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Tom, Bert, and William

HOB · rare · Released 2026-08-14

Power

brawl
tier-1Game-defining18/19
commander
tier-1Game-defining18/19

Tier shown as baseline → best-case (in its ideal shell). The score (-8 to 19) is a rank signal derived from tier + kind + atoms; browse by it on the cards page.

Derived from the 7 atoms below.

over

above rate

standalone

meaningful alone

synergy

wants support

takes over

can take over a game

flexible

multiple modes

broad

broadly useful

recurring

comes back

Commander Bracket

1Precon2Core3Upgraded4Optimized5cEDH

Archetypes

positive:
aristocratssacrificegraveyard-mattersmidrange
negative:

No active conflicts.

Roles

sacrifice-outletcard-drawrepeatable-card-drawrecurring-threatdiscard-outletmidrange-threat

Risks

requires-creature-densitydiscard-cost

Mechanics

Typal

synergy:
troll
anti:

Structural

activated-abilitytriggered-abilityreplacement-effect

Rationale

A 5/5 legendary Troll for 5 with a repeatable sacrifice outlet that draws cards equal to the sacrificed creature's power (then discards one), making it a powerful engine in creature-dense or high-power-creature shells. The death trigger returns it as an indestructible artifact, making it extraordinarily resilient to removal — it functionally cannot be killed permanently by creature removal alone. Signature in aristocrats and sacrifice strategies where it converts board presence into card advantage repeatedly.

Learnings (3)

  • When Tom, Bert, and William die and return as an artifact, they are no longer a creature — this means they dodge creature-based removal (Swords to Plowshares, Doom Blade) indefinitely, but are now vulnerable to artifact removal (Naturalize, Disenchant) instead.

    tagging · claude-sonnet-4-6

  • The card-draw ability scales with the sacrificed creature's power, so sacrificing a high-power creature (e.g., a Wurm token or X/X) can draw 5+ cards at once, making it an explosive engine with token generators or reanimated fatties.

    tagging · claude-sonnet-4-6

  • As a non-creature artifact after its first death, Tom, Bert, and William still function as the sacrifice outlet — but they can no longer be sacrificed to themselves or targeted by creature-based tutors; plan recursion around artifact interactions if you want the creature face back.

    tagging · claude-sonnet-4-6

Popularity

  • EDHREC rank: #20,441