What Is Tiny Leaders In Magic: The Gathering?

What is Tiny Leaders in Magic: The Gathering? Other than being kind of an entertaining thing to say out loud – try it, it’s a lot of fun – Tiny Leaders is an offshoot of Commander that has players going smaller, rather than bigger.

This makes it a really good entry point for players who like the card selection of Commander over Brawl, but find the idea of shuffling 100 cards a little daunting. It’s also a little bit cheaper too, which is always a nice bonus.

What is Tiny Leaders in Magic: The Gathering?

Tiny Leaders is a lot like Commander. You have the same general idea, you choose a general to head up your deck and then build a deck in their colors, often around them as a theme, and it’s a singleton format as well.

However, it differs in two major areas. For starters, the decks have to be fifty cards instead of one hundred, which makes it a little easier to manage along with being less expensive, generally speaking. You also have a key difference when it comes to your card selection; you can only choose cards that cost three mana or less to cast.

This makes it all a little bit faster, but it’s no less absurd thanks to the number of cards you can choose from. It’s an interesting format to explore, and while it’s not as well-known as Commander, it can be just as much fun if you and your friends choose to get into it. You also start with twenty-five life, which helps the speed of the format greatly.

What cards are banned in Tiny Leaders?

Tiny Leaders is an odd one, because it states you can’t use Derevi, Empyrial Tactician Derevi, Empyrial Tactician Flying
When Derevi enters and whenever a creature you control deals combat damage to a player, you may tap or untap target permanent.
{1}{G}{W}{U}: Put Derevi onto the battlefield from the command zone. , Erayo, Soratami Ascendant Erayo, Soratami Ascendant Flying
Whenever the fourth spell of a turn is cast, flip Erayo. , or Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary Rofellos, Llanowar Emissary {T}: Add {G} for each Forest you control. as your commander, but you can have them in your deck.

Alongside that, there’s also a sizeable list of banned cards, which you can see here:

Ancestral Recall Ancestral Recall Target player draws three cards.
Balance Balance Each player chooses a number of lands they control equal to the number of lands controlled by the player who controls the fewest, then sacrifices the rest. Players discard cards and sacrifice creatures the same way.
Black Lotus Black Lotus {T}, Sacrifice this artifact: Add three mana of any one color.
Black Vise Black Vise As this artifact enters, choose an opponent.
At the beginning of the chosen player's upkeep, this artifact deals X damage to that player, where X is the number of cards in their hand minus 4.
Channel Channel Until end of turn, any time you could activate a mana ability, you may pay 1 life. If you do, add {C}.
Chaos Orb Chaos Orb {1}, {T}: If this artifact is on the battlefield, flip it onto the battlefield from a height of at least one foot. If this artifact turns over completely at least once during the flip, destroy all nontoken permanents it touches. Then destroy this artifact.
Contract From Below Contract From Below Remove this card from your deck before playing if you're not playing for ante.
Discard your hand, ante the top card of your library, then draw seven cards.
Counterbalance Counterbalance Whenever an opponent casts a spell, you may reveal the top card of your library. If you do, counter that spell if it has the same mana value as the revealed card.
Darkpact Darkpact Remove this card from your deck before playing if you're not playing for ante.
You own target card in the ante. Exchange that card with the top card of your library.
Demonic Attorney Demonic Attorney Remove this card from your deck before playing if you're not playing for ante.
Each player antes the top card of their library.
Demonic Tutor Demonic Tutor Search your library for a card, put that card into your hand, then shuffle.
Earthcraft Earthcraft Tap an untapped creature you control: Untap target basic land.
Edric, Spymaster of Trest Edric, Spymaster of Trest Whenever a creature deals combat damage to one of your opponents, its controller may draw a card.
Falling Star Falling Star Flip Falling Star onto the playing area from a height of at least one foot. Falling Star deals 3 damage to each creature it lands on. Tap all creatures dealt damage by Falling Star. If Falling Star doesn't turn completely over at least once during the flip, it has no effect.
Fastbond Fastbond You may play any number of lands on each of your turns.
Whenever you play a land, if it wasn't the first land you played this turn, this enchantment deals 1 damage to you.
Goblin Recruiter Goblin Recruiter When this creature enters, search your library for any number of Goblin cards, reveal them, then shuffle and put those cards on top in any order.
Grindstone Grindstone {3}, {T}: Target player mills two cards. If two cards that share a color were milled this way, repeat this process.
Hermit Druid Hermit Druid {G}, {T}: Reveal cards from the top of your library until you reveal a basic land card. Put that card into your hand and all other cards revealed this way into your graveyard.
High Tide High Tide Until end of turn, whenever a player taps an Island for mana, that player adds an additional {U}.
Imperial Seal Imperial Seal Search your library for a card, then shuffle and put that card on top. You lose 2 life.
Jeweled Bird Jeweled Bird Remove this card from your deck before playing if you're not playing for ante.
{T}: Ante this artifact. If you do, put all other cards you own from the ante into your graveyard, then draw a card.
Karakas Karakas {T}: Add {W}.
{T}: Return target legendary creature to its owner's hand.
Library of Alexandria Library of Alexandria {T}: Add {C}.
{T}: Draw a card. Activate only if you have exactly seven cards in hand.
Mana Crypt Mana Crypt At the beginning of your upkeep, flip a coin. If you lose the flip, this artifact deals 3 damage to you.
{T}: Add {C}{C}.
Mana Drain Mana Drain Counter target spell. At the beginning of your next main phase, add an amount of {C} equal to that spell's mana value.
Mana Vault Mana Vault This artifact doesn't untap during your untap step.
At the beginning of your upkeep, you may pay {4}. If you do, untap this artifact.
At the beginning of your draw step, if this artifact is tapped, it deals 1 damage to you.
{T}: Add {C}{C}{C}.
Metalworker Metalworker {T}: Reveal any number of artifact cards in your hand. Add {C}{C} for each card revealed this way.
Mind Twist Mind Twist Target player discards X cards at random.
Mishra’s Workshop Mishra’s Workshop {T}: Add {C}{C}{C}. Spend this mana only to cast artifact spells.
Mox Emerald Mox Emerald {T}: Add {G}.
Mox Jet Mox Jet {T}: Add {B}.
Mox Pearl Mox Pearl {T}: Add {W}.
Mox Ruby Mox Ruby {T}: Add {R}.
Mox Sapphire Mox Sapphire {T}: Add {U}.
Najeela, the Blade Blossom Najeela, the Blade Blossom Whenever a Warrior attacks, you may have its controller create a 1/1 white Warrior creature token that's tapped and attacking.
{W}{U}{B}{R}{G}: Untap all attacking creatures. They gain trample, lifelink, and haste until end of turn. After this phase, there is an additional combat phase. Activate only during combat.
Necropotence Necropotence Skip your draw step.
Whenever you discard a card, exile that card from your graveyard.
Pay 1 life: Exile the top card of your library face down. Put that card into your hand at the beginning of your next end step.
Shahrazad Shahrazad Players play a Magic subgame, using their libraries as their decks. Each player who doesn't win the subgame loses half their life, rounded up.
Skullclamp Skullclamp Equipped creature gets +1/-1.
Whenever equipped creature dies, draw two cards.
Equip {1}
Sol Ring Sol Ring {T}: Add {C}{C}.
Strip Mine Strip Mine {T}: Add {C}.
{T}, Sacrifice this land: Destroy target land.
Survival of the Fittest Survival of the Fittest {G}, Discard a creature card: Search your library for a creature card, reveal that card, put it into your hand, then shuffle.
Sword of Body and Mind Sword of Body and Mind Equipped creature gets +2/+2 and has protection from green and from blue.
Whenever equipped creature deals combat damage to a player, you create a 2/2 green Wolf creature token and that player mills ten cards.
Equip {2}
The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale All creatures have "At the beginning of your upkeep, destroy this creature unless you pay {1}."
Time Vault Time Vault This artifact enters tapped.
This artifact doesn't untap during your untap step.
If you would begin your turn while this artifact is tapped, you may skip that turn instead. If you do, untap this artifact.
{T}: Take an extra turn after this one.
Time Walk Time Walk Take an extra turn after this one.
Timetwister Timetwister Each player shuffles their hand and graveyard into their library, then draws seven cards. (Then put Timetwister into its owner's graveyard.)
Timmerian Fiends Timmerian Fiends Remove this card from your deck before playing if you're not playing for ante.
{B}{B}{B}, Sacrifice this creature: The owner of target artifact may ante the top card of their library. If that player doesn't, exchange ownership of that artifact and Timmerian Fiends. Put the artifact card into your graveyard and Timmerian Fiends from anywhere into that player's graveyard. This change in ownership is permanent.
Tolarian Academy Tolarian Academy {T}: Add {U} for each artifact you control.
Umezawa’s Jitte Umezawa’s Jitte Whenever equipped creature deals combat damage, put two charge counters on Umezawa's Jitte.
Remove a charge counter from Umezawa's Jitte: Choose one —
• Equipped creature gets +2/+2 until end of turn.
• Target creature gets -1/-1 until end of turn.
• You gain 2 life.
Equip {2}
Vampiric Tutor Vampiric Tutor Search your library for a card, then shuffle and put that card on top. You lose 2 life.
Wheel of Fortune Wheel of Fortune Each player discards their hand, then draws seven cards.
Yawgmoth’s Will Yawgmoth’s Will Until end of turn, you may play lands and cast spells from your graveyard.
If a card would be put into your graveyard from anywhere this turn, exile that card instead.