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Building Tribal Synergy with a Blue Leviathan: Kederekt Leviathan in Commander

Blue decks aren’t shy about big moves, tempo, and clever trickery, but a card like Kederekt Leviathan reminds us that sometimes the most dramatic plays come from a carefully balanced reset. Released in Double Masters 2022, this rare blue leviathan comes loaded with a game-altering ETB ability and a recursive oddity in Unearth. For tribal-focused Commander builds, it’s a tool that doesn’t just swing for damage; it reshapes how you chart your path to victory 🧙‍♂️🔥.

At a glance, Kederekt Leviathan is a chunky 5/5 for six mana plus two blue, a total of eight colored mana when you drop it onto the battlefield. Its true power, though, is not its body but its battlefield impact: When this creature enters, return all other nonland permanents to their owners' hands. That is a colossal board-reset button, a moment to reboot the table while you watch your tribal engine hum back to life. In Commander, where games often hinge on a single big board state, Leviathan gives blue players a strategic lever to tilt the tempo back in their favor with surgical precision 🧭.

When you’re piloting a tribal deck—say, a Wizard-focused build or a blue-dominant tribe like Illusions or even a broader tribal plan—the phrase “nonland permanents” covers far more than creatures. Artifacts, enchantments, and even certain creature-based auras can bounce back to hands, which means you need to time the cast and sequencing carefully. If your board is heavy with mana rocks and critical auras that support your tribe, Leviathan asks you to weigh the cost: which pieces are you willing to rebound to hand to seize the initiative? It’s not just a board wipe; it’s a chance to re-align your tribe’s synergy with a fresh start, all while your opponents scramble to recover their own boards 🧙‍♂️🎯.

That said, a mass bounce is a double-edged sword. The keyword here is “other nonland permanents.” Your own key planeswalkers or tribal lords can be bounced too, turning what looks like a punishing blow into a moment of vulnerability if you’re not careful. The trick is to pair Leviathan with resilient recursion and re-entry options. Enter the Unearth ability: Unearth {6}{U} (Return this card from your graveyard to the battlefield. It gains haste. Exile it at the beginning of the next end step or if it would leave the battlefield. Unearth only as a sorcery.). In a tribal shell, you can drop Leviathan once you’ve set up a stable boardstate and a graveyard full of toolbox targets. Then, when it’s time to reset again, Unearth can reinsert the Leviathan for a second bite at the tempo, letting you reestablish your tribal board quickly after you’ve cleared the excess clutter. It’s a flavor text in motion—wisdom from the sea, with a quick reprise when you need it 🧜‍♂️⚔️.

Design-wise, the set’s blue color identity pairs nicely with tribal strategies that rely on synergy from a core creature type. The Leviathan’s ETB effect is not a generic reset; it becomes a statement about how you value your board and your tribe. You’re prioritizing cards that survive bounce or re-enter the battlefield through other means, and you’re leaning on your best tribal payoff cards that don’t mind returning to hand or that can re-enter the battlefield without losing momentum. Think of tribal lords and key creatures that you can reanimate or replay with minimal downtime, so Leviathan doesn’t just erase your plan but instead re-creates it from the ashes with renewed focus 🔥.

Budget-minded commanders will appreciate how Leviathan behaves when paired with card draw and counterspell suites. A well-timed bounce buys you a window to refill your hand and protect your board with permission spells, while your tribe’s core creatures either survive the reset or return quickly—often with tribal value intact. In practice, you can use Leviathan to answer board stalls, then slam a big tribal payoff, such as a well-supported Wizard or Illusion theme, to push through an established plan. The key is to control the pace: don’t impulsively cast Leviathan when you still need your own nonland permanents to advance your line; instead, set up a round where the replay sequence after the bounce turns your table back to you with a stronger stance 🧙‍♂️💎.

From a collecting and design perspective, Kederekt Leviathan stands out as a rare from Double Masters 2022, printed in both foil and non-foil. Its price tag might be modest now, but its EDHREC footprint (rank around the 8,846 range) underscores that it’s recognized as a flavorful, mana-intensive but impactful option for players who like to lean into big plays and strategic resets. The artwork by Mark Hyzer carries the characteristic Double Masters flair, pairing a sense of ancient hinge and arcane might with a splash of surreal Leviathan menace—perfect for a deck that wants to evoke both tempo and awe 🧩🎨.

If you’re considering how to weave Kederekt Leviathan into a tribal Blue Commander strategy, think of the game as a chess match with periodic tidal waves. You don’t want to flood your own board with nonland permanents that your Leviathan will bounce away; you want to curate a stable minority of indispensable permanents that become your tribe’s backbone. Then, when the moment is right, you unleash Leviathan, reset the table to your advantage, and rebuild your regional synergy with renewed vigor. It’s not the most conventional path for tribal decks, but it’s one that rewards patience, sequencing, and a healthy respect for the tempo swing a single card can deliver 🧙‍♂️🎲.

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