MTG Commander mulligans are supposed to be the part before the game. Somehow, they are also the part where your “casual pod” accidentally invents a brand-new format called Commander, but everyone starts with the perfect hand. That is a real power-level decision, even if you swear it’s just “so nobody has a bad time.”
If you want the big-picture Commander refresher first, read our pillar: MTG Commander Explained: History, Rules, and How to Start. Then come back here and let’s talk about the thing that quietly decides whether your game is fun, fast, miserable, or all three.
TL;DR
- Commander uses the London mulligan like the rest of Magic.
- In multiplayer, you get a free mulligan (your first mulligan doesn’t “count,” so you still keep 7).
- Every extra “friendly” mulligan rule makes games more consistent, which helps precons… and helps tuned combo decks even more.
- The best fix is not a speech. It’s a 10-second Rule 0 check-in: “Official mulligans? Any freebies? Any limits?”
The official rule: London mulligan + the “free” multiplayer mulligan
Commander doesn’t have its own weird official mulligan system anymore. It used to. We will talk about that villain arc in a second.
Right now, the mulligan process in Commander is the same core rule used across Magic:
- Draw 7.
- If you mulligan, shuffle your hand back, draw 7 again.
- When you keep, you put cards on the bottom equal to the number of mulligans you took.
Here’s the Commander-specific feeling: in multiplayer, your first mulligan is free. That means the first time you mulligan, it doesn’t count toward the “cards to bottom” penalty (or the mulligan count in general). Practically, it plays like this:
- First hand: 7
- First mulligan: still keep 7 (bottom 0)
- Second mulligan: keep 6 (bottom 1)
- Third mulligan: keep 5 (bottom 2)
So yes, you effectively get two looks at seven cards before the hand-size tax starts.
And to be super clear: the free mulligan is a multiplayer rule, not a “Commander exception.” Commander just benefits because it is normally multiplayer.
Why MTG Commander mulligans get a freebie (and why that matters)
The free mulligan exists because multiplayer games are already slow and swingy, and a player stuck on one land isn’t “balanced,” they’re trapped in a three-hour non-game where they watch other people have fun.
Commander also piles on variance:
- 100-card singleton
- often best-of-one
- lots of decks built around synergy, not redundancy
So the free mulligan is basically Magic acknowledging reality: you should get a real chance to function.
But here’s the important part: the free mulligan is already a big power boost compared to older mulligan systems. Which is why the next section exists.
A quick history of Commander mulligans (aka why your group still argues about Partial Paris)
Commander used to use a unique mulligan method called Partial Paris, where you could selectively swap out parts of your hand. It helped people find lands and early plays, but it also enabled some truly shameless hand sculpting.
Wizards was already calling out years ago that Commander mulligans should be simpler and closer to “normal Magic,” and that Partial Paris and other variants were gone. Then London mulligan arrived and became the modern baseline.
That’s the root of today’s confusion: lots of groups learned Commander during the “we do it our way” era and never stopped.
The real issue: house mulligan rules change your format
This is the part people skip because it sounds dramatic, but it’s just math.
When you loosen mulligans, you increase consistency. Increased consistency:
- reduces mana-screw (good)
- increases fast starts (also good… until it isn’t)
- makes tutors, fast mana, and compact win lines show up more often (this is where the table starts sweating)
So when a pod says, “We do unlimited free mulligans until you have a playable hand,” what they usually mean is “We are trying to avoid non-games.” Fair.
What they are also doing is silently pushing the entire pod up the power ladder. If you want the bigger conversation, this links directly to MTG Commander Power Levels Explained (and why everyone is a ‘7’).
Common house rules, from “fine” to “you did this to yourselves”
1) Official rules only (London + one free multiplayer mulligan)
Best default for mixed pods, LGS tables, and anyone who wants less arguing.
2) “One extra free mulligan if your hand is unplayable”
This usually means 0 lands, 1 land no ramp, or 6 lands no action. It’s basically mercy, not hand sculpting. It’s also easy to abuse if your deck is built like a crime.
3) “Free mulligans until you have three lands”
This sounds fair, but it massively rewards greedy deckbuilding. It tells people they can run fewer lands and just mulligan until the game fixes it for them.
4) Partial Paris / selective redraws
Fun for kitchen-table chaos, but it’s the most “hand sculpting” you can do without literally assembling your opening seven from a binder.
5) “Hearthstone mulligan” style swaps
Commander groups sometimes adopt “swap any number, redraw that many” systems because they feel cleaner than full mulligans. They are still strong. Strong mulligans always help the best decks the most.
None of these are morally wrong. But they are not neutral. Pick one on purpose, not by vibes.
The 10-second Rule 0 mulligan check-in (use this and move on)
Here’s what to say, verbatim, at the start of the game:
“London mulligan with the one free multiplayer mulligan? Any extra freebies? Any limits?”
That’s it. You don’t need a dissertation. You just need agreement.
If someone says “we do unlimited free mulligans,” ask one follow-up:
- “Until a playable hand, or until a specific rule like three lands?”
Now everyone knows what game they’re in.
A practical recommendation: the “friendly but not abusable” mulligan
If you play a lot of precons and newer players, strict rules can create feel-bad starts. At the same time, unlimited free mulligans are basically handing optimized decks a loyalty program.
A good middle ground for casual pods is:
- Use official London mulligans with the built-in free mulligan.
- Add one extra free mulligan only if your hand is truly dead (0-1 lands with no ramp, or 6-7 lands with no action).
- If your pod cares, require a quick reveal to prove it’s not just “i didn’t like this hand.”
That keeps the spirit of Commander (avoid non-games) without turning every deck into “consistent turn-two engine, somehow, every time.”
How to actually mulligan well in Commander (without tilting)
Now the part nobody wants to hear: a lot of opening-hand problems are self-inflicted.
If your deck:
- runs too few lands
- has a sky-high curve
- relies on one specific card to function
Then your mulligans will feel like punishment. The mulligan system is not your enemy. Your decklist is.
What a keepable Commander hand looks like
A keep is not “I have lands.” A keep is “I have a plan.”
Here are some fast heuristics that work across most decks:
Most midrange Commander decks want:
- 2 to 4 lands
- at least one early play (ramp, draw, cheap creature, setup piece)
- at least one way to not fold immediately (removal, blocker, disruption)
Green decks can keep lighter
2 lands + a ramp spell or mana dork is usually fine, because green’s whole identity is “i will simply have more mana than you.”
Non-green decks should be pickier
If your hand is 2 lands and your first real play is on turn 4, you’re basically betting the game on topdecks. That’s not brave. That’s just gambling with extra steps.
Control decks need development too
Keeping a hand of 3 lands and 4 counterspells sounds smart, but it often means you do nothing while the table advances, then you run out of answers and die with principles intact.
When you should ship a hand, even if it feels “close”
- One land, no ramp, no cheap draw
- Five lands and two spells that cost 5+
- Hands that only function if you draw exactly one specific color next
- Hands that do nothing before turn 4 in a pod that isn’t glacial
Commander gives you time to recover from a mulligan. It does not give you time to pretend your hand is fine while everyone else ramps and draws.
London mulligan: what to put on the bottom
The London mulligan is powerful because you always see seven cards. The skill check is choosing what to bottom.
A simple approach:
- Bottom your most expensive cards first (unless your deck is built to cheat them)
- Bottom narrow interaction that won’t matter early (that one hate card you’re praying lines up)
- Keep lands, ramp, draw, and any cheap setup that makes your deck actually start
If you’re keeping 6, you’re not trying to build your dream hand. You’re trying to build a functional hand that doesn’t lose immediately. Romance is for later.
The uncomfortable truth: generous mulligans reward greed
If your group allows “mulligan until perfect,” people will start building:
- lower land counts
- more taplands and slower mana bases
- higher curves
- more combo density
Because they can. The mulligan rule is now part of their deck plan.
So if your pod keeps having games where someone always has the nuts, and nobody knows why, check your mulligan rule first. You might have accidentally built a format where consistency is free and the strongest decks cash in first.
Wrap-up: decide your mulligan rule like adults, then shuffle up
MTG Commander mulligans don’t need to be a fight, and they definitely don’t need to be a loophole contest. Pick a rule, say it out loud, apply it evenly.
If you want the clean default: use official London mulligans, enjoy the free multiplayer mulligan, and stop there. If you want a kinder table for precons: add one small mercy exception and keep it tight.
Because the goal isn’t “perfect hands.” The goal is “a real game where everyone actually plays Magic.”
