Commander-Specific Combat Mechanics

Overview

This section covers the Commander-specific combat mechanics in the Rummage game engine. For core combat mechanics that apply to all formats, see the MTG Core Combat documentation.

Commander Combat Extensions

Commander extends the basic MTG combat system with these key mechanics:

Commander Damage - A player who has been dealt 21 or more combat damage by the same commander loses the game
Multiplayer Combat - Special considerations for attacking and blocking in a multiplayer environment
Commander-specific Combat Abilities - Handling abilities that interact with commander status

Commander Damage - Implementation of the 21-damage loss condition
Multiplayer Combat - Special rules for combat with multiple players
Combat Verification - Validation of combat decisions in multiplayer scenarios
Combat Abilities - Implementation of commander-specific combat abilities

Key Commander Combat Features

Commander Damage Tracking

The system tracks commander damage separately from regular damage:

#![allow(unused)]
fn main() {
#[derive(Component)]
pub struct CommanderDamageTracker {
    // Maps commander entity -> damage dealt to player
    pub damage_taken: HashMap<Entity, u32>,
}
}

When a player takes 21 or more combat damage from the same commander, they lose the game regardless of their life total.

Multiplayer Combat Dynamics

Commander's multiplayer format introduces unique combat dynamics:

Players can attack any opponent, not just the player to their left/right
Political considerations affect attack and block decisions
Players can make deals regarding combat (though these aren't enforced by the game rules)

Combat in Multiplayer Politics

Combat is central to the political dynamics of Commander:

Attacks signal aggression and can lead to retaliation
Defending other players can forge temporary alliances
Commander damage creates an additional threat vector beyond life totals

Commander combat interacts with several other systems:

Player Mechanics - For life total and commander damage tracking
Game Mechanics - For state-based actions that check commander damage thresholds
Special Rules - For politics and multiplayer considerations

Testing

The tests directory contains comprehensive test cases for validating commander-specific combat mechanics, with special focus on commander damage tracking and multiplayer scenarios.

Next: Commander Damage

Rummage Documentation