Pauper
Constructed · Commons Only
Pauper is 60 card constructed where every card has been printed at common. It’s far and away the cheapest way to own a real constructed deck, and it plays way above its price tag.
The Rules
- 60 card minimum. There’s no maximum, but nearly everyone plays exactly 60 so their best cards show up more often. (CR 100.2a)
- Up to 4 copies of any one card, except basic lands, which have no limit. (CR 100.2a)
- 20 starting life. (CR 103.4)
- 15 card sideboard in tournament play. The 4 copy limit counts deck and sideboard together. (CR 100.4a)
- Matches are usually best of three. Between games you can swap cards with your sideboard, as long as the deck stays legal.
- Commons only. A card is legal if any official printing of it was ever common, unless it’s banned.
Deck Makeup
- Decks look like any other constructed format: tight curves, four-of cores, 17 to 22 lands depending on speed.
- Rarity is checked per printing, not per copy. If any printing was ever common, every printing is legal, including your shiny promo copy.
- Whole competitive decks often cost less than one staple from another constructed format.
Tips
Decades of commons include some of the most efficient spells ever printed. Pauper has real combo, control, and aggro decks, and real games.
Trying an idea costs a few dollars, so experiments are nearly free. There’s no better format for learning deckbuilding.
Watch Out For
Rarity can differ between printings, and what matters is whether any official printing was common. Look up the card, not just the copy in your hand.
Cheap doesn’t mean unrestricted. Several of the format’s most famous commons sit on its banned list.
Banned Cards
Pauper keeps its own actively managed banned list. Worth a look before you build. We don’t list banned cards here on purpose: banlists change, and a stale list is worse than none.
Official Banned & Restricted List