Image courtesy of Scryfall.com
Protection and Evasion Strategies for Coveted Peacock
Blue has always thrived on manipulation, tempo, and clever combat tricks, but Coveted Peacock brings a delightfully direct angle to those themes. This Commander Masters reprint is a 3/4 blue Bird for a sleek 5 mana (3 colorless and 2 blue), featuring Flying and a powerful attack-triggered goad ability. When it swings, you may goad a target creature defending player controls. That single line unlocks a world where you pressure defenses, disrupt plans, and steer combat in your favor—without having to lock in a flashy, double-combat combo. 🧙♂️🔥💎⚔️
Goad is a bit of a political spell in combat math: you’re telling your opponents, “Please attack someone other than me,” while also forcing their defenses to shift. Coveted Peacock doesn’t just dodge blockers; it weaponizes the decision-making process. The circlet of blue control glitters here because you get to dictate two kinds of protection by evasion: you protect your life total by avoiding lethal blocks, and you protect your long game by forcing your foes into suboptimal combat lines. And yes, the artful aura of the card—illustrated by Christopher Burdett—gives you a sense of regal mischief that fits the tactic to a T. 🎨🧭
Flying: The Quiet Shield
First and foremost, Coveted Peacock’s Flying gives you the classic evasion edge. In any multiplayer setting, that air superiority translates to fewer turns stalled behind ground blockers. When you’re piloting a goad-centric plan, flying becomes a reliable safety valve: your creature can punch through to trigger feints, while your opponents juggle threats across the table. The combination of evasion and goad lets you press pressure even when you don’t have a direct line to a kill. It’s the strategic equivalent of a well-timed bluff—the kind that makes opponents second-guess their blockers and opens doors for your next spell or creature. 🧙♂️
Goad: Turning Defenders into Offense
That “attack, goad a defender’s creature” clause is the heartbeat of Coveted Peacock’s strategy. Goading makes the defending player’s creatures consider attacking their own planeswalker or rival—that is, if they’re not too busy trying to survive your next wave of blue disruption. Here are practical ways to leverage this ability:
- Target high-value blockers: goad creatures that double as removal or stabilizers. By forcing them to attack, you strip your opponent of defensive lines and create opportunities for your own evasive threats to slip through on subsequent turns. 🔥
- Combo with tap/untap engines or flicker effects: reattacking Peacock or other goad-enablers on consecutive turns can compound pressure, especially in volumes-heavy Commander lists. ⏳
- Pair with pump spells to swing through damaged lines after goading draws their forced attacks. A well-timed aura or instant-speed finisher can turn Peacock into a reputational pest—precisely the role blue loves to play. ⚡
“Goad isn’t just disruption; it’s a psychological weapon. When you make someone else’s board do the fighting for you, you’re not just winning combat—you’re shaping the entire game’s tempo.”
Protection: Keeping Coveted Peacock Safe on the Battlefield
Protection in this context is less about shield-like keywords and more about sustainability—how you keep Peacock safe long enough to deliver your plan. Here are practical angles to consider in a blue-heavy build:
- Counter magic and tempo tools: keep a suite of countermagic ready to stop key removal spells or mass bounce effects that target Peacock. A well-timed counterspell can buy you the window to set up a goad-enabled attack that can’t be answered immediately. ⚔️
- Bounce and blink effects: spells that return Coveted Peacock to your hand or flicker it out and back in can reset its presence on the battlefield, dodging removal while preserving goad triggers. Flicker effects also enable you to attack with Peacock multiple times in the same turn cycle, a spicy edge in siege-like games. 🧙♂️
- Shield the board state with counters and cantrips: blue decks thrive on card advantage. Use cantrips and protective draws to weather removal storms and keep Peacock’s-costed engine online. A tidy hand makes it easier to respond to threats and keep momentum rolling. 🎲
- Protection through redundancy: include other goad enablers and evasive threats. If Peacock is answered, you still have pressure on the table. Redundancy makes your plan resilient in the face of a determined removal suite. 💎
Deck-Building Sweet Spots
In Commander Masters, Coveted Peacock slots neatly into blue-based goad builds where players lean into political combat and control tempo. Think of a list that combines resolving threats with clever misdirection. Here are some build ideas and synergy targets:
- Goad clusters: add other goad effects or creatures with similar outputs to maximize misdirection and pressure across the table. The more goad effects you stack, the more your opponents must juggle threats they might otherwise ignore. 🧩
- Value evasion engines: inclusion of other flying creatures, unblockable enablers, and tempo-dense cantrips keeps you ahead on critical turns. Your goal is to present a moving target—difficult to remove and even harder to ignore. 🎯
- Counter-magic and card advantage package: a classic blue blueprint—counterspells, card draw, and a few graveyard-friendly recursions to loop Peacock back into play or to rebuild the field after a wipe. 🧠
As a Commander Masters pick, Coveted Peacock sits at uncommon rarity, a reminder that even a single card can spark a tactical revolution at your table. Its mana cost of 3UU plus a solid 3/4 body gives you a reliable mid-game presence, and its foil-and-nonfoil finishes provide accessibility for both casual and competitive groups. The fact that this card has reprint history and a vivid Christopher Burdett illustration just adds to the joy of pulling it from a pack or trading for it in the wild. The card’s identity as a blue goad-starter makes it a natural fit for players who adore politics at the table and the elegant math of combat. 🎨💎
Flavor, Art, and the MTG Community
Beyond the tactical layer, Coveted Peacock embodies a certain blue charm: precision, elegance, and a touch of mischief. The bird’s regal plumage mirrors blue’s love of intellect and control, while the goad mechanic invites players to rethink who is defining the battlefield’s rhythm. You can almost hear the soft rustle of the peacock’s tail as its wings beat out a tempo that makes opponents rethink their next attack. The art direction, a hallmark of Burdett’s intricate linework, balances regal aesthetics with a hint of chaos—a nod to the strategic juggling that Blue players relish. 🖼️
If you’re gearing up for a night of Commander, Coveted Peacock offers a crisp, interactive engine that rewards careful planning and bold, creative plays. And while you’re optimizing your tactical setup, you can also upgrade your desk space with a dash of MTG flair—like the Customizable Desk Mouse Pad we’re featuring. It’s the kind of product that keeps your workspace as sharp as your play, making long sessions a little more stylish and a lot more comfortable. 🧙♂️💼
For those who want to explore more goad-powered adventures or test this strategy in your own decks, consider pulling Coveted Peacock into a blue-heavy helm of control and misdirection. The synergy between evasion and control is where blue shines, and Coveted Peacock is a vivid reminder that sometimes the best defense is an elegant feathered offense. Ready to build? Your next Commander night awaits—and who knows, you might just crow with victory as your foes scramble to reclaim their momentum. ⚡🎲