- Game Changer
- A specific card on Wizards' published list. Bracket 3 caps at 3; Bracket 4 has no published cap but a higher count weights rule-zero. This B4 build runs 5: Enlightened Tutor, Smothering Tithe, Jeska's Will, Mana Vault, Crop Rotation. The B3 build runs 3 of 3.
- Bracket
- The published power-tier system for Commander: 1 (precon), 2 (casual), 3 (upgraded/standard), 4 (high-power), 5 (cEDH).
- Voltron
- Stack everything on one creature, swing for the kill. Old metagame slang. Cloud is the textbook voltron commander.
- Commander damage
- Damage from a commander tracks per-source. 21 commander damage from one source kills the dealt-to player regardless of life total.
- ETB
- 'Enters the battlefield'. Triggered abilities that fire when a permanent comes into play. Cloud's free-equip is an ETB.
- Equip
- An activated ability on an Equipment card. Pay the cost, attach to a creature you control. Sorcery speed only.
- Attach
- Putting an Equipment (or Aura) onto a creature. ETB triggers like Cloud's are 'attach', not 'equip', so they bypass the equip cost and the sorcery-speed limit.
- Free equip
- Equip without paying the printed cost. Cloud's ETB, Puresteel Paladin (metalcraft), Sigarda's Aid, Hammer of Nazahn (ETB), Stonehewer Giant, Forge Anew, Balan.
- Treasure
- Sacrificial colorless artifact token. Tap, sac, add one mana of any color. Counts as an artifact for Hellkite Tyrant.
- Phase Out
- Phased-out permanents are treated as though they don't exist until their controller's next untap step. They aren't destroyed, exiled, returned, or stolen. Robe of Stars, Clever Concealment.
- Cascade
- When you cast a card with cascade, exile from the top of your library until you exile a non-land with a lesser mana value, then cast it free. Nahiri's combat trigger uses similar dig-and-cast mechanics.
- Affinity
- A cost-reduction keyword: this spell costs 1 less for each Artifact you control. Not in this deck, but the term comes up.
- Modified
- A creature is modified if it has counters, equipment, or auras on it. Some payoffs scale off this.
- Vigilance
- Attacking doesn't tap the creature. Red XIII, Samut, Shadowspear-equipped Cloud.
- Lifelink
- Damage dealt also gains you that much life. Shadowspear, Aerith.
- Mindslaver
- You control target player's next turn: their draws, plays, attacks. From the Dominion Bracelet attack trigger at 7+ power.
- Metalcraft
- Active when you control 3+ artifacts. Puresteel Paladin reads 'if you have metalcraft, equip costs you 0'. Trivial to turn on here.
- Impulse draw
- Exile from the top of your library, you may play those cards this turn (or sometimes longer). Jeska's Will, Professional Face-Breaker.
- Mulligan
- Shuffle your hand back, draw 7 again. Standard EDH mulligan: each mull, put one card on the bottom at end of the process.
- Mana Vault
- Two-mana artifact (costs 1 generic). Tap for 3 colorless. Doesn't untap during your untap step; instead, you may pay 4 or take 4 damage each untap step to untap it. Legacy fast-mana classic. Counts as a Game Changer in this build.
- Crop Rotation
- Instant. Sacrifice a land you control to tutor any land from your library directly into play untapped. Instant-speed means you can grab Command Beacon mid-removal to dodge commander tax, or grab Slayers' Stronghold to set up haste effects. Game Changer in this build.
- Command Beacon
- Colorless land. Tap, sacrifice: put your commander from the command zone into your hand. Bypasses commander tax. Crop Rotation finds it at instant speed.
- Slayers' Stronghold
- Colorless land. {2}{R}{W}, tap, sacrifice: target creature gets +2/+0, vigilance, and haste until end of turn. Sorcery-speed activated ability. Crop Rotation finds it at instant speed; activation happens next main phase or on a follow-up turn.