Eventually, they used the skeleton as a shield for my strongest attacks until they pulled a card to decimate my creature field, opening me up to the final blow
I especially like how Vanille's Meld cost is Green and Black so she can function as your Commander in the two necessary colors
If youre able to add counters to Conclave Mentor itself it also gains you a lot of life when it dies, which helps you stay alive and activate abilities that require you to pay life
If you take full advantage, youll survive longer in your Commander games, giving yourself the chance to climb your way back from the brink of defeat
Toss in some mana dorks that tap for mana equal to their power, like Mona Lisa, Science Geek and Gyre Sage, and you can storm your way up to a lethal Fireball
Spell or ability taps a creature and, very often, that permanent can't untap during its next untap This is an offshoot of the last category, and one that isn't quite as permanent an answer