Hi Everyone. I wanted to share a little story about I wrote about building my first Commander deck.

I've been playing Magic for about four years. I play Standard and Pauper Online, but I have always basically ignored Commander, until the other day. Long story short I'm really excited about the format now that I've spent a little time with it. Check it out:
http://bopmtg.net/blog/first-commander

Glad to hear you're getting into the format and already enjoying yourself!

Feel free to post any good stories from your games, or put up a decklist if you're looking for card suggestions. Around here, deck advice can easily range from, "here's how to make your deck more streamlined and competitive" to "check out this awesome card I've never seen played" depending on what you're looking for.

Glad to hear you're rediscovering Magic through Commander. It's natural to start out with a "goodstuff" deck, but I hope you'll also try a deck built more around your commander.

As you say, there's always a risk of your commander being stolen or tucked, but there are ways to get around that. Simple spot removal in case of stealing and sacrifice outlets and creature tutors in case of tucking. Plus, you can build your deck so that it has synergy with your commander without being completely dependent on him or her.

For example, having Ruhan as your commander means your path to victory involves attacking with a big creature. You can take advantage of the fact that it only takes 21 commander damage to kill an opponent and play various equipment and auras that give Ruhan evasion (protection, flying, trample, unblockability, etc.) or that simply make him bigger (double strike is your friend). This means that even if he gets tucked, you can just equip your stuff to, say, Stormtide Leviathan and keep smashing face.

Thanks for the welcome. Good points about protecting your commander. I think I will try to build around my Commander at some point, and Uril, the Miststalker seems like a good choice for someone paranoid about losing his commander like me.