MTG: Midsummer Night’s Team – Top Five Faerie Commanders
Watch where you step when you’re walking through the woods. If you wander too far, you might disappear into a mushroom circle.
Welcome Planeswalkers and Praetors to our ongoing series about the best casual experience in Magic: Commander. For the uninitiated, Commander is a semi-casual format for Magic: the Gathering. You use a deck of 100 cards led by a legendary creature, aka, your Commander.
Aside from basic lands, you are only allowed one copy of each card in the deck. Moreover, you can only include cards in your Commander’s “color identity” or artifacts. Each color and color combo has a unique playstyle and a wealth of mighty generals to lead your deck to victory. EDHRec.com is an excellent source for Commander info and can give you ideas on how to build your next Commander deck or tune an existing one.
Faeries have been a menace in folklore for as long as folk have been loreing. Whether they’re replacing babies with their own children, getting people hopelessly lost in the forest, or playing elaborate pranks, these mercurial tricksters are usually more pest than threat. However, because their rules are different, those pranks can get deadly very fast; after all, we don’t fit back together if we break. These five Commanders take that to a new level, unleashing a horde of pranksters with the best idea yet: see what your opponent looks like with no life points.
Alela, Cunning Conqueror
One of the most famous faeries in Eldraine, Alela’s second incarnation is a nasty customer. Out of the gate, you get a 2/4 flyer for four, plus access to Dimir, a fairy’s favorite color combo.
Once she’s out, the run really begins. The first spell you cast on each opponent’s turn nets you a 1/1 Faerie with flying to build your army. Then, whenever a Faerie hits your opponent, you can goad them away from your precious life points towards someone else. Watch your opponents destroy each other and then pick up the pieces when they’re done.
Tegwyll, Duke of Splendor
Tegwyll is a powerful little monster and one of my favorite pieces from Wilds of Eldraine. Right out of the gate, he’s a 2/3 with flying and deathtouch for three, making him a solid wall.
His Fairie anthem isn’t bad, either, but that’s not the reason you put him in the lead. Whenever one of your other Fairies dies, you get a draw effect. For the measly cost of a life and a creature, card advantage is a steal. Dimir doesn’t mind a little sacrifice to get what they need.
Alela, Artful Provocatuer
The OG Alela is a whole lot nastier than her successor as a beater. A 2/3 with flying, deathtouch, AND lifelink, this Commander can get out of control with only a few extra bits. Thankfully, that’s exactly what she wants.
Whenever you cast an artifact of enchantment spell, you get a free Faerie token, and since she gives them extra teeth, they’re already more powerful than average. You can load up your deck with Voltron-style aura and equipment and STILL come out on top in the creature department. Alela is here to lead an army; best give her one.
Oona, Queen of the Fae
The Queen in more than just name, Oona is a powerful disruptive piece. Combining a 5/5 flying beatstick with exile mill and army creation, she will turn your opponent’s best spells into fodder for your army. Oona doesn’t play pranks; she commits war crimes.
Talion, the Kindly Lord
Talion is the strangest entry on this list, if only for his strange ability. When he comes into play, you pick a number between 1 and 10, and whenever your opponent casts a spell with that CMC, they lose two life and you get a card. He doesn’t do much for Faerie tribal, but he’s a crack shot at Clones.
What do you think of these Commanders?
