MTG: Anything But Ordinary – Top 5 Human Commanders
Humans aren’t usually the go-to in fantasy settings, but these 5 Commanders help them ascend to new heights.
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 to build your next Commander deck or tune an existing one.
When you think of fantasy armies, Humans aren’t usually the first thing that comes to mind. Armies of Elves or Dwarves with Dragons flying overhead are the more common scene. However, the humble Humans have their place as well. After all, Frodo’s quest may have failed without the assistance of Aragorn, Eowyn, and the rest of the Kingdoms of Men. In Magic, Humans have always been a “default” creature type: most creatures that Knights, Soldiers, or Warriors are depicted as Human, but didn’t get the type until recently. These days, though, the unassuming Human decks are things to be feared.
Éowyn, Shieldmaiden
My favorite of the bunch and leader of my personal Humans deck, Éowyn is an incredible combo piece. A 5/4 with first strike for five is already a good deal, but her follow-up ability is even better. At the beginning of combat, if a Human (other than her) hit the battlefield earlier this turn, you get two 2/2 Human Knights with trample and haste. Again, that’s an incredible value, but it gets better. If you have at least six Humans after that, you get to draw a card. Token creation, combat power, and card advantage all in one Jeskai package; this Shieldmaiden can do it all.
Kyler, Sigardian Emissary
Selesnya loves +1/+1 counters and tokens, and so do Human decks, so Kyler is a match made in heaven. He get’s bigger every time a Human hits the battlefield, and the stronger he is, the stronger they are. He’s like a walking Coat of Arms, except you can ALSO play Coat of Arms. Kyler is an unassuming powerhouse that can go crazy surprisingly fast.
Aragorn the Uniter
Known as “Scare-agorn” in my playgroup, this incarnation of Aragorn is a nasty customer. A 5/5 for four with a nasty suite of abilities, Aragorn can deliver a Commander kill by turn 6 if played in Voltron. In Human Tribal, he pumps out Human Soldiers and buffs them with his abilities, keeping your opponent on their toes with direct damage and giving you deck fixing. There’s truly nothing this Gondorian King can’t do. But he isn’t done yet…
Aragorn, King of Gondor
THIS version of Aragon is a little less oppressive, but still a big problem. He’s a 4/4 with vigilance and lifelink for four, which is a great value. He also makes you the monarch when he hits the battlefield, giving you a little extra card advantage but also putting a target on your back. His true strength, however, comes form his attack trigger. When he attacks, you get to shut down a creature’s ability to block…unless you’re the monarch. As all make way for the true King of Gondor, if you have the monarchy, no creatures can block your attacks. That does mean you won’t get to keep the monarchy for long, but if you can, you can annihilate your opponent with your horde of Humans.
Silvar, Devourer of the Free/Trynn, Champion of Freedom
This partnership is thematically hilarious. Trynn makes Human tokens during your end step as long as you attacked, and Silvar can eat them to get bigger and unkillable for a turn. I like to imagine Trynn convincing the tokens to leave the safety of the city walls in the name of “freedom,” only to get scarfed up by her kitten. In game terms, this is an easy Commander Kill buff deck, and the more Humans you have, the more you can feed Silvar.
What do you think of these Commanders?
