Commander is the most popular way to play Magic, and the most social. As a beginner, it can be overwhelming to choose where to start. These are our picks for some great beginner options – and why to pick them.
WHAT MAKES A GREAT BEGINNER COMMANDER
Not all Commanders are good for a beginner. In fact, some of them can turn people right off from playing the format. Whether it’s because they’re too complex or too much of a threat to the table, some Commanders are best reserved for after you learn the ropes.
Commanders that make great options for beginners usually tick all or most of the following:
- They’re cheap to cast and easy to cast with a budget manabase
- They have a fun effect to build around
- Don’t require focused linear deckbuilding to the point the deck “solves itself”
- Don’t require too much management of tokens and outside of the game effects
- Above all, they are not kill-on-sight to the point you’ll never get to keep it in play
If you pick a Commander that doesn’t meet enough of these attributes as a beginner – or to lend to a beginner – it might not be the best way to learn the format.
Let’s check out some great beginner options!
BELLO, BARD OF THE BRAMBLES
Bello is the Commander of a red green deck focused around big hitters and powerful artifacts and enchantments. Some of the most fun permanents to play around with in Commander are Enchantments, especially when you can put multiple into play that synergize with each other. Bello lets you play more synergy-focused artifacts and enchantments than you’d normally be able to fit into a casual build, as normally you want more creatures.
Bello turns those noncreature permanents into 4/4 elementals with haste and indestructible that draw you cards when they connect during your turn. That’s a really strong effect, and keeps cards flowing, and damage going in.
The best part of this is it encourages new players to learn how to play asymmetrical board wipes. When you noncreature permanents are indestructible creatures for the turn, playing a Blasphemous Act or Chain Reaction can prove devastating – and a LOT of value!
Bello is the leader of the Animated Army Commander Precon, so you can pick up a precon and get stuck right in.
PANTLAZA, SUN-FAVORED
Pantlaza, Sun-Favored is a favored Dinosaur Commander. Everyone loves Dinosaurs, and they’re a great rallying point to build a deck around, especially for new players. Dinosaurs read “big, stompy and aggressive”, and that’s exactly how they play! Pantlaza is five mana, which makes three mana ramp like Cultivate and Kodama’s Reach ideal for playing on Turn 3, so you can get to your Commander quicker.
Once per turn, when a Dinosaur enters, you get to Discover X, where X is that creature’s toughness. So, at the very least, your Pantlaza should get you something when it enters. Once you start dropping bigger and bigger Dinosaurs, your board will get wider and scarier. Throw in a few spells that flicker your Dinos (spells that exile a creature and bring it back to play) and you’re cooking with gas.
Pantlaza is leader of the Veloci-Ramp-tor Commander Precon, so if you do want to try a Dinosaur deck, that’s a great place to start.
HENZIE “TOOLBOX” TORRE
Henzie is one of my favorite Commanders, and part of what makes him so fun is that it’s hard to go wrong. You can pack the early turns with mana dorks or set up plays – think little bits of card draw, or synergistic enchantments like Tortured Existence or Bitter Reunion. Once you drop Henzie, from then on? You’re slamming in with whatever big splashy creatures you love to play, at a discounted rate. Combining cost reduction and card draw is always a winner, and when it’s on a Commander that you don’t really care if it gets removed, you’re laughing.
The best way to play Henzie is to make sure you play enough ramp creatures that you can blitz out, like Rampant Rejuvenator and Seedguide Ash. Once you ramp a bit, you can do anything – from combat beats to full on combo.
Henzie leads the Riveteer Rampage precon, but given it’s possible to build a great budget Henzie list (which features comparatively little of the precon!), for this one we’d advise going for singles instead. If you want advice? Well, that’s what the Henzie discord is for.
TIDUS, YUNA’S GUARDIAN
Tidus, Yuna’s Guardian is a great entry point for Commander. If you’d prefer to play with some blue in your list (or you love the idea of playing a Final Fantasy deck), then this one’s for you. Tidus is three mana, so comes down pretty early. He allows you to move counters around on your creatures, and whenever those creatures deal combat damage to a player, you get to draw a card and proliferate. Proliferate means you can add an additional counter of any kind already on a permanent or player.
This includes +1/+1 counters, ability keyword counters, counters on Sagas, and Planeswalker Loyalty, to name a few. This is an incredibly flexible way to build a deck, and the synergies in your 99 can operate independently of your Commander if he gets removed. If you love the summons of Final Fantasy, this is the deck to put them in.
Tidus leads the Counter Blitz Commander Precon, along with alternate Commander Yuna, Grand Summoner. It’s a great way to dip in Magic.
MAELSTROM WANDERER
Blue green is a great color combination for new players, as it’s the easiest one to draw cards and make lots of mana in. When you add red? You get to do everything fast, and with extra killing power. Maelstrom Wanderer is one of the more sturdy options for a newer player, as all it asks you to do is get to eight mana. The rest? Well, it’ll take care of it.
Maelstrom Wanderer doesn’t lead a Commander Precon, so it’s the more advanced of the beginner options featured today – but don’t let that intimidate you. You can put all of your favorite Dragons, Elves and other beasties in here, and given that your Commander gives everything haste, you can make big splashy plays and take real advantage of the Cascade mechanic. What’s more, even if it gets removed, you got to Cascade twice.
Maelstrom Wanderer is the perfect deck for a beginner who just wants to resolve the scary haymaker creatures in style. If that’s you, then you should definitely give it a try.
END STEP
Being a beginner to Commander can be a little intimidating. Picking the right Commander for your first deck can be tough. If you want our advice, then picking one of these flexible and fun Commanders can be a great option. Which Commander would you advocate for new players?
Kristen is Card Kingdom’s Head Writer and a member of the Commander Format Panel. Formerly a competitive Pokémon TCG grinder, she has been playing Magic since Shadows Over Innistrad, which in her opinion, was a great set to start with. When she’s not taking names with Equipment and Aggro strategies in Commander, she loves to play any form of Limited.