Eminence in MTG: Rules, History, and All 6 Cards Ranked

Last updated on August 10, 2026

Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir | Illustration by Simon Dominic

I love Magic mechanics that are “controversial” among fans. I’ll make a safe bet that almost no one thinks flying or trample are terrible or broken mechanics. They’re good, they add depth to the game, and that’s it.

But then you have the mechanics that have fans divided. Storm, dredge, annihilator, cascade, Phyrexian mana, infect. The mechanics that twist the game in fascinating ways but sometimes twist it a little too much and end up warping it.

Today I want to talk about Commander’s very own exclusive and controversial mechanic: eminence.

How Does Eminence Work?

Inalla, Archmage Ritualist | Illustration by Yongjae Choi

Eminence is an ability word that shows up on commander creatures and works while that creature is in the command zone or on the battlefield. Most of these are linked to specific creature types, though eminence has broken out from its original typal intent.

Though the mechanic can be shut off while the eminence creature is in play, it’s generally uninteractable from the command zone, which has earned it a reputation as a broken mechanic.

Some playtest cards have introduced a variant called “mono-eminence”, which exists on partner commanders but only grants the eminence ability if your deck remains mono-colored. We haven't seen this on any black-bordered cards yet.

The History of Eminence in MTG

Eminence was introduced as a new mechanic in Commander 2017, where it appeared on all four typal commanders from those precons. It has since been used on one-off designs in March of the Machine Commander and Mystery Booster Commander Edition, bringing the total to six cards with this ability.

Oloro, Ageless Ascetic from Commander 2013 has a sort of “proto-eminence” ability that predates the actual keyword.

How Many Eminence Commanders Are There?

There are six playable eminence commanders as of Mystery Booster Commander Edition. The mechanic has also been used on a handful of playtest cards like The Unknown Wizard, though those cards aren’t legal in any format.

Is Eminence an Activated Ability?

Eminence is an ability word that groups a series of cards with similar or identical effects. It allows for certain abilities to be used as long as a specific criteria is met.

While eminence is an ability word and has no real effect on the rules, none of the cards with it have an activated eminence ability either, though many of them take the form of triggered abilities.

Is There Any Way to Counter or Deal with Eminence?

There isn’t any effective way to deal with eminence from the command zone. The best way to try and eliminate the ability is to wait until a player casts their commander, then to lock it down with something like Darksteel Mutation or Song of the Dryads so it neither has its ability, nor returns to the command zone. Unfortunately, there’s little you can do if your opponent just never casts their eminence commander.

What Happens if an Eminence Commander is Put into the Command Zone with its Ability on the Stack?

For most eminence commanders, sending it to the command zone once its ability has triggered won’t prevent that ability from resolving. Most of these commanders check to see if they’re on the battlefield or in the command zone when they trigger, then check again when that ability resolves. If you control Inalla, Archmage Ritualist and a wizard enters, the ability will trigger. If your opponent removes Inalla and you put it in the command zone, the ability will still see Inalla as either in play or in the command zone, so the ability still resolves.

However, sending those commanders to other zones might disrupt the abilities. For example, you attack with a knight while you control Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir, and the eminence ability triggers. If your opponent targets Sidar with a bounce spell and you return it to your hand, it’ll neither be on the battlefield nor in the command zone, so the ability will fizzle.

Gallery and List of Eminence Cards

Playable Commanders

• Sahir, Visitor in Darkness
• Arahbo, Roar of the World
• Edgar Markov
• Inalla, Archmage Ritualist
• Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir
• The Ur-Dragon

Playtest Cards

• Auntie Flint
• Efteekay, Flame of the Kav
• Lorthos, Tentacled Terror
• Mr. Wiggles, Helpful Butterfly
• Mzed, Mercenary Leader
• The Knight of Commentary
• Theopholos, Order Acolyte
• The Unknown Wizard

Eminence Card List and Rankings

#6. Arahbo, Roar of the World

Arahbo, Road of the World is probably the best commander for a cat deck. There are quite a few legendary cats but most of them don’t really work in a tribal build. Arahbo’s two abilities are entirely focused on the other cats in your deck and making them attack.

This card’s eminence ability is at its strongest during the early stages of a match. Giving a creature +3/+3 at the beginning of combat won’t make all that much difference once your opponents have more solid board states. But having it on turn 2 with a Steppe Lynx and a land can help you rush some damage early on. The longer the game goes on the more this becomes a small support ability.

#5. Sahir, Visitor in Darkness

Sahir, Visitor in Darkness has such a cool design. It actually has a negative effect from the command zone, encouraging you to get it into play as soon as possible so you actually start to get some benefit from pinging yourself. You’re forced to expose your eminence creature instead of tucking it away in the command zone the whole game.

Of course, you wouldn’t be running this if you didn’t have a plan to use the life loss to your advantage. Maybe you’re going the Voltron route with Pestilence or you just want extra cards from Phyrexian Arena. It’s a cool puzzle to piece together, and proof that eminence can be used in interesting ways.

#4. Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir

Sidar Jabari of Zhalfir represents the full cycle for a proper reanimation strategy; it’s the discard outlet and the reanimation effect all in one, just limited to knights. Sidar Jabari set out to prove that eminence could be implemented in a way that wasn’t completely broken, and it cleared that bar. Free looting from the command zone is still quite strong, just not as inherently busted as the abilities on the first wave of eminence commanders.

#3. Inalla, Archmage Ritualist

Inalla, Archmage Ritualist is in the lower half of the original eminence commanders. Its ability isn’t terrible by any means, but it’s hard to put it at the top of the list when there are so many good alternative wizard commanders out there.

Inalla still sees some play thanks to its replicating effect and it has some interesting combos if you know how to break it, but there are easier ways to go about combo-ing with a Grixis wizard deck.

#2. The Ur-Dragon

I personally love The Ur-Dragon as a dragon commander. Its eminence ability lets you go faster in a deck that desperately needs it since most of its creatures are extremely expensive, and The Ur-Dragon knows a thing or two about being expensive.

Attacking with a hoard of dragons while it’s on the battlefield can turn the game around, even if it’s very expensive. Drawing anywhere between one and a potentially infinite number of cards depending on how many dragons you attack with is strong enough by itself. But you also get to cheat any one permanent from your hand into play after refueling your hand.

But beware removal because The Ur-Dragon is always one of the biggest targets at the table.

#1. Edgar Markov

Edgar Markov is just a very solid vampire commander. It generates a free backup army of 1/1 vampires as you enact your gameplan, then breaks free from the command zone for a huge board pump.

It's banned in Duel Commander thanks to how absolutely broken it was in that format. Making extra tokens for every vampire you play isn’t a colossal advantage in a multiplayer game. But having to face eight or nine creatures on turn 3 or 4 can be extremely discouraging.

Wrap Up

Arahbo, Roar of the World | Illustration by Jesper Ejsing

Eminence has been written off as a bit of a design mistake, and yet we’ve seen it used as recently as 2026. The original wave of commanders were and remain broken cards due to the uninteractable nature of the mechanic, but you can tell the designers are eager to find ways to use eminence in a way that isn’t a total disaster.

If anything, Sahir, Visitor in Darkness has paved the way for new eminence designs, ones in which the ability from the command zone is actually a detriment, encouraging you to actually play your commander to get rewarded.

Do you like eminence? Do you hate that one person in your playgroup who always plays dragons with extremely reduced costs? Do you want to see this mechanic return, or would you rather it stays gone? Let me know in the comments below and make sure to drop by our Discord and join our community. Check out The Daily Upkeep newsletter to stay up to date on all the latest MTG news.

Thanks for reading, and take care!