The 9 Best Angel Decks in Magic Ranked

Archangel of Thune | Illustration by James Ryman

Angels in Magic are a pretty dynamic creature type. They have a mixture of abilities that protect you and your other permanents while also being able to do some serious damage. They’re also represented pretty well across Magic’s five colors, though white is definitely the most prominent. This gives you a good amount of deck building options when it comes to making a deck around this type.

Because angels have flying, they can be somewhat difficult for certain deck types to deal with. They also have a lot of synergy among themselves as well as a fair number of cards that specifically support the creature type. It isn’t surprising that some form of angel builds crops up in most formats.

While not all angel decks are top tier in a given format, the fact that they at least show up consistently is a testament to the power of these creatures. Let’s take a look at some of the best angel decks from across Magic’s different formats. Because some of these decks are in different formats, their rankings are based more on their relative effectiveness within a given format as opposed to how well they stack up against one another.

What Are Angel Decks in MTG?

Linvala, Keeper of Silence | Illustration by Igor Kieryluk

Angel decks in Magic are decks whose strategies rely heavily on angel cards. This could be Commander decks built around the creature type, or more competitive decks. Some angel decks in 1v1 formats also lean heavily on effects that focus on angels specifically, while others just happen to have angels as some of their key cards. Currently, there are angel decks across quite a few formats, though not all of them are top tier.

Honorable Mention: Extended Trinket Angels

Exalted Angel | Illustration by Michael Sutfin

The Trinket Angel deck in Extended is a variation on the popular “The Solution” archetype. These are Azorius () control decks focused on playing cheap creatures then using control spells to maintain board supremacy. Some variations use big fliers to finish off opponents; in this case that creature is Exalted Angel.

This deck also utilizes a Trinket Mage to help find your Sensei's Divining Top or some control artifacts like Pithing Needle or Tormod's Crypt.

This build specifically was used by Gabriel Nassif at the Worlds tournament in 2006. While the Extended format doesn’t really exist anymore, I did want to highlight a build featuring angels that was at one point very competitive.

#9. Liesa, Forgotten Archangel Commander Deck

Liesa, Forgotten Archangel | Illustration by Dmitry Burmak

Liesa, Forgotten Archangel is a solid commander for several types of deck. Its first ability keeps your creatures available on future turns while also allowing you to benefit from death triggers. Its second ability can do a great job shutting down other players’ graveyard strategies.

For an angel build like this one, Liesa’s first ability interacts well with ETB effects on creatures like Bishop of Wings or Righteous Valkyrie since you’ll be able to consistently play creatures. This deck also has a Serra Paragon to help get back some early game cards that might be removed before Liesa hits the battlefield.

This deck also has a lifegain subtheme. A lot of angels have lifelink while others like Metropolis Reformer and Angel of Destiny have other ways to gain you life. Along with lifegain, you have classic lifegain payoffs like Aetherflux Reservoir, Bolas's Citadel and Felidar Sovereign.

Thanks to Liesa’s ability, this deck is also able to run a lot of board wipes. This allows you to keep your opponents’ fields clear of creatures and exile them while yours will just come safely back to your hand. Though you’ll be set back a little bit by having to recast them, you won’t be as negatively impacted as your opponents who will lose their creatures permanently.

#8. Avacyn, Angel of Hope Commander Deck

Avacyn, Angel of Hope | Illustration by Jason Chan

Avacyn, Angel of Hope is another angel commander that doesn’t name angels specifically but still works well as a commander for the type. Mono-white has plenty of good angel cards to choose from, and once this commander hits the field your board will be very well protected, even more so if you can manage to have Avacyn and Sephara, Sky's Blade at the same time.

Similar to the Liesa deck, this one also runs a solid number of board wipes like Ondu Inversion and Cleansing Nova. Even more so than with Liesa, Avacyn makes these cards work much better for you since you’ll get to keep all your creatures.

Though white can sometimes struggle to ramp, cards like Extraplanar Lens, Archaeomancer's Map and Smothering Tithe make it easier to afford your expensive commander. Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx can also generate a lot of mana for this deck as many angel cards have two or more white pips in their casting cost.

This deck also has a solid amount of control that helps you stay in the game while you wait to cast Avacyn. Archangel of Tithes discourages players from attacking you while cards like Angel of Condemnation and Angel of Sanctions can help momentarily remove some threats.

#7. Sigarda, Font of Blessings Commander Deck

Sigarda, Font of Blessings | Illustration by Justyna Dura

Sigarda, Font of Blessings fits the theme of angel commanders that protect your other permanents in some way. It also has the added bonus of allowing you to cast angels off the top of your library, giving you access to one or possibly more extra cards each turn. It’s also relatively cheap, making it easier to get Sigarda on the field and start using its ability compared to other angel commanders.

When it comes to angels in this deck, you’ll see a lot of overlap in the mono-white cards. That’s because angels like Giada, Font of Hope and Righteous Valkyrie are so generally good that it’s hard not to include them in angel decks.

Thanks to Sigarda being Selesnya (), this deck also gets access to powerful angels like Shalai, Voice of Plenty and Sigarda, Host of Herons. You also have access to some much-needed ramp like Cultivate and Kodama's Reach which allow you to get to your expensive angels like Emeria Shepherd more quickly.

There are also a few humans in this deck like Bishop of Wings and Starnheim Aspirant that help support your angels. Because Sigarda covers both creature types, these cards work especially well in this deck.

#6. Kaalia of the Vast Commander Deck

Kaalia of the Vast | Illustration by Michael Komarck

Kaalia of the Vast has a unique advantage for an angel commander in that it allows you to cheat out some of your more expensive creatures pretty quickly. Because a lot of powerful angel cards like Akroma, Angel of Wrath and Aurelia, the Warleader have both high and restrictive mana costs, Kaalia can remove some major barriers to playing an effective angel deck.

Thanks to Kaalia’s ability, this deck is also able to have a bit steeper of a mana curve than you might otherwise see. You don’t have to choose between late game plays like Gisela, Blade of Goldnight and Avacyn, Angel of Hope. Instead, you can include both and more.

Thanks to Kaalia’s ability not just working with angels, you’re also able to include some dragons in this deck that work well with your strategy. Decadent Dragon can generate mana in case Kaalia dies and you need to either recast it or hard cast one of your bombs. Terror of the Peaks can be very effective in a deck built around cheating out big creatures.

#5. Giada, Font of Hope Commander Deck

Giada, Font of Hope | Illustration by Eric Deschamps

Giada, Font of Hope has a lot of great qualities in a commander. It’s cheap, so it’s easier to get out and recast when removed. Giada’s ability also scales as the game goes on, meaning this angel doesn’t stop being relevant despite hitting the board early game. Being a mana dork is also a very nice quality in a mono-white commander, as the color can sometimes struggle to ramp as well as others.

This is a pretty creature-heavy build to make sure Giada’s ability is doing a lot of work for you. Cards like Emeria Shepherd, Dawnbreak Reclaimer, and Breathkeeper Seraph give you ways to ensure you’re keeping a good number of angels on the field. Creatures re-entering the battlefield may even come back stronger than they originally were thanks to Giada.

Cards like Court of Grace that create Angel tokens are a good addition to a Giada deck. If you have a consistent way to create Angels, the more work Giada’s ability is going to do for you. These tokens themselves also become massive at a certain point, making them even more worth the low cost you initially paid.

Since you’ll be looking to fill the board with powerful creatures, you can potentially close out the game with cards like Mass Calcify and Ravnica at War since these wipes will ignore your creatures.

#4. Modern Bant Aggro

Resplendent Angel | Ilustration by Volkan Baga

Angels aren’t exactly a top tier archetype in Modern at the moment, but if you’re just looking to get in some games for fun, one of the best angel decks in the format right now is this aggro Bant () build. It takes advantage of cheap angels like Giada, Font of Hope and Youthful Valkyrie that can be played early but only get better the longer they’re out.

Because most of your creatures in this deck have flying, Errant and Giada has a good chance of letting you play some cards off the top of your deck. There are also cards like Skyclave Apparition and Noble Hierarch which aren’t angels but just work well in the deck.

#3. Pioneer Selesnya Angels

Inspiring Overseer | Illustration by Irina Nordsol

This Pioneer angels build focuses mainly on low to the ground angels with a few support cards. Focusing on low mana values helps keep the pace of this deck up, and allows you to effectively use cards like Collected Company and Kayla's Reconstruction.

There is also good lifegain synergy in this deck. Bishop of Wings and Righteous Valkyrie both make it easier to trigger Resplendent Angel and get some extra bodies on the field. This is especially true when you’re playing one of your spells that drops multiple creatures for you.

#2. Historic Selesnya Angels

Righteous Valkyrie | Illustration by Chris Rahn

This Historic build is actually very similar to the Pioneer version with just a few changes. This is the result of having formats using pretty similar card pools as one another. The main changes in this deck are that it adds in Speaker of the Heavens, Emeria's Call, and Elspeth Resplendent while also cutting a few copies of Kayla's Reconstruction.

The sideboard also has some differences. You have fewer Portable Holes to be replaced by Brutal Cathars.

All in all, the strategy for this deck is similar: You want to make the most out of your angel-centric ETB abilities. You can get a lot of activations off a good Collected Company or Kayla's Reconstruction hit.

#1. Explorer Selesnya Angels

Youthful Valkyrie | Illustration by Anna Steinbauer

While this Explorer deck is very similar to the last two, it’s also considered a much higher tier of deck in the format thanks to the differences in the meta between the three. Apart from the similar strategies to the other two, this one also includes an Ajani, Strength of the Pride to capitalize on the extra life you’re gaining.

This deck also swaps some Skyclave Apparitions for Fateful Absences. This gives the deck a slightly quicker form of removal, even if it isn’t as permanent. Serra Paragon is also a good inclusion for this deck, since all your other creatures are mana value 3 or less.

Wrap Up

Lyra Dawnbringer | Illustration by Chris Rahn

What makes angel decks fun is that they can differ in big ways. While some of these decks are pretty similar, that’s usually because they’re using the same card pool and looking to compete within similar metas. When you start looking at Commander builds or old deck types like the Trinket Angels deck, you see the different ways that they can work. I think it’s interesting that saying, “I’m playing an angel deck,” in an Eternal format like EDH could mean a lot of different things.

Which of these decks do you like the best? What other angel commanders would you like to see a deck built around? Let me know in the comments or on Draftsim’s Twitter/X.

Thank you for reading and stay safe!