All 12 Cat Lords in Magic Ranked

Regal Caracal | Illustration by Andrea Radeck

Allegedly, cats play well together (don’t tell my roommate’s cat). They do in Magic, at least, and a lot of cats stick to similar colors and themes. They’ve been in Magic since forever, so it make sense that they have some of the most synergistic lords among the second-tier creature types (goblins, elves, and dragons have them beat).

As your local cat fanatic, I’ve got all the best cat lords to support your cat commanders and other cat decks.

What Are Cat Lords in MTG?

Arahbo, the First Fang | Illustration by Simon Dominic

Cat lords are creature cards that provide advantages to the cat creatures you have on the battlefield, or that help you to cast them more easily. These advantages can include buffs to their power and toughness, keyword abilities, or other benefits. I won’t consider cards that create tokens with the cat creature type; no Ajani's Chosen here.

Honorable Mentions

Some cards just don’t quite fit the lord category, either because they aren’t creatures or because they don’t quite do the thing lord thing. I’ll take the chance to mention Animal Sanctuary here, a land that allows you to add +1/+1 counters to individual cats, among other creature types.

Basri, Tomorrow's Champion provides hexproof and indestructible to your cats when you cycle it, but that makes it closer to a typal combat trick than a true lord.

#12. Ingenious Leonin

Nah man. Ingenious Leonin sports an activated ability that’s only a combat trick. It’s a lord, but only just.

#11. Raksha Golden Cub

Raksha Golden Cub is only a lord when it’s equipped, and it costs a whopping 7 mana. The ability is powerful, but it’s too expensive and restricted to make me want to play it. Imagine if you were to pay the mana to cast it and equip it only for someone to remove it before you attack.

#10. Kemba, Kha Enduring

I wouldn’t normally include an ability that triggers when a creature type enters among lords. That’s why I’ve left off Qasali Slingers. But with Kemba, Kha Enduring, the enters trigger is somewhat of a lord ability. You can auto-attach equipment to cats as they enter, and equipped creatures get a +1/+1 buff.

#9. Spider-Ham, Peter Porker

Another lord ranking, another Spider-Ham, Peter Porker cameo. Cats have enough lords that they don’t really need Spider-Ham, frankly. You can’t use it if you build a Kaheera companion deck, either. What is it they say about a jack-of-all-trades?

#8. Hungry Lynx

If you’re so darn hungry, why do you play with your food?

Hungry Lynx gives your cats a roundabout way to gain consistent +1/+1 counters, since you give an opponent a rat token at each of your end steps. Rat tokens are also fairly common sacrifice fodder, so there’re specific matchups in which this cat lord will pull more than its weight.

#7. King of the Pride

King of the Pride is simple and effective with its +2/+1 buff, but I especially like the idea of it in multiples to stack that buff high. I don’t play Modern and don’t have a notion of how competitive Modern Cats is, but I’d definitely put this in a pet cat deck.

#6. Kaheera, the Orphanguard

A lord buff plus vigilance is a really good combination, and Kaheera, the Orphanguard is also a cat that benefits from your other cat lords. It’s in good colors to play it in typal decks, and cats are a better fit for Kaheera’s companion ability than most of the other types that it supports.

#5. Arahbo, the First Fang

I really like any lord that gives that classic +1/+1 stat buff. Arahbo, the First Fang also turns your other nontoken cats into two-for-one deals in terms of bodies on the field, which is perfect to support cat decks that lean into token generation.

#4. Ajani, Nacatl Pariah / Ajani, Nacatl Avenger

I only count Ajani, Nacatl Avenger as a lord because you have to go through the creature side to get there. Once you flip from Ajani, Nacatl Pariah, the +2 ability lets you put a +1/+1 counter on each cat you control, a fantastic mass pump ability in a typal deck. The card is really good on its own and in other token decks, even when you aren’t specifically using it as a cat lord, and I really like that neutral loyalty ability in a go-wide deck to finish off an opponent.

#3. Arahbo, Roar of the World

It may be situational, but at least Arahbo, Roar of the World always gives one of your cats a buff during combat thanks to eminence. It really gets going once it’s on the battlefield, since you can pay as many times as you can to double a creature’s power and give it trample. You won’t use it in the 99 as often since it means you aren’t using the eminence ability to its full potential, but I can’t stop thinking of Baylen Sneak Attack combos.

#2. Feline Sovereign

This little gremlin has obviously just knocked over that goblet on the right-hand side of the art. That face is such an Urkel. Yes, kitty, you did do that.

Feline Sovereign combines the classic lord buff with protection from dogs, which is flavorful, but not the most useful considering the relative lack of dogs in Magic. That saboteur Naturalize is really neat, though, and it can be devastating if you go wide enough or tall enough (with trample enablers, of course).

#1. Regal Caracal

Three bodies for 5 mana is a good start, and Regal Caracal gives that +1/+1 buff plus lifelink. This is especially good in decks that go wide. All your attacking cats gain you life when they deal damage, sure, but your chump blockers also gain you life. Regal Caracal’s combined advantages mean that almost every cat commander wants to run it.

Wrap Up

Kemba, Kha Enduring | Illustration by Zoltan Boros

Cats have far more token generators than they have strict lords, so there may be fewer cards here than you expected. But the lords they have play very well together. A lot of white and green, and even a little red, so there’s plenty to support a token army with Rin and Seri, Inseparable, or whatever other cat commander you want.

Which cat lord would be your pick for the top slot? What would you want from cats in future sets? Do you think we’ll get a 5-color legendary cat in a Universes Beyond release, and for which property? Let me know in the comments below or over on the Draftsim Discord.

Until next time, stay safe!