All 37 Clue Commanders in Magic Ranked

Last updated on December 22, 2025

Chief Jim Hopper | Illustration by Greg Staples

I’ll give you a hint about our topic today: They’re artifacts, they draw cards, and they’ve been receiving more and more support in newer Magic sets. Oh, you read the title and you already knew we were talking about Clues today? Well, that’s no fun.

What started out as an investigative flavor mechanic in Shadows over Innistrad has become widespread enough that we can actually compare different clue commanders to one another. Not to be confused with the legendary creatures from that janky Ravnica: Clue Edition product. That’s a mystery for another time.

What Are Clue Commanders in MTG?

Senator Peacock | Illustration by Aurore Folny

We’re keeping it simple here: A clue commander is any legendary creature that creates Clue tokens, or interacts with Clue tokens or cards specifically. I’ve included every qualifying creature with the word “Clue” or “investigate” in their textbox.

There are technically quite a few commanders that can front a clue deck that don’t actually reference clues themselves, but I wanted this to feel distinct from a generic “artifact commanders” list. That and there were way more clue commanders than I was anticipating, so no need to add other factors into the list.

That said, the best clue commanders have some sort of payoff for creating or sacrificing Clues beyond just letting you draw extra cards, whereas legends that just make Clues for the sake of card advantage will rank a little bit lower.

Honorable Mention

Val, Marooned Surveyor is a hard one for completionists because it is restricted to Arena and thus Brawl as a commander. I think it would operate just fine on tabletop since you would just have no way to trigger it for the digital-only mechanic, seek. Come talk with me during rule 0 if you have an issue with this remarkable Naya commander that is a 2-drop thanks to its hybrid mana.

#37. Rory Williams

Rory Williams only shows up here because it says the word investigate on it, but it’s a minor part of the card, and Amy Pond doesn’t do anything extra with the Clue token.

#36. Astrid Peth

Astrid Peth keys off sacrificing Clues, but it’s more of a Food card, so it’s better suited as a guest at all those hobbit feasts instead. Not generating a Clue on its own makes it a no-go for what I’m looking at today.

#35. Piper Wright, Publick Reporter

Maybe I’m missing something, but Piper Wright, Publick Reporter looks like a Draft uncommon to me. Maybe a fine inclusion in the 99 of these other commanders, but definitely unexciting.

#34. Nick Valentine, Private Eye

Move aside Private Eye, Nick's in town. I mean, I’m not really going out of my way to make Byway Courier my commander. Nick Valentine, Private Eye is a little better than that, but not by enough that you’d actually run it in the command zone. The unblockable clause just doesn’t matter much on a 2/2 with no combat damage trigger.

#33. Lord Jyscal Guado

Lord Jyscal Guado has a nice end step trigger and is a cheap, flying commander. As for the requirement of putting any counter on your creature or your opponents, this is trivial in the appropriate deck. The biggest reason to avoid this cleric commander in your command zone and why it belongs in the 99 is its color identity in mono-white.

#32. Malcolm, the Eyes

All eyes, but still not seeing Malcolm, the Eyes as a viable commander. Putting the occasional Clue on a Lightning Stormkin isn’t swaying me much.

#31. The Rani

Investigate’s used as a reward on cards quite often, as seen on The Rani. This Grixis commander () is advertising something completely different than a true clue deck, though its color identity is home to most of the best artifact payoffs.

#30. The Seventh Doctor

If The Seventh Doctor is working as a clue commander, that means you’re missing out on the effect you really want. The Clues are a consolation prize, not the reason to run this as your commander.

#29. Dennick, Pious Apprentice / Dennick, Pious Apparition

Dennick, Pious Apparition is another inconsequential Clue generator that’s not making the cut as a commander unless you’re really interested in having Dennick, Pious Apprentice as a stax piece in the command zone.

#28. Sally Sparrow

Again, investigate being used as a non-synergistic reward for doing something else. Sally Sparrow giving all your creatures flash is useful, but we’re not breaking out the clue deck for this one.

#27. Sarah Jane Smith

Same deal as Sally Sparrow, but at least Sarah Jane Smith has Doctor’s companion, which might pair it up with another Doctor Who legend that actually puts these Clue tokens to good use.

#26. Elmar, Ulvenwald Informant / Max, the Daredevil

The usefulness of Elmar, Ulvenwald Informant/Max, the Daredevil is going to come down to how well you can use the “untap a creature” part of the effect. If you’re not doing anything with that, this is just Malcolm, the Eyes but worse. It does come with a partner though (a friend, rather), preferably one with a tap ability or a way to use those Clues you’ll be making.

#25. Wernog, Rider’s Chaplain / Will the Wise

These Stranger Things commanders aren’t all that strong, and friends forever only does so much to boost them up. Wernog, Rider's Chaplain/Will the Wise can make a bunch of Clues if your opponents let you, but it doesn’t have any payoff for making them aside from drawing cards. The repercussions for not making a Clue is 1 damage? Your opponents will just take the damage if they don’t want you to have the card advantage, which leaves you with an expensive flashy Thraben Inspector as your commander. Hey, at least it triggers on the way out too!

#24. Kellan, Inquisitive Prodigy

Kellan, Inquisitive Prodigy is a solid card but a lousy clue commander. Its adventure is basically Growth Spiral with extra steps, and there isn’t really much of an incentive to run extra clue cards if Kellan’s your commander. You could plan to target your own Clues on attack and essentially crack them for free, but you’re more likely to want to pair this with Liquimetal Coating and go to town on your opponents’ stuff instead.

#23. James, Wandering Dad

Michael Fassbender’s invitational card is a mana dork for abilities, or you can Follow Him to make a bunch of Clues. Nothing too enticing here, though James, Wandering Dad confirms the ideal Dad-bod is a 2/4.

#22. Sophina, Spearsage Deserter / Chief Jim Hopper

Sophina, Spearsage Deserter/Chief Jim Hopper does the usual Boros () aggro rigmarole, but pays you off for attacking by making a bunch of Clue tokens. Fine, but unexciting for a 4-mana 4/4, so you’ll have to lean on Jim Hopper’s commander friend to really pull this one up.

#21. Inquisitor Eisenhorn

“They’re taking the Hobbits to Eisenhorn!” Oh, they better not be.

I like Inquisitor Eisenhorn in theory. Hit your opponents, make some Clue tokens, then crack them on different turns for more shots at creating Cherubael. A free 4/4 flier for simply drawing a spell is awesome, but the effect doesn’t do much if you already control Cherubael, so there’s a drop-off in how effective this is. It’s also not trivial getting a 2/3 for 4 through for combat damage.

#20. Jenny Flint + Madame Vastra

The artifact duo of Jenny Flint and Madame Vastra creates Clue tokens and pays you off for sacrificing them. Sounds good, except damage triggers like the one on Madame Vastra are pretty easy to disrupt, so there’s a chance these two don’t get to do their thing that often. The lure effect obviously makes the dream more of a reality.

#19. The Third Doctor

I neither love nor hate The Third Doctor. I can respect that it’s a token payoff that wants you to stockpile your tokens, but I want to be sacrificing my Treasures and Clues. Maybe this gets more interesting with the right companion at its side.

#18. Ezrim, Agency Chief

Ezrim, Agency Chief is basically Dream Trawler with a BA in Criminal Justice. Players might remember how absurd it was in Murders at Karlov Manor Limited, but it seems pretty mediocre in Commander. The keyword abilities it gains by sacrificing artifacts aren’t going to decide a game the same way they would end a Limited match, and you don’t really want to be sacrificing your Clues and other artifacts for temporary keyword bonuses anyway.

#17. Tamiyo, Inquisitive Student / Tamiyo, Seasoned Scholar

Tamiyo, Inquisitive Student has some real potential, but I’m not sure where it stands as a commander. It can’t deal commander damage, and Tamiyo, Seasoned Scholar isn’t that hard for opponents to deal with. Still, a near-guaranteed Clue every turn starting on turn 2 sounds appealing, so maybe there’s something to this transforming planeswalker.

#16. Duggan, Private Detective

Teach me how to Duggan, teach me teach me how to Duggan. Ahem.

Looks to me like Duggan, Private Detective exists for the sake of making a top-down design of a Doctor Who character. If The Most Important Punch In History could be activated multiple times we’d be talking, but I’m guessing there’s a reason it’s once-only (let me know Whovians). Still, it creates a Clue every turn and can pop a creature off board, so there’s something to work with here.

#15. Lazav, Wearer of Faces

New Lazav printings will continue until morale improves.

I like the passive graveyard hate on Lazav, Wearer of Faces, and I like the concept of sacrificing Clues to turn Lazav into a Body Double or sorts. Maybe it’s all just a bit too finnicky, but it also seems like a clever way to get attack triggers from creatures like Grave Titan.

#14. Osgood, Operation Double

This is about Osgood as it gets for blue ramp. You’re looking at a Renowned Weaponsmith split across two bodies, but I like that both copies of Osgood, Operation Double have separate paradox abilities, which means you can stock up on Clues fast. It’s also kind of cool to have a commander that leaves behind a copy of itself if it dies.

#13. The Fugitive Doctor

Okay, that’s a lot of moving parts that all seem to add up to a Gruul () spellslinger commander? Funky. The Fugitive Doctor is what I’m looking for in an actual “clue commander,” since you’re rewarded for running it with other clue cards. I’m just a little skeptical of the color identity, which is noticeably absent blue, the best color for clue support.

#12. Sophia, Dogged Detective

Jinkies! Not to be confused with Dogged Detective, Sophia, Dogged Detective is a weird Bant () Clue/Food/Dog hybrid. I’m pretty sure it only exists for the sake of making a Scooby-Doo reference, but it also just reads like a strong card, putting two bodies on board and pumping out extra Food and Clues as you sic your dogs on your opponents.

#11. Alquist Proft, Master Sleuth

Dimir () agents stealing your thoughts in the midst of the night? Fblthp caught totally lost on the streets of Ravnica? Trostani back at it again with the murders? No worries, Alquist Proft, Master Sleuth is on the case!

While I’m not sure a 3/3 vigilance is really commander material, I do love the design of Alquist Proft. The idea here is that they upgrade your Clues into super-Clues, so to speak. Now each of your Clues can become a Sphinx's Revelation, which makes sense, since cracking a Clue should give a Master Sleuth a revelation of sorts.

#10. Inquisitor Greyfax

None of Inquisitor Greyfax’s abilities read like they’re that good, but the overall package is deceptively strong. +1/+0 is minor, but vigilance is so much better than people give it credit for, and you can ward off attacks while drawing cards with the tap ability. This is an effective commander that leaves your strategy pretty open-ended, though I doubt “clue synergy” is the first place you’ll go with Grayfax.

#9. Martha Jones

I actually really like Martha Jones because it incentivizes you to play other Clue token generators. It’s only good for one unblockable hit on its own, so you need to surround it with other Clues to get a real advantage here. It’s also a great companion for most of the doctors, since a lot of them have attack triggers and want to slip through in combat anyway.

#8. Teysa, Opulent Oligarch

I suppose you could lean into a clue theme with Teysa, Opulent Oligarch, but it’s really a self-contained engine that doesn’t need much more help. More Clues does mean more spirits, and I like that Teysa triggers if a Clue is destroyed or sacrificed incidentally. No blue though, so that’s a knock against it.

#7. Eloise, Nephalia Sleuth

I’m still frustrated that this random investigator is a 4/4, and that they refuse to errata Eloise, Nephalia Sleuth into a detective. I’m most familiar with Eloise as a March of the Machines infinite combo enabler, but I appreciate that the surveil ability is generically tied to all types of tokens.

#6. Lavinia, Foil to Conspiracy

Hey, look at that! A Ravnica: Clue Edition commander that cares about Clue tokens! Lavinia, Foil to Conspiracy combines the best of multiple commanders we’ve already glanced at, generating Clue tokens and giving you the mana to use them. You don’t have to lean into Clues here either; you could just play an instant-heavy gameplan and use Lavinia as an incidental form of card advantage.

#5. Morska, Undersea Sleuth

Morska, Undersea Sleuth was the face commander of the Deep Clue Sea precon, one of my personal favorites in recent memory. This is a clue commander by definition, and a good one at that. It passively makes Clues with no extra effort, and pays you off for using them. I appreciate how malleable this commander is.

#4. Lonis, Cryptozoologist

I assume when people say invest in crypto they’re talking about this thing. Why stock up Dogecoin when you can run Lonis, Cryptozoologist in your command zone instead? Lonis converts Clues into a mini-Bribery effect, and it generates Clue tokens easier than most other cards. The 1/2 body is rough, so you really need to be using that amazing activated ability often.

#3. Senator Peacock

Yes! When I say “clue commander,” this is what I mean: a commander that asks you to dig up as many other Clue-makers as you can from your collection. Sure, you could ignore actual Clue tokens altogether and let Senator Peacock just convert other artifacts and artifact tokens into clues for you. But first off, that’s no fun, and second off, why are you playing a Clue-themed commander if you’re not looking for an excuse to play all those raggedy old investigate cards?

#2. Lonis, Genetics Expert

They (surly) forgot a “once per turn” rider on the evolving Lonis, Genetics Expert, which makes this combo city if you want to build it that way. For example, this just goes immediately infinite with Extruder if you’d like. That makes me worry that anyone who actually tries to build this as a clue deck will get shot down because of the potential to create infinite combos.

#1. Tivit, Seller of Secrets

I’m not fond of Tivit, Seller of Secrets, but I’m also not dense enough to pretend like this isn’t the best commander with the word “investigate” in its rules text. It produces so much value on ETB and attacks, and regardless of how the votes break, you’re up five artifacts for the Time Sieve combo. Tivit’s also a giant flier with everyone’s favorite definitely-not-hexproof ward .

Best Clue Payoffs

It used to be that Clues were only good for crackin’ and random artifact synergies, but there are actually plenty of clue-specific rewards in Magic now, courtesy of sets like Doctor Who and Murders at Karlov Manor.

We can’t go without mentioning Academy Manufactor, the obnoxious Clue/Food/Treasure payoff that only keeps getting better. Truly one of the most broken cards that constantly slips under the radar. Transmutation Font is a mythic cousin that is costly, but very good at what it does. It simply s to create a clue, then costs and a few tokens to tutor and cheat an artifact onto the battlefield. It feels underhanded, but a powerstone is great to pay Clue costs and for sacrifices like this.

Armed with Proof turns your Clues into equipment, à la Arterial Alchemy with Blood tokens. Also, what a fun name for this effect. Merchant of Truth comes from the same Commander precon and also lets your Clues contribute to combat via exalted. Tangletrove Kelp was designed as a way to further weaponize your Clues by turning them into 6/6 plants each combat.

Tireless Tracker, Thorough Investigation, and Ulvenwald Mysteries all trigger off sacrificing Clues. Notably, these trigger even if you didn’t pay the cost to sacrifice the Clues, so feeding a Clue to something like Deadly Dispute still causes these cards to trigger.

Persuasive Interrogators is worth a shoutout, since it provides an alternate poison win condition that you absolutely deserve a medal for if you manage to win with it.

Five Hundred Year Diary is a Clue that also produces mana for each Clue you control. Havengul Laboratory/Havengul Mystery can spot you free reanimations if you’ve sacrificed enough clues each turn. Tamiyo's Journal is a bit slow, but it can convert three Clues into an instant-speed Demonic Tutor.

And of course, there’s the endless slew of artifact-centric payoffs that naturally work with Clue tokens that we’re not going to list out here. Things like Cyberdrive Awakener, Reckless Fireweaver, and so on.

Commanding Con-Clue-Sion

Alquist Proft, Master Sleuth | Illustration by Andreas Zafiratos

Great detective work folks! All that sleuthing led you to the end of our list, I see. Almost like the clues were all Red Herrings and you were gonna end up here anyway.

I knew going into this that Clues had received quite a bit of love in recent years, but I was surprised by just how many legendary creatures reference Clue tokens in some way. Granted, a ton of those come from Doctor Who, and a big chunk of them have no real business being at the helm of a Commander deck, but there’s still a lot of investigating to be done with these legends.

Do you play a clue token deck? Is it focused entirely on Clues, or is it a hybrid with Landers, Food, Treasures, etc.? Are you hoping for more clue support in the future, or should our detective work come to an end? Let me know in the comments or over in the Draftsim Discord or on Twitter/X.

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