The 32 Best Theft Commanders in Magic Ranked

Last updated on February 2, 2026

Don Andres, the Renegade | Illustration by Daarken

I love theft strategies in Magic, built around stealing and winning with your opponents' cards. It might be because most of them fall under my favorite color identity, Grixis (). Or maybe because they lend themselves well to the grindy, midrangey decks I love playing.

Whatever the reason, I love theft strategies in MTG. They're at their most fun in Commander, when everybody's brought sick decks full of powerful cards to steal. But if you want a strong Commander deck, you need a good commander, which begs the question: Which theft commander is the best?

Let's figure it out—after we wash our hands.

What Are Theft Commanders?

Kotis, the Fangkeeper | Illustration by Evyn Fong

Theft commanders are legendary creatures that help you deploy a “theft” strategy, in which you win the game by casting or stealing your opponents' cards. Most of these effects live in Grixis colors, though all five colors are represented on the list.

Good theft commanders do one of three things:

• They steal your opponents' cards.
• They let you cast your opponents' spells.
• They reward you for casting spells or controlling permanents that you don't own.

Any one of these effects is fantastic, though I prefer theft commanders that steal permanents and cast spells as they often come with built-in card advantage.

#32. Tariel, Reckoner of Souls

Tariel, Reckoner of Souls can be quite impactful despite its slowness. You'll want to pair this Mardu commander with mill cards like Mesmeric Orb and pinpoint graveyard hate like Lion Sash to get creatures in your opponents' graveyard and exile chaff like Llanowar Elves. Tariel requires a lot of work, but the payoff's there. Probably.

#31. Emrakul, the World Anew

You need to be swimming in ramp spells for Emrakul, the World Anew to be a useful Eldrazi commander, but what else would a colorless deck run? You can further the theft theme with It That Betrays and Emrakul, the Promised End to steal turns.

#30. Memnarch

Memnarch lets you steal every artifact your opponents control, plus anything you can pay additional mana to turn into artifacts. Liquimetal Torque and Liquimetal Coating help. You can also pour infinite mana through Memnarch to take everything your opponents own. This commander almost always has some targets since most decks play mana rocks.

#29. Olivia Voldaren

Olivia Voldaren lets you convert your opponents' creatures into vampires and then steal them over the course of several turns. While slow, Olivia is a classic theft commander. Olivia seems strong with all the cards that increase noncombat damage, like Solphim, Mayhem Dominus and Ojer Axonil, Deepest Might, though that may distract from the theft plan.

#28. Black Cat, Cunning Thief

Move over Gonti, Lord of Luxury; there’s a new mono-black flicker-theft commander! Black Cat, Cunning Thief might cost an extra mana, but that’s worthwhile for a far stronger enters ability. Getting the best two of nine cards is an absurd number. This is Dig Through Time, theft edition. Get multiple triggers from Conjurer's Closet or black’s sideways-flickering with a sacrifice effect plus Malakir Rebirth effect to bury your opponents in card advantage.

#27. Zara, Renegade Recruiter

Who doesn't love a pirate commander? Zara, Renegade Recruiter lets you steal creatures right from your opponents' hands, which gives you a chance to swipe powerful ETB triggers off creatures like Etali, Primal Conqueror that other threaten effects miss. Make sure to add flicker cards like Thassa, Deep-Dwelling that specify the creature returns under your control—not its owner's control—so that you can keep the recruited creatures forever.

#26. Plargg and Nassari

Plargg and Nassari lets you steal two spells a turn, which is a pretty decent rate. This red commander pays for itself in a turn cycle or two, and letting an opponent pick which spell you can't cast leads to interesting political discussions. Toss in some cast-from-exile support like Passionate Archaeologist and other red theft cards like Stolen Strategy and you have a real brew on your hands!

#25. Ixhel, Scion of Atraxa

Ixhel, Scion of Atraxa plays more of an incidental theft strategy. As an Abzan commander, it misses out on two of the three core colors for theft commanders, and it requires additional support from cards that spread poison counters. But it steals more cards in an end step than most of the other options, making it a notable card advantage engine.

#24. Nathan Drake, Treasure Hunter

Nathan Drake, Treasure Hunter has simplicity on its side. You attack, you exile cards, and you cast one of them. This is a simple value engine that rewards building around it. Ramp is key here because you still need to spend mana on the spells you cast; once you have an abundance of mana, you can look to get multiple triggers from Nathan with cards like Strionic Resonator and Aggravated Assault.

#23. Laughing Jasper Flint

One of my favorite commanders from Outlaws of Thunder Junction, Laughing Jasper Flint asks for a crew of rowdy outlaws and rewards you with plenty of card advantage.

What I like most about this Rakdos commander is how it snowballs. Each time you steal a creature, you see an additional card on your next upkeep, which increases your odds of playing more creatures, and so on.

#22. The Beast, Deathless Prince

Doctor Who‘s The Beast, Deathless Prince works best with a bunch of Threaten effects that steal creatures and give them haste, but it works with other theft effects. Card draw is a simple but effective reward for nabbing your opponent's creatures.

#21. Arvinox, the Mind Flail

Arvinox, the Mind Flail strips your opponents of their resources each end step. Three cards stolen a turn is a fantastic rate that helps make up for Arvinox's exorbitant mana value. You need to whip out the Cabal Coffers to play this at a reasonable time, but I don't mind paying for so much card advantage. Just be wary of your opponents scrying a bunch of lands to the bottom to mess up your draw engine.

#20. Azula, Cunning Usurper

Azula, Cunning Usurper gives theft a controlling spin since it removes the creatures it steals. Letting your opponent choose which of their spells you swipe can work against you, but it often works out because Azula is in blue, which means plentiful access to flicker effects like Thassa, Deep-Dwelling and Displacer Kitten. Repeated edicts stack well; your opponents can only have so much chaff before Azula steals real threats.

#19. Kellogg, Dangerous Mind

Rakdos () decks have no trouble producing Treasure tokens, so Fallout‘s Kellogg, Dangerous Mind always has some fodder to steal creatures with.

Think of it like this: Kellogg lets you cast Mind Control every turn, but you must pay for it with Treasure. Don't forget protective spells like Deflecting Swat and Armor of Shadows to keep Kellogg and your stolen creature around.

#18. Rashmi and Ragavan

Rashmi and Ragavan is another theft commander that employs a more incidental theft plan, this time built around assembling a critical mass of artifacts. But artifacts and theft decks overlap very well, especially if you focus on using your artifacts to power out big theft payoffs a Temur commander has access to, like Mind's Dilation, Etali, Primal Conqueror, and Blatant Thievery.

#17. Admiral Beckett Brass

Admiral Beckett Brass gets right to the heart of piracy by swiping spells whenever you board an opponent's ship with enough pirates. The big thing holding this down the list is the need for a critical mass of pirates, which can distract from the theft theme and lead to an overall weaker game plan.

#16. Coram, the Undertaker

Coram, the Undertaker gives you temporary access to cards your opponents mills, which is admittedly more steps than the average theft commander. But Coram doesn’t go all-in on theft like other commanders, which allows deckbuilding flexibility. Mesmeric Orb is a must-include for the theft list, and cards like Altar of the Brood and Altar of Dementia further enhance Coram’s abilities.

#15. Rubinia Soulsinger

How would you like Mind Control in the command zone? If that sounds good, check out Rubinia Soulsinger. This Bant commander works well with clones and such. The biggest drawback comes from its fragility. Your opponents can just kill Rubinia to get their creature back and, as a creature itself, it's more vulnerable than enchantment-based Mind Control effects.

#14. Eriette, the Beguiler

Eriette, the Beguiler lets you turn any aura into Control Magic so long as the mana values line up properly.

This Esper commander encourages playing large auras like Eldrazi Conscription or Gift of Doom to increase the range of creatures you can steal, offering a compelling twist on most theft commanders.

#13. Valki, God of Lies  / Tibalt, Cosmic Impostor

For the purposes of theft strategies, we're much more interested in Tibalt, Cosmic Impostor than Valki, God of Lies. You can dip into all the cast-from-exile synergies like Prosper, Tome-Bound and Nalfeshnee to reward you for using Tibalt. Drawing three cards each time you uptick Tibalt gives you plenty of card advantage, which helps make up for the hefty mana value.

#12. Saruman of Many Colors

Saruman of Many Colors has a fairly daunting text box that boils down to stealing enchantments, instants, and sorceries after casting two spells in a single turn. The size of the second spell you cast determines how big of a spell you can steal, so you should look to cast spells that are free or reduce their mana cost, like Force of Will and Dig Through Time. The spell you cast doesn't need to be among the cards milled with Saruman's trigger, so you can set things up with mill spells like Ruin Crab and Mesmeric Orb.

#11. Tasha, the Witch Queen

Tasha, the Witch Queen can be rather slow, as the second ability relies on the first to do anything. You're priced into upticking and hoping Tasha survives the turn cycle. But 3/3 demon tokens are a fantastic reward for stealing spells, Tasha offers plenty of card advantage, and Dimir () is an excellent color identity for a theft commander.

#10. Merieke Ri Berit

At a passing glance, Merieke Ri Berit looks like Rubinia Soulsinger, but Merieke is far more powerful. Esper () is a better color identity for a theft commander, and you can often play this as a combo commander utilizing untap effects like Thousand-Year Elixir and Vizier of Tumbling Sands to steal and destroy opposing creatures. Even if you don't go down that route, I like Merieke Ri Berit much better as “Mind Control on your commander” since your opponent can't just kill this and get their card back.

#9. Nihiloor

Nihiloor wants to be the top-end of a theft deck. You ideally don't play this horror until you have three sizable creatures to steal from your opponents, though dropping it when it takes out one impactful threat still works. That drain effect ends games surprisingly quickly, making this one of the more aggressive theft commanders.

#8. Kotis, the Fangkeeper

Kotis, the Fangkeeper puts a Voltron spin on theft, which is better than it sounds. The great weakness of EDH theft decks is losing permanents when the player who controlled them leaves the game; you never want to amass a winning board only to lose everything because Tom died to a Cheeky House-Mouse. Kotis sidesteps this because it becomes your central win condition, and the theft is an upside to stacking counters, auras, equipment, or other buffs on the indestructible creature. It might not be all-in on theft like other commanders, but that theft diversity makes it one of the more consistent ones.

#7. Xanathar, Guild Kingpin

Xanathar, Guild Kingpin can be a fantastic control commander. I've played against versions of the deck that are entirely interaction, relying on Xanathar's theft to dig towards a win condition. Even if you don't go full-throttle on the control plan, this Dimir theft commander lends itself well to grindy game plans.

#6. Rakdos, the Muscle

Theft decks built on Threaten effects often employ sacrifice outlets to steal an opponent's creature, attack with it, and then get rid of it before control changes again. Rakdos, the Muscle might be the best steal-and-sac commander since it generates even more card advantage. This is a self-enabling engine that your opponents will struggle to remove.

#5. Breeches, Brazen Plunderer + Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator

This potent pair of partner commanders is, in my opinion, the superior option for pirate-based theft. Because Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator has evasion, you don't need to worry about adding too many additional pirates to enable Breeches, Brazen Plunderer. That leaves more room for other theft cards.

#4. Gonti, Canny Acquisitor

Slither Blade fans, rejoice! Gonti, Canny Acquisitor gives your tiny unblockable creatures a powerful payoff in the form of card advantage. This Sultai commander pairs well with saboteur effects like Thief of Sanity or evasive threats like Baleful Strix. The cost reduction that comes with Gonti looks insignificant but adds up quickly.

#3. Don Andres, the Renegade

Don Andres, the Renegade rewards you handsomely for stealing from your opponents. It doesn't care if you take spells or creatures, you get a reward. It doesn't help steal any of those cards, but as a Grixis commander, it gives you access to all the best theft effects in the game.

#2. Sen Triplets

Historically one of the most salt-provoking theft commanders in the format, Sen Triplets can be slow in the current Commander landscape, but it does plenty of work if you can keep it around. Stealing cards directly from your opponent's hand might be the dirtiest form of card advantage in the game. Not only do you “draw” the cards, your opponent loses access to them if you use them. This Esper commander takes over games with a few turn cycles.

#1. Haldan, Avid Arcanist + Pako, Arcane Retriever

Haldan, Avid Arcanist and Pako, Arcane Retriever are the perfect “partner with” commanders for a theft deck. You get all the card advantage benefits of a theft deck while turning Pako into a threat capable of killing your opponents single-handedly. They have to remove it, but it often draws three or more cards before they do. While Temur () colors aren't the best for theft, they excel at maximizing cast-from-exile cards with spells like Doc Aurlock, Grizzled Genius and Faldorn, Dread Wolf Herald.

Best Theft Commander Payoffs

Ways to steal your opponents' cards are vital to any theft deck. It's an archetype with plenty of support. You have access to creatures like Thief of Sanity and Hostage Taker plus plenty of top end, such as Agent of Treachery and Mind's Dilation.

Once you have the tools to steal your opponents' cards, you need ways to utilize them. Rakdos+ decks might be interested in sacrificing them to cards like Goblin Bombardment and Ashnod's Altar, especially if they're stealing cards with temporary Threaten effects.

Other theft payoffs reward you for controlling or attacking with opposing creatures, like Thieving Amalgam and The Beast, Deathless Prince. The lion's share of these cards steal spells by letting you exile then cast them, so you can pick up plenty of synergy from cards like Doc Aurlock, Grizzled Genius, Vega, the Watcher, and Passionate Archaeologist to make them sing.

Another way to enhance these commanders are cards that interact with abilities. Most theft effects are tied to activated or triggered abilities, so cards like Strionic Resonator and Lithoform Engine ensure a bigger payoff. Commanders with enters triggers love flicker effects like Ghostly Flicker, and anything that cares about attacking or dealing combat damage benefits from extra combat effects.

Lastly, make sure your theft deck has lots of ramp! Many of these theft commanders essentially “draw” cards from your opponents' decks. That's well and good, but if your opponents kill you before you can cast them, they didn't help much. Packing your deck with enough ramp to cast the cards your commander draws ensures you'll have a smooth, powerful game plan.

Commanding Conclusion

Xanathar, Guild Kingpin | Illustration by Kieran Yanner

Theft decks are some of my favorites to play. They can be a bit contentious, as not everybody loves losing access to their cards, but it generally leads to interesting gameplay with intriguing options that only come about because you're playing with four different decks at once.

What do you think of theft decks? Do you like them, or hate them? Let me know in the comments below or on the Draftsim Discord!

Stay safe, and thanks for reading!