Last updated on June 30, 2026
Dina, Soul Steeper | Illustration by Chris Rahn
Although you can often find strong build-around rare commanders for cheap, including a decent number of the most popular commanders that are now under a dollar, there’s something extra fun about taking an uncommon legend and sitting across the table from a pile of mythic rares. It feels a bit like a hard mode flex.
I first started really getting into uncommons as commanders when I opened Slimefoot, the Stowaway in a Dominaria pack, and it’s been a bit of a collector obsession of mine since. If you share my interest in what can feel a bit like hipster Commander, “Come with me and you’ll be in a world of pure imagination!”
What Are Uncommon Commanders in Magic?
Ardenn, Intrepid Archaeologist | Illustration by Jason Rainville
An uncommon commander is any qualifying commander, usually a creature but sometimes other card types like spacecraft or planeswalkers, that has been printed at least once as an uncommon.
These tend to be less powerful than most intended characters, and are often uncommon for the purposes of pushing a Limited theme. There are still plenty of powerful uncommon legends, though, and they're mandatory if you're playing Pauper Commander.
This ranking lists these cards as commanders. There are a number of legendary creatures that have some good value in the 99 that are underwhelming as a commander.
#56. Doc Aurlock, Grizzled Genius
Doc Aurlock, Grizzled Genius is a smart one, and though plot cards appear less and less the farther we get from Outlaws of Thunder Junction, the big-time reduction on playing cards from exile and the graveyard is huge for decks with flashback, foretell, and adventures.
#55. Alexios, Deimos of Kosmos
Alexios, Deimos of Kosmos goads and forces the durdlers and control players to attack, even if you have to donate the attacker. Alexios incites combat and instigates turmoil at your table, and is a decent player with chaos cards.
#54. Honest Rutstein
Honest Rutstein is truly a simple cost reducer and gravedigger on one efficient body. You could say this card puts in an honest day's work, but that joke's low-hanging fruit.
#53. Zoyowa Lava-Tongue
This warlock is going to climb the ranks thanks to the many various ways to descend. Archfiend of Ifnir, Waste Not, Chainer, Nightmare Adept, and a host of other discard and sacrifice cards? Just wait for it.
#52. Greta, Sweettooth Scourge
Gyome, Master Chef is probably better in the food/sacrifice space, but Greta, Sweettooth Scourge has card draw in its abilities, and that’s always a thing to pay attention to. Plus, Greta just murdered a gummi worm, so do not underestimate their strength!
#51. Teshar, Ancestor's Apostle
Teshar, Ancestor's Apostle is a powerful bird cleric and fun to play: this historic commander lets you sac artifacts and recur them to your durdly heart's content.
#50. Captain America, Living Legend
Captain America, Living Legend sees niche play as a vehicle, or even better, spacecraft commander that gets to crew and station creatures for free. That isn’t quite a full deck, but Azorius has plenty of spicy activated abilities to pad out the list, like Arcanis the Omnipotent and Ioreth of the Healing House.
#49. Vega, the Watcher
Vega, the Watcher is more fun as a supporting cast member to Gorion, Wise Mentor and Ranar the Ever-Watchful, but this might be the spirit commander for a deck that wants to mess around with stuff like One with the Multiverse, The Temporal Anchor, Future Sight, etc.
#48. Kangee, Sky Warden
Kangee, Sky Warden is the best Azorius commander for fliers by a wide margin. You're all-in on the theme if you plan to run this as a commander.
#47. Rebbec, Architect of Ascension
Rebbec, Architect of Ascension grants a pretty wide swath of protection from spot removal, which is a useful service for the artifact commanders that might want a spot of white to partner with this artificer, like Silas Renn, Seeker Adept, Ich-Tekik, Salvage Splicer, and a few others.
#46. Jasmine Boreal of the Seven
I mean, you’re gonna order a copy of Muraganda Petroglyphs for this deck. But doesn’t Jasmine Boreal of the Seven want your deck to house the vanilla creatures from your boomer storage boxes? The ones that the younger version of you thought were good, letting you play Magic like you thought it was when Gigantosaurus was your favorite card?
#45. Bruenor Battlehammer
There are better things to do in Boros () equipment decks than Bruenor Battlehammer, but by playing with equip costs, it’s arguably one of the more fun ways to try to make that archetype work.
#44. Mr. Orfeo, the Boulder
Mr. Orfeo, the Boulder is here to Fling your Yargle and Multani. After watching the Barbie movie, I decided for myself that his full name is “Mr. Ken Orfeo”, and now you know which song is in my head when I play this deck.
#43. Balmor, Battlemage Captain
This card doesn’t see quite the play it should, but Izzet () mages are spoiled for choices. In the right build, Balmor, Battlemage Captain goes fast, and it's actually quite solid in Duel Commander. Someday, Izzet prowess fliers will come together and this will be a top deck.
#42. Totentanz, Swarm Piper
You don’t have to play Rat Colony to want to run a Totentanz, Swarm Piper deck, but that’s a thing. Up until Wilds of Eldraine, rats deck were usually mono-black. But WOE gave us a decent number of good rat cards in red, like Song of Totentanz. Being able to play rats with Impact Tremors and Goblin Bombardment is a lot of fun. I expect to see this deck rise in the ranks as more people figure this bard out.
#41. Abdel Adrian, Gorion's Ward
Paired with Candlekeep Sage as a background, Abdel Adrian, Gorion's Ward quietly rose to second place behind Brago, King Eternal in the Azorius () blink commander space. There’s something about drawing a card when you Ephemerate your commander to keep it alive that’s especially pleasing to a certain kind of player. Me, I mean me.
#40. Loki Laufeyson
Copying spells is pretty good, and Loki Faufeyson does it at a relatively cheap cost: Just 1 extra mana, and you can do it every turn, maybe more with untap effects like Sting, the Glinting Dagger. The power restriction is tough, but red has plenty ways to make Loki large enough to copy whoppers like Mana Geyser.
#39. Thalisse, Reverent Medium
Thalisse, Reverent Medium is the most popular Orzhov () tokens commander because… have you read the card? It’s a lot like a token doubler that functions on everyone's end step.
#38. Trelasarra, Moon Dancer
If you’ve ever been stuck waiting for Trelasarra, Moon Dancer to finish scrying and adding +1/+1 counters in a Scurry Oak/Heliod, Sun-Crowned combo deck, you know why you might consider this elf cleric over reigning Selesnya () lifegain champ Lathiel, the Bounteous Dawn.
#37. Lagrella, the Magpie
Lagrella, the Magpie is a strange card to use as a commander. You’re probably going to just use Chulane, Teller of Tales, but Lagrella offers a piece of removal in the command zone, and having a blinkable piece of removal that can also sort of slow-blink something else on your board is surprisingly amazing. Just blinking Lagrella to keep forcing opponents to put their commanders back in the command zone can just shut down some decks entirely.
#36. Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar
Stopping your opponents from interacting on your turn gives you lots of wiggle room, whether you want to land an infinite combo or just resolve your Craterhoof Behemoth in peace. Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar shelters you and comes with card draw for relevancy before the turn you win. Sure, you need to buff your creatures, but this is Selesnya. You have to actively work to keep +1/+1 counters off your creatures.
#35. Aegar, the Freezing Flame
Giant typal plus the typical Izzet nonsense? Aegar, the Freezing Flame is a big wizard with a lot of ways to win and a lot of ways to respond to other decks.
#34. Minthara, Merciless Soul
Tokens + proliferate. This is probably the place for all those Phyrexia: All Will Be One uncommons you drafted but didn’t have an EDH deck for. Minthara, Merciless Soul can get out of hand in a snap if folks aren’t careful.
#33. Svella, Ice Shaper
Ice, ice, baby. Svella, Ice Shaper wants to ramp. Is snow ramp better than typical ramp? Is Gruul () ramp better than mono-green? This is all unclear to me, but Svella, Ice Shaper is one very solid troll that can get huge things out quickly if you’re willing to buy all the snow-covered lands.
#32. Killian, Ink Duelist
If you liked Orzhov auras in Historic better than Azorius, Killian, Ink Duelist is the commander for you. This menacing warlock also likes equipment, Pacifism effects, and long walks at sunset by the Witherbloom swamps.
#31. Green Goblin, Revenant
Green Goblin, Revenant is a simple payoff for discard decks. Pitch a bunch of cards to effects like Cool but Rude, Key to the City, and Chainer, Nightmare Adept, then reward yourself with a surge of card draw to find additional payoffs like Monument to Endurance.
#30. Ganax, Astral Hunter
Usually paired with the Acolyte of Bahamut background for a Gruul dragons deck, Ganax, Astral Hunter helps you ramp those dragons out. It’s also part of a number of infinite mana combos, my favorite of which is the more aspirational than realistic Old Gnawbone and Hellkite Charger. And there’s always Orthion, Hero of Lavabrink with Staff of Domination.
#29. Ich-Tekik, Salvage Splicer
Ich-Tekik, Salvage Splicer pairs with other artifact commanders, and until Meria, Scholar of Antiquity, it was one of the more common ways to get green in on the artifacts game.
#28. Hamza, Guardian of Arashin
Hamza, Guardian of Arashin is one of the best +1/+1 counters commanders, sort of like a Rakdos, Lord of Riots that feeds off counters instead of damage.
#27. Tannuk, Memorial Ensign
Tannuk, Memorial Ensign is a paltry Tatyova that proves blue gets better cards. But this is still worth trying out: It’s a win condition and card advantage in the command zone, plus you get access to the important landfall cards like Scute Swarm and Lotus Cobra.
#26. Cadira, Caller of the Small
There are better Selesnya tokens commanders than Cadira, Caller of the Small, sure, but have you seen the token this generates?
One of the best Selesnya cards in the game, Cadira, Caller of the Small is the leader if you’re Clowning Around with Preston, the Vanisher or going full rabbit with Regal Bunnicorn and Pollen-Shield Hare.
#25. Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker
This is a fun deck to play, and one of the best aristocrat commanders. Shirei, Shizo's Caretaker reanimates your favorite weenies, like Serrated Scorpion, Creeping Bloodsucker, and many others. Add an Ashnod's Altar, whisk in a Zulaport Cutthroat, fold in Pitiless Plunderer, and bake at 350 for 30 minutes until golden brown or your opponents concede.
#24. Slimefoot, the Stowaway
The king of its own archetype, I’ll brook no argument as to why Slimefoot, the Stowaway is the most fun thing to do in Golgari.
#23. Armix, Filigree Thrasher
Over time, Armix, Filigree Thrasher gets pretty scary in clearing out potential blockers. An excellent artifact commander, this golem pairs nicely with lots of buddies, perhaps Keskit, the Flesh Sculptor to keep the disposable artifacts coming.
#22. Long Feng, Grand Secretariat
The big reason to run Long Feng, Grand Secretariat are the combos. The big one is Basking Broodscale for infinite mana, but toss in a sacrifice outlet and a Scurry Oak and you still get infinite stuff. Or maybe a sac outlet and two persist creatures, or… it just keeps going. If you see this in the command zone, be prepared for some unfair Magic.
#21. Kardur, Doomscourge
Kardur, Doomscourge seems to be a better goad commander than the more popular Firkraag, Cunning Instigator. Enough Feign Death style effects in this deck, and you can run a Village Rites animated sac machine that keeps you safe while goading other shenanigans. If, like me, you play a lot of 1v1 Commander, this berserker may not be a card you’ve thought about much.
#20. Rocco, Cabaretti Caterer
How good is this Naya card‘s toolbox? Better than you think. Who’s on the list for the Rocco, Cabaretti Caterer afterparty? Esper Sentinel, Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker, Drannith Magistrate, Toski, Bearer of Secrets, and even such mystery guests as Vexing Shusher may show up when this druid's in command.
#19. Juri, Master of the Revue
This wily shaman continues to adapt its performance to the prevailing winds. Juri, Master of the Revue can still command an aristocrats deck, but as a Rak-Sac commander with some wicked treasure synergies, Juri continues to find interesting roles well into middle age.
#18. Imoti, Celebrant of Bounty
Ramp, cast 6-drops, cascade. Throw in a Gilanra, Caller of Wirewood and Keruga, the Macrosage, then tutor up Apex Devastator. Good times for Imoti, Celebrant of Bounty.
#17. Wiccan, Young Avenger
Storm decks are typically pinched on two resources: Card draw and mana. Wiccan, Young Avenger handles the first easily by effectively drawing a card whenever you play most of your cards. Is it the strongest mono-red storm commander? Not at all. But if you want to play storm yet find Birgi, God of Storytelling too strong, this is a great alternative to tone things down.
#16. Sanar, Unfinished Genius
Sanar, Unfinished Genius would be a respectable commander even without its prepared spell. It’s basically a mana dork in the command zone, low-impact enough that your opponents might not remove it but still providing a solid advantage. The prepared spell even gives you something to do with all the mana, which is nice; it’s hard to stall out with this in charge.
#15. Araumi of the Dead Tide
Recursion and self-mill decks are fun, especially if you use Araumi of the Dead Tide to bring back Mulldrifter and Massacre Wurm. Add some self-mill, and be sure to protect your graveyard and pack some countermagic for the graveyard hate your merfolk will attract!
#14. Cormela, Glamour Thief
Leaving Grixis ()) vampires to Evelyn, the Covetous, Cormela, Glamour Thief is good as a rogue cEDH commander looking to power out some of that style’s most popular cEDH wincons, Ad Nauseam, Brain Freeze, and Thassa's Oracle.
#13. Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim
Elas il-Kor, Sadistic Pilgrim covers one of the basic needs of an aristocrats deck as a Blood Artist you'll always have access to. You just need to bring the fodder and sac outlets and Elas will play its part.
#12. Zada, Hedron Grinder
Zada, Hedron Grinder is an awesome budget commander. Fill up on cheap creatures and token-makers then toss out a lot of targeting cantrips and buffs, like Ancestral Anger and Sudden Breakthrough.
A more expensive (and likely better) build is to do all of that with a mono-red goblins focus. And you already know how that works.
#11. Wilson, Refined Grizzly
Wilson, Refined Grizzly is one of the more popular “Choose a Background” commanders from Dungeons & Dragons: The Battle for Baldur’s Gate because this bear's cheap, flexible, and fancy AF. Raised by Giants gives you an interesting version of big green, and Cultist of the Absolute gives you (checks notes) Golgari sac!
#10. Syr Konrad, the Grim
Syr Konrad, the Grim likes to do a lot of things black decks are good at doing. And it’s a wincon in the command zone for those strategies. Make creatures. Sac them. Recur them. Cards like Gravepurge get good in this deck. And then there’s always Mindcrank….
#9. Tatyova, Benthic Druid
Tatyova, Benthic Druid goes fast. Still a decent cEDH general, and still a pretty popular Simic leader even after the never-ending blitz of power in that color pair.
#8. Queza, Augur of Agonies
The popular and flexible Esper commander () Queza, Augur of Agonies is especially popular among uncommon commanders, and quite solid as a spellslinger commander. There are a lot of builds that synergize, including every Orzhov payoff you’d like, but now with card draw and counterspells. The more powerful play is to emphasize wheels like Whispering Madness and Dark Deal for high impact table drain.
#7. Dina, Soul Steeper
Dina, Soul Steeper creeps into the top ranks of Golgari commanders. Staple a tiny version of Sanguine Bond onto a creature that’s also a sac outlet for death trigger effects, and you have most of an engine for 2 mana in the exact colors to go wild.
#6. Fynn, the Fangbearer
Deathtouch typal is a thing. I’m sure the world weeps that they didn’t throw a black pip on Fynn, the Fangbearer, but we can’t have everything. It somehow crept into the ranks of the most popular mono-green commanders! Infect, fight spells, pump, trample, and a few pieces of protection. This is a budget deck that’s pretty straightforward to play.
#5. Dargo, the Shipwrecker
Dargo, the Shipwrecker is useful because it has a baked-in ability to get itself out earlier than its cost advertises, which allows for Greater Good or Neoform nuttiness in its best deck when partnered with Thrasios, Triton Hero. You can do something similar in Naya () with Sidar Kondo of Jamuraa where the white gives you access to tutors like Academy Rector, or in a Jund () build with Ikra Shidiqi, the Usurper, which capitalizes on the high mana value with simpler cards like Sacrifice.
#4. Kediss, Emberclaw Familiar
Kediss, Emberclaw Familiar, a cute lil' elemental and one of the best lizard commanders, is what allows a Voltron partner like Rograkh to kill the table. When you absolutely, positively, got to kill every last… (you know the rest).
#3. Arabella, Abandoned Doll
Arabella, Abandoned Doll is just one of the better Boros commanders. The color pair is all about going wide with small creatures, which Arabella turns into a serious win condition. Aggro often struggles in Commander, but Arabella deals enough damage to make it feasible since it deals a turn of burn damage to all your opponents. You also get access to lots of small-creature support like Delney, Streetwise Lookout and The Battle of Bywater.
#2. Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh
Rograkh, Son of Rohgahh is the ultimate Voltron commander. Classically good with Kediss, Emberclaw Familiar to try to kill the whole table at once, pairings with Ardenn, Intrepid Archaeologist to pants up for casual tables and Silas Renn, Seeker Adept for a fast mana Ad Nauseam (what else?) in cEDH are more likely duos.
One of the most versatile of the Commander Legends uncommon partners, Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator is great in lots of decks and looks great while doing it! This siren loves pirate typal decks with Breeches, Brazen Plunderer. It likes to partner with Kediss, Emberclaw Familiar for Treasure value ramp or in a cEDH deck running just Glint-Horn Buccaneer and some Polymorph effects. There are a good half dozen other powerful pairings.
Best Uncommon Commander Payoffs
Partner and Backgrounds
In these spaces, where you’re matching two commanders or a commander and a legendary enchantment, sometimes you just really need to dip into another color to build your deck. Piecing together a couple uncommon partners offers a lot of customization to deckbuilding.
Powered Down Options for Your Favorite Decks
Uncommon legends are a useful way to power down what would otherwise be a higher-bracket deck. For example, your Birgi, God of Storytelling deck could look to Wiccan, Young Avenger to be slightly less busted.
Your Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait deck would be fairer with Tannuk or Tatyova at the helm.
Or your go-wide Winota, Joiner of Forces deck could be lead by Arabella, Abandoned Doll to keep up the pressure without cheating mana costs.
Can a Commander Be Uncommon?
Yes! As long as the uncommon creature is legendary it can command your 99. A regular, nonlegendary uncommon can command your forces in Pauper Commander, but that’s a different format with different rules.
Commanding Conclusion
Tannuk, Memorial Ensign | Illustration by David Auden Nash
I probably like these cards more than most. It reminds me of the build-around cards from the early days of Magic. I get a bit tired of WotC printing the perfect mythic commander answer to our favorite decks and everything at the LGS being the same thing, it makes me want to go back to the PreDH days before Commander was official.
I’d love to see people mix it up. And I’d love to see uncommon-commanders-only nights once in a while. How about you? Are you on this hype train, or is it back to Atraxa, Praetors' Voice for you?
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