EDH: Top 5 Worst Recent Commanders for Multiplayer

Commander is currently the favorite casual format for Magic players. It's wonderful how much each player who plays and manages to extract the maximum potential from somewhat exotic, legendary creatures.

The format was made for you to exercise your creativity with thousands if not millions of possible combinations to differentiate the game and make it more fun, and that's why it's so loved.

But not everything is a thousand wonders, even in Commander. As already seen, some of the worst legendary creatures to be commanders, showing creatures who are pretty bad from a general point of view.

Today we are going to see something similar, but with legendary creatures which were printed recently: with the famous rare seal and even with the recent legendary permanent border that resembles the shape of a crown. We will see some creatures who, despite being legendary, are not as powerful as others in EDH.

Also, unlike the other article, this time I was more specific with not only picking modern creatures, but also picking ones that have abilities. That is, our friend Yargle, Glutton of Urborg, despite being from Dominaria, will not be on the list because we all know that there are better options in black than a legendary vanilla.

It is important to point out that, as previously mentioned, the game is completely free to be played in the way the player sees fit! This article just rounds up a few creatures that probably aren't meant to be commanders, and might even work better as one of the 99.

In possible cases, cards with similar effects and even substitutes will also be shown. But nothing prevents anyone from going against the trend and deciding to build a deck of the aforementioned creatures. So consider that when choosing the creatures below!

Atris, Oracle of Half-Truths

Atris, Oracle of Half-Truths appeared in 2020, in Theros: Beyond Death. It's a very similar card to Fact or Fiction, even having the same cost, but not the same result. In addition to this effect of possible one to three cards in hand, we have a 3/2 body with Menace. So far, it's a decent card, with no relevant effects other than its entering the battlefield effect.

What puts Atris on our list is the fact that your opponent will look at the cards in your deck, separate them into two piles, and in one of the piles you don't know what awaits you. This makes him somewhat dubious of being in the command zone.

In most cases, leaving decisions to your opponents doesn't seem advantageous, even more so in a situation where you don't know what's coming, and you have to rely on luck or good will.

Obviously, in a Commander geared around him, we have the blue color offering blink features with cards like Thassa, Deep-Dwelling and even top-of-the-deck reshuffling and access to black with cards like Reanimate in case creatures go to the graveyard.

But having all that work to play around the commander and having some sort of advantage seems a bit too strenuous considering other cards in the scenario that could similarly benefit you with a similar theme, such as Oskar, Rubbish Reclaimer, for example. For these reasons, Atris, Oracle of Half-Truths finds itself on our list.

The Raven Man

The Raven Man is an iconic character in Dominaria United. In his first appearances, there were several theories about who he was and what his intentions were with the planeswalker Liliana Vess. But we're here to talk about him as a card!

For two mana we have a 2/1 human wizard that generates more bodies if any player discards a card at the end of each turn. Despite spawning 1/1 creatures with flying, they can't block, so they can have another purpose, like sacrifice or attack, for example.

His ability for four mana would also be more interesting if it didn't have the sorcery-speed limitation. If his ability was a Syphon Mind, The Raven Man wouldn't even be being considered here.

Within the black deck archetype in Commander, we have a variety of more effective creatures. The most famous is Tergrid, God of Fright, who is well known for being a very cruel commander in EDH.

Tinybones, Trinket Thief and even Tourach, Dread Cantor are more viable options as a replacement for The Raven Man, having the same mana cost.

Gorion, Wise Mentor

Let's go on a controversial adventure with Gorion, Wise Mentor. This friendly human wizard's copying adventure theme seems to offer excellent value, but the adventure mechanic itself isn't very interesting on its own in Commander, and most adventure-type spells don't offer anything too threatening even if it's copied.

Of course, we can count on interesting interactions, like drawing cards with Vega, the Watcher or even copying the spell again with Errant, Street Artist (which by the way could also be on this list), but not much is expected from a Lucky Clover that is 3/4 with vigilance, as only instants or sorceries are copied with Gorion.

With the release of Wilds of Eldraine this year, it's possible that the Adventure deck will be stronger and more consistent, but that's something that only the future can tell. As for what we have today, unfortunately the archetype doesn't help much.

Satsuki, the Living Lore

Satsuki, the Living Lore is as controversial a choice as Gorion's Wise Mentor. She was the first commander with direct interaction with Saga-type enchantments, and her low-cost and first ability are pretty eye-catching.

But her effect, which only happens when the creature dies, is somewhat inconvenient, since this can either increase its cost the next time it is cast, or the need for cards to recover it from the graveyard to be played again. Some sagas would solve this, such as Elspeth Conquers Death. But in the same way that adventure-type spells aren't so scary in multiplayer, we can say the same about the green and white combination for Sagas.

The theme of enchantments in this color combination isn't new, taking Sythis, Harvest's Hand as an example. Unlike Sythis, Satsuki interacts directly with sagas, and we have few in that color that offer real risk. We even have some more boring ones, like Fall of the Thran or Jugan Defends the Temple, but between offering little or no risk, it's more viable to go for another line.

Even with these problems, the dream of a saga-themed deck is not dead yet. Especially with Tom Bombadil, which offers all the colors for the archetype and makes Satsuki, the Living Lore a great card among the 99 in this future deck.

Even though she is not a good commander, she will be a great card alongside the storyteller bard.

Dorothea, Vengeful Victim

Dorothea, Vengeful Victim is definitely a card that shouldn't be in the command zone. It's a very strong statement, but let's face it, paying two mana to then wait for her to attack or block, and then pay three more for her to become Dorothea's Retribution, is extremely unnecessary work, since you can only save all this effort running Geist of Saint Traft.

There was already a card that "did the same" as the Geist, which is Invocation of Saint Traft, and here Dorothea is yet another attempt to rescue the ability of this iconic creature.

It is worth remembering that it is very noticeable that at no time was she created to be a commander, since there is a legendary creature that literally does the same and even better.

It is understandable that both Dorothea and Invocation of Saint Traft are cards that more rescue the flavor of Geist of Saint Traft than actually being a possible substitute. It might be interesting to run a challenge among friends and see how much you can get out of it, but I can tell you that it's a lot of effort for little reward.

In Commander, almost anything is possible. Building decks and mechanics and seeing them put into action is definitely where the fun of the format lies, so as much as they tell you that what you use is bad or that there is something better, remember that while you are having fun, that's all that matters, after all, Magic is a game, and games are made for our entertainment!

And you, would you put together a deck of the commanders shown above, just to prove that they are really worth it? Or do you know any commanders who are just as weird, if not worse, than the ones above? Share with us!