Of all the many, many archetypes available in Commander, Tokens is perhaps the most consistently popular. The idea of flooding the board with tiny creatures has a timeless appeal, and the archetype has received consistent support over the years to do far more than that.
Thanks to this ample support, there are plenty of options for Token Commanders, to an almost overwhelming degree. To help you navigate this crowded market, we’ve assembled our picks for the best Token Commanders in all of MTG.
6 | Adrix And Nev, Twincasters
A big part of the appeal of the Token archetype is its doubling cards, like Doubling Season and Parallel Lives, which really let the deck go over the top. Adrix and Nev gives you a cheap token doubler right out of the command zone, making it a hugely exciting option for Token players.
This is good with any token producers, but it’s particularly great with those that make multiple tokens, like Hornet Queen, or big tokens, like Reef Worm. It also lets you go hard with cards that create token copies of your actual creatures, like Springheart Nantuko.
Like most token doublers, Adrix and Nev doesn’t just stop at creatures, but can double all token types. This lets you go crazy with Treasure generators like Tireless Provisioner, or Food synergy pieces like The Cabbage Merchant. By accommodating other token types like this, Adrix and Nev give you a lot more options than just going wide.
Adrix and Nev even enable a range of combos, including infinite token Deadeye Navigator loops, and instant wins with Biovisionary. Whether you want to play fair or unfair, with creatures or artifacts, this dynamic duo has something for you.
5 | Zurgo Stormrender
Recent MTG Commanders are often accused of being enablers and payoffs in one, and Zurgo, Stormrender fits that description to a tee. Not only does he create tokens himself, but he rewards you with both draw and mass damage when they die, depending on the circumstances.
The draw is particularly relevant here, since aggressive Token decks often find themselves running out of steam post-board wipe. With sacrifice outlets like Goblin Bombardment to guarantee draw, Zurgo gets around that problem with ease. The drain also serves as a very viable win condition, essentially giving you a Blood Artist in the command zone to close out games.
With token doublers like Elspeth, Storm Slayer, and trigger doublers like Teysa Karlov, Zurgo becomes a genuinely terrifying threat. You can even lean into Mobilize as a sub-theme, with cards like Firebender Ascension for extra tokens, and Voice of Victory for bonus triggers.
4 | Krenko, Mob Boss
Goblins have been part of Magic since the very beginning, but the type really came into its own with the printing of Krenko, Mob Boss. This absurd legend is not only the best Goblin Commander in MTG by far, but one of its best Token Commanders, too.
It’s easy to go wide with Goblins using token producers like Howlsquad Heavy, giving Krenko a fantastic base. This can result in a truly ridiculous level of token production, which in turn enables quick kills with Impact Tremors and Purphoros, God of the Forge. Even without these cards, a couple of Goblin lords like Rundvelt Hordemaster can turn your fresh tokens into a lethal board regardless.
Krenko is also well-stocked with infinite combos too, including looping itself with Skirk Prospector, and making infinite tokens with Thornbite Staff and a sacrifice outlet. When paired with its high baseline power, this makes Krenko a legitimate threat at every Commander bracket up to four.
3 | The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl
Squirrel Girl might be brand-new, but it’s also clearly one of the best Token Commanders MTG has ever seen. Like a Mono-Green Krenko for Squirrels, she lets you double your tokens via her activated ability. Unlike Krenko, however, Squirrel Girl doesn’t need to tap to do so, which gives her a lot more infinite combo potential.
It’s almost insultingly easy to pop off with Squirrel Girl, by using cards like Phyrexian Altar or Earthcraft to activate her ability repeatedly. There are also infinite death loops with Nim Deathmantle and Ashnod’s Altar available, giving her more angles of attack.
While these combos are definitely the big draw with Squirrel Girl, she can play a fair game well, too. Making Squirrels on entry and attack is solid, and being in green lets her access the token doublers that Krenko missed out on. Throw in Craterhoof Behemoth and friends, and ‘legitimate’ wins are very much on the table here.
2 | Marneus Calgar
Of all the Token Commanders in MTG, Marneus Calgar undoubtedly has the best competitive pedigree. This Warhammer banger sees regular play all the way up in cEDH, on account of its potent combination of abilities. Serving as an easy draw engine in the command zone is strong in itself, but Marneus backs that up with an infinite mana outlet to boot.
By itself, Marneus can easily draw through your deck to pull off combo wins with Thassa’s Oracle by activating its ability repeatedly. It also plays brilliantly with all the efficient token producers in cEDH, like Orcish Bowmasters and Lotho, Corrupt Shirriff. All of this has given the card a solid niche in cEDH, which is something very few Commanders can claim.
Marneus is even better in the lower brackets, where its abilities let you play a strong grindy game by keeping your hand and board well-stocked. Thanks to the ‘one or more’ clause, cards that create multiple instances of tokens, like Pitiless Plunderer, are ideal pairings. You can also pull off easy infinites with that activated ability, with cards like Ashnod’s Altar and Nadir Kraken.
1 | Baylen, The Haymaker
Sneaking unceremoniously into the Bloomburroow main set, Baylen, the Haymaker is the most pushed Token Commander we’ve ever seen by far. For just three mana, it gives you an immediate, instant-speed way to convert your tokens into advantage. Generally those first two abilities, the draw and the mana production, are all you need to dominate games.
These abilities let you sit back and hold the fort with your token board, only tapping them down when you need to. When paired with mass untappers like Drumbellower, you can even grind out advantage on each opponent’s turn. Since Baylen works with all tokens, you can also invest in wide boards of Food or Clues with cards like Farmer Cotton to better recover from board wipes.
Factor in that third ability, which lets Baylen go tall as well as wide, and you have one seriously flexible Commander. Whether you want to go all-in on creatures, diversify into artifacts, or even play a fun Hare Apparent build, the options here are as varied as they are powerful. Baylen is the current Token king of MTG, and it’ll take a seriously impressive challenger to dethrone him.
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