There are a lot of tribes in Magic: The Gathering, but not all of them are great for Commander. Thankfully, we’re talking about Elementals today, and they’re absurdly good in the format.
The best Elementals in Commander also happen to be an excellent selection of different Commander choices for the most part too, so this list should inspire you.
The 10 best Elementals in Commander
Risen Reef is our shoutout for today. For three mana, you get a green and blue 1/1 that reads, “Whenever Risen Reef or another Elemental enters the battlefield under your control, look at the top card of your library. If it’s a land card, you may put it onto the battlefield tapped. If you don’t put the card onto the battlefield, put it into your hand.” It’s easy to see why this one is one of the best Elementals in Commander, but we don’t think it’s quite in the top 10.
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10 – Omnath, Locus of the Roil
Our first Omnath is Omnath, Locus of the Roil. While as a commander this card could be far higher up the list, as an Elemental not in a dedicated tribal deck it’s not as powerful. This Omnath is a four mana green, blue, and red 3/3 that deals damage to any target equal to the number of Elementals you control as it enters. On top of that, it also allows you to put a +1/+1 counter on an Elemental you control when a land enters, and then draw a card if you control eight or more.
9 – Horde of Notions
Horde of Notions costs one of each mana, and is a 5/5 with vigilance, trample, and haste. As with Locus of the Roil, they’re incredible in an Elemental deck, but not as useful on their own. You can pay one of each mana to cast an Elemental card from your graveyard for free though, so when they’re good they’re great. They also look cool, which helps.
8 – Maelstrom Wanderer
Maelstrom Wanderer is a card that’s good as long as you’ve got the mana to cast it. It costs eight mana, and is a blue, red, and green 7/5. It not only gives all of your creatures haste, but also has cascade twice. That means that whenever you cast it, you’re likely going to be bringing in three different creatures, all of which can attack immediately. It’s silly in the best way.
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7 – Forgotten Ancient
For four mana, Forgotten Ancient is a green 0/3. Obviously though, there’s far more to it than that. You see, it gets a +1/+1 counter on it every time any player casts a spell, which means it can end up very large very quickly. Not only that though, at the beginning of your upkeep, you can also move any number of those counters onto other creatures as you please. It’s great in +1/+1 counters decks, but is also just great in general.
6 – Omnath, Locus of Rage
Our second Omnath is Omnath, Locus of Rage. This is the seven-mana red and green 5/5 variant. This one spits out 5/5 Elementals whenever you play a land, which is already very potent. On top of that, it also allows you to deal three damage to any target whenever it or another Elemental you control dies. It means you can shoot down any pesky threats as long as you can kill off the tokens it makes.
Read More: Best Starter Commanders – Omnath, Locus Of Rage
5 – Yarok, the Desecrated
Yarok, the Desecrated is another excellent choice as a commander. This time around though, it’s not all about being an Elemental, because that’s not what their ability is focused on. Instead, this five mana black, green, and blue 3/5 has deathtouch and lifeline. Along with that, it reads, “If a permanent entering the battlefield causes a triggered ability of a permanent you control to trigger, that ability triggers an additional time.”
4 – Roil Elemental
We’re finally back onto a nonlegendary Elemental again. Roil Elemental is a six-mana blue 3/2 with flying. It has a landfall ability that reads, “Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, you may gain control of target creature for as long as you control Roil Elemental.” Stealing stuff in Commander is great, but stealing stuff just because you played a land card is even better.
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3 – Muldrotha, the Gravetide
Muldrotha, the Gravetide is a six-mana black, green, and blue 6/6. It allows you to play one permanent of each type from your graveyard in each of your turns. Basically, it’s one of the best cards around for pure recursion, because it requires so little work to make it pay off. Plus, because it says play and not cast, it means you can re-use your fetch lands with ease too.
2 – Animar, Soul of Elements
Our penultimate choice is Animar, Soul of Elements. This three-mana blue, red, and green 1/1 is a powerhouse. It’s the kind of card that other cards dream of being, well, aside from our number one. It has protection for white and black, and gets a +1/+1 counter on it whenever you cast a creature spell. Then, it makes every creature spell you cast cost one mana less for each counter on it. See, that’s absurd.
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1 – Omnath, Locus of Creation
Finally, we have Omnath, Locus of Creation. This four-mana red, green, white, and blue 4/4 lets you draw a card as it enters the battlefield. Along with that, it reads, “Whenever a land enters the battlefield under your control, you gain 4 life if this is the first time this ability has resolved this turn. If it’s the second time, add one red, green, white, and blue mana. If it’s the third time, Omnath deals 4 damage to each opponent and each planeswalker you don’t control.” It’s so easy to benefit from this thing and it fits into a bunch of different strategies as a result.
