You’ve faced the competitive Commander (cEDH) decks that win on turn 3 but cost thousands of dollars. Even optimised decks that run a Mana Crypt, Deflecting Swat or Teferi’s Protection all contribute to a very expensive deck. But do you really need to break the bank to deploy a powerful Commander deck?
One of the best things about Magic is its long history and enormous card pool that the Commander format can tap on. There are thousands of Commons, Uncommons, and even bulk Rares and Mythic Rares that have no other great purpose other than fitting in with a specific Commander.
We sifted out 8 Commanders that are not only cheap themselves, their main deck doesn’t require expensive cards to run smoothly. Although these are not tier 1, “cEDH”- level decks, you’ll find that most of these budget Commander decks have a paper price of US$30-90, and can be used for months or longer because they are fun and hold their own at the table.
At such a low price point, there’s way less risk of playing a Commander even if it doesn’t do well for you. Try any one of these budget Commanders out, and we promise it’ll be worth your time and money:
Feather, the Redeemed Budget Commander
One of the most effective Boros Commanders out there that is both lethal and difficult to deal with is Feather, the Redeemed. For just 3 Mana, Feather is 3/4 Flying Creature that is already hard for opponents to block. Her unique ability of bringing back any Instants or Sorceries that target her back to your hand means you can keep reusing those spells turn after turn, as long as you have the Mana.
Cards such as Infuriate, Defiant Strike often have no presence in other constructed formats, and being plentiful Common cards, they are all easily obtainable and cheap. A good Feather deck could hold up to 30-40 Instants and Sorceries, and this particular one comes in at less than US$40:
Feather, the Redeemed is a powerful budget Commander because of the immense value she can get, easily being able to deal 21 Commander damage in 1 or 2 turns. When cards like Expedite lets you draw a card as well, you’re getting card advantage every time you cast it on Feather.
There are also a great many protection spells that make getting rid of Feather a nightmare. There’s God’s Willing, Sheltering Light, and Adamant Will that either give protection or Indestructible, and the best part is that they cost pennies or even given away at the local game store.
If there is a drawback, it’s that Feather, the Redeemed is still essentially a Voltron-style Commander, and if you don’t protect her well and she gets taken out, all those Instants and Sorceries become redundant until Feather hits the Battlefield again. This is why you’d want to have backup Creatures such as Firebrand Archer and Guttersnipe that can deal direct damage to all opponents.
Feather, the Redeemed is a great budget Commander that can be a real force if piloted correctly, just be patient when casting her out and always keep up Mana for protection.
Uril, the Miststalker Budget Commander
Another Voltron-style Commander that comes in a different form is Uril, the Miststalker. Instead of Instants and Sorceries, Uril makes uses of Enchantment Auras to give permanent benefits to your Commander. Uril is a 5/5 for 5 Mana, but it’s also one of the rare few that have the Hexproof ability, meaning opponents cannot target it with spells or abilities.
And just like unwanted Instants and Sorceries, Auras are also under utilised in other formats (except perhaps Bogle in Modern) because you are putting all your assets on 1 Creature that could be removed down the road. Uril, the Miststalker‘s Hexproof makes it a much more viable threat, and although it doesn’t have blue in its identity, you can still use cards like Adamant Will and Karametra’s Blessing in the likelihood that opponents will use mass removal spells that can sidestep Hexproof.
Here’s an example of an Uril deck that costs only US$80:
With 30+ Enchantment Auras to cast onto Uril, the Miststalker, it gets big real fast. Just a single Aura that grants a +2/+2 buff makes Uril a 9/9 Creature, thanks to Uril’s personal increased strength. Slap 2 Auras and it becomes 11/11 or bigger. If you have Rancor or any other Aura that grants Trample, that’s almost nothing that can stop your Commander from dealing 21 lethal damage to an opponent.
Having Trample is key for Uril’s success. Without it, some Creatures like Fog Bank can block Uril all day, or other Creatures with protection from green will simply absorb the damage. Make sure to pack sufficient removal cards, mostly in red and white like Chaos Warp or Lava Coil, to get rid of any obstacles.
Like Feather, the Redeemed, Uril, the Miststalker is a big beast on steroids. The added Hexproof protection without the need for Swiftfoot Boots makes it an incredibly powerful but budget Commander.
Sarulf, Realm Eater Budget Commander
Sarulf, Realm Eater is a ticking time bomb, a great political tool, and relies on big Creatures or Sarulf itself to whack opponents. It has the unique ability of removing all +1/+1 counters on it during your Upkeep, and Exiling every other non-Land Permanent on the Battlefield. That includes Mana Artifacts like Sol Ring, Planeswalkers and Enchantments as well.
To keep Sarulf, the Realm Eater growing, this US$30 budget deck packs lots of targeted or mass removal. Then there’s Blossoming Defense and Snakeskin Veil to give it temporary Hexproof. Once Sarulf has enough counters, unleash it for a massive board wipes, leaving itself alive.
There are big Creatures in the deck such as Meteor Golem, and you could add others that have 6 or more Mana Value, such as Beanstalk Giant or Annoyed Altisaur, which also Cascades into another card. Use Sarulf to clear the field of enemy blockers, and swing with your big Creatures for the win.
Syr Konrad, the Grim Budget Commander
You don’t often see Uncommons are prominent Commanders, but Syr Konrad, the Grim is not only cheap but an Uncommon that is exceptionally strong thanks to his ability to ping each opponent from life whenever any Creature dies, is milled, or leaves your Graveyard. That is a very wide net that can trigger many times in a table with 4 Commander players.
Since Syr Konrad wants to get cards in and out of the Graveyard, this US$60 budget Commander deck does exactly that using effects that either force players to Sacrifice their own Creatures, or to Mill their Libraries. There’s the trusty Fleshbag Marauder, Merciless Executioner and Plaguecrafter to do that, and if everyone complies, each opponent will be taking 4 damage.
Then there are other cards to support Syr Konrad, the Grim‘s efforts, with Zulaport Cutthroat, Blood Artist and Grim Haruspex performing very similar damage dealing whenever an opponent’s Creature dies.
If the opponent has run out of Creatures, then you could simply activate Syr Konrad’s Mill ability. Doing that not only causes them life when a Creature gets pulled into the Graveyard, you get to reanimate whatever Creatures go into your own Graveyard, thus dealing even more damage. Woe Strider has Escape, while Unearth and Call of the Death-Dweller can be very effective.
Being mono black, you can rely on cheap ramp Artifacts to cast Syr Konrad, the Grim as quickly as possible. After that, get the Creatures rolling into and out of the Graveyard, and you’ll soon see how powerful his ability can be despite being a budget Commander.
Hinata, Dawn-Crowned Budget Commander
For a time during the release of Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty, Hinata, the Dawn Crowned was the darling of the Commander. Its ability to reduce the cost of your spells while taxing the opponent’s sounded very powerful. Indeed it is, and while Hinata has faded in the shadows thanks to new Dominaria United and Warhammer Commanders stealing the limelight, it is still 1 of the best budget Commanders out there.
The reason why Hinata, Dawn-Crowned can be a budget Commander is because most spells with X in its casting cost tend to be pretty cheap. Hinata especially cares for those that has X possible targets, such as Rolling Thunder, Mass Manipulation and Curse of the Swine.
When you can cast a card like Sublime Ephiphany, countering a spell, drawing a card, bouncing a Permanent, and creating a copy of a Creature, for only 2 Mana, you have a sense of how strong Hinata can be. You can build a deck with just a budget of US$60:
It also becomes very easy to protect Hinata, Dawn-Crowned since counter spells also get a cost reduction. Negate only costs a single blue Mana, exactly the same as March of the Swirling Mists regardless of how many Creatures you need Phased out.
This deck also takes advantage of several Creatures with the Mutate alternative cost. Since Mutate involves targeting 1 of your existing Creatures, it enjoys the cost reduction that Hinata, Dawn-Crowned affords. For example, it now costs a single blue Mana to Mutate Sea-Dasher Octopus. This is a more balanced use of Hinata compared to the other X-spells we mentioned above, but it still produces a lot of value that can prove impactful in the long game.
Isshin, Two Heavens as One Budget Commander
Isshin, Two Heavens as One is the attack-oriented cousin to Yarok, the Desecrator, relying on combat triggers to get extra value. Whenever any attack trigger happens, as long as Isshin is on the Battlefield, that effect triggers an additional time. You get double the value at no extra cost.
Again, because Creatures with attack triggers are often overlooked in competitive decks, the prices of these cards are kept low and make Isshin, Two Heavens as One a perfect budget Commander. Being in aggressive black, red and white colours also gives lots of options, such as Audacious Thief that draws cards, Leonin Warleader that creates tokens, and Brutal Hordechief that pings every opponent.
This budget US$90 deck also includes a good number of Enchantments that also trigger when one of your Creatures attack. Mardu Ascendancy puts more attackers onto the field, and Campaign of Vengeance is the Enchantment equivalent to Brutal Hordechief.
You can also attempt to get extra combat steps through cheaper options such as Relentless Assault and Resurgence, or the new red Creature Karlach, Fury of Avernus.
The main pitfall for this deck, and many other budget Commanders, is that the game plan rests solely on their shoulders. Without Isshin, Two Heavens as One on the board, each attack trigger feels lacking and won’t do enough across the play table. You’ll also have to protect your other Creatures too, since Isshin will be relying on their attack triggers to create a foothold in the game.
Isshin, Two Heavens as One takes a while to snowball, but once it gets rolling, it’s an unstoppable budget Commander.
Torbran, Thane of Red Fell Budget Commander
Many people will point out to Zada as one of the cheapest mono red Commanders to build. However a spicier budget Commander can be found in Torbran, Thane of Red Fell, perfectly designed to do the thing that red does best – burn.
Since each player starts with 40 life, it doesn’t make sense to burn opponents 1 by 1. Multi-pingers like Thermo Alchemist, Firebrand Archer, and Kessig Flamebreather are all cheap and powerful staples in a Torbran deck. Direct burn spells such as End the Festivities and Fiery Confluence do massive damage when the Commander is out.
A budget deck can be built with only US$40, and even includes stax Enchantments like Mana Barbs and Sulfuric Vortex that are sure to scald every player. You won’t find Blood Moon in such a deck, but in red there’s a long list of cheap burn spells that you can slot in. Hungry Flames and Forked Bolt are examples of spells that have multiple targets, and each will receive 2 additional damage if Torbran, Thane of Red Fell is on the board.
The deck is not as reliant on its Commander as some of the other budget ones in this list, but having Torbran on the field will at least double its potency, and can wipe out multiple opponents in a single wave of fire.
Mairsil, the Pretender Budget Commander
As one of the very first Commanders created for the annual preconstructed decks, Mairsil, the Pretender doesn’t get a lot of attention thanks to her other more prominent brethren like Breya, Etherium Shaper, and Atraxa, Praetor’s Voice. But Mairsil is not a slouch as she’s able to continually tap on the abilities from any card that she Exiles.
This particular US$65 deck deploys uses cheap control cards to keep any threats at bay, while waiting patiently for its infinite combo. The combo pieces Blood Pet, Triskelion and Endling are all less than a dollar, and gives Mairsil the ability to ping infinite damage to your opponents.
There are the cheap but dependable blue Auras like Frogify, Kasmina’s Transmutation, and Deep Freeze that can nullify enemy Commanders. Plus the usual package of Negate, Mana Leak and Saw it Coming should be efficient enough against other budget Commander decks.
Because this Mairsil, the Pretender build relies on an infinite combo, its game plan is to deny opponents from casting or drawing cards, while using filter spells like Unexpected Windfall, Faithless Looting and Cathartic Reunion to find the key combo pieces.
Mairsil, the Pretender may look weak at 1st glance, but can be strong in many ways, and doesn’t cost much to build as a budget Commander.
End Step
From what we’ve seen, cheap doesn’t have to mean weak, as exemplified from the 8 budget Commanders here. They won’t be the absolute most powerful Commanders out there, but considering the price of a full deck, they can still do serious damage at the game table, and may even walk away with a win.
Are there other budget Commanders that you think deserves a shout out? Let us know at let@tapandsac.com.
