How to Build a Commander Deck (EDH Guide)

I built my first Commander deck in 2019 with a pile of cards from a draft box and a Muldrotha, the Gravetide I pulled from a pack. It was terrible. Sixty lands, twenty creatures that did not work together, and zero card draw. I lost every game for a month. But that process—figuring out why the deck did not work and learning how to fix it—taught me more about deckbuilding than years of playing Standard ever did. This guide is everything I wish someone had told me before I sleeved up that pile.

Commander is Magic's most popular format for good reason: 100-card singleton, multiplayer politics, and the freedom to build around almost any legendary creature in the game. Whether this is your first deck or your fifteenth, the fundamentals below apply to every Commander build.

The Rules

Before we get into deckbuilding, here are the core rules that shape every decision:

• 100 cards total — 99 in your library plus your commander in the command zone
• Singleton — only one copy of each card except basic lands
• Color identity — every card in your deck must share the color identity of your commander. Color identity includes mana symbols in the card's mana cost AND rules text. A card with a red activation cost cannot go in a mono-green deck.
• Starting life: 40 — double the normal amount. This is why aggro is harder in Commander: you have to deal 120 total damage across three opponents.
• Commander damage — 21 combat damage from a single commander is lethal, regardless of life total. This is why Voltron (suit-up-and-swing) strategies exist.
• Command zone — your commander starts in the command zone and can be cast from there. Each time it dies or is exiled, you can send it back to the command zone, but it costs 2 more each time (the "commander tax").

Step 1: Choose Your Commander

Your commander is the only card you are guaranteed to have access to every game. It defines your strategy, your colors, and your power level. I have found that the best commander choices share three traits:

Clear Build Direction

The best commanders tell you what to do. Krenko, Mob Boss says "make Goblins." Meren of Clan Nel Toth says "sacrifice creatures and bring them back." Talrand, Sky Summoner says "cast instants and sorceries." If you read a commander and immediately have ten card ideas, that is a good sign. If you read it and feel confused about what the deck wants to do, keep looking.

Two or Three Colors

Mono-color commanders limit your card pool significantly. Five-color commanders give you access to everything but create manabase nightmares (and expensive ones). Two or three colors hits the sweet spot: enough card diversity to build multiple versions of the deck, but a manageable mana base. In my experience, the best first commanders are in Simic (green-blue), Golgari (green-black), or Orzhov (white-black)—these color pairs have excellent staples at every price point.

Accessible Card Pool

Some commanders require expensive staples to function. Others thrive on budget cards. Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait draws cards just by playing lands—every basic land in your deck becomes a cantrip. Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver generates tokens from Zombies dying, and there are dozens of budget Zombies available. Lathril, Blade of the Elves can be built for $30 and still win games. All three have preconstructed decks available as starting points, which I strongly recommend for first-time builders.

Step 2: Build Your Mana Base

The mana base is where most first-time Commander builders go wrong. In a 99-card singleton deck with two or more colors, you cannot afford to stumble on mana. I have played against decks with incredible strategies that lost because they could not cast their commander on turn five.

How Many Lands?

Start with 36–38 lands. Here is how I adjust from there:

• Low curve (avg mana value under 3): 34–36 lands with 12+ cheap ramp sources
• Average curve (3.0–3.5): 36–37 lands with 10–12 ramp sources
• High curve (3.5+): 37–38 lands with 10+ ramp sources
• Landfall decks: 38–40 lands because lands ARE your strategy

Our Mana Base Calculator handles this math precisely—paste your Moxfield or Archidekt link and it runs 50,000 simulated games against your exact decklist.

Fixing Your Colors

In a two-color deck, start with these lands (budget alternatives in parentheses):

• Command Tower — produces any color in your identity. Auto-include.
• Shock land (e.g., Overgrown Tomb) — fetchable, untapped for 2 life
• Check lands (e.g., Woodland Cemetery) — free if you control the right basic type
• Fast lands (e.g., Blooming Marsh) — free on turns 1–3
• Pain lands (e.g., Llanowar Wastes) — always untapped, 1 damage per colored use
• Exotic Orchard — usually produces your colors in a multiplayer game

For three-color decks, add fetch lands if your budget allows, plus triomes (fetchable three-color lands). Always include 8–12 basic lands for cards like Cultivate and Kodama's Reach. See our Dual Land Cycles Guide for every option.

Step 3: The 10-10-10 Framework

This is the framework I use for every Commander deck I build. It ensures your deck functions before you add your fun cards:

10 Ramp Sources

Ramp gets you ahead on mana. In a format where everyone starts at 40 life, the player who reaches 6–7 mana first usually dictates the game.

• Sol Ring — the best card in Commander. Always include it.
• Arcane Signet — two mana, produces any color in your identity
• Signets and Talismans — Dimir Signet, Talisman of Dominance, etc. Two-mana rocks that fix colors.
• Cultivate / Kodama's Reach — find two basics, one to hand, one to play. Essential in green decks.
• Nature's Lore / Three Visits — two mana to find a Forest (or a shock land with Forest type) untapped
• Fellwar Stone / Mind Stone — budget two-mana rocks that do the job

In green decks, lean toward land-based ramp (Cultivate, Rampant Growth) because lands are harder to remove than artifacts. In non-green decks, you are stuck with mana rocks—run 12–14 to compensate.

10 Card Draw Sources

Running out of cards in Commander means sitting and watching other people play. I would rather lose than spend four turns topdecking.

• Cheap staples: Night's Whisper, Sign in Blood, Read the Bones (black); Ponder, Preordain, Brainstorm (blue); Harmonize, Beast Whisperer (green)
• Engines: Phyrexian Arena, Sylvan Library, Coastal Piracy, Guardian Project—cards that draw repeatedly over multiple turns
• Burst draw: Rishkar's Expertise, Pull from Tomorrow, Stinging Study—big refills when you need them
• Note: Rhystic Study and Mystic Remora are extremely powerful card draw but are designated Game Changers—not allowed in Brackets 1–2 and limited in Bracket 3

10 Removal/Interaction

You need answers to threats. In a four-player game, someone will play something that needs to die immediately.

• Targeted removal: Swords to Plowshares, Path to Exile, Generous Gift (white); Pongify, Rapid Hybridization, Reality Shift (blue); Go for the Throat, Infernal Grasp (black); Chaos Warp, Abrade (red); Beast Within, Nature's Claim (green)
• Board wipes: Wrath of God, Damnation, Blasphemous Act, Cyclonic Rift (Game Changer). Run 2–3 board wipes minimum.
• Counterspells (if in blue): Counterspell, Negate, Swan Song, Arcane Denial
• Artifact/enchantment removal: Vandalblast, Return to Nature, Austere Command

A common mistake is skipping removal to fit more strategy cards. I have learned that the deck with 10 removal spells wins more games than the deck with 10 more synergy pieces, because in a four-player game, threats come from three directions.

Step 4: Fill Your Strategy Slots

With ~37 lands, ~10 ramp, ~10 draw, ~10 removal, and your commander, you have about 32 slots for cards that execute your game plan. Here is how to think about those slots by archetype:

Creature-Based Strategies (Tokens, Tribal, Voltron)

Fill with creatures and support. For a Zombie tribal deck under Wilhelt: 20–25 Zombies that work with death triggers, plus 7–12 payoff cards (Diregraf Captain, Plague Belcher, Rooftop Storm). For Voltron: 15–20 equipment/auras and 12–15 creatures that benefit from being suited up.

Spellslinger (Instants/Sorceries Matter)

Run 25–30 instants and sorceries with 10–15 payoffs for casting them (Guttersnipe, Archmage Emeritus, Storm-Kiln Artist). Your card draw doubles as strategy here—blue draw spells trigger your payoffs.

Combo

Include your combo pieces plus redundancy and ways to find them. If your win condition is a two-card combo, run tutors (Demonic Tutor, Vampiric Tutor—both Game Changers) or redundant pieces. Be aware that infinite combos push you into Bracket 3 or higher.

Power Level and Brackets

Commander uses an official 5-bracket power level system (currently in WotC beta) to help players find games at similar intensity. Certain powerful cards are designated as Game Changers—they are not allowed in Brackets 1–2 and limited to 3 per deck in Bracket 3. The current Game Changers list has 53 cards and is updated every 3–4 months.

• Bracket 1 — Exhibition: Theme decks, chair tribal, art tribal. No Game Changers, no infinite combos, minimal tutors. The goal is expression, not winning.
• Bracket 2 — Core: Precon-level power. Common staples like Sol Ring and Swords to Plowshares, basic synergies, but no Game Changers. Most LGS casual pods land here.
• Bracket 3 — Upgraded: Stronger than precons. Efficient interaction, synergy combos, up to 3 Game Changers (Rhystic Study, Demonic Tutor, Cyclonic Rift, etc.). The most common power level at organized events.
• Bracket 4 — Optimized: High power. Fast mana, efficient infinite combos, heavy tutoring, no Game Changer limit. Decks here are built to win consistently but may not be running the absolute most competitive list.
• Bracket 5 — cEDH: Fully competitive. Mana Crypt, Mana Vault, free counterspells, the fastest combo wins available. Tournament-level play where every card is chosen for maximum efficiency.

Use our Commander Bracket Calculator to estimate where your deck lands. It analyzes your decklist for Game Changers, combo density, tutor count, mana curve, and 14 synergy axes to place you in the right bracket.

The Commander Tax and Why It Matters

Every time your commander dies or gets exiled to the command zone, it costs 2 more to cast next time. A 5-mana commander that dies twice now costs 9 mana. This has real deckbuilding implications:

• Protect your commander — run Lightning Greaves, Swiftfoot Boots, or Tyvar's Stand in decks that depend on their commander surviving
• Cheap commanders recover faster — a 2-mana commander can be recast at 4 mana after one death. A 6-mana commander recast at 8 is devastating.
• Build resilience — your deck should function without your commander on the battlefield. If removing your commander shuts off your entire strategy, you need more redundancy in the 99.

Multiplayer Politics

Commander is a multiplayer format, and that changes everything about how you play. I have won games where I was the weakest player at the table just by making the right deals.

• Threat assessment matters. Do not attack the player with no board. Attack the player who is about to combo off.
• Hold removal for real threats. Do not waste a Swords to Plowshares on a 3/3 when someone else is about to play a game-ending threat.
• Communicate your power level. Before the game starts, use the bracket system to set expectations. Nothing ruins a pod faster than a Bracket 4 deck at a Bracket 2 table.

Budget Tips

I have built competitive Bracket 2 and Bracket 3 decks for under $50. Here is how:

• Start with a precon. Preconstructed Commander decks cost $40–$50 and include a playable mana base, a commander, and a coherent strategy. Upgrade 10–15 cards and you have a solid deck.
• Budget staple swaps. Night's Whisper instead of Rhystic Study. Rampant Growth instead of Three Visits. Go for the Throat instead of Fatal Push. The budget versions are 80% as effective at 10% of the cost.
• Invest in mana first. Good lands improve every single game. Buy shock lands, pain lands, and Command Tower before you buy expensive strategy cards.
• Buy singles, not packs. Cracking packs is fun but terrible value for deckbuilding. Identify the 30 cards you need and buy them individually.
• Check multiple vendors. Prices vary 20–40% between TCGplayer, Card Kingdom, and local stores. Our Price Checker can help compare.

Related Guides

Master your mana base with our Manabase Guide featuring Frank Karsten's math. Compare every dual land cycle in the Dual Land Cycles Guide. Understand the Commander Bracket system and check the full Game Changers list. Read how we built the Bracket Calculator for the technical methodology.

Common First-Deck Mistakes

I made every one of these with my Muldrotha deck. Learn from my pain:

• Too many expensive cards. If your average mana value is over 4.0, your deck will spend the first four turns doing nothing while opponents develop their boards.
• Not enough lands. 33 lands is not enough for a deck with a 3.5 average mana value. You will miss land drops and fall behind.
• No card draw. "My strategy is my card draw" is a trap. When your strategy gets disrupted, you need backup card draw to recover.
• Zero interaction. Skipping removal to fit more synergy pieces means you have no answer when an opponent plays a game-ending threat.
• Too many pet cards. Every card needs to earn its slot. If a card does not advance your strategy, draw cards, ramp you, or remove threats, cut it.

Upgrading Your Deck Over Time

The best Commander decks are not built in a day. I have been upgrading my Muldrotha deck for three years, and it has gone from a Bracket 2 pile to a focused Bracket 3 machine. Here is the upgrade path I recommend:

Month 1: Fix the Mana Base

Replace tap lands with pain lands and check lands. Add Command Tower if you do not have one. Ensure you have Sol Ring and Arcane Signet. This single change will improve every game you play.

Month 2–3: Improve Card Draw and Removal

Replace inefficient draw spells with better ones. Swap Divination for Night's Whisper. Add targeted removal like Swords to Plowshares or Beast Within. Cut board wipes that cost 6+ mana for ones that cost 4–5.

Month 4–6: Refine Your Strategy

Now cut the cards that do not advance your game plan. Every card should either: advance your strategy, draw cards, ramp, or remove threats. If a card does not fit one of those categories, cut it. This is where the deck starts to feel cohesive instead of random.

Month 6+: Optimize

Add your first Game Changers if you want to move to Bracket 3. Upgrade ramp to faster options. Replace generic good cards with cards that specifically combo with your commander. This is also when you start cutting lands if your curve has dropped — a deck with an average mana value of 2.8 does not need 38 lands.

Building for Specific Power Levels

I build differently depending on which bracket I am targeting:

• Bracket 2 target: No Game Changers. No infinite combos. Keep average mana value above 3.0. Run 37–38 lands. Focus on fun, splashy cards over efficiency. Accept that your deck will sometimes stumble — that is the point.
• Bracket 3 target: Pick 1–3 Game Changers that match your strategy. Add focused tutors (non-Game-Changer options like Diabolic Tutor are fine). Lower your curve to 2.8–3.2. Run 36–37 lands with better duals. Include a defined win condition.
• Bracket 4 target: Remove all restraints. Run the best tutors, the best fast mana, the best interaction. Curve should be 2.2–2.8. Include at least one compact combo win condition. Test against other Bracket 4 decks and cut cards that underperform.

Use our Bracket Calculator at each stage to verify you are hitting your target bracket.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many lands should a Commander deck have?

Most Commander decks run 36–38 lands, plus 10–12 ramp sources (mana rocks and ramp spells). Lower-curve decks (average mana value under 3) can go as low as 33–35 lands with more cheap ramp. Higher-curve or landfall decks may want 38–40 lands. Use our Mana Base Calculator for precise recommendations.

What is the best ratio of ramp, draw, and removal in Commander?

A solid starting point is the 10-10-10 rule: 10 ramp sources, 10 card draw sources, and 10 removal/interaction pieces. With about 37 lands and your commander, that leaves roughly 32 slots for your deck’s strategy. Adjust based on your commander — spellslinger decks want more draw, while green decks lean into ramp.

How do I choose a commander for my first EDH deck?

Pick a commander that excites you and has a clear build-around strategy. Good first commanders have straightforward abilities, are in 2–3 colors (for deck-building flexibility without mana base complexity), and have plenty of budget-friendly support cards. Popular starters include Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait (Simic landfall), Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver (Dimir zombies), and Lathril, Blade of the Elves (Golgari elves).

What is the commander tax?

Each time your commander leaves the battlefield and returns to the command zone, it costs an additional 2 generic mana to cast. A 4-mana commander costs 6 after one death, 8 after two, and so on. This is why cheap commanders (2–3 mana) are often considered stronger—they recover from removal more easily.

What are Game Changers in Commander?

Game Changers are a list of 53 powerful cards designated by Wizards of the Coast as part of the Commander Bracket system. They include cards like Rhystic Study, Cyclonic Rift, Demonic Tutor, and Mana Crypt. Game Changers are not allowed in Brackets 1–2 and limited to 3 per deck in Bracket 3. Brackets 4–5 have no Game Changer limits. The list is updated every 3–4 months.