MTG: HIDE YOUR SHINY THINGS – Top 5 Goblin Commanders
When it comes to horde tactics, Elves and Soldiers aren’t bad, but there’s really no one better than the Goblins.
Welcome Planeswalkers and Praetors to our ongoing series about the best casual experience in Magic: Commander. For the uninitiated, Commander is a semi-casual format for Magic: the Gathering. You use a deck of 100 cards led by a legendary creature, aka, your Commander.
Aside from basic lands, you are only allowed one copy of each card in the deck. Moreover, you can only include cards in your Commander’s “color identity” or artifacts. Each color and color combo has a unique playstyle and a wealth of mighty generals to lead your deck to victory. EDHRec.com is an excellent source for Commander info and can give you ideas to build your next Commander deck or tune an existing one.
For the most part, Goblins are just silly little guys. They don’t get much bigger than 3 or 4 power, and apart from haste, they’re mostly harmless. However, get enough of them together, and they can become a REAL problem. Even better, they can usually catapult themselves at your opponent’s head, meaning they don’t even have to attack to get the damage through. If you see one of these Commanders across the table, you might want to get out a calculator.
Krenko, Mob Boss
Probably no surprise to see this iteration of Krenko holding the top spot. Krenko can double up your Goblins at lightning speed, and with just a little extra help, he can make you an infinite army. Add in some typal buffs like Coat of Arms or some combat doublers, and you’ll have an unstoppable army in no time.
Wort, Boggart Auntie
Less of a horde leader and more a recursion boss, Wort lets you pull Goblins out of your graveyard at the beginning of your turn. There are plenty of reasons outside of combat for Goblins to end up in the yard, like the aforementioned launch, so she’s great for keeping your army well-stocked. Plus, in Rakdos colors, you get access to some of the more hilarious Goblins, and you can pull off some incredible tricks.
Muxus, Goblin Grandee
Now THIS is when the horde goes crazy. Muxus lets you cheat out Goblins, then gets stronger whenever he attacks the more you have. With so many ways to make Goblin tokens in Red, you’ll have a powerhouse creature in no time. Just sprinkle in a little evasion and turn Muxus into a tiny green sniper rifle.
Zada, Hedron Grinder
If there’s anything Goblins love (other than mayhem), it’s making a lot of something. While Zada doesn’t make you more Goblins per se, he does make all your instant and sorcery spells target EVERYTHING you control. That means all your fast buffs hit your entire field, and all your protection shields all of them as well. Since Goblins are usually present in ridiculous numbers, that means a lot of spells. Pack this deck full of buff instants, and watch the fur fly.
Purphoros, God of the Forge
Purphoros is not a Goblin, obviously, but he does make them a lot better. Whenever a creature hits the battlefield, Purphoros makes sure ALL your opponents feel it. Since Goblins love to make more and more of themselves, Purphoros will be raining a firestorm down on your opponents. Once your army is large enough, Purphoros has a nifty secondary ability to buff their teeth, turning 20 1/1 creatures into a potential 60 damage source.
What do you think of these Commanders?
