+1/+1 counters are placed on creatures, and add a point each to that creature's power and toughness. They're by far the most common sort of counter in Magic, and have been part of the game since Alpha (see Sengir VampireSengir Vampire).

These power and toughness altering counters show up everywhere in Commander, from mana dorks like Gyre SageGyre Sage to sacrifice outlets like Carrion FeederCarrion Feeder.

Counters are often stacked up high on one creature, like with Mossborn HydraMossborn Hydra. With enough counters, this creature can win the game in just a few attacks. Counters can also be scattered across multiple creatures by an effect like Gavony TownshipGavony Township to achieve a similarly potent board state.

Every color has access to +1/+1 counters. They're a fundamental part of the game, after all! But each color utilizes those counters in a different way.

Let's see what makes each one unique.

White

White does a fantastic job at both producing and taking advantage of +1/+1 counters. We can suit our creatures up with counters using Felidar RetreatFelidar Retreat, turn counters into card advantage with Exemplar of LightExemplar of Light, and even save our counter-ified creatures from removal with Together ForeverTogether Forever.

While isn't necessary for a +1/+1 counters deck, it does provide a lot of tools to help us develop a powerful board state.

Green

This color is the best for +1/+1 counters in Commander. We can turn counters into mana with Incubation DruidIncubation Druid, generate absurd amounts of counters with Managorger HydraManagorger Hydra, and even draw extra cards with TerrasymbiosisTerrasymbiosis.

even provides access to counter doublers like Loading ZoneLoading Zone, further cementing its status as top dog in this strategy.

Red

This color may not get the same glory that and do, but has some fantastic synergies with +1/+1 counters too.

Caldera PyremawCaldera Pyremaw can shred opposing life totals if we put enough counters on it, Inti, Seneschal of the SunInti, Seneschal of the Sun hands out +1/+1 counters like candy, and The Red TerrorThe Red Terror turns those counters directly into damage.

There's a lot to love here, even if other colors have an easier time making counters.

Blue

Blue also does a nice job with +1/+1 counters. It's even got a doubler with Deepglow SkateDeepglow Skate. Beyond that, though, we can grant our creatures evasion with Herald of Secret StreamsHerald of Secret Streams or selectively wipe the board with Wave GoodbyeWave Goodbye.

Blue decks can't produce counters as easily as green  or white decks can, but they've still got some sweet payoffs.

Black

Among 's best cards for this strategy are Drana, Liberator of MalakirDrana, Liberator of Malakir, Mikaeus, the UnhallowedMikaeus, the Unhallowed (particularly good in combo decks), and Vincent ValentineVincent Valentine.

Black is sadly the worst color for +1/+1 counters. That's not to say it's bad, but just doesn't stand up well when compared to the other four colors.

Now that we know what each color can do with +1/+1 counters, let's build a deck. We'll be building a Bracket 2 list with no Game Changers so that we can show off as many unique cards as possible in the 99.

and are the best colors by far for a +1/+1 counter deck, but we'll be using just one of them to keep things interesting. Today's deck will be focused on Cleopatra, Exiled PharaohCleopatra, Exiled Pharaoh, a super cool commander from Assassin's Creed that focuses on both +1/+1 counters and legendary creatures.

There were some other great options, though, and I encourage any of you who are looking for a new +1/+1 counter commander to check out EDHREC's tag pages.

Cleopatra can put counters on our legendary creatures easily, but she only hands out one counter to two creatures every turn. That's not enough for us. So we're going to hand out counters on landfall with Bristly Bill, Spine SowerBristly Bill, Spine Sower, put counters on our whole board with Emissary GreenEmissary Green, and even spread counters around with Forgotten AncientForgotten Ancient.

Once we've got counters on all of our creatures, we can proliferate to increase their effectiveness. Agent Frank HorriganAgent Frank Horrigan is a huge beater that makes the rest of our board super effective.

Vraska, Betrayal's StingVraska, Betrayal's Sting is a fantastic planeswalker that proliferates, removes problematic creatures, and can even win us the game with her ultimate.

We've even got removal spells like AtomizeAtomize that add counters to our stuff as a neat bonus.

Another interesting inclusion is Vadmir, New BloodVadmir, New Blood. While this Outlaws of Thunder Junction card isn't blowing anyone's hair back, it's a nice way to mitigate the life loss that Cleopatra inflicts upon us as we draw cards from her ability. Vadmir even gets an additonal +1/+1 counter if we choose to place a counter on an opponent's creature with Cleopatra.

Speaking of placing counters on opposing creatures, Chevill, Bane of MonstersChevill, Bane of Monsters encourages us to do just that. Bounty counters aren't as popular as +1/+1 counters, but they give us an easy way to suit up our opponents' creatures with counters so that we can draw extra cards.

For players looking to do that more often, Generous PatronGenerous Patron may be a nice inclusion. The 99 we're building here goes in a different direction, though, focusing more heavily on putting +1/+1 counters on our own creatures.

To quote the fine folks over at Loading Ready Run, "A big creature is its own reward." But we can do a little bit more with our +1/+1 counters.

Kodama of the West TreeKodama of the West Tree lets each of our creatures search up a land every time they deal combat damage to an opponent. This is fantastic in the early- and mid-game, where mana is at a premium. This Spirit is a bit less powerful in the later stages of a Commander game, but it provides our modified creatures with trample to make up for that fact.

I've also included Innkeeper's TalentInnkeeper's Talent, one of the best Class enchantments we've got access to. This two-drop produces +1/+1 counters, protects our important creatures, and eventually doubles all of our counter generation. What more could we possibly ask for from a single card?

We've got lots of ways to turn +1/+1 counters into extra mana, like Rishkar, Peema RenegadeRishkar, Peema Renegade and Kami of Whispered HopesKami of Whispered Hopes. Lots of our legendary creatures, like the aforementioned Agent Frank Horrigan, have restrictively high mana costs. Ramp spells like Rishkar and the Kami can help us cast those scary spells ahead of schedule.

We've also got The Earth CrystalThe Earth Crystal on hand to reduce the cost of our spells while increasing the amount of +1/+1 counters we put on our creatures. Each of the legendary Crystals is great in their own right, but the green version is a perfect fit in our 99.

A lot of the best cards in our 99 are legendary creatures, which works extremely well with Cleopatra.

This subtheme is supported by cards like Delighted HalflingDelighted Halfling (to make our legendary spells uncounterable), Vraska Joins UpVraska Joins Up (for some extra card advantage), and Nasty EndNasty End (for a big burst of card draw when paired with our commander.

Other Cleopatra decks could lean even harder into the legendary creature theme, including cards like Animist's MightAnimist's Might and Interceptor, Shadow's HoundInterceptor, Shadow's Hound. That sort of deck is beyond the scope of this article, but there's some cool cards out there for pilots that choose to go in this direction.

It's a recent release, but I'd still like to advocate for Super ShredderSuper Shredder. Permanents leave the battlefield all the time during a Commander game, and a mono- Aristocrats deck would be particularly well positioned to add tons of counters to this Mutant Ninja Human.

Riku of Many PathsRiku of Many Paths is also fantastic. Built as a hybrid Spellslinger and +1/+1 Counters deck, Riku becomes a potent Voltron threat fast. He even gives himself trample, making it much easier to take out opponents with commander damage.

I often slot Essence CaptureEssence Capture into my +1/+1 counter decks in place of CounterspellCounterspell. While it's not quite as powerful as everyone's favorite spell, Essence Capture does let us add a +1/+1 counter to one of our creatures upon resolution.

That sort of synergy is exactly what I look for as I build out my interaction suites.

For decks that go wide, I want to suggest Generous PupGenerous Pup. This two-drop can generate a boatload of +1/+1 counters over the course of a game. If we've got just five creatures on the battlefield, even a single counter placed on Generous Pup can turn that middling board state into a terrifying one.