Lorehold, the HistorianLorehold, the Historian | Art by Joshua Raphael

Secrets of Strixhaven previews have concluded, and while the volume of new legends you can build Commander decks around is more at a "normal" level compared to the recent Universes Beyond sets, there is still enough of them that it can take a bunch of time to digest and ponder their uses.

I'm here to help with that! I've got over 30 years experience playing multiplayer Magic, and nearly 18 years playing and writing about EDH/Commander. So I combed through the list and leveraged my expertise to highlight twelve new legends that stand head and shoulders above the rest in terms of power, fun, or both.

We were first introduced to this world back in 2021 with Strixhaven: School of Mages, and it's wild that we're already back for another round! For longtime Commander fans who were around for the first time around, it was incredibly cool that the legends who founded the five schools were all Elder Dragons, harkening back to the early days of the format when it was called Elder Dragon Highlander (EDH).

It's good news that the five Dragons are now back in new form, and most of them are powerful and cool enough to make this list.

The Strixhaven school bell is due to ring soon, so let's get to it!

The Copy Instant or Sorcery Trio

Having an ability attached to your commander to copy spells is quite powerful, and Secrets of Strixhaven brings us not one, not two, but three such new legends, so I've grouped them together in one section to kick things off.

Silverquill, the DisputantSilverquill, the Disputant

Each of the new Elder Dragons adds cool keywords to instant and sorcery spells you cast, and Silverquill, the DisputantSilverquill, the Disputant tacks on casualty 1. When you cast the spell, you can sacrifice a creature with power one or greater, and if you do you get to copy that spell. Given that Silverquill is in Orzhov () colors, it's easy to slot in a bunch of Aristocrats' style sacrificial fodder like Doomed TravelerDoomed Traveler, Orzhov EnforcerOrzhov Enforcer, and Ministrant of ObligationMinistrant of Obligation.

What about the instant and sorcery spells we're copying? Whatever floats your boat! What I love about this design is just how customizable you can make it, from expected spells like Secure the WastesSecure the Wastes and Night's WhisperNight's Whisper, to wild choices like Will of the MarduWill of the Mardu and Storm HerdStorm Herd.

Aziza, Mage Tower CaptainAziza, Mage Tower Captain

Aziza, Mage Tower CaptainAziza, Mage Tower Captain brings the copy party over to Boros () in a way that's certainly outside of the typical aggro Boros approach. You want to have two other creatures available to tap with Aziza in order to copy the spell, which puts a crimp in your attacking style... unless you lean hard into vigilance creatures.

It's important to note that Aziza's effect is what taps the creatures, so it doesn't matter if they have summoning sickness or not. In what will be a reoccurring theme in this column, this design is amazing in how open ended it is; you can choose your standard fare of utility spells like Swords to PlowsharesSwords to Plowshares and Rip ApartRip Apart, or lean into a particular theme like token synergies or graveyard shenanigans.

Mica, Reader of RuinsMica, Reader of Ruins

Mica, Reader of RuinsMica, Reader of Ruins brings the copy angle to mono-red, suggesting a unique blend of Spellslinger and artifact sacrificial fodder. Generating Treasure is quite easy these days, with Storm-Kiln ArtistStorm-Kiln Artist being a slam-dunk inclusion for this deck.

There are a ton of cheap artifacts that generate value when they enter and go to the graveyard that will fit, like Ichor WellspringIchor Wellspring and Prized StatuePrized Statue, and I can't wait to see what bonkers spells people will copy with Mica - Hit the Mother LodeHit the Mother Lode springs to mind!

Moseo, Vein's New DeanMoseo, Vein's New Dean

Having a Bird Skeleton Warlock as your new dean is a bit spooky, but at least they bring a cute new Pest token along with them! Moseo, Vein's New DeanMoseo, Vein's New Dean doesn't ask much from your deckbuilding: gain life during your turn, and have creature cards in your graveyard to bring back to life with the infusion trigger.

Cards like Creeping BloodsuckerCreeping Bloodsucker and Whip of ErebosWhip of Erebos can get the infusion party started, on up to casting Gray Merchant of AsphodelGray Merchant of Asphodel, or sacrificing Kokusho, the Evening StarKokusho, the Evening Star... and getting it right back with Moseo!

Muddle, the Ever-ChangingMuddle, the Ever-Changing

Otter fans rejoice! Not only do we get a cute critter with Muddle, the Ever-ChangingMuddle, the Ever-Changing, it's a great card to craft a fun and uniquely "you" deck around. All you'll need are your favorite creatures with enters (or leaves the battlefield) abilities, and then your favorite spells to get Muddle to copy one of the creatures and then attack with the myriad trigger.

Personally, I'm looking forward to having Muddle copy a MulldrifterMulldrifter, letting me draw a bunch of cards from the myriad copies when Muddle attacks. The new Emeritus of IdeationEmeritus of Ideation is a wild choice - cast Ancestral RecallAncestral Recall to trigger Muddle to copy Emeritus, then attack and the three myriad copies of Emeritus will let you cast Ancestral during your attack step up to three times.

Or how about Torrential GearhulkTorrential Gearhulk for a late-game punch?

Killian, Decisive MentorKillian, Decisive Mentor

The Orzhov color combination has dabbled in Aura synergies, but what I really like about Killian, Decisive MentorKillian, Decisive Mentor is how it encourages aggressive play by neutralizing a potential blocker by tapping it and goading it, and letting you draw a card when one or more creatures enchanted by Auras you control attack.

Having that draw trigger from attacking, not from combat damage, makes it quite powerful and is why Killian 2.0 lands on this best-of list. You can lean into the goading with Ghoulish ImpetusGhoulish Impetus and Eye of NidhoggEye of Nidhogg; and you can play sticky Auras like Gift of ImmortalityGift of Immortality and Angelic DestinyAngelic Destiny.

There are some awesome new cards to add to the mix in Changing LoyaltyChanging Loyalty and Eiganjo DynastorianEiganjo Dynastorian.

Witherbloom, the BalancerWitherbloom, the Balancer

I've been a fan of the Golgari () color combination since before Commander was even dreamed about, but I've found the designs in recent years uninspiring and have instead become a fan of Gruul . Witherbloom, the BalancerWitherbloom, the Balancer brings me enthusiastically back to Golgari by exemplifying the beating heart of what I love about Commander: awesome creatures, plus big splashy spells.

Not only does Witherbloom give your instant and sorcery spells affinity for creatures, it itself has affinity for creatures, which leads to an ideal turn sequence. Have at least five creatures on the battlefield and you can cast Witherbloom for three mana, and then you'll have a whopping six or more mana discount for some big and splashy instant or sorcery you can then cast.

I'm actually working on a deck tech for Witherbloom, so stay tuned for that, but I'll give you one sneak preview: Stinging StudyStinging Study!

Quandrix, the ProofQuandrix, the Proof

Similar to Witherbloom, Quandrix, the ProofQuandrix, the Proof also has the same keyword it gives to instant and sorcery spells you cast from your hand, the incredibly fun and powerful cascade. So you get value when you cast Quandrix from its cascade trigger, and later on you'll get to cast instant and sorcery spells with cascade.

Notably, this adds some constraints to deckbuilding since you'll not want to play too many narrow reactive spells like CounterspellCounterspell that you'll end up cascading into. If you want to have some ability to counter spells you'll want them to be modal in nature so if you cascade into it you can choose other modes to still get that value; cards like Cryptic CommandCryptic Command and Mystic ConfluenceMystic Confluence.

This is definitely the kind of deck you'll want to have Seedborn MuseSeedborn Muse (if you're playing Game Changers) and Wilderness ReclamationWilderness Reclamation so you'll have mana to cast an instant or two during your opponents' turns!

Zaffai and the TempestsZaffai and the Tempests

The text box on Zaffai and the TempestsZaffai and the Tempests is absolutely eye-popping, but for seven mana you've got to expect a powerful effect. I imagine high Bracket Zaffai decks will stuff their 99 full of extra turn spells; how about Time StretchTime Stretch for free?

Other big spells you could look to are Call Forth the TempestCall Forth the Tempest, Mnemonic DelugeMnemonic Deluge, and the new Improvisation CapstoneImprovisation Capstone.

Orysa, Tide ChoreographerOrysa, Tide Choreographer

Don't get too hung up on the mana reduction part of this card, because Orysa, Tide ChoreographerOrysa, Tide Choreographer is basically a MulldrifterMulldrifter you have in the command zone! You can certainly lean into high toughness creatures if you want, and I think at a minimum you'll want to run Charix, the Raging IsleCharix, the Raging Isle as Orysa's faithful pet.

You could even run this as a Merfolk deck with a bunch of ways to boost the size of your Merfolk, like Master of the Pearl TridentMaster of the Pearl Trident, Vodalian HexcatcherVodalian Hexcatcher, and Merfolk SovereignMerfolk Sovereign to work towards that cost reduction.

But you can also just play your favorite pile of blue cards and include ways to blink your commander and keep the card drawing value train rolling; cards like Essence FluxEssence Flux, Ghostly FlickerGhostly Flicker, and Displacer BeastDisplacer Beast.

Blech, Loafing PestBlech, Loafing Pest

Blech, Loafing PestBlech, Loafing Pest makes it on the fun side rather than the powerful side of the list since it presents a cool deckbuilding challenge. Namely, can you surround a pile of Pest, Bat, Insect, Snake and Spider cards with a lots of little gain life triggers to grow the nuisance critters into game-winning threats?

You can chain lifegain pings with cards like Cauldron of EssenceCauldron of Essence, Mirkwood BatsMirkwood Bats, and South Wind AvatarSouth Wind Avatar. Notably, Blech can buff itself, so can you really describe it as "loafing?"

Nita, Forum ConciliatorNita, Forum Conciliator

While playing with other players' spells is awkward if you're playing over an internet service like Spelltable, it's a fun way to play in person since each game plays out so differently depending on the deck mix you're playing against. Nita, Forum ConciliatorNita, Forum Conciliator brings that strategy to Orzhov in a bundle of abilities that presents a very interesting deckbuilding challenge.

The card wants you to go wide with lots of creatures so the +1/+1 counters can make your small army large and threatening, but it also wants to sacrifice a creature to dip into the instant and sorcery spells your opponents might have lurking in their graveyard. Cauldron of SoulsCauldron of Souls jumps to mind, since giving persist to a creature you're going to sacrifice is quite nice when you'll eventually give it a +1/+1 counter to cancel out the -1/-1 counter.

Breach the MultiverseBreach the Multiverse, aside from just being a very powerful late game card, is going to be excellent for stocking your opponents' graveyards with juicy targets for Nita.

The Challenge! Page, Loose LeafPage, Loose Leaf

Before I wrap up, I wanted to call out Page, Loose LeafPage, Loose Leaf. While not technically on my list of the best new commanders from this set, I do think it presents a very interesting deckbuilding challenge that a few folks will no doubt find impossible to resist.

I imagine you'll want to start with some way to neutralize the legend rule, like Mirror BoxMirror Box and Mirror GalleryMirror Gallery, and ways to copy Page, like Sculpting SteelSculpting Steel and Helm of the HostHelm of the Host. Then you'll want to return the original Page to your hand with something like Erratic PortalErratic Portal, and then discard it to a Page copy's grandeur ability to randomly find an instant or sorcery spell (moving your commander to the command zone when it hits the graveyard).

Going to all that trouble you'll want to be sure those colorless instant or sorcery spells are all bangers! Cards like All Is DustAll Is Dust, Desecrate RealityDesecrate Reality, or Rise of the EldraziRise of the Eldrazi. Even when you can't pull together the shenanigans, Page is a two-mana creature that taps for a colorless mana, which is pretty sweet all on its own.

Which new legends from Secrets of Strixhaven are you most excited about building new Commander decks around?

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