BiorhythmBiorhythm | Art by Ron Spears

Welcome to Too-Specific Top 10, where if there isn’t a category to rank our pet card at the top of, we’ll just make one up! (Did you know that Svella, Ice ShaperSvella, Ice Shaper is the only commander with green in its color identity that will let you choose from multiple cards to immediately cast for free, without a mana value restriction?)

They finally ripped the band-aid off, and BiorhythmBiorhythm is unbanned. Still, so what? It's not like it's any good, right?

Well, maybe it is? At eight mana to cast, the old mantra of "this card should win you the game" applies. So, the natural question is: What commanders win you the game when you resolve BiorhythmBiorhythm?

I've heard a lot of possible strategies over the years when Biorhythm's banning has come up, and most of them have situated around wiping the board. So, what commanders wipe the board?

Top 10 Green+ Commanders That Wipe the Board

1. Child of AlaraChild of Alara
2. Polukranos, World EaterPolukranos, World Eater
3. Shattergang BrothersShattergang Brothers, I guess?
4. Arashi, the Sky AsunderArashi, the Sky Asunder
5. ...

Yeah, I know. I thought there were like 30 commanders that wipe the board as well. It turns out, however, that pretty much all the examples you're thinking of (Toxrill, the CorrosiveToxrill, the Corrosive, Piru, the VolatilePiru, the Volatile, Rakdos, the ShowstopperRakdos, the Showstopper, Archangel AvacynArchangel Avacyn...) are non-green. Meaning, they can't play BiorhythmBiorhythm.

The list of green commanders does get a little bigger if you include spot removal, but even then, pretty much all of them are expensive or use an expensive ability to remove creatures, meaning you'd have to pay a bunch of mana to clear the board, then cast an eight-mana spell.

In other words? I think that particular boogeyman has been way overhyped. Which is not the same thing as saying I don't think there's a few strategies with BiorhythmBiorhythm that couldn't work.

Top 10 Green Commanders That Cause Mass Direct Damage, Life Loss, or Evasion

Criteria: Commanders with green in their color identity that can deal direct damage to each opponent or player, life loss to each opponent or player, or that can give multiple creatures you control evasion of some kind.

As is tradition, all results are ordered by EDHREC score, although in this case we're going by number of decks helmed by each commander.

10. Dina, Soul SteeperDina, Soul Steeper

(Helms 8,359 Decks, Rank #248; 31.8K Inclusions, 1.85% of 1.72M Decks)

While not quite "have your commander on board, resolve BiorhythmBiorhythm, and win!" Dina, Soul SteeperDina, Soul Steeper does synergize fairly well with Biorhythm in a couple different ways.

The first is both the most cool, and also the least likely. Technically, if you were in a situation where you had less life than creatures on board, then Biorhythm's effect would have your life total increase. That increase? Yes, it's technically life gain, per the rules. In other words, you would trigger Dina, and have all your opponents lose a life. Is that one life loss likely to win you the game? No.

Assuming most opponents will have a healthy amount of 5-10 creatures in a game that has gone on long enough for you to resolve an eight-mana spell, you're probably going to have to trigger Dina several times. As a Lifegain deck, this shouldn't be that hard to do, although it will probably cost mana.

What's even better, however, is that you're likely to win the longer the game goes on anyhow, as you'll have drained your opponents to a low life total and you, the Lifegain deck, will be gaining life once more.

All in all, Dina could be all right with Biorhythm, but will probably need significant build-around. Tons of ramp you wouldn't otherwise play, and probably a bunch of lifelink creatures in addition to the Blood ArtistBlood Artist effects you're already playing.

In other words, I think you'd be better off just keeping your Aristocrats deck an Aristocrats deck, and winning with said Blood Artist effects.

9. Jetmir, Nexus of RevelsJetmir, Nexus of Revels

(Helms 9,384 Decks, Rank #199; 55.7K Inclusions, 5.84% of 955K Decks)

If there is a slam dunk out there for Biorhythm, it's probably Jetmir, Nexus of RevelsJetmir, Nexus of Revels. If you haven't ever seen a Jetmir deck, let me explain it for you: It's just... 30ish lands and 70ish mana dorks. That's it. That's the whole formula.

Okay, maybe you throw in some card draw too, but my point stands. All Jetmir wants to do is put a bunch of bodies on the board that also make a ton of mana, and then all of them become 4/1 vigilant, trampling double strikers.

The problem there, though, is that second number. 4/1's aren't going to stick around past your first alpha strike, so if you don't win outright, the chances are good that you're not going to do much the rest of the game. Biorhythm, then, could help with that situation, and increase the odds that once it resolves, your remaining creatures that didn't pay for its eight-mana cost can trample over for the win.

8. Eshki, Temur's RoarEshki, Temur's Roar

(Helms 10,501 Decks, Rank #173; 10.2K Inclusions, 1.75% of 582K Decks)

If Dina's multiple lifegain triggers feels like it's a lot to do after casting Biorhythm, then Eshki, Temur's RoarEshki, Temur's Roar is asking to move mountains. Finding eight mana is hard enough, finding six afterward before the table unites against you to kill you with your own reduced life total? Impossible.

7. Anikthea, Hand of ErebosAnikthea, Hand of Erebos

(Helms 12,581 Decks, Rank #127; 14.3K Inclusions, 1.74% of 823K Decks)

When you think of Anikthea, Hand of ErebosAnikthea, Hand of Erebos, Aggro is not usually what comes to mind. Instead, it's usually an intricate web of enchanment effects that mostly sit there despite the fact that they're 3/3s. With that said, four or five 3/3s with menace should be more than enough to finish off an average table after a Biorhythm resolves, and there is no shortage of ramp enchantments that will get you to eight mana.

In short, Anikthea can absolutely be built around Biorhythm, and the prospect feels a little scary.

6. Najeela, the Blade-BlossomNajeela, the Blade-Blossom

(Helms 12,960 Decks, Rank #117; 11.7K Inclusions, 2.20% of 534K Decks)

NajeelaNajeela, on the other hand, definitely falls more toward the Eshki side of the spectrum. Asking for WUBRG after spending eight mana on Biorhythm feels like way too much. And if you already have infinite mana, then you don't even need the big spell.

5. Omnath, Locus of CreationOmnath, Locus of Creation

(Helms 17,009 Decks, Rank #70; 16.4K Inclusions, 2.78% of 591K Decks)

Four to the face won't kill an entire table after a Biorhythm resolves, but it will probably kill at least one player. Combine that with Omnath, Locus of CreationOmnath, Locus of Creation paying for half of the cost of Biorhythm on your second land drop, and this deck feels like it wants this card, badly.

Just... try to land an Avenger of ZendikarAvenger of Zendikar or a Scute SwarmScute Swarm first.

4. Hearthhull, the WorldseedHearthhull, the Worldseed

(Helms 19,768 Decks, Rank #47; 10.8K Inclusions, 2.65% of 408K Decks)

As strong as Omnath, Locus of CreationOmnath, Locus of Creation feels, Hearthhull, the WorldseedHearthhull, the Worldseed might be even better with Biorhythm. Where Omnath tops out at four direct damage in a turn that's easily achievable after playing a huge spell, if you have a fully stationed Hearthhull out with a land-sacrifice outlet online and resolve Biorhythm, there is just no way you aren't winning that turn.

3. Kenrith, the Returned KingKenrith, the Returned King

(Helms 28,213 Decks, Rank #13; 17.1K Inclusions, 3.21% of 534K Decks)

When you think of Kenrith, the Returned KingKenrith, the Returned King, you generally think of five-color good stuff piles, not Aggro decks. With that said, if you can make a huge board state and get to nine mana, it seems very achievable to resolve a Biorhythm and then pay a to give all your creatures trample to swing in for the finishing blow.

There's probably better things to be doing, but isn't that always the case with Kenrith decks?

2. The Wise MothmanThe Wise Mothman

(Helms 29,939 Decks, Rank #10; 9.61K Inclusions, 1.06% of 910K Decks)

If you had a player on The Wise MothmanThe Wise Mothman after the Fallout decks came out (and let's be honest, everyone did), then you know how good this card is at stacking rad counters and making creatures huge.

With that said, Biorhythm does feel like a bit of a risk here. Don't get me wrong, Mothman is going to stack some counters on itself and just straight-up kill a player by flying over the top, but if you're counting on rad counters to kill the other two? That can be a tall order when everyone's deck is almost half lands.

Honestly, you're probably better sticking to chip damage, removal, and huge swings as your general Mothman plan.

1. Lathril, Blade of the ElvesLathril, Blade of the Elves

(Helms 30,307 Decks, Rank #9; 23.6K Inclusions, 1.38% of 1.72M Decks)

Lathril, Blade of the ElvesLathril, Blade of the Elves is the quintessential Elf-ball commander, despite not having the red in its color identity to actually cast FireballFireball. Play down a ton of mana dorks, make a bunch of Elf tokens, then tap them all in the late game to eventually drain everyone's life totals.

On the one hand, making that eventual life drain into a single turn after a Biorhythm sounds great, but is it actually that achievable? To cast an eight-mana Biorhythm, you're going to need several of those mana dorks, and what is the likelihood that you're then going to still have ten Elves to tap?

I'm not saying it's impossible, but it does feel a bit win-more.

Honorable Mentions

With that said, we've barely scratched the surface of decent BiorhythmBiorhythm commanders and strategies.

Our top ten didn't touch on even one of the mono-green options, despite there being dozens of commanders that can both assemble a 99 of massive creatures and then give them trample.

First on my list there is Kodama of the West TreeKodama of the West Tree, which will easily ramp you up to eight mana no problem, and then will also have your creatures be big enough in the moment to easily trample over for the win.

That said, Oviya, Automech ArtisanOviya, Automech Artisan's Elvish PiperElvish Piper ability can land LumraLumra, Cultivator ColossusCultivator Colossus, and Regal BehemothRegal Behemoth just as easily as it can Blightsteel ColossusBlightsteel Colossus, meaning that getting to eight mana in a deck built around doing so is no problem.

Finally, Ruxa, Patient ProfessorRuxa, Patient Professor decks thrive at doing nothing but playing down various GigantosaurusGigantosauruses, which means that getting to eight mana might be a struggle, but finishing off opponents once you resolve a Biorhythm won't be.

There are obviously more options with more colors, and one thing we didn't talk about was just overwhelming everyone. The best at that might just be the least imaginative Kinnan, Bonder ProdigyKinnan, Bonder Prodigy deck ever thought of, which is saying something. The idea of Kinnan making a lot of mana is part and parcel, meaning that casting Biorhythm won't be a heavy lift. But Kinnan also excels at loading the board down with creatures, ensuring that swinging in won't be an issue and neither will your life total after Biorhythm resolves.

Honestly, though, I think the even better option might be Choco, Seeker of ParadiseChoco, Seeker of Paradise, which will land you a whole bunch of lands every turn and also draw you a bunch of cheap Birds you can lay down to ensure you can fly over the top when the spell hits the fan.

My personal favorite for all this? Jaheira, Friend of the ForestJaheira, Friend of the Forest makes a ton of mana in a deck that is obviously going to play a ton of tokens, and has a ton of options available as backgrounds, from Passionate ArchaeologistPassionate Archaeologist to Noble HeritageNoble Heritage to Agent of the Iron ThroneAgent of the Iron Throne as finishers, to Guild ArtisanGuild Artisan, Feywild VisitorFeywild Visitor, and Cloakwood HermitCloakwood Hermit to go all in on the token plan.

Nuts and Bolts

There always seems to be a bit of interest in how these lists are made (this seems like a good time to stress once again that they are based on EDHREC score, not my personal opinion…), and people are often surprised that I’m not using any special data or .json from EDHREC, but rather just muddling my way through with some Scryfall knowledge! For your enjoyment/research, here is this week’s Scryfall search.

What Do You Think?

All in all, I have to say that personally, I am whelmed by the options BiorhythmBiorhythm presents. There's no question you can win games with it, and there are probably a ton of strategies to do so I didn't touch on at all today. But none of them grip me at all.

Like, I get it, but also, have zero interest in it, you know? But what about you?

And finally, what is your favorite BiorhythmBiorhythm commander option? What's the strategy you most want to pursue with it?

Let us know in the comments, and we'll see you at the table that just got its legs chopped off in what appears to be an uneven fashion.