The Cabbage MerchantThe Cabbage Merchant | Art by Patrick Gañas

Outside of commanders, creatures occupy a strange space in cEDH. The format is defined by fast mana, compact combos, and stack interaction — not by turning creatures sideways and throwing combat damage around the table until each opponents' life totals hit zero. And yet, many of the format's most game-defining permanents are creatures.

Averaging anywhere from 15-25% of the typical mainboard (depending on strategy and archetype), creatures are an integral part of the format that show up across games. What matters here isn't that they're efficient bodies (although, as we'll see, these cards are all pretty cheap), but rather the consistent value they generate.

This list will take a look at the ten best creatures in Commander, outside of the command zone.

#10 - Birds of ParadiseBirds of Paradise

First off, what would a format be without its mana dorks? Coming in at number ten is Birds of Paradise, arguably the best mana-value one mana producer of all time.

Simple, straightforward, and ruthlessly cost efficient, Birds of Paradise is the kind of slam-dunk auto-include that you don't even need to think about sleeveing up, because odds are that your deck already has it. It's like Sol RingSol Ring; if you're playing green, you're playing Birds of Paradise.

#9 - Enduring VitalityEnduring Vitality

Next up is a much newer, much more mana-intensive source of mana production that has exploded in popularity across the cEDH scene as of late: Enduring Vitality.

For , Enduring Vitality is a 3/3 Elk Glimmer enchantment creature with vigilance that grants creatures you control ": Add one mana of any color." Additionally, when it dies, if it was a creature, return it to the battlefield under its owner's control as a noncreature enchantment.

As we'll see with the rest of this list, the bulk of creatures in cEDH are played for reasons that have nothing to do with tapping. These aren't combat behemoths, or creatures that have their own abilities requiring in the activation cost. So, Enduring Vitality here can slot right in alongside your armada of perpetually untapped creatures to put them to work as mana producers.

#8 - MockingbirdMockingbird

Coming in as our only clone on the list is Mockingbird, a flexible creature that scales as the game goes and synergizes well with many of the format's other best cards.

For , Mockingbird is a 1/1 Bird Bard creature with flying that you can have enter as copy of any creature on the battlefield with mana value less than or equal to the amount of mana spent to cast Mockingbird, except it's still a Bird in addition to its other types and it still has flying.

So, why Mockingbird instead of, say, Phantasmal ImagePhantasmal Image or any of the other low-cost clones in cEDH? Well, it comes down to the margins.

For one, Mockingbird can clone other one-mana creatures for the lowest price in the format, just . Secondly, it can be searched for off of Ranger-Captain of EosRanger-Captain of Eos's enter trigger (more on that card in a bit), and, last but not least, whatever it copies counts as Bird, which can be untapped as part of Valley FloodcallerValley Floodcaller loops (also more on that later).

This all to say, while Mockingbird can sometimes cost more than Phantasmal ImagePhantasmal Image, the marginal benefits most definitely outweigh the costs.

#7 - The Cabbage MerchantThe Cabbage Merchant

Here at seventh place is the most recent addition to the format, as well as the first passive value engine on our list: The Cabbage Merchant.

For , The Cabbage Merchant is a legendary 2/2 Human Citizen creature with the triggered abilities "Whenever an opponent casts a noncreature spell, create a Food token," and "Whenever a creature deals combat damage to you, sacrifice a Food." The Cabbage Merchant also has "Tap two untapped Foods you control: Add one mana of any color."

I've said it before and I'll say it again: combat plays a pretty minor role in cEDH. What plays a much bigger role, however, is your opponents casting noncreature spells. With The Cabbage Merchant out, you can sit back and watch as you ratchet up mana production turn after turn, spell after spell, Food after Food.

#6 - Grand AbolisherGrand Abolisher

Here at sixth place, like Birds of ParadiseBirds of Paradise before it, is another example of a best-in-class effect that has plenty of parallels also rounding out cEDH deck lists. It's Grand Abolisher.

For , Grand Abolisher is a 2/2 Human Cleric that prevents your opponents from casting spells and activating abilities of artifacts, creatures, and enchantments during your turn. In practice, this usually means that Grand Abolisher resolves, then an un-interactable, game-winning combo follows shortly thereafter.

Similar staples include Hexing SquelcherHexing Squelcher and Voice of VictoryVoice of Victory, but neither rise to the same level of blanket protection that Grand Abolisher provides.

#5 - Ranger-Captain of EosRanger-Captain of Eos

Speaking of SilenceSilence effects, the card marking our halfway point brings its own take on defensive interaction to the mix: Ranger-Captain of Eos.

For , Ranger-Captain of Eos is a 3/3 Human Soldier that, when it enters, allows you to search your library for a creature card with mana value one or less and put it in your hand. Additionally, you can sacrifice Ranger-Captain to prevent your opponents from casting noncreature spells for the rest of the turn

A single turn with blanket protection a la Silence is usually all it takes to close out a game, so the value that Ranger-Captain's activated ability brings with it cannot be overstated. Cast it early on to find a value play, like MockingbirdMockingbird, then sacrifice Ranger-Captain on the turn you plan to win the game.

#4 - Valley FloodcallerValley Floodcaller

Alrighty folks, we've moved passed the majority of the list and have made it to the home stretch. Kicking us off here is the only card on our list that's part of a combo, and that's Valley Floodcaller.

For , Valley Floodcaller is an Otter Wizard with flash that enables you to cast noncreature spells as though they had flash. Additionally, whenever you cast a noncreature spell, you get to untap each Bird, Frog, Otter, and Rat you control, and they get +1/+1 until end of turn.

So, first off, why is Valley Floodcaller the one combo-piece on our list? Well, simply put, it's because this card is just so strong on its own that many decks run it as a single flash enabler, not as a combo component.

Thassa's OracleThassa's Oracle may be a great way to close out a game, but the actual card is terrible in a vacuum. Not so with Valley Floodcaller; cEDH's premier flash enabler, Borne Upon a WindBorne Upon a Wind, costs just one mana less, and that card has come to define the format without being a part of any combos.

All this to say, casting spells as though they had flash is absolutely worth the mana investment, regardless of the rest of the card's text.

Moving on to the marginal upside of Valley Floodcaller, let's look at a brief rundown of its combo with Banishing KnackBanishing Knack (or, alternatively, Retraction HelixRetraction Helix, as they're functionally identical).

1. With your non-summoning sick Valley Floodcaller in play, target it (or another non-summoning sick Bird/Otter/Rat/Frog you control) with either Banishing Knack or Retraction Helix.
2. Once the Knack/Helix has resolved, tap the creature the spell targeted in order to return a mana-positive artifact you control to your hand.
3. Cast the newly-bounced artifact, which will trigger Valley Floodcaller, untapping you tapped creature from step two.
4. Once the mana rock resolves, float some mana, then re-tap the Knack/Helix creature to bounce it again.
5. Rinse and repeat, creating infinite mana.

#3 - Ragavan, Nimble PilfererRagavan, Nimble Pilferer

Our third pick is the notorious Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer - a constructed staple that has (at least, for a time) dominated every format it has ever been legal in.

For , Ragavan is a 2/1 legendary Monkey Pirate creature with a dash cost of , meaning you can cast it for an alternate cost in order to give it haste until end of turn. If you do, return it to your hand at the end of turn. What really pushes it to playability, however, is its damage trigger: whenever Ragavan deals combat damage to a player, you create a Treasure token and exile the top card of that player's library. Until end of turn, you may cast that card.

Ragavan is a red mana dork that pressures life totals, banks mana turn after turn via Treasure tokens, and can form a steady stream of card advantage - all for just .

#2 - Orcish BowmastersOrcish Bowmasters

Our penultimate pick is a card that keeps just about every other creature in the format on a watch list, and that's Orcish Bowmasters.

For , Orcish Bowmasters is a 1/1 Orc Archer with flash and a gnarly triggered ability. "When Orcish Bowmasters enters the battlefield and whenever an opponent draws a card except the first one they draw in each of their draw steps, Orcish Bowmasters deals 1 damage to any target. Then amass Orcs 1." (To amass Orcs, first create a 0/0 Orc Army creature token if you don't already control an Orc Army. Then, place X +1/+1 counters on an Orc Army you control, where X is the amass number.)

Orcish Bowmasters demolishes most other creatures that see cEDH play these days. Just looking over our list, 80% of the creatures on it have toughness two or less, meaning all it takes is (at most) two Bowmasters triggers to take any one of them out. Contextualize that against the ever-present plethora of card draw engines, and a resolved Orcish Bowmasters can routinely mean the end of most creatures.

#1 - Esper SentinelEsper Sentinel

Last but not least, the only creature to properly say "draw a card" on it; it's Esper Sentinel.

For , Esper Sentinel is a 1/1 Human Soldier artifact creature with "Whenever an opponent casts their first noncreature spell each turn, draw a card unless that player pays , where X is Esper Sentinel's power."

While it's rare for Esper Sentinel's power to grow in any given game, all you need to do is look at the popularity of Rhystic StudyRhystic Study to understand just how backbreaking a tax can be.

Plus, since it just costs , Esper Sentinel is able to come down as early as possible to maximize the number of turns during which that is just wholly unpayable.

Wrap Up

Creatures play a broad and integral role in every Magic format. The only difference with cEDH, however, is just how absent combat can be from the consideration of what makes a creature good. Ragavan may be a ruthlessly efficient combat threat in other formats, but here it dominates tables thanks to its card advantage and mana production capacity.

Similarly, Enduring VitalityEnduring Vitality is as good as it is thanks to the general disinterest in pressuring with creatures. Why tap for a few damage when you could tap for mana?