Olivia, Crimson BrideOlivia, Crimson Bride | Art by Anna Steinbauer

Hey, everyone! Last week, I brought you the most-played Commander cards from what is very likely my favorite set of all time, Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty. Today, I'm covering a set that takes place on what is definitely my favorite plane of all time: Innistrad, with Innistrad: Crimson Vow (VOW). If there's anything I enjoy more than the sci-fi and cyberpunk aesthetics, it's good old Gothic horror.

Original Innistrad also came out just when I was beginning to fall in love with Magic: The Gathering, so any foray into that vampire- and zombie-ridden neck of the multiversal woods holds a special place in my heart. I hope you RSVP'dRSVP'd!

10. End the FestivitiesEnd the Festivities - 71,124 decks

But the party's just getting started! At first glance, getting into over 70,000 decks may seem like overachieving for what is essentially a sideboard card in other formats, but here's some food for thought: even without any synergies, this already deals with 1/1 tokens and utility creatures like Birds of ParadiseBirds of Paradise cheaply.

On top of that, there are tons of commander options that augment the damage it deals. Ghyrson Starn, KelermorphGhyrson Starn, Kelermorph upgrades this to an entwined SlagstormSlagstorm, Ojer Axonil, Deepest MightOjer Axonil, Deepest Might does him one better and gives you a Storm's WrathStorm's Wrath, and Judith, Carnage ConnoisseurJudith, Carnage Connoisseur truly curtails any celebrations from your opponents by casting Plague WindPlague Wind as a party favor. If you're more interested in gaining resources than depriving the other players of theirs, you can read DougY's piece on best burn spells and see which Dracogenius he suggests pairing End with.

9. Reckless ImpulseReckless Impulse - 74,729 decks

I'm more familiar with this in Pauper aggro decks than in Commander, but it's not difficult to consider why deckbuilders don't mind paying two mana to essentially draw two cards. And that's before you think about how this promises you Treasure tokens in Prosper, Tome-BoundProsper, Tome-Bound, Wolves in Faldorn, Dread Wolf HeraldFaldorn, Dread Wolf Herald, and Thopters in Pia Nalaar, Consul of RevivalPia Nalaar, Consul of Revival, among many other interactions.

8. Halana and Alena, PartnersHalana and Alena, Partners - 74,996 decks

It's a simple enough equation: granting haste to a creature plus putting a bunch of +1/+1 counters on it equals a lot of damage, very quickly. It's also a popular formula in Gruul (); Surrak and GoreclawSurrak and Goreclaw and Xenagos, God of RevelsXenagos, God of Revels do similar things, while Rhythm of the WildRhythm of the Wild solves for half of the equation devastatingly effectively.

The pair work really well not just during the combat phase, but with counter synergies, too. Shalai and HallarShalai and Hallar and Minsc & Boo, Timeless HeroesMinsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes don't need creatures to turn sideways to dish out a ton of damage. Just be sure to augment Halana and Alena first — and protect them at all costs — so they really do their thing.

7. Wedding RingWedding Ring - 82,898 decks

Oh, look! It's a fun and friendly group hug card that you can slot into Ms. BumbleflowerMs. Bumbleflower, Kynaios and Tiro of MeletisKynaios and Tiro of Meletis, or Gluntch, the BestowerGluntch, the Bestower. What could go wrong, except perhaps some sour-graping from the bridesmaids who didn't get a Ring put on it?

Well, all it takes is a Consecrated SphinxConsecrated Sphinx to turn this marriage story into an infinite lovers' quarrel where both players draw their decks and the controller of the 4/6 wins the game if they have a bigger deck:

Of course, Sphinx's trigger is a may, but self-mill decks also can leverage this combo to go full throttle into marital discord and come out of it victorious with a Laboratory ManiacLaboratory Maniac.

6. Cultivator ColossusCultivator Colossus - 98,942 decks

This comprises half of a cool combo with AbundanceAbundance that lets you stack your deck however you like and dump all your lands from your deck into play. If you add Maze's EndMaze's End and Amulet of VigorAmulet of Vigor, you also get to win the game on the spot:

Naturally, this is great at cultivating your mana situation in landfall or lands-matter theme decks where you can put an abundance of cardboard into play without actually putting an Abundance into play. Omnath, Locus of CreationOmnath, Locus of Creation and The NecrobloomThe Necrobloom can already make use of a higher land count with a plethora of utility options and payoffs available so that your Colossus can go to town by just drawing lands off the top of your library.

I do love spinning the wheel and seeing how lucky I get, especially when having a bunch of lands clumped together is often seen as a sign of the Magic gods' disfavor.

5. Kessig FlamebreatherKessig Flamebreather - 107,572 decks

This is the perfect example of what I always write about critical mass. If you want to build a consistent Spellslinger deck, for example, you probably want to run several copies of certain card clusters, usually divided into enablers and payoffs. Cheap "cantrips" that draw cards like PreordainPreordain, ConsiderConsider, and BrainstormBrainstorm are great enablers because they trigger your spell payoffs for just one mana and they keep the cards flowing, so you can keep progressing your game plan.

Now, there are a whole host of cards that deal one damage to your opponents when you cast a spell, and because you want to build a consistent deck, you're more likely to play all of them than to just pick the best ones. Redundancy is important — that's why 60-card decks tend to play four copies of important cards — so Flamebreather is often going to make your Spellslinger deck right alongside GuttersnipeGuttersnipe, Electrostatic FieldElectrostatic Field, and Coruscation MageCoruscation Mage.

If you're interested in learning more about the basics of Spellslinger decks, I wrote a guide for beginners here.

4. Undying MaliceUndying Malice - 116,067 decks

For just one mana, you get something between a blink spell like EphemerateEphemerate and a protection spell like Dive DownDive Down, plus a whole +1/+1 counter for your efforts. That's an absurd amount of utility, especially when you think about how you can just cast this on a creature with an enters ability that you were going to sacrifice anyway. I've extolled the virtues of this family of cards before. Not Dead After AllNot Dead After All and Feign DeathFeign Death may look finicky, but they really are quite easy to get two cards' worth of value out of.

3. Welcoming VampireWelcoming Vampire - 281,896 decks

If a card-draw engine in is even remotely playable, I have to imagine it's going to see a fair bit of play in Commander. Vampire doesn't even let you draw more than one extra card each turn, and it constrains you to running small creatures, but that doesn't stop it from being one of the best versions of this effect in the format.

Each member of the creature-triggered card draw family has its own upsides and costs: Mentor of the MeekMentor of the Meek can go wild, but you need the extra mana to do so. Bygone BishopBygone Bishop is similarly unbothered by "once per turn" clauses, but Clue tokens take time to crack (though they do offer up their own artifact and/or token synergies). Tocasia's WelcomeTocasia's Welcome can't attack, which honestly is probably more of a good thing since it can't be taken down by a board clear effect.

This also has possibly the most relevant typing of the whole bunch. Make the most of your welcome by running this alongside creatures with flash or cards that produce tokens at instant speed, like Kambal, Profiteering MayorKambal, Profiteering Mayor (under the right conditions), Secure the WastesSecure the Wastes, or Halo FountainHalo Fountain, with bonus points going to repeatable effects.

2. Hullbreaker HorrorHullbreaker Horror - 380,277 decks

A card I have used as a monstrous standalone finisher in 60-card control decks is actually our second expensive combo piece on this list, this time alongside cheap artifacts like Sol RingSol Ring and Mana CryptMana Crypt:

When I think about it, Horror ends the game either way, but I actually had to attack in Standard and Pioneer! In the land of 100-card decks, you're not just locked into running this in a slow, grindy deck that survives long enough for you to cast seven-drops. This breakdances its way into combo theme decks like Kinnan, Bonder ProdigyKinnan, Bonder Prodigy and Vivi OrnitierVivi Ornitier, as well as Urza, Lord High ArtificerUrza, Lord High Artificer artifact lists where you're already bound to run combo pieces.

1. The Rare Lands

VOW has contributed multiple archetype workhorses to Commander, but perhaps no family of cards is as powerful or as ubiquitous as the mighty nonbasic land that produces two colors of mana right away. Dreamroot CascadeDreamroot Cascade and company are hardly showstoppers, but they help you cast spells in multicolor decks and they enter the battlefield untapped pretty much every time you need them to. They're simple, effective, and popular enough to have seen reprints in Secrets of Strixhaven and Doctor Who.

Things buried on Innistrad rarely seem to stay that way.Things buried on Innistrad rarely seem to stay that way.

And I'm glad they don't, because that means we get to take another trip to the plane next week for the most played cards in Innistrad: Midnight Hunt! But before that, what's your favorite card from VOW that didn't make the list? Mine's easy. I've played Bloodtithe HarvesterBloodtithe Harvester in so many formats and it's always been solid.