Toph, the First MetalbenderToph, the First Metalbender | Art by Eilene Cherie

Welcome, welcome, welcome to Fire and Ice! This is the data-driven series where I go over cards that are becoming more or less popular for different Commander decks, and talk about why they may be gaining or losing popularity. I'm Julia, EDHREC's Duchess of Data, and I'm super excited to jump into today's article! For some information on the math that supports this series, check out this article.

EDHREC, of course, has a ton of data. We'll draw conclusions from that data about how certain commanders' decks have changed over time, give insight into new cards, and hopefully provide some tech for your favorite commander's list.

Today, we're focusing on Toph, the First MetalbenderToph, the First Metalbender. In honor of the recently released Avatar movie, I wanted to take a look at one of the coolest commanders from the set! She currently sits as the 23rd most popular commander on EDHREC, with nearly 30,000 decks to her name!

Toph, the First MetalbenderToph, the First Metalbender

What's Hot and What's Not for Toph, the First Metalbender?

For , Toph is a 3/3 Human Warrior Ally. The card also turns all of our nontoken artifacts into lands (this doesn't inherently provide those artifacts with a mana ability, though). On each of our end steps, she prompts us to earthbend 2, putting two +1/+1 counters on a land we control and turning it into a creature that'll return to the battlefield after dying. Earthbent lands being able to come back to the battlefield is a really big deal, and some pilots have built combos around that fact.

Toph pilots blend artifact and land synergies, creating a unique and powerful Naya deck. Avatar cards feature heavily, due to the flavor and power of earthbending, but there are cards from throughout Magic's history in these lists too! Among this commander's most popular cards are Great Divide GuideGreat Divide Guide (51% inclusion), Zuran OrbZuran Orb (also 51% inclusion), and The Stasis CoffinThe Stasis Coffin (45% inclusion).

What's Fiery for Toph Decks?

Planar EngineeringPlanar Engineering - Fire Score of 11.90

Explosive VegetationExplosive Vegetation and Roiling RegrowthRoiling Regrowth had a baby! This four-mana ramp spell is a perfect fit for Toph decks. If we sacrifice two lands that we previously earthbent to Planar Engineering, we'll end up grabbing four basics from our library without really getting rid of our on-board lands to do so!

Spells in this vein, like HarrowHarrow and Entish RestorationEntish Restoration, will always be great inclusions in Toph's 99. This spell just so happens to grab more lands than most other ramp spells at this mana cost, making it even better. Its super high fire score is not surprising in the slightest.

ErodeErode - Fire Score of 7.42

Naya decks have access to fantastic removal, including Swords to PlowsharesSwords to Plowshares and Path to ExilePath to Exile. So it's puzzling to see a suboptimal removal spell like Erode gaining so much popularity.

This instant can target planeswalkers, while Swords and Path cannot, but Erode destroys its target instead of exiling it. That's a pretty big difference, especially with how many graveyard decks are out there. I'm not convinced this spell is worth including.

Germination PracticumGermination Practicum - Fire Score of 6.83

Toph decks have no problem creating the mana needed to cast this spell. With that in mind, Germination Practicum can be a great game-ender for pilots that don't want to win with a combo. Our commander already puts +1/+1 counters on our creatures, so this spell is a natural fit for our game plan.

There are certainly more land-centric win conditions available, but Germination Practicum is a great set-it-and-forget-it option.

Emil, Vastlands RoamerEmil, Vastlands Roamer - Fire Score of 3.85

These decks have tons of differently named lands, including nonbasics in our mana base and the artifacts that Toph makes into lands. That allows Emil to and create a huge Fractal token. It wouldn't be surprising to create a 10/10 or larger!

The trample that Emil lends to our creatures is nice to have, too. While we won't frequently attack with our transformed lands, it's nice to give them a bit of evasion.

Haywire MiteHaywire Mite - Fire Score of 2.20

If we earthbend this creature, we've got repeatable removal and life gain on demand. This is one of the best creatures to repeatedly target with our commander's end step trigger!

It's also lovely that Haywire Mite costs just to cast and to activate. We couldn't ask for more from an artifact.

What's Icy for Toph Decks?

Earthbending LessonEarthbending Lesson - Ice Score of -2.61

We do want to earthbend frequently, but we'll often want other effects to be attached when we do so. Paying four mana to put four +1/+1 counters on a land we control isn't a great rate, even if we can save that land from demise later down the line.

We also don't care too much about the numerical value attached to our earthbending abilities. As long as the creature returns to the battlefield after dying or being exiled, we don't care how many +1/+1 counters it has.

BadgermoleBadgermole and Earth RumbleEarth Rumble - Ice Scores of -2.16 and -2.18

While these cards do have other effects besides earthbending, we're forced to overpay massively for their effects. Badgermole is a -cost almost-vanilla 4/4 and Earth Rumble is a -cost fight spell. Badgermole does give our creatures with +1/+1 counters trample, but that doesn't make it worth including when Emil can do so much more (at a lower mana cost)! As for Earth Rumble, there are one-mana fight spells out there. Spending four mana to remove a single creature just isn't justifiable, no matter how on-theme this spell is.

When Badgermole CubBadgermole Cub, Toph, Hardheaded TeacherToph, Hardheaded Teacher, and even Ba Sing SeBa Sing Se exist, it's hard to justify paying this much for mediocre cards that just so happen to earthbend.

Haru, Hidden TalentHaru, Hidden Talent - Ice Score of -1.91

The average Toph deck has a grand total of nine Allies in it, including Toph herself. So, excluding any shenanigans, Haru will top out at earthbending fewer than ten times per game! That's not nearly enough to justify a slot in our 99.

Even if Haru is guaranteed to earthbend at least once per game when our commander hits the board, it's just not good enough. We can and should look elsewhere.

What's in a Toph, the First Metalbender Deck?

Here's Toph's average deck on EDHREC, modified to include all of her hot cards and exclude all of her cold cards.

Conclusion

Toph is a great commander, and a great character too. The TLA product release was likely timed to draw players in to the theatrical release, so I'm curious: did you see the new Avatar movie? If so, did you enjoy it? Let me know in the comments, and I'll be back soon with another Fire and Ice!