Let’s start a new subseries! I love just faffing about in Moxfield and throwing deck ideas together. The only part I hate about that process is cutting my inevitably-oversized deck back down to the 100-card limit.
Today, we’re going to look at 5 commanders from the Doctor Who set that interest me.
5: Sergeant John Benton
Colour Identity: Selesnya (G/W)
The Gist: Whenever he deals combat damage to a player, both you and that player draw that many cards.
Why it’s interesting: One of the most deceptively terrifying “Group Hug”/aggro commanders in the entire format. Because he has haste and trample out of the command zone for just 3 mana, you load the deck with instant-speed, low-cost pumps (Giant Growth, Invigorate, Mutagenic Growth). You swing, pump him up to 10+ power, draw 10 cards, and give the defending player 10 cards to keep them friendly… right before you use that massive fresh hand to protect him or kill the rest of the table.
4: Davros, Dalek Creator
Colour Identity: Grixis (U/B/R)
The Gist: Group-slug value engine that forces opponents into “villainous choices” at your end step based on lose-life triggers.
Why it’s interesting: Davros rewards you for doing what Grixis naturally wants to do: pinging everyone. If opponents lost 3 or more life this turn, you force them to give you a 3/3 Dalek token or let you draw a card. Running cheap pingers like Guttersnipe, Passionate Archaeologist, or Nightshade Harvester ensures you hit your triggers every single turn while wearing down life totals.
3: Me, the Immortal
Colour Identity: Temur (G/U/R)
The Gist: Counters stay on her as she moves between zones (graveyard, command zone, hand).
Why it’s interesting: She operates like a modular, custom-built Voltron menace. +1/+1 counters and keyword counters (flying, trample, hexproof, indestructible via cards like Daring Fiendbonder or Ikoria keyword counters) stick to her permanently. Casting her for the third time in a game doesn’t feel bad because she re-enters the battlefield as an 8/8 Flying, Trampling, Indestructible threat right away.
2. The Celestial Toymaker
Colour Identity: Esper (W/U/B)
The Gist: Cares explicitly about divvy mechanics (piles).
Why it’s interesting: A deck custom-built around psychological mini-games. Whenever an opponent separates cards into piles for you (or you force them to choose between piles), the Toymaker drains opponents and draws you value. It lets you play all the weird, fun cards that rarely find a home, like Fact or Fiction, Atris, Oracle of Half-Truths, Sphinx of Uthuun, Epiphany at the Drownyard, and Hostile Negotiations.
1: River Song
Colour Identity: Izzet (U/R)
The Gist: Draw from the bottom of your library instead of the top, and put counters on her whenever cards are shuffled into libraries.
Why it’s interesting: She completely flips decades of MTG deckbuilding conventions on its head. Suddenly, cards with downside mechanics that put cards on the bottom (like Jace, the Mind Sculptor, Neera, Wild Mages, or scry effects) become direct, targeted card draw. Moreover, whenever an opponent uses a fetch land, tutors, or shuffles their deck, River gets massive, turning opponent library searches into a lethal Commander damage threat.
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