Planeswalkers captivated players everywhere with their reusable and terrifying powers when they first debuted. Planeswalkers have a unique “loyalty” system in which they can activate one of their abilities once each turn by adding or removing the appropriate number of loyalty counters.
Many newcomers focus on the planewalkers’ most powerful “ultimate” effects, but their loyalty-boosting abilities are considerably more important because you’ll use them far more frequently. Let’s take a look at some of the most powerful planeswalkers in Magic: The Gathering, with hundreds of cards to choose from!
Teferi, Temporal Archmage
While we adore Teferi, Temporal Archmage, we believe he is at his finest when he is in a five-color Planeswalker deck rather than at the helm of his own Commander deck. That said, he’s still a strong Planeswalker, and as we receive more mono Blue Planeswalkers, he’ll become even more so.
Teferi costs six mana, and his first ability lets you draw one of your library’s top two cards while discarding the other. His second ability is a little annoying; it allows you to untap the top four permanents in your deck, which means you can probably cast anything that costs eleven mana the turn after you cast him if you wish.
Finally, his ultimate equips you with an emblem that allows you to use Planeswalker abilities at will and on any player’s turn. That implies that you’ll have instant access to an army of effects if you fill your deck with Planeswalkers. You’ll become a target as a result of this, but you presumably already knew that.
Gideon, Ally of Zendikar
Gideon has always been a good planeswalker in MTG because of his uncommon ability to transform into a creature. He has the power to transform into a monster with 5/5 stats and indestructible, which means he will be immune to all damage this round. So, without thinking about him, flip him sideways.
Gideon could not only become a monster, but he could also put down a 2/2 creature. Even while it isn’t what makes Gideon so remarkable, the fact that he can put down an emblem makes him valuable in many decks. Every creature you control has one additional power and one extra toughness as a result of his symbol. You may even do this as soon as you’ve put him on the field if you wish.
Overall, Gideon’s emblem and ability to transform into a creature make him a valuable planeswalker in many decks, making him one of the strongest planeswalkers in MTG.
Teferi, Time Traveler
Teferi has a high starting loyalty of four and a powerful passive that only allows enemies to cast spells at sorcery speed (protecting you from instants during your turn).
+1 is fascinating because it allows you to cast sorceries at any phase until the end of your turn, but -3 is the real treat since it returns a creature, artifact, or enchantment to your hand while drawing you a card.
Freyalise, Llanowar’s Fury
Freyalise, Llanowar’s Fury, comes up next. For an Elf deck, Freyalise is a powerful commander. She’s also great in any deck that wants to play a lot of Green Creatures while still being able to produce a lot of mana. For five mana, you can summon a Planeswalker that can transform into a 1/1 Elf Druid who can tap for one Green mana, destroy an enchantment or artifact, and draw a card for each Green Creature you control.
This effectively makes her one of the finest commanders available for a classic Creature deck. So, if you want to either pump forth an endless supply of Elves (you can’t use Tyvar), or legions of massive old monsters, Freyalise is an excellent choice. She also has a nice eyepatch, which is fantastic.
Oko, Thief of Crowns
Oko, in my view, is a pain to play against. To begin with, he only spends three mana in return for four loyalty or his health. Not only that, but he can buff himself up to six loyalty in an instant, making Oko extremely tough to kill, given that most monsters at this stage can’t inflict six damage in one blow.
His powers, such as the ability to create a food token, are also irritating and difficult to cope with. We don’t believe it. Instead, he may transform any item or creature into an Elk with 3/3 stats with his other ability. Isn’t it true that your opponent has a huge, terrifying creature with crazy stats? It’s now an Elk, which is unfortunate.
His second ability allows him to exchange a creature or artifact under your control with the permanent controlling creature of your opponent. This essentially implies that you can offer your opponent a little food token in return for a creature.
Jace, Wielder of Mysteries
Jace costs much blue mana, but he has good beginning loyalty and a devastating passive that allows you can win the game even if your deck is empty (which normally causes a loss). This completely demolishes rival mill decks while rewarding your own deck-depleting strategies.
+1 draws a card while milling two cards from the deck to the graveyard, and -8 draws seven cards, winning the game if your library is now empty!
Saheeli, The Gifted
Saheeli, the Gifted is a four-mana Blue and Red Planeswalker that is ideal for any deck looking to create a lot of Artifacts while also copying them. In Commander, artifact decks may do a lot of different things, and this particular variation is a lot of fun since it’s difficult to beat up an army that appears out of nowhere.
Her first ability creates a 1/1 Servo token, which is at most decent. She can, however, reduce the cost of your next spell by one generic mana for each Artifact you control, which is significant given that many of the greatest Artifacts only cost generic mana, to begin with. Finally, her ultimate grants every Artifact you control a token copy as well as haste.
This allows you to replicate pretty much anything on your side of the battlefield, and it can help you finish the game swiftly with a combination or a massive strike. Saheeli has a special talent.
Karn Liberated
Karn, a legendary planeswalker who modern players fear, costs seven mana and has six loyalty. This doesn’t appear to be a fair exchange, but after you see his talents, you’ll be convinced otherwise. Karn has the ability to exile, not only cards from your hand but also permanents from the battlefield. Karn is already a highly unpleasant and crazy planeswalker because of his two abilities.
Karn can eventually reset the game and allow the controlling player to exile everything under their control. Karn’s ability makes him feel a lot like a cheating card; he’s good and important, but no one loves him, especially when he’s not in their hand.
The Royal Scions
Will and Rowan team up for this low-cost spell with a five-star starting loyalty. Their first +1 draws and discards a card, allowing you to tinker with your hand as required, but their second +1, which grants a creature +2/+0, first strike, and trample for the round, is the one we typically suggest.
That’s a lot of strength, especially considering that first strike and trample are normally reserved for white and green characters. The -8 is good, drawing four cards and doing damage to a target equal to your hand size, but it’s the enticing +1 that truly sells this card.
Estrid, The Masked
Enchantment-themed decks may be a lot of fun to play. There are a lot of good options, but Estrid, the Masked could well be the best. Estrid can easily take over any game for four mana in Bant colors, owing to her three abilities; make sure you’re all-in on Enchantments.
You can untap all enchanted permanents you control with her first ability. This includes lands, Planeswalkers, and almost certainly Creatures. Do we really need to explain why having a lot of mana is so powerful? Her second ability enchants any permanent with a Mask token that protects it from being destroyed once.
Finally, before returning all of your enchantments to the battlefield, she uses her ultimate to place the top seven cards of your library into your graveyard. Estrid understands what she’s talking about, and if you pick up on what she’s saying, you’re going to get along like an enchanted house on fire.
Ugin, The Spirit Dragon
Ugin is a legendary colorless planeswalker who frequently declares the conclusion of a game once it has been completed. The cost of eight mana may appear high, but Ugin’s abilities are all crazy. He does three damage to any creature or player with his first ability, which might increase his allegiance to Ugin. This skill may effectively end a player’s life on its own.
The second ability of Ugin makes most people feel dangerous and unjust. When activated, Ugin can exile all permanents with one or more colors below the amount mana cost of the player’s choosing, thereby ending the game.
Ugin’s last ability eventually grants you seven lives, enables you to draw seven cards, and allows you to place seven permanents into the battlefield for free. Ugin’s powers are all crazy, and he deserves to be included among the finest planeswalkers.
Teferi, Hero of Dominaria
Teferi impresses with a trio of excellent effects, despite his four loyalty. +1 takes the cake, drawing a card and untaping two lands at the conclusion of your turn to provide mana for casting instants throughout opponent turns.
-3 produces an emblem that exiles an enemy permanently anytime you draw, and ultimate -8 makes a powerful removal that places a non-land in the third position in its deck!
Tevesh Szat, Doom of Fools
Tevesh Szat is a five-mana Black Planeswalker with an unnecessarily creepy tongue and an unsettling aura. His skills are enormous in comparison to his looks. If you appreciate sacrificing things for profit, his first ability can generate two 0/1 Thrull Creature tokens.
His second ability enables you to draw cards by sacrificing a Creature or Planesalkwer, and you gain an additional card if that permanent is someone’s commander. Finally, you may seize control of all commanders, including those in their command zones, with his ultimate. That’s both amusing and ridiculously strong.
That would be plenty on its own, but the fact that Tevesh Szat is also a partner means you can combine him with a variety of additional partner Commanders to create even more powerful color combinations and crueler decks. Basically, if you want to watch the world burn, Tevesh Szat is the book for you.
Jace, The Mind Sculptor
For a long time, Jace was the MTG poster child. Jace has four abilities and three levels of loyalty for only four mana. It’s becoming more difficult to find a planeswalker with four mana and four abilities. You can choose whether or not to let your opponent draw a card from their library using Jace’s first ability. Activating this ability grants Jace two loyalty.
His second ability allows you to pick which card you want to remove from the top of your library. His third ability returns a creature to its owner’s hand, requiring the owner to re-pay the creature’s mana to play it again.
You can exile all cards from any player’s library with Jace’s last ability, which costs 12 mana. They must then shuffle their hands in their library after that. This implies they’d have to wait for mana again if they’d been saving it for an insane creature in their possession. For all of these, four mana? That’s not terrible!
Wrenn and Six
This planeswalker costs two mana for three loyalty, making it one of Magic’s most affordable planeswalkers. +1 adds one land from your graveyard to your hand, which is ideal for fetch lands like “Evolving Wilds.” – 1 hits any target for one, which is a convenient way to dispatch weenies such as “Llanowar Elves.”
-7 generates an emblem that allows you to recast your instants and sorceries from your graveyard by discarding a land—which, due to +1, you’ll have plenty of.
Daretti, Scrap Savant
Darettie is another commander that focuses on artifacts. However, this one is all about the combinations. You receive a Red Planeswalker for four mana, and their first ability is to draw and discard cards. This is important because the second ability allows you to sacrifice an Artifact and then restore it to the battlefield from your graveyard. If you set it up correctly, you might easily have a ten-mana card in play the turn you play him, which is a little unfair, but you’re in charge, so who cares?
Finally, Daretti’s ultimate rewards you with an emblem that effectively returns any Artifacts that enter the graveyard to the battlefield. This makes it quite difficult for you to stop. There is a right method to play this walker, so it isn’t for people who want to explore a lot, but it’s still a lot of fun if you enjoy being ahead of the mana curve.
Nissa, Who Shakes The World
Nissa costs five mana and gives five loyalty in return, which is a reasonable trade. Nissa may make each Forest create one additional green mana simply by remaining on the battlefield. Nissa’s first ability enables her to set a counter on land and convert it into a creature with Haste and Vigilance, earning her one loyalty. Her second ability renders all of your lands uninhabitable. Not only that, but it also lets you play any number of Forest cards from your deck.
Nissa is primarily a planeswalker who aids in the defense and generation of mana from your land card. You can quickly build up a large quantity of land with this planeswalker, allowing you to bring in more strong creatures. Her one-of-a-kind ability makes her more practical and helps her become one of MTG’s top planeswalkers.
Sorin Markov
Sorin differs from the other planeswalkers on the list in that he is good in more than one format. Sorin is an annoyance in commander and a difficult card to defeat because of his powers.
His first ability does two damage to any opponent’s creature or human while also granting you two life. This ability is useful, but it is unable to perform lethal actions that can lead to the game’s conclusion. On the other hand, his second ability has a massive effect on your opponent, increasing a target opponent’s life total to ten. This ability is most commonly seen being utilized to reduce the opponent’s life total from 40 to 10, which is a useful ability.
Liliana of the Veil
Liliana, like Wrenn and Six, is a supporting planeswalker (mainstay). Her powers deplete your opponent’s resources. Her first ability to discard cards and brings her one loyalty. On the other hand, her second ability requires the target player to sacrifice one of their own creatures. Her ultimate ability requires the target player to give up almost half of their permanents.
She is unquestionably important and will continue to be in the most strong MTG decks due to her ability to decrease a large number of opponent creatures and permanents. Of course, he’s one of the finest planeswalkers in MTG.
Nicol Bolas, The Ravager / Nicol Bolas, The Arisen
Finally, we have the Elder Dragon Nicol Bolas, the Ravager, and this isn’t because Nicol Bolas has held our family captive in return for being at the top of the list. Nicol Bolas, the Ravager is a four-mana, four-mana, four-mana, four-mana, four-mana, four-mana, four-mana, four-mana, four-mana, four-mana All of your opponents must discard a card when he reaches the battlefield, which is entertaining. You may also turn him into the Planeswalker Nicol Bolas, the Arisen, by paying four generic mana plus one Blue, one Black, and one Red mana.
Nicky B, as we affectionately refer to him, possesses four distinct skills. The first ability allows you to draw two cards, and the second ability causes a Creature or Planeswalker to take ten damage. The third ability allows you to revive a Creature or Planeswalker from anybody under your control’s graveyard, which is always a good thing.
On the other hand, the ultimate is game-ending since it exiles all cards from a player’s library save the bottom one. When you have one turn left and limited resources, it isn’t easy to win a game of Commander. Anyway, Nicky B, may we please have our family back now?
