When it comes to support for different creature types, the Magic: The Gathering gods don’t deal out their favor equally. Some types, like Goblins and Elves, have an absurdly deep card pool, while others, like the humble Snake, have more of a card puddle. Interestingly, this lack of love from up above makes such creature types even more appealing to fans, leading to a dedicated Snake niche within the Magic community.
For residents of that niche, today is your lucky day. We’ve carefully assembled a stellar selection of sinuous sidekicks, all of whom can do a sterling job at leading a squadron of Snakes into battle in the Commander format. For those about to slither, we salute you.
10 Pharika, God Of Affliction
Pharika may not technically have the Snake creature type, but she’s an honorary Snake in everything from appearance to abilities. As part of the original God cycle from Theros block, she’s an overstatted 5/5 indestructible for three mana, but only becomes a creature when your devotion to black and green reaches seven or more.
For the most part, this is irrelevant, as it’s Pharika’s activated ability, not her combat prowess, that’s the real draw here. For just two mana, she can exile a creature from a graveyard at instant speed, shutting down Reanimator strategies while spawning a Snake token with deathtouch in the process. This serves as a silver bullet against both graveyard decks and big Ramp creatures, making Pharika indispensable in many games.
9 Sachi, Daughter Of Seshiro
An interesting dual-type commander, Sachi provides support to both Snakes and Shamans, though not necessarily in equal measure. For the former, a +0/+1 boost is surprisingly impactful, putting your 1/1 Snake buddies out of range of ping effects, but the latter is where Sachi’s real power lies.
Letting all of your Shamans tap for two green mana is an incredibly powerful effect, and it includes Sachi herself, meaning if she survives till your untap step something big is almost certainly coming.
There isn’t a huge amount of overlap between Shamans and Snakes creature-wise, but you can use the excess mana from your Shamans to power out the more impressive Snakes, such as Thieving Amalgam and Nemesis of Mortals.
8 Kaseto, Orochi Archmage
As the grandiose gesture in his art implies, Kaseto can orchestrate some very quick wins in your Commander pod. This is thanks to his activated ability: a simple two-mana number that lets one of your creatures slip in unblocked this turn, and gives it a +2/+2 buff if it happens to be a Snake.
There are various ways to use this effect, such as buffing a wide board of Snakes once each before crashing in, or buffing a single Snake, ideally your commander, up multiple times and attacking for lethal thanks to commander damage. Kaseto’s low cost, both to play and to activate, makes him flexible enough to do both, sometimes in the course of a single game.
7 Shisato, Whispering Hunter
For all the sadists who were fans of Yu-Gi-Oh!’s infamous ‘Yata-Lock’ combo, Shisato offers a similarly frustrating effect in Magic. Each time he connects with a player’s face, that player skips the untap step of their next turn, all but paralyzing them and preventing most of their possible actions.
Combined with cards that grant unblockable and some protection, Shisato can lock a player out of the game for good, or tactically switch up his targets as the balance of power at the table shifts. He does require you to sacrifice a Snake each turn, a not-inconsiderable cost, but there are enough token generators in the type to make this a price worth paying for Shisato’s shenanigans.
6 Sosuke, Son Of Seshiro
As befits a Snake Warrior that somehow manages to wield four swords at once, Sosuke is an incredibly aggressive leader for a Snake-based Commander deck. His Anthem effect alone is a game-changer, doubling the power of your 1/1 Snake legions and making them much harder to ignore, but his second ability, which grants your Warriors a wordier version of deathtouch, is excellent too.
Together, these abilities make it much harder to come out of a combat step with Sosuke and feel good about it, as either your opponents’ life total will be taking a pounding or their creatures will. Throw in a very reasonable stats-to-cost ratio for a Kamigawa legend, and you have an incredibly solid Snakes commander.
5 Xyris, The Writhing Storm
Stretching the definition of the word ‘Snake’ to the length of its immense body, Xyris feels far grander than his reptilian brethren, in terms of both art and effects. Every time an opponent draws a card outside their normal draw for the turn, Xyris summons a 1/1 Snake token: an ability that can easily get out of hand in the value-hungry Commander format.
This is doubly true when you consider Xyris’ other ability, which lets both you and the opponent he damages draw cards equal to the damage he deals after swinging in. Refilling their hand is a nice way to take the edge off smacking your opponent in the face, and the extra Snakes you’ll receive as a result will have you suiting up Xyris with Auras to maximize his usefulness.
4 Blex, Vexing Pest
For a creature type as sparsely-populated as Snake, the best allies can often be found outside the type itself. This is certainly true in the case of Blex, Vexing Pest: a Lord for not just Snakes, but also several other niche creature types as well, including Bats, Spiders, and Insects.
This alone, combined with Blex’s low cost, would make him a prime contender for the position of Snake commander, but he also doubles up as an efficient draw spell. Search for Blex can fill up both your hand and graveyard, enabling whatever plans you want for just four mana and some life. No matter which side you play, Blex always brings his Vexing Best to the commander table.
3 Hapatra, Vizier Of Poisons
-1/-1 counters are a mainstay of Magic at this point, so it’s nice to see a commander like Hapatra who lets you properly build around them. Every time you place a -1/-1 counter while she’s in play, you get a 1/1 Snake token with deathtouch: great for controlling the board, but even better for enabling scumbag Combo wins out of nowhere.
Combined with cards like Blood Artist and Blowfly Infestation, Hapatra can go infinite with terrifying ease, particularly for a commander that only costs two mana in the first place. If you can keep her alive, be it through Auras or Equipment, then it won’t be long before your opponents start to feel her venom taking effect.
2 Seshiro The Anointed
There’s a subtle humor to Seshiro the Anointed, in that he’s a typal commander that many creature types would kill for, yet he’s confined to the tiny niche of Snakes. As balancing techniques go, it’s one of the more interesting approaches. For just six mana, Seshiro provides what is essentially a permanent Overrun for all of your other Snakes, and lets you draw a card whenever one gets through for damage.
Both of these effects are excellent, and Seshiro’s 3/4 stats aren’t embarrassing either. While both of Seshiro’s children are great Snake commanders in their own right, it’s clear they have a lot to learn before they reach the lofty heights of their father.
1 Patron Of The Orochi
Patron of the Orochi’s Snake offering ability implies that a mana-cheating strategy where you sacrifice a big Snake to power it out is the way to go here, but you should really read it as flash with extra steps. As long as you have a Snake to sacrifice, you can bring this slithering Spirit out just before your turn begins, and untap into a world of doubled mana and activated abilities.
The possibilities for degenerate play lines here are endless: you can drop huge threats, funnel mana into win conditions like Helix Pinnacle, or just give your creatures pseudo-vigilance by using the ability post-combat. Eight mana seems like a lot, but it’s a bargain for the power this Patron can provide.