The Five Best One-Color Commander Decks for Beginners in Magic: The Gathering

Adeline, Resplendent Cathar – White

White is the color of the wide, swarming board, and nobody embodies that better than Adeline.

For just three mana, this Innistrad: Midnight Hunt Knight comes down with vigilance and a power equal to the number of creatures you control, so she hits harder with every friend you add.

Better still, every time you attack, she spawns a 1/1 Human token for each opponent, tapped and already swinging.

In a four-player game, that is up to three free attackers per turn, and her vigilance means she can crash in and still stand back to block.

The plan could not be more beginner friendly, you play creatures, attack, make more creatures, and repeat.

*Buy Adeline, Resplendent Cathar cards on TCGPlayer and eBay

Talrand, Sky Summoner – Blue

If you would rather sling spells than swing swords, blue’s Talrand is your gateway commander. This four mana Merfolk Wizard first splashed down in Magic 2013 and has been reprinted so many times that copies are wonderfully cheap.

His ability is a single, glorious line, whenever you cast an instant or sorcery, you make a 2/2 flying Drake.

That means every cantrip, every counterspell, and every removal spell you were already happy to play quietly builds an evasive air force on the side.

Talrand teaches new players the blue toolbox, which is card draw, interaction, and tempo, while rewarding them with a board they never had to commit to the battlefield.

*Buy Talrand, Sky Summoner cards on TCGPlayer and eBay

Sheoldred, the Apocalypse – Black

Black is the color of attrition, of bleeding the table dry, and Sheoldred makes that lesson painless – for you.

A four mana Phyrexian Praetor with a 4/5 deathtouch body, she carries an ability that looks symmetrical but is anything but. Whenever you draw, you gain 2 life, whenever an opponent draws, they lose 2.

Since black loves to draw extra cards, you simply lean into your strengths and watch three opponents quietly drain themselves.

She is the priciest pick on this list, a genuine chase mythic from Dominaria United, but she doubles as a centerpiece for your binder and is about as simple to pilot as a powerhouse gets.

*Buy Sheoldred, the Apocalypse cards on TCGPlayer and eBay

Torbran, Thane of Red Fell – Red

Red wants to deal damage, and Torbran wants to deal more of it.

This four mana Dwarf Noble from Throne of Eldraine reads simply, if a red source you control would damage an opponent or their stuff, it deals that much plus 2 instead.

Suddenly a one-damage ping deals three, a Lightning Bolt swings for five, and your big red dragon hits like a freight train.

The math is easy and the payoff is enormous, which makes him a perfect crash course in burn and combat.

His triple red cost also gently teaches the value of committing to a single color’s mana, a lesson every new player benefits from learning early.

*Buy Torbran, Thane of Red Fell cards on TCGPlayer and eBay

Ezuri, Renegade Leader – Green

Green is the color of ramp and big swings, and Ezuri ties both together with a tidy bow.

A three mana Elf Warrior from Scars of Mirrodin, he leads one of the cheapest, most beloved tribes in the game.

Elves are famous for producing mountains of mana, and Ezuri turns that mana into a finish. You can pay five mana and your whole Elf army gets +3/+3 and trample until the end of turn, a classic overrun that ends games out of nowhere.

His other ability lets you regenerate an Elf for a single green mana, shrugging off removal and the board wipes that scare new players most.

Ramp, go wide, swing for lethal. It is the green dream in three easy steps.

*Buy Ezuri, Renegade Leader cards on TCGPlayer and eBay