Who’s the Best MTG Commander in the New Final Fantasy Set?
After spending some quality time sleeving up the new Magic: The Gathering Final Fantasy set, I have some thoughts I want to share with you.
The set is a massive crossover that was five years in the making, and with over 100 legendary heroes and villains to choose from, picking a commander can feel like choosing your starting party for the first time.
The “best” commander really depends on what you’re looking for. Are you a competitive player hunting for power or just a fan who wants to feel like you’re playing your favorite game?
Let’s take a look at some of the top contenders.
Your Pre-Constructed Options
For many, the journey starts with the four pre-con Commander decks. Each one is a ready-to-play 100-card deck themed around a specific game.
You’ve got Revival Trance (FFVI), Limit Break (FFVII), Counter Blitz (FFX), and Scions & Spellcraft (FFXIV).
If you want the strongest deck right out of the box, the community agrees, theCounter Blitz deck, led by Tidus, Yuna’s Guardian, is the winner. It’s built around a simple but powerful theme of putting +1/+1 counters on your creatures.
Tidus rewards you for doing this by letting you draw cards and proliferate (add more counters), while his partner Yuna helps get your creatures on the board with extra counters to start. It’s a fun and powerful loop.
But don’t overlook the Revival Trance deck. While its face commander, Terra, has some issues, the deck’s hidden star is Celes, Rune Knight. For just three mana, she can bring small creatures back from your graveyard over and over, letting you reuse their powerful abilities.
Some players call her a secret competitive commander because she can enable game-winning infinite combos with a few upgrades, giving her a much higher power ceiling.
The Best Final Fantasy Commanders From the Main Set
Beyond the pre-cons, the main set is packed with great commander options that command high prices and define powerful strategies.
If you’ve ever wanted to play the villain, Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER is your chance. His strategy is aristocrats, where you win by sacrificing your own creatures. Whenever any creature dies, Sephiroth drains life from an opponent.
The real terror begins when four creatures die in one turn, transforming him into Sephiroth, One-Winged Angel. When he transforms, you get a permanent emblem with his life-draining ability.
Emblems can’t be removed by normal means, so even if Sephiroth is defeated, the emblem sticks around, pinging your opponents for the rest of the game. This power, plus his iconic status, makes his special printings true trophy pieces for collectors.
Perhaps the biggest surprise star of the set is Vivi Ornitier. The shy black mage from Final Fantasy IX has become a game-breaking powerhouse. Vivi is the ultimate spellslinger commander.
Every time you cast a non-creature spell, he gets stronger and deals damage to your opponents. You can then tap him to get mana based on his power, letting you cast even more spells. This elegant loop has made him one of the most valuable and sought-after cards in the release.
Commanders for the True Fan
But power isn’t everything. For players who love creativity, some commanders offer unique puzzles.
Gogo, Master of Mimicry is a great, bizarre choice. For a mana cost of XX, you can copy any activated or triggered ability you control X times. You can copy a fetch land to ramp out a bunch of lands at once, or copy a game-winning ability to end the game in a wild way. Building a Gogo deck is for players who love making their friends angry.
Then there’s Zidane, Tantalus Thief. In Final Fantasy IX, Zidane is a charming rogue who is part of a theater troupe that’s secretly a band of thieves. His card perfectly captures this. When he enters the battlefield, you get to temporarily steal an opponent’s creature.
The real fun is using flicker (spells that exile a creature and return it to the battlefield) to make that theft permanent. Because you controlled the creature when it was exiled, it returns under your control for good.
The Best Commander is Your Favorite Character
So, after my tour across the world of Magic: The Gathering Final Fantasy, it’s clear there’s no single best commander, but man, are there some awesome choices. The set is a massive celebration of one of gaming’s most beloved franchises. Ultimately, the best commander is the one that makes you smile. Happy hunting!
