Are Uncommon Legends Getting Better and Better? - Bulk Up!
We are only a few weeks into 2025, and 2024 already feels so far away. As I looked back over the most played cards of the year, I noticed a pattern. A good number of uncommon legendary creatures either made it into the 99 of decks, or many players built around them. This got a bulk aficionado like me, Tyler 'Savesya' Bucks, thinking: are uncommon legendaries getting better?
Not to date myself too much, but back in my day, uncommon legendary creatures were few and far between. When we would get them, they would either tend to be hyper specific, not interesting enough to build around, or plain unfeasible to play as your commander (I'm looking at you, Brothers Yamazaki... Both of you!) So, let's marvel at these amazing uncommon legends from 2024, and build some anticipation for a new year of Magic products!
#1 - Honest Rutstein
Included in 34457 decks & the commander of 535 decks (at time of writing).
Kicking things off with Honest Rutstein! When I first saw this card spoiled in Outlaws of Thunder Junction, I thought to myself "this might be one of the best commanders for a new player" and judging by the numbers, I may have underestimated how many people would instead put it in their 99... For three mana you get to return a creature card from your graveyard to your hand, which is already a strong effect, but it doesn't stop there. It also makes your creature spells cost one generic mana less to cast.
The play pattern of this commander is very clean, and it's perfect for new and established players alike. A deck built around Honest Rutstein can play a lot of efficient value creatures in the early game, sacrifice them for an effect, and then get it back after casting your commander; all of that by turn three. Then once Rutstein is on the battlefield, you can easily cast the rest of your creatures to reflood the board!
If you build this deck, I suggest you fill it with one- and two-mana creatures you can sacrifice for useful effects! Sakura-Tribe Elder could ramp you several times throughout the game, Insidious Fungus is removal when you need it or even more ramp, and of course Viscera Seer is a free sac outlet that allows you to sculpt the top of your deck. Also, keep an eye out for colorless creatures that only cost one mana, like Haywire Mite, since your commander would make it free!
#2 - Alexios, Deimos of Kosmos
Included in 22741 decks & the commander of 3250 decks (at time of writing).
Moving onto a card that's become the scourge of many tables, Alexios, Deimos of Kosmos. Following in the footsteps (or should I say tire tracks) of another Universes Beyond commander, Slicer, Hired Muscle, you're able to give Alexios away to your opponents for a turn. This play pattern tends to make for fast games since your commander grows more and more each turn, and since it has trample already, blocking becomes a difficult calculation.
A lot of decklists for Alexios include strong Auras and Equipment for good reason. As a reminder: even though someone else controls one of your creatures, you still control anything attached to it. For example, if one of your opponents hits another player while Mask of Memory is attached to your commander, you will be the one to draw those cards. Now think about doing that every single combat... Yeah, it becomes a problem very quick!
While I'm sure you'll see a lot of expensive cards on the EDHREC page for Alexios, here are some busted budget cards to add to your decks: Barrow-Blade from Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth is interesting since it will turn off any abilities that might put your commander in peril. Zephyr Boots will add flying to the mix, as well as a looting ability! If you need some ramp, throw Shiny Impetus on your own creature. One trip around the table will see you four Treasures richer!
Let's challenge some stats!
Before I move on, let me try to be like the EDHRECast for a moment and challenge some stats! Diamond Pick-Axe is showing up in 36% of decks for Alexios, Deimos of Kosmos, but it's probably not as helpful as you might think. The Pick-Axe gives its ability to the creature, so when an opponent gains control of it, that player will be making Treasures instead of you! So be on the lookout for effects that are in quotation marks, because those benefits are usually given to the creature's controller, instead of its owner.
#3 - Doc Aurlock, Grizzled Genius
Included in 21602 decks & the commander of 619 decks (at time of writing).
Doc Aurlock, Grizzled Genius is a wild little card. For only two mana, you get a big cost reduction for spells you cast from your graveyard or exile, as well as help with plotting your spells (a new mechanic debuted in OTJ). That's a lot of value attached to this creature, and because of that, you can take a deck built around it in a lot of different directions!
Of course, adding a lot of cards with plot to the list would work perfectly, but as of now, we don't have too many of those. Don't worry, because there's useful abilities like foretell, flashback, jump-start, retrace, escape, Adventure, disturb, as well as any other cards that allow you cast spells from exile or your graveyard. Heck, even Doctor Who has a few spells to help along the way with "paradox" cards triggering when you cast things from anywhere but your hand!
It can be a little overwhelming making a deck around Doc Aurlock, since you need to find a main strategy for all these crazy cards. I would use this as a Simic spellslinger deck, adding instant and sorcery payoffs in order to take advantage of all those cards you're casting. Quandrix Apprentice, Talrand, Sky Summoner, and Archmage of Runes are just a few of the cards that come to mind if your goal is to filter through your deck and build your board for the late game.
#4 - Arabella, Abandoned Doll
Included in 9664 decks & commander of 6680 decks (at time of writing).
I hope you're not afraid of dolls (especially abandoned ones), because Arabella, Abandoned Doll is too good not to throw in your decks! She's a two-drop that packs a big punch. When she attacks, count up your creatures with power two or less, because Arabella is going to deal damage to each opponent equal to that number, and you're going to gain that much life! That's a huge swing, even after one combat.
There's a whole lot of different ways to build this commander, even if it seems straightforward at first glance. Whether you go with tokens, small value creatures, or even a Boros life gain shell, it's going to be a pretty aggressive deck. One of the new decks emerging in the last few months for Arabella seems to include a little rabbit known as Hare Apparent. Since a deck can play any number of them, you can flood your board with tiny creatures that are all going to trigger your commander's attack ability!
If you don't want to go the Hare Apparent route, here's some suggestions to keep your engine of tiny creatures running. I recently featured Molten Gatekeeper in an article (you can check that out here), and in this deck it fits your burn strategy on two fronts. Even though this deck would be low to the ground, you might still need some ramp, Ornithopter of Paradise is here to help by tapping for mana or even attacking to trigger Arabella. When all else fails, try to just end the game with a well-timed Song of Totentanz!
#5 - Arbaaz Mir
Included in 13794 decks & commander of 725 decks (at time of writing).
Keeping things red and white, we have another Assassin's Creed card! Arbaaz Mir deals a damage to each opponent for every nontoken historic permanent that enters the battlefield under your control, and you gain a life. So, while this might not be the craziest card to build around, it does seem like it would be fun to dig through your collection to find your best legendaries, artifacts and Sagas to throw together. You might be surprised by the directions these decks can go.
First let's think about legendary and artifact lands: that's right, Boros Landfall! It doesn't just stop there, how about chaining mana rocks together all in one turn to deal even more damage to your foes? How about slamming planewalkers into the list? Assassin's Creed Super Friends is something I didn't think I would ever see. If all of that is too wacky, you can always just put as many legendary creatures as possible in the deck, and see what chaos ensues.
The lands triggering your commander is one of the most interesting parts to me, so here are a few budget options that you can trigger Arbaaz Mir with. Darksteel Citadel, Rustvale Bridge and Scene of the Crime are all artifact lands that can easily slot into the deck. Then there's legendary lands, like Geier Reach Sanitarium, Shivan Gorge and The Grey Havens, that bring a little bit of extra value along the way. This deck would be a silly build around but could lead to some fun stories!
#6 - Baron Bertram Graywater
Included in 12480 decks & commander of 149 decks (at time of writing).
Finishing up our list, we have Baron Bertram Graywater. This is a case of a legendary creature that's played in the 99 of decks far more than at the helm. The Baron makes you a Vampire Rogue every time another token enters under your control. While this only triggers once each turn, that ability can still grow your board fast. On top of that, you can spend two mana to sacrifice a creature or artifact to draw a card, which is a very strong ability to have on a commander!
One of the best ways to build around Bertram would be to make sure you can trigger his token creation on each turn around the table, so keeping an eye out for any spell that creates incidental tokens can ensure your engine is humming. Remember that those tokens don't even need to be all that great by themselves since your commander can just sacrifice them for a new card if worse comes to worst. Your tokens like Food, Goats, Incubators, Scions, and even Powerstones can all be turned into card draw when you need it!
I try hard not to suggest cards over $2, but Baron Bertram Graywater and Lotho, Corrupt Shirriff seem like they would just be best friends! Making Treasures and Vampires at the same time sounds like a match made in... somewhere other than heaven. (Also see Monologue Tax as a budget option.) If you need a way to close out games by weaponizing your tokens, Mirkwood Bats is always there to help! Draining the table whenever you create a token is strong enough, but then couple that with the fact that your commander can sacrifice those tokens to drain an additional life is some nasty synergy.
The Wrap Up!
I have to give a lot of props to the designers over at Wizards. They found a way to design uncommon legendary creatures that are powerful, but in specific ways. Sometimes those uses are best served in the 99, but a few can break through into the command zone. If you're like me, maybe this list inspired you to build around one of the cards featured here. So, as we look forward to 2025, let's keep an eye on our bulk, because the leader of your next deck might be hiding there!