Whether you’re brewing your first Commander deck template or your fiftieth, having a solid deck template tailored to your archetype saves time, ensures balance, and helps you stay competitive or casual—your choice.
This guide breaks down Commander deck construction into plug-and-play deck templates for the most popular archetypes, including:
- 🧠 Control
- 🔥 Aggro
- 🪦 Graveyard
- 🌳 Landfall
- 🧙 Spellslinger
- 🧬 Combo
- 🧝 Tribal
- 💥 Stompy (Big Creatures)
We’ll cover card type ratios, essential cards, and how to modify based on power level or budget—plus when to proxy and what to cut.
⚙️ The Commander Deck Template Framework
Before diving into archetypes, here’s the core structure most Commander decks follow:
| Category | Typical Count |
|---|---|
| Lands | 34–38 |
| Ramp | 10–14 |
| Card Draw | 8–12 |
| Interaction (Removal) | 8–12 |
| Win Conditions | 3–6 |
| Synergy/Utility Cards | 10–20 |
| Commander Support | 3–5 |
🧙♂️ Spellslinger (Instant/Sorcery-Focused)
Typical Commanders: Mizzix of the Izmagnus, Veyran, Imoti, Zaffai, Narset
Core Traits: Cast lots of spells, care about spell count, storm potential
Template:
- 38 Lands
- 12 Ramp (Talismans, rituals, land fetch)
- 12 Draw (Wheel of Fortune, Jeska’s Will, Blue cantrips)
- 10+ Instants/Sorceries that trigger commander effects
- 8 Removal (Bounce, counters, sweepers)
- 5–8 Payoff creatures/enchantments (Thousand-Year Storm, Talrand)
- 2–3 Wincons (Grapeshot, Aetherflux Reservoir, big X spells)
Tips:
- Run low-cost spells with flexible effects
- Add recursion like Mystic Retrieval, Snapcaster Mage
- Proxy-worthy: Dockside Extortionist, Mana Drain, Wheel of Fortune
💥 Stompy (Big Creatures, Big Mana)
Typical Commanders: Ghalta, Selvala, Xenagos, Goreclaw
Core Traits: Huge creatures, mana ramp, trample
Template:
- 36 Lands
- 14 Ramp (dorks, land fetch, Cradle effects)
- 6–8 Draw (Greater Good, Momentous Fall)
- 8 Interaction (Beast Within, fight spells, wipe protection)
- 20+ creatures (ETB effects, trample, haste)
- 3–5 Finishers (Craterhoof, Overwhelming Stampede)
Tips:
- Curve matters! Don’t overload 7+ drops
- Creature ramp > spell ramp
- Proxy-worthy: Gaea’s Cradle, Natural Order, Survival of the Fittest
🧠 Control
Typical Commanders: Aminatou, Zur, Marchesa, Talion
Core Traits: Counterspells, board wipes, win late
Template:
- 36 Lands
- 12 Ramp (rocks, land tax, enchant ramp)
- 10 Card Draw (Fact or Fiction, Phyrexian Arena)
- 14 Interaction (Counterspell, Toxic Deluge, Vindicate)
- 5–7 Wincons (Torpor Orb combos, walkers, Thassa’s Oracle)
- 10 Utility (Blink, tutors, protection)
Tips:
- Focus on flexibility, not just denial
- Plan your wincon early (combo or attrition)
- Proxy-worthy: Force of Will, Mana Drain, Demonic Tutor
🧬 Combo
Typical Commanders: Thrasios/Timna, Kes, Korvold, Niv-Mizzet
Core Traits: Assemble a 2–3 card infinite combo, win fast or stealthily
Template:
- 34–36 Lands
- 14 Ramp (fast mana, Dockside, dorks)
- 10 Card Draw (tutors count here)
- 10+ Tutors (Vampiric, Enlightened, etc.)
- 6–8 Interaction
- 5–6 Combo Pieces
- 3–5 Redundancies
Tips:
- Have a backup plan
- Include silence/protection like Teferi’s Protection
- Proxy-worthy: Dockside, Ad Nauseam, Yawgmoth’s Will, Timetwister
🪦 Graveyard/Recursion
Typical Commanders: Meren, Muldrotha, Karador, Sidisi
Core Traits: Use the graveyard as an extension of your hand
Template:
- 36 Lands
- 10 Ramp
- 8–10 Draw (Life from the Loam, dredge, Underrealm Lich)
- 8–10 Removal
- 15–20 Graveyard-focused cards (mill, reanimate, sacrifice)
- 3–5 Wincons (combo or value engine)
Tips:
- Pack grave-hate protection
- Self-mill + recursion is better than trying to “loot”
- Proxy-worthy: Entomb, Survival of the Fittest, Yawgmoth’s Will
🧝 Tribal
Typical Commanders: Edgar Markov, Elves (Marwyn, Lathril), Slivers, Goblins
Core Traits: Synergy from a shared creature type
Template:
- 35–36 Lands
- 10 Ramp
- 10–15 Tribe creatures
- 10 Lords / synergy enablers
- 6–8 Removal
- 3–5 Wincons or Overrun effects
- 3–4 Tutors if needed
Tips:
- Run anthem effects, protection, and utility tribal cards
- Prioritize speed and resilience
- Proxy-worthy: Cavern of Souls, Mana Echoes, Earthcraft
🌳 Landfall / Lands Matter
Typical Commanders: Lord Windgrace, Tatyova, Omnath, The Gitrog Monster
Core Traits: Abuse land drops, land recursion, and landfall triggers
Template:
- 38–40 Lands
- 12 Ramp (including land drops: Exploration, Burgeoning)
- 8 Draw (Tatyova, Tireless Tracker)
- 8 Interaction (Wipe, artifact/enchantment hate)
- 10 Landfall enablers (Retreat to Coralhelm, Avenger of Zendikar)
- 3–5 Wincons (Scapeshift, Valakut, Titania)
Tips:
- More lands = more fuel
- Include Crucible of Worlds, fetchlands, and bounce lands
- Proxy-worthy: Exploration, Fastbond, Crucible of Worlds
🗂 Summary Chart – Deck Template by Archetype
| Archetype | Ramp | Draw | Interaction | Lands | Wincons | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spellslinger | 12 | 12 | 10 | 38 | 3–5 | Low CMC, storm tools |
| Stompy | 14 | 6–8 | 8 | 36 | 4–6 | Big mana, trample |
| Control | 12 | 10 | 12–14 | 36 | 3–5 | Deny, delay, dominate |
| Combo | 14 | 10 | 6–8 | 34–36 | 3–5 | Protect and assemble |
| Graveyard | 10 | 10 | 8–10 | 36 | 3–5 | Self-mill + recursion |
| Tribal | 10 | 8–10 | 6–8 | 36 | 3–5 | Fast synergy ramp |
| Landfall | 12 | 8 | 8 | 38–40 | 3–5 | Land recursion + triggers |
💬 Final Thoughts
Deckbuilding in Commander isn’t one-size-fits-all—but using archetype-based templates helps you balance fun, power, and theme. Whether you’re tuning a precon or brewing cEDH, these frameworks give you a starting point.