Orzhov White-Black Commanders: A Complete Guide
Orzhov, the white-black color pairing in Magic: The Gathering, is synonymous with themes of life gain, sacrifice, and control. Whether you want to grind out value, lock down the board, or drain your opponents' life totals, Orzhov has a commander to suit your style. This guide will explore some of the most popular and effective Orzhov commanders, providing insights into their strengths, strategies, and synergies.
Orzhov offers a unique blend of black’s ability to destroy and resurrect, combined with white’s lifegain, protection, and powerful creatures. Together, these colors create a rich toolbox for controlling the board, generating card advantage, and whittling down opponents' life totals while maintaining a resilient game plan.
Let's dive in and explore the top Orzhov Commanders!
Commander list
- Karlov of the Ghost Council
- Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim
- Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter
- Athreos, God of Passage
- Teysa Karlov
- Zoraline, Cosmos Caller (Special Guest)
Karlov of the Ghost Council
| Card | Description |
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Name: Karlov of the Ghost Council |
Karlov of the Ghost Council is a lifegain-focused commander who can grow rapidly out of control, providing both a massive threat and removal on a stick.
Karlov decks prioritize lifegain triggers, often through cards like Soul Warden, Lunarch Veteran, and Healer’s Hawk. Once Karlov is sufficiently large, you can use his ability to exile opponents' creatures, making him both an aggressive and controlling force on the battlefield. Lifegain synergies with cards like Well of Lost Dreams and Archangel of Thune make Karlov an overwhelming presence that’s difficult for opponents to handle.
Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim
| Card | Description |
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Name: Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim |
Ayli, Eternal Pilgrim is a versatile commander who can act as both a value engine and a win condition. Her cheap cost and powerful abilities make her a flexible and resilient choice.
Ayli excels in lifegain strategies, where you can leverage her ability to exile creatures for repeatable removal. Combine her with lifegain engines like Authority of the Consuls and Soul Warden to quickly reach 50 life, unlocking her second ability. Pair Ayli with powerful creatures to sacrifice, such as Sun Titan and Solemn Simulacrum, to maximize value while controlling the board.
Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter
| Card | Description |
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Name: Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter |
Vish Kal, Blood Arbiter is a massive threat that can dominate the battlefield by growing in power and acting as spot removal. His lifelink also allows you to maintain your life total while dealing with enemy threats.
Vish Kal shines in decks that generate a lot of tokens or creatures you’re willing to sacrifice. Cards like Grave Titan and Wurmcoil Engine are excellent inclusions, as they provide sacrificial fodder while maintaining pressure. Vish Kal’s ability to remove creatures and grow in power makes him a versatile commander, capable of leading a control or combo-oriented deck.
Athreos, God of Passage
| Card | Description |
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Name: Athreos, God of Passage |
Athreos, God of Passage is perfect for a resilient, aggressive deck. His ability to return creatures to your hand or drain your opponents whenever your creatures die ensures that you never run out of steam.
Athreos decks often feature low-cost creatures that opponents hate to see return, such as Serra Ascendant, Selfless Spirit, and Dark Confidant. His ability to pressure opponents with difficult choices makes him ideal for a deck that intends to grind opponents down over time. Pairing him with recursion and sacrifice outlets like Skullclamp or Phyrexian Altar creates a self-sustaining engine of value.
Teysa Karlov
| Card | Description |
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Name: Teysa Karlov |
Teysa Karlov is a powerhouse in aristocrats and sacrifice decks. Her ability to double death triggers makes her a central figure for decks that thrive on creatures dying for value.
Teysa excels in decks that utilize creatures with "When this creature dies" abilities, such as Blood Artist and Grim Haruspex. Pair her with token generators like Elenda, the Dusk Rose to maximize your board presence. Sacrifice outlets like Yawgmoth, Thran Physician allow you to consistently trigger Teysa’s ability, creating overwhelming card advantage or draining opponents to death.
Zoraline, Cosmos Caller
| Card | Description |
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Name: Zoraline, Cosmos Caller |
A special mention goes to Zoraline, Cosmos Caller, who makes her debut in the new set Bloomburrow.
Zoraline, Cosmos Caller is a versatile Orzhov commander who excels in blending Bat tribal, recursion, and graveyard synergy into a cohesive strategy. Her ability to gain life whenever a Bat attacks encourages a tribal approach, with cards like Desecrated Tomb and Regal Bloodlord generating the Bat tokens needed to fuel this engine. Beyond life gain, Zoraline's true strength lies in her recursion ability, which allows you to bring back key low-cost permanents from your graveyard whenever she enters or attacks, at the cost of {W}{B} and 2 life. This makes her a powerful tool for maintaining board presence and creating value over time. To maximize this potential, filling your graveyard with valuable targets using cards like Entomb and Buried Alive ensures that you always have something impactful to recur. Together, these strategies create a resilient, adaptable deck that can pressure opponents through consistent life gain, token generation, and strategic recursion, making Zoraline a formidable and flexible choice in any Orzhov deck.