Primeval TitanPrimeval Titan | Art by Aleksi Briclot

Hello, everyone, my name's Jonathan and some weeks ago I wrote a couple of articles talking about the best upkeep and end step triggers. So, today I'm continuing this series by taking a look at the best "titan" triggers in Commander. But, what exactly do I mean by "titan" triggers? Well, let's have a look at my beloved (and sadly banned) Primeval TitanPrimeval Titan.

As you can see, this creature has an ability that triggers both when it enters and when it attacks. This is exactly what I call a "titan" trigger, as its name comes from the original cycle of "Titan" creatures.

Before diving into my list, I want to clarify one thing. My ranking is completely subjective and based on my opinions. You may disagree with me on some or all of the cards I included, and that's totally fine. But always keep in mind these are only my ideas, not rules set in stone: feel free to share your own thoughts in the comments below!

Honorable Mention Number 1: Dragonhawk, Fate's TempestDragonhawk, Fate's Tempest

For my first honorable mention, I wanted to go with a card I love: Dragonhawk, Fate's TempestDragonhawk, Fate's Tempest. What's interesting about it is that nothing ever goes to waste, as you can choose what to do with the cards it gives you turn after turn. If you need to develop your board more, you're simply going to ignore them and deal a bunch of damage to your opponents' faces. Instead, if your big creatures are in play and ready to swing, you can thank Dragonhawk, Fate's TempestDragonhawk, Fate's Tempest for the additional gas it gives you.

Sadly, I couldn't realistically put it any higher than an honorable mention. It's true that when it gets going it's hard to stop it, but it's really not that easy to put this creature in motion. It needs quite a bit of setup, and a well-timed board wipe sets it back to the Stone Age. So, while I can't deny the strength of its ability, this doesn't ensure it a place on the main list.

Honorable Mention Number 2: Ureni of the UnwrittenUreni of the Unwritten

Continuing on the same line as the previous entry, we have another big creature: Ureni of the UnwrittenUreni of the Unwritten. This can be even more devastating than Dragonhawk, Fate's TempestDragonhawk, Fate's Tempest, because it both allows you to choose and put into play the best Dragon from the top eight cards of your library. This means that the seven-mana investment you made to cast Ureni of the Unwritten will easily be worth double this amount. And if it gets swinging...

Once again, this card is only included as an honorable mention for a good reason. First of all, its cost: seven mana with three different colors can make it tricky to cast, although having access to green ramp spells can ease this problem. What's truly stopping me from putting it higher in the ranking is the whiff possibility. In fact, although eight cards are a lot, there is always the possibility that you won't flip into any Dragon creature. And if that's the case, you've just spent quite a lot of mana to get almost nothing out of it because, let's be real, you're not untapping with this enormous threat on your next turn.

Number 5: Uro, Titan of Nature's WrathUro, Titan of Nature's Wrath

Let's open the official list with a card that terrorized players and became the scourge of multiple formats: Uro, Titan of Nature's WrathUro, Titan of Nature's Wrath. The first information I got about this card came from my brother, who told me that "whenever a player casts it, they start moving their hands so much", which is a pretty good representation of the impact Uro, Titan of Nature's Wrath has on the game. You have to draw a card, add to your life total and play a land from your hand: these are a lot of game actions to perform whenever it enters or attacks.

Clearly, it's not nearly as strong as in 1-v-1, 60-card formats, but this doesn't take away the power of its ability. Additionally, even at Commander tables it can snowball out of control, as it grants the player a lot of resources at a very cheap cost of three or four mana.

Number 4: The Disrupting Duo: Rottenmouth ViperRottenmouth Viper and Kefka, Court MageKefka, Court Mage

These two cards' main goal is to disrupt your opponents into oblivion, and they're pretty good at that. But let's go in order.

Rottenmouth ViperRottenmouth Viper is a card that might seem ok-but-not-great at first, but it becomes better and better the more you look at it. First off, you'll never pay the full six mana; actually, you might as well consider this a three-drop or lower, given that you'll include a ton of sacrifice fodder in a deck that plays it. And then, the blight counters can add up very quickly, especially because they can be proliferated or simply grow over time.

Also, they scale very well for us (and very poorly for our opponents): at first, it might seem as nothing happened, but with even just three counters you'll be able to put the table in a very difficult situation.

And then there's Kefka, Court MageKefka, Court Mage, one of the most recent cards in this list. What's interesting about it is how it interacts with the whole table: as an opponent, would you be willing to discard a useful card to prevent the Kefka player from drawing an additional one? Or would you think about yourself and grant them more resources?

Also consider that they'll have to face this choice turn after turn. On top of all of this, once the game's been disrupted enough, you can simply flip it and proceed to see so many cards you'll win the game in the blink of an eye.

Number 3: Kindred DiscoveryKindred Discovery

Here's somewhat of a surprise, since it's the only noncreature card in the whole list which perfectly fits today's criteria.

Kindred DiscoveryKindred Discovery is one of the most powerful payoffs for any typal strategy that wants to go wide. It's so easy to trigger, so drawing absurd amounts of cards during each turn. It can also work as a board wipe insurance, since you'll get your engine going again simply by casting some more creatures.

Its most glaring downside is its cost: five mana is a lot to pay, mostly because the card ends up in a weird position in the mana curve. If you want to slam it on the board on turn five, you must have already built a good enough board that can take advantage of it. If that's not the case, then you're going to cast it later in the game, when maybe it won't be nearly as relevant.

All things considered, this remains a very strong card, with an upside so big it cancels out the negative aspects. Nonetheless, it requires a good deal of planning to be played properly, so that you don't miss a step as you move into the middle stages of the game.

Number 2: Recursion Galore: Sun TitanSun Titan, Colossal Grave-ReaverColossal Grave-Reaver, Overlord of the BalemurkOverlord of the Balemurk

Once again, I couldn't decide on simply one card for this category, so I chose to put the most representative ones.

First, Sun TitanSun Titan is a timeless card (as well as a member of the original Titan cycle). It's not the flashiest, especially compared to today's standards, but it's impressive how it can consistently get the work done. It's a bit expensive to cast, but the amount of value it can generate is unmatched.

Then, talking about flashy cards, Colossal Grave-ReaverColossal Grave-Reaver is the embodiment of a new age of Magic cards. Sure, it's very expensive, but it's the perfect top-end of your mana curve. It just has to stick around for a little bit, and then it'll net you a ton of creatures. It can feed itself and go off like that, or it can take advantage of other engines you already have on the board. It's both the engine and the payoff, which makes it a very explosive mix.

Finally, Overlord of the BalemurkOverlord of the Balemurk shines for its flexibility. The fact that you can pay only two mana, get a trigger and then benefit from the attack trigger during future turns is truly incredible. This one isn't a very flashy card either, but its ability to generate value and card advantage at different stages of the game truly make it excel.

Number 1: Your Usual Broken Sacrifice Stuff: Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIERSephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER and Korvold, Fae-Cursed KingKorvold, Fae-Cursed King

At last, standing at the top of the list, there are two of the most powerful payoffs for one of the strongest strategies in Commander. Artistocrats decks have always been part of the format, and they get stronger and stronger with every new set. They're a core part of Commander's identity, and they can count on absurdly strong cards like Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIERSephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER and Korvold, Fae-Cursed KingKorvold, Fae-Cursed King to lead their engines.

On one hand, Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIERSephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER is another new-ish card, with a front side that can decimate life totals in the blink of an eye. And then, the flip side is a game-ender that takes all the base abilities and puts them on steroids. The fact that the whole cards revolves around this creature entering and attacking makes Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER the perfect name to top this list.

On the other hand, we have what's become the true king of Sacrifice decks in the format: Korvold, Fae-Cursed KingKorvold, Fae-Cursed King. The way it can take over games is truly astounding: from the moment it touches the battlefield, it'll start piling on cards and resources and triggers from other payoffs. Oh, and don't forget: it can easily take out a person or two with commander damage. The amount of times it can trigger its effects is absurd, allowing it to proudly stand in the first spot for this ranking.