Deck Archetypes

The 20 Commander Deck Archetypes

Every Commander deck is trying to do something. These are the twenty things: what each archetype does, which colors suit it, and the cards and commanders that define it.

The Deck Lab's macro knobs — Speed, Interaction, Stax and Card flow — each turning a group of channel targets at once, above the channel rack they retune.

An archetype is a deck's primary game plan: not what is in it, but what it is trying to do on the turn it wins. Two decks can share sixty cards and be entirely different archetypes, and knowing which one you have built tells you what to cut, what to add, and which pods you are a good fit for.

These are the twenty archetypes TurnZero HQ classifies decks into. Most real decks are a blend of two or three: aristocrats decks go wide, lands decks ramp, and a combo lurks in the back of plenty of otherwise fair decks. Pick the one that describes the win, and treat the rest as support.

All 20 Archetypes

Spellslinger Wins on a pile of instants and sorceries rather than a board of creatures. Graveyard recursion Cards come back from the graveyard, treating it as a second hand. Mill Empties libraries instead of attacking, winning when opponents cannot draw. Voltron One creature, usually the commander, carries the whole game plan. Go wide Floods the board with tokens and wins with numbers. Aristocrats Sacrifices its own creatures for value and drains the table. Enchantress Built around a critical mass of enchantments that draw cards as they resolve. Artifacts Built around a critical mass of artifacts and the payoffs that count them. Tribal Rewards playing many creatures that share a creature type. Stax Taxes or locks down what every player at the table is allowed to do. Combo Aims to assemble a specific card combination that ends the game. Control Answers everything and wins late, once the table has run out of threats. Ramp Accelerates into a mana advantage and casts bigger things sooner. Aggro Cheap, aggressive creatures apply pressure early and often. Group hug Gives the whole table resources, and wins from the goodwill it creates. Superfriends Built around a critical mass of planeswalkers. Lands matter Landfall and land-recursion turn the mana base itself into the engine. Counters Built around +1/+1 counters and the effects that multiply them. Blink Repeatedly exiles and returns its own creatures for their enter triggers. Lifegain Built around gaining life and the payoffs that turn it into a win condition.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the main Commander deck archetypes?

The twenty archetypes TurnZero HQ tracks are Spellslinger, Graveyard recursion, Mill, Voltron, Go wide, Aristocrats, Enchantress, Artifacts, Tribal, Stax, Combo, Control, Ramp, Aggro, Group hug, Superfriends, Lands matter, Counters, Blink, and Lifegain. Most real decks combine two or three of them.

Can a Commander deck be more than one archetype?

Almost every deck is. Aristocrats decks are usually also go-wide, lands-matter decks are usually also ramp, and combo turns up as a backup plan inside decks built around something else entirely. The archetype is a description of the primary game plan, not an exclusive label.

How do I know which archetype my deck is?

Ask what the deck is doing on the turn it wins. A deck that draws twenty cards and then attacks with one enormous creature is Voltron, not card draw. The archetype is whatever the rest of the deck is in service of.

Related Guides

Play Better Commander: In-Game Decision Frameworks →Build an Archetype in the Deck Builder →Commander Guides Hub →Best MTG Commander Decks & Precons →The Commander Deck Template →What Is Color Identity in MTG? →All 32 MTG Color Combinations and Their Names →What Is EDH Power Level? →

See which of your archetypes actually wins.

TurnZero HQ tags every deck you track with its archetype, so your record breaks down by strategy, not just by commander. Free to start.

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