We continue with more articles exploring some of the most iconic, popular, and powerful creature tribes in the game of Magic. This time, we’re exploring best MTG Humans.
This tribe fits perfectly with the description of iconic, popular, and powerful. It is one of the most bland in terms of specific characteristics. But this makes it extremely varied due to the diversity of all Human creatures out there. It is one of the oldest, lore important, and powerful tribes in the whole game.
Because this tribe is full of really good creatures, I have decided to change the format of the article a bit. Instead of having the traditional Honourable Mentions and the Top 10 list, I will present the best three creatures in each color with the addition of the best Commander in that color.
There will be cards in mono color, three in dual, triple, and quadruple color combinations as well. There’s also a five color Commander included.
With that aside let’s get going.
Best MTG Humans – Mono Color
White
This is one of the colors with most Humans out there. The amount of really good Human creatures in this color is great. I’ve chosen some of the most used Human creatures not only played in this tribe, but played in many other themes.
#1 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
All three cards are a part of sideboards and main boards of many of the meta decks in Modern. Thalia is especially powerful, as it slows your opponents down significantly. Against some decks, she’s a must-kill threat.
#2 Champion of the Parish
Champion of the Parish is a key one drop for any kind of competitive tribal Human deck. It can grow very quickly, while costing just one white mana.
#3 Thalia’s Lieutenant
Thalia’s Lieutenant, is also used in Human tribal decks as it is extremely powerful in that shell. It is also really good in Human tribal Commander decks as well.
In general, three really powerful and impactful cards in this color.
Commander: Rick, Steadfast Leader
If you’re looking for a best Commander for MTG Humans, look no further, as this is the one. Although, the card was quite controversial, thanks to the Walking Dead collaboration in the unique Secret Lair – it’s power is unquestionable.
Blue
Blue is the color of instants. It is famous for its counterspells and card draw engines. And most creatures have abilities related to these themes.
#1 Snapcaster Mage
Snapcaster Mage is one of the most iconic MTG Humans in the entire game. Its backstory of how it was created and the impact it has on the game are truly remarkable. Its abilities are no joke as well.
Being able to cast a creature at instant speed and getting to replay an instant or sorcery from your graveyard is truly powerful. This is why it is a common card in eternal formats, especially in Modern where it is an absolute staple.
#2 Baral, Chief of Compliance
The same about Snapcaster Mage can be said about Baral, Chief of Compliance. Since its introduction in the Khaladesh block it has seen play in every format. Its ability to make instants and sorceries 1 cheaper and draw a card whenever you counter something is great.
Baral is both powerful and flavorful. It is a usual sideboard and mainboard piece in Modern decks, as well as a great Commander itself.
#3 Agent of Treachery
Lastly, Agent of Treachery is such a devastating card. When it was a part of Standard it terrorized the format. Now, it has found a place in Commander. It is highly priced but its ability is sure worth it. Getting to steal anything when it enters the battlefield is insane, and the added ability to draw cards if you have three permanents from other players is crazy.
Commander: Urza, Lord High Artificer
Moving away from control elements and spell based abilities, Urza tackles another blue stapled theme: Artifacts. And it is quite honestly the best artifact themed Commander out there. It takes advantage of having artifacts, it creates artifacts, and it combos off with artifacts. It is just extremely good at artifacts.
Black
Black is the color of sacrifice, removal, and graveyard synergies. The overarching theme of this color is power at a cost. This is true especially in Human cards, which are usually represented as corrupted individuals.
#1 Dark Confidant
Dark Confidant is one iconic card in this color. Its original art is cool. And it’s flavor text perfectly states the black motto “Greatness, at any cost.” Its ability allows you to reveal the top card of your library and put it into your hand. At the cost of losing life equal to the cards CMC. It’s a great card selection card in a color which struggles with it.
#2 Xathrid Necromance
Xathrid Necromancer is a great zombie card. It is really flavorful. It turns Humans when they die into zombies. Great addition to a Human tribal deck. The fact that it turns Humans into zombies is just cool. I like it very much.
#3 Kitesail Freebooter
Kitesail Freebooter is a card that was frequently played in Standard. It is a staple in Modern Humans. And it is a good addition to any Commander deck. It is a 2 mana ½ that has flying. Its ability is to take away a noncreature, nonland card from a target opponent’s hand until Kitesail Freebooter leaves the battlefield. This makes this card a good control element.
Commander: Yawgmoth. Thran Physician
For the Blue Commander Urza was the choice. So, it is fitting to choose its lore enemy Yawgmoth. Both characters are two of the main protagonists of the early magic story. Their color identity and their abilities are extremely opposite of each other. This makes them have attributes associated with their colors.
Yawgmoth has protection from Humans, symbolizing his resistance and struggle against Urza. He can sacrifice another creature by paying 1 life and getting in return a card and a -1-1 counter on a target creature. Very classic black mechanics. And finally he can Proliferate by discarding a card and paying two black. This synergizes perfectly with its first ability.
Red
Red is the color of aggressive play styles based on explosive attacks and damage. Usually the cards in this color all have these same abilities with some minor variations. Most of MTG Humans are no exception to this statement. They are usually small creatures with low CMC which pack a punch.
#1 Seasoned Pyromancer
Season Pyromancer is probably the best red Human overall. Because of its place in all formats. This is one of the few cards that sees consisten play in all formats where it is legal. In Modern it is a part of Red Aggro decks. The same archetype in Commander as well. Its ability to provide card draw, token generation, and damage output is efficient and powerful.
#2 Soul-Scar Mage
Soul-Scar Mage is a really efficient attacker and creature remover. It is a 1 mana ½ with prowess which removes creatures. Crazy. The fact is that this creature is also really good in Commander. The second ability allows it to be a more passive support piece in this format. This is why this card is chosen over Monastery Swiftspear, Fervent Champion, and Robber of the Rich.
#3 Dualcaster Mage
Dualcaster Mage is another iconic card. It sees most of its play in spell-based Commander decks as well as once and again being included in modern decklists. Its ability to be cast at instant speed and copying a spell is great. The fact that it is not that expensive to cast at 3 mana. And the fact that it is a 2/2 creature for that cost and with that ability it makes it pretty good.
Commander: Najeela, the Blade-Blossom
This is one of the most powerful and fun Commanders out there. Yes it is red in color identity, but its ability makes it a five color Commander. This card is all about attacking. Her first ability allows you to create tokens every time you attack with a warrior. Her second ability gives an extra attack phase as well as a ton of keyword abilities to all attacking creatures. One of the best aggressive commanders out there.
Green
Green is the color of mana ramp and big creatures. This means that there are not a lot of Humans specifically with this single color combination. And the few that there are usually fall into these two main themes of the color.
#1 Noble Hierarch
This is true for Noble Hierarch which is basically a really good mana dork, producing one mana in white, blue, and green. This makes this card extremely valuable to any deck with these colors. It also has the added benefit of having Exalted as a keyword ability.
#2 Tireless Tracker
Tireless Tracker also falls into the mana ramp category. This card is a bit different though. It benefits from lands entering the battlefield making you “investigate”. This ability allows you to draw cards. Another good ability.
Lastly, when you sacrifice the Clue, Tracker grows. This also provides an aggressive angle to the card. It does a lot for a 3 mana 3/2.
#3 Eternal Witness
Finally, Eternal Witness is just a classic and iconic card in the format of Commander. For three mana you get to play a 2/1 creature and bring back any card from the graveyard to your hand. It’s a simple design. It doesn’t sound complicated or very relevant. But indeed it is an extremely powerful ability for the low cost.
Commander : Yisan, the Wanderer Bard
For the best Commander in Green, Yisan is pretty much a classic green creature based Commander. It’s cheap and has a great ability. For 3 mana you get to put a verse counter on it, look for a creature card with CMC equal to the amount of counters on it, and put that creature into the battlefield.
The fact that you can find a way to manipulate its counters, or untap it and pay the cost easily in green, makes Yisan a very good Commander.
Best MTG Humans – Dual Color
This was probably the hardest color combination to choose from. Most MTG Humans are in various two color combinations. They are some of the most extremely powerful and most iconic Humans in the entire game.
Some of the cards that deserve a mention and were left of the top three are:
- Reflector Mage
- Deputy of Detention
- Dranith Enforcer
- Samut, Voice of Dissent
- Kambal, Consul of Allocation
- Sigarda, Heron’s Grace
- Judith, the Scourge Diva
- Hostage Taker
- Lavinia, Azorius Renegade
- Ravos, Soultender
- Chainer, Nightmare Adept
- Zhur-Taa Druid
- Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain
The three cards that I have chosen are:
#1 Captain Sisay
Captain Sisay is just an iconic card. Its simple ability to tap and look for a Legendary card, reveal it, and put it into your hand at no extra cost is really good. This is why it sees a lot of play in Commander.
#2 Tymna the Weaver
Tyman the Weaver is probably the most powerful Human creature in the format of Commander. It is one of the most used partner Commanders out there in the casual and competitive scene. Its ability to draw cards by paying life is great in Commander where the life total is so high.
#3 Meddling Mage
Meddling Mage is one of the best MTG Humans for control strategies. Being able to restrict the usage of your opponents best card is insanely good. She is a staple in Modern, and she is one of the most powerful cards in Commander.
Commander: General Kudro of Drannith
For a Commander option I could’ve chosen Tymna. But General Kudro is the best fit for a Human tribal Commander. This guy pumps Humans. This guy punishes your opponents by playing Humans. And this guy is not afraid to sacrifice Humans to take out other big creatures. It’s flavorful with good abilities. And it has one of the best voice lines in MTG Arena: “GO!!”
Best MTG Humans – Triple Color
There is less Humans in three color combinations than the dual color ones. Most of the three colored powerful Humans are Legendary. Because of this not many of them see play outside of Commander. But this also means that they mostly have really good abilities. Some honorable mentions in this category are:
The cards included in this list are:
#1 Mantis Rider
A Human that has seen plenty of play outside of the format of Commander is Mantis Rider. This card is a staple in some of Modern Human tribal decks. It is one of the most efficient cars of all times, as a three mana 3/3 with 3 keyword abilities. It has flying, vigilance, and haste. What else can you ask from a card.
#2 Chulane, Teller of Tales
Chulane, Teller of Tales is a really powerful Commander. Firstly it is not that expensive for a Commander. 5 CMC with one green, white, and blue. This gives you access to two of the best colors in Commander: Green (ramp), Blue (card draw, counterspells).
Its last ability is to pay 3 and tap to return a creature you control to their owner’s hands. Not bad. But its first ability is to draw a card and play a land from your hand to the battlefield whenever you cast a creature. CAST. It doesn’t even have to resolve. You ramp and draw cards from doing something basic as playing creatures. Crazy.
#3 Jodah, Archmage Eternal
Jodah, Archmage Eternal is not a popular card. It is one of the most difficult cards to pull off. However It is crazy fun to build around and it can provide incredible payoff.
Its ability takes into consideration all colors. This makes it a five color Commander. Its ability lets you play any spell from your hand by paying these five colors. This means that you can play huge creatures like Eldrazi for half their cost. And with Combo pieces such as Morophon, the Boundless you can play spells for free.
Commander: Jirina Kudro
For the Commander option I’ve chosen Jirina Kudro who is the daughter of General Kudro. And like her father, she also has synergies with various MTG Humans.
Her ability is far more simple than her father’s. She creates a 1/1 Human creature whenever she enters the battlefield for each time you’ve casted a Commander from the Command zone. And she also gives all Humans +2/+1.
Best MTG Humans – Four Colors
This color combination is one with the least amount of Human creatures in the game. It is really difficult to create a card with four colors that works properly. In this case, there were just a couple of options to choose for. This is why there is no Commander alternative as these three cards can be played as Commanders as well.
Let’s see which cards I included as best 3 Humans in three colors.
#1 Breya, Etherium Shaper
Breya is probably the most played card out of the three. As well as the most known. Her whole design is based around artifacts. The fact that she has four colors to build around make her one of the best artifact Commanders out there.
She has token creation, damage dealing, creature removal, and life gain. The only thing she is missing is card draw. Apart from that she is a really good Commander overall.
#2 Saskia the Unyielding
Saskia the Unyielding has one of the most fun designs out there. She has a somewhat political side to her. The fact that you target an opponent directly, gives this card an interesting dynamic in a multiplayer game.
She also has good stats being a 3/4 for 4 with vigilance and haste. The haste means that she can attack and trigger her ability as soon as you play her. This makes her a really fun and unique card to build around.
#3 Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis
Kynaios and Tiro of Meletis is a really interesting card. Firstly because its two characters are represented as one creature. Secondly because it’s one of the few cards out there that does not only help the player controlling it but also helps their opponents.
This card is a part of the Most Fun Commanders to Play With list that I wrote about before. The reason being the positive vibes that this card gives whenever you play with it.
Best MTG Humans – Five Color
For five colors, we’ve already mentioned some options above, but here’s one more for good measure.
Kenrith, the Returned King
This is one of the most fun and powerful Commanders out there. It’s tool box styled abilities allow you to build plenty of cool and creative decks. Kenrith might be white in color identity, but it’s multicolored ability allows you to build a deck with all colors in mind.
This makes him one of the most played, talked about, built around, and flexible commanders out there.
Conclusion
Humans in general are a great tribe to play with. It is a tribe relevant to almost every format with decks dedicated to them that are powerful. They are some of the most iconic, powerful, varied, and certainly relatable creatures out of all the ones in the game.
Hopefully this list has given you an idea of some of the great Human cards. As always, if you agree or disagree with any addition to the whole list let us know in the comment section.
Thank you for reading our content. If you’re looking for more articles, maybe some of the following ones will interest you:
Stay safe, have fun, and go for wins with your fellow Humans!