Grand Arbiter Augustin IVGrand Arbiter Augustin IV | Art by Zoltan Boros and Gabor Szikszai

There is a lot going on in the Commander format. Players simultaneously build new decks, tinker with existing strategies, track prices, dissect trends, and keep up with new cards. Once decks are created, purchased, and optimized, we get to face off against other humans, whether it's an established playgroup or complete strangers.

Playing against people creates all sorts of further social conversations. That's why we have great resources like Mike Carrozza's "Am I the Bolas?" and Cas Hinds articles about etiquette, social interaction, salting out, and more!

These interactions inevitably lead to cards that make players angry, annoyed, and upset. This is why EDHREC has annual "Salt Voting" and keeps a list of the top 100 saltiest cards.

It's bad enough when a high-salt card is somewhere in the 99 of an opponent's deck. But permanent access to a salt-inducer in the command zone can just be too much sometimes! That's why today, we're going to look at the top 10 saltiest commanders and find more fun alternatives in the same color identity and strategy.

But before we get started, one quick caveat – we won't be looking at legendary creatures that have high salt scores but don't show up as often in the command zone. These include:

• Vorinclex, Voice of HungerVorinclex, Voice of Hunger (2.61 salt, 760 decks)
• Jin-Gitaxias, Core AugurJin-Gitaxias, Core Augur (2.57 salt, 880 decks)
• Hokori, Dust DrinkerHokori, Dust Drinker (2.27 salt, 885 decks)
• Jin-Gitaxias, Progress TyrantJin-Gitaxias, Progress Tyrant (2.22 salt, 1791 decks)
• Braids, Cabal MinionBraids, Cabal Minion (2.21 salt, 1442 decks)

Ten Salty Commanders

With that out of the way, let's look at ten salty commanders - ranked from lowest to highest salt score - explore their basic strategies, and try to find each one a more enjoyable replacement.

10. Sheoldred, the ApocalypseSheoldred, the Apocalypse – 2.03 salt score, 10,642 decks

This Phyrexian Praetor is a mono-black commander that punishes opponents for simply playing Magic. What's more salt-inducing than turning drawing extra cards into a downside?

Decks led by this commander stack up additional damage and life loss while forcing everyone to draw extra cards. This is fun for the Sheoldred player but dismal for everyone else.

Potential Replacement: Ayara, First of LocthwainAyara, First of Locthwain

Like Sheoldred, Ayara is a mono-black commander that specializes in repeatedly draining all our opponents. The usual Aristocrats strategy she leads, however, is much less oppressive than the scary four-drop.

Taking full advantage of black's most popular creatures is way less likely to create "feels bad" moments for opponents, like dying on the spot to Sheoldred + Peer into the AbyssPeer into the Abyss. Plus, Ayara's mana cost means Gray Merchant of AsphodelGray Merchant of Asphodel and Abhorrent OverlordAbhorrent Overlord get an awesome boost.

9. Sen TripletsSen Triplets – 2.04 salt score, 6,873 decks

Sen TripletsSen Triplets is an Esper () commander that steals opponents' cards. But what makes it saltier than commanders like Kotis, the FangkeeperKotis, the Fangkeeper is the fact that it has a built-in SilenceSilence effect and the fact that the cards are also basically being discarded.

This is a horrible combination to be on the receiving end of!

Some of the Triplets' highest synergy cards figure out the best player to steal from, grant a reward for casting opponents' spells, and double up on the commander's upkeep trigger.

Potential Replacement: Eriette, the BeguilerEriette, the Beguiler

Eriette is another Esper commander that steals other players' stuff. We'll still be able to play with our opponents' cards, but in a much less oppressive way.

Instead of forcing opponents to lose cards from their hands, we're casting goofy high mana value Auras to selectively disrupt the board state and turn the tide of the game in our favor.

8. Edgar MarkovEdgar Markov – 2.05 salt score, 42,592 decks

A Mardu () commander with the powerful eminence ability, Edgar MarkovEdgar Markov doesn't even need to be on the battlefield to have a significant effect on the game.

1/1 VampireVampire tokens appear innocuous at first glance, but become fearsome when bolstered by the many lords Vampires have to offer. Quickly dying to a horde of tokens created by a card you can't even interact with is a surefire way to go home salty.

Potential Replacement: Zurgo, Thunder's DecreeZurgo, Thunder's Decree

Zurgo, another Mardu commander that also creates a steady stream of tokens, is a fun alternative.

Like Vampires, Warriors have a decent number of types-matter cards at their disposal, like Mindblade RenderMindblade Render and Gornog, the Red ReaperGornog, the Red Reaper.

7. Yuriko, the Tiger's ShadowYuriko, the Tiger's Shadow – 2.15 salt score, 29,894 decks

Yuriko, the Tiger's ShadowYuriko, the Tiger's Shadow, a Dimir () strategy, breaks the commander tax rule. Ninjutsu doesn't actually cast a card, so she'll always sneak into play for just – no matter how often she's been removed.

Meanwhile, everyone else will be forced to pay more for commanders as the game progresses – how unfair!

Decks led by this commander are often a simple combination of evasive, low-cost threats, Ninjas, and high mana value cards for Yuriko's mass drain ability.

Potential Replacement: Satoru UmezawaSatoru Umezawa

This one's a pretty obvious replacement, keeping the same evasive threats + ninjutsu core of the deck intact. But instead of unfun commander tax evasion, we're plopping big threats into combat with Satoru-enabled ninjutsu .

Satoru requires more setup and offer more enjoyable variation than a commander that always costs and always does the same thing.

6. Kinnan, Bonder ProdigyKinnan, Bonder Prodigy – 2.15 salt score, 27,048 decks

Kinnan, Bonder ProdigyKinnan, Bonder Prodigy is a Simic () commander known for explosive starts. The immediate mana advantage this commander enables is sure to cause a lot of salt, especially with Basalt MonolithBasalt Monolith creating infinite mana at the drop of a hat.

Kinnan doesn't just produce tons of mana, he's also a mana sink. Decks can repeatedly spend to find a game-breaker like Tidespout TyrantTidespout Tyrant.

Potential Replacement: Kenessos, Priest of ThassaKenessos, Priest of Thassa

Kenessos is another two-mana Simic commander that can cheat big creatures onto the battlefield. Where Kinnan can spiral out of control with ramp, Kenessos trades this in for slower average starts backed up by consistent card selection. This is a great recipe for a more balanced, fun game for everyone involved.

This strategy pulls together library setup enablers, cost reducers, and a powerful top end of big sea monsters. Cool tech from this past year includes Summon: LeviathanSummon: Leviathan and StarwinderStarwinder.

5. Toxrill, the CorrosiveToxrill, the Corrosive – 2.19 salt score, 8,032 decks

Toxrill is a Dimir commander that makes creature-based strategies absolutely miserable. This is quite oppressive in the popular Bracket 2-3 spaces, where games overwhelmingly end with combat damage.

Even if this Slug Horror is removed, its slime counters stay on creatures, meaning repeatable mass removal in the command zone – not exactly fun for anyone else involved.

Potential Replacement: Sephiroth, Planet's HeirSephiroth, Planet's Heir

Like Toxrill, Sephiroth can keep token strategies honest. But unlike the more oppressive Slug, he has a one-time effect rather than permanently locking decks out of the game.

Fueling Sephiroth with creature tokens we gave our opponents is a fun synergy. And attacking with a growing vigilant threat is a much more enjoyable way to win than Toxrill's repetitiveness. and can surely find some evasion for this commander as well.

4. Urza, Lord High ArtificerUrza, Lord High Artificer – 2.31 salt score, 17,886 decks

Urza is a monoblue commander whose abilities resemble the salty patterns we see in Kinnan – mana advantage combined with built-in payoff (and a giant ConstructConstruct to boot!).

This deck can also ignore the effects of cards like Winter OrbWinter Orb and Static OrbStatic Orb (already among the saltiest cards of all) by tapping them. This creates a situation where one player has tons of available resources and no one else does. It's no fun to watch one of your opponents play solitaire until they win.

Potential Replacement: Mm'menon, the Right HandMm'menon, the Right Hand

Like Urza, this Jellyfish Advisor turns our artifacts into mana producers and also contains built-in card advantage.

Mm'menon has similar potential as Urza but requires slower setup and careful sequencing. Also, a 3/4 flyer in the command zone is a more threatening attacker, especially paired with Equipment (perfect artifacts to tap for ). Instead of Urza's salty lock pieces, we can make cards like Howling MineHowling Mine and Blinkmoth UrnBlinkmoth Urn asymmetrical instead.

3. Grand Arbiter Augustin IVGrand Arbiter Augustin IV – 2.58 salt score, 11,417 decks

This Azorius () Human Advisor reduces his controller's costs, but that's not where the salt comes in. He also taxes each opponent for every single spell they cast. This is a common theme for high-salt cards – players understandably get frustrated when they can't cast their cards normally.

This strategy often contains even more cards that stop opponents from doing basic things, like searching librariessearching libraries, attackingattacking, blockingblocking, casting spellscasting spells, making use of activatedactivated and triggered abilitiestriggered abilities, and more.

Potential Replacement: The Council of FourThe Council of Four

This Human Noble is a great healthy alternative to Augustin IV because it doesn't prevent your opponents from taking basic game actions, it just rewards you when they do.

The most common cards in this strategy involve making all players draw a card (we'll end up with way more cards than everyone else), permanents that reward us for drawing extra cards, and ways to boost our army of Knights.

And if we want to throw a Ghostly PrisonGhostly Prison effect or two in there, it's existing in a much less salt-inducing context.

2. Tergrid, God of FrightTergrid, God of Fright – 2.80 salt score, 11,208 decks

Tergrid, a mono-black commander, causes salt for a similar reason as Sen TripletsSen Triplets: taking resources away from opponents while simultaneously adding them to her controller's board. And like Kinnan or Urza, she allows her controller to cheat huge threats onto the battlefield ahead of schedule.

A simple SmallpoxSmallpox turns into an unbelievable card advantage burst, Dark DealDark Deal turns into many copies of Show and TellShow and Tell, and  staples Fleshbag MarauderFleshbag Marauder and friends no longer affect everyone equally.

Potential Replacement: Tinybones, Bauble BurglarTinybones, Bauble Burglar

For players fond of mass discard and accessing opponents' stuff, Tinybones is a solid replacement that can hit the battlefield far sooner than Tergrid.

Cards like Burglar RatBurglar Rat and its various functional reprints already serve as 3-for-1s in four player games and this Skeleton Rogue will grant us an even larger bonus over time. But unlike Tergrid, this advantage is slow and steady, requiring us to actually play the cards we steal.

1. Vivi OrnitierVivi Ornitier – 2.81 salt score, 27,048 decks

This Izzet () Wizard is built to lead efficient Spellslinger strategies, creating a huge mana boost and pinging out opponents at a frightening speed.

CuriosityCuriosity and friends draw unfair amounts of cards, while Quicksilver ElementalQuicksilver Elemental gains Vivi's ability (but without the restriction), leading to infinite mana. This can certainly create solitaire-style interactions that leave opponents salty.

Potential Replacement: Ovika, Enigma GoliathOvika, Enigma Goliath

Fellow Izzet Spellslinger commander Ovika has a lot in common with Vivi, but instead of a three-mana hyper efficient engine, we have much slower seven-mana house that can even win through combat.

Ovika gives us access to awesome Goblin-themed mana engines in Skirk ProspectorSkirk Prospector and Brightstone RitualBrightstone Ritual. And it's hard to be salty facing a slow deck with mana rocks like Hedron ArchiveHedron Archive and Gilded LotusGilded Lotus.

Swap Summary

Sheoldred, the ApocalypseSheoldred, the Apocalypse → Ayara, First of LocthwainAyara, First of Locthwain

Sen TripletsSen Triplets→ Eriette, the BeguilerEriette, the Beguiler

Edgar MarkovEdgar Markov → Zurgo, Thunder's DecreeZurgo, Thunder's Decree

Yuriko, the Tiger's ShadowYuriko, the Tiger's Shadow → Satoru UmezawaSatoru Umezawa

Kinnan, Bonder ProdigyKinnan, Bonder Prodigy → Kenessos, Priest of ThassaKenessos, Priest of Thassa

Toxrill, the CorrosiveToxrill, the Corrosive → Sephiroth, Planet's HeirSephiroth, Planet's Heir

Urza, Lord High ArtificerUrza, Lord High Artificer → Mm'menon, the Right HandMm'menon, the Right Hand

Grand Arbiter Augustin IVGrand Arbiter Augustin IV → The Council of FourThe Council of Four

Tergrid, God of FrightTergrid, God of Fright→ Tinybones, Bauble BurglarTinybones, Bauble Burglar

Vivi OrnitierVivi Ornitier → Ovika, Enigma GoliathOvika, Enigma Goliath

Conclusion

Thanks for reading, and I hope this breakdown inspired you to desalinate your decks. Or maybe you skimmed through and I accidentally gave you 10 commanders to make your opponents hate you even more... uh oh!

In any case, which commanders make you the most salty to play against? Have you ever tried intentionally powering down your decks to better fit the vibe of a playgroup? Sound off in the comments below!