Kudo, King Among BearsKudo, King Among Bears | Art by Ekaterina Burmak

Lions and tigers and Bears (beets, Battlestar Galactica), oh my! Bears are one of Magic’s original creature types, debuting all the way back in 1993’s Alpha set with the now-iconic Grizzly BearsGrizzly Bears.

While Bears might not be the most popular Commander archetype (the top commander for Bears, Ayula, weighs in at #297), it is an extremely flavorful and fun one, as these top cards indicate.

So, stave off hibernation (including that HibernationHibernation) and let’s take a look at Commander’s top Bears.

Honorable Mentions

Muraganda PetroglyphsMuraganda Petroglyphs

OwlbearOwlbear

Bear UmbraBear Umbra

Doric, Nature's WardenDoric, Nature's Warden

Top 20 Bear Cards for Commander

20. Words of WildingWords of Wilding

The list begins in earnest with three straight green enchantments that all involve producing 2/2 Bear tokens (you’ll find that creating pseudo-Grizzly BearsGrizzly Bears tokens is a theme herein). Words of Wilding hails from 2002’s Onslaught, which focused on myriad typal shenanigans. Cool combo alert:

19. BearscapeBearscape

While Words of Wilding forces you to pay and skip drawing a card (which is never that fun), Bearscape lets you chuck resources that you might not use again by exiling two cards from your graveyard and paying to produce a 2/2 Bear token, which pairs beautifully with…

18. Ayula's InfluenceAyula's Influence

Looking to fill your graveyard with cards for Bearscape? Enter: Ayula’s Influence! Sure, chucking lands might put you on the back foot, but if you’re playing a green deck, it’s likely you’ve got ramp out the wazoo (just play one of the most valuable cards from Stronghold, BurgeoningBurgeoning, and you’re set).

This card also references one of the best legendary Bear creatures ever (more on her later).

17. Mother BearMother Bear

Perhaps because a vanilla 2/2 for two mana was for, a long time, the standard rate in Magic, Grizzly Bears have become something of a mascot for the color green and for the Bear creature type. As such, many Bears throughout the years fit into that category, but as power creep began to rear its head, those 2/2 creatures gained abilities heretofore unseen on a Bear (yes, I said "heretofore unseen").

For instance, Mother Bear, a 2/2 for two from Modern Horizons, is a vanilla Grizzly on the battlefield, but when it’s in the graveyard, you can pay to create two 2/2 Bear tokens. Also, if that flavor text doesn’t make you misty-eyed, then you’ve definitely committed a Heartless ActHeartless Act or two.

16. Ursine MonstrosityUrsine Monstrosity

A 3/3 trampling Bear Mutant from Duskmourn: House of Horror Commander, this bruiser delivers a little bit of randomness to your Commander pod by only letting this creature attack a random opponent per combat, though that attack will likely wreak some havoc due to this Mutant gaining indestructible and getting a TarmogoyfTarmogoyf boost each combat.

15. Rampaging Yao GuaiRampaging Yao Guai

Two straight Bear Mutants? What is this, an X-Men-themed list?! No, but this one kind of is. Anyways, a 2/2 with vigilance and trample for is already pretty reasonable in a monogreen build, but bake a mana sink into this card that can destroy an entire board’s worth of pesky artifacts and enchantments (or even just one or two crippling ones), and you’ve got one of the best Bear cards ever for a Commander player.

14. Caller of the ClawCaller of the Claw

I’ve got a soft spot for this 2/2 Elf since I pulled it multiple times while cracking packs of 2003’s Legions back in the day. While its main purpose is to help you reset your board after dealing with a (non-exiling) board wipe, it can also combo off if you’ve let a few creatures die already:

13. Kudo, King Among BearsKudo, King Among Bears

Obviously, the novelty of this card is that it turns all creatures on the board (not just yours) into Grizzly Bears, though keywords, counters, Auras and other effects are still in place affecting those creatures.

Still though, with a dearth of legendary Bears available in Magic’s history, this 2/2 for is the third-most popular Bear commander in the game.

12. WerebearWerebear

Boasting one of the finest (aka cheesiest) flavor texts in Magic history, Werebear is a great Bear mana dork that can also turn into a 4/4 bruiser with relative ease thanks to its threshold ability.

An elegant package embossed with stunning artwork from long-time Magic contributor Carl Critchlow.

11. Surrak and GoreclawSurrak and Goreclaw

Magic’s equivalent to the Pokémon TCG’s eminently popular “Tag Team” cards occurred when notable figures from the game’s past joined forces in the March of the Machine expansion. In this card’s case, Surrak and Goreclaw of Tarkir fame combined to deliver a +1/+1 counter, trample, and haste to any nontoken creatures entering the battlefield under your control.

Perfect for Aggro Bears!

10. Evercoat UrsineEvercoat Ursine

A 6/5 trampler for from Bloomburrow Commander, this bedazzled Bear nets you two free cards via its cascading hideaway 3 abilities, and if you connect with any opponent on an attack with it, you can cast either of those cards for free.

Fingers crossed it’s a Grizzly Bears variant!

9. Doc Aurlock, Grizzled GeniusDoc Aurlock, Grizzled Genius

The only Simic () creature found herein (as well as the only Simic Bear in existence), Doc Aurlock from Outlaws of Thunder Junction reduces the cost of any spells played from your graveyard as well as cards in exile.

This 2/2 Bear Druid pairs beautifully with any number of keywords that delve into such territory, such as flashback, warp, adventures, as well as the main reason Doc Aurlock was printed: plotting.

8. Owlbear CubOwlbear Cub

Among the most adorable Magic artworks of all time (Poison Dart FrogPoison Dart Frog neck-and-neck with it, among others), Owlbear Cub is a dynamo if you’re able to attack an opponent in the late game, as you can seek out a creature card from the top eight cards from your library and have it immediately attacking said opponent.

“Mama’s Coming,” indeed.

7. Goreclaw, Terror of Qal SismaGoreclaw, Terror of Qal Sisma

A dynamite legendary Bear that wants you to be playing big, beefy creatures as often as possible, which she helps with by reducing their cost by . Then, once in play, if you keep up an aggressive slant, which should be the modus operandi of Bear decks, she’ll boost all other attackers by +1/+1 and gift trample to them to boot.

Stay terrible, Goreclaw.

6. Jasmine Boreal of the SevenJasmine Boreal of the Seven

Not to be confused with one of the original legends from the Legends expansion, the 4/5 vanilla Jasmine BorealJasmine Boreal (peep this guide on how to actually turn her original printing into a somewhat feasible Commander deck), Jasmine Boreal of the Seven from Dominaria United Commander unveils a notable sub-theme of Bear typal decks: improving vanilla creatures with no abilities.

Not only does Jasmine ramp your ability-free vanilla creatures by tapping to add to your mana pool (that, conveniently, can only be used on creatures with no abilities), she also allows your vanilla creatures to be pretty much unblockable, as it’s rare to come across that many opposing vanilla creatures in modern Magic.

5. Duskana, the Rage MotherDuskana, the Rage Mother

This Naya-colored () legendary Bear follows in the footsteps of many of the other Bears herein – it’s a “Grizzly Bears typal” card that benefits creatures you control with base power and toughness 2/2.

While Duskana’s combat trigger is pretty sweet, the fact that this five-mana 5/5 can net you a boatload of cards upon entry is the real reason to play this wrathful mama.

4. Lumra, Bellow of the WoodsLumra, Bellow of the Woods

With a version of this card featuring artwork by Pokémon TCG master artist Mitsuhiro Arita (and 2025 Secret Lair Drop contributor), Lumra, Bellow of the Woods is an Elemental Bear from Bloomburrow that’s an exquisite addition to any Landfall deck, or deck that enjoys nifty shenanigans involving land:

While desperately missing the trample keyword (enter Surrak and GoreclawSurrak and Goreclaw), this Calamity Beast can grow to immense heights in a standard game of Commander, so long as your deck does a good job of putting lands in the graveyard (hey, that’s what Ayula's InfluenceAyula's Influence is for).

3. Wilson, Refined GrizzlyWilson, Refined Grizzly

Perhaps the finest riff on Grizzly Bears ever conceived, this Bear Warrior from Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate is a 2/2 for … sounds familiar, right? Well, Wilson (no, not that one) ratchets up the power creep from the original Bear and tacks on the following keywords: vigilance, reach, trample and ward .

As if that wasn’t enough, it's uncounterable and also allows Commander players to “choose a Background,” which makes this erudite ursine a flexible and fun option to lead your 98 in a Bear-themed deck. According to our research, the top Background pairings for Wilson are Raised by GiantsRaised by Giants, Folk HeroFolk Hero, and Master ChefMaster Chef, though my editor does love his Clones deck, led by Wilson and Shameless CharlatanShameless Charlatan.

2. Ruxa, Patient ProfessorRuxa, Patient Professor

Another payoff for the “vanilla creatures matter” theme so prevalent among Bears, Ruxa, Patient Professor from Commander 2021 recurs a creature with no abilities every time it enters or attacks (pretty sweet), gives such creatures a +1/+1 boost, and also delivers “supertrample” to them (aka dealing damage to foes as if they weren’t blocked).

A powerful, bespectacled Bear? Sign me up!

1. Grizzly BearsGrizzly Bears

… just kidding, just kidding. Though, admittedly, this creature type wouldn’t exist and be the meme-tastic force that it is without this iconic creature from Magic’s first set, Alpha. So memorable is this card, in fact, that Wizards has reprinted it with different names a staggering four times: Balduvian BearsBalduvian Bears, Bear CubBear Cub, Forest BearForest Bear and Runeclaw BearRuneclaw Bear.

Beyond that, Ashcoat BearAshcoat Bear from Time Spiral is a strictly better version of the Bears boasting flash, and other vanilla Bears (such as the 4/2 for Alpine GrizzlyAlpine Grizzly or the 4/3 for Golden BearGolden Bear) surely wouldn’t exist without the all-encompassing influence of the Grizzlies.

The Real #1. Ayula, Queen Among BearsAyula, Queen Among Bears

“If you come at the queen, you best not miss” might as well be the motto for mono-green Bear players, as the top Bear card for Commander is Ayula, Queen Among Bears from 2019’s Modern Horizons.

Seeing as her modal triggered ability pings whenever any Bear enters the battlefield under your control (that’s inclusive of tokens), you’ll be able to grow your very Bear-y board and also thin out the opposing herds via Ayula’s fight trigger.

Of course, she weighs in with the requisite 2/2 for , making her the platonic, iconic ideal of Grizzly Bears the Magic world over.

A Bear-y Good Time

Bears have changed a lot over the years for Magic players, though the 2/2 for two mana bit is still a classic over 30 years after the first Bear woke up from hibernation in Alpha.

Thanks for joining us, and catch you next time! Oh, and make sure to keep your eyes peeled for some yummy honey…

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