Birgi, God of StorytellingBirgi, God of Storytelling | Art by Eric Deschamps

Hello again, gamers! Nick here, ready to bring you another, more-specific-than-usual top 10 list! Last time, we looked at the most played landfall cards in EDH in honor of the upcoming booster set Edge of Eternities. Today is all about the most popular commanders that are double-faced cards (DFCs)! This means we're not looking at how many decks each legendary creature is played in, but how many lists they headline.

There are a bunch of powerful and exciting DFC commanders out there, not least because DFCs often represent two cards' worth of value in one piece of cardboard. You'll see what I mean soon, but the release of Final Fantasy has also contributed to making this particular type of commander more attractive to build around.

10. Slicer, Hired MuscleSlicer, Hired Muscle - 5,169 decks

We're starting off with a pretty wordy card, though this is frequently the norm with DFCs - especially legends. I would still call Slicer deceptively complex (after all, he is a decepticon), though, because you can start by ignoring the expensive front side and cast Slicer, High-Speed Antagonist, the back face, for just three mana.

The Vehicle side gets in for a hasty three damage, then the real fun begins. In a game with more than two players, the Hired Muscle face will threaten to get in for a ton of damage against everyone but you, and if you don't want that, you can always get the 3/2 back and keep it.

Given Slicer's penchant for smashing other players' faces and his color identity, he's a popular option for a monocolor Equipment deck. Suiting him up and watching opponents' life totals go down while they take him for a joyride sounds like a lot of fun, and double strike can take things out of hand very quickly.

Check out my article on how to build an Equipment theme deck for more inspiration.

9. Terra, Magical AdeptTerra, Magical Adept - 6,230 decks

It's an interesting, if not conclusive, observation to me that commanders from Final Fantasy have already breached the top 10 most built-around DFC cards, given how recently the set dropped.

It could just be that the individual power level of these cards is very high. Terra seems strong at three mana with an ability that slots right into Enchantress or Saga strategies, among others, as well as her not-immediately-obvious rainbow color identity. And, whereas other popular Saga commanders - Tom BombadilTom Bombadil, Narci, Fable SingerNarci, Fable Singer, and Sigurd, Jarl of RavensthorpeSigurd, Jarl of Ravensthorpe - do interesting things with a variety of Sagas, Terra seems more interested in squeezing a ton of value out of the most powerful Saga you have access to at the time.

She also has a lot of combo potential, figuring in several combos you can learn more about on Commander Spellbook. The three most popular ones are even two-card combos, like this one:

Let's not forget that Terra is a 6/6 flying monster while also doing the busted Saga stuff, and that she also comes back as 4/2 that recurs something after you add an absurd amount of mana. Opponents should remove this when they have the chance!

8. Kefka, Court MageKefka, Court Mage - 7,650 decks

Here's another Final Fantasy DFC commander that can combo off easily, this time with engines that convert card draw into damage:

Even on his own, Kefka works with a lot of different tools and effects to generate card advantage, including Waste NotWaste Not to turn discarded cards into more resources, Harmonic ProdigyHarmonic Prodigy to double dip, and Essence FluxEssence Flux to take advantage of the enters part of his ability before he even gets to attack. ReanimateReanimate is also a great include, letting you pick up whatever juicy card your opponent discarded.

The front side grinds your opponents out of resources so you can combo out with the back face. That's what I call one-card synergy!

7. Nicol Bolas, the RavagerNicol Bolas, the Ravager - 6,732 decks

This incarnation of one of Magic lore's big bads is one of my favorite cards in the game. I'm a sucker for midrangey-leaning-controlling, grindy decks in all formats, and Nicol Bolas embodies all of that.

A 4/4 flyer can be a nuisance in combat, especially after you dome each opponent for a precious card. Like Kefka, recurring Bolas with reanimation effects or blink is fairly easy.

The real selling point, of course, is the back half, and it's one that makes Bolas so well suited to helming a Grixis, very Bolas-licious, planeswalker deck. Seven mana is a hefty cost to flip him, but this type of deck is going to play a ton of accelerators anyway so you can cast other expensive PWs like the other Bolases and haymakers like Liliana, Dreadhorde GeneralLiliana, Dreadhorde General and Ugin, the Spirit DragonUgin, the Spirit Dragon.

Once you do have The Arisen in play, you can pretty much have your way with the battlefield, sniping down threats, reanimating your best thing, and drawing cards. Make sure not to leave home without The Chain VeilThe Chain Veil!

6. Sephiroth, Fabled SOLDIERSephiroth, Fabled SOLDIER - 8,916 decks

This Human Avatar Soldier is a great pick to lead the type of mono-black Aristrocrats deck that you might also want Ayara, First of LocthwainAyara, First of Locthwain for. Sephiroth is great because he's both an enabler and a payoff, and that bodes well for success as a commander.

One thing I will point out is that in a long game, it doesn't sound impossible to cast and transform the card into Sephiroth, One-Winged Angel more than once, which means you can get more than one draining emblem.

Sometimes it won't matter because you'll have set up the infinite GravecrawlerGravecrawler+Phyrexian AltarPhyrexian Altar combo or one of its variants, but it's still something sweet to work towards:

5. Etali, Primal ConquerorEtali, Primal Conqueror - 8,676 decks

Another favorite recently-printed card, Etali is powerful aside from just being very fun, because who doesn't like spinning the wheel with your opponents' decks?

Looking at EDHREC data, the Elder Dinosaur is a pretty flexible commander, being played in Dinosaurs, Ramp, Combo, and more. I'm pretty tickled by its prevalence in Clones decks that seeks to abuse the color red's temporary cloning effects to get multiple bites out of the apple with Etali's enters trigger. There are so many options available, including Orthion, Hero of LavabrinkOrthion, Hero of Lavabrink, Jaxis, the TroublemakerJaxis, the Troublemaker, and Molten DuplicationMolten Duplication.

As for alternate things to copy, there are OG Etali, Primal StormEtali, Primal Storm, FuryFury, and Apex DevastatorApex Devastator, among other sweet options. Aside from these payoffs and enablers, you're also just running a bunch of mana accelerators.

Etali's back half is basically a Blightsteel ColossusBlightsteel Colossus, and it's not too hard to win the game with.

4. Tergrid, God of FrightTergrid, God of Fright - 8,810 decks

The God of Fright and her Lantern are also great leading an Aristocrats or Sacrifice deck like Sephiroth, but Tergrid's best archetype is Discard, possible because it's easier to make your opponents discard a bunch of stuff than sacrifice them (I'm open to being wrong, though!). The discard deck uses oppressive, global spells like SmallpoxSmallpox, Dark DealDark Deal, and Vicious RumorsVicious Rumors to get ahead with Tergrid in play.

Because her ability is so powerful, Discard decks playing her should probably be running sacrifice-based removal, while Sac decks should utilize discard effects to optimize for her ability.

I'm not too familiar with the Group Slug archetype she's popular in, but Josh Nelson has my back and yours with this take on the theme, though using Kefka.

3. Ojer Axonil, Deepest MightOjer Axonil, Deepest Might - 10,728 decks

This God cracks the top 100 most played commanders overall by dint of being absolutely excellent in a dedicated Burn deck. Getting every burn spell to deal four is appealing, and that's just the floor with Ojer Axonil, Deepest MightOjer Axonil, Deepest Might in play!

One of the best ways to take advantage of this damage amplifier is with pingers, or creatures (and other permanent types) that can repeatedly deal one damage, usually through casting multiple instants and sorceries, but also through creatures or lands entering.

2. Tovolar, Dire OverlordTovolar, Dire Overlord - 11,124 decks

Figuring in a whopping 5,000 Werewolf decks is the kindred commander Tovolar, who turns damage into cards and packs a Kessig Wolf RunKessig Wolf Run activation on his back half.

While packing your deck full of Innistrad's lovely Werewolves, like Huntmaster of the FellsHuntmaster of the Fells, Duskwatch RecruiterDuskwatch Recruiter, and Ill-Tempered LonerIll-Tempered Loner, is a safe bet for a Tovolar deck, EDHREC's card combo tab reminds us that Gruul () decks have some combos available to them, including this one:

1. Esika, God of the TreeEsika, God of the Tree - 17,553 decks

Another God, another excellent commander! Esika is the most played DFC commander and currently the 20th most played commander over all. This is probably because a mana generator that also synergizes really well with a lot of different strategies is such a great enabler for EDH shenanigans.

Sure enough, you see Esika leading multiple types of rainbow decks, including PWs, Gods, Devotion, and Legends. There are also so many combos you can run in a five-color deck that involve creatures or 'walkers, so do check them out for inspiration before building an Esika deck!

Our world may be dark, but there's still plenty to seeOur world may be dark, but there's still plenty to see

What a sweet list of cards! I'm not surprised several of these cards boast strong combo potential, as apart from being cool and splashy legends, they feature a lot of text and a lot of abilities that combine with other effects.

Do you have a favorite, maybe underrated, DFC commander you'd like to rave about? Let us know!