Magic: The Gathering's Commander format is full of power𝓰ful and interesting commanders that players can choose from when constructing a deck. Unfortunately, not all Commanders are created equally, and there are a multitude of commanders both obscure and well known that don't have what it takes to 🏅be a capable commander.
White has quite a reputation when it comes to Commander, having more problems than other colors when it comes to the Commander format, as it lacks in areas that are often important in Commander. So today we'r💎e going to look at the bottom of the barrel 🍌when it comes to potential white Commanders available to select.
10 Taranika, Akroan Veteran 𒆙🐻
The most recently printed entry on this list, while a card like Taranika, Akroan Veteran is serviceable in limited, she simply ✤has far too little impact or usefulness to be a solid comꩵmander.
While Taranika is a 3/3 🐼with vigilance for three mana, passing the "Vanilla Test," by having power and toughness at least equal to her mana cost, her second ability provides very little effectiveness in a format like Commander in which players have life totals of forty. Upon attackingm Taranika can untap a creature and provide it with a base power and toughness of 4/4 and gains indestructibility. While indistructibility is nice to have, the buff is only temporary. Additionally, as the ability changes the base power in toughnessof a creature rather than giving that creature +4/+4, it's use is incredibly limited, as it can only boost smaller creatures, as it would actually hinder larger creatures.
9 ꦦ Orim, Samite Healer
Two commonly found effects in the Commander format are those that deal direct damage and those that gain lif🉐e. Direct damage can be used to deal with opponents while lifegain can be used to preserve one's self in a game.
🌞However, Orim, Samite Healer is a card that possesses the ability to tap in order to prevent three damage that would be dealt to a creature or player. This ability is incredibly weak, effectively a strictly worse version of lifegain that can only be used as a reaction.
8 🌟 Tivada🥂r Of Thorn
What Tivadar of Thorn does, he does quite effectively. Unfortunately, what Tivadar is capable of is extremelyꦜ specific, targeted, and niche.
A 2/2 with first strike and protection from red for three mana, upon entering the battlefield, Tivadar of Thorn destroys target goblin. This makes Tivadar of Thorn an incredibly efficient and reliable means of dealing with goblཧins. However, nine times o🦋ut of ten, a player will not be playing against a goblin deck, making Tivadar of Thorn a pretty useless commander.
7 Rashida Scalebane💦
Rashida Scalebane is a commander who suffers from a nearly identical problems found within Tividar of Thorn. A 3/4 for five mana,⛦ out of the gate, Rashida Scalebane's mana cost outweighs their stats, cau💎sing them to fail the "Vanilla Test."
When it comes to Rashida's abilities, Rashida🌌 can be tapped in order to destroy a dragon, gaining its controller life equal that dragon's power. When paired up against a dragon deck, Rashida is capable of answering many of the most powerful drag𓆏ons in the game, gaining life at the same time.
However, when facing any other type of deck, Rꦬashida is litౠtle more than an over costed 3/4. Even Tivadar of Thorn possessed first strike and protection form red.
6 Kentaro, The Smiling Cat 🐎
Kentar🌸o, the Smiling Cat i൩s an unfortunate commander who suffers from his own color identity.
Allowing mana of any kind to be cast when casting Samurai, Kentaro automatically color fixes potential samurai that would be cast. While this ability would be useful in many cases, Kentaro is mono-white. Thiꩲs means that asside from letting his controller cast samurai with c🧜olorless mana produced from artifacts, Kentaro's ability provides little to no use in a mono-white deck. Had Kentaro been red and white, he'd likely be one of the stronger options for a samurai-tribal commander, but his poor color identity lands him on this list.
5 Lieutenant 🌺Kirtar ꧋
A 2/2 with flying for three mana, Lieetenant Kirtar is simply not worth the resources used to ga🐻in value from their already restricted ability.
For the cost of two mana, Kirtar can be sacrificed in order to exile an attacking creature. While this may not appea💞r too bad at🔯 first glance, this ability is effectively five mana to exile an attacking creature, whilst sacrificing one's own commander. As commander abilities, are repeatable over the course of the game due to being able to reliably recast commanders with an additional Commander Tax, one could hypothetically use Kirtar's ability later in the game for a total cost of seven mana. For removal that is limited to only being able to target attacking creatures, this heavy investment of mana is far from worth it.
4 𝄹 Sidar Jabari 🤡
Overcosted and lacking in both power and flexibility, Sidar Jabari encapsulates many traits found within the worst commanders in Magic.
A 2/2 with flanking for four mana, Sidar Jabari fails the "Vanilla Test" quite pitifully. More importantly, Sidar Jabari's abilities are just as lackluster, only possessing🌟 the abil🐲ity to tap a creature when he attacks.
Possessing little to no synergies and abilities which can built around alongside low stats and underwhelming ability, there is no reason why Sidar Jabari shoul🅺d be selected as a commander.
3 💮 Hikari, Twilight Guardian
Hikari, Twilight Guardian is 4/4 with flying for five mana is a spirit who may be exiled and returned during the next end step whenever its controller casts a spirit or Arcane spell. While there are numerous powerful flicker-based commanders that exist within to format, all revolve around the ability to flicker other creatures, not a commander.
Possessing no "enter the battlefield" trigger, there is little ince🐽ntive to play a commander only capable of flickerin☂g itself, and one that can only do so once per turn, as Hikari only returns to the battlefield during the next end step.
2 Hazꦓduhr The Abbot
A hybrid of Lieutenant Kirtar and Orim, Samite Healer, Hazduh𒉰r the Abbot is an abysmal🍬 commander who possesses the worst elements of each.
At the cost of X mana, Hazdur can be tapped, redirecting that much damage that would be dealt to other white creatures to Hazduh𓂃r himself. Mana intensive and limited in application, players can essentially pay mana to sacrifice their Commander in order to prevent other damage. As Hazduh💟r already costs five mana to cast, his ability is mana intensive, and he will presumably die as soon as it's activated, there are few incentives to want a commander like Hazduhr the Abbot leading a Commander deck.
1 ౠ Rashka The Slayer
Rashka the Slayer is a terrib💯le commander who encapsulates elements of numerous other entries on this list.
A 3/3 with reach for five mana, Rashka's stats are not close to being worth the mana invested in her. While other entries on this list such as Tivadar of Thorn and Rashida Scalebane are overcosted, when paired up against very s🥀pecific strategies, they can at least have a single moment of usefulness.
Rashka's only other benefit on the other hand, is that upon blocking a black creature, she receives a temporary +1/+2, making her a 4/5. Even when at her most useful, Rashka still fails the "Vanilla test," only having reach to show for it!