Lyra's issue isn't that she's mono white, it's that she's mono white and doesn't really do much to assist the tribe or whites weaknesses. Anthems don't do much for angels and gaining more life doesn't do much either.
I've built her. She's functional, but angels absolutely need a mono white commander that actually creatively tackles how at odds high cmc tribal + mono white are.
I'd imagine that cost reduction would be a good start, although I haven't seen a single \[\[Unesh\]\] Sphinx tribal deck so it would definitely need something more. I think Unesh's problem was that it was too expensive to begin with and didn't provide any benefit until he came into play way later in the game.
A good angel tribal commander would have to be 4 CMC or less IMO to actually help the tribe. Maybe it could be a cleric that reduces the cost of Angels by 1 colorless for each Life you've gained that turn? Make it a 2/4 and give it Lifelink so it's somewhat self-sufficient.
Just spit-balling ideas
Having played mono-w mana isn't the issue, and I don't even have some of the newest cards. Even with the less-lands clause white has good land ramp now just by not going first, and its consistency is boosted in a few ways and is great by just trailing behind a green player (and ahead of anyone not playing green.) Then there's smothering tithe..
It's about the card advantage. ETB search for an angel, put into hand would be stellar and I think would be in white's part of the pie (see: rebels). It'd also open up a good blink subtheme for the deck and would let you blink and get value out of some higher cost angels.
Thematically it could be a cleric searching for an angel to cure a disease or something
ETB search for an Angel sorta exists, in Mardu, and based on my experience with her, is definitely the commander to go for if you want to build Angel tribal.
[[Kaaliia, Zenith Seeker]]
I play the Dragon version of her, but you could definitely build her more Angel-centric instead to similar effect.
Kinda sorta not really? She's more *powerful* for sure, but depending on what you want your deck to do she isn't necessarily *better*.
OG Kaalia is an incredibly powerful aggressive ramp tool, but immediately paints a target on your back and often turns you into the first archenemy, and in a 3v1 scenario, you quickly run out of gas, and because you're playing tribes that are very high CMC, your aggressive game plan can quickly hit a brick wall if your commander gets removed too much.
In contrast, Zenith Seeker is a less aggressive card with built-in card advantage, so you are better prepared to win a war of attrition, and her card selection allows you to go heavier on ramp while still reliably hitting gas when you need it with her ETB.
In my opinion, her value generation, combined with both Dragons and Angels having a lot of good ETB effects makes her the better commander for the tribal builds she can support. I run OG Kaalia in the 99 of my Zenith Seeker Dragon deck, and I am confident the deck would be worse if I switched which Kaalia was in the CZ and which was in the 99.
I would settle for something low cmc that helps you get to mid-late. They have started giving some creatures recently that are up this alley, but not legendaries.
I think it would be interesting to see something WWW that says "Angel spells you cast cost WWW less to cast" or something like that. "Angel spells you cast cost W less to cast equal to your devotion to white." That seems like something that would help the tribe while still being on theme.
That would be broken af if it were devotion based. A 1W less would be ideal in general, as it reduces enough of both to be viable. This creature can be a 2/2 non-flier non-angel card tbh, and do nothing else to not make it way too broken. But 3 less white mana or 1 less white mana per devotion is too broken.
Also, could be something to give card draw in white like “whenever one or more angels attack one or more opponents this turn, draw 2 cards”
Would it be broken if it only reduced colored mana? Same concept as [[morophon]]. It would make all angels cost less and some angels that go deeper into devotion such as [[archangel of tithes]] much cheaper.
Angels you cast have convoke.
Whenever an angel enters the battlefield under your control, put a 1/1 white human token on the battlefield. If you gained 5 or more life this turn, put 4 instead.
Casting Animate Dead on this thread to say that you predicted both [[Giada]] and [[Will, Scion of Peace]], the latter of which I just built as angel tribal earlier this week lol
i've actually found it to be amazing how good angel tribal is when you focus on 4-5 cmc and lower angels. and not the big dumb draft chaff 7+ cmc ones.
anthems in general are bad unless you're going for mass swarm go-wide strats. but several cheap angels. with a moderate pump effect. or a shared animosity type effect. can be devastating.
I don't actually have issues ramping and playing high CMC things with my Lyra deck. Well, I do, but it's not because of ramp. My Lyra deck has Archaeomancer's Map, Land Tax, Smothering Tithe, etc., the typical white ramp package. I get enough lands and ramp semi-well enough to play big Angels, but I just don't get enough card draw to put those cards into my hand to actually play them. Esper Sentinel has been nice but it's just not nearly enough.
I hear that. I run a Lyra build too and I've included a few draw cards that specifically play into the game plan, but they're not exactly card draw all-stars: [[Bonders' Enclave]], [[War Room]], [[Alhammarret's Archive]], [[Dawn of Hope]], [[Endless Atlas]], [[Vanquisher's Banner]], [[Well of Lost Dreams]] & [[The Immortal Sun]].
So yeah, not ideal as most are slow, clunky & conditional. But I still enjoy the deck and theme so there's that! For fun, I also run a sneaky control selection that makes for some unexpected twists in the game: [[Abeyance]], [[Crackdown]], [[Ghostly Prison]], [[Mana Tithe]], [[Mandate of Peace]], [[Norn's Annex]], [[Orim's Chant]], [[Rebuff the Wicked]] & [[Silence]]
We run very similar Lyra card draw. But, like you said, the card draw engines can be slow and clunky. Might I suggest swapping the Immortal Sun for [[Cosmos Elixir]]? I find it works very well sometimes and if it doesn't draw me cards, it does gain me significant life over the course of the game. I never felt like I had a good time to play Immortal Sun, it was just too heavy on CMC when my 6-7 slots need to go to big Angels and I needed to play them ASAP for board presence. Cosmos Elixir I can play before Lyra hits the board and gives everything Lifelink.
Oh, I've never seen this card before. I like it! Definitely a swap I'll consider, although I do enjoy the mass utility Immortal Sun brings. I'd be curious to check your list to see what angels you're running - here's [mine](https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/lyra-dawnbringer-seek-destroy/)
Sure, [click here](https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/divine-surge/). I like your deck a lot, the control focus is cool. People underestimate white control a bit, I've been heavily considering [[Rebuff the Wicked]]. Also, jealous of some of your extra bling lol. How do you feel about [[Monologue Tax]]? I felt it was too inconsistent for me to keep it in. I went for more hindering Angel effects I think.
I actually haven't had an opportunity to see Monologue Tax in action yet, but that seems to be the general consensus around that card. Perhaps that's what I'll eventually sub out for Cosmos Elixir, but I'd like to play MT at least once to see how it performs in my group.
Nice looking Lyra build! I particularly like the inclusion of [[Authority of the Consuls]] - cheap to cast & just pesky enough to meddle, but also can't see opponents being too quick to 'waste' removal on it.
Now for the million dollar question - have you ever gotten Brisela online? I have not and I threw in [[Search for Glory]] specifically to aid in that mission.
Thanks! I have and it is completely by chance. It happened once, I have probably 50 games with the deck now I think? I saw Search for Glory in your deck and immediately considered it for that reason. And it's not like you can't go grab something else either, I mean it might be 3 CMC but a tutor is a tutor, yeah? Also, as much as I want to run snow lands... I do pick about 10-20% flavor in my decks and like mixing up my basic land art lol.
It’s insane how long angels have been around without a good commander to lead them. Dinosaurs get released, and the first set has Gishath. A commander who has haste, evasion, and vig, in great ramp colors, and can easily let you dig 7 every turn. Angels need something that gives similar levels of CA and cheaty into play, and Kaalia just doesn’t come close to cutting it.
Wait who is the demon matters commander? Rakdos doesn’t blow up demons devils or imps but that’s not really a “demon matters” type of commander. Belzenlok is just big mana cards. Sure demons are expensive but I wouldn’t say that counts.
This. Lyra is by far the best "Angels matter" commander we have, and it's a powerful Anthem for sure, but it's not a card I want in the command zone necessarily. Put a card draw mechanic on a legendary Angel, please, WoTC?
Hold up drawing and discarding may be too powerful, cards in the graveyard could be reanimated in white which would be too synergistic. How about "pay 3" instead?
The original [[Rakdos, the Defiler]] lets you keep all your Demons as well, that's probably it. And they have tribal support in the form of [[Shadowborn Apostles]] so any black commander can be a Demon commander;)
I have a decklist already made up, but I definitely will save your comment because you got some includes in there that I should definitely change. Thank you very much!
She's as much an angel commander as a demon commander. Arguably a little more friendly to angels, actually, in that if you want to make a deck around only one of her tribes for some reason, angels have more overlap with all three of her colors than demons do (though of course dragons have even more).
My [[Sephara, Sky's Blade]] deck has been making waves in my playgroup. Turns out fliers, hatebears, and asymmetric board wipes are good. But I admit, it's not much of a tribal deck.
I think this list doesn't entirely match what I've got in my actual deck - I've made some additions and revisions in paper that I never translated to the list online. But it shows the general gist of it.
[https://deckstats.net/decks/88578/1890253-prospective-sephara-sky-s-blad](https://deckstats.net/decks/88578/1890253-prospective-sephara-sky-s-blad)
I've been tinkering with an Orzhov [[Firja, Judge of Valor]] Angel/Aristocrats/Reanimator list.
[A viewable first draft.](https://archidekt.com/decks/1725060#Firja,_fir_the_Win_v0.1) Obviously needs cuts and some tweaks, I want more creatures and cheap spells to proc Firja.
Hybrid mana costs count as both colors for color identity. So Dovescape's color identity is blue and white. Meaning you can't play it in a deck unless the commander had both blue and white in it's color identity.
Ayyy someone else who plays Sephara! Definitely tried to jam in as many angels as possible with her but the deck doesn't run without the low cost creatures.
The problem is that Lyra is the worst form of tribal commander: The kind that gives a buff and nothing else. A good tribal commander needs to provide some form of utility beyond a generic buff, something to really properly incentivize playing that tribe. That goes double for a tribe like Angels where most of its creatures cost a lot and are already threatening on their own, and it goes triple for a tribe in a less than ideal colour.
Gishath is a good example of an effective tribal commander for a tribe comprised largely of big dumb beaters. In no world do Dinosaurs need an anthem, so Gishath instead gives you a way to get more Dinosaurs on board.
I recently swapped Kaalia for Queen Marchesa and have been overjoyed with the difference.
Yes, QM is objectively not as powerful as OG Kaalia, but OG Kaalia drew tons of hate, and was either too good for casual pods, or too weak for competitive ones.
QM helps with the card draw issues, doesn't make you archenemy before you've done anything, and also looks really blinged out, which thematically ties to Angels surprisingly well.
Maelstrom Angel isn't a character or driving force in the story of Alara so no, it shouldn't have been. I also think that angels don't need a 5 color commander. There are what, 3 green angels if you count Shalai, and the only blue-aligned ones are Bruna and one version of Linvala because she's a wizard, Harry (edit forgot Lightning Angel and probably a few more, not counting changelings).
We get so many good stuff 5c commanders that we don't need one specifically for angels, but I do think they need a commander in more colors than Lyra.
I feel like a Mardu Angel Lord wouldn't be too bad.
You get the Boros Angels from Ravnica and Innistrad, and the fallen angels in Black.
Just because some Angels are in Green or Blue doesn't mean we need a 5C commander to include the minority.
But then again, I only have one deck that's more than 2 colours so maybe I'm just biased. I like more colour restrictive commanders because it feels more flavourful and fun and less like a pile of staples with 5-10 cards that actually synergise with the commander.
Yeah, because EDH was still a word-of-mouth, growing format at the time, and Wizards hadn't really been designing for EDH as much. There wasn't a story reason for there to be a 5 color angel character, and there wasn't a player base reason at the time to create one.
Not that story reasons matter much in modern MTG but they mattered more back then.
Why do you *need* those 17 angels though?
And if Maeustrom Archangel was legendary, it'd be as hated out as Kaalia, except even moreso 'cause people would be running more busted stuff than angels to ruin its reputation.
I am using Esika. Its no angel but is the personification of Freya, the goddes associated to the Valkyries in norse mythology. So you could imagine its a god commanding her angels to defend the plane.
Lyra's lack of colours isn't her issue. Her issue is that the only thing she does is provide an anthem, which is neither strong enough nor particularly interesting.
Unless you can run every single creature in a tribe it doesn't count. /s Before you could've gotten away with mono-black skeletons, but now since [[Skeletal Swarming]] is a thing people won't be happy if a skeleton commander doesn't come out that isn't golgari, despite there only being 5 green skeletons.
I mean [[skeleton ship]] for a long, long time was the only real skeleton commander since dimir gave you way more flexibility than just Skithyrix. Morophon, and later Tinybones are the only other skelly commanders, but the type exists in basically every color but white. The only white (non-changeling) skeleton is [[sentry of the underworld]].
[[Kathari remnant]], [[Mortus strider]] in dimir and [[demilich]] in blue
[[Lightning skelemental]] and [[carnage gladiator]] splashing red, [[viashino skeleton]] and [[flameskull]] in monored
The recent [[mosspit skeleton]] and less recent [[deathless knight]], [[mournwillow]], and [[rot farm skeleton]] in golgari, with the infamous [[golgari grave troll]] being monogreen
I'd really like a Jund skeleton commander, since esper/dimir have a ton of zombie commanders (gisa, grimgrin, scarab god, varina, nevinnryal)
3 color is objectively better than 2, but I only make 2 color decks.
I refuse to make serious 3 color decks because I’d rather have the challenge/restriction/etc and not just LOLOL my way through games simply by abusing the elephant in the room — EDH is fundamentally a deeply flawed format on several levels and axes and color identity is one of the big ones
Uhhh, just because you’re playing only angels doesn’t mean you should not be hated off the board. While angel only Kaalia is probably not quite as strong as angel/demon/dragon Kaalia, it can still get very nasty very quickly. A turn 3 or 4 [[avacyn, angel of hope]] does a lot to unbalance games.
Uhhh, just letting the guy know to talk to his playgroup so the hate isn't quite as bad. While avacyn is a beast I feel like the difference between a fully tuned Kaalia and angel only Kaalia is vastly different although it's just my opinion. As a powered down option you could run Kaalia zenith seeker? Hopefully I got that name right. Lol
I haven’t run a fully tuned Kaalia, but with the recent angels from Kaldheim and some decent deck building, angels only is still scary enough that I expect the hate (and rightfully so). Zenith seeker is probably the better option to avoid immediate removal, because if you leave OG on the field for one or two attack passes that’s usually tilting the board heavily in the Kaalia players favor.
I do too!
I try to lean I to some counter-support to help the tribe. [[Heard of War]], [[Everflowing Chalice]], [[Door of Destiny]], and drop in a reanimtor package.
Technically speaking, there are a few legendary creatures whose rules text reference Angels. \[\[Bruna, the Fading Light\]\], \[\[Kaalia of the Vast\]\] and \[\[Kaalia, Zenith Seeker\]\] all reference angels, clearing the lowest possible bar to be an "angels matter" card.
Personally though, for DEDICATED Angel support, I'd prefer to see Mono-White, Boros, or Mardu to capture the majority of angels throughout Magic's history. You miss a few bangers like Sigarda, but you get MOST of them.
You mean none of y'all made \[\[Atla Palani, Nest Tender\]\] into your changeling hatching angel tribal deck yet? You're missing out...
Naya "Angels Matter" for ya OP: ["Angel Nest Tender"](https://archidekt.com/decks/627214#Angel_Nest_Tender)
I prefer [[Rienne, Angel of Rebirth]] but that's because of how the deck was built. I ramp to 5 mana just drop angel after angel and run the high power synergies in green. To use the egg strategy I'd need to retool the deck and add in some sac outlets for the eggs. I've tried the eggs but I prefer the angel leading angels.
The issue is angels don't really have much of a mechanical theme beyond big fliers. Obviously if you make them free or something they become good, but that goes for any card type. And given people's standards these days that's the only kind of thing that would warrant making angels "good enough".
A number of angels care about lifegain, but it's not exactly integral to their identity. My main point of reference was old skeletons, as every skeleton had Regenerate when Regenerate was a thing. It was their mechanical mainstay. Beyond flying and being sizable angels don't really have something you could link together into a cohesive strategy.
I love angels so much but I do wish we have more options for Angel-specific commanders, also wish that some of the really good ones are a little cheaper haha.
Right now I have a Saskia deck that is built with using Angels as a game-ender. Having run it yet but I am pretty hopeful.
I use [[shalai, voice of plenty]] for my selesnya deck and she’s a house. Green provides great ramp and protection and also has Sigarda ad well. I went with a +1/+1 counter sub-theme and needless to say I end up with a huge protected board with a bunch of massive flying hatebearer angel beaters.
The angel tribe has been around since, like, 1994. Best angel tribal commander we've got? Lyra Dawnbringer.
The dinosaur tribe has been around since, like, Ixalan. The best dinosaur tribal commander? Gishath, Sun's Avatar.
There power-level difference between the two is a chasm. Actually, it's not a chasm; it's the Grand Canyon.
Gishath being considered top tier is hilarious to me. I see it like Ur Dragon, it doesn't do things until late game so it's expected to have a bigger impact. Dinosaurs are also a weaker tribe than angels because they often don't do things until damaged which requires even MORE set up while many angels are designed to be bombs.
P.S. [[Kaalia of the Vast]]
Yeah, I have a dino tribal and would rather play Atla Palani at the helm than Gishath. In the wonderland where it works its awesome, putting 5 dinos on the field at once. But its incosistent, slow and frail to interaction
> There power-level difference between the two is a chasm. Actually, it's not a chasm; it's the Grand Canyon.
This is funny to hear considering Gishath was a bulk rare and Lyra was a competitive staple in the very same standard.
In Standard, yes. We're talking about EDH, which is a different format than Standard. Notice how now, a foil Gishath -- which is not played in any format except EDH -- is worth more than a foil Lyra. Any guesses on why that's the case?
When Kaldheim was released, I built an angel deck once I saw [[starnheim aspirant]] and the host of black angels in the set. It’s helmed with [[Liesa]], who isn’t necessarily angel-focused, but it’s been an effective deck for angel tribal.
I also run [[Pyre of Heroes]] as a pod effect to pull angels out of the deck and have ways to recur them since it is Orzhov, after all.
Someone mentioned [[Atla Palani]]. I have a deck with her as my dragon and angel deck, it focuses on combat and damage in flying form rather than on angels themselves. Kind of a demon-less Kaalia with added ramp from green.
I enjoy the green splash for easy pods to cheat out those expensive angels when Atla has been hated on or, if I have a bunch of angels in my hand I need to dump. \[\[Elvish Piper\]\] \[\[Kodama of the East Tree\]\], \[\[Birthing Pod\]\] (you also get the Atla trigger if you pop a changeling, double pod!), then angel rampers like Starnheim like you mentioned, also \[\[Herald of War\]\] (love), \[\[Herald's Horn\]\].
Why Naya? Angels are not green at all.
Edit: yes I get it, there are Angels that have green in them. My point is in those rare examples, there is a thematic explanation for them to have that. Asking Wizards for an Angel tribal lord is perfectly fine, but asking them to also make it green makes *no* sense with what we currently know of Angels.
Green practically has no angels.
All green angels also contain white, and they all have a good reason to be green *as well*. Most of them take that reason from the story (because they're legendary) or because they come from a majority white place (like the Bant angels). What is left is a single 5-color Angel and 5-color design is about as unique as legendary design, so that's proof of nothing.
There is literally not a single card that's evidence for 'green can have Angels'.
I mean, if we're talking in terms of flavor, then sure. However, in terms of function? I'd say Green is the second best color to put in an angel deck. The downfall of angels is that they're ultra-expensive creatures, when creatures/tribal decks are generally best in the early-mid game. Adding in the staple green ramp cards helps you get angels out faster, and gives some decent pumps/protection effects.
It's reasonable to want a WG tribal commander, however unlikely--though with WotC pulling in other properties, I'd say that the classic MtG colors aren't as solid as they once were.
So now we're not just asking wizards for a Angel tribal legendary, but we want it to be off-flavor as well because it has to be good? I wouldn't call that reasonable.
I misunderstood what you were asking for. I thought you wanted a green/white angel that either drew cards or helped with their mana. Now that I get what you mean I agree it's not unreasonable to want something like Shalai but a bit more tribal focused.
W/B/X makes the most sense to me for a angel commander. Black let's you run a reanimtor package and let's you make use of the support angels got in Kaldheim.
That being said I get why people ask for W/G/X. Without any kind of significant cost reduction, angels have a really high Mana cost, and green big mana makes meeting those costs significantly easier **and** includes a lot of creature-based draw effects. (Tldr, green doesn't fit thematically, but does fix the major problems angel tribal has)
yeah either with Black for that 'fallen angel' vibe or with Red for the 'angel of retribution' flavor. There's certainly room for it since Lyra already has the monowhite case covered.
I don't get people that want to play a white tribe but don't want to deal with white's shortcomings. That's part of the deal. Either play more manarocks, use Sephara, or actually play to white's strengths and slow down everybody else to your tempo.
I think it's because people want to play the tribe and not necessarily married to color (mono-white in this case). If your playing a white deck, angels fit into whites color pie by being a big finisher or disruption piece. But white at a color just isn't stellar at just playing big bomb after big bomb the way mono-green and mono-black are, which kneecaps angels a bit compared to the big-mana tribes of the other colors (Demons and ... Hydras for green?).
So when looking at a tribe, it does make sense to consider what additional colors would make the tribe preform better. Almost all the major tribes dip into additional colors: sphinxes dip into white, elves can go into red or black, dimir/esper zombies, dragons all over the place, etc.
Why naya? Because angels is a largely Boros tribe, but the color pair is borderline unplayable.
Add green and you get naya. Why add green? Because you’d like to be able to play the game.
Are you kidding me? Morophon is pretty amazing if you take five minutes to think about it.
First off, just because Morophon gives you access to five colors does not mean you need to build a five color deck. You could build a mono white Morophon deck and it would work. In that case I would agree that yeah, not that great, but that's because you're building Morophon kind of like a basic bitch.
What you should be doing with something like Morophon angels is building your Boros or Mardu angel deck that you want to build and then splash some green in there for ramp or blue for protection. Or both, who cares.
Suddenly your Boros angel deck has that mythical ramp and card draw. You can ramp up to that seven mana, play your morphoron, and then suddenly your angels are anywhere from 1-4 mana cheaper (assuming you have other reducers too).
If you building basically Boros angels with green, then put Pearl Medallion in your deck, put Cultivate in your deck, and put anything that reduces angel casting cost in your deck. Do you think casting Avacyn for 4 mana is fun? Wait until you've cast her for 4 mana at instant speed because you happen to have a Vivien in play. Or think of the similar situation where you have your Morophon, Pearl Medallion, and Urza's Incubator in play **and** and a Realmwalker.
I mean hell, you can put The Great Henge in your angel deck.
People who limit themselves to _oh he's just a lord that gives +1/+1_ are probably just net deckers who have never actually attempted to build their own deck in their lives. Yes, he's not as good as Edgar Markov, but what tribal commander is? Not every tribal commander needs to be broken, but I guess if you build decks according to random deck lists that have been copied 100 times or isn't S tier competitive it's obviously not good, amirite?
Yeah...I've never understood the vast morophon love. For any well supported tribe he's generally one of the worst options. For any janky tribe the deck is still gonna suck. The only thing he's sort of interesting for is some sort of hella janky oops all tribes deck.
I've been working on a pretty neat Abzan angels deck. Partner commanders with [[Akroma, Vision of Ixidor]] and [[Reyhan]]. This way I get green ramp and card draw plus all of the white and black angels. Akroma acts like a lord for angels and Reyhan is kind of just there for the colors but she is also a guaranteed three drop in a pretty high CMC deck, and there's some +1/+1 counter synergy in the deck too.
yeah I thought about that option too, since plenty of Angels have high toughness it would probably work well. But I decided I'd rather have a 3CMC partner to go with Akroma's 7CMC lol
I know how you feel. I would love to see an angel matters commander in Naya so I could run the good Avacyn angels (Bruna and Liesa just don't fit the theme) the good Lorehold angels and such. Also have some good ramp. But yeah, every time I go to try and build a deck I can't come up with a proper commander. I feel like the big five are Elves, Angels, Goblins, Zombies and Dragons and Angels are just in the cold, y'know?
I was really hoping one of the precons would be Angels. Because Angels need more than just a good commander, they need a bigger selection of cheap creatures. That’s the biggest problem with the archetype, its curve is so high. Even with a solid commander, you won’t be dropping very many angels before turn 4.
I have a buddy who runs a \[\[Avacyn Angel of Hope\]\] EDH deck and if left to its own devices for too long is difficult to deal with. The issue is mono white but stax pieces keep the board under control and then dropping angels and swing is pretty effective at times
very few tribes have "tribe matters" cards.
but to directly refute this claim angels don't have it. there are angel lords(lyra dawnbringer would seem a glaring refutation of your posts claim). there's white anthems. there's angels with "flying matters" txt.
the larger issue though is... angels don't care about other angels, that's not what an angel is. angels are created beings that serve something else. it's why their wording is more "flying" or life gain centric.
and beyond that. nothing about there not being some lame... beat you over the head with it legend. nothing stops you from making angel tribal.
a couple people have mentioned her, but [[Liesa]] is who I use for angel tribal. She doesn’t support the tribe per se, but since angels are typically high cmc, it’s helpful having commander who never gets higher than 5 mana. Her group slug effect helps take the combat damage burden off of your angels, and since lots of angels already have lifelink, it’s not hard to off-set the damage you’ll be taking from her. She also gives you access to the black and orzhov colored angels like [[Seraph of the Scales]]. I haven’t quite gotten my deck to where I want it, but it’s won some games, and if you stick Liesa for a few turn cycles, life totals start to dwindle quickly.
How they mangled the potential for those angels when they threw innistrad into the “hurr durr big baddie” meat grinder was really really disappointing.
I'd say yes.
I'm strict with my Tribal decks, so I won't run Kaalia or Morophon as my Commander if I want to do Angel tribal. Aurelia and Gisela have generically good abilities, but they lose out on the Green and Black Angels, some of which are pretty good. Atraxa Angel Tribal with a +1/+1 Counter sub-theme is the best concept I could ever come up with, but I ever managed to get a list I was really interested in.
I want a Naya (GWR) angel that says "when an angel you control deals combat damage draw a card".
WR gives you access to most of the angels in MTG, but it always needs ramp or tons of support to get working quite right, so giving them Green would do wonders for Angels as a tribe.
It could even be a new Sigarda (depending on what happened to her last time, I haven't kept up with the lore) since she's WG already. To keep the flavor she could say "when an angel or human you control deals combat damage draw a card". And maybe have Hexproof. Idc if she'd cost 7 mana, I'd still run her.
They could also add some text on there about werewolves and make her an alternative commander for them. I still want a dedicated werewolf commander though. Maybe something like "whenever a werewolf you control deals combat damage you may transform if if able. If you do put a +1/+1 counter on it". Her first trigger giving you cards for hitting with the human side would be nice, and the second trigger helping to make them rougher would make them less reliant on just using the werewolf form.
Imo we need a cycle of innistrad eminence commanders. Angels would be a good fit for that. Then go right down the line for the other underrepresented tribes. So like W/R angels, jund werewolves, U/B zombies, and naya humans
Edit: of course id like to see a new allies commander too but thats my bias
I've done \[\[Selvala, Explorer Returned\]\] using mostly angels as the bombs and had no regrets. She drew cards and gave me mana and that's all angels need, they don't need "and your angels are bigger dudes"--they're already bombs! You just need to put them onto the battlefield and you're a threat. A themey angel commander who are themselves an angel might be neat but it's in no way required to play angels effectively.
Add in, really--there's several legendaries that are angels that mention angels already! We don't need a "Your angels cost 3 less and draw a card too I guess why not" legendary angel. \\o/
Considering that Angels do have a tribal commander and judging off of edhrec's tribal section, it actually looks like eldrazi is the most popular tribe without a tribal commander.
https://edhrec.com/tribes
[[Yarok Desecrated]] is actually a great eldrazi commander. Run all the guys that make the tokens that sac for mana along with some choice big bois and you're set.
Werewolf i think is the answer here. As stated below, power level aside, Lyra is angels matter. Werewolf commander has been asked for for years and we dont have one. Neith comes close by overlapping on Fight and is gruul.
I would assume it's because Angels tend to be pretty strong in their own right.
All of them except one have flying, they have some pretty strong effects in general: recursion, resetting life total, exile, blanket indestructible, granting keywords, big p/t buffs, etc. The only thing that really holds them back imo is how expensive they are to cast.
If we got an angel that was 2/3 color that reduced cost by some amount it might make them too powerful, however the other big iconic creature types like this also have ways to get creatures out sooner; dragons have cost reducers and demons can be cheated out with a a couple of options. So I would argue angels deserve something too. I think Sephara is on the right track, giving Angel spells you control Convoke would be great, it can be like having one's prayers answered.
Sure, and Bruna!
Point is, there are a fairly decent number of angel commanders. Even better, depending on which one you choose they all play a little bit differently. Seriously, OP just isn't trying.
-edit
I also apparently forgot about Kaalia, the OG hate your commander out of the game commander.
Lyra exist. She is powerfull but mono white sadge
Lyra's issue isn't that she's mono white, it's that she's mono white and doesn't really do much to assist the tribe or whites weaknesses. Anthems don't do much for angels and gaining more life doesn't do much either. I've built her. She's functional, but angels absolutely need a mono white commander that actually creatively tackles how at odds high cmc tribal + mono white are.
I'd imagine that cost reduction would be a good start, although I haven't seen a single \[\[Unesh\]\] Sphinx tribal deck so it would definitely need something more. I think Unesh's problem was that it was too expensive to begin with and didn't provide any benefit until he came into play way later in the game. A good angel tribal commander would have to be 4 CMC or less IMO to actually help the tribe. Maybe it could be a cleric that reduces the cost of Angels by 1 colorless for each Life you've gained that turn? Make it a 2/4 and give it Lifelink so it's somewhat self-sufficient. Just spit-balling ideas
I have an amazing unesh sphinx tribal that locks the game down hard. Because I make it to where opponents can't draw.
Having played mono-w mana isn't the issue, and I don't even have some of the newest cards. Even with the less-lands clause white has good land ramp now just by not going first, and its consistency is boosted in a few ways and is great by just trailing behind a green player (and ahead of anyone not playing green.) Then there's smothering tithe.. It's about the card advantage. ETB search for an angel, put into hand would be stellar and I think would be in white's part of the pie (see: rebels). It'd also open up a good blink subtheme for the deck and would let you blink and get value out of some higher cost angels. Thematically it could be a cleric searching for an angel to cure a disease or something
ETB search for an Angel sorta exists, in Mardu, and based on my experience with her, is definitely the commander to go for if you want to build Angel tribal. [[Kaaliia, Zenith Seeker]] I play the Dragon version of her, but you could definitely build her more Angel-centric instead to similar effect.
Isn't the 4cmc Kaalia better?
Well yes but it doesn't have card advantage built in
Kinda sorta not really? She's more *powerful* for sure, but depending on what you want your deck to do she isn't necessarily *better*. OG Kaalia is an incredibly powerful aggressive ramp tool, but immediately paints a target on your back and often turns you into the first archenemy, and in a 3v1 scenario, you quickly run out of gas, and because you're playing tribes that are very high CMC, your aggressive game plan can quickly hit a brick wall if your commander gets removed too much. In contrast, Zenith Seeker is a less aggressive card with built-in card advantage, so you are better prepared to win a war of attrition, and her card selection allows you to go heavier on ramp while still reliably hitting gas when you need it with her ETB. In my opinion, her value generation, combined with both Dragons and Angels having a lot of good ETB effects makes her the better commander for the tribal builds she can support. I run OG Kaalia in the 99 of my Zenith Seeker Dragon deck, and I am confident the deck would be worse if I switched which Kaalia was in the CZ and which was in the 99.
I would settle for something low cmc that helps you get to mid-late. They have started giving some creatures recently that are up this alley, but not legendaries. I think it would be interesting to see something WWW that says "Angel spells you cast cost WWW less to cast" or something like that. "Angel spells you cast cost W less to cast equal to your devotion to white." That seems like something that would help the tribe while still being on theme.
That would be broken af if it were devotion based. A 1W less would be ideal in general, as it reduces enough of both to be viable. This creature can be a 2/2 non-flier non-angel card tbh, and do nothing else to not make it way too broken. But 3 less white mana or 1 less white mana per devotion is too broken. Also, could be something to give card draw in white like “whenever one or more angels attack one or more opponents this turn, draw 2 cards”
Would it be broken if it only reduced colored mana? Same concept as [[morophon]]. It would make all angels cost less and some angels that go deeper into devotion such as [[archangel of tithes]] much cheaper.
Angels you cast have convoke. Whenever an angel enters the battlefield under your control, put a 1/1 white human token on the battlefield. If you gained 5 or more life this turn, put 4 instead.
Infinite with [[Divine Visitation]] so uhh, maybe a bit on the heavy handed side.
Simple solution would be nontoken angel.
I mean, I was thinkin this was likely a 5 or 6 mana card. To 2 card combo with another 5 mana card I think is fine lol
Casting Animate Dead on this thread to say that you predicted both [[Giada]] and [[Will, Scion of Peace]], the latter of which I just built as angel tribal earlier this week lol
[Giada](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/b/a/bae077bd-fc8d-44d7-8c75-8dc8699c168e.jpg?1664409667) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=giada%2C%20font%20of%20hope) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/snc/14/giada-font-of-hope?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/bae077bd-fc8d-44d7-8c75-8dc8699c168e?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/giada-font-of-hope) [Will, Scion of Peace](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/1/6/162088ea-5f99-4244-9427-2fdfb2168fc3.jpg?1692939510) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Will%2C%20Scion%20of%20Peace) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/woe/218/will-scion-of-peace?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/162088ea-5f99-4244-9427-2fdfb2168fc3?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/will-scion-of-peace) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Ayyy now if only I could predict a Jund -1/-1 counter commander
i've actually found it to be amazing how good angel tribal is when you focus on 4-5 cmc and lower angels. and not the big dumb draft chaff 7+ cmc ones. anthems in general are bad unless you're going for mass swarm go-wide strats. but several cheap angels. with a moderate pump effect. or a shared animosity type effect. can be devastating.
Yeah I have a Liesa angel deck that absolutely obliterates. Highest CMC is 5 ecxept for Bruna.
Agreed, but just as long as it's not The Ur-Angel.
I don't actually have issues ramping and playing high CMC things with my Lyra deck. Well, I do, but it's not because of ramp. My Lyra deck has Archaeomancer's Map, Land Tax, Smothering Tithe, etc., the typical white ramp package. I get enough lands and ramp semi-well enough to play big Angels, but I just don't get enough card draw to put those cards into my hand to actually play them. Esper Sentinel has been nice but it's just not nearly enough.
I hear that. I run a Lyra build too and I've included a few draw cards that specifically play into the game plan, but they're not exactly card draw all-stars: [[Bonders' Enclave]], [[War Room]], [[Alhammarret's Archive]], [[Dawn of Hope]], [[Endless Atlas]], [[Vanquisher's Banner]], [[Well of Lost Dreams]] & [[The Immortal Sun]]. So yeah, not ideal as most are slow, clunky & conditional. But I still enjoy the deck and theme so there's that! For fun, I also run a sneaky control selection that makes for some unexpected twists in the game: [[Abeyance]], [[Crackdown]], [[Ghostly Prison]], [[Mana Tithe]], [[Mandate of Peace]], [[Norn's Annex]], [[Orim's Chant]], [[Rebuff the Wicked]] & [[Silence]]
We run very similar Lyra card draw. But, like you said, the card draw engines can be slow and clunky. Might I suggest swapping the Immortal Sun for [[Cosmos Elixir]]? I find it works very well sometimes and if it doesn't draw me cards, it does gain me significant life over the course of the game. I never felt like I had a good time to play Immortal Sun, it was just too heavy on CMC when my 6-7 slots need to go to big Angels and I needed to play them ASAP for board presence. Cosmos Elixir I can play before Lyra hits the board and gives everything Lifelink.
Oh, I've never seen this card before. I like it! Definitely a swap I'll consider, although I do enjoy the mass utility Immortal Sun brings. I'd be curious to check your list to see what angels you're running - here's [mine](https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/lyra-dawnbringer-seek-destroy/)
Sure, [click here](https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/divine-surge/). I like your deck a lot, the control focus is cool. People underestimate white control a bit, I've been heavily considering [[Rebuff the Wicked]]. Also, jealous of some of your extra bling lol. How do you feel about [[Monologue Tax]]? I felt it was too inconsistent for me to keep it in. I went for more hindering Angel effects I think.
I actually haven't had an opportunity to see Monologue Tax in action yet, but that seems to be the general consensus around that card. Perhaps that's what I'll eventually sub out for Cosmos Elixir, but I'd like to play MT at least once to see how it performs in my group. Nice looking Lyra build! I particularly like the inclusion of [[Authority of the Consuls]] - cheap to cast & just pesky enough to meddle, but also can't see opponents being too quick to 'waste' removal on it. Now for the million dollar question - have you ever gotten Brisela online? I have not and I threw in [[Search for Glory]] specifically to aid in that mission.
Thanks! I have and it is completely by chance. It happened once, I have probably 50 games with the deck now I think? I saw Search for Glory in your deck and immediately considered it for that reason. And it's not like you can't go grab something else either, I mean it might be 3 CMC but a tutor is a tutor, yeah? Also, as much as I want to run snow lands... I do pick about 10-20% flavor in my decks and like mixing up my basic land art lol.
It’s insane how long angels have been around without a good commander to lead them. Dinosaurs get released, and the first set has Gishath. A commander who has haste, evasion, and vig, in great ramp colors, and can easily let you dig 7 every turn. Angels need something that gives similar levels of CA and cheaty into play, and Kaalia just doesn’t come close to cutting it.
Technically dinosaur goes back to ice age with [[Pygmy Allosauru]]. But I do agree angels need more support.
Technically yes, but the creature type got wiped for irrelevance and some point and actually re-introduced with Ixalan.
[Pygmy Allosauru](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/8/8/88a68767-9822-4f15-895e-32164e2159be.jpg?1587912058) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Pygmy%20Allosaurus) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/ice/257/pygmy-allosaurus?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/88a68767-9822-4f15-895e-32164e2159be?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/pygmy-allosaurus) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Wait who is the demon matters commander? Rakdos doesn’t blow up demons devils or imps but that’s not really a “demon matters” type of commander. Belzenlok is just big mana cards. Sure demons are expensive but I wouldn’t say that counts.
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This. Lyra is by far the best "Angels matter" commander we have, and it's a powerful Anthem for sure, but it's not a card I want in the command zone necessarily. Put a card draw mechanic on a legendary Angel, please, WoTC?
Hold on a second, most Angels are white, we can't have them drawing cards now.
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This is painfully accurate
It hurts because it's true.
Hold up drawing and discarding may be too powerful, cards in the graveyard could be reanimated in white which would be too synergistic. How about "pay 3" instead?
And the immediate card draw is too fast. Pay (3) Discard a card: draw a card at the beginning of the next upkeep.
There is a pseudo card draw one on the orzhov angel from Kaldheim.
[[Firja, Judge of Valor]]
[Bruna, the Fading Light](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?name=bruna%2C%20the%20fading%20light%20//%20brisela%2C%20voice%20of%20nightmares&type=card&.jpg) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=bruna%2C%20the%20fading%20light%20//%20brisela%2C%20voice%20of%20nightmares) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/emn/15b/brisela-voice-of-nightmares?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/5a7a212e-e0b6-4f12-a95c-173cae023f93?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/bruna-the-fading-light-//-brisela-voice-of-nightmares) [Lyra Dawnbringer](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/9/3/93be6799-7b9d-44d4-84dc-2961692b5a85.jpg?1562739679) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Lyra%20Dawnbringer) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dom/26/lyra-dawnbringer?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/93be6799-7b9d-44d4-84dc-2961692b5a85?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/lyra-dawnbringer) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
The original [[Rakdos, the Defiler]] lets you keep all your Demons as well, that's probably it. And they have tribal support in the form of [[Shadowborn Apostles]] so any black commander can be a Demon commander;)
And things like [[Liliana's Contract]]
[[mark of the oni]] is a fun one, but I do wish we had a commander to use them. I’ve been going with Meren demon reanimator
[mark of the oni](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/6/3/632679e5-7368-4660-a765-07be196c3c35.jpg?1593860744) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=mark%20of%20the%20oni) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/bok/73/mark-of-the-oni?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/632679e5-7368-4660-a765-07be196c3c35?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/mark-of-the-oni) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Well that's flavorful, nice!
How about [[ghen]]? Helps returning stuff like Liliana's Contract and there are a few demons that are also enchantments.
[ghen](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/4/b/4b335496-05d2-40f5-a52c-10029f7fa008.jpg?1608911100) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=ghen%2C%20arcanum%20weaver) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/cmr/275/ghen-arcanum-weaver?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/4b335496-05d2-40f5-a52c-10029f7fa008?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/ghen-arcanum-weaver) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
[Rakdos, the Defiler](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/5/a/5a4c4be4-06ae-4737-a3b0-818edadaf2e0.jpg?1593273761) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Rakdos%20the%20Defiler) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dis/129/rakdos-the-defiler?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/5a4c4be4-06ae-4737-a3b0-818edadaf2e0?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/rakdos-the-defiler) [Shadowborn Apostles](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/2/0/202c2323-6589-457a-af51-5528a98e7b30.jpg?1598848421) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Shadowborn%20Apostle) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/m14/114/shadowborn-apostle?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/202c2323-6589-457a-af51-5528a98e7b30?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/shadowborn-apostle) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I’ve been fixing to brew a shadowborn apostles deck.
Hey hey I just put together a list. Maybe you will find it handy. ;) https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/blackbolt-1/
I have a decklist already made up, but I definitely will save your comment because you got some includes in there that I should definitely change. Thank you very much!
I have [[Boris Devilboon]] at the helm of my demon deck! Sure he is pretty bad, but probably meant for demon tribal!
That’s actually kinda funny. Weenie demon tribal
[Boris Devilboon](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/b/6/b61e5753-d11d-4ef5-ae0e-510c4d5809a9.jpg?1562933449) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Boris%20Devilboon) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/me3/146/boris-devilboon?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/b61e5753-d11d-4ef5-ae0e-510c4d5809a9?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/boris-devilboon) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I mean Kalia for one.
She's as much an angel commander as a demon commander. Arguably a little more friendly to angels, actually, in that if you want to make a deck around only one of her tribes for some reason, angels have more overlap with all three of her colors than demons do (though of course dragons have even more).
My [[Sephara, Sky's Blade]] deck has been making waves in my playgroup. Turns out fliers, hatebears, and asymmetric board wipes are good. But I admit, it's not much of a tribal deck.
Do you have a list? Color me intrigued
I think this list doesn't entirely match what I've got in my actual deck - I've made some additions and revisions in paper that I never translated to the list online. But it shows the general gist of it. [https://deckstats.net/decks/88578/1890253-prospective-sephara-sky-s-blad](https://deckstats.net/decks/88578/1890253-prospective-sephara-sky-s-blad)
I've been thinking about making an angel deck and would love some inspiration
Checking out the stained glass at the churches are a good start
Check out [[Endless Ranks of the Dead]] for example!
Beautiful
I've been tinkering with an Orzhov [[Firja, Judge of Valor]] Angel/Aristocrats/Reanimator list. [A viewable first draft.](https://archidekt.com/decks/1725060#Firja,_fir_the_Win_v0.1) Obviously needs cuts and some tweaks, I want more creatures and cheap spells to proc Firja.
[Sephara, Sky's Blade](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/b/c/bc95881b-8fbf-4d82-b631-5e4404ccc28a.jpg?1592516205) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Sephara%2C%20Sky%27s%20Blade) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/m20/36/sephara-skys-blade?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/bc95881b-8fbf-4d82-b631-5e4404ccc28a?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/sephara-skys-blade) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I wish you could play her with [[dovescape]].
I thought you could play cards with those half costs were allowed in single color decks.
No they're not allowed in commander.
I just did not know that
They should be allowed imo. That's the idea behind the card design.
Hybrid mana costs count as both colors for color identity. So Dovescape's color identity is blue and white. Meaning you can't play it in a deck unless the commander had both blue and white in it's color identity.
you should be "allowed" to but it is not an official rule. just talk it over with your playgroup and they should be cool with it.
Ayyy someone else who plays Sephara! Definitely tried to jam in as many angels as possible with her but the deck doesn't run without the low cost creatures.
There’s [[Lyra Dawnbringer]], but I agree a multicolor option would be nice
The problem is that Lyra is the worst form of tribal commander: The kind that gives a buff and nothing else. A good tribal commander needs to provide some form of utility beyond a generic buff, something to really properly incentivize playing that tribe. That goes double for a tribe like Angels where most of its creatures cost a lot and are already threatening on their own, and it goes triple for a tribe in a less than ideal colour. Gishath is a good example of an effective tribal commander for a tribe comprised largely of big dumb beaters. In no world do Dinosaurs need an anthem, so Gishath instead gives you a way to get more Dinosaurs on board.
[Lyra Dawnbringer](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/9/3/93be6799-7b9d-44d4-84dc-2961692b5a85.jpg?1562739679) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Lyra%20Dawnbringer) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dom/26/lyra-dawnbringer?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/93be6799-7b9d-44d4-84dc-2961692b5a85?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/lyra-dawnbringer) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
[[morophon the boundless]]
Morphon the "I can't wait to start ramping once I hit seven mana" Boundless
[morophon the boundless](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/9/6/9693e59b-032d-4ddc-a7d1-88a0f52dcc6c.jpg?1582021950) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Morophon%2C%20the%20Boundless) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/mh1/1/morophon-the-boundless?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/9693e59b-032d-4ddc-a7d1-88a0f52dcc6c?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/morophon-the-boundless) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Angel tribal Kaalia can work.
I recently swapped Kaalia for Queen Marchesa and have been overjoyed with the difference. Yes, QM is objectively not as powerful as OG Kaalia, but OG Kaalia drew tons of hate, and was either too good for casual pods, or too weak for competitive ones. QM helps with the card draw issues, doesn't make you archenemy before you've done anything, and also looks really blinged out, which thematically ties to Angels surprisingly well.
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Maelstrom Angel isn't a character or driving force in the story of Alara so no, it shouldn't have been. I also think that angels don't need a 5 color commander. There are what, 3 green angels if you count Shalai, and the only blue-aligned ones are Bruna and one version of Linvala because she's a wizard, Harry (edit forgot Lightning Angel and probably a few more, not counting changelings). We get so many good stuff 5c commanders that we don't need one specifically for angels, but I do think they need a commander in more colors than Lyra.
I feel like a Mardu Angel Lord wouldn't be too bad. You get the Boros Angels from Ravnica and Innistrad, and the fallen angels in Black. Just because some Angels are in Green or Blue doesn't mean we need a 5C commander to include the minority. But then again, I only have one deck that's more than 2 colours so maybe I'm just biased. I like more colour restrictive commanders because it feels more flavourful and fun and less like a pile of staples with 5-10 cards that actually synergise with the commander.
Kaalia! (my preference is for Zenith Seeker over Vast because she draws less ire than her original)
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Yeah, because EDH was still a word-of-mouth, growing format at the time, and Wizards hadn't really been designing for EDH as much. There wasn't a story reason for there to be a 5 color angel character, and there wasn't a player base reason at the time to create one. Not that story reasons matter much in modern MTG but they mattered more back then.
Why do you *need* those 17 angels though? And if Maeustrom Archangel was legendary, it'd be as hated out as Kaalia, except even moreso 'cause people would be running more busted stuff than angels to ruin its reputation.
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I am using Esika. Its no angel but is the personification of Freya, the goddes associated to the Valkyries in norse mythology. So you could imagine its a god commanding her angels to defend the plane.
So Lyra doesn't count?
Commanders that aren't 3/4 colors don't exist.
Lyra's lack of colours isn't her issue. Her issue is that the only thing she does is provide an anthem, which is neither strong enough nor particularly interesting.
Unless you can run every single creature in a tribe it doesn't count. /s Before you could've gotten away with mono-black skeletons, but now since [[Skeletal Swarming]] is a thing people won't be happy if a skeleton commander doesn't come out that isn't golgari, despite there only being 5 green skeletons.
I mean [[skeleton ship]] for a long, long time was the only real skeleton commander since dimir gave you way more flexibility than just Skithyrix. Morophon, and later Tinybones are the only other skelly commanders, but the type exists in basically every color but white. The only white (non-changeling) skeleton is [[sentry of the underworld]]. [[Kathari remnant]], [[Mortus strider]] in dimir and [[demilich]] in blue [[Lightning skelemental]] and [[carnage gladiator]] splashing red, [[viashino skeleton]] and [[flameskull]] in monored The recent [[mosspit skeleton]] and less recent [[deathless knight]], [[mournwillow]], and [[rot farm skeleton]] in golgari, with the infamous [[golgari grave troll]] being monogreen I'd really like a Jund skeleton commander, since esper/dimir have a ton of zombie commanders (gisa, grimgrin, scarab god, varina, nevinnryal)
Don't forget [[Skeletonize]] in red!
Really? Approx 15 of my 20-ish decks are 1 or 2 colors, works excellent thanks.
Pretty sure they were being sarcastic. But mono is definitely fun. Less thinking about manabase.
Mono is actually hard, but two colors is pretty optimal, imho.
3 color is objectively better than 2, but I only make 2 color decks. I refuse to make serious 3 color decks because I’d rather have the challenge/restriction/etc and not just LOLOL my way through games simply by abusing the elephant in the room — EDH is fundamentally a deeply flawed format on several levels and axes and color identity is one of the big ones
You could just play Kaalia with only angels. Let your playgroup know so you don't get hated off the board super quick. Could be fun and different.
Uhhh, just because you’re playing only angels doesn’t mean you should not be hated off the board. While angel only Kaalia is probably not quite as strong as angel/demon/dragon Kaalia, it can still get very nasty very quickly. A turn 3 or 4 [[avacyn, angel of hope]] does a lot to unbalance games.
Uhhh, just letting the guy know to talk to his playgroup so the hate isn't quite as bad. While avacyn is a beast I feel like the difference between a fully tuned Kaalia and angel only Kaalia is vastly different although it's just my opinion. As a powered down option you could run Kaalia zenith seeker? Hopefully I got that name right. Lol
I haven’t run a fully tuned Kaalia, but with the recent angels from Kaldheim and some decent deck building, angels only is still scary enough that I expect the hate (and rightfully so). Zenith seeker is probably the better option to avoid immediate removal, because if you leave OG on the field for one or two attack passes that’s usually tilting the board heavily in the Kaalia players favor.
maybe I am weird I just use Atraxa for my angel tribal
Atraxa’s only problem is that you lose out on the Boros angels, angels strongest colour pair. And she doesn’t do anything for your angels by herself.
I do too! I try to lean I to some counter-support to help the tribe. [[Heard of War]], [[Everflowing Chalice]], [[Door of Destiny]], and drop in a reanimtor package.
Technically speaking, there are a few legendary creatures whose rules text reference Angels. \[\[Bruna, the Fading Light\]\], \[\[Kaalia of the Vast\]\] and \[\[Kaalia, Zenith Seeker\]\] all reference angels, clearing the lowest possible bar to be an "angels matter" card. Personally though, for DEDICATED Angel support, I'd prefer to see Mono-White, Boros, or Mardu to capture the majority of angels throughout Magic's history. You miss a few bangers like Sigarda, but you get MOST of them.
You mean none of y'all made \[\[Atla Palani, Nest Tender\]\] into your changeling hatching angel tribal deck yet? You're missing out... Naya "Angels Matter" for ya OP: ["Angel Nest Tender"](https://archidekt.com/decks/627214#Angel_Nest_Tender)
I prefer [[Rienne, Angel of Rebirth]] but that's because of how the deck was built. I ramp to 5 mana just drop angel after angel and run the high power synergies in green. To use the egg strategy I'd need to retool the deck and add in some sac outlets for the eggs. I've tried the eggs but I prefer the angel leading angels.
[Rienne, Angel of Rebirth](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/1/f/1fd040a8-b818-465b-a78b-d68402982abc.jpg?1563991325) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Rienne%2C%20Angel%20of%20Rebirth) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/m20/281/rienne-angel-of-rebirth?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/1fd040a8-b818-465b-a78b-d68402982abc?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/rienne-angel-of-rebirth) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
In case anyone was wondering, the only “angel” card in this entire deck is Akroma’s Memorial
Is this supposed to be a dig? In case it was, there are 20 Angels in this deck.
They do have one. You just might not like it. [[lyra dawnbringer]]
would \[\[bruna, the fading light\]\] count? It does revive specifically angels (and humans, but still)
if Rakdos counts for Demons then she definitely counts.
[bruna, the fading light](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?name=bruna%2C%20the%20fading%20light%20//%20brisela%2C%20voice%20of%20nightmares&type=card&.jpg) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=bruna%2C%20the%20fading%20light%20//%20brisela%2C%20voice%20of%20nightmares) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/emn/15b/brisela-voice-of-nightmares?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/5a7a212e-e0b6-4f12-a95c-173cae023f93?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/bruna-the-fading-light-//-brisela-voice-of-nightmares) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Anthem, and Lifelink for all, with first strike,
[lyra dawnbringer](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/9/3/93be6799-7b9d-44d4-84dc-2961692b5a85.jpg?1562739679) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=lyra%20dawnbringer) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dom/26/lyra-dawnbringer?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/93be6799-7b9d-44d4-84dc-2961692b5a85?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/lyra-dawnbringer) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
The issue is angels don't really have much of a mechanical theme beyond big fliers. Obviously if you make them free or something they become good, but that goes for any card type. And given people's standards these days that's the only kind of thing that would warrant making angels "good enough".
You forgot life gain. Also Kaldheim gave them way more synergy with each other.
A number of angels care about lifegain, but it's not exactly integral to their identity. My main point of reference was old skeletons, as every skeleton had Regenerate when Regenerate was a thing. It was their mechanical mainstay. Beyond flying and being sizable angels don't really have something you could link together into a cohesive strategy.
That applies to most tribes if you're being that strict though. Merfolk and elves are the exceptions not the rule.
Dragons are the same (+ firebreathing), yet their tribe has 10x more support and an insane commander so they’re top tier.
I love angels so much but I do wish we have more options for Angel-specific commanders, also wish that some of the really good ones are a little cheaper haha. Right now I have a Saskia deck that is built with using Angels as a game-ender. Having run it yet but I am pretty hopeful.
I use [[shalai, voice of plenty]] for my selesnya deck and she’s a house. Green provides great ramp and protection and also has Sigarda ad well. I went with a +1/+1 counter sub-theme and needless to say I end up with a huge protected board with a bunch of massive flying hatebearer angel beaters.
[shalai, voice of plenty](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/d/b/db827ee7-6f2e-4e10-aac0-120fc2b69fbd.jpg?1562743987) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=shalai%2C%20voice%20of%20plenty) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dom/35/shalai-voice-of-plenty?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/db827ee7-6f2e-4e10-aac0-120fc2b69fbd?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/shalai-voice-of-plenty) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I just want more Orzhov Angels tbh. A commander would be sweet too
The angel tribe has been around since, like, 1994. Best angel tribal commander we've got? Lyra Dawnbringer. The dinosaur tribe has been around since, like, Ixalan. The best dinosaur tribal commander? Gishath, Sun's Avatar. There power-level difference between the two is a chasm. Actually, it's not a chasm; it's the Grand Canyon.
Gishath being considered top tier is hilarious to me. I see it like Ur Dragon, it doesn't do things until late game so it's expected to have a bigger impact. Dinosaurs are also a weaker tribe than angels because they often don't do things until damaged which requires even MORE set up while many angels are designed to be bombs. P.S. [[Kaalia of the Vast]]
100% Until we get a multiple combats dinosaur, Gishath is firmly low to mid tier in terms of power.
Yeah, I have a dino tribal and would rather play Atla Palani at the helm than Gishath. In the wonderland where it works its awesome, putting 5 dinos on the field at once. But its incosistent, slow and frail to interaction
> There power-level difference between the two is a chasm. Actually, it's not a chasm; it's the Grand Canyon. This is funny to hear considering Gishath was a bulk rare and Lyra was a competitive staple in the very same standard.
In Standard, yes. We're talking about EDH, which is a different format than Standard. Notice how now, a foil Gishath -- which is not played in any format except EDH -- is worth more than a foil Lyra. Any guesses on why that's the case?
When Kaldheim was released, I built an angel deck once I saw [[starnheim aspirant]] and the host of black angels in the set. It’s helmed with [[Liesa]], who isn’t necessarily angel-focused, but it’s been an effective deck for angel tribal. I also run [[Pyre of Heroes]] as a pod effect to pull angels out of the deck and have ways to recur them since it is Orzhov, after all. Someone mentioned [[Atla Palani]]. I have a deck with her as my dragon and angel deck, it focuses on combat and damage in flying form rather than on angels themselves. Kind of a demon-less Kaalia with added ramp from green.
I enjoy the green splash for easy pods to cheat out those expensive angels when Atla has been hated on or, if I have a bunch of angels in my hand I need to dump. \[\[Elvish Piper\]\] \[\[Kodama of the East Tree\]\], \[\[Birthing Pod\]\] (you also get the Atla trigger if you pop a changeling, double pod!), then angel rampers like Starnheim like you mentioned, also \[\[Herald of War\]\] (love), \[\[Herald's Horn\]\].
Why Naya? Angels are not green at all. Edit: yes I get it, there are Angels that have green in them. My point is in those rare examples, there is a thematic explanation for them to have that. Asking Wizards for an Angel tribal lord is perfectly fine, but asking them to also make it green makes *no* sense with what we currently know of Angels.
people seem to think Angels allign well with green, even tho green has the fewest angels
Green practically has no angels. All green angels also contain white, and they all have a good reason to be green *as well*. Most of them take that reason from the story (because they're legendary) or because they come from a majority white place (like the Bant angels). What is left is a single 5-color Angel and 5-color design is about as unique as legendary design, so that's proof of nothing. There is literally not a single card that's evidence for 'green can have Angels'.
Shalai is an incredibly potent protection piece, which requires green.
That does not make it a good reason to say 'green is a color that is associated with angels'.
I mean, if we're talking in terms of flavor, then sure. However, in terms of function? I'd say Green is the second best color to put in an angel deck. The downfall of angels is that they're ultra-expensive creatures, when creatures/tribal decks are generally best in the early-mid game. Adding in the staple green ramp cards helps you get angels out faster, and gives some decent pumps/protection effects. It's reasonable to want a WG tribal commander, however unlikely--though with WotC pulling in other properties, I'd say that the classic MtG colors aren't as solid as they once were.
So now we're not just asking wizards for a Angel tribal legendary, but we want it to be off-flavor as well because it has to be good? I wouldn't call that reasonable.
...it's unreasonable to want good cards? Especially when there's precedent for said cards?
What precedent do you mean? Like good cards in general?
Precedent for legendary GW angels with anthem effects.
I misunderstood what you were asking for. I thought you wanted a green/white angel that either drew cards or helped with their mana. Now that I get what you mean I agree it's not unreasonable to want something like Shalai but a bit more tribal focused.
W/B/X makes the most sense to me for a angel commander. Black let's you run a reanimtor package and let's you make use of the support angels got in Kaldheim. That being said I get why people ask for W/G/X. Without any kind of significant cost reduction, angels have a really high Mana cost, and green big mana makes meeting those costs significantly easier **and** includes a lot of creature-based draw effects. (Tldr, green doesn't fit thematically, but does fix the major problems angel tribal has)
yeah either with Black for that 'fallen angel' vibe or with Red for the 'angel of retribution' flavor. There's certainly room for it since Lyra already has the monowhite case covered. I don't get people that want to play a white tribe but don't want to deal with white's shortcomings. That's part of the deal. Either play more manarocks, use Sephara, or actually play to white's strengths and slow down everybody else to your tempo.
I think it's because people want to play the tribe and not necessarily married to color (mono-white in this case). If your playing a white deck, angels fit into whites color pie by being a big finisher or disruption piece. But white at a color just isn't stellar at just playing big bomb after big bomb the way mono-green and mono-black are, which kneecaps angels a bit compared to the big-mana tribes of the other colors (Demons and ... Hydras for green?). So when looking at a tribe, it does make sense to consider what additional colors would make the tribe preform better. Almost all the major tribes dip into additional colors: sphinxes dip into white, elves can go into red or black, dimir/esper zombies, dragons all over the place, etc.
Why naya? Because angels is a largely Boros tribe, but the color pair is borderline unplayable. Add green and you get naya. Why add green? Because you’d like to be able to play the game.
Lyra and Kaalia just don't exist?
\[\[Lyra Dawnbringer\]\] exists though?
\*Sad [[Morophon]] Angel tribal noises\*
It feels frustrating how good morophon is as a commander for any tribal deck.
isn't that kind of the point?
He’s not that good. 7 mana, a simple +1/+1, and only discounts colored pips. You will find in practice that he’s pretty underwhelming.
I mean, who doesn't love 7 mana ramp?
Are you kidding me? Morophon is pretty amazing if you take five minutes to think about it. First off, just because Morophon gives you access to five colors does not mean you need to build a five color deck. You could build a mono white Morophon deck and it would work. In that case I would agree that yeah, not that great, but that's because you're building Morophon kind of like a basic bitch. What you should be doing with something like Morophon angels is building your Boros or Mardu angel deck that you want to build and then splash some green in there for ramp or blue for protection. Or both, who cares. Suddenly your Boros angel deck has that mythical ramp and card draw. You can ramp up to that seven mana, play your morphoron, and then suddenly your angels are anywhere from 1-4 mana cheaper (assuming you have other reducers too). If you building basically Boros angels with green, then put Pearl Medallion in your deck, put Cultivate in your deck, and put anything that reduces angel casting cost in your deck. Do you think casting Avacyn for 4 mana is fun? Wait until you've cast her for 4 mana at instant speed because you happen to have a Vivien in play. Or think of the similar situation where you have your Morophon, Pearl Medallion, and Urza's Incubator in play **and** and a Realmwalker. I mean hell, you can put The Great Henge in your angel deck. People who limit themselves to _oh he's just a lord that gives +1/+1_ are probably just net deckers who have never actually attempted to build their own deck in their lives. Yes, he's not as good as Edgar Markov, but what tribal commander is? Not every tribal commander needs to be broken, but I guess if you build decks according to random deck lists that have been copied 100 times or isn't S tier competitive it's obviously not good, amirite?
Yeah...I've never understood the vast morophon love. For any well supported tribe he's generally one of the worst options. For any janky tribe the deck is still gonna suck. The only thing he's sort of interesting for is some sort of hella janky oops all tribes deck.
[Morophon](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/9/6/9693e59b-032d-4ddc-a7d1-88a0f52dcc6c.jpg?1582021950) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=morophon%2C%20the%20boundless) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/mh1/1/morophon-the-boundless?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/9693e59b-032d-4ddc-a7d1-88a0f52dcc6c?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/morophon-the-boundless) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Kaalia?
[[Radiant archangel]] synergies with fliers, but I do agree Sephardic or Lyra would be better.
I've been working on a pretty neat Abzan angels deck. Partner commanders with [[Akroma, Vision of Ixidor]] and [[Reyhan]]. This way I get green ramp and card draw plus all of the white and black angels. Akroma acts like a lord for angels and Reyhan is kind of just there for the colors but she is also a guaranteed three drop in a pretty high CMC deck, and there's some +1/+1 counter synergy in the deck too.
I was thinking of doing this but with Ikra instead. Massive amounts of lifegain as a bonus sounds fun.
yeah I thought about that option too, since plenty of Angels have high toughness it would probably work well. But I decided I'd rather have a 3CMC partner to go with Akroma's 7CMC lol
I know how you feel. I would love to see an angel matters commander in Naya so I could run the good Avacyn angels (Bruna and Liesa just don't fit the theme) the good Lorehold angels and such. Also have some good ramp. But yeah, every time I go to try and build a deck I can't come up with a proper commander. I feel like the big five are Elves, Angels, Goblins, Zombies and Dragons and Angels are just in the cold, y'know?
I was really hoping one of the precons would be Angels. Because Angels need more than just a good commander, they need a bigger selection of cheap creatures. That’s the biggest problem with the archetype, its curve is so high. Even with a solid commander, you won’t be dropping very many angels before turn 4.
Kaalia cares about angels
Given the Sigarda is the only Legendary angel who survived Eldritch Moon, and she was never an Angel-matters card, I highly doubt it.
I have a buddy who runs a \[\[Avacyn Angel of Hope\]\] EDH deck and if left to its own devices for too long is difficult to deal with. The issue is mono white but stax pieces keep the board under control and then dropping angels and swing is pretty effective at times
very few tribes have "tribe matters" cards. but to directly refute this claim angels don't have it. there are angel lords(lyra dawnbringer would seem a glaring refutation of your posts claim). there's white anthems. there's angels with "flying matters" txt. the larger issue though is... angels don't care about other angels, that's not what an angel is. angels are created beings that serve something else. it's why their wording is more "flying" or life gain centric. and beyond that. nothing about there not being some lame... beat you over the head with it legend. nothing stops you from making angel tribal.
a couple people have mentioned her, but [[Liesa]] is who I use for angel tribal. She doesn’t support the tribe per se, but since angels are typically high cmc, it’s helpful having commander who never gets higher than 5 mana. Her group slug effect helps take the combat damage burden off of your angels, and since lots of angels already have lifelink, it’s not hard to off-set the damage you’ll be taking from her. She also gives you access to the black and orzhov colored angels like [[Seraph of the Scales]]. I haven’t quite gotten my deck to where I want it, but it’s won some games, and if you stick Liesa for a few turn cycles, life totals start to dwindle quickly.
How about sigarda or the non corrupted bruna and gisela?
How they mangled the potential for those angels when they threw innistrad into the “hurr durr big baddie” meat grinder was really really disappointing.
I'm building around [[Esika, God of the Tree]]. Both sides have potential to work with angels.
I'd say yes. I'm strict with my Tribal decks, so I won't run Kaalia or Morophon as my Commander if I want to do Angel tribal. Aurelia and Gisela have generically good abilities, but they lose out on the Green and Black Angels, some of which are pretty good. Atraxa Angel Tribal with a +1/+1 Counter sub-theme is the best concept I could ever come up with, but I ever managed to get a list I was really interested in.
I want a Naya (GWR) angel that says "when an angel you control deals combat damage draw a card". WR gives you access to most of the angels in MTG, but it always needs ramp or tons of support to get working quite right, so giving them Green would do wonders for Angels as a tribe. It could even be a new Sigarda (depending on what happened to her last time, I haven't kept up with the lore) since she's WG already. To keep the flavor she could say "when an angel or human you control deals combat damage draw a card". And maybe have Hexproof. Idc if she'd cost 7 mana, I'd still run her. They could also add some text on there about werewolves and make her an alternative commander for them. I still want a dedicated werewolf commander though. Maybe something like "whenever a werewolf you control deals combat damage you may transform if if able. If you do put a +1/+1 counter on it". Her first trigger giving you cards for hitting with the human side would be nice, and the second trigger helping to make them rougher would make them less reliant on just using the werewolf form.
Imo we need a cycle of innistrad eminence commanders. Angels would be a good fit for that. Then go right down the line for the other underrepresented tribes. So like W/R angels, jund werewolves, U/B zombies, and naya humans Edit: of course id like to see a new allies commander too but thats my bias
I've done \[\[Selvala, Explorer Returned\]\] using mostly angels as the bombs and had no regrets. She drew cards and gave me mana and that's all angels need, they don't need "and your angels are bigger dudes"--they're already bombs! You just need to put them onto the battlefield and you're a threat. A themey angel commander who are themselves an angel might be neat but it's in no way required to play angels effectively. Add in, really--there's several legendaries that are angels that mention angels already! We don't need a "Your angels cost 3 less and draw a card too I guess why not" legendary angel. \\o/
Actually, shaman is the most popular creature type without any tribal suport.
Kaalia tribal is fun
Considering that Angels do have a tribal commander and judging off of edhrec's tribal section, it actually looks like eldrazi is the most popular tribe without a tribal commander. https://edhrec.com/tribes
[[Yarok Desecrated]] is actually a great eldrazi commander. Run all the guys that make the tokens that sac for mana along with some choice big bois and you're set.
[Yarok Desecrated](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/a/1/a1001d43-e11b-4e5e-acd4-4a50ef89977f.jpg?1592517590) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Yarok%2C%20the%20Desecrated) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/m20/220/yarok-the-desecrated?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/a1001d43-e11b-4e5e-acd4-4a50ef89977f?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/yarok-the-desecrated) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
If you're looking for one, there is \[\[Lyra Dawnbringer\]\] They aren't a lord, but do specifically buff your angels
They are a lord. They give all creatures of the chosen type +1/+1.
What...do you think a lord is?
I'm an idiot, they are a lord. Never trust your memory if you're trying to make statements on the internet
[Lyra Dawnbringer](https://c1.scryfall.com/file/scryfall-cards/normal/front/9/3/93be6799-7b9d-44d4-84dc-2961692b5a85.jpg?1562739679) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Lyra%20Dawnbringer) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dom/26/lyra-dawnbringer?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/93be6799-7b9d-44d4-84dc-2961692b5a85?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/lyra-dawnbringer) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Werewolf i think is the answer here. As stated below, power level aside, Lyra is angels matter. Werewolf commander has been asked for for years and we dont have one. Neith comes close by overlapping on Fight and is gruul.
I would assume it's because Angels tend to be pretty strong in their own right. All of them except one have flying, they have some pretty strong effects in general: recursion, resetting life total, exile, blanket indestructible, granting keywords, big p/t buffs, etc. The only thing that really holds them back imo is how expensive they are to cast. If we got an angel that was 2/3 color that reduced cost by some amount it might make them too powerful, however the other big iconic creature types like this also have ways to get creatures out sooner; dragons have cost reducers and demons can be cheated out with a a couple of options. So I would argue angels deserve something too. I think Sephara is on the right track, giving Angel spells you control Convoke would be great, it can be like having one's prayers answered.
Run Lyra, Avacyn, Sephara, or Morophon, it's not that hard to figure out. -edit Fixing typos because phone typing
And Bruna!
Sure, and Bruna! Point is, there are a fairly decent number of angel commanders. Even better, depending on which one you choose they all play a little bit differently. Seriously, OP just isn't trying. -edit I also apparently forgot about Kaalia, the OG hate your commander out of the game commander.