Best Izzet Commanders – Top Picks for 2025
Looking to cast flashy spells, draw a ton of cards, and maybe cause a little chaos along the way? Then Izzet might be your perfect color pairing. Red brings the chaos, blue brings the planning – together, they make decks that are fast, tricky, and full of surprises.
In Commander, Izzet often leans into slinging spells, copying effects, and squeezing as much value as possible out of every instant, sorcery, or artifact you cast. Whether you’re duplicating powerful spells, drawing your whole deck, or winning with stormy combos, the best Izzet commanders turn every game into a fireworks show.
This list highlights commanders that blend fun, flexibility, and explosive potential – perfect for players who want their turns to feel like a chain reaction of awesome.
What Makes Izzet Commanders Unique?
Izzet decks are about action – cast, copy, draw, repeat. They’re full of interactions, fast plays, and satisfying engines that reward you for doing what every Magic player loves: casting spells. Red fuels the aggression and chaos, while blue brings control and card selection. Together, they make a color identity that thrives on tempo, synergy, and clever sequencing.
Strengths
- Excellent at card draw, cantrips, and spell recursion
- Access to extra turn effects, copy spells, and storm mechanics
- Lots of value engines tied to casting or copying spells
Weaknesses
- Often reliant on the commander to function smoothly
- Vulnerable to tax effects, stax, or creature-heavy strategies
- May need careful sequencing and setup – not always beginner-friendly
Common Archetypes
- Spell-slingers (instants and sorceries)
- Copy spells / chaotic randomness
- Artifact synergy and value engines
- Combo or storm decks
Spell-Slingers & Instants/Sorceries – Where Every Spell Sparks a Chain Reaction
At its heart, Izzet is all about spells – and these commanders take that identity to the next level. Whether it’s through casting, copying, or turning spells into creatures or card draw, these legends are ideal for storm decks, value engines, and anyone who loves chaining effects together.
If you want your deck to play like a fireworks display of interactions and clever combos, these are the commanders to start with.
Niv-Mizzet, Parun – Best for Classic Spell-Slinging Control
The original Izzet engine – and still a top-tier choice.
Niv-Mizzet, Parun can’t be countered, draws you a card whenever anyone casts an instant or sorcery, and deals 1 damage whenever you draw a card. This turns every cantrip, wheel effect, or opponent’s spell into potential value and pings.
Perfect for players who love card draw, control decks, and explosive damage chains.
Vivi Ornitier – Best for Flexible Spell Mana & Instant Casts
Small body, huge spell potential.
Vivi lets you pay to add any combination of red and blue mana equal to Vivi’s power. Each time you cast noncreature spell, you put a +1/+1 counter on Vivi and deal 1 damage to each opponent. This scaling mana generation means your biggest spells arrive sooner, with damage stacking as the game progresses.
A strong pick for storm fans and anyone looking to cheat out big spells early.
Stella Lee, Wild Card – Best for Spell-Curve Value Engines
Double down on spells for extra cards.
Cast your second spell in a turn and Stella exiles the top card of your library, giving you until your next turn to play it. With plenty of cheap spells or instant-speed tricks, that turns into a constant flow of extra options. She also has a tap ability that allows you to copy an instant or sorcery you control, letting you gain double the value for big hitting spells.
Great for players who like to keep their hand moving and always have options.
Veyran, Voice of Duality – Best for Copy Effects and Magecraft Storming
Double your fun – and your triggers.
Veyran makes any triggered ability from casting or copying instants and sorceries trigger an additional time. That means every magecraft effect (like card draw, damage, or tokens) goes off twice – and Veyran herself gets bigger too.
A top-tier pick for storm builds, magecraft synergies, and decks that want to scale with every cast.
Ovika, Enigma Goliath – Best for Token Storm from Noncreature Spells
Who needs creatures when your spells make armies?
Ovika makes 1/1 Phyrexian Goblin tokens with haste equal to the mana value of every noncreature spell you cast – turning big sorceries, planeswalkers, or enchantments into swarm strategies. With ward 3 and 3 life, she’s tough to remove and easy to build around.
Best for players who want noncreature spells to build a combat win-con.
Bria, Riptide Rogue – Best for Prowess Tribal Aggro
Every spell makes the team stronger.
Bria has prowess, gives all your other creatures prowess, and makes a target creature you control unblockable whenever you cast a noncreature spell. This turns every pump, cantrip, or removal spell into both a team-wide buff and a guaranteed hit.
Perfect for aggressive spell-slinger builds that want to keep swinging.
Alania, Divergent Storm – Best for Multi-Spell Copy Combos
One spell becomes two – every turn.
Alania copies the first instant, sorcery, or Otter spell (other than herself) you cast each turn. This makes every combat trick, burn spell, or big finisher twice as deadly, and rewards careful sequencing to maximise value. She’s a flexible choice for both tempo and combo-focused builds.
Great for combo-minded players who thrive on multiplying key spells for maximum impact.
Jhoira, Weatherlight Captain – Best for Historic Spell-Slinging
Draw spells with style.
Jhoira draws you a card whenever you cast a historic spell – that includes artifacts, legendaries, and Sagas. In Izzet, that often means artifacts and legendary spells, turning your deck into a value engine that draws off nearly every play.
A classic commander for artifact-heavy storm decks and combo builds with legendary pieces.
Mizzix of the Izmagnus – Best for Cost-Reduction Storm Decks
The ultimate spell math wizard.
Mizzix gives you experience counters when you cast instants or sorceries with mana cost greater than your experience, then uses those counters to reduce the cost of your spells. That leads to turns where you cast half your deck for almost nothing.
One of the best commanders for high-powered spell-slinger builds and storm players.
Neera, Wild Mage – Best for Chaos Recasting and Big Spells
Spell roulette in full effect.
Neera lets you bounce a spell you cast, then reveal cards until you hit another nonland – casting that spell for free. This can turn a 1-mana cantrip into a 10-mana haymaker. Add topdeck manipulation and it becomes a chaos combo machine.
Great for players who love unpredictable turns and surprise blowouts.
Copy & Chaos Effects – Doubling Trouble and Spreading Mayhem
Not all Izzet decks are neat spell chains. Some thrive on copying effects, generating tokens, and introducing unpredictable variables into every game. These commanders give you tools to duplicate permanents, mirror spells, or tap into randomness – all while keeping things spicy and fun.
If you enjoy turning one thing into two (or five), or just want to embrace the chaos, these legends will keep every game feeling fresh.
Brudiclad, Telchor Engineer – Best for Token Cloning and Wild Boards
One token to rule them all.
Brudiclad gives all your creature tokens haste, then lets you turn every token you control into a copy of another. With the right setup, this can transform Treasure tokens into an army of 5/5s or clone your strongest creature multiple times.
Ideal for players who love token swarm decks with a twist of cleverness.
Saheeli, the Sun’s Brilliance – Best for Copying Creatures and ETB Value
A brilliant way to reuse value engines.
Saheeli taps for to create a temporary token copy of any artifact or creature you control, which gains haste and gets exiled at the next end step. It’s the perfect way to copy ETB creatures, big threats, or synergistic permanents again and again.
Best for blink-style value decks that want their creatures doing double duty.
Saheeli, the Gifted – Best for Copy-Fueled Artifact Storm
Play artifacts, flood the board, cast huge spells.
Saheeli’s +1 creates a Servo token, while her second +1 reduces the cost of your next spell by for each artifact you control – which can be game-breaking with high-cost instants or sorceries. Her ultimate? Creating a copy of each artifact you control. Enough said.
An excellent pick for artifact-based spell-slinger decks and combo brewers.
Sarkhan, Soul Aflame – Best for Dragon Tribal Tempo
Your dragon army just got faster.
Sarkhan reduces the cost of your Dragon spells, and whenever a Dragon enters the battlefield under your control, he can become a copy of it until end of turn. That means extra enters-the-battlefield triggers, surprise attackers, and more pressure without committing more cards to the board.
Perfect for fans of Dragon decks who want cost reduction, surprise cloning, and extra pressure.
Artifact Synergy & Utility Engines – Tapping, Crafting, and Generating Value
While Izzet is famous for spells, it also boasts powerful commanders that generate value through artifacts – from Treasure-making engines to draw triggers, and even vehicles and equipment synergies. These decks tend to be resilient and combo-friendly, letting you play at a high velocity while building up layered advantage.
If you enjoy decks that interact with the board, make tokens, and convert pieces into power, these commanders offer a creative and efficient approach to Izzet.
Captain Howler, Sea Scourge – Best for Discard-Fueled Aggro
Every pitch makes a punch hit harder.
Whenever you discard one or more cards, Captain Howler pumps a creature +2/+0 for each card discarded and sets up card draw if it connects. Pair with evasive threats, trample enablers, or double strike to make sure the damage – and the card advantage – keeps flowing.
Best for players who enjoy aggressive discard strategies with a steady flow of cards.
The Locust God – Best for Draw Triggers and Token Swarms
One of the most iconic Izzet commanders.
The Locust God makes a 1/1 flying Insect every time you draw a card – which, in blue and red, is very easy to do. Combine this with wheels, looting, and cantrips to quickly amass a terrifying airborne army. Plus, he dodges removal by returning to your hand when he dies.
Great for token decks, draw synergy, or combo-control builds.
Iron Man, Titan of Innovation – Best for Artifact Chain Combos
The suit makes the man – and wins the game.
When Iron Man attacks, you create a Treasure, then you may sacrifice a noncreature artifact to tutor another artifact with mana value one higher directly onto the battlefield tapped. This creates natural chains from small utility artifacts into massive threats, all while keeping the pressure on in the air.
Best for artifact lovers who enjoy upgrading small tools into massive threats mid-game.
Yusri, Fortune’s Flame – Best for Coin Flip Chaos and Burst Draw
High risk, high reward.
Yusri flips coins when he attacks – allowing you to draw a card for each win, but dealing damage to you for each loss. And, if you win five flips this way, that’s where the fun really starts as you may cast spells from your hand without paying their mana cost until the end of the turn. With ways to manipulate flips or mitigate damage, he becomes a powerful draw engine and free casting machine.
Great for players who enjoy chaotic tempo, high-variance gameplay, and stylish flair.
Firkraag, Cunning Instigator – Best for Political Combat and Draw Triggers
Stir the pot, then profit.
Firkraag goads opposing creatures and rewards you with card draw and +1/+1 counters when opponents’ creatures deal combat damage after attacking each other. He’s a perfect fit for group slug, combat manipulation, and tempo-control decks.
A strong pick for political players who enjoy subtle control and advantage loops.
Other Izzet Commander Options – Creative Picks and Unusual Builds
Not every Izzet commander fits neatly into a single archetype. These legends offer niche strategies, unique card interactions, or flavorful designs that give brewers plenty of room to explore. Whether you’re looking for something off-meta, lore-rich, or just plain weird, these options deliver fresh gameplay within the blue-red color identity.
Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph – Best for Ping Damage and Machine-Gun Creatures
Everything hurts just a little bit more.
Ghyrson Starn triples the damage dealt by sources you control that deal exactly 1 damage – turning pingers, red spells, and effects like Goblin Sharpshooter into machine guns of destruction. Pair him with token generators and repeatable ping sources for maximum chaos.
Best for players who love precision damage and removal with flair.
Niv-Mizzet, Visionary – Best for Burn-Draw Engines
Draw as much as you burn.
Niv-Mizzet has flying, no maximum hand size, and turns every point of noncombat damage you deal into card draw. Perfect for decks that want to sling burn spells, pingers, or damage-based board control while keeping their hand full. A potent option for players who love controlling the game through precision damage.
Perfect for burn-control players who want to turn every point of damage into card draw and inevitability.
Magnus the Red – Best for Cost-Reduction Storming
March to war with science.
Magnus reduces the cost of instants and sorceries by for each creature token you control, and creates 3/3 creature tokens whenever he deals combat damage to a player. It’s a hybrid spell-slinger and token strategy that rewards going wide and dealing commander damage.
A great pick for players who enjoy storm decks with board presence.
Jhoira of the Ghitu – Best for Suspend Combo Decks
Plan ahead, explode later.
Jhoira lets you pay and exile a nonland card with four suspend counters – setting you up for future turns where you cast big spells for free. With time manipulation or suspend synergy, this can become a terrifying engine of inevitability.
Perfect for combo players and brewers who enjoy setting up dramatic turns.
River Song – Best for Draw Reversal and Timey-Wimey Shenanigans
Draw from the bottom, not the top.
River Song introduces a completely different mechanic – you draw from the bottom of your library. She also punishes opponents who scry or surveil by gaining a +1/+1 counter and then dealing damage to that player equal to her power.
Best for players who enjoy flavorful builds, Doctor Who fans, or rule-bending card interactions.
Conclusion – Why Izzet Is Always a Blast in Commander
In Izzet, smart plays and wild ideas go hand in hand. Some decks sling a steady stream of spells to keep the value flowing, others copy the biggest threats on the table, and a few just light the place up for fun.
With plenty of draw power, spell synergies, artifact toys, and a healthy dose of chaos, you can build something tight and controlled or lean into pure unpredictability. You can go big, go wide, go fast – or all three at once. With so many mechanically diverse and exciting commanders available, there’s an Izzet legend for every kind of deckbuilder.
So if you’re ready to brew something clever, sling spells like a storm mage, or just cause some colorful mayhem, these Izzet commanders will make sure every game feels like a highlight reel.
