It already takes long enough to finish a game of Commander without one player intentionally slowing things down and restricting resources. So, why would anyone want to play Stax in Commander? If you've ever wanted to roleplay as Nicol Bolas and be the Archenemy of your playgroup, here are the 10 Best Stax Commanders you should consider running.

What is Stax?

Stax, sometimes called Prison, is a control deck that wins the game by grinding your opponents out of resources. It wants to restrict your opponents' options, and generally wins the game at a point where they can no longer play the game. To that end, nearly half of the Commander Game Changers would be considered Stax pieces or are cards that let Stax decks go over the top. They are powerful and backbreaking, and these Commanders make the best use of them.

1. Urza, Lord High Artificer

Symmetrical effects are balanced in theory, but as anyone who has cast a Wrath of God knows, with a little bit of planning that symmetry is easy to break. Urza, Lord High Artificer lets you break that symmetry on two particularly unfun cards, Winter Orb and Trinisphere.

These "symmetrical" artifacts impact the board equally, but Urza's ability to tap artifacts at instant speed gives you a way to break that symmetry to make sure that you will be the only player at the table actually casting spells.

2. Tayam, Luminous Enigma

If you've played cEDH, you know why Tayam, Luminous Enigma is one the best Commanders for a Stax deck. What seems like a fun creature-based Abzan deck is a menace that recurs its best Stax pieces even after your opponents destroy them. More importantly it does so without casting the spells.

Take Archon of Emeria for instance. It restricts the amount of spells each player can cast in a given turn. Tayam, lets you get around that restriction by returning cards from your graveyard without casting them. Combine this with cards like Devoted Druid and it's easy to see how Tayam is near the top of this list.

3. Grand Arbiter Augustin IV

Way back when Commander was still called EDH, Grand Arbiter Augustin IV was the boogieman that kept other decks in check. While Azorius is a potent color combination full of Stax goodies like Teferi, Time Raveler, Grand Arbiter is the whole package.

Grand Arbiter Augustin IV makes your spells cheaper and your opponents' spells more expensive. Combine this with cards like God-Pharaoh's Statue and other similar taxing effects and your opponents will have to pay upward of six mana just to cast one spell. Meanwhile, all of your spells are still getting a discount.

4. Zur the Enchanter

Speaking of taxing your opponents, Zur the Enchanter is one of the best ways to make sure you stay alive by making it very hard to attack you. Propaganda and Ghostly Prison are two very important lock pieces that make your opponents pay mana for the privilege of attacking you.

Combined with additional effects like Copy Enchantment, it is very easy to abuse Zur's attack trigger to assemble a Pillow Fort that you get to hide behind while your opponents attack each other. Slap an Ethereal Armor on your Zur and you'll win the late game with a few attacks.

5. Sythis, Harvest's Hand

Sythis, Harvest's Hand has access to many of the same enchantment based lock pieces that Zur does, but it plays very differently. Where Zur plays out like a control deck with typical Blue permission and Black removal, Sythis feels more like a storm deck. It uses cards like Jukai Naturalist to make your enchantments cheaper. Sanctum Weaver produces tons of mana. Sterling Grove protects your pieces.

It is not uncommon for a Sythis player to draw 10+ cards in a given turn as they stack multiple Enchantress effects on top of each other. From that point, one Sphere of Safety is enough to stop anyone from attacking you. Then, one Hallowed Haunting will quickly close out the game.

6. Thalia and the Gitrog Monster

If you prefer your Stax deck to lean closer to a classic Hatebear archetype, Thalia and the Gitrog Monster is your Commander. These colors include some of the most backbreaking creatures ever printed, like Collector Ouphe, Aven Mindcensor, and Dauthi Voidwalker. Furthermore, this duo's "Enters the Battlefield" tapped static ability stops the most unfair strategies from winning out of nowhere.

When you take these factors into consideration, along with the ability to recur lands from the graveyard and draw cards, Thalia and the Gitrog Monster is a well-rounded all-star of your next Stax deck.

7. Hokori, Dust Drinker

Wizards of the Coast doesn't allow mass land destruction in lower brackets. Hokori, Dust Drinker skirts that rule by allowing your opponents to keep their lands. Fair warning: if you pull out Hokori in a lower bracket game, be prepared to lose some friends. At the very least you'll likely lose the game immediately as everyone gangs up to take you out.

Hokori can be paired with powerful stax pieces like Loxodon Gatekeeper to further slow down the game. It works well with mana rocks like Sol Ring to help you break the symmetry of its effect to still cast spells. Buyer beware Hokori is powerful but unpopular in most friend groups for a good reason.

8. Brago, King Eternal

Most times you see Brago, King Eternal as someone's Commander, you can expect a Blink style deck that is using his ability to trigger powerful enters-the-battlefield effects more than once. It's fun, it's fair, and it's a popular strategy at the lower brackets.In the hands of a Stax player, Brago is an absolute terror.

Mystic Remora is Rhystic Study's older and scary cousin that is only made fair due to its cumulative upkeep clause. However, when Brago is able to flicker it each turn, you'll never pay more than one to keep it in play. Combine this same logic with cards like The One Ring or even Reality Acid and you'll do a double take the next time you see someone announce Brago as their Commander.

9. Magda, Brazen Outlaw

If you think Magda, Brazen Outlaw is a fun Commander for a Dwarf Typal deck, I would like to introduce you to her friend Portal to Phyrexia. This Mono-Red Stax deck gets access to punishing lock pieces like Blood Moon that hinder your opponents mana.

Magda is surprisingly effective against other Stax and control decks, because she gets to tutor up her scariest threats from your library and put them directly into play without casting them. Part way between a Toolbox and Stax deck, Magda is a strong contender at higher brackets that doesn't give opponents time to react to your strongest cards.

10. Sen Triplets

Last but not least, we have one of the original Stax Commanders, Sen Triplets. Stax decks are mostly defined by the cards and colors a deck has access to as opposed to relying fully on their commander. Sen Triplets lives in arguably the best Stax color combination, Esper, and does something sneaky to ensure victory.

Unlike other Stax decks, your deck can be entirely devoid of win conditions because you can reliably cast the cards out of your opponents hands with Sen Triplets. That's without mentioning it also locks a specific opponent out of the game on critical turns. If you need to resolve a spell on your turn, simply target that player who might be playing counterspells and you can all but guarantee that your spells will resolve.

Conclusion

Many players question if Stax is fun, and I am here to tell you that it is very fun... for exactly one player. If you are interested in competing at higher bracket games, Stax is a good option that reliably controls what your opponents are allowed to do. At lower brackets, Stax is still viable, but it is certainly something that should be discussed with your friends before you start playing.