There are 2,640 legendary creatures that make up the roster of possible Commanders for you to choose from. When you break that down it can seem overwhelming. I roughly estimate that we get about 80-100 brand new legendary creatures each year and with the rise of Universe Beyond sets, that number may increase next year. But, not every legendary creature makes for a good Commander, but that doesn't stop people like me from trying to make them work. Introducing common legendary creatures. These cards are, well, extremely bad, because they are common. These cards are all draft chaff, bottom of bulk pile cards that you can use to lead an army into battle. Maybe these cards will inspire you to build a fresh janky brew showcasing the power that a single common card can hold in Magic. So, without further ado, here are the 13 common legends that you could choose to build from and yes, most of them are from the brand new Spider-Man release.

13. Stegron the Dinosaur Man

Congratulations to Stegron the Dinosaur Man for being the worst common legendary creature for the Command Zone. Stegron is a 5/4 with menace for five total mana. He has another ability, however you have to discard him to get it, which is nearly impossible in Commander. Some of these cards at the bottom of this list are going to be bad, however, Commander damage is still a reliable way to win games and you could use this large menace creature to make that happen, it's just not very likely.

12. Beetle, Legacy Criminal

Beetle, Legacy Criminal is winning over Stegron the Dinosaur Man simply for the fact that flying is better than menace. I can't see a reason that you would want to exile your Commander, but Beetle can exile from your graveyard to give something flying for a turn. Again, simply dealing Commander damage seems like this is the only way to do anything with this card. I guess it is notable that Beetle is a rogue which does have a lot of support in Blue, especially Notorious Throng.

11. Venom, Evil Unleashed

Spider-Man is obsessed with these large legendary creatures with very little text on them. Venom, Evil Unleashed is next on the list. This card also has an exile from graveyard effect similar to Beetle, but it puts two +1 counters on something instead of one. Deathtouch also makes it difficult for your opponents to swing into you or have them taking damage to the face or losing a creature in combat. The best thing about this card is that it is a beautiful piece done by popular Magic artist Jesper Ejsing.

10. Swarm, Being of Bees

Swarm, Being of Bees is incredibly fun to say. This card is also a three-mana 2/2 flyer with flash. This Commander is low to the ground and evasive. Something we haven't seen in the lower parts of this tier list so far. Flying makes getting in for damage easy and flash allows you to keep up removal or casting your Commander with three mana open. Swarm also is an insect that has a lot of support in Black, unfortunate that this couldn't be splashed in Golgari.

9. Spider-Man, Web-Slinger

Spider-Man, Web-Slinger, is the first exciting legend on this list! Yes, he is a vanilla 3/3 creature with Web-Slinging, however, we can use this to make something interesting. Web-Slinging returns a tapped creature to your hand in order to cast the spell with the Web-Slinging for a cheaper rate. Returning creatures to hand is a way to double up on enters and cast triggers and White is full of them. Tap your creatures with vehicles and cards like Springleaf Drum and then return those creatures to hand with Spider-Man. This deck would require a lot of moving pieces to get small advantages to hopefully overwhelm your opponent. If you are looking for a deck-building challenge, this could be your next task.

8. Spider-Rex, Daring Dino

Colossal Dreadmaw is a beloved dinosaur and a Limited all-star. Spider-Rex, Daring Dino is in essence a legendary version of Colossal Dreadmaw with the added bonus of Ward 2 and Reach. Spider-Rex is just a fun stompy Commander that can be ramped into easily since you are in Green.

7. Chandler

Finally, our first non Spider-Man card. This is none other than Chandler from Homelands. Chandler is a 5-mana mono Red legend that has an activated ability to destroy an artifact creature for three Red mana. Yes, it is an eight mana investment to destroy specifically an artifact creature. This is a horrible rate, however, this is the first common legend we have seen with a repeatable effect, not counting Spider-Man, Web-Slinger. It isn't a particularly powerful ability, but it being removal in the Command Zone makes it a little more desirable then, let's say, Stegron, the Dinosaur Man.

6. Doc Ock, Sinister Scientist

Doc Ock, Sinister Scientist is most likely the best of the vanilla legends we have seen from the start of this list. Doc Ock has base power and toughness 8/8 if there are 8 or more cards in your graveyard, which isn't that difficult to do in a game of Commander. Consider, Mental Note, and Thought Scour are all simple Blue cantrips that will help you get to 8 cards in your graveyard quickly. Doc Ock also gains hexproof if you control another villain creature. Luckily, Spider-Man brought a ton of this creature type to Magic to make sure you can gain hexproof with ease or you could always play a changeling or two. An 8/8 with hexproof that can threaten Commander damage wins is not awful, it being five mana though is, but its a common, what do you expect.

5. Skoa, Embermage

Skoa, Embermage is a terrible card for the Commander format. It has an ability to discard an extra copy of the card to deal four damage to any target. However, in a singleton format, this is impossible. Skoa can deal four damage when it enters the battlefield which is at least some form of removal in zone. You can flicker this creature with cards like Conjurer's Closet and Orthion, Hero of Lavabrink for additional damage around the table. I think this card could make for an interesting flicker-based strategy in Red focused on non-combat damage burn.

4. Starling, Aerial Ally

Starling, Aerial Ally enters the battlefield and grants flying to another creature until the end of turn. This Commander is similar to Skoa, Embermage in that it needs to be flickered in order to gain more advantage out of it. White is packed full of ways to do this. Ephemerate, Cloudshift, and Charming Prince are just a handful of examples to give more of your army flying thanks to Starling. Granting evasion to your larger creatures that live in White is a fine strategy for Commander, but this legend being 5 mana is a slight set back.

3. Spider-Man, Brooklyn Visionary

Well, so far we have seen removal and evasion in the zone, but we haven't seen any ramp. Spider-Man, Brooklyn Visionary enters the battlefield and puts a basic land from your library into play tapped. This version of Spider-Man also comes with web-slinging for two and a Green. Web-slinging is incredibly easy to pull off in a color full of mana dorks that tap for mana like Llanowar Elves and Elvish Mystic. Once again you could return this card to your hand or flicker it with Conjurer's Closet like effects, but they are hard to come by in Green. I think this Commander would be best as just a way to get ahead on mana incredibly early and use it to get an edge over your opponents. Starting the game with essentially a Rampant Growth in your hand definitely isn't the worst thing we have seen so far on this list.

2. Joven

Joven is very similar to Chandler, except Joven can destroy non creature artifacts. Artifacts are a very key card type in Commander and are seen in every single game. Having a repeatable way to remove them is incredibly powerful. Destroying powerful equipment or mana rocks to set back your opponents could give you a path to victory. This card doesn't spark a lot of creativity for a deck, which does keep it from taking the top spot on the list, even though having repeatable removal at this low of a rarity is incredible, even if it requires a lot of mana.

1. Spider-Gwen, Free Spirit

Spider-Gwen, Free Spirit takes the number one spot on this list no question. Spider-Gwen provides card selection every single turn, while also fueling your graveyard. Similar to Magda, Brazen Outlaw, you can fill your deck with Clown Car and Springleaf Drum in order to gain advantage for simply having ways to tap your Commander. Red loves recurring artifacts from the graveyard with creatures like Scrap Welder and Goblin Welder. You also have access to game changing cards like Underworld Breach and don't forget about Madness cards as well! Spider-Gwen, Free Spirit is most definitely the most powerful legend we have seen at common and it even can spark a lot of creativity when trying to figure out how to gain advantage off her.

That wraps up every single legendary creature at common level. In the next year I am guessing there will be a rise of these cards with lots more Universe Beyond sets on the horizon. So, look forward to getting inspired to build a brand-new Commander deck while searching through your draft chaff.

See you on the battlefield!

-Nigel