Top Nonlegendary Creatures of 2025 Reshape Commander Play

A new ranking of 2025 nonlegendary creatures made clear that printed support beyond legendary commanders had a real impact this year. The ten highlighted cards span removal, deck manipulation, token and +1/+1 synergy, artifact support, and utility role replacements, and they are already influencing deck lists and archetype choices.

Leading the practical winners is Summon: Bahamut, a saga creature that doubles as a removal engine and a potential win condition, which shifts how control and midrange shells close out games. Land focused strategies gained tools in Icetill Explorer and Badgermole Cub. Icetill Explorer excels in land and self mill builds and pairs naturally with Crucible style recursion, while Badgermole Cub accelerates mana and enables land based plans that need late game reach.

Card draw and tempo bodies are represented by Quantum Riddler, a flexible draw option with a solid body that fits in many blue based shells. Value engines also appeared in Elegy Acolyte, a lifelinking source that produces tokens and supports sustain and board presence. Token and +1/+1 synergies find reinforcement in Cosmogrand Zenith which rewards casting multiple spells, and in Ouroboroid which offers a large payoff for +1/+1 and equipment focused builds.

Artifact centric decks saw a notable inclusion in Pinnacle Emissary, which offers artifact token support particularly for Izzet artifact strategies. Interaction and tempo received an upgrade in Voice of Victory, a new Grand Abolisher style card that can lock opponents out of responses or speed up activations. Utility replacements surfaced in Umbral Collar Zealot, an uncommon that in many lists outclasses long standing tools like Viscera Seer by offering similar or better functionality.

For brewers this roundup provides concrete swaps and brew ideas. Try inserting Quantum Riddler into tempo commanders who lack repeatable draw, or swap Viscera Seer for Umbral Collar Zealot in sacrifice shells that want more stats or synergy. Land based commanders can adopt Badgermole Cub and Icetill Explorer to smooth late game plans. The list also included five honorable mentions, underscoring that 2025 produced depth beyond the top ten.

These cards matter because they expand nonlegendary options for deck design, offer budget conscious upgrades, and refresh archetypes across power bands. Verify interactions and slots in your 99, but expect several of these creatures to remain staples in the coming season.