One with Nature: Building Your Animar, Soul of the Elements Commander Deck

If you’ve ever dreamed of casting massive creatures for next to nothing, Animar, Soul of Elements might just be your new favorite Commander. Equal parts ramp engine, protection spell, and combo piece, Animar turns even the most casual creature into a stepping stone for game-ending plays. In this guide, we’ll break down how to build an Animar Commander deck, walk through your strategy for early, mid, and late game, and highlight five must-include cards that bring it all together.

Meet Your Commander

Animar costs just three mana—one green, one blue, and one of any color—and comes with protection from white and black, two of the most common removal colors.

Every time you cast a creature, Animar gains a +1/+1 counter, and each of those counters makes your creature spells cost one colorless mana less. That means the more creatures you cast, the cheaper your next ones become. Snowball mechanics like this are what Commander dreams are made of.

How to Build the Deck

When it comes to mana, Animar changes the rules. You don’t need a ton of traditional ramp because Animar is ramp. That said, fast mana like Sol Ring and mana dorks like Llanowar Elves and Birds of Paradise help you hit your curve early. A land base with about 34–36 lands is solid, with a tilt toward green to guarantee you can cast Animar on time.

You’ll want your deck to be creature-heavy—somewhere in the range of 35 to 40. A good Animar deck includes a mix of cheap utility creatures to build counters, bounce creatures to replay and stack value, and big finishers to cash in on all the mana you’ve saved. Non-creature spells should be minimal and impactful. Think one or two counterspells, a few ways to tutor for combo pieces, and just enough interaction to keep opponents honest.

Early Game: Setting Up

In the first few turns, your priority is simple—get Animar on the board as fast as possible and start building up +1/+1 counters. Cheap creatures are your best friends here. Even a lowly one-drop can shave a mana off your next creature and set the chain reaction in motion. If you’ve got a way to protect Animar, like Swiftfoot Boots or a well-timed counterspell, even better. By turn three, you want Animar down and ready to go.

Mid Game: Going Wide or Tall

By turns four to six, things should start getting exciting. Animar’s cost reduction will start to kick in, and you’ll be able to play two or three creatures per turn. Bounce creatures like Shrieking Drake or Man-o’-War shine here, letting you replay them to build up even more counters. This phase is all about turning tempo into advantage—play your value creatures, protect Animar, and start looking for your payoffs.

Late Game: Finish the Job

In the late game, your board should be full of creatures or your hand full of massive threats. With a few counters on Animar, cards like Craterhoof Behemoth, Pathbreaker Ibex, or Eldrazi titans become dirt cheap. If you’re running combos, this is the time to assemble them. Whether you’re going infinite or just going over the top, this is where Animar closes out the game in style.

Five Must-Include Cards

Forgotten Ancient

One of the best cards you can include is Forgotten Ancient. This elemental gathers +1/+1 counters every time any player casts a spell, not just you. Then, on your upkeep, you can move those counters to Animar or another key creature. It turns every spell at the table into fuel for your strategy.

All Will Be One 

AWBO pairs beautifully with Animar’s +1/+1 counter engine. Every time Animar gains a counter, All Will Be One turns it into direct damage. Cast a creature, Animar gets a counter, and you shoot something. Do that a few times in a row, and you’re clearing boards or burning faces.

Benevolent Hydra 

A flexible counter battery that can enter the battlefield with a big impact. It not only carries counters that synergize with All Will Be One and The Ozolith, but it can also distribute counters to other creatures as needed—like Animar—fueling your cost reduction engine in the process.

Branching Evolution 

Take your counter game to the next level. Every time you place a +1/+1 counter on a creature, you double it. That means each creature you cast now puts two counters on Animar, accelerating your discount into overdrive and making combo turns far easier.

The Ozolith

Finally, The Ozolith is an insurance policy and combo enhancer all in one. When a creature with counters leaves the battlefield, The Ozolith scoops them up, and at the beginning of your combat phase, it can move them to Animar. That means your progress never disappears—even if Animar does. It's an especially useful tool for rebuilding fast after a board wipe or targeted removal.

Shuffle Up Your Animar Commander Deck and Draw

Animar is one of the most explosive commanders in Magic. He ramps, protects himself, rewards creature-heavy decks, and enables some truly wild combo lines. Whether you’re casting Eldrazi for free or looping tiny creatures into game-ending fireworks, building Animar means building for big plays.

And with powerhouse support from cards like Forgotten Ancient, All Will Be One, and Branching Evolution, your counter engine can scale into absurd territory quickly. Whether you're playing casually or brewing for cEDH, Animar is endlessly customizable, always flashy, and almost never boring.

And remember, all the cards you see here are availble through our friends at TCGPlayer!