RakdosLegendary Creature — Astartes WarriorLucius the Eternal
Mana value5Rank#15,592
The Commander
Haste
Armour of Shrieking Souls — When Lucius the Eternal dies, exile it and choose target creature an opponent controls. When that creature leaves the battlefield, return this card from exile to the battlefield under its owner's control.
Guide
Gameplan
Suit up Lucius the Eternal—a resilient hasty beater whose death-trigger keeps bringing him back—with equipment and pump to deal lethal commander damage, while leaning on Mardu sacrifice value to keep recurring him. He attacks turn after turn, and his Armour of Shrieking Souls makes opponents hesitate to block or kill him since he just returns when their creature dies. Grind the board with removal and aristocrats while threatening one-shot Voltron kills.
Strengths
- Haste means he applies pressure the turn he lands, every time he comes back
- His death trigger makes him incredibly hard to permanently answer—killing him just queues a return
- Cheap to recast at 5 mana and naturally fits a Voltron commander-damage clock
- Black/Red gives premium removal, sacrifice outlets, and recursion to abuse his dies trigger
Weaknesses
- Exile-based removal (Swords to Plowshares, Path) and pacifism effects shut him down without triggering the return
- If opponents have no creatures, the death trigger can fizzle or get awkward
- As a single creature, he's vulnerable to chump-blocking and going wide doesn't help him
- Voltron strategies fold to a single board wipe of your auras/equipment or repeated edicts
- BR lacks card draw and ramp depth compared to other color pairs
Key Cards
- Swiftfoot Boots — Hexproof protects your Voltron threat from targeted removal that would otherwise stall the kill.
- Embercleave — Cheap, game-ending damage boost with trample that turns one connection into a kill.
- Sword of Feast and Famine — Protection colors plus untapping lands and stripping hands makes Lucius a relentless attacker.
- Goblin Bombardment — A free sacrifice outlet to trigger his death ability on demand for value and resets.
- Bastion of Remembrance — Turns every sacrifice and combat death into incremental drain, supporting an aristocrats finish.
- Loran's Escape — Cheap protection that dodges removal and pushes through the final swing.
Upgrade Path
Add more protection (Robe of the Archmagi-style hexproof, Whispersilk Cloak) and efficient one-shot enablers like Embercleave and the Swords to close faster. Improve mana with fast rocks (Mana Crypt, Arcane Signet) and tutors (Demonic Tutor, Stoneforge Mystic for equipment) to assemble your kill consistently. Round out with strong removal (Deflecting Swat, Terminate) and a few aristocrat payoffs so the deck has a backup win that doesn't rely solely on connecting in combat.
Core Cards
The most-played cards for this commander, built from aggregated deck data (the Mythic Graph). Build public decks to seed it.
Win Conditions
- ▸Commander damage via an equipped/buffed Lucius dealing 21
- ▸Aristocrats drain from repeated sacrifices with Blood Artist-style effects
- ▸Grinding opponents out with relentless attacks and removal until they run out of blockers
Archetypes
- Voltron — Haste and a recursive body make him an efficient, hard-to-remove vessel for equipment and auras dealing commander damage.
- Aristocrats — His death trigger rewards sacrificing him, pairing naturally with sac outlets and drain effects.
- Sacrifice/Recursion Midrange — BR's removal and graveyard recursion grind value while Lucius keeps returning.
- Goad/Combat Control — A resilient attacker that pressures opponents while you control the board with removal.
Combos
- Lucius the Eternal + Pitiless Plunderer + Attrition
→ Destroy all nonblack creatures that enter the battlefield under an opponent's control, Destroy all nonblack creatures opponents control, Lock
- Lucius the Eternal + Genesis Chamber + Confusion in the Ranks + Goblin Bombardment
→ Gain control of all artifacts, Gain control of all creatures
- Lucius the Eternal + Genesis Chamber + Confusion in the Ranks + Blasting Station
→ Gain control of all artifacts, Gain control of all creatures
Combos via Commander Spellbook.
Related Commanders
Same color identity (BR), by popularity.
