The Commander
Snake offering (You may cast this spell any time you could cast an instant by sacrificing a Snake and paying the difference in mana costs between this and the sacrificed Snake. Mana cost includes color.)
: Untap all Forests and all green creatures. Activate only once each turn.
Guide
Gameplan
Patron of the Orochi is a green ramp/big-mana commander that doubles as an engine: tap it to untap all your Forests and green creatures once per turn for explosive mana or extra attacks. Ramp into it (or cheat it out via Snake offering by sacrificing a Snake), then chain its untap ability with mana-producers and tappers to generate enormous mana and beat down with a wide, snake-heavy green board.
Strengths
- Free repeatable untap of all Forests and green creatures enables huge mana bursts and double duty from attackers/tappers
- Snake offering lets you flash it in for cheap if you have a Snake, dodging sorcery-speed limits
- Mono-green gives access to the best ramp and the most resilient big creatures
- Synergizes with Elf/mana-dork and Snake tribal shells that flood the board with green bodies
Weaknesses
- Eight mana and very build-around—does little without supporting mana engines or untap payoffs
- Mono-green struggles with interaction, lacking counters and clean removal
- Vulnerable to board wipes that erase the green creatures its ability depends on
- Limited card draw outside green's usual creature-based draw
Key Cards
- Gaea's Cradle — Untapping it each turn with the Patron ability produces absurd mana off a wide green board.
- Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx — Devotion-fueled mana that the Patron can untap for repeatable explosive green mana.
- Sakura-Tribe Elder — A cheap creature that doubles as a Snake to enable Snake offering while ramping.
- Patagia Viper — A Snake token-maker that feeds Snake offering and widens the board for the untap ability.
- Craterhoof Behemoth — Classic mono-green finisher that turns the untap-fueled wide board into lethal damage.
- Selvala, Heart of the Wilds — Massive mana on tap that the Patron can untap to refill for game-ending turns.
Upgrade Path
Lean into untap payoffs—add Gaea's Cradle, Nykthos, and high-output dorks like Selvala and Karametra's Acolyte, then pair them with mana sinks (Walking Ballista, Helix Pinnacle, Finale of Devastation) to convert mana into wins. Improve consistency with green tutors (Worldly Tutor, Green Sun's Zenith) and ramp (Cultivate, Nature's Lore), and add protection like Heroic Intervention and Asceticism to survive wipes. Finally, tighten the Snake count so Snake offering is reliably online for flashing the Patron in cheaply.
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
- ▸Craterhoof Behemoth or Overwhelming Stampede alpha strike off a wide green board
- ▸Massive mana into game-ending X-spells like Genesis Wave or Helix Pinnacle
- ▸Repeated double-attacks by untapping green creatures each combat
- ▸Infinite mana loops untapping Gaea's Cradle/Nykthos into a giant payoff
Archetypes
- Big Mana Ramp — The untap ability refuels Forests and mana creatures for explosive green payoffs.
- Snakes Tribal — Snake offering rewards a Snake-heavy board and ties into Orochi/Snake support.
- Stompy/Go-Wide Aggro — Untapping all green creatures enables vigilance-like double attacks and overrun finishes.
- Combo (mana loops) — Untapping mana producers plus cost reducers can generate arbitrarily large mana.
Combos
- Patron of the Orochi + Temur Sabertooth + Lightning Greaves
→ Infinite blinking of some creatures, Infinite ETB, Infinite green mana
- Patron of the Orochi + Temur Sabertooth + Concordant Crossroads
→ Infinite blinking of some creatures, Infinite ETB, Infinite green mana
- Volrath, the Shapestealer + Patron of the Orochi
→ Infinite green mana, Infinite mana green creatures and Forests you control can produce, Infinite untap of green creatures and Forests you control
- Patron of the Orochi + Temur Sabertooth + Akroma's Memorial
→ Infinite blinking of some creatures, Infinite ETB, Infinite green mana
- Emiel the Blessed + Patron of the Orochi + Lightning Greaves
→ Infinite blinking, Infinite ETB, Infinite green mana
Combos via Commander Spellbook.
Related Commanders
Same color identity (G), by popularity.
