TemurLegendary Creature — Snake LeviathanXyris, the Writhing Storm
Mana value5Rank#4,580
The Commander
Flying
Whenever an opponent draws a card except the first one they draw in each of their draw steps, create a 1/1 green Snake creature token.
Whenever Xyris deals combat damage to a player, you and that player each draw that many cards.
Guide
Gameplan
Xyris turns mass card draw into an army of Snakes, then converts that army into damage. You force everyone to draw with group-draw effects, flood the board with tokens, and either swing wide, connect with Xyris to refill your hand, or combo off for a lethal draw loop.
Strengths
- Generates a wide token board for free off symmetrical draw spells
- Massive card advantage when Xyris connects refuels your gas
- Wheels both punish opponents and reload your hand simultaneously
- Flexible win lines: go-wide, combo, or commander damage
Weaknesses
- Heavily commander-dependent; folds to repeated removal and tax effects
- Symmetrical draw can hand opponents answers and combo pieces
- Tokens are fragile to board wipes and sweepers
- Can durdle and lose to faster decks if Xyris is kept off the table
Key Cards
- Wheel of Fortune — Each opponent's drawn card after the first makes a Snake, generating a huge board instantly.
- Windfall — Cheap repeatable wheel that fills your hand and the battlefield with Snakes.
- Teferi's Puzzle Box — Forces opponents to draw every turn, producing Snakes on every turn cycle.
- Curiosity — Attached to Xyris, the draw-on-damage trigger triggers itself for an infinite draw/Snake loop.
- Skullclamp — Sacrifices fragile Snakes for two cards each, which loops into more Snakes and card flow.
- Impact Tremors — Turns every Snake token entering into direct damage, closing games without combat.
Upgrade Path
Add fast mana (Mana Crypt, Sol Ring, Jeska's Will) and protection like Lightning Greaves and Heroic Intervention to keep Xyris safe and accelerate the engine. Tighten the combo package with Curiosity, Ophidian Eye, and a damage outlet like Impact Tremors or Reckless Fireweaver for deterministic kills. Trim slow value wheels for efficient draw and interaction so you can win before symmetrical draw helps opponents.
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
- ▸Curiosity/Ophidian Eye on Xyris for an infinite draw loop into a payoff
- ▸Impact Tremors or Purphoros draining life as Snakes flood in
- ▸Overrun-style anthems turning the Snake army lethal
- ▸Repeated Xyris combat damage emptying decks and refilling your hand
Archetypes
- Tokens — Opponent draws constantly mint Snake tokens for a go-wide assault.
- Wheels/Spellslinger — Group-draw and wheel effects are the core engine that fuels the deck.
- Combo — Curiosity-style draw enchantments on Xyris enable infinite draw-and-token loops.
- Aristocrats — Skullclamp and sac outlets turn the endless Snakes into cards and damage.
Combos
No combos found for this commander on Commander Spellbook.
Related Commanders
Same color identity (GRU), by popularity.
