Magic: The Gathering cards come in many forms ranging from devastating sorcery spells to helpful artifacts. By in large the most common and widely played cards in Magic are creatures. Capable of attacking and blocking, many creature’s primarily act in combat and are often a deck’s primary source of dealing damage.
Throughout Magic’s history, over eleven thousand unique creature cards have seen print, and it is often difficult to gauge just how powerful a given card may be. So today, we’re going to examine the ten creature cards from across Magic’s history that have the highest total strength!
10 Krosan Cloudscraper
While Krosan Cloudscraper doesn’t see notable play in any formats and is hindered by its mana intensive nature. A green 13/13 for ten mana, Krosan Cloudscraper has not combat abilities to speak of and is little more than a large body on the battlefield.
In addition to its cost of ten mana, the creature requires a payment of two green mana at the beginning of each upkeep or else it is sacrificed.
9 Death’s Shadow
Death’s Shadow is an iconic mono-black creature that has a powerful namesake deck within the Modern format. For a single black mana, Death’s Shadow is an enormous 13/13. However, this creature has a drawback, receiving -X/-X where X is it’s controller’s life total.
Despite this drawback, black has access to a multitude of spells that can damage its caster for an additional beneficial effect. Additionally, Death’s Shadow can be paired with the enchantment, Phyrexian Unlife to allow Death’s Shadow to exist without being hindered.
8 Withengar Unbound
Withengar Unbound is a terrifying and massive 13/13 legendary demon with flying, intimidate, and trample. Withengar even has an ability that lends it to be used in multiplayer formats like Commander, as when another player loses the game, thirteen +1/+1 counters are put on Withengar.
Withengar’s drawback is that it is the transformed side of the equipment, Elbrus, the Binding blade. A seven mana equipment that only provides an equipped creature with +1/+0, Elbrus’s power lies in its ability to transform into Withengar Unbound if the equipped creature deals combat damage to a player.
7 Emrakul, The Promised End
Another 13/13, Emrakul, the Promised End is a colorless Legendary Eldrazi for thirteen mana who costs one mana less for each card type among cards in its caster’s graveyard. Complimenting it’s massive scale, Emrakul, the Promised End has flying, trample, and protection from instants, allowing it to both easily deal damage and protect itself from instant-based removal.
As if all of this weren’t enough, when Emrakul is cast, it allows its controller to gain control of another player during that player’s next turn!
6 Worldspine Wurm
Printed in Return to Ravnica, Worldspine Wurm is a staggering 15/15 with trample for eleven mana. A green creature, unlike the previously mentioned Krosan Cloudscraper that offsets its own power through a drawback, all of Worldspine Wurm’s abilities are strictly beneficial.Upon dying, Worldspine Worm splits its power into three, creating three 5/5 wurm tokens.
Furthermore, Worldspine Wurm can’t be kept down for long as if it would be put in its owner’s graveyard from anywhere, it is shuffled into its owner’s library instead.
5 Emrakul, The Aeon’s Torn
Another iteration of the previously mentioned legendary eldrazi, Emrakul, Emrakul, the Aeon’s Torn is a creature as massive as it is mana intensive.
An uncounterable 15/15 with flying, protection from colored spells, and annihilator 6 for fifteen mana, Emrakul allows its controller to take an extra turn after being cast. Between the absurd offense potential of Emrakul and the extra turn it provides, it is not uncommon for a game to be won shortly after (if not immediately after) Emrakul, the Aeon’s Torn is cast.
4 Impervious Greatwurm
Impervious Greatwurm is a mammoth 16/16 indestructible green wurm for ten mana. The “buy-a-box” promo of Guilds of Ravnica, Impervious Greatworm possesses Convoke, allowing creatures to be tapped in order to pay for one mana each when a player is casting the greatworm.
This allows this creature to be cast for an often significantly reduced rate in decks containing large sums of creatures such as token decks.
3 Marit Lage
Not a creature spell itself, Marit Lage is legendary black 20/20 Avatar creature token with flying and indestructible that can be created using the effects of the cards Dark Depths and Marit Lage’s Slumber.
Dark Depth’s is a legendary snow land that enters the battlefield with ten snow counters on it, allowing its controller to pay three mana at any time to remove these counters. Once there are no counters remaining, Marit Lage is created. Alternatively, Marit Lage’s Slumber is a blue enchantment for two mana that can create Marit Lage at the beginning of its owner’s upkeep if they control ten or more snow permanents.
2 B.F.M. (Big Furry Monster)
Released in the comedy set, Unglued, the B.F.M. is a very unique creature that is so large that it is split across two cards that must be played simultaneously. Requiring an immense fifteen black mana, the B.F.M. is a laughably large 99/99 that cannot be blocked by no fewer than three creatures.
As a creature from an “Un-set,” the B.F.M. is not legal in any official Magic formats.
1 Infinity Elemental
Like the B.F.M., the Infinity Elemental is a creature that is not legal in any formats due to being printed in Unstable. A red creature for seven mana, while Infinity Elemental possesses a manageable five toughness. its power is another story. As its name may suggest, Infinity Elemental has infinite power.
Though it may not be legally playable in any format, no other creature comes close to having as much as the unquantifiable Infinity Elemental!
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