The Archimandrite
Color Identity
Details
Mana Value
5
Popularity
#2,678
of 3,381 commanders · via EDHREC
Card Text
Legendary Creature — Human Advisor
At the beginning of your upkeep, you gain X life, where X is the number of cards in your hand minus 4.
Whenever you gain life, each Advisor, Artificer, and Monk you control gains vigilance and gets +X/+0 until end of turn, where X is the amount of life you gained.
Tap three untapped Advisors, Artificers, and/or Monks you control: Draw a card.
0/5
Playstyle
Midrange · Steady · Minimal interaction · Wins by engines
- Aggression
- 2 of 5
- Speed
- 2 of 5
- Interaction
- 2 of 5
- Combat
- 3 of 5
- Engine
- 4 of 5
- Complexity
- 3 of 5
Strategy Guides
Lifegain Strategy Guide
Lifegain decks are for players who want each point of life to become a resource, not just a larger cushion against attacks. This strategy wants to gain life in steady repeatable triggers, using lifegain commanders, Soul Warden effects, and payoff cards, to win through life drain, oversized creatures, or a charged Aetherflux Reservoir. Unlike Group Hug, it keeps the resources for itself, and unlike Aristocrats it is driven by life gained rather than death triggers. The best lifegain decks EDH players build feel patient early, then convert a safe life total into pressure.
Learn more about lifegain strategies
Card Draw Strategy Guide
Card Draw decks are for players who want a full hand to be the engine, the protection, and eventually the win condition. This strategy wants to draw extra cards every turn, using card draw commanders, repeatable engines, wheels, and draw payoffs, to win through card advantage EDH plans such as damage triggers, stocked interaction, or superior late-game resources. Unlike Control, it is not only answering threats, and unlike Spellslinger it cares about the draw event more than the spell cast. The best card draw commanders either refill you directly or convert each extra card into pressure.
Learn more about card draw strategies
Spellslinger Strategy Guide
Spellslinger decks are for players who want each instant and sorcery to advance the board, refill the hand, or pressure life totals. This strategy wants to cast cheap spells across every turn cycle, using spellslinger commanders, magecraft payoffs, and copy effects, to win through accumulated damage, spell-made tokens, or card advantage. Unlike Storm, it does not need one huge chain turn, and unlike Combo it is not waiting for specific pieces to end the game at once. The best instants and sorceries decks reward steady sequencing and careful use of interaction.
Learn more about spellslinger strategies
Aggro Strategy Guide
Aggro decks are for players who want to commit threats early, attack often, and make combat math matter every turn. This strategy wants to pressure all opponents with efficient attackers, using anthems, haste, attack triggers, extra combats, and aggro commanders, to win through repeated combat damage before slower engines stabilize. In Commander that still means pushing through 120 total damage, so go-wide aggro EDH decks need refueling and scaling damage rather than only fast starts. Aggro differs from Tokens because it focuses on attacking with the bodies, from Voltron because it spreads pressure across many creatures, and from Infect because it deals life-total damage instead of poison.
Learn more about aggro strategies
Appears in These Collections
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| 04 |  Braids, Arisen Nightmare | | Aristocrats | $4.76 | ▲ 6.2% |
| 05 |  Azusa, Lost but Seeking |  | Lands Matter | $12.84 | ▼ 0.7% |
| 06 |  Loran of the Third Path | | Group Hug | $5.63 | ▲ 110.1% |
| 07 |  Toski, Bearer of Secrets | | Equipment | $7.99 | ▲ 238.6% |
| 08 |  Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar | | +1/+1 Counters | $3.94 | ▼ 3.7% |
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