Wolf creatures are fairly commonplace inMagic: The Gathering. Though there are less than 100 actual Wolves in print, Wolf tokens are one of the most common green creature tokens, and there areplanes like Innistradthat feature Wolves as a central theme of the setting. Sure, they’re usually lumped in with Werewolves there, but Wolves have their own separate, non-shapeshifting identity.
While Wolves aren’t the most strategically complex creatures in Magic, there are still enough incentives to play them that it’s worth knowing the Alphas from the rest of the pack. They’re almost exclusive green creatures, many of them create other Wolf tokens, and their bark is most certainly not louder than their bite.
10Young Wolf
Simple. Cheap. Effective.
It doesn’t look like much, but never underestimate just how much undying can do for a card. When all is said and done, the single green mana for Young Wolf nets you a 1/1 and a 2/2 across two bodies, just not all at the same time.
Putting all the usual convoluted undying combos aside, any deck interested in Wolf creatures is happy to havea one-drop with extra utility. Tovolar, Dire Overlord in particular is thrilled to see a one-mana Wolf that can attack with relative impunity early in the game.
9Anara, Wolvid Familiar
Does Everyone Have Their Wolf-Buddy?
Partnerslet you customize your Commander deck’s color identity and strategy, but they also work just fine as part of the maindeck. Anara, Wolvid Familiar is a simple but effective way to protect your commander(s).
Of course, Anara’sindestructibleapplies to itself if it is in fact one of your commanders, where it’ll also protect your partner of choice. There’s not much in terms of Wolf-synergy here, and ‘Wolf Beast’ is an ambiguous typeline to begin with, but most casual decks have room for a few midrange creatures like this.
8Sarulf, Realm Eater
A Wolf With A Taste For Everything
Hailing from the Norse-inspired plane of Kaldheim, Sarulf is Magic’s top-down take on Fenrir, the titanic mythological wolf who eats the world during Ragnarok. While Sarulf won’t be consuming existence as we know it in a normal game, it does a good impression of its real-world (?) counterpart.
Just like Fenrir, Sarulf grows to immense proportions as opponents' permanents leave the battlefield, giving you the option to remove them and keep the board clear. you may complement Sarulf with tons of targeted removal, or mix in a+1/+1 counter themeto fuel the ability yourself.
7Ukkima, Stalking Shadow
A Whale Of A Wolf
Relationships are a tough act to balance, as evidenced by just how much Ukkima, Stalking Shadow carries their partnership with Cazur, Ruthless Stalker. Cazur’s so lackluster you might even consider running the Whale Wolf as a solo act, whether as the commander or in the 98/99.
Ukkima’s also one of the few Wolves that doesn’t vibe with Wolf decks much, both due to its color identity and the strategy it promotes. It’s more of aNinja-esque creature, looking to chip in damage, grow over time, and chunk opposing life totals when it leaves play.
6Primal Adversary
The Most Ferocious Of The Adversaries
Of all the mythic rare Adversaries printed in Innistrad: Midnight Hunt, Primal Adversary is the most challenging to use. It’s mana intensive and puts some of your lands in danger if you’re not careful. The upside: a fearsome pack of Wolves, most of which tap for mana.
‘Animating’ lands is a tricky proposition. On one hand you make use of extra lands you don’t really need. However, you expose some of your most precious resources to a wider range of removal. The ability requires an informed judgment call, though the floor of a three-mana 4/3trampleris a nice fallback.
Remember any lands you tap to use Primal Adversary’s ability will still be tapped even if you turn them into creatures, so choose wisely!
5Cemetery Prowler
On The Prowl For Graveyard Hate
Cemetery Prowler is an imminently fair Wolf that covers a number of different bases. It has good stats for its cost, provides minor, repeatable graveayrd hate, and even gives you cost reduction with the right set-up.
The goal is to diversify the types of cards you exile with Prowler so you can spread your cost reduction across more of your own cards. You usually want to exile your opponents' cards, but you can exile your own if doing so gives you the card type you’re looking for.
4Hollowhenge Overlord
A Flashy Token Doubler
Flashcan completely change the dynamic of a card. Without flash Hollowhenge Overlord would probably die right away, but sneaking it in on an opponent’s end step makes it that much more likely you’ll get at least one trigger from it.
It’s still probably dying after the first trigger, but that’s fine if you already made four or five Wolf tokens. Overlord gets more absurd if it somehow sticks around for multiple triggers, essentially doubling the wolfpack every turn. At the worst it’ll always count itself if you control no other Wolves.
Remember the ideal time to cast a spell with flash is on the opponent’s End Step, right before you untap for your turn.
3Immerwolf
Every Wolf’s Best Friend
Immerwolf is a staple of Wolf and Werewolf decks alike, though it’s tailored specifically towards transforming Werewolves. It’s actually a bit of an anti-combo with the Werewolves from Eldritch Moon, which aren’t humans on either side.
Still, no good typal strategy is complete without a few dedicated lord creatures, and the +1/+1 from Immerwolf is all it needs to really justify itself in a Wolf deck. Intimidate adds very little to the card, since being two colors means there’s just a wider array of creatures that can still block it.
2Voja, Jaws of the Conclave
Elves And Wolves Unite!
Voja finally gets a standalone card, and it’s a real chocolate & peanut butter situation. Two great tastes and all that. In this case, yourElvessupply +1/+1 counters while your Wolves provide card advantage. Add in enough keywords for a short novel and you’ve definitely got a brew worthy of Commander.
You’ll have to decide which creature type to bias towards. Do you run more Elves for faster pressure, favor Wolves for card draw, or find an even split for the best of both worlds? It’s hard to go too wrong regardless of preference.
Try prioritizing creatures that put both an Elf and Wolf on the battlefield, like Wren’s Run Packmaster or Wolf-Skull Shaman.
1Nightpack Ambusher
An Angry, Furry Plan-In-A-Can
Nightpack Ambusher was printed at a time when flash-themed decks were popular in Standard. Alongside the enchantment Wilderness Reclamation, you could operate a deck almost entirely at instant speed. That lets players essentially skip their own turns and make an army of Wolf tokens while doing so.
It’s also perfect for Wolf/Werewolf decks. Most Werewolves transform when a turn ends without a spell being cast. Ambusher lets you pass over your turn without giving up a meaningful play, rewards you for doing so on subsequent turns, and even pumps all your wolvid creatures!
