Art by Matt Cavotta
Commander deckU
Empress Galina
Control the board by untapping Empress Galina to repeatedly steal opponents' legendary permanents, using Leyline of Singularity to turn every target on the battlefield legendary while casting big theft and counter spells.
Asked for“A $600 Empress Galina commander deck — a theft-and-control deck that steals opponents' creatures and casts their spells, turning their own cards into your win conditions.”
Deck anatomy
What this list actually runs on: how cheaply it casts things, and whether it has enough ramp, card draw and interaction to keep up at the table. Each block is one card — hover for its name.
Mana curve · 61 nonland cards
The working parts
Counted from Scryfall’s community card tags, not from the builder’s own labels. A card that does two jobs counts twice, so these add up to more than the deck. The hatched band is a common rule of thumb, not a law — combo decks run leaner, battlecruiser decks heavier.
Colored mana symbols
Commander
1Empress Galina
3UULegendary Creature — Merfolk Noble
Chosen commander for the requested strategy.
Ramp
10
Thought Vessel
2Artifact
Mana rock providing unlimited hand size for stolen/drawn cards
Card Draw
10
Consecrated Sphinx
4UUCreature — Sphinx
Draws huge amounts of cards off opponents' draw steps
Archmage Emeritus
2UUCreature — Human Wizard
Draws cards whenever casting instant or sorcery spells
Removal
10
Imprisoned in the Moon
2UEnchantment — Aura
Neutralizes problem commanders or lands
Threats/Wincons
23
Agent of Treachery
5UUCreature — Human Rogue
Steals any target permanent and draws cards when controlling stolen permanents
Memnarch
7Legendary Artifact Creature — Wizard
Turns permanents into artifacts and steals them
Roil Elemental
3UUUCreature — Elemental
Steals creatures whenever playing a land
Bribery
3UUSorcery
Searches an opponent's library for their best creature and puts it onto the battlefield
Treachery
3UUEnchantment — Aura
Steals a creature and untaps up to five lands for free value
Blatant Thievery
4UUUSorcery
Steals one permanent from each opponent simultaneously
Expropriate
7UUSorcery
Massive game-ending spell stealing extra turns or permanents
Keiga, the Tide Star
5ULegendary Creature — Dragon Spirit
Steals target creature upon death
Sower of Temptation
2UUCreature — Faerie Wizard
Steals target creature on enter-the-battlefield
Clever Impersonator
2UUCreature — Shapeshifter
Copies any nonland permanent on the battlefield
Phyrexian Metamorph
3UPArtifact Creature — Phyrexian Shapeshifter
Cheap clone of any creature or artifact
Spark Double
3UCreature — Illusion
Copies Empress Galina or stolen legendary creatures without legend rule restriction
Knowledge Exploitation
5UUKindred Sorcery — Rogue
Casts any instant or sorcery directly from an opponent's deck
Mind's Dilation
5UUEnchantment
Free spell theft off top of opponents' libraries whenever they cast spells
Corrupted Conscience
3UUEnchantment — Aura
Steals a creature and gives it infect as a win condition
Desertion
3UUInstant
Counters a creature or artifact spell and steals it onto your battlefield
Sakashima the Impostor
2UULegendary Creature — Human Rogue
Clone effect that bypasses legend rule and can bounce back to hand
Hullbreaker Horror
5UUCreature — Kraken Horror
Uncounterable control threat that bounces nonland permanents and spells
Steal Enchantment
UUEnchantment — Aura
Steals powerful enemy enchantments like Smothering Tithe or Necropotence
Draining Whelk
4UUCreature — Illusion
Counters a spell and becomes a massive flying finisher
Utility
8
Leyline of Singularity
2UUEnchantment
Key synergy engine that turns every nonland permanent legendary so Galina can steal them
Pemmin's Aura
1UUEnchantment — Aura
Untaps Galina for U, allowing multiple steals per turn plus shroud protection
Freed from the Real
2UEnchantment — Aura
Untaps Galina repeatedly for U to steal multiple targets per turn
Thousand-Year Elixir
3Artifact
Allows Galina to tap immediately and provides a cheap untap activation
Fierce Guardianship
2UInstant
Free counterspell protection for Galina and your strategy
