Art by Javier Charro
Commander deckW
Foggy Nelson, On Retainer
Protect and continuously pump your creatures using Foggy Nelson alongside blink effects, scaling counters into a lethal board while disrupting opponents at instant speed.
Asked for“Foggy Nelson, On Retainer commander deck”
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 · 62 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
1Foggy Nelson, On Retainer
2WLegendary Creature — Human Advisor
Chosen commander for the requested strategy.
Ramp
9
Knight of the White Orchid
WWCreature — Human Knight
Fetches Plains directly to the battlefield
Loyal Warhound
1WCreature — Dog
Early creature that tutors Plains when behind on lands
Archaeomancer's Map
2WArtifact
White staple for keeping up with opponent land drops
Card Draw
10
Esper Sentinel
WArtifact Creature — Human Soldier
Draws cards off opponent noncreature spells and benefits from +1/+1 counters
Welcoming Vampire
2WCreature — Vampire
Triggers on small creature entries and commander flashes
Mentor of the Meek
2WCreature — Human Soldier
Turns low-power creature plays into cards
Bennie Bracks, Zoologist
3WLegendary Creature — Elf Druid
Draws on end step when tokens or extra bodies enter
Folk Hero
1WLegendary Enchantment — Background
Commander shares creature type Human with many key cards
Trouble in Pairs
2WWEnchantment
Punishes extra card draws, attacks, and extra turns
Removal
10
Threats/Wincons
23
Sun Titan
4WWCreature — Giant
Recurs low-cost creatures and permanents every attack
Elesh Norn, Mother of Machines
4WLegendary Creature — Phyrexian Praetor
Doubles your ETBs including Foggy's counter trigger
Preston, the Vanisher
3WLegendary Creature — Rabbit Wizard
Creates illusion copies whenever creatures enter without being cast
Ephemerate
WInstant
Rebounds to trigger Foggy's ETB and protect key threats twice
Teleportation Circle
3WEnchantment
Free end-step flicker for Foggy Nelson and other ETB creatures
Conjurer's Closet
5Artifact
Repeatedly triggers Foggy's hexproof and counter ability
Abdel Adrian, Gorion's Ward
4WLegendary Creature — Human Warrior
Exiles Foggy and team under himself, making tokens and resetting ETBs
Cathars' Crusade
3WWEnchantment
Pumps your entire army rapidly whenever creatures enter
Archangel of Thune
3WWCreature — Angel
Scales +1/+1 counters across the whole board via lifegain
Mikaeus, the Lunarch
XWLegendary Creature — Human Cleric
Flexible +1/+1 counter mana sink and board pump
Heliod, Sun-Crowned
2WLegendary Enchantment Creature — God
Grants lifelink and distributes +1/+1 counters reliably
Walking Ballista
XXArtifact Creature — Construct
Turns Foggy's counters into direct damage and removal
Skyclave Apparition
1WWCreature — Kor Spirit
Removes problematic permanents and loves being blinked
Adeline, Resplendent Cathar
1WWLegendary Creature — Human Knight
Generates aggressive tokens each combat to receive counters
Felidar Retreat
3WEnchantment
Converts land drops into +1/+1 counters or vigilance tokens
Luminarch Aspirant
1WCreature — Human Cleric
Supplies free +1/+1 counters each combat phase
Abzan Falconer
2WCreature — Human Soldier
Gives flying to all creatures modified by Foggy Nelson's counters
Basri's Lieutenant
3WCreature — Human Knight
Gives vigilance and provides knight tokens when modified creatures die
Karmic Guide
3WWCreature — Angel Spirit
Reanimates key creatures and re-triggers on blink
Reveillark
4WCreature — Elemental
Recurs two low-power creatures upon leaving the battlefield
Moonshaker Cavalry
5WWWCreature — Spirit Knight
White's premier overrun finisher on a flying body
Akroma's Will
3WInstant
Instant-speed lethal alpha-strike or complete team protection
Odric, Master Tactician
2WWLegendary Creature — Human Soldier
Lets you dictate all combat blocking with wide boards
Utility
10
Mother of Runes
WCreature — Human Cleric
Grants targeted protection at instant speed
Giver of Runes
WCreature — Kor Cleric
Protects creatures and gives evasion against specific colors or colorless
Selfless Spirit
1WCreature — Spirit Cleric
Sacrifices for indestructible board protection against sweepers
Flawless Maneuver
2WInstant
Free protection spell when Foggy Nelson is on the battlefield
Loran of the Third Path
2WLegendary Creature — Human Artificer
Artifact/enchantment removal on an ETB and optional draw
Cloudshift
WInstant
One-mana instant blink to trigger Foggy or dodge targeted removal
Justiciar's Portal
1WInstant
Blinks a creature and provides first strike defensively or offensively
Restoration Angel
3WCreature — Angel
Flash flyer that can blink Foggy to pass out another counter and hexproof
Swiftfoot Boots
2Artifact — Equipment
Grants haste and hexproof protection to vital creatures
