Voltron Commander: Buff Your Commander and Attack for Lethal

Voltron decks are one of the most straightforward archetypes in Commander. Instead of building a wide board or casting complex combos, Voltron decks focus on buffing a single creature—usually your commander—and attacking for lethal damage. If you love the idea of turning your commander into an unstoppable beatstick, Voltron is the archetype for you.

What Makes a Good Voltron Deck?

A good Voltron deck needs three things: a commander that benefits from being buffed, a suite of equipment and auras to pump your commander, and protection to keep your commander safe from removal.

Commanders That Benefit from Buffs

The best Voltron commanders have abilities that trigger when they're equipped, enchanted, or when they deal combat damage.

• Rafiq of the Many: First strike, and whenever Rafiq attacks, he gets +2/+2 until end of turn for each other creature that's attacking.
• Kemba, Sky Regent: Whenever Kemba becomes equipped, draw two cards. This creates a powerful card advantage engine.
• Akiri, Line-Sword Commander: Whenever Akiri becomes equipped, she gets +1/+0 until end of turn and gains first strike.
• Bruse Tarl, Boorish Herder: Whenever Bruse Tarl becomes the target of a spell, you may search your library for a basic land card and put it onto the battlefield.

Equipment and Auras

Equipment and auras are the backbone of any Voltron deck. They buff your commander and give it additional abilities.

• Sword of Fire and Ice: Equipped creature gets +2/+2 and has protection from red and from blue. Whenever it deals combat damage to a player, it deals 2 damage to any target and you draw a card.
• Lightning Greaves: Equipped creature has haste and shroud. This is essential for protecting your commander from targeted removal.
• Whispersilk Cloak: Equipped creature is unblockable and has shroud. This makes your commander very difficult to deal with.
• Curiosity: Whenever enchanted creature deals damage to an opponent, draw a card. This creates a powerful card advantage engine.

Protection

Protection is essential for Voltron decks. Your opponents will try to remove your commander with removal spells and board wipes.

• Teferi's Protection: You and your permanents gain hexproof and indestructible until end of turn. This is the best protection spell in the format.
• Boros Charm: Choose one: creatures you control gain indestructible until end of turn, or Boros Charm deals 4 damage to any target, or you gain 4 life, or untap target permanent you control.
• Heroic Intervention: Permanents you control gain hexproof and indestructible until end of turn. This is excellent for protecting your commander from board wipes.

Best Voltron Commanders

Rafiq of the Many

Rafiq is the ultimate Voltron commander. His ability to get +2/+2 for each other attacking creature creates a powerful damage output. With Rafiq on the battlefield and a few creatures attacking, you can deal massive combat damage.

Kemba, Sky Regent

Kemba is a Voltron commander that draws you cards whenever she becomes equipped. This creates a powerful card advantage engine that lets you find more equipment and auras.

Akiri, Line-Sword Commander

Akiri is a Voltron commander that gets +1/+0 and gains first strike whenever she becomes equipped. She also has the ability to untap equipment and attach them to her, creating a powerful loop.

Building a Voltron Deck

Here's a step-by-step guide to building a Voltron deck:

1. Choose your commander: Pick a commander that benefits from being buffed. Rafiq, Kemba, and Akiri are the most popular choices.
2. Build your equipment and aura suite: Run at least 15-20 equipment and auras. Include Swords, Greaves, Cloaks, and enchantments like Curiosity.
3. Add protection: Run 8-10 protection spells to keep your commander safe from removal. Teferi's Protection, Boros Charm, and Heroic Intervention are excellent choices.
4. Add ramp: Run 8-12 ramp sources to help you cast your expensive spells on time.
5. Add card draw: Run 8-12 card draw sources to help you find your best cards.
6. Add removal: Run 8-10 removal spells to deal with opposing threats.
7. Test and iterate: Play your deck and see what works. Cut underperforming cards and add new ones.

Checking Your Voltron Deck with Rate My Decks

When you analyze your deck with Rate My Decks, we detect your deck's archetype and compare it to the optimal build for that archetype. If your Voltron deck is running too few equipment and auras, we'll flag it as a weakness. If your deck is missing key protection spells, we'll recommend additions.