Best Cards for Edgar Markov (2025 Guide)
Edgar Markov remains one of the most feared commanders in EDH, and for good reason. His Eminence ability creates a 1/1 Vampire token whenever you cast a Vampire spell—even from the command zone! This means you're generating board presence before Edgar even hits the battlefield. Building around this ability requires a careful balance of low-cost Vampires, powerful tribal synergies, and devastating finishers.
Whether you're looking to upgrade your Markov precon or build a fresh Vampire tribal deck from scratch, this guide covers the essential cards that will have your opponents scrambling for answers. Ready to create custom tokens for your ever-growing vampire army? Let's sink our teeth into the best cards for Edgar Markov!
1. Shared Animosity
Mana Cost:
Shared Animosity is the single most explosive card in any Edgar Markov deck. When your Vampires attack, each one gets +1/+0 for every other attacking creature that shares a creature type with it. In a deck that regularly attacks with 8-15 Vampires, this turns your modest 1/1 tokens into 10/1 monsters.
Why it's essential:
- Transforms go-wide token strategies into lethal alpha strikes
- Stacks with other anthem effects for truly absurd damage
- Works even with the tokens Edgar creates from the command zone
2. Stromkirk Captain
Mana Cost:
Stromkirk Captain is one of the most efficient Vampire lords available. For just
Why it's essential:
- First strike makes combat math a nightmare for opponents
- Low mana cost means early deployment and trigger for Edgar
- The power/toughness boost keeps your tokens relevant
3. Captivating Vampire
Mana Cost:
Beyond being a solid +1/+1 lord, Captivating Vampire has one of the most devastating activated abilities in the deck. By tapping five untapped Vampires you control, you can steal any creature and turn it into a Vampire. Yes, that includes your opponents' commanders.
Why it's essential:
- Lord effect provides consistent team buff
- Creature theft punishes opponents for playing big threats
- Stolen creatures become Vampires, triggering your synergies
4. Anointed Procession
Mana Cost:
Edgar Markov's Eminence ability creates tokens, and Anointed Procession doubles them. Every Vampire spell you cast now creates two 1/1 Vampire tokens instead of one. This effect compounds quickly, doubling your board presence and making your anthem effects twice as effective.
Why it's essential:
- Doubles Edgar's Eminence trigger output
- Synergizes with all token-generating Vampires in the deck
- Makes recovery from board wipes twice as fast
5. Blood Artist
Mana Cost:
The iconic aristocrats payoff. Blood Artist triggers whenever any creature dies—not just yours. In a deck full of expandable tokens facing off against creature-based opponents, Blood Artist will drain life totals rapidly. It's also your insurance policy against board wipes.
Why it's essential:
- Punishes opponents for blocking or using removal
- Turns board wipes into significant life swings
- Low mana cost and triggers Edgar's Eminence
6. Cordial Vampire
Mana Cost:
Cordial Vampire puts a +1/+1 counter on each Vampire you control whenever any creature dies. In a deck that creates countless tokens and encourages combat, this quickly turns your army into an unkillable force. A single combat step can permanently boost your entire board by 3-4 counters.
Why it's essential:
- Permanent stat boosts that survive even if Cordial Vampire dies
- Triggers off any creature dying, including opponents' creatures
- Makes your 1/1 tokens grow into legitimate threats
7. Sanctum Seeker
Mana Cost:
Sanctum Seeker drains each opponent for 1 life and gains you 1 life whenever any Vampire you control attacks. In a typical Edgar Markov attack, you're swinging with 10+ Vampires, meaning each opponent loses 10 life and you gain 30. That's game-ending pressure.
Why it's essential:
- Scales with your board size for massive life swings
- Drains ALL opponents, not just the one you're attacking
- Provides reach to close out games even through blockers
8. Twilight Prophet
Mana Cost:
Once you achieve the City's Blessing (easy with Edgar's token generation), Twilight Prophet becomes a repeatable card draw engine that also drains your opponents. At your upkeep, you reveal the top card of your library, put it in your hand, and each opponent loses life equal to its mana value.
Why it's essential:
- Consistent card advantage in a color combination that needs it
- Life drain adds pressure and keeps you ahead
- Ascend is trivially easy to achieve with Edgar
9. Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord
Mana Cost:
Sorin does everything this deck wants. His +1 grants a Vampire deathtouch and lifelink. His -3 removes any creature (Sorin deals 3, your Vampire gets +3/+0). But the real power is his -3: put a Vampire from your hand onto the battlefield. Cheating in a
Why it's essential:
- Cheats expensive Vampires into play early
- Provides removal that synergizes with your creatures
- Lifelink + deathtouch turns any Vampire into a threat
10. Olivia's Wrath
Mana Cost:
This is your one-sided board wipe. Olivia's Wrath gives all non-Vampire creatures -X/-X, where X is the number of Vampires you control. With even a modest board of 6 Vampires, you're killing most creatures your opponents control while leaving your army completely untouched.
Why it's essential:
- One-sided board wipe that leaves your creatures standing
- Scales with your board size for maximum devastation
- Solves the go-wide deck's biggest problem: getting blocked
11. Legion Lieutenant
Mana Cost:
A simple, efficient Vampire lord. At just
Why it's essential:
- Cheapest two-color Vampire lord available
- Early deployment means more turns of anthem effect
- Triggers Edgar and immediately buffs the token it creates
12. Welcoming Vampire
Mana Cost:
Card draw in White? Welcoming Vampire draws you a card whenever a creature with power 2 or less enters under your control. Edgar's 1/1 tokens trigger this every time, meaning you're drawing cards just for casting your Vampires. The once-per-turn limit is barely noticeable.
Why it's essential:
- Consistent card draw that triggers off Edgar's Eminence
- White-based card advantage is rare and valuable
- Flying provides relevant evasion
13. Bloodletter of Aclazotz
Mana Cost:
This card ends games. Whenever an opponent loses life during your turn, Bloodletter of Aclazotz causes them to lose that much life again. Combined with Sanctum Seeker, Blood Artist, or even just combat damage, you're effectively doubling all the damage you deal.
Why it's essential:
- Doubles all life loss you inflict on your turn
- Turns incidental drain effects into lethal damage
- Flying body provides relevant evasion
14. Champion of Dusk
Mana Cost:
Champion of Dusk refills your hand like nothing else. When it enters, you draw cards and lose life equal to the number of Vampires you control. With Edgar's token generation, you typically control 8-12 Vampires by turn 5, meaning Champion draws you a massive grip of cards.
Why it's essential:
- Explosive card draw that scales with your board
- The life loss is easily offset by your drain effects
- Refills your hand after aggressive early-game deployments
15. Vampire Nocturnus
Mana Cost:
The classic Vampire finisher. If the top card of your library is black, all your Vampires get +2/+1 and flying. In a deck that's heavily black, this triggers most of the time, turning your ground-based army into an evasive aerial assault force that hits like a truck.
Why it's essential:
- Massive stat boost across your entire board
- Flying provides critical evasion for your tokens
- Encourages you to manipulate your library for consistent triggers
Honorable Mentions
These cards didn't make the top 15 but deserve consideration:
- Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose — Turns all your lifegain into opponent life loss
- Exquisite Blood + Sanguine Bond — Infinite combo that wins on the spot
- Skullclamp — Turns 1/1 tokens into card draw
- Impact Tremors — Pings opponents whenever Edgar creates tokens
- Master of Dark Rites — Sacrifice a token for mana boost
Building Your Edgar Markov Deck
The key to Edgar Markov success is maintaining a low mana curve. Every Vampire you cast creates a token, so cheap Vampires mean more triggers. Aim for a curve where most of your creatures cost 1-3 mana, with only your most impactful finishers costing more.
Want to test your Edgar Markov build before investing? Use our proxy printer to print high-quality proxies of these staples and playtest with your group. Once you've found your perfect list, consider creating custom tokens for your Vampire army—nothing says "Edgar Markov player" like a horde of matching custom 1/1 Vampire tokens!
What are your must-have cards for Edgar Markov? Did we miss any staples? The Vampire tribal community is always evolving, and new sets continue to add powerful new options for the bloodthirsty commander.
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