Arcane Foundry › Commanders › Aphelia, Viper Whisperer
Aphelia, Viper Whisperer
Legendary Creature — Gorgon Assassin · {1}{B} · Black/Green commander
Deathtouch
Whenever Aphelia attacks, you may pay {1}{B/G}. If you do, create a 1/1 black Snake creature token with deathtouch.
{4}{B}: Until end of turn, whenever one or more Gorgons and/or Snakes you control deal combat damage to a player, that player loses half their life, rounded up.
Build an Aphelia, Viper Whisperer deck →
What Aphelia, Viper Whisperer actually does
Read off the card by the same engine the Forge and Analyzer use — this is the mechanical classification, not a summary.
- Triggered ability · attackWhenever Aphelia attacks, you may pay {1}{B/G}. If you do, create a 1/1 black Snake creature token with deathtouch.
- Activated ability{4}{B}: Until end of turn, whenever one or more Gorgons and/or Snakes you control deal combat damage to a player, that player loses half their life, rounded up.
- Keyword · deathtouchdeathtouch
What an Aphelia, Viper Whisperer deck wants
The plan the Forge derives for this commander: the roles it fills and how many of each.
- 8× Make the commander connect — a body that never deals combat damage never triggers
- 28× A body of the exact type the commander's trigger requires — the wrong type is worthless here regardless of quality
- 5× A team pump that actually pumps tokens
- 5× Actually remove one problem permanent — preventing its damage is not removing it
- 1× Answer a whole board at once
- 9× Find the exact card the plan needs
- 7× Refill your hand
- 2× Keep a permanent you control alive through removal
- 11× Get ahead on mana
Best cards for Aphelia, Viper Whisperer
Ranked by an engine that reads what each card does — its real cost, its delay and how reliably it works — rather than counting how often other people play it.
Make the commander connect — a body that never deals combat damage never triggers
- Garruk's Uprising3 mana
- Kodama of the West Tree3 mana
- Primal Rage2 mana
- Eldrazi Monument5 mana
- Colossus Hammer1 mana
- Rancor1 mana
- Shadowspear1 mana
- Falthis, Shadowcat Familiar3 mana
A body of the exact type the commander's trigger requires — the wrong type is worthless here regardless of quality
- Stonecoil Serpent0 mana
- Sakura-Tribe Elder2 mana
- Fanatic of Rhonas2 mana
- Lotus Cobra2 mana
- Omarthis, Ghostfire Initiate0 mana
- Shigeki, Jukai Visionary2 mana
- Weaver of Harmony2 mana
- Winding Constrictor2 mana
A team pump that actually pumps tokens
- Mosswort Bridge0 mana
- Nesting Grounds0 mana
- Heroic Intervention2 mana
- Zulaport Cutthroat2 mana
- Sylvan Safekeeper1 mana
- Tamiyo's Safekeeping1 mana
- Tyvar's Stand1 mana
- Veil of Summer1 mana
Actually remove one problem permanent — preventing its damage is not removing it
- Assassin's Trophy2 mana
- Defile1 mana
- Tragic Slip1 mana
- Infernal Grasp2 mana
- Fatal Push1 mana
- Beast Within3 mana
- Bitter Triumph2 mana
- Nature's Claim1 mana
Answer a whole board at once
- Do or Die2 mana
- Force of Despair3 mana
- Accursed Marauder2 mana
- Bontu's Last Reckoning3 mana
- Innocent Blood1 mana
- Coils of the Medusa2 mana
- Forced March3 mana
- Nature's Ruin3 mana
Find the exact card the plan needs
- Demonic Tutor2 mana
- Diabolic Intent2 mana
- Vampiric Tutor1 mana
- Green Sun's Zenith1 mana
- Imperial Seal1 mana
- Insatiable Avarice1 mana
- Diabolic Intent2 mana
- Nature's Rhythm2 mana
Refill your hand
- Skullclamp1 mana
- Orcish Bowmasters2 mana
- Black Market Connections3 mana
- Braids, Arisen Nightmare3 mana
- Garruk's Uprising3 mana
- Morbid Opportunist3 mana
- Phyrexian Arena3 mana
- Beast Whisperer4 mana
Keep a permanent you control alive through removal
- Innkeeper's Talent2 mana
- Guardian Augmenter3 mana
- Cryptothrall4 mana
- Saryth, the Viper's Fang4 mana
- Lightning Greaves2 mana
- Swiftfoot Boots2 mana
- Asceticism5 mana
- Eldrazi Monument5 mana
Get ahead on mana
- Chrome Mox0 mana
- Everflowing Chalice0 mana
- Mox Amber0 mana
- Mox Diamond0 mana
- Mox Opal0 mana
- Birds of Paradise1 mana
- Crop Rotation1 mana
- Delighted Halfling1 mana