The 30 Best Biggest Creatures in Magic - Draftsim (2024)

Last updated on November 29, 2023

Apex Devastator | Illustration by Svetlin Velinov

There are thousands of creature cards in Magic, but would it surprise you that only about 30 have a power greater than 10? White doesn’t even have any! Despite the game’s plethora of big creatures, very few ever reach the pinnacle point of being the biggest.

Which creatures are the biggest in each color, and are they useful in gameplay? Which creature types go big the most, and how can you use them effectively?

Let's find out!

What Are the Biggest Creatures in MTG?

Earthquake Dragon | Illustration by Johan Grenier

Magic has always had a fair share of 1-mana 1/1s and 2-mana 2/2s, but power and toughness don’t always scale 1:1 with mana value. You start to see a ballooning of power and toughness as you get into the higher-cost creatures. It isn’t exactly uncommon for massive double-digit power battlecruisers to appear.

The biggest creatures are typically one of a few different creature types, most commonly Eldrazi, krakens, dragons, dinosaurs, and avatars. I’d classify creatures with power or toughness of 10 or greater as “the biggest,” and it appears that WotC thinks the same.

There are currently a total of 54 cards that have at least 10 power. They’re the biggest in terms of physical size (more on that later), and that’s a big part of why their stats are so big. It wouldn’t make any sense for a little elf ranger to be nearly as strong as a kraken the size of mountains. And just because a creature is huge doesn’t always mean it's good (or anything close).

Best Big Creatures in White (or Not)

Funny enough, white doesn’t have any creatures with power greater than 10, or even 9. The closest thing is Avacyn, Angel of Hope, an 8/8 angel. This is still an incredible creature and it’s probably stronger than most 10/10s.

White just isn’t a color that goes big.

Best Big Creatures in Blue

#5. Leviathan

This creature is straight up called “Leviathan.” It’s a 9-mana 10/10 with trample which, like Jokulmorder, comes into play tapped and requires you to sacrifice lands to untap and to attack. It’s nearly on-par with Jokulmorder, but a bit worse.

#4. Jokulmorder

Blue has a few massive creatures backing it up, like Jokulmorder. It comes into play tapped, requires you to sacrifice lands when it enters, and only untaps when you play an Island. That’s far too much downside for a 6-mana 12/12 with trample, which is why you’ve probably never even heard of this card.

#3. Polar Kraken

In third place for blue is Polar Kraken, an 11/11 with trample for 11 mana that comes into play tapped (sensing a theme here). It even has a cumulative upkeep cost of a land.

I’m not sure why these massive blue creatures are so awful. It’s kind of embarrassing at this point.

#2. Supreme Exemplar

Supreme Exemplar is a blue 7-mana 10/10 flier. It requires you to exile another elemental while it’s in play. It’s a weird and rare mechanic, but it’s sure better than the previous three creatures!

#1. Denizen of the Deep

The best big blue card is Denizen of the Deep. This is an 11/11 serpent for eight that bounces each of your other creatures into your hand when it enters the battlefield. It’s nothing too special, but the bar is pretty low.

Best Big Creature in Black

#1. Death’s Shadow

Like white, black doesn’t exactly go tall with its creatures. Death's Shadow is the closest thing to a mega 10/10 or bigger, and only if you have three life. That puts you in Lightning Bolt range anyway.

Best Big Creatures in Red

#3. Bearer of the Heavens

Red has a few fun and interesting big creatures including Bearer of the Heavens. It’s a 10/10 for eight mana that destroys all permanents on the end step following its death.

It’s a massive toll for killing it, which makes sense for a creature that’s literally holding up the sky. Still wish it had trample.

#2. Nova Chaser

Nova Chaser has a pretty neat design. It’s a 10/2 with trample for just four mana, with the gimmick that you have to champion an elemental when it enters the battlefield.

I think it’s cute and funny, but I wish it had haste. That might be too strong for four mana, though.

#1. Infinity Elemental

Infinity Elemental is arguably the best big creature on the list. Keep in mind this is an Un-set card, but having infinite power is as good as it gets, right?

Best Big Creatures in Green

#8. Nessian Boar

Nessian Boar sports 10 power and 6 toughness for just five mana. It forces all possible creatures to block it, then gives those blocking creatures’ owners a card for each one. It’s honestly pretty bad but is huge for the mana value.

#7. Primeval Protector

Primeval Protector is a 10/10 avatar for 11 mana that costs less for each creature your opponents control, so it’s a very effective choice in multiplayer Commander games. It even enters the battlefield with a +1/+1 counter for each creature you control. It’s a massive body for relatively little mana, and that’s pretty decent for a big creature.

#6. Impervious Greatwurm

Impervious Greatwurm is a massive 16/16 wurm with convoke, so it’s an easy cast at an otherwise large 10-mana. It’s also got indestructible, but unfortunately no trample.

#5. Earthquake Dragon

Earthquake Dragon is a Commander card, and it has an ability like Ghalta, Primal Hunger that makes it cost less based on the total power of your creatures.

It’s got a higher total mana value of 15 but also has flying, trample, and the ability to return to your hand from the graveyard. That’s pretty consistent!

#4. Apex Altisaur

Apex Altisaur is a 10/10 for nine that fights a creature you don’t control when it enters the battlefield. It’s also got the enrage mechanic, so it gets to fight again whenever it’s dealt damage.

Luckily it says “up to one,” so you don’t have to make it fight, but it can if you need it to! Odds are it's probably the last thing standing.

#3. Ghalta, Primal Hunger

Ghalta, Primal Hunger is one of the newer dinosaurs, and it costs X less where X is equal to the total power of creatures you control. It’s exceptionally easy to cast in the right deck, and it’s got trample to boot.

#2. Worldspine Wurm

Worldspine Wurm is a whopping 15/15 for 11 mana with trample that splits into three 5/5 tramplers when it dies. It also goes back into your library when it goes to the graveyard from anywhere, so you won’t miss out on casting it thanks to some random mill player.

#1. Apex Devastator

Not to be outdone, the best big green creature is Apex Devastator. If you’ve seen this monstrosity then you probably saw this one coming.

The Devastator is big, and it pulls out four other permanents or spells alongside it to further adds to its effect on the game. I always love casting this card, and it's quickly become one of my favorite casual EDH cards! I can’t recommend it enough if your deck can cast it consistently, especially ahead of curve.

Best Big Creatures in Multicolored

#5. Lord of Tresserhorn

I won’t lie, Lord of Tresserhorn is a pretty bad card. It’s quite old and vulnerable to power creep and other design changes. Its downside of losing two life, sacrificing two other creatures, and giving your opponent two cards just isn't worth a 10/4 with regeneration.

#4. Arixmethes, Slumbering Isle

Arixmethes, Slumbering Isle is a 12/12 kraken that lies dormant until you remove all five slumber counters, and you can take one off whenever you cast a spell. It’s a neat trick, especially because you’re getting a 12/12 for four mana, but it’s a little annoying and inefficient to activate.

#3. Primeval Spawn

Primeval Spawn is a huge creature with a huge payoff. It lets you play cards from the top 10 on your library for free, as long as their total mana value doesn’t exceed 10. That’s sweet.

#2. Progenitus

Progenitus is a great creature, maybe one of the best on its own, but it's just too hard to cast. I don’t think anyone outside of 5-color good-stuff Commander deck pilots are actually casting this thing. It’s more of an easy Natural Order bomb target.

#1. The Ur-Dragon

The Ur-Dragon is a pretty safe pick for number one big boi in multicolored. It’s far and away better than the rest and is maybe one of the best dragon creatures, period.

It makes your other dragons cheaper, is super big, and generates card advantage. What more could you possibly want?

Best Big Creatures in Colorless

#8. Phyrexian Dreadnought

Phyrexian Dreadnought, the infamous old classic, is a 1-mana 12/12 with trample. Of course, you need to pay for that 12 power somewhere, which has inspired Legacy decks that play Phyrexian Dreadnought to cheat it in on turn 2 with a Stifle.

#7. Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre

Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre is one of the worse Eldrazi, but it’s still one of the best creatures out there. It lets you destroy a permanent when it’s cast, which is nowhere near as good as Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger, but still strong. It’s also got annihilator 4, which makes for a nice game-ending attack.

#6. Kozilek, Butcher of Truth

Kozilek, Butcher of Truth is one of the O.G. Eldrazi. It’s a 12/12 with annihilator 4 for 12 and draws you four cards on cast. Like the newer Kozilek, this one focuses on card advantage, but I’m not too sure you’ll be needing that if you can hardcast Eldrazi!

#5. Kozilek, the Great Distortion

Kozilek, the Great Distortion has recently become one of my new favorite commanders for a nice mono-brown experience, but it’s still a decent card on its own. It focuses heavily on card advantage and offers an excellent layer of defense with its activated ability that allows you to counter certain spells.

#4. Blightsteel Colossus

One of the few non-Eldrazi is Blightsteel Colossus, but it’s still quite a menacing card. It’s an 11/11 with trample, indestructible, and infect. Yes, infect.

This is a one-shot kill, and it’s an instant triple kill in Commander if paired with Chandra's Ignition!

#3. Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger

Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger is one of the most-played Eldrazi cards thanks to Tron, for good reason. It gets rid of any two permanents when it’s cast, not when it enters, has indestructible, and it mills your opponent for up to a third of their deck when it attacks.

This is a great beefy creature with guaranteed value.

#2. Emrakul, the Promised End

This version of Emrakul, Emrakul, the Promised End, is actually legal in most formats. It’s a prominent sideboard piece for control decks going into the mirror. It becomes cheaper to cast as the game progresses and the graveyard fills up, and it even lets you take control of your opponent so you can make them enact their own demise. It's also worth considering graveyard protection, just so you can do the thing.

#1. Emrakul, the Aeons Torn

Emrakul, the Aeons Torn is one of the most powerful creatures ever. With one of the highest powers in the game, it almost always results in a concede from your opponent should it be cast. You get an extra turn, it has protection from colored spells, it’s got annihilator… what’s not to love?

Best Big Creature Payoffs

One of the best ways to take advantage of expensive, massive creatures is to get them into play fast. The earlier you deploy a threat, the less prepared your opponent is to defend themselves or eliminate the threat.

Generic fast mana like Mana Crypt, Sol Ring, Mana Vault, and Grim Monolith alone represent so much value. They deploy these massive creatures up to two, four, or even five turns ahead of schedule. Doing that is better than anything else.

Another big payoff comes from fling effects. Nothing is worse than having a huge 12/12 creature without trample attack into some 1/1 Squirrel token just to do nothing. When in doubt, “fling” effects like Fling and Kazuul's Fury help you to get the job done and get the face damage you so desperately desire.

What’s the Biggest Creature in MTG?

In terms of actual physical size, the biggest creature is one that has yet to receive its own creature card: Genju of the Realm. It’s a massive spirit nearly the size of the entire plane of Kamigawa, and that’s about as big as it gets.

If you’re looking for one that has actually received its own creature card, that award goes to Emrakul. Literally so big that she had to be imprisoned inside a moon, she’s of a massive scale that puts her in striking range of Genju. That’s big.

What Creature Has the Highest Power in MTG?

The creature in Magic with the highest power, disregarding the Un-sets, is none other than Marit Lage. It’s a 20/20 token spawned by Dark Depths after all the counters have been removed (or a copy without counters has been made by Thespian's Stage). Unlike most of the creatures on this list, this one is actually played!

Lands has been a Legacy deck since it was a possible to make. It’s a cheap and effective threat that’s all but unkillable and requires very specific removal methods like Sudden Edict to properly deal with. If it isn’t in the meta, it’s even stronger because of that.

How Big Is Emrakul?

Emrakul, at least in the form represented in Emrakul, the Promised End, is at least 150 feet tall as described by Gideon. That’s sort of small when you consider it, but remember that this form is a projection of Emrakul onto the plane, not Emrakul herself. It seems that she's much bigger, potentially larger than a plane, but is scaled down based on where she is.

That leads to the 150 feet version Gideon saw, versus what was imprisoned in a literal moon.

How Tall Is Ulamog?

Just like Emrakul is a projection rather than a standalone unique object, Ulamog doesn’t have an official height. Regardless, Ulamog is likely about 150 feet tall, similar to how Gideon described the other Eldrazi.

Wrap Up

Impervious Greatwurm | Illustration by Simon Dominic

Big creatures feel powerful to bring into your Magic game. Ever since I started I’ve always loved resolving a massive creature for my opponents to attempt to kill, only to fold when I get to attack!

What do you think of some of these creatures? Are they usually all duds, except for standouts like the Eldrazi? Do some of them have a place in specific strategies? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below or over in the official Draftsim Discord.

Until next time, stay safe and stay healthy!