MTG: Vehicles - What Are They and the 10 Most Popular Vehicles in Commander!

Have you ever played Vehicles? This type of artifact was first introduced in Kaladesh and stood out in the most recent set, Aetherdrift. The main plot centered around a race between the planes in the Multiverse - almost like Fast and Furious, but in Magic: The Gathering!

In this article, we'll show you a few things about Vehicles, like what they are, how they work, and, at the end, we'll show you the top 10 most popular Vehicles for Commander decks, according to EDHRec.

Vehicles are an artifact subtype that can be Crewed by creatures you control (almost as if they were actually going to "drive" that artifact on the battlefield). These artifacts usually feature the word "Crew" and a number next to them.

Let's use the Tardis as an example!

This particular Vehicle has Crew 2. This means that, to Crew it, you need to tap creatures you control and add their power until you have the same amount as the number next to their Crew, or more. In this case, you must add up 2 or more power. When you Crew it, this Vehicle will turn into an artifact creature that can attack or block. You can eve use it to Crew another Vehicle!

Once Crewed, the Vehicle's power and toughness are the ones printed on the card itself. Once again, let's consider the Tardis: it is a 2/4. A few creatures have extra effects when they Crew a Vehicle, like Speedway Fanatic (which gives Haste to the Vehicle it Crews) or 1/1 Pilot tokens (which Crew Vehicles as if their power were 2 greater).

After a creature Crews a Vehicle, their bonus can't be removed (for instance, if that creature is Speedway Fanatic, the Vehicle will have Haste). You can Crew a Vehicle at instant speed.

Some Exceptions

We discussed Vehicles with Crew because they're more common, but there are a few exceptions.

Dermotaxi doesn't need to be Crewed with creatures. Just tap two creatures you control (regardless of their power) to activate this artifact's ability and turn it into a copy of the creature you exiled with its first effect until the end of the turn. As for Transformers, like Megatron, Tyrant, they have Living Metal, which means they can be creatures during their controller's turns.

"Is There a Way to Stop Me From Crewing My Vehicles?"

Crew is an activated ability. For Vehicle decks, one of the biggest enemies is...

Ouphe stood out because of how popular it is, but there are a few other cards with similar effects, such as:

"I Put A Creature In Play This Turn. Can I Use it to Crew Something?"

Yes! It is the Vehicle that forces you to tap a creature, so a creature can Crew a Vehicle even if you put it in play that turn. Please note that Vehicles have summoning sickness, and these artifacts can't attack on the same turn they entered play, just like regular creatures.

"Can I Use More Resources Than Needed to Crew a Vehicle?"

Yes, you can! And, depending on your deck, this can be even better. For instance, if you're playing Magda, Brazen Outlaw, you want your Dwarves tapped, but you usually don't want to lose them when you attack blockers that are stronger or more resistant than they are.

If you tap these Dwarves to Crew a Vehicle, you'll create Treasures with your commander without putting your creatures at risk.

Tapping creatures to Crew something is also great with Survival effects like Kona's, which lets you put a permanent in play for free.

We gathered the 10 most popular Vehicles in Commander according to EDRec. Let's see them!

10. Esika's Chariot

Imagine a Cat carriage that creates Cats. Yeah, that's right!

Associated with Esika, God of the Tree (which you can learn more about here), this legendary Vehicle once stole the spotlight in Standard and Pioneer lists. If you'd like to know more about this card and Abzan Greasefang, check out this deck tech by one of our best writers, Romeu!

As soon as this carriage enters play, you'll create two 2/2 Cat tokens. When it attacks, you'll create a copy of a target token you control. This Vehicle already creates creatures to Crew it when it enters the board, and then creates even more copies - either of Cats or any other interesting token on your board. If it didn't need green mana, it would probably be more popular.

9. Parhelion II

This Vehicle has more keywords than many legendary creatures!

Besides its flying, vigilance, and first strike, this artifact creates two 4/4 Angel tokens whenever it attacks. Furthermore, it has Crew 4, so, later on, you can use the token it creates to Crew it.

8. Weatherlight

This is a piece of Dominaria history, flying over your board.

Like many Dominaria cards, our beloved Weatherlight interacts with historic cards. This means it is an interesting option for decks centered around Sagas, artifacts, or decks that just play many legendary cards in general.

7. Cultivator's Caravan

Present in over 39 thousand decks right now, at the time I'm writing this article, is a Vehicle that creates mana!

When it comes to, "is it fun to play?", Cultivator's Caravan is not as fun as other cards in this list. However, in terms of popularity, which is our criteria today, this Vehicle is certainly beloved by a lot of players, and that's why it occupies our 7th place!

6. Skysovereign, Consul Flagship

Cruising through the skies, we have this card, which can simply destroy many weak creatures on the spot.

When it enters the board or attacks, this Vehicle deals 3 damage to a creature or planeswalkers a target opponent controls. On casual tables, you can attack a certain opponent with it and destroy another opponent's creature, all at once!

5. The Indomitable

Ahoy! If before we were cruising through the skies, now we'll venture through the open seas of the Multiverse with this Vehicle.

The Indomitable's effect is very similar to enchantments like Coastal Piracy and Reconnaissance Mission in terms of card draw, but it has a 6/6 body and trample. You can also cast it from your graveyard when you have three and/or more tapped Pirates and Vehicles on the board (depending on the Vehicle, you can tap two Pirates to Crew it and then attack).

4. Hedge Shredder

Ramp and self-mill in the same Vehicle? Let's ignore this weird design and give Hedge Shredder a chance!

This Vehicle, which is great with The Necrobloom and The Wise Mothman, has Crew 1 and a 5/5 body so you can attack with it risk-free. Even if you end up milling lands into your graveyard with its self-mill effect, for instance, you can use its passive ability to make them enter your board tapped.

3. Imposter Mech

Did your opponent play a creature so cool that you want one just like it on your side? Then this is the right Vehicle for you!

For just two mana, you can cast Imposter Mech, a Vehicle that enters the board as a copy of a creature under your opponent's control, except it is a Vehicle, will lose all its card types, and has Crew 3. It might seem like a trap, but it's not! This low-cost Vehicle can clone the best (or worst) your opponents got!

2. Shorikai, Genesis Engine

This is the best commander if you enjoy giant robots!

With its activated ability, this Vehicle will create Pilot tokens (the ones we mentioned at the beginning of this article) so you can Crew it or your other Vehicles.

Furthermore, the coolest part is that you can use it as your commander, so, if you want to build a deck entirely of Vehicles, this is the way to do it!

1. Smuggler's Copter

Our first place is occupied by a Vehicle that caused so much chaos it was banned in Pioneer for a time (but now it is back!).

This Vehicle has one of the simplest abilities in this entire list, but that doesn't make it less valuable. For two mana, you'll most likely have a 3/3 body with flying that, when it attacks or blocks, lets you draw and discard a card with Crew 1.

They might not be in every set, but Vehicles are very versatile, and some are so generic they can fit practically any deck.

When we think of Commander, there are definitely a few leaders that interact with these artifacts, like Greasefang, Okiba Boss and Edward Kenway (click here if you'd like to know more about them), and many other legendary cards you can use to build very fun decks and mow down your opponents.

Do you like Vehicles? Tell us your thoughts in our comment section below.

Thank you for reading, and see you next time!