Legendary Creature — Dwarf Warrior

Gimli of the Glittering Caves

Mana value3EDHREC#3,543

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The Commander

Double strike

Whenever another legendary creature you control enters, put a +1/+1 counter on Gimli.

Whenever Gimli deals combat damage to a player, create a Treasure token.

Guide

Gameplan

Cast Gimli early, then chain cheap legendary creatures to pile +1/+1 counters on him while his double strike turns those counters into massive damage. Connect with a player to generate Treasure, ramping into more legends and protective gear. You win through commander damage or by overwhelming the table with a single buffed-up Dwarf.

Strengths

Double strike doubles every counter and pump effect, making Gimli a fast commander-damage clock
Treasure generation provides ramp and color/fixing flexibility for a mono-red deck
Self-growing without combat tricks—just play legendary creatures you'd run anyway
Cheap three-mana body that comes online immediately and snowballs

Weaknesses

Heavily reliant on the commander; spot removal and board wipes reset your whole plan
Mono-red lacks reliable instant-speed protection and card draw
Vulnerable to chump blockers, fog effects, and edicts that stop the lone attacker
Needs a critical mass of legendary creatures, which can raise the deck's curve

Key Cards

Embercleave — Cheap to cast after attacks and grants double strike-stacking trample to push lethal commander damage.
Shadowspear — Cheap equipment granting trample and lifelink, and its ability strips hexproof/indestructible from blockers.
Hammer of Nazahn — Indestructibility plus a big buff and free attaching makes Gimli a resilient threat.
Reckless Fireweaver — Turns each Treasure trigger into incidental damage, adding a reach/aristocrats angle.
Sram, Senior Edificer — A legendary that grows Gimli and draws cards off your equipment and auras.
Hellkite Courser — A legendary that triggers Gimli and can cheat him back onto the battlefield attacking.

Upgrade Path

Add resilience and evasion—Swiftfoot Boots, Lightning Greaves, and indestructibility sources keep Gimli alive through removal. Tighten the legendary count with efficient, low-cost legends (Slobad, Anim Pakal, Toralf) to maximize counter triggers, and lean into Treasure synergies with cards like Mayhem Devil and Goldspan Dragon to convert ramp into damage and explosive turns.

Core Cards

The most-played cards for this commander, built from aggregated deck data (the Mythic Graph). Build public decks to seed it.

Win Conditions

▸Commander damage via double strike plus equipment buffs
▸Wide aggressive board of legendary creatures
▸Treasure-fueled burn/ping payoffs like Reckless Fireweaver and Mayhem Devil

Archetypes

Voltron — Gimli's double strike and counters reward stacking equipment and buffs onto one creature for commander-damage kills.
Legends Matter — Every other legendary creature entering grows Gimli, incentivizing a high density of legends.
Aristocrats/Treasure — Treasure tokens fuel sacrifice payoffs and pingers like Reckless Fireweaver and Mayhem Devil.
Aggro — A cheap snowballing attacker backed by mono-red haste and ramp closes games fast.