EDH Optimizer
Balin, Loremaster
Legendary Creature — Dwarf Bard · 3RR
Color identity: Red
Balin, Loremaster is red: its deck can only run cards of that color plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Storied (If you control three or more artifacts, legendaries, and/or Sagas, you have an enduring story for the rest of the game.)
Whenever Balin or another Dwarf you control enters, you may discard your hand. Draw X cards, where X is the number of cards discarded this way. If you have an enduring story, Balin deals X damage to each opponent.
Reference price of the card: €0.22
Average lands in decks for Balin, Loremaster: 36
WheelsBurnDwarvesDiscardHistoricClonesGroup SlugDragons
Build your Balin, Loremaster deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Balin, Loremaster 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Balin, Loremaster deck starts over 4,000 games
The list people actually play per EDHREC (the 99 most-included cards, with its average land count), simulated with the EDH Optimizer engine: hands, mulligans, lands, curve and commander. It does not model opponents; it measures whether the plan gets going.
Deck health of the average list: C+ (64/100)
- Consistency51
- Speed61
- Interaction38
- Resilience65
- Closing95
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 36 lands (9 nonbasic, 27 Mountain)
Sol Ring · Magda, Brazen Outlaw · Arcane Signet · Blazing Firesinger // Seething Song · Glóin, Dwarf Emissary · Torbran, Thane of Red Fell · Fíli and Kíli, Joyous · Dori, Bearer of Friends · Glóin the Mighty // Easy Pickings · Ruby Medallion · Dwarven Grunt · Magmakin Artillerist · Plundering Barbarian · Cool but Rude · Monument to Endurance · Containment Construct · Óin the Brave · Chaos Warp · Cursed Mirror · Blasphemous Act · Bloodfire Dwarf · Big Score · Dwarven Mauler · Glint-Horn Buccaneer · Misty Knight, Hero for Hire · Gimli of the Glittering Caves · Universal Automaton · Change of Fortune · Dwarven Trader · Dwarven Scorcher · Faithless Looting · Rubble Rouser · Magda, the Hoardmaster · Return the Favor · Roaming Throne · Seething Song · Fearless Liberator · Electroduplicate · Unexpected Windfall · Vault Robber · Alhammarret's Archive · Devastating Onslaught · Dwarven Recruiter · Dwarven Reinforcements · Thought Vessel · Abrade · Jeska's Will · The Fire Crystal · Bag of Holding · Untimely Malfunction · Collective Inferno · Twinflame · Deflecting Swat · Liberated Dwarf · Mana Geyser · Seven Dwarves · Spark Mage · Phial of Galadriel · Lightning Greaves · Panharmonicon · Brallin, Skyshark Rider · Fellwar Stone · Magus of the Wheel · Dwarven Mine · The Lonely Mountain · Great Furnace · Mines of Moria · Reliquary Tower · War Room · Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx · Cavern of Souls · Urza's Saga
🃏 Recommended cards for Balin, Loremaster
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Balin, Loremaster, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Magda, Brazen Outlaw | 82% | +77% |
| Blazing Firesinger | 72% | +67% |
| Glóin, Dwarf Emissary | 71% | +66% |
| Fíli and Kíli, Joyous | 67% | +65% |
| Dori, Bearer of Friends | 66% | +64% |
| Dwarven Mine | 72% | +62% |
| Glóin the Mighty | 65% | +61% |
| Magmakin Artillerist | 63% | +60% |
| Dwarven Grunt | 63% | +59% |
| Plundering Barbarian | 61% | +55% |
| Cool but Rude | 58% | +55% |
| Monument to Endurance | 58% | +53% |
| Óin the Brave | 54% | +51% |
| Containment Construct | 54% | +50% |
| Bloodfire Dwarf | 51% | +48% |
| Torbran, Thane of Red Fell | 68% | +46% |
| The Lonely Mountain | 49% | +46% |
| Misty Knight, Hero for Hire | 47% | +46% |
| Dwarven Mauler | 49% | +46% |
| Glint-Horn Buccaneer | 49% | +46% |
| Change of Fortune | 45% | +43% |
| Rubble Rouser | 43% | +42% |
| Universal Automaton | 46% | +42% |
| Dwarven Trader | 44% | +41% |
💰 The best cards for your Balin, Loremaster deck, by budget
Three tiers based on the maximum price PER CARD you are willing to pay. Paste your list and hit Optimize: you pick that cap and the AI only suggests swaps that fit under it.
Tier 1 · Budget up to €2/card
The most value for almost nothing. Coming from a precon? Start here.
- Dori, Bearer of Friends
- Dwarven Mine
- Magmakin Artillerist
- Dwarven Grunt
- Plundering Barbarian
- Óin the Brave
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Magda, Brazen Outlaw
- Glóin, Dwarf Emissary
- Fíli and Kíli, Joyous
- Cool but Rude
- Torbran, Thane of Red Fell
- Glint-Horn Buccaneer
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Monument to Endurance
- Roaming Throne
- Surly Badgersaur
- Molten Echoes
- Thorin, Company's Leader
- The One Ring
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Balin, Loremaster
- Underworld Breach + Wheel of Fortune + Jeska's Will → Infinite draw triggers for all players, Infinite looting for all players, Near-infinite magecraft triggers, Near-infinite storm count
- Underworld Breach + Lion's Eye Diamond + Wheel of Fortune → Infinite draw triggers, Infinite looting, Infinite looting for opponents, Near-infinite storm count
- Dualcaster Mage + Twinflame → Infinite creature LTB, Infinite creature ETB, Infinite creature tokens with haste, Infinite magecraft triggers
- Dualcaster Mage + Molten Duplication → Infinite creature LTB, Infinite creature ETB, Infinite creature sacrifice triggers, Infinite death triggers, Infinite creature tokens with haste, Infinite magecraft triggers
- Underworld Breach + Grinding Station → Infinite self-mill, Near-infinite storm count, Near-infinite mana among colors of legendary creatures and planeswalkers you control
- Blasphemous Act + Repercussion → Near-infinite damage to all players
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Balin, Loremaster's color identity?
Balin, Loremaster is red: its deck can only run cards of that color plus colorless ones. Color identity comes from every mana symbol on the card, including those in the rules text, not just the casting cost.
What turn does Balin, Loremaster come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Balin, Loremaster deck (the 99 most-included cards per EDHREC, with 36 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 4.4 on average and is on the battlefield before turn 7 in 99 % of games. It misses at least one land drop in the first six turns 15 % of the time and floods 21 %. Deck health: C+ (64/100).
How many lands should a Balin, Loremaster deck run?
Real Balin, Loremaster decks run 36 lands on average. That is a starting point, not a rule: a lower curve can shave one or two, big-mana builds want more. The EDH Optimizer simulator tells you, over 10,000 games, how often you get mana screwed or flooded with your exact count.
What are the best cards for Balin, Loremaster?
The three highest-synergy cards are Magda, Brazen Outlaw, Blazing Firesinger, Glóin, Dwarf Emissary. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Balin, Loremaster decks.
What combos does Balin, Loremaster have?
Balin, Loremaster has 6 known combos. The most popular one is Underworld Breach + Wheel of Fortune + Jeska's Will. Note that two-card combos raise your deck's bracket, so it is worth knowing which ones you are running before you sit down.
How much does a Balin, Loremaster deck cost?
You can start cheap: Dori, Bearer of Friends, Dwarven Mine, Magmakin Artillerist are under €2 each. The "Level up" section on this page splits the best cards into three price caps PER CARD (up to €2, up to €10 and no cap), and the optimizer only suggests swaps that fit the cap you pick.