EDH Optimizer
Cao Cao, Lord of Wei
Legendary Creature — Human Soldier · 3BB
Color identity: Black
Cao Cao, Lord of Wei is black: its deck can only run cards of that color plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
{T}: Target opponent discards two cards. Activate only during your turn, before attackers are declared.
Reference price of the card: €3.11
Average lands in decks for Cao Cao, Lord of Wei: 35
DiscardPrison-1/-1 CountersBurnControlDevotionGraveyardGroup Slug
Build your Cao Cao, Lord of Wei deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Cao Cao, Lord of Wei 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Cao Cao, Lord of Wei deck starts over 4,000 games
The list people actually play (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: D (46/100)
- Consistency34
- Speed53
- Interaction33
- Resilience69
- Closing44
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 35 lands (10 nonbasic, 25 Swamp)
Sol Ring · Waste Not · Geth's Grimoire · Megrim · Liliana's Caress · Painful Quandary · Dark Ritual · Jet Medallion · Oppression · Syphon Mind · Tourach, Dread Cantor · Tinybones, Trinket Thief · Crypt Ghast · Sangromancer · The Raven Man · Arcane Signet · Fell Specter · Shrieking Affliction · Dark Deal · Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal // Temple of the Dead · Quest for the Nihil Stone · Torment of Hailfire · Bottomless Pit · Gray Merchant of Asphodel · Raiders' Wake · Tergrid, God of Fright // Tergrid's Lantern · Hypnotic Specter · Phyrexian Arena · Burglar Rat · Mind Twist · Rankle, Master of Pranks · Cunning Advisor · Defile · Sign in Blood · Tinybones, Bauble Burglar · Feed the Swarm · Go for the Throat · Wei Night Raiders · Damnation · Hymn to Tourach · Court of Ambition · Reanimate · Syr Konrad, the Grim · Charcoal Diamond · Bandit's Talent · Elderfang Disciple · Liliana of the Veil · Nezumi Informant · Cunning Lethemancer · Demonic Tutor · Virus Beetle · Wheel of Torture · Unnerve · Doom Blade · The Rack · Mind Stone · Mutilate · Withering Torment · Asylum Visitor · Swiftfoot Boots · Lightning Greaves · Rise of the Dark Realms · Cabal Ritual · Infernal Grasp · Cabal Coffers · Bojuka Bog · Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth · Geier Reach Sanitarium · Cabal Stronghold · Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx · Witch's Cottage · Castle Locthwain · Reliquary Tower · Myriad Landscape
🃏 Recommended cards for Cao Cao, Lord of Wei
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Cao Cao, Lord of Wei, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Waste Not | 82% | +72% |
| Geth's Grimoire | 76% | +69% |
| Megrim | 73% | +68% |
| Liliana's Caress | 71% | +66% |
| Painful Quandary | 71% | +61% |
| Oppression | 65% | +58% |
| Tourach, Dread Cantor | 60% | +56% |
| Tinybones, Trinket Thief | 55% | +52% |
| Shrieking Affliction | 51% | +50% |
| Syphon Mind | 61% | +49% |
| The Raven Man | 54% | +49% |
| Fell Specter | 51% | +47% |
| Quest for the Nihil Stone | 48% | +46% |
| Sangromancer | 54% | +43% |
| Aclazotz, Deepest Betrayal | 49% | +43% |
| Mind Twist | 43% | +42% |
| Raiders' Wake | 45% | +42% |
| Hypnotic Specter | 44% | +41% |
| Cunning Advisor | 40% | +40% |
| Bottomless Pit | 45% | +40% |
| Dark Deal | 50% | +39% |
| Tergrid, God of Fright | 45% | +38% |
| Wei Night Raiders | 38% | +37% |
| Tinybones, Bauble Burglar | 40% | +37% |
💰 The best cards for your Cao Cao, Lord of Wei 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.
- Megrim
- Painful Quandary
- Oppression
- Tourach, Dread Cantor
- Shrieking Affliction
- Syphon Mind
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Waste Not
- Geth's Grimoire
- Liliana's Caress
- Tinybones, Trinket Thief
- Cunning Advisor
- Bottomless Pit
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Wei Night Raiders
- Torment of Hailfire
- Xiahou Dun, the One-Eyed
- Thousand-Year Elixir
- Sima Yi, Wei Field Marshal
- Damnation
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Cao Cao, Lord of Wei
- Sanguine Bond + Exquisite Blood → Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite lifegain
- Sanguine Bond + Bloodthirsty Conqueror → Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite lifegain
- Gravecrawler + Phyrexian Altar → Infinite death triggers, Infinite creature ETB, Infinite creature LTB, Infinite creature sacrifice triggers, Infinite storm count
- Exquisite Blood + Enduring Tenacity → Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite lifegain
- Basalt Monolith + Forsaken Monument → Infinite colorless mana
- Bloodchief Ascension + Mindcrank → Infinite mill, Near-infinite lifegain, Near-infinite lifegain triggers, Near-infinite lifeloss
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Cao Cao, Lord of Wei's color identity?
Cao Cao, Lord of Wei is black: 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 Cao Cao, Lord of Wei come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Cao Cao, Lord of Wei deck (the 99 cards most played with it, with 35 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 5.0 on average and is on the battlefield before turn 7 in 94 % of games. It misses at least one land drop in the first six turns 36 % of the time and floods 19 %. Deck health: D (46/100).
How many lands should a Cao Cao, Lord of Wei deck run?
Real Cao Cao, Lord of Wei decks run 35 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 Cao Cao, Lord of Wei?
The three highest-synergy cards are Waste Not, Geth's Grimoire, Megrim. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Cao Cao, Lord of Wei decks.
What combos does Cao Cao, Lord of Wei have?
Cao Cao, Lord of Wei has 6 known combos. The most popular one is Sanguine Bond + Exquisite Blood. 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 Cao Cao, Lord of Wei deck cost?
You can start cheap: Megrim, Painful Quandary, Oppression 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.