EDH Optimizer
Gandalf, Friend of the Shire
Legendary Creature — Avatar Wizard · 3U
Color identity: Blue
Gandalf, Friend of the Shire is blue: its deck can only run cards of that color plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Flash
You may cast sorcery spells as though they had flash.
Whenever the Ring tempts you, if you chose a creature other than Gandalf as your Ring-bearer, draw a card.
Reference price of the card: €0.10
Average lands in decks for Gandalf, Friend of the Shire: 35
SpellslingerFlashControlWizardsCantripsCard DrawMillTokens
Build your Gandalf, Friend of the Shire deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Gandalf, Friend of the Shire 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Gandalf, Friend of the Shire 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: C (51/100)
- Consistency90
- Speed41
- Interaction88
- Resilience88
- Closing10
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 35 lands (6 nonbasic, 29 Island)
Sol Ring · Birthday Escape · Arcane Signet · Counterspell · Sapphire Medallion · Talrand, Sky Summoner · High Tide · Soothing of Sméagol · Glorious Gale · Preordain · Thought Vessel · Archmage Emeritus · Ponder · Curse of the Swine · Murmuring Mystic · Flood of Recollection · Negate · Horses of the Bruinen · Baral, Chief of Compliance · Inherited Envelope · Windfall · Haughty Djinn · Ravenform · Wavebreak Hippocamp · Archmage of Runes · Elrond, Lord of Rivendell · Mind Stone · Lórien Revealed · Archaeomancer · Frantic Search · Brainstorm · Call to Mind · Rangers of Ithilien · Treasure Cruise · Mocking Sprite · Wizards of Thay · Propaganda · Solve the Equation · Arcane Denial · Deep Analysis · Glamdring, Foe-hammer // Gleam of Death · Hullbreaker Horror · Mindsplice Apparatus · Serum Visions · Opt · Shark Typhoon · Wash Out · Blue Sun's Twilight · Dreadful as the Storm · Day's Undoing · Glamdring · Sky Diamond · An Offer You Can't Refuse · Pongify · Scroll of Isildur · Unwind · Midnight Clock · Rewind · Wizard Class · Aetherize · Bribery · Thunderclap Drake · Wayfarer's Bauble · Aether Gale · Mystic Sanctuary · Reliquary Tower · Rivendell · Myriad Landscape · Riptide Laboratory · Castle Vantress
🃏 Recommended cards for Gandalf, Friend of the Shire
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Gandalf, Friend of the Shire, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Birthday Escape | 71% | +70% |
| Soothing of Sméagol | 58% | +57% |
| Glorious Gale | 57% | +57% |
| Flood of Recollection | 50% | +47% |
| Horses of the Bruinen | 47% | +47% |
| Talrand, Sky Summoner | 59% | +46% |
| Inherited Envelope | 45% | +45% |
| Murmuring Mystic | 51% | +42% |
| Curse of the Swine | 51% | +41% |
| Elrond, Lord of Rivendell | 41% | +40% |
| Call to Mind | 38% | +37% |
| Rangers of Ithilien | 37% | +36% |
| Archmage Emeritus | 56% | +36% |
| Haughty Djinn | 42% | +35% |
| Ravenform | 42% | +35% |
| Baral, Chief of Compliance | 45% | +35% |
| Preordain | 57% | +33% |
| Wizards of Thay | 35% | +33% |
| Mocking Sprite | 36% | +33% |
| Lórien Revealed | 40% | +32% |
| Wavebreak Hippocamp | 42% | +32% |
| Dreadful as the Storm | 31% | +30% |
| Archmage of Runes | 41% | +30% |
| Glamdring, Foe-hammer | 33% | +30% |
💰 The best cards for your Gandalf, Friend of the Shire 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.
- Birthday Escape
- Soothing of Sméagol
- Glorious Gale
- Flood of Recollection
- Horses of the Bruinen
- Talrand, Sky Summoner
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Baral, Chief of Compliance
- Lórien Revealed
- Archmage of Runes
- Solve the Equation
- Bribery
- Eluge, the Shoreless Sea
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Mnemonic Deluge
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Gandalf, Friend of the Shire
- Hullbreaker Horror + Sol Ring → Infinite colorless mana, Infinite storm count
- Dramatic Reversal + Isochron Scepter → Infinite magecraft triggers, Infinite mana nonland permanents you control can produce, Infinite storm count, Infinite untap of nonland permanents you control
- Hullbreaker Horror + Mana Vault → Infinite colorless mana, Infinite storm count
- Bruvac the Grandiloquent + Maddening Cacophony → Infinite mill
- Ghostly Flicker + Peregrine Drake + Archaeomancer → Infinite blinking, Infinite creature ETB, Infinite landfall triggers, Infinite creature LTB, Infinite magecraft triggers, Infinite mana lands you control can produce, Infinite storm count, Infinite untap of lands you control
- Tidespout Tyrant + Sol Ring → Infinite colorless mana, Infinite storm count
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Gandalf, Friend of the Shire's color identity?
Gandalf, Friend of the Shire is blue: 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 Gandalf, Friend of the Shire come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Gandalf, Friend of the Shire deck (the 99 cards most played with it, with 35 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 3.7 on average and is on the battlefield before turn 7 in 100 % of games. It misses at least one land drop in the first six turns 19 % of the time and floods 6 %. Deck health: C (51/100).
How many lands should a Gandalf, Friend of the Shire deck run?
Real Gandalf, Friend of the Shire 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 Gandalf, Friend of the Shire?
The three highest-synergy cards are Birthday Escape, Soothing of Sméagol, Glorious Gale. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Gandalf, Friend of the Shire decks.
What combos does Gandalf, Friend of the Shire have?
Gandalf, Friend of the Shire has 6 known combos. The most popular one is Hullbreaker Horror + Sol Ring. 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 Gandalf, Friend of the Shire deck cost?
You can start cheap: Birthday Escape, Soothing of Sméagol, Glorious Gale 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.