EDH Optimizer
Gollum, Scheming Guide
Legendary Creature — Halfling Horror · 1B
Color identity: Black
Gollum, Scheming Guide is black: its deck can only run cards of that color plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Whenever Gollum attacks, look at the top two cards of your library, put them back in any order, then choose land or nonland. An opponent guesses whether the top card of your library is the chosen kind. Reveal that card. If they guessed right, remove Gollum from combat. Otherwise, you draw a card and Gollum can't be blocked this turn.
Reference price of the card: €1.71
Average lands in decks for Gollum, Scheming Guide: 38
EquipmentVoltronChaosArtifactsPoliticsAurasCommander MattersGroup Slug
Build your Gollum, Scheming Guide deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Gollum, Scheming Guide 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Gollum, Scheming Guide 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: B (72/100)
- Consistency69
- Speed54
- Interaction57
- Resilience85
- Closing95
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 38 lands (11 nonbasic, 27 Swamp)
Sol Ring · Swiftfoot Boots · Vorpal Sword · Arcane Signet · Feed the Swarm · Blackblade Reforged · Dark Ritual · Explorer's Scope · Sword of the Animist · Lashwrithe · Brass Squire · Call of the Ring · Sign in Blood · Nightmare Lash · Bilbo's Ring · Crypt Ghast · Defile · Go for the Throat · Jet Medallion · Night's Whisper · Pact Weapon · Phyrexian Arena · Quietus Spike · Claim the Precious · Silent Arbiter · Dread Presence · Fireshrieker · Solemn Simulacrum · Mithril Coat · Astarion's Thirst · Imp's Mischief · Toxic Deluge · Witch-king of Angmar · Commander's Plate · Eternal Thirst · Hostile Negotiations · Liar's Pendulum · Mind Stone · Read the Bones · Lightning Greaves · Thran Power Suit · Withering Torment · Foundry Inspector · Crawlspace · Gray Merchant of Asphodel · Kaya's Ghostform · Basilisk Collar · Consuming Corruption · Infernal Grasp · The Toymaker's Trap · Charcoal Diamond · The One Ring · Wayfarer's Bauble · Gollum, Patient Plotter · Tainted Strike · Blade of the Oni · Armor of Shadows · Mask of Memory · Phyresis · Thought Vessel · Inquisitor's Flail · Bojuka Bog · Cabal Coffers · Cabal Stronghold · Myriad Landscape · Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth · War Room · Reliquary Tower · Barad-dûr · Buried Ruin · Rogue's Passage · Witch's Cottage
🃏 Recommended cards for Gollum, Scheming Guide
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Gollum, Scheming Guide, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Vorpal Sword | 66% | +62% |
| Blackblade Reforged | 56% | +53% |
| Explorer's Scope | 53% | +52% |
| Sword of the Animist | 53% | +50% |
| Brass Squire | 48% | +47% |
| Call of the Ring | 48% | +46% |
| Lashwrithe | 49% | +45% |
| Bilbo's Ring | 45% | +44% |
| Nightmare Lash | 46% | +44% |
| Pact Weapon | 43% | +40% |
| Quietus Spike | 41% | +40% |
| Claim the Precious | 40% | +39% |
| Swiftfoot Boots | 68% | +37% |
| Silent Arbiter | 38% | +36% |
| Fireshrieker | 36% | +34% |
| Astarion's Thirst | 34% | +33% |
| Liar's Pendulum | 32% | +32% |
| Witch-king of Angmar | 34% | +32% |
| Hostile Negotiations | 32% | +31% |
| Thran Power Suit | 31% | +30% |
| Eternal Thirst | 32% | +30% |
| Mithril Coat | 35% | +29% |
| The Toymaker's Trap | 28% | +28% |
| Crawlspace | 29% | +28% |
💰 The best cards for your Gollum, Scheming Guide 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.
- Vorpal Sword
- Blackblade Reforged
- Explorer's Scope
- Brass Squire
- Lashwrithe
- Nightmare Lash
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Sword of the Animist
- Call of the Ring
- Bilbo's Ring
- Pact Weapon
- Silent Arbiter
- Witch-king of Angmar
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Mithril Coat
- Commander's Plate
- The One Ring
- Shadowspear
- Excalibur, Sword of Eden
- The Black Gate
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Gollum, Scheming Guide
- Sanguine Bond + Exquisite Blood → Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite lifegain
- Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose + Exquisite Blood → Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite lifegain
- Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose + Bloodthirsty Conqueror → Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite lifegain
- Sanguine Bond + Bloodthirsty Conqueror → Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite lifegain
- Exquisite Blood + Enduring Tenacity → Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite lifegain
- Bloodchief Ascension + Mindcrank → Infinite mill, Near-infinite lifegain, Near-infinite lifegain triggers, Near-infinite lifeloss
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Gollum, Scheming Guide's color identity?
Gollum, Scheming Guide 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 Gollum, Scheming Guide come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Gollum, Scheming Guide deck (the 99 cards most played with it, with 38 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 2.1 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 11 %. Deck health: B (72/100).
How many lands should a Gollum, Scheming Guide deck run?
Real Gollum, Scheming Guide decks run 38 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 Gollum, Scheming Guide?
The three highest-synergy cards are Vorpal Sword, Blackblade Reforged, Explorer's Scope. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Gollum, Scheming Guide decks.
What combos does Gollum, Scheming Guide have?
Gollum, Scheming Guide 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 Gollum, Scheming Guide deck cost?
You can start cheap: Vorpal Sword, Blackblade Reforged, Explorer's Scope 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.