EDH Optimizer
Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior
Legendary Creature — Human Soldier Warrior · 3WW
Color identity: White
Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior is white: its deck can only run cards of that color plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Horsemanship (This creature can't be blocked except by creatures with horsemanship.)
When Guan Yu is put into your graveyard from the battlefield, you may shuffle Guan Yu into your library.
Reference price of the card: €15.71
Average lands in decks for Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior: 36
Build your Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior 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 (68/100)
- Consistency89
- Speed55
- Interaction73
- Resilience83
- Closing62
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 36 lands (5 nonbasic, 31 Plains)
Sol Ring · Path to Exile · Swords to Plowshares · Arcane Signet · Swiftfoot Boots · Shu General · Archaeomancer's Map · Generous Gift · Land Tax · Pearl Medallion · Liu Bei, Lord of Shu · Zhang Fei, Fierce Warrior · Zhao Zilong, Tiger General · Deathrender · Ghostly Prison · Lightning Greaves · Remembrance · Riding Red Hare · Shu Cavalry · Shu Elite Companions · The Wind Crystal · Wrath of God · Blackblade Reforged · Esper Sentinel · Marble Diamond · Open the Armory · Smothering Tithe · Cathars' Crusade · Enlightened Tutor · Keeper of the Accord · Mana Tithe · Reprieve · Sword of the Animist · Weathered Wayfarer · Guan Yu's 1,000-Li March · Idyllic Tutor · Mask of Memory · Rebuff the Wicked · Return to Dust · Tithe · Austere Command · Danitha Capashen, Paragon · Hero's Blade · Kongming, "Sleeping Dragon" · Oketra's Monument · Sevinne's Reclamation · Steelshaper's Gift · Sun Titan · Sword of Feast and Famine · Teferi's Protection · Kindred Judgment · Archivist of Oghma · Ashnod's Altar · Avenging Huntbonder · Bastion Protector · Blasting Station · Blind Obedience · Flawless Maneuver · Huang Zhong, Shu General · Mangara, the Diplomat · Monologue Tax · Phyrexian Altar · Sword of Hearth and Home · War Room · Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx · Rogue's Passage · Emeria, the Sky Ruin · Myriad Landscape
🃏 Recommended cards for Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Shu General | 54% | +54% |
| Liu Bei, Lord of Shu | 46% | +46% |
| Zhao Zilong, Tiger General | 46% | +46% |
| Zhang Fei, Fierce Warrior | 46% | +46% |
| Shu Elite Companions | 42% | +42% |
| Shu Cavalry | 42% | +42% |
| Riding Red Hare | 42% | +42% |
| Deathrender | 42% | +42% |
| Remembrance | 42% | +42% |
| Blackblade Reforged | 38% | +32% |
| Guan Yu's 1,000-Li March | 31% | +31% |
| Tithe | 31% | +29% |
| Wrath of God | 42% | +29% |
| Kongming, "Sleeping Dragon" | 27% | +27% |
| Hero's Blade | 27% | +26% |
| Open the Armory | 38% | +25% |
| Return to Dust | 31% | +24% |
| Archaeomancer's Map | 50% | +24% |
| Mask of Memory | 31% | +23% |
| Mana Tithe | 35% | +23% |
| Huang Zhong, Shu General | 23% | +23% |
| Avenging Huntbonder | 23% | +23% |
| Idyllic Tutor | 31% | +23% |
| Weathered Wayfarer | 35% | +22% |
💰 The best cards for your Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior 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.
- Shu Elite Companions
- Shu Cavalry
- Deathrender
- Blackblade Reforged
- Wrath of God
- Kongming, "Sleeping Dragon"
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Shu General
- Riding Red Hare
- Remembrance
- Open the Armory
- Idyllic Tutor
- Blasting Station
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Liu Bei, Lord of Shu
- Zhao Zilong, Tiger General
- Zhang Fei, Fierce Warrior
- Guan Yu's 1,000-Li March
- Tithe
- Huang Zhong, Shu General
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior
- Rings of Brighthearth + Basalt Monolith → Infinite colorless mana
- Ashnod's Altar + Cathars' Crusade → Infinite creature ETB, Infinite creature LTB, Infinite +1/+1 counters on most creatures you control, Infinite colorless mana, Infinite death triggers, Infinite creature sacrifice triggers
- Karn, the Great Creator + Mycosynth Lattice → Activated abilities of permanents your opponents control can't be activated, Activated abilities can't be activated, Lock, Mass Land Denial
- Approach of the Second Sun + Reprieve → Win the game
- Ondu Spiritdancer + Secret Arcade // Dusty Parlor → Infinite creature ETB, Infinite creature tokens
- Cathars' Crusade + Phyrexian Altar → Infinite +1/+1 counters on most creatures you control, Infinite creature ETB, Infinite creature LTB, Infinite colored mana, Infinite death triggers, Infinite creature sacrifice triggers
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior's color identity?
Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior is white: 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 Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior deck (the 99 cards most played with it, with 36 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 4.6 on average and is on the battlefield before turn 7 in 98 % of games. It misses at least one land drop in the first six turns 26 % of the time and floods 17 %. Deck health: B (68/100).
How many lands should a Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior deck run?
Real Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior 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 Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior?
The three highest-synergy cards are Shu General, Liu Bei, Lord of Shu, Zhao Zilong, Tiger General. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior decks.
What combos does Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior have?
Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior has 6 known combos. The most popular one is Rings of Brighthearth + Basalt Monolith. 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 Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior deck cost?
You can start cheap: Shu Elite Companions, Shu Cavalry, Deathrender 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.