EDH Optimizer
Ian Malcolm, Chaotician
Legendary Creature — Human Scientist · 1UR
Color identity: Red · Blue · Izzet
Ian Malcolm, Chaotician is Izzet (red and blue): its deck can only run cards of those colors plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Whenever a player draws their second card each turn, that player exiles the top card of their library.
During each player's turn, that player may cast a spell from among the cards they don't own exiled with Ian Malcolm, and mana of any type can be spent to cast it.
Reference price of the card: €3.61
Average lands in decks for Ian Malcolm, Chaotician: 34
ChaosWheelsGroup HugCard DrawExileTheftGroup SlugControl
Build your Ian Malcolm, Chaotician deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Ian Malcolm, Chaotician 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Ian Malcolm, Chaotician 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 (42/100)
- Consistency82
- Speed40
- Interaction45
- Resilience75
- Closing8
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 34 lands (22 nonbasic, 4 Island, 8 Mountain)
Sol Ring · Howling Mine · Arcane Signet · Dictate of Kruphix · Kami of the Crescent Moon · Chaos Warp · Fevered Visions · Thought Vessel · Vision Skeins · The Twelfth Doctor · Windfall · Temple Bell · Izzet Signet · Arcane Denial · Burning Inquiry · Red Death, Shipwrecker · Wild-Magic Sorcerer · Scrawling Crawler · Talisman of Creativity · Humble Defector · Brand · Memory Worm · Share the Spoils · Etali, Primal Storm · Plargg and Nassari · Blasphemous Act · Teferi's Puzzle Box · Noggle Ransacker · Zurzoth, Chaos Rider · Perplexing Chimera · Invert Polarity · Guff Rewrites History · Counterspell · Possibility Storm · Minds Aglow · Faerie Mastermind · Folio of Fancies · Tempt with Mayhem · Lore Broker · Wild Magic Surge · Forced Fruition · Homunculus Horde · Nalfeshnee · Hive Mind · Propaganda · Fellwar Stone · Powerbalance · Warp World · Chaos Mutation · Font of Mythos · Flaming Tyrannosaurus · Decanter of Endless Water · Winds of Change · Neera, Wild Mage · The Locust God · Ensnared by the Mara · Scrambleverse · Mizzix, Replica Rider · Psychosis Crawler · Passionate Archaeologist · Razorkin Needlehead · Thieves' Auction · Prosperity · Magus of the Wheel · Zenith Chronicler · Command Tower · Sulfur Falls · Reliquary Tower · Stormcarved Coast · Shivan Reef · Geier Reach Sanitarium · Mikokoro, Center of the Sea · Frostboil Snarl · Exotic Orchard · Training Center · Steam Vents · Cascade Bluffs · Temple of Epiphany · Izzet Boilerworks · Homeward Path · Scalding Tarn · Riverglide Pathway // Lavaglide Pathway · Ferrous Lake · Myriad Landscape · Evolving Wilds · Mystic Sanctuary · Riverpyre Verge
🃏 Recommended cards for Ian Malcolm, Chaotician
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Ian Malcolm, Chaotician, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Howling Mine | 87% | +84% |
| Dictate of Kruphix | 82% | +80% |
| Kami of the Crescent Moon | 79% | +77% |
| Fevered Visions | 76% | +74% |
| Vision Skeins | 68% | +67% |
| The Twelfth Doctor | 62% | +60% |
| Temple Bell | 60% | +59% |
| Red Death, Shipwrecker | 56% | +54% |
| Burning Inquiry | 56% | +54% |
| Wild-Magic Sorcerer | 55% | +53% |
| Scrawling Crawler | 54% | +51% |
| Humble Defector | 53% | +51% |
| Memory Worm | 52% | +51% |
| Brand | 52% | +51% |
| Geier Reach Sanitarium | 53% | +50% |
| Mikokoro, Center of the Sea | 51% | +50% |
| Share the Spoils | 51% | +50% |
| Zurzoth, Chaos Rider | 46% | +45% |
| Noggle Ransacker | 46% | +45% |
| Plargg and Nassari | 47% | +45% |
| Etali, Primal Storm | 49% | +44% |
| Perplexing Chimera | 45% | +44% |
| Teferi's Puzzle Box | 46% | +44% |
| Guff Rewrites History | 44% | +42% |
💰 The best cards for your Ian Malcolm, Chaotician 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.
- Howling Mine
- Dictate of Kruphix
- Fevered Visions
- Vision Skeins
- The Twelfth Doctor
- Red Death, Shipwrecker
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Kami of the Crescent Moon
- Temple Bell
- Burning Inquiry
- Wild-Magic Sorcerer
- Scrawling Crawler
- Mikokoro, Center of the Sea
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Faerie Mastermind
- Passionate Archaeologist
- Keeper of Secrets
- Anvil of Bogardan
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Ian Malcolm, Chaotician
- 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
- 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
- Curiosity + Niv-Mizzet, Parun → Infinite draw triggers, Infinite card draw, Near-infinite damage
- Niv-Mizzet, Parun + Niv-Mizzet, Visionary → Near-infinite damage, Infinite card draw, Infinite draw triggers
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Ian Malcolm, Chaotician's color identity?
Ian Malcolm, Chaotician is Izzet (red and blue): its deck can only run cards of those colors 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 Ian Malcolm, Chaotician come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Ian Malcolm, Chaotician deck (the 99 cards most played with it, with 34 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 3.1 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 32 % of the time and floods 5 %. Deck health: D (42/100).
How many lands should a Ian Malcolm, Chaotician deck run?
Real Ian Malcolm, Chaotician decks run 34 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 Ian Malcolm, Chaotician?
The three highest-synergy cards are Howling Mine, Dictate of Kruphix, Kami of the Crescent Moon. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Ian Malcolm, Chaotician decks.
What combos does Ian Malcolm, Chaotician have?
Ian Malcolm, Chaotician 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 Ian Malcolm, Chaotician deck cost?
You can start cheap: Howling Mine, Dictate of Kruphix, Fevered Visions 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.