EDH Optimizer
Radioactive Man
Legendary Creature — Human Scientist Villain · 4B
Color identity: Black
Radioactive Man is black: its deck can only run cards of that color plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Deathtouch
Whenever Radioactive Man deals combat damage to a player, that player loses half their life, rounded up.
Reference price of the card: €0.21
Average lands in decks for Radioactive Man: 37
BurnComboDeathtouchLife ExchangeSnow
Build your Radioactive Man deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Radioactive Man 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Radioactive Man deck starts over 4,000 games
The list people actually play per EDHREC (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 (55/100)
- Consistency21
- Speed57
- Interaction49
- Resilience90
- Closing56
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 37 lands (14 nonbasic, 23 Swamp)
Dark Ritual · Swiftfoot Boots · Sol Ring · Kaya's Ghostform · Key to the City · Trailblazer's Boots · Arcane Signet · Bloodletter of Aclazotz · Jet Medallion · Lightning Greaves · Toxic Deluge · Dauthi Embrace · Feed the Swarm · Quietus Spike · Supernatural Stamina · Wound Reflection · Gray Merchant of Asphodel · Morbid Opportunist · Not Dead After All · Ophiomancer · Unstoppable Slasher · Bontu's Monument · Cabal Ritual · Deadly Rollick · Fireshrieker · Gifted Aetherborn · Nighthawk Scavenger · Sign in Blood · Undying Malice · Wayfarer's Bauble · Whispersilk Cloak · Bloodthirsty Conqueror · Crypt Ghast · Deadly Dispute · Extinction Event · Strionic Resonator · Thieves' Tools · Village Rites · Withering Torment · Animate Dead · Archfiend of Despair · Assassin Initiate · Blade of Selves · Charcoal Diamond · Dauthi Voidwalker · Defile · Filth · Hooded Blightfang · Mithril Coat · Night's Whisper · Phyrexian Arena · Plaguecrafter · Reanimate · Soul Shatter · Syr Konrad, the Grim · The Darkness Crystal · Warlock Class · Commander's Plate · Culling the Weak · Damnation · Dark Petition · Darksteel Plate · Rogue's Passage · Access Tunnel · Cabal Coffers · Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx · Witch's Cottage · Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth · Bojuka Bog · Phyrexian Tower · Mortuary Mire · Myriad Landscape · Shizo, Death's Storehouse · Cabal Stronghold · Castle Locthwain · War Room
🃏 Recommended cards for Radioactive Man
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Radioactive Man, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Key to the City | 71% | +69% |
| Trailblazer's Boots | 71% | +68% |
| Access Tunnel | 71% | +68% |
| Kaya's Ghostform | 71% | +61% |
| Quietus Spike | 59% | +58% |
| Dauthi Embrace | 59% | +57% |
| Rogue's Passage | 76% | +57% |
| Wound Reflection | 59% | +55% |
| Bloodletter of Aclazotz | 65% | +54% |
| Supernatural Stamina | 59% | +51% |
| Swiftfoot Boots | 82% | +51% |
| Unstoppable Slasher | 53% | +48% |
| Fireshrieker | 47% | +45% |
| Gifted Aetherborn | 47% | +44% |
| Nighthawk Scavenger | 47% | +42% |
| Not Dead After All | 53% | +42% |
| Whispersilk Cloak | 47% | +41% |
| Extinction Event | 41% | +41% |
| Strionic Resonator | 41% | +40% |
| Thieves' Tools | 41% | +40% |
| Undying Malice | 47% | +37% |
| Ophiomancer | 53% | +35% |
| Hooded Blightfang | 35% | +35% |
| Assassin Initiate | 35% | +35% |
💰 The best cards for your Radioactive Man 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.
- Key to the City
- Trailblazer's Boots
- Access Tunnel
- Kaya's Ghostform
- Quietus Spike
- Dauthi Embrace
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Wound Reflection
- Unstoppable Slasher
- Strionic Resonator
- Blade of Selves
- Filth
- Lightning Greaves
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Bloodletter of Aclazotz
- Archfiend of Despair
- Bloodthirsty Conqueror
- Mithril Coat
- Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx
- Shizo, Death's Storehouse
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Radioactive Man
- Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose + Bloodthirsty Conqueror → Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite lifegain
- Sensei's Divining Top + Aetherflux Reservoir + Bolas's Citadel → Infinite card draw, Infinite draw triggers, Near-infinite damage, Near-infinite lifegain, Near-infinite lifegain triggers, Near-infinite storm count
- Sensei's Divining Top + Bolas's Citadel + Sheoldred, the Apocalypse → Infinite card draw, Infinite draw triggers, Near-infinite lifegain, Near-infinite lifegain triggers, Near-infinite storm count
- Professor Onyx + Chain of Smog → Infinite lifegain, Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite magecraft triggers
- Unstoppable Slasher + Bloodletter of Aclazotz → Target opponent loses the game, Infinite lifeloss for target opponent
- Sheoldred, the Apocalypse + Vilis, Broker of Blood + Necropotence → Infinite card draw, Infinite draw triggers, Near-infinite lifegain, Near-infinite lifegain triggers, Near-infinite self-discard triggers, Near-infinite looting
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Radioactive Man's color identity?
Radioactive Man 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 Radioactive Man come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Radioactive Man deck (the 99 most-included cards per EDHREC, with 37 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 4.7 on average and is on the battlefield before turn 7 in 97 % of games. It misses at least one land drop in the first six turns 28 % of the time and floods 32 %. Deck health: C (55/100).
How many lands should a Radioactive Man deck run?
Real Radioactive Man decks run 37 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 Radioactive Man?
The three highest-synergy cards are Key to the City, Trailblazer's Boots, Access Tunnel. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Radioactive Man decks.
What combos does Radioactive Man have?
Radioactive Man has 6 known combos. The most popular one is Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose + Bloodthirsty Conqueror. 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 Radioactive Man deck cost?
You can start cheap: Key to the City, Trailblazer's Boots, Access Tunnel 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.