EDH Optimizer
Saruman of Many Colors
Legendary Creature — Avatar Wizard · 3WUB
Color identity: Black · Blue · White · Esper
Saruman of Many Colors is Esper (black, blue and white): its deck can only run cards of those colors plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Ward—Discard an enchantment, instant, or sorcery card.
Whenever you cast your second spell each turn, each opponent mills two cards. When one or more cards are milled this way, exile target enchantment, instant, or sorcery card with equal or lesser mana value than that spell from an opponent's graveyard. Copy the exiled card. You may cast the copy without paying its mana cost.
Reference price of the card: €1.07
Average lands in decks for Saruman of Many Colors: 34
MillSpellslingerControlTheftReanimatorComboGraveyardCantrips
Build your Saruman of Many Colors deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Saruman of Many Colors 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Saruman of Many Colors 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: B+ (76/100)
- Consistency48
- Speed46
- Interaction97
- Resilience94
- Closing94
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 34 lands (24 nonbasic, 1 Plains, 7 Island, 2 Swamp)
Arcane Signet · Sol Ring · Storm of Saruman · Swords to Plowshares · Consuming Aberration · Path to Exile · Talisman of Dominance · Brainstorm · Frantic Search · Lotho, Corrupt Shirriff · Counterspell · The Water Crystal · Dark Ritual · Gríma, Saruman's Footman · Talisman of Progress · Ruin Crab · Breach the Multiverse · Maddening Cacophony · Archmage Emeritus · Singularity Rupture · Drown in the Loch · Thought Scour · Opt · Void Rend · Dimir Signet · Fellwar Stone · Fractured Sanity · Press the Enemy · Talisman of Hierarchy · Alisaie Leveilleur · Propaganda · Consider · Syr Konrad, the Grim · Alphinaud Leveilleur · Azorius Signet · Mindcrank · Ponder · Psychic Corrosion · Wizard's Staff · Windfall · Reanimate · Sorcerous Squall · Uthros Psionicist · Arcane Denial · Memory Plunder · Dovin's Veto · Preordain · The Council of Four · Bruvac the Grandiloquent · Dig Through Time · Thought Vessel · Ghostly Prison · Orzhov Signet · Anguished Unmaking · Palantír of Orthanc · Exhibition Tidecaller · Memory Erosion · Smothering Tithe · Supreme Verdict · The Mindskinner · An Offer You Can't Refuse · Extract from Darkness · Saruman the White · Snap · Notion Thief · Command Tower · Exotic Orchard · Arcane Sanctum · Glacial Fortress · Watery Grave · Sunken Hollow · Drowned Catacomb · Hallowed Fountain · Godless Shrine · Raffine's Tower · Reliquary Tower · Prairie Stream · Isolated Chapel · Flooded Strand · Sea of Clouds · Morphic Pool · Polluted Delta · Marsh Flats · Vault of Champions · Underground River · Shipwreck Marsh · Adarkar Wastes · Evolving Wilds · Jidoor, Aristocratic Capital // Overture
🃏 Recommended cards for Saruman of Many Colors
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Saruman of Many Colors, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Storm of Saruman | 68% | +66% |
| Consuming Aberration | 56% | +55% |
| The Water Crystal | 51% | +49% |
| Gríma, Saruman's Footman | 49% | +47% |
| Ruin Crab | 48% | +47% |
| Maddening Cacophony | 47% | +46% |
| Breach the Multiverse | 47% | +45% |
| Singularity Rupture | 46% | +44% |
| Thought Scour | 44% | +43% |
| Drown in the Loch | 45% | +43% |
| Archmage Emeritus | 46% | +40% |
| Opt | 43% | +39% |
| Fractured Sanity | 40% | +39% |
| Press the Enemy | 40% | +38% |
| Consider | 38% | +35% |
| Brainstorm | 52% | +35% |
| Lotho, Corrupt Shirriff | 52% | +35% |
| Psychic Corrosion | 36% | +35% |
| Mindcrank | 36% | +34% |
| Uthros Psionicist | 34% | +34% |
| Sorcerous Squall | 34% | +34% |
| Frantic Search | 52% | +33% |
| Syr Konrad, the Grim | 38% | +33% |
| Memory Plunder | 33% | +32% |
💰 The best cards for your Saruman of Many Colors 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.
- Consuming Aberration
- Ruin Crab
- Singularity Rupture
- Thought Scour
- Drown in the Loch
- Archmage Emeritus
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Storm of Saruman
- The Water Crystal
- Gríma, Saruman's Footman
- Maddening Cacophony
- Breach the Multiverse
- Lotho, Corrupt Shirriff
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Bruvac the Grandiloquent
- Palantír of Orthanc
- Mesmeric Orb
- Zellix, Sanity Flayer
- Bloodchief Ascension
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Saruman of Many Colors
- Hullbreaker Horror + Sol Ring → Infinite colorless mana, Infinite storm count
- Demonic Consultation + Thassa's Oracle → Exile your library, Win the game
- Tainted Pact + Thassa's Oracle → Win the game
- 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
- Bloodchief Ascension + Mindcrank → Infinite mill, Near-infinite lifegain, Near-infinite lifegain triggers, Near-infinite lifeloss
- Bruvac the Grandiloquent + Maddening Cacophony → Infinite mill
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Saruman of Many Colors's color identity?
Saruman of Many Colors is Esper (black, blue and white): 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 Saruman of Many Colors come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Saruman of Many Colors deck (the 99 most-included cards per EDHREC, with 34 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 5.7 on average and is on the battlefield before turn 7 in 91 % of games. It misses at least one land drop in the first six turns 21 % of the time and floods 20 %. Deck health: B+ (76/100).
How many lands should a Saruman of Many Colors deck run?
Real Saruman of Many Colors 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 Saruman of Many Colors?
The three highest-synergy cards are Storm of Saruman, Consuming Aberration, The Water Crystal. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Saruman of Many Colors decks.
What combos does Saruman of Many Colors have?
Saruman of Many Colors 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 Saruman of Many Colors deck cost?
You can start cheap: Consuming Aberration, Ruin Crab, Singularity Rupture 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.