EDH Optimizer
Sauron, the Necromancer
Legendary Creature — Avatar Horror · 3BB
Color identity: Black
Sauron, the Necromancer is black: its deck can only run cards of that color plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Menace
Whenever Sauron attacks, exile target creature card from your graveyard. Create a tapped and attacking token that's a copy of that card, except it's a 3/3 black Wraith with menace. At the beginning of the next end step, exile that token unless Sauron is your Ring-bearer.
Reference price of the card: €0.36
Average lands in decks for Sauron, the Necromancer: 35
ReanimatorWraithsGraveyardSelf-MillMillThe RingTokensAristocrats
Build your Sauron, the Necromancer deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Sauron, the Necromancer 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Sauron, the Necromancer 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+ (74/100)
- Consistency62
- Speed55
- Interaction74
- Resilience85
- Closing94
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 35 lands (12 nonbasic, 23 Swamp)
Call of the Ring · Nazgûl · Sol Ring · Witch-king of Angmar · Claim the Precious · Sam's Desperate Rescue · Arcane Signet · Dark Ritual · Gray Merchant of Asphodel · Gollum, Patient Plotter · Jet Medallion · One Ring to Rule Them All · Ringwraiths · Reanimate · Feed the Swarm · Buried Alive · Inherited Envelope · Massacre Wurm · Stitcher's Supplier · Witch-king, Bringer of Ruin · Swiftfoot Boots · Crypt Ghast · Uruk-hai Berserker · Victimize · Lightning Greaves · Palantír of Orthanc · Vile Entomber · Syr Konrad, the Grim · Gothmog, Morgul Lieutenant · Archon of Cruelty · The Black Breath · Nasty End · Phyrexian Arena · The One Ring · Entomb · Solemn Simulacrum · Noxious Gearhulk · Toxic Deluge · Orcish Bowmasters · Ripples of Undeath · Sepulchral Primordial · Voracious Fell Beast · Archpriest of Shadows · Gollum's Bite · Mind Stone · Mirkwood Bats · Village Rites · Night's Whisper · Ayara, First of Locthwain · Go for the Throat · Troll of Khazad-dûm · Defile · Living Death · Animate Dead · Bontu's Monument · Orcish Medicine · Sheoldred, Whispering One · Sign in Blood · Mithril Coat · Plaguecrafter · Ravenous Chupacabra · Black Market Connections · Fell Beast of Mordor · The Darkness Crystal · Cabal Coffers · Bojuka Bog · Barad-dûr · Minas Morgul, Dark Fortress · Rogue's Passage · The Black Gate · Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth · Cabal Stronghold · Myriad Landscape · Phyrexian Tower · Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx · Takenuma, Abandoned Mire
🃏 Recommended cards for Sauron, the Necromancer
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Sauron, the Necromancer, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Nazgûl | 87% | +86% |
| Call of the Ring | 88% | +86% |
| Witch-king of Angmar | 76% | +75% |
| Claim the Precious | 73% | +72% |
| Sam's Desperate Rescue | 67% | +66% |
| Gollum, Patient Plotter | 64% | +63% |
| One Ring to Rule Them All | 64% | +63% |
| Ringwraiths | 61% | +60% |
| Inherited Envelope | 54% | +54% |
| Witch-king, Bringer of Ruin | 49% | +49% |
| Uruk-hai Berserker | 47% | +47% |
| Barad-dûr | 47% | +44% |
| Palantír of Orthanc | 45% | +43% |
| Buried Alive | 56% | +43% |
| Stitcher's Supplier | 49% | +43% |
| Minas Morgul, Dark Fortress | 45% | +42% |
| Gothmog, Morgul Lieutenant | 43% | +42% |
| The Black Breath | 42% | +41% |
| Vile Entomber | 45% | +39% |
| Nasty End | 41% | +38% |
| Archon of Cruelty | 42% | +37% |
| Voracious Fell Beast | 34% | +33% |
| Gollum's Bite | 33% | +32% |
| Massacre Wurm | 49% | +32% |
💰 The best cards for your Sauron, the Necromancer 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.
- Claim the Precious
- Sam's Desperate Rescue
- Gollum, Patient Plotter
- One Ring to Rule Them All
- Ringwraiths
- Inherited Envelope
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Call of the Ring
- Witch-king of Angmar
- Witch-king, Bringer of Ruin
- Archon of Cruelty
- Massacre Wurm
- Ripples of Undeath
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Nazgûl
- Palantír of Orthanc
- Minas Morgul, Dark Fortress
- The Black Gate
- The One Ring
- Entomb
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Sauron, the Necromancer
- 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
- Gravecrawler + Phyrexian Altar → Infinite death triggers, Infinite creature ETB, Infinite creature LTB, Infinite creature sacrifice triggers, Infinite storm count
- Exquisite Blood + Enduring Tenacity → Infinite lifegain triggers, Infinite lifeloss, Infinite lifegain
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Sauron, the Necromancer's color identity?
Sauron, the Necromancer 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 Sauron, the Necromancer come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Sauron, the Necromancer deck (the 99 cards most played with it, with 35 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 4.8 on average and is on the battlefield before turn 7 in 96 % of games. It misses at least one land drop in the first six turns 33 % of the time and floods 14 %. Deck health: B+ (74/100).
How many lands should a Sauron, the Necromancer deck run?
Real Sauron, the Necromancer decks run 35 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 Sauron, the Necromancer?
The three highest-synergy cards are Nazgûl, Call of the Ring, Witch-king of Angmar. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Sauron, the Necromancer decks.
What combos does Sauron, the Necromancer have?
Sauron, the Necromancer 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 Sauron, the Necromancer deck cost?
You can start cheap: Claim the Precious, Sam's Desperate Rescue, Gollum, Patient Plotter 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.