EDH Optimizer
Xande, Dark Mage
Legendary Creature — Human Wizard · 2UB
Color identity: Black · Blue · Dimir
Xande, Dark Mage is Dimir (black and blue): its deck can only run cards of those colors plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Menace (This creature can't be blocked except by two or more creatures.)
Xande gets +1/+1 for each noncreature, nonland card in your graveyard.
Reference price of the card: €0.33
Average lands in decks for Xande, Dark Mage: 35
VoltronSpellslingerControlMillSelf-MillGraveyardReanimatorDiscard
Build your Xande, Dark Mage deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Xande, Dark Mage 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Xande, Dark Mage 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+ (74/100)
- Consistency36
- Speed43
- Interaction100
- Resilience87
- Closing98
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 35 lands (23 nonbasic, 8 Island, 4 Swamp)
Arcane Signet · Sol Ring · Consider · Talisman of Dominance · Counterspell · Dimir Signet · Swiftfoot Boots · Frantic Search · Enter the Enigma · An Offer You Can't Refuse · Dark Ritual · Fact or Fiction · Fandaniel, Telophoroi Ascian · Mind Stone · Opt · Preordain · Windfall · Brainstorm · Dreams of Laguna · Feed the Swarm · Haughty Djinn · Propaganda · Aqueous Form · Archmage Emeritus · Resentful Revelation · Thought Scour · Ripples of Undeath · Toxic Deluge · Negate · Withering Torment · Ponder · Otherworldly Gaze · Singularity Rupture · Archmage of Runes · Overkill · Wayfarer's Bauble · Lightning Greaves · Slip Through Space · Arcane Denial · Mandate of Abaddon · Reanimate · Thought Vessel · Vohar, Vodalian Desecrator · Fell the Profane // Fell Mire · Sink into Stupor // Soporific Springs · Circle of Power · Aetherize · Fellwar Stone · Infernal Grasp · Talrand, Sky Summoner · Transpose · Waterlogged Teachings // Inundated Archive · Baleful Strix · Swan Song · Wonder · Commander's Sphere · Lier, Disciple of the Drowned · Pongify · Artful Dodge · Go for the Throat · Deadly Rollick · Rona, Sheoldred's Faithful · Baral, Chief of Compliance · Breach the Multiverse · Command Tower · Sunken Hollow · Drowned Catacomb · Rogue's Passage · Watery Grave · Choked Estuary · Shipwreck Marsh · Undercity Sewers · Underground River · Bojuka Bog · Morphic Pool · Tainted Isle · Polluted Delta · Gloomlake Verge · Mystic Sanctuary · Temple of Deceit · Dimir Aqueduct · Reliquary Tower · Darkwater Catacombs · Exotic Orchard · Sunken Ruins · Treno, Dark City · Evolving Wilds
🃏 Recommended cards for Xande, Dark Mage
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Xande, Dark Mage, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Consider | 55% | +42% |
| Enter the Enigma | 45% | +41% |
| Fandaniel, Telophoroi Ascian | 42% | +40% |
| Dreams of Laguna | 39% | +38% |
| Haughty Djinn | 38% | +37% |
| Resentful Revelation | 37% | +36% |
| Archmage Emeritus | 37% | +33% |
| Fact or Fiction | 42% | +33% |
| Ripples of Undeath | 36% | +32% |
| Opt | 42% | +31% |
| Frantic Search | 50% | +30% |
| Thought Scour | 37% | +30% |
| Preordain | 40% | +30% |
| Aqueous Form | 37% | +30% |
| Archmage of Runes | 32% | +30% |
| Overkill | 32% | +30% |
| Slip Through Space | 30% | +29% |
| Mandate of Abaddon | 29% | +28% |
| Otherworldly Gaze | 33% | +27% |
| Windfall | 40% | +26% |
| Swiftfoot Boots | 51% | +26% |
| Circle of Power | 27% | +26% |
| Transpose | 26% | +26% |
| Vohar, Vodalian Desecrator | 29% | +26% |
💰 The best cards for your Xande, Dark Mage 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.
- Consider
- Enter the Enigma
- Fandaniel, Telophoroi Ascian
- Dreams of Laguna
- Haughty Djinn
- Resentful Revelation
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Ripples of Undeath
- Archmage of Runes
- Mandate of Abaddon
- Windfall
- Propaganda
- Brotherhood Regalia
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Undercity Sewers
- Palantír of Orthanc
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Xande, Dark Mage
- 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
- Hullbreaker Horror + Mana Vault → Infinite colorless mana, Infinite storm count
- Hullbreaker Horror + Mox Amber → Infinite creature ETB, Infinite creature LTB, Infinite colored mana, Infinite storm count
- Tidespout Tyrant + Sol Ring → Infinite colorless mana, Infinite storm count
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Xande, Dark Mage's color identity?
Xande, Dark Mage is Dimir (black 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 Xande, Dark Mage come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Xande, Dark Mage deck (the 99 most-included cards per EDHREC, with 35 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 3.7 on average and is on the battlefield before turn 7 in 100 % of games. It misses at least one land drop in the first six turns 20 % of the time and floods 35 %. Deck health: B+ (74/100).
How many lands should a Xande, Dark Mage deck run?
Real Xande, Dark Mage 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 Xande, Dark Mage?
The three highest-synergy cards are Consider, Enter the Enigma, Fandaniel, Telophoroi Ascian. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Xande, Dark Mage decks.
What combos does Xande, Dark Mage have?
Xande, Dark Mage 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 Xande, Dark Mage deck cost?
You can start cheap: Consider, Enter the Enigma, Fandaniel, Telophoroi Ascian 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.