EDH Optimizer
Zara, Renegade Recruiter
Legendary Creature — Human Pirate · 3UR
Color identity: Red · Blue · Izzet
Zara, Renegade Recruiter is Izzet (red and blue): its deck can only run cards of those colors plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Flying
Whenever Zara attacks, look at defending player's hand. You may put a creature card from it onto the battlefield under your control tapped and attacking that player or a planeswalker they control. Return that creature to its owner's hand at the beginning of the next end step.
Reference price of the card: €0.17
Comes in the precon Ahoy Mateys
Average lands in decks for Zara, Renegade Recruiter: 35
TheftPiratesClonesTreasureAggroGroup HugBounceExtra Combats
Build your Zara, Renegade Recruiter deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Zara, Renegade Recruiter 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Zara, Renegade Recruiter 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 (72/100)
- Consistency31
- Speed44
- Interaction100
- Resilience80
- Closing98
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 35 lands (20 nonbasic, 8 Island, 7 Mountain)
Sol Ring · Arcane Signet · Izzet Signet · Telepathy · Talisman of Creativity · Swiftfoot Boots · Coercive Recruiter · Lightning Greaves · Counterspell · Captivating Crew · Ghostly Flicker · Conjurer's Closet · Sundial of the Infinite · Fling · Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator · Blasphemous Act · Port Razer · Protean Raider · Breeches, Brazen Plunderer · Chaos Warp · Glasses of Urza · Snap · Breeches, Eager Pillager · Aetherize · Mind Stone · Run Away Together · Siren Stormtamer · Thassa, Deep-Dwelling · Thought Vessel · Dire Fleet Daredevil · Dominus of Fealty · Etali, Primal Storm · Fellwar Stone · Gitaxian Probe · Goblin Bombardment · Spark Double · Negate · Treasure Nabber · Cutthroat Negotiator · Peek · Unsummon · Windfall · Arcane Denial · Kazuul's Fury // Kazuul's Cliffs · Strionic Resonator · Aqueous Form · Ashnod's Altar · Invert Polarity · Insurrection · Mob Rule · Thieving Skydiver · Whispersilk Cloak · Agent of Treachery · Cursed Mirror · Merchant Raiders · Seize the Spotlight · Vandalblast · Act of Treason · Commander's Sphere · Thud · Discontinuity · Clever Impersonator · Mass Mutiny · Phantom Steed · Command Tower · Sulfur Falls · Shivan Reef · Rogue's Passage · Training Center · Frostboil Snarl · Steam Vents · Stormcarved Coast · Cascade Bluffs · Temple of Epiphany · Izzet Boilerworks · Exotic Orchard · High Market · Reliquary Tower · Path of Ancestry · Scalding Tarn · Myriad Landscape · Mystic Sanctuary · Riverglide Pathway // Lavaglide Pathway · Swiftwater Cliffs
🃏 Recommended cards for Zara, Renegade Recruiter
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Zara, Renegade Recruiter, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Telepathy | 56% | +55% |
| Coercive Recruiter | 51% | +49% |
| Captivating Crew | 46% | +45% |
| Sundial of the Infinite | 45% | +45% |
| Conjurer's Closet | 45% | +44% |
| Ghostly Flicker | 46% | +44% |
| Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator | 44% | +42% |
| Fling | 44% | +42% |
| Port Razer | 42% | +40% |
| Protean Raider | 40% | +39% |
| Glasses of Urza | 38% | +38% |
| Breeches, Brazen Plunderer | 38% | +37% |
| Breeches, Eager Pillager | 37% | +35% |
| Thassa, Deep-Dwelling | 34% | +34% |
| High Market | 32% | +32% |
| Rogue's Passage | 46% | +32% |
| Dominus of Fealty | 32% | +31% |
| Run Away Together | 35% | +31% |
| Siren Stormtamer | 35% | +31% |
| Dire Fleet Daredevil | 32% | +31% |
| Treasure Nabber | 30% | +28% |
| Cutthroat Negotiator | 29% | +28% |
| Goblin Bombardment | 31% | +28% |
| Etali, Primal Storm | 32% | +27% |
💰 The best cards for your Zara, Renegade Recruiter 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.
- Telepathy
- Coercive Recruiter
- Captivating Crew
- Ghostly Flicker
- Malcolm, Keen-Eyed Navigator
- Fling
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Conjurer's Closet
- Goblin Bombardment
- Spark Double
- Strionic Resonator
- Agent of Treachery
- Lightning Greaves
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Sundial of the Infinite
- Thassa, Deep-Dwelling
- Seize the Spotlight
- Pirated Copy
- Sakashima of a Thousand Faces
- Phyrexian Altar
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Zara, Renegade Recruiter
- Hullbreaker Horror + Sol Ring → Infinite colorless mana, Infinite storm count
- Dualcaster Mage + Twinflame → Infinite LTB, Infinite ETB, Infinite creature tokens with haste, Infinite magecraft triggers
- Niv-Mizzet, Parun + Curiosity → Infinite card draw, Near-infinite damage
- Reiterate + Jeska's Will → Infinite magecraft triggers, Infinite red mana, Infinite storm count, Exile your library with the ability to play the exiled cards until end of turn
- Narset's Reversal + Isochron Scepter → Infinite turns, Lock
- Reiterate + Mana Geyser → Infinite magecraft triggers, Infinite red mana, Infinite storm count
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Zara, Renegade Recruiter's color identity?
Zara, Renegade Recruiter 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 Zara, Renegade Recruiter come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Zara, Renegade Recruiter deck (the 99 most-included cards per EDHREC, with 35 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 4.7 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 25 % of the time and floods 24 %. Deck health: B (72/100).
How many lands should a Zara, Renegade Recruiter deck run?
Real Zara, Renegade Recruiter 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 Zara, Renegade Recruiter?
The three highest-synergy cards are Telepathy, Coercive Recruiter, Captivating Crew. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Zara, Renegade Recruiter decks.
What combos does Zara, Renegade Recruiter have?
Zara, Renegade Recruiter 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 Zara, Renegade Recruiter deck cost?
You can start cheap: Telepathy, Coercive Recruiter, Captivating Crew 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.