EDH Optimizer
Zhao, the Seething Flame
Legendary Creature — Human Soldier · 4R
Color identity: Red
Zhao, the Seething Flame is red: its deck can only run cards of that color plus colorless ones.
Rules text:
Menace (This creature can't be blocked except by two or more creatures.)
Reference price of the card: €0.13
Average lands in decks for Zhao, the Seething Flame: 43
Build your Zhao, the Seething Flame deck step by step, with in-depth analysis and AI optimization of your list.
🛠️ Build a deck for Zhao, the Seething Flame 📥 Analyze my deck🎲 How the average Zhao, the Seething Flame 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 (72/100)
- Consistency72
- Speed59
- Interaction62
- Resilience62
- Closing99
See the cards of the average deck · 99 cards, 42 lands (19 nonbasic, 23 Mountain)
Desert Were-Worm · Vision of Love · Arcane Signet · Blasphemous Act · Commander's Sphere · Fiery Fall · Mind Stone · Sol Ring · Star of Extinction · Wayfarer's Bauble · All Is Dust · Anticausal Vestige · Aurora Phoenix · Boarding Party · Call Forth the Tempest · Casey Jones, Back Alley Brute · Cavern-Hoard Dragon · Chancellor of the Forge · Charred Foyer // Warped Space · Chimil, the Inner Sun · Combustible Gearhulk · Confusion in the Ranks · Coveted Jewel · Divergent Transformations · Everflowing Chalice · Faithless Looting · Firbolg Flutist · Fire Diamond · Havoc Jester · Hellkite Tyrant · Hideous Taskmaster · Incinerator of the Guilty · Ingenuity Engine · Kuldotha Rebirth · Let the Galaxy Burn · Meteoric Mace · Mindslaver · Mole Module · Nexus of Becoming · Oblivion Sower · Oliphaunt · Overlord of the Boilerbilges · Rampaging War Mammoth · Rolling Hamsphere · Ruin Grinder · Slice and Dice · Spiked Corridor // Torture Pit · Spitebellows · Steel Hellkite · Threefold Thunderhulk · Timesifter · Triple Triad · Trumpeting Carnosaur · Tyrant's Familiar · Ultimate Magic: Meteor · Unexpected Windfall · Volcanic Vision · Myriad Landscape · Rogue's Passage · Sunken Citadel · Temple of the False God · Branch of Vitu-Ghazi · Crystal Vein · Mirrex · Scavenger Grounds · Sokenzan, Crucible of Defiance · Untaidake, the Cloud Keeper · Abstergo Entertainment · Blast Zone · Drownyard Temple · Foundry of the Consuls · Fountainport · Kher Keep · Sandstone Needle · Spinerock Knoll · Terrain Generator
🃏 Recommended cards for Zhao, the Seething Flame
The highest-synergy cards in decks for Zhao, the Seething Flame, with their inclusion rate.
| Card | Inclusion | Synergy |
|---|---|---|
| Vision of Love | 50% | +45% |
| Fiery Fall | 44% | +44% |
| Sunken Citadel | 44% | +44% |
| Desert Were-Worm | 50% | +43% |
| Star of Extinction | 44% | +43% |
| Commander's Sphere | 44% | +37% |
| Temple of the False God | 44% | +36% |
| Branch of Vitu-Ghazi | 33% | +33% |
| Untaidake, the Cloud Keeper | 33% | +33% |
| Mole Module | 33% | +33% |
| Rolling Hamsphere | 33% | +33% |
| Timesifter | 33% | +33% |
| Slice and Dice | 33% | +33% |
| Let the Galaxy Burn | 33% | +33% |
| Rampaging War Mammoth | 33% | +33% |
| Spitebellows | 33% | +33% |
| Divergent Transformations | 33% | +33% |
| Havoc Jester | 33% | +33% |
| Oblivion Sower | 33% | +33% |
| Mirrex | 33% | +33% |
| Mindslaver | 33% | +33% |
| Nexus of Becoming | 33% | +33% |
| Volcanic Vision | 33% | +33% |
| Ultimate Magic: Meteor | 33% | +33% |
💰 The best cards for your Zhao, the Seething Flame 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.
- Vision of Love
- Fiery Fall
- Sunken Citadel
- Desert Were-Worm
- Star of Extinction
- Commander's Sphere
Tier 2 · Balanced up to €10/card
The real step up: pieces that are no longer cheap but still sensible.
- Divergent Transformations
- All Is Dust
- Confusion in the Ranks
- Overlord of the Boilerbilges
- Chimil, the Inner Sun
- Crystal Vein
Tier 3 · No cap no cap
The cards your price cap was hiding from you.
- Spiked Corridor // Torture Pit
- Call Forth the Tempest
- Cavern-Hoard Dragon
- Ugin, Eye of the Storms
Reference prices (cheapest English printing). They change daily.
♾️ Known combos with Zhao, the Seething Flame
- Magmatic Galleon + Havoc Jester → Infinite colored mana
Other commanders
Frequently asked questions
What is Zhao, the Seething Flame's color identity?
Zhao, the Seething Flame is red: 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 Zhao, the Seething Flame come down, and how often does the deck get stuck?
In the average Zhao, the Seething Flame deck (the 99 cards most played with it, with 42 lands), simulated 4,000 times, the commander comes down on turn 4.2 on average and is on the battlefield before turn 7 in 99 % of games. It misses at least one land drop in the first six turns 11 % of the time and floods 11 %. Deck health: B (72/100).
How many lands should a Zhao, the Seething Flame deck run?
Real Zhao, the Seething Flame decks run 43 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 Zhao, the Seething Flame?
The three highest-synergy cards are Vision of Love, Fiery Fall, Sunken Citadel. This page lists the top 24 with their real inclusion rate in Zhao, the Seething Flame decks.
What combos does Zhao, the Seething Flame have?
Zhao, the Seething Flame has 1 known combo. The most popular one is Magmatic Galleon + Havoc Jester. 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 Zhao, the Seething Flame deck cost?
You can start cheap: Vision of Love, Fiery Fall, Sunken Citadel 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.