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EDH Card-Draw Master List

Unknown Primer

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Blue (348)

White (71)

Gold (234)

Green (120)

Black (153)

Colorless (131)

Red (107)

A reference for all the draw/card advantage I like for EDH.

We all know the best ones and there are plenty of other lists out there for the stand-outs. This list is for reference in case people need a budget alternative or if a specific commander can take advantage of a card's quirky properties or someone needs a card at a specific CMC.

Cards are listed by CMC by default. Change that if you want to.

For fun, I have included the promo versions of all the cards that have one.

I'm trying to include a lot, including obscure stuff, but not the stuff that is too specific. If it's a legendary creature that has specific card draw I'll include it since they can be commanders.

I know cards like Cathartic Reunion and Wild Guess aren't technically card advantage. Since Red is so poor in the area of draw, I'll include these cards. Same with "impulsive draw" cards like Outpost Siege.

I'm on the fence about including looting and rummaging effects (Merfolk Looter/Rummaging Goblin). Probably will exclude most of them just to keep the list smaller. Then again, there aren't too many ones that I consider good enough for this list. Obviously decks that can take advantage of their graveyards will want them, and colors like Red would want them for the card selection. I'll include some of the better ones, especially if the card has other up-side.

I'm trying not to include cards that just cantrip unless they're particularly good--like Brainstorm, Serum Visions, or Gitaxian Probe--or have a way to be abused--like recurring or blinking a cheap cantripping creature such as Coiling Oracle or Elvish Visionary. Some decks can really use cantrips for their gameplan/synergies, like Anticipate or Portent, so they'll be here.

On a similar note, I won't be including tutors--even tutors that tutor up more than one card like Shared Summons, Diabolic Revelation, or Conflux. There are solid lists out there that straight-up list every tutor.

I have a few graveyard-to-hand recursion cards in the list. I don't want to include all the cards like Restock, Regenesis, and Once and Future, but I feel that some cards provide so much card advantage they should be included--like Seasons Past and Creeping Renaissance. My list, my rules. Cards that are too specific, like Archaeomancer, wont be included either.

Cards that can only draw specific things like Lead the Stampede or Pieces of the Puzzle that I consider good enough will be on the list.

In my mind I always valued Scry 1 as about 0.4 or 0.45 of a drawn card--particularly in relation to mana costs. So for Read the Bones, I think of it like drawing 2.8 cards for 3 mana--a great rate. Foresee would be like 2.9 cards for 4 mana--about average going rate for cards drawn per mana spent. Obviously card advantage is way better than selection, but sometimes it's still quite nice.

Divination Concentrate Tidings Inspiration

There are a ton of "draw 3 discard 1" sorceries for 4 or even 5 mana, which are pretty bad in EDH in my opinion--even with graveyard strategies. Sift, Trial of Knowledge, and Amass the Components for example. Many are costed for being commons, which makes perfect sense, but that isn't where you wanna be in EDH. Why run Sift when you can run Concentrate? If you're running a graveyard-y deck and these kinds of cards are good for you, I guess go to EDHREC and figure it out. A four CMC Instant Sifter, like Rain of Revelation, would be on-rate and included in the main list. Enhanced Awareness would not make the cut.

Maybe I'll make a repository of "Sifters" here:

Miss me with that Sift shit: Show

Let me know if you think I missed any good (or tolerable) cards!!

Oracle: Draw Card - Exile Card Play - Put Hand

Updated 10/12/23 < rav > ONE

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Updates Add

ONE — Nov. 2, 2023
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Got up to All Will Be One. Should be caught up soon.

Oct. 13, 2023
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MID — Oct. 4, 2021
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Late Update — Sept. 8, 2021
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Revision 59 See all

(1 year ago)

+1 All-Seeing Arbiter main
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