# ScrollVault — Complete Site Content > ScrollVault provides free Magic: The Gathering deck building tools and competitive strategy guides. All tools use Frank Karsten's hypergeometric probability math and Commander Spellbook combo data. No account required, no ads, completely free. Last updated: 2026-06-12 Website: https://scrollvault.net --- ## MTG Mana Base Calculator URL: https://scrollvault.net/tools/manabase/ Free mana base calculator that uses Frank Karsten's hypergeometric math to compute exact land counts and colored source requirements for any MTG format. Supports Standard, Modern, Pioneer, Legacy, Pauper, Premodern, Limited (40-card), Commander (99-card singleton), and custom deck sizes. Import decklists from Moxfield or Archidekt URLs, or paste any decklist format (MTGA, Moxfield export, TappedOut, Deckstats). The tool auto-detects mana pips, ramp, card draw, alternate casting costs (delve, convoke, affinity), spell MDFCs, and mana doublers via Scryfall. The WASM-powered Monte Carlo simulation runs 50,000 games to measure actual cast-on-curve probability. The optimizer recommends specific dual land cycles ranked by color coverage, untapped probability, and budget tier. ### Frequently Asked Questions **How many lands should I put in my MTG deck?** For a 60-card deck (Standard, Modern, Pioneer), 23-26 lands is typical depending on your mana curve. Aggro decks run 22-23 lands, midrange 24-25, and control 25-26. For Commander (99 cards + commander), 35-38 lands is standard. Use Karsten's formula: 19.59 + 1.90 × average mana value for 60-card decks, scaled proportionally for other sizes. **How many lands for Commander / EDH?** Commander decks (99 cards + commander) typically run 35-38 lands. Decks with low mana curves and lots of mana rocks can go as low as 33, while 4+ color decks or landfall strategies may want 38-40. The key factor is ramp density — each cheap ramp spell (MV ≤ 2) reduces the optimal land count by approximately 0.28 lands. **What is Frank Karsten's mana math?** Frank Karsten's mana math uses hypergeometric probability to determine exactly how many colored sources you need to cast spells on curve with approximately 90-95% consistency. For example, a card costing 1WW needs about 18 white sources in a 60-card deck to be castable on curve 90% of the time. The formula accounts for deck size, number of cards drawn, and the number of colored pips required. **How many colored sources do I need?** The number depends on pip count and the turn you need the mana. In a 60-card deck: a single colored pip on turn 1 needs ~14 sources, on turn 3 needs ~12 sources, and double pips (like 1WW on turn 3) need ~18 sources. For Commander (99 cards), multiply these numbers by approximately 1.65x. **How do dual lands affect my mana base?** Each dual land counts as a source for every color it produces. A Hallowed Fountain counts as both a white and blue source. Premium duals like shock lands and fetch lands are the most efficient because they enter untapped and cover multiple colors with a single land slot. --- ## Commander Bracket & Power Level Calculator URL: https://scrollvault.net/tools/commander-bracket/ Free Commander bracket calculator that estimates your deck's power level using the official WotC 5-bracket system. Unlike checklist-based tools, ScrollVault cross-references every card pair in your deck against Commander Spellbook's verified combo database to detect interactions other tools miss. Import decklists from Moxfield, Archidekt, MTGGoldfish, or AetherHub. Automatically fixes decklists missing quantities. Generates a shareable "Bracket Passport" card for Rule 0 conversations. ### Analysis Features - **Combo detection:** Cross-references Commander Spellbook for verified two-card and multi-card infinite combos. Shows combo prerequisites, steps, and how many decks run each combo. - **14-axis synergy analysis:** Measures enabler/payoff depth across sacrifice, counters, tokens, landfall, ETB/blink, graveyard, creature cheating, spellslinger, artifacts, enchantress, voltron, stax, lifegain, and wheels strategies. - **Synergy fragility scoring:** Rates each strategy axis as Robust (balanced enablers/payoffs), Moderate, or Fragile (lopsided — engine breaks if key pieces are removed). - **Interaction coverage:** Evaluates answers across 6 categories: creature removal, artifact removal, enchantment removal, graveyard hate, counterspells, and board wipes. Grades coverage as Full Spectrum, Minor Blind Spot, or Significant Gaps. - **Interaction quality tiers:** Rates each removal spell as Premium (0-1 CMC), Efficient (2 CMC), Standard (3 CMC), or Expensive (4+ CMC). Shows percentage of efficient answers. - **Interaction density:** Percentage of nonland cards dedicated to interaction, rated by bracket expectations. Includes instant-speed ratio, CMC distribution, and gap warnings. - **Game Changers detection:** Checks against the official 53-card Game Changers list. Last list change: February 2026 (Farewell added, Biorhythm unbanned). Verified unchanged in the May 18, 2026 B&R announcement. - **Partner/companion support:** Full first-class partner handling — enter "Tymna the Weaver + Thrasios, Triton Hero" style pairs, both commanders simulated from the command zone, per-commander 21-damage tracking. Supports Background and Doctor's Companion pairs. - **Monte Carlo goldfish clock:** 1,000 simulated hands of your exact 99 (mulligans, land drops, ramp, tutors, token engines) measuring four win-clocks — combat damage, two-card combo, poison/infect, and commander damage. Reports "can win as early as turn X" (best 5%) and the median-hand turn that brackets actually describe. A measured clock decisively faster than a bracket's expectation raises the verdict; borderline verdicts are flagged as such. - **Alternate win condition detection:** Flags Thassa's Oracle-style "you win the game" effects on the result even when their assembly speed can't be simulated. - **Foreign-language decklist resolution:** Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Japanese decklists resolve to English automatically via Scryfall. - **Card popularity scoring:** Uses EDHREC rank from Scryfall to rate card quality on a 0-4 scale (Jank to Premium). - **Opening hand probabilities:** Calculates odds of 3+ lands, 1+ ramp, and 1+ interaction in opening 7 cards. ### What This Tool Measures vs What It Does Not This tool measures deck construction: card quality, combo density, interaction coverage, synergy depth, mana consistency, and speed potential. This tells you what bracket your deck belongs in for pre-game Rule 0 conversations. This tool does NOT measure pilot skill, local meta matchups, political dynamics, or actual game outcomes. A Bracket 4 deck piloted poorly will lose to a Bracket 2 deck piloted well. Brackets describe the ceiling of your deck, not your win rate. The WotC bracket system is an absolute construction metric — a Bracket 3 deck is Bracket 3 regardless of who is at the table. ### How the Bracket System Works - **Bracket 1 (Exhibition):** Ultra-casual decks that prioritize a theme or idea over power. No Game Changers, no infinite combos, no MLD, no extra turns. Games last 9+ turns. - **Bracket 2 (Core):** Unoptimized, straightforward decks. No Game Changers, no infinite combos, no MLD. Precon-level power. Games last 8+ turns. - **Bracket 3 (Upgraded):** Strong synergy and high card quality. Up to 3 Game Changers allowed. Late-game infinite combos acceptable. Games last 6+ turns. - **Bracket 4 (Optimized):** No card restrictions other than the banned list. Fast combos, mass land denial, unlimited Game Changers. Games last 4+ turns. - **Bracket 5 (cEDH):** Competitively metagamed decks. Games can end on any turn. ### Hard Rules (force a bracket floor) - 1-3 Game Changers → Bracket 3 minimum - 4+ Game Changers → Bracket 4 minimum - Mass land destruction → Bracket 4 minimum - Fast two-card true infinite combo → Bracket 4 minimum - Slow two-card infinite combo → Bracket 3 minimum - Chainable extra turns → Bracket 3 minimum - Lock combos → Bracket 3 minimum ### Frequently Asked Questions **What are the Commander brackets?** Commander brackets are a 5-tier power level system introduced by Wizards of the Coast in 2025. They range from Bracket 1 (Exhibition, ultra-casual) to Bracket 5 (cEDH, competitive). The system uses Game Changers — a list of 53 powerful cards — as the primary divider between casual (B1-B2) and upgraded (B3+) play. **What are Game Changers in Commander?** Game Changers are 53 powerful cards identified by WotC that significantly affect the game. Examples include Rhystic Study, Cyclonic Rift, Smothering Tithe, Demonic Tutor, and Thassa's Oracle. They are not allowed in Brackets 1-2 and limited to 3 cards in Bracket 3. Brackets 4-5 have no Game Changer limit. **Is Sol Ring a Game Changer?** No. Sol Ring is not on the official Game Changers list. While Sol Ring is one of the most powerful cards in Commander, WotC decided it is ubiquitous enough that restricting it would be impractical. Sol Ring is legal in all 5 brackets. **What forces a deck into Bracket 4?** Mass land destruction (Armageddon, Obliterate), 4 or more Game Changers, or fast two-card infinite combos (like Thassa's Oracle + Demonic Consultation). Bracket 4 has no card restrictions other than the banned list. **What is interaction density in Commander?** Interaction density is the percentage of your nonland cards dedicated to removal, counterspells, and board wipes. The calculator measures this and rates it as light, healthy, or heavy based on your bracket level. It also breaks down by instant-speed percentage, CMC distribution, and coverage across 6 removal categories. **What bracket calculator detects combos?** ScrollVault's Commander Bracket Calculator cross-references every card pair in your deck against Commander Spellbook's database of verified infinite combos. Most other bracket tools only check cards against a Game Changers list — they miss combos formed by cards not on the list. **How much instant-speed interaction does a Commander deck need?** In a 4-player game, you take one turn for every three your opponents take. Below 40% instant-speed interaction means most of your answers only work on your own turn. Bracket 3 and above should aim for at least 50% instant-speed. **What is synergy fragility in Commander?** Synergy fragility measures how balanced your deck's strategy engines are. A sacrifice deck with 8 sac outlets and 8 death triggers is Robust — remove a few pieces and the engine still works. A deck with 10 sac outlets but only 2 death triggers is Fragile — remove 2 cards and the engine collapses. ScrollVault rates each synergy axis as Robust, Moderate, or Fragile. **What is interaction quality in Commander?** Interaction quality tiers rate your removal by efficiency. Premium answers cost 0-1 mana (Swords to Plowshares, Swan Song, Mental Misstep). Efficient answers cost 2 mana (Counterspell, Nature's Claim). Standard answers cost 3 (Beast Within). Expensive answers cost 4+ and may be too slow in faster metas. The calculator shows what percentage of your interaction is efficient (Premium + Efficient tier). **What is interaction coverage in Commander?** Interaction coverage measures whether your deck can answer all threat types: creatures, artifacts, enchantments, graveyards, spells (counterspells), and board states (wipes). A deck with creature removal but no enchantment answers has a blind spot. The calculator grades coverage as Full Spectrum (no gaps), Minor Blind Spot (1 category empty), or Significant Gaps (2+ categories empty). --- ## Commander Deck Gallery URL: https://scrollvault.net/gallery/ Community decklists with automated bracket analysis, synergy detection, and combo identification. Save decks from the bracket calculator to share with your playgroup. Filter by bracket, commander, or archetype. --- ## MTG Draft Simulator URL: https://scrollvault.net/draft/ Free draft simulator with 167 real Magic sets and smart AI opponents. Replicates a real 8-player booster draft: open a pack of 14 cards, pick one, pass the rest. 3 packs total (42 picks). AI bots use scoring based on card ratings, color signals, and curve needs. For sets played on MTG Arena, card ratings incorporate real-game win-rate data from 17Lands, and every pick shows its Games-in-Hand win rate (GIH WR) badge. Build your deck and export to MTG Arena. Data-driven per-set draft guides at /draft// (e.g. /draft/sos/). **How many cards do you pick in an MTG draft?** 42 picks total: 14 cards from each of 3 packs. **How many packs in a Magic draft?** 3 packs per player. Pack 1 passes left, Pack 2 right, Pack 3 left. --- ## MTG Sealed Pool Simulator URL: https://scrollvault.net/tools/sealed/ Open 6 virtual booster packs from any Magic set, sort by color/type/CMC, and build a 40-card sealed deck. Practice for prerelease events. **How many packs do you open in MTG sealed?** 6 booster packs, giving approximately 84-90 cards to build from. **How many cards in a sealed deck?** Minimum 40 cards including basic lands. Standard build is 22-23 spells plus 17-18 basic lands. --- ## Hypergeometric Calculator URL: https://scrollvault.net/tools/hypergeometric/ Calculate the exact probability of drawing specific cards in your Magic deck using the hypergeometric distribution. Enter deck size, number of desired cards, and cards drawn to see exact and cumulative probabilities. Includes turn-by-turn odds table and London mulligan modeling. **What are the odds of drawing a specific card in my opening hand?** In a 60-card deck with 4 copies, you have a 39.9% chance of drawing at least one copy in your opening 7 cards. In a 99-card Commander deck with a single copy, the probability drops to 7.1%. --- ## Dual Lands Reference Guide URL: https://scrollvault.net/tools/lands/ Complete searchable reference for all 48 dual land cycles in Magic: The Gathering. Filter by color pair (10 pairs), format legality (Standard, Modern, Pioneer, Legacy, Commander), ETB speed (untapped, conditional, tapped), and land type. Includes TCGPlayer pricing and buy links. --- ## Guide: How Many Lands in MTG? URL: https://scrollvault.net/guides/how-many-lands.html Frank Karsten's land count formula for 60-card decks: **19.59 + 1.90 × average mana value**. For Commander (99 cards), scale by 99/60 = 1.65x, then subtract for ramp density. | Format | Deck Size | Typical Lands | Notes | |--------|-----------|---------------|-------| | Standard | 60 | 23-26 | Aggro 22-23, Midrange 24-25, Control 25-26 | | Modern | 60 | 22-24 | Lower curves, more cantrips | | Pioneer | 60 | 23-25 | No fetch lands | | Legacy | 60 | 20-22 | Cantrips + free spells reduce count | | Commander | 99+1 | 35-38 | Scale by ramp: each cheap ramp ≈ -0.28 lands | | Limited | 40 | 17 | 16 for aggro, 18 for bombs | --- ## Guide: Commander Land Count Data URL: https://scrollvault.net/guides/commander-land-count-data.html Research piece based on 3.75 million Monte Carlo simulated games across 5 Commander archetypes (Aggro, Midrange, Control, Combo, Landfall) and 15 land counts (28-42). Interactive Chart.js visualizations showing cast-rate curves per archetype. Full methodology disclosure. --- ## Guide: Commander Brackets Explained URL: https://scrollvault.net/guides/commander-brackets.html The official WotC 5-bracket Commander power level system, introduced February 2025. Updated October 2025 with turn expectations and tutor restriction removal. Updated February 2026 with Farewell added to Game Changers. --- ## Guide: Game Changers List URL: https://scrollvault.net/guides/game-changers.html Full list of 53 official Game Changers, organized by category with bracket implications. Last list change: February 9, 2026. Verified unchanged in the May 18, 2026 B&R announcement. --- ## Banned & Restricted Reference (Effective May 19, 2026) URL: https://scrollvault.net/guides/banned-list.html Source: https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/announcements/banned-and-restricted-may-18-2026 The May 18, 2026 Banned & Restricted announcement took effect May 19, 2026. The next announcement is scheduled for June 30, 2026. **Changes:** - **Standard:** no changes. - **Pioneer:** Cori-Steel Cutter banned. - **Modern:** Phlage, Titan of Fire's Fury banned. Lotus Field banned. Violent Outburst unbanned. Umezawa's Jitte unbanned. - **Legacy:** Undercity Informer banned. - **Vintage:** no changes. - **Pauper:** Bonder's Ornament unbanned on a trial basis (final verdict scheduled for August 10, 2026). - **Commander:** no changes. The list of 83 banned cards and 53 Game Changers is unchanged. - **Alchemy:** Sewer-veillance Cam banned. **Verify on Scryfall:** - Standard: https://scryfall.com/search?q=banned%3Astandard - Pioneer: https://scryfall.com/search?q=banned%3Apioneer - Modern: https://scryfall.com/search?q=banned%3Amodern - Legacy: https://scryfall.com/search?q=banned%3Alegacy - Pauper: https://scryfall.com/search?q=banned%3Apauper - Alchemy: https://scryfall.com/search?q=banned%3Aalchemy - Commander: https://scryfall.com/search?q=banned%3Acommander - Game Changers: https://scryfall.com/search?q=is%3Agamechanger --- ## Guide: How to Build a Commander Deck URL: https://scrollvault.net/guides/commander-deck-building.html **The 10-10-10 Framework:** - 10 ramp spells (Sol Ring, signets, dorks, land ramp) - 10 card draw spells (cantrips, engines, burst draw) - 10 removal spells (single target + board wipes) - ~37 lands - ~33 slots for your strategy (creatures, enchantments, combos, synergy) --- ## Methodology: Commander Bracket Validation URL: https://scrollvault.net/methodology/bracket-validation.html Public accuracy report for the ScrollVault Commander Bracket Calculator. We validate against a 36-deck authoritative core reference set, plus a separate 14-deck community-labeled cohort that stress-tests the fuzzy B1/B2 and B3/B4 bracket boundaries (reported separately, never blended into the headline). **Authoritative core composition (36 total):** - Bracket 2: 11 WotC-published stock precons (expected range [1,2] — the B1/B2 boundary is fuzzy by WotC's own design) - Bracket 3: 6 WotC-published precons each containing 1-2 Game Changers (rule-forced B3 floor) - Bracket 4: 3 decks rule-forced to B4 by the Game Changer floor (4+ Game Changers exceeds Bracket 3's allowance) while clearly not cEDH — no judgment-based B4 labels exist publicly, so these validate the floor rule, not subjective B4 power - Bracket 5: 16 cEDH archetypes from cEDH-DDB linked Moxfield primers (Kinnan Infinite Mana, Thoracle, Kraum+Tymna Breach, etc.) - Bracket 1: 0 in the core — WotC publishes no canonical B1 decklist (B1 is defined by intent, not card choices). The boundary cohort carries 3 owner-declared B1 theme decks instead. **Boundary stress-test cohort (14 community-labeled decks, added June 2026):** real Archidekt decks with owner-stated bracket labels re-judged against WotC's framework, chosen specifically to probe the B1/B2 and B3/B4 edges. **Latest validation results (June 2026):** - Core set: 100% bracket-in-range, 100% bracket-±1, 97.2% bracket-exact (35 of 36), 100% power-in-range - Expanded 50-deck suite (core + boundary cohort): 100% bracket-in-range, 100% bracket-±1 - Boundary cohort alone: 100% in-range; exact-match drops on these decks by design — they sit on the framework's fuzzy edges **Cross-validation against Claude tiers (Sonnet 4.6 / Opus 4.7 / Haiku 4.5), same 36 core decks:** - Best models (Sonnet 4.6, Opus 4.7): 94.4% bracket-exact; Haiku 4.5: 83.3% - ScrollVault engine: 97.2% (+2.8 pp over best Claude), and no model matched the engine's 100% in-range or 100% power-in-range - Power-in-range spread: ScrollVault 100% vs Sonnet 91.7% / Opus 83.3% / Haiku 63.9% **Reproducibility:** Every reference deck has a clickable source URL. The Node validation runner script (`scripts/run-validation.cjs`) drives the live bracket calculator via Puppeteer and writes per-deck outcomes to JSON. Anyone can reproduce the 97.2% number. --- ## Cornerstone Post: We Simulated 5 Million Mana Bases URL: https://scrollvault.net/posts/tipping-point-5-million-simulations.html Long-form post introducing the **Tipping Point** metric — the turn at which the probability of having enough mana of the right colors to cast your curve-supportable spells reaches at least 80%. Below the Tipping Point, your mana base bottlenecks the deck. From the Tipping Point onward, curve and draw quality become the gating factors. **Methodology:** - WASM Monte Carlo engine compiled from Rust (sim-engine/) - Per-deck simulation: 10,000 games (interactive chip in bracket tool) to 50,000 games (published guides) - Aggregate site-wide: 5+ million simulated MTG games across guides + reference data - Models London Mulligan, Commander's free first mulligan, conditional ETB lands, ramp source mana output (Sol Ring's 2-mana matters), Hopcroft-Karp bipartite matching for colored pips, MDFCs, cycling lands **Headline findings:** - Karsten's classic formula (19.59 + 1.90 × avgMV for 60-card; 31.42 + 3.13 × avgMV − 0.28 × ramp for Commander) validates against our simulator within 1-3% for typical builds - Commander's free first mulligan adds the equivalent of ~1.5 lands to effective consistency vs Modern's London-only mulligan - cEDH's ability to function at 28-30 lands is downstream of Sol Ring + Mana Crypt + Mana Vault all producing 2-3 mana per slot — replacing one with a Mind Stone moves a 5-drop's turn-5 cast rate from 88% to 93% (5pp swing from one card) - 5-color Domain decks need 38-40 lands minimum even with the full Triome package — color requirements compound nonlinearly **Why no competitor publishes this:** Heuristic bracket calculators (ScryCheck, EDHPowerLevel, brackcheck, ArcMind) score a deck against a rule set and emit a label. They do not simulate. Tipping Point requires a real Monte Carlo engine. ScrollVault built that engine in Rust, compiled to WebAssembly, and exposes both a quick-read chip on the bracket tool and a full sim view in the manabase tool. **Includes 6-question FAQ on methodology** covering: definition of Tipping Point, relationship to Karsten's formula, simulation count per deck, why competitors lack this metric, Sol Ring's outsized impact, and how to check your own deck. --- ## Tool: Commander Precon Library URL: https://scrollvault.net/tools/commander-bracket/precons/ 61 official WotC Commander precons pre-analyzed through the bracket calculator. Includes precons from Commander 2021 (C21), Modern Horizons 3 Commander (M3C), Forgotten Realms Commander (CMR/FIC), Innistrad: Crimson Vow Commander, Tarkir: Dragonstorm Commander, and recent Final Fantasy / Bloomburrow / Foundations Commander releases. **Per-precon data:** - Bracket assignment (1-3 typical for precons) - Power level on 0-10 scale with confidence interval - Game Changer detection - Synergy density across 14 axes - Combo detection via Spellbook - Tipping Point reading - Filter by bracket and color identity - One-click "Analyze in calculator" deep-link auto-loads the decklist **Distribution:** Bracket 1 = 4 precons, Bracket 2 = 46 precons, Bracket 3 = 11 precons. Each precon has its own SEO-friendly detail page with full passport, signal breakdown, decklist, and source URL.