Sevinne, the Chronoclasm costs {2}{U}{R}{W} and is a 2/2 Legendary Human Wizard. Prevent all damage that would be dealt to Sevinne, and whenever you cast your first instant or sorcery spell from your graveyard each turn, you copy that spell and may choose new targets for the copy. Every flashback spell is cast from the graveyard, and the first one each turn is a copy.
The precon already has the flashback spells and the copy effects, including Deep Analysis, Increasing Vengeance, Faithless Looting, Sevinne's Reclamation and Mystic Retrieval. Each swap below pairs a cut with an add, and every card is scored with the same numbers the Oracle uses to build decks: synergy and inclusion from the Sevinne decks, plus lift, which shows how much more often a card turns up in Sevinne decks than in decks that could play it.
Looking for the unmodified list first? Read the Mystic Intellect precon guide.
What is holding the deck back
Not enough flashback cards and payoffs
Galvanic Iteration, Pursue the Past, Electric Revelation, Twinned Vision and Beacon Bolt have flashback or jump-start, and Vega, Lier and Archmage Emeritus reward casting spells from the graveyard. They are among the top-scoring cards the precon leaves out.
Rocks and creatures outside the lists
Dockside Extortionist and Scaretiller are not cards Sevinne, and Armillary Sphere, Azorius Locket and Izzet Locket are each played in about one Sevinne deck in ten or eleven decks usually play.
Top-end creatures that Sevinne decks skip
Pristine Skywise, Pristine Angel and Zetalpa are each played in about one Sevinne deck in twelve to fourteen, and Cliffside Rescuer and Gerrard in about one in seventeen.
The 11 swaps
Each pair shows the numbers for the card coming out and the card going in. Click a card image to zoom.
Dockside Extortionist is a two-mana 1/2 Goblin Pirate that makes Treasures for opposing artifacts and enchantments. It is not a card Sevinne decks usually play.
Goblin Electromancer is a 2/2 Goblin Wizard for {U}{R}. Instant and sorcery spells you cast cost {1} less. A two-drop that makes every flashback spell cheaper, and the highest-scoring creature the precon leaves out.
Scaretiller is a four-mana 1/4 artifact creature that puts a land onto the battlefield when it becomes tapped. It is not a card Sevinne decks usually play.
Archmage Emeritus is a 2/2 Human Wizard for {2}{U}{U}. Magecraft: whenever you cast or copy an instant or sorcery spell, you draw a card. A four-drop that draws a card from each flashback spell and each of Sevinne's copies.
Bloodthirsty Blade is a two-mana Equipment that goads. It is played in about one Sevinne deck in seventeen.
Galvanic Iteration costs {U}{R}. When you next cast an instant or sorcery spell this turn, you copy that spell and may choose new targets for the copy, and it has flashback {1}{U}{R}. A two-mana instant that copies your next spell, and can be cast again from the graveyard.
Cliffside Rescuer is a two-mana 2/2 Kor Soldier that sacrifices itself to protect a permanent. It is played in about one Sevinne deck in seventeen.
Pursue the Past costs {R}{W}. You gain 2 life, and you may discard a card to draw two cards, and it has flashback {2}{R}{W}. A two-mana sorcery in exactly Sevinne's colors that loots and can be cast again from the graveyard.
Gerrard, Weatherlight Hero is a four-mana 3/3 first striker that brings creatures back when it dies. It is played in about one Sevinne deck in seventeen.
Vega, the Watcher is a 2/2 Legendary Bird Spirit for {1}{W}{U} with flying. Whenever you cast a spell from anywhere other than your hand you draw a card. A three-drop that draws a card from every flashback spell.
Pristine Skywise is a six-mana 6/4 flying Dragon that untaps for noncreature spells. It is played in about one Sevinne deck in fourteen.
Lier, Disciple of the Drowned is a 3/4 Legendary Human Wizard for {3}{U}{U}. Spells can't be countered, and each instant and sorcery card in your graveyard has flashback with a cost equal to its mana cost. A five-drop that gives every spell in your graveyard flashback, which is every spell Sevinne copies.
Zetalpa, Primal Dawn is an eight-mana 4/8 with flying, double strike, vigilance, trample and indestructible. It is played in about one Sevinne deck in fourteen.
Kykar, Wind's Fury is a 3/3 flying Legendary Bird Wizard for {1}{U}{R}{W}. Whenever you cast a noncreature spell you create a 1/1 white Spirit creature token with flying, and you can sacrifice a Spirit for {R}. A four-drop in Sevinne's exact colors that makes a flyer from every spell.
Pristine Angel is a six-mana 4/4 flyer with protection while untapped. It is played in about one Sevinne deck in twelve.
Electric Revelation costs {2}{R}, with an additional cost of discarding a card. You draw two cards, and it has flashback {3}{R}. A three-mana instant that fills the graveyard and gives a flashback spell.
Armillary Sphere is a two-mana artifact that sacrifices itself to fetch two basic lands. It is played in about one Sevinne deck in eleven.
Twinned Vision costs {1}{U/R}. You draw a card, or two cards if it wasn't cast from your hand, and it has flashback {1}{U/R}{U/R} with an additional discard. A two-mana instant that draws two when cast from the graveyard, where Sevinne also copies it.
Azorius Locket is a three-mana rock that taps for {W} or {U}. It is played in about one Sevinne deck in eleven.
Mission Briefing costs {U}{U}. You surveil 2, then choose an instant or sorcery card in your graveyard and may cast it this turn, and it is exiled instead if it would go to the graveyard. A two-mana instant that casts a spell from the graveyard, which triggers Sevinne.
Izzet Locket is a three-mana rock that taps for {U} or {R}. It is played in about one Sevinne deck in ten.
Beacon Bolt costs {1}{U}{R}. It deals damage to target creature equal to the number of instant and sorcery cards you own in exile and in your graveyard, and it has jump-start. A three-mana removal spell that is stronger with a full graveyard and that you can cast again from it.
The full swap list
Cut
- Dockside Extortionist
- Scaretiller
- Bloodthirsty Blade
- Cliffside Rescuer
- Gerrard, Weatherlight Hero
- Pristine Skywise
- Zetalpa, Primal Dawn
- Pristine Angel
- Armillary Sphere
- Azorius Locket
- Izzet Locket
Add
- Goblin Electromancer
- Archmage Emeritus
- Galvanic Iteration
- Pursue the Past
- Vega, the Watcher
- Lier, Disciple of the Drowned
- Kykar, Wind's Fury
- Electric Revelation
- Twinned Vision
- Mission Briefing
- Beacon Bolt
What to keep
These cards are doing the deck's heavy lifting. Do not cut them.
- Faithless Looting$0.36
Played in 78% of Sevinne decks. Loots twice and has flashback. - Deep Analysis$0.17
Played in 76% of Sevinne decks. Draws two cards and has flashback for {1}{U} and 3 life. - Sevinne's Reclamation$0.40
Played in 72% of Sevinne decks. Returns a cheap permanent and copies itself when cast from the graveyard. - Increasing Vengeance$0.84
Played in 70% of Sevinne decks. Copies a spell, twice when cast from the graveyard. - Mystic Retrieval$0.24
Played in 65% of Sevinne decks. Returns an instant or sorcery and has flashback for {2}{R}.
If you want to spend more
These are strong but sit outside a budget upgrade. Prices are the cheapest paper printing.
- Past in Flames$2.23
Gives every instant and sorcery in your graveyard flashback, which turns your whole graveyard into spells for Sevinne. It costs more than a budget upgrade should. - Veyran, Voice of Duality$2.22
A creature that makes magecraft and copy triggers happen an additional time. It costs more than a budget upgrade should.
Mystic Intellect already has the flashback spells, the copy effects and Sevinne itself. The upgrade is cheap flashback cards and payoffs for casting from the graveyard, in place of rocks and creatures that Sevinne decks skip. These eleven swaps cost about $4 in total.
Want a full 100-card list built around Sevinne, the Chronoclasm from today's data?
Build with The Oracle →Frequently asked questions
What are the best upgrades for the Mystic Intellect precon?
Using data from 1,004 Sevinne decks, the highest-scoring additions are Galvanic Iteration (for Bloodthirsty Blade), Goblin Electromancer (for Dockside Extortionist) and Archmage Emeritus (for Scaretiller). The full list has 11 swaps, each scored with synergy, inclusion and lift.
How much does it cost to upgrade Mystic Intellect?
All 11 swaps cost about $4.25 at the cheapest paper printings (TCGplayer market prices via Scryfall, 2026-10-28). If you want to spend more, the guide also covers Past in Flames ($2.23) and Veyran, Voice of Duality ($2.22).
What should I cut from Mystic Intellect?
The weakest cards for this commander are Dockside Extortionist, Scaretiller and Bloodthirsty Blade. The guide explains the reason for every cut, and swaps each one for a card that scores higher.
Which cards should I keep in Mystic Intellect?
Keep Faithless Looting, Deep Analysis, Sevinne's Reclamation, Increasing Vengeance and Mystic Retrieval. These are the cards doing the deck's heavy lifting.
What does Sevinne do?
Sevinne, the Chronoclasm costs {2}{U}{R}{W} and is a 2/2 Legendary Human Wizard. Prevent all damage that would be dealt to Sevinne, and whenever you cast your first instant or sorcery spell from your graveyard each turn, you copy that spell and may choose new targets for the copy. Every flashback spell is cast from the graveyard, and the first one each turn is a copy.
More Commander 2019 upgrade guides
How the numbers work
Inclusion is the share of Sevinne, the Chronoclasm decks (1,004 of them when this was written, 2026-10-28) that play the card. Synergy is how much more often they play it than other decks in the same colours. Oracle score is synergy × 0.6 plus inclusion × 0.4, the same blend The Oracle uses to rank cards for a deck. Lift compares how often the card appears in these decks with how often it could, capped at 8× here; it is shown for context and does not change the score.
Two cautions. Players who run the precon unmodified count as Sevinne decks, which flatters every card the precon contains. Lift is high for many flashback cards because few decks play them outside a graveyard deck, so use lift to compare cards, not to judge one in isolation. A card the commander's decks do not usually play counts as 0 in the average score. Prices are the cheapest non-foil paper printing on TCGplayer (via Scryfall), in USD, and move daily.