Clavileño, First of the Blessed costs {1}{W}{B} and is a 2/2. Whenever you attack, target attacking Vampire that is not a Demon becomes a Demon in addition to its other types, and gains "When this creature dies, draw a card and create a tapped 4/3 white and black Vampire Demon creature token with flying." Every attacking Vampire that dies replaces itself with a 4/3 flier and a card.
The precon already has the Vampire core, including Cordial Vampire, Mavren Fein, Master of Dark Rites, Indulgent Aristocrat and Elenda, the Dusk Rose. 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 Clavileño decks, plus lift, which shows how much more often a card turns up in Clavileño decks than in decks that could play it.
Looking for the unmodified list first? Read the Blood Rites precon guide.
What is holding the deck back
Missing Vampire lords
Edgar, Charmed Groom and Captivating Vampire give your other Vampires +1/+1, and Forerunner of the Legion finds the next Vampire. They are among the top-scoring cards the precon leaves out.
Token makers and doublers
Preacher of the Schism and Legion's Landing make Vampire tokens, and Teysa Karlov doubles the death triggers of Cordial Vampire, Elenda and Clavileño's own grant.
Rocks and fillers
Wayfarer's Bauble, Kindred Boon and Heirloom Blade are each played in about one Clavileño deck in four or five, and Bloodtracker, Timothar and Vona are Vampires that score far below the lords.
The 8 swaps
Each pair shows the numbers for the card coming out and the card going in. Click a card image to zoom.
Wayfarer's Bauble is a one-mana artifact that fetches a basic land for {2} more. It is played in about one Clavileño deck in four.
Edgar, Charmed Groom is a legendary Vampire Noble for {2}{W}{B}. Other Vampires you control get +1/+1, and when it dies it returns transformed as Edgar Markov's Coffin, which makes a lifelink Vampire each upkeep. It is the highest-scoring card the precon leaves out.
Bloodtracker is a 2/2 flying Vampire Wizard for {3}{B} that grows for {B} and 2 life. It is played in about one Clavileño deck in five.
Teysa Karlov is a 2/4 for {2}{W}{B}. If a creature dying causes a triggered ability of a permanent you control to trigger, it triggers an additional time, and your creature tokens have vigilance and lifelink. Cordial Vampire and Elenda double up.
Timothar, Baron of Bats is a six-mana 4/4 Vampire Noble that turns dead Vampires into Bats. It is played in about one Clavileño deck in six.
Captivating Vampire is a 2/2 Vampire for {1}{B}{B}. Other Vampire creatures you control get +1/+1, and you can tap five untapped Vampires to gain control of a creature. A three-mana lord with a late-game steal.
Kindred Boon is a four-mana enchantment that gives creatures of a chosen type indestructible. It is played in about one Clavileño deck in five.
Preacher of the Schism is a 2/4 deathtouch Vampire Cleric for {2}{B}. When it attacks the player with the most life it creates a 1/1 lifelink Vampire, and when it attacks while you have the most life you draw a card and lose 1 life. A Vampire that makes more Vampires, and an attacker for Clavileño.
Heirloom Blade is a three-mana Equipment that gives +3/+1. It is played in about one Clavileño deck in four.
Forerunner of the Legion is a 2/2 Vampire Knight for {2}{W}. When it enters you may search for a Vampire and put it on top of your library, and whenever another Vampire enters a creature gets +1/+1 until end of turn. A Vampire that finds the next one.
Vona, Butcher of Magan is a five-mana 4/4 Vampire Knight that destroys permanents by paying 7 life. It is played in about one Clavileño deck in four.
Legion's Landing costs {W}. When it enters you create a 1/1 lifelink Vampire, and when you attack with three or more creatures it transforms into Adanto, the First Fort, a land that taps for {W} and makes a Vampire for {2}{W}. A one-drop Vampire that becomes a land.
Commander's Sphere is a three-mana rock that sacrifices itself to draw a card. It is played in about one Clavileño deck in three, in a deck with Sol Ring, Arcane Signet and other rocks.
Bloodline Keeper is a flying Vampire that taps to create a 2/2 black Vampire with flying, and with five or more Vampires you can transform it into Lord of Lineage, which gives other Vampires +2/+2. A Vampire factory for a deck whose commander wants Vampires attacking.
Return to Dust is a four-mana instant that exiles an artifact or enchantment, or two in your main phase. It is played in about one Clavileño deck in three.
Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose is a 1/3 Vampire Cleric for {2}{B}. Whenever you gain life, target opponent loses that much life, and for {3}{B}{B} your creatures gain lifelink until end of turn. A Vampire that turns the deck's lifelink into drain.
The full swap list
Cut
- Wayfarer's Bauble
- Bloodtracker
- Timothar, Baron of Bats
- Kindred Boon
- Heirloom Blade
- Vona, Butcher of Magan
- Commander's Sphere
- Return to Dust
Add
- Edgar, Charmed Groom
- Teysa Karlov
- Captivating Vampire
- Preacher of the Schism
- Forerunner of the Legion
- Legion's Landing
- Bloodline Keeper
- Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose
What to keep
These cards are doing the deck's heavy lifting. Do not cut them.
- Cordial Vampire$2.37
Played in 91% of Clavileño decks. Puts a +1/+1 counter on each Vampire you control whenever it or another creature dies. - Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle$0.34
Makes a lifelink Vampire token whenever nontoken Vampires attack. - Master of Dark Rites$5.15
Sacrifices a creature for {B}{B}{B} to cast Vampires. - Elenda, the Dusk Rose$6.28
Grows whenever another creature dies and leaves Vampire tokens when it dies. - Olivia's Wrath$0.42
Gives each non-Vampire creature -X/-X, where X is the number of Vampires you control.
If you want to spend more
These are strong but sit outside a budget upgrade. Prices are the cheapest paper printing.
- Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord$3.75
A planeswalker that gives lifelink and deathtouch and turns Vampires into damage. It costs more than a budget upgrade should. - Sanguine Bond$5.59
Makes opponents lose life equal to your life gain. - Markov Baron$0.29
A convoke Vampire that gives other Vampires +1/+1.
Blood Rites is a Vampire deck that most Clavileño lists barely change, so eight swaps are enough. They trade a rock, an Equipment and four weaker cards for lords, token makers and a death-trigger doubler. These eight swaps cost about $27 in total.
Want a full 100-card list built around Clavileño, First of the Blessed from today's data?
Build with The Oracle →Frequently asked questions
What are the best upgrades for the Blood Rites precon?
Using data from 10,839 Clavileño decks, the highest-scoring additions are Edgar, Charmed Groom (for Wayfarer's Bauble), Teysa Karlov (for Bloodtracker) and Bloodline Keeper (for Commander's Sphere). The full list has 8 swaps, each scored with synergy, inclusion and lift.
How much does it cost to upgrade Blood Rites?
All 8 swaps cost about $26.71 at the cheapest paper printings (TCGplayer market prices via Scryfall, 2026-10-27). If you want to spend more, the guide also covers Sorin, Imperious Bloodlord ($3.75), Sanguine Bond ($5.59) and Markov Baron ($0.29).
What should I cut from Blood Rites?
The weakest cards for this commander are Wayfarer's Bauble, Bloodtracker and Timothar, Baron of Bats. The guide explains the reason for every cut, and swaps each one for a card that scores higher.
Which cards should I keep in Blood Rites?
Keep Cordial Vampire, Mavren Fein, Dusk Apostle, Master of Dark Rites, Elenda, the Dusk Rose and Olivia's Wrath. These are the cards doing the deck's heavy lifting.
What does Clavileño do?
Clavileño, First of the Blessed costs {1}{W}{B} and is a 2/2. Whenever you attack, target attacking Vampire that is not a Demon becomes a Demon in addition to its other types, and gains "When this creature dies, draw a card and create a tapped 4/3 white and black Vampire Demon creature token with flying." Every attacking Vampire that dies replaces itself with a 4/3 flier and a card.
More Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander upgrade guides
How the numbers work
Inclusion is the share of Clavileño, First of the Blessed decks (10,839 of them when this was written, 2026-10-27) 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 Clavileño decks, which flatters every card the precon contains. Lift is moderate for most of these cards because they are played in many Vampire decks, so use lift to compare cards, not to judge one in isolation. Prices are the cheapest non-foil paper printing on TCGplayer (via Scryfall), in USD, and move daily.