Otrimi, the Ever-Playful costs {3}{B}{G}{U} and is a 6/6 Legendary Nightmare Beast with trample and mutate {1}{B}{G}{U}. Whenever it deals combat damage to a player, you return target creature card with mutate from your graveyard to your hand. Every mutate creature that dies comes back, so the deck wants as many mutate creatures as possible.
The precon already has the best mutate creatures, including Boneyard Lurker, Migratory Greathorn, Dreamtail Heron, Chittering Harvester and Auspicious Starrix. 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 Otrimi decks, plus lift, which shows how much more often a card turns up in Otrimi decks than in decks that could play it.
Looking for the unmodified list first? Read the Enhanced Evolution precon guide.
What is holding the deck back
Not enough mutate creatures and payoffs
Gemrazer, Sea-Dasher Octopus, Dirge Bat, Brokkos and Parcelbeast all have mutate. Pollywog Symbiote and Essence Symbiote reward every mutate. They are among the top-scoring cards the precon leaves out.
Hydras and Auras outside the lists
Boneyard Mycodrax, Capricopian, Genesis Hydra, Heroes' Bane, Masked Admirers, Vastwood Hydra, Wydwen, Zaxara and Predatory Impetus are not cards Otrimi decks usually play. Parasitic Impetus and Psychic Impetus are each played in about one Otrimi deck in seventeen or more.
Cheap creatures that grow when mutated
Mysterious Egg and Zagoth Mamba are cheap creatures that trigger when they mutate, and Stormchaser Drake draws a card whenever a mutate spell targets it.
The 12 swaps
Each pair shows the numbers for the card coming out and the card going in. Click a card image to zoom.
Boneyard Mycodrax is a three-mana creature whose size is the number of other creature cards in your graveyard. It is not a card Otrimi decks usually play.
Gemrazer is a 4/4 Beast for {3}{G} with reach and trample, and mutate {1}{G}{G}. Whenever it mutates, you destroy target artifact or enchantment an opponent controls. A four-drop mutate creature that removes a permanent, and the highest-scoring card the precon leaves out.
Capricopian is an {X}{G} creature that grows and redirects. It is not a card Otrimi decks usually play.
Sea-Dasher Octopus is a 2/2 Octopus for {1}{U}{U} with flash, and mutate {1}{U}. Whenever it deals combat damage to a player, you draw a card. A creature that can mutate for two mana at instant speed and draws cards.
Genesis Hydra is an {X}{G}{G} creature that puts a permanent from the top of your library onto the battlefield. It is not a card Otrimi decks usually play.
Dirge Bat is a 3/3 Bat for {2}{B}{B} with flash and flying, and mutate {4}{B}{B}. Whenever it mutates, you destroy target creature or planeswalker an opponent controls. A mutate creature that is also removal.
Heroes' Bane is a five-mana creature that enters with four +1/+1 counters. It is not a card Otrimi decks usually play.
Brokkos, Apex of Forever is a 6/6 Legendary Nightmare Beast Elemental for {2}{B}{G}{U} with trample, and mutate {2}{U/B}{G}{G}. You may cast it from your graveyard using its mutate ability. A mutate creature in exactly the commander's colors that comes back from the graveyard.
Masked Admirers is a four-mana 3/2 Elf Shaman that draws a card and can return from the graveyard. It is not a card Otrimi decks usually play.
Pollywog Symbiote is a 1/3 Frog for {1}{U}. Each creature spell you cast costs {1} less if it has mutate, and whenever you cast a creature spell with mutate you draw a card, then discard a card. A two-drop that makes every mutate spell cheaper and loots.
Vastwood Hydra is an {X}{G}{G} creature that spreads its counters when it dies. It is not a card Otrimi decks usually play.
Parcelbeast is a 2/4 Elemental Beast for {2}{G}{U} with mutate {G}{U}. For {1} and a tap, you look at the top card of your library, and if it is a land you may put it onto the battlefield, and if you don't, you put it into your hand. A mutate creature that mutates for two mana and ramps or draws.
Wydwen, the Biting Gale is a four-mana 3/3 Faerie Wizard with flash and flying. It is not a card Otrimi decks usually play.
Essence Symbiote is a 2/2 Beast for {1}{G}. Whenever a creature you control mutates, you put a +1/+1 counter on that creature and gain 2 life. A two-drop that grows every mutated creature.
Zaxara, the Exemplary is a four-mana 2/3 deathtouch creature that makes Hydras from X spells. It is not a card Otrimi decks usually play.
Mysterious Egg is a 0/2 Egg for {1}. Whenever it mutates, you put a +1/+1 counter on it. A one-mana creature that is a cheap target to mutate onto.
Predatory Impetus is a five-mana Aura that gives +3/+3 and goads the enchanted creature. It is not a card Otrimi decks usually play.
Zagoth Mamba is a 1/1 Nightmare Snake for {B}. Whenever it mutates, target creature an opponent controls gets -2/-2 until end of turn. A one-drop that removes a small creature when a mutate creature lands on it.
Parasitic Impetus is a three-mana Aura that goads and drains. It is played in about one Otrimi deck in seventeen.
Season of Growth costs {1}{G}. Whenever a creature you control enters, you scry 1, and whenever you cast a spell that targets a creature you control, you draw a card. A two-mana enchantment that draws a card from every mutate spell, because a mutate spell targets a creature.
Psychic Impetus is a three-mana Aura that gives +2/+2 and goads. It is played in about one Otrimi deck in twenty.
Mythos of Brokkos costs {2}{G}{G}. If {U}{B} was spent to cast it you search your library for a card and put it into your graveyard, then you return up to two permanent cards from your graveyard to your hand. A four-mana sorcery that fetches a mutate creature and returns two of them.
Bonder's Ornament is a three-mana rock that taps for any color. It is played in about one Otrimi deck in seventeen.
Stormchaser Drake is a 2/1 flying Drake for {1}{U}. Whenever it becomes the target of a spell you control, you draw a card. A two-drop that draws a card whenever you mutate onto it.
The full swap list
Cut
- Boneyard Mycodrax
- Capricopian
- Genesis Hydra
- Heroes' Bane
- Masked Admirers
- Vastwood Hydra
- Wydwen, the Biting Gale
- Zaxara, the Exemplary
- Predatory Impetus
- Parasitic Impetus
- Psychic Impetus
- Bonder's Ornament
Add
- Gemrazer
- Sea-Dasher Octopus
- Dirge Bat
- Brokkos, Apex of Forever
- Pollywog Symbiote
- Parcelbeast
- Essence Symbiote
- Mysterious Egg
- Zagoth Mamba
- Season of Growth
- Mythos of Brokkos
- Stormchaser Drake
What to keep
These cards are doing the deck's heavy lifting. Do not cut them.
- Boneyard Lurker$0.21
Played in 94% of Otrimi decks. A 4/4 mutate creature that returns a permanent card when it mutates. - Migratory Greathorn$0.18
Played in 94% of Otrimi decks. Fetches a basic land when it mutates. - Dreamtail Heron$0.12
Played in 91% of Otrimi decks. A flyer that draws a card when it mutates. - Chittering Harvester$0.21
Played in 89% of Otrimi decks. Makes each opponent sacrifice a creature when it mutates. - Auspicious Starrix$0.24
Played in 87% of Otrimi decks. A 6/6 that puts permanents onto the battlefield when it mutates.
If you want to spend more
These are strong but sit outside a budget upgrade. Prices are the cheapest paper printing.
- Venomthrope$3.87
A three-mana flying, deathtouch, hexproof creature that is a strong target for mutate. It costs more than a budget upgrade should. - Vesuvan Duplimancy$5.65
An enchantment that copies a creature whenever you cast a spell that targets only it, which includes mutate. It costs more than a budget upgrade should.
Enhanced Evolution already has the best mutate creatures and Otrimi's recursion. The upgrade is cheap mutate creatures and cards that reward every mutate, in place of Hydras and Auras that Otrimi decks leave out. These twelve swaps cost about $5 in total.
Want a full 100-card list built around Otrimi, the Ever-Playful from today's data?
Build with The Oracle →Frequently asked questions
What are the best upgrades for the Enhanced Evolution precon?
Using data from 3,807 Otrimi decks, the highest-scoring additions are Gemrazer (for Boneyard Mycodrax), Sea-Dasher Octopus (for Capricopian) and Dirge Bat (for Genesis Hydra). The full list has 12 swaps, each scored with synergy, inclusion and lift.
How much does it cost to upgrade Enhanced Evolution?
All 12 swaps cost about $5.28 at the cheapest paper printings (TCGplayer market prices via Scryfall, 2026-10-28). If you want to spend more, the guide also covers Venomthrope ($3.87) and Vesuvan Duplimancy ($5.65).
What should I cut from Enhanced Evolution?
The weakest cards for this commander are Boneyard Mycodrax, Capricopian and Genesis Hydra. The guide explains the reason for every cut, and swaps each one for a card that scores higher.
Which cards should I keep in Enhanced Evolution?
Keep Boneyard Lurker, Migratory Greathorn, Dreamtail Heron, Chittering Harvester and Auspicious Starrix. These are the cards doing the deck's heavy lifting.
What does Otrimi do?
Otrimi, the Ever-Playful costs {3}{B}{G}{U} and is a 6/6 Legendary Nightmare Beast with trample and mutate {1}{B}{G}{U}. Whenever it deals combat damage to a player, you return target creature card with mutate from your graveyard to your hand. Every mutate creature that dies comes back, so the deck wants as many mutate creatures as possible.
More Commander 2020 (Ikoria) upgrade guides
How the numbers work
Inclusion is the share of Otrimi, the Ever-Playful decks (3,807 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 Otrimi decks, which flatters every card the precon contains. Lift is high for many mutate cards because few decks play them outside a mutate 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.