Shiko and Narset, Unified costs {1}{U}{R}{W}, and is a 4/4 flier with vigilance. Whenever you cast your second spell each turn, you copy it if it targets a permanent or player, and you may choose new targets for the copy. If you do not copy a spell this way, you draw a card. Every turn with two spells is a copy or a card.
The precon already has the cantrips and the payoffs, including Veyran, Narset's Reversal and Whirlwind of Thought. 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 Shiko and Narset decks, plus lift, which shows how much more often a card turns up in these decks than in decks that could play it.
Looking for the unmodified list first? Read the Jeskai Striker precon guide.
What is holding the deck back
Cards that hand opponents a copy
Transforming Flourish has demonstrate, which lets you copy the spell but also gives an opponent a copy, and its exile effect lets the victim cast a free card.
A slow top end
Six nonland cards have a mana value of six or more, including Velomachus Lorehold at seven mana, and the deck wants to cast two spells every turn.
Few cheap enablers for the second spell
Hinata, Taigam, Stormcatch Mentor and Flamehold Grappler are the top-scoring cards the precon leaves out, and each makes the second spell cheaper or copies it.
The 4 swaps
Each pair shows the numbers for the card coming out and the card going in. Click a card image to zoom.
Transforming Flourish destroys an artifact or creature, but its demonstrate gives an opponent a copy, and its victim exiles cards until they find a nonland card and may cast it for free. It is played in about one Shiko and Narset deck in six.
Hinata, Dawn-Crowned is a 4/4 flying, trampling Kirin Spirit for {1}{U}{R}{W}. Spells you cast cost {1} less for each target, and spells your opponents cast cost {1} more for each target. It makes your targeted second spell cheaper, and your opponents' removal more expensive.
Ancestral Vision costs {U} to suspend for four turns, and then draws three. It is slow for a deck that wants to cast two spells every turn, and played in about one Shiko and Narset deck in five.
Taigam, Master Opportunist is a two-mana creature with flurry: whenever you cast your second spell each turn, you copy it, then exile the spell you cast with four time counters on it, which gives it suspend. A second flurry engine that doubles up Shiko and Narset's.
Shiny Impetus is an Aura that gives +2/+2 and goads a creature and makes Treasure when it attacks. It does nothing for casting two spells a turn.
Stormcatch Mentor is a {U}{R} 1/1 with haste and prowess. Instant and sorcery spells you cast cost {1} less. A cheap creature that makes it easier to cast two spells on turn three.
Velomachus Lorehold is a seven-mana 5/5 flier with vigilance and haste that casts a free instant or sorcery when it attacks. It is a great card, but seven mana is a lot, and it is played in about one Shiko and Narset deck in four.
Flamehold Grappler is a {U}{R}{W} 3/3 first striker. When it enters, you copy the next spell you cast this turn, and you may choose new targets for the copy. A three-mana creature that copies a spell, and then your second spell is a second copy.
The full swap list
Cut
- Transforming Flourish
- Ancestral Vision
- Shiny Impetus
- Velomachus Lorehold
Add
- Hinata, Dawn-Crowned
- Taigam, Master Opportunist
- Stormcatch Mentor
- Flamehold Grappler
What to keep
These cards are doing the deck's heavy lifting. Do not cut them.
- Veyran, Voice of Duality$2.14
Played in 75% of Shiko and Narset decks. Gets +1/+1 whenever you cast or copy an instant or sorcery, and makes your magecraft triggers happen twice. - Narset's Reversal$1.88
Copies an instant or sorcery spell, then returns it to its owner's hand. - Archmage Emeritus$0.66
Draws a card whenever you cast or copy an instant or sorcery. - Whirlwind of Thought$0.26
Draws a card whenever you cast a noncreature spell. - Monastery Mentor$0.81
Makes a Monk token whenever you cast a noncreature spell.
If you want to spend more
These are strong but sit outside a budget upgrade. Prices are the cheapest paper printing.
- Jeskai Revelation$4.94
A seven-mana instant that bounces a spell or permanent, deals 4 damage and makes tokens. It costs more than a budget upgrade should. - Narset, Enlightened Exile$7.34
Gives your creatures prowess and exiles noncreature cards when she attacks. - Snap$3.35
Returns a creature to its owner's hand and untaps up to two lands, so it mostly pays for itself.
Jeskai Striker is already close to what Shiko and Narset players run, so four swaps are enough. They add a cost reducer and two copy effects, and take out a card that gives opponents a copy and a card that costs seven. These four swaps cost about $2 in total.
Want a full 100-card list built around Shiko and Narset, Unified from today's data?
Build with The Oracle →Frequently asked questions
What are the best upgrades for the Jeskai Striker precon?
Using data from 10,190 Shiko and Narset decks, the highest-scoring additions are Hinata, Dawn-Crowned (for Transforming Flourish), Taigam, Master Opportunist (for Ancestral Vision) and Stormcatch Mentor (for Shiny Impetus). The full list has 4 swaps, each scored with synergy, inclusion and lift.
How much does it cost to upgrade Jeskai Striker?
All 4 swaps cost about $1.95 at the cheapest paper printings (TCGplayer market prices via Scryfall, 2026-10-27). If you want to spend more, the guide also covers Jeskai Revelation ($4.94), Narset, Enlightened Exile ($7.34) and Snap ($3.35).
What should I cut from Jeskai Striker?
The weakest cards for this commander are Transforming Flourish, Ancestral Vision and Shiny Impetus. The guide explains the reason for every cut, and swaps each one for a card that scores higher.
Which cards should I keep in Jeskai Striker?
Keep Veyran, Voice of Duality, Narset's Reversal, Archmage Emeritus, Whirlwind of Thought and Monastery Mentor. These are the cards doing the deck's heavy lifting.
What does Shiko and Narset do?
Shiko and Narset, Unified costs {1}{U}{R}{W}, and is a 4/4 flier with vigilance. Whenever you cast your second spell each turn, you copy it if it targets a permanent or player, and you may choose new targets for the copy. If you do not copy a spell this way, you draw a card. Every turn with two spells is a copy or a card.
More Tarkir: Dragonstorm Commander upgrade guides
How the numbers work
Inclusion is the share of Shiko and Narset, Unified decks (10,190 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 Shiko and Narset decks, which flatters every card the precon contains. Lift is moderate for most of these cards because they are played in many Jeskai 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.