Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait costs {4}{G}{U} and is a 5/5 Legendary Serpent. You may play an additional land on each of your turns, and landfall: whenever a land you control enters, you may draw a card. Every land drop draws a card, and with an extra land drop and ramp spells, that is several cards a turn.
The precon already has the landfall creatures and the ramp, including Cultivate, Rampaging Baloths, Avenger of Zendikar, Ramunap Excavator and Growth Spiral. 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 Aesi decks, plus lift, which shows how much more often a card turns up in Aesi decks than in decks that could play it.
Looking for the unmodified list first? Read the Reap the Tides precon guide.
What is holding the deck back
Not enough landfall payoffs and extra land drops
Tatyova, Courser of Kruphix, Retreat to Coralhelm and Zendikar's Roil reward each land drop, and Oracle of Mul Daya, Loot and Druid Class give extra land drops. They are among the top-scoring cards the precon leaves out.
Seven- and eight-drops outside the lists
Elder Deep-Fiend, Meteor Golem, Simic Sky Swallower, Sphinx of Uthuun and Verdant Sun's Avatar cost seven or eight and are not cards Aesi decks usually play. The deck has 17 nonland cards at mana value six or more.
A deck with 44 lands
With 44 lands and several ramp spells, the deck wants cheap cards that draw and make use of land drops rather than more expensive creatures.
The 12 swaps
Each pair shows the numbers for the card coming out and the card going in. Click a card image to zoom.
Elder Deep-Fiend is an eight-mana 5/6 with flash and emerge that taps four permanents. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Tatyova, Benthic Druid is a 3/3 Legendary Merfolk Druid for {3}{G}{U}. Landfall: whenever a land you control enters you gain 1 life and draw a card. A five-drop that draws a card on every land, and the highest-scoring card the precon leaves out.
Fathom Mage is a four-mana 1/1 with evolve that draws when it gets counters. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Sakura-Tribe Elder is a 1/1 Snake Shaman for {1}{G}. Sacrifice it and you search your library for a basic land card and put it onto the battlefield tapped. A two-drop that is a land drop, and a card, at instant speed.
Meteor Golem is a seven-mana 3/3 that destroys a nonland permanent. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Oracle of Mul Daya is a 2/2 Elf Shaman for {3}{G}. You may play an additional land on each of your turns, you play with the top card of your library revealed, and you may play lands from the top of your library. A four-drop that gives you another land drop and lands from the top.
Mulldrifter is a five-mana 2/2 flyer that draws two cards. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Courser of Kruphix is a 2/4 Enchantment Creature for {1}{G}{G}. You play with the top card of your library revealed, you may play lands from the top of your library, and landfall: whenever a land enters you gain 1 life. A three-drop that plays lands from the top, so every land you draw is a free card.
Sharktocrab is a four-mana 4/4 that taps creatures when it gets counters. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Arixmethes, Slumbering Isle is a 12/12 Legendary Kraken for {2}{G}{U}. It enters tapped with five slumber counters and is a land while it has a slumber counter, it can lose a counter whenever you cast a spell, and it taps for {G}{U}. A four-mana land that is a Kraken later, and a landfall trigger when it enters.
Shipbreaker Kraken is a six-mana 6/6 with monstrosity that taps down creatures. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Retreat to Coralhelm costs {2}{U}. Landfall: whenever a land you control enters, you choose one: you may tap or untap target creature, or you scry 1. A three-mana enchantment that scries on every land drop or untaps a creature.
Simic Sky Swallower is a seven-mana 6/6 flying, trample creature with shroud. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Multani, Yavimaya's Avatar is a Legendary Elemental Avatar for {4}{G}{G} with reach and trample. It gets +1/+1 for each land you control and each land card in your graveyard, and for {1}{G} and returning two lands it returns from the graveyard to your hand. A six-drop that is huge in a deck with 44 lands, and bounces lands for more landfall.
Sphinx of Uthuun is a seven-mana 5/5 flyer that gives you a pile of cards. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Zendikar's Roil costs {3}{G}{G}. Landfall: whenever a land you control enters, you create a 2/2 green Elemental creature token. A five-mana enchantment that makes a body on every land drop.
Sporemound is a five-mana 3/3 that makes a Saproling on each land drop. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Harrow is a {2}{G} instant with an additional cost of sacrificing a land. You search your library for up to two basic land cards and put them onto the battlefield untapped. A three-mana instant that nets a land and triggers Aesi twice.
Stumpsquall Hydra is an {X}{G}{G}{G} creature that distributes counters among it and commanders. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Conduit of Worlds is an artifact for {2}{G}{G}. You may play lands from your graveyard, and for a tap, if you haven't cast a spell this turn, you may cast target nonland permanent card from your graveyard. A four-mana artifact that replays your sacrificed lands, and every replayed land draws a card.
Verdant Sun's Avatar is a seven-mana 5/5 that gains life when creatures enter. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Druid Class costs {1}{G}. Landfall: whenever a land you control enters, you gain 1 life. Level 2 ({2}{G}) lets you play an additional land on each of your turns, and level 3 ({4}{G}) turns a land into a creature with power and toughness equal to the number of lands you control. A two-mana enchantment that gives another land drop and a land creature later.
Wickerbough Elder is a four-mana 4/4 that enters with a -1/-1 counter and can destroy an artifact or enchantment. It is not a card Aesi decks usually play.
Loot, Exuberant Explorer is a 1/4 Legendary Beast Noble for {2}{G}. You may play an additional land on each of your turns, and for {4}{G}{G} and a tap you look at the top six cards and may put a creature card with mana value less than or equal to the number of lands you control onto the battlefield. A three-drop that gives a land drop and puts a big creature onto the battlefield.
The full swap list
Cut
- Elder Deep-Fiend
- Fathom Mage
- Meteor Golem
- Mulldrifter
- Sharktocrab
- Shipbreaker Kraken
- Simic Sky Swallower
- Sphinx of Uthuun
- Sporemound
- Stumpsquall Hydra
- Verdant Sun's Avatar
- Wickerbough Elder
Add
- Tatyova, Benthic Druid
- Sakura-Tribe Elder
- Oracle of Mul Daya
- Courser of Kruphix
- Arixmethes, Slumbering Isle
- Retreat to Coralhelm
- Multani, Yavimaya's Avatar
- Zendikar's Roil
- Harrow
- Conduit of Worlds
- Druid Class
- Loot, Exuberant Explorer
What to keep
These cards are doing the deck's heavy lifting. Do not cut them.
- Cultivate$0.39
Played in 78% of Aesi decks. Puts one land onto the battlefield and one into your hand, which is another landfall. - Growth Spiral$0.30
Played in 69% of Aesi decks. Draws a card and puts a land from your hand onto the battlefield. - Rampaging Baloths$0.30
Played in 65% of Aesi decks. Makes a 4/4 Beast whenever a land enters. - Avenger of Zendikar$0.49
Played in 64% of Aesi decks. Makes Plants equal to your lands and grows them on landfall. - Ramunap Excavator$4.30
Played in 59% of Aesi decks. Lets you play lands from your graveyard.
If you want to spend more
These are strong but sit outside a budget upgrade. Prices are the cheapest paper printing.
- Lotus Cobra$5.99
A two-mana creature that adds a mana of any color on every land drop. It costs more than a budget upgrade should. - Koma, Cosmos Serpent$4.41
A seven-mana Serpent that makes a 3/3 Serpent token at every upkeep and can't be countered. It costs more than a budget upgrade should.
Reap the Tides already has the landfall creatures, the ramp and Aesi's extra land drop. The upgrade is cheap landfall payoffs and cards that give extra land drops, in place of seven- and eight-drops and cards that Aesi decks leave out. These twelve swaps cost about $10 in total.
Want a full 100-card list built around Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait from today's data?
Build with The Oracle →Frequently asked questions
What are the best upgrades for the Reap the Tides precon?
Using data from 17,463 Aesi decks, the highest-scoring additions are Tatyova, Benthic Druid (for Elder Deep-Fiend), Harrow (for Sporemound) and Oracle of Mul Daya (for Meteor Golem). The full list has 12 swaps, each scored with synergy, inclusion and lift.
How much does it cost to upgrade Reap the Tides?
All 12 swaps cost about $9.92 at the cheapest paper printings (TCGplayer market prices via Scryfall, 2026-10-28). If you want to spend more, the guide also covers Lotus Cobra ($5.99) and Koma, Cosmos Serpent ($4.41).
What should I cut from Reap the Tides?
The weakest cards for this commander are Elder Deep-Fiend, Fathom Mage and Meteor Golem. The guide explains the reason for every cut, and swaps each one for a card that scores higher.
Which cards should I keep in Reap the Tides?
Keep Cultivate, Growth Spiral, Rampaging Baloths, Avenger of Zendikar and Ramunap Excavator. These are the cards doing the deck's heavy lifting.
What does Aesi do?
Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait costs {4}{G}{U} and is a 5/5 Legendary Serpent. You may play an additional land on each of your turns, and landfall: whenever a land you control enters, you may draw a card. Every land drop draws a card, and with an extra land drop and ramp spells, that is several cards a turn.
More Commander Legends upgrade guides
How the numbers work
Inclusion is the share of Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait decks (17,463 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 Aesi decks, which flatters every card the precon contains. Lift is high for many landfall cards because few decks play them outside a landfall 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.