Gavi, Nest Warden costs {2}{U}{R}{W} and is a 2/5 Legendary Human Shaman. You may pay {0} rather than pay the cycling cost of the first card you cycle each turn, and whenever you draw your second card each turn you create a 2/2 red and white Dinosaur Cat creature token. Every cycle after the first is a second draw, so cycle once for free and every turn makes a Dinosaur Cat.
The precon already has the cycling enablers and the flicker, including Nimble Obstructionist, Astral Drift, Fluctuator, Tectonic Reformation and Valiant Rescuer. 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 Gavi decks, plus lift, which shows how much more often a card turns up in Gavi decks than in decks that could play it.
Looking for the unmodified list first? Read the Timeless Wisdom precon guide.
What is holding the deck back
Not enough cheap cards with cycling
Drannith Stinger, Flourishing Fox, Magmakin Artillerist and Drannith Healer punish every cycle for a few mana and have cycling {1} or cycling themselves. Countervailing Winds, Complicate and Miscalculation are counterspells with cycling. They are among the top-scoring cards the precon leaves out.
Goad Auras and creatures outside the lists
Martial Impetus, Psychic Impetus, Shiny Impetus, Agitator Ant, Cryptic Trilobite, Ethereal Forager, Isperia, Mercurial Chemister and Portal Mage are not cards Gavi decks usually play.
A top-heavy deck
The deck has 13 nonland cards at mana value six or more, including Chandra, Flamecaller, and 39 lands.
The 11 swaps
Each pair shows the numbers for the card coming out and the card going in. Click a card image to zoom.

Martial Impetus is a three-mana Aura that goads the enchanted creature. It is not a card Gavi decks usually play.
Drannith Stinger is a 2/2 Human Wizard for {1}{R} with cycling {1}. Whenever you cycle another card, it deals 1 damage to each opponent. A two-drop that pings the table for every cycle, and the highest-scoring card the precon leaves out.

Psychic Impetus is a three-mana Aura that gives +2/+2 and goads the creature. It is not a card Gavi decks usually play.
Flourishing Fox is a 1/1 Fox for {W} with cycling {1}. Whenever you cycle another card, it gets a +1/+1 counter. A one-drop that grows with every cycle.

Shiny Impetus is a three-mana Aura that goads a creature and makes a Treasure when it attacks. It is not a card Gavi decks usually play.
Magmakin Artillerist is a 1/4 Elemental Pirate for {2}{R} with cycling {1}{R}. Whenever you discard one or more cards, it deals that much damage to each opponent, and when you cycle it, it deals 1 damage to each opponent. A three-drop that pings for every discard, including cycling.

Bonder's Ornament is a three-mana rock that taps for any color. It is not a card Gavi decks usually play.
Containment Construct is a 2/1 Construct artifact creature for {2}. Whenever you discard a card, you may exile it from your graveyard and play it this turn. A two-drop that lets you play the cards you cycle.

Agitator Ant is a three-mana 2/2 that offers counters and goads. It is not a card Gavi decks usually play.
Drannith Healer is a 2/2 Human Cleric for {1}{W} with cycling {1}. Whenever you cycle another card, you gain 1 life. A two-drop that is also a cycler.

Cryptic Trilobite is a variable-cost creature that grows and adds mana for abilities. It is not a card Gavi decks usually play.
Cloud of Faeries is a 1/1 flying Faerie for {1}{U} with cycling {2}. When it enters, it untaps up to two lands. A two-drop that pays for itself and cycles later.

Ethereal Forager is a six-mana 3/3 flyer with delve. It is not a card Gavi decks usually play.
Shark Typhoon is a six-mana enchantment. Whenever you cast a noncreature spell, you create an X/X blue Shark with flying, where X is that spell's mana value, and it has cycling {X}{1}{U}. When you cycle it, you create an X/X Shark. A card that is both a cycler and a Shark maker.

Isperia, Supreme Judge is a six-mana 6/4 flyer that draws when creatures attack. It is not a card Gavi decks usually play.
Countervailing Winds costs {2}{U}. It counters target spell unless its controller pays {1} for each card in your graveyard, and it has cycling {2}. A counterspell that gets better with every card you cycle.

Mercurial Chemister is a five-mana 2/3 that draws two cards. It is not a card Gavi decks usually play.
Complicate costs {2}{U}. It counters target spell unless its controller pays {3}, and it has cycling {2}{U}: when you cycle it, you may counter target spell unless its controller pays {1}. A counterspell that is also a cycler.

Portal Mage is a three-mana 2/2 with flash that redirects an attacker. It is not a card Gavi decks usually play.
Miscalculation costs {1}{U}. It counters target spell unless its controller pays {2}, and it has cycling {2}. A cheap counterspell that cycles.

Chandra, Flamecaller is a six-mana planeswalker. It is played in about one Gavi deck in fourteen.
Homunculus Horde is a 2/2 Homunculus for {3}{U}. Whenever you draw your second card each turn, you create a token that's a copy of this creature. A four-drop that makes a copy whenever Gavi makes a Dinosaur Cat.
The full swap list
Cut
- Martial Impetus
- Psychic Impetus
- Shiny Impetus
- Bonder's Ornament
- Agitator Ant
- Cryptic Trilobite
- Ethereal Forager
- Isperia, Supreme Judge
- Mercurial Chemister
- Portal Mage
- Chandra, Flamecaller
Add
- Drannith Stinger
- Flourishing Fox
- Magmakin Artillerist
- Containment Construct
- Drannith Healer
- Cloud of Faeries
- Shark Typhoon
- Countervailing Winds
- Complicate
- Miscalculation
- Homunculus Horde
What to keep
These cards are doing the deck's heavy lifting. Do not cut them.
- Nimble Obstructionist$0.42
Played in 84% of Gavi decks. A flash flyer that counters an ability when cycled. - Astral Drift$0.30
Played in 83% of Gavi decks. Flickers a creature whenever you cycle a card. - Fluctuator$0.80
Played in 79% of Gavi decks. Makes cycling abilities cost {2} less. - Tectonic Reformation$0.43
Played in 78% of Gavi decks. Gives each land card in your hand cycling {R}. - Valiant Rescuer$0.23
Played in 77% of Gavi decks. Makes a Soldier the first time you cycle each turn.
If you want to spend more
These are strong but sit outside a budget upgrade. Prices are the cheapest paper printing.
- Rielle, the Everwise$4.04
A three-mana creature that draws as many cards as you discard the first time each turn. It costs more than a budget upgrade should. - Teferi's Ageless Insight$3.83
An enchantment that doubles every draw except the first each turn, which makes Gavi trigger more. It costs more than a budget upgrade should.
Timeless Wisdom already has the cycling enablers, the flicker and Gavi's token engine. The upgrade is cheap cards with cycling and creatures that punish each cycle, in place of goad Auras and creatures that Gavi decks leave out. These eleven swaps cost about $3 in total.
Want a full 100-card list built around Gavi, Nest Warden from today's data?
Build with The Oracle →Frequently asked questions
What are the best upgrades for the Timeless Wisdom precon?
Using data from 4,773 Gavi decks, the highest-scoring additions are Drannith Stinger (for Martial Impetus), Countervailing Winds (for Isperia, Supreme Judge) and Complicate (for Mercurial Chemister). The full list has 11 swaps, each scored with synergy, inclusion and lift.
How much does it cost to upgrade Timeless Wisdom?
All 11 swaps cost about $3.36 at the cheapest paper printings (TCGplayer market prices via Scryfall, 2026-10-28). If you want to spend more, the guide also covers Rielle, the Everwise ($4.04) and Teferi's Ageless Insight ($3.83).
What should I cut from Timeless Wisdom?
The weakest cards for this commander are Martial Impetus, Psychic Impetus 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 Timeless Wisdom?
Keep Nimble Obstructionist, Astral Drift, Fluctuator, Tectonic Reformation and Valiant Rescuer. These are the cards doing the deck's heavy lifting.
What does Gavi do?
Gavi, Nest Warden costs {2}{U}{R}{W} and is a 2/5 Legendary Human Shaman. You may pay {0} rather than pay the cycling cost of the first card you cycle each turn, and whenever you draw your second card each turn you create a 2/2 red and white Dinosaur Cat creature token. Every cycle after the first is a second draw, so cycle once for free and every turn makes a Dinosaur Cat.
More Commander 2020 (Ikoria) upgrade guides
How the numbers work
Inclusion is the share of Gavi, Nest Warden decks (4,773 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 Gavi decks, which flatters every card the precon contains. Lift is high for many cycling cards because few decks play them outside a cycling 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.










