Live Play Data

Expedition Map

· Artifact · Foundations (FDN)

Live Inclusion

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Times Brought

622

Decks Running

357

Median Cast Turn

2.5

Drawn → Played

70%

Format

Multiplayer 1v1

3% of tracked Commander decks run Expedition Map, and 70% of drawn copies reach the cast step. Median first cast lands on turn 2.5, early enough to shape the land base before the game accelerates.

Expedition Map is a colorless, one-mana artifact that converts three mana and a sacrifice into any land from your library. On Playgroup Live, it appears in 357 of the 13667 distinct tracked decks, putting its inclusion rate at 3%. Across 595 tracked multiplayer games, it has been brought to the table 622 times and cast 108 times.

The functional story is in the timing. Most casts cluster on turns 1 and 4, suggesting two distinct use patterns: slam it turn 1 off an opening hand, or play it into a window where three mana is freely available. 77% of drawn copies are cast on the same turn they are drawn. That is a strong signal that players treat this as an immediate action rather than a held option. The draw-to-play rate of 70% reflects this urgency, with uncast copies most often explained by game-end effects rather than player hesitation.

Because it has no color identity, Expedition Map fits into every Commander deck, from five-color goodstuff to colorless Eldrazi builds. The top-commander list reflects that breadth: Zhulodok, Omo, Toph, and Child of Alara all appear near the top, spanning completely different strategies. The card's value is proportional to how much your land base matters, and in Commander, the answer is almost always "a lot."

At a glance

3% of tracked Commander decks include Expedition Map
70% of drawn copies are cast before the game ends
T2.5 median first-cast turn across all tracked games
77% of drawn copies are cast the same turn they are drawn
294 distinct players have brought Expedition Map to a tracked game
41% of casts land exactly on curve at one mana

First-cast turn

n=108

41%

23%

T6-9

T10+

Median 2.5 P25 1 · P75 6 · max 12

On curve 41% (44 / 108 cast on T1) Cast same turn as drawn 77%

The "good card" funnel

622 brought · 294 players

Brought to game

622

Ever drawn

155

Reached battlefield

108

Still on board at game end

70%

Of 622 copies brought to tracked games, 155 were drawn, 108 were cast, and the majority ended in the graveyard after being sacrificed to search up a land, exactly as intended.

≥ -3.4pp

Players who cast this card win 32% of the time (n=108) , vs 26% when it never left the library (n=401).

When players drew this card but left it in hand, they won 43% (n=45) — about the same as leaving it in the library. Those players survived long enough to draw it, so the gap above is about the card resolving, not just about surviving.

Observed gap +5.5pp; 95% confidence interval -3.4pp to +14.4pp. Correlational, not causal: powerful payoffs also get cast more often in games you are already winning.

Final zone distribution

173 instances

2.9%

Library

9.2%

Battlefield

61.8%

Graveyard

6.9%

Exile

Most Expedition Map copies end the game in the graveyard after being sacrificed to fetch a land, which is the intended line. The small number that finish on the battlefield were likely never activated.

Commanders that played this card

in tracked games

The commander spread is broad and colorless-heavy. Zhulodok, Omo, and Toph lead at the top, but no single commander dominates, reflecting how universally accessible a zero-color-identity card can be.

Frequently Asked

How often is Expedition Map drawn in a Commander game?

In 595 tracked multiplayer games where Expedition Map was in the deck, it was drawn 25% of the time. That is consistent with what you would expect from a singleton in a 100-card deck. Of the 155 instances that reached a player's hand, 70% were cast before the game ended.

What turn does Expedition Map typically get cast?

The median first-cast turn is 2.5. The distribution is notably bimodal: 41 of the 108 tracked casts happened on turn 1, suggesting many players draw it in their opening hand and play it immediately. A second cluster appears between turns 4 and 6, which aligns with the three-mana activation window becoming available. The mode is turn 1.

Does casting Expedition Map correlate with winning?

Games where Expedition Map was cast show a win rate of 32%, compared to 26% for games where it stayed in the library. The delta is +5.5 percentage points. Both sample sizes are solid, but this is an early directional signal rather than a conclusive effect. Decks that run the Map may already be better-tuned for their land bases, which would contribute to the gap independently of the card itself.

Why does Expedition Map see play across such different commanders?

Expedition Map has no color identity, so it is available to every deck in the format. Its value scales with how much any specific land matters to a strategy. Eldrazi Temples, Cabal Coffers, Maze's End, Dark Depths, and utility lands in five-color decks all become searchable. The top-commander list on Playgroup Live includes colorless Eldrazi lists, land-matters commanders, and broad five-color piles, confirming that its appeal is cross-archetype rather than tied to one strategy.

Is Expedition Map legal in Commander and other formats?

Yes. Expedition Map is legal in Commander, Legacy, Modern, Pioneer, Pauper, Vintage, and most other sanctioned formats. It is not legal in Old School or Premodern. It has no color identity, making it eligible for any Commander deck regardless of the commander's colors.

How concentrated is the Expedition Map data across players?

The data is well-spread. 294 distinct players have brought Expedition Map to a tracked game on Playgroup Live, and the single heaviest contributor accounts for only 3% of all instances. That distribution strengthens confidence in the aggregate numbers, as no individual player's habits are disproportionately shaping the results.