Karplusan Forest
Karplusan Forest sits in 4.8% of tracked Commander decks, a reflection of its Gruul-only color identity. When drawn, players cast it 77% of the time, with a median first-cast turn of 3.
Karplusan Forest is a Gruul dual land with one honest cost: 1 damage whenever you tap it for red or green. Across 122 tracked games on Playgroup Live, it appears in 4.8% of all decks, which reflects its color-identity restriction to red-green combinations rather than any lack of appeal within those decks.
The draw-to-play rate tells the real story. 77% of drawn Karplusan Forests are cast before the game ends, one of the higher rates you will see for a land that enters untapped. Players also hold it briefly: the median time from draw to cast is 1 turn, and 46% of instances are played the same turn they are drawn. That combination points to a card that functions as a reliable mana fixer rather than a strategic hold.
The win-rate delta is a modest +3.5 percentage points in favor of games where the card was cast versus games where it sat in the library. With 24 cast observations and 100 library observations, treat that number as an early directional signal rather than a firm conclusion. What it does confirm is that Karplusan Forest is not a drag on game outcomes, consistent with the expectation that untapped dual lands stabilize early mana without costing tempo.
- 4.8% inclusion rate across all tracked Commander decks
- 77% of drawn copies are cast before the game ends
- T3 median first-cast turn
- 92% battlefield stickiness once it resolves
- +3.5pp win-rate lift in games where it was cast vs. sat in library
- 46% of drawn copies are played the same turn they are drawn
First-cast turn
n=25The "good card" funnel
152 broughtOf 133 copies brought to games, 31 were drawn and 24 of those were cast, meaning roughly 1 in 5 copies brought to a table made it onto the battlefield before the game ended.
Players who cast this card win 40% of the time (n=25) , vs 35% when it never left the library (n=116).
Final zone distribution
152 instances100 of 133 brought copies ended in the library, the expected outcome for a singleton land in a 100-card deck. The 22 copies that stayed on the battlefield reflect games where the card was both drawn and actively used.
Top commanders running this card
by deck count-
1
Ulalek, Fused Atrocity
13 decks
-
2
Hearthhull, the Worldseed
12 decks
-
3
Ureni of the Unwritten
12 decks
-
4
Bello, Bard of the Brambles
7 decks
-
5
Riku of Many Paths
7 decks
-
6
Etali, Primal Conqueror // Etali, Primal Sickness
6 decks
-
7
Samut, the Driving Force
5 decks
-
8
Flubs, the Fool
4 decks
-
9
Indoraptor, the Perfect Hybrid
4 decks
-
10
Leonardo, the Balance
4 decks
The top-10 commander list spans Gruul, Jund, five-color, and Temur shells, showing that Karplusan Forest earns its slot wherever red and green overlap rather than in one dominant archetype.
How often is Karplusan Forest drawn in a Commander game? ▾
In game instances where the card was in the deck, it was drawn 23% of the time. That is close to the expected baseline for a singleton in a 100-card deck. Of 31 observed drawn instances, 24 were cast before the game ended, giving a draw-to-play rate of 77%.
What turn does Karplusan Forest typically hit the battlefield? ▾
The median first-cast turn is 3, with the 25th percentile at turn 2 and the 75th at turn 7. The distribution shows two small clusters: turns 1 and 3 each account for 6 of the 24 observed casts. Players who draw it in their opening hand tend to drop it early; those who draw it mid-game deploy it when they need the color fixing.
Does playing Karplusan Forest actually help you win? ▾
Across our tracked games, decks that cast Karplusan Forest won 37.5% of the time (9 of 24 instances), compared to 34% when it sat in the library the whole game (34 of 100 instances). That 3.5-percentage-point gap is directional. The cast-side sample of 24 is below the threshold where we would call this conclusive, so treat it as an early signal that the card is not a liability.
Is Karplusan Forest legal in Commander? ▾
Yes. Karplusan Forest is legal in Commander, as well as in Legacy, Modern, Pioneer, Vintage, Historic, Timeless, Duel Commander, Premodern, and Oathbreaker. It is not legal in Standard, Pauper, or Pauper Commander. Its color identity of red-green restricts it to Commander decks whose commanders include both colors.
Why is Karplusan Forest popular in Gruul Commander decks? ▾
Gruul decks prioritize fast mana and consistent color access. Karplusan Forest enters the battlefield untapped at zero mana cost, which is the key threshold for lands in competitive and mid-power Commander. The 1-damage drawback is largely irrelevant in a 40-life format. Its inclusion alongside shock lands, Stomping Ground, and other untapped duals makes it a reliable slot in any red-green mana base.
Which commanders most often include Karplusan Forest? ▾
Ureni of the Unwritten (Gruul-blue) leads with 12 tracked decks, followed by Hearthhull, the Worldseed (Jund) at 11 and Ulalek, Fused Atrocity (five-color) at 8. The spread across multiple color identities confirms that red-green as a shared denominator, not a specific commander archetype, drives inclusion. Bello, Bard of the Brambles and Riku of Many Paths each appear in 7 tracked decks as well.