Lluwen, Imperfect NaturalistLluwen, Imperfect Naturalist | Art by Evyn Fong

Hello, fellow Worm HarvestWorm Harvesters! I'm Brian, your usual host of Brew For Your Buck (BFYB), and we're kicking off 2026 with the newest set, Lorwyn Eclipsed. I know a lot of people are excited by the return to Lorwyn. For those of you new to the game, we used to spend three, and in the case of Lorwyn, four, sets in a row on a single plane. Some might argue that it was two Lorwyn and two Shadowmoor, but same idea.

Point being, there is a lot of opportunity for nostalgia, and today's featured commander, Lluwen, Imperfect NaturalistLluwen, Imperfect Naturalist, is no different.

What Does Lluwen, Imperfect NaturalistLluwen, Imperfect Naturalist Do?

Lluwen's flavor text indicates that this character doesn't feel a sense of belonging. But I know where he belongs: harvesting worms. The first ability is just fuel for the second, and if you haven't figured it out already, Lluwen basically casts Worm HarvestWorm Harvest.

I love Worm Harvest, and still play it in my Gitrog Monster deck today. In fact, that deck is where I started in terms of inspiration for this deck list.

Lluwen is obviously going to want a lot of lands in the graveyard, but we can also take advantage of the fact that he's making a lot of creature tokens that we can utilize in a bunch of different ways. So I also took a look at Golgari () Aristocrats, Tokens, and Self-Mill pages for other ideas.

As we'll see, there are so many ways to build Lluwen and I'm excited to see and hear about different builds after the set gets released.

Key Cards for LluwenLluwen

Lands Matter

Let's start with the land synergies. We obviously want a lot of lands in the graveyard in order to harvest the maximum amount of Worms, so ways to fill the 'yard are key. Without a doubt, the two most important cards for this deck are Life from the LoamLife from the Loam and Dakmor SalvageDakmor Salvage.

If you've never played with dredge before, I'd recommend looking up some gameplay. It's an incredibly powerful ability that lets us self-mill for free. We can use Life from the LoamLife from the Loam to get back lands in order to make our land drop for the turn, or to have one to discard to Lluwen's ability. Next time we draw, we replace it with dredge 3 instead, get Loam back to our hand and put three cards in the graveyard. Rinse and repeat.

Meanwhile, Dakmor SalvageDakmor Salvage is the best land we can discard to Lluwen's ability. Simply dredge it back to hand and use it to discard again.

Of course, there are the other ways to abuse lands going in and out of the graveyard. We can take our pick of any Crucible of WorldsCrucible of Worlds effect that we want. Icetill ExplorerIcetill Explorer is especially good, since it accelerates our mana and mills us.

I'm also a big fan of Walk-In Closet // Forgotten CellarWalk-In Closet // Forgotten Cellar. We get the Crucible effect, but later in the game we can open the Forgotten Cellar side and play whatever is in our gigantic graveyard. Another way to do this is with Exploration BroodshipExploration Broodship. It's an ExplorationExploration, always good for lands decks, but also lets us play stuff (by sacrificing a land) out of the graveyard later in the game.

The options for lands themselves are abundant. If price isn't a factor, we can add the full suite of Fetchlands, but I'll stick to my budget tendencies and only add Verdant CatacombsVerdant Catacombs, plus some of the less powerful optionsless powerful options that still put themselves in the graveyard.

We should also include Golgari Rot FarmGolgari Rot Farm. Bouncelands let us more easily manipulate which zones our lands end up in, and can let us re-use the effects on some utility lands. Boseiju, Who EnduresBoseiju, Who Endures and Takenuma, Abandoned MireTakenuma, Abandoned Mire are the best of these, but there are others like Cabal PitCabal Pit and the classic Bojuka BogBojuka Bog.

No matter what way we build Lluwen, it will be a lands deck at heart, so I'm sticking to the suggested minimum of 40 for this list. This gives us a large enough density to make land drops and have extras to abuse for other effects, primarily increasing the Worm count. Otherwise, there are a ton of other land synergies that could slot in.

For higher powered tables, I'd recommend Glacial ChasmGlacial Chasm and Constant MistsConstant Mists, but I won't be adding them to the final list. Edge of AutumnEdge of Autumn is a pet card of mine, providing some ramp early and cycling for free later.

Creatures and Tokens

Obviously, I'm a big fan of the lands-matter theme, but for this deck I view doing all of that as setup. If we wanted to build a generic Golgari Lands deck, I'd stick with The Gitrog MonsterThe Gitrog Monster. We're here for one thing and one thing only: Worms. If we get the setup right, Lluwen's activated ability can bring a massive amount of creatures onto the battlefield in one shot.

How do we go about abusing this?

Well, the creatures themselves are 1/1 black and green Worm creature tokens. I state this outright because it's important to dissect every part of that phrase if we want to abuse the Worms to their fullest. For example, Ayara, First of LocthwainAyara, First of Locthwain cares quite a lot about them being black. Mirkwood BatsMirkwood Bats cares even more about them being tokens. Essence WardenEssence Warden cares that they are creatures. Fumulus, the InfestationFumulus, the Infestation even cares about them being Worms!

In fact, the three above cards have inspired me to include a lifegain subtheme, so that's why cards like Dina, Soul SteeperDina, Soul Steeper and Marauding Blight-PriestMarauding Blight-Priest are in the final list.

Another must-add is Creakwood LiegeCreakwood Liege, not only because it pumps our Worms into 3/3s and makes extras, but it was originally printed in Eventide, so we grab even more nostalgia factor. Sylvan AnthemSylvan Anthem is also, well, an anthem for the Worms and lets us scry a bunch of times to set up our next draw.

Even better, Snarling GorehoundSnarling Gorehound lets us surveil for each Worm that enters, potentially putting that many cards into the graveyard and setting up for even more Worms the next time we activate Lluwen.

Of course, once we make all the Worms, we need to put them to work. My black-mana infested brain immediately looks to sacrifice synergies, so we'll put some of the good outlets like Umbral Collar ZealotUmbral Collar Zealot in the list. For the sake of price, I'm not putting in Phyrexian AltarPhyrexian Altar, but I am aware the card exists and how busto-disgusto (technical term) it could be in this deck. Ashnod's AltarAshnod's Altar will do just fine (for now).

Plumb the ForbiddenPlumb the Forbidden lets us use the Worms to draw as many cards as we could want at instant speed, and for only two mana. Savra, Queen of the GolgariSavra, Queen of the Golgari is another card which takes advantage of the Worms being both black and green, and can certainly help clear out opposing boards plus save us a ton of money compared to Grave PactGrave Pact.

Lastly, if I can find a slot for my favorite card of all time, it has to go in the list. Dread ReturnDread Return lets us trade three Worms for any other creature in our graveyard, which should be pretty full thanks to all of the dredge from before.

I must admit that there are other things to do besides sacrifice the Worms. We've already added a few things that turn them into real threats in combat, but how about turning them into mana too? We have a few effects like Cryptolith RiteCryptolith Rite out there, and we also can use the Worms to pay convoke costs. Lethal SchemeLethal Scheme is maybe the best one, since it can also fill the graveyard with lands for Lluwen, or pump the Worms with connive.

Pile OnPile On also lets us surveil, and it's pretty fun to name Worm with Obelisk of UrdObelisk of Urd.

I think that's enough Worm abuse for now, since I want to highlight some other cards, but again there's a massive list of cards that could be included to take advantage of the token explosion. Pact of the SerpentPact of the Serpent is a good one that deserves a quick shoutout. Let me know your favorites in the comments, unless your favorites are Craterhoof BehemothCraterhoof Behemoth and Parallel LivesParallel Lives. Again, they're omitted for price and for more interesting options.

Other Synergies

The last set of cards I want to highlight are a bit random but do serve important roles. First: untappers for Lluwen. What's better than getting ten Worms? Getting twenty.

Tyvar, Jubilant BrawlerTyvar, Jubilant Brawler and Saryth, the Viper's FangSaryth, the Viper's Fang both allow us to untap Lluwen so we can use his ability more than once in a turn cycle, and each have additional upside. Tyvar mills us and allows us to activate Lluwen's ability even if he has summoning sickness. Meanwhile Saryth makes any of our attacking Worms also have deathtouch while protecting other key creatures, like Lluwen, that we don't send into the fray.

We also might as well take advantage of having a big graveyard. Urgent NecropsyUrgent Necropsy is terribly underrated in graveyard decks. Using one card to get rid of four problems is a pretty great deal when our opponents collectively have 200 more cards than we do.

Traverse the UlvenwaldTraverse the Ulvenwald and Analyze the PollenAnalyze the Pollen are both tutors that care about stuff in the graveyard, but aren't so powerful and flexible that I'd consider them out of place at a Bracket 2-3 table. Our whole plan is to have a lot of permanents in the graveyard, so Squirming EmergenceSquirming Emergence is a pretty great recursion spell while Terror TideTerror Tide will be one of our board wipes.

I think it's fairly obvious at this point that there are a ton of different ways to build the deck. We'll round out the list with the usual necessities like mana acceleration, card velocity, and interaction, but I think it's clear that the sheer amount of choices for cool cards to go in this deck could be overwhelming.

Building a list and playing it will be the best way to narrow down those choices. Speaking of playing...

Gameplay

In general, we'll set up in the early turns by milling and ramping, ramping and milling. When to cast Lluwen is an interesting conundrum. Getting him out on turn two is useful. We'll mill four cards as I don't recommend putting anything on top of the deck unless we really need it. This will likely get some lands in the graveyard and means Lluwen won't have summoning sickness when we hit five mana. However, in an interaction-heavy pod, it might make sense to hold off on casting Lluwen until we have some protection ready.

After that, we cast our payoffs and make as many Worms as possible. Remember to keep a land in hand to pay the activation cost as well. Our opponents will see what's coming with Lluwen, so some politicking might be needed to ensure they survive until we're ready to activate the ability.

As with any graveyard deck, we must worry about my mortal nemesis, Rest in PeaceRest in Peace, and similar effects that will make our graveyard useless. Fortunately, our recursion package makes us relatively resilient to board wipes, and we've got enough self-mill to recover from our graveyard being exiled by an opposing Soul-Guide LanternSoul-Guide Lantern or similar.

Watch out for Blood ArtistBlood Artist effects that specifically trigger when any creature dies, since the Worms will likely be doing a lot of that (at least when I play the deck).

Wrap Up and Mini-BFYB

Lluwen is the commander I'm most excited about from Lorwyn Eclipsed. It's an obvious throwback to a fun and nostalgic card. By putting that effect in the command zone, we've gotten a brewer's paradise, with tons of unique cards to take advantage of the commander. As is tradition with my preview deck techs, I'll include a mini-BFYB analysis for those of you looking to build the deck without breaking the bank.

• Boseiju, Who EnduresBoseiju, Who Endures ($37.98) --> ForestForest ($0.01)
• Verdant CatacombsVerdant Catacombs ($19.78) --> Terramorphic ExpanseTerramorphic Expanse ($0.11)
• Icetill ExplorerIcetill Explorer ($16.35) --> Conduit of WorldsConduit of Worlds ($2.80)

The final deck list is below, and I’d love to hear your feedback about my choices or cool tech you found for the deck!

Note: I didn't include any Game Changers to keep the price down and for the sake of being Bracket flexible, but you can always use them to power up the deck.

Happy brewing, and I’ll see you next time!

Lluwen, Imperfect Naturalist Commander Deck List