New Strixhaven Commander Enables Combo Win On Opponent’s Upkeep

Last updated on February 5, 2026

Lorehold, the Historian | Illustration by Joshua Raphael

Looks like Lorehold, the Historian is going to be that commander from Secrets of Strixhaven (SOS).

It's already the upcoming MTG set's most popular commander according to EDHREC, by a wide margin. And, as we reported last week, it's already pushing up prices in the Magic card market: Library of Leng, which early theorycrafters include in roughly 3 out of 4 Lorehold decks, spiked more than 500% last Friday, and it's still up.

This week, a fun three-card Lorehold combo showed up, which can win you the game on the spot with a bit of help from Lorehold's miracles… and by countering your own wincon.

How Lorehold, the Historian Works

Approach of the Second Sun | Illustration by Kev Walker

Lorehold, the Historian does two things (on top of being a big, hasty flyer): 

1. Each instant and sorcery card in your hand has miracle : This means that, if it’s the first card you draw that turn, you can cast it as soon as you draw it. The “as soon as” part will be crucial for the combo, as we'll see in a bit.
2. At the beginning of each opponent’s upkeep, you can draw a card by discarding a card.

Needless to say, Lorehold, the Historian is a pretty big threat all by itself: Lorehold decks are packing the really big guns, like Hit the Mother Lode, Call Forth the Tempest, or Storm Herd since, with Lorehold, the Historian on the board and just open (and something else in your hand to discard), you could draw and miracle-cast a huge bomb during any of your foe's upkeep.

But there's a specific win-on-the-spot combo, involving Approach of the Second Sun and Lapse of Certainty.

The Approach of Lorehold's Certainty Combo

Lapse of Certainty | Illustration by Anthony Francisco

Here's how the combo works. You need:

• Lorehold, the Historian on the battlefield.
• Approach of the Second Sun somewhere you can cast it. It will normally be your hand, but if you have any effect that lets you cast sorcery from the graveyard or exile, that works too (as long as Approach is in that zone).
• Lapse of Certainty in hand.
• Any random card in hand you don’t mind discarding to Lorehold’s upkeep trigger.
• Access to on your turn, plus on your next opponent's turn.

First, during your turn, cast Approach of the Second Sun, and hold priority while it's still on the stack…

… then cast Lapse of Certainty targeting your own Approach.

So, yes, you're countering your own sorcery while it's still on the stack. Lapse will put Approach on top of your library.

Now finish your turn. During your next opponent’s upkeep, Lorehold, the Historian makes you draw Approach of the Second Sun as your first draw that turn and gives it miracle; cast it for , and if it resolves… game over.

The Fine Print

Rules Lawyer | Illustration by Sean Murray

Second, Approach of the Second Sun cares about three things in order to win you the game:

1. The first time, that you cast Approach of the Second Sun; notice that there's no other restriction in this first case, so you could cast it from your graveyard (if you can give it flashback somehow, for example), and it doesn't need to resolve this first time, just be cast,
2. The second time, that you resolve Approach of the Second Sun, in order to win the game, and
3. That the second, game-winning cast was from your hand.

Point 1 is what allows you to counter it with Lapse of Certainty the first time (you just need to cast Approach; no need to resolve it this first time). 

Miracle-casting it the second time does fulfill point 3, since miracle-cast is done from hand (you draw it into your hand, then miracle lets you cast it).

The second Approach must be cast from your hand, but the first may have been cast from anywhere.

Will Lorehold Break Commander?

Velomachus Lorehold – Illustration by Raymond Swanland

Not with this combo, at least! It's not a piece of cake to set up, and it can be disrupted.

For starters, having access to is not exactly a small ask. And then the combo is telegraphed: Messing with your Lorehold, the Historian during your turn completely wrecks it, and you let one opponent fully untap before you can go for the killing blow so they could counter your second, game-winning Approach of the Second Sun.

(Remember that the second Approach has to resolve for you to win; if it's countered while on the stack, everything fizzles).

They could also StifleLorehold, the Historian‘s trigger during their upkeep. Or mess with your draws, force you to shuffle your library, etc.

On the other hand it's fun, may catch some of your foes by surprise, and above all showcases the kind of shenanigans that are making Lorehold SOS' most popular commander. It's not just Magic: It's a miracle!