Magic’s Foundations Commander decks look perfect for new players
Overview & Key Takeaways
Whatever your choice of color, these new Commander decks offer a great starting point.
Magic: The Gathering's next in-universe set, Reality Fracture, will launch with a single four-color Commander deck. And while Marvel Super Heroes will deliver four new Commander decks in June, August's The Hobbit set won’t offer any new precons. Perhaps to fill a bit if that Commander deck-shaped void in the slate of Magic releases this fall, Wizards of the Coast listed five new mono-colored Commander decks on online retailers, scheduled for release the very same day as Reality Fracture. Despite having a few dozen Commander decks already, here’s why I’m particularly excited for these — and why am tempted to pick up a couple of them.
Fresh slate
image: Wizards of the Coast
Since the 2022 Starter Commander decks were released, things have changed. These were two-colored decks that have seen steep price hikes in the years since, especially the Draconic Destruction set. That’s a shame, given how they were intended to offer an entry-level product for Commander players, but these new Foundations decks meet that need handily.
Not only are they $30, but each comes in a single color. That not only makes them easier to understand for newcomers, but it also means that if you have fun with, say, the White “Calling All Angels” deck, you can start swapping in cards of that color to customize it as you see fit. With dragons, dinosaurs, angels, zombies, and artifacts, every color has a relatively basic upgrade process, coupled with a nice, simple playstyle. Green’s “Tramplesaurus Rex” deck is, as the name suggests, all about big green creatures, meaning it’s easy to pilot for new players who can get their mana online, and they know they can drop green creatures, particularly dinosaurs, in there.
Simplify things
Another aspect that’s worth calling out is that, outside of the five-color Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Turtle Power deck, precons have been growing steadily more complex in recent years.
From the introduction of set-specific mechanics like the Ring tempting you (Tales of Middle Earth), to -1/-1 Blight counters (Lorwyn Eclipsed) and more, it’s not been easy to find a set of precons to jump right on board with — doubly so if you don’t really care about Final Fantasy or any other Universes Beyond sets. Plus, many of those are more expensive.
That means a series of $30 precons that won’t disrupt a pod’s Commander nights in terms of power or reprint value (although we’re still waiting for the decklists) is a great way to get like-minded friends to try out the format, or Magic in general.
I was recently playing a game of Commander with my wife, and these would have been perfect for just that occasion rather than pitting Lorehold Spirit against Food & Fellowship.
With that in mind, I think these will be ideal to pick up just to keep handy for anyone wanting to see what all the fuss is about. Come on in, folks — the water’s just right.
