Calling All Angels Upgrade Guide: Best Giada Upgrades

Calling All Angels is one of the most approachable Commander precons in the Foundations lineup, but its real strength is how little you need to change before it starts feeling like a focused Angel tribal deck. Led by Giada, Font of Hope, the mono-white strategy turns every new Angel into a bigger threat while using lifegain, flying creatures and powerful tribal synergies to dominate the battlefield.

The original 100-card deck already includes excellent staples such as Righteous Valkyrie, Lyra Dawnbringer, Bishop of Wings and Youthful Valkyrie. That’s a strong foundation, especially compared with precons that need a dozen replacements before their main strategy feels consistent.

The best Calling All Angels upgrades aren’t necessarily the most expensive Angels available. What this deck really wants is a smoother mana curve, more reliable card advantage, ways to convert lifegain into additional creatures and protection against board wipes.

Our first recommendations are Resplendent Angel, Pearl Medallion and Akroma’s Will. They improve three different parts of the deck without changing its identity. Here’s how we’d upgrade Giada, which cards we’d cut and where we’d spend our money first.

Best Calling All Angels Upgrades at a Glance

If you want to improve the deck without rebuilding it from scratch, these are the cards we’d consider first.

These recommendations focus on making the existing deck more consistent rather than replacing everything that came in the box. Prices can change significantly between printings, so compare available versions before choosing which upgrades to purchase.

Don’t own the precon yet? Check the current Calling All Angels sealed deck price on TCGplayer before buying individual upgrades.

You can also explore the complete Calling All Angels decklist in the PreconForge Commander Precon Database to compare the original card selection and its value.

How Giada Makes the Entire Deck Better

Giada, Font of Hope costs just , making her one of the most efficient commanders available for Angel tribal. She is a 2/2 flying, vigilant Angel that can tap for to cast Angel spells, giving the deck early access to the expensive creatures that normally define the tribe.

Her second ability is even more important. Every other Angel you control enters with an additional +1/+1 counter for each Angel already under your control. With Giada alone on the battlefield, your next Angel enters with an extra counter. The following Angel receives even more, and the advantage keeps growing as your army expands.

That interaction makes inexpensive Angels surprisingly valuable. Youthful Valkyrie grows whenever another Angel enters, while Starnheim Aspirant reduces the cost of future Angel spells. Both help create stronger turns than simply waiting until you can cast another expensive creature.

The main trap when upgrading Giada is replacing too many early-game cards with impressive six- and seven-mana threats. Giant Angels are fun, but they aren’t especially useful when your hand is full of them and you don’t have enough mana to cast anything.

A stronger Giada deck develops creatures early, adds larger threats as the game progresses and protects its battlefield long enough for those growing Angels to take over.

Best Creature Upgrades for Calling All Angels

Resplendent Angel – Our First Addition

Resplendent Angel is one of the most natural upgrades for this precon because so many of its existing cards already gain life.

At the beginning of each end step, if you’ve gained at least five life during that turn, Resplendent Angel creates a 4/4 Angel token with flying and vigilance. This isn’t limited to your own end step, making it especially threatening when you can gain life during an opponent’s turn.

Bishop of Wings, Righteous Valkyrie and Lyra Dawnbringer help support the lifegain requirement. Once the engine is running, every additional Angel token also increases the size of the Angels that enter afterward through Giada.

That combination creates a genuine snowball effect without relying on complicated combos.

Our recommendation: Prioritize Resplendent Angel if your budget allows. It reinforces the existing strategy and gives the deck a repeatable way to produce more threats.

Valkyrie Harbinger – More Angels Without Casting Them

Valkyrie Harbinger offers another reliable payoff for gaining life. At the beginning of each end step, if you’ve gained at least four life that turn, it creates a 4/4 flying Angel token with vigilance.

Although Harbinger is considerably more expensive to cast than Resplendent Angel, its token generation can quickly justify that investment in longer Commander games.

The best part is that Calling All Angels already contains enough lifegain to support both cards. You don’t need to devote half the deck to lifegain spells or abandon the core Angel tribal plan.

With Lyra Dawnbringer granting lifelink to your Angels, even ordinary combat can generate the life needed to create another threatening creature.

Battle Angels of Tyr – Card Advantage for Mono-White

One of Calling All Angels‘ biggest limitations is its ability to recover after spending several turns developing its battlefield. Battle Angels of Tyr helps solve that problem while remaining a powerful Angel creature.

Its myriad ability creates temporary attacking copies when you attack an opponent in a multiplayer game. Combat damage from these Angels can reward you with cards, Treasure tokens or life depending on how your resources compare with those of the defending player.

Giada also improves the original creature as it enters, making Battle Angels of Tyr more threatening than its printed size suggests.

For a deck that otherwise tends to spend its resources quickly, adding an on-theme source of card advantage is particularly valuable.

Archangel of Thune – The Premium Upgrade

Archangel of Thune is one of the strongest premium options available, but it isn’t necessary for the deck to function well.

Whenever you gain life, Archangel of Thune places a +1/+1 counter on every creature you control. Since Calling All Angels already generates life through several different creatures and permanents, those counters can accumulate surprisingly quickly.

The interaction becomes especially dangerous alongside Bishop of Wings, Righteous Valkyrie and Lyra Dawnbringer. Each source of lifegain can contribute to strengthening the entire battlefield, while Giada continues adding counters as new Angels enter.

It’s an excellent card for players who want to invest heavily in Angel tribal. For a budget build, however, we’d prioritize improving consistency and protection before spending heavily on a single premium creature.

Best Noncreature Upgrades: Mana, Removal and Protection

Not every improvement needs to be another Angel. Some of the strongest changes come from making sure your existing creatures can actually stay on the battlefield.

Pearl Medallion – Make the Deck Faster

Pearl Medallion reduces the generic mana cost of your white spells by one. Because Calling All Angels contains numerous expensive white creatures, this can save a considerable amount of mana over the course of a game.

Giada already helps cast Angels, but her acceleration requires her to remain on the battlefield. Pearl Medallion operates independently of your commander, making the deck less vulnerable to repeated removal.

The Medallion also reduces the cost of many noncreature white spells, improving your ability to develop creatures while retaining mana for interaction.

For players looking to make the deck feel smoother immediately, this is one of the best upgrades to consider.

Akroma’s Will – Protection That Can Win the Game

Akroma’s Will performs two very different roles, both of which Calling All Angels appreciates.

With your commander on the battlefield, choosing both modes can give your creatures flying, vigilance, double strike, lifelink, indestructible and protection from all colors until end of turn.

That makes it an outstanding finishing spell when you’ve developed several large Angels. Instead of needing another turn to attack, you can potentially end the game with a single explosive combat phase.

It can also protect your creatures from many forms of removal, although protection from colors and indestructible won’t answer every possible board wipe.

For a deck centered on maintaining a large flying army, Akroma’s Will is an exceptional investment.

Flawless Maneuver – Protect Your Investment

Flawless Maneuver gives your creatures indestructible until end of turn. If you control your commander, you can cast it without paying its mana cost.

That flexibility matters because Giada decks naturally want to spend most of their available mana casting Angels. Holding up several mana for a protection spell can delay your development, while Flawless Maneuver can preserve your battlefield without requiring the same commitment.

If you’re working with a smaller budget, Unbreakable Formation provides another useful protection option and can also support an aggressive combat turn.

Path to Exile – Cheap Interaction Matters

Swords to Plowshares is already part of the stock deck, but adding Path to Exile provides another efficient answer to troublesome creatures.

Commander games frequently involve threats that cannot be beaten simply by attacking with larger creatures. A cheap removal spell gives Calling All Angels the flexibility to answer dangerous commanders and other creatures while continuing its own development.

This is the sort of relatively straightforward addition that can improve a deck more consistently than another expensive creature.

What Cards Should You Cut From Calling All Angels?

The stock precon already contains an excellent Angel core, so cutting cards requires some restraint. We want to remove inefficient or unreliable pieces without weakening the strategy that makes Giada powerful.

Here’s where I’d begin.

These are suggested one-for-one swaps rather than a mandatory package. In particular, land changes should preserve the total land count, and the best replacement depends on your budget and the rest of your final list.

Commander’s Sphere is an obvious place to start. Three-mana ramp is less appealing in a deck whose commander already provides Angel-specific acceleration, especially when cheaper cost reduction is available.

Secret Rendezvous draws cards, but giving an opponent the same number can be a substantial drawback. Battle Angels of Tyr better supports the deck’s creature-based plan, although it requires combat damage to generate its rewards.

Reya Dawnbringer provides powerful recurring reanimation, but nine mana is an enormous investment. Calling All Angels already contains recursion through cards such as Emeria Shepherd and Defy Death, so Reya is one of the easier expensive Angels to replace.

Finally, Temple of the False God can create awkward opening hands because it doesn’t produce mana until you already control at least five lands. A deck trying to cast Giada on turn two should prioritize reliable early development.

I would avoid cutting inexpensive Angels such as Youthful Valkyrie, Angel of Vitality, Inspiring Overseer and Starnheim Aspirant. These cards may not look as spectacular as the deck’s expensive creatures, but they help establish the early board presence that makes Giada effective.

Budget vs. Premium Calling All Angels Upgrades

One of the best things about Giada is that you can upgrade the precon gradually. You don’t need to purchase every premium Angel immediately, and several relatively affordable improvements can make the deck considerably smoother.

Budget Upgrade Path

For a lower-cost upgrade, I’d focus on improving efficiency before adding more finishers.

Start with Path to Exile for inexpensive interaction and Unbreakable Formation for battlefield protection. Myriad Landscape can replace an unreliable utility land, while Valkyrie Harbinger offers a natural way to turn existing lifegain into more Angels if its current price fits your budget.

These changes keep the original deck recognizable. You still win by developing Angels and making them progressively stronger, but you’ll have more tools to survive removal and maintain pressure.

I’d make the first few swaps, play several games and only then decide which weaknesses remain.

Premium Upgrade Path

If you’re willing to invest more heavily, the priority shifts toward repeatable value and greater protection.

Resplendent Angel provides additional creatures, Archangel of Thune transforms lifegain into permanent battlefield growth and Battle Angels of Tyr offers another way to generate resources.

Pearl Medallion makes expensive white spells easier to cast, while Akroma’s Will and Flawless Maneuver help protect the creatures you’ve invested in.

There’s no need to buy every premium card immediately. Choose the upgrades that solve problems you’ve actually encountered during games. If your hand is consistently full of expensive Angels, prioritize mana efficiency. If board wipes are your biggest problem, protection should come first.

Buying tip: The names of the recommended cards throughout this guide link to individual card listings, allowing you to compare different printings before deciding what to purchase.

The Stock Angel Core Is Already Excellent

One reason Calling All Angels responds so well to relatively small upgrades is that the original deck contains several of the tribe’s most important cards.

Righteous Valkyrie rewards Angels and Clerics entering the battlefield with lifegain, eventually providing a substantial boost to your creatures once you reach a sufficiently high life total. Its interaction with Giada is particularly appealing because additional +1/+1 counters increase the toughness of incoming Angels.

Youthful Valkyrie offers another inexpensive scaling threat, gaining a +1/+1 counter whenever another Angel enters under your control. When played early, it can grow into one of the deck’s largest creatures without any additional investment.

Lyra Dawnbringer gives your other Angels +1/+1 and lifelink, strengthening both combat and the deck’s lifegain engines. Bishop of Wings provides another payoff for creatures entering and dying, helping ensure that the deck can still generate value when combat doesn’t go according to plan.

The cost-reduction package is also important. Starnheim Aspirant and Herald of War make expensive Angels easier to deploy, which is exactly what a tribe with so many high-cost creatures needs.

At the top of the curve, Sephara, Sky’s Blade can help protect your other flying creatures, while Emeria Shepherd provides valuable recursion.

These aren’t cards you should automatically replace simply because they’re part of a preconstructed deck. They already give Calling All Angels an identity worth preserving.

Should You Upgrade the Mana Base?

Calling All Angels benefits from being mono-white. Unlike multicolored Commander decks, it doesn’t need an expensive collection of dual lands to function consistently.

The original list uses a large number of Plains alongside utility lands including War Room, Bonders‘ Enclave, Seraph Sanctuary, Radiant Fountain and Secluded Steppe.

War Room is especially useful because it gives mono-white a repeatable card-draw option from a land slot. Seraph Sanctuary also supports the lifegain strategy naturally whenever an Angel enters.

The first change I’d make is removing Temple of the False God. Its inability to produce mana early is particularly problematic in a deck that wants Giada on turn two.

Myriad Landscape is a reasonable budget replacement when additional land-based ramp is valuable, although entering tapped means it isn’t a perfect early-game solution. Another basic Plains may be preferable if your opening turns are consistently too slow.

Beyond that, I wouldn’t invest heavily in expensive utility lands before addressing the deck’s other weaknesses. Giada needs white mana, several Angels have demanding white mana costs and reliable development matters more than clever land interactions.

How the Upgraded Calling All Angels Deck Wins

The ideal game begins with Giada entering on turn two, followed by an inexpensive Angel that immediately starts building a meaningful battlefield.

Youthful Valkyrie grows as additional Angels arrive, Starnheim Aspirant helps cast larger threats and Righteous Valkyrie rewards the deck for developing creatures.

As the game progresses, Giada makes every new Angel increasingly dangerous. Lyra Dawnbringer turns a developed battlefield into a powerful lifelink army, while Resplendent Angel and Valkyrie Harbinger convert those lifegain triggers into additional creatures.

Premium upgrades make the process even more threatening. Archangel of Thune adds counters whenever you gain life, and Battle Angels of Tyr can help replenish resources as you attack.

Eventually, the deck can overwhelm opponents with several enormous flying Angels. Akroma’s Will provides a potential finishing play, turning an already threatening combat step into something much harder to survive.

The key is maintaining pressure without committing every creature in your hand. A well-timed board wipe can still punish overextension, so the best Giada pilots balance developing their battlefield with preserving enough resources to recover.

Is Calling All Angels Worth Buying or Upgrading?

For anyone who enjoys Angel tribal, Calling All Angels is an excellent starting point. The precon already contains many of the creatures and support cards that would form the backbone of a dedicated Giada deck, making it easier to upgrade gradually rather than rebuild from scratch.

However, the value depends heavily on the sealed price.

If you already own Giada, Font of Hope, Lyra Dawnbringer, Righteous Valkyrie and several other Angel staples, purchasing the individual missing cards may be more economical than buying another complete precon.

For a newer Commander player, the sealed deck offers something different: a ready-to-play 100-card strategy with a functioning mana base, useful reprints and a clear upgrade path.

Our Best Foundations Commander Deck ranking compares Calling All Angels against the other four Foundations precons, while the PreconForge Commander Precon Database lets you explore the original decklist in more detail.

Check the current Calling All Angels sealed deck price on TCGplayer

PreconForge Verdict: The Best Giada Upgrades

Calling All Angels doesn’t need a complete overhaul to become a much stronger Commander deck. Its original package already includes important tribal creatures, lifegain engines, cost reduction and several strong ways to protect or rebuild your battlefield.

Our first priorities would be Resplendent Angel for repeatable token generation, Pearl Medallion for a smoother mana curve and Akroma’s Will for protection and finishing power. Battle Angels of Tyr and Valkyrie Harbinger are excellent additions for players who want more consistent resources and creature production.

Higher-budget builds can add Archangel of Thune and Flawless Maneuver, but the most important improvements aren’t necessarily the most expensive ones. Making sure the deck develops early, maintains its card advantage and survives removal will usually matter more than adding another enormous Angel.

Most importantly, preserve the inexpensive Angels that make Giada work. Every creature already on the battlefield makes the next one stronger, and a smooth progression from early Angels to powerful flying threats is what gives this commander such a convincing game plan.

Our final recommendation: Start with mana efficiency and protection, add Resplendent Angel when your budget allows and build toward Archangel of Thune only after the core deck already feels consistent.