How to Upgrade a Commander Precon: The First 10 Cards You Should Replace

Buying a Commander precon is one of the easiest ways to start playing Magic: The Gathering. You get a complete 100-card deck, a commander with a clear strategy and enough cards to sit down and play immediately. But after a few games, you’ll probably notice the same problems that appear in many preconstructed decks: awkward opening hands, expensive spells stuck in your hand, not enough card draw or a battlefield that disappears to one board wipe.

The good news is that you don’t need to rebuild the entire deck to fix those weaknesses. In fact, upgrading just 10 cards in a Commander precon can make a noticeable difference, provided you’re replacing the right cards.

The biggest mistake is focusing exclusively on expensive staples. Adding a powerful mythic rare won’t help much if your deck consistently misses its fourth land drop or spends the opening turns doing nothing. A better approach is to improve the deck’s foundation first, then invest in cards that strengthen its unique strategy.

This guide explains how to upgrade a Commander precon, which 10 types of cards you should consider replacing first and how to make meaningful improvements without spending more than necessary.

The First 10 Commander Precon Upgrades at a Glance

Before buying anything, identify the cards that aren’t contributing enough to your deck’s game plan. Every precon is different, but the following order gives you a practical starting point.

This isn’t a list of 10 universal cards that every Commander deck must cut. A card can be excellent in one precon and unnecessary in another. The goal is to identify inefficient slots and replace them with cards that contribute more consistently.

Start by playing a few games with the original list. Pay attention to which cards regularly stay in your hand, which ones feel underwhelming when cast and what causes you to fall behind.

You can use the PreconForge Commander Precon Database to examine original decklists, compare singles values and find upgrade guides for individual decks.

1. Replace Your Worst Land First

The mana base is one of the easiest places to improve a preconstructed Commander deck, especially when it contains several colors.

Some precons include lands that regularly enter tapped or produce the wrong colors during important early turns. Others rely on utility lands that offer an interesting ability but don’t contribute reliably to casting spells.

One example is Temple of the False God. It can generate two colorless mana once you control at least five lands, but it does absolutely nothing before that point. In a deck already struggling with early mana development, drawing it in your opening hand can be frustrating.

Replacing an unreliable utility land with a basic land or a more dependable fixing land may improve your opening turns more than an expensive creature upgrade.

For multicolored decks, Command Tower and Exotic Orchard are common examples of useful fixing, provided they aren’t already included in the stock list. Other options depend on your colors, budget and how frequently your existing lands enter tapped.

The important distinction is that you generally want to replace a weak land with another land. Cutting lands to add powerful spells can make an already inconsistent deck even less reliable.

If your precon has a particularly awkward mana base, our Commander Precon Mana Base Upgrade Guide explains how to improve color fixing without spending heavily on premium lands.

First upgrade priority: Replace the land that most frequently prevents you from casting your spells on time.

2. Replace a Slow Mana Rock With Earlier Ramp

Commander decks often benefit from playing their commander a turn earlier. That makes inexpensive mana acceleration one of the most useful improvements you can buy.

Many stock lists contain three-mana artifacts such as Commander’s Sphere. Sphere isn’t a bad card: it fixes mana and can eventually be sacrificed to draw a card. However, its three-mana cost makes it less attractive in decks that want to accelerate immediately.

If your precon doesn’t already include Arcane Signet, Mind Stone or Talisman of Progress in the appropriate colors, these are examples of alternatives worth considering.

The advantage of a two-mana rock is simple. It can help you reach four mana on turn three rather than waiting until turn four, assuming you make your land drops.

That difference becomes particularly important for commanders that start generating resources as soon as they enter.

Of course, not every three-mana rock needs replacing. Chromatic Lantern can be valuable in demanding multicolored decks, while some artifact strategies actively benefit from particular mana rocks.

Second upgrade priority: Identify whether replacing one slower mana source with cheaper acceleration improves your early turns.

3. Cut an Inefficient Ramp Spell

The third swap continues the same principle, but focuses on ramp spells and the balance between early and late mana development.

Green Commander decks often have access to excellent land-based ramp. Cards such as Nature’s Lore, Three Visits and Rampant Growth can develop your mana earlier than more expensive alternatives.

If your precon contains a five-mana ramp spell that only provides additional lands, replacing it with a cheaper option may make the entire deck feel faster.

However, expensive ramp isn’t automatically bad. Traverse the Outlands can generate enormous value in decks built around large creatures, while Skyshroud Claim may be useful when searching for Forest cards with valuable land types.

The question is whether the card justifies its cost in your particular strategy.

For decks without green, mana rocks and other color-appropriate acceleration may serve the same purpose. The point is to improve access to mana before your expensive spells become stranded in hand.

Third upgrade priority: Replace ramp that arrives too late with a mana source that helps your commander develop sooner.

4. Upgrade Your Weakest Card-Draw Spell

Preconstructed decks sometimes include card-draw spells that look appealing but don’t provide enough resources for their mana cost.

That weakness becomes especially noticeable in multiplayer Commander, where a single opponent may answer several of your creatures or force you to rebuild after a board wipe.

The best replacement depends on your strategy.

A creature-heavy green deck may benefit from Beast Whisperer, which draws a card whenever you cast a creature spell. Decks with sufficiently large creatures can take advantage of Return of the Wildspeaker, while black decks built around sacrificing creatures may prefer Village Rites or Deadly Dispute.

Blue decks have access to broad card-draw and selection effects, while red decks can use impulse draw and other ways to access additional spells.

The important distinction is between drawing cards as a one-time effect and creating a repeatable source of advantage. Both have a place, but a deck that constantly runs out of resources may benefit more from an engine that keeps working over multiple turns.

Fourth upgrade priority: Replace your least effective draw spell with a card that matches how your deck naturally plays.

5. Replace an Expensive Creature That Doesn’t Do Enough

Many Commander precons contain impressive creatures that cost six, seven or eight mana but contribute relatively little to the strategy.

A large creature isn’t automatically valuable simply because it has powerful combat stats. If it doesn’t generate immediate value, support your commander or threaten to end the game, it may be one of the easiest cards to cut.

Consider the difference between a generic large creature and Eternal Witness. Eternal Witness is much smaller, but returning an important card from your graveyard to your hand can be useful in almost any stage of the game.

Similarly, Reclamation Sage provides both a creature and an answer to an artifact or enchantment, while Solemn Simulacrum supplies mana development and potential card advantage.

These aren’t automatic additions to every precon. Their usefulness depends on color identity and strategy.

In a deck led by Ghoulcaller Gisa, for example, a high-power creature such as Rotting Regisaur can be more valuable than a generic expensive Zombie because Gisa converts its power into a large army of tokens.

The lesson is to evaluate creatures by what they accomplish for your specific commander, not simply by their mana cost or rarity.

Fifth upgrade priority: Replace an expensive creature that consistently underperforms with something that provides useful value earlier.

6. Replace Narrow Removal With Flexible Interaction

Commander is a multiplayer format, which means your deck needs answers to a wide variety of threats.

Some precons include removal spells that only work under specific conditions or cost too much compared with the alternatives available in their colors.

A flexible removal spell can help address dangerous commanders, utility creatures or permanents that would otherwise stop your strategy.

Swords to Plowshares and Path to Exile are efficient options for white decks, while black decks can use Feed the Swarm to interact with creatures or enchantments.

Green has cards such as Beast Within, and red has Chaos Warp, both of which can answer a broad range of permanents.

Multicolored decks can consider particularly flexible options such as Assassin’s Trophy or Anguished Unmaking when their colors allow them.

The goal isn’t necessarily to increase your total removal count with every upgrade. Sometimes replacing one awkward answer with a more versatile one is enough.

Sixth upgrade priority: Make sure you have efficient answers that work against the kinds of threats your playgroup regularly presents.

7. Replace a Weak Combat Trick With Reliable Protection

A common mistake when upgrading Commander precons is adding more creatures without considering how to keep them alive.

One board wipe can undo several turns of development, particularly in tribal decks that depend on maintaining a large battlefield.

That’s why protection spells can offer more value than another expensive creature.

Green decks frequently benefit from Heroic Intervention, which gives permanents you control hexproof and indestructible until end of turn. White decks can consider Flawless Maneuver or Unbreakable Formation, while decks with access to blue may use Counterspell or other counterspells to stop particularly dangerous effects.

Protection doesn’t need to be expensive. Tamiyo’s Safekeeping can preserve an important permanent, and Snakeskin Veil is another inexpensive option in decks that want to protect individual creatures.

When choosing what to cut, look for low-impact combat tricks that temporarily increase a creature’s power without providing much lasting value.

Replacing one of those with a spell that saves your commander or protects the entire battlefield can make an enormous difference.

Seventh upgrade priority: Add a dependable defensive option before spending your whole budget on another finisher.

8. Replace an Off-Theme Card With Commander Synergy

Every precon has a central strategy, but not every card supports it equally well.

Some cards are included because they represent the set’s mechanics, offer a secondary theme or demonstrate a particular interaction. Others are individually powerful but don’t contribute enough to the overall game plan.

These are often among the best candidates for replacement.

Consider three different Foundations Commander decks.

In Wretched Ranks, Ghoulcaller Gisa wants high-power creatures and sacrifice payoffs. Cards such as Grave Pact can turn sacrifices into a meaningful form of board control.

Calling All Angels rewards players for casting Angels and gaining life. Resplendent Angel reinforces those existing mechanics by producing additional Angel tokens.

Reign of Dragons wants to cast expensive Dragons while Lathliss, Dragon Queen creates additional flying creatures. Ganax, Astral Hunter helps turn Dragon entries into Treasure tokens, creating resources for follow-up spells.

None of these upgrades is universally appropriate. Each works because it strengthens what the commander already wants to accomplish.

The best Commander precon upgrades usually make a deck more focused rather than more complicated.

Eighth upgrade priority: Remove a card that contributes little to your main strategy and add one that directly supports your commander.

9. Replace a Redundant Finisher

Precons sometimes contain more expensive finishing cards than they actually need.

Having multiple ways to win is useful, but filling your deck with enormous spells that all require the same resources can make opening hands inconsistent.

If your deck already has enough ways to finish a game, the ninth upgrade may be better spent on something that helps you reach those winning positions more often.

A creature-heavy green deck might already include Overwhelming Stampede and Unnatural Growth. Adding another expensive combat finisher could be less useful than improving card draw or mana acceleration.

Similarly, a Dragon deck built around Lathliss, Dragon Queen may already have excellent late-game threats. Its biggest weakness might be getting those creatures onto the battlefield before opponents establish control.

The solution isn’t always to replace a finisher with another finisher. Sometimes the strongest upgrade is a resource engine such as Skullclamp, Guardian Project or The Great Henge in a deck that can use it effectively.

These cards help sustain your strategy rather than demanding that you already have a dominant position.

Ninth upgrade priority: Cut the finishing spell you least often need and replace it with an effect that makes your deck more consistent.

10. Use the Final Slot to Fix Your Biggest Weakness

After making nine thoughtful replacements, the final upgrade should be based on what you’ve learned from actually playing the deck.

Maybe your commander keeps getting removed. Perhaps you regularly run out of cards, struggle with flying creatures or lose to graveyard-based strategies.

There isn’t one universal card that solves every problem.

If your playgroup relies heavily on graveyards, Soul-Guide Lantern may be more useful than another powerful creature. If you’re constantly facing artifact and enchantment engines, Generous Gift, Beast Within or another color-appropriate removal spell could be the right addition.

If games regularly end with your hand empty, another card-advantage source may help.

This is why I wouldn’t recommend buying a fixed collection of 10 cards before playing your precon. The first few improvements may be obvious, but the final slots should reflect the weaknesses you actually encounter.

Tenth upgrade priority: Replace your least useful remaining card with something that addresses a real, recurring problem.

How Much Should You Spend Upgrading a Commander Precon?

One of the biggest advantages of preconstructed Commander decks is that they let you improve your collection gradually. There’s no need to spend hundreds of dollars immediately after buying a sealed deck.

I’d approach upgrades in three stages.

Working with a smaller budget? Our Best Budget Commander Upgrades Under $25 guide shows exactly where to spend your money first, with affordable ramp, card draw, removal, and commander-specific upgrades that can make a real difference without breaking the bank.

These are spending tiers rather than fixed shopping lists. Card prices fluctuate, and a single premium staple can sometimes cost more than an entire budget upgrade package.

Upgrading a Commander Precon for Under $20

With a small budget, prioritize cards that improve how the deck functions rather than how impressive it looks.

Replacing a slow mana rock, improving a weak removal spell and adding one useful card-advantage engine can make a precon noticeably smoother.

Depending on current prices, cards such as Mind Stone, Rampant Growth, Feed the Swarm or Village Rites may offer practical improvements.

The exact choices depend on your colors and what’s already included in the original list.

The $20–$50 Upgrade Sweet Spot

For many casual Commander players, this is a useful range for making several coordinated improvements.

You can often combine better mana development with one or two cards that strengthen the commander’s main mechanic. A Zombie deck might invest in sacrifice payoffs, while an Angel deck may prioritize lifegain synergies and protection.

The goal is to create a more consistent strategy without replacing so much of the original list that buying the precon stops making financial sense.

When Premium Commander Upgrades Make Sense

Expensive cards can be worthwhile, especially when you plan to keep playing the same deck for years.

The Great Henge, Smothering Tithe and Rhystic Study are examples of powerful cards that can improve suitable strategies.

But their value depends on your deck, budget and playgroup. None of them is mandatory.

Before making an expensive purchase, ask whether the card solves a problem that cheaper options cannot address. If the answer is no, it may be smarter to make several smaller improvements instead.

Real Examples: How We’d Upgrade Three Commander Precons

General deckbuilding advice becomes much more useful when applied to actual products.

Here are three examples of how our 10-card approach changes depending on the commander.

Wretched Ranks – Improve Sacrifice Efficiency

Ghoulcaller Gisa converts the power of a sacrificed creature into 2/2 Zombie tokens. That makes high-power creatures and sacrifice payoffs particularly valuable.

Rotting Regisaur is an excellent example because its seven power can produce seven Zombie tokens through Gisa.

Grave Pact then turns sacrifices into pressure on opposing creatures, while Jet Medallion helps make black spells easier to cast.

Rather than replacing the original Zombie lords and token engines, we’d improve the cards that make Gisa’s sacrifice ability more effective.

Our Wretched Ranks Upgrade Guide covers the full recommended additions and cuts.

Calling All Angels – Improve the Mana Curve and Protection

Giada, Font of Hope rewards you for casting Angels and maintaining a large flying battlefield.

The original Calling All Angels precon already includes important tribal creatures, so we’d avoid replacing its inexpensive Angels with too many expensive threats.

Instead, Pearl Medallion improves mana efficiency, Resplendent Angel provides additional token generation and Akroma’s Will offers protection and potential finishing power.

The result is a deck that still feels like Calling All Angels but develops its strategy more reliably.

See our Calling All Angels Upgrade Guide for a more detailed breakdown.

Reign of Dragons – Ramp Before Adding More Dragons

Lathliss, Dragon Queen creates a 5/5 Dragon token whenever another nontoken Dragon enters under your control.

The original deck already contains powerful creatures, so its most useful upgrades focus on getting them onto the battlefield sooner.

Ganax, Astral Hunter provides Treasure generation, while Roaming Throne can multiply important Dragon triggered abilities.

An inexpensive mana rock may also improve the deck more than yet another seven-mana Dragon.

Our Reign of Dragons Upgrade Guide explains how to make the strategy faster and more consistent.

Should You Upgrade a Precon or Build a New Commander Deck?

Sometimes a precon is exactly what you need. Other times, it may be more economical to build a custom deck from cards you already own.

A precon is particularly useful when you want a complete playable strategy, don’t already have many relevant staples or enjoy improving an existing list gradually.

Building from scratch gives you more control over your commander, mana curve and individual card choices. However, that flexibility can become overwhelming when you’re still learning how different Commander strategies function.

Our How to Build a Commander Deck guide explains the complete process of constructing a 100-card list, including land counts, ramp, interaction and win conditions.

Before buying a new precon, you can also use the PreconForge Commander Precon Finder to compare decks by budget, color identity and strategy.

If you already own a precon that you enjoy playing, I’d usually recommend trying a few carefully chosen upgrades before abandoning it for something completely different.

How to Test Your Upgraded Commander Deck

One of the most overlooked parts of upgrading a Commander precon is testing whether the changes actually improve performance.

After making your first three to five swaps, play several games without changing anything else. Pay attention to whether you’re casting spells sooner, drawing enough cards and participating more consistently.

A deck that feels powerful in one unusually good game isn’t necessarily better than the original version. The improvements should help across multiple ordinary games, including those where your opening hand is less than ideal.

You can also practice drawing opening hands and playing the first few turns without opponents. That won’t reproduce real multiplayer interaction, but it can reveal whether your mana curve has improved.

If you’re regularly forced to mulligan because your hand contains too many expensive spells, reconsider the number of high-cost cards you’ve kept. If you still struggle to cast your commander, check whether your mana base and ramp package are doing enough.

Our Commander Mulligan Guide explains how to evaluate opening hands and recognize problems that may originate from deck construction rather than bad luck.

The best approach is to upgrade gradually, test the results and let actual games guide your next purchases.

Common Commander Precon Upgrade Mistakes

The first mistake is replacing too many cards at once. A precon is designed around a particular strategy, and cutting twenty or thirty cards without understanding their roles can create a deck that is less consistent than the original.

Another mistake is overloading the deck with powerful staples that don’t support its commander. A card may be excellent in isolation while contributing very little to your specific game plan.

Players also frequently underestimate the importance of mana. Expensive creatures and flashy win conditions are exciting purchases, but they won’t matter if you spend the first four turns struggling to develop resources.

A fourth mistake is ignoring the playgroup. A relatively casual Commander deck doesn’t necessarily become more enjoyable when upgraded into a strategy that consistently overwhelms everyone else at the table.

Finally, don’t assume that expensive cards are automatically better than inexpensive ones. Some of the most useful upgrades are simple mana rocks, removal spells and flexible support cards.

Your goal should be a deck that plays more reliably and creates better games, not simply one with a higher singles value.

PreconForge Verdict: Which 10 Cards Should You Replace First?

The best way to upgrade a Commander precon is to fix its weaknesses in a sensible order.

Start with mana consistency. Replace unreliable lands and slow acceleration before adding more expensive threats. Then improve card draw and interaction so the deck can continue participating after its first major play.

Once those foundations are stronger, focus on commander-specific synergies, battlefield protection and the cards that help your strategy finish games.

There’s no universal list of 10 cards that every precon should remove. Some stock decks already contain excellent mana rocks, removal and card advantage, while others need considerable work in those areas.

That’s why our recommended approach is to replace the weakest cards by role, not by price or rarity.

Make a few changes, play several games and evaluate the results before spending more money. You’ll usually learn more from testing five thoughtful swaps than from immediately purchasing twenty expensive cards.

Our final recommendation: Start by replacing the worst land, slowest ramp and weakest card-draw effect. Then use the remaining seven upgrades to strengthen your commander’s strategy and solve the problems you actually encounter at the table.