Last updated on May 19, 2025
Reconstruct History | Illustration by Campbell White
Preconstructed decks, or precons, can be one of the best ways for new players to get into Magic. You don’t have to understand how deckbuilding works to use them, and precons of the same format are usually balanced so you and your friends can each pick one up and know that your games will be relatively even. Veteran players still have fun playing some precons straight out of the box. Maybe your playgroup wants to shake things up, or maybe you just want to try out a new style of play.
Whatever your experience level is, these are preconstructed products that you could pick up and enjoy playing right away. When players hear “precon” they often think 100-card Commander precons which range from set themes that don't fit Standard to special releases like the Warhammer 40k decks which are good examples of decks that preconstructed and powerful. There are also precon 60-card decks for formats like Pioneer that are great for any players that want for a prepackaged experience.
Apart from precons related to specific formats, there are also unique products designed for casual play. These can include theme decks showcasing characters dueling, board game elements, cards with their own special format rules, or cards that aren’t legal outside of casual play. While these are rarely the best precons in terms of value or updating, these unique products can be great if you want to keep the decks unedited and just enjoy the specific experience of that Magic spinoff game.
Ready to jump in and find out which are the best precons in Magic? Let's unwrap this mystery!
#18. Archenemy: Nicol Bolas
Archenemy is a casual multiplayer format where one player takes on the titular role of “archenemy” while three other players team up to defeat them. The archenemy is given an advantage like a higher life total and powerful scheme cards to supplement their deck.
While previous Archenemy products were single decks designed for the lone player, Archenemy: Nicol Bolas includes one deck for the archenemy as well as three decks for the other players to use. This makes it a much easier way to play this fun format right out of the box instead of having to assemble your own decks to challenge the archenemy.
Not only does having precons for all four players ensure a more balanced play experience, it also keeps a more consistent theme. The player who decides to be the archenemy plays as Nicol Bolas, and the three other players play as popular members of the Gatewatch: Chandra, Nissa, and Gideon. Some players may have gotten sick of the Gatewatch and Nicol Bolas monopolizing Magic’s story for a while, but this is a fun product to look back on and remember this period of Magic’s history.
Archenemy: Nicol Bolas is hard to find, but it is available on TCGplayer.
#17. Explorers of Ixalan
Explorers of Ixalan is a multiplayer Magic game that combines some board game elements with typical Magic gameplay. It features four precons, one for each major faction from the plane of Ixalan: the Legion of Dusk, the Brazen Coalition, the River Heralds, and the Sun Empire. Each deck has its own unique themes to go along with the faction they represent.
While playing a normal multiplayer game of Magic, you can also explore one of Ixalan’s islands in search of Orazca, the Golden City, and any other helpful treasures. On your turn, you can spend mana exploring some of the tiles that make up the map as well as play cards. Exploring grants you perks in the game to represent your good fortune in treasure-hunting.
This is one of the better options for you if you enjoy thematic Magic products that help you feel like you’re part of the story. It’s also just a fun way to mix up the typical multiplayer game.
- Explorers of Ixalan is a complete, out-of-the-box multiplayer Magic experience in which players search for the lost city
- Contains 4 x 60 card preconstructed decks and much more!
- Players will explore the verdant jungle of Ixalan in search of the Golden City of Orazca and they will discover locations and events from the Ixalan story line along the way.
- English Edition
#16. Enduring Enchantments
The Commander Masters Commander Deck Enduring Enchantments takes one of the more resilient and versatile color combinations in the white-black-green Abzan () and gives a starting point to one of the powerful archetypes in Magic, enchantress.
It's easy to latch onto the play style of pump up your creatures with enchantments and go, and the glaring weakness is when you give your opponent a 2-for-1 on their removal spell. Well, Enduring Enchantments has card draw to back that up, and one of the reasons it makes it to this list is the platform it provides.
Can you go hard into the enchantment theme? Yes, lots of Magic sets feature amazing enchantments in the same colors as Anikthea, Hand of Erebos. Does a deck with great sagas scratch your itch?
The secondary commander, Narci, Fable Singer is an excellent bard that has you telling great stories of good games, and it's one of the best saga commanders in its own right. Can you rock some enchantment recursion or reanimation and pull fatties out of the graveyard after putting them there with a drawback? You can!
You have to try hard to not get value out of this deck.
- POWERFUL RIGHT OUT OF THE BOX—Take your Commander game to the next level with a high-powered, ready-to-play deck
- PLAY WITH COMMANDER’S GREATEST HITS—Turn heads with a deck stacked with reprints of some of the greatest cards to grace Magic’s most popular format
- INTRODUCES 10 COMMANDER CARDS—Each Commander deck also introduces 10 never-before-seen Magic: The Gathering cards
- WHITE-BLACK-GREEN COMMANDER DECK—get the Enduring Enchantments Commander Deck, a White-Black-Green 100-card deck containing 2 Foil Legendary cards and 98 nonfoil cards, and battle your friends in epic, multiplayer games
- COLLECT SPECIAL TREATMENT CARDS—Each deck comes with a 2-card Collector Booster Sample Pack containing 2 special treatment cards from the Commander Masters set, including 1 Rare or Mythic Rare
#15. Grave Danger
Grave Danger is one of the starter Commander decks that Wizards released in 2022. These decks are cheaper though less competitive than the typical Commander precon. These decks are a great option if you’re looking to get started with Commander or want to try and get your friends into the game with a low barrier to entry.
Grave Danger is my personal favorite of these decks because it’s helmed by Gisa and Geralf and has a very strong zombie and reanimation theme going on. That said you can really slot any of the starter Commander decks here depending on your preference for the theme. They're all great out-of-the-box options for players looking to get started.
- READY-TO-PLAY COMMANDER DECK FOR NEWCOMERS AND FANS: Join friends in epic battles! This Magic: The Gathering Starter Commander Deck, Grave Danger (Blue-Black), is ready to play straight out of the box
- INTRO TO MAGIC’S MOST POPULAR FORMAT: Commander is a multiplayer way to play Magic! Learn how to play with your own deck, easy-to-follow rules, strategy tips, and reference card
- 100 CARD BLUE-BLACK DECK: With the Grave Danger deck, ally with the human wizards and siblings Gisa and Geralf and overwhelm foes with a multiplying army of zombies
- FOIL-ETCHED LEGENDARY CREATURE CARD: Includes 1 legendary creature card with gorgeous art and a foil-etched treatment. This card serves as your "commander" with unique abilities that make plays even more powerful
- INCLUDES ACCESSORIES AND DECK BOX: Also comes with 10 two-sided tokens, a deck box for storage, and punchout counters to keep track of creature buffs
#14. Gruul Stompy
Challenger decks are a hard thing to get right. It’s difficult for Wizards to plan and print a product that’s competitive in its format when it comes out with formats changing so quickly. Gruul Stompy still does a pretty good job. Bonecrusher Giant and Scavenging Ooze are both cards that see play in competitive decks, and Questing Beast can be a great addition to an aggro deck.
This deck also includes a pretty good mana base for a precon. You get a full playset of Rockfall Vale and Karplusan Forest, and you even get the Gruul () shock land, Stomping Ground. Having a good mana base is always important to keep up with formats that want to move quickly.
Like any good precon, Gruul Stompy is also $30 cheaper than if you tried to assemble the deck with singles.
- 1 battle-ready 60-card MTG Pioneer 2022 Challenger Deck
- 15-card sideboard
- 5 double-sided tokens and 6 helper cards
- 1 deck box (holds 75 sleeved Magic cards)
- Pioneer Gruul Stompy (Red-Green)—accelerate your mana early and crush with giant threats
#13. The Final Fantasy and Lord of The Rings Starter Kits
The Final Fantasy Starter Kit and The Lord of The Rings Starter Kit both make a great and fun option. Characters from the beloved stories make for an exciting first Magic experience. The balanced Tales of Middle-earth decks are a great way to get to know the game. They aren’t super competitive, but they match up well.
The Dimir and Boros colored starter decks from Final Fantasy keep the game moving with significant aggressive strategies. For the red-white deck we expect it with an equipment theme. The blue-black is slightly more balanced with graveyard play and plenty of ways to make your threats evasive.
These are also great decks for experienced players that want a quick game, or perhaps just returned to Magic after many years. I bought a kit on a camping trip when it ended up raining most of the time, so it was a great way to enjoy the time while we couldn't get outside.
- MAGIC: THE GATHERING MEETS THE LORD OF THE RINGS: Experience the epic story of The Lord of the Rings and learn how to play Magic with this Magic: The Gathering The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth Starter Kit. For 2 players. Ages 13+
- JOIN THE FOLLOWSHIP: Immerse yourself in Middle-earth with thematic game mechanics and gorgeous card art, battling alongside your favorite The Lord of the Rings characters
- LEARN TO PLAY MAGIC WITH A FRIEND: Use the included how-to-play guide or the interactive online tutorial in Magic: The Gathering Arena, a digital platform available on desktop or mobile, and enjoy 2-player battles
- TWO READY-TO-PLAY 60-CARD DECKS: This Starter Kit comes with 2 beautifully illustrated premade decks, including 1 foil Mythic Rare card and 4 Rare cards in each one, and 2 deck boxes for easy storage
- FIGHT FOR THE FATE OF MIDDLE-EARTH: Choose the Black-Red deck to join Sauron and the hordes of Mordor or fight for the Free Peoples of Middle-earth with the Green-White deck
#12. Guided By Nature
Commander 2014 introduced an interesting new concept to the format: planeswalkers that can be your commander. Of the five planeswalker commanders released in the set, Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury is one of the best. It can generate tokens and ramp at the same time, but it’s also a great form of unnatural removal. It won’t be too difficult to get Freyalise out and get it to its ultimate ability as your commander, which can end up drawing you a ton of cards.
Apart from Freyalise itself, Guided by Nature is a great elf-themed Commander deck with a lot of mono-green staples like Emerald Medallion, Beastmaster Ascension, and Song of the Dryads. You don’t have to worry as much about the typical precon issue of having a bad land base as a monocolored deck, and you get some good utility lands like Oran-Rief, the Vastwood.
#11. Unsanctioned
Unlike other Un-sets, Unsanctioned wasn’t a Draft product but a box that contained five preconstructed half-decks. These decks feature a mix of new and reprinted silver-border cards and were designed to be shuffled together to make full ready-to-play decks similar to the Jumpstart set. This box set is a great way for players to enjoy an Un-set while not being super confident with either Draft or Sealed formats.
While I’d usually say that precon products are good for new players, silver-border cards might be a little lost on them just because many of the cards draw on Magic mechanics to create inside jokes. But Unsanctioned is a good introduction to Un-sets if you’ve been playing Magic for a little while and want to dip your toes into some of the game’s goofier side.
- Combine two of the 30-card decks into a two-colored super-deck! Mix and match the decks into new deranged, delirious, and downright preposterous combinations.
- The rules are unhinged, the stadium is unstable, and things are about to come unglued. Unsanctioned is mayhem-filled Magic: The Gathering, ready to play right out of the box.
- Unsanctioned includes 160 Magic cards, including 10 full-art basic land cards—5 foil and 5 non-foil— with gorgeous illustrations, printed here for the first time.
- Unlike most Magic: The Gathering sets, Unsanctioned is filled with special silver-bordered cards that get to do things other Magic cards don’t, like give a creature “infinity” power.
- Unsanctioned is filled with cards from Magic’s “Un” sets, like Unglued, Unhinged, and Unstable, plus seventeen cards that join the “Un” family for the first time. Unheard of!
#10. March of the Machine Commander Deck Bundle 5 Deck Set
March of the Machine Commander Decks include the chaotic multiplayer variant Planechase. The planes act like Pokémon's stadium cards and can be cycled through one at a time, and have a global effect on all players.
The five decks add up to a lot of variety for a play group with balanced yet powerful cards in each deck. The Cavalry Charge deck stands out as a favorite, but the plane cards are so good at leveling the playing field to keep even the best collection of great knights in check.
- Bundle of all 5 March of the Machine Commander Decks, with 1 Growing Threat, 1 Cavalry Charge, 1 Call for Backup, 1 Divine Convocation, and 1 Tinker Time
- Each deck set contains a 100-card ready-to-play deck (2 Traditional Foil + 98 nonfoil cards), plus 10 Planechase cards and 1 planar die to trigger unique abilities and jump across the Multiverse
- 2-card Collector Booster Sample Packs—each deck comes with a sample pack containing 2 special treatment cards from the March of the Machine main set, including 1 Rare or Mythic Rare and at least 1 Traditional Foil card
- Introducing 50 never-before-seen MTG cards to Commander—10 in each deck
- Accessories included with each deck—1 Foil-Etched Display Commander, 10 double-sided tokens, Life Tracker, and deck box
#9. Explorers of The Deep
The Explorers of The Deep deck is practically a product of every blue-green Commander deck that came before it. The color combination is notoriously strong in EDH and this deck is evidence of it. Jam together lots of ramp and card draw, sprinkle in merfolk synergy and you're golden.
- NO FISHY BUSINESS—Explore the depths for lands and buff your army of Merfolk to change the tide of battle!
- INTRODUCES 10 COMMANDER CARDS—This deck introduces 10 never-before-seen Commander cards to Magic: The Gathering
- COLLECT SPECIAL TREATMENT CARDS—Each deck also comes with a 2-card Collector Booster Sample Pack containing 2 alt-border cards from the The Lost Caverns of Ixalan set, including 1 Rare or Mythic Rare and at least 1 Traditional Foil card
- EPIC MULTIPLAYER BATTLES—Commander is a multiplayer way to play Magic, an epic, free-for-all battle full of strategic plays and social intrigue
- JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF IXALAN—Explore the cavernous depths beneath Ixalan in a race to the hidden core. Will you uncover treasure and glory, or will your adventure spell certain doom?
#8. Animated Army
Animated Army gets creative with artifact animation and solid creatures. Plus you get to play raccoons and try out the offspring mechanic that is full of good additional triggered abilities.
- TINY TAILS, BIG ADVENTURE—Put your best paw forward and enter the world of Bloomburrow. Battle your friends with armies of adorable critters and prove that bravery comes in all sizes!
- BRING THE TABLE TO LIFE—Make trash and smash all who stand in your way with the Racoon Bard, Bello, at your side. One critter’s trash is another one’s treasure.
- EPIC MULTIPLAYER BATTLES—Commander is a multiplayer way to play Magic, an epic, free-for-all battle full of strategic plays and social intrigue
- INTRODUCES 10 COMMANDER CARDS—This deck introduces 10 never-before-seen Commander cards to Magic: The Gathering, including 3 foil cards (one of which is Borderless!)
- CONTENTS—1 ready-to-play Animated Army Bloomburrow Commander Deck, a 2-card Collector Booster Sample Pack, 10 double-sided tokens, and 1 deck box
#7. Riders of Rohan
The Riders of Rohan are appropriately really strong and quite capable around most Commander tables. It is combat-focused and not too difficult to get going, with plenty of card advantage and raw power built in.
- MAGIC MEETS THE LORD OF THE RINGS—Experience the beloved story of The Lord of the Rings with the strategic gameplay of Magic: The Gathering, facing off against opponents in thrilling magical battles
- EPIC MULTIPLAYER BATTLES—Commander is a multiplayer way to play Magic, an epic, free-for-all battle full of strategic plays and social intrigue
- RIDERS OF ROHAN—Join the riders of Rohan with a 100-card Blue-Red-White deck containing 2 Foil Legendary Creature cards and 98 nonfoil cards
- INTRODUCES 20 COMMANDER CARDS—This deck introduces 20 never-before-seen Commander cards to Magic: The Gathering
- COLLECT SPECIAL TREATMENT CARDS—Each deck comes with a 2-card Collector Booster Sample Pack containing 2 special treatment cards from The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth set, including 1 Rare or Mythic Rare and at least 1 Traditional Foil
#6. Tyranid Swarm
It’s clear that Wizards put a lot of effort into their Universes Beyond Warhammer 40k crossover when looking at decks like Tyranid Swarm. This deck has some great original cards like Shadow in the Warp, Ghyrson Starn, Kelermorph, and Old One Eye. Not only are these cards powerful, but they really make it stand out from other Commander decks and strengthen the 40K theme by being originals for the deck.
The deck also has a powerful alternative commander in the form of Magus Lucea Kane. It synergizes very well with the deck’s unique ravenous mechanic and can really change up the way the deck is played. Tyranid Swarm has good replay value without having to change the original decklist by having two strong commanders you can run with it that each play a bit differently.
- 100-card ready-to-play Warhammer 40,000 Commander Deck—Tyranid Swarm
- Green-Blue-Red Deck—contains 2 legendary traditional foil cards plus 98 nonfoil cards
- Every card features Warhammer-themed art—including 42 cards that are new to Magic
- 1 foil-etched Display Commander
- 10 double-sided tokens, 1 life tracker, and 1 deck box
#5. Heads I Win, Tails You Lose
Heads I Win, Tails You Lose was the first ever Secret Lair Commander precon. The deck was a bit more expensive than the average precon, and players had to wait over a year from ordering for it to finally arrive unlike most Magic products. When it finally came it proved very much worth the price and wait for how powerful of a precon it is. It shouldn’t be too much of a surprise since the deck is based on one that senior Magic designer Gavin Verhey plays.
The deck uses Okaun, Eye of Chaos and Zndrsplt, Eye of Wisdom as partner commanders, but you can also run Yusri, Fortune's Flame as an alternate commander. The deck is coin flip themed, including all the best coin flip cards like Chance Encounter, Krark's Thumb, and Stitch in Time.
The deck is fun and chaotic, with luck playing a huge role in how well you do. It’s great for players who seek a less traditional type of deck but still want to stay competitive. Players who bought it at its $100 Secret Lair price also got a great deal because the deck includes upwards of $250 worth of cards.
#4. Izzet Phoenix
Like the legendary fire birds themselves, phoenix decks seem to be an ever-enduring theme in Magic. This makes the Izzet Phoenix Challenger deck for Pioneer one of the best precon decks available. With cards like Thing in the Ice, Expressive Iteration, and of course Arclight Phoenix, this precon is built very similar to Pioneer Phoenix decks that are stills somewhat relevant in the current meta.
This deck also features a good mana base with a playset of Shivan Reef and a couple of Sulfur Falls‘ to go with it. You’ll also get a copy of Steam Vents. Though meta decks have a slightly better mana base you can still hold your own with this deck out of the box, especially if where you play has a more casual player base.
- 1 battle-ready 60-card MTG Pioneer 2022 Challenger Deck
- 15-card sideboard
- 5 double-sided tokens and 6 helper cards
- 1 deck box (holds 75 sleeved Magic cards)
- Izzet Phoenix (Blue-Red)—cast a whole lotta spells and fly in with spell-loving creatures
#3. Built From Scratch
Commander 2014 was a good year for commanders, and Built From Scratch is a very powerful precon right out of the box. The deck uses Daretti, Scrap Savant as a commander, one with great abilities to help you cheat out some expensive artifacts. You’ll easily run away with a game if you manage to get off its ultimate ability.
There are plenty of great artifacts to go along with Daretti, like Junk Diver, Wurmcoil Engine, and Steel Hellkite. There’s also great artifact support with Goblin Welder along with generally good cards like Ruby Medallion and Arcane Lighthouse.
#2. Necron Dynasties
Most players agree that Necron Dynasties was the best of the Warhammer 40k Commander precons. While there isn’t one massive standout card, the whole deck just works so well together. There’s a lot of synergy between the self-mill and recursion mechanics, plus a lot of support from and for your artifacts.
Not only is the Necron deck powerful, it’s also a great thematic translation of the Necrons in 40K to Magic. In 40K, the Necrons are very difficult to keep down because they’re basically able to repair themselves and keep fighting. This is represented very well by cards like Dread Return or Beacon of Unrest as well as unearth mechanics.
- 100-card ready-to-play Warhammer 40,000 Commander Deck— Necron Dynasties
- Black Deck—contains 2 legendary traditional foil cards plus 98 nonfoil cards
- Every card features Warhammer-themed art—including 42 cards that are new to Magic
- 1 foil-etched Display Commander
- 10 double-sided tokens, 1 life tracker, and 1 deck box
#1. Vampiric Bloodlust
Similar to The Ur-Dragon, Commander 2017 also introduced an excellent tribal commander for vampires: Edgar Markov. Edgar Markov can create a ton of token creatures for you, give you extra bodies to use with your aristocrat cards like Skullclamp, or cards like Blood Tribute which requires you to tap vampires.
Edgar Markov also buffs all your creatures and itself quite a bit to make your token creatures formidable over time. Vampiric Bloodlust also has powerful Commander staples like Teferi's Protection and Blind Obedience that help this deck stay competitive without the need to add more cards.
Wrap Up
The Ur-Dragon | Illustration by Jaime Jones
Magic precons come in so many varieties. There are lots to enjoy about the more unique products like Archenemy or Explorers of Ixalan. While these decks might not be the most competitive, they offer the best out-of-the-box experience of any Magic product. For a step in the Limited direction, take any two jumpstart boosters open them and shuffle for a 40-deck and fun experience with other jumpstart boosters. The themes are broad enough that they work together and are complete with lands thanks to Wizards.
What preconstructed products do you like the best? Do you often play right from the box, or do you prefer to upgrade the decks you buy? Or are you like me and kept the old intro decks together as a cycle and play them against each other? Let me know in the comments or on Draftsim’s Twitter.
Thank you for reading, and I look forward to seeing you next time!
Note: this post contains affiliate links. If you use these links to make a purchase, you’ll help Draftsim continue to provide awesome free articles and apps.
Follow Draftsim for awesome articles and set updates:
Add Comment