On October 2, five Foundations Commander decks arrived, and they carry a notable claim: Wizards of the Coast describes them as the most affordable Commander decks the company has ever made. At $26.99 each, they are aimed squarely at people who are new to the format, though experienced players will find plenty to upgrade.
What is in each deck
Every deck includes a foil mythic rare legendary creature as its commander, with new artwork, plus 99 other cards. According to the announcement, all of the cards are original designs, with no reprints. That makes them a good way to add fresh cards to a collection rather than duplicates.
The five decks
- Calling All Angels (white): led by Giada, Font of Hope, and built around Angels.
- Keen Engineering (blue): led by Sai, Master Thopterist, focused on artifacts and Thopter tokens.
- Wretched Ranks (black): led by Ghoulcaller Gisa, a Zombie and sacrifice deck.
- Reign of Dragons (red): led by Lathliss, Dragon Queen, with Dragons and Treasure.
- Tramplesaurus Rex (green): led by Ghalta, Primal Hunger, a straightforward Dinosaur stampede.
Choosing one
Because each deck is a single color, the mana is forgiving and the game plans are easy to explain. If you are introducing a friend to Commander, I would suggest letting them pick the creature type they find most fun, since that tends to matter more than raw power. Reign of Dragons and Tramplesaurus Rex are the easiest to teach, while Keen Engineering rewards players who like building a board of small pieces.
Upgrading later
The decks are designed to be playable out of the package and upgradeable over time. A common approach is to swap in a handful of cards each month rather than rebuilding everything at once. I will cover budget upgrades in a future post.
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