Last updated on February 29, 2024

Start from Scratch - Illustration by Bayard Wu

Start from Scratch | Illustration by Bayard Wu

There’s usually no better way to start playing MTG than buying a new MTG pre-constructed deck, or precon. All the cards are there for a reason, and you’ll have many new discoveries relative to the cards, how they play together, and how they fare against other precons. You’ll naturally jump to conclusions as to which cards are better, reach a page like this online and boom – you're hooked into the game.

So let’s dive into those starter decks. There’s a bunch of them, and each month there are new and better starter decks, with shiny new cards. Which one should I get, and are they worth it? Let’s find out.

Table of Contents show

What Is a Starter Deck?

Start Your Engines MTG card art by Darek Zabrocki

Start Your Engines | Illustration by Darek Zabrocki

Starter decks are usually the first decks you get in a Local Game Store (LGS). People usually start playing Magic: The Gathering via starter decks, either taking them out of the box and taking them to a friends’ house or buying a couple starter decks to fight each other. WotC knows that most people start getting into MTG by playing with starter decks, and they keep doing an excellent job at designing these decks both for beginner players and for advanced players looking for specific cards.

Many things have changed in MTG design and philosophy in recent years, including new player acquisition and reacquisition. Commander, or EDH, is the most played format, not only in casual environments but also in competitive ones. As such, each year WotC releases a ton of new Commander precon decks, usually 2 or 4 per main set. The very nature of the Commander format makes it so that starter decks are really playable out of the box without the need for many upgrades, and they are easily upgradable.

Other interesting products are the Starter kits, where you have two decks designed to battle against each other, and the challenger decks, which are meant to be playable at the FNM (Friday Night Magic) level.

# 14. Blue-Red Deck from 2023 Starter Kit

Shivan Devastator - Illustration by Brent Hollowell

Shivan Devastator | Illustration by Brent Hollowell

First, I want to cover the two last decks WotC released on the 2023 Starter kit. This deck is a Izzet () Standard-legal deck based on what blue-red does best. You’ll play a bunch of instants and sorceries to keep the board under control and then win with a splashy rare like Hullbreaker Horror or Tyrant of Kher Ridges. It's also got a dragon-matters theme going with Sarkhan, Soul Aflame. Great deck for new players to learn and get in touch with the game, unfortunately not very competitive out of the box to play Standard, so let’s keep that in mind.

Strengths and Weaknesses

This is a deck aimed at teaching MTG, so it’s not a very strong and competitive deck. It has a few synergies going on, like having Sarkhan, Soul Aflame in play and playing a big dragon for cheap, making Sarkhan be a copy of said dragon. That said, it has a lot of bad cards in it. I’ll try to replace the bad cards with better and more playable cards to make this deck look more like an Izzet () aggressive/tempo deck with the suggested upgrades.

Let’s Take Out Bad Cards

I’ll start by taking out 3 Stasis Fields, 4 Stormkeld Prowler, and 2 Roc Hunter. That’s 9 cards. Let’s add 2 Shivan Devastator, 2 Aether Channeler, 3 Monastery Swiftspear, and 2 Electrostatic Infantry.

Let’s Take Out Expensive Spells

Archive Dragon and Ragefire Hellkite don’t do much, so let’s remove them. Also, Witchstalker Frenzy is very situational, so I’d cut two. To fill these five slots, I’d go with three Play with Fire, one more Goddric, Cloaked Reveler, and one more Dragonwing Glider.

#13. Green-White Deck from 2023 Starter Kit

Mesa Cavalier - Illustration by David Palumbo

Mesa Cavalier | Illustration by David Palumbo

Like the other deck from this collection, this one is a creature-centric deck based on +1/+1 counters and strength in numbers. It’s excellent to teach MTG, but it lacks in the competitive department.

Strengths and Weaknesses

This deck has 24 creatures, and most of them deal with +1/+1 counters. That’s very nice to teach that you can augment your creatures, and there are even more benefits from doing that. The backup mechanic fits this deck perfectly, because not only are players triggering the +1/+1 counter synergies but also adding abilities to existing creatures. That said, we’re going to change some stuff here and there.

Improve the Low End

To start improving the quality of your cards, I’d add 2 more Recruitment Officer, 1 Dusk Legion Duelist and 1 Siege Veteran. Let’s take out 2 Samite Herbalist and 2 Mesa Cavalier.

Improve the Top End

Next, I want to add two Steel Seraph, 1 Combat Thresher, and one more Boon-Bringer Valkyrie. Let’s take out bad cards like 2 Magnigoth Sentry and 2 Fairgrounds Trumpeter. This way you’re improving on the quality of your creatures overall.

#12. Reap the Tides EDH Precon

Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait - Illustration by Viktor Titov

Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait | Illustration by Viktor Titov

One of the few Simic () precons in this list, Reap the Tides favors going big, and that’s a near-and-dear theme for Commander players – especially new ones. Aesi, Tyrant of Gyre Strait does what you expect from blue and green. You’ll play more lands than your opponents and draw cards while at it. Then, proceed to take over the game with expensive and impactful spells. While your commander is alive, you’ll draw cards needed to win the game later, and since you’re playing that much land, if your commander is removed, you’ll easily cast it the next turn to keep the train going.

Add More Late Game Power

Koma, Cosmos Serpent, Arixmethes, Slumbering Isle, and Cultivator Colossus are big beefy creatures that can close out a game. Imoti, Celebrant of Bounty is a creature that gives other big spells you cast cascade, including your commander. Finally, The Goose Mother is a nice X spell that gives you a big creature and Food.

To make room for these changes, remove Peel from Reality, Sharktocrab, and Meteor Golem. They’re in the Limited power territory, and you’re not in need of artifact or ETB effects. Verdant Sun's Avatar and Simic Sky Swallower aren’t the beefy cards you’re looking for.

Add More Benefits for Playing Lands

Tatyova, Benthic Druid is a Selesnya () classic. It does add redundancy to the deck. Lotus Cobra and Scute Swarm are ways to benefit from playing so much land. Finally, Azusa, Lost but Seeking turbos out those synergies. To make room, cut Fathom Mage, which is very slow in a deck like this where you’ll usually want proliferate or more +1/+1 counter synergy. I’m also cutting Molimo, Maro-Sorcerer and Stormtide Leviathan.

Changes to the Mana Base

Usually a 2-color mana base in an EDH precon doesn’t need that much work. Here, it’s important to play fetch lands because you’ll draw extra cards with your commander. That’s why I’m adding Brokers Hideout, Fabled Passage, and Myriad Landscape.

You can also upgrade your blue-green lands with Restless Vinestalk, Tangled Islet, and Temple of Mystery because they add some extra utility on top of the mana fixing. The worst lands to cut for these upgrades are Vivid Grove, Vivid Creek, Simic Guildgate, and Thornwood Falls. You can also shave one of each basic Forest and Island.

#11. Undead Unleashed EDH Precon

Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver - Illustration by Chris Rallis

Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver | Illustration by Chris Rallis

Here’s a Dimir () typal zombies EDH deck, with Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver as its commander. Wilhelt is a very popular commander. When your zombies die, you’ll make a 2/2 zombie with decayed, and you can sacrifice them to draw cards. Like the Elven Empire deck, you’ll want as many good zombies and zombie lords as you can.

Strengths and Weaknesses

The main strength of the deck is that it’s very focused around doing its stuff. You’ll be attacking with a huge force of zombies, possibly receiving bonus from the zombie lords, and if they die, you’ll profit. The main weakness of the deck is that it’s slow, and if your lords are targeted with spot removal, it loses some of the power.

Add Some Zombie Lords

Bladestitched Skaab, Geralf, Visionary Stitcher, and Lord of the Undead give your zombie horde nice benefits. If you have the money, go for an Undead Warchief too. These cuts are cards I don’t like in this deck specifically: Forgotten Creation, Eloise, Nephalia Sleuth, and Shadow Kin.

Add Key Zombies

Gravecrawler and Champion of the Perished can establish a quick presence. Gravecrawler in this deck is an awesome sacrifice outlet, able to be cast from your graveyard easily. Archghoul of Thraben gives you many cards along the way, provided that your zombies are dying, and they will. Let’s take out some expensive cards like Hour of Devastation, Eater of Hope, and Curse of Unbinding.

Add Some Key Cards

Invasion of Amonkhet gives you card advantage, and you can reanimate a creature, turning it into a 4/4 zombie. That fits this deck. Mirkwood Bats drains your opponents for a lot of life since you’ll be creating many Zombie tokens. Carrion Feeder is a zombie that allows you to sacrifice the decayed zombies that were already going to die and profit from it. Leaving the deck are Butcher of Malakir, Overseer of the Damned, and Liliana's Devotee.

#10. Party Time EDH Precon

Nalia de'Arnise - Illustration by John Stanko

Nalia de'Arnise | Illustration by John Stanko

Party Time is an EDH Precon deck built around the party mechanic. A party is a group of creatures that are clerics, wizards, warriors, or rogues, and the more of these you have in play, the closer to a full party you’ll get. Your commander, Nalia de'Arnise is a rogue that lets you play creatures from the top of your deck – a very powerful ability – if they’re eligible party members. On top of that, you’ll get a huge benefit if you have a full party. You’ll want to have a wizard, a cleric, a rogue, and a warrior on the battlefield at all times to maximize your commander’s second ability, while casting party members from the top of your deck.

Strengths and Weaknesses

This deck is already a very serviceable Orzhov () EDH deck, with a strong commander. You’ll frequently be able to cast spells from the top of your deck and attack with a full party. The upgrades I propose focus on trimming rogues and expensive cards and adding more creatures of the needed types so that you can get something like 20-22 wizards, warriors, and clerics, and thus reliably get a full party. You don’t want that many rogues in this deck, since your commander is already a rogue.

Reduce the Non-Creature Spells

Interesting additions for removal are Fiend Hunter, Banisher Priest, and Shrouded Shepherd. To make room, take out non-creatures like Despark, Crib Swap, and Dusk.

Change Some Warriors and Wizards

Vexilus Praetor and Oketra's Monument are nice options for warriors, replacing Butcher of Malakir and Mardu Strike Leader. To replace wizards, you can put in Gandalf, White Rider and Dreamstealer, while taking out Corpse Augur and Calculating Lich.

Cut Some Rogues

Shaile, Dean of Radiance and Tenacious Underdog are nice additions to this deck, while removing rogues like Zulaport Cutthroat and Gonti, Lord of Luxury to make room for them.

Changes to the Mana Base

The deck's already got nice mana fixing. Caves of Koilos and Fetid Heath can replace worse options like a basic Plains and a basic Swamp. If you have excess budget laying around, you can invest in better lands like Godless Shrine, Shattered Sanctum, and Vault of Champions. Take out Snowfield Sinkhole, Mortuary Mire, and Myriad Landscape.

#9. Elven Empire EDH Precon

Lathril, Blade of the Elves - Illustration by Caroline Gariba

Lathril, Blade of the Elves | Illustration by Caroline Gariba

Elven Empire is a typal elf deck which relies on elf numbers to do strong stuff. That's very reminiscent of when I was playing the game in the ‘90's with Llanowar Elves and Quirion Elves. Lathril, Blade of the Elves is the commander, and it makes an Elf token for each point of combat damage it deals. That means you'll want to buff Lathril and your elves, typically with anthem effects. Also, it's got the tap ability to make each player lose 10 life, and in most cases activating this ability grants you a win.

Strengths and Weaknesses

This deck’s strength is the sheer elvish numbers you can make. Unfortunately, these decks are weak to sweepers, so the best way to improve this is by adding cards like Heroic Intervention to protect your guys. You’ll instead rely on speed to take out opponents before that happens, and cards that protect your board are usually on the expensive side. The cheapest and quickest way to improve this deck is to upgrade the quality of the cards. This deck has a built-in sacrifice component, but it doesn’t need it. You want sheer elf numbers to strike hard.

Add Some Staple Elves

Llanowar Elves, Elvish Warmaster, and Elvish Visionary are staple, cheap elves that see play in various formats. Let’s take out Jaspera Sentinel, Elvish Rejuvenator, and Voice of the Woods.

Good Elvish Cards

To strengthen the typal component of your deck, add Priest of Titania, Leaf-Crowned Visionary, Galadhrim Ambush, and Realmwalker. Galadhrim Ambush is awesome because it makes elves and protects you at the same time. These elves are on the weak side and are cuttable: Springbloom Druid, Lys Alana Scarblade, Farhaven Elf, and Elderfang Ritualist.

Add Some Power and Card Advantage

Tyvar Kell and Freyalise, Llanowar's Fury are planeswalkers that slowly add more elves to the board. Shamanic Revelation can be a big card advantage spell in this deck as well. To make room, let’s release Ambition's Cost, Twinblade Assassins, and Eyeblight Cullers from duty.

Round It Up with Some Staples

Beast Within and Skullclamp are very nice in these kinds of decks. Skullclamp turns your elves into cards, while Beast Within solves problems. Tergrid's Shadow and Eyeblight Massacre are the next ones to go.

Changes to the Mana Base

Here are a few black and green lands to improve the mana base. Restless Cottage, Llanowar Wastes, Temple of Malady, and Woodland Cemetery, all add something to your deck. Rogue's Passage is interesting to give evasion to Lathril. Take off the worst lands in your deck, and those are roughly Golgari Guildgate, Myriad Landscape, Foul Orchard, Jungle Hollow, and a basic Forest.

#8. Azorius Spirits 2021 Challenger Deck

Spell Queller - Illustration by Adam Paquette

Spell Queller | Illustration by Adam Paquette

This deck is very similar to an already top-tier deck in Pioneer, and that’s mono-blue or Azorius () spirits. This deck attacks with fliers to win, and it has a typal spirit theme going. This is a Pioneer Challenger deck from 2021, so there are better card options, but overall the deck plays fine.

Strengths and Weaknesses

The core of the deck is here, mostly good and cheap spirits, and interaction in the form of counterspells. This deck also has flying matters themes in cards like Watcher of the Spheres. You’ll want as many spirits and spirits-matter cards you can get, so I’m going to replace some of the flying matters cards. The mana base could be more reliable, as this isn’t a mono-blue deck.

Changes to the Mana Base

Add two Hallowed Fountain, two Glacial Fortress and four Seachrome Coast, while taking out 5 Plains and two Temple of Enlightenment. This helps to solidify the mana base. If you can, get some Hengegate Pathway / Mistgate Pathway or Deserted Beach as well.

Interaction

2 March of Swirling Mist and 1 Invasion of Gobakhan are two nice cards to disrupt your opponents and protect your spirits. I’d take out 3 Empyrean Eagle. Let’s also add a Dovin's Veto and 2 Geistlight Snare to the sideboard, taking out 2 Isolate and 1 Silkwrap.

Add Curious Obsession

Brazen Borrower

If one thing makes you win with this deck, it’s Curious Obsession. Let’s add four and take out Spectral Sailor, a Brazen Borrower, and two Watcher of the Spheres.

Core Spirits

Let’s take out the 2 Remorseful Cleric and the last 2 Watcher of the Spheres, then replace them with 2 Mausoleum Wanderer and 2 Spell Queller.

#7. Warhammer 40K EDH The Ruinous Powers Precon

Abaddon the Despoiler - Illustration by Johan Grenier

Abaddon the Despoiler | Illustration by Johan Grenier

Warhammer 40K’s precons are super strong right out of the box, and people were surprised at how pushed some of these decks and designs are. The Ruinous Powers is a Grixis () precon led by Abaddon the Despoiler. Basically, it gives cascade to spells that cost less than the amount of life your opponents lost this turn, so that’s the message. Make them lose life and cast spells with good cascade value – the more the merrier. Of course, Abaddon needs a supporting cast to make sure they lose life consistently, so there’s an opportunity for improvement.

Strengths and Weaknesses

The Warhammer 40k decks have very powerful designs and are a blast to play with. As with many precons, the lack of focus is the main problem. There are demons, spellslinging cards, and cascade-matters cards. I’ll try to trim the spellslinging theme, highlighting the life loss and cascade aspect instead.

Add Incentives for Players Losing Life

Davros, Dalek Creator is a commander that wants opponents to lose life, and so does Abaddon. It’s a nice fit. Solphim, Mayhem Dominus is excellent, doubling all the noncombat damage, although a little bit expensive. I’ll take out Reverberate and Let the Galaxy Burn.

Changes to the Mana Base

Tri-color decks usually require some tinkering in the mana base. I want to cut at least one basic land from each type, so let’s put temples. I’m adding Temple of Malice, Temple of Deceit and Temple of Epiphany. They fix mana, they scry, and they’re cheap to buy.

Life Loss Synergies

Loyal Subordinate is a card that makes people lose life naturally, and so is Court of Ambition. Spawn of Mayhem is another interesting card in this regard. I want to add High Fae Negotiator, a card that can dome everyone for 3 when bargained. Let’s take out cards that don’t make much sense like Magnus the Red, Be'lakor, the Dark Master, Bile Blight, and Dark Ritual.

#6. Izzet Phoenix 2022 Challenger Deck

Arclight Phoenix - Illustration by Slawomir Maniak

Arclight Phoenix | Illustration by Slawomir Maniak

This is also a deck that’s pretty competitive in Pioneer. The core of this deck is Arclight Phoenix, a 3/2 haste flier that you can take out of your graveyard just by casting three instants or sorceries. Naturally, you’ll want a lot of draw and discard, as well as good instants and sorceries in blue and red. Especially interesting is all the ways you can put your phoenix in the graveyard, with cards like Chart a Course, Consider, Izzet Charm, and Lightning Axe.

Strengths and Weaknesses

It’s a deck that’s going in the right direction, having cards that benefit from spells like Arclight Phoenix, Thing in the Ice, and Crackling Drake, and it’s got a nice mana base and spells. It usually folds to graveyard hate and exile-based removal.

Cut Expressive Iterations for Abrade

You can’t play Expressive Iteration since it’s banned. Abrade is a nice removal spell that gets artifacts and creatures.

Add Two Arclight Phoenixes

Arclight Phoenix is the main card in this deck, so you’ll want all four. You can take out a Pieces of the Puzzle and an Izzet Charm for them.

Some Spell Changes

Add a main deck Beacon Bolt, Brotherhood's End and two Fiery Impulse, taking out two Flame-Blessed Bolt, a Chart a Course and an Opt.

Changes to the Mana Base

I’d add a Steam Vents and two more Sulfur Falls, taking off one Island and two Mountains. If possible, get two Spirebluff Canals. This deck has a functional mana base already with so many drawing and discarding.

Add Two Ledger Shredders

These two are perfect in a deck like this, and I’d swap two Crackling Drake for Ledger Shredder. They are very expensive, though.

#5. Vampiric Bloodlust EDH Precon

Edgar Markov - Illustration by Volkan Baga

Edgar Markov | Illustration by Volkan Baga

This 2017 EDH precon has Edgar Markov in the lead. Edgar Markov is a Mardu () commander that has the eminence ability. This always triggers when you cast a vampire, no matter if your commander is in the command zone or on the battlefield, and many people consider it a design mistake since it’s all upside. Either way, having so many Vampire tokens can lead to a vampire go-wide strategy, sacrificing vampires for profit, or both. Cards that buff your vampires or your tokens are extra good here, and you won’t have a shortage of creatures. Edgar is quite competitive at the high levels of Commander play, but here I’m aiming to leave the power level lower on the spectrum, as a slightly upgraded precon deck.

Strengths and Weaknesses

This deck’s strength lies in the fact that you’ll always have some vampires laying around, and you don’t need to keep your commander around or recasting it from the command zone that much. It’s very straight-forward in how it plays: You cast vampires, buff them, attack, and build a small army. When Edgar Markov comes into play, it can attack right away and pump your whole team. As for weaknesses, you have some do-nothing cards that cost a lot of mana and don’t contribute directly to the theme of playing vampires to the board, so you’ll usually take out those when upgrading the deck.

Change Some Vampires Around

I’m add Cordial Vampire, Welcoming Vampire and Legion Lieutenant. These are all cheap vampires that work very well with more vampires. Legion Lieutenant buffs them, while Welcoming Vampire gives you a bunch of cards here and there. These are also cheap vampires, and this deck can have a curve problem sometimes. Let’s take out Skeletal Vampire, Licia, Sanguine Tribune, and Bloodsworn Steward.

Sacrifice Theme

Mirkwood Bats is nuts in a deck that creates or loses so many tokens. Cruel Celebrant is also a nice card to keep draining your opponents. Why not add both? Cut Consuming Vapors and Underworld Connections to make space.

Strength in Numbers

Drana, Liberator of Malakir, Sanctum Seeker, and Champion of Dusk are vampires that benefit from having lots of vampires around. Be sure to include those three staples, replacing Vein Drinker, Crimson Honor Guard, and Bloodhusk Ritualist.

Add Some Artifact Support

Obelisk of Urd and Vanquisher's Banner are strong artifacts to have around, since you’ll buff your vampires and draw some cards. For adding these two, cut Curse of Disturbance and Curse of Vitality.

Changes to the Mana Base

Add these lands: Voldaren Estate, Secluded Courtyard, Dragonskull Summit, Unclaimed Territory, and Isolated Chapel. These are nice lands that provide you with mana fixing and come into play untapped most of the time. In decks with lots of vampires, three of these can generate the color of mana you’ll need anyway. Take out bad lands like Rakdos Guildgate, Boros Guildgate, Orzhov Guildgate, Stone Quarry, and Forsaken Sanctuary.

#4. Exit From Exile EDH Precon

Faldorn, Dread Wolf Herald - Illustration by Jason A. Engle

Faldorn, Dread Wolf Herald | Illustration by Jason A. Engle

Exit from Exile is a very straightforward EDH precon. It wants you to cast spells from exile, and by doing that you’ll make a 2/2 Wolf token. Gather enough Wolf tokens and swing for the win. But how exactly do you cast spells from exile? Well, red’s been getting a lot of the famous impulse draw ability, so cards like Wrenn's Resolve do it, as does Escape from the Wilds. It’s a very powerful deck straight from the box, and it’s fun and synergistic.

Strengths and Weakness

This deck is a little tricky to run, especially for newer players. It’s a competitive deck right out of the box though. There’s so much card advantage and resource advantage to be obtained once the exile train gets running. This deck can be weak to fliers though, so reach creatures are very interesting. Outside of something like Hornet Queen, the deck lacks in this department.

Cards That Care About Wolves

I wouldn’t say that this deck is a typal wolf deck, but adding these two cards makes a difference. Tovolar, Dire Overlord and Nightpack Ambusher are nice additions, and I’d shave off a Forest and Izzet Chemister for them.

Adding Good Cards

Chaos Warp is a staple in red removal in EDH. Goblin Anarchomancer is at home in a red and green deck that wants to cast many spells. I’m cutting cards like Managorger Hydra and Terramorph to make room for them.

Good Cards That Care About Exile

Questing Druid, Valakut Exploration, Visions of Phyrexia, and Invasion of Kaldheim are all strong cards that exile cards from your library for you to be able to cast. I’m taking off creatures that have exile-related mechanics, notably mechanics like suspend or adventure, but that are better in 60-card Constructed decks than in Commander. These are Bonecrusher Giant, Sweet-Gum Recluse, Greater Gargadon, and Primeval Bounty.

Changes to the Mana Base

Hidden Volcano and Hidden Nursery are very nice additions, and they replace a Mountain and a Forest. You can also add cards like Rockfall Vale and Rootbound Crag, replacing worse land cards like Highland Forest and Myriad Landscape.

#3. Planar Portal EDH Precon

Prosper, Tome-Bound - Illustration by Yongjae Choi

Prosper, Tome-Bound | Illustration by Yongjae Choi

This precon is very famous because of its commander. Prosper, Tome-Bound is one Commander deck frequently played at the highest levels of competitive EDH. Each time you play a spell from exile, you’ll get a Treasure to play your next spells, and on your end step you’ll exile a card for free. These abilities feed into themselves wonderfully, and Prosper becomes really good when you have access to more impulse draw like Wrenn's Resolve and cards like Outpost Siege. Furthermore, you’ll make and sacrifice a lot of Treasure, which has its own synergies in this deck.

Strengths and Weaknesses

Prosper, Tome-Bound is a strong commander, and if your opponents let it live, you’re having a good time. Just getting card advantage and mana advantage every turn is strong, and if Prosper dies you’ll probably have enough mana to cast it again thanks to all the Treasure. This deck has a lot of themes going on, so I opted to solidify the exile card / Treasure production dynamic. There are some cards that make Rats and benefit from it that look very out of place.

Add More Impulse Draw

Wrenn's Resolve, Reckless Impulse, Outpost Siege, Decadent Dragon, and Laelia, the Blade Reforged are all nice cards that help you to exile more cards, which turbo out Prosper’s abilities. Besides, you’ll get a lot of card advantage this way. Let’s take out cards that don’t do much in this deck, like Ogre Slumlord, Piper of the Swarm, Chittering Witch, and Dark-Dweller Oracle.

Add Treasure Synergy

Mayhem Devil, Disciple of the Vault, Deadly Dispute, and Revel in Riches all shine when you’re producing and sacrificing a lot of Treasure. If you have a higher budget, I’d add Goldspan Dragon too. To make room for these, let’s take out Karazikar, the Eye Tyrant, Shiny Impetus, Loyal Apprentice, and Death Tyrant.

Changes to the Mana Base.

Hidden Volcano is a no-brainer here, as it casts a spell directly from exile. Other nice investments are Temple of Malice, Haunted Ridge, and Treasure Vault. Let’s take out Zhalfirin Void, Spinerock Knoll, Mortuary Mire, and a basic Swamp.

#2. Warhammer 40K EDH Necron Dynasties Precon Deck

Szarekh, the Silent King | Illustration by Anton Solovianchyk

Szarekh, the Silent King | Illustration by Anton Solovianchyk

Usually considered one of the best Warhammer 40K EDH precon decks, Necron Dynasties doesn’t disappoint. The cards especially designed for this collection are strong, mechanics like unearth are excellent, and this deck is very focused. You’ll basically need artifacts, self-mill, and artifact recursion. Szarekh, the Silent King is the commander, and it’s basically a decent-sized flier that lets you mill yourself and recover something from your hand when it attacks most of the time.

Strengths and Weaknesses

Although limited in what black can do, getting a mono color EDH deck to play is very easy and intuitive. You’ll get to kill and sweep the board in true-black fashion, and your graveyard will be a huge source of resources as the game goes on. The mana base is obviously solid, and the card quality is above average for a precon. To suggest upgrades, you’ll keep the original commander and improve a little bit on the deck. Some will argue that other commanders are better, and as a precon, it’s nice to have so many viable commander options. Let’s make the deck start quicker and have more value overall. I’ll also focus the deck around the commander because usually precons overshoot for all the possible legends around.

Fast Start

Foundry Inspector, Leaden Myr, and Millikin are artifacts that make your other artifacts cheaper. Millikin even mills cards for you. I’m taking out other mana rocks that are more focused in the late game like Commander's Sphere, Hedron Archive and Gilded Lotus

Consistency

Myr Retriever and Unseal the Necropolis gives you more cards. Deadly Dispute, besides giving you cards, also gives you Treasure and allow you to sacrifice other creatures. Out goes Triarch Stalker, Sautekh Immortal, and Tomb Blade.

Value Cards

Here I’m borrowing some Doctor Who cards. Cyberman Patrol, Cybermen Squadron, and Dalek Drone fit into this aggressive/recursive artifact black deck. Cybership can be retrieved with your commander, and an 8/8 flying vehicle is nothing to scoff at. The final cuts are Unstable Obelisk, Night Scythe, Convergence of Dominion, and a basic Swamp.

#1. Food and Fellowship EDH Precon

Frodo, Adventurous Hobbit - Illustration by Axel Sauerwald

Food and Fellowship is an Abzan () deck centered about two partners: Frodo, Adventurous Hobbit and Sam, Loyal Attendant. This is a token-themed deck with lots of lifegain components, and in the middle of these two concepts there are Food tokens, which are very related to the hobbits theme in Lord of the Rings. This is one of the strongest precons available.

Strengths and Weaknesses

The theme of the deck is very linear. You’ll make lots of Food tokens, sacrifice them to gain life, and reap the rewards of gaining life, whether through the EDH staple Sanguine Bond or with cards like Gwaihir, Greatest of the Eagles. There’s also lots of cards that care about Food, both creating and sacrificing it. There’s no shortage of Food whatsoever. There’s no real weaknesses to this deck, but you can make it better by changing some cards that don’t really belong here.

Wilds of Eldraine Food Additions

Cards like Greta, Sweettooth Scourge, Night of the Sweets' Revenge, and Tough Cookie are ways to get the most out of your Food tokens. Academy Manufactor isn’t a card from Eldraine, but it fits the same role here. Let’s take cards that are slow or not at their best in this deck like Bilbo, Birthday Celebrant, Call for Unity, Trading Post, and Harmonize.

Cards That Care About Lifegain

Add Mortality Spear, Gumdrop Poisoner, and Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose. Those are very efficient cards if you’re gaining life constantly. Crypt Incursion, Pristine Talisman, and Orchard Strider are easy cuts.

Expensive Upgrades

Mondrak, Glory Dominus and The One Ring are excellent in this deck. These are very, very expensive cards though, since they’re staples in EDH. Fell the Mighty and Mentor of the Meek are easy swaps in this case.

Upgrades to the Mana Base

Restless Cottage, Caves of Koilos, and Llanowar Wastes are easy inclusions. Let’s take out Shineshadow Snarl, Necroblossom Snarl, and Fortified Village.

Are MTG Starter Decks Worth It?

They are. Not only in the quality of the cards, but most of them are very well designed and ready to battle. Most starter decks give you a higher value than if you buy singles, unless you need only a specific card or two. And if you’re starting a MTG collection, it’s all upside.

Wrap Up

Sam, Loyal Attendant - Illustration by Campbell White

Sam, Loyal Attendant | Illustration by Campbell White

I’d say the strategy WotC is employing these days to acquire new players goes through mainly the Commander precon decks, MTG Arena Starter decks and these starter kits that not only come with decks, but you can get the cards to start your MTG Arena journey as well. These starter decks are all tabletop, paper decks, and for digital battles on MTG Arena we also have an article covering MTGA starter decks that you may be interested in, so please check that out.

What are your favorite precons that didn’t make the list? Have you had the chance to play with one of them? Let me know in the comments section below or leave a tweet at Draftsim Twitter.

I hope I’ve helped you in your initial steps to become an MTG player, and thanks for reading.

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30 Comments

  • Avatar
    redacted May 6, 2020 11:46 am

    Just wanted to say thank you so much for this article. I’m a new player and probably would have floundered around with the sub par decks instead of winning with Gruul Clans (don’t have orzhov or boros yet). This gave me the confidence to modify and strengthen Gruul Clans and even build my first deck from scratch.

    • Avatar
      Dan Troha May 6, 2020 12:25 pm

      Awesome, so glad it helped you!

    • Niels
      Niels May 7, 2020 1:39 am

      Very happy to hear the article helped you get the confidence you needed! MTG is definitely one of those games where the more time you invest in understanding the game and its intricacies, the more you’ll be able to take away from it. Above all, enjoy playing and have fun with it!

  • Avatar
    Myk August 5, 2020 8:41 am

    The idiot in me edited the initial 5 decks as soon as I got packs not honking of how to put them back. But now I can’t. Some require crafting and I just cant redo out for blood as meteor golem is not on my list. Any tips?

  • Avatar
    Fred October 1, 2020 1:05 pm

    Hi there! could you adjust the starting decks and improvement tips? m20 is out now and i just started :/ Awesome guide anyway! 🙂 thx

    • Avatar
      Dan Troha October 2, 2020 12:29 pm

      Paper decks have been updated!

  • Avatar
    Shade October 23, 2020 3:04 pm

    What about the mono black starter deck Cold Blooded Killers. This is my personal favorite. I’ve kind of tweaked it to my liking. I’m new to Arena…about 2 weeks or so.

  • Avatar
    sw December 5, 2020 10:00 pm

    My Stomp, Stomp doesn’t have Escape to the Wilds card in it.

  • Avatar
    sw December 5, 2020 10:06 pm

    Looks like it has Radha, Heart of Keld instead.

    • Avatar
      Dan Troha December 7, 2020 9:56 am

      Totally makes sense since that card was banned. They’ll replace it with another rare. I’ll update the article, thanks.

  • Avatar
    DK December 30, 2020 9:13 pm

    I must be missing something , i keep ending up with 61 cards for the Stomp, Stomp

    • Avatar
      Dat Nub Doe January 10, 2021 8:21 pm

      He took out 4 cards and put in 5.. Hopefully he catches that and makes a tweak. 😉

      • Avatar
        Dan Troha January 11, 2021 10:43 am

        Not exactly sure what you guys are talking about. 26 + 8 + 1 + 1 +24 = 60.

        • Avatar
          Alex January 30, 2021 6:12 am

          Yeah, but 4 cards were taken out in and 5 added resulting in 61/60. I’m having the same issue haha

          • Avatar
            Dan Troha February 2, 2021 3:50 pm

            I see. Feel free to include one less card of your choice 🙂

          • Avatar
            Mike June 18, 2021 11:35 am

            Any suggestions which card to include one less of? What would you do?

          • Avatar
            Dan Troha June 18, 2021 12:35 pm

            Probably not 1 copy of Barge In since there are enough situational combat tricks already.

  • Avatar
    Jacobater May 17, 2021 1:35 am

    RE: Orzhov: Life Skills it looks like you’ve removed 6 and added 5, or am I missing something?

    • Avatar
      Dan Troha May 17, 2021 2:32 pm

      Looks like it. I’d probably just leave a Boot Nipper (for mana curve reasons) or the mythic (for power level) in the deck.

  • Avatar
    Gabe May 20, 2021 6:02 pm

    Wasn’t able to find any of the cards to add for starry-eyed except pacifism for some reason :/

  • Avatar
    Colbstar July 19, 2021 4:14 am

    Please Help! I don’t know if these decks were removed in an update or something, but there are 5 new starter decks and now I can’t get these 10 anymore T-T somebody please help, am I never going to able to get these? Or do I have to ‘make’ them myself

    • Avatar
      Dan Troha July 19, 2021 11:28 am

      With rotation coming soon, I think they just did an update. We’ll get this revised shortly.

  • Avatar
    Biblitorkar1 February 14, 2022 1:48 pm

    I followed this guide, but now with recent changes five of this decks cant be played in standard only in historic, these decks are: treasure hunt fireworks, sky patrol, savage lands and dungeon delving, it says invalid cards are zero, but a yellow warning signs came up over the decks, what does that mean ?

    • Avatar
      Dan Troha November 3, 2022 11:31 am

      This guide has been updated with new decks instead!

  • Avatar
    Russ Jones (Harry el Cerdo) May 11, 2022 12:20 pm

    I really like your site. I found it because someone told me about your Arena Tutor. It sounds wonderful but I have a Mac! Any chance of a port?

    • Avatar
      Dan Troha May 11, 2022 12:56 pm

      Thanks! Sorry, but as long as Overwolf is Windows-only, Arena Tutor will likely be the same.

  • Avatar
    AJ November 1, 2022 4:03 am

    Will you be updated the article with suggested starter deck upgrades like last year?

    As a beginner, I found your sugggestions really helpful and I had way more fun with the game.

    • Avatar
      Dan Troha November 1, 2022 9:19 am

      Yes, we did a few days ago. It’s in the middle of the article. If you’re not seeing it, try clearing your browser cache for this article.

  • Avatar
    James November 3, 2022 6:26 am

    There are 61 cards in the gravematters. What should we cut?

  • Avatar
    sound of Text September 12, 2023 11:18 pm

    I love this post! I’m a new player and I’m trying to figure out what decks to build. This post has helped me a lot.

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