Last updated on December 19, 2025
Eshki, Temur's Roar | Illustration by Billy Christian
This year has been exceptional for EDH. 2025 had amazing commanders, plus a whopping thirteen precons, most centered around Final Fantasy and Tarkir: Dragonstorm. But are any of them worth your attention and time?
#13. Jeskai Striker
Jeskai Striker, led by Shiko and Narset, Unified, is a spellslinger deck that suffers from classic precon bloat, where too many themes receive too little support. It tries to be big instants and sorceries, token aggro, and storm all at once, failing in each regard and succeeding at nothing.
Best Cards:
- Shiko and Narset, Unified got a bad deck, but is a pretty cool commander with lots of flexibility. It can be built as a control deck that copies removal or combo focused on big spells like Time Warp and Jeskai Revelation.
- Transcendent Dragon might be the coolest Mystic Snake ever printed.
- FIGHT DRAGONS WITH DRAGONS—Return to Tarkir for an epic battle between dragons and clans; discover which clan fits your playstyle with distinct three-color gameplay, and add draconic power to your collection
- HIT HARD AND HIT OFTEN—Join the Jeskai spirit dragon, Shiko, and former planeswalker Narset and the Jeskai clan to cast extra spells and flurry spell effects with this Blue-Red-White Commander deck
- 2 FOIL BORDERLESS COMMANDERS—Every Tarkir: Dragonstorm Commander Deck contains 2 Traditional Foil Legendary Creature cards featuring gorgeous Borderless art, including each clan’s Mythic Spirit Dragon
- BATTLE ALONGSIDE YOUR CLAN—Led by monk-practitioners of the Way, the Jeskai seek unity of thought and a shared understanding of reality. Precise, compassionate, and rigorous, they consider it their duty to guide Tarkir to a better future.
- INTRODUCES 10 COMMANDER CARDS—Each deck introduces 10 never-before-seen Commander cards to Magic: The Gathering
#12. Revival Trance
Revival Trance, led by Terra, Herald of Hope, suffers because it has no good commander. Terra wants to reanimate small creatures while the 99 wants to go big. The backup commander, Celes, Rune Knight, also cares little for big creatures. Coupled with subpar discard outlets, the deck flounders around without doing much.
Best Cards:
- Terra, Herald of Hope and Celes, Rune Knight are powerful commanders, just not for this archetype; Terra enables grindy midrange decks while Celes works best as a combo commander that use its +1/+1 counters to break persist.
- Rejoin the Fight is exactly the kind of mass reanimation spells the archetype needs in EDH.
- FINAL FANTASY VI-THEMED DECK—Battle your friends with FINAL FANTASY VI’s iconic heroes, villains, and spells with the strategic gameplay of the Magic: The Gathering collectible card game
- YOU CAN’T DESTROY EVERYTHING—Fill your graveyard and revive your fallen heroes as you fight alongside Terra, Herald of Hope to restore balance to the world.
- 25 NEW CARDS plus ALL NEW ART—All 100 cards in this ready-to-play deck feature new FINAL FANTASY-themed art, including 25 Commander cards entirely new to Magic: The Gathering
- 2 FOIL LEGENDARY CARDS—Each deck includes 2 Legendary Creature cards with a shiny Traditional Foil treatment that can be played as your commander
- COLLECT SPECIAL ALT-BORDER CARDS—Each deck also comes with a 2-card Collector Booster Sample Pack containing 2 alternate-border cards of rarity Rare or higher
#11. Mardu Surge
Zurgo Stormrender leads the Mardu into battle in the Mardu Surge precon, which focuses on aggro with aristocrat cards to abuse mobilize tokens. The deck doesn’t do much wrong, but little goes right, with an excessively high curve that includes cards like Myr Battlesphere and Legion Loyalty that aren’t at their best in the aggressive shell.
Best Cards:
- Zurgo Stormrender has proven to be one of 2025’s best commanders thanks to the aggressive gameplan and the flexibility it offers between token aggro and aristocratic value.
- It has solid reprints including Adeline, Resplendant Cathar, Gix, Yawgmoth Praetor, Skullclamp, and Blade of Selves.
- FIGHT DRAGONS WITH DRAGONS—Return to Tarkir for an epic battle between dragons and clans; discover which clan fits your playstyle with distinct three-color gameplay, and add draconic power to your collection
- STRIKE WHILE THE IRON IS HOT—Ally with the Mardu clan to make attacker tokens and sacrifice them for value with this Red-White-Black Commander deck
- 2 FOIL BORDERLESS COMMANDERS—Command your army with the Mythic Spirit Dragon, Neriv, or Zurgo, leader of the new Mardu; every Tarkir: Dragonstorm Commander Deck includes 2 Traditional Foil Legendary Creature cards featuring gorgeous Borderless art
- BATTLE ALONGSIDE YOUR CLAN—The Mardu are nomads who defend and expand their vast territory through agile tactics and the exploitation of weakness. A unified force, they are revered for their lightning-wielding fighters, expert beast riders, and commitment to their clan.
- INTRODUCES 10 COMMANDER CARDS—Each deck introduces 10 never-before-seen Commander cards to Magic: The Gathering
#10. World Shaper
World Shaper is a mixed bag despite the incredible Heathhull, the Worldseed. The deck is only okay, with a mishmash of landfall and sacrifice synergies that ramble across the battlefield with no real plan. But the individual card shine, with new cards and reprints Jund players should be excited to pick up. This deck is almost best as a grab bag of sorts to enhance or begin your Jund journey.
Best Cards:
- Hearthhull, the Worldseed distinguishes itself among land commanders, which often exploit landfall rather than land sacrifice. It’s an efficient card draw engine and win condition, making it a perfect build around.
- Evendo Brushrazer is an incredible sacrifice payoff that produces mana and draws cards—the formula for a card that’s at least a staple, if not broken.
- TERRAFORM AND TERRORIZE—Sacrifice lands and grow back stronger alongside the massive seedship, Hearthhull, and Szarel, director of terrasymbiosis
- 2 FOIL BORDERLESS COMMANDERS—Every Edge of Eternities Commander Deck includes 2 Traditional Foil Legendary Creature cards featuring Borderless art
- INTRODUCES 12 COMMANDER CARDS—Each deck introduces 12 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 1 Traditional Foil card and 1 alt-border Rare or Mythic Rare (foil or nonfoil)
- THRILLING MULTIPLAYER BATTLES—Commander is a multiplayer way to play Magic, an epic, free-for-all battle full of strategic plays and social intrigue
#9. Living Energy
The Living Energy deck, led by Saheeli, Radiant Creator, underwhelms. It’s the third energy precon in a short period of time and does little to distinguish itself from its predecessors, employing a commander nearly identical to Satya, Aetherflux Genius and an artifact theme similar to Fallout’s Science! precon. The deck isn’t bad, nor is it remarkable; it’s the very definition of mid.
Best Cards:
- Stridehanger Automaton is a wonderful payoff for artifact token decks that synergizes with anything that wants a wide board.
- The deck has decent staple reprints, notably Academy Ruins, Panharmonicon, Conjurer's Closet, Arcane Denial, and Lightning Greaves.
- READY, SET, CHARGE!—Join artificer extraordinaire Saheeli to stockpile energy, then charge up your artifact creatures for a big finish with this Red-Green-Blue Aetherdrift Commander Deck
- 2 FOIL BORDERLESS COMMANDERS—Every Aetherdrift Commander Deck includes 2 Traditional Foil Legendary Creature cards featuring Borderless art
- INTRODUCES 10 COMMANDER CARDS—Each 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 alternate-border Aetherdrift cards
- THRILLING MULTIPLAYER BATTLES—Commander is a multiplayer way to play Magic, an epic, free-for-all battle full of strategic plays and social intrigue
#8. Limit Break
Limit Break gives Cloud, Ex-SOLDIER a straightforward strategy: equipment and aggression. The simplicity might not appeal to experienced players, but it makes this a perfect precon for beginners.
Best Cards:
- Both Cloud, Ex-SOLDIER and Tifa, Martial Artist are incredible commanders for Naya () aggro players, with distinct playstyles to build unique decks around.
- The deck has excellent reprints, with standouts being Clever Concealment, Skullclamp, Lightning Greaves, and Sword of the Animist.
- FINAL FANTASY VII-THEMED DECK—Battle your friends with FINAL FANTASY VII’s iconic heroes, villains, and spells with the strategic gameplay of the Magic: The Gathering collectible card game
- LET’S MOSEY—Get into gear with Cloud, Ex-SOLDIER and fight for the planet’s future as you equip weapons and raise your creature stats to 7 power or higher to break past your limit
- 25 NEW CARDS plus ALL NEW ART—All 100 cards in this ready-to-play deck feature new FINAL FANTASY-themed art, including 25 Commander cards entirely new to Magic: The Gathering
- 2 FOIL LEGENDARY CARDS—Each deck includes 2 Legendary Creature cards with a shiny Traditional Foil treatment that can be played as your commander
- COLLECT SPECIAL ALT-BORDER CARDS—Each deck also comes with a 2-card Collector Booster Sample Pack containing 2 alternate-border cards of rarity Rare or higher
#7. Abzan Armor
Abzan Armor gives toughness-matter decks a unique precon, with Felothar the Steadfast leading the fray as a power-crept Doran, the Siege Tower. A simple gameplan makes it perfect for new players and it has almost everything you could want for the archtype for a great experience out of the box.
Best Cards:
- Felothar the Steadfast outshines Doran, the Siege Tower because it has the Assault Formation text that allows defenders to attack.
- Jaws of Defeat might be the strongest payoff the archetype has ever seen, rivaling Arcades, the Strategist.
- FIGHT DRAGONS WITH DRAGONS—Return to Tarkir for an epic battle between dragons and clans; discover which clan fits your playstyle with distinct three-color gameplay, and add draconic power to your collection
- LET YOUR SHIELD BE YOUR SWORD—Ally with the Abzan clan to play defenders and turn toughness into power with this White-Black-Green Commander deck
- 2 FOIL BORDERLESS COMMANDERS—Command your army with Abzan’s Mythic Spirit Dragon, Betor, or Felothar, khan of the Abzan clan; every deck includes 2 Traditional Foil Legendary Creature cards featuring gorgeous Borderless art
- BATTLE ALONGSIDE YOUR CLAN—The Abzan are stalwart warriors with strong familial bonds who summon their ancestors’ spirits; they preserve the history and lineage of their clan through impenetrable defenses and sacred ancestral Kin-Trees
- INTRODUCES 10 COMMANDER CARDS—Each deck introduces 10 never-before-seen Commander cards to Magic: The Gathering
#6. Scions & Spellcraft
Scions & Spellcraft has one of the best commanders of the year, Y'sthola, Night's Blessed, but the deck itself needs work. It has too many random creatures that fail to support the spellslinger commander and not enough card advantage/removal for the long game. Some Universe Beyond precons falter because they focus more on printing new cards than building a cohesive strategy, as seen here.
- Y'shtola, Night's Blessed is the breakout commander from 2025. It gives spellslinger decks a unique twist by pivoting away from Izzet () and incentivizes a long, controlling game rather than building up to an explosive storm turn.
- G'raha Tia, Scion Reborn applies the Young Pyromancer template to fresh colors for a unique token commander.
- FINAL FANTASY XIV-THEMED DECK—Battle your friends with FINAL FANTASY XIV’s iconic heroes, villains, and spells with the strategic gameplay of the Magic: The Gathering collectible card game
- ALWAYS SEEK OUT NEW KNOWLEDGE—Be a master caster and gain control with card advantage as you band together with Y’shtola, Night’s Blessed to aid Eorzea in its time of need
- 25 NEW CARDS plus ALL NEW ART—All 100 cards in this ready-to-play deck feature new FINAL FANTASY-themed art, including 25 Commander cards entirely new to Magic: The Gathering
- 2 FOIL LEGENDARY CARDS—Each deck includes 2 Legendary Creature cards with a shiny Traditional Foil treatment that can be played as your commander
- COLLECT SPECIAL ALT-BORDER CARDS—Each deck also comes with a 2-card Collector Booster Sample Pack containing 2 alternate-border cards of rarity Rare or higher
#5. Eternal Might
Zombie typal might seem vanilla in 2025 Commander, but Eternal Might makes it work, in large part because Temmet, Naktamun's Will gives the deck a draw-focused gameplan that distinguishes it from typical zombie strategies. The deck also has the perfect base for a zombie deck, with most of the zombie lords and other staples.
Best Cards:
- Temmet, Naktamun's Will is a very aggressive zombie commander, which sets it apart from grindy choices like Wilhelt, the Rotcleaver.
- Hashaton, Scarab's Fist branches away from zombie typal to helm a variety of decks that range from casual reanimator to cEDH-viable combo strategies.
- GUIDE THE DEAD TO GLORY—On the plane of Amonkhet, the dead never rest; burn through cards and grow your mummy army with this White-Blue-Black Aetherdrift Commander deck
- 2 FOIL BORDERLESS COMMANDERS—Every Aetherdrift Commander Deck includes 2 Traditional Foil Legendary Creature cards featuring Borderless art
- INTRODUCES 10 COMMANDER CARDS—Each 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 alternate-border Aetherdrift cards
- THRILLING MULTIPLAYER BATTLES—Commander is a multiplayer way to play Magic, an epic, free-for-all battle full of strategic plays and social intrigue
#4. Temur Roar
Temur Roar keeps things simple with a classic battlecruiser strategy that churns out dragons faster than your opponents can keep up with them. It’s a well-built deck that does exactly what it promises game after game for an excellent gameplay experience. Customization is simple as the ramp shell is consistent enough to work without dragons if you want to take a more generalist approach.
Best Cards:
- Ureni of the Unwritten is incredible, either as a dragon commander or a support piece in the 99 of The Ur-Dragon or Miirym, Sentinel Wurm. A big creature that drops another into play is perfection.
- Eshki, Temur's Roar is a satisfying commander without typal restrictions, letting you run it in all manner of battlecruiser decks.
- A NEW AGE OF TARKIR—Return to Tarkir for an epic battle between dragons and clans; discover which clan fits your playstyle with distinct three-color gameplay, and add draconic power to your collection
- HARNESS THE FURY OF THE DRAGONS—Join the Temur clan to ramp mana and summon dragons with this Green-Blue-Red Commander deck
- 2 FOIL BORDERLESS COMMANDERS—Command your army with Ureni, spirit dragon of wisdom, or Eshki, leader of the Temur clan; every Tarkir: Dragonstorm Commander Deck includes 2 Traditional Foil Legendary Creature cards featuring gorgeous Borderless art
- BATTLE ALONGSIDE YOUR CLAN—The Temur are a semi-nomadic people who thrive in the northern mountain terrain by living in concert with their environment. They are expert hunters, gatherers, and herders, working alongside their formidable animal companions.
- INTRODUCES 10 COMMANDER CARDS—Each deck introduces 10 never-before-seen Commander cards to Magic: The Gathering
#3. Sultai Arisen
Much of Sultai Arisen ’s prestige comes from the Teval, the Balanced Scale, but the 99’s no slouch. Straightforward graveyard synergies construct a solid deck. It doesn’t have the greatest ceiling, and one could argue it’s just another graveyard deck, but the floor is solid, with ample room for customization.
Best Cards:
- Teval, the Balanced Scale offers a powerful value engine for any graveyard-based archetype, from delve to reanimate. It even works as a typal commander since it makes zombie tokens, and support their oft-graveyard related synergies.
- Teval's Judgment is a leaves-the-graveyard payoff nearly as potent as the legend itself.
- FIGHT DRAGONS WITH DRAGONS—Return to Tarkir for an epic battle between dragons and clans; discover which clan fits your playstyle with distinct three-color gameplay, and add draconic power to your collection
- GROW BACK FROM BEYOND—Ally with the Sultai to fill your graveyard and return with zombie druids with this Black-Green-Blue Commander deck
- 2 FOIL BORDERLESS COMMANDERS—Command your army with the Mythic Spirit Dragon, Teval, or Kotis, leader of the Sultai clan; every Tarkir: Dragonstorm Commander Deck includes 2 Traditional Foil Legendary Creature cards featuring gorgeous Borderless art
- BATTLE ALONGSIDE YOUR CLAN—Adept at transforming challenge into opportunity, the Sultai cultivate sprawling land into farms and cities. Not even death can stop them, as their powerful necromancers raise the honored dead to continue leading and serving.
- INTRODUCES 10 COMMANDER CARDS—Each deck introduces 10 never-before-seen Commander cards to Magic: The Gathering
#2. Counter Intelligence
Counter Intelligence is a slam-dunk across the board. Excellent reprints, fun new cards, a novel commander and strategy that pulls on an old mechanic. You can’t really go wrong with it, assuming you like artifacts and counters.
- Kilo, Apogee Mind has broad applications with its easily-triggered proliferate ability. It works with charge counters, +1/+1 counters, planeswalkers, even sagas! It can be enabled and repeated triggers are only a Freed from the Real away.
- Insight Engine and Uthros Research Craft provide long-term card advantage to take advantage of grindy Commander games.
- SURPASS YOUR PROGRAMMING—Boost artifacts and proliferate counters with the aid of interstellar vessel, Inspirit, and its sentient navigational consciousness, Kilo
- 2 FOIL BORDERLESS COMMANDERS—Every Edge of Eternities Commander Deck includes 2 Traditional Foil Legendary Creature cards featuring Borderless art
- INTRODUCES 12 COMMANDER CARDS—Each deck introduces 12 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 1 Traditional Foil card and 1 alt-border Rare or Mythic Rare (foil or nonfoil)
- THRILLING MULTIPLAYER BATTLES—Commander is a multiplayer way to play Magic, an epic, free-for-all battle full of strategic plays and social intrigue
#1. Counter Blitz
Counter Blitz takes the top spot among this year’s EDH precons because it’s novel and strong out of the box, with an easily customizable base. Counter decks typically get new commanders that add more counters to cards, but Tidus, Yuna's Guardian moves them around—a relatively unexplored design space in Magic. Coupled with reprints of vital staples like Gyre Sage, Walking Ballista, and Fathom Mage, Counter Blitz has almost everything you could ask from a preconstructed deck.
Best Cards:
- Tidus, Yuna's Guardian and Yuna, Grand Summoner are excellent counters commanders with diverse buildpaths.
- Excellent reprints include Farewell, Hardened Scales, Damning Verdict, and Three Visits.
The quality of this year’s precon was inconsistent, but the general bar has been raised compared to previous years—none of these are unplayable like Undead Unleashed. Maybe the bar will get even higher, and 2026 precons will get mana bases better than those in an average Final Fantasy Draft deck.
- FINAL FANTASY X-THEMED DECK—Battle your friends with FINAL FANTASY X’s iconic heroes, villains, and spells with the strategic gameplay of the Magic: The Gathering collectible card game
- WHEN YOU GOT THE BALL, YOU GOTTA SCORE.—Embark on a journey to Zanarkand alongside Tidus, Yuna’s Guardian as you buff your creatures with counters and pass them around to boost team spirit
- 25 NEW CARDS plus ALL NEW ART—All 100 cards in this ready-to-play deck feature new FINAL FANTASY-themed art, including 25 Commander cards entirely new to Magic: The Gathering
- 2 FOIL LEGENDARY CARDS—Each deck includes 2 Legendary Creature cards with a shiny Traditional Foil treatment that can be played as your commander
- COLLECT SPECIAL ALT-BORDER CARDS—Each deck also comes with a 2-card Collector Booster Sample Pack containing 2 alternate-border cards of rarity Rare or higher
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4 Comments
I’m sorry to be that guy but the Hearthhull precon so low is a joke. For starters, it has a two card infinite combo in the box. Hearthhull itself is insanely strong. It has a whole suite of powerful cards in the 99. There are variety of strategies like going wide with tokens or burning your opponents by sacrificing lands. The deck always feels like it’s doing something every turn and deck doesn’t require a lot of expensive upgrades to feel powerful.
To be fair, it looks like everything from roughly rank 10+ is evaluated as solid, if not actively great.
This is the worst tier list about these deck I saw. Putting World Shapper, likely the strongest deck of the year, in 10th is just criminal. Especially when the FF decks are terrible built sacrificing cohesion for more legendary creatures (Scions & Spellcraft and Limit break in particular both need to change a third of the deck for it to work and are ok out of the box purely due to the great commanders), the exception being Counter Blitz that is actually good.
You’re allowed to disagree with the list, but the FIN decks minus the Mardu deck are all rock solid out of the box. No strong opinion about World Shaper myself.
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