Commander players have a lot to look forward to on October 2nd. Not only are the Reality Fracture main set and Multiverse Reforged precons releasing, but players can also get their hands on five new Foundations Commander decks! These starter decks are perfect for newer players, and even come packed with a surprising number of valuable reprints.
While the reprint values of these decks are incredible-looking, especially for their $30 MSRP, it’s important to remember that reprint values will likely fall once these decks are released.
Tramplesaurus Rex
For total reprint value, Tramplesaurus Rex offers the biggest bang for your buck. This precon, like the rest of the bunch, has an MSRP of $29.99. Yet, according to MTGGoldfish, this mono-green deck led by Ghalta, Primal Hunger is valued at $159.22.
A good chunk of this value comes from a few notable reprints. The priciest of the bunch, Surrak and Goreclaw, is actually the most expensive card from any precon at nearly $22. While it does see a good portion of Commander play, mostly in the 99, its hefty price tag primarily stems from its scarcity. Initially appeared in the scarce March of the Machine Jumpstart product, this card’s price could plummet following this reprint.
Beyond Surrak and Goreclaw, some other Commander all-stars in Tramplesaurus Rex also hold strong value despite multiple reprints. Witch’s Clinic is a good example, appearing in multiple previous precons. As a colorless utility land that fits into nearly every Commander deck, its demand remains high, and so does its $14 value.
Similarly, Birds of Paradise, the iconic mana dork appearing in over 1.3 million Commander decks according to EDHREC, sits at over $10 due to its continuous demand. Once you factor in plenty of other $5+ reprint staples like Beast Whisperer and Arachnogenesis, it’s easy to see why this precon is an awesome starter deck.
Wretched Ranks
Led by Ghoulcaller Gisa, the Wretched Ranks Zombie typal deck features plenty of noteworthy payoffs, like the card draw engine Graveborn Muse. Aside from its appearance on The List, this is the first reprint the $12 powerhouse has received since Tenth Edition, making it a welcome inclusion.
Undead Warchief is in a similar boat, with no non-List reprint since Planechase debuted 17 years ago. With a precon printing finally on the way, perhaps this Zombie megalord will finally be available for under its current $14 price tag.
As it turns out, the thematic bangers don’t stop there, as the $9 Lord of the Undead and Ayara, First of Locthwain are both getting reprinted, too. With token makers like Endless Ranks of the Dead and Diregraf Colossus, these go-wide payoffs make the deck look surprisingly strong for a starter precon. Altogether, this deck reportedly features $130.26 worth of reprints, making it the second-highest-value precon.
Reign of Dragons
While Reign of Dragons takes a step back in overall value, it still has plenty of solid reprints that make the product worth buying. Utvara Hellkite certainly fits the mold, and at $13.50, covering nearly half the deck’s MSRP by itself!
Then, in the $8-$9 range, both Chandra’s Ignition and Breath Weapon appear as strong board wipes. The latter is a particularly impactful reprint, since it remains one of the best sideboard options in Pauper.
While these three cards are the heaviest hitters, plenty of cards above $5, like War Room and Herald’s Horn, see tons of EDH play. Altogether, this deck reportedly holds a total reprint value of $122.14.
Keen Engineering
Unsurprisingly, as a deck with Sai, Master Thopterist
Sai, Master ThopteristWhenever you cast an artifact spell, create a 1/1 colorless Thopter artifact creature token with flying.
{1}{U}, Sacrifice two artifacts: Draw a card. as the Commander of choice, the Keen Engineering precon incorporates a boatload of artifacts. The priciest of them is Misleading Signpost, a super unique mana rock originally printed in Wilds of Eldraine Commander. The upside of getting to redirect an attacker away from you and potentially to its death is quite high, and it’s nice to see this tool finally get its first reprint.
Given the sheer volume of artifacts this deck features to fully maximize Sai, it’s no surprise that other artifact payoffs like Vedalken Archmage also make a splash. Appearing in only Mirrodin and Jumpstart, this Wizard is well-deserving of a reprint.
Sadly, these are the only reprints above the $8 mark, but there are still some other solid Commander staples to look forward to. Both Scrawling Crawler and Forsaken Monument sit above $6, seeing play in 224,000 and 163,000 decks, respectively. All in all, this deck reportedly offers $115.70 of reprint value, which isn’t shabby.
Calling All Angels
Finally, we have the Calling All Angels deck, which, as the name suggests, is an Angel Typal shell. Despite having the lowest reprint value of the bunch, there were still some elite inclusions, with the strongest being Norn’s Choirmaster
Norn’s ChoirmasterFlying, first strike
Whenever a commander you control enters or attacks, proliferate. (Choose any number of permanents and/or players, then give each another counter of each kind already there.) valued at $11. Ironically, this card actually fits better in decks with a more dedicated counters theme, like Atraxa, Praetor’s Voice, but it still has merit here alongside cards like Youthful Valkyrie.
All that being said, Wizards certainly didn’t hold back on the elite Angel payoffs, as indicated by cards like Starnheim Aspirant, which sits at nearly $9. This tool makes it much easier to cast beefy Angels like Reya Dawnbringer
Reya DawnbringerFlying
At the beginning of your upkeep, you may return target creature card from your graveyard to the battlefield. or Herald of Eternal Dawn
Herald of Eternal DawnFlash (You may cast this spell any time you could cast an instant.)
Flying
You can't lose the game and your opponents can't win the game. ahead of schedule, further enabling the $5 Righteous Valkyrie.
With a reported total value of $113.70, this deck is still well worth picking up. In fact, many players seem hyped for this release, noting the gorgeous new art of the Commander, Giada, Font of Hope
Giada, Font of HopeFlying, vigilance
Each other Angel you control enters with an additional +1/+1 counter on it for each Angel you already control.
{T}: Add {W}. Spend this mana only to cast an Angel spell..
Ultimately, while these products are clearly geared towards newer players, the combination of good reprint value and solid decklists has helped these precons make a good first impression. If you’re interested in grabbing these precons, the official release of these decks lines up with Reality Fracture’s release on October 2nd.
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