Upgrade your Commander precon with cards you already own
Most precons get noticeably better with cards that already sit in your binders. Commandarium shows you which ones, where they fit and what each one replaces — before you spend anything.
Opens Commandarium. Tap Search, then Precons, and find your precon.
How to upgrade a precon from your collection
- Get the precon in. Every Commander precon is built in under Search → Precons: open yours and tap Copy to my decks — the copy keeps the printings from the box. Then ··· → Add to collection… so its cards count as yours. Or scan the 100 cards and choose Add to → Deck → New deck from these cards, which does both.
- Bring in the rest of your cards — a CSV from your collection app, or the scanner.
- See where the precon is thin. The Analysis tab shows ramp, card draw, removal and board wipes next to their targets: Card draw 6/10 tells you where to start. How to read the counts
- Swap in your own cards — one by one, or let Commandarium rebuild the deck from your collection, with Undo.
Three ways to put your own cards in
Search your collection by job
Open Add cards with My collection and Only my commander’s colors on, and search the rules text: “draw a card”, “destroy target”, “search your library”. Each result shows how well it fits your commander. Add it, then take out the weakest precon card with the same job.
Rebuild it from your cards
··· → Rebuild… with My cards first builds the deck again around the same commander, from your whole collection. New cards are marked, the removed ones are listed at the end, and Undo brings the precon back.
Buy only the last few
When your binders run out, Make it stronger suggests cards you don’t own yet, within a price limit per card — each with the card it should replace.
For the rebuild, the precon’s own cards must be in your collection — otherwise Commandarium can’t keep the best of them. ··· → Add to collection… on the imported precon does that in one step, into a binder named after the deck; and if your collection app already lists the precon, it came over with your import.
What to take out of a precon first
- Lands that enter tapped, when you own faster ones in the deck’s colors.
- Expensive cards that do nothing the turn they land. A seven-drop has to win the game or change it.
- Off-theme filler — cards that don’t work with your commander. The fit marks on every card show which ones.
- Surplus in one role: when the Analysis tab shows Ramp 12/10 but Card draw 6/10, trade two ramp pieces for two draw spells.
Mind the bracket. Most precons play at Bracket 2. Every Game Changer you add is counted and the deck shows its bracket, so an upgrade doesn’t move you up a table by accident. Brackets explained
More on where an upgrade pays off: How to upgrade a Commander deck on a budget.
Upgrade your precon
Pick your precon from the built-in lists and see what your collection can do with it.
Open CommandariumOpens Commandarium. Tap Search, then Precons, and find your precon.
Questions
Does Commandarium have the precon lists built in?
Yes. Search → Precons lists every Commander precon, newest first, with how much of each you already own. A list from anywhere else goes in under Decks → Import deck.
Will a rebuild throw my precon away?
No. Undo brings the old list back. To keep both, choose Duplicate in the deck’s ··· menu first and upgrade the copy.
A card I own is already in another deck. Does Commandarium know?
No — it counts a card as owned no matter which deck it sits in. Check before you take a card out of another deck.
Can it suggest cards I don’t own?
Yes: Make it stronger picks upgrades you don’t own yet, within your budget. 2 analyses a month are free with an account, 20 with Plus.
Is it free?
Yes. Import, analysis, rebuilding and the shopping list are free. The optional Plus subscription removes ads and the limit of 5 decks and 5 binders.
Read more
More ways to build from what you own
ManaBox collection to Commander deck
Already catalogued your cards in ManaBox? Import the CSV and build around what you own.
How it works →Delver Lens CSV to Commander deck
Scanned your cards with Delver Lens? Import the CSV and build a Commander deck from your scans.
How it works →MTG spreadsheet to Commander deck
Keep your cards in Excel or Google Sheets? Save the list as CSV and build from it.
How it works →Scan cards and start a deck
No digital collection yet? Scan a small stack and start building from it.
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How it works →A deck from one binder or box
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How it works →Check your deck’s ratios
Import a decklist and see its ramp, card draw and removal against their targets.
How it works →A shopping list from your collection
Only the cards your collection is missing for a deck — with today’s prices and the total.
How it works →Deck prices on Cardmarket
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How it works →