The Wise MothmanThe Wise Mothman | Art by Sergei Leoluch Panin

Preconstructed Commander decks are how many players break into our format. Whether you're an enfranchised player from another format looking to branch out or a new players looking to jump into Magic for the first time ever, precons can be a fantastic way to start playing Commander.

These decks are often released to accompany a larger set, and there's usually a few of them released at a time. As part of EDHREC's precon month, I'll be exploring these "precon groups," and putting together a top five.

While the strength of decks within a set may vary, there's usually an overarching power level that can be assigned to the whole. Without any further ado, let's see which sets of precons are the coolest, strongest, and most unique!

Honorable Mention: Commander 2017

Four precons released in this group, led by Inalla, Archmage RitualistInalla, Archmage Ritualist, Edgar MarkovEdgar Markov, Arahbo, Roar of the WorldArahbo, Roar of the World, and The Ur-DragonThe Ur-Dragon. All four of these commanders are incredibly powerful, with The Ur-Dragon and Edgar actually sitting as the two most popular commanders of all time on EDHREC.

But, despite the popularity and strength of all four of these legendary creatures, the 99s of their decks leave a lot to be desired.

There's not enough ramp, poorly constructed mana bases, and some confusing cards too. Why is Palace SiegePalace Siege in an Ur-Dragon deck that cares about neither life gain nor the graveyard? The world may never truly know.

The Commander 2017 decks aren't quite strong enough to make it into our top five, but the eminence abilities attached to all four of these commanders are super strong.

If this list were about the strongest commanders to be released in preconstructed decks, The Ur-Dragon and Edgar Markov would be in a much different spot. But, for an article that takes the whole deck into account, these precons don't quite make the cut.

#5: Bloomburrow Commander

All four of these lists do something interesting. Bello brings enchantment synergies to Gruul () decks for the first time, Zinnia provides an insane amount of value with creatures like Esper SentinelEsper Sentinel, Ms. Bumbleflower redefines what "group hug" can be, and Hazel is the first Squirrel commander to be printed since Chatterfang, Squirrel GeneralChatterfang, Squirrel General. Let's see what makes each of these decks unique.

Animated Army - Bello, Bard of the BramblesBello, Bard of the Brambles

This deck has an extremely aggressive tilt, and can do some absurd things with damage doublers like Gratuitous ViolenceGratuitous Violence.

There's a wealth of enchantment synergies in and a wealth of artifact synergies in . Bello ties the two together with ease, and provides the ability to close out games super quickly.

Like in any precon, there's a few bad cards. But with great reprints like Unnatural GrowthUnnatural Growth and fun new cards like Pyreswipe HawkPyreswipe Hawk, this deck shines.

Family Matters - Zinnia, Valley's VoiceZinnia, Valley's Voice

This is another fantastic deck. Zinnia may be the most powerful face commander from the Bloomburrow precons, and I cannot believe that they're able to be cast for just three mana.

Zinnia's decklist had great new cards like Agate InstigatorAgate Instigator and some interesting releases like Rapid AugmenterRapid Augmenter too. Even if we choose to stick within the theme of creatures with one power, there are tons of intriguing upgrade paths.

Peace Offering - Ms. BumbleflowerMs. Bumbleflower

I could go on and on about how strong this Rabbit is. Ms. Bumbleflower seems like a friendly, kind soul that just wants everyone to succeed. But, under that veil, she's actually a powerful card advantage engine that'll dole out +1/+1 counters like nobody's business.

I'm always happy to see a different sort of deck, and Wizards of the Coast delivered big time here. We even got some interesting new cards, like Bloodroot ApothecaryBloodroot Apothecary!

Squirreled Away - Hazel of the RootbloomHazel of the Rootbloom

Golgari () Squirrel decks are nothing new, but Hazel is a great leader for the strategy. Her decklist had great reprints, like Academy ManufactorAcademy Manufactor, and some super intriguing new cards, like Hazel's BrewmasterHazel's Brewmaster

She makes tons of mana, helps us flood the board with tokens, and even has utility outside of typal decks.

While it's obviously better to make copies of Squirrel tokens with Hazel, we can make copies of anything! Maybe we pair this Druid with Ulamog's DreadsireUlamog's Dreadsire in an upgraded list?

#4: Final Fantasy Commander

Final Fantasy was one of the best selling Magic sets ever, and it had some fantastic Commander precons to boot. While these decks didn't iterate on their color identities' themes very much, they were all well-constructed decks with interesting commanders.

Counter Blitz - Tidus, Yuna's GuardianTidus, Yuna's Guardian

Tidus is one of the best +1/+1 counter commanders available in our format, and he's got a solid decklist to back him up.

The ability to move counters, proliferate, and draw cards all being stapled onto one creature is fantastic! He lets us keep a full hand and build value, just by taking the same game actions we were already going to take

New cards like Chocobo KnightsChocobo Knights and Sphere GridSphere Grid pair extremely well with reprints like Incubation DruidIncubation Druid and Luminous BroodmothLuminous Broodmoth to create a cohesive, fun deck.

Limit Break - Cloud, Ex-SOLDIERCloud, Ex-SOLDIER

We'll be talking about another Naya () Equipment deck later in this list too! But, regardless, Cloud leads a great deck.

By providing us with card draw and mana production in the command zone, we're able to fill out the rest of the deck with banger after banger.

The subtheme of creatures with power seven or greater fits right in, as most equipment provide some sort of boost to a creature's stats!

There weren't a ton of interesting new cards here, but Lifestream's BlessingLifestream's Blessing and Avalanche of Sector 7Avalanche of Sector 7 are still cool.

Scions & Spellcraft - Y'shtola, Night's BlessedY'shtola, Night's Blessed

Y'shtola is a great commander, and has even seen a limited amount of cEDH play! She synergizes very well with cards like Snuff OutSnuff Out and Force of WillForce of Will, incentivizing us to play with some powerful cards of old.

But, beyond that, Y'shtola's precon is an interesting Spellslinger list. We've got some great reprints like Dig Through TimeDig Through Time and Lethal SchemeLethal Scheme, plus some generically powerful cards like Authority of the ConsulsAuthority of the Consuls and the new Astrologian's PlanisphereAstrologian's Planisphere. This deck was well thought-out, well constructed, and has a great commander too.

Revival Trance - Terra, Herald of HopeTerra, Herald of Hope

This Mardu () list is certainly the least interesting of the four. It's far from a bad deck, it's just not doing much to excite me.

Terra is a strong commander, as she's all but assured to punch through in combat and reanimate something small every turn.

There's lots of great reanimation targets in her 99, like the classic Meteor GolemMeteor Golem and the new Summon: Esper ValigarmandaSummon: Esper Valigarmanda, but there's nothing novel about what Terra does.

She's certainly strong, she "does the thing" every turn, but doesn't draw me in like the other three commanders we've talked about.

#3: The Lost Caverns of Ixalan Commander

This set of four typal decks is fantastic. Our original trip to Ixalan brought new life to some relatively unloved creature types, and players (myself included) were all extremely excited to return.

The Lost Caverns of Ixalan did not disappoint, and brought some super powerful decks to Commander players.

While two of these commanders (Pantlaza and Hakbal) became much more popular than the others (Clavileño and Admiral Brass), all four of these decks were well-received.

Ahoy Mateys - Admiral Brass, UnsinkableAdmiral Brass, Unsinkable

As a reformed Admiral Beckett BrassAdmiral Beckett Brass player, I was super excited to see this card get printed. Pirates had never really cared much about the graveyard before the release of LCI, so this was a breath of fresh air.

There were some interesting cards in this list, like Skeleton CrewSkeleton Crew, and some powerful reprints too, like Shared AnimosityShared Animosity.

We also got vintage staple Broadside BombardiersBroadside Bombardiers, but that hardly matters for the overall strength of the decklist.

Blood Rites - Clavileño, First of the BlessedClavileño, First of the Blessed

This is the weakest of the four decks, but it still puts an interesting spin on an Orzhov () aristocrats strategy.

Clavileño "infects" creatures with a sort of demonic vampirism, turning them into 4/3 flying creatures and letting us draw cards when they die.

He disincentivizes our opponents from blocking our creatures, and combines two creature types in an interesting way. Is he also a biting commentary on colonialism? I'll leave that up to you.

There are some fantastic new cards in this list, though, like Charismatic ConquerorCharismatic Conqueror. This two-drop is among the best white creatures in all of Commander, so it's neat to know that it came from this precon!

Other fun cards include Master of Dark RitesMaster of Dark Rites and Carmen, Cruel SkymarcherCarmen, Cruel Skymarcher.

Explorers of the Deep - Hakbal of the Surging SoulHakbal of the Surging Soul

I once played against this precon, and got my butt thoroughly kicked. After the game, I asked my opponent what changes they'd made to improve the deck. They hadn't made any!

The base list is just that strong. Hakbal lets pilots explore multiple times per turn, adding +1/+1 counters to creatures and lands into hand with ease. Of course, because this is a Simic () deck, we also get to put extra lands onto the battlefield!

There's tons of Merfolk that synergize well with +1/+1 counters (Benthic BiomancerBenthic Biomancer), Merfolk that are strong regardless of what else is on the board (Kiora's FollowerKiora's Follower), and even some newly printed Merfolk that changed the face of the strategy entirely (Singer of Swift RiversSinger of Swift Rivers).

Veloci-Ramp-Tor - Pantlaza, Sun-FavoredPantlaza, Sun-Favored

Pantlaza has shot up the charts, and is almost in the top 10 most popular commanders ever! That's for good reason, too, as this Dino lets us get more Dinos when we cast Dinos.

In other words, Pantlaza gives us free value when we take game actions. If we want to really maximize his effectiveness, we can even flash in Dinosaurs on opposing players' turns for more discover triggers.

Apart from reprinting some of the best Dinosaurs already available in Commander, this deck gave us Bronzebeak ForagersBronzebeak Foragers and Curious AltisaurCurious Altisaur, some fantastic removal and card advantage stapled to relevantly typed creatures!

#2: Fallout

This group of Commander precons didn't accompany a larger release, and were instead released as a standalone product.

While all four decks are solid, one of them soared above the rest. We'll see which one in just a moment, but it's important to note that each of these Universes Beyond Commander decks was a success in its own right!

Hail, Caesar - Caesar, Legion's EmperorCaesar, Legion's Emperor

Each of Caesar's three modes are useful, even if they are a tad bit dull. Having the ability to choose two abilities out of the three makes this commander even stronger!

It's also neat that he doesn't need to attack himself in order to trigger, allowing us to keep our commander relatively safe while we gain value from him.

This series of precons also brought us some neat lands, including Desolate MireDesolate Mire in this list. I won't mention each new land by name, but this cycle was a neat addition to the Commander card pool.

We got a few other cool cards in this 99, like Rose, Cutthroat RaiderRose, Cutthroat Raider.

Mutant Menace - The Wise MothmanThe Wise Mothman

This was by far the best deck from the Fallout release, as it lent a new face to a commonly misunderstood strategy: mill.

Many mill decks struggle to generate fun play experiences, instead just causing opponents to feel like they're "losing cards."

The Wise Mothman fixes that problem, by adding +1/+1 counters to our creatures and causing our opponents to lose life as they're incrementally milled out.

This is a hybrid +1/+1 counter and mill deck, and it sits well in both realms. New cards like Mirelurk QueenMirelurk Queen serve as neat value engines while off-kilter cards like The Master, TranscendentThe Master, Transcendent serve as great ways to spice things up.

Science! - Dr. Madison LiDr. Madison Li

For a while, we didn't get any Jeskai () energy precons, then we got two in the same year! Dr. Madison Li may not have had a large card pool to work with, but she can still generate a massive amount of .

There were some fantastic new cards in this deck, like Nuka-Cola Vending MachineNuka-Cola Vending Machine and Brotherhood VertibirdBrotherhood Vertibird, both of which support a solid 99. Just like any good commander, she's also a part of some convoluted artifact-based combos!

Scrappy Survivors - Dogmeat, Ever LoyalDogmeat, Ever Loyal

This is that other Naya Equipment deck I was talking about! Dogmeat is a bit different than Cloud, though.

This Dog grabs us an Equipment from the graveyard upon entering (instead of auto-equipping), and creates us a Junk token to crack for one-time card advantage (instead of repeatedly drawing us cards).

But, this actually works really well! Because Junk tokens are artifacts, we can make good use of effects like the newly printed Junk JetJunk Jet and the classic All That GlittersAll That Glitters.

It's certainly not a competition between Cloud and Dogmeat, but I think that this good boy is a better Equipment commander.

#1: Warhammer 40,000

These were among the first precons to make use of a non-WOTC property, and they knocked it out of the park. All four of these decks are quite powerful and have some fantastic new cards.

There's not much of a through-line connecting these decks, though, so let's just see what makes each one worth a spot on this list.

Forces of the Imperium - Inquisitor GreyfaxInquisitor Greyfax

Neither of this commander's abilities are game-breaking, but they're both subtly quite powerful (especially when the political nature of Commander is considered).

Giving our creatures a small power bump and vigilance means that we'll often be safe from crackback attacks, while having the ability to tap opposing creatures down can prevent one particularly important permanent from having much of an impact on the game.

It's just gravy that Greyfax makes us a clue token when we activate her ability!

There are tons of great new cards in this deck, like "backup commander" Marneus CalgarMarneus Calgar, the angelic Celestine, the Living SaintCelestine, the Living Saint, and even the helicopter-parent-esque Vexilus PraetorVexilus Praetor! Tons of instant classics got their start in this list.

Necron Dynasties - Szarekh, the Silent KingSzarekh, the Silent King

As one of the only mono- precons (and also as the only good one), Szarekh's Necron Dynasties deck is unique.

It's even more unique when considering how infrequently deals with artifacts. It's not that this deck breaks the color pie, it's just a tad out of left field.

But, this deck embraces that strangeness and excels. There's some stellar new cards here, like Canoptek SpyderCanoptek Spyder and Canoptek Scarab SwarmCanoptek Scarab Swarm, combined with some awesome reprints like Caged SunCaged Sun.

Almost every new card in this deck fits right into its game plan, and almost every new card is interesting in one way or another.

The Ruinous Powers - Abaddon the DespoilerAbaddon the Despoiler

As Abaddon's flavor text implies, this deck can get a bit chaotic. It blends life loss and cascade in a really interesting way, while also encouraging pilots to play primarily in their second main phase.

Despite the complexity inherent in counting life loss and cascading into spells, The Ruinous Powers actually does a very good job teaching new players about the finer points of the game!

There are, of course, a ton of new cards that caught my eye. Keeper of SecretsKeeper of Secrets is a monstrously powerful creature, PoxwalkersPoxwalkers is among the best sacrifice fodder in all of Commander, and Blood for the Blood God!Blood for the Blood God! is cool as all hells.

Tyranid Swarm - The SwarmlordThe Swarmlord

While the 99 of Tyranid Swarm is fantastic, The Swarmlord actually leaves a lot to be desired. It's not great to spend on a vanilla 5/5!

We also won't be drawing many cards with this Tyranid, either, as this isn't a dedicated sacrifice deck. This precon would have operated much better with Magus Lucea KaneMagus Lucea Kane at the helm, and a few more X-spells in its 99.

Putting that aside, though, we got ClamavusClamavus, MawlocMawloc, and even The Red TerrorThe Red Terror printed for this deck. Those three, and many more, help make up for the shortcomings of The Swarmlord.

Conclusion

The format of this list made it difficult to include one-off decks, like the infamous Heads I Win, Tails You Lose list from Secret Lair. That deck was quite strong, but it's difficult to justify including it when compared to multi-deck releases.

Did I miss your favorite deck? With well over 100 commander precons out there, it's difficult to put together a definitive top five. Let me know what you think I got wrong in the comments, and I'll be back next week with another article!