The preconstructed Commander deck built around Ghired, Conclave Exile gives new players a working shell — Legendary Creature — Human Shaman,...
The preconstructed Commander deck built around Ghired, Conclave Exile gives new players a working shell — Legendary Creature — Human Shaman, colour identity green, red, white — whose exact text is:
When Ghired enters, create a 4/4 green Rhino creature token with trample.
Whenever Ghired attacks, populate. The token enters tapped and attacking. (To populate, create a token that's a copy of a creature token you control.)
Upgrading a precon is not about replacing it. It is about finding the roles the shell performs weakly — ramp, card draw, interaction, and closing power — and swapping the weakest cards in each role for stronger ones that serve the same job. This guide works by role, which is the honest way to upgrade any prebuilt deck without inventing a decklist you have not verified.
What to cut, by role
Cut cards that duplicate a role you already perform better, cards whose mana cost belongs to a later turn than the role needs, and cards that only function when the game is already going well. Work one role at a time, keep a written list of every swap, and play games between rounds of changes — a precon upgraded on evidence stays coherent, while one rebuilt in a single evening often loses the charm that made it fun.
What to add, by role
Real upgrade candidates that serve this commander's plan include: Idol of Oblivion (mana cost {2}; Artifact; rarity: rare; most recent printing listed by Scryfall: Tarkir: Dragonstorm Commander): {T}: Draw a card. Activate only if you created a token this turn.
{8}, {T}, Sacrifice this artifact: Create a 10/10 colorless Eldrazi creature token. Flameshadow Conjuring (mana cost {3}{R}; Enchantment; rarity: rare; most recent printing listed by Scryfall: March of the Machine Commander): Whenever a nontoken creature you control enters, you may pay {R}. If you do, create a token that's a copy of that creature. That token gains haste. Exile it at the beginning of the next end step. Warstorm Surge (mana cost {5}{R}; Enchantment; rarity: rare; most recent printing listed by Scryfall: Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur's Gate): Whenever a creature you control enters, it deals damage equal to its power to any target.
Build and check your list with the MTGBrew AI deck builder, and browse every card mentioned here in the MTGBrew card database on MTGBrew.
If this topic is on your bench, keep going with Derevi, Empyrial Tactician Commander Guide: How the Deck Actually Wins — it covers the neighbouring decisions from a different angle, and the two pieces together give you a fuller picture than either one alone.
Keep reading
Keep reading: Derevi, Empyrial Tactician Commander Guide: How the Deck Actually Wins and Syr Gwyn, Hero of Ashvale Commander Spotlight: What This Legend Brings to the Command Zone.
A sane upgrade order
Sequencing is a skill this deck rewards. The order you deploy threats, hold interaction, and commit to the board decides more games than any single card choice. Play a few games slowly, talk through your turns out loud, and the deck's real lines of play will surface — then tune the list to serve the lines you actually take.
Start with the mana base and the draw package, then interaction, then finishers. That order feels unglamorous and wins the most games, because a deck that always makes its land drops and always has cards in hand gets to show you what its exciting cards can actually do.
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