It’s no secret that Magic: The Gathering can be an expensive game to play. Outside of Pauper and Draft, costs can ramp up quickly, even in once-affordable formats like Standard. Currently, a top-tier Standard deck can set you back over $600, so it’s no wonder that many players want to get their money’s worth.
Thankfully, as mentioned, other formats are much more affordable and accessible. As well as the more affordable competitive formats, Commander is a godsend in this regard. Thanks to the bracket system, there’s a wide range of power levels and price brackets open to players. Additionally, preconstructed Commander decks offer a fantastic low-cost entry point into the format.
Unfortunately, while Commander precons have a long history of being fantastic products, Wizards is tweaking them in 2026. Starting off the year on the wrong foot, precons are soon going to be more expensive while containing less.
More For Less
Over the weekend, amidst all the Secret Lair and new set announcements, Wizards gave Lorwyn Eclipsed a proper first look. Showing off the first official spoilers and products, there’s plenty to be excited about. Looking past these spoilers into the set’s Collecting Lorwyn Eclipsed article, however, reveals some disappointing news.
When going over the MRSPs for Lorwyn Eclipsed, Wizards unveiled a price increase for two products. Lorwyn Eclipsed Collector Boosters and Commander decks are both getting more expensive in 2026. Frustratingly, this isn’t just an experiment, as this will be the new MSRP for all Magic Multiverse sets in 2026.
- Collector Booster: $26.99 | Previously: $24.99 | $2 Increase
- Commander deck: $49.99 | Previously: $44.99 | $5 Increase
Thankfully, these updated prices are still a long way from the price of a Universes Beyond set. In comparison. Final Fantasy Collector Boosters are $37.99 at MSRP, while Commander decks are $69.99. That said, while things could definitely be worse, this price increase is hardly what MTG players want.
As if this price increase weren’t bad enough on its own, Lorwyn Eclipsed Commander decks will also contain less content. Previously, Commander precons would contain the deck, tokens, a deck box, and a Collector Booster Sample Pack. For Lorwyn Eclipsed, the Collector Booster Sample Pack is being removed, replaced instead by a reference card.
Unfortunately, this change makes the sudden price increase feel that much more punishing. While it’s not uncommon for prices to rise eventually, having costs go up while content goes down feels much worse.
Give and Take
Unsurprisingly, on social media, MTG players aren’t exactly happy about the price increase and content removal. While this has happened multiple times before, with life counters and multiple display Commanders being cut, it still sucks to see. Frustratingly, there’s not even an official reason from Wizards to explain why this price increase has happened.
While we’ve not gotten a reason from Wizards, some MTG players already have elaborate theories. WhatGravitas, for instance, suggests that Wizards is trying to create more Collector Booster demand, as if they’re not scalped enough already. Toastboaster, meanwhile, optimistically hopes that this content reduction might actually bring about a more positive change.
Following in the footsteps of Aetherdrift, it’s possible this price increase is being done to justify including more art. Should this happen, with more reprints getting new art and flavor text, the price increase would certainly feel more palatable. Sadly, we won’t know if this has happened until the Commander deck is revealed in January.
Somewhat frustratingly, as much as we don’t like price increases, it’s still hard to argue with the value of Commander precons. Even when they don’t offer fantastic reprints, getting two new Commanders and ten brand new cards in a ready-to-go deck is great value. Realistically, Wizards could charge even more for precons, and they’d still be a great deal, but we don’t want to give them that idea.
Ultimately, while it’s inevitable that further price increases will happen eventually, we can only hope they come with increased value. Getting more brand-new cards or reskinned reprints would be fantastic to see, even if they do cost extra. For now, we’ll have to see what Lorwyn Eclipsed brings.
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