Thwip! Kapow! Swing for lethal! That’s right, Marvel’s Spider-Man swings into Magic: The Gathering this September 26th. Don’t fret, you can get these sweet new cards for your Commander deck a week early at pre-release (Sept 19th). This set is jam-packed with heroes and villains as new Legendary creatures spanning the breadth of the Spiderverse, but there are tonnes of hidden gems for your 99 as well. As with other Top 10 lists we’ll skip those that will shine in the Command Zone in favour of goodies for your existing (or soon to be) decks. Without any more hesitating, let’s jump in!
White was once plagued with miserable options for Card Draw, but that has changed in the last few years and Rent Is Due is quite the Card Draw engine! Repeatable draw effects are always best in Commander, and this Enchantment will have your opponents groaning as long as you can keep tapping Treasures or Creatures. It may not seem like much, but with a low Mana Value, this card is bound to see tonnes of play.
You likely know the line. Well, we’re not going to be responsible with this one bit. Voltron and Aura based decks are going to love With Great Power …. Similar to All That Glitters and the like, this Enchantment will make one Creature super huge and grant you some player removal protection, but you may end up losing said Creature if you’re thwapped enough. Granting +2/+2 for each Aura is pretty hefty so expect to become a target after landing this. Suiting that Creature up with Indestructible is probably necessary.
While the art for Impostor Syndrome is meme-quality, don’t overlook this Blue Enchantment! Creating non-Legendary copies of Creatures can be a lot of fun and can lead to some extremely comical hijinks. Yes, your Creatures do need to deal Combat damage to an Opponent and your Token Creatures won’t self-replicate, so it won’t be game breaking on its own, but it will lead to a lot of memorable moments.
Dark Confidant (or Bob) has been a very powerful card in Magic’s history, cementing itself in Modern many years ago. While it doesn’t see as much play in Commander, the effect is still powerful, allowing you to generate Card Advantage for a little bit of life (or a lot, depending on your deck). Parker Luck offers a new take on the effect that opens up some interesting political plays in Commander. You and an Opponent (or two Opponents) get to draw cards and lose life equal to the Mana Value cost of the card revealed by the opposite Player. You can use this card to draw more of your own cards at a discounted rate if one of your Opponents has lower mana value cards. Or you can feed two of your Opponents more cards in hopes of dashing an archenemy at the table you can’t deal with.
Mana Rocks like Arcane Signet and Fellwar Stone make their way into hundreds of Commander decks by virtue of their accessibility and power. The Soul Stone is a pretty strong option for decks with Black, offering Indestructibility like a Darksteel Ingot but with a late game upside acting as a slightly weaker Debtor’s Knell. Will we see this in every Commander deck that can run it? Likely not yet as it carries the weight of a highly sought after collector item being the first (of presumably six) Infinity Stones. I love the effect of this card and I hope we get to see an accessible version soon, but in the mean-time, we all need to hope for a bit of luck with our booster pack opening.
Cards that provide more resources for simply playing the game are always great. Like Birgi, God of Storytelling and Storm-Kiln Artist, Electro, Assaulting Battery will keep your mana flowing while you cast a bunch of spells. You’ll be limited by Card Draw, but these types of effects are typically lightning rods for removal given how explosive they can be. I’d expect to see Electro turning up in Storm decks and any others that care about casting lots of spells.
Combat tricks can create some of the best stories, turning the tide at the last minute when a game is thought to be over. Strength of Will does this in a truly Timmy/Tammy fashion granting a Creature you control Indestructible and powering it up equal to the damage it received. Be cautious using this against a Creature with Trample as you’ll only get counters equal to your Creatures toughness (since the rest of the damage goes to the player instead). Regardless, this will definitely lead to some blow outs!
Like Lurking Predators, Web of Life and Destiny lets you cheat Creatures into play, albeit at a far slower pace. You won’t get multiple triggers per round, but you may have this Enchantment in play earlier and it’s more likely to net you a Creature on each trigger. In the right deck Web of Life and Destiny could help you snowball to victory. Having a Combat start trigger also means you get benefit the turn you play it, reducing the risk of casting a large Mana Value haymaker just to have it removed immediately after.
Group hug cards are either loved or reviled by players, especially when it can hand someone the win. Cheering Crowd does have the potential to land in the latter, offering your opponents a big chunk of mana if everyone opts in, but if you can manage to survive you get the mana payoff and a big Creature to boot! While it’s unlikely you’ll see this at competitive tables, in lower brackets or more relaxed games of Commander this could be a great way to get everyone in the game without a long term payoff of extra lands in play.
On its own, Vibrant Cityscape isn’t much to look at. So why is it in this Top 10 list? Well, overall accessibility is something all Commander players should rally behind so new players can get into the format we love. This land is a functional reprint of Evolving Wilds, Terramorphic Expanse and Escape Tunnel (although Escape Tunnel is hands-down the best). This is a meaningful pick up from this set for anyone looking to play three or more Colours while being mindful of budget. Yes the basic land enters tapped, but having the right Colours at the right time is critical for casting all the spells that got you excited to play in the first place! Definitely worth a pick up for any budget decks you’re building.
Well there we have it, 10 cards you should pick up from Marvel’s Spider-Man for your Commander decks.
There are tonnes of other goodies, including a whole slew of potential new Commanders in this set we didn’t cover, so take a swing through the set when you get a chance. Were there any cards you’re excited about that I missed? Let me know in the Chimera Gaming Discord, or reach me directly on Bluesky.
Did you know we usually have 20 pods firing for Commander night on Tuesdays? Tables fill up fast and I hope to see you there!
