Commander Precon League Guide
Runs: May 13th-July 29th
Meets: Every Wednesday at 6PM
Entry: $10 per week attended
Prizing: Store Credit Prize Pool Split 40% for 1st, 25% for 2nd, 15% for 3rd, 20% for Best Attendance
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League Overview
Join our Commander Precon League, a fun, casual event series built for every kind of Commander player. Players will face off in multiplayer pods every Wednesday night, starting May 13 and running through July 29.
This is a relaxed, community-focused league where the goal is to enjoy Commander, meet new players, and slowly power up your deck over time.
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Deck Rules
Players must begin with a sealed preconstructed Commander deck or build one identical to an official precon list. After paying the initial entry, fill out the Deck Reserve Form to reserve your top 2 choices of decks to run. Up to 2 people may play the same deck, selected by who paid the initial entry and submitted those choices first.
Eligible decks include any Commander precon released from Sept 2023 or later, up to and including Secrets of Strixhaven.
Examples of legal sets for precon decks include Wilds of Eldraine, Doctor Who, Bloomburrow, Tarkir Dragonstorm, Final Fantasy, Fallout, Edge of Eternities, and any other precon from Sept 2023 (Wilds of Eldraine) through today (Secrets of Strixhaven).
The only decks banned from this period are Modern Horizons III and Secret Lair decks.
Banned and restricted rules:
- Game Changers are now allowed but restricted by phase.
- Cards banned in Commander are not allowed.
- No proxies are allowed. All cards must be authentic.
Players must submit their decklist every week, noting any updates or swaps made. Decks will be checked at random during events to ensure they are legal.
Players may choose any eligible commander from the precon as their commander. They cannot change this later. Decks must remain true to their original color identity.
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Upgrades
Decks may gradually be upgraded throughout the league. Each phase allows a total of swaps from the original deck, including any swaps made in previous phases. A swap means replacing one card with another of your choice. This can be for any commander legal card. Game changers are limited, as seen in the chart below.
Phase 1: May 13–May 20, 0 swaps, 0 game changers* (base precon only)
Phase 2: May 27–June 3, 4 swaps, 0 game changers*
Phase 3: June 10–June 17, 8 swaps, 1 game changer max
Phase 4: June 24–July 1, 12 swaps, 2 game changer max
Phase 5: July 8–July 15, 16 swaps, 3 game changers max
Phase 6: July 22–July 29, 20 swaps, unlimited game changers
Example: If a phase allows 12 swaps, at least 88 of the 100 cards should come from the original precon list. Swaps are cumulative from the original deck and cannot exceed the total allowed for that phase.
Game Changers are now allowed, but limited by phase. The number for each phase is the maximum allowed in a deck. Swapping for a GC is counted as one of your swaps.
*During Phases 1 & 2 GCs are only allowed if part of the original precon list. If a precon has a GC in the original deck list, it may be swapped for another GC from Phase 3 onward.
Players may make these swaps at any time during the phase, but the total for the phase cannot exceed the listed cumulative number.
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League Format
Multiplayer pods of 3 to 4 players will be created with those who attend on Wednesday.
Each night will consist of two games.
Matchups will be timed with a hard stop at 90 minutes per game, followed by a short break before the second game begins.
Attendance and results will be tracked for standings.
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Pod Matchups
Pods will be matched randomly during Phases 1-4. Pods will be matched based on Win Rate for Phases 5-6.
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Scoring
- 3 points for attending
- 1 point per game played
- 1 point per game won
Points for game wins increase by 1 each phase, for a maximum of 6 points in Phase 6.
Scores will be tracked for each night. The 3 lowest scoring nights for each player will be dropped at the end of the season. This also allows for absences.
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Weekly Attendance Reward
Players will receive a random booster pack and a random promo card for each week they attend. These will be rewarded at the end of each session.
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Prizes
75% of each entry will be put into a prize pool awarded at the end of the season. League prizes will be awarded in store credit.
- 1st Place: 40% of total prize pool
- 2nd Place: 25% of total prize pool
- 3rd Place: 15% of total prize pool
- Best Attendance: 20% of total prize pool
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Extras
Ask staff or join our Discord for updates, standings, and event chatter. More information will also be available on our social media pages.
Darkstone Comics reserves the right to update or alter these rules as the season progresses in the interest of more fun & balanced gameplay.