Magic: The Gathering Modern Horizons 3 Commander Deck - Tricky Terrain (100-Card Deck, 2-Card Collector Booster Sample Pack + Accessories)
2025-09-26
What it is and why it matters
A ready-to-play 100-card Commander deck built around Modern Horizons 3’s “Tricky Terrain” identity, plus a pair of collector booster sample cards and some accessories. These MH3 precons are useful for players who want a themed, out-of-the-box Commander experience that’s tuned enough to win casual tables while still being a solid foundation for upgrades.
Estimated Power Level
6/10 — tuned and synergistic enough to compete in casual-to-casual-competitive pods, but not optimized like a fully upgraded club-level list.
Core Game Plan & Synergies
Tricky Terrain leans on land-based interactions: accelerating lands and mana, generating incremental advantage from landplay (landfall, untap/enter effects, or land recursion), and using that steady resource stream to fuel value creatures, churn through the deck, and close with big threats or a land-based combo. Expect the commander to help you exploit lands (tutors, bounce/untap, benefit when lands enter), while the rest of the deck supports ramp, protection, and a few finishers.
Notable Cards and Roles
(I don’t have the exact list from the box—these are archetype-appropriate examples you can expect or add)
- Ramp enablers (example: Rampant Growth / Cultivate) — smooth out early mana and hit land drops.
- Land recursion/utility (example: Crucible of Worlds / Ramunap Excavator) — reuse fetches and nonbasic lands.
- Landfall/value engines (example: Tireless Tracker / Scapeshift-style finishers) — convert land plays into cards or a big win.
- Tutors / land search (example: Harrow / Farseek) — find key pieces and fix colors.
- Interaction/removal (example: Beast Within / Counterspell) — deal with heads on the board and protect your plan.
- Card advantage (example: Oracle of Mul Daya / Exploration-style effects) — accelerate draw and extra land drops.
- Finishers (example: Big utility creature or Scapeshift-style mass land triggers) — end the game once the engine is online.
Mulligan Priorities
- Keep: 2+ lands with at least one ramp spell or a tutor; this deck wants to hit its land drops and set up engines quickly.
- Keep: A single-land hand if it has turn-1 ramp and interaction.
- Mull: Low-land hands with no ramp or no interaction—this deck can stall without early land access.
Upgrades
| Budget swap (cheap) | Premium swap (strong) |
|---|---|
| Rampant Growth / Sakura-Tribe Elder (budget ramp) | Oracle of Mul Daya / Exploration (premium land advantage) |
| Basic mana-fixing artifacts (e.g., signets) | Mana Crypt / Mana Vault (high-power ramp) |
| Generic removal (e.g., Beast Within) | Force of Vigor / Cyclonic Rift (premium interaction) |
| Reusable land utility (e.g., Golgari Grave-Troll substitute) | Crucible of Worlds / Ramunap Excavator (premium land recursion) |
(Adjust swaps to match exact deck contents; these are archetype-appropriate upgrade paths.)
Matchups & Table Politics
- Versus fast aggro: You need early ramp and interaction—don’t be afraid to spend tempo to stabilize with removal or blockers.
- Versus combo-heavy tables: Keep tutors and disruption; deny the first combo piece you can. Land recursion is less effective if the table can combo off quickly.
- Politics: This deck’s steady value makes it a tempting long-game target—work deals early (e.g., trading removal or picking lower-threat targets) to avoid becoming the table’s main focus.
Who it’s great for
- Players new to Commander who want a themed, playable precon.
- Landfall/land-matter fans and players who enjoy resource-engine gameplay.
- Casual groups that like interactive games with clear upgrade paths.
- Collectors who want an MH3 product with a small sample of collector boosters.
Grab a copy and see how the terrain shapes your games: https://amzn.to/4829R2a
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