Commander Masters Precon Review – Enduring Enchantments!

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Mike Carrozza - August 2, 2023

Hello! Welcome to my set review of Commander Masters commander preconstructed decks!

I’ll be going through each of the commander decks and talking about the new cards chiefly, while highlighting worthwhile reprints.

Next up is the Enduring Enchantments deck. This deck is far and away my favourite of the precons. It’s cohesive and interesting, there’s some value in the reprints that doesn’t feel like being screwed over by the high price tag, and the new cards are fun and add a breath of fresh air to a beloved archetype.

Let’s get into the new cards!

Anikthea, Hand of Erebos

Anikthea is oddly reminiscent of Myrkul, Lord of Bones in that it exiles a card type from your graveyard and makes it the other one. In Myrkul’s case, creatures become enchantments and in Anikthea, non-Aura enchantments become creatures.

This card is flexible and cool. You’ll want to protect Anikthea. At five mana, having to cast her a second time for seven mana, even in green feels bad. You’ll want to pack your deck with enchantments you want to make token Zombies of like Oblivion Ring and Parallel Lives.

This card is open-ended enough that it’s hard to talk about without boxing it in! Enjoy brewing. This is going to be a standout commander! I’ve already written about her for The Bag of Loot!

Narci, Fable Singer

The deck’s backup commander is also getting a lot of attention, potentially calling back to Femeref Enchantress. A lifelinking 3/3 for 1WBG with text that supports a newly beloved card type – Sagas.

If you draw a card when you sacrifice an enchantment, how are you going to sacrifice an enchantment? You could rely on Infernal Tribute, Auratog, Braids, Arisen Nightmare, and Faith Healer, but why not just play Sagas? On their final chapter, they sacrifice themselves! Plus when a final chapter of a Saga goes off, Narci drains your opponents equal to its mana value.

We just got five colour Sagas with Tom Bombadil, but just checking Scryfall for Abzan Sagas, and Narci is going to be well supported. Not all Sagas sacrifice themselves it turns out – I forgot about the Kamigawa Sagas like Azusa’s Many Journeys, but they still trigger Narci’s final ability.

Battle at the Helvault

Speaking of Sagas, Battle at the Helvault is the new Saga printed for this deck and it’s pretty fun! It’s a Grasp of Fate for six mana with a clock on it. Then as it ends, you get an 8/8 flying, vigilant, indestructible Avacyn token. Really cool finale and definitely worth keeping around for Narci.

Are there better options out there? There’s literally Grasp of Fate in the deck and that keeps the cards locked up until it goes away without the timer. That said, flavour fans like this because apparently there’s a lore contradiction, hinting at some Innistraditi, believing the events that didn’t happen. It’s an interesting lore flag!

Boon of the Spirit Realm

Boon of the Spirit Realm is a Cathars’ Crusade that doesn’t give me a headache. I don’t love the rate of five mana for a single +1/+1 anthem, but definitely can see this being wild in a Daxos, the Returned deck. Any deck that runs a Niko Aris might consider this to surprise boost!

It’s not crazy, but it’s simple and can be effective.

Cacophony Unleashed

Why doesn’t the second ability have Constellation? Cacophony Unleashed is a seven mana creature board wipe which is just not the rate that we’re at in this format. Can you flicker your boardwipe? Nope, only on cast. The second ability turns it into a 6/6 deathtouching menace. Unless you’re really into Ashiok’s messed up demon, I’d skip this.

Composer of Spring

For two mana, we got one of the wildest freaking enchantress cards I’ve seen in a hot minute. Composer of Spring says whenever an enchantment enters the battlefield under your control, put a land into play from your hand tapped, or if you’ve got six or more enchantments – an EASY bar to clear in a dedicated enchantments list – you get to put a creature or a land into play instead. Wow. This is just nuts enough that just reading the card is good enough to review it. It’s so good. Consider this a recommendation to pick it up when it’s cheap enough for you to feel good about it.

Demon of Fate’s Design

This feels like one of Erebos’ Demons and when it comes to playing Narci, it feels like Demon of Fate’s Design might be her best friend. Being able to cast an enchantment for life instead of mana makes any blue/black deck playing this a little scarier with the possibility of threatening an Omniscience for ten life. Of course with Anikthea, you can sacrifice an enchantment with DFD and then bring it back with Anikthea’s attack trigger while the Demon fuels its strength.

I like it but definitely need it to work in the deck and it feels pretty narrow.

8. Ghoulish Impetus

This card is awesome in a Constellation deck. Doomwake Giant would need another enchantment to enter with this since the Impetus offsets the debuff, but maybe there’s a chain that can happen. It would feel really good to have the creature enchanted die each turn while you’ve got Setessan Champion or Eidolon of Blossoms in play. Yowza!

I think this card is ready to be slotted into Killian, Ink Duelist or in Thantis, the Warweaver.

Nyxborn Behemoth

Another enchantment sacrifice outlet to enable Narci and send enchantments to the yard for Anikthea to animate. This is a big beater and serves as the precon’s finisher, but I don’t know where else I’d want play this. Is there an enchantment fling deck? Is there a way to make this a Saga for Narci? Shrug!

Ondu Spiritdancer

This card has some of the most beautiful text I’ve ever read. Enchantments are my favourite permanent type. When you have an enchantment enter, token or not, you can make a copy once a turn. Beautiful. Gorgeous. Inspiring.

Copy Ondu Spiritdancer themselves then play an Anointed Procession. Oh wow, I love this card!

Here are notable reprints!