MagicCon Atlanta Announcements and Cheap Pickups

Last weekend was MagicCon Atlanta, and as can be the case with these big events, there was a plethora of new announcements about the future of the game. 

Some of them were a bit… underwhelming (I do have to ask who in 2025 was requesting a Furby or The Office Secret Lair) but overall the news was more exciting than not, and points to a jam-packed 2026 and end of the current year. 

As such, I’ve laid out some preliminary picks for Commander cards I think will pair well with some of these announcements that you might want to keep an eye out for.

Lorwyn Eclipsed

Coming up in January of next year we have Lorwyn Eclipsed, and with this return to Lorwyn we, naturally, also have the return of hybrid mana. So far we’ve seen a handful of these new hybrid cards announced, such as Deceit and Emptiness, and while those are indeed exciting, I’d like to focus on some older hybrid cards under the pretense that maybe, just maybe, the hybrid mana rules might change for Commander. 

As it currently stands, these spells can only be included in Commander decks if the deck’s color identity includes both the hybrid spell’s colors - for example, you can run Kitchen Finks in a Sythis, Harvest's Hand deck, but you can’t run them in a Ghalta, Primal Hunger deck. 

This restriction keeps certain cards out of decks that might otherwise take advantage of effects that would be outside their color pie, and in a way, keeps said decks in check. That being said, there’s been a long-standing argument within Commander as to whether the rules should change so that hybrid mana spells can be used in decks that just utilize one of the colors, and while I personally am fine with things the way they are, it’s not unlike Wizards to change core rules of the format to suit their needs to sell more packs - see the recent rules change that allows legendary Vehicles and Spacecraft to be your commander. 

If this change were to happen (which again, I’m not saying is likely, but only saying is possible), there’s a few cards that would be worth picking up to take advantage of this. 

First up is Spiteful Visions, a punishing enchantment in Rakdos colors that could definitely be utilized in mono-red group slug archetypes. Think about it… Sheoldred, the Apocalypse has further established damage off of card draw as a legitimate strategy, and red has plenty similar group pinging effects, but being able to add Spiteful Visions on top such spells as Sulfuric Vortex without having to splash black, might make for a powerful inclusion. This is a simple but great card, one that encourages some interesting playstyles, and being able to play it in mono-red or mono-black might have its benefits. Why not check out the cheapest version for half a dollar then on the off chance we see this rules change?

Second is Lurrus of the Dream-Den, a card too strong for Legacy but not quite versatile enough to be played that much in Commander. However, this would be great in some mono-white recursion or weenie decks, and if Wizards does implement this potential rules change I could see it being more widely utilized. It likely won’t see more play as a companion, but in the 99 it could make for a nice fit. 

Also, while there are a variety of treatments to choose from, my choice would have to be for the March of the Machine: Multiverse Legends etched foil as the best bang-for-your-buck; etched foils always stand out amongst the pack, and this one seems decently priced at the moment for around $3 a pop. 

Spiteful Visions	CardKingdom $2.49	TCGPlayer $2.49
Spiteful Visions	CardKingdom $1.49	TCGPlayer $0.70
Lurrus of the Dream-Den	CardKingdom $1.79	TCGPlayer $1.00
Lurrus of the Dream-Den (Foil Etched)	CardKingdom	TCGPlayer $3.03
Lurrus of the Dream-Den	CardKingdom $1.99	TCGPlayer $1.99

Star Trek

Next up, speaking of Spacecraft, we’re getting a Star Trek set late in 2026. While no cards have been revealed yet, I have my suspicions of what may be included. While more Spacecraft is the obvious first thing to come to mind, next up would be potentially more creatures with the Alien subtype, which, while not present in Edge of Eternities, may finally see the light of day again in this set. 

Some picks if this does end up being the case include Iraxxa, Empress of Mars, an uncommon from Universes Beyond: Doctor Who that might not seem too strong at first, but when paired with all the recent warp mechanics in Edge of Eternities, along with other cards that incentivize casting from exile like Charred Foyer // Warped Space, might be worth checking out. And for only $0.20, you can’t get it for much cheaper than this. 

Then of course there’s the oft-mentioned Gallifrey Council Chamber, which received some hype leading up to Edge of Eternities, before losing the spotlight when no Alien-type cards were revealed in that set. It’s still not the worst grab if you think Aliens will come back at some point, especially at $0.20 as well for the base version. 

Yet another decent card that might see some further utility in Star Trek is Recon Craft Theta, a neat little Vehicle that makes an Alien token and triggers proliferate on attack. It’s nothing too crazy, but both might be relevant if we’re spending more time in space. At less than a buck, there’s no reason not to keep an eye out for some when rounding out trades.

Coming from a different angle, another aspect of the Star Trek set that will almost definitely be present will be the continuation of galaxy foils. Right now on the heels of Edge of Eternities galaxy foils are hot, and while I don’t necessarily think grabbing any worthwhile bonus sheet lands in galaxy foil at this time would be considered a “cheap” pickup, I would recommend checking out some of the basic lands from Unfinity. It might seem silly, but my reasoning is that if galaxy foils are going to continue getting printed, the likelihood of people trying to make decks exclusively or primarily out of them goes up. And what does everyone need in their decks more than basic lands? 

The planet variants from this set are already somewhat pricey, but you can pick up a beautiful Adam Paquette Island (487) - Full Art (Galaxy Foil) for just three dollars. And as someone who has a few of my own, I can personally tell you these are beautiful and some of my favorites in my collection. I opened a good bit of Unfinity, and from this group of five lands I’d say the Island and the Plains play off the galaxy foiling the best; both are equally worth checking out.

Iraxxa, Empress of Mars	CardKingdom $0.49	TCGPlayer $0.27
Iraxxa, Empress of Mars (Surge Foil)	CardKingdom	TCGPlayer $8.94
Gallifrey Council Chamber	CardKingdom	TCGPlayer $0.32
Gallifrey Council Chamber (Surge Foil)	CardKingdom	TCGPlayer $12.05
Gallifrey Council Chamber (Extended Art)	CardKingdom $1.79	TCGPlayer $0.86
Recon Craft Theta	CardKingdom $1.29	TCGPlayer $0.89
Recon Craft Theta (Extended Art)	CardKingdom $3.49	TCGPlayer $4.47
Island (487) - Full Art (Galaxy Foil)	CardKingdom	TCGPlayer $3.22
Plains (486) - Full Art (Galaxy Foil)	CardKingdom	TCGPlayer $2.82

Jaws

Lastly, one of the other announcements that excited me was the upcoming Jaws Secret Lair - not because I’m a huge Jaws fan or anything, but because I find the new Jaws card they revealed so incredibly powerful. I mean just look at it… it triggers whenever anyone sacrifices a noncreature artifact, which means any time your opponents want to use their Treasure, Clues, or Food, they all lose one health. This is a pretty powerful ability, and to be honest, the first card I would recommend for it, Descent into Avernus, is already included in the Lair. 

Instead then, let's think of what decks could best utilize Jaws in the 99. The most notable one has to be Kibo, Uktabi Prince, who not only gives everyone artifacts, but also forces opponents to sacrifice them, thus fueling Jaws. There are surely other decks that would benefit from Jaws in the 99, but Kibo is the most stand-out by far. The synergy is just on-point, so I wouldn't be surprised to see more of this $4 Commander more once Jaws officially shows up to terrorize local game stores.

It’s also worth noting that in a weird way Jaws is a counter-play to all the popular Food-based decks that have been gaining popularity lately (looking at you, Ragost) and can definitely slow down any Treasure-based strategies as well. Either having him at the helm or in the deck, this new red staple is sure to be a menace once he officially releases.

Kibo, Uktabi Prince	CardKingdom $9.49	TCGPlayer $8.14
Kibo, Uktabi Prince (Extended Art)	CardKingdom	TCGPlayer $4.13

In Conclusion

There is so much Magic content coming up that it can feel overwhelming (I didn’t even touch on the Playstation crossover), but these are just some of my gut-reaction picks for cheap cards that synergize well with these announcements. 

Hopefully you’re finding the future of the game just as exciting as I am, even if I feel we are a bit too invested in Universes Beyond, and hopefully as they drop the plethora of products announced will be just as exciting as they seem today.

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