Precon Upgrade Guide
Call the Spirits Upgrade Guide
What to cut, what to add, and how to play the Orzhov enchantments precon from Commander 2015, commanded by Daxos the Returned.
Commander 2015
Call the Spirits
Experience counters only go up, but building the enchantment count takes patience. Out of the box, before any upgrades. How we rate precons
Buy Call the Spirits on TCGplayer →Quick verdict
Call the Spirits rewards you for casting enchantments, and its commander turns that habit into a growing army. Each enchantment spell gives Daxos the Returned an experience counter, and every Spirit token Daxos makes is as large as your experience count. The deck has a good set of enchantment payoffs, but it carries expensive cards that do little, a couple of removal enchantments that can backfire, and a mana base with many lands that enter tapped.
TurnZero HQ rates Call the Spirits a 3 out of 5 on difficulty and a 3 out of 5 on power, as it comes in the box. That is our editorial read, not an official Wizards rating. The full hundred cards are on the Call the Spirits decklist page, and every other precon we cover is on the precon directory.
How the precon plays
Daxos the Returned is a three-mana 2/2. Whenever you cast an enchantment spell, you get an experience counter, and those counters stay with you for the rest of the game even if Daxos dies. For {1}{W}{B} it makes a white and black Spirit enchantment creature token whose power and toughness each equal your number of experience counters, so every Spirit grows when you cast another enchantment.
The deck supplies the enchantments and pays you for them. Mesa Enchantress draws a card for each enchantment spell, Sigil of the Empty Throne makes a 4/4 Angel for each, and Celestial Ancient puts a +1/+1 counter on each of your creatures. Removal comes as enchantments too, like Banishing Light , Grasp of Fate and Seal of Doom , so even answering a threat adds experience.
Because the Spirit tokens are enchantments themselves, they trigger constellation cards when they enter. Doomwake Giant shrinks every opposing creature each time a Spirit arrives, and Ajani's Chosen makes a 2/2 Cat.
What works out of the box
Daxos the Returned ↗
Turns every enchantment you cast into a permanent experience counter, then makes Spirit tokens as big as your count.
Sigil of the Empty Throne ↗
Makes a 4/4 flying Angel for each enchantment spell you cast. It is the deck's strongest single payoff.
Mesa Enchantress ↗
Draws a card each time you cast an enchantment spell, which keeps the experience coming.
Celestial Ancient ↗
Puts a +1/+1 counter on each of your creatures whenever you cast an enchantment spell, growing the whole board at once.
Grasp of Fate ↗
Three mana to exile a nonland permanent from each opponent, and it counts as an enchantment spell for Daxos.
Doomwake Giant ↗
Each enchantment entering, including every Spirit token Daxos makes, gives opposing creatures -1/-1 until end of turn.
What needs improvement
The deck has several expensive cards that don't help the enchantment plan. Thief of Blood is a six-mana 1/1 that also strips the +1/+1 counters from your own creatures, Sandstone Oracle costs seven and only draws if an opponent has more cards than you, and Open the Vaults returns every player's artifacts and enchantments, not just yours.
The mana base has many lands that enter tapped, including Barren Moor , Secluded Steppe , Orzhov Guildgate and two Vivid lands. In a two-color deck that wants to cast a cheap enchantment and still have mana for Daxos's ability, those cost tempo. Read the land and mana base guide for more on building a smoother mana base.
Upgrade ideas
Each upgrade below starts from something the deck does poorly and says what a replacement card has to do. The cards named are examples, not the only answer: if you own something else that does the same job, or a newer printing does it better, it goes in the same slot. Make one change at a time and play a few games between them, so you can tell which change helped. The general method is in how to upgrade a Commander precon →
1. Trade expensive filler for enchantment payoffs
The deck wins by casting enchantments and getting paid for each one. Six- and seven-drops that ignore that plan are the easiest slots to fill.
What to look for Cards costing four or less that make a creature or a counter every time you cast an enchantment, ideally enchantments themselves so they also add experience.
Cut, for example
Thief of Blood A six-mana 1/1 flier that removes every counter from every permanent, including the +1/+1 counters Celestial Ancient puts on your team.
Sandstone Oracle Seven mana, and it only draws if an opponent has more cards in hand than you. Often it is a 4/4 flier and nothing else.
Add, for example
Hallowed Haunting ↗
An enchantment that makes a growing Spirit token whenever you cast an enchantment spell, and gives your creatures flying and vigilance at seven enchantments.
Archon of Sun's Grace ↗
A 3/4 lifelink flier that makes a 2/2 flying Pegasus whenever an enchantment enters under your control, including Daxos's Spirit tokens.
2. Use removal that can't backfire
Two of the deck's removal enchantments have real drawbacks. Swapping them for clean exile effects keeps the experience count rising without the risk.
What to look for Enchantments costing three or less that exile an opponent's creature or permanent when they enter.
Cut, for example
Grave Peril Destroys the next nonblack creature to enter, including your own white creatures. It often hits you first.
Cage of Hands Stops a creature from attacking or blocking, but its abilities still work. Exile answers handle more threats.
Add, for example
Journey to Nowhere ↗
Two mana, exiles a creature when it enters. Cheap removal that also gives Daxos an experience counter.
Ossification ↗
Two mana, exiles a creature or planeswalker an opponent controls for as long as the Aura stays on your basic land.
Oblivion Ring ↗
Three mana, exiles any other nonland permanent. It answers artifacts and enchantments as well as creatures.
3. Replace the taplands
Daxos wants you to cast a cheap enchantment and still have three mana left for a Spirit. Lands that enter tapped make that a turn later.
What to look for White-black lands that enter untapped in normal play.
Cut, for example
Barren Moor A Swamp that always enters tapped. Its cycling is a small upside for the lost tempo.
Secluded Steppe The white version of Barren Moor: a tapped Plains with cycling.
Orzhov Guildgate Always enters tapped and has no other ability.
Add, for example
Isolated Chapel ↗
Enters untapped if you control a Plains or Swamp and taps for white or black.
Caves of Koilos ↗
Always enters untapped. It taps for colorless for free or white or black for 1 damage.
Shineshadow Snarl ↗
Enters untapped if you reveal a Plains or Swamp from your hand and taps for white or black.
4. Add steady card draw
Mesa Enchantress and Phyrexian Arena carry most of the draw. One or two more sources keep enchantments flowing after the first few turns.
What to look for Cheap draw, ideally on an enchantment or enchantment creature so it adds experience as well.
Cut, for example
Oreskos Explorer Only finds Plains when opponents have more lands than you, and leaves a 2/2 that does nothing else.
Open the Vaults Returns every player's artifacts and enchantments from the graveyard. Opponents often get as much back as you do.
Win conditions
The upgraded deck wins by casting cheap enchantments every turn, building experience, and then making Spirit tokens with Daxos the Returned that are as large as the opponents' best creatures. Sigil of the Empty Throne and Hallowed Haunting add fliers for each enchantment, and Dictate of Heliod or Marshal's Anthem pump the team for the final attack.
Who should buy this precon
A reasonable choice for a player with a few Commander games behind them who enjoys building a board over several turns. You need to plan your turns so you cast an enchantment and still have mana for Daxos, and the deck rewards counting experience ahead. It is less suited to someone who wants a fast, aggressive deck.
Checked against the printed decklist on October 10, 2026.
Track how the upgrades actually perform.
TurnZero HQ keeps a win rate per deck version, so you can change a few cards, play some games, and see the difference instead of guessing.
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