Precon Upgrade Guide
Fae Dominion Upgrade Guide
What to cut, what to add, and how to play the Dimir Faeries precon from Wilds of Eldraine, commanded by Tegwyll, Duke of Splendor.
Wilds of Eldraine
Fae Dominion
Flash and flyers ask for some patience. Out of the box, before any upgrades. How we rate precons
Buy Fae Dominion on TCGplayer →Quick verdict
Fae Dominion is a Faerie deck that plays much of its game on other players' turns. Tegwyll, Duke of Splendor pumps your other Faeries and draws a card whenever one dies, so trading small fliers in combat or losing them to removal still pays you back. The deck has good flash creatures and plenty of card draw, but it plays two sweepers that don't suit it, a few expensive cards that sit in hand, and less cheap removal than a flash deck wants.
TurnZero HQ rates Fae Dominion 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 Fae Dominion decklist page, and every other precon we cover is on the precon directory.
How the precon plays
Tegwyll, Duke of Splendor is a three-mana 2/3 with flying and deathtouch. Other Faeries you control get +1/+1, and whenever another Faerie you control dies, you draw a card and lose 1 life. A board of 1/1 Faerie Rogue tokens becomes a board of 2/2 fliers, and each one that dies replaces itself.
Many of the deck's creatures reward casting spells during an opponent's turn. Alela, Cunning Conqueror makes a Faerie Rogue token the first time you do it each opponent's turn, Blightwing Bandit steals the top card of that player's library, and Nymris, Oona's Trickster digs two cards deep. Flash creatures like Brazen Borrower , Scion of Oona and Malleable Impostor trigger all three.
Archmage of Echoes copies every Faerie or Wizard permanent spell you cast, and Kindred Dominance naming Faerie destroys every creature that isn't one. Combat damage from Faeries also triggers Faerie Bladecrafter , Nettling Nuisance and Alela's goad.
What works out of the box
Tegwyll, Duke of Splendor ↗
An anthem for every other Faerie and a card whenever one dies. Trades and removal both refill your hand.
Alela, Cunning Conqueror ↗
Makes a 1/1 flying Faerie Rogue the first time you cast a spell on each opponent's turn, and goads a creature whenever your Faeries hit that player.
Archmage of Echoes ↗
Copies each Faerie or Wizard permanent spell you cast. Most of your creatures arrive with a token twin.
Glen Elendra Archmage ↗
Sacrifice it and pay one blue mana to counter a noncreature spell, and persist brings it back once to do it again.
Scion of Oona ↗
Flash, another +1/+1 for your other Faeries, and shroud for all of them, which blanks most targeted removal.
What needs improvement
Two of the sweepers don't suit a Faerie deck. Nightmare Unmaking exiles creatures by comparing their power to your hand size, which hits your pumped Faeries as easily as anything else, and Perplexing Test bounces every creature token or every nontoken creature, including your own. Kindred Dominance and Tegwyll's Scouring are the wipes that fit, since one spares Faeries and the other gives you three back.
For a deck built to act on other players' turns, there is little cheap removal. Reality Shift and Reckless Spite are the only instants that destroy or exile a creature outright, and expensive cards like Shadow Puppeteers cost seven mana. See how much removal a Commander deck needs for a target.
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. Swap awkward sweepers for cheap removal
This deck wants to hold mana open and answer threats at instant speed. Five-mana sweepers that also hit your Faeries do the opposite.
What to look for Removal costing two mana that destroys a creature, ideally at instant speed so it also triggers your opponent's-turn cards.
Cut, for example
Nightmare Unmaking Exiles creatures based on your hand size, which is hard to set up and often catches your own Faeries.
Perplexing Test Bounces all tokens or all nontoken creatures, and either mode sends your own Faeries back too.
Add, for example
2. Fix the slow lands
Holding up instant-speed mana from the early turns needs lands that enter untapped and make both colors.
What to look for Lands that make blue and black and usually enter untapped.
Cut, for example
Temple of the False God Makes no mana until you control five lands, which is when you need it least.
Temple of Deceit Always enters tapped. In a flash deck, the scry 1 isn't worth the turn.
3. Add cheaper Faeries
Tegwyll pumps and draws off every Faerie, so each cheap one is worth more here than in most decks. The deck has a few slow cards that don't add to the Faerie count.
What to look for Faeries costing two mana, or cards that make Faerie tokens every turn. Flash is a bonus, since it triggers Alela and the other opponent's-turn cards.
Cut, for example
Shadow Puppeteers Seven mana for a 4/4 and two tokens. Its Dragon ability is strong but the cost is too high.
Theoretical Duplication Only copies creatures an opponent puts onto the battlefield this turn. It needs them to cooperate.
Midnight Clock A mana rock whose payoff shuffles your hand and graveyard away. The deck already draws plenty.
Add, for example
Spellstutter Sprite ↗
A two-mana flash Faerie that counters a spell with mana value up to the number of Faeries you control when it enters.
Faerie Mastermind ↗
A two-mana flash Faerie that draws you a card whenever an opponent draws their second card each turn.
Bitterblossom ↗
Two mana: a 1/1 flying Faerie Rogue token every upkeep for 1 life. With Tegwyll out, each one is a 2/2 that draws a card when it dies.
4. More spells to cast on other players' turns
Alela, Blightwing Bandit and Nymris all trigger on the first spell you cast during each opponent's turn. Cheap interaction gives you something useful to cast every time.
What to look for Instants costing two mana or less that counter a spell or remove a creature, so you can trigger the payoffs and answer a threat in one card.
Cut, for example
Illusionist's Gambit Only castable during the declare blockers step on an opponent's turn, and it only redirects one combat.
Misleading Signpost A mana rock with a narrow combat trick attached. A counterspell triggers the same payoffs and answers more.
Win conditions
The deck wins with a wide board of evasive Faeries. Tegwyll and Scion of Oona pump the team, Glen Elendra Liege adds more, and Faerie tokens from Alela, Faerie Formation and Oona, Queen of the Fae keep the air full. Kindred Dominance naming Faerie clears every other creature for a final attack. The upgrades give you cheaper bodies and better things to do on other players' turns.
Who should buy this precon
A good fit for a player who likes instant-speed decisions and holding mana up. The deck rewards knowing when to flash in a creature or save a counter, which takes some practice, so it is a moderate play. It sits at about average precon power and improves noticeably with the cheaper Faeries above.
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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