Precon Upgrade Guide
Growing Threat Upgrade Guide
What to cut, what to add, and how to play the Orzhov Phyrexian incubate precon from March of the Machine, commanded by Brimaz, Blight of Oreskos.
March of the Machine
Growing Threat
Incubate tokens need a beat before they pay off. Out of the box, before any upgrades. How we rate precons
Buy Growing Threat on TCGplayer →Quick verdict
Growing Threat gets two bodies out of most of its creature spells. Brimaz, Blight of Oreskos incubates whenever you cast a Phyrexian or an artifact creature, so a five-drop also leaves behind an Incubator with five +1/+1 counters. The deck is full of strong removal and solid Phyrexians, but its top end costs nine and ten mana, its ramp includes several colorless rocks with no other use, and it has few ways to make Phyrexians die on purpose for Brimaz's proliferate.
TurnZero HQ rates Growing Threat 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 Growing Threat decklist page, and every other precon we cover is on the precon directory.
How the precon plays
Brimaz, Blight of Oreskos is a four-mana 3/4. Whenever you cast a Phyrexian creature spell or an artifact creature spell, you incubate X, where X is that spell's mana value: you create an Incubator artifact token with X +1/+1 counters, and you can pay {2} to transform it into a Phyrexian artifact creature that keeps those counters. At the beginning of each end step, if a Phyrexian died under your control that turn, you proliferate.
Most of the deck's creatures trigger Brimaz. Golem makers like Blade Splicer , Master Splicer and Darksteel Splicer are Phyrexians, and so are value creatures like Phyrexian Gargantua , Blight Titan and Massacre Wurm . Colorless artifact creatures such as Myr Battlesphere and Duplicant count as well, so the deck's removal creatures also leave a big Incubator behind.
The late game comes from recursion. Moira and Teshar returns a permanent from your graveyard for a turn whenever you cast a historic spell, which every artifact is, and Phyrexian Delver , Victimize and Yawgmoth's Vile Offering put creatures back for good. When a transformed Incubator or other Phyrexian dies, Brimaz proliferates every counter you have left.
What works out of the box
Brimaz, Blight of Oreskos ↗
Every Phyrexian or artifact creature spell also makes an Incubator with counters equal to its mana value, so each creature is really two.
Blade Splicer ↗
Three mana for a 1/1 and a 3/3 first-strike Golem, plus a three-counter Incubator from Brimaz. A lot of board for one card.
Massacre Wurm ↗
Gives opponents' creatures -2/-2 when it enters and drains 2 life for each of their creatures that dies. It also incubates six.
Moira and Teshar ↗
Every artifact or legendary spell returns a permanent card from your graveyard for a turn with haste, which re-triggers enter abilities like Noxious Gearhulk's.
Noxious Gearhulk ↗
Destroys a creature when it enters and gains you life equal to its toughness. As an artifact creature, it also incubates six.
Myr Battlesphere ↗
Seven mana for a 4/7 and four Myr tokens, and it turns those Myr into direct damage when it attacks.
What needs improvement
The curve tops out very high. Phyrexian Triniform costs nine and Ancient Stone Idol costs up to ten, and the ramp leans on colorless rocks like Ichor Elixir , Fractured Powerstone and Coveted Jewel that do nothing else. Brimaz wants a stream of mid-sized creature spells, and the deck is better off getting that stream going on turn three than reaching nine mana.
Brimaz's proliferate only happens on turns when a Phyrexian dies under your control, and the deck has just Phyrexian Ghoul and Compleated Huntmaster to make that happen on purpose. A couple of cheap sacrifice outlets and payoffs turn the end-step trigger into something you control.
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. Ramp with artifact creatures instead of rocks
A mana rock does nothing with Brimaz. A mana creature that is also an artifact makes mana and an Incubator, and the deck's Myr Battlesphere rewards having Myr on the battlefield.
What to look for Artifact creatures or Phyrexians costing three mana or less that tap for mana. Each one triggers Brimaz on the way in. See how much ramp a Commander deck needs.
Cut, for example
Ichor Elixir Four mana for two colorless. Its planar dice text only matters in Planechase, and it does not trigger Brimaz.
Fractured Powerstone A two-mana colorless rock with a die roll that never comes up in a normal game.
Coveted Jewel Six mana to draw three and make three mana, but any opponent who gets an unblocked attack through takes it and draws three.
Add, for example
2. Swap the biggest creatures for efficient ones
Nine- and ten-drops rarely get cast before the game is decided. A six-mana artifact creature that is hard to remove does more and still makes a six-counter Incubator.
What to look for Phyrexians or artifact creatures costing six mana or less that leave something behind when they die or return artifacts from your graveyard.
Cut, for example
Phyrexian Triniform Nine mana for a 9/9. It does trigger a nine-counter Incubator, but you will seldom have nine mana in time.
Ancient Stone Idol Costs {1} less for each attacking creature, so it is only cheap on a turn when you are already attacking with a wide board.
Cataclysmic Gearhulk Every player keeps one artifact, creature, enchantment and planeswalker. This deck usually has the most artifacts and creatures, so it loses the most.
Add, for example
Wurmcoil Engine ↗
A six-mana 6/6 with deathtouch and lifelink that leaves two 3/3 Phyrexian Wurms when it dies. Those Wurms dying later turns on Brimaz's proliferate.
Sanctum Gargoyle ↗
A four-mana artifact flier that returns an artifact card from your graveyard to your hand, such as Noxious Gearhulk.
3. Sacrifice Phyrexians on your own terms
Brimaz proliferates at the end of any turn a Phyrexian of yours died. A free sacrifice outlet lets you cash in a spare Incubator creature or Golem whenever you want that trigger, and a drain payoff rewards each one.
What to look for Cheap creatures or artifacts that sacrifice a creature at no mana cost, and cards that gain value whenever a creature dies.
Cut, for example
Sculpting Steel Copies an artifact, but as a noncreature artifact spell it does not trigger Brimaz, and it is only as good as the best artifact on the table.
Shimmer Myr Lets you cast artifacts at instant speed. That rarely matters in a deck whose artifacts are mostly creatures you want out early.
4. Untap more of the lands
A two-color deck should rarely have to play a tapped land, and this one has several. Untapped duals make the turn-three Blade Splicer or turn-four Brimaz reliable.
What to look for White-black dual lands that enter untapped in the first few turns. The land and mana base guide compares the options.
Cut, for example
Path of Ancestry Enters tapped, and its scry only works on creatures that share a type with Brimaz, which is a Cat.
Silverquill Campus Always enters tapped, and its scry costs four mana to use.
Add, for example
Win conditions
The upgraded deck wins by turning every creature spell into two threats. Cast Brimaz, follow up with Phyrexians and artifact creatures each turn, and transform the Incubators into large bodies. Massacre Wurm , Myr Battlesphere and the Golem makers give you a board opponents struggle to attack through, and Brimaz's proliferate keeps the counters growing once you start sacrificing spare Phyrexians to Carrion Feeder .
Who should buy this precon
A good deck for a player with a few games of Commander behind them. Brimaz's trigger is easy to see, but the deck asks you to track Incubator counts, decide when to pay {2} to transform one, and plan sacrifices around the end-step proliferate. It suits someone who likes building a board with removal backing it up rather than racing.
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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