MTG Deckbuilding Guides

Rankings, shortlists, and buying context for Magic players. Every guide connects the cards we recommend to live price pages, set data, and the rest of the research tools on TCG Spikes.

Featured value guide · August 2026

Is The He-Man Secret Lair Worth It?

We priced all 27 cards, ranked the five Masters of the Universe drops, compared every bundle, and added the newly revealed card pictures.

See all five verdicts

Secret Lair

Secret Lair value guides

Compare fixed-drop replacement value and randomized-product pull rates with explicit assumptions, dated prices, and practical buying plans.

Masters of the Universe · 5 drops · 27 cardsIs The He-Man Secret Lair Worth It?Every drop ranked by nonfoil and foil value, with card pictures, bundle math, and sale-day guidance. MSCHF · 121 cards · modeled pull ratesIs The Zeta Set Worth It?Pack EV, rarity odds, exact-treatment estimates, and the 20 pulls that matter most. Superdrop · 8 drops · 41 cardsIs A Perfectly Normal Superdrop Worth It?Every fixed drop ranked by nonfoil replacement value, with foil warnings and buying tiers.

The Hobbit

The Hobbit guides

New HOB and HOC commanders, exact color identities, and sourced Standard, Modern, Legacy, Vintage, and Pauper results. Rankings state their sample and keep lower-evidence cards separate.

Standard · Updated August 26 · 6 rankedBest Marvel cards for StandardPost-ban Standard roles, tournament examples, and practical deckbuilding risks.Commander · 10 ranked; 5 honorable mentions10 Best Hobbit CommandersCompare the top ten new Hobbit commanders and five honorable mentions using dated EDHREC adoption, card-specific build advice, risks, and tracked prices. Commander · 15 eligible recommendationsBest Red Hobbit CommandersCompare new red Hobbit commanders by exact color identity, with dated EDHREC adoption, deck-building advice, risks, card images, and tracked prices. Commander · 13 eligible recommendationsBest Blue Hobbit CommandersCompare new blue Hobbit commanders by exact color identity, with dated EDHREC adoption, deck-building advice, risks, card images, and tracked prices. Commander · 11 eligible recommendationsBest Black Hobbit CommandersCompare new black Hobbit commanders by exact color identity, with dated EDHREC adoption, deck-building advice, risks, card images, and tracked prices. Commander · 14 eligible recommendationsBest White Hobbit CommandersCompare new white Hobbit commanders by exact color identity, with dated EDHREC adoption, deck-building advice, risks, card images, and tracked prices. Commander · 11 eligible recommendationsBest Green Hobbit CommandersCompare new green Hobbit commanders by exact color identity, with dated EDHREC adoption, deck-building advice, risks, card images, and tracked prices. Commander · 0 eligible recommendationsDoes The Hobbit Have a New Colorless Commander?The Hobbit has no new colorless commander in HOB or HOC. Check the eligibility audit and why legendary artifacts do not qualify for the command zone. Standard · 2 ranked; 15 mentionsBest Hobbit Cards for StandardReview new Hobbit cards with sourced Standard decklist appearances, separating ranked picks, lower-sample mentions, and main-deck versus sideboard roles. Modern · 1 ranked; 5 mentionsBest Hobbit Cards for ModernReview new Hobbit cards with sourced Modern decklist appearances, separating ranked picks, lower-sample mentions, and main-deck versus sideboard roles. Legacy · 2 ranked; 0 mentionsBest Hobbit Cards for LegacyReview new Hobbit cards with sourced Legacy decklist appearances, separating ranked picks, lower-sample mentions, and main-deck versus sideboard roles. Vintage · 1 ranked; 0 mentionsBest Hobbit Cards for VintageReview new Hobbit cards with sourced Vintage decklist appearances, separating ranked picks, lower-sample mentions, and main-deck versus sideboard roles. Pauper · 2 ranked; 0 mentionsBest Hobbit Cards for PauperReview new Hobbit cards with sourced Pauper decklist appearances, separating ranked picks, lower-sample mentions, and main-deck versus sideboard roles.

Marvel Super Heroes

Marvel Super Heroes guides

Competitive format rankings and Commander guides from the same set, collected in one place. New set tags will join this library as their guide collections grow.

Modern · Updated August 26 · 6 rankedBest Marvel cards for ModernCorrected Pro Tour counts, Loki results, Shang-Chi, and sideboard specialists. Legacy · Updated August 26 · 1 rankedBest Marvel cards for LegacyLoki and legal alternatives after The Fantasticar ban; small samples stay explicit. Pauper · Updated August 26 · 3 rankedBest Marvel cards for PauperUpdated Challenge evidence and precise Vision of Love and Teamwork rules. Commander · Red color identityBest Red Marvel commandersSpell damage, free casts, and immediate combat pressure. Commander · Blue color identityBest Blue Marvel commandersArtifacts, copied abilities, draw engines, and tempo. Commander · Black color identityBest Black Marvel commandersGraveyards, sacrifice, artifact engines, and resilient value. Commander · White color identityBest White Marvel commandersHeroes, Equipment, protected attacks, and wide boards. Commander · Green color identityBest Green Marvel commandersCounters, creature abilities, removal, and scalable threats. Commander · ColorlessBest Colorless Marvel commandersFantasticar spell chains, artifact engines, and commander-eligible Vehicles.

Secrets of Strixhaven

Secrets of Strixhaven guides

Commander rankings cover every new legend without reprint padding. Modern, Legacy, and Pauper rankings use actual tournament decklists; lower-sample cards remain evidence-backed honorable mentions.

Commander · 10 ranked · 5 honorable mentionsBest Secrets commanders overallSpell engines, sacrifice decks, Fractals, prepared cards, and Elder Dragons. Modern · Tournament evidence · 7 rankedBest Secrets cards for ModernSeven repeat performers and ten lower-sample cards with linked decklist evidence. Legacy · Tournament evidence · 3 rankedBest Secrets cards for LegacyThree repeated performers and four one-deck honorable mentions. Pauper · Tournament evidence · 3 rankedBest Secrets cards for PauperThree main-deck cards and two sideboard-only honorable mentions. Commander · Red, Izzet, and BorosBest Red Secrets commandersEvery new qualifying legend, grouped by exact identity. Commander · Blue, Izzet, and SimicBest Blue Secrets commandersEvery new qualifying legend, grouped by exact identity. Commander · Black, Orzhov, and GolgariBest Black Secrets commandersEvery new qualifying legend, grouped by exact identity. Commander · White, Boros, and OrzhovBest White Secrets commandersEvery new qualifying legend, grouped by exact identity. Commander · Green, Simic, and GolgariBest Green Secrets commandersEvery new qualifying legend, grouped by exact identity. Commander · Colorless · 2 totalBest Colorless Secrets commandersThe honest two-card field: The Dawning Archaic and Page, Loose Leaf.

Lorwyn Eclipsed

Lorwyn Eclipsed guides

Commander rankings use current EDHREC adoption and audited ECL/ECC eligibility. Competitive format rankings require actual sourced deck appearances and current legality; Standard is explicitly framed around the August 10 bans rather than treating the older metagame as current.

Commander · 10 ranked · 5 honorable mentionsBest Lorwyn Eclipsed commanders overallAshling, Maralen, Auntie Ool, and the most-built new legends across ECL and ECC. Standard · 25 ranked · post-ban contextBest Lorwyn Eclipsed cards for StandardCurrent legality, sourced use, and a clear August 10 metagame-reset warning. Pioneer · 4 ranked · 1 mentionBest Lorwyn Eclipsed cards for PioneerFormidable Speaker leads the cards with repeated, sourced Pioneer use. Modern · 5 ranked · 2 mentionsBest Lorwyn Eclipsed cards for ModernWistfulness, Formidable Speaker, Moonshadow, and every supported result. Vintage · 4 ranked · real deck useBest Lorwyn Eclipsed cards for VintageFour main-deck results, with four more observed sideboard or lower-confidence cards. Commander · 9 recommendationsBest Red Lorwyn Eclipsed commandersElementals, Goblins, blight, combat, and every qualifying red identity. Commander · 7 recommendationsBest Blue Lorwyn Eclipsed commandersMerfolk, Faeries, Elementals, transformation, and five-color engines. Commander · 11 recommendationsBest Black Lorwyn Eclipsed commandersBlight, graveyards, Faeries, Treefolk, and the deepest color field in the set. Commander · 10 recommendationsBest White Lorwyn Eclipsed commandersKithkin, Giants, Birds, Treefolk, and every qualifying white identity. Commander · 11 recommendationsBest Green Lorwyn Eclipsed commandersElementals, Treefolk, blight, kindred engines, and five-color builds. Commander · 0 eligible new optionsDoes Lorwyn Eclipsed have a colorless commander?The complete eligibility audit, with no reprint or legendary-permanent padding.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles guides

Commander rankings use verified eligibility and current EDHREC deck adoption. Modern, Legacy, and Pauper reviews use the site's current tournament store, keep the established evidence thresholds, and document every lower-sample result instead of padding the ranked lists.

Commander · 10 ranked · 5 honorable mentionsBest TMNT commanders overallEvery genuinely eligible new legend audited across TMT and TMC. Modern · 2 ranked · 3 mentionsBest TMNT cards for ModernSkateboard's 58-deck breakout, Sewer-veillance Cam, and every lower-sample result. Legacy · 1 ranked · 3 mentionsBest TMNT cards for LegacyRaph & Mikey's Reanimator results plus three honest one-deck mentions. Pauper · 3 ranked · main-deck evidenceBest TMNT cards for PauperUtrom Monitor and Sewer-veillance Cam in Affinity, plus Leonardo in mono-white. Commander · 18 recommendationsBest Red TMNT commandersMono-red through five-color, capped by exact identity. Commander · 19 recommendationsBest Blue TMNT commandersArtifacts, clues, Character select, and every qualifying identity. Commander · 19 recommendationsBest Black TMNT commandersRats, Ninjas, sacrifice engines, and multicolor villains. Commander · 19 recommendationsBest White TMNT commandersSneak, go-wide teams, and multicolor Ninja engines. Commander · 18 recommendationsBest Green TMNT commandersMutagen, counters, huge attacks, and partner flexibility. Commander · 1 legal new optionBest Colorless TMNT commanderKrang's artifact army, with the eligibility trap explained.