We Are the Borg Commander deck upgrade guide with Locutus of Borg, Urza, Overflow Submatrix, Etherium Sculptor and Swords to Plowshares cards
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We Are the Borg Upgrade Guide: 10 Cuts and 10 Upgrades for The Borg Queen

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The best upgrades for the MTG Star Trek We Are the Borg Commander deck are Etherium Sculptor, Foundry Inspector, Swords to Plowshares, Path to Exile and Urza, Chief Artificer. All 10 picks below cost about $22 on TCGplayer, and eight of them cost about $7 together. The first cards to cut are Return to Dust, Bitter Triumph and Darksteel Plate, plus the slowest mana rocks.

Updated October 28, 2026 · Decklist from Wizards of the Coast (revealed October 27, 2026) · Picks and percentages from EDHREC (261 early Borg Queen decks and the We Are the Borg precon page) · Prices are TCGplayer market prices, checked October 28, 2026

What’s in the We Are the Borg Commander deck?

We Are the Borg is the white, blue and black deck from MTG Star Trek. Its face commander is The Borg Queen, a 7-mana 4/4 artifact creature, and Locutus of Borg is the second legend you can lead with. The deck is built around artifact creatures: almost half of its 100 cards are artifacts, and 15 cards make 1/1 Borg tokens or assimilate creatures.

Part of the deckCount
Lands38 (12 basics)
Artifact creatures20
All artifacts, including 5 Spacecraft43
Mana artifacts10 (Queen’s Diamond only pays for your commander)
Instants and sorceries16
Enchantments3
Average mana value (nonland cards)3.34

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Each Star Trek Commander deck comes with a traditional foil face commander with borderless art, 99 nonfoil cards (32 of them new to Magic), 10 double-sided tokens, a reference card and a deck box.

The deck lists for $74.99 and sells for about $72.69 on TCGplayer. It releases November 13, 2026, but Wizards said on October 16 that Star Trek Commander decks in North America may arrive after that date. See our Star Trek delays guide for every region.

How does The Borg Queen deck win?

The Borg Queen gives your artifact creatures +2/+2. Whenever she enters or attacks, an opponent exiles cards from the top of their library until they hit a creature, and you assimilate it: it joins your side with a +1/+1 counter as a Borg artifact creature. So she pumps your army and steals a new body every attack.

The plan is to go wide with 1/1 Borg tokens and artifact creatures, then make them huge. Locutus of Borg gives every artifact creature “make a Borg token when you deal combat damage to a player,” Tempered Steel adds another +2/+2, and One, Borg Evolved gives your artifact creatures flying, double strike, vigilance, menace, lifelink and ward {2}. When the board gets crowded, Battle of Wolf 359 shrinks only the nonartifact creatures, so your Borg survive it.

The cards worth keeping are the ones that make or pump Borg: Locutus, Tempered Steel, One, Jurati, Cordial Queen (it copies your artifact tokens after combat damage), Hugh, First of Many (artifact spells get replicate), Co-Option Adjutant, Conquest Mission, Skullclamp and Emergency Regeneration. The weak spots are slow mana rocks and clunky removal, and that’s where the upgrades go.

What are the best We Are the Borg upgrades?

These 10 picks come from what early Borg Queen players on EDHREC add most, checked against how the deck actually plays. Every card image links to the card on TCGplayer.

1. Etherium Sculptor

Etherium Sculptor Magic: The Gathering card, an upgrade for the We Are the Borg Commander deck
Common · 2 mana · Artifact Creature

What it does: Your artifact spells cost {1} less to cast.

Why it fits the Borg: 43 of the deck’s cards are artifacts, and The Borg Queen is one of them, so a turn-two Sculptor turns her into a 6-drop. It’s also a 1/2 artifact creature, which makes it a 3/4 once the Queen is out.

Price: about $0.37 (TCGplayer) · in 66% of EDHREC Borg Queen decks

2. Foundry Inspector

Foundry Inspector Magic: The Gathering card, an upgrade for the We Are the Borg Commander deck
Uncommon · 3 mana · Artifact Creature

What it does: A colorless 3/2 that makes your artifact spells cost {1} less.

Why it fits the Borg: It stacks with Etherium Sculptor and the deck’s Type-03 Borg Vessel, so your artifacts can cost 2 or 3 less. With both reducers out, the Queen costs 5, and Foundry Inspector itself becomes a 5/4 under her.

Price: about $0.29 (TCGplayer) · in 59% of EDHREC Borg Queen decks

3. Swords to Plowshares

Swords to Plowshares Magic: The Gathering card with Star Trek art, an upgrade for the We Are the Borg Commander deck
Uncommon · 1 mana · Instant

What it does: Exile target creature. Its controller gains life equal to its power.

Why it fits the Borg: The deck’s other cheap removal, Bitter Triumph, costs 2 mana plus a card or 3 life. Swords costs one white mana at instant speed and exiles, so nothing comes back. The version shown is the new Star Trek printing from the Federation Fleet deck.

Price: about $1.69 for the cheapest printing (TCGplayer) · the Star Trek printing lists from $4.99 (TCGplayer) · in 52% of EDHREC Borg Queen decks

4. Path to Exile

Path to Exile Magic: The Gathering card with Doctor Who art, an upgrade for the We Are the Borg Commander deck
Uncommon · 1 mana · Instant

What it does: Exile target creature. Its controller may search their library for a basic land and put it onto the battlefield tapped.

Why it fits the Borg: A second 1-mana answer for the creature that would block your swarm or wipe your board. The Doctor Who printing shown here fits a sci-fi deck nicely.

Price: about $1.52 (TCGplayer) · in 49% of EDHREC Borg Queen decks

5. Thought Monitor

Thought Monitor Magic: The Gathering card, an upgrade for the We Are the Borg Commander deck
Rare · 7 mana · Artifact Creature

What it does: A 2/2 flier with affinity for artifacts (it costs {1} less for each artifact you control). When it enters, you draw two cards.

Why it fits the Borg: With five or six artifacts out it costs 1 or 2 mana, draws two with no discard, and becomes a 4/4 flier under the Queen. It does the job of Thirst for Knowledge much better.

Price: about $0.26 (TCGplayer) · in 39% of EDHREC Borg Queen decks

6. Urza, Chief Artificer

Urza, Chief Artificer Magic: The Gathering card, an upgrade for the We Are the Borg Commander deck
Mythic · 6 mana · Legendary Creature

What it does: A 4/5 with affinity for artifact creatures. Your artifact creatures have menace, and at the beginning of your end step you create a 0/0 Construct artifact token that gets +1/+1 for each artifact you control.

Why it fits the Borg: It’s in the same white, blue and black colors, it gets cheaper with every Borg on the board, and it makes a new attacker every turn. With 10 artifacts out, each Construct is a 10/10 before the Queen’s +2/+2.

Price: about $5.26 (TCGplayer) · in 30% of EDHREC Borg Queen decks

7. Overflow Submatrix

Overflow Submatrix Magic: The Gathering Star Trek card, an upgrade for the We Are the Borg Commander deck
Rare · 3 mana · Artifact Creature

What it does: A 3/3 Borg. Once during each of your turns, you may cast an artifact creature spell from your graveyard. It enters with a finality counter, so it’s exiled if it would die again.

Why it fits the Borg: It’s a new Borg from the main Star Trek set, and it gets your best artifact creatures back after a board wipe or a Skullclamp. Every turn it’s out, you can recast one more artifact creature from your graveyard.

Price: about $9.92 on preorder (TCGplayer) · in 10% of EDHREC Borg Queen decks so far

8. Steel Overseer

Steel Overseer Magic: The Gathering card, an upgrade for the We Are the Borg Commander deck
Rare · 2 mana · Artifact Creature

What it does: Tap it to put a +1/+1 counter on each artifact creature you control.

Why it fits the Borg: Every Borg token grows by one each turn, and the counters stay even if the Queen or Tempered Steel leaves. It also works with Supplementation Node, which already adds counters in the deck.

Price: about $0.25 (TCGplayer) · in 21% of EDHREC Borg Queen decks

9. Skorpekh Lord

Skorpekh Lord Magic: The Gathering card, an upgrade for the We Are the Borg Commander deck
Rare · 3 mana · Artifact Creature

What it does: A 3/2 with menace. Your other artifact creatures get +1/+0 and menace. Unearth {2}{B} brings it back from the graveyard for one turn.

Why it fits the Borg: Another anthem, plus a backup for Extraction Integrant’s menace, so a wide Borg board is very hard to block. Unearth means it can still swing one more time after a board wipe.

Price: about $2.43 (TCGplayer) · in 21% of EDHREC Borg Queen decks

10. Organic Extinction

Organic Extinction Magic: The Gathering card, an upgrade for the We Are the Borg Commander deck
Rare · 10 mana · Sorcery

What it does: Destroy all nonartifact creatures. It has improvise, so each artifact you tap pays for {1} of its cost.

Why it fits the Borg: It wipes every organic creature and leaves your artifact creatures alone, which is about as Borg as a card can get. With eight artifacts to tap, it costs just {W}{W}.

Price: about $0.29 (TCGplayer) · in 33% of EDHREC Borg Queen decks

How much does it cost to upgrade the We Are the Borg deck?

All 10 cards cost about $22.28 at their cheapest TCGplayer printings. Overflow Submatrix ($9.92) and Urza, Chief Artificer ($5.26) are most of that. Skip those two and the other eight cost about $7.10, which makes this one of the cheapest precon upgrades we’ve covered.

Which 10 cards should you cut from the We Are the Borg deck?

The deck wants three things: lots of artifact creatures, anthems to make them big, and enough mana to cast 7-drops like The Borg Queen and One, Borg Evolved. So we kept every token maker, anthem and piece of board protection, and cut the cards that do the least for that plan. The percentage is how many EDHREC Borg Queen decks still run each card.

  • Return to Dust (10%): 4 mana to remove artifacts and enchantments, and Anguished Unmaking and Deliver from Chaos already handle problem permanents.
  • Bitter Triumph (11%): it costs a card or 3 life on top of its mana. Swords and Path do the job for 1.
  • Darksteel Plate (11%): it protects one creature, and this deck wins with a wide board. Emergency Regeneration protects all your artifacts at once.
  • Stonespeaker Crystal (11%): a 4-mana rock. Etherium Sculptor and Foundry Inspector save you more mana on artifact spells for less.
  • Astral Cornucopia (11%): you pay {X}{X}{X}, so it ramps very little early, even with Optimization Annex adding a counter.
  • Wayfarer’s Bauble (12%): 3 mana over two turns for one tapped land.
  • Commander’s Sphere (12%): a 3-mana rock that makes one mana.
  • Thirst for Knowledge (16%): Thought Monitor draws two cards with no discard and leaves a body for the Queen to pump.
  • Door of Destinies (16%): it only grows when you cast Borg spells, and your Borg tokens aren’t cast, so it’s slow here.
  • The Best of Both Worlds (18%): 6 mana to borrow one creature, and chapter III gives it back.

What we kept on purpose: Disallow (11%) is the deck’s only answer to a board wipe that Emergency Regeneration can’t stop, like Toxic Deluge or an exile wipe. Everflowing Chalice (15%) is cheap, and Seven of Nine and Optimization Annex both add charge counters to it. Forsaken Monument (13%) gives your colorless Borg tokens +2/+2 and adds extra colorless mana when Ambulatory Reactor turns your Borg into mana sources.

After these swaps the deck still has Sol Ring, Arcane Signet, three Talismans, Everflowing Chalice and Queen’s Diamond for mana, plus Ambulatory Reactor and three cost reducers: Etherium Sculptor, Foundry Inspector and Type-03 Borg Vessel.

Which lands should you upgrade in We Are the Borg?

The precon has six lands that enter tapped or fetch slowly. Early Borg Queen players swap them for shock lands and artifact lands. The artifact lands also count for affinity, improvise and Dispatch’s metalcraft, but an artifact board wipe can hit them.

Land to addPriceEDHREC
Hallowed Fountain$6.8171%
Godless Shrine$8.3070%
Watery Grave$9.9770%
Ancient Den$1.6252%
Seat of the Synod$1.0152%
Vault of Whispers$4.2251%

Cut Evolving Wilds, Terramorphic Expanse, Irrigated Farmland, Umbral Expanse, Fetid Pools and Contaminated Landscape to make room. All six lands cost about $31.93, or $6.85 for just the three artifact lands.

What are the best premium upgrades for The Borg Queen?

  • Krang, Utrom Warlord (about $21.77, in 48% of decks): a 9-mana 9/9 artifact creature that gives your other artifact creatures flying, trample, indestructible and haste. Your cost reducers make it much cheaper.
  • Cybermen Squadron (about $22.27, 36%): your nonlegendary artifact creatures get myriad, so each attacking Borg makes copies that attack your other opponents too.
  • Cyberman Patrol (about $14.45, 33%): gives your artifact creatures afflict 3, so each time one is blocked, the defending player loses 3 life.

Is the We Are the Borg deck worth buying?

Yes, if you like going wide and building one big army. For about $72.69 you get a focused artifact deck, two legends you can lead with and plenty of Borg flavor, and the 10 upgrades above add only about $22. If you’d rather pilot spaceships, read our Federation Fleet upgrade guide for Picard’s deck, or compare all four in our Star Trek Commander decks guide.

We Are the Borg FAQ

Who is the commander of We Are the Borg?

The face commander is The Borg Queen, a 7-mana white, blue and black artifact creature. Locutus of Borg is the second legend, and at 4 mana it’s a faster way to start the Borg token plan.

When does the We Are the Borg deck come out?

It releases on November 13, 2026 with MTG Star Trek. Wizards said on October 16 that the Commander decks may arrive later in North America.

How much does We Are the Borg cost?

The list price is $74.99, and it sold for about $72.69 on TCGplayer on October 28, 2026.

What is the cheapest We Are the Borg upgrade?

Etherium Sculptor and Foundry Inspector cost under 40 cents each, and they’re the two cards early Borg Queen players add most.

Sources: Wizards of the Coast’s Star Trek Commander decklists (October 27, 2026); EDHREC’s The Borg Queen and We Are the Borg pages (261 decks), checked October 28, 2026; card text from Scryfall; prices from TCGplayer. Card images: Wizards of the Coast, via Scryfall.

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