Short answer: You can make a real upgrade to any of the four MTG Marvel Super Heroes Commander decks for under $30. Avengers Assemble gets all 10 of our picks for $17.59. The Fantastic Four gets nine cards that fix its four-color mana for $23.83. Doom Prevails gets eight discard payoffs led by Leader, Super-Genius for $28.32. Wakanda Forever gets nine cards led by Chimil, the Inner Sun for $29.55. Every pick comes from what players actually run on EDHREC, priced on TCGplayer.
Updated October 24, 2026 · Play rates from EDHREC · TCGplayer market prices checked October 24, 2026
Who this is for: You own one of the Marvel precons and have about $30 to spend on it. Each section below lists the best cards that fit the budget, with a link to that deck’s full guide, which also covers the 10 cards to cut and land upgrades.
How much does it cost to upgrade each Marvel precon?
| Deck | Deck price | Under-$30 package | Full guide |
|---|---|---|---|
| Avengers Assemble | About $49 | 10 cards, $17.59 | Avengers guide |
| The Fantastic Four | About $38 | 9 cards, $23.83 | Fantastic Four guide |
| Doom Prevails | About $68 | 8 cards, $28.32 | Doom guide |
| Wakanda Forever | About $41 | 9 cards, $29.55 | Wakanda guide |
Prices move fast. Follow @HelloNerdsnack on X for price drops and new chase cards.
Deck prices are TCGplayer market prices for the regular (non-Collector’s Edition) decks. Card prices are for the cheapest English printing.
Avengers Assemble: best upgrades under $30
Captain America, Team Leader gives every Hero that enters haste and a +1/+1 counter, and grows himself too. These cards add more cheap Heroes, use those counters, and protect your board. All 10 picks from our full guide fit the budget with room to spare.
| Card | Why it’s worth it | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Agent Phil Coulson | Taps to put a +1/+1 counter on every other Hero. In 72% of Captain America decks. | $0.29 |
| Captain America, Wings of Freedom | Pumps every other Hero by his toughness when he attacks. | $0.37 |
| SP//dr, Piloted by Peni | Draws a card whenever a creature with counters hits a player. | $0.31 |
| Daredevil, Man Without Fear | An extra card every time you attack. | $0.30 |
| Path to Exile | One-mana removal that replaces Make Your Move. | $1.15 |
| Spider-Woman, Stunning Savior | Opponents’ creatures and artifacts enter tapped. | $1.49 |
| Captain America, Super-Soldier | Gives you and your other Heroes hexproof. | $2.48 |
| Avengers Assemble! | Heroes get +2/+2, and you draw a card most turns. | $2.87 |
| Hawkeye, Trick Shot | Every Hero that enters deals damage equal to your Hero count. | $3.64 |
| Spectacular Spider-Man | A two-drop that saves your board from a wipe. | $4.69 |
| Total | 10 cards | $17.59 |
Cut first: Speed, Young Avenger, Love on the Battlefield and Patriot, Shield Wielder. Full list in our Avengers Assemble upgrade guide.
The Fantastic Four: best upgrades under $30
All four commanders reward you for casting a noncreature spell before combat, and their best abilities cost {R}{G}{W}{U}. These cards add cheap spells, mana that makes every color, and the main-set versions of the family. Only Bloom Tender ($13.29) misses the cut.
| Card | Why it’s worth it | Price |
|---|---|---|
| The Thing, Ben Grimm | A 7/7 trampler that grows whenever your Heroes deal damage. | $0.14 |
| Human Torch, Johnny Storm | Pings an opponent whenever you draw, if you control another Hero. | $0.20 |
| Invisible Woman, Sue Storm | Makes a 0/4 Wall whenever your other Heroes get counters. | $0.21 |
| Faeburrow Elder | Taps for one mana of each of your colors. | $0.49 |
| Swords to Plowshares | One-mana removal. In 44% of Mister Fantastic decks. | $1.25 |
| Nature’s Lore | Fetches a Forest dual like Temple Garden, untapped. | $2.10 |
| Counterspell | Stops a board wipe, and counts as a noncreature spell. | $2.83 |
| Birds of Paradise | Any color from turn two. | $7.38 |
| Heroic Intervention | Saves your board from a wipe. | $9.23 |
| Total | 9 cards | $23.83 |
Cut first: Dragon Man, Negative Zone Portal and Path of Discovery. Full list in our Fantastic Four upgrade guide.
Doom Prevails: best upgrades under $30
Doctor Doom drains each opponent for 2 whenever you discard a land, and makes a Villain connive every combat. These cards pay you for every discard. Norman Osborn ($14.45) and Green Goblin, Nemesis ($10.07) are the next two to buy if you can stretch the budget.
| Card | Why it’s worth it | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Doom Reigns Supreme | Drains each opponent whenever a Villain enters. | $0.29 |
| Green Goblin, Revenant | Draws a card for each card you’ve discarded this turn. | $0.32 |
| Leader, Super-Genius | A second connive every combat, plus an extra card. In 70% of Doom decks. | $0.33 |
| Archfiend of Ifnir | Every discard shrinks your opponents’ creatures. | $0.37 |
| M.O.D.O.K. | Connive on demand, and opposing creatures get -1/-1. | $2.57 |
| Cool but Rude | Every discard deals 2 damage to each opponent. | $5.68 |
| Doctor Octopus, Master Planner | Refills your hand to eight every end step. | $6.11 |
| Monument to Endurance | Each discard draws, makes a Treasure or drains 3. | $12.65 |
| Total | 8 cards | $28.32 |
Cut first: Superior Foes of Spider-Man, Damocles Base and Lady Loki. Full list in our Doom Prevails upgrade guide.
Wakanda Forever: best upgrades under $30
T’Challa makes a Vibranium token (mana for artifact spells only) whenever he enters or attacks, and gets two +1/+1 counters whenever you cast an artifact that costs 4 or more. These cards are mostly artifacts that use that mana. Genji Glove ($7.62) is the one pick from our full guide that doesn’t fit.
| Card | Why it’s worth it | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Bronze Guardian | Double strike, with power equal to your artifact count. | $0.35 |
| Path to Exile | One-mana removal. | $1.15 |
| Swords to Plowshares | One-mana removal. In 47% of T’Challa decks. | $1.25 |
| Jhoira’s Familiar | Your artifacts and legends cost {1} less. | $1.40 |
| Kutzil, Malamet Exemplar | Draws when T’Challa connects, and stops opponents casting spells on your turn. | $2.37 |
| Mystic Forge | Cast artifacts from the top of your library. | $2.59 |
| Thousand Moons Smithy | A growing Gnome now, and a land that makes more of them later. | $2.91 |
| Chimil, the Inner Sun | A free spell every end step. In 47% of T’Challa decks. | $8.30 |
| Heroic Intervention | Saves your board from a wipe. | $9.23 |
| Total | 9 cards | $29.55 |
Cut first: Divine Visitation, Palace Jailer and Queen Mother Ramonda. Full list in our Wakanda Forever upgrade guide.
Which cards are worth adding to more than one Marvel deck?
If you own several of the decks, a few cards show up in more than one list:
- Swords to Plowshares and Path to Exile: one-mana removal for the three decks with white.
- Heroic Intervention: protects your board in the two green decks, Wakanda Forever and The Fantastic Four.
- Counterspell: worth a slot in any of the three blue decks.
Buy one copy per deck you actually play. Swapping cards between decks gets old fast.
Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the cheapest Marvel precon to upgrade?
Avengers Assemble. All 10 picks in our guide cost $17.59 together on October 24, 2026.
Which Marvel precon gets the most out of upgrades?
The Fantastic Four. It’s the least consistent deck out of the box because of its four-color mana, and cheap fixing like Birds of Paradise and Faeburrow Elder fixes most of that.
Where do these picks come from?
Each one is among the most-played cards that aren’t in the precon, in that commander’s decks on EDHREC. We then checked prices on TCGplayer.
Sources: EDHREC commander and precon pages for Captain America, Team Leader; Mister Fantastic; Doctor Doom, King of Latveria; and T’Challa, the Black Panther, checked October 24, 2026; TCGplayer market prices checked October 24, 2026.
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