Have you ever found yourself wondering if every even number greater than 2 can be represented as the sum of two prime numbers? Do you know Cheryl’s Birthday? Did you even need a piece of parchment to solve Archimedes’ Cattle Problem? You might find yourself right at home at Quandrix College.
This is the upgrade guide for the Quantum Quandrix pre-constructed Commander deck. In this article, I will offer ideas for cards to include, as well as cards to remove from the precon. Additionally, I will highlight new cards that are coming out with Strixhaven.
A Brief Note on Budget
First, I want to make a quick note about these upgrade recommendations. These lists have a lot of ideas, but they definitely don’t include everything. Feel free to do your own research and find your favorite cards to upgrade the Quantum Quandrix deck with.
Second, there are going to be way more ideas in this article than one deck can handle. You can follow any one upgrade path and focus on that, or pick and choose your favorite parts of multiple paths to make the deck your own.
Third, I am not considering any budget restrictions when making these recommendations. I only want to brainstorm as many fun ideas as possible. Unfortunately, this means that some of the cards I recommend might be outside of some people’s budget ranges. If they are available, I will also do my best to include budget options for a card or effect.
Regardless of your budget or play style, this article will have a ton of great suggestions for powering up your Quantum Quandrix deck. If you would like to purchase the deck, you can order it on Amazon.
Quantum Quandrix Decklist
General Upgrades
I have brainstormed five cool upgrade pathways for this Quantum Quandrix deck. Each one of these pathways, though, have a few things that can make them all powerful. Some of these cards are mana base upgrades, others are just cards that synergize with the commander.
Some of these recommendations can have a powerful impact on your deck’s power level and make your deck play considerably better. Take a few minutes to read through these boring recommendations before getting to the exciting stuff below.
The Mana Base
Lands are a great place to start when upgrading any Commander precon. Having the ability to consistently cast your spells in a lower-powered deck is even more important than with higher power levels. As a result, you want a good chunk of your lands (up to a third of them if you can) to tap for multiple colors.
Additionally, you should prioritize lands that enter the battlefield untapped over the ones that enter tapped. If too many of your lands enter tapped, you won’t will find yourself playing a turn behind your opponents who’s lands enter untapped every time.
With all this being said, though, all decks are unique and have their own set of needs. You should consider each deck’s mana base individually in order to maximize the value you can get out of every land.
This is a short list of lands that tap for blue or green:
Most of those are pretty expensive. Here are some budget alternatives:
If you have to use lands that enter the battlefield tapped, you should make sure they have some other utility. For example:
And don’t forget that lands that tap for mana of any color count as dual lands:
One of the best part about a good mana base is when you can find lands that synergize with your commander’s abilities. For example, Littjara Mirrorlake and Mirrorpool both make copies of creatures. Running these lands basically allows you to play two additional spells in your deck that don’t occupy a spell slot.
General Commander Synergies
For this deck, there are two potential commanders. Both of them want you to make as many creature tokens as you can. For this reason, Doubling Season, Primal Vigor, and Parallel Lives are three of the best cards you can play in any version of this deck.
Unfortunately, these cards are pretty expensive. Because they are such unique cards, there are not really any budget alternatives to them. You could probably get away with not playing them if you don’t have the budget, but they would take your deck to the next level if you could.
If you builds one of the tribal versions of this deck, Reflections of Littjara is sort of a budget Parallel Lives. Similarly, Kindred Discovery and Kindred Summons will be valuable in those tribal decks.
Other great cards for this deck are Blade of Selves, Progenitor Mimic, Esika’s Chariot, Helm of the Host, Faerie Artisans, Mirror Match, and Supplant Form. I’m sure there are tons of other great cards as well. Pretty much anything that cares about creatures tokens, or makes them could work really well in this deck.
What to Take Out
Even though I said that any cards that deal with creature tokens, we might be cutting a lot of cards that do. There are so many of these kinds of the cards in the game that we can afford to be choosey about which ones we include. These are a couple that I think you could find better alternatives for:
- Arashi, the Sky Asunder
- Desolation Twin
- Forgotten Ancient
- Garruk, Primal Hunger
- Hornet Nest
- Hydra Broodmaster
- Incubation Druid
- Kaseto, Orochi Archmage
- Kazandu Tuskcaller
- Managorger Hydra
- Master Biomancer
- Plaxcaster Frogling
- Primal Empathy
Another reason I would recommend cutting some of these cards is because they care about +1/+1 counters. There are a few obscure versions of this deck that could use +1/+1 counters but the ones I’m talking about today (with the exception of upgrade path #5) prioritize tokens over counters.
5 Ways to Upgrade
These are the five directions I thought of taking this deck:
- Tokens
- Voltron
- Wizard Tribal
- Merfolk Tribal
- Fractal Tribal
These are not the only ways to upgrade this deck, just the ones I came up with. If you think of another cool idea, let me know in the comments below.
Power Level
At the beginning of each the next sections I included a range of numbers. That range is what I expect this deck to be able to perform at on a 1-10 power scale (Based on the power scale established by the Command Zone Podcast). For more information on the Commander power scale, you can take a look at the table below.
| Power Level | Name | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 1-2 | Jank | Very little synergy among cards. No Commander staples. Under powered on purpose. |
| 3-4 | Casual | Some synergies, but lacking the strong ones. The deck still lacks focus. Mana curves mostly neglected. A deck that a new player would build. |
| 4-6 | Focused | Synergy exists, the deck has a focused gameplan, although it doesn't always win in the exact same way, usually after turn 13. Includes staples and a small amount of tutors. On the same power level as most Commander precons. |
| 7-8 | Optimized | Powerful and varied synergies between the cards. A decent number of good tutors. Good mana curve. Has an efficient and consistent way to win on turns 10-12 (level 7) or 7-9 (level 8). Some social rules — like no mass land destruction, no consistent combo wins — still exist. |
| 9-10 | Competitive | The most powerful decks, on competitive EDH level. Quick and explosive, can win on turns 4-6 (level 9) or 1-3 (level 10). No social rules, no jank cards. Only the most powerful commanders and strategies can reach this level. |
Actual power levels may vary, but let those numbers be a guide when considering upgrading this deck in those ways.
The last thing before we get started is that at the beginning of each section I outline which commander would be best suited for that section. You don’t necessarily have to follow my recommendation, but I am recommending them for a reason. If you have any questions about my recommendations, feel free to ask me about them in the comments below.
1. Tokens (6-8)
Recommended Commander: Adrix and Nev, Twincasters or Esix, Fractal Bloom
For the first upgrade path for Quantum Quandrix deck, I am going to go a little farther in depth about tokens. The cards that everyone is talking about are Avenger of Zendikar and Master of Waves. These cards are phenomenal, and if you have a copy of either that needs a home, this deck would be a good one.
However, these cards don’t really stretch the boundaries of creativity. If you are looking for a couple more cards with similar (albeit weaker) effects, here are a couple to consider:
- Awakening Zone
- Confirm Suspicions
- Druid’s Deliverance
- Followed Footsteps
- Fresh Meat
- Lithoform Engine
- Mimic Vat
- Quasiduplicate
- Scute Swarm
- Spell Swindle
- Stolen by the Fae
- Sublime Epiphany
- Tendershoot Dryad
- Vizier of Many Faces
Finding cards that make tokens, though, is the easy part. The more difficult and interesting part of building this deck is finding the cards that do cool stuff with tokens. These are a couple that I was able to find:
New Cards From Strixhaven
There are a lot of great cards in this set that make tokens, but some of them are going to be mentioned in later sections. One that stands out to me as being amazing is Double Major. Mascot Exhibition is another card that makes tokens, but it isn’t very efficient for Commander.
What to Take Out
Other than the cards mentioned previously, feel free to take out any other token creators in the Quantum Quandrix deck that you don’t like as well as others. You have so many options in Magic that you should definitely only be playing your favorite ones.
2. Voltron (5-7)
Recommended Commander: Adrix and Nev, Twincasters
The usual tells for whether or not a commander would be a good leader of a Voltron deck is if they have high power and toughness, or if they can protect themselves exceptionally well. In the case of Adrix and Nev, we are investigating the later option.
This commander has a new ability on it called Ward. Ward makes it so an opponent has to pay an additional cost in order to resolve a spell that targets the creature. This makes that creature more difficult to remove, and are therefore a potential candidate for a Voltron deck.
This version of the deck would largely ignore Adrix and Nev’s second ability to make tokens. That ability is obviously the flashier, more powerful ability. If you can find a way to mix the two abilities, please let me know in the comments. I’m sure its a sweet deck.
Taking Advantage of Ward
In order to maximize the effectiveness of Adrix and Nev’s abilities, you should add more abilities that do a similar thing. For example:
- Battle Mammoth
- Callaphe, Beloved of the Sea
- Esior, Wardwing Familiar
- Gargos, Vicious Watcher
- Kasmina, Enigmatic Mentor
- Kira, Great Glass-Spinner
- Kopala, Warden of Waves
- Monastery Siege
- Rayne, Academy Chancellor
- Shaper’s Sanctuary
- Wild Defiance
Even though that added protection will help keep your commanders on the battlefield, they won’t solve your problems entirely. You will still have to guard against board wipes and the occasional removal spell that your opponent is actually able to cast.
The low hanging fruit here is to use counterspells. While this type of strategy tends to be fairly boring, it works in a slightly more exciting way with this deck.
The way Ward is worded, the spell that is targeting Adrix and Nev, Twincasters gets countered if the opponent can’t pay the tax. This means that there is potential for spells to get countered fairly often.
So, including the typical counterspell suite, you should include cards that care about countering spells. For example, something like Baral, Chief of Compliance and Lullmage Mentor.
Which Flavor of Voltron?
Finally, you are going to need to choose a strategy that pumps your commander’s power and toughness. Adrix and Nev are natively a 2/2, which is not going to be able to knock out three opponents. Commonly, Voltron decks use auras, equipment, or pump spells to pull off the win. Any one of these are viable options, but you should probably choose to focus on one of them.
New Cards From Strixhaven
The best card for this deck from the main set is Exponential Growth. This is a card that helps with the latter part of the deck. That is, helping to pump up Adrix and Nev’s power to a level that might actually knock out another player for you. If you have an instant-speed way to pump your commander, Access Tunnel is another really great option.
What to Take Out
There are not really any cards in the Quantum Quandrix deck that contribute to a Voltron build. This deck is designed to be a token deck that goes wide, and this section is trying to convert that to a Voltron deck that goes tall. Because of this, you can pretty much take out any cards that aren’t ramp, removal, or card advantage.
3. Wizard Tribal (5-8)
Recommended Commander: Adrix and Nev, Twincasters
The Wizard Tribal and Merfolk Tribal recommendations in this article are admittedly a bit of a stretch. However, I don’t think that they are unreasonable upgrade paths. The main reason for this is because there are a good handful of cards in both tribes that make tokens of the appropriate tribe.
For example, here are a couple Wizard token makers:
Not only that, but there is an abundance of Wizard tribal support in Magic. The following cards are just the tip of the iceberg:
- Azami, Lady of Scrolls
- Cyclone Summoner
- Galecaster Colossus
- Gempalm Sorcerer
- Inspired Sprite
- Naru Meha, Master Wizard
- Patron Wizard
- Riptide Director
- Sage of Fables
- Sigil Tracer
- Stonybrook Banneret
- Vedalken Aethermage
- Windrider Wizard
Plus, any Wizard tribal deck would be incomplete without Wizard’s Retort. And since you have one counterspell, you might as well throw in more. This will help round out your Wizards with interaction while you develop your board state.
New Cards From Strixhaven
Strixhaven is a perfect set for Wizards. Here are a couple that show up in blue-green:
What to Take Out
Even token generators are probably not going to make the cut from the Quantum Quandrix precon, unless they are or make Wizards. You can keep Wizards like Champion of Wits, Master Biomancer, Curiosity Crafter, Deekah, Fractal Theorist, and Guardian Augmenter can stay, but all of the other creatures can go.
4. Merfolk Tribal (5-7)
Recommended Commander: Adrix and Nev, Twincasters
Similar to Wizard tribal, Merfolk tribal is not what the Quantum Quandrix deck is obviously designed for. However, if you wanted to make a Merfolk-themed token deck, Adrix and Nev might be better even than more traditional Merfolk commanders like Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca.
Here are a few of the many Merfolk cards that make tokens:
Admittedly, these are not enough cards to fill out an entire deck. You are going to need to throw in some more Merfolk support in order for the deck to be functional:
- Deeproot Elite
- Forerunner of the Heralds
- Kopala, Warden of Waves
- Kumena, Tyrant of Orazca
- Lord of Atlantis
- Master of the Pearl Trident
- Merfolk Mistbinder
- Merfolk Sovereign
- Merrow Harbinger
- Merrow Reejerey
- Seafloor Oracle
- Seahunter
- Stonybrook Banneret
And since Merfolk are such an old tribe, they have cool non-Creature cards that synergize specifically with them. Merrow Commerce and Aquitect’s Will are two such cards.
New Cards From Strixhaven
Strixhaven even has a couple of Merfolk that you could add to the deck if you want. They are:
What to Take Out
The entire precon doesn’t have a single other Merfolk in it. Feel free to take out all of the creatures and just replace them with the best Merfolk you can find in blue-green.
5. Fractal Tribal (4-5)
Recommended Commander: Esix, Fractal Bloom
Last, but certainly not least, we have an Quantum Quandrix upgrade path that couldn’t have even existed before Strixhaven. In the set, we got tons of cards that make tokens with a new Creature type on them: Fractals. These tokens pretty much always enter as 0/0’s and come with +1/+1 counters on them. They are neat little tokens, but the only direct support they get is from Strixhaven.
There are, however, a couple of cards that help supplement the lack of Fractals in the game:
Each of these cards either turn your other creatures into Fractals, or reward you for having a bunch of them. These cards are important, because a lot of the support cards are Creatures that are not Fractals. For example:
If you can turn these Creatures into Fractals, you can make a pretty cohesive deck with this strategy.
Other cards that have synergy with +1/+1 counters are:
- Biogenic Upgrade
- Branching Evolution
- Hadana’s Climb
- Hardened Scales
- Inspiring Call
- Solidarity of Heroes
- The Ozolith
Since all Fractals have +1/+1 counters, these will boost the power of an otherwise weak tribe.
New Cards From Strixhaven
The trickiest part about a Fractal tribal deck, is that not all cards that make Fractals do so in the same way. What I mean by that, is that each card that makes Fractals puts +1/+1 counters on them based on a different variable. One wants you to have a lot of cards in your deck, another in your hand, another in your graveyard. Because of this, you are going to need a deck that checks a wide variety of boxes.
Here are the cards who’s requirements you are going to need to meet in order to make Fractals:
- Augmenter Pugilist
- Body of Research
- Emergent Sequence
- Fractal Summoning
- Kasmina, Enigma Sage
- Kianne, Dean of Substance
- Leyline Invocation
- Manifestation Sage
- Serpentine Curve
Additionally, Tanazir Quandrix appears to be a Legendary Creature which would make a good Fractals commander. Their ability acts as an Overrun ability to Creatures with small base power/toughness, which exactly describes Fractals. I think that it would be unwise to exclude this card in a Fractals deck.
What to Take Out
Biomathematician, Geometric Nexus, Oversimplify, Sequence Engine, Paradox Zone, Fractal Harness, and Deekah, Fractal Theorist are cards from the Commander deck that make Fractals. Pretty much all other creatures can come out of the deck.
Quantum Quandrix – Conclusion
And with that, we finish another upgrade article. Thank you so much for making it to the end of the Quantum Quandrix Upgrade Guide. Let me know which one of these builds you like best or are going to build. If you have any suggestions or comments, feel free to leave them below or find me on Instagram or Twitter.
Also, please check out my other upgrade articles for the Commander 2021 decks. Hopefully they can inspire you to build a fun Commander deck that you will love.
More Strixhaven
If you want to open some of the new Strixhaven cards, to upgrade your Quantum Quandrix deck with, you can purchase a booster box on Amazon.
If you want the shiniest and the rarest card, you can check the Strixhaven Collector Booster contents here.
More Commander
Would you like to check upgrade guides for other Commander 2021 / Strixhaven decks? They are listed here:
- Lorehold Legacies Upgrade Guide
- Prismari Performance Upgrade Guide
- Silverquill Statement Upgrade Guide
- Witherbloom Witchcraft Upgrade Guide
However, if none of these precons suit you, you can find all Commander precons here.
Until next time, enjoy Magic and have fun with your upgraded Quantum Quandrix Commander deck!