The Borg Queen gives your artifact creatures +2/+2, and whenever she enters or attacks she makes an opponent exile cards from their library until a creature card shows up, which you assimilate: it joins your board with a +1/+1 counter as a Borg artifact creature. Nearly every creature in the precon is a Borg artifact creature, so the Queen pumps the whole team and turns every attack into a stolen creature.
Each swap below pairs a cut with an add, and every card is scored with the same numbers the Oracle uses to build decks: synergy and inclusion from those Borg Queen decks, plus lift, which shows how much more often a card turns up in them than in decks that could play it.
Looking for the unmodified list first? Read the We Are the Borg precon guide.
What is holding the deck back
Mana pieces that cost more than they give
Commander's Sphere, Wayfarer's Bauble and Stonespeaker Crystal are each played in about one Borg Queen deck in six. The deck already has Sol Ring, Arcane Signet, Everflowing Chalice and three Talismans, and the data favours making artifacts cost less over adding more rocks.
Too few cost reducers
Etherium Sculptor, Foundry Inspector and Thought Monitor all make artifact spells cheaper or to cast, and the deck is full of artifacts. Etherium Sculptor and Foundry Inspector are among the highest-scoring cards the precon leaves out.
Narrow or low-impact cards
Return to Dust only answers artifacts and enchantments, Darksteel Plate adds indestructible to one creature, and Astral Cornucopia costs three mana for X to make mana. Each is played in about one Borg Queen deck in five or six.
The 6 swaps
Each pair shows the numbers for the card coming out and the card going in. Click a card image to zoom.
Commander's Sphere is a {3} artifact that taps for one mana of your commander's colours and can be sacrificed to draw a card. It is played in about one Borg Queen deck in six.
Etherium Sculptor is a 1/2 artifact creature for {1}{U}. Artifact spells you cast cost {1} less. With the Borg Queen out it is a 3/4, and it makes most of the nonland cards in this deck cheaper.
Wayfarer's Bauble is a {1} artifact that costs {2}, {T} and a sacrifice to fetch a basic land onto the battlefield tapped. It is played in about one Borg Queen deck in six.
Foundry Inspector is a 3/2 artifact creature for {3}. Artifact spells you cast cost {1} less. It is another cost reducer in a deck whose creatures, mana rocks and Spacecraft are all artifacts, and it is a creature the Borg Queen pumps.
Return to Dust is a {2}{W}{W} instant that exiles an artifact or enchantment, and up to one more if you cast it in your main phase. It is played in about one Borg Queen deck in six, and an artifact deck rarely wants to exile artifacts.
Uthros Research Craft is a {2}{U} Spacecraft. Station it by tapping creatures and, from 3 charge counters, every artifact spell you cast draws a card and adds a charge counter. At 12 or more counters it becomes an artifact creature with flying and +1/+0 for each artifact you control. In this deck that is a steady card engine.
Stonespeaker Crystal is a {4} artifact that taps for {C}{C} and can be sacrificed with {2} to exile graveyards and draw a card. It is played in about one Borg Queen deck in six.
Thought Monitor is a 2/2 flying artifact creature for {6}{U} with affinity for artifacts, so it costs {1} less for each artifact you control, and it draws two cards when it enters. In a deck of this many artifacts it usually costs a few mana, and with the Borg Queen it is a 4/4 flier.
Darksteel Plate is a {3} Equipment with indestructible that gives the equipped creature indestructible, with equip {2}. It is played in about one Borg Queen deck in five.
Ephemerate is a {W} instant that exiles a creature you control and returns it, and with rebound you can cast it again from exile on your next upkeep. Blinking the Borg Queen makes her enter again, so she assimilates another creature, and it also saves a creature from removal. It is played in about one Borg Queen deck in three.
Astral Cornucopia is an artifact that costs {X}{X}{X} and taps for one mana of a chosen colour for each charge counter. It is played in about one Borg Queen deck in six.
Iron Man, Bleeding Edge is a 3/5 flying artifact creature for {3}{U}{U}. Whenever you cast an artifact spell you may copy it, once each turn, and the copy is a token that is not legendary. Every turn you cast an artifact, you get a second one.
The full swap list
Cut
- Commander's Sphere
- Wayfarer's Bauble
- Return to Dust
- Stonespeaker Crystal
- Darksteel Plate
- Astral Cornucopia
Add
- Etherium Sculptor
- Foundry Inspector
- Uthros Research Craft
- Thought Monitor
- Ephemerate
- Iron Man, Bleeding Edge
What to keep
These cards are doing the deck's heavy lifting. Do not cut them.
- Locutus of Borg$19.95
Played in 80% of Borg Queen decks. Lifelink, and every artifact creature you control makes a 1/1 Borg token when it deals combat damage to a player. - One, Borg Evolved$49.95
Played in 81% of Borg Queen decks. Gives every artifact creature you control flying, double strike, vigilance, menace, lifelink and ward {2}. - Co-Option Adjutant
Played in 72% of Borg Queen decks. Every artifact creature you control draws a card when it deals combat damage to a player. - Type-03 Borg Vessel$14.95
Played in 67% of Borg Queen decks. Artifact spells cost {1} less, and at 7 charge counters it makes a 1/1 Borg token whenever you cast a spell. - Hugh, First of Many$28.95
Played in 64% of Borg Queen decks. Gives your artifact spells replicate {2}{U}, so one card becomes several.
If you want to spend more
These are strong cards that cost more than the swaps above. Prices are the cheapest paper printing.
- Cryptothrall$23.14
Cryptothrall ({4}) scores 37: it is in 37% of The Borg Queen decks with 36% synergy. It reads: Protector: Other artifact creatures you control have hexproof. - Krang, Utrom Warlord$22.71
Krang, Utrom Warlord ({9}) scores 36: it is in 37% of The Borg Queen decks with 36% synergy. It reads: Flying, trample, indestructible, haste. Other artifact creatures you control have flying, trample, indestructible, and haste. - Inventors' Fair$18.03
Inventors' Fair scores 28: it is in 31% of The Borg Queen decks with 26% synergy. It reads: At the beginning of your upkeep, if you control three or more artifacts, you gain 1 life. {T}: Add {C}. {4}, {T}, Sacrifice Inventors' Fair: Search your library for an artifact card, reveal it, put it into your hand, then shuffle. Activate only if you control three or more artifacts. - The Mind Stone$47.93
The Mind Stone ({1}{W}) scores 27: it is in 28% of The Borg Queen decks with 26% synergy. It reads: Indestructible. {T}: Add {W}. {5}{W}, {T}: Harness The Mind Stone. ∞: At the beginning of your end step, exile up to one other target nonland permanent you control, then return that card to the battlefield under its owner's control.
The precon's engine is already close to what the first Borg Queen decks play: its best cards, Locutus of Borg and One, Borg Evolved, are in about four decks in five. The upgrade is more artifact cost reducers and card draw, in place of clunky mana rocks and narrow answers. These six swaps cost about $14 in total, keep the deck's identity intact, and are based on early data that we will update after release.
Want a full 100-card list built around The Borg Queen from today's data?
Build with The Oracle →Frequently asked questions
What are the best upgrades for the We Are the Borg precon?
Using data from 801 The Borg Queen decks, the highest-scoring additions are Etherium Sculptor (for Commander's Sphere), Foundry Inspector (for Wayfarer's Bauble) and Ephemerate (for Darksteel Plate). The full list has 6 swaps, each scored with synergy, inclusion and lift.
How much does it cost to upgrade We Are the Borg?
All 6 swaps cost about $13.55 at the cheapest paper printings (TCGplayer market prices via Scryfall, 2026-11-03). If you want to spend more, the guide also covers Cryptothrall ($23.14), Krang, Utrom Warlord ($22.71), Inventors' Fair ($18.03) and The Mind Stone ($47.93).
What should I cut from We Are the Borg?
The weakest cards for this commander are Commander's Sphere, Wayfarer's Bauble and Return to Dust. The guide explains the reason for every cut, and swaps each one for a card that scores higher.
Which cards should I keep in We Are the Borg?
Keep Locutus of Borg, One, Borg Evolved, Co-Option Adjutant, Type-03 Borg Vessel and Hugh, First of Many. These are the cards doing the deck's heavy lifting.
What does The Borg Queen do?
The Borg Queen gives your artifact creatures +2/+2, and whenever she enters or attacks she makes an opponent exile cards from their library until a creature card shows up, which you assimilate: it joins your board with a +1/+1 counter as a Borg artifact creature. Nearly every creature in the precon is a Borg artifact creature, so the Queen pumps the whole team and turns every attack into a stolen creature.
More Star Trek Commander upgrade guides
How the numbers work
Inclusion is the share of The Borg Queen decks (801 of them when this was written, 2026-11-03) that play the card. Synergy is how much more often they play it than other decks in the same colours. Oracle score is synergy × 0.6 plus inclusion × 0.4, the same blend The Oracle uses to rank cards for a deck. Lift compares how often the card appears in these decks with how often it could, capped at 8× here; it is shown for context and does not change the score.
Two cautions. Players who run the precon unmodified count as The Borg Queen decks, which flatters every card the precon contains. And lift is very high for many Star Trek cards because they are new and rarely played outside Star Trek decks, so use lift to compare cards, not to judge one in isolation. Prices are the cheapest non-foil paper printing on TCGplayer (via Scryfall), in USD, and move daily.