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Traditional Draft BRO 11 January 2023

11 January 02:21 - Nyx 3 Wins - 2 Losses
Maindeck
Creature (16)
2 Lat-Nam Adept image
1 Stone Retrieval Unit image
1 Spotter Thopter image
2 Harbin, Vanguard Aviator image
1 Great Desert Prospector image
1 Third Path Savant image
1 Coastal Bulwark image
1 Yotian Medic image
1 Tocasia's Onulet image
1 Adaptive Automaton image
1 Hulking Metamorph image
1 Terisian Mindbreaker image
1 Zephyr Sentinel image
1 Ambush Paratrooper image
Instant, Sorcery, Enchantment, Artifact (8)
1 Mesmeric Orb image
1 Disenchant image
1 Mightstone's Animation image
2 Stern Lesson image
1 Supply Drop image
1 Soul Partition image
1 Loran's Escape image
Land (17)
8 Plains image
9 Island image
Sideboard
1 Perennial Behemoth image
1 Ashnod's Harvester image
1 Hoarding Recluse image
1 Third Path Savant image
1 Misery's Shadow image
1 Combat Courier image
1 Gixian Infiltrator image
1 Mine Worker image
1 Carrion Locust image
1 Overwhelming Remorse image
1 Epic Confrontation image
2 Moment of Defiance image
1 Fog of War image
1 Tawnos's Tinkering image
1 Stern Lesson image
2 Machine Over Matter image
1 Aeronaut's Wings image
1 Chromatic Lantern image
1 Desynchronize image

Pack 1 Pick 1: Perennial Behemoth
Mishra's Bauble image 1.5 This is a free artifact that replaces itself, though it does take a whole turn to actually replace itself, so the UR deck won’t be quite as excited about this one
Perennial Behemoth image 2.5 Green decks in the format will certainly be milling themselves, and Evolving Wilds is at Common in the set, and that’s always a sweet combo with this type of effect. This also has some passable defensive stats, and the ability to come back from the yard is some nice additional upside – sometimes you’ll be able to Unearth it and play a land!
Hulking Metamorph image 3.5 A 4-mana 3/3 that can copy any creature or artifact you contro is pretty good. It won’t ever be worse than a 3/3, and it doesn’t take that much in addition to that stat-line for you to feel like you’re getting a decent deal. Just add a key word, static ability, or ETB ability and you’re doing fine. The flip side of course is that if you have some really big creatures it will be smaller, but that’s okay.
Gaea's Courser image 3.5 This is a great payoff for loading the graveyard. In Black/Green decks especially, it will generate some 2-for-1s or better.
Third Path Iconoclast image 3.5 This is basically a gold version of Young Pyromancer – it is harder to cast than the ‘mancer, but it also counts all noncreature spells and not just instants and sorceries! This thing can generate quite the army and make all of your spells significantly better
Military Discipline image 1.5 The turn you cast this, it will definitely help your creature win combat, and then you get a permanent +1/+0 effect to stick around. This will definitely generate some serious tempo sometimes, allowing your creature to survive against something that costs a lot more mana! It does have the inherent risks auras have, and you have to be careful about playing this, but I think this seems solid.
Wasteful Harvest image 1.5 This format does have a deck that really wants to mill cards, but I’m still not super into this. Three mana to get a single permanent back from the graveyard is pretty underwhelming, even with mill attached. I’d much rather impact the board and mill myself at the same time, and there are ways to do that in the format
Whirling Strike image 1.5 This is a solid trick, as it will usually keep your creature alive, kill the opposing creature, and even do some trample damage! It gets better in a set with Prowess and other spell payoffs
Aeronaut's Wings image 2.0 +1/+0 and Flying is enough to make a creature a problem for your opponent, even if two to play and two to equip will feel a little clunky.
Scrapwork Cohort image 2.5 A 4-mana 3/1 that makes a 1/1 token is a playable card, especially in a format where one card making multiple artifacts matters. So, the fact it can Unearth and leave behind some permanent value in the form of that 1/1 is some nice late game upside to have.
Perimeter Patrol image 2.5 A three mana 3/3 is solid, and this has some real upside that will let it attack a lot more effectively
Koilos Roc image 3.0 A 5-mana 3/3 with Flash and Flying is usually playable, as it not only allows you to leave mana up for other stuff, you can flash it in to ambush something – so I’m pretty happy that this also adds a powerstone to the mix. Because of Flash, you’ll also be able to use that powerstone most of the time when you untap.
Yotian Medic image 2.0 This is a solid little defensive creature. It can block for a lot of the game while giving you back some life, which is certainly going to be a pain for aggro decks
Moment of Defiance image 2.0 This is a bit expensive for a trick that only boosts toughness by 1, which means that oftentimes your creature will also die, but it definitely makes up for that by drawing you a card. In situations where you creature does survive, you get a 2-for-1, and in situations where it doesn’t, you break even while gaining some life. It also draws you a card, checking the box for the Blue-Black deck. That seems fine to me
Deadly Riposte image 2.5 This is a solid removal spell for non-aggressive decks, as removing something and gaining life goes a long way towards helping you stabilize. Meanwhile, it is pretty bad in a deck that wants to be aggressive, as you’d rather have removal that can deal with blockers, and this just doesn’t! It demands a tapped creature and the creature has to be small for this to do its job, so it certainly isn’t premium.
Pack 1 Pick 2: Ashnod's Harvester
Springleaf Drum image 1.0 It is surprisingly hard to set up this kind of mana ramp in Limited. This can get your mana going incredibly fast provided you have some early creatures, but that’s far from guaranteed, and then by the mid-to-late game it has waning usefulness
Heavyweight Demolisher image 2.0 A 7-mana 8/6 with Menace is no joke..but it isn’t so good that I like the fact that it punishes you by making you pay three mana just to untap it. The Unearth upside is sweet of course, as your opponent has to account for it or end up dying in the late game, but the untap tax is enough for me to really feel like I won’t always be happy about playing this
Ashnod's Harvester image 3.0 A two mana 3/1 that hates on the graveyard will pretty much always make the cut, especially one that’s an artifact! Unearth and other graveyard action is a very real presence in the format, and being able to take one of those away from your opponent will feel pretty nice! It can even Unearth on its own to take a card out of it has to, and a 3/1 is an effective attacker on many boards
Junkyard Genius image 3.5 As usual, Black-Red has a sacrifice theme – one that feels a lot like what we saw in Forgotten Realms, a few sets back. It can sacrifice creatures, but can also sacrifice a plentiful artifact token resource in the set – in this case, Powerstones. This comes with one of those stones, so you can use this ability without any extra help, and it is a pretty strong one! +1/+0 and Menace makes a board a heck of a lot more imposing, and there is plenty of other sacrifice support in the set. The one thing this doesn’t have going for it is the awful stat-line, but it largely overcomes that to be a pretty powerful signpost Uncommon
Tower Worker image 2.0 Ramp is a real thing in this format, so this will certainly be seeing some play. Getting the other two Assembly-Workers in play at the same time is a fun goal, but don’t count on it
Scatter Ray image 2.5 This looks like a very nice counterspell for the format, as creatures and artifacts are going to make up the bulk of spells in most decks. It isn’t a hard counter, but 4 mana is enough that it will be relevant all game long. One downside in this format: powerstones can be used to help pay for costs like this.
Depth Charge Colossus image 1.0 I don’t love this. Both modes are pretty inefficient for a creature you have to pay extra mana for to untap. Even with powerstones I don’t think I’m playing this.
Mishra's Onslaught image 1.5 You are overpaying for both modes on this card – usually each of these effects costs three. You do get some modality here, but the token effect is generally underpowered while the mass pump effect is narrow, so I think this will get cut a fair bit
Lat-Nam Adept image 2.5 4-mana 3/3s have felt pretty awful lately, but this one can grow throughout the game as you draw more cards – and that’s one of the format’s main archetypes, so this will certainly have a home in the format.
Power Plant Worker image 2.0 This is a fun cycle, since they all reference the original Urza lands. I think the card seems pretty decent too. The stats aren’t great, but +2/+2 for three mana isn’t the worst rate in a set with power stones everywhere. I wouldn’t count on getting all three of these in play, but you might achieve it on occasion.
Perimeter Patrol image 2.5 A three mana 3/3 is solid, and this has some real upside that will let it attack a lot more effectively
Disenchant image 2.5 This is a solid main deck card in this format. There are lots of artifacts and a decent number of Enchantments. It is efficient and Instant speed too, which is always nice.
Gix's Caress image 1.5 Coercion is basically never good in Limited, and that’s what the first part of this card is. Paying three to trade one-for-one and not do anything on the board is a real problem, even if you do get to disrupt your opponent. This gives you a little thing back in the form of a powerstone, which certainly makes it better – but I still don’t like this.
Veteran's Powerblade image 1.5 One mana to equip this is pretty nice, but three to cast is always going to feel pretty ugly. Still, it makes your solder tokens into 3/1s, which means they can swing in most cases! Obviously works with other soldiers too, but I don’t really feel like this is the soldier payoff you’re really hoping for when you draft the UW deck.
Pack 1 Pick 3: Overwhelming Remorse
Liquimetal Coating image 0.0 You don’t want to be doing this. For the most part, this effect is meaningless! There are of course some cornercases – like if you have a card that destroys artifacts you can make it destroy any permanent – or if you need another artifact in play for some effect it can do that, but there’s a reason I said “corner cases.” This just doesn’t do enough.
Blanchwood Armor image 0.0 // 2.5 This is a reprint, and it is not especially good in Limited. It can offer a huge boost, especially if you’re heavy Green, but it doesn’t do enough to mitigate against the downside of getting 2-for-1’d. There are some good targets for it in the format for sure, but having one of those targets in play is additional set up in addition to needing a bunch of Forests!
Spotter Thopter image 3.0 A 4-mana ⅔ that scries 2 is a 2.5 at very worst. Scrying 2 isn’t that far off from drawing a card! So, the fact it has late-game upside as an 8-mana ⅘ that Scries 4 is pretty nice.
Fallaji Dragon Engine image 3.0 So, a three mana ⅓ with Flying that can raise its power is probably a 2.5, and an 8 mana 5/5 Flyer with that ability is probably a 1.5. However, a card that can be either of those things is significantly better, especially in a set with an Artifact theme!
Kill-Zone Acrobat image 2.0 There are plenty of expendable things to give up to give this flying when it needs it to get in for damage – whether you’re giving up powerstones or creatures with unearth
Tocasia's Onulet image 2.0 A 5-mana 4/4 that gains you 2 life when it dies is probably a 1.5. This has a pretty reasonable Unearth cost too, though, and you get to gain 2 more life!
Veteran's Powerblade image 1.5 One mana to equip this is pretty nice, but three to cast is always going to feel pretty ugly. Still, it makes your solder tokens into 3/1s, which means they can swing in most cases! Obviously works with other soldiers too, but I don’t really feel like this is the soldier payoff you’re really hoping for when you draft the UW deck.
Scrapwork Rager image 3.0 This is a fun reference to Phyrexian Rager. When you cast it, it is a little bit worse, since you pay one more mana for the same effect – but the Unearth side of things means this bad boy gives you a 2-for-1, and that’s pretty nice.
Whirling Strike image 1.5 This is a solid trick, as it will usually keep your creature alive, kill the opposing creature, and even do some trample damage! It gets better in a set with Prowess and other spell payoffs
Overwhelming Remorse image 3.5 A card that was always 5 for this effect is probably a 3.0, and this will often cost significantly less, especially in graveyard decks. Just getting it down to 4 is pretty much getting you to the premium level, and it will often be even cheaper
Weakstone's Subjugation image 3.0 I really like this design, and think it actually makes for a really good Blue removal spell. Only paying one mana when the creature is tapped is perfectly reasonable, and sort of “kicking it” to tap the creature down for 4 mana is fine too. The creature can still do all kinds of stuff, unfortunately – like use abilities, be sacrificed, and so on – so it isn’t really premium.
Wasteful Harvest image 1.5 This format does have a deck that really wants to mill cards, but I’m still not super into this. Three mana to get a single permanent back from the graveyard is pretty underwhelming, even with mill attached. I’d much rather impact the board and mill myself at the same time, and there are ways to do that in the format
Tomakul Scrapsmith image 2.5 You either get a three mana 3/2, or a three mana 2/1 that draws you an Artifact. Obviously the latter option is the better one, and this would be at least a 3.5 if that’s what it was – but it will only do that half the time, and the 3/2 option is less exciting. It also takes a bit of a hti because Red is not very interested in the graveyard in this set, so loading it up a little bit is unlikely to give you any extra value
Pack 1 Pick 4: Epic Confrontation
Ivory Tower image 0.0 This isn’t good in Limited. You need to be a draw go style control deck to really make this gain you life that matters, and that just doesn’t happen in Limited. This will frequently do nothing or close to nothing.
Thran Vigil image 1.0 // 3.0 This will mostly trigger off of Unearth in this format, but there are other ways to get it going in Black, as we’ve seen in this video. Obviously, this is a build around, because not all decks – even Black decks – will reach the critical mass of synergy needed to make this thing do its job.
Battery Bearer image 4.0 This looks like a very strong signpost Uncommon. Obviously, Blue-Green is about ramping into artifacts, including with powerstones – and the Bearer comes with the ability to make all of your creatures powerstone-like which is pretty powerful in a format with lots of ways to spend that mana. And it even has a shot at drawing you a few cards, which is awesome. It just feels like this format has a make-up that this card can really abused.
Argothian Opportunist image 3.0 This seems like a bread-and-butter Common for Green decks. It has passable stats and gets you some power stone ramp going.
Coastal Bulwark image 2.0 Obviously, if you’re playing Blue, this is going to be a 3/3 – and a wall that can Surveil 1 is going to be a solid thing to have in more defensive decks.
Scrapwork Rager image 3.0 This is a fun reference to Phyrexian Rager. When you cast it, it is a little bit worse, since you pay one more mana for the same effect – but the Unearth side of things means this bad boy gives you a 2-for-1, and that’s pretty nice.
Supply Drop image 2.0 This is a pretty interesting design! Three mana for +2/+2 isn’t a great rate for a trick, but you can cash it in for a card later, giving it some real 2-for-1 potential in a format that has a fair bit of Artifact synergy too.
Power Plant Worker image 2.0 This is a fun cycle, since they all reference the original Urza lands. I think the card seems pretty decent too. The stats aren’t great, but +2/+2 for three mana isn’t the worst rate in a set with power stones everywhere. I wouldn’t count on getting all three of these in play, but you might achieve it on occasion.
Epic Confrontation image 3.5 This is a reprint, and it was a premium removal spell last time. The stats boost is surprisingly effective at helping your creature win the fight. You do have to be careful with this kind of removal spell, because if your opponent can respond by removing your creature you get blown out, and that does matter – but you can often find a good window to cast this
Powerstone Engineer image 2.0 Trading this off and getting a powerstone in the process seems fine.
Fallaji Archaeologist image 2.5 This is a cool design. It will either be a two mana ¼ – which is passable – or a two mana 0/3 that gets you something from the graveyard. Now, keep in mind you only get the card back if it is among those that are milled – and this only hits noncreature nonlands, so you may wiff sometimes. But if you’re a spell heavy deck in the format – which generally means UR – it seems like this will do what you want it to do most of the time, and at least you get a consolation prize if you do wiff.
Mishra's Domination image 1.5 This has some nice flexibility, as it can be a decent removal spell for an aggro deck or a way to buff a creature. It doesn’t do either thing well, though
Pack 1 Pick 5: Lat-Nam Adept
Bone Saw image 0.0 0 mana artifacts are exciting for constructed, but they aren’t nearly as good in Limited because what you get is usually a card that isn’t worth an entire card – and that’s definitely what Bone Saw is. Especially in a set without any real equipment theme. Playing this will feel like you took a mulligan
Meticulous Excavation image 0.0 I don’t think this is very good. It does give you ways to rebuy ETB abilities and the like, but it asks for a ton of mana that you’re only going to have available in the extreme late game. And yes, with powerstones around this will be easier to use, but I don’t think that makes enough of a difference. The whole Unearth part of the card is kind of silly too, because to take advantage of it, you’re going to need to pay to Unearth a creature and then pay three more to return it to your hand so you get to keep it around. That’s just not a reasonable expectation.
Arms Race image 1.0 This Artifact-only but more expensive version of Sneak Attack is pretty cool, and this format certainly has some beefy artifact creatures that you could cheat into play, like basically everything with Prototype. However, it is hard to take full advantage of a card like this in Limited, as you often find yourself going down cards in order to do some damage or get your creature chump blocked, and that’s not usually worth it. You also invest a total of 8 mana to cheat your first thing into play, and I don’t love that! You need a few things to make this worth playing – payoffs for sacrificing stuff, big artifact creatures to cheat into play, and things that give you value when they enter the battlefield or die. I feel like that’s probably asking too much of a draft or a sealed pool. This has some potential, but hard to imagine it working very consistently
Fog of War image 0.0 Fogs are unplayable in Limited. You spend a card to delay the inevitable in most cases.
Lat-Nam Adept image 2.5 4-mana 3/3s have felt pretty awful lately, but this one can grow throughout the game as you draw more cards – and that’s one of the format’s main archetypes, so this will certainly have a home in the format.
Fallaji Archaeologist image 2.5 This is a cool design. It will either be a two mana ¼ – which is passable – or a two mana 0/3 that gets you something from the graveyard. Now, keep in mind you only get the card back if it is among those that are milled – and this only hits noncreature nonlands, so you may wiff sometimes. But if you’re a spell heavy deck in the format – which generally means UR – it seems like this will do what you want it to do most of the time, and at least you get a consolation prize if you do wiff.
Penregon Strongbull image 3.0 This looks pretty sweet. There are plenty of artifacts to sacrifice, including the powerstones that can help pay for the ability, which effectively makes this say “Sacrifice a powerstone: It gets +1/+1 and deals 1 damage to an opponent.” The ability is just very affordable, and this creature attacking with a few artifacts in play is going to be a pretty sizable problem. Love that it also damages the opponent, giving it the capability of doing some very significant damage if it goes unblocked
Tawnos's Tinkering image 1.0 I feel like actually generating a card of value with this is going to be a little bit challenging, and it is a pretty big investment for a card that won’t always be able to do enough
Mine Worker image 1.5 If this format had a life gain deck, it would be way better. As is, it is fairly mediocre, as it has poor stats and an ability that doesn’t really do enough. Obviously if you can get the Tron going here you’re going to be happier, but even with all three at Common, I wouldn’t count on that
Depth Charge Colossus image 1.0 I don’t love this. Both modes are pretty inefficient for a creature you have to pay extra mana for to untap. Even with powerstones I don’t think I’m playing this.
Third Path Savant image 2.0 This has a very powerful ability that draws you cards late, and if you’re flooding out or have a bunch of powerstones, that’s a nice ability to help get you out of it. It has a pretty bad stat-line until you get to that point, though.
Pack 1 Pick 6: Mesmeric Orb
Mesmeric Orb image 0.0 This is a symmetrical mill card, and not really something you should be playing. It is hard to have much control over who has more permanents to untap, and you never know if this will hurt you more than your opponent. It is true that it will hurt your opponent first since they will untap first, but that still isn’t enough for me to ever play this thing.
Arbalest Engineers image 3.5 You’ll probably choose to make this a three mana 3/3 with Trample and Haste most of the time, but having the option of picking off a small creature or ramping your mana is great. Any of those cards individually would be pretty good, so having the option between all three is great.
Scrapwork Rager image 3.0 This is a fun reference to Phyrexian Rager. When you cast it, it is a little bit worse, since you pay one more mana for the same effect – but the Unearth side of things means this bad boy gives you a 2-for-1, and that’s pretty nice.
Machine Over Matter image 2.0 This seems pretty solid, as it will often only cost a single Blue mana, and the fact it can hit any nonland permanent makes it nicely flexible. Even if you pay 2 for this, we’ve seen that card be fine in the past. The downside about bounce, of course, is you use up a card and generally you don’t deal with one of your opponent’s – you just make them cast it again. But, if you can time this right, you can sometimes get a 1-for-1 in addition to the tempo – like if you use it in response to a trick or something.
Citanul Stalwart image 2.0 Even with powerstones, it can be a little tricky finding a way to consistently use this to fix and ramp your mana. There will be times where you just can’t do it, and its an ability that isn’t that great in the late game. That said, this format does have many payoffs for doing such a thing, and the powerstones certainly make this better.
Tawnos's Tinkering image 1.0 I feel like actually generating a card of value with this is going to be a little bit challenging, and it is a pretty big investment for a card that won’t always be able to do enough
Aeronaut's Wings image 2.0 +1/+0 and Flying is enough to make a creature a problem for your opponent, even if two to play and two to equip will feel a little clunky.
Unleash Shell image 3.0 5 mana is a lot, but at least its an Instant! It can deal with most creatures in the format too, and Shocking your opponent in the face when you use it is definitely some decent additional upside. The problem with paying 5 for this effect is you’’ll often have to use it on a creature that costs less, and you’re losing some serious tempo when you do that – and sometimes you just can’t get the mana to deal with a cheap creature and that’s a problem too. You don’t really want more than one of these most of the time, because they are so expensive, but I do think the first copy should be valued reasonably highly
Whirling Strike image 1.5 This is a solid trick, as it will usually keep your creature alive, kill the opposing creature, and even do some trample damage! It gets better in a set with Prowess and other spell payoffs
Warlord's Elite image 1.5 A three mana 4/4 is nice and all, but not incredible, and this makes you jump through some significant hoops to actually get it into play. Tapping lands or creatures to play this feels like it will be a pretty big pain most of the time, and overall it feels like this will effectively be a 5-mana 4/4 pretty often
Pack 1 Pick 7: Hoarding Recluse
Steel Exemplar image 2.5 This is going to be easier to play as a 6/6 Trampler than you might think – once again, because of powerstones! Obviously most Limited decks are two colors, so your mana base probably can’t support doing this all on its own, but if you have a few powerstones in play, it becomes much easier to cast this at full size. The fail case isn’t the worst thing ever either
Hoarding Recluse image 2.0 This can trade for anything, and while that’s not the most exciting at 4 mana, a 2/3 Reach can also block lots of small stuff in addition to making your opponent hesitant to attack with big stuff. The death ability here actually matters a bit too, as Green-Black decks will be milling themselves a significant chunk of the time, and sometimes you end up milling things you didn’t really want to mill, and this can help you get that card back
Clay Revenant image 1.5 This kind of creature almost always seems to underperform, and I think this version is worse than most cheap creatures who make you pay mana to get them back from the graveyard. The idea here is that this is something you can sacrifice over and over again, or that you can get value out of if you discard or mill it, but it is just so clunky. You have to pay 4 mana every time to get it back in play, and that’s pretty dismal, even with powerstones. What’s more is, a one mana ½ isn’t that relevant for that long anyway
Blitz Automaton image 3.0 A three mana 3/2 with Haste is right around a 2.5, so adding the more expensive upside of this being a 6/4 with Haste sometimes is nice. Yes, 7 mana for a 6/4 with Haste is an awful rate, but the modality of all of these prototype cards is great in Limited!
Third Path Savant image 2.0 This has a very powerful ability that draws you cards late, and if you’re flooding out or have a bunch of powerstones, that’s a nice ability to help get you out of it. It has a pretty bad stat-line until you get to that point, though.
Energy Refractor image 1.5 It is a good thing this replaces itself, because it is pretty bad at filtering mana! Two mana for one mana of any color just isn’t a very good rate, though it can do it multiple times a turn because it doesn’t tap. The format does care about artifacts and noncreature spells, and one that replaces itself has some inhererent value, with the filtering part just some minor upside. It does let you make your powerstones produce colored mana, but still not efficient at all.
Ambush Paratrooper image 2.5 This has passable Flying stats, and in the late game it can buff the whole board. Keep in mind, too, that activated abilities in this format are all going to be easier than normal to activate thanks to power stones.
Coastal Bulwark image 2.0 Obviously, if you’re playing Blue, this is going to be a 3/3 – and a wall that can Surveil 1 is going to be a solid thing to have in more defensive decks.
Dredging Claw image 1.5 +1/+0 and Menace is a decent – but not great – boost for a two mana Equipment that costs two to equip. The cool thing here is that if you have Unearth creatures, it equips for free, drastically increasing the chance that creature can crack in for some damage. While Unearth is definitely prevalent in the format, I don’t really feel like it is so prevalent that I’ll regularly be running this in my Black decks
Pack 1 Pick 8: Stone Retrieval Unit
Astral Cornucopia image 1.5 This is mostly just a three mana rock that can tap for one mana of any color. And that’s passable in a format with a bunch of artifact and ramp stuff going on. You can use a bunch of powerstones to make it better than that of course, which is some decent format-specific upside, but this still isn’t that impressive.
Urza, Powerstone Prodigy image 3.0 A three mana 1/3 with Vigilance that can loot is a card you’ll always play, so I love the upside you get when you discard artifacts. You won’t always want to do that of course, so I mostly see the ability as sort of softening the blow of having to discard a real card instead of a land – though you will go for the powerstone when you have something amazing to ramp into.
Curate image 2.5 This lets you see up to three cards and can let you put advantageous cards in the graveyard, and that’s pretty nice – especially in a format with a spell deck and a card draw deck!
Blanchwood Prowler image 3.0 This is either a two mana 1/1 that draws you a land and loads your graveyard, or a two mana 2/2 that loads your graveyard. Both of those options are solid, and you can get some extra value out of milling yourself in Green, as the Green-Black deck is all about it
Moment of Defiance image 2.0 This is a bit expensive for a trick that only boosts toughness by 1, which means that oftentimes your creature will also die, but it definitely makes up for that by drawing you a card. In situations where you creature does survive, you get a 2-for-1, and in situations where it doesn’t, you break even while gaining some life. It also draws you a card, checking the box for the Blue-Black deck. That seems fine to me
Mishra's Domination image 1.5 This has some nice flexibility, as it can be a decent removal spell for an aggro deck or a way to buff a creature. It doesn’t do either thing well, though
Kill-Zone Acrobat image 2.0 There are plenty of expendable things to give up to give this flying when it needs it to get in for damage – whether you’re giving up powerstones or creatures with unearth
Stone Retrieval Unit image 2.5 The rate here isn’t amazing, but it is one card that adds two artifacts to the board, and ramps you. Seems solid to me
Pack 1 Pick 9: Moment of Defiance
Military Discipline image 1.5 The turn you cast this, it will definitely help your creature win combat, and then you get a permanent +1/+0 effect to stick around. This will definitely generate some serious tempo sometimes, allowing your creature to survive against something that costs a lot more mana! It does have the inherent risks auras have, and you have to be careful about playing this, but I think this seems solid.
Wasteful Harvest image 1.5 This format does have a deck that really wants to mill cards, but I’m still not super into this. Three mana to get a single permanent back from the graveyard is pretty underwhelming, even with mill attached. I’d much rather impact the board and mill myself at the same time, and there are ways to do that in the format
Whirling Strike image 1.5 This is a solid trick, as it will usually keep your creature alive, kill the opposing creature, and even do some trample damage! It gets better in a set with Prowess and other spell payoffs
Aeronaut's Wings image 2.0 +1/+0 and Flying is enough to make a creature a problem for your opponent, even if two to play and two to equip will feel a little clunky.
Koilos Roc image 3.0 A 5-mana 3/3 with Flash and Flying is usually playable, as it not only allows you to leave mana up for other stuff, you can flash it in to ambush something – so I’m pretty happy that this also adds a powerstone to the mix. Because of Flash, you’ll also be able to use that powerstone most of the time when you untap.
Yotian Medic image 2.0 This is a solid little defensive creature. It can block for a lot of the game while giving you back some life, which is certainly going to be a pain for aggro decks
Moment of Defiance image 2.0 This is a bit expensive for a trick that only boosts toughness by 1, which means that oftentimes your creature will also die, but it definitely makes up for that by drawing you a card. In situations where you creature does survive, you get a 2-for-1, and in situations where it doesn’t, you break even while gaining some life. It also draws you a card, checking the box for the Blue-Black deck. That seems fine to me
Pack 1 Pick 10: Lat-Nam Adept
Heavyweight Demolisher image 2.0 A 7-mana 8/6 with Menace is no joke..but it isn’t so good that I like the fact that it punishes you by making you pay three mana just to untap it. The Unearth upside is sweet of course, as your opponent has to account for it or end up dying in the late game, but the untap tax is enough for me to really feel like I won’t always be happy about playing this
Tower Worker image 2.0 Ramp is a real thing in this format, so this will certainly be seeing some play. Getting the other two Assembly-Workers in play at the same time is a fun goal, but don’t count on it
Depth Charge Colossus image 1.0 I don’t love this. Both modes are pretty inefficient for a creature you have to pay extra mana for to untap. Even with powerstones I don’t think I’m playing this.
Mishra's Onslaught image 1.5 You are overpaying for both modes on this card – usually each of these effects costs three. You do get some modality here, but the token effect is generally underpowered while the mass pump effect is narrow, so I think this will get cut a fair bit
Lat-Nam Adept image 2.5 4-mana 3/3s have felt pretty awful lately, but this one can grow throughout the game as you draw more cards – and that’s one of the format’s main archetypes, so this will certainly have a home in the format.
Veteran's Powerblade image 1.5 One mana to equip this is pretty nice, but three to cast is always going to feel pretty ugly. Still, it makes your solder tokens into 3/1s, which means they can swing in most cases! Obviously works with other soldiers too, but I don’t really feel like this is the soldier payoff you’re really hoping for when you draft the UW deck.
Pack 1 Pick 11: Spotter Thopter
Liquimetal Coating image 0.0 You don’t want to be doing this. For the most part, this effect is meaningless! There are of course some cornercases – like if you have a card that destroys artifacts you can make it destroy any permanent – or if you need another artifact in play for some effect it can do that, but there’s a reason I said “corner cases.” This just doesn’t do enough.
Spotter Thopter image 3.0 A 4-mana ⅔ that scries 2 is a 2.5 at very worst. Scrying 2 isn’t that far off from drawing a card! So, the fact it has late-game upside as an 8-mana ⅘ that Scries 4 is pretty nice.
Whirling Strike image 1.5 This is a solid trick, as it will usually keep your creature alive, kill the opposing creature, and even do some trample damage! It gets better in a set with Prowess and other spell payoffs
Wasteful Harvest image 1.5 This format does have a deck that really wants to mill cards, but I’m still not super into this. Three mana to get a single permanent back from the graveyard is pretty underwhelming, even with mill attached. I’d much rather impact the board and mill myself at the same time, and there are ways to do that in the format
Tomakul Scrapsmith image 2.5 You either get a three mana 3/2, or a three mana 2/1 that draws you an Artifact. Obviously the latter option is the better one, and this would be at least a 3.5 if that’s what it was – but it will only do that half the time, and the 3/2 option is less exciting. It also takes a bit of a hti because Red is not very interested in the graveyard in this set, so loading it up a little bit is unlikely to give you any extra value
Pack 1 Pick 12: Coastal Bulwark
Ivory Tower image 0.0 This isn’t good in Limited. You need to be a draw go style control deck to really make this gain you life that matters, and that just doesn’t happen in Limited. This will frequently do nothing or close to nothing.
Thran Vigil image 1.0 // 3.0 This will mostly trigger off of Unearth in this format, but there are other ways to get it going in Black, as we’ve seen in this video. Obviously, this is a build around, because not all decks – even Black decks – will reach the critical mass of synergy needed to make this thing do its job.
Coastal Bulwark image 2.0 Obviously, if you’re playing Blue, this is going to be a 3/3 – and a wall that can Surveil 1 is going to be a solid thing to have in more defensive decks.
Mishra's Domination image 1.5 This has some nice flexibility, as it can be a decent removal spell for an aggro deck or a way to buff a creature. It doesn’t do either thing well, though
Pack 1 Pick 13: Fog of War
Bone Saw image 0.0 0 mana artifacts are exciting for constructed, but they aren’t nearly as good in Limited because what you get is usually a card that isn’t worth an entire card – and that’s definitely what Bone Saw is. Especially in a set without any real equipment theme. Playing this will feel like you took a mulligan
Arms Race image 1.0 This Artifact-only but more expensive version of Sneak Attack is pretty cool, and this format certainly has some beefy artifact creatures that you could cheat into play, like basically everything with Prototype. However, it is hard to take full advantage of a card like this in Limited, as you often find yourself going down cards in order to do some damage or get your creature chump blocked, and that’s not usually worth it. You also invest a total of 8 mana to cheat your first thing into play, and I don’t love that! You need a few things to make this worth playing – payoffs for sacrificing stuff, big artifact creatures to cheat into play, and things that give you value when they enter the battlefield or die. I feel like that’s probably asking too much of a draft or a sealed pool. This has some potential, but hard to imagine it working very consistently
Fog of War image 0.0 Fogs are unplayable in Limited. You spend a card to delay the inevitable in most cases.
Pack 1 Pick 14: Tawnos's Tinkering
Tawnos's Tinkering image 1.0 I feel like actually generating a card of value with this is going to be a little bit challenging, and it is a pretty big investment for a card that won’t always be able to do enough
Whirling Strike image 1.5 This is a solid trick, as it will usually keep your creature alive, kill the opposing creature, and even do some trample damage! It gets better in a set with Prowess and other spell payoffs
Pack 1 Pick 15: Third Path Savant
Third Path Savant image 2.0 This has a very powerful ability that draws you cards late, and if you’re flooding out or have a bunch of powerstones, that’s a nice ability to help get you out of it. It has a pretty bad stat-line until you get to that point, though.
Pack 2 Pick 1: Harbin, Vanguard Aviator
Gilded Lotus image 2.0 This is pretty bad in most Limited formats, but I think the fact that this deck has many high-mana things to ramp into, coupled with the fact that you can accelerate into the Lotus itself with powerstones, actually makes it playable.
Harbin, Vanguard Aviator image 3.5 This has a great baseline as a two mana 3/2 Flyer, and it slots perfectly into the UW deck in the format, which is soldier tribal! You will generally only need to trigger this once and it will probably win you the game, and that seems fairly doable
Calamity's Wake image 0.0 This isn’t here for Limited. You don’t really want to use up a card to hate on the graveyard and stop noncreature spells for the turn most of the time. It is kind of reasonable as a sideboard card in situations where your opponent has lots of graveyard action I guess, but even then I’m not ultra impressed with such a narrow hate effect that doesn’t really give you a card back.
Pyrrhic Blast image 2.5 We see these sacrifice effects a lot and they are usually kind of a pain to use, since you 2-for-1 yourself! But this gets around that by replacing itself with a draw a card effect. You can also hit any player with it, so it can finish someone off which is cool. Now, it still does require some set up that is surprisingly awkward sometimes – like you need a creature with high enough power or some sacrifice synergy or this can fall pretty flat. It is an Instant, so you can use it in response to removal and stuff which helps
Arbalest Engineers image 3.5 You’ll probably choose to make this a three mana 3/3 with Trample and Haste most of the time, but having the option of picking off a small creature or ramping your mana is great. Any of those cards individually would be pretty good, so having the option between all three is great.
Disenchant image 2.5 This is a solid main deck card in this format. There are lots of artifacts and a decent number of Enchantments. It is efficient and Instant speed too, which is always nice.
Excavation Explosion image 4.0 This looks pretty great, even as a Sorcery! Three mana to do three to anything is always nice – you can usually break even or better on the mana you spend, and this actually gives you some mana back in the form of a powerstone
Gixian Skullflayer image 2.0 This is a nice little payoff for getting creatures in your graveyard, a strategy that looks to be well supported in the format. I do wish this enabled itself a little bit, like by milling a single card or something – but it will be able to grow with relative ease in Black/Green decks especially
Scatter Ray image 2.5 This looks like a very nice counterspell for the format, as creatures and artifacts are going to make up the bulk of spells in most decks. It isn’t a hard counter, but 4 mana is enough that it will be relevant all game long. One downside in this format: powerstones can be used to help pay for costs like this.
Tocasia's Dig Site image 1.5 This isn’t great for your mana, but having a repeatable source of Surveil is going to be worth it in some decks, because it can both laid your graveyard and improve your card quality. Three mana is a lot for sure, and that’s an ability you’ll only be using when you have nothing better to do – but hey, it will find you something to do eventually!
Argothian Sprite image 2.5 This is better than it looks. There are lots of Artifact creatures in the set, including most of the format’s creature tokens, so this will be a nice attacker on many boards. Then, in the mid-to-late game you can buff it to make sure it stays relevant. As I’ve been saying, power stones make an ability like this easier to use than it looks! This looks like a quality two-drop for Green decks int he format
Raze to the Ground image 2.5 This format does have a ton of Artifacts, so this will usually have a target, many of which will be creatures. And its also nice that it can draw you a card when it hits a cheap artifact. In a pinch you could even go after your own powerstone! However…it is a little overcosted and clunky to be that good. Three mana to kill only one permanent type, even one that is relatively plentiful in the set, just isn’t a great rate. The uncounterable clause only matters a tiny bit here too. I mean, I don’t think this is bad at all – but I think some people will see this and think it is premium, but it just won’t be
Carrion Locust image 2.0 Incidental graveyard hate is going to be nice in this format, as there are plenty of things that will be nice to exile – especially Unearth creatures. It comes attached to a reasonable flyer, and sometimes you’ll even make your opponent lose a life
Tocasia's Onulet image 2.0 A 5-mana 4/4 that gains you 2 life when it dies is probably a 1.5. This has a pretty reasonable Unearth cost too, though, and you get to gain 2 more life!
Warlord's Elite image 1.5 A three mana 4/4 is nice and all, but not incredible, and this makes you jump through some significant hoops to actually get it into play. Tapping lands or creatures to play this feels like it will be a pretty big pain most of the time, and overall it feels like this will effectively be a 5-mana 4/4 pretty often
Pack 2 Pick 2: Misery's Shadow
Misery's Shadow image 4.0 This is a pretty sweet two mana 2/2. It can buff itself quite easily and effectively. Don’t under estimate how much easier it is to pay a single colorless mana for the buff than it would be if it cost colored mana – this is especially true in a world of powerstones. Basically, it stays relevant all game long thanks to its ability to buff itself, and the exile clause definitely matters in a format with Unearth and various other graveyard stuff going on
Sarinth Steelseeker image 4.0 This looks really good. Format has a ton of artifacts, and this even counts power stones. The trigger also isn’t limited to once per turn, unlike lots of these effects! Basically, every time you put an artifact in play you either draw a card or Surveil 1, and that’s a trigger that will generate some pretty amazing value. This looks like quite the engine
Alloy Animist image 2.0 With all the power stones around, this ability is going to overperform – between the fact that they can pay for the ability and the fact you can animate them! This is a good place to sink mana
Thran Power Suit image 1.5 On its own, this is a two mana to play and two to equip equipment that grants +1/+1 and Ward 2. The Ward 2 is a pretty nice thing to have, as it makes your investment in equipping it feel a little less painful.
Swiftgear Drake image 1.5 5-mana for a 2/4 with Flying and Haste isn’t amazing, but it isn’t a completely terrible rate either – probably something like a D+, so the ETB upside here is kind of nice. You can get rid of some graveyard action your opponent is utilizing, or you can put a card back on the bottom of your library that you want to draw later
Sibling Rivalry image 0.5 // 3.0 This format has a very real Sacrifice deck in it, meaning that Sibling Rivalry is going to be pretty well-positioned, as the best thing to do with these is to steal an opposing creature or artifact and sacrifice it to one of your sacrifice outlets – like the Minotaur we saw earlier. This also gives you a powerstone, which gives you something else to sacrifice in many cases! This is definitely a build around, as it isn’t very good in just any deck in the format
Phalanx Vanguard image 2.5 A two mana 2/2 with Vigilance is right around a 2.0, so the fact that the power on this thing will go up pretty often makes it a solid two drop.
Mishra's Onslaught image 1.5 You are overpaying for both modes on this card – usually each of these effects costs three. You do get some modality here, but the token effect is generally underpowered while the mass pump effect is narrow, so I think this will get cut a fair bit
Urza's Rebuff image 1.5 Adding a second mode to Cancel is definitely an upgrade, but Cancel is usually a D+. Three mana counter spells that cost two blue ask a little too much of you – that’s a lot of mana to leave up - but its nice you can use this to tap some stuff down too.
Carrion Locust image 2.0 Incidental graveyard hate is going to be nice in this format, as there are plenty of things that will be nice to exile – especially Unearth creatures. It comes attached to a reasonable flyer, and sometimes you’ll even make your opponent lose a life
Scrapwork Cohort image 2.5 A 4-mana 3/1 that makes a 1/1 token is a playable card, especially in a format where one card making multiple artifacts matters. So, the fact it can Unearth and leave behind some permanent value in the form of that 1/1 is some nice late game upside to have.
Stern Lesson image 2.5 This is a solid card that will slot nicely into the spell decks and the artifact decks – especially the ramp-oriented artifact deck. Three mana to draw two and discard one on its own on an instant is usually kind of alright, and I do think the Powerstone upside here is enough for this to be a one-of in most Blue decks in the format. Any noncreature spell that draws you cards will be welcome in Blue-Red too.
Goring Warplow image 2.5 Two mana for a 1/1 death touch is okay – that card is probably a 1.5. Having the option between the two makes this a 2.5
Tawnos's Tinkering image 1.0 I feel like actually generating a card of value with this is going to be a little bit challenging, and it is a pretty big investment for a card that won’t always be able to do enough
Pack 2 Pick 3: Harbin, Vanguard Aviator
Self-Assembler image 0.0 // 3.0 Last time we saw this, it was the only Assembly-Worker in the set, so you needed multiple copies of it to get it going – and that was actually fairly doable. And a 5-mana 4/4 that draws you another 5-mana 4/4 is pretty nice in Limited. Efficiency matters in Limited, but outcarding your opponent matters a lot too, so the inefficiency didn’t matter! In this set, there are plenty of other assembly-workers for you to search up, so it is probably even better! It does need a build around grade, as you don’t want to play this if you have 0 Assembly-Workers to search up, and even just having one other assembly-worker can be a little sketchy, as once you draw them both you’re kind of in trouble. So, you really need 2+ assembly-workers to get this going – but the good news is, that’s doable
Harbin, Vanguard Aviator image 3.5 This has a great baseline as a two mana 3/2 Flyer, and it slots perfectly into the UW deck in the format, which is soldier tribal! You will generally only need to trigger this once and it will probably win you the game, and that seems fairly doable
The Fall of Kroog image 0.5 As usual, land destruction tends to be pretty bad in Limited. There aren’t enough powerful nonbasics around, so you find yourself just destroying regular lands, and doing that for six mana isn’t really where you want to be. Land destruction at that stage often has a minimal impact on the game. And sure, this adds a bolt to the face and can kill some X/1s, but I still don’t feel like its enough to play this thing
Fog of War image 0.0 Fogs are unplayable in Limited. You spend a card to delay the inevitable in most cases.
Supply Drop image 2.0 This is a pretty interesting design! Three mana for +2/+2 isn’t a great rate for a trick, but you can cash it in for a card later, giving it some real 2-for-1 potential in a format that has a fair bit of Artifact synergy too.
Mishra's Onslaught image 1.5 You are overpaying for both modes on this card – usually each of these effects costs three. You do get some modality here, but the token effect is generally underpowered while the mass pump effect is narrow, so I think this will get cut a fair bit
Scrapwork Cohort image 2.5 A 4-mana 3/1 that makes a 1/1 token is a playable card, especially in a format where one card making multiple artifacts matters. So, the fact it can Unearth and leave behind some permanent value in the form of that 1/1 is some nice late game upside to have.
Warlord's Elite image 1.5 A three mana 4/4 is nice and all, but not incredible, and this makes you jump through some significant hoops to actually get it into play. Tapping lands or creatures to play this feels like it will be a pretty big pain most of the time, and overall it feels like this will effectively be a 5-mana 4/4 pretty often
Third Path Savant image 2.0 This has a very powerful ability that draws you cards late, and if you’re flooding out or have a bunch of powerstones, that’s a nice ability to help get you out of it. It has a pretty bad stat-line until you get to that point, though.
Air Marshal image 2.5 Three mana is kind of a lot for giving Flying only to creatures with a particular type, but the good news is that it is easier than normal to produce mana to pay for abilities in this set thanks to powerstones and there are lots of soldiers. It can also target itself.
Lat-Nam Adept image 2.5 4-mana 3/3s have felt pretty awful lately, but this one can grow throughout the game as you draw more cards – and that’s one of the format’s main archetypes, so this will certainly have a home in the format.
Ashnod's Intervention image 1.0 Returning the creature to your hand instead of to the battlefield is obviously a big downgrade from other versions of this effect we have seen before, but it does mean that you can use this to trade one-for-one for something while holding on to your creature. It can be especially nice if your creature has an ETB ability or something, but I kind of feel like the tempo hit you take in casting this to win combat is a little bit too much. This seems like it is efficient, but it really isn’t when you consider having to recast your creature. You can also use this with an Unearthed creature of course, but I still don’t feel like that’s enough upside.
Tawnos's Tinkering image 1.0 I feel like actually generating a card of value with this is going to be a little bit challenging, and it is a pretty big investment for a card that won’t always be able to do enough
Pack 2 Pick 4: Great Desert Prospector
Ivory Tower image 0.0 This isn’t good in Limited. You need to be a draw go style control deck to really make this gain you life that matters, and that just doesn’t happen in Limited. This will frequently do nothing or close to nothing.
Thran Vigil image 1.0 // 3.0 This will mostly trigger off of Unearth in this format, but there are other ways to get it going in Black, as we’ve seen in this video. Obviously, this is a build around, because not all decks – even Black decks – will reach the critical mass of synergy needed to make this thing do its job.
Great Desert Prospector image 3.5 It is a bit of a bummer that this guy doesn’t count himself, so the floor on the card is a pretty ugly 5-mana 3/2. However, the ceiling can be pretty silly, as he can really enable you to ramp into artifact stuff or sink mana into activated abilities. Generally speaking, there are lots of ways to make use of power stones in the set!
Scrapwork Mutt image 2.5 A three mana 2/1 that rummages when it ETBS is probably a 1.5, and I think adding Unearth to the mix is some real upside, since you get the ETB all over again. This looks like it can nicely set up graveyard and artifact payoffs.
Overwhelming Remorse image 3.5 A card that was always 5 for this effect is probably a 3.0, and this will often cost significantly less, especially in graveyard decks. Just getting it down to 4 is pretty much getting you to the premium level, and it will often be even cheaper
Tawnos's Tinkering image 1.0 I feel like actually generating a card of value with this is going to be a little bit challenging, and it is a pretty big investment for a card that won’t always be able to do enough
Gixian Infiltrator image 2.0 This is a solid, if unexciting sacrifice payoff that will work especially well in the Black/Red deck. It starts with decent stats and a few counters are enough to make it a threat
Supply Drop image 2.0 This is a pretty interesting design! Three mana for +2/+2 isn’t a great rate for a trick, but you can cash it in for a card later, giving it some real 2-for-1 potential in a format that has a fair bit of Artifact synergy too.
Machine Over Matter image 2.0 This seems pretty solid, as it will often only cost a single Blue mana, and the fact it can hit any nonland permanent makes it nicely flexible. Even if you pay 2 for this, we’ve seen that card be fine in the past. The downside about bounce, of course, is you use up a card and generally you don’t deal with one of your opponent’s – you just make them cast it again. But, if you can time this right, you can sometimes get a 1-for-1 in addition to the tempo – like if you use it in response to a trick or something.
Aeronaut's Wings image 2.0 +1/+0 and Flying is enough to make a creature a problem for your opponent, even if two to play and two to equip will feel a little clunky.
Goblin Firebomb image 1.5 We’ve seen cards like this before, and they are always pretty mediocre. It isn’t efficient, even for destroying any permanent type. Now, the format does have an artifact theme, and if you can find ways to recur this, it can get interesting! You’ll run it if you’re really desperate for removal
Sibling Rivalry image 0.5 // 3.0 This format has a very real Sacrifice deck in it, meaning that Sibling Rivalry is going to be pretty well-positioned, as the best thing to do with these is to steal an opposing creature or artifact and sacrifice it to one of your sacrifice outlets – like the Minotaur we saw earlier. This also gives you a powerstone, which gives you something else to sacrifice in many cases! This is definitely a build around, as it isn’t very good in just any deck in the format
Pack 2 Pick 5: Disenchant
Junkyard Genius image 3.5 As usual, Black-Red has a sacrifice theme – one that feels a lot like what we saw in Forgotten Realms, a few sets back. It can sacrifice creatures, but can also sacrifice a plentiful artifact token resource in the set – in this case, Powerstones. This comes with one of those stones, so you can use this ability without any extra help, and it is a pretty strong one! +1/+0 and Menace makes a board a heck of a lot more imposing, and there is plenty of other sacrifice support in the set. The one thing this doesn’t have going for it is the awful stat-line, but it largely overcomes that to be a pretty powerful signpost Uncommon
Machine Over Matter image 2.0 This seems pretty solid, as it will often only cost a single Blue mana, and the fact it can hit any nonland permanent makes it nicely flexible. Even if you pay 2 for this, we’ve seen that card be fine in the past. The downside about bounce, of course, is you use up a card and generally you don’t deal with one of your opponent’s – you just make them cast it again. But, if you can time this right, you can sometimes get a 1-for-1 in addition to the tempo – like if you use it in response to a trick or something.
Moment of Defiance image 2.0 This is a bit expensive for a trick that only boosts toughness by 1, which means that oftentimes your creature will also die, but it definitely makes up for that by drawing you a card. In situations where you creature does survive, you get a 2-for-1, and in situations where it doesn’t, you break even while gaining some life. It also draws you a card, checking the box for the Blue-Black deck. That seems fine to me
Powerstone Fracture image 2.5 In case you didn’t get it from the card’s name, the ideal thing to do here is going to be to sacrifice a powerstone. In that case, you aren’t using up a real card – and that’s good, because giving up a real card to cast this is pretty bad. It is basically a wore bone splinters, and it isn’t like bone splinters is an incredible card. I still think this falls below premium removal because of the set up needed to make it decent
Scatter Ray image 2.5 This looks like a very nice counterspell for the format, as creatures and artifacts are going to make up the bulk of spells in most decks. It isn’t a hard counter, but 4 mana is enough that it will be relevant all game long. One downside in this format: powerstones can be used to help pay for costs like this.
Shoot Down image 2.5 This has a whole lot of targets in this format. It is a bit clunky as a 4 mana Sorcery, but it just feels like this will be able to deal with enough permanents in this format that I like the first copy in most Green decks
Mishra's Domination image 1.5 This has some nice flexibility, as it can be a decent removal spell for an aggro deck or a way to buff a creature. It doesn’t do either thing well, though
Thraxodemon image 2.0 This is a bear with some decent upside – giving up a creature or artifact to draw a card is nice, though I don’t love paying three mana for the effect – but powerstones will soften the blow some
Tower Worker image 2.0 Ramp is a real thing in this format, so this will certainly be seeing some play. Getting the other two Assembly-Workers in play at the same time is a fun goal, but don’t count on it
Goblin Firebomb image 1.5 We’ve seen cards like this before, and they are always pretty mediocre. It isn’t efficient, even for destroying any permanent type. Now, the format does have an artifact theme, and if you can find ways to recur this, it can get interesting! You’ll run it if you’re really desperate for removal
Disenchant image 2.5 This is a solid main deck card in this format. There are lots of artifacts and a decent number of Enchantments. It is efficient and Instant speed too, which is always nice.
Pack 2 Pick 6: Mightstone's Animation
Keeper of the Cadence image 1.0 This is a neat ability, and if you can find a way to mill yourself out, this can effectively let you choose what you draw every turn! Before you get to that point, though, you just have an overcosted creature whose ability won’t be impacting the game for quite some time. Basically, in the most controlling deck ever this is a pretty real win condition, but that kind of deck often doesn’t exist in Limited.
Gnawing Vermin image 2.0 This gives you a bunch of little stuff, but getting all of it for one mana is a pretty decent deal! One mana 1/1s that can give -1/-1 to something when they die are usually pretty nice, as they can trade up for X/2s or even get a 2-for-1 if your opponent has two X/1s. The fact it mills sets up a couple of different Black decks in the format too
Ashnod's Intervention image 1.0 Returning the creature to your hand instead of to the battlefield is obviously a big downgrade from other versions of this effect we have seen before, but it does mean that you can use this to trade one-for-one for something while holding on to your creature. It can be especially nice if your creature has an ETB ability or something, but I kind of feel like the tempo hit you take in casting this to win combat is a little bit too much. This seems like it is efficient, but it really isn’t when you consider having to recast your creature. You can also use this with an Unearthed creature of course, but I still don’t feel like that’s enough upside.
Machine Over Matter image 2.0 This seems pretty solid, as it will often only cost a single Blue mana, and the fact it can hit any nonland permanent makes it nicely flexible. Even if you pay 2 for this, we’ve seen that card be fine in the past. The downside about bounce, of course, is you use up a card and generally you don’t deal with one of your opponent’s – you just make them cast it again. But, if you can time this right, you can sometimes get a 1-for-1 in addition to the tempo – like if you use it in response to a trick or something.
Mightstone's Animation image 3.0 In most formats this kind of effect is overwhelming, but THIS format has a ton of Powerstones running around, and paying 4 to make one into a 4/4 is definitely something you can do, especially because this can replace itself. In a pinch, you can even put it on something that is already a creature, but generally for full value you’ll want to stick this on a powerstone or other noncreature artifact, as that is far more of an upgrade. The card draw effect will also trigger the draw 2 payoffs for the Blue-Black deck.
Survivor of Korlis image 2.5 Soldier is a creature type that matters here, and that’s nice. This is also a good place to put counters and the like thanks to First Strike! And getting a bit of value out of the graveyard is nice too. This seems like it might be one of those one mana 1/1s we’ve seen lately that does lots of little things and the whole package turns out to be a pretty nice card
Disfigure image 3.5 As usual, this is premium removal. It can kill a pretty wide spectrum of things for only one mana, giving you a great deal
Desynchronize image 2.0 5 mana is a lot, and while this does let you trade 1-for-1, since it doesn’t just bounce the permanent – it puts it on top or bottom of your opponent’s library – it also doesn’t do a great job of dealing with some really problematic permanents, which your opponent can just draw again.
Moment of Defiance image 2.0 This is a bit expensive for a trick that only boosts toughness by 1, which means that oftentimes your creature will also die, but it definitely makes up for that by drawing you a card. In situations where you creature does survive, you get a 2-for-1, and in situations where it doesn’t, you break even while gaining some life. It also draws you a card, checking the box for the Blue-Black deck. That seems fine to me
Gaea's Gift image 2.0 This is a nice trick. In addition to doing a good job of helping a creature win combat, the slew of keywords it gets makes it so you can blank most removal when you cast it. We’ve seen a lot o tricks like this of late, and they’ve all ended up being a card you always want one or two of in aggressive decks, and I think that’s what we have here
Pack 2 Pick 7: Combat Courier
Transmogrant Altar image 1.0 // 3.0 There is a pretty real sacrifice deck in this format, so I am very intrigued by this. There is plenty of fodder and payoffs for sacrificing, so generating extra value when you use either of these abilities isn’t far-fetched, and that seems pretty darn good. In that sort of deck, this looks like it could be a very real engine. I think it needs a build around grade for sure, as it probably doesn’t make sense outside of Black-Red. If you can’t get some extra stuff out of sacrificing things, this isn’t nearly as good.
Combat Courier image 2.0 It is nice that you can cash this in for a card – twice, thanks to Unearth – and that does give you a 2-for-1, albeit an expensive one. But if you can get some extra value out of this being around, it is definitely worth it.
Aeronaut's Wings image 2.0 +1/+0 and Flying is enough to make a creature a problem for your opponent, even if two to play and two to equip will feel a little clunky.
Machine Over Matter image 2.0 This seems pretty solid, as it will often only cost a single Blue mana, and the fact it can hit any nonland permanent makes it nicely flexible. Even if you pay 2 for this, we’ve seen that card be fine in the past. The downside about bounce, of course, is you use up a card and generally you don’t deal with one of your opponent’s – you just make them cast it again. But, if you can time this right, you can sometimes get a 1-for-1 in addition to the tempo – like if you use it in response to a trick or something.
Loran's Escape image 2.0 These effects have been playing pretty well lately, and I think that’s probably the case here too. Blanking removal and various other effects while also improving a creature’s ability to win combat is pretty solid.
Perimeter Patrol image 2.5 A three mana 3/3 is solid, and this has some real upside that will let it attack a lot more effectively
Kill-Zone Acrobat image 2.0 There are plenty of expendable things to give up to give this flying when it needs it to get in for damage – whether you’re giving up powerstones or creatures with unearth
Shoot Down image 2.5 This has a whole lot of targets in this format. It is a bit clunky as a 4 mana Sorcery, but it just feels like this will be able to deal with enough permanents in this format that I like the first copy in most Green decks
Moment of Defiance image 2.0 This is a bit expensive for a trick that only boosts toughness by 1, which means that oftentimes your creature will also die, but it definitely makes up for that by drawing you a card. In situations where you creature does survive, you get a 2-for-1, and in situations where it doesn’t, you break even while gaining some life. It also draws you a card, checking the box for the Blue-Black deck. That seems fine to me
Pack 2 Pick 8: Yotian Medic
Fateful Handoff image 0.0 This is bad. Sure, you get to draw some cards, but giving your opponent a permanent is pretty bad. And you might be saying “Well, give them something that isn’t good!” Well..if you’re giving them a one or two mana card, it still isn’t really worth it, since you draw way fewer cards – and you still used a card to give your opponent a permanent, so you’re starting way behind when you cast this. It does work in an interesting way with Unearth, but you have to pay to Unearth the creature and cast this, which is a big ask. I guess if you feel like you have enough removal in your deck, using this and drawing into that removal could be alright, but I think overall, this is just a card to be avoided.
Corrupt image 1.0 // 3.5 This is a pretty sweet reprint, and it gives you a very good reason to go really hard into Black, especially if you get multiples! This can be a very real win condition or an excellent removal spell. While it is costly and a Sorcery, all the life it can gain you is enough to outweigh that. You probably need to be doing 4 with this for it to feel decent, and 5+ to feel like you’re really getting there. Now, if you aren’t a deck running 13+ Swamps it is going to get significantly worse, so keep that in mind
Dwarven Forge-Chanter image 3.0 Back in Khans of Tarkir there was a White two mana 1/3 with Prowess and it was a really nice common – so, adding Ward – Pay 2 life to that also makes for a pretty sweet common! A creature with Prowess is always really obnoxious to block or attack into, since you never know what your opponent might be able to do. The threat of activation is very real! This is a great two drop for Blue-Red decks, and lots of other Red decks will have enough non-creature spells to have a pretty good time with this
Fallaji Archaeologist image 2.5 This is a cool design. It will either be a two mana ¼ – which is passable – or a two mana 0/3 that gets you something from the graveyard. Now, keep in mind you only get the card back if it is among those that are milled – and this only hits noncreature nonlands, so you may wiff sometimes. But if you’re a spell heavy deck in the format – which generally means UR – it seems like this will do what you want it to do most of the time, and at least you get a consolation prize if you do wiff.
Powerstone Fracture image 2.5 In case you didn’t get it from the card’s name, the ideal thing to do here is going to be to sacrifice a powerstone. In that case, you aren’t using up a real card – and that’s good, because giving up a real card to cast this is pretty bad. It is basically a wore bone splinters, and it isn’t like bone splinters is an incredible card. I still think this falls below premium removal because of the set up needed to make it decent
Urza's Rebuff image 1.5 Adding a second mode to Cancel is definitely an upgrade, but Cancel is usually a D+. Three mana counter spells that cost two blue ask a little too much of you – that’s a lot of mana to leave up - but its nice you can use this to tap some stuff down too.
Raze to the Ground image 2.5 This format does have a ton of Artifacts, so this will usually have a target, many of which will be creatures. And its also nice that it can draw you a card when it hits a cheap artifact. In a pinch you could even go after your own powerstone! However…it is a little overcosted and clunky to be that good. Three mana to kill only one permanent type, even one that is relatively plentiful in the set, just isn’t a great rate. The uncounterable clause only matters a tiny bit here too. I mean, I don’t think this is bad at all – but I think some people will see this and think it is premium, but it just won’t be
Yotian Medic image 2.0 This is a solid little defensive creature. It can block for a lot of the game while giving you back some life, which is certainly going to be a pain for aggro decks
Pack 2 Pick 9: Tocasia's Onulet
Calamity's Wake image 0.0 This isn’t here for Limited. You don’t really want to use up a card to hate on the graveyard and stop noncreature spells for the turn most of the time. It is kind of reasonable as a sideboard card in situations where your opponent has lots of graveyard action I guess, but even then I’m not ultra impressed with such a narrow hate effect that doesn’t really give you a card back.
Pyrrhic Blast image 2.5 We see these sacrifice effects a lot and they are usually kind of a pain to use, since you 2-for-1 yourself! But this gets around that by replacing itself with a draw a card effect. You can also hit any player with it, so it can finish someone off which is cool. Now, it still does require some set up that is surprisingly awkward sometimes – like you need a creature with high enough power or some sacrifice synergy or this can fall pretty flat. It is an Instant, so you can use it in response to removal and stuff which helps
Gixian Skullflayer image 2.0 This is a nice little payoff for getting creatures in your graveyard, a strategy that looks to be well supported in the format. I do wish this enabled itself a little bit, like by milling a single card or something – but it will be able to grow with relative ease in Black/Green decks especially
Scatter Ray image 2.5 This looks like a very nice counterspell for the format, as creatures and artifacts are going to make up the bulk of spells in most decks. It isn’t a hard counter, but 4 mana is enough that it will be relevant all game long. One downside in this format: powerstones can be used to help pay for costs like this.
Raze to the Ground image 2.5 This format does have a ton of Artifacts, so this will usually have a target, many of which will be creatures. And its also nice that it can draw you a card when it hits a cheap artifact. In a pinch you could even go after your own powerstone! However…it is a little overcosted and clunky to be that good. Three mana to kill only one permanent type, even one that is relatively plentiful in the set, just isn’t a great rate. The uncounterable clause only matters a tiny bit here too. I mean, I don’t think this is bad at all – but I think some people will see this and think it is premium, but it just won’t be
Carrion Locust image 2.0 Incidental graveyard hate is going to be nice in this format, as there are plenty of things that will be nice to exile – especially Unearth creatures. It comes attached to a reasonable flyer, and sometimes you’ll even make your opponent lose a life
Tocasia's Onulet image 2.0 A 5-mana 4/4 that gains you 2 life when it dies is probably a 1.5. This has a pretty reasonable Unearth cost too, though, and you get to gain 2 more life!
Pack 2 Pick 10: Stern Lesson
Thran Power Suit image 1.5 On its own, this is a two mana to play and two to equip equipment that grants +1/+1 and Ward 2. The Ward 2 is a pretty nice thing to have, as it makes your investment in equipping it feel a little less painful.
Swiftgear Drake image 1.5 5-mana for a 2/4 with Flying and Haste isn’t amazing, but it isn’t a completely terrible rate either – probably something like a D+, so the ETB upside here is kind of nice. You can get rid of some graveyard action your opponent is utilizing, or you can put a card back on the bottom of your library that you want to draw later
Mishra's Onslaught image 1.5 You are overpaying for both modes on this card – usually each of these effects costs three. You do get some modality here, but the token effect is generally underpowered while the mass pump effect is narrow, so I think this will get cut a fair bit
Urza's Rebuff image 1.5 Adding a second mode to Cancel is definitely an upgrade, but Cancel is usually a D+. Three mana counter spells that cost two blue ask a little too much of you – that’s a lot of mana to leave up - but its nice you can use this to tap some stuff down too.
Carrion Locust image 2.0 Incidental graveyard hate is going to be nice in this format, as there are plenty of things that will be nice to exile – especially Unearth creatures. It comes attached to a reasonable flyer, and sometimes you’ll even make your opponent lose a life
Stern Lesson image 2.5 This is a solid card that will slot nicely into the spell decks and the artifact decks – especially the ramp-oriented artifact deck. Three mana to draw two and discard one on its own on an instant is usually kind of alright, and I do think the Powerstone upside here is enough for this to be a one-of in most Blue decks in the format. Any noncreature spell that draws you cards will be welcome in Blue-Red too.
Pack 2 Pick 11: Supply Drop
The Fall of Kroog image 0.5 As usual, land destruction tends to be pretty bad in Limited. There aren’t enough powerful nonbasics around, so you find yourself just destroying regular lands, and doing that for six mana isn’t really where you want to be. Land destruction at that stage often has a minimal impact on the game. And sure, this adds a bolt to the face and can kill some X/1s, but I still don’t feel like its enough to play this thing
Fog of War image 0.0 Fogs are unplayable in Limited. You spend a card to delay the inevitable in most cases.
Supply Drop image 2.0 This is a pretty interesting design! Three mana for +2/+2 isn’t a great rate for a trick, but you can cash it in for a card later, giving it some real 2-for-1 potential in a format that has a fair bit of Artifact synergy too.
Air Marshal image 2.5 Three mana is kind of a lot for giving Flying only to creatures with a particular type, but the good news is that it is easier than normal to produce mana to pay for abilities in this set thanks to powerstones and there are lots of soldiers. It can also target itself.
Ashnod's Intervention image 1.0 Returning the creature to your hand instead of to the battlefield is obviously a big downgrade from other versions of this effect we have seen before, but it does mean that you can use this to trade one-for-one for something while holding on to your creature. It can be especially nice if your creature has an ETB ability or something, but I kind of feel like the tempo hit you take in casting this to win combat is a little bit too much. This seems like it is efficient, but it really isn’t when you consider having to recast your creature. You can also use this with an Unearthed creature of course, but I still don’t feel like that’s enough upside.
Pack 2 Pick 12: Gixian Infiltrator
Ivory Tower image 0.0 This isn’t good in Limited. You need to be a draw go style control deck to really make this gain you life that matters, and that just doesn’t happen in Limited. This will frequently do nothing or close to nothing.
Thran Vigil image 1.0 // 3.0 This will mostly trigger off of Unearth in this format, but there are other ways to get it going in Black, as we’ve seen in this video. Obviously, this is a build around, because not all decks – even Black decks – will reach the critical mass of synergy needed to make this thing do its job.
Tawnos's Tinkering image 1.0 I feel like actually generating a card of value with this is going to be a little bit challenging, and it is a pretty big investment for a card that won’t always be able to do enough
Gixian Infiltrator image 2.0 This is a solid, if unexciting sacrifice payoff that will work especially well in the Black/Red deck. It starts with decent stats and a few counters are enough to make it a threat
Pack 2 Pick 13: Machine Over Matter
Machine Over Matter image 2.0 This seems pretty solid, as it will often only cost a single Blue mana, and the fact it can hit any nonland permanent makes it nicely flexible. Even if you pay 2 for this, we’ve seen that card be fine in the past. The downside about bounce, of course, is you use up a card and generally you don’t deal with one of your opponent’s – you just make them cast it again. But, if you can time this right, you can sometimes get a 1-for-1 in addition to the tempo – like if you use it in response to a trick or something.
Moment of Defiance image 2.0 This is a bit expensive for a trick that only boosts toughness by 1, which means that oftentimes your creature will also die, but it definitely makes up for that by drawing you a card. In situations where you creature does survive, you get a 2-for-1, and in situations where it doesn’t, you break even while gaining some life. It also draws you a card, checking the box for the Blue-Black deck. That seems fine to me
Mishra's Domination image 1.5 This has some nice flexibility, as it can be a decent removal spell for an aggro deck or a way to buff a creature. It doesn’t do either thing well, though
Pack 2 Pick 14: Moment of Defiance
Ashnod's Intervention image 1.0 Returning the creature to your hand instead of to the battlefield is obviously a big downgrade from other versions of this effect we have seen before, but it does mean that you can use this to trade one-for-one for something while holding on to your creature. It can be especially nice if your creature has an ETB ability or something, but I kind of feel like the tempo hit you take in casting this to win combat is a little bit too much. This seems like it is efficient, but it really isn’t when you consider having to recast your creature. You can also use this with an Unearthed creature of course, but I still don’t feel like that’s enough upside.
Moment of Defiance image 2.0 This is a bit expensive for a trick that only boosts toughness by 1, which means that oftentimes your creature will also die, but it definitely makes up for that by drawing you a card. In situations where you creature does survive, you get a 2-for-1, and in situations where it doesn’t, you break even while gaining some life. It also draws you a card, checking the box for the Blue-Black deck. That seems fine to me
Pack 2 Pick 15: Aeronaut's Wings
Aeronaut's Wings image 2.0 +1/+0 and Flying is enough to make a creature a problem for your opponent, even if two to play and two to equip will feel a little clunky.
Pack 3 Pick 1: Adaptive Automaton
Adaptive Automaton image 3.0 There’s really only one tribal deck in the format – UW Soldiers - and this will definitely fit in nicely there. However, you might be surprised how easily this can fit into other decks too – the format also has tons of humans and Phyrexians! I think that probably means this will work out often enough to value fairly highly.
Diabolic Intent image 0.5 Tutors don’t tend to perform very well in Limited, and I don’t think there’s an exception here – even at two mana. This is mostly because you have 2-for-1 yourself to make it do its thing, and while some decks in Limited have powerful enough cards to make that worth doing, you won’t usually have such a card. If you can find a way to sacrifice something worth less than a card – like a creature token, it gets more interesting – but still not good
Audacity image 3.0 I like this Aura. It is basically a fixed Rancor, which is pretty fun. +2/+0 and Trample is enough to make a whole lot of creatures problematic, and the fact you get to draw a card when Audacity goes to the graveyard means you don’t have to worry about getting 2-for-1’d
Involuntary Cooldown image 2.0 This makes the creatures you target with it tapped for three different attacks on your part, and that’s certainly pretty potent. The downside is that this doesn’t fully remove the cards, only temporarily getting them out of the way, and sometimes you’ll still have static and activated abilities to worry about. Still, with a Prowess deck in this format, this seems like a nice play in that type of deck.
Haywire Mite image 2.0 This has plenty of targets in this format, so it is certainly a main deck card. Doesn’t hurt that it is a cheap artifact in a format that really cares about such things
Urza's Rebuff image 1.5 Adding a second mode to Cancel is definitely an upgrade, but Cancel is usually a D+. Three mana counter spells that cost two blue ask a little too much of you – that’s a lot of mana to leave up - but its nice you can use this to tap some stuff down too.
Ambush Paratrooper image 2.5 This has passable Flying stats, and in the late game it can buff the whole board. Keep in mind, too, that activated abilities in this format are all going to be easier than normal to activate thanks to power stones.
Supply Drop image 2.0 This is a pretty interesting design! Three mana for +2/+2 isn’t a great rate for a trick, but you can cash it in for a card later, giving it some real 2-for-1 potential in a format that has a fair bit of Artifact synergy too.
Perimeter Patrol image 2.5 A three mana 3/3 is solid, and this has some real upside that will let it attack a lot more effectively
Weakstone's Subjugation image 3.0 I really like this design, and think it actually makes for a really good Blue removal spell. Only paying one mana when the creature is tapped is perfectly reasonable, and sort of “kicking it” to tap the creature down for 4 mana is fine too. The creature can still do all kinds of stuff, unfortunately – like use abilities, be sacrificed, and so on – so it isn’t really premium.
Aeronaut's Wings image 2.0 +1/+0 and Flying is enough to make a creature a problem for your opponent, even if two to play and two to equip will feel a little clunky.
Desynchronize image 2.0 5 mana is a lot, and while this does let you trade 1-for-1, since it doesn’t just bounce the permanent – it puts it on top or bottom of your opponent’s library – it also doesn’t do a great job of dealing with some really problematic permanents, which your opponent can just draw again.
Third Path Savant image 2.0 This has a very powerful ability that draws you cards late, and if you’re flooding out or have a bunch of powerstones, that’s a nice ability to help get you out of it. It has a pretty bad stat-line until you get to that point, though.
Overwhelming Remorse image 3.5 A card that was always 5 for this effect is probably a 3.0, and this will often cost significantly less, especially in graveyard decks. Just getting it down to 4 is pretty much getting you to the premium level, and it will often be even cheaper
Excavation Explosion image 4.0 This looks pretty great, even as a Sorcery! Three mana to do three to anything is always nice – you can usually break even or better on the mana you spend, and this actually gives you some mana back in the form of a powerstone
Pack 3 Pick 2: Terisian Mindbreaker
Terisian Mindbreaker image 2.0 Milling just isn’t a viable strategy in most Limited formats – it happens sometimes – but I don’t think its happening very often here. Hitting half of an opposing library with every attack is definitely sweet, and even if your opponent kills it, you can Unearth it! But it isn’t really going to mill your opponent out very often. It has mediocre stats too, which make it hard for it really attack that effectively very often. It is better than some cards that are all in on mill, because at least in this case you get a creature, and the repeatable nature of the mill trigger definitely helps too.
Skyfisher Spider image 3.5 This is another very good signpost Uncommon. Having Bone Splinters stapled to a 3/3 with Reach is quite the deal, especially in a color pair with expendable bodies and a reason to put creatures in the graveyard. The life gain it gives you can really make a difference too! You shouldn’t always exile it of course, as getting this back for value is also quite good, but the life gain will be the way to go a decent percentage of the time
Disciples of Gix image 2.0 The idea here is that you can search up stuff that you can get value out of while it is in the graveyard, and there are certainly Artifacts with Unearth in this set – but the fact it doesn’t let you search up creatures more broadly is a little frustrating, especially because the Black-Green deck in the format demands creatures be in the graveyard in particular. Still, lots of Artifacts in the set are creatures, so it will be able to help out that kind of deck a decent chunk of the time. The stats are bad, but I feel like this ETB will feel like you’re drawing a card
Mishra, Excavation Prodigy image 3.0 This looks like a pretty nice Uncommon. Looting is a great ability to have around in Limited, as it improves the quality of your draws – and Mishra here pays you off a little bit for discarding artifacts, since he can give you mana back. I’m not sure how often it is going to be optimal to do that, but it is nice to have the option. The stat-line is a little rough, as he can die to pretty much anything, including spells that cost 1/3rd what he does, but at least having Haste means you can usually do something with him right away
Koilos Roc image 3.0 A 5-mana 3/3 with Flash and Flying is usually playable, as it not only allows you to leave mana up for other stuff, you can flash it in to ambush something – so I’m pretty happy that this also adds a powerstone to the mix. Because of Flash, you’ll also be able to use that powerstone most of the time when you untap.
Depth Charge Colossus image 1.0 I don’t love this. Both modes are pretty inefficient for a creature you have to pay extra mana for to untap. Even with powerstones I don’t think I’m playing this.
Recommission image 1.5 If you can consistently get back a 3 mana creature with this, it is going to feel pretty dang good, as your creature will easily be worth more than 2 mana. The problem is that you have to set this up and have the right deck make up. And while those things are doable, there will certainly be times where this is stuck in your hand.
Third Path Savant image 2.0 This has a very powerful ability that draws you cards late, and if you’re flooding out or have a bunch of powerstones, that’s a nice ability to help get you out of it. It has a pretty bad stat-line until you get to that point, though.
Fallaji Chaindancer image 2.0 This is going to be tough to block on a lot of boards, as a 2/4 double strike can deal with a whole lot of creatures without going down itself. The threat of activation will let this get in for 2 a decent chunk of the time, and if you have other ways to augment it – it can get even sillier! Powerstones will make this ability easier to activate than you might think, too
Emergency Weld image 3.0 Gravedigger is always a nice card in Limited, this costs half as much for a creature half the size, and still returns something from your graveyard to your hand. Getting a 2-for-1 is harder with a 1/1, but a two mana 1/1 with this effect seems pretty nice
Swiftgear Drake image 1.5 5-mana for a 2/4 with Flying and Haste isn’t amazing, but it isn’t a completely terrible rate either – probably something like a D+, so the ETB upside here is kind of nice. You can get rid of some graveyard action your opponent is utilizing, or you can put a card back on the bottom of your library that you want to draw later
Ambush Paratrooper image 2.5 This has passable Flying stats, and in the late game it can buff the whole board. Keep in mind, too, that activated abilities in this format are all going to be easier than normal to activate thanks to power stones.
Shoot Down image 2.5 This has a whole lot of targets in this format. It is a bit clunky as a 4 mana Sorcery, but it just feels like this will be able to deal with enough permanents in this format that I like the first copy in most Green decks
Thraxodemon image 2.0 This is a bear with some decent upside – giving up a creature or artifact to draw a card is nice, though I don’t love paying three mana for the effect – but powerstones will soften the blow some
Pack 3 Pick 3: Soul Partition
Jalum Tome image 0.5 // 2.0 This is a pretty clunky way to loot, but the Blue-Black deck in the format is probably interested in this, as it gives you a way to consistently trigger all of your payoffs for drawing a second card in a turn.
Soul Partition image 2.0 This is interesting. It is mostly just going to generate tempo for you when you use it on your opponent, since they will ultimately be able to cast the card – just for an increased tax. Using it on your own stuff is certainly a thing, if you want to rebuy ETBs and stuff, but you still have to pay the cost for the card again, which is way worse than just blinking or flickering something. It is basically a White version of a bounce spell in a lot of ways – though making them pay extra does make it better than straight up bounce in some ways. Ultimately, you’re going to get nice tempo but go down a card when you cast this.
Dreams of Steel and Oil image 2.5 This is a very efficient way to disrupt the opponent, and it can hit a whole lot of cards in the format. I’m usually not super high on discard, but when it gets down to a single mana and allows you to hit the majority of cards in the format, I’m on board. It is nice that you even get to exile something, which will often at least take away something with Unearth or something like that. That isn’t quite a 2-for-1, but if you hit a card in hand and a card they could use in their graveyard, you’re getting a good deal. Don’t get me wrong – it still isn’t great. The fail case on the card – where you don’t hit anything - is still pretty ugly and will feel like you’re mulliganing
Spectrum Sentinel image 1.0 This looks pretty bad for Limited. Multicolored isn’t a huge theme in the format, and neither are nonbasic lands. Mostly, you’re going to be getting a one mana ½. It is both an artifact and a soldier, so in decks that care about those things it isn’t the biggest disaster ever, but it still isn’t very good
Keeper of the Cadence image 1.0 This is a neat ability, and if you can find a way to mill yourself out, this can effectively let you choose what you draw every turn! Before you get to that point, though, you just have an overcosted creature whose ability won’t be impacting the game for quite some time. Basically, in the most controlling deck ever this is a pretty real win condition, but that kind of deck often doesn’t exist in Limited.
Desynchronize image 2.0 5 mana is a lot, and while this does let you trade 1-for-1, since it doesn’t just bounce the permanent – it puts it on top or bottom of your opponent’s library – it also doesn’t do a great job of dealing with some really problematic permanents, which your opponent can just draw again.
Veteran's Powerblade image 1.5 One mana to equip this is pretty nice, but three to cast is always going to feel pretty ugly. Still, it makes your solder tokens into 3/1s, which means they can swing in most cases! Obviously works with other soldiers too, but I don’t really feel like this is the soldier payoff you’re really hoping for when you draft the UW deck.
Tocasia's Onulet image 2.0 A 5-mana 4/4 that gains you 2 life when it dies is probably a 1.5. This has a pretty reasonable Unearth cost too, though, and you get to gain 2 more life!
Penregon Strongbull image 3.0 This looks pretty sweet. There are plenty of artifacts to sacrifice, including the powerstones that can help pay for the ability, which effectively makes this say “Sacrifice a powerstone: It gets +1/+1 and deals 1 damage to an opponent.” The ability is just very affordable, and this creature attacking with a few artifacts in play is going to be a pretty sizable problem. Love that it also damages the opponent, giving it the capability of doing some very significant damage if it goes unblocked
Koilos Roc image 3.0 A 5-mana 3/3 with Flash and Flying is usually playable, as it not only allows you to leave mana up for other stuff, you can flash it in to ambush something – so I’m pretty happy that this also adds a powerstone to the mix. Because of Flash, you’ll also be able to use that powerstone most of the time when you untap.
Yotian Medic image 2.0 This is a solid little defensive creature. It can block for a lot of the game while giving you back some life, which is certainly going to be a pain for aggro decks
Burrowing Razormaw image 2.0 This has some reasonable stats and does a good job of loading your graveyard
Gixian Skullflayer image 2.0 This is a nice little payoff for getting creatures in your graveyard, a strategy that looks to be well supported in the format. I do wish this enabled itself a little bit, like by milling a single card or something – but it will be able to grow with relative ease in Black/Green decks especially
Pack 3 Pick 4: Chromatic Lantern
Chromatic Lantern image 2.0 This gives you great fixing and a little bit of ramp, things that are reasonably beneficial, but you do have to remember it doesn’t add to the board in any meaningful way.
Meticulous Excavation image 0.0 I don’t think this is very good. It does give you ways to rebuy ETB abilities and the like, but it asks for a ton of mana that you’re only going to have available in the extreme late game. And yes, with powerstones around this will be easier to use, but I don’t think that makes enough of a difference. The whole Unearth part of the card is kind of silly too, because to take advantage of it, you’re going to need to pay to Unearth a creature and then pay three more to return it to your hand so you get to keep it around. That’s just not a reasonable expectation.
Gnawing Vermin image 2.0 This gives you a bunch of little stuff, but getting all of it for one mana is a pretty decent deal! One mana 1/1s that can give -1/-1 to something when they die are usually pretty nice, as they can trade up for X/2s or even get a 2-for-1 if your opponent has two X/1s. The fact it mills sets up a couple of different Black decks in the format too
Loran's Escape image 2.0 These effects have been playing pretty well lately, and I think that’s probably the case here too. Blanking removal and various other effects while also improving a creature’s ability to win combat is pretty solid.
Machine Over Matter image 2.0 This seems pretty solid, as it will often only cost a single Blue mana, and the fact it can hit any nonland permanent makes it nicely flexible. Even if you pay 2 for this, we’ve seen that card be fine in the past. The downside about bounce, of course, is you use up a card and generally you don’t deal with one of your opponent’s – you just make them cast it again. But, if you can time this right, you can sometimes get a 1-for-1 in addition to the tempo – like if you use it in response to a trick or something.
Veteran's Powerblade image 1.5 One mana to equip this is pretty nice, but three to cast is always going to feel pretty ugly. Still, it makes your solder tokens into 3/1s, which means they can swing in most cases! Obviously works with other soldiers too, but I don’t really feel like this is the soldier payoff you’re really hoping for when you draft the UW deck.
Desynchronize image 2.0 5 mana is a lot, and while this does let you trade 1-for-1, since it doesn’t just bounce the permanent – it puts it on top or bottom of your opponent’s library – it also doesn’t do a great job of dealing with some really problematic permanents, which your opponent can just draw again.
Stern Lesson image 2.5 This is a solid card that will slot nicely into the spell decks and the artifact decks – especially the ramp-oriented artifact deck. Three mana to draw two and discard one on its own on an instant is usually kind of alright, and I do think the Powerstone upside here is enough for this to be a one-of in most Blue decks in the format. Any noncreature spell that draws you cards will be welcome in Blue-Red too.
Disfigure image 3.5 As usual, this is premium removal. It can kill a pretty wide spectrum of things for only one mana, giving you a great deal
Swiftgear Drake image 1.5 5-mana for a 2/4 with Flying and Haste isn’t amazing, but it isn’t a completely terrible rate either – probably something like a D+, so the ETB upside here is kind of nice. You can get rid of some graveyard action your opponent is utilizing, or you can put a card back on the bottom of your library that you want to draw later
Epic Confrontation image 3.5 This is a reprint, and it was a premium removal spell last time. The stats boost is surprisingly effective at helping your creature win the fight. You do have to be careful with this kind of removal spell, because if your opponent can respond by removing your creature you get blown out, and that does matter – but you can often find a good window to cast this
Goblin Blast-Runner image 2.0 This seems like a pretty nice sacrifice payoff at Common. A 3/2 with Menace can swing effectively for a long time, and sometimes it will be bigger! At the same time, it will also be a ½ a decent chunk of the time, and that’s not so good
Pack 3 Pick 5: Hulking Metamorph
Millstone image 1.0 Now we’ve got the original mill card, which is where the mechanic gets its name! And…it also isn’t great in Limited, though the fact that you actually can control who this hurts more makes it better than something like the Orb. This can actually win you some games if you’re a control deck, but most of the time you’d rather just have something that actually adds to the board.
Hulking Metamorph image 3.5 A 4-mana 3/3 that can copy any creature or artifact you contro is pretty good. It won’t ever be worse than a 3/3, and it doesn’t take that much in addition to that stat-line for you to feel like you’re getting a decent deal. Just add a key word, static ability, or ETB ability and you’re doing fine. The flip side of course is that if you have some really big creatures it will be smaller, but that’s okay.
Arbalest Engineers image 3.5 You’ll probably choose to make this a three mana 3/3 with Trample and Haste most of the time, but having the option of picking off a small creature or ramping your mana is great. Any of those cards individually would be pretty good, so having the option between all three is great.
Argothian Sprite image 2.5 This is better than it looks. There are lots of Artifact creatures in the set, including most of the format’s creature tokens, so this will be a nice attacker on many boards. Then, in the mid-to-late game you can buff it to make sure it stays relevant. As I’ve been saying, power stones make an ability like this easier to use than it looks! This looks like a quality two-drop for Green decks int he format
Stern Lesson image 2.5 This is a solid card that will slot nicely into the spell decks and the artifact decks – especially the ramp-oriented artifact deck. Three mana to draw two and discard one on its own on an instant is usually kind of alright, and I do think the Powerstone upside here is enough for this to be a one-of in most Blue decks in the format. Any noncreature spell that draws you cards will be welcome in Blue-Red too.
Mine Worker image 1.5 If this format had a life gain deck, it would be way better. As is, it is fairly mediocre, as it has poor stats and an ability that doesn’t really do enough. Obviously if you can get the Tron going here you’re going to be happier, but even with all three at Common, I wouldn’t count on that
Tomakul Honor Guard image 2.0 This has solid stats, and cheap removal will cost extra to destroy it! The format does have a bunch of 1/1 tokens, though, and that always makes a 3/1 sad
Whirling Strike image 1.5 This is a solid trick, as it will usually keep your creature alive, kill the opposing creature, and even do some trample damage! It gets better in a set with Prowess and other spell payoffs
Deadly Riposte image 2.5 This is a solid removal spell for non-aggressive decks, as removing something and gaining life goes a long way towards helping you stabilize. Meanwhile, it is pretty bad in a deck that wants to be aggressive, as you’d rather have removal that can deal with blockers, and this just doesn’t! It demands a tapped creature and the creature has to be small for this to do its job, so it certainly isn’t premium.
Epic Confrontation image 3.5 This is a reprint, and it was a premium removal spell last time. The stats boost is surprisingly effective at helping your creature win the fight. You do have to be careful with this kind of removal spell, because if your opponent can respond by removing your creature you get blown out, and that does matter – but you can often find a good window to cast this
Blanchwood Prowler image 3.0 This is either a two mana 1/1 that draws you a land and loads your graveyard, or a two mana 2/2 that loads your graveyard. Both of those options are solid, and you can get some extra value out of milling yourself in Green, as the Green-Black deck is all about it
Pack 3 Pick 6: Zephyr Sentinel
Soul-Guide Lantern image 2.0 This is another artifact that replaces itself, making it useful in the format. It also hates on the graveyard – something else of value in a format with Unearth and a couple of graveyard decks. You can main deck this pretty happily
Yotian Frontliner image 2.0 This will be pretty sweet to play on turn one, because it is likely to get in and buff other creatures in the process. However, even with Unearth, it has diminishing turns as the game goes on, because it just won’t survive attacking on very many boards. Basically, you end up paying a couple of mana to buff a creature twice, and I’m not super impressed by that. It is both an artifact and a soldier, which this format cares about, and that helps some.
Loran, Disciple of History image 3.0 This will usually be a 4-mana 3/3 that gets an artifact back from the graveyard, and that’s pretty good! White is unusually good at loading the graveyard, especially if you’re going with the Black-White deck, and the format has lots of artifacts, so it seems very doable. There aren’t a lot of legendary creatures in the set, so triggering it more than once isn’t going to happen very often.
Zephyr Sentinel image 3.5 You will always play a two mana 2/1 with flying and Flash, so the additional effect is a great thing to add! You can use it to save a creature from removal, or to rebuy an ETB ability – the soldier bonus is nice too! But yeah, you won’t always have a reason to use the bounce effect.
Deadly Riposte image 2.5 This is a solid removal spell for non-aggressive decks, as removing something and gaining life goes a long way towards helping you stabilize. Meanwhile, it is pretty bad in a deck that wants to be aggressive, as you’d rather have removal that can deal with blockers, and this just doesn’t! It demands a tapped creature and the creature has to be small for this to do its job, so it certainly isn’t premium.
Powerstone Engineer image 2.0 Trading this off and getting a powerstone in the process seems fine.
Tawnos's Tinkering image 1.0 I feel like actually generating a card of value with this is going to be a little bit challenging, and it is a pretty big investment for a card that won’t always be able to do enough
Gaea's Gift image 2.0 This is a nice trick. In addition to doing a good job of helping a creature win combat, the slew of keywords it gets makes it so you can blank most removal when you cast it. We’ve seen a lot o tricks like this of late, and they’ve all ended up being a card you always want one or two of in aggressive decks, and I think that’s what we have here
Stern Lesson image 2.5 This is a solid card that will slot nicely into the spell decks and the artifact decks – especially the ramp-oriented artifact deck. Three mana to draw two and discard one on its own on an instant is usually kind of alright, and I do think the Powerstone upside here is enough for this to be a one-of in most Blue decks in the format. Any noncreature spell that draws you cards will be welcome in Blue-Red too.
Coastal Bulwark image 2.0 Obviously, if you’re playing Blue, this is going to be a 3/3 – and a wall that can Surveil 1 is going to be a solid thing to have in more defensive decks.
Pack 3 Pick 7: Loran's Escape
Haywire Mite image 2.0 This has plenty of targets in this format, so it is certainly a main deck card. Doesn’t hurt that it is a cheap artifact in a format that really cares about such things
Ravenous Gigamole image 2.5 This loads your graveyard, and will frequently also get you something back – when it doesn’t, it is a 4-mana ¾ -- which isn’t great, but because you’re interested in graveyard stuff, putting those cards in the graveyard definitely matters.
Power Plant Worker image 2.0 This is a fun cycle, since they all reference the original Urza lands. I think the card seems pretty decent too. The stats aren’t great, but +2/+2 for three mana isn’t the worst rate in a set with power stones everywhere. I wouldn’t count on getting all three of these in play, but you might achieve it on occasion.
Fallaji Chaindancer image 2.0 This is going to be tough to block on a lot of boards, as a 2/4 double strike can deal with a whole lot of creatures without going down itself. The threat of activation will let this get in for 2 a decent chunk of the time, and if you have other ways to augment it – it can get even sillier! Powerstones will make this ability easier to activate than you might think, too
Urza's Rebuff image 1.5 Adding a second mode to Cancel is definitely an upgrade, but Cancel is usually a D+. Three mana counter spells that cost two blue ask a little too much of you – that’s a lot of mana to leave up - but its nice you can use this to tap some stuff down too.
Tomakul Honor Guard image 2.0 This has solid stats, and cheap removal will cost extra to destroy it! The format does have a bunch of 1/1 tokens, though, and that always makes a 3/1 sad
Carrion Locust image 2.0 Incidental graveyard hate is going to be nice in this format, as there are plenty of things that will be nice to exile – especially Unearth creatures. It comes attached to a reasonable flyer, and sometimes you’ll even make your opponent lose a life
Bitter Reunion image 1.5 This is a neat take on a Tormented Voice-type effect. While the UR deck in this format cares about spells, it actually cares about all non-creature spells, so this will still trigger them like Tormented Voice would. The ability to give haste to your whole board will come up sometimes too. I think you probably cut this most of the time in any deck that doesn’t care about spells, and even in the spell deck it probably isn’t the card you’re happily shoving in your deck
Loran's Escape image 2.0 These effects have been playing pretty well lately, and I think that’s probably the case here too. Blanking removal and various other effects while also improving a creature’s ability to win combat is pretty solid.
Pack 3 Pick 8: Mine Worker
Thran Power Suit image 1.5 On its own, this is a two mana to play and two to equip equipment that grants +1/+1 and Ward 2. The Ward 2 is a pretty nice thing to have, as it makes your investment in equipping it feel a little less painful.
Thran Vigil image 1.0 // 3.0 This will mostly trigger off of Unearth in this format, but there are other ways to get it going in Black, as we’ve seen in this video. Obviously, this is a build around, because not all decks – even Black decks – will reach the critical mass of synergy needed to make this thing do its job.
Kill-Zone Acrobat image 2.0 There are plenty of expendable things to give up to give this flying when it needs it to get in for damage – whether you’re giving up powerstones or creatures with unearth
Mine Worker image 1.5 If this format had a life gain deck, it would be way better. As is, it is fairly mediocre, as it has poor stats and an ability that doesn’t really do enough. Obviously if you can get the Tron going here you’re going to be happier, but even with all three at Common, I wouldn’t count on that
Goblin Blast-Runner image 2.0 This seems like a pretty nice sacrifice payoff at Common. A 3/2 with Menace can swing effectively for a long time, and sometimes it will be bigger! At the same time, it will also be a ½ a decent chunk of the time, and that’s not so good
Fallaji Archaeologist image 2.5 This is a cool design. It will either be a two mana ¼ – which is passable – or a two mana 0/3 that gets you something from the graveyard. Now, keep in mind you only get the card back if it is among those that are milled – and this only hits noncreature nonlands, so you may wiff sometimes. But if you’re a spell heavy deck in the format – which generally means UR – it seems like this will do what you want it to do most of the time, and at least you get a consolation prize if you do wiff.
Hoarding Recluse image 2.0 This can trade for anything, and while that’s not the most exciting at 4 mana, a 2/3 Reach can also block lots of small stuff in addition to making your opponent hesitant to attack with big stuff. The death ability here actually matters a bit too, as Green-Black decks will be milling themselves a significant chunk of the time, and sometimes you end up milling things you didn’t really want to mill, and this can help you get that card back
Military Discipline image 1.5 The turn you cast this, it will definitely help your creature win combat, and then you get a permanent +1/+0 effect to stick around. This will definitely generate some serious tempo sometimes, allowing your creature to survive against something that costs a lot more mana! It does have the inherent risks auras have, and you have to be careful about playing this, but I think this seems solid.
Pack 3 Pick 9: Ambush Paratrooper
Haywire Mite image 2.0 This has plenty of targets in this format, so it is certainly a main deck card. Doesn’t hurt that it is a cheap artifact in a format that really cares about such things
Urza's Rebuff image 1.5 Adding a second mode to Cancel is definitely an upgrade, but Cancel is usually a D+. Three mana counter spells that cost two blue ask a little too much of you – that’s a lot of mana to leave up - but its nice you can use this to tap some stuff down too.
Ambush Paratrooper image 2.5 This has passable Flying stats, and in the late game it can buff the whole board. Keep in mind, too, that activated abilities in this format are all going to be easier than normal to activate thanks to power stones.
Perimeter Patrol image 2.5 A three mana 3/3 is solid, and this has some real upside that will let it attack a lot more effectively
Aeronaut's Wings image 2.0 +1/+0 and Flying is enough to make a creature a problem for your opponent, even if two to play and two to equip will feel a little clunky.
Desynchronize image 2.0 5 mana is a lot, and while this does let you trade 1-for-1, since it doesn’t just bounce the permanent – it puts it on top or bottom of your opponent’s library – it also doesn’t do a great job of dealing with some really problematic permanents, which your opponent can just draw again.
Third Path Savant image 2.0 This has a very powerful ability that draws you cards late, and if you’re flooding out or have a bunch of powerstones, that’s a nice ability to help get you out of it. It has a pretty bad stat-line until you get to that point, though.
Pack 3 Pick 10: Third Path Savant
Disciples of Gix image 2.0 The idea here is that you can search up stuff that you can get value out of while it is in the graveyard, and there are certainly Artifacts with Unearth in this set – but the fact it doesn’t let you search up creatures more broadly is a little frustrating, especially because the Black-Green deck in the format demands creatures be in the graveyard in particular. Still, lots of Artifacts in the set are creatures, so it will be able to help out that kind of deck a decent chunk of the time. The stats are bad, but I feel like this ETB will feel like you’re drawing a card
Depth Charge Colossus image 1.0 I don’t love this. Both modes are pretty inefficient for a creature you have to pay extra mana for to untap. Even with powerstones I don’t think I’m playing this.
Third Path Savant image 2.0 This has a very powerful ability that draws you cards late, and if you’re flooding out or have a bunch of powerstones, that’s a nice ability to help get you out of it. It has a pretty bad stat-line until you get to that point, though.
Fallaji Chaindancer image 2.0 This is going to be tough to block on a lot of boards, as a 2/4 double strike can deal with a whole lot of creatures without going down itself. The threat of activation will let this get in for 2 a decent chunk of the time, and if you have other ways to augment it – it can get even sillier! Powerstones will make this ability easier to activate than you might think, too
Swiftgear Drake image 1.5 5-mana for a 2/4 with Flying and Haste isn’t amazing, but it isn’t a completely terrible rate either – probably something like a D+, so the ETB upside here is kind of nice. You can get rid of some graveyard action your opponent is utilizing, or you can put a card back on the bottom of your library that you want to draw later
Shoot Down image 2.5 This has a whole lot of targets in this format. It is a bit clunky as a 4 mana Sorcery, but it just feels like this will be able to deal with enough permanents in this format that I like the first copy in most Green decks
Pack 3 Pick 11: Desynchronize
Jalum Tome image 0.5 // 2.0 This is a pretty clunky way to loot, but the Blue-Black deck in the format is probably interested in this, as it gives you a way to consistently trigger all of your payoffs for drawing a second card in a turn.
Keeper of the Cadence image 1.0 This is a neat ability, and if you can find a way to mill yourself out, this can effectively let you choose what you draw every turn! Before you get to that point, though, you just have an overcosted creature whose ability won’t be impacting the game for quite some time. Basically, in the most controlling deck ever this is a pretty real win condition, but that kind of deck often doesn’t exist in Limited.
Desynchronize image 2.0 5 mana is a lot, and while this does let you trade 1-for-1, since it doesn’t just bounce the permanent – it puts it on top or bottom of your opponent’s library – it also doesn’t do a great job of dealing with some really problematic permanents, which your opponent can just draw again.
Veteran's Powerblade image 1.5 One mana to equip this is pretty nice, but three to cast is always going to feel pretty ugly. Still, it makes your solder tokens into 3/1s, which means they can swing in most cases! Obviously works with other soldiers too, but I don’t really feel like this is the soldier payoff you’re really hoping for when you draft the UW deck.
Burrowing Razormaw image 2.0 This has some reasonable stats and does a good job of loading your graveyard
Pack 3 Pick 12: Machine Over Matter
Machine Over Matter image 2.0 This seems pretty solid, as it will often only cost a single Blue mana, and the fact it can hit any nonland permanent makes it nicely flexible. Even if you pay 2 for this, we’ve seen that card be fine in the past. The downside about bounce, of course, is you use up a card and generally you don’t deal with one of your opponent’s – you just make them cast it again. But, if you can time this right, you can sometimes get a 1-for-1 in addition to the tempo – like if you use it in response to a trick or something.
Veteran's Powerblade image 1.5 One mana to equip this is pretty nice, but three to cast is always going to feel pretty ugly. Still, it makes your solder tokens into 3/1s, which means they can swing in most cases! Obviously works with other soldiers too, but I don’t really feel like this is the soldier payoff you’re really hoping for when you draft the UW deck.
Desynchronize image 2.0 5 mana is a lot, and while this does let you trade 1-for-1, since it doesn’t just bounce the permanent – it puts it on top or bottom of your opponent’s library – it also doesn’t do a great job of dealing with some really problematic permanents, which your opponent can just draw again.
Swiftgear Drake image 1.5 5-mana for a 2/4 with Flying and Haste isn’t amazing, but it isn’t a completely terrible rate either – probably something like a D+, so the ETB upside here is kind of nice. You can get rid of some graveyard action your opponent is utilizing, or you can put a card back on the bottom of your library that you want to draw later
Pack 3 Pick 13: Stern Lesson
Millstone image 1.0 Now we’ve got the original mill card, which is where the mechanic gets its name! And…it also isn’t great in Limited, though the fact that you actually can control who this hurts more makes it better than something like the Orb. This can actually win you some games if you’re a control deck, but most of the time you’d rather just have something that actually adds to the board.
Stern Lesson image 2.5 This is a solid card that will slot nicely into the spell decks and the artifact decks – especially the ramp-oriented artifact deck. Three mana to draw two and discard one on its own on an instant is usually kind of alright, and I do think the Powerstone upside here is enough for this to be a one-of in most Blue decks in the format. Any noncreature spell that draws you cards will be welcome in Blue-Red too.
Tomakul Honor Guard image 2.0 This has solid stats, and cheap removal will cost extra to destroy it! The format does have a bunch of 1/1 tokens, though, and that always makes a 3/1 sad
Pack 3 Pick 14: Stern Lesson
Tawnos's Tinkering image 1.0 I feel like actually generating a card of value with this is going to be a little bit challenging, and it is a pretty big investment for a card that won’t always be able to do enough
Stern Lesson image 2.5 This is a solid card that will slot nicely into the spell decks and the artifact decks – especially the ramp-oriented artifact deck. Three mana to draw two and discard one on its own on an instant is usually kind of alright, and I do think the Powerstone upside here is enough for this to be a one-of in most Blue decks in the format. Any noncreature spell that draws you cards will be welcome in Blue-Red too.
Pack 3 Pick 15: Carrion Locust
Carrion Locust image 2.0 Incidental graveyard hate is going to be nice in this format, as there are plenty of things that will be nice to exile – especially Unearth creatures. It comes attached to a reasonable flyer, and sometimes you’ll even make your opponent lose a life
Draft Pick Overview