Zul Ashur, Lich Lord
2 // 3.5 This is playable even with 0 other zombies, but if you have 3 or 4 of them, it gets substantially better.
Burnished Hart
2 This ramps and fixes your mana pretty well, while also providing a body that can chump block. Not all decks want that, but I think enough of them will.
Diregraf Ghoul
2 Entering tapped is a big downside unless you drop this on turn one, but at least a 2/2 body is sort of relevant on most boards.
Mischievous Mystic
4 This has good stats, and even if you only get one token out of it you're going to feel great.
Savannah Lions
1.5 Feels pretty good on turn one, but quickly becomes irrelevant.
Marauding Blight-Priest
2 This isn't the most exciting payoff, but it's fine -- and it's a two-card combo with Bloodthirsty Conqueror.
Mocking Sprite
2 Last time we saw this, the stat-line really held it back. This format has fewer incidental ways to kill it, but I'm still skeptical of it being able to stick around.
Broken Wings
0.5 This is a sideboard card. There aren't enough targets in most decks for it to be wortwhile in the main deck.
Healer's Hawk
3 This is a great one drop, especially in a format with lots of ways to buff the Hawk.
Courageous Goblin
2.5 This'll be able to rumble on turn 3 as a 3/2 Menace reasonably often in this format.
Gleaming Barrier
1 If this format had an artifact theme this might be more useful, as is it's just a bad defensive creature that gives you a little mana back.
Vampire Soulcaller
2 Not being able to block is a big downside, as it makes it way harder to generate a 2-for-1 with this than with something like Gravedigger.
Cat Collector
4 If this was 5-mana for a 3/2 that makes a 1/1 and gains you 3 life, you'd play that card happily -- and this has lots of upside beyond that.
Pack 1 Pick 2: Shivan Dragon
Divine Resilience
1.5 This is good at blanking removal, not so good at winning combat -- and you kind of need both these days for a trick to be exciting.
Eager Trufflesnout
3 Getting one food out of this feels good, and if you get more than that you're going to be thrilled.
Stromkirk Bloodthief
1.5 Last time we saw this was in a way more vampire-heavy set and it was not very good. It's probably going to be worse here. The stat-line is bad and the trigger is surprisingly hard to get.
Cephalid Inkmage
2.5 This is pretty good at enabling threshold, making it more likely it will be unblockable.
Involuntary Employment
1.0 // 2.5 You can't really play this unless you're crazy aggressive or you have good sacrifice outlets. If you do have those things, it can be solid.
Firebrand Archer
1.5 // 2.5 You can only play this if you lots and lots of noncreature spells, since the stat-line is so bad. You need a few triggers to make up for that.
Grow from the Ashes
2 It can be tough to play a card that doesn't add to the board, but this can fix and ramp really effecitvely, and can be particularly good with landfall.
Helpful Hunter
3.5 Two mana 1/1s that draw a card are also quality Limited cards, and there's no reason that won't be true here.
Pilfer
2 This is a nice way to disrupt your opponent, although not adding to the board is always a problem.
Gutless Plunderer
1.5 Three-mana 2/2s with death touch aren't anything special and even if you get this Raid trigger it's hard to feel good about casting this.
Witness Protection
1 This is a removal spell that gives you less than a 1-for-1. Leaving a 1/1 creature around is brutal since it can still attack and block, and if you have any X/1s it can be super miserable.
Shivan Dragon
2 This can win the game, but it's big, slow and clunky. It's a passable top-curve threat.
Pack 1 Pick 3: Llanowar Elves
Revenge of the Rats
1 / 3.5 This is definitely a buildaround, but a legit one for graveyard decks. Making a bunch of tokens is a good way to win the game once you've dumped your library in the graveyard.
Divine Resilience
1.5 This is good at blanking removal, not so good at winning combat -- and you kind of need both these days for a trick to be exciting.
Mischievous Mystic
4 This has good stats, and even if you only get one token out of it you're going to feel great.
Crypt Feaster
2 The floor is mediocre and so is the ceiling. This isn't really the graveyard payoff you're looking for, but you'll play it.
Armasaur Guide
2.5 You can get a counter from this even when it doesn't attack, and it's nice it can put the counter on itself too, as a 5/5 vigilance is pretty formidable.
Sure Strike
1.5 This is a good trick in combat, but it's a little bit expensive and not useful against most removal.
Evolving Wilds
2.5 This plus a basic land is always a nice way to fix for a bomb, and it can even help you get threshold.
Llanowar Elves
3 Playing this on turn one will win you a lot of games, but it is a pretty bad top deck late.
Elementalist Adept
2 1 toughness prowess creatures can underperform, since they often need two triggers to survive being block by a 2/2, but Flash being in the mix helps make it more likely you can find a window to get in with it.
Elfsworn Giant
3.5 This is a very strong landfall trigger, and while the stat-line isn't incredible, it's not thard to make sure you get at least one 1/1 out of this, and if it's left alone, it becomes a value engine.
Dismal Backwater
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Youthful Valkyrie
2.5 This is an okayish stat-line, and most White decks will have like 3 angels, so the upside is accessible.
Pack 1 Pick 4: Wildwood Scourge
Guarded Heir
3.5 This is expensive, but it delivers what a 6-mana card could. It's virtually impossible for you to win the game the turn after you cast it, even when you're behind -- and it can pull you ahead if you're at parity.
Wildwood Scourge
2 This never feels like an efficient creature, and it doesn't exactly grow quickly.
Spectral Sailor
3 This is a great one drop that can chip in for damage early, and in the late game it has a nice mana sink ability.
Eaten Alive
3 Not going to be as good here as it was in Crimson Vow, as decayed zombie tokens aren't everywhere, but it's still petty awesome when you do have something expendable to give up.
Gnarlid Colony
2 This was super underwhelming when we saw it last, and while this format has a +1/+1 counter theme, the creature is inefficient and trample only matters on the largest creatures.
Felidar Savior
4 For 4 mana, you get 4/5 worth of stats, 2/2 of which effectively has haste, and 2/3 of which has lifelink. That's an amazing rate, and counters and life gain have support in the format.
Squad Rallier
2.5 The stat-line is a bit underwhelming, but that activated ability is exactly what you want in the mid-to-late game. It's some serious flood insurance.
Strix Lookout
2 The stats aren't amazing, but it can attack for much of the game, and once it can't looting isn't too shabby.
Spitfire Lagac
2 This has mediocre stats and an underwhelming landfall trigger.
Luminous Rebuke
2.5 This is either too narrow or too expensive, but having the choice between the modes makes it greater than the sum of its parts.
Scoured Barrens
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Pack 1 Pick 5: Bigfin Bouncer
Rogue's Passage
1.5 This effect generally isn't worth making your mana worse for. Sure, it can be nice late -- but that's not even a guarantee.
Rune-Sealed Wall
1.5 Purely defensive creatures are rarely worth it in Limited, and while this can surveil, that's not enough upside.
Infernal Vessel
4 You spend three mana for a 2/1 and a 4/3 -- that's an excellent deal, and usually a 2-for-1.
Vampire Soulcaller
2 Not being able to block is a big downside, as it makes it way harder to generate a 2-for-1 with this than with something like Gravedigger.
Healer's Hawk
3 This is a great one drop, especially in a format with lots of ways to buff the Hawk.
Macabre Waltz
2.5 Giving up a land late to get two good creatures back from the yard is a good way to win those games, although this is pretty bad when you get it early.
Bigfin Bouncer
3 Adding a 3/2 to the board and bouncing your opponent's best creature feels pretty nice -- although it can be a little rough against "enters" triggers.
Make Your Move
0.5 There aren't enough artifacts or enchantments in this format for this to be main deck material.
Jungle Hollow
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Heroic Reinforcements
3.5 If you can curve out with this at the top, you usually win the game -- and even if thigns aren't going quite that smoothly, it usually results in a big turn.
Pack 1 Pick 6: Apothecary Stomper
Secluded Courtyard
0 This format doesn't have enough of a typal theme for this to ever make sense. It will rarely produce colored mana.
Gnarlid Colony
2 This was super underwhelming when we saw it last, and while this format has a +1/+1 counter theme, the creature is inefficient and trample only matters on the largest creatures.
Hungry Ghoul
2.5 It has passable starting point and it's activated ability has some good applications in the format, in addition to just being solid on it's own.
Fleeting Distraction
1 // 2.5 This is only going to make the cut regularly in spell decks that love the idea of a card that triggers prowess and replaces itself.
Make Your Move
0.5 There aren't enough artifacts or enchantments in this format for this to be main deck material.
Elementalist Adept
2 1 toughness prowess creatures can underperform, since they often need two triggers to survive being block by a 2/2, but Flash being in the mix helps make it more likely you can find a window to get in with it.
Apothecary Stomper
2.5 This is pretty solid for the cost. The counters will augment your board in a pretty big way, and even as a 4/4 the stomper isn't really a creature that can be ignored.
Scoured Barrens
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Lightshell Duo
2.5 This'll never be great, but it slots in nicely to your spell and graveyard decks.
Pack 1 Pick 7: Eager Trufflesnout
Eager Trufflesnout
3 Getting one food out of this feels good, and if you get more than that you're going to be thrilled.
Rune-Sealed Wall
1.5 Purely defensive creatures are rarely worth it in Limited, and while this can surveil, that's not enough upside.
Giant Growth
2 This is always a nice trick. It wins most combats very efficiently and can even blank some removal.
Squad Rallier
2.5 The stat-line is a bit underwhelming, but that activated ability is exactly what you want in the mid-to-late game. It's some serious flood insurance.
Gutless Plunderer
1.5 Three-mana 2/2s with death touch aren't anything special and even if you get this Raid trigger it's hard to feel good about casting this.
Courageous Goblin
2.5 This'll be able to rumble on turn 3 as a 3/2 Menace reasonably often in this format.
Lightshell Duo
2.5 This'll never be great, but it slots in nicely to your spell and graveyard decks.
Clinquant Skymage
2 This starting stat-line is absolutely abyssmal, but the text box does mean it can grow in a hurry.
Ravenous Amulet
1.5 This is too slow to work out very well. If you have lots of fodder you might be able to go off, though.
Marauding Blight-Priest
2 This isn't the most exciting payoff, but it's fine -- and it's a two-card combo with Bloodthirsty Conqueror.
Fleeting Distraction
1 // 2.5 This is only going to make the cut regularly in spell decks that love the idea of a card that triggers prowess and replaces itself.
Grow from the Ashes
2 It can be tough to play a card that doesn't add to the board, but this can fix and ramp really effecitvely, and can be particularly good with landfall.
Fake Your Own Death
2.5 This is a quality trick that almost always wins combat and/or blanks removal, while generating extra value with a treasure.
Thornwood Falls
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Pack 1 Pick 9: Mocking Sprite
Savannah Lions
1.5 Feels pretty good on turn one, but quickly becomes irrelevant.
Mocking Sprite
2 Last time we saw this, the stat-line really held it back. This format has fewer incidental ways to kill it, but I'm still skeptical of it being able to stick around.
Broken Wings
0.5 This is a sideboard card. There aren't enough targets in most decks for it to be wortwhile in the main deck.
Gleaming Barrier
1 If this format had an artifact theme this might be more useful, as is it's just a bad defensive creature that gives you a little mana back.
Vampire Soulcaller
2 Not being able to block is a big downside, as it makes it way harder to generate a 2-for-1 with this than with something like Gravedigger.
Divine Resilience
1.5 This is good at blanking removal, not so good at winning combat -- and you kind of need both these days for a trick to be exciting.
Cephalid Inkmage
2.5 This is pretty good at enabling threshold, making it more likely it will be unblockable.
Involuntary Employment
1.0 // 2.5 You can't really play this unless you're crazy aggressive or you have good sacrifice outlets. If you do have those things, it can be solid.
Witness Protection
1 This is a removal spell that gives you less than a 1-for-1. Leaving a 1/1 creature around is brutal since it can still attack and block, and if you have any X/1s it can be super miserable.
Crypt Feaster
2 The floor is mediocre and so is the ceiling. This isn't really the graveyard payoff you're looking for, but you'll play it.
Armasaur Guide
2.5 You can get a counter from this even when it doesn't attack, and it's nice it can put the counter on itself too, as a 5/5 vigilance is pretty formidable.
Evolving Wilds
2.5 This plus a basic land is always a nice way to fix for a bomb, and it can even help you get threshold.
Dismal Backwater
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Pack 1 Pick 12: Guarded Heir
Guarded Heir
3.5 This is expensive, but it delivers what a 6-mana card could. It's virtually impossible for you to win the game the turn after you cast it, even when you're behind -- and it can pull you ahead if you're at parity.
Felidar Savior
4 For 4 mana, you get 4/5 worth of stats, 2/2 of which effectively has haste, and 2/3 of which has lifelink. That's an amazing rate, and counters and life gain have support in the format.
Squad Rallier
2.5 The stat-line is a bit underwhelming, but that activated ability is exactly what you want in the mid-to-late game. It's some serious flood insurance.
Pack 1 Pick 13: Rune-Sealed Wall
Rune-Sealed Wall
1.5 Purely defensive creatures are rarely worth it in Limited, and while this can surveil, that's not enough upside.
Vampire Soulcaller
2 Not being able to block is a big downside, as it makes it way harder to generate a 2-for-1 with this than with something like Gravedigger.
Pack 1 Pick 14: Fleeting Distraction
Fleeting Distraction
1 // 2.5 This is only going to make the cut regularly in spell decks that love the idea of a card that triggers prowess and replaces itself.
Pack 2 Pick 1: Elvish Archdruid
Elvish Archdruid
3 This has a passable baseline as a three mana 2/2 that can tap for Green, and most Green decks in this format will have enough Elves for there to be additional upside.
Ajani's Pridemate
3 As usual, the Pridemate is a nice life gain payoff with a reasonable baseline.
Wardens of the Cycle
3 Just getting the Morbid trigger once is enough to feel good about things, and that's good -- but don't expect to make this go off one very turn.
An Offer You Can't Refuse
0 One mana to counter a noncreature spell is great! Giving your opponent a huge mana boost, though? Not so much. You basically 2-for-1 yourself when you cast this.
Swiftfoot Boots
1 For this to be good, your creature already has to be great -- and in Limited that's not very likely.
Goblin Surprise
2.5 Neither mode is great. The tokens are a bit below rate and the buff is situational, but having a choice between them is a big upgrade.
Squad Rallier
2.5 The stat-line is a bit underwhelming, but that activated ability is exactly what you want in the mid-to-late game. It's some serious flood insurance.
Beast-Kin Ranger
2.5 Making tokens can make this hit really hard, but a 3-mana 3/3 trampler isn't anythign special.
Burst Lightning
4 This is Shock with upside, and the upside is real -- since in the late game it can deal with much larger creatures or finish the opponent off.
Macabre Waltz
2.5 Giving up a land late to get two good creatures back from the yard is a good way to win those games, although this is pretty bad when you get it early.
Elementalist Adept
2 1 toughness prowess creatures can underperform, since they often need two triggers to survive being block by a 2/2, but Flash being in the mix helps make it more likely you can find a window to get in with it.
Gleaming Barrier
1 If this format had an artifact theme this might be more useful, as is it's just a bad defensive creature that gives you a little mana back.
Swiftwater Cliffs
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Burglar Rat
2.5 This is always a solid Limited creature. It's certainly not a full-blown 2-for-1, but it gets a card up front and then you have a body around to block or sacrifice.
Pack 2 Pick 2: Spinner of Souls
Searslicer Goblin
4 Getting a creature token from a Raid trigger is a big deal, as that token can keep triggering raid all on it's own. Attacking with a one drop and dropping this on two will often be gameover.
Spinner of Souls
4 This makes every trade into a 2-for-1 and has really good stats, so it can take over some games.
Brineborn Cutthroat
2 This has bad starting stats but there are enough cards with flash and instants in the set for it to grow.
Inspiring Call
1.5 You need a lot of creatures with counters for this to feel worth it, and while this format certainly has decks that can do it, having a baseline of being a blank card is brutal.
Good-Fortune Unicorn
3 Extra counters are great, but starting as a three mana 2/2 isn't.
Aegis Turtle
1 This isn't worth a card. All it does is block, and it doesn't do it all that well, since it just absorbs damage and can't trade for anything.
Mocking Sprite
2 Last time we saw this, the stat-line really held it back. This format has fewer incidental ways to kill it, but I'm still skeptical of it being able to stick around.
Luminous Rebuke
2.5 This is either too narrow or too expensive, but having the choice between the modes makes it greater than the sum of its parts.
Crypt Feaster
2 The floor is mediocre and so is the ceiling. This isn't really the graveyard payoff you're looking for, but you'll play it.
Crackling Cyclops
1.5 This probably asks too much to be worth it. It'll be a 0/4 way too often, and it isn't like a 3/4 is that exciting.
Apothecary Stomper
2.5 This is pretty solid for the cost. The counters will augment your board in a pretty big way, and even as a 4/4 the stomper isn't really a creature that can be ignored.
Sure Strike
1.5 This is a good trick in combat, but it's a little bit expensive and not useful against most removal.
Pack 2 Pick 3: Koma, World-Eater
Koma, World-Eater
4.5 If this attacks there's a very good chance you get those 4 3/3 tokens, and Koma has a pretty good shot at attacking thanks to it's Ward and it's sheer size.
Dwynen, Gilt-Leaf Daen
3 The baseline here is solid and there are enough Elves in the format for this to buff a few of the creatures in your deck.
Meteor Golem
2 Adding a 3/3 to the board and destroying your opponents best permanent is powerful, but not all decks are going to get to 7 mana.
Sanguine Syphoner
2.5 This attack trigger plays pretty well, especially in a format with a life gain deck.
Run Away Together
1.5 It's temping to imagine scenarios where you bounce a creature with an "enters" trigger or help a creature dodge removal, but this is mostly just an awkward bounce spell.
Beast-Kin Ranger
2.5 Making tokens can make this hit really hard, but a 3-mana 3/3 trampler isn't anythign special.
Spitfire Lagac
2 This has mediocre stats and an underwhelming landfall trigger.
Macabre Waltz
2.5 Giving up a land late to get two good creatures back from the yard is a good way to win those games, although this is pretty bad when you get it early.
Bite Down
3.5 This is always great removal, and while you have to be careful agaisnt interaction, being an instant helps make it easy to find the rightw indow for it.
Fanatical Firebrand
2.5 This is really nice on turn one, and it's ping ability keeps it at least somewhat relevant all game long.
Evolving Wilds
2.5 This plus a basic land is always a nice way to fix for a bomb, and it can even help you get threshold.
Pack 2 Pick 4: Ruby, Daring Tracker
Etali, Primal Storm
4.5 This probably dies when it attacks, but it'll usually generate a very efficient 2-for-1 at a minimum, and the ceiling is much higher.
Ruby, Daring Tracker
3.5 She accelerates your mana to get you to bigger creatures, and then becomes a big creature herself at that point. Pretty good top-deck, too.
Infernal Vessel
4 You spend three mana for a 2/1 and a 4/3 -- that's an excellent deal, and usually a 2-for-1.
Quick-Draw Katana
2 This only offers a buff during your turn, and if you're an aggro deck you're probably more interested in playing more creatures than playing this thing.
Sure Strike
1.5 This is a good trick in combat, but it's a little bit expensive and not useful against most removal.
Prideful Parent
3.5 Three mana 2/2s that make 1/1s are always quality cards in Limited, and the 2/2 in this case even comes with Vigilance.
Witness Protection
1 This is a removal spell that gives you less than a 1-for-1. Leaving a 1/1 creature around is brutal since it can still attack and block, and if you have any X/1s it can be super miserable.
Apothecary Stomper
2.5 This is pretty solid for the cost. The counters will augment your board in a pretty big way, and even as a 4/4 the stomper isn't really a creature that can be ignored.
Eaten Alive
3 Not going to be as good here as it was in Crimson Vow, as decayed zombie tokens aren't everywhere, but it's still petty awesome when you do have something expendable to give up.
Aegis Turtle
1 This isn't worth a card. All it does is block, and it doesn't do it all that well, since it just absorbs damage and can't trade for anything.
Firespitter Whelp
2.5 Wind Drake stats aren't what they used to be, but the upside is enough to make this solid.
Ravenous Amulet
1.5 This is too slow to work out very well. If you have lots of fodder you might be able to go off, though.
Sure Strike
1.5 This is a good trick in combat, but it's a little bit expensive and not useful against most removal.
Soul-Shackled Zombie
2.5 Draining 2 with this is going to be pretty close to automatic, and the body does a decent job of trading.
Think Twice
2.5 This is never super efficient, but it does draw you 2 cards, and if you mill it, it's like adding the card to your hand which is pretty sweet.
Cackling Prowler
2.5 A 4-mana 4/3 with Ward 2 is pretty decent, as the Ward heps offset some of the problems of that stat-line, and it gives it more time to grow.
Bake into a Pie
3.5 It's a little expensive but makes up for that in a big way with that food token.
Gleaming Barrier
1 If this format had an artifact theme this might be more useful, as is it's just a bad defensive creature that gives you a little mana back.
Goblin Surprise
2.5 Neither mode is great. The tokens are a bit below rate and the buff is situational, but having a choice between them is a big upgrade.
Pack 2 Pick 6: Llanowar Elves
Luminous Rebuke
2.5 This is either too narrow or too expensive, but having the choice between the modes makes it greater than the sum of its parts.
Llanowar Elves
3 Playing this on turn one will win you a lot of games, but it is a pretty bad top deck late.
Mocking Sprite
2 Last time we saw this, the stat-line really held it back. This format has fewer incidental ways to kill it, but I'm still skeptical of it being able to stick around.
Ambush Wolf
2.5 This can trade up when it ambush blocks, and when it doesn't it can add significantly to the board during your opponent's end step, and maybe even hate on the graveyard.
Pilfer
2 This is a nice way to disrupt your opponent, although not adding to the board is always a problem.
Evolving Wilds
2.5 This plus a basic land is always a nice way to fix for a bomb, and it can even help you get threshold.
Refute
2 Cancel is usually not a card that always makes the cut, and this probably doesn't quite get there either -- although adding Loot to the mix is definitely better.
Pack 2 Pick 7: Ambush Wolf
Omniscience
0 This is too expensive to be relevant, and even when you do get it in play in Limited, you probably don't have any cards you need to cast for free anyway -- since you have 10 mana.
Refute
2 Cancel is usually not a card that always makes the cut, and this probably doesn't quite get there either -- although adding Loot to the mix is definitely better.
Inspiring Paladin
3 Even without the +1/+1 counter upside this would be a solid card, and with it becomes a very good Common.
Burglar Rat
2.5 This is always a solid Limited creature. It's certainly not a full-blown 2-for-1, but it gets a card up front and then you have a body around to block or sacrifice.
Ambush Wolf
2.5 This can trade up when it ambush blocks, and when it doesn't it can add significantly to the board during your opponent's end step, and maybe even hate on the graveyard.
Aegis Turtle
1 This isn't worth a card. All it does is block, and it doesn't do it all that well, since it just absorbs damage and can't trade for anything.
Vanguard Seraph
2 It's been awhile since a 4-mana 3/3 Flyer was exciting, and this life gain payoff is underwhelming.
Involuntary Employment
1.0 // 2.5 You can't really play this unless you're crazy aggressive or you have good sacrifice outlets. If you do have those things, it can be solid.
Pack 2 Pick 8: Gnarlid Colony
Savannah Lions
1.5 Feels pretty good on turn one, but quickly becomes irrelevant.
Gnarlid Colony
2 This was super underwhelming when we saw it last, and while this format has a +1/+1 counter theme, the creature is inefficient and trample only matters on the largest creatures.
Quick-Draw Katana
2 This only offers a buff during your turn, and if you're an aggro deck you're probably more interested in playing more creatures than playing this thing.
Fleeting Distraction
1 // 2.5 This is only going to make the cut regularly in spell decks that love the idea of a card that triggers prowess and replaces itself.
Grow from the Ashes
2 It can be tough to play a card that doesn't add to the board, but this can fix and ramp really effecitvely, and can be particularly good with landfall.
Bloodfell Caves
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Campus Guide
1.5 This is the fixing you play when you're desperate. Or the two drop you play when you're desperate. Mostly, it's bad at being either of those things, so you hope you don't play it.
Pack 2 Pick 9: Swiftwater Cliffs
An Offer You Can't Refuse
0 One mana to counter a noncreature spell is great! Giving your opponent a huge mana boost, though? Not so much. You basically 2-for-1 yourself when you cast this.
Goblin Surprise
2.5 Neither mode is great. The tokens are a bit below rate and the buff is situational, but having a choice between them is a big upgrade.
Beast-Kin Ranger
2.5 Making tokens can make this hit really hard, but a 3-mana 3/3 trampler isn't anythign special.
Macabre Waltz
2.5 Giving up a land late to get two good creatures back from the yard is a good way to win those games, although this is pretty bad when you get it early.
Gleaming Barrier
1 If this format had an artifact theme this might be more useful, as is it's just a bad defensive creature that gives you a little mana back.
Swiftwater Cliffs
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Pack 2 Pick 10: Apothecary Stomper
Aegis Turtle
1 This isn't worth a card. All it does is block, and it doesn't do it all that well, since it just absorbs damage and can't trade for anything.
Crackling Cyclops
1.5 This probably asks too much to be worth it. It'll be a 0/4 way too often, and it isn't like a 3/4 is that exciting.
Apothecary Stomper
2.5 This is pretty solid for the cost. The counters will augment your board in a pretty big way, and even as a 4/4 the stomper isn't really a creature that can be ignored.
Quick-Draw Katana
2 This only offers a buff during your turn, and if you're an aggro deck you're probably more interested in playing more creatures than playing this thing.
Sure Strike
1.5 This is a good trick in combat, but it's a little bit expensive and not useful against most removal.
Lathril, Blade of the Elves
2.5 You need this to get in once to feel worth it, and while Menace helps with that, the 2/3 stat-line doesn't. You won't be getting 10 elves, so don't worry about that part.
Serra Angel
3 This is still a pretty legit creature in Limited. The stat-line's great and it performs well as both an attacker and blocker, which is great, since it has Vigilance.
Secluded Courtyard
0 This format doesn't have enough of a typal theme for this to ever make sense. It will rarely produce colored mana.
Felling Blow
3 This is a little bit clunky and you have to be careful about when you cast it -- but when the coast is clear, it's going to kill something and make your creature a better attacker at the same time.
Healer's Hawk
3 This is a great one drop, especially in a format with lots of ways to buff the Hawk.
Icewind Elemental
2.5 5-mana 3/4 Flyers have held up pretty well in Limited, and a loot trigger is pretty powerful.
Eaten Alive
3 Not going to be as good here as it was in Crimson Vow, as decayed zombie tokens aren't everywhere, but it's still petty awesome when you do have something expendable to give up.
Elfsworn Giant
3.5 This is a very strong landfall trigger, and while the stat-line isn't incredible, it's not thard to make sure you get at least one 1/1 out of this, and if it's left alone, it becomes a value engine.
Make Your Move
0.5 There aren't enough artifacts or enchantments in this format for this to be main deck material.
Gleaming Barrier
1 If this format had an artifact theme this might be more useful, as is it's just a bad defensive creature that gives you a little mana back.
Axgard Cavalry
1.5 This stat-line is pretty bad these days, and Haste is too narrow of a keyword ability for this to be very useful.
Prideful Parent
3.5 Three mana 2/2s that make 1/1s are always quality cards in Limited, and the 2/2 in this case even comes with Vigilance.
Dazzling Angel
3 This is a solid stat-line and the incidental life gain is going to feel good in go-wide and lifegain decks in the format.
Pack 3 Pick 2: Elvish Archdruid
Elvish Archdruid
3 This has a passable baseline as a three mana 2/2 that can tap for Green, and most Green decks in this format will have enough Elves for there to be additional upside.
Overrun
3.5 This can win a lot of games, though you do need a built out board and three green mana for it to do the job.
Secluded Courtyard
0 This format doesn't have enough of a typal theme for this to ever make sense. It will rarely produce colored mana.
Divine Resilience
1.5 This is good at blanking removal, not so good at winning combat -- and you kind of need both these days for a trick to be exciting.
Think Twice
2.5 This is never super efficient, but it does draw you 2 cards, and if you mill it, it's like adding the card to your hand which is pretty sweet.
Involuntary Employment
1.0 // 2.5 You can't really play this unless you're crazy aggressive or you have good sacrifice outlets. If you do have those things, it can be solid.
Armasaur Guide
2.5 You can get a counter from this even when it doesn't attack, and it's nice it can put the counter on itself too, as a 5/5 vigilance is pretty formidable.
Elfsworn Giant
3.5 This is a very strong landfall trigger, and while the stat-line isn't incredible, it's not thard to make sure you get at least one 1/1 out of this, and if it's left alone, it becomes a value engine.
Fake Your Own Death
2.5 This is a quality trick that almost always wins combat and/or blanks removal, while generating extra value with a treasure.
Squad Rallier
2.5 The stat-line is a bit underwhelming, but that activated ability is exactly what you want in the mid-to-late game. It's some serious flood insurance.
Healer's Hawk
3 This is a great one drop, especially in a format with lots of ways to buff the Hawk.
Tranquil Cove
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Ravenous Amulet
1.5 This is too slow to work out very well. If you have lots of fodder you might be able to go off, though.
Pack 3 Pick 3: Rugged Highlands
Time Stop
2.5 It's expensive, but close enough to Time Walk to be viable in most Blue decks.
Bulk Up
1.5 The ceiling here is real -- you can spend 8 mana and quadruple power. The flower is awful -- since it doesnt' buff toughness at all, it's not much of a combat trick.
Fiendish Panda
4 This is usually going to be a 2-for-1, and if you're good at gaining life it can become a threat in its own right.
Ravenous Amulet
1.5 This is too slow to work out very well. If you have lots of fodder you might be able to go off, though.
Fleeting Flight
2 This is a solid trick, it'll win combat most of the time and has the "oops I win" upside of sending your big creature into the air.
Helpful Hunter
3.5 Two mana 1/1s that draw a card are also quality Limited cards, and there's no reason that won't be true here.
Prideful Parent
3.5 Three mana 2/2s that make 1/1s are always quality cards in Limited, and the 2/2 in this case even comes with Vigilance.
Apothecary Stomper
2.5 This is pretty solid for the cost. The counters will augment your board in a pretty big way, and even as a 4/4 the stomper isn't really a creature that can be ignored.
Soul-Shackled Zombie
2.5 Draining 2 with this is going to be pretty close to automatic, and the body does a decent job of trading.
Aegis Turtle
1 This isn't worth a card. All it does is block, and it doesn't do it all that well, since it just absorbs damage and can't trade for anything.
Rugged Highlands
2.5 These all offer nice fixing, and the lifegain on the BW can be extra nice.
Sanguine Syphoner
2.5 This attack trigger plays pretty well, especially in a format with a life gain deck.
Pack 3 Pick 4: Genesis Wave
Genesis Wave
1 You need a ton of mana for casting this to be worthwhile, and you just can't get there in Limited often enough.
Juggernaut
1.5 If you need a 4-drop you can probably do worse, but how often are you desperate for a 4 drop in Limited?
Clinquant Skymage
2 This starting stat-line is absolutely abyssmal, but the text box does mean it can grow in a hurry.
Ruby, Daring Tracker
3.5 She accelerates your mana to get you to bigger creatures, and then becomes a big creature herself at that point. Pretty good top-deck, too.
Fleeting Distraction
1 // 2.5 This is only going to make the cut regularly in spell decks that love the idea of a card that triggers prowess and replaces itself.
Think Twice
2.5 This is never super efficient, but it does draw you 2 cards, and if you mill it, it's like adding the card to your hand which is pretty sweet.
Healer's Hawk
3 This is a great one drop, especially in a format with lots of ways to buff the Hawk.
Giant Growth
2 This is always a nice trick. It wins most combats very efficiently and can even blank some removal.
Fake Your Own Death
2.5 This is a quality trick that almost always wins combat and/or blanks removal, while generating extra value with a treasure.
Rogue's Passage
1.5 This effect generally isn't worth making your mana worse for. Sure, it can be nice late -- but that's not even a guarantee.
Pack 3 Pick 5: Llanowar Elves
Grappling Kraken
3 It's expensive, but it has a very strong landfall trigger. Once it's in play, each land you draw becomes a removal spell -- so you don't really care if you flood out.
Angel of Finality
2.5 This is a nice stat-line, and sometimes you'll take threshold away from your opponent.
Gleaming Barrier
1 If this format had an artifact theme this might be more useful, as is it's just a bad defensive creature that gives you a little mana back.
Firebrand Archer
1.5 // 2.5 You can only play this if you lots and lots of noncreature spells, since the stat-line is so bad. You need a few triggers to make up for that.
Cackling Prowler
2.5 A 4-mana 4/3 with Ward 2 is pretty decent, as the Ward heps offset some of the problems of that stat-line, and it gives it more time to grow.
Goblin Surprise
2.5 Neither mode is great. The tokens are a bit below rate and the buff is situational, but having a choice between them is a big upgrade.
Felidar Savior
4 For 4 mana, you get 4/5 worth of stats, 2/2 of which effectively has haste, and 2/3 of which has lifelink. That's an amazing rate, and counters and life gain have support in the format.
Luminous Rebuke
2.5 This is either too narrow or too expensive, but having the choice between the modes makes it greater than the sum of its parts.
Llanowar Elves
3 Playing this on turn one will win you a lot of games, but it is a pretty bad top deck late.
Pack 3 Pick 6: Wary Thespian
Exsanguinate
1 You need a ton of mana before this is worth casting, and even then it doesn't impact the board.
Vampire Soulcaller
2 Not being able to block is a big downside, as it makes it way harder to generate a 2-for-1 with this than with something like Gravedigger.
Beast-Kin Ranger
2.5 Making tokens can make this hit really hard, but a 3-mana 3/3 trampler isn't anythign special.
Strix Lookout
2 The stats aren't amazing, but it can attack for much of the game, and once it can't looting isn't too shabby.
Run Away Together
1.5 It's temping to imagine scenarios where you bounce a creature with an "enters" trigger or help a creature dodge removal, but this is mostly just an awkward bounce spell.
Hare Apparent
1.5 // 2.5 You can't really play this if you only have one, but if you have 4+, you'll get enough tokens for them to be worthwhile.
Wary Thespian
2.5 Green isn't super graveyard-oriented in the format, but the solid stat-line and card selection this offers will be welcome in pretty much any Green deck.
Ambush Wolf
2.5 This can trade up when it ambush blocks, and when it doesn't it can add significantly to the board during your opponent's end step, and maybe even hate on the graveyard.
Pack 3 Pick 7: Beast-Kin Ranger
Serra Angel
3 This is still a pretty legit creature in Limited. The stat-line's great and it performs well as both an attacker and blocker, which is great, since it has Vigilance.
Snakeskin Veil
3 Always a great trick, it's solid in combat and great against removal. Spending one mana to win combat or blank a removal spell is a great feeling.
Wary Thespian
2.5 Green isn't super graveyard-oriented in the format, but the solid stat-line and card selection this offers will be welcome in pretty much any Green deck.
Icewind Elemental
2.5 5-mana 3/4 Flyers have held up pretty well in Limited, and a loot trigger is pretty powerful.
Beast-Kin Ranger
2.5 Making tokens can make this hit really hard, but a 3-mana 3/3 trampler isn't anythign special.
Fanatical Firebrand
2.5 This is really nice on turn one, and it's ping ability keeps it at least somewhat relevant all game long.
Cathar Commando
2.5 This has a passable stat-line and Flash can allow it to trade up sometimes, and having disenchant in your main deck is nice.
Rune-Sealed Wall
1.5 Purely defensive creatures are rarely worth it in Limited, and while this can surveil, that's not enough upside.
Pack 3 Pick 8: Treetop Snarespinner
Cat Collector
4 If this was 5-mana for a 3/2 that makes a 1/1 and gains you 3 life, you'd play that card happily -- and this has lots of upside beyond that.
Inspiration from Beyond
0 // 3 This has a nice ceiling, but a miserable floor. You need lots of spells and lots of graveyard stuff going on, and neither of those are guaranteed.
Fleeting Flight
2 This is a solid trick, it'll win combat most of the time and has the "oops I win" upside of sending your big creature into the air.
Broken Wings
0.5 This is a sideboard card. There aren't enough targets in most decks for it to be wortwhile in the main deck.
Mocking Sprite
2 Last time we saw this, the stat-line really held it back. This format has fewer incidental ways to kill it, but I'm still skeptical of it being able to stick around.
Treetop Snarespinner
2 This is a decent defensive creature, and it's activated ability is pretty nice in the late game.
Secluded Courtyard
0 This format doesn't have enough of a typal theme for this to ever make sense. It will rarely produce colored mana.
Healer's Hawk
3 This is a great one drop, especially in a format with lots of ways to buff the Hawk.
Elfsworn Giant
3.5 This is a very strong landfall trigger, and while the stat-line isn't incredible, it's not thard to make sure you get at least one 1/1 out of this, and if it's left alone, it becomes a value engine.
Make Your Move
0.5 There aren't enough artifacts or enchantments in this format for this to be main deck material.
Prideful Parent
3.5 Three mana 2/2s that make 1/1s are always quality cards in Limited, and the 2/2 in this case even comes with Vigilance.
Secluded Courtyard
0 This format doesn't have enough of a typal theme for this to ever make sense. It will rarely produce colored mana.
Divine Resilience
1.5 This is good at blanking removal, not so good at winning combat -- and you kind of need both these days for a trick to be exciting.
Armasaur Guide
2.5 You can get a counter from this even when it doesn't attack, and it's nice it can put the counter on itself too, as a 5/5 vigilance is pretty formidable.
Elfsworn Giant
3.5 This is a very strong landfall trigger, and while the stat-line isn't incredible, it's not thard to make sure you get at least one 1/1 out of this, and if it's left alone, it becomes a value engine.
Squad Rallier
2.5 The stat-line is a bit underwhelming, but that activated ability is exactly what you want in the mid-to-late game. It's some serious flood insurance.
Pack 3 Pick 11: Apothecary Stomper
Ravenous Amulet
1.5 This is too slow to work out very well. If you have lots of fodder you might be able to go off, though.
Apothecary Stomper
2.5 This is pretty solid for the cost. The counters will augment your board in a pretty big way, and even as a 4/4 the stomper isn't really a creature that can be ignored.
Aegis Turtle
1 This isn't worth a card. All it does is block, and it doesn't do it all that well, since it just absorbs damage and can't trade for anything.
Sanguine Syphoner
2.5 This attack trigger plays pretty well, especially in a format with a life gain deck.
Pack 3 Pick 12: Rogue's Passage
Juggernaut
1.5 If you need a 4-drop you can probably do worse, but how often are you desperate for a 4 drop in Limited?
Rogue's Passage
1.5 This effect generally isn't worth making your mana worse for. Sure, it can be nice late -- but that's not even a guarantee.
Pack 3 Pick 13: Gleaming Barrier
Gleaming Barrier
1 If this format had an artifact theme this might be more useful, as is it's just a bad defensive creature that gives you a little mana back.