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Premier Draft WAR 14.mars 2021

14 March 11:04 - wittekip 7 Wins - 2 Losses
Maindeck
Creature (16)
1 Makeshift Battalion image
1 Grateful Apparition image
1 Elite Guardmage image
2 Rising Populace image
1 Fblthp, the Lost image
2 Enforcer Griffin image
1 Thunder Drake image
1 Law-Rune Enforcer image
1 Martyr for the Cause image
2 War Screecher image
1 Pouncing Lynx image
1 Aven Eternal image
1 Rescuer Sphinx image
Planeswalker (2)
1 Gideon Blackblade image
1 Teferi, Time Raveler image
Instant, Sorcery, Enchantment, Artifact (5)
1 Prison Realm image
1 Wanderer's Strike image
2 Divine Arrow image
1 Finale of Revelation image
Land (17)
9 Plains image
8 Island image
Sideboard
1 Rising Populace image
1 Spark Reaper image
1 Ugin's Conjurant image
1 Charmed Stray image
1 Bulwark Giant image
1 Kraul Stinger image
1 Herald of the Dreadhorde image
1 Charity Extractor image
1 Spark Harvest image
1 Relentless Advance image
1 No Escape image
1 Battlefield Promotion image
1 Kasmina's Transmutation image
1 Defiant Strike image
1 Stealth Mission image
1 Totally Lost image
2 Dovin's Veto image
1 Return to Nature image

Pack 1 Pick 1: Gideon Blackblade
Gideon Blackblade image 4.0 Gideon is basically a 3-mana 4/4 with a whole bunch of upside, and that’s a nice place to be. His +1 will make one of your other creature’s better, he’s immune to damage, and if you get his loyalty high enough, he can take down permanents. If you play him on turn three he is going to win you the game most of the time, but he does have diminishing values as the game goes on, as a 3-mana 4/4 is less and less impressive. It is not always easy to move his loyalty up enough to take down nonland permanents, but he’s still pretty great.
Eternal Skylord image 4.0 So, you pay 5 mana here to always get 5/5 worth of stats, and 2/2 of that will have flying. If you already have an Army in play, it getting flying and +2/+2 right away is great. You can play this and have it be great in a deck with 0 other ways to make Armies, too, because it is just efficient on its own. Because of all that, this is one of the better uncommons in the set.
Domri's Ambush image 3.5 This is pretty great! Any time there are spells that let a creature deal damage equal to its power to another creature, they tend to be pretty darn good. Keep in mind that this isn’t a “fight,” your opponent’s creature does not do damage to yours. RG for this effect would already be a pretty solid card, but adding a +1/+1 counter to the mix, along with the ability to talk planesawlkers, and we are definitely in the realm of premium removal. Sure, it is somewhat situational in that you have to have a creature, and you have to be careful when you cast it so you don’t get blown out – and the fact that it is a Sorcery does make it a little harder to find an ideal opening, but it is still pretty good.
Ugin's Conjurant image 3.0 X-costed creatures are nice because you can play them anywhere on your curve and they will be reasonably efficient. Now, this X-costed creature does shrink when it is damaged, but with all the Proliferate in this set, it is still a pretty good creature to have.
Heartfire image 1.5 Two mana to do 4 to anything at Instant speed would be premium removal. This asks you to do a little more work than that though, wanting you to sacrifice a creature or planeswalker to use it. Now, it looks like the RB deck is going to be interested in doing some sacrificing, and will also have creatures that are good to sacrifice, so maybe that's the best place for it. But either way, I think this is an alright card -- what saves it from being outright bad is the fact that it is an Instant, and the fact it can go to your opponent' face. As an Instant, it can be used in situations where losing the creature isn't as much of a downside -- like after you block something first, then sacrifice the creature to kill something else. The most attractive time to use this is in response to your opponent's removal of course. But still, even in those "ideal" situations, you're not really getting a 2-for-1. To do that you'll need to be giving up tokens.
Aid the Fallen image 2.0 To play this, you want to be consistently getting back both a creature and a planeswalker. The good news is, that isn’t super hard to do in this format. This is the kind of card that is terrible early but really good late, and most Black decks want one copy of this to help them have that nice late game.
Aven Eternal image 3.5 3-mana 2/2 flyers tend to be playable if that’s all they are. Adding Amass here is great, and will give you a great deal whether you put a counter on an Army already in play or you make a token.
Iron Bully image 2.5 This card really overperforms thanks to all the Proliferate in the set. Even if it just puts its counter on itself, it doesn’t tend to only be a 2/2 with Menace for very long!
Teferi's Time Twist image 1.0 This can do a variety of things, but most of the time they won’t be worth doing. Because this is an Instant, if your opponent tries to take down a planeswalker, you can use the Time Twist, both saving it and setting its loyalty back to what it was when it came into play. On top of that, Teferi’s Time Twist is also good with ETB creatures, can help your creature dodge a removal spell, and so on. I still am not very interested in playing it.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
Goblin Assailant image 1.0 This is a vanilla creature with mediocre stats. You’ll only play it if you’re desperate for a two drop.
Snarespinner image 1.5 This blocks fliers really well for a two-drop, but it isn’t that great at anything else.
Makeshift Battalion image 2.5 You’ll play this in an aggressive deck, but for the most part that type of deck isn’t great in this format. It just won’t always be easy to send in two additional creatures into combat, and it won’t be worth risking trades so much either since the payoff is just a +1/+1 counter. I’m not saying this is bad, just not something you should be excited about.
Kronch Wrangler image 2.5 So a 2-mana 2/1 with trample is not very good. Add this other text to it, though and it obviously gets a good deal better. Obviously best suited to RG, where there are the most “ferocious” pay offs, but the fact that this gets bigger in the late game is nice when coupled with the fact that it can do some damage or trade early.
Pack 1 Pick 2: Elite Guardmage
Pledge of Unity image 3.5 So, this is a nice signpost uncommon for GW, where you want to be both going wide and making +1/+1 counters, and obviously this helps on both fronts! This, plus Proliferate is pretty crazy!
Samut, Tyrant Smasher image 2.5 Samut really likes to make your creatures do as much damage as possible! And, between Haste and the stats boosts she can offer, she does deliver there. She isn’t going to give you crazy value like some of these planeswalkers, but she’s perfectly well-suited for aggro decks.
Elite Guardmage image 3.5 This gives you a reasonable Flying body while also drawing you a card and gaining you life. This makes it easy for it to get you a glorious 2-for-1, while also giving you a reasonable threat.
New Horizons image 2.5 This type of mana-fixing/ramping Auras always feels good when it also does something to impact the board. Making one of your creatures a little better isn’t too shabby. This can help you splash double-colored cards too, which I like!
Rising Populace image 1.5 This sort of creature always seems to disappoint. 3-mana 2/2 is not a stat line you want to have, but it does slowly get bigger the longer the game goes on.
Thundering Ceratok image 2.0 So a 5-mana 4/5 with Trample is already passable, it is a body big enough that trample really means something. Making it so this also gives trample to your whole team is nice, though it is worth noting that I would guess that around 50% of the time you play this, that won’t matter. There will also be plenty of times when it does, just don’t expect it to be a huge play all the time, and don’t value it that way, because it won’t.
Kasmina's Transmutation image 2.5 Removal that doesn’t really remove is always pretty underwhelming. I mean, sure, you do at least take away all of the creature’s abilities and make it a 1/1, but it can still block, and that’s a pretty big deal. This is still decent removal, just don’t treat it like one of the best common removal spells in the set.
Nahiri's Stoneblades image 0.0 I don't like tricks that don't help my creature survive combat. Only bumping power with no keyword added just isn’t worth it, even if you can pump two creatures.
Aven Eternal image 3.5 3-mana 2/2 flyers tend to be playable if that’s all they are. Adding Amass here is great, and will give you a great deal whether you put a counter on an Army already in play or you make a token.
Erratic Visionary image 1.5 This has a decent body and it loots. Looting can improve your draws in the late game, and that’s nice.
Kronch Wrangler image 2.5 So a 2-mana 2/1 with trample is not very good. Add this other text to it, though and it obviously gets a good deal better. Obviously best suited to RG, where there are the most “ferocious” pay offs, but the fact that this gets bigger in the late game is nice when coupled with the fact that it can do some damage or trade early.
Ashiok's Skulker image 1.5 2-mana 1/3 flyers are usually alright, and this can pump your whole team in the late game. It is decent filler.
Shriekdiver image 1.5 A 3-mana 2/1 with Flying is kind of ok, and you can make this one into a 4-mana 2/1 with Flying and Haste which is…also ok.
Pack 1 Pick 3: Prison Realm
Role Reversal image 2.5 We have seen a few other cards that had an effect like this over the years, such as Switcheroo which costs 2 more mana and only allows the exchange of creatures, and Shifting Loyalties which has the same textbox but cost twice as much mana. These cards have never been amazing, though they are somewhat polarizing – you may hear some say that these cards are great. And yeah, sometimes you can set up situations where these play pretty well, but there are also plenty of situations where the exchange isn’t in your favor or just isn’t worth it, limiting just how good of a card it can be. Still, knocking the mana cost all the way down to 3 this time does make this card significantly better.
Dreadhorde Twins image 3.5 4 mana for 4/4 worth of stats, and a at least a 2/2 that has Trample is a pretty decent deal. Plus, in the event you have an even larger Army in play, this giving it Trample is some pretty great upside, especially because it can take advantage of it right away.
Prison Realm image 4.0 This is excellent removal, taking down any creature or planeswalker no questions asked. Adding Scry to the equation is nice too. And yeah, if it gets blown up your opponent gets their thing back, but the efficiency, power, and flexibility it offers makes that a worthwhile risk.
Kasmina, Enigmatic Mentor image 4.0 This is one of the best uncommon walkers in the set. 4 mana for a 2/2 that loots would already be kind of a passable card. I mean it wouldn’t be great, probably a D, but the point is that’s what this card is at its worse, and it obviously can do way more. I think getting two 2/2s and looting twice is a great deal for 4 mana, and adding the static ability is sort of just an extra bonus.
Lazotep Reaver image 3.0 This is a nice two drop. Two mana for 2/3 of stats divided across two bodies is a great deal, and it stays relevant all game long.
Bloom Hulk image 3.5 This has good stats and it proliferates. You’ll usually feel like you’re getting more than 4 mana’s worth of value out of this. This is one of Green’s best commons.
Gideon's Sacrifice image 0.0 This card is way too finnicky to be worth it in Limited. It is basically a fog that kills one of your creatures – it has a little more upside than Fog, but it just won’t be worth it very often. You have to 2-for-1 or 2-for-none yourself to use it, and I’m gonna pass on that.
Duskmantle Operative image 1.5 This is a bear with some reasonable but unexciting upside.
Naga Eternal image 1.0 This is a vanilla creature with mediocre stats. That’s all.
Enforcer Griffin image 2.5 A 5-mana ¾ with Flying might not seem great, but it has just the right size in this format, outclassing most of the non-rare Flyers in the set. It isn’t anything special, but it is better than it looks.
Thunder Drake image 2.5 You generally want to be able to consistently get this up to ¾ for it to be worth it, and that’s fairly doable. Sometimes you will get the Drake late and be in top deck mode and that’s not so good, but it seems solid enough to me.
Contentious Plan image 2.0 A cantrip with Proliferate is nice in this format. You’ll just almost always have something to put more counters on, and that will feel great since this just replaces itself.
Pack 1 Pick 4: Spark Harvest
Jace's Triumph image 2.0 This is mostly just Divination. Having a Jace is possible, but not super likely. Divination is always a pretty decent card, and that’s what this is.
Lazotep Plating image 1.5 There are a few cards in this set that seem to have been printed with the intent of taking away the downside Amass has -- that is, that you can put at on of resources into one of those tokens and have it get bounced or destroyed and really not feel so good about the situation. Overall, I think this is actually a pretty nice card. Sometimes we see these hexproof effects and they are hard to want to actually play, but since this one coems with Amass, it does more than just blank a removal spell. I also think the special synergy with Amass will make this pretty solid. Still, it is highly situational -- against some opponents it wont' really matter -- but hey, at least you can Amass 1 in those matches, I guess?
Relentless Advance image 1.5 You have two possibilities here: one is that you just paid 4 to put 3 +1/+1 counters onto a Zombie Army token you already have, the other is that you paid 4 mana for a 3/3 – in other words, a Hill Giant. Sure, it has some synergy with populate and other cards with Amass, but neither of those deals would be a particularly attractive card in Limited.
Crush Dissent image 1.5 As good as Amass is in this format, I don’t like this card a whole lot. Counters that let your opponent pay mana to ignore them have to be really efficient in Limited, since they will become weaker and weaker as the game goes on. Now, the fail case here is that you still get to Amass, and that keeps it from being unplayable.
Snarespinner image 1.5 This blocks fliers really well for a two-drop, but it isn’t that great at anything else.
Prismite image 1.0 This is a creature with bad stats that also doesn’t filter mana very well. If your deck is desperately in need of a two drop AND some mana fixing, it can do those things, but again – it doesn’t do either of them well.
Ashiok's Skulker image 1.5 2-mana 1/3 flyers are usually alright, and this can pump your whole team in the late game. It is decent filler.
Spark Harvest image 3.5 This kills a bunch of cards in this format, and it can only cost one mana if you are willing to sacrifice something. Obviously killing walkers matters more in this format than in any other we have ever seen, and the ability to sacrifice a walker matters more too. A lot of the uncommon walkers eventually tick down to 1 loyalty, so turning them into fodder for this seems nice. It is made a lot better by the fact that you can also straight up pay 5 to destroy a creature or planeswalker.
Invading Manticore image 2.5 Whether or not you already have an army, you are paying 6 mana to add 6/7 to the battlefield, and that's not a bad thing to have at the top of your curve.
Arlinn's Wolf image 2.0 A 3-mana 3/2 that can’t be blocked by smaller creatures is nice. Sometimes your 3/2 gets in trouble against a couple of 1/3s or something, and this prevents that. It isn’t anything special, but it is definitely a 3-drop you’ll play without feeling bad about.
Topple the Statue image 1.5 So, when we see 3 mana to tap something and draw a card at instant speed isn’t all that great. It does replace itself, and have a somewhat flexible effect, so that does save it from being completely terrible.
Pack 1 Pick 5: Rising Populace
Finale of Devastation image 1.5 So, a 3-mana 3/2 is usually not that great, and something you only include when desperate – but this obviously brings more than that to the table. Landfall for Proliferate seems pretty nice, especially because Green seems interested in +1/+1 counters, and obviously all decks will have planeswalkers. This becomes a serious value engine if it isn’t dealt with, at least in a deck that takes advantage by having lots of counters to proliferate.
Bulwark Giant image 1.5 Well, this is the kind of card that really stabilize you against an aggressive deck. 5 life is huge against decks intent on ending the game quickly, and a 3/6 is no small roadblock. Obviously, this is primarily a defensive card, and not something every White deck is after.
Arlinn's Wolf image 2.0 A 3-mana 3/2 that can’t be blocked by smaller creatures is nice. Sometimes your 3/2 gets in trouble against a couple of 1/3s or something, and this prevents that. It isn’t anything special, but it is definitely a 3-drop you’ll play without feeling bad about.
Saheeli's Silverwing image 1.5 There isn’t enough of an artifact sub-theme in the set that you want to play sub-par cards just because they are artifacts, and that’s what this is. 4 mana for a 2/3 flyer is not a good rate, and the ETB ability it has is not the most relevant. It gives you some minor information, and that’s not enough to overcome these bad stats.
Goblin Assault Team image 1.5 So, a 4-mana 4/1 with Haste would normally not be so good -- maybe it can get in for 4 once or something, but then it dies to literally everything. However, because this also leaves a +1/+1 counter behind, it helps you get around that downside. There is also additional upside here in the fact that it can trade for a ton of stuff with 4 power -- any time you can trade for something decently sized with this and get the counter, you're going to feel ok about things. I'm not sure you'll ever want more than one of these, but the first of these seems like a reasonable inclusion in most Red decks.
Teyo's Lightshield image 2.5 A 3-mana ¼ is an ok deal, and a 3-mana 0/3 that puts a counter on something a little more meaningful is even better.
Aid the Fallen image 2.0 To play this, you want to be consistently getting back both a creature and a planeswalker. The good news is, that isn’t super hard to do in this format. This is the kind of card that is terrible early but really good late, and most Black decks want one copy of this to help them have that nice late game.
Rising Populace image 1.5 This sort of creature always seems to disappoint. 3-mana 2/2 is not a stat line you want to have, but it does slowly get bigger the longer the game goes on.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
Giant Growth image 2.0 We don’t see combat tricks like this very often anymore. A single mana giving such a massive P/T boost is great, and will make a creature capable of winning almost any combat. The opportunity cost of leaving up one Green mana is really low, and the upside here is very high. It is still a combat trick, so it has some issues of being situational and easy to get blown out on.
Pack 1 Pick 6: Spark Reaper
Bond of Flourishing image 1.0 This reminds me a lot of cards like Adventurous Impulse and Anticipate – which means it is a fine card to include, can help dig you into whatever you really need, but it isn’t anything amazing. I do like that it gains you 3 life, so that if doing this means you are going behind on board a bit to dig, you at least gain some life to helps often that blow. And yeah, it can only hit permanents, but that’s MOST of your deck, so I think that’s fine.
Kraul Stinger image 1.5 This can trade with anything, but being a 3-mana 2/2 isn’t so good. One mana 1/1 death touchers are way better, because you can always trade up.
Spellkeeper Weird image 2.0 A 3-mana ¼ has some not entirely horrendous defensive stats, and this one comes with the ability to get back key spells – with removal spells being the most interesting. While I think this will probably be best in a UR spells deck, I think most Blue decks in this format will probably run enough instants and sorceries for the Weird to be a solid inclusion in the deck.
Davriel's Shadowfugue image 1.0 4 mana to make the opponent discard 2 and lose 2 life just isn’t a good deal. Mind Rot, which makes the opponent discard 2 for 3 mana is often not good enough for Limited, and this costs one more and adds a negligible effect.
Charmed Stray image 1.0 // 2.5 This is only going to be worth it if you end up with 3+ of them, as a one -mana 1/1 with lifelink just doesn’t do enough to be worth a card. If you do have multiple copies, they do get better – but I’d advise not going after them hard, and just picking them up late in packs.
Ahn-Crop Invader image 3.0 This is a nice aggressive creature. Because it has First Strike, your opponent will often just not be willing to block it when you attack with it when you have mana up, since it is likely to win most combat even if you just sacrifice one thing to it. It pairs particularly well with Amass tokens.
Goblin Assault Team image 1.5 So, a 4-mana 4/1 with Haste would normally not be so good -- maybe it can get in for 4 once or something, but then it dies to literally everything. However, because this also leaves a +1/+1 counter behind, it helps you get around that downside. There is also additional upside here in the fact that it can trade for a ton of stuff with 4 power -- any time you can trade for something decently sized with this and get the counter, you're going to feel ok about things. I'm not sure you'll ever want more than one of these, but the first of these seems like a reasonable inclusion in most Red decks.
Spark Reaper image 2.5 A 3-mana 2/3 has somewhat passable stats, and this has a pretty nice activated ability. The fact that you can use it at Instant speed – which we don’t always get with effects like this is what really makes it worthwhile, since you can use it in response to removal or declare a block and then use it, getting some serious value. This is a decent late-game mana sink.
Guild Globe image 1.5 This replaces itself and gives you some fixing. If you’re interested in splashing something this can help you do it.
Pack 1 Pick 7: Fblthp, the Lost
Fblthp, the Lost image 3.0 A two mana 1/1 who draws you a card is just nice value, and sometimes can even get you a 2-for-1. That’s probably what will happen here most of the time. However, you can use effects like Vivien’s Arkbow to put it into play and draw more cards. You can also shuffle it back into your library …if you want, by targeting him with a spell, but I don’t think that comes up a whole lot. Sometimes your opponent will get an advantage out of that effect too, because if Fblthp is your blocker for example, and they have lethal if they get him out of the way – they will have even more cards than usual to enable that.
Neoform image 0.0 This “Birthing Pod” effect is hard to make work in Limited, just because your deck can’t really be constructed around it effectively. It is just difficult to make it actually worth trading one card for another in most scenarios, and in this case – you actually have to 2-for-1 yourself by using Neoform, so I think it is worse. I don’t think adding the counter to the creature makes it much better.
Pouncing Lynx image 3.0 Two mana 2/1 first strike is pretty darn good, and yeah – this can only do it when it attacks, but that’s still pretty great. This is a difficult creature to deal with in the early game, and first strike can even pose problems later in games for your opponent. This can be especially good in conjunction with combat tricks.
Rising Populace image 1.5 This sort of creature always seems to disappoint. 3-mana 2/2 is not a stat line you want to have, but it does slowly get bigger the longer the game goes on.
Prismite image 1.0 This is a creature with bad stats that also doesn’t filter mana very well. If your deck is desperately in need of a two drop AND some mana fixing, it can do those things, but again – it doesn’t do either of them well.
Giant Growth image 2.0 We don’t see combat tricks like this very often anymore. A single mana giving such a massive P/T boost is great, and will make a creature capable of winning almost any combat. The opportunity cost of leaving up one Green mana is really low, and the upside here is very high. It is still a combat trick, so it has some issues of being situational and easy to get blown out on.
Sky Theater Strix image 1.5 This is a two mana ½ Flyer that will sometimes attack for two. Not great, but not bad either.
Spellkeeper Weird image 2.0 A 3-mana ¼ has some not entirely horrendous defensive stats, and this one comes with the ability to get back key spells – with removal spells being the most interesting. While I think this will probably be best in a UR spells deck, I think most Blue decks in this format will probably run enough instants and sorceries for the Weird to be a solid inclusion in the deck.
Pack 1 Pick 8: Enforcer Griffin
Deathsprout image 4.0 Killing a creature for 4 mana at instant speed AND fixing your mana is great. This is one of the best uncommons in the set.
Return to Nature image 1.5 This hates on enough things that it is worth playing in your main deck sometimes, though this format does not have a ton of Artifacts.
Enforcer Griffin image 2.5 A 5-mana ¾ with Flying might not seem great, but it has just the right size in this format, outclassing most of the non-rare Flyers in the set. It isn’t anything special, but it is better than it looks.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
Naga Eternal image 1.0 This is a vanilla creature with mediocre stats. That’s all.
Samut's Sprint image 1.5 This is just red’s obligatory solid combat trick that will be nice in aggro decks. +2/+1 is enough of a boost for a creature to win a lot of combats, and the additional Haste upside doesn’t hurt. Still, it IS a combat trick and it comes with all the inherent risks that combat tricks have they are inherently situational and come with the risk of a 2-for-1 that blows you out.
Giant Growth image 2.0 We don’t see combat tricks like this very often anymore. A single mana giving such a massive P/T boost is great, and will make a creature capable of winning almost any combat. The opportunity cost of leaving up one Green mana is really low, and the upside here is very high. It is still a combat trick, so it has some issues of being situational and easy to get blown out on.
Pack 1 Pick 9: Ugin's Conjurant
Ugin's Conjurant image 3.0 X-costed creatures are nice because you can play them anywhere on your curve and they will be reasonably efficient. Now, this X-costed creature does shrink when it is damaged, but with all the Proliferate in this set, it is still a pretty good creature to have.
Teferi's Time Twist image 1.0 This can do a variety of things, but most of the time they won’t be worth doing. Because this is an Instant, if your opponent tries to take down a planeswalker, you can use the Time Twist, both saving it and setting its loyalty back to what it was when it came into play. On top of that, Teferi’s Time Twist is also good with ETB creatures, can help your creature dodge a removal spell, and so on. I still am not very interested in playing it.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
Snarespinner image 1.5 This blocks fliers really well for a two-drop, but it isn’t that great at anything else.
Makeshift Battalion image 2.5 You’ll play this in an aggressive deck, but for the most part that type of deck isn’t great in this format. It just won’t always be easy to send in two additional creatures into combat, and it won’t be worth risking trades so much either since the payoff is just a +1/+1 counter. I’m not saying this is bad, just not something you should be excited about.
Kronch Wrangler image 2.5 So a 2-mana 2/1 with trample is not very good. Add this other text to it, though and it obviously gets a good deal better. Obviously best suited to RG, where there are the most “ferocious” pay offs, but the fact that this gets bigger in the late game is nice when coupled with the fact that it can do some damage or trade early.
Pack 1 Pick 10: Rising Populace
New Horizons image 2.5 This type of mana-fixing/ramping Auras always feels good when it also does something to impact the board. Making one of your creatures a little better isn’t too shabby. This can help you splash double-colored cards too, which I like!
Rising Populace image 1.5 This sort of creature always seems to disappoint. 3-mana 2/2 is not a stat line you want to have, but it does slowly get bigger the longer the game goes on.
Thundering Ceratok image 2.0 So a 5-mana 4/5 with Trample is already passable, it is a body big enough that trample really means something. Making it so this also gives trample to your whole team is nice, though it is worth noting that I would guess that around 50% of the time you play this, that won’t matter. There will also be plenty of times when it does, just don’t expect it to be a huge play all the time, and don’t value it that way, because it won’t.
Kasmina's Transmutation image 2.5 Removal that doesn’t really remove is always pretty underwhelming. I mean, sure, you do at least take away all of the creature’s abilities and make it a 1/1, but it can still block, and that’s a pretty big deal. This is still decent removal, just don’t treat it like one of the best common removal spells in the set.
Ashiok's Skulker image 1.5 2-mana 1/3 flyers are usually alright, and this can pump your whole team in the late game. It is decent filler.
Pack 1 Pick 11: Thunder Drake
Gideon's Sacrifice image 0.0 This card is way too finnicky to be worth it in Limited. It is basically a fog that kills one of your creatures – it has a little more upside than Fog, but it just won’t be worth it very often. You have to 2-for-1 or 2-for-none yourself to use it, and I’m gonna pass on that.
Naga Eternal image 1.0 This is a vanilla creature with mediocre stats. That’s all.
Thunder Drake image 2.5 You generally want to be able to consistently get this up to ¾ for it to be worth it, and that’s fairly doable. Sometimes you will get the Drake late and be in top deck mode and that’s not so good, but it seems solid enough to me.
Contentious Plan image 2.0 A cantrip with Proliferate is nice in this format. You’ll just almost always have something to put more counters on, and that will feel great since this just replaces itself.
Pack 1 Pick 12: Relentless Advance
Relentless Advance image 1.5 You have two possibilities here: one is that you just paid 4 to put 3 +1/+1 counters onto a Zombie Army token you already have, the other is that you paid 4 mana for a 3/3 – in other words, a Hill Giant. Sure, it has some synergy with populate and other cards with Amass, but neither of those deals would be a particularly attractive card in Limited.
Ashiok's Skulker image 1.5 2-mana 1/3 flyers are usually alright, and this can pump your whole team in the late game. It is decent filler.
Arlinn's Wolf image 2.0 A 3-mana 3/2 that can’t be blocked by smaller creatures is nice. Sometimes your 3/2 gets in trouble against a couple of 1/3s or something, and this prevents that. It isn’t anything special, but it is definitely a 3-drop you’ll play without feeling bad about.
Pack 1 Pick 13: Bulwark Giant
Bulwark Giant image 1.5 Well, this is the kind of card that really stabilize you against an aggressive deck. 5 life is huge against decks intent on ending the game quickly, and a 3/6 is no small roadblock. Obviously, this is primarily a defensive card, and not something every White deck is after.
Giant Growth image 2.0 We don’t see combat tricks like this very often anymore. A single mana giving such a massive P/T boost is great, and will make a creature capable of winning almost any combat. The opportunity cost of leaving up one Green mana is really low, and the upside here is very high. It is still a combat trick, so it has some issues of being situational and easy to get blown out on.
Pack 1 Pick 14: Kraul Stinger
Kraul Stinger image 1.5 This can trade with anything, but being a 3-mana 2/2 isn’t so good. One mana 1/1 death touchers are way better, because you can always trade up.
Pack 2 Pick 1: Teferi, Time Raveler
Teferi, Time Raveler image 4.0 His static ability will probably hurt your opponent a little bit, and his +1 isn’t the most exciting, but I’m pretty interested in that -3. If this were 1WU for a sorcery that bounced an artifact, creature, or enchantment and drew you a card, it would probably be pretty good because that’s a great deal – it has flexibility and replaces itself, so you don’t only get tempo, you get a new card.
Gideon's Triumph image 3.0 This is situational, but efficient. Keep in mind, by the way, that you can wait to use this until after combat is over – like if your opponent double blocks and you can only kill one of their creatures in combat, if you use this after the one creature died in combat, you can also get the second creature. Generally, your opponent will be attacking with and blocking with their largest creature, so I think overall this will do what you need it to.
Storm the Citadel image 1.0 I am not a big fan of this in Limited. 5 for +2/+2 at sorcery speed for your whole team is nothing special – an evasive ability like trample, or something like vigilance added to it would make it a lot better. As it is, I don’t see the combat damage trigger on this card mattering in most games. Yeah, I’m just not impressed, even if your deck can go wide, you hopefully have some better ways to take advantage of it than this.
Flux Channeler image 1.5 // 3.5 A 3-mana 2/2, which is a horrendous statline, and it doesn’t get to help you proliferate right away or anything, at least not most of the time. That said, as soon as you play noncreatures – including planeswalkers, being able to add counters to stuff as a repeatable effect seems pretty nice. This is sort of a double build around – you need lots of counters and lots of non-creature spells to make it work, but when you can, it is a pretty great engine.
Nahiri's Stoneblades image 0.0 I don't like tricks that don't help my creature survive combat. Only bumping power with no keyword added just isn’t worth it, even if you can pump two creatures.
Pollenbright Druid image 3.5 A 2-mana 1/1 that puts a counter anywhere – including on itself, is usually a pretty decent card already. At worst it is going to be a Grizzly Bears, and there are other times where putting the counter elsewhere makes a big deal, like on an evasive creature. But this has the additional ability to also just Proliferate, which you will be doing if you already have other counters in play. Either way, you’re going to get some value out of your 2 drop in the late game, and that’s not always easy to come by.
Vampire Opportunist image 1.5 This starts with some mediocre stats, and it has a late game ability that is pretty expensive. That said, it isn’t the worst mana sink to have, as it can really close out a game in tight situations.
Charmed Stray image 1.0 // 2.5 This is only going to be worth it if you end up with 3+ of them, as a one -mana 1/1 with lifelink just doesn’t do enough to be worth a card. If you do have multiple copies, they do get better – but I’d advise not going after them hard, and just picking them up late in packs.
Contentious Plan image 2.0 A cantrip with Proliferate is nice in this format. You’ll just almost always have something to put more counters on, and that will feel great since this just replaces itself.
War Screecher image 1.5 2-mana 1/3 flyers are usually alright, and this can pump your whole team in the late game. It is decent filler.
No Escape image 3.0 This is a pretty good counterspell. Creatures and planeswalkers together are going to make up three quarters or more of most decks, so this has plenty of targets. And it’s a hard counter! And it exiles the things it counters. All of that makes me want to play the first copy of this in most Blue decks.
Jaya's Greeting image 4.0 Two mana to do 3 to something at Instant speed is already premium, so adding Scry is just icing on the cake.
Vivien's Grizzly image 2.0 Like her Arkbow, her Grizzly also is a nice manasink, though less reliable than the legendary artifacts. But still, this is basically a really bad Duskwatch Recruiter – but the Recruiter was an absurd limited card, so being a bad version of it doesn’t mean the card itself is bad. It has alright stats and the ability to draw you cards sometimes in the late game.
Spark Reaper image 2.5 A 3-mana 2/3 has somewhat passable stats, and this has a pretty nice activated ability. The fact that you can use it at Instant speed – which we don’t always get with effects like this is what really makes it worthwhile, since you can use it in response to removal or declare a block and then use it, getting some serious value. This is a decent late-game mana sink.
Pack 2 Pick 2: Law-Rune Enforcer
Gideon's Triumph image 3.0 This is situational, but efficient. Keep in mind, by the way, that you can wait to use this until after combat is over – like if your opponent double blocks and you can only kill one of their creatures in combat, if you use this after the one creature died in combat, you can also get the second creature. Generally, your opponent will be attacking with and blocking with their largest creature, so I think overall this will do what you need it to.
Teyo, the Shieldmage image 2.0 Basically, you are paying 3 for a 0/3 wall, and maybe he makes you a second one too. With most of these walkers, if you get to use their ability the second time, they sound pretty good. In this case? Not so much. 3 mana for two 0/3s is something, but not anything special. It isn’t like 0/3s are even that hard to bust through in the long run.
Bleeding Edge image 4.0 This will frequently feel like a 3-mana 2/2 that destroys a creature when it enters the battlefield – and that’s a great card. It definitely will feel a bit less good to put counters on an Army already in play, but it is still a reasonable deal. The -2/-2 can’t kill everything of course, but it does enough for me to want to value this really highly.
Prismite image 1.0 This is a creature with bad stats that also doesn’t filter mana very well. If your deck is desperately in need of a two drop AND some mana fixing, it can do those things, but again – it doesn’t do either of them well.
Courage in Crisis image 2.0 If this was just 3-mana to put a counter on something at Sorcery speed, it would be an F or close to it. But you add proliferate to the mix and things get more interesting. Basically, at its worse, this gives you two +1/+1 counters at sorcery speed, and there will be plenty of times where it will add counters some other places too. That said, it does come with some pretty huge risk in that it can open you up to a 2-for-1 if you're not careful.
Relentless Advance image 1.5 You have two possibilities here: one is that you just paid 4 to put 3 +1/+1 counters onto a Zombie Army token you already have, the other is that you paid 4 mana for a 3/3 – in other words, a Hill Giant. Sure, it has some synergy with populate and other cards with Amass, but neither of those deals would be a particularly attractive card in Limited.
Divine Arrow image 3.0 This is a removal spell that is situational, but it does the job pretty efficiently. You’ll never really cut the first copy of this, but being situational does hold it back from being premium.
Vampire Opportunist image 1.5 This starts with some mediocre stats, and it has a late game ability that is pretty expensive. That said, it isn’t the worst mana sink to have, as it can really close out a game in tight situations.
Sky Theater Strix image 1.5 This is a two mana ½ Flyer that will sometimes attack for two. Not great, but not bad either.
Invading Manticore image 2.5 Whether or not you already have an army, you are paying 6 mana to add 6/7 to the battlefield, and that's not a bad thing to have at the top of your curve.
Mana Geode image 1.5 If you need fixing you could do worse than playing this.
Band Together image 3.0 Just up front: note this does not let you target two different creatures of your opponent's. Instead, you target two of your creatures, who then do damage equal to their power to one creature your opponent controls. Now that that's clear -- this is still an excellent common for Green. We have seen instant speed versions of this effect before, and they all only allowed you to target one creature on your side to do the damage -- this lets you do even more damage, allowing your two smallish creatures to take down one of your opponent's much larger creatures.
Law-Rune Enforcer image 4.0 Any time we have seen master decoy around, it has been great – and in some ways, this is even better. For one thing, it is one fewer mana to cast for the same stats, and it only asks for colorless mana to tap things. Of course, the original Master Decoy can tap any creature – but tapping things with CMC 2 or greater is what you do with this kind of card any way, so that isn’t a huge downgrade. Being able to lock down your opponent’s best creature, or get problem blockers out of the way is huge, and in a lot of ways a card like Law-Rune Enforcer becomes a removal spell. This is an absolutely excellent common.
Pack 2 Pick 3: Martyr for the Cause
Ignite the Beacon image 1.5 Even in a set with 36 planeswalkers in it, I don’t like this card a whole lot. It is basically 5 mana to draw two planeswalkers, and while that would be crazy in most sets, the planeswalkers in this set on average aren’t as powerful as you might be used to. If you have 4 walkers you probably play this, but it isn’t even that impressive there.
Tenth District Legionnaire image 3.0 A two mana 2/2 with Haste does some work already, but the fact this also has Heroic -- more or less -- and such a good trigger for when you target it makes it very interesting. Combat tricks will be even more powerful than usual on this guy, since he gets extra big and does so permanently. Same with auras! And Scry on top of all of that is very nice.
Thundering Ceratok image 2.0 So a 5-mana 4/5 with Trample is already passable, it is a body big enough that trample really means something. Making it so this also gives trample to your whole team is nice, though it is worth noting that I would guess that around 50% of the time you play this, that won’t matter. There will also be plenty of times when it does, just don’t expect it to be a huge play all the time, and don’t value it that way, because it won’t.
Enforcer Griffin image 2.5 A 5-mana ¾ with Flying might not seem great, but it has just the right size in this format, outclassing most of the non-rare Flyers in the set. It isn’t anything special, but it is better than it looks.
Martyr for the Cause image 3.0 This guy adds proliferate to a Grizzly Bear body, which means that he has some late-game relevance, even if he can just block and add a couple counters to your permanents that’s going to do something.
Kronch Wrangler image 2.5 So a 2-mana 2/1 with trample is not very good. Add this other text to it, though and it obviously gets a good deal better. Obviously best suited to RG, where there are the most “ferocious” pay offs, but the fact that this gets bigger in the late game is nice when coupled with the fact that it can do some damage or trade early.
Chainwhip Cyclops image 1.5 This guy is decent. There are tons of board states where an ability like that really opens the flood gates – get that one problem blocker out of the way, and now the best your opponent can do is chump or trade! It does cost a lot of mana here, at 4, and it comes on an inefficient creature as a 5-mana 4/4, but that effect can be a good mana sink.
Wardscale Crocodile image 2.0 Hexproof on a common is pretty nice. I mean sure, it can die in combat pretty easily, but because it has hexproof you can make sure that it only dies in combat when it is beneficial for you—like killing a creature with 5 toughness. Then, there is the usual upside that Hexproof creatures bring – risky spells, like Fight cards, or auras and the like become a lot better, because you know your opponent won’t be able to easily 2-for-1 you.
Snarespinner image 1.5 This blocks fliers really well for a two-drop, but it isn’t that great at anything else.
Charmed Stray image 1.0 // 2.5 This is only going to be worth it if you end up with 3+ of them, as a one -mana 1/1 with lifelink just doesn’t do enough to be worth a card. If you do have multiple copies, they do get better – but I’d advise not going after them hard, and just picking them up late in packs.
Crush Dissent image 1.5 As good as Amass is in this format, I don’t like this card a whole lot. Counters that let your opponent pay mana to ignore them have to be really efficient in Limited, since they will become weaker and weaker as the game goes on. Now, the fail case here is that you still get to Amass, and that keeps it from being unplayable.
Davriel's Shadowfugue image 1.0 4 mana to make the opponent discard 2 and lose 2 life just isn’t a good deal. Mind Rot, which makes the opponent discard 2 for 3 mana is often not good enough for Limited, and this costs one more and adds a negligible effect.
Pack 2 Pick 4: War Screecher
Dovin's Veto image 0.5 This is definitely a card that was printed with constructed in mind. Negate is usually pretty nice in constructed, it is not nearly as nice in Limited. Your typical Limited deck will only have about 5 cards that this can counter, and that’s not nearly enough for you to ever want to play this in your main 40 cards.
Jiang Yanggu, Wildcrafter image 3.0 His static ability will be pretty nice in decks that get their on the counters, and the fact that he can make creatures get counters all on his own is nice. He has low starting loyalty, and he asks that a creature already be in play, but having a card that fixes for you while making your creatures better is pretty god.
Vraska's Finisher image 3.0 This type of card does not normally impress me, but Vraska’s Finisher really does well in this format. With all the planeswalkers around, Vraska’s ability to destroy the ones that have been damaged on your turn is pretty great, especially because people often let through damage on a planeswalker if it doesn’t kill it. When you do that, you don’t end up using up a card to kill the walker. Generally, if you are using this to kill a creature, you do use up another card to make it get damaged, but still, sometimes that’s worth doing.
Spellkeeper Weird image 2.0 A 3-mana ¼ has some not entirely horrendous defensive stats, and this one comes with the ability to get back key spells – with removal spells being the most interesting. While I think this will probably be best in a UR spells deck, I think most Blue decks in this format will probably run enough instants and sorceries for the Weird to be a solid inclusion in the deck.
Ironclad Krovod image 1.0 This is a vanilla creature with okayish stats. You hope you aren’t playing it.
Erratic Visionary image 1.5 This has a decent body and it loots. Looting can improve your draws in the late game, and that’s nice.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
War Screecher image 1.5 2-mana 1/3 flyers are usually alright, and this can pump your whole team in the late game. It is decent filler.
Invading Manticore image 2.5 Whether or not you already have an army, you are paying 6 mana to add 6/7 to the battlefield, and that's not a bad thing to have at the top of your curve.
Bloom Hulk image 3.5 This has good stats and it proliferates. You’ll usually feel like you’re getting more than 4 mana’s worth of value out of this. This is one of Green’s best commons.
Bulwark Giant image 1.5 Well, this is the kind of card that really stabilize you against an aggressive deck. 5 life is huge against decks intent on ending the game quickly, and a 3/6 is no small roadblock. Obviously, this is primarily a defensive card, and not something every White deck is after.
Pack 2 Pick 5: Rising Populace
Bond of Revival image 2.0 These types of effects tend to underperform, at least 5 mana. It is nice that this one gives Haste to your creature, so maybe you get in for some damage right away. But frequently you’ll have this and all you can do is bring back a 2-drop or a 3-drop that doesn’t make a huge impact. Or worse you will draw it early when it isn’t really going to be worth it. Of course, the upside can be massive, and it certainly gets better in decks with a couple really powerful creatures – something this set has no shortage of.
Ugin's Conjurant image 3.0 X-costed creatures are nice because you can play them anywhere on your curve and they will be reasonably efficient. Now, this X-costed creature does shrink when it is damaged, but with all the Proliferate in this set, it is still a pretty good creature to have.
Wall of Runes image 1.5 If you’re a defensive deck, you’ll play this and it will be passable. If you’re not defensive, don’t play it.
Samut's Sprint image 1.5 This is just red’s obligatory solid combat trick that will be nice in aggro decks. +2/+1 is enough of a boost for a creature to win a lot of combats, and the additional Haste upside doesn’t hurt. Still, it IS a combat trick and it comes with all the inherent risks that combat tricks have they are inherently situational and come with the risk of a 2-for-1 that blows you out.
Arboreal Grazer image 1.0 This kind of card tends to be pretty terrible in Limited. Getting to put a land in play will feel pretty good in the early game, but you aren’t actually netting a card there. It might get you ahead in the short-term, but it isn’t nearly as good as having a creature that is a mana dork, or one that searches up a land, its way worse. Then, in the late game, it is entirely useless! Mostly, don’t play this.
Kaya's Ghostform image 1.0 This just isn’t useful. It is nice that it counts being exiled, because it seems like there is a lot of that going around in this set, but still. You open yourself up to a 2-for-1 when you cast it in the first place, and then when it sticks you do get something pretty nice – the creature comes back. But for that to really be worth it you probably need something awesome, or something with a death trigger or ETB trigger. If you can do that, maybe you play it, but mostly I think you should steer clear of this.
Loxodon Sergeant image 2.0 This starts out with reasonablish stats, and it also has a useful ability. Obviously, Vigilance for your whole team when this comes down is decent, but it is the kind of ETB ability that I would guess won't matter about 50% of the time. Don't get me wrong, it makes a difference, but I don't feel like enough of one. I think this is a card that you don't feel bad about having in your deck, but you probably don't want more than one.
Charity Extractor image 1.5 This is a pretty good defensive card, and not a bad place to counters thanks to lifelink. But you’ll cut it a lot. It just doesn’t do enough.
Goblin Assailant image 1.0 This is a vanilla creature with mediocre stats. You’ll only play it if you’re desperate for a two drop.
Rising Populace image 1.5 This sort of creature always seems to disappoint. 3-mana 2/2 is not a stat line you want to have, but it does slowly get bigger the longer the game goes on.
Pack 2 Pick 6: Wanderer's Strike
Nahiri, Storm of Stone image 3.0 Her static ability is nice, since it can enable so many attacks that weren't possible otherwise -- first strike can be a real game changer. But her value comes from the fact that she's also a reasonable removal spell. For 4 mana, she can take down tapped creatures with up to SIX toughness. And sure, killing something that is tapped usually means it hit you first, and that's never great, but when it comes with the additional upside of perhaps being able to kill 2 or 3 creatures, and First Strike for your team, that’s not too bad.
Bond of Flourishing image 1.0 This reminds me a lot of cards like Adventurous Impulse and Anticipate – which means it is a fine card to include, can help dig you into whatever you really need, but it isn’t anything amazing. I do like that it gains you 3 life, so that if doing this means you are going behind on board a bit to dig, you at least gain some life to helps often that blow. And yeah, it can only hit permanents, but that’s MOST of your deck, so I think that’s fine.
Return to Nature image 1.5 This hates on enough things that it is worth playing in your main deck sometimes, though this format does not have a ton of Artifacts.
Samut's Sprint image 1.5 This is just red’s obligatory solid combat trick that will be nice in aggro decks. +2/+1 is enough of a boost for a creature to win a lot of combats, and the additional Haste upside doesn’t hurt. Still, it IS a combat trick and it comes with all the inherent risks that combat tricks have they are inherently situational and come with the risk of a 2-for-1 that blows you out.
Wanderer's Strike image 3.5 5 mana is a lot, but killing something no question asked is a pretty good return at that investment. Being at Sorcery speed hurts a little, but adding Populate in a set that seems to have a plethora of reasons to Populate is nice.
Teferi's Time Twist image 1.0 This can do a variety of things, but most of the time they won’t be worth doing. Because this is an Instant, if your opponent tries to take down a planeswalker, you can use the Time Twist, both saving it and setting its loyalty back to what it was when it came into play. On top of that, Teferi’s Time Twist is also good with ETB creatures, can help your creature dodge a removal spell, and so on. I still am not very interested in playing it.
Kronch Wrangler image 2.5 So a 2-mana 2/1 with trample is not very good. Add this other text to it, though and it obviously gets a good deal better. Obviously best suited to RG, where there are the most “ferocious” pay offs, but the fact that this gets bigger in the late game is nice when coupled with the fact that it can do some damage or trade early.
Band Together image 3.0 Just up front: note this does not let you target two different creatures of your opponent's. Instead, you target two of your creatures, who then do damage equal to their power to one creature your opponent controls. Now that that's clear -- this is still an excellent common for Green. We have seen instant speed versions of this effect before, and they all only allowed you to target one creature on your side to do the damage -- this lets you do even more damage, allowing your two smallish creatures to take down one of your opponent's much larger creatures.
Unlikely Aid image 2.0 This is a solid trick. The stats boost and indestructibility is going to be enough for your creature to win most combats, and you can even use it in response to (most) removal to save your creature. Now, it IS still a trick, which is something only aggro decks are really interested in, and it is a bit risky since your opponent interacting in response to it is really bad.
Pack 2 Pick 7: No Escape
Domri's Ambush image 3.5 This is pretty great! Any time there are spells that let a creature deal damage equal to its power to another creature, they tend to be pretty darn good. Keep in mind that this isn’t a “fight,” your opponent’s creature does not do damage to yours. RG for this effect would already be a pretty solid card, but adding a +1/+1 counter to the mix, along with the ability to talk planesawlkers, and we are definitely in the realm of premium removal. Sure, it is somewhat situational in that you have to have a creature, and you have to be careful when you cast it so you don’t get blown out – and the fact that it is a Sorcery does make it a little harder to find an ideal opening, but it is still pretty good.
Huatli's Raptor image 3.0 A two mana 2/3 with Vigilance is nice, especially one that proliferates for you. That said, this isn’t the kind of gold card that is going to really actively pull you into a color pair, it is the kind you happily run if you’re already looking at GW +1/+1 counters as a deck.
Vraska's Finisher image 3.0 This type of card does not normally impress me, but Vraska’s Finisher really does well in this format. With all the planeswalkers around, Vraska’s ability to destroy the ones that have been damaged on your turn is pretty great, especially because people often let through damage on a planeswalker if it doesn’t kill it. When you do that, you don’t end up using up a card to kill the walker. Generally, if you are using this to kill a creature, you do use up another card to make it get damaged, but still, sometimes that’s worth doing.
Saheeli's Silverwing image 1.5 There isn’t enough of an artifact sub-theme in the set that you want to play sub-par cards just because they are artifacts, and that’s what this is. 4 mana for a 2/3 flyer is not a good rate, and the ETB ability it has is not the most relevant. It gives you some minor information, and that’s not enough to overcome these bad stats.
Pollenbright Druid image 3.5 A 2-mana 1/1 that puts a counter anywhere – including on itself, is usually a pretty decent card already. At worst it is going to be a Grizzly Bears, and there are other times where putting the counter elsewhere makes a big deal, like on an evasive creature. But this has the additional ability to also just Proliferate, which you will be doing if you already have other counters in play. Either way, you’re going to get some value out of your 2 drop in the late game, and that’s not always easy to come by.
No Escape image 3.0 This is a pretty good counterspell. Creatures and planeswalkers together are going to make up three quarters or more of most decks, so this has plenty of targets. And it’s a hard counter! And it exiles the things it counters. All of that makes me want to play the first copy of this in most Blue decks.
Bulwark Giant image 1.5 Well, this is the kind of card that really stabilize you against an aggressive deck. 5 life is huge against decks intent on ending the game quickly, and a 3/6 is no small roadblock. Obviously, this is primarily a defensive card, and not something every White deck is after.
Erratic Visionary image 1.5 This has a decent body and it loots. Looting can improve your draws in the late game, and that’s nice.
Pack 2 Pick 8: Battlefield Promotion
Bond of Discipline image 1.5 It is easy to imagine the ideal scenario here, where you cast the Bond and swing for lethal, but it just doesn’t line up that way very easily. Sure, you don’t even need lethal because of lifelink, but you still end up using a whole card just to damage your opponent and mess up the race a little. While it is more effective than a Fog, in a lot of ways this card feels like a glorified one.
Neoform image 0.0 This “Birthing Pod” effect is hard to make work in Limited, just because your deck can’t really be constructed around it effectively. It is just difficult to make it actually worth trading one card for another in most scenarios, and in this case – you actually have to 2-for-1 yourself by using Neoform, so I think it is worse. I don’t think adding the counter to the creature makes it much better.
Bulwark Giant image 1.5 Well, this is the kind of card that really stabilize you against an aggressive deck. 5 life is huge against decks intent on ending the game quickly, and a 3/6 is no small roadblock. Obviously, this is primarily a defensive card, and not something every White deck is after.
Snarespinner image 1.5 This blocks fliers really well for a two-drop, but it isn’t that great at anything else.
Steady Aim image 1.0 This will make your creature survive combat frequently, and can be used in response to damage-based removal. What I don’t love is that it isn’t that exciting offensively, and generally you want your combat tricks to produce blowouts on the attack, like blowing up double blocks – which this won’t do as often. I think it is an ok trick, but I don’t want more than one in an ideal world.
Battlefield Promotion image 1.0 Even though this set has a long of payoffs for +1/+1 counters, and a few for gaining life, I’m normally not interested in this. This is a relatively grindy format, and combat tricks like this just don’t work like you’d hope they would in other formats. You should mostly avoid this.
Vampire Opportunist image 1.5 This starts with some mediocre stats, and it has a late game ability that is pretty expensive. That said, it isn’t the worst mana sink to have, as it can really close out a game in tight situations.
Pack 2 Pick 9: War Screecher
Storm the Citadel image 1.0 I am not a big fan of this in Limited. 5 for +2/+2 at sorcery speed for your whole team is nothing special – an evasive ability like trample, or something like vigilance added to it would make it a lot better. As it is, I don’t see the combat damage trigger on this card mattering in most games. Yeah, I’m just not impressed, even if your deck can go wide, you hopefully have some better ways to take advantage of it than this.
Nahiri's Stoneblades image 0.0 I don't like tricks that don't help my creature survive combat. Only bumping power with no keyword added just isn’t worth it, even if you can pump two creatures.
Vampire Opportunist image 1.5 This starts with some mediocre stats, and it has a late game ability that is pretty expensive. That said, it isn’t the worst mana sink to have, as it can really close out a game in tight situations.
Charmed Stray image 1.0 // 2.5 This is only going to be worth it if you end up with 3+ of them, as a one -mana 1/1 with lifelink just doesn’t do enough to be worth a card. If you do have multiple copies, they do get better – but I’d advise not going after them hard, and just picking them up late in packs.
Contentious Plan image 2.0 A cantrip with Proliferate is nice in this format. You’ll just almost always have something to put more counters on, and that will feel great since this just replaces itself.
War Screecher image 1.5 2-mana 1/3 flyers are usually alright, and this can pump your whole team in the late game. It is decent filler.
Pack 2 Pick 10: Divine Arrow
Gideon's Triumph image 3.0 This is situational, but efficient. Keep in mind, by the way, that you can wait to use this until after combat is over – like if your opponent double blocks and you can only kill one of their creatures in combat, if you use this after the one creature died in combat, you can also get the second creature. Generally, your opponent will be attacking with and blocking with their largest creature, so I think overall this will do what you need it to.
Teyo, the Shieldmage image 2.0 Basically, you are paying 3 for a 0/3 wall, and maybe he makes you a second one too. With most of these walkers, if you get to use their ability the second time, they sound pretty good. In this case? Not so much. 3 mana for two 0/3s is something, but not anything special. It isn’t like 0/3s are even that hard to bust through in the long run.
Prismite image 1.0 This is a creature with bad stats that also doesn’t filter mana very well. If your deck is desperately in need of a two drop AND some mana fixing, it can do those things, but again – it doesn’t do either of them well.
Divine Arrow image 3.0 This is a removal spell that is situational, but it does the job pretty efficiently. You’ll never really cut the first copy of this, but being situational does hold it back from being premium.
Vampire Opportunist image 1.5 This starts with some mediocre stats, and it has a late game ability that is pretty expensive. That said, it isn’t the worst mana sink to have, as it can really close out a game in tight situations.
Pack 2 Pick 11: Charmed Stray
Enforcer Griffin image 2.5 A 5-mana ¾ with Flying might not seem great, but it has just the right size in this format, outclassing most of the non-rare Flyers in the set. It isn’t anything special, but it is better than it looks.
Wardscale Crocodile image 2.0 Hexproof on a common is pretty nice. I mean sure, it can die in combat pretty easily, but because it has hexproof you can make sure that it only dies in combat when it is beneficial for you—like killing a creature with 5 toughness. Then, there is the usual upside that Hexproof creatures bring – risky spells, like Fight cards, or auras and the like become a lot better, because you know your opponent won’t be able to easily 2-for-1 you.
Snarespinner image 1.5 This blocks fliers really well for a two-drop, but it isn’t that great at anything else.
Charmed Stray image 1.0 // 2.5 This is only going to be worth it if you end up with 3+ of them, as a one -mana 1/1 with lifelink just doesn’t do enough to be worth a card. If you do have multiple copies, they do get better – but I’d advise not going after them hard, and just picking them up late in packs.
Pack 2 Pick 12: Dovin's Veto
Dovin's Veto image 0.5 This is definitely a card that was printed with constructed in mind. Negate is usually pretty nice in constructed, it is not nearly as nice in Limited. Your typical Limited deck will only have about 5 cards that this can counter, and that’s not nearly enough for you to ever want to play this in your main 40 cards.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
Bulwark Giant image 1.5 Well, this is the kind of card that really stabilize you against an aggressive deck. 5 life is huge against decks intent on ending the game quickly, and a 3/6 is no small roadblock. Obviously, this is primarily a defensive card, and not something every White deck is after.
Pack 2 Pick 13: Charity Extractor
Arboreal Grazer image 1.0 This kind of card tends to be pretty terrible in Limited. Getting to put a land in play will feel pretty good in the early game, but you aren’t actually netting a card there. It might get you ahead in the short-term, but it isn’t nearly as good as having a creature that is a mana dork, or one that searches up a land, its way worse. Then, in the late game, it is entirely useless! Mostly, don’t play this.
Charity Extractor image 1.5 This is a pretty good defensive card, and not a bad place to counters thanks to lifelink. But you’ll cut it a lot. It just doesn’t do enough.
Pack 2 Pick 14: Return to Nature
Return to Nature image 1.5 This hates on enough things that it is worth playing in your main deck sometimes, though this format does not have a ton of Artifacts.
Pack 3 Pick 1: Enforcer Griffin
Karn, the Great Creator image 0.0 This Karn is unplayable in this Limited format. This set just does not have enough artifacts in it to make this artifact build around planeswalker worthwhile. I think he was printed more with constructed formats in mind, because his ability to make your opponent’s artifacts unable to use activated abilities, and the ability to do what Karn does – that is, animate an artifact – or to let you grab an Artifact from your sideboard – just doesn’t seem worth the payoff here.
Despark image 3.0 When it can kill things, it does it really efficiently. It can’t always though, and it being as situational as it is can be a bummer.
Dovin's Veto image 0.5 This is definitely a card that was printed with constructed in mind. Negate is usually pretty nice in constructed, it is not nearly as nice in Limited. Your typical Limited deck will only have about 5 cards that this can counter, and that’s not nearly enough for you to ever want to play this in your main 40 cards.
Tyrant's Scorn image 3.0 This has nice flexibility – it can kill smaller creatures, and it can bounce the ones it can’t kill. That’s a pretty good deal, and allows it to have at least some impact on virtually every creature in the set.
Band Together image 3.0 Just up front: note this does not let you target two different creatures of your opponent's. Instead, you target two of your creatures, who then do damage equal to their power to one creature your opponent controls. Now that that's clear -- this is still an excellent common for Green. We have seen instant speed versions of this effect before, and they all only allowed you to target one creature on your side to do the damage -- this lets you do even more damage, allowing your two smallish creatures to take down one of your opponent's much larger creatures.
Loxodon Sergeant image 2.0 This starts out with reasonablish stats, and it also has a useful ability. Obviously, Vigilance for your whole team when this comes down is decent, but it is the kind of ETB ability that I would guess won't matter about 50% of the time. Don't get me wrong, it makes a difference, but I don't feel like enough of one. I think this is a card that you don't feel bad about having in your deck, but you probably don't want more than one.
Grim Initiate image 3.0 Like all these cards with Amass, you have to look at this as having one of two possibilities. One is that, when this dies, it makes a 1/1 token that has synergy with Amass payoffs and Proliferate. The other is that it makes your Army bigger. I think both of those options are pretty nice when attached to a one-drop with First Strike, and means that it has at least some usefulness all game long, even if that usefulness is never going to be earthshattering. It is also great if you are interested in sacrificing stuff, since it gives you two bodies.
Samut's Sprint image 1.5 This is just red’s obligatory solid combat trick that will be nice in aggro decks. +2/+1 is enough of a boost for a creature to win a lot of combats, and the additional Haste upside doesn’t hurt. Still, it IS a combat trick and it comes with all the inherent risks that combat tricks have they are inherently situational and come with the risk of a 2-for-1 that blows you out.
Spellgorger Weird image 1.0 // 3.5 I do think this needs two grades, as you need a critical mass of instants and sorceries to really get there. Sure, if you get it to 3/3 you’re doing alright, but obviously you want a deck with 7+ instants and sorceries to fully take advantage of this thing. Doesn’t hurt that it has synergy with proliferate either!
Prismite image 1.0 This is a creature with bad stats that also doesn’t filter mana very well. If your deck is desperately in need of a two drop AND some mana fixing, it can do those things, but again – it doesn’t do either of them well.
Duskmantle Operative image 1.5 This is a bear with some reasonable but unexciting upside.
Sky Theater Strix image 1.5 This is a two mana ½ Flyer that will sometimes attack for two. Not great, but not bad either.
Rising Populace image 1.5 This sort of creature always seems to disappoint. 3-mana 2/2 is not a stat line you want to have, but it does slowly get bigger the longer the game goes on.
Enforcer Griffin image 2.5 A 5-mana ¾ with Flying might not seem great, but it has just the right size in this format, outclassing most of the non-rare Flyers in the set. It isn’t anything special, but it is better than it looks.
Pack 3 Pick 2: Pouncing Lynx
Eternal Taskmaster image 3.0 Two mana for a 2/3 is a nice deal, even coming into play tapped, and the fact that this guy can bring creatures back to your hand from your graveyard is really nice too, and something that gives him usefulness all game long.
Dovin, Hand of Control image 2.0 The static ability here looks kind of nice, making your opponent pay more for stuff. Unfortunately, there are lots of games where that effect won’t make much of a difference, since most decks don’t run THAT many cards in those three categories – wish they had included planeswalkers too at least! His loyalty ability might be a nice way to slow down the game for control decks, and can help you find answers, but mostly he seems like he is a mediocre fog effect to me. Sometimes that’s something you want, but it isn’t anything special.
Bleeding Edge image 4.0 This will frequently feel like a 3-mana 2/2 that destroys a creature when it enters the battlefield – and that’s a great card. It definitely will feel a bit less good to put counters on an Army already in play, but it is still a reasonable deal. The -2/-2 can’t kill everything of course, but it does enough for me to want to value this really highly.
Nahiri's Stoneblades image 0.0 I don't like tricks that don't help my creature survive combat. Only bumping power with no keyword added just isn’t worth it, even if you can pump two creatures.
Pouncing Lynx image 3.0 Two mana 2/1 first strike is pretty darn good, and yeah – this can only do it when it attacks, but that’s still pretty great. This is a difficult creature to deal with in the early game, and first strike can even pose problems later in games for your opponent. This can be especially good in conjunction with combat tricks.
Kronch Wrangler image 2.5 So a 2-mana 2/1 with trample is not very good. Add this other text to it, though and it obviously gets a good deal better. Obviously best suited to RG, where there are the most “ferocious” pay offs, but the fact that this gets bigger in the late game is nice when coupled with the fact that it can do some damage or trade early.
Vivien's Grizzly image 2.0 Like her Arkbow, her Grizzly also is a nice manasink, though less reliable than the legendary artifacts. But still, this is basically a really bad Duskwatch Recruiter – but the Recruiter was an absurd limited card, so being a bad version of it doesn’t mean the card itself is bad. It has alright stats and the ability to draw you cards sometimes in the late game.
Demolish image 0.0 I always try to give this a sideboard grade, but the reality is – you will never side this in in this set. There aren’t enough artifacts or problem lands, so most of the time this reads “Pay 4 mana, discard this and do almost nothing.”
Ahn-Crop Invader image 3.0 This is a nice aggressive creature. Because it has First Strike, your opponent will often just not be willing to block it when you attack with it when you have mana up, since it is likely to win most combat even if you just sacrifice one thing to it. It pairs particularly well with Amass tokens.
Kiora's Dambreaker image 2.0 A 6-mana 5/6 isn’t great, but it is passable stats, especially in Blue. Add Proliferate to that and it certainly gets better – especially in a set whose cup runneth over with various types of counters.
Turret Ogre image 2.5 This has decent stats + Reach, and an ETB ability that will trigger a good chunk of the time. That is a solid playable.
Loxodon Sergeant image 2.0 This starts out with reasonablish stats, and it also has a useful ability. Obviously, Vigilance for your whole team when this comes down is decent, but it is the kind of ETB ability that I would guess won't matter about 50% of the time. Don't get me wrong, it makes a difference, but I don't feel like enough of one. I think this is a card that you don't feel bad about having in your deck, but you probably don't want more than one.
Herald of the Dreadhorde image 2.0 A 4-mana 3/2 isn’t great, but hey – it can trade with plenty of 4 drops, and if you’re trading with this your’e probably going to come out ahead, because it comes with Amass 2. Whether this makes you a 2/2 creature or makes your Army a bigger, it is a good deal, since it is coming in addition to a trade.
Pack 3 Pick 3: Aven Eternal
Deathsprout image 4.0 Killing a creature for 4 mana at instant speed AND fixing your mana is great. This is one of the best uncommons in the set.
Heartwarming Redemption image 1.0 Sometimes an effect like this can be a nice way to reload your hand, but it is also super awkward. Any time I look at a card and see that it is completely useless if you’re in top deck mode, it makes me really uninterested in playing it, especially because even in an ideal situation where you’re flooding and you use this to get out of that flood, it still isn’t going to feel like it is doing something that impressive.
Stealth Mission image 1.0 I don’t like most versions of this card we see. Sure, you get a free swing in, and sometimes that will win you the game. But a lot of the time it just doesn’t matter. And it is super risky because it opens you up to the dreaded 2-for-1 in many situations if you aren’t careful.
Battlefield Promotion image 1.0 Even though this set has a long of payoffs for +1/+1 counters, and a few for gaining life, I’m normally not interested in this. This is a relatively grindy format, and combat tricks like this just don’t work like you’d hope they would in other formats. You should mostly avoid this.
Kasmina's Transmutation image 2.5 Removal that doesn’t really remove is always pretty underwhelming. I mean, sure, you do at least take away all of the creature’s abilities and make it a 1/1, but it can still block, and that’s a pretty big deal. This is still decent removal, just don’t treat it like one of the best common removal spells in the set.
Aven Eternal image 3.5 3-mana 2/2 flyers tend to be playable if that’s all they are. Adding Amass here is great, and will give you a great deal whether you put a counter on an Army already in play or you make a token.
Defiant Strike image 1.0 Last time we saw this card, it was surprisingly good because it was in Khans of Tarkir, and the Prowess mechanic was all over the place, including on White cards. Not the case here though. +1/+0 is the kind of stat boost that will have very little impact on combat the majority of the time, and normally you want your combat tricks to make it more likely your creature wins combat against larger creatures-- and sure, this cycles itself, and that's what keeps it from being unplayable, but it still isn't very good.
Prismite image 1.0 This is a creature with bad stats that also doesn’t filter mana very well. If your deck is desperately in need of a two drop AND some mana fixing, it can do those things, but again – it doesn’t do either of them well.
Aid the Fallen image 2.0 To play this, you want to be consistently getting back both a creature and a planeswalker. The good news is, that isn’t super hard to do in this format. This is the kind of card that is terrible early but really good late, and most Black decks want one copy of this to help them have that nice late game.
Kraul Stinger image 1.5 This can trade with anything, but being a 3-mana 2/2 isn’t so good. One mana 1/1 death touchers are way better, because you can always trade up.
Jaya's Greeting image 4.0 Two mana to do 3 to something at Instant speed is already premium, so adding Scry is just icing on the cake.
Band Together image 3.0 Just up front: note this does not let you target two different creatures of your opponent's. Instead, you target two of your creatures, who then do damage equal to their power to one creature your opponent controls. Now that that's clear -- this is still an excellent common for Green. We have seen instant speed versions of this effect before, and they all only allowed you to target one creature on your side to do the damage -- this lets you do even more damage, allowing your two smallish creatures to take down one of your opponent's much larger creatures.
Pack 3 Pick 4: Finale of Revelation
Finale of Revelation image 3.0 The efficiency here doesn’t get interesting until X is pretty high. I mean, paying 5 to draw 3 at Sorcery speed is solid. And yeah, if X = 10 you’re going to win thanks to insane card advantage, and obviously once X is 4 or more I think the card starts to give you a pretty incredible rate. But it is definitely pretty awkward and clunky.
Bond of Insight image 0.0 // 2.5 This isn’t as good as it looks. This is because you will need a decent number of instants and sorceries for this card to actually do anything. Milling yourself and your opponent 4 cards just isn’t worth it if you aren’t also returning two instants and sorceries – even just returning one is pretty bad for 4 mana. If you have enough spells it does improve, though.
Ral's Outburst image 3.5 4 mana to do 3 at Instant speed is already playable, but the fact that this not only draws you a card, but even gives you a bit of card selection makes this great. It will always be a 2-for-1, and if you can’t kill a creature with it, you can still hit your opponent and try to dig for something.
Spark Harvest image 3.5 This kills a bunch of cards in this format, and it can only cost one mana if you are willing to sacrifice something. Obviously killing walkers matters more in this format than in any other we have ever seen, and the ability to sacrifice a walker matters more too. A lot of the uncommon walkers eventually tick down to 1 loyalty, so turning them into fodder for this seems nice. It is made a lot better by the fact that you can also straight up pay 5 to destroy a creature or planeswalker.
Iron Bully image 2.5 This card really overperforms thanks to all the Proliferate in the set. Even if it just puts its counter on itself, it doesn’t tend to only be a 2/2 with Menace for very long!
Pollenbright Druid image 3.5 A 2-mana 1/1 that puts a counter anywhere – including on itself, is usually a pretty decent card already. At worst it is going to be a Grizzly Bears, and there are other times where putting the counter elsewhere makes a big deal, like on an evasive creature. But this has the additional ability to also just Proliferate, which you will be doing if you already have other counters in play. Either way, you’re going to get some value out of your 2 drop in the late game, and that’s not always easy to come by.
Topple the Statue image 1.5 So, when we see 3 mana to tap something and draw a card at instant speed isn’t all that great. It does replace itself, and have a somewhat flexible effect, so that does save it from being completely terrible.
Stealth Mission image 1.0 I don’t like most versions of this card we see. Sure, you get a free swing in, and sometimes that will win you the game. But a lot of the time it just doesn’t matter. And it is super risky because it opens you up to the dreaded 2-for-1 in many situations if you aren’t careful.
Ob Nixilis's Cruelty image 4.0 This is is Black’s obligatory premium common removal spell. 3 mana for -5/-5 is a great deal, especially at instant speed, and especially with the exile clause attached to it. The great thing about this kind of card too, is that it doesn’t have to outright kill a creature to give you value, sometimes, you can set up a block and use it to make your opponent’s creature smaller so yours survives in combat. Granted, -5/-5 is going to do the job on its own most of the time, but -X/-X Black removal spells always come with that bit of upside. This is probably the best Common in the set.
Chainwhip Cyclops image 1.5 This guy is decent. There are tons of board states where an ability like that really opens the flood gates – get that one problem blocker out of the way, and now the best your opponent can do is chump or trade! It does cost a lot of mana here, at 4, and it comes on an inefficient creature as a 5-mana 4/4, but that effect can be a good mana sink.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
Pack 3 Pick 5: Rescuer Sphinx
Vivien, Champion of the Wilds image 3.0 The static ability here can be nice, for sure, as putting Flash on big Green creatures can often result in those creatures being better than removal spells. Your opponent will have to think twice about attacking you or Vivien if you have untapped mana and even one card in hand – so probably a good time to hold on to basics. Her +1 isn’t the most exciting thing – though it does kind of help protect her, since Vigilance means you can attack without worrying about the crack back so much, and Reach means that flyers will be held in check too. That said, you do need to have creatures in play already for it to work out. Her -2 doesn’t impress me a ton either, to be honest – she can only play creature cards off of the ability, and yeah most of the time that means that you will basically draw 1 card off of it – and yeah, you will also be able to play that creature at Instant speed – but it just doesn’t seem like enough. Especially since whiffing on looking at the top 3 is a very real thing.
Leyline Prowler image 4.0 A 3-mana 2/3 with Lifelink and Deathtouch is something I'd already be in on. Those are two great keyword abilities -- being able to trade with anything and gain you life is a good deal, and obviously it stonewalls smaller creatures. Then, they made it so that this not only ramps but also fixes your mana! This is a really great uncommon.
Rescuer Sphinx image 3.5 4-mana 3/2 with Flying isn’t a terrible place to start, and this does more than that! Returning one of your permanents to your hand can give you some value – either by making an Aura-based removal spell fall off, or by taking advantage of an ETB ability. In this set, you can also add Planeswalkers to the list, who you can bounce when they are low on loyalty. Plus, the Sphinx gets a +1/+1 counter out of the deal if it does that.
Band Together image 3.0 Just up front: note this does not let you target two different creatures of your opponent's. Instead, you target two of your creatures, who then do damage equal to their power to one creature your opponent controls. Now that that's clear -- this is still an excellent common for Green. We have seen instant speed versions of this effect before, and they all only allowed you to target one creature on your side to do the damage -- this lets you do even more damage, allowing your two smallish creatures to take down one of your opponent's much larger creatures.
Tithebearer Giant image 3.0 Because this is fairly expensive and has mediocre stats you don’t normally want more than one of these, but the first copy is pretty nice. Because it draws you a card and has a reasonable body, you’re virtually always going to get a 2-for-1 out of this, and 2-for-1s go a long way towards helping you win.
Goblin Assault Team image 1.5 So, a 4-mana 4/1 with Haste would normally not be so good -- maybe it can get in for 4 once or something, but then it dies to literally everything. However, because this also leaves a +1/+1 counter behind, it helps you get around that downside. There is also additional upside here in the fact that it can trade for a ton of stuff with 4 power -- any time you can trade for something decently sized with this and get the counter, you're going to feel ok about things. I'm not sure you'll ever want more than one of these, but the first of these seems like a reasonable inclusion in most Red decks.
Spellkeeper Weird image 2.0 A 3-mana ¼ has some not entirely horrendous defensive stats, and this one comes with the ability to get back key spells – with removal spells being the most interesting. While I think this will probably be best in a UR spells deck, I think most Blue decks in this format will probably run enough instants and sorceries for the Weird to be a solid inclusion in the deck.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
Vampire Opportunist image 1.5 This starts with some mediocre stats, and it has a late game ability that is pretty expensive. That said, it isn’t the worst mana sink to have, as it can really close out a game in tight situations.
Pollenbright Druid image 3.5 A 2-mana 1/1 that puts a counter anywhere – including on itself, is usually a pretty decent card already. At worst it is going to be a Grizzly Bears, and there are other times where putting the counter elsewhere makes a big deal, like on an evasive creature. But this has the additional ability to also just Proliferate, which you will be doing if you already have other counters in play. Either way, you’re going to get some value out of your 2 drop in the late game, and that’s not always easy to come by.
Pack 3 Pick 6: Kasmina's Transmutation
Cyclops Electromancer image 1.0 // 3.5 So, I think this is the kind of card that needs two grades. If you are playing a deck that has a fairly standard 2-4 instants or sorceries in it, this is going to be almost unplayable. Basically, I think you want to have at least 2 instants and sorceries in your graveyard when you play this, as that gives you a good chance to kill a creature -- it needs to be doing that, because 5 for a 4/2 is obviously not so good. If you end up in a spell-heavy deck, which it looks like UR wants to be in this format, though, this will be one of the best cards in your deck, and will do an impressive Flame-Tongue Kavu impression.
Crush Dissent image 1.5 As good as Amass is in this format, I don’t like this card a whole lot. Counters that let your opponent pay mana to ignore them have to be really efficient in Limited, since they will become weaker and weaker as the game goes on. Now, the fail case here is that you still get to Amass, and that keeps it from being unplayable.
Aid the Fallen image 2.0 To play this, you want to be consistently getting back both a creature and a planeswalker. The good news is, that isn’t super hard to do in this format. This is the kind of card that is terrible early but really good late, and most Black decks want one copy of this to help them have that nice late game.
Spark Reaper image 2.5 A 3-mana 2/3 has somewhat passable stats, and this has a pretty nice activated ability. The fact that you can use it at Instant speed – which we don’t always get with effects like this is what really makes it worthwhile, since you can use it in response to removal or declare a block and then use it, getting some serious value. This is a decent late-game mana sink.
Bulwark Giant image 1.5 Well, this is the kind of card that really stabilize you against an aggressive deck. 5 life is huge against decks intent on ending the game quickly, and a 3/6 is no small roadblock. Obviously, this is primarily a defensive card, and not something every White deck is after.
Makeshift Battalion image 2.5 You’ll play this in an aggressive deck, but for the most part that type of deck isn’t great in this format. It just won’t always be easy to send in two additional creatures into combat, and it won’t be worth risking trades so much either since the payoff is just a +1/+1 counter. I’m not saying this is bad, just not something you should be excited about.
Grim Initiate image 3.0 Like all these cards with Amass, you have to look at this as having one of two possibilities. One is that, when this dies, it makes a 1/1 token that has synergy with Amass payoffs and Proliferate. The other is that it makes your Army bigger. I think both of those options are pretty nice when attached to a one-drop with First Strike, and means that it has at least some usefulness all game long, even if that usefulness is never going to be earthshattering. It is also great if you are interested in sacrificing stuff, since it gives you two bodies.
Kasmina's Transmutation image 2.5 Removal that doesn’t really remove is always pretty underwhelming. I mean, sure, you do at least take away all of the creature’s abilities and make it a 1/1, but it can still block, and that’s a pretty big deal. This is still decent removal, just don’t treat it like one of the best common removal spells in the set.
Arlinn's Wolf image 2.0 A 3-mana 3/2 that can’t be blocked by smaller creatures is nice. Sometimes your 3/2 gets in trouble against a couple of 1/3s or something, and this prevents that. It isn’t anything special, but it is definitely a 3-drop you’ll play without feeling bad about.
Pack 3 Pick 7: Divine Arrow
Charmed Stray image 1.0 // 2.5 This is only going to be worth it if you end up with 3+ of them, as a one -mana 1/1 with lifelink just doesn’t do enough to be worth a card. If you do have multiple copies, they do get better – but I’d advise not going after them hard, and just picking them up late in packs.
Goblin Assault Team image 1.5 So, a 4-mana 4/1 with Haste would normally not be so good -- maybe it can get in for 4 once or something, but then it dies to literally everything. However, because this also leaves a +1/+1 counter behind, it helps you get around that downside. There is also additional upside here in the fact that it can trade for a ton of stuff with 4 power -- any time you can trade for something decently sized with this and get the counter, you're going to feel ok about things. I'm not sure you'll ever want more than one of these, but the first of these seems like a reasonable inclusion in most Red decks.
Divine Arrow image 3.0 This is a removal spell that is situational, but it does the job pretty efficiently. You’ll never really cut the first copy of this, but being situational does hold it back from being premium.
Lazotep Reaver image 3.0 This is a nice two drop. Two mana for 2/3 of stats divided across two bodies is a great deal, and it stays relevant all game long.
Vivien's Grizzly image 2.0 Like her Arkbow, her Grizzly also is a nice manasink, though less reliable than the legendary artifacts. But still, this is basically a really bad Duskwatch Recruiter – but the Recruiter was an absurd limited card, so being a bad version of it doesn’t mean the card itself is bad. It has alright stats and the ability to draw you cards sometimes in the late game.
Shriekdiver image 1.5 A 3-mana 2/1 with Flying is kind of ok, and you can make this one into a 4-mana 2/1 with Flying and Haste which is…also ok.
Arlinn's Wolf image 2.0 A 3-mana 3/2 that can’t be blocked by smaller creatures is nice. Sometimes your 3/2 gets in trouble against a couple of 1/3s or something, and this prevents that. It isn’t anything special, but it is definitely a 3-drop you’ll play without feeling bad about.
Sky Theater Strix image 1.5 This is a two mana ½ Flyer that will sometimes attack for two. Not great, but not bad either.
Pack 3 Pick 8: Grateful Apparition
Grateful Apparition image 3.0 With all the planeswalkers and +1/+1 counters in this set proliferating a lot gives you a ton of value, and that’s what this can do for you thanks to being evasive. You can even put counters on it to help it get in!
Despark image 3.0 When it can kill things, it does it really efficiently. It can’t always though, and it being as situational as it is can be a bummer.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
Crush Dissent image 1.5 As good as Amass is in this format, I don’t like this card a whole lot. Counters that let your opponent pay mana to ignore them have to be really efficient in Limited, since they will become weaker and weaker as the game goes on. Now, the fail case here is that you still get to Amass, and that keeps it from being unplayable.
Rising Populace image 1.5 This sort of creature always seems to disappoint. 3-mana 2/2 is not a stat line you want to have, but it does slowly get bigger the longer the game goes on.
Sky Theater Strix image 1.5 This is a two mana ½ Flyer that will sometimes attack for two. Not great, but not bad either.
Charity Extractor image 1.5 This is a pretty good defensive card, and not a bad place to counters thanks to lifelink. But you’ll cut it a lot. It just doesn’t do enough.
Pack 3 Pick 9: Dovin's Veto
Dovin's Veto image 0.5 This is definitely a card that was printed with constructed in mind. Negate is usually pretty nice in constructed, it is not nearly as nice in Limited. Your typical Limited deck will only have about 5 cards that this can counter, and that’s not nearly enough for you to ever want to play this in your main 40 cards.
Tyrant's Scorn image 3.0 This has nice flexibility – it can kill smaller creatures, and it can bounce the ones it can’t kill. That’s a pretty good deal, and allows it to have at least some impact on virtually every creature in the set.
Band Together image 3.0 Just up front: note this does not let you target two different creatures of your opponent's. Instead, you target two of your creatures, who then do damage equal to their power to one creature your opponent controls. Now that that's clear -- this is still an excellent common for Green. We have seen instant speed versions of this effect before, and they all only allowed you to target one creature on your side to do the damage -- this lets you do even more damage, allowing your two smallish creatures to take down one of your opponent's much larger creatures.
Duskmantle Operative image 1.5 This is a bear with some reasonable but unexciting upside.
Sky Theater Strix image 1.5 This is a two mana ½ Flyer that will sometimes attack for two. Not great, but not bad either.
Rising Populace image 1.5 This sort of creature always seems to disappoint. 3-mana 2/2 is not a stat line you want to have, but it does slowly get bigger the longer the game goes on.
Pack 3 Pick 10: Herald of the Dreadhorde
Eternal Taskmaster image 3.0 Two mana for a 2/3 is a nice deal, even coming into play tapped, and the fact that this guy can bring creatures back to your hand from your graveyard is really nice too, and something that gives him usefulness all game long.
Vivien's Grizzly image 2.0 Like her Arkbow, her Grizzly also is a nice manasink, though less reliable than the legendary artifacts. But still, this is basically a really bad Duskwatch Recruiter – but the Recruiter was an absurd limited card, so being a bad version of it doesn’t mean the card itself is bad. It has alright stats and the ability to draw you cards sometimes in the late game.
Demolish image 0.0 I always try to give this a sideboard grade, but the reality is – you will never side this in in this set. There aren’t enough artifacts or problem lands, so most of the time this reads “Pay 4 mana, discard this and do almost nothing.”
Ahn-Crop Invader image 3.0 This is a nice aggressive creature. Because it has First Strike, your opponent will often just not be willing to block it when you attack with it when you have mana up, since it is likely to win most combat even if you just sacrifice one thing to it. It pairs particularly well with Amass tokens.
Herald of the Dreadhorde image 2.0 A 4-mana 3/2 isn’t great, but hey – it can trade with plenty of 4 drops, and if you’re trading with this your’e probably going to come out ahead, because it comes with Amass 2. Whether this makes you a 2/2 creature or makes your Army a bigger, it is a good deal, since it is coming in addition to a trade.
Pack 3 Pick 11: Defiant Strike
Stealth Mission image 1.0 I don’t like most versions of this card we see. Sure, you get a free swing in, and sometimes that will win you the game. But a lot of the time it just doesn’t matter. And it is super risky because it opens you up to the dreaded 2-for-1 in many situations if you aren’t careful.
Battlefield Promotion image 1.0 Even though this set has a long of payoffs for +1/+1 counters, and a few for gaining life, I’m normally not interested in this. This is a relatively grindy format, and combat tricks like this just don’t work like you’d hope they would in other formats. You should mostly avoid this.
Defiant Strike image 1.0 Last time we saw this card, it was surprisingly good because it was in Khans of Tarkir, and the Prowess mechanic was all over the place, including on White cards. Not the case here though. +1/+0 is the kind of stat boost that will have very little impact on combat the majority of the time, and normally you want your combat tricks to make it more likely your creature wins combat against larger creatures-- and sure, this cycles itself, and that's what keeps it from being unplayable, but it still isn't very good.
Kraul Stinger image 1.5 This can trade with anything, but being a 3-mana 2/2 isn’t so good. One mana 1/1 death touchers are way better, because you can always trade up.
Pack 3 Pick 12: Stealth Mission
Topple the Statue image 1.5 So, when we see 3 mana to tap something and draw a card at instant speed isn’t all that great. It does replace itself, and have a somewhat flexible effect, so that does save it from being completely terrible.
Stealth Mission image 1.0 I don’t like most versions of this card we see. Sure, you get a free swing in, and sometimes that will win you the game. But a lot of the time it just doesn’t matter. And it is super risky because it opens you up to the dreaded 2-for-1 in many situations if you aren’t careful.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
Pack 3 Pick 13: Totally Lost
Spellkeeper Weird image 2.0 A 3-mana ¼ has some not entirely horrendous defensive stats, and this one comes with the ability to get back key spells – with removal spells being the most interesting. While I think this will probably be best in a UR spells deck, I think most Blue decks in this format will probably run enough instants and sorceries for the Weird to be a solid inclusion in the deck.
Totally Lost image 1.5 We've seen this card a lot, and it is always kind of ok. Putting something on top of your library is better than just bouncing something, because it means you are replacing your opponent's draw, meaning you are trading one card for one card -- which is not the guess with regular bounce spells. Still, at 5 mana this is a bit clunky, though it can enable some nice blowouts in response to combat tricks and will be nice against Amass tokens.
Pack 3 Pick 14: Makeshift Battalion
Makeshift Battalion image 2.5 You’ll play this in an aggressive deck, but for the most part that type of deck isn’t great in this format. It just won’t always be easy to send in two additional creatures into combat, and it won’t be worth risking trades so much either since the payoff is just a +1/+1 counter. I’m not saying this is bad, just not something you should be excited about.
Draft Pick Overview