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Premier Draft DAR 20 June 2021

20 June 09:02 - ActionSalad 7 Wins - 2 Losses
Maindeck
Creature (13)
1 Untamed Kavu image
1 Thallid Omnivore image
1 Yavimaya Sapherd image
1 Llanowar Elves image
2 Deathbloom Thallid image
2 Windgrace Acolyte image
1 Thallid Soothsayer image
1 Baloth Gorger image
1 Torgaar, Famine Incarnate image
1 Steel Leaf Champion image
1 Grunn, the Lonely King image
Instant, Sorcery, Enchantment, Artifact (10)
1 Pierce the Sky image
1 Spore Swarm image
1 Grow from the Ashes image
1 Vicious Offering image
1 Eviscerate image
1 Soul Salvage image
1 Saproling Migration image
1 Fungal Infection image
1 Wild Onslaught image
1 Ancient Animus image
Land (17)
7 Swamp image
9 Forest image
1 Memorial to Folly image
Sideboard
1 Firefist Adept image
1 Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive image
1 Llanowar Elves image
3 Deathbloom Thallid image
1 Stronghold Confessor image
1 Rat Colony image
1 Caligo Skin-Witch image
1 Llanowar Envoy image
1 Sentinel of the Pearl Trident image
1 Relic Runner image
1 In Bolas's Clutches image
1 Shivan Fire image
1 Soul Salvage image
2 Gift of Growth image
1 Blink of an Eye image

Pack 1 Pick 1: In Bolas's Clutches
Grand Warlord Radha image 4.0 Radha does typically give you some serious mana, and in a format with lots of Kicker and other mana sinks, you usually have something to use it on. This is all coupled with a pretty reasonable body.
In Bolas's Clutches image 4.5 This is an Uncommon bomb, which isn’t something you see every day! Mind control effects are among the strongest thing you can do in Limited, as you end up using a card to steal your opponents’ best creature, which basically amounts to a 2-for-1. It is also nice that this will give you two legendary permanents if your deck is interested in that. It does have the downside of being an Aura – so if your opponent bounces the target or destroys the Clutches, they get their creature back, but that’s reasonable downside on a very powerful card.
Merfolk Trickster image 3.0 This has a lot of utility for a two drop. A two mana 2/2 with Flash is already fairly passable, but the ETB ability here is quite good. You can use it to simply tap down an attacker you don’t want to attack you – or to tap down a blocker that you don’t want to be in your way. But, you can also use it to turn abilities of a creature off at instant speed, and this can sometimes really allow you to blow out your opponent. It won’t always come up, but when it does, it’ll feel pretty good.
Danitha Capashen, Paragon image 3.5 There are lots of reasonable Equipment and Auras in this set, but even if there weren’t, Danitha would be quite good. A 3-mana 2/2 with those keywords is just going to do a lot of work. But yeah, the fact that there are good Auras and Equipment that she discounts for you, AND the fact that she’s great with them, makes her even better.
Aven Sentry image 2.0 This has decent French Vanilla stats, and not much else.
Windgrace Acolyte image 2.0 The ETB trigger here is surprisingly solid. The life you gain and the cards you mill can be some really significant value on a reasonable evasive creature.
Invoke the Divine image 2.0 There are enough targets for this in this format that you end up main decking it sometimes.
Opt image 2.0 As usual, this is fine. Seeing two cards for one mana feels pretty good.
Grow from the Ashes image 3.5 Fixing and ramp are big in this format as a result of kicker and various mana sinks, and Grow from the Ashes is really good at giving you both of those things, especially when you kick it. It can even allow you to splash double colored cards, which is nice upside.
Healing Grace image 0.0 Strictly better Healing Salve is still not a playable card.
Ancient Animus image 2.5 Getting the counter with this won’t come up a ton, but being an instant speed fight effect is a fine baseline.
Deathbloom Thallid image 3.0 This has solid base stats that makes it easy for it to trade, and then it leaves behind a Saproling – that’s a pretty good deal for three mana.
Fervent Strike image 1.5 This is a one-mana trick that can help a creature win a decent number of combats. That’s what makes it a decent enough trick for aggressive decks.
Broken Bond image 1.5 There’s enough Artifacts and Enchantments in this set that you can play this in the main deck some, and sometimes it will even ramp you a bit.
Pack 1 Pick 2: Shivan Fire
Elfhame Druid image 3.5 This is some pretty nice ramp, especially for spells with Kicker. This format makes sure you usually have something to do with mana as a result of Kicker and lots of activated abilities too, so even in the late game, when a mana dork can be kind of rough to draw, it can be useful. Though it still really shines the most early.
Memorial to Folly image 3.5 I love utility lands, and this whole Memorial cycle is certainly that! It enters tapped, but most of the time the Memorial will just feel like a way better Swamp, since in the late game it can get you the best creature back out of your graveyard, that’s a very real effect on a land – something most don’t have!
Shield of the Realm image 1.5 This doesn’t give any real stats boost, but the effect it grants can often really tamper with combat. Of course, the problem is, you generally have to put it on a creature that is already good, because if your creature is just a 2/2 or something, adding this effect won’t make much of difference.
Adamant Will image 1.5 This is a decent trick, which will frequently allow your creature to win combat. The indestructibility also gives it an additional use as a way to save a creature from removal. This format is pretty grindy, so tricks aren’t as good as they are in some formats, but if you’re an aggressive deck and you need a trick, this is a solid one.
Demonic Vigor image 1.5 People always overrate this type of card, as it is easy to imagine putting it on a really good creature and making sure you get it back. However, more often than not, you won’t have an amazing creature to put it on, and you’ll often get back something that isn’t super relevant.
Knight of New Benalia image 1.5 Two mana 3/1s tend to be kind of alright, and this one has a useful creature type.
Krosan Druid image 2.5 Early in the game, the Druid gives you a reasonable body, and in the late game in can gain you a ton of life, enough that it can often allow you to stabilize, and that’s some really nice upside! You won’t always get the opportunity to kick it, of course.
Pierce the Sky image 0.5 This is mostly a sideboard card – it pretty much kills all the flyers in the set.
Shivan Fire image 3.5 This is premium removal. One mana to do 2 at instant speed already is, and adding the additional upside of being more potent with Kicker is just great.
Serra Disciple image 1.5 This has been a great card for 25+ years at this point, and it is still great in Limited. That stat-line and those keywords just aren’t something we see very often for only 5 mana.
Mesa Unicorn image 2.5 Two mana 2/2s with Lifelink are usually nice little cards in Limited, and that’s the case here.
Stronghold Confessor image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with Menace and a 4-mana 3/3 with Menace are both kind of okay, and having the flexibility to be either is quite nice.
Tolarian Scholar image 1.5 In most formats, this would be a 1.0, but the Wizard creature type matters enough here that this 3-mana 2/3 gets a little upgrade.
Pack 1 Pick 3: Firefist Adept
Warcry Phoenix image 2.0 This isn’t efficient, but it is nice that it can keep coming back when you attack with enough creatures, and that kind of persistence can be pretty great.
Syncopate image 2.0 This is a Counterspell that can sort of stay relevant all game since you can pay X, but there will still be times where you just can’t use it to effectively counter something because your opponent has too much mana. Like a lot of counterspells, it has some significant downside as a result of being so situational, but this one is good enough that you’ll play it a decent chunk of the time.
Llanowar Elves image 3.0 Magic’s classic mana dork is back, and it is once again pretty good. If you play it on turn one, the boost it gives you will often be game-winning. That is of course balanced by the fact that if you draw it light, it is a pretty big dud, but still – that early game upside makes it pretty good.
Keldon Overseer image 2.5 Another card with Kicker where neither the unkicked OR kicked version seems very efficient, but the upside offered by that flexibility is very real. Kicking this late and Threatening an opponents creature will add a lot of damage to the board in most cases, and will often really allow you to attack in a situation where it didn’t look like a good idea.
Befuddle image 1.5 This type of Blue “combat trick” almost always disappoints, just because you need things to line up in very specific ways for it to actually feel like a combat trick. Other times, it just feels like Fog. However, adding a cantrip effect to this makes it substantially better, as does the fact that the UR deck likes spells. It still isn’t good exactly, but it is better than most versions of this type of card.
Bloodstone Goblin image 2.0 A two-mana 2/2 isn’t a bad baseline, but this often isn’t much more than that. That’s because, by the part of the game where you can pay kicker costs, a 3/3 with Menace usually isn’t going to be the most…well…menacing creature around.
Demonic Vigor image 1.5 People always overrate this type of card, as it is easy to imagine putting it on a really good creature and making sure you get it back. However, more often than not, you won’t have an amazing creature to put it on, and you’ll often get back something that isn’t super relevant.
Rat Colony image 1.5 So, I wouldn’t advise jamming a bunch of these into your deck in most cases (though, if you have Tetsuko Umezawa, things might get interesting). Still, it is a kind of okay two drop, and they do get better in multiples.
Knight of New Benalia image 1.5 Two mana 3/1s tend to be kind of alright, and this one has a useful creature type.
Gaea's Protector image 0.5 This is such an odd card. The idea is that you have a 4/2 that will kill your opponents X/4, but the problem is that your opponent just has to assign one blocker, and they can just stick something in front of it that trades – or worse, put a couple of Saprolings in front of it.
Vicious Offering image 3.5 Even without Kicker, this has a pretty nice baseline as a two mana instant that gives -2/-2. That’s something you would play most of the time! The kicker upside is great though, as -5/-5 can take down even more stuff. It feels especially good to give up a Saproling with it.
Pack 1 Pick 4: Vicious Offering
Warcry Phoenix image 2.0 This isn’t efficient, but it is nice that it can keep coming back when you attack with enough creatures, and that kind of persistence can be pretty great.
Syncopate image 2.0 This is a Counterspell that can sort of stay relevant all game since you can pay X, but there will still be times where you just can’t use it to effectively counter something because your opponent has too much mana. Like a lot of counterspells, it has some significant downside as a result of being so situational, but this one is good enough that you’ll play it a decent chunk of the time.
Llanowar Elves image 3.0 Magic’s classic mana dork is back, and it is once again pretty good. If you play it on turn one, the boost it gives you will often be game-winning. That is of course balanced by the fact that if you draw it light, it is a pretty big dud, but still – that early game upside makes it pretty good.
Keldon Overseer image 2.5 Another card with Kicker where neither the unkicked OR kicked version seems very efficient, but the upside offered by that flexibility is very real. Kicking this late and Threatening an opponents creature will add a lot of damage to the board in most cases, and will often really allow you to attack in a situation where it didn’t look like a good idea.
Befuddle image 1.5 This type of Blue “combat trick” almost always disappoints, just because you need things to line up in very specific ways for it to actually feel like a combat trick. Other times, it just feels like Fog. However, adding a cantrip effect to this makes it substantially better, as does the fact that the UR deck likes spells. It still isn’t good exactly, but it is better than most versions of this type of card.
Bloodstone Goblin image 2.0 A two-mana 2/2 isn’t a bad baseline, but this often isn’t much more than that. That’s because, by the part of the game where you can pay kicker costs, a 3/3 with Menace usually isn’t going to be the most…well…menacing creature around.
Demonic Vigor image 1.5 People always overrate this type of card, as it is easy to imagine putting it on a really good creature and making sure you get it back. However, more often than not, you won’t have an amazing creature to put it on, and you’ll often get back something that isn’t super relevant.
Rat Colony image 1.5 So, I wouldn’t advise jamming a bunch of these into your deck in most cases (though, if you have Tetsuko Umezawa, things might get interesting). Still, it is a kind of okay two drop, and they do get better in multiples.
Knight of New Benalia image 1.5 Two mana 3/1s tend to be kind of alright, and this one has a useful creature type.
Gaea's Protector image 0.5 This is such an odd card. The idea is that you have a 4/2 that will kill your opponents X/4, but the problem is that your opponent just has to assign one blocker, and they can just stick something in front of it that trades – or worse, put a couple of Saprolings in front of it.
Vicious Offering image 3.5 Even without Kicker, this has a pretty nice baseline as a two mana instant that gives -2/-2. That’s something you would play most of the time! The kicker upside is great though, as -5/-5 can take down even more stuff. It feels especially good to give up a Saproling with it.
Pack 1 Pick 5: Eviscerate
Excavation Elephant image 2.0 Like most cards with Kicker in this set, Excavation Elephant is a decent creature when you cast it regularly, and then in the later part of the game you can kick it for some extra value. There are enough Artifacts in this set that casting this with Kicker and getting something back is very doable.
Llanowar Envoy image 1.5 This offers a mediocre body and mediocre fixing. You’ll play it sometimes if you need both of those things.
Llanowar Elves image 3.0 Magic’s classic mana dork is back, and it is once again pretty good. If you play it on turn one, the boost it gives you will often be game-winning. That is of course balanced by the fact that if you draw it light, it is a pretty big dud, but still – that early game upside makes it pretty good.
Frenzied Rage image 2.0 +2/+1 and Menace for two mana is very aggressive, and can make many creatures into a threat. Now, it does have the same downside of all Auras – namely, the huge risk of getting 2-for-1’d, but it is worth doing in some of the more aggressive decks.
Blessing of Belzenlok image 1.0 This is a mediocre trick, even if you use it on a legendary creature.
Eviscerate image 3.5 This is premium removal. 4 to kill something at Sorcery speed isn’t incredible, but this format is slow enough that it does the job without feeling too clunky.
Broken Bond image 1.5 There’s enough Artifacts and Enchantments in this set that you can play this in the main deck some, and sometimes it will even ramp you a bit.
Deep Freeze image 2.5 This is typical of most Blue removal. It does the job of turning off a creature, but the downside is that creature can still block. This means this type of effect isn’t great if you’re really aggressive, but still – at least the creature can only block once! This isn’t premium, but it is solid removal.
Blessed Light image 3.0 This is kind of expensive, but the price is going to be worth it most of the time. Exiling creatures and Enchantments is nice. Sometimes exiling is especially nice, as recursion is a thing. This is also an Instant, which means you can sometimes manufacture a 2-for-1 with it. It isn’t premium removal, but it is certainly solid, and the first copy will usually make the cut.
Serra Disciple image 1.5 This has been a great card for 25+ years at this point, and it is still great in Limited. That stat-line and those keywords just aren’t something we see very often for only 5 mana.
Pack 1 Pick 6: Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive
Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive image 2.5 So, on his own, Tetsuko is a two mana 1/3 that is unblockable. You would already play that sometimes! He comes with the additional upside of also making a few other creatures in your deck unblockable too, and that’s pretty nice.
Aesthir Glider image 1.5 In a lot of formats this would be close to unplayable, but in this one – which features lots of Artifact/Historic payoffs, you end up playing the glider sometimes. A 3-mana 2/1 with Flying isn’t bad, but the fact it can’t block is a little miserable.
Fire Elemental image 1.0 The stats here aren’t great, and there’s not any payoff in this set for Elementals, so you won’t play this most of the time.
Frenzied Rage image 2.0 +2/+1 and Menace for two mana is very aggressive, and can make many creatures into a threat. Now, it does have the same downside of all Auras – namely, the huge risk of getting 2-for-1’d, but it is worth doing in some of the more aggressive decks.
Soul Salvage image 2.0 As usual, most Black decks tend to end up wanting one of these most of the time, but usually not more than one. They are bad to get in the early game, when they are effectively blank cards, but in the late game it is a good way to help you pull ahead of your opponent.
Guardians of Koilos image 1.5 The idea here is that you can bounce a Saga or other Historic thing to your hand that will give you value when you play it again, but a lot of the time this is just a 5-mana 4/4, and that’s not really something you want.
Voltaic Servant image 1.5 There are a few pretty sweet combos you can pull off with Voltaic Servant in this format, with Traxos being the sweetest one around, but it is also just a two mana 1/3 that will be giving an artifact creature pseudo-Vigilance, and that’s not the worst thing ever.
Krosan Druid image 2.5 Early in the game, the Druid gives you a reasonable body, and in the late game in can gain you a ton of life, enough that it can often allow you to stabilize, and that’s some really nice upside! You won’t always get the opportunity to kick it, of course.
Charge image 1.5 Pumping your whole board with this isn’t the best thing to be doing in a format that can be as grindy as this one, but it does do the job reasonably efficiently, and if you’re going wide enough you might end up playing it.
Pack 1 Pick 7: Llanowar Elves
Grunn, the Lonely King image 3.0 Grunn is a 6-mana 5/5, and that’s not very good, but the fact that he becomes a 10/10 when he attacks is pretty nice, that’s not something to easily contend with. If you can kick him, he gets even bigger. This format does have some efficient removal that can make Grunn feel bad sometimes, but he does represent a very real threat.
Rampaging Cyclops image 2.5 This is a 4-mana 4/4 with downside, which seems kind of rough, but it kind of turns out that his statline is good enough for that to be worth it. 4/4 is just very large in Limited, and while the double block clause is rough, most of the time you’ll still be trading at least with your opponent, so it isn’t the biggest disaster.
Befuddle image 1.5 This type of Blue “combat trick” almost always disappoints, just because you need things to line up in very specific ways for it to actually feel like a combat trick. Other times, it just feels like Fog. However, adding a cantrip effect to this makes it substantially better, as does the fact that the UR deck likes spells. It still isn’t good exactly, but it is better than most versions of this type of card.
Bloodtallow Candle image 2.0 This is not an efficient way to removal creatures, but this format has several payoffs for playing Artifacts/historic cards, and having a cheap one around isn’t bad, especially because some of those payoffs let you get Artifacts back from your graveyard, and recurring a removal spell – even an inefficient one, tends to feel pretty good.
Llanowar Elves image 3.0 Magic’s classic mana dork is back, and it is once again pretty good. If you play it on turn one, the boost it gives you will often be game-winning. That is of course balanced by the fact that if you draw it light, it is a pretty big dud, but still – that early game upside makes it pretty good.
Cabal Evangel image 1.0 A two mana 2/2 with no other text tends to not be worth playing unless you’re desperate for a two drop.
Seismic Shift image 0.5 This isn’t very good. Sometimes Red decks will end up playing a card that makes an opponent’s stuff unable to block, but only targeting two creatures with this is a big bummer for 4 mana. And yeah, I know it blows up a land too, but that effect is pretty much never good in Limited.
Feral Abomination image 1.5 This is a kind of okay finisher if you’re desperate for one.
Pack 1 Pick 8: Blink of an Eye
Memorial to Folly image 3.5 I love utility lands, and this whole Memorial cycle is certainly that! It enters tapped, but most of the time the Memorial will just feel like a way better Swamp, since in the late game it can get you the best creature back out of your graveyard, that’s a very real effect on a land – something most don’t have!
Rampaging Cyclops image 2.5 This is a 4-mana 4/4 with downside, which seems kind of rough, but it kind of turns out that his statline is good enough for that to be worth it. 4/4 is just very large in Limited, and while the double block clause is rough, most of the time you’ll still be trading at least with your opponent, so it isn’t the biggest disaster.
Pierce the Sky image 0.5 This is mostly a sideboard card – it pretty much kills all the flyers in the set.
Befuddle image 1.5 This type of Blue “combat trick” almost always disappoints, just because you need things to line up in very specific ways for it to actually feel like a combat trick. Other times, it just feels like Fog. However, adding a cantrip effect to this makes it substantially better, as does the fact that the UR deck likes spells. It still isn’t good exactly, but it is better than most versions of this type of card.
Llanowar Envoy image 1.5 This offers a mediocre body and mediocre fixing. You’ll play it sometimes if you need both of those things.
Rat Colony image 1.5 So, I wouldn’t advise jamming a bunch of these into your deck in most cases (though, if you have Tetsuko Umezawa, things might get interesting). Still, it is a kind of okay two drop, and they do get better in multiples.
Blink of an Eye image 3.5 Even without Kicker, this would be a playable card. Adding kicker to the mix is great, because it keeps you from going down a card for tempo. Instead, you get to bounce their thing and draw a card, which tends to feel pretty good for 4 mana.
Pack 1 Pick 9: Deathbloom Thallid
Windgrace Acolyte image 2.0 The ETB trigger here is surprisingly solid. The life you gain and the cards you mill can be some really significant value on a reasonable evasive creature.
Grow from the Ashes image 3.5 Fixing and ramp are big in this format as a result of kicker and various mana sinks, and Grow from the Ashes is really good at giving you both of those things, especially when you kick it. It can even allow you to splash double colored cards, which is nice upside.
Healing Grace image 0.0 Strictly better Healing Salve is still not a playable card.
Deathbloom Thallid image 3.0 This has solid base stats that makes it easy for it to trade, and then it leaves behind a Saproling – that’s a pretty good deal for three mana.
Fervent Strike image 1.5 This is a one-mana trick that can help a creature win a decent number of combats. That’s what makes it a decent enough trick for aggressive decks.
Broken Bond image 1.5 There’s enough Artifacts and Enchantments in this set that you can play this in the main deck some, and sometimes it will even ramp you a bit.
Pack 1 Pick 10: Stronghold Confessor
Demonic Vigor image 1.5 People always overrate this type of card, as it is easy to imagine putting it on a really good creature and making sure you get it back. However, more often than not, you won’t have an amazing creature to put it on, and you’ll often get back something that isn’t super relevant.
Krosan Druid image 2.5 Early in the game, the Druid gives you a reasonable body, and in the late game in can gain you a ton of life, enough that it can often allow you to stabilize, and that’s some really nice upside! You won’t always get the opportunity to kick it, of course.
Pierce the Sky image 0.5 This is mostly a sideboard card – it pretty much kills all the flyers in the set.
Stronghold Confessor image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with Menace and a 4-mana 3/3 with Menace are both kind of okay, and having the flexibility to be either is quite nice.
Tolarian Scholar image 1.5 In most formats, this would be a 1.0, but the Wizard creature type matters enough here that this 3-mana 2/3 gets a little upgrade.
Pack 1 Pick 11: Windgrace Acolyte
Demonic Vigor image 1.5 People always overrate this type of card, as it is easy to imagine putting it on a really good creature and making sure you get it back. However, more often than not, you won’t have an amazing creature to put it on, and you’ll often get back something that isn’t super relevant.
Rat Colony image 1.5 So, I wouldn’t advise jamming a bunch of these into your deck in most cases (though, if you have Tetsuko Umezawa, things might get interesting). Still, it is a kind of okay two drop, and they do get better in multiples.
Gaea's Protector image 0.5 This is such an odd card. The idea is that you have a 4/2 that will kill your opponents X/4, but the problem is that your opponent just has to assign one blocker, and they can just stick something in front of it that trades – or worse, put a couple of Saprolings in front of it.
Pack 1 Pick 12: Rat Colony
Llanowar Envoy image 1.5 This offers a mediocre body and mediocre fixing. You’ll play it sometimes if you need both of those things.
Broken Bond image 1.5 There’s enough Artifacts and Enchantments in this set that you can play this in the main deck some, and sometimes it will even ramp you a bit.
Pack 1 Pick 13: Llanowar Envoy
Llanowar Envoy image 1.5 This offers a mediocre body and mediocre fixing. You’ll play it sometimes if you need both of those things.
Broken Bond image 1.5 There’s enough Artifacts and Enchantments in this set that you can play this in the main deck some, and sometimes it will even ramp you a bit.
Pack 1 Pick 14: Soul Salvage
Soul Salvage image 2.0 As usual, most Black decks tend to end up wanting one of these most of the time, but usually not more than one. They are bad to get in the early game, when they are effectively blank cards, but in the late game it is a good way to help you pull ahead of your opponent.
Pack 2 Pick 1: Thallid Soothsayer
Teshar, Ancestor's Apostle image 3.0 This starts with some mediocre stats. However, you’ll find yourself getting one card back with this reasonably often, and that’s a nice effect to have.
Wild Onslaught image 1.5 This isn’t especially good without kicker, but sometimes that boost will mean the difference between winning combat and losing it, and can sometimes result in lethal! Kicking it is where a ton of damage can really come out of nowhere in a hurry, though it is pretty darn expensive to do it.
Thallid Soothsayer image 2.5 Cashing in creatures for cards is nice on a late of board states, especially if you have a bunch of Saprolings.
Gaea's Blessing image 0.5 This is mostly a cantrip in Limited, and not really an efficient one.
Rescue image 0.5 This can do some things – like help you reset a Saga – but it is mostly too narrow to ever really want to play.
Ghitu Journeymage image 2.5 In a Red deck, especially a UR deck, this will be a 3-mana 3/2 that does 2 damage to the opponent a decent chunk of the time, and that’s a decent enough card.
Grow from the Ashes image 3.5 Fixing and ramp are big in this format as a result of kicker and various mana sinks, and Grow from the Ashes is really good at giving you both of those things, especially when you kick it. It can even allow you to splash double colored cards, which is nice upside.
Guardians of Koilos image 1.5 The idea here is that you can bounce a Saga or other Historic thing to your hand that will give you value when you play it again, but a lot of the time this is just a 5-mana 4/4, and that’s not really something you want.
Dub image 2.0 This is a pretty solid Aura, mostly because the stats boost it gives will often make a creature into something your opponent has to kill, and if they can’t, you probably win. Still, it is quite swingy – if your opponent can kill your guy, that means you just got 2-for-1’d, and that’s not always easy to recover from.
Llanowar Elves image 3.0 Magic’s classic mana dork is back, and it is once again pretty good. If you play it on turn one, the boost it gives you will often be game-winning. That is of course balanced by the fact that if you draw it light, it is a pretty big dud, but still – that early game upside makes it pretty good.
Keldon Warcaller image 1.5 This just doesn’t line up very often to really make your Sagas better. It is mostly just a bear.
Sparring Construct image 1.5 This is passable, mostly just because it is an Artifact.
Rat Colony image 1.5 So, I wouldn’t advise jamming a bunch of these into your deck in most cases (though, if you have Tetsuko Umezawa, things might get interesting). Still, it is a kind of okay two drop, and they do get better in multiples.
Adamant Will image 1.5 This is a decent trick, which will frequently allow your creature to win combat. The indestructibility also gives it an additional use as a way to save a creature from removal. This format is pretty grindy, so tricks aren’t as good as they are in some formats, but if you’re an aggressive deck and you need a trick, this is a solid one.
Pack 2 Pick 2: Baloth Gorger
Lingering Phantom image 2.5 This has bad stats to be sure – as 6-mana 5/4 isn’t where you want to be, but the fact that you can just get it back all game long for a single B is nice. Sure, you have to have Historic spells to be triggering that consistently, but even just having a few of them around is doable. Now, this does cost 6, and sometimes you just won’t be able to keep casting it, but if that’s true, it is because you have other stuff to do. Lingering Phantom is something you can get back and then cast when you whiff on your draw step.
Memorial to Unity image 3.0 This is a land that will draw you the best creature in the top 5 of your library late, and that’s some nice utility!
Wizard's Lightning image 4.0 I would always play this if it was 3-mana for 3 damage to any target, but the fact it turns into straight up Lightning Bolt if you have a Wizard makes it incredible!
Baloth Gorger image 3.5 This is a very good common, as playing it as a 4-mana 4/4 feels pretty good, and then in the late game it has the added utility of being an 8-mana 7/7, which, while not efficient – is not upside to have on an already efficient creature.
Academy Journeymage image 3.5 Man-O’-War effects are always good in Limited – adding to your own board and subtracting from your opponent’s at the same time is always good. Even if you can’t reduce the cost of this, it plays pretty well, and if you can lower the cost to 4 it is going to feel great.
Bloodstone Goblin image 2.0 A two-mana 2/2 isn’t a bad baseline, but this often isn’t much more than that. That’s because, by the part of the game where you can pay kicker costs, a 3/3 with Menace usually isn’t going to be the most…well…menacing creature around.
Dub image 2.0 This is a pretty solid Aura, mostly because the stats boost it gives will often make a creature into something your opponent has to kill, and if they can’t, you probably win. Still, it is quite swingy – if your opponent can kill your guy, that means you just got 2-for-1’d, and that’s not always easy to recover from.
Keldon Warcaller image 1.5 This just doesn’t line up very often to really make your Sagas better. It is mostly just a bear.
Demonic Vigor image 1.5 People always overrate this type of card, as it is easy to imagine putting it on a really good creature and making sure you get it back. However, more often than not, you won’t have an amazing creature to put it on, and you’ll often get back something that isn’t super relevant.
Vodalian Arcanist image 2.0 This has decent stats and allows you to make some extra mana for Instants and Sorceries, something that is a pretty nice effect to have, albeit not one that will come up all the time.
Adamant Will image 1.5 This is a decent trick, which will frequently allow your creature to win combat. The indestructibility also gives it an additional use as a way to save a creature from removal. This format is pretty grindy, so tricks aren’t as good as they are in some formats, but if you’re an aggressive deck and you need a trick, this is a solid one.
Healing Grace image 0.0 Strictly better Healing Salve is still not a playable card.
Relic Runner image 2.5 This is unblockable often enough that it is a pretty nice little two-drop.
Pack 2 Pick 3: Deathbloom Thallid
Sentinel of the Pearl Trident image 1.5 This is just too expensive for what it is. Its ETB trigger won’t do anything far more often than it will. And sure, resetting a Saga or triggering an ETB ability again seems cool, but it won’t happen as often as you’d think.
Sage of Lat-Nam image 2.0 The effect here is pretty strong, as cashing in artifacts for cards can be a good deal, but it isn’t always easy to set up.
Shanna, Sisay's Legacy image 3.0 Shanna is often just a large vanilla creature which gets a little bit of upside against creature abilities, but you know, two mana for a creature that can potentially get larger is quite good. Of course, the flipside is that she can also shrink at an inopportune time.
Jousting Lance image 2.5 This is another piece of Equipment that might be a little bit clunky in most formats, but in this one, Jousting Lance tends to be pretty good. +2/+0 and first strike is enough to make many creatures very difficult to block, so most creature-based decks are pretty interested in this.
Warlord's Fury image 1.5 There is a bit of a spell theme in this set, but not really enough of one that Warlord’s Fury feels amazing here. It does replace itself, so it isn’t terrible.
Homarid Explorer image 1.0 There isn’t enough of a payoff for milling yourself or your opponent for this to be very good.
Deathbloom Thallid image 3.0 This has solid base stats that makes it easy for it to trade, and then it leaves behind a Saproling – that’s a pretty good deal for three mana.
Blessed Light image 3.0 This is kind of expensive, but the price is going to be worth it most of the time. Exiling creatures and Enchantments is nice. Sometimes exiling is especially nice, as recursion is a thing. This is also an Instant, which means you can sometimes manufacture a 2-for-1 with it. It isn’t premium removal, but it is certainly solid, and the first copy will usually make the cut.
Call the Cavalry image 2.5 This makes creatures reasonably efficiently, and they even have a useful creature type. It isn’t exciting, but it does a decent job of making your board presence bigger.
Skirk Prospector image 0.5 There aren’t enough Goblins in this set for this to be worth it. It can sacrifice itself to its own ability to help you ramp, but giving up a card for such minor ramp just isn’t worth doing in Limited.
Academy Journeymage image 3.5 Man-O’-War effects are always good in Limited – adding to your own board and subtracting from your opponent’s at the same time is always good. Even if you can’t reduce the cost of this, it plays pretty well, and if you can lower the cost to 4 it is going to feel great.
Pierce the Sky image 0.5 This is mostly a sideboard card – it pretty much kills all the flyers in the set.
Pack 2 Pick 4: Deathbloom Thallid
Torgaar, Famine Incarnate image 4.0 So, it is pretty easy to make Torgaar a 6 mana 7/6 with a pretty nice ETB ability. Just having a single creature to sacrifice is not far-fetched, especially in BG, where it is likely you have a few Saprolings lying around. The ETB ability here is an interesting one, because it can be used two different ways. If your opponent has more than 10 life, you can target them and lower them to 10 life. And, if you have less than 10 life, you can target yourself, and go up to 10 life. Sometimes the ETB will make very little difference, but because it can be used in two different ways, it will often do a little something, which is nice on a 6-mana 7/6 – and it will be cheaper than that a decent chunk of the time!
Skizzik image 2.5 This is a nice aggressive creature that can do a bunch of damage out of nowhere. A 4-mana 5/3 with Trample and Haste that has to die at the end step isn’t amazing, but it is something you would play in some aggressive decks. Adding Kicker means that you pay one more mana for it to stick around longer. Now, with only three toughness that doesn’t always mean it will actually get to stick around, as your opponent can likely block and kill it, but Trample makes sure you still get some damage.
Zhalfirin Void image 0.5 This basically isn’t worth it unless you end up mono-colored or almost mono-colored. It tends to do some very serious damage to your mana base, and that definitely is not worth the upside of having a scry land.
Skirk Prospector image 0.5 There aren’t enough Goblins in this set for this to be worth it. It can sacrifice itself to its own ability to help you ramp, but giving up a card for such minor ramp just isn’t worth doing in Limited.
Homarid Explorer image 1.0 There isn’t enough of a payoff for milling yourself or your opponent for this to be very good.
Serra Disciple image 1.5 This has been a great card for 25+ years at this point, and it is still great in Limited. That stat-line and those keywords just aren’t something we see very often for only 5 mana.
Windgrace Acolyte image 2.0 The ETB trigger here is surprisingly solid. The life you gain and the cards you mill can be some really significant value on a reasonable evasive creature.
Bloodstone Goblin image 2.0 A two-mana 2/2 isn’t a bad baseline, but this often isn’t much more than that. That’s because, by the part of the game where you can pay kicker costs, a 3/3 with Menace usually isn’t going to be the most…well…menacing creature around.
Opt image 2.0 As usual, this is fine. Seeing two cards for one mana feels pretty good.
Arbor Armament image 1.0 This is a mediocre trick, but it does give the counter permanently. Still, tricks that are defensive always seem super awkward. You can of course use it offensively, but Reach doesn’t matter in that situation, and +1/+1 just isn’t always going to be enough to win combat.
Pack 2 Pick 5: Torgaar, Famine Incarnate
Orcish Vandal image 1.5 If you have Artifacts, being able to hurl them at your opponent’s dome and creatures feels pretty good, but this format doesn’t have so many that doing that is really easy.
Adeliz, the Cinder Wind image 4.0 If you end up with enough Wizards and spells (which won’t be very hard in a UR deck), this will be one of your best cards, as it will just make combat a nightmare for your opponent. Pumping your whole board is no joke, and even if Adeliz is alone, she effectively has Prowess for herself, and that’s pretty nice on a creature with Haste and Flying.
Fervent Strike image 1.5 This is a one-mana trick that can help a creature win a decent number of combats. That’s what makes it a decent enough trick for aggressive decks.
Keldon Raider image 2.5 A 4-mana 4/3 that lets you rummage is perfectly fine, but not much more than that.
Benalish Honor Guard image 1.5 This is alright, but even with the large number of legendaries in this set, this will be a two mana 2/2 most of the time, and usually not much bigger than 3/2. It is also a knight, which matters.
Stronghold Confessor image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with Menace and a 4-mana 3/3 with Menace are both kind of okay, and having the flexibility to be either is quite nice.
Gift of Growth image 2.0 This trick will often allow your creature to win combat early, and sometimes the kicker side of things can get you lethal out of nowhere, in addition to also being the sort of boost that will allow almost any creature to take down any other creature. It is still a trick of course, and comes with the significant downside those have.
Saproling Migration image 3.5 Both modes on this are quite good, and can allow you to go wide in a hurry. In BG there are some significant Saproling/go wide payoffs too, which make it even nicer.
Excavation Elephant image 2.0 Like most cards with Kicker in this set, Excavation Elephant is a decent creature when you cast it regularly, and then in the later part of the game you can kick it for some extra value. There are enough Artifacts in this set that casting this with Kicker and getting something back is very doable.
Pack 2 Pick 6: Saproling Migration
Orcish Vandal image 1.5 If you have Artifacts, being able to hurl them at your opponent’s dome and creatures feels pretty good, but this format doesn’t have so many that doing that is really easy.
Adeliz, the Cinder Wind image 4.0 If you end up with enough Wizards and spells (which won’t be very hard in a UR deck), this will be one of your best cards, as it will just make combat a nightmare for your opponent. Pumping your whole board is no joke, and even if Adeliz is alone, she effectively has Prowess for herself, and that’s pretty nice on a creature with Haste and Flying.
Fervent Strike image 1.5 This is a one-mana trick that can help a creature win a decent number of combats. That’s what makes it a decent enough trick for aggressive decks.
Keldon Raider image 2.5 A 4-mana 4/3 that lets you rummage is perfectly fine, but not much more than that.
Benalish Honor Guard image 1.5 This is alright, but even with the large number of legendaries in this set, this will be a two mana 2/2 most of the time, and usually not much bigger than 3/2. It is also a knight, which matters.
Stronghold Confessor image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with Menace and a 4-mana 3/3 with Menace are both kind of okay, and having the flexibility to be either is quite nice.
Gift of Growth image 2.0 This trick will often allow your creature to win combat early, and sometimes the kicker side of things can get you lethal out of nowhere, in addition to also being the sort of boost that will allow almost any creature to take down any other creature. It is still a trick of course, and comes with the significant downside those have.
Saproling Migration image 3.5 Both modes on this are quite good, and can allow you to go wide in a hurry. In BG there are some significant Saproling/go wide payoffs too, which make it even nicer.
Excavation Elephant image 2.0 Like most cards with Kicker in this set, Excavation Elephant is a decent creature when you cast it regularly, and then in the later part of the game you can kick it for some extra value. There are enough Artifacts in this set that casting this with Kicker and getting something back is very doable.
Pack 2 Pick 7: Fungal Infection
Jodah, Archmage Eternal image 3.0 Jodah is mostly just a fairly hard to cast 4-mana 4/3 with Flying, which isn’t bad, but the other part of the card just won’t come up in Limited because your mana won’t be good enough.
Final Parting image 0.5 5 mana for a tutor effect just isn’t worth it 99% of the time. And yeah, you do get to tutor up two things, but this is still woefully inefficient, and spending a turn casting this and not adding to the board is rough.
Fungal Infection image 2.5 This ends up lining up surprisingly well. Sometimes you can use this to just kill an X/2, other times you can use it to kill two X/1s, and still other times you can use it help a creature win combat while also getting a Saproling. Sure, sometimes a Saproling and -1/-1 won’t do a ton, but even in those fail cases you can at least get a blocker.
Drudge Sentinel image 1.0 A 3-mana 2/1 that can become indestructible for three mana isn’t very good. Both parts of that are pretty inefficient. The Sentinel isn’t an especially good attacker or blocker, so you mostly just won’t play it.
Bloodtallow Candle image 2.0 This is not an efficient way to removal creatures, but this format has several payoffs for playing Artifacts/historic cards, and having a cheap one around isn’t bad, especially because some of those payoffs let you get Artifacts back from your graveyard, and recurring a removal spell – even an inefficient one, tends to feel pretty good.
Homarid Explorer image 1.0 There isn’t enough of a payoff for milling yourself or your opponent for this to be very good.
Befuddle image 1.5 This type of Blue “combat trick” almost always disappoints, just because you need things to line up in very specific ways for it to actually feel like a combat trick. Other times, it just feels like Fog. However, adding a cantrip effect to this makes it substantially better, as does the fact that the UR deck likes spells. It still isn’t good exactly, but it is better than most versions of this type of card.
Soul Salvage image 2.0 As usual, most Black decks tend to end up wanting one of these most of the time, but usually not more than one. They are bad to get in the early game, when they are effectively blank cards, but in the late game it is a good way to help you pull ahead of your opponent.
Pack 2 Pick 8: Deathbloom Thallid
Fire Elemental image 1.0 The stats here aren’t great, and there’s not any payoff in this set for Elementals, so you won’t play this most of the time.
Excavation Elephant image 2.0 Like most cards with Kicker in this set, Excavation Elephant is a decent creature when you cast it regularly, and then in the later part of the game you can kick it for some extra value. There are enough Artifacts in this set that casting this with Kicker and getting something back is very doable.
Aven Sentry image 2.0 This has decent French Vanilla stats, and not much else.
Soul Salvage image 2.0 As usual, most Black decks tend to end up wanting one of these most of the time, but usually not more than one. They are bad to get in the early game, when they are effectively blank cards, but in the late game it is a good way to help you pull ahead of your opponent.
Rat Colony image 1.5 So, I wouldn’t advise jamming a bunch of these into your deck in most cases (though, if you have Tetsuko Umezawa, things might get interesting). Still, it is a kind of okay two drop, and they do get better in multiples.
Deathbloom Thallid image 3.0 This has solid base stats that makes it easy for it to trade, and then it leaves behind a Saproling – that’s a pretty good deal for three mana.
Llanowar Scout image 1.5 People often really overrate this type of effect. It is easy to imagine simply always ramping with it, but the problem is that you have to have lands to put into play in the first place. That might sound like a foregone conclusion, but it really isn’t – what makes other ramp cards great is that they get you the land from your library, which effectively draws you a card – in this case, you have to have the land to ramp, and that’s a big difference.
Pack 2 Pick 9: Wild Onslaught
Wild Onslaught image 1.5 This isn’t especially good without kicker, but sometimes that boost will mean the difference between winning combat and losing it, and can sometimes result in lethal! Kicking it is where a ton of damage can really come out of nowhere in a hurry, though it is pretty darn expensive to do it.
Gaea's Blessing image 0.5 This is mostly a cantrip in Limited, and not really an efficient one.
Ghitu Journeymage image 2.5 In a Red deck, especially a UR deck, this will be a 3-mana 3/2 that does 2 damage to the opponent a decent chunk of the time, and that’s a decent enough card.
Grow from the Ashes image 3.5 Fixing and ramp are big in this format as a result of kicker and various mana sinks, and Grow from the Ashes is really good at giving you both of those things, especially when you kick it. It can even allow you to splash double colored cards, which is nice upside.
Keldon Warcaller image 1.5 This just doesn’t line up very often to really make your Sagas better. It is mostly just a bear.
Rat Colony image 1.5 So, I wouldn’t advise jamming a bunch of these into your deck in most cases (though, if you have Tetsuko Umezawa, things might get interesting). Still, it is a kind of okay two drop, and they do get better in multiples.
Pack 2 Pick 10: Relic Runner
Sentinel of the Pearl Trident image 1.5 This is just too expensive for what it is. Its ETB trigger won’t do anything far more often than it will. And sure, resetting a Saga or triggering an ETB ability again seems cool, but it won’t happen as often as you’d think.
Warlord's Fury image 1.5 There is a bit of a spell theme in this set, but not really enough of one that Warlord’s Fury feels amazing here. It does replace itself, so it isn’t terrible.
Homarid Explorer image 1.0 There isn’t enough of a payoff for milling yourself or your opponent for this to be very good.
Skirk Prospector image 0.5 There aren’t enough Goblins in this set for this to be worth it. It can sacrifice itself to its own ability to help you ramp, but giving up a card for such minor ramp just isn’t worth doing in Limited.
Pack 2 Pick 11: Sentinel of the Pearl Trident
Sentinel of the Pearl Trident image 1.5 This is just too expensive for what it is. Its ETB trigger won’t do anything far more often than it will. And sure, resetting a Saga or triggering an ETB ability again seems cool, but it won’t happen as often as you’d think.
Warlord's Fury image 1.5 There is a bit of a spell theme in this set, but not really enough of one that Warlord’s Fury feels amazing here. It does replace itself, so it isn’t terrible.
Homarid Explorer image 1.0 There isn’t enough of a payoff for milling yourself or your opponent for this to be very good.
Skirk Prospector image 0.5 There aren’t enough Goblins in this set for this to be worth it. It can sacrifice itself to its own ability to help you ramp, but giving up a card for such minor ramp just isn’t worth doing in Limited.
Pack 2 Pick 12: Pierce the Sky
Skirk Prospector image 0.5 There aren’t enough Goblins in this set for this to be worth it. It can sacrifice itself to its own ability to help you ramp, but giving up a card for such minor ramp just isn’t worth doing in Limited.
Windgrace Acolyte image 2.0 The ETB trigger here is surprisingly solid. The life you gain and the cards you mill can be some really significant value on a reasonable evasive creature.
Pack 2 Pick 13: Windgrace Acolyte
Skirk Prospector image 0.5 There aren’t enough Goblins in this set for this to be worth it. It can sacrifice itself to its own ability to help you ramp, but giving up a card for such minor ramp just isn’t worth doing in Limited.
Windgrace Acolyte image 2.0 The ETB trigger here is surprisingly solid. The life you gain and the cards you mill can be some really significant value on a reasonable evasive creature.
Pack 2 Pick 14: Gift of Growth
Gift of Growth image 2.0 This trick will often allow your creature to win combat early, and sometimes the kicker side of things can get you lethal out of nowhere, in addition to also being the sort of boost that will allow almost any creature to take down any other creature. It is still a trick of course, and comes with the significant downside those have.
Pack 3 Pick 1: Steel Leaf Champion
Steel Leaf Champion image 0.0 // 3.5 Like all of this cycle, the Champion is going to be hard to cast on turn three in most Limited decks. However, if you’re mono-green or close to it, it does end up being a pretty powerful card. Nice thing is, even if you play it late, it isn’t terrible, as those stats and the evasive ability still play pretty well.
Spore Swarm image 3.0 Three saprolings at Instant speed for 4 isn’t too shabby, especially in a set that can pay you off significantly for them.
Sorcerer's Wand image 1.0 Even with a lot of Wizards in this set, it is pretty hard to set this up, and even when you do, it isn’t really going to be great in most situations.
Grunn, the Lonely King image 3.0 Grunn is a 6-mana 5/5, and that’s not very good, but the fact that he becomes a 10/10 when he attacks is pretty nice, that’s not something to easily contend with. If you can kick him, he gets even bigger. This format does have some efficient removal that can make Grunn feel bad sometimes, but he does represent a very real threat.
Vodalian Arcanist image 2.0 This has decent stats and allows you to make some extra mana for Instants and Sorceries, something that is a pretty nice effect to have, albeit not one that will come up all the time.
Primordial Wurm image 1.5 You’re kind of hoping you get something better than this for the top of your curve, especially in a set with a ton of Kicker, which allows multiple cards to be curve toppers and early plays, but if you really need a big boi at the end of the game, the Wurm is passable.
Stronghold Confessor image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with Menace and a 4-mana 3/3 with Menace are both kind of okay, and having the flexibility to be either is quite nice.
Skirk Prospector image 0.5 There aren’t enough Goblins in this set for this to be worth it. It can sacrifice itself to its own ability to help you ramp, but giving up a card for such minor ramp just isn’t worth doing in Limited.
Broken Bond image 1.5 There’s enough Artifacts and Enchantments in this set that you can play this in the main deck some, and sometimes it will even ramp you a bit.
Adamant Will image 1.5 This is a decent trick, which will frequently allow your creature to win combat. The indestructibility also gives it an additional use as a way to save a creature from removal. This format is pretty grindy, so tricks aren’t as good as they are in some formats, but if you’re an aggressive deck and you need a trick, this is a solid one.
Grow from the Ashes image 3.5 Fixing and ramp are big in this format as a result of kicker and various mana sinks, and Grow from the Ashes is really good at giving you both of those things, especially when you kick it. It can even allow you to splash double colored cards, which is nice upside.
Seismic Shift image 0.5 This isn’t very good. Sometimes Red decks will end up playing a card that makes an opponent’s stuff unable to block, but only targeting two creatures with this is a big bummer for 4 mana. And yeah, I know it blows up a land too, but that effect is pretty much never good in Limited.
Sparring Construct image 1.5 This is passable, mostly just because it is an Artifact.
Pegasus Courser image 3.5 This is perhaps White’s best Common. Its base stats certainly aren’t good, but being able to send other creatures to the sky is the kind of ability that can really alter a game state all game long.
Pack 3 Pick 2: Ancient Animus
Jodah, Archmage Eternal image 3.0 Jodah is mostly just a fairly hard to cast 4-mana 4/3 with Flying, which isn’t bad, but the other part of the card just won’t come up in Limited because your mana won’t be good enough.
Memorial to War image 2.5 This Memorial is kind of a dud compared the others, blowing up lands just isn’t a big deal in Limited – though, it is nice that it can blow opposing Memorials, and people will be fixing enough in this format that sometimes it has a real effect. Still, it pales in comparison to the others, but it is still a land with some very utility in the late game.
Valduk, Keeper of the Flame image 3.0 This is a nice buildaround for Equipment/Auras, as a free Spark Elemental every turn isn’t too shabby. The downside, of course, is having to put a bunch of Auras/Equipment on a single creature is very risky, but the payoff is sometimes worth it.
Opt image 2.0 As usual, this is fine. Seeing two cards for one mana feels pretty good.
Ghitu Chronicler image 3.5 This can be a two mana 1/3 early – and you need that sometimes. However, the real value of the card comes when you kick it. 6 mana for a 1/3 that returns a spell is surprisingly potent in this format, especially if you’ve got Fight With Fire, but even if you just have reasonable spells to get back, this still feels pretty good.
Ancient Animus image 2.5 Getting the counter with this won’t come up a ton, but being an instant speed fight effect is a fine baseline.
Deep Freeze image 2.5 This is typical of most Blue removal. It does the job of turning off a creature, but the downside is that creature can still block. This means this type of effect isn’t great if you’re really aggressive, but still – at least the creature can only block once! This isn’t premium, but it is solid removal.
Skittering Surveyor image 3.5 So, this is a 3-mana ½ that draws you any basic land, and I would be on board with that pretty much no matter the format. The fixing it provides is just that good – and in this format, it is even better! Especially because there is Artifact/historic synergy all over the place.
Soul Salvage image 2.0 As usual, most Black decks tend to end up wanting one of these most of the time, but usually not more than one. They are bad to get in the early game, when they are effectively blank cards, but in the late game it is a good way to help you pull ahead of your opponent.
Stronghold Confessor image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with Menace and a 4-mana 3/3 with Menace are both kind of okay, and having the flexibility to be either is quite nice.
Pegasus Courser image 3.5 This is perhaps White’s best Common. Its base stats certainly aren’t good, but being able to send other creatures to the sky is the kind of ability that can really alter a game state all game long.
Krosan Druid image 2.5 Early in the game, the Druid gives you a reasonable body, and in the late game in can gain you a ton of life, enough that it can often allow you to stabilize, and that’s some really nice upside! You won’t always get the opportunity to kick it, of course.
Syncopate image 2.0 This is a Counterspell that can sort of stay relevant all game since you can pay X, but there will still be times where you just can’t use it to effectively counter something because your opponent has too much mana. Like a lot of counterspells, it has some significant downside as a result of being so situational, but this one is good enough that you’ll play it a decent chunk of the time.
Pack 3 Pick 3: Grunn, the Lonely King
Memorial to Folly image 3.5 I love utility lands, and this whole Memorial cycle is certainly that! It enters tapped, but most of the time the Memorial will just feel like a way better Swamp, since in the late game it can get you the best creature back out of your graveyard, that’s a very real effect on a land – something most don’t have!
Ghitu Lavarunner image 1.5 One mana creatures like this just don’t do well in Limited, especially because loading up the graveyard super quickly isn’t going to happen. This will mostly just be a one mana ½ that is a 2/2 with Haste in the mid-to-late game, but by then, it won’t really matter. The fact it is a Wizard does help make it more playable though.
Warlord's Fury image 1.5 There is a bit of a spell theme in this set, but not really enough of one that Warlord’s Fury feels amazing here. It does replace itself, so it isn’t terrible.
Homarid Explorer image 1.0 There isn’t enough of a payoff for milling yourself or your opponent for this to be very good.
Healing Grace image 0.0 Strictly better Healing Salve is still not a playable card.
Keldon Warcaller image 1.5 This just doesn’t line up very often to really make your Sagas better. It is mostly just a bear.
Llanowar Scout image 1.5 People often really overrate this type of effect. It is easy to imagine simply always ramping with it, but the problem is that you have to have lands to put into play in the first place. That might sound like a foregone conclusion, but it really isn’t – what makes other ramp cards great is that they get you the land from your library, which effectively draws you a card – in this case, you have to have the land to ramp, and that’s a big difference.
Powerstone Shard image 0.0 // 2.5 This is hard to make work, but if you end up 3+ Powerstone Shards, you can start consider playing them, especially if you’re in a ramp deck. If you have 2 or less, it probably isn’t worth it.
Cloudreader Sphinx image 3.5 This card really overperforms. 5-mana ¾ Flyers are usually somewhat passable, but in this format that statline is especially good. Additionally, Scry 2 is a nice thing to add to an already solid creature.
Caligo Skin-Witch image 3.0 This is another card with Kicker where neither option is terribly efficient, but it turns out that it doesn’t really matter – the flexibility and late game usefulness make up for that. In this format, people tend to hold on to card a fair bit, so kicking the Skin-Witch ends up hitting two cards way more in this format than in most, and can often just be the kind of thing that shifts the game in your favor.
Navigator's Compass image 0.5 This kind of card is always overrated. People look at it and they really think of it as a form of fixing, and..well, it is, but you also use up an entire card for it, and you just modify a land you already have. This does nothing but fix for the most part. It does gain you a bit of life, and it is an artifact in a set that cares about them, but you can do a lot better than this.
Pack 3 Pick 4: Memorial to Folly
Memorial to Folly image 3.5 I love utility lands, and this whole Memorial cycle is certainly that! It enters tapped, but most of the time the Memorial will just feel like a way better Swamp, since in the late game it can get you the best creature back out of your graveyard, that’s a very real effect on a land – something most don’t have!
Ghitu Lavarunner image 1.5 One mana creatures like this just don’t do well in Limited, especially because loading up the graveyard super quickly isn’t going to happen. This will mostly just be a one mana ½ that is a 2/2 with Haste in the mid-to-late game, but by then, it won’t really matter. The fact it is a Wizard does help make it more playable though.
Warlord's Fury image 1.5 There is a bit of a spell theme in this set, but not really enough of one that Warlord’s Fury feels amazing here. It does replace itself, so it isn’t terrible.
Homarid Explorer image 1.0 There isn’t enough of a payoff for milling yourself or your opponent for this to be very good.
Healing Grace image 0.0 Strictly better Healing Salve is still not a playable card.
Keldon Warcaller image 1.5 This just doesn’t line up very often to really make your Sagas better. It is mostly just a bear.
Llanowar Scout image 1.5 People often really overrate this type of effect. It is easy to imagine simply always ramping with it, but the problem is that you have to have lands to put into play in the first place. That might sound like a foregone conclusion, but it really isn’t – what makes other ramp cards great is that they get you the land from your library, which effectively draws you a card – in this case, you have to have the land to ramp, and that’s a big difference.
Powerstone Shard image 0.0 // 2.5 This is hard to make work, but if you end up 3+ Powerstone Shards, you can start consider playing them, especially if you’re in a ramp deck. If you have 2 or less, it probably isn’t worth it.
Cloudreader Sphinx image 3.5 This card really overperforms. 5-mana ¾ Flyers are usually somewhat passable, but in this format that statline is especially good. Additionally, Scry 2 is a nice thing to add to an already solid creature.
Caligo Skin-Witch image 3.0 This is another card with Kicker where neither option is terribly efficient, but it turns out that it doesn’t really matter – the flexibility and late game usefulness make up for that. In this format, people tend to hold on to card a fair bit, so kicking the Skin-Witch ends up hitting two cards way more in this format than in most, and can often just be the kind of thing that shifts the game in your favor.
Navigator's Compass image 0.5 This kind of card is always overrated. People look at it and they really think of it as a form of fixing, and..well, it is, but you also use up an entire card for it, and you just modify a land you already have. This does nothing but fix for the most part. It does gain you a bit of life, and it is an artifact in a set that cares about them, but you can do a lot better than this.
Pack 3 Pick 5: Grow from the Ashes
Thorn Elemental image 2.0 This isn’t the worst thing to ramp into or have at the top of your curve, it is nice that you can just make the 7 damage hit your opponent no matter what, and that does really discourage little chump blocks and the like.
Divination image 2.0 As usual, Divination is fine. It is a 3-mana 2-for-1, and while you don’t want too many cards that don’t add to the board, having one of these is fine in most Blue decks.
Deathbloom Thallid image 3.0 This has solid base stats that makes it easy for it to trade, and then it leaves behind a Saproling – that’s a pretty good deal for three mana.
Arbor Armament image 1.0 This is a mediocre trick, but it does give the counter permanently. Still, tricks that are defensive always seem super awkward. You can of course use it offensively, but Reach doesn’t matter in that situation, and +1/+1 just isn’t always going to be enough to win combat.
Charge image 1.5 Pumping your whole board with this isn’t the best thing to be doing in a format that can be as grindy as this one, but it does do the job reasonably efficiently, and if you’re going wide enough you might end up playing it.
Adamant Will image 1.5 This is a decent trick, which will frequently allow your creature to win combat. The indestructibility also gives it an additional use as a way to save a creature from removal. This format is pretty grindy, so tricks aren’t as good as they are in some formats, but if you’re an aggressive deck and you need a trick, this is a solid one.
Arcane Flight image 1.5 This gives a nice boost for the cost, especially with Flying in the mix. It is especially nice on the hexproof turtle, but its efficiency makes it worthwhile in some other Blue decks too.
Grow from the Ashes image 3.5 Fixing and ramp are big in this format as a result of kicker and various mana sinks, and Grow from the Ashes is really good at giving you both of those things, especially when you kick it. It can even allow you to splash double colored cards, which is nice upside.
Llanowar Scout image 1.5 People often really overrate this type of effect. It is easy to imagine simply always ramping with it, but the problem is that you have to have lands to put into play in the first place. That might sound like a foregone conclusion, but it really isn’t – what makes other ramp cards great is that they get you the land from your library, which effectively draws you a card – in this case, you have to have the land to ramp, and that’s a big difference.
Ghitu Lavarunner image 1.5 One mana creatures like this just don’t do well in Limited, especially because loading up the graveyard super quickly isn’t going to happen. This will mostly just be a one mana ½ that is a 2/2 with Haste in the mid-to-late game, but by then, it won’t really matter. The fact it is a Wizard does help make it more playable though.
Pack 3 Pick 6: Llanowar Elves
Arbor Armament image 1.0 This is a mediocre trick, but it does give the counter permanently. Still, tricks that are defensive always seem super awkward. You can of course use it offensively, but Reach doesn’t matter in that situation, and +1/+1 just isn’t always going to be enough to win combat.
Gift of Growth image 2.0 This trick will often allow your creature to win combat early, and sometimes the kicker side of things can get you lethal out of nowhere, in addition to also being the sort of boost that will allow almost any creature to take down any other creature. It is still a trick of course, and comes with the significant downside those have.
Llanowar Elves image 3.0 Magic’s classic mana dork is back, and it is once again pretty good. If you play it on turn one, the boost it gives you will often be game-winning. That is of course balanced by the fact that if you draw it light, it is a pretty big dud, but still – that early game upside makes it pretty good.
Deathbloom Thallid image 3.0 This has solid base stats that makes it easy for it to trade, and then it leaves behind a Saproling – that’s a pretty good deal for three mana.
Sergeant-at-Arms image 2.5 This is another card with Kicker where both options don’t exactly seem efficient, but having the choice between them is great. You either get a 3-mana 2/3 or a 6-mana 2/3 that makes two 1/1 tokens. When you kick it, it can really allow you to stabilize in situations even when you are pretty far behind.
Cold-Water Snapper image 1.5 Yep, there’s a common with hexproof in this set! This is a great place to put Auras like Arcane Flight, and is sort of passable as top curve in other Blue decks too.
Mammoth Spider image 2.5 This creature has some very nice stats for the format, and can stonewall a lot of creatures on the ground and in the air.
Keldon Warcaller image 1.5 This just doesn’t line up very often to really make your Sagas better. It is mostly just a bear.
Windgrace Acolyte image 2.0 The ETB trigger here is surprisingly solid. The life you gain and the cards you mill can be some really significant value on a reasonable evasive creature.
Pack 3 Pick 7: Untamed Kavu
Untamed Kavu image 3.5 This is really efficient no matter which mode you use, with the 5-mana 5/5 version obviously being the more attractive one in most scenarios.
Elfhame Druid image 3.5 This is some pretty nice ramp, especially for spells with Kicker. This format makes sure you usually have something to do with mana as a result of Kicker and lots of activated abilities too, so even in the late game, when a mana dork can be kind of rough to draw, it can be useful. Though it still really shines the most early.
Vodalian Arcanist image 2.0 This has decent stats and allows you to make some extra mana for Instants and Sorceries, something that is a pretty nice effect to have, albeit not one that will come up all the time.
Blessing of Belzenlok image 1.0 This is a mediocre trick, even if you use it on a legendary creature.
Tolarian Scholar image 1.5 In most formats, this would be a 1.0, but the Wizard creature type matters enough here that this 3-mana 2/3 gets a little upgrade.
Frenzied Rage image 2.0 +2/+1 and Menace for two mana is very aggressive, and can make many creatures into a threat. Now, it does have the same downside of all Auras – namely, the huge risk of getting 2-for-1’d, but it is worth doing in some of the more aggressive decks.
Mesa Unicorn image 2.5 Two mana 2/2s with Lifelink are usually nice little cards in Limited, and that’s the case here.
Ghitu Journeymage image 2.5 In a Red deck, especially a UR deck, this will be a 3-mana 3/2 that does 2 damage to the opponent a decent chunk of the time, and that’s a decent enough card.
Pack 3 Pick 8: Yavimaya Sapherd
Spore Swarm image 3.0 Three saprolings at Instant speed for 4 isn’t too shabby, especially in a set that can pay you off significantly for them.
Stronghold Confessor image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with Menace and a 4-mana 3/3 with Menace are both kind of okay, and having the flexibility to be either is quite nice.
Skirk Prospector image 0.5 There aren’t enough Goblins in this set for this to be worth it. It can sacrifice itself to its own ability to help you ramp, but giving up a card for such minor ramp just isn’t worth doing in Limited.
Broken Bond image 1.5 There’s enough Artifacts and Enchantments in this set that you can play this in the main deck some, and sometimes it will even ramp you a bit.
Grow from the Ashes image 3.5 Fixing and ramp are big in this format as a result of kicker and various mana sinks, and Grow from the Ashes is really good at giving you both of those things, especially when you kick it. It can even allow you to splash double colored cards, which is nice upside.
Seismic Shift image 0.5 This isn’t very good. Sometimes Red decks will end up playing a card that makes an opponent’s stuff unable to block, but only targeting two creatures with this is a big bummer for 4 mana. And yeah, I know it blows up a land too, but that effect is pretty much never good in Limited.
Pack 3 Pick 9: Spore Swarm
Spore Swarm image 3.0 Three saprolings at Instant speed for 4 isn’t too shabby, especially in a set that can pay you off significantly for them.
Stronghold Confessor image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with Menace and a 4-mana 3/3 with Menace are both kind of okay, and having the flexibility to be either is quite nice.
Skirk Prospector image 0.5 There aren’t enough Goblins in this set for this to be worth it. It can sacrifice itself to its own ability to help you ramp, but giving up a card for such minor ramp just isn’t worth doing in Limited.
Broken Bond image 1.5 There’s enough Artifacts and Enchantments in this set that you can play this in the main deck some, and sometimes it will even ramp you a bit.
Grow from the Ashes image 3.5 Fixing and ramp are big in this format as a result of kicker and various mana sinks, and Grow from the Ashes is really good at giving you both of those things, especially when you kick it. It can even allow you to splash double colored cards, which is nice upside.
Seismic Shift image 0.5 This isn’t very good. Sometimes Red decks will end up playing a card that makes an opponent’s stuff unable to block, but only targeting two creatures with this is a big bummer for 4 mana. And yeah, I know it blows up a land too, but that effect is pretty much never good in Limited.
Pack 3 Pick 10: Soul Salvage
Primevals' Glorious Rebirth image 2.0 This set has a lot of legendaries, but not so many that this is going to be easy to set up. You probably need to get back at least two things to feel like you’re doing it, and that’s not going to be the norm.
Urza's Tome image 1.5 Even in a set like this one, this seems to be a little too clunky to make your deck on a regular occasion. It will often just loot for 3 mana, and that’s really not worth it.
Thallid Omnivore image 3.0 You will end up having this on many board states where your opponent always has to block it, since it can get big so quickly and so cheaply. Saprolings pair really well with it, not only because of the life gain, but also because there are plenty of cards in this set that make multiples, and that’s just what Thallid Omnivore is after.
Befuddle image 1.5 This type of Blue “combat trick” almost always disappoints, just because you need things to line up in very specific ways for it to actually feel like a combat trick. Other times, it just feels like Fog. However, adding a cantrip effect to this makes it substantially better, as does the fact that the UR deck likes spells. It still isn’t good exactly, but it is better than most versions of this type of card.
Pack 3 Pick 11: Thallid Omnivore
Primevals' Glorious Rebirth image 2.0 This set has a lot of legendaries, but not so many that this is going to be easy to set up. You probably need to get back at least two things to feel like you’re doing it, and that’s not going to be the norm.
Urza's Tome image 1.5 Even in a set like this one, this seems to be a little too clunky to make your deck on a regular occasion. It will often just loot for 3 mana, and that’s really not worth it.
Thallid Omnivore image 3.0 You will end up having this on many board states where your opponent always has to block it, since it can get big so quickly and so cheaply. Saprolings pair really well with it, not only because of the life gain, but also because there are plenty of cards in this set that make multiples, and that’s just what Thallid Omnivore is after.
Befuddle image 1.5 This type of Blue “combat trick” almost always disappoints, just because you need things to line up in very specific ways for it to actually feel like a combat trick. Other times, it just feels like Fog. However, adding a cantrip effect to this makes it substantially better, as does the fact that the UR deck likes spells. It still isn’t good exactly, but it is better than most versions of this type of card.
Pack 3 Pick 12: Caligo Skin-Witch
Keldon Warcaller image 1.5 This just doesn’t line up very often to really make your Sagas better. It is mostly just a bear.
Llanowar Scout image 1.5 People often really overrate this type of effect. It is easy to imagine simply always ramping with it, but the problem is that you have to have lands to put into play in the first place. That might sound like a foregone conclusion, but it really isn’t – what makes other ramp cards great is that they get you the land from your library, which effectively draws you a card – in this case, you have to have the land to ramp, and that’s a big difference.
Caligo Skin-Witch image 3.0 This is another card with Kicker where neither option is terribly efficient, but it turns out that it doesn’t really matter – the flexibility and late game usefulness make up for that. In this format, people tend to hold on to card a fair bit, so kicking the Skin-Witch ends up hitting two cards way more in this format than in most, and can often just be the kind of thing that shifts the game in your favor.
Pack 3 Pick 13: Deathbloom Thallid
Deathbloom Thallid image 3.0 This has solid base stats that makes it easy for it to trade, and then it leaves behind a Saproling – that’s a pretty good deal for three mana.
Llanowar Scout image 1.5 People often really overrate this type of effect. It is easy to imagine simply always ramping with it, but the problem is that you have to have lands to put into play in the first place. That might sound like a foregone conclusion, but it really isn’t – what makes other ramp cards great is that they get you the land from your library, which effectively draws you a card – in this case, you have to have the land to ramp, and that’s a big difference.
Pack 3 Pick 14: Gift of Growth
Gift of Growth image 2.0 This trick will often allow your creature to win combat early, and sometimes the kicker side of things can get you lethal out of nowhere, in addition to also being the sort of boost that will allow almost any creature to take down any other creature. It is still a trick of course, and comes with the significant downside those have.
Draft Pick Overview