Tracker App

Premier Draft AKR 12 August 2021

12 August 10:17 - sang 7 Wins - 2 Losses
Maindeck
Creature (11)
1 Watchers of the Dead image
1 Sand Strangler image
3 Magmaroth image
2 Aerial Guide image
1 Firebrand Archer image
2 Fervent Paincaster image
1 Seeker of Insight image
Instant, Sorcery, Enchantment, Artifact (13)
1 Perilous Vault image
1 Supreme Will image
3 Hieroglyphic Illumination image
3 Magma Spray image
1 Insult // Injury image
1 Essence Scatter image
1 Cartouche of Knowledge image
1 Puncturing Blow image
1 Open Fire image
Land (16)
1 Ipnu Rivulet image
8 Mountain image
5 Island image
2 Desert of the Mindful image
Sideboard
1 Wall of Forgotten Pharaohs image
1 Slither Blade image
1 Soulstinger image
1 Anointer Priest image
1 Aven of Enduring Hope image
1 Crash Through image
1 Countervailing Winds image
1 By Force image
1 Trespasser's Curse image
1 Renewed Faith image
1 Strategic Planning image
1 Liliana's Defeat image
1 Floodwaters image
1 Forsake the Worldly image
1 Sunscorched Desert image

Pack 1 Pick 1: Perilous Vault
Perilous Vault image 3.0 So, this can exile everything, which is pretty cool, but the downside is that, in most cases, your opponent knows it is coming too, though they won’t have been able to prepare as much as you have. They’ll see the Vault come down and just pass their turn, rather than play something else. This can create something of a stalemate though, as you can just wait to use it until its advantageous for you to do so! And in the end you’ll probably win out, since you can wait to use it until you can also cast something to rebuild your board. It is clunky as heck of course.
Shefet Monitor image 3.5 This card is really good. In the early game, you can cycle it away, and you get to draw two cards in the process! One will be a basic land of course, but that’s fine, it is still giving you a 2-for-1 off of a Cycle, which is pretty awesome – and good for your mana! Then, in the late game, Shefet Monitor towers over many board states, and can be a passable finisher.
Claim image 1.5 Reanimating a small creature for only Black mana is kind of okay, though it is pretty darn restrictive on the mana cost. If you cast both halves in the same turn, you can reanimate a thing, and then also give it +2/+0 and Haste, which is kind of alright, but the reanimation being as restrictive as it is really limits how good this card can be.
Magmaroth image 2.5 Keeping this a 4-mana 5/5 or 4/4, even in a spell deck, isn’t always the easiest thing to do. And, even when you can, the card isn’t exactly a worldbeater.
Doomed Dissenter image 2.5 On the face of it, Doomed Dissenter is a solid little card – he gives you a 1/1 and a 2/2 for only two mana, and that’s quite the deal, even if you don’t get them both at the same time. In addition to that, he has some added utility in this format. First, he makes a Zombie – that means BW likes him. Second, he gives you value when you dies, and that makes him an awesome place to stick -1/-1 counters in the BG deck, where you’ll effectively get to ignore that downside on those creatures.
Compelling Argument image 1.0 There’s not really a mill deck in this format, but this does cycle for only one Blue mana, so you’ll play it sometimes.
Bloodlust Inciter image 2.5 This kind of card isn’t always very good, but this format is fast enough that the Inciter is actually pretty decent. Giving Haste to every creature you play is quite nice, especially the ones that have scary Exert effects.
Shed Weakness image 1.5 This is an alright trick. One mana for +2/+2 is fairly passable, and sometimes you’ll also get rid of a -1/-1 counter, which will make it feel like Giant Growth!
In Oketra's Name image 1.5 This just doesn’t pan out most of the time. Sure, if you have a bunch of Zombies and you’re going wide, it gives a nice boost for the cost, but having both of those things happen isn’t guaranteed.
Desert of the Mindful image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Sacred Cat image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with lifelink isn’t usually anything special, but this effectively ends up being two mana for 2 1/1s with Lifelink, and that’s actually quite nice.
Those Who Serve image 1.0 You’ll play this if you have enough Zombie synergies, but that’s pretty much it.
Cartouche of Solidarity image 3.0 The whole Cartouche cycle is quite nice. +1/+1 and First Strike is already the kind of boost that makes a creature significantly more formidable, and this also makes sure to give you a spare 1/1 body, which helps the threat of a 2-for-1 not loom quite as large.
Essence Scatter image 2.5 Creature spells are the most common type of spell in Magic, so Essence Scatter always tends to be a pretty solid playable in Limited. Its easy to cast and has lots of targets.
Pack 1 Pick 2: Magmaroth
Cascading Cataracts image 1.0 This isn’t good. It mostly hurts your mana base – up until the point where it can filter into mana for all five colors. This makes it a really weird version of a filter land, and as is usually the case with filter lands, you’ll play it if you’re super desperate for fixing, but think long and hard about whether its worth it.
Obelisk Spider image 3.5 This X-costed planeswalker can come down whenever you want her too, and she packs some pretty nice abilities. Her +2 doesn’t net you a card or anything, but it does Scry 2, which is some nice selection. Her 0 ability does net you cards, and can even put some into play for free! Meanwhile, her ultimate is quite easy to reach, and it can do 10 damage to your opponent out of nowhere, which is often enough to just end the game. She is challenging to take over the game with all alone though, and for that reason I don’t think she’s quite a bomb.
Magmaroth image 2.5 Keeping this a 4-mana 5/5 or 4/4, even in a spell deck, isn’t always the easiest thing to do. And, even when you can, the card isn’t exactly a worldbeater.
Strategic Planning image 1.0 You just won’t want to do this most of the time. It has a very minimal effect that doesn’t impact on the board, and it is very replaceable.
Pursue Glory image 2.0 This is a very inefficient Trumpet Blast, but unlike Trumpet Blast it can actually do something even when you aren’t able to do lethal with it! You can cycle it away.
Hooded Brawler image 2.5 This 3-mana 3/2 can swing as a 5/4 once his base stats aren’t doing it for you anymore, and that’s enough size to be relevant all game long.
Aven of Enduring Hope image 2.5 A 5-mana 3/3 flyer isn’t great, but the +3 life effect plays surprisingly well in this format, and can help you stabilize while adding a flying threat to the board.
Haze of Pollen image 0.5 Fog effects are bad in Limited – usually unplayable. Even adding cycling doesn’t help that out a whole lot.
Wasteland Scorpion image 2.5 Deathtouchers can trade with anything, and that’s pretty nice! That does mostly make this a defensive card, though. And, like a lot of cards in the set, you can also cycle this away when it isn’t very good.
Oashra Cultivator image 1.0 This isn’t very good. An 0/3 body just doesn’t stand up very well in this format, since all the Exert creatures can just manhandle it, and its ability to search up a basic land is clunky and slow. Sure, if you need fixing and/or ramp, you’ll play the cultivator, but you kind of hope you end up with some of the better ramp in the set, like Oasis Ritualist.
Aerial Guide image 3.5 This is a great Common. Wind Drake stats are kind of passable, and giving another attacker Flying is a pretty big deal, and Aerial Guide can quickly account for a ton of damage as a result of that ability.
Open Fire image 4.0 This kills a ton of creatures in this format, and it can even go to the dome, so its definitely premium removal.
Wall of Forgotten Pharaohs image 2.0 As a 0/4, this can actually block many of the exerters in the format, and its Desert payoff ability isn’t the worst way to slowly win a game, either. Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t great, but if you’re in a slower deck, this often ends up being a pretty solid card for you.
Pack 1 Pick 3: Supreme Will
Khenra Charioteer image 3.0 This kind is a little underwhelming as far as signpost uncommons go, but he is very efficient and grants your creatures a nice keyword, so its still a pretty nice card.
Supreme Will image 2.5 Neither mode here is an especially good card in Limited, but having the option between them really means you can utilize whichever one is optimal. Countering a spell when you can is great, but if that option doesn’t present itself, you’ll usually go for the card draw.
Khenra Scrapper image 3.0 Like a lot of these Exert creatures, once this starts Exerting itself, it is difficult to block effectively, and a 4/3 with Menace can do a ton of damage in a hurry.
Binding Mummy image 3.0 This has a baseline of a 2-mana 2/2 and it has some very real upside. This set is loaded up with Zombies – and remember, anything that is Embalmed comes back as a zombie too, so the Binding Mummy tends to be quite good at tapping down blockers and letting you go all out.
Scarab Feast image 1.0 This format has a lot of graveyard stuff, but you still mostly won’t play this. The only reason it isn’t just a sideboard card is because of Cycling.
Brute Strength image 1.5 This is a decent trick. The small toughness boost is a bit of a bummer, and means that sometimes you won’t be able to avert a 2-for-1 when you use it, but it can also result in a ton of unexpected damage for your opponent.
Desert of the Mindful image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Festering Mummy image 1.5 This can create 2-for-1 situations on some board states – like when your opponent has two X/1s, and it has both Zombie and -1/-1 counter upside.
Shed Weakness image 1.5 This is an alright trick. One mana for +2/+2 is fairly passable, and sometimes you’ll also get rid of a -1/-1 counter, which will make it feel like Giant Growth!
Supernatural Stamina image 2.5 This is a pretty impressive combat trigger. The +2/+0 is enough to make many creatures capable of trading when they couldn’t before, and the additional effect on the card makes it so you get that creature back anyway. This can feel especially powerful on an ETB creature. The low cost here is great, and can really accomplish a lot.
Strategic Planning image 1.0 You just won’t want to do this most of the time. It has a very minimal effect that doesn’t impact on the board, and it is very replaceable.
Blur of Blades image 1.5 Sometimes this will get a blocker out of the way and damage your opponent, and suddenly their dead to an Alpha strike. That makes it a reasonable inclusion in aggressive decks, especially because it will always have a pretty decent effect in those decks.
Pack 1 Pick 4: Aerial Guide
Vizier of Remedies image 1.0 This is a two mana 2/1 with some very minor upside for the format. You’ll play it if you really need a two drop, but that’s about it.
Trial of Knowledge image 2.5 Paying four mana for an effect that doesn’t immediately impact the board isn’t great in this format, but this does give you a pretty nice effect.
Oashra Cultivator image 1.0 This isn’t very good. An 0/3 body just doesn’t stand up very well in this format, since all the Exert creatures can just manhandle it, and its ability to search up a basic land is clunky and slow. Sure, if you need fixing and/or ramp, you’ll play the cultivator, but you kind of hope you end up with some of the better ramp in the set, like Oasis Ritualist.
Desert of the Indomitable image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Aven Initiate image 2.5 4-mana 3/2 flyers are okayish. Adding Embalm here is quite nice, since it will give you another copy of the Initiate in the late game, albeit at a very steep price.
Slither Blade image 1.5 This is a great place to put Cartouches and stuff like that since its unblockable, but it is pretty unimpressive in most other decks.
Trespasser's Curse image 0.5 This doesn’t do anything apart from the life drain effect, and that just isn’t going to be worth a card most of the time.
Aerial Guide image 3.5 This is a great Common. Wind Drake stats are kind of passable, and giving another attacker Flying is a pretty big deal, and Aerial Guide can quickly account for a ton of damage as a result of that ability.
Firebrand Archer image 2.5 This performs surprisingly well as a spell payoff, and can really chip in a ton of additional damage, while also providing pretty good reach in the later part of the game.
Countervailing Winds image 2.0 This will sometimes perform quite well as a counterspell, and if you’re in a situation where it doesn’t, you can just Cycle it away.
Naga Vitalist image 2.5 This is pretty decent at ramping you, and sometimes you’ll be interested in that.
Pack 1 Pick 5: Hieroglyphic Illumination
By Force image 0.5 There aren’t enough artifacts in this set for this to be remotely worth putting in your main deck.
Manglehorn image 0.5 There aren’t really enough artifacts in this set for it to be worth it.
Nest of Scarabs image 0.0 // 3.0 Obviously, this is a build around, and one that will mostly only work in the BG deck, which is all about -1/-1 counters. If you have few or no ways to make counters, Nest of Scarabs is terrible. However, if you get there on a critical mass of -1/-1 counter cards, and it is doable in this format, Nest of Scarabs gets pretty crazy, since it will start spitting out a significant number of tokens.
Pouncing Cheetah image 1.5 This is kind of okay. It can flash in and ambush block stuff, but there’s not much that it can survive blocking because of its mediocre stats.
Gust Walker image 3.5 This is an excellent two drop. It can simply attack as a two mana 2/2 early, and then once its necessary, it can start Exerting itself to continue attacking in the air. This two drop is relevant all game long, and is very nice in aggressive decks.
Blur of Blades image 1.5 Sometimes this will get a blocker out of the way and damage your opponent, and suddenly their dead to an Alpha strike. That makes it a reasonable inclusion in aggressive decks, especially because it will always have a pretty decent effect in those decks.
Hieroglyphic Illumination image 2.5 4 mana to draw 2 at instant speed isn’t the greatest thing ever, but this has an alternate mode where you pay a single Blue to draw a card, and having both of those options is pretty nice.
Naga Vitalist image 2.5 This is pretty decent at ramping you, and sometimes you’ll be interested in that.
Desert of the True image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Aven Initiate image 2.5 4-mana 3/2 flyers are okayish. Adding Embalm here is quite nice, since it will give you another copy of the Initiate in the late game, albeit at a very steep price.
Pack 1 Pick 6: Magmaroth
Magmaroth image 2.5 Keeping this a 4-mana 5/5 or 4/4, even in a spell deck, isn’t always the easiest thing to do. And, even when you can, the card isn’t exactly a worldbeater.
Trial of Solidarity image 3.0 Cards that pump your whole board and give it Vigilance tend to be quite nice, since they drastically alter the state of a race. You’re suddenly doing way more damage, your creatures are harder to block, and your creatures can hang back to block. The Cartouche clause comes up more often than you’d think here too!
Djeru's Resolve image 1.0 Without Cycling, this would pretty much be unplayable. With cycling…well, you’ll play it on really rare occasions.
Slither Blade image 1.5 This is a great place to put Cartouches and stuff like that since its unblockable, but it is pretty unimpressive in most other decks.
Bloodlust Inciter image 2.5 This kind of card isn’t always very good, but this format is fast enough that the Inciter is actually pretty decent. Giving Haste to every creature you play is quite nice, especially the ones that have scary Exert effects.
Trespasser's Curse image 0.5 This doesn’t do anything apart from the life drain effect, and that just isn’t going to be worth a card most of the time.
Strategic Planning image 1.0 You just won’t want to do this most of the time. It has a very minimal effect that doesn’t impact on the board, and it is very replaceable.
Rhonas's Stalwart image 3.5 Look, yet another really good common two-drop with Exert! Like the others, this has a fine baseline that can attack reasonably well, and then in the later game in can start exerting to make itself larger and more evasive.
Pathmaker Initiate image 2.0 Making small creatures unblockable definitely has a place in this format, especially when you can exert them to make them bigger after you make them unblockable.
Pack 1 Pick 7: Magma Spray
Ramunap Ruins image 3.0 The Ruins make it so you have some serious reach in the late game, especially if you have multiple deserts.
Unquenchable Thirst image 3.0 It isn’t that difficult to get enough deserts for this to do the more powerful thing. Not tapping the creature when you don’t have a desert definitely isn’t great, but that is a pretty reasonable floor on a card that can shut down most creatures in the format for only two mana.
Impeccable Timing image 2.5 This is too situational to be “premium” removal, but it does a pretty nice job in a format with lots of small creatures.
Pouncing Cheetah image 1.5 This is kind of okay. It can flash in and ambush block stuff, but there’s not much that it can survive blocking because of its mediocre stats.
Magma Spray image 3.5 One mana for 2 damage is pretty much always premium, and Magma Spray can even deal with pesky embalm creatures permanently.
Slither Blade image 1.5 This is a great place to put Cartouches and stuff like that since its unblockable, but it is pretty unimpressive in most other decks.
Binding Mummy image 3.0 This has a baseline of a 2-mana 2/2 and it has some very real upside. This set is loaded up with Zombies – and remember, anything that is Embalmed comes back as a zombie too, so the Binding Mummy tends to be quite good at tapping down blockers and letting you go all out.
Compelling Argument image 1.0 There’s not really a mill deck in this format, but this does cycle for only one Blue mana, so you’ll play it sometimes.
Pack 1 Pick 8: Firebrand Archer
Hope Tender image 3.0 If you’re not exerting this, it doesn’t do a whole lot other than be a 2-mana 2/2. Simply untapping a single land just isn’t that big of a deal, you’re essentially just filtering mana. Still, it can ramp for you when it exerts and it has fine base line stats.
Liliana's Defeat image 0.5 This will be great against Black and terrible against everyone else. Leave this in your sideboard.
Hashep Oasis image 3.0 These Desert utility lands are all pretty nice! In addition to counting as deserts for several cards in the set, they come into play completely untapped and can give you colored mana – even if you do have to pay life for it. If you don’t want that mana, it can also just tap for cololorless. Then, they can all do a thing by giving up a Desert. In this case, you get to pump a creature. And sure, it is only at Sorcery speed, but keep in mind that this thing has been a nice land for you all game, and in the late game it is having a very real impact! If you have enough deserts, you can do these effects repeatedly, which is sometimes nice.
Zealot of the God-Pharaoh image 2.5 A 4-mana 4/3 is reasonable, and this has an ability that is a solid enough mana sink.
Firebrand Archer image 2.5 This performs surprisingly well as a spell payoff, and can really chip in a ton of additional damage, while also providing pretty good reach in the later part of the game.
Feral Prowler image 2.0 It is unfortunately pretty hard to trade Feral Prowler for anything, since basically all the best small creatures in the format can evade it or get to big when they are exerted. That doesn’t make it terrible, but it is definitely worse here than in most sets.
Gilded Cerodon image 1.5 While effects that make something unable to block play pretty well in this format, the Cerodon is a little too expensive to be in the same class as something like Ahn-Crop Crasher.
Pack 1 Pick 9: Magmaroth
Magmaroth image 2.5 Keeping this a 4-mana 5/5 or 4/4, even in a spell deck, isn’t always the easiest thing to do. And, even when you can, the card isn’t exactly a worldbeater.
Compelling Argument image 1.0 There’s not really a mill deck in this format, but this does cycle for only one Blue mana, so you’ll play it sometimes.
Bloodlust Inciter image 2.5 This kind of card isn’t always very good, but this format is fast enough that the Inciter is actually pretty decent. Giving Haste to every creature you play is quite nice, especially the ones that have scary Exert effects.
Shed Weakness image 1.5 This is an alright trick. One mana for +2/+2 is fairly passable, and sometimes you’ll also get rid of a -1/-1 counter, which will make it feel like Giant Growth!
In Oketra's Name image 1.5 This just doesn’t pan out most of the time. Sure, if you have a bunch of Zombies and you’re going wide, it gives a nice boost for the cost, but having both of those things happen isn’t guaranteed.
Those Who Serve image 1.0 You’ll play this if you have enough Zombie synergies, but that’s pretty much it.
Pack 1 Pick 10: Aerial Guide
Strategic Planning image 1.0 You just won’t want to do this most of the time. It has a very minimal effect that doesn’t impact on the board, and it is very replaceable.
Aven of Enduring Hope image 2.5 A 5-mana 3/3 flyer isn’t great, but the +3 life effect plays surprisingly well in this format, and can help you stabilize while adding a flying threat to the board.
Oashra Cultivator image 1.0 This isn’t very good. An 0/3 body just doesn’t stand up very well in this format, since all the Exert creatures can just manhandle it, and its ability to search up a basic land is clunky and slow. Sure, if you need fixing and/or ramp, you’ll play the cultivator, but you kind of hope you end up with some of the better ramp in the set, like Oasis Ritualist.
Aerial Guide image 3.5 This is a great Common. Wind Drake stats are kind of passable, and giving another attacker Flying is a pretty big deal, and Aerial Guide can quickly account for a ton of damage as a result of that ability.
Wall of Forgotten Pharaohs image 2.0 As a 0/4, this can actually block many of the exerters in the format, and its Desert payoff ability isn’t the worst way to slowly win a game, either. Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t great, but if you’re in a slower deck, this often ends up being a pretty solid card for you.
Pack 1 Pick 11: Desert of the Mindful
Scarab Feast image 1.0 This format has a lot of graveyard stuff, but you still mostly won’t play this. The only reason it isn’t just a sideboard card is because of Cycling.
Brute Strength image 1.5 This is a decent trick. The small toughness boost is a bit of a bummer, and means that sometimes you won’t be able to avert a 2-for-1 when you use it, but it can also result in a ton of unexpected damage for your opponent.
Desert of the Mindful image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Shed Weakness image 1.5 This is an alright trick. One mana for +2/+2 is fairly passable, and sometimes you’ll also get rid of a -1/-1 counter, which will make it feel like Giant Growth!
Pack 1 Pick 12: Countervailing Winds
Oashra Cultivator image 1.0 This isn’t very good. An 0/3 body just doesn’t stand up very well in this format, since all the Exert creatures can just manhandle it, and its ability to search up a basic land is clunky and slow. Sure, if you need fixing and/or ramp, you’ll play the cultivator, but you kind of hope you end up with some of the better ramp in the set, like Oasis Ritualist.
Slither Blade image 1.5 This is a great place to put Cartouches and stuff like that since its unblockable, but it is pretty unimpressive in most other decks.
Countervailing Winds image 2.0 This will sometimes perform quite well as a counterspell, and if you’re in a situation where it doesn’t, you can just Cycle it away.
Pack 1 Pick 13: By Force
By Force image 0.5 There aren’t enough artifacts in this set for this to be remotely worth putting in your main deck.
Desert of the True image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Pack 1 Pick 14: Slither Blade
Slither Blade image 1.5 This is a great place to put Cartouches and stuff like that since its unblockable, but it is pretty unimpressive in most other decks.
Pack 2 Pick 1: Insult
Insult image 4.0 This Aftermath card really wants you to be casting both halves in the same turn, and when you do, what you get is pretty incredible. You do 4 to a creature and 4 to your opponent, and all of your creatures can do double damage. Most of the time when you’re able to cast both sides in a single turn, you’ll find yourself just winning the game because you get rid of a blocker and do a ton of damage to your opponent. Obviously, the fact you can cast them on separate turns is definitely upside, but you’ll only do that if you’re desperate.
River Hoopoe image 3.0 If you can get to the part of the game where River Hoopoe can start using that ability, you’re going to feel pretty great. The life gain really helps you stabilize, and the cards you draw will allow you to ultimately overwhelm your opponent. The problem is, getting to that point of the game isn’t always easy, and if that’s the case, this is just a two mana 1/3 Flyer – and that’s not a body that is particularly good at blocking in this format. Still, the mid-to-late-game upside is very real.
Fervent Paincaster image 2.5 A 3-mana 3/1 that can ping the opponent is kind of okay, and adding the ability to exert to ping anything is pretty nice, and certainly a problem for any deck with lots of X/1s.
Trial of Ambition image 3.0 Playing this on turn two to kill your opponent’s only creature feels great, and all game long it will at least subtract from the opposing board some. Because it is so cheap, it also isn’t that difficult to play a cartouche and replay the Trial in the same turn, which will feel pretty great.
Desert Cerodon image 2.5 Like a lot of creatures with cycling, this doesn’t have great stats, but the fact you can throw it away for a new card when the 6/4 isn’t worth it makes it pretty solid.
Marauding Boneslasher image 2.0 This has decent stats and a useful creature type, so you’ll play it a decent amount of the time.
Initiate's Companion image 2.0 Thing is fine. A two mana 3/1 is, as usual, a decent aggro creature, and its combat damage to a player effect kind of matters. Its most notable use is untapping an exerted creature.
Magma Spray image 3.5 One mana for 2 damage is pretty much always premium, and Magma Spray can even deal with pesky embalm creatures permanently.
Sacred Cat image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with lifelink isn’t usually anything special, but this effectively ends up being two mana for 2 1/1s with Lifelink, and that’s actually quite nice.
Striped Riverwinder image 2.5 A 7-mana 5/5 isn’t great, even with Hexproof, but the fact you can Cycle this away early is pretty awesome. Then, in the late game, it is pretty difficult to interact with and not the worst finisher ever.
Hekma Sentinels image 2.0 Opponents do have to respect that this might turn into a ¾ out of nowhere, but it isn’t exactly like a ¾ is a world beater to begin with.
Desert of the Glorified image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Khenra Scrapper image 3.0 Like a lot of these Exert creatures, once this starts Exerting itself, it is difficult to block effectively, and a 4/3 with Menace can do a ton of damage in a hurry.
Pitiless Vizier image 2.5 This guy has a very real threat of activation. A 4/2 hits hard, and there aren’t that many creatuers that can block this and survive, and in those situations your opponent has to gauge whether or not you have the Cycling card that just blows them out entirely.
Pack 2 Pick 2: Wall of Forgotten Pharaohs
Dread Wanderer image 2.5 In the early game, this one mana 2/1 can do some decent damage, and then in the later part of the game, he can just keep coming back from the graveyard. One nice thing here is that he can actually block, unlike some other similar cards, so in the late game he’ll still have some serious utility, even if he does enter the battlefield tapped. Still, in the middle part of the game, where a 2/1 body isn’t very good and it won’t be able to come back from your graveyard, it isn’t going to feel great.
Hope Tender image 3.0 If you’re not exerting this, it doesn’t do a whole lot other than be a 2-mana 2/2. Simply untapping a single land just isn’t that big of a deal, you’re essentially just filtering mana. Still, it can ramp for you when it exerts and it has fine base line stats.
Magmaroth image 2.5 Keeping this a 4-mana 5/5 or 4/4, even in a spell deck, isn’t always the easiest thing to do. And, even when you can, the card isn’t exactly a worldbeater.
Liliana's Defeat image 0.5 This will be great against Black and terrible against everyone else. Leave this in your sideboard.
Pursue Glory image 2.0 This is a very inefficient Trumpet Blast, but unlike Trumpet Blast it can actually do something even when you aren’t able to do lethal with it! You can cycle it away.
Quarry Hauler image 3.0 Quarry Hauler brings a decent body to the table, and its ETB trigger will be useful a surprising chunk of the time. You can use it to add -1/-1 counters to opposing things, subtract them from yours, add +1/+1 counters, and so forth.
Slither Blade image 1.5 This is a great place to put Cartouches and stuff like that since its unblockable, but it is pretty unimpressive in most other decks.
Doomed Dissenter image 2.5 On the face of it, Doomed Dissenter is a solid little card – he gives you a 1/1 and a 2/2 for only two mana, and that’s quite the deal, even if you don’t get them both at the same time. In addition to that, he has some added utility in this format. First, he makes a Zombie – that means BW likes him. Second, he gives you value when you dies, and that makes him an awesome place to stick -1/-1 counters in the BG deck, where you’ll effectively get to ignore that downside on those creatures.
Mighty Leap image 1.5 This is always a decent trick that has the upside of giving you some reach in the late game.
Wall of Forgotten Pharaohs image 2.0 As a 0/4, this can actually block many of the exerters in the format, and its Desert payoff ability isn’t the worst way to slowly win a game, either. Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t great, but if you’re in a slower deck, this often ends up being a pretty solid card for you.
Trespasser's Curse image 0.5 This doesn’t do anything apart from the life drain effect, and that just isn’t going to be worth a card most of the time.
Binding Mummy image 3.0 This has a baseline of a 2-mana 2/2 and it has some very real upside. This set is loaded up with Zombies – and remember, anything that is Embalmed comes back as a zombie too, so the Binding Mummy tends to be quite good at tapping down blockers and letting you go all out.
Dissenter's Deliverance image 1.0 There aren’t a ton of Artifacts in this set, but this does Cycle, so you’ll put it in your main deck some.
Pack 2 Pick 3: Hieroglyphic Illumination
Failure image 1.5 The Failure half of the card is where most of this card’s value comes from, as two mana to effectively counter a spell isn’t too bad. The Comply half is less impressive, though the idea here is to cast both and name the spell you bounced, but even doing that isn’t always very good, since your opponent can just play their other stuff and be perfectly happy until they have the ability to cast the other thing.
Crypt of the Eternals image 1.0 Filter lands very rarely impress me, and this one can only filter into the Grixis colors, making it worse than most versions of this we’ve seen before! Gaining 1 life doesn’t make enough of a difference. If you need fixing in these colors, you might play this, but otherwise, steer clear.
Liliana's Defeat image 0.5 This will be great against Black and terrible against everyone else. Leave this in your sideboard.
Hieroglyphic Illumination image 2.5 4 mana to draw 2 at instant speed isn’t the greatest thing ever, but this has an alternate mode where you pay a single Blue to draw a card, and having both of those options is pretty nice.
Desert of the Fervent image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Striped Riverwinder image 2.5 A 7-mana 5/5 isn’t great, even with Hexproof, but the fact you can Cycle this away early is pretty awesome. Then, in the late game, it is pretty difficult to interact with and not the worst finisher ever.
Soulstinger image 2.5 All on its own, Soulstinger is a 4-mana 2/3 that puts two -1/-1 counters on something when it dies. That’s the kind of card that can really create 2-for-1s, and that’s sort of the baseline here. You can also just play the Soulstinger as a larger creature if that’s what you need, and put the counters somewhere else.
Pouncing Cheetah image 1.5 This is kind of okay. It can flash in and ambush block stuff, but there’s not much that it can survive blocking because of its mediocre stats.
Hekma Sentinels image 2.0 Opponents do have to respect that this might turn into a ¾ out of nowhere, but it isn’t exactly like a ¾ is a world beater to begin with.
Sunscorched Desert image 1.0 So, you mostly don’t play this Desert, since it isn’t good for your mana at all. However, sometimes you might end up in a mono-colored deck, and if its an aggressive mono-colored deck that has a few Desert payoffs, Sunscorched Desert actually makes the cut. That doesn’t happen a ton, but I’ve seen it happen a few times.
Oasis Ritualist image 3.5 This card is really nice. It has enough toughness to stand up to most common Exert creatures, and it provides significant fixing and ramp.
Blur of Blades image 1.5 Sometimes this will get a blocker out of the way and damage your opponent, and suddenly their dead to an Alpha strike. That makes it a reasonable inclusion in aggressive decks, especially because it will always have a pretty decent effect in those decks.
Pack 2 Pick 4: Essence Scatter
Oketra's Attendant image 3.5 A 5-mana 3/3 Flyer isn’t great, but this one has both Cycling and Embalm, and that makes it way better. Embalm tends to be pretty nice because it effectively gives you two cards worth of value over the course of the game, and the fact you can cycle this away early to find a land drop, and then still Embalm it late is pretty nice.
Ancient Crab image 1.0 This format has lots of cheap creature who can gain evasion or stats boosts as a result of exerting or other effects, and that makes Ancient Crab pretty unimpressive here.
Hooded Brawler image 2.5 This 3-mana 3/2 can swing as a 5/4 once his base stats aren’t doing it for you anymore, and that’s enough size to be relevant all game long.
Essence Scatter image 2.5 Creature spells are the most common type of spell in Magic, so Essence Scatter always tends to be a pretty solid playable in Limited. Its easy to cast and has lots of targets.
Sacred Cat image 2.5 A one mana 1/1 with lifelink isn’t usually anything special, but this effectively ends up being two mana for 2 1/1s with Lifelink, and that’s actually quite nice.
Nef-Crop Entangler image 3.0 This is yet another Exert two-drop who, once it starts exerting itself, can attack pretty much all game long.
Oashra Cultivator image 1.0 This isn’t very good. An 0/3 body just doesn’t stand up very well in this format, since all the Exert creatures can just manhandle it, and its ability to search up a basic land is clunky and slow. Sure, if you need fixing and/or ramp, you’ll play the cultivator, but you kind of hope you end up with some of the better ramp in the set, like Oasis Ritualist.
Pouncing Cheetah image 1.5 This is kind of okay. It can flash in and ambush block stuff, but there’s not much that it can survive blocking because of its mediocre stats.
Firebrand Archer image 2.5 This performs surprisingly well as a spell payoff, and can really chip in a ton of additional damage, while also providing pretty good reach in the later part of the game.
Soulstinger image 2.5 All on its own, Soulstinger is a 4-mana 2/3 that puts two -1/-1 counters on something when it dies. That’s the kind of card that can really create 2-for-1s, and that’s sort of the baseline here. You can also just play the Soulstinger as a larger creature if that’s what you need, and put the counters somewhere else.
Splendid Agony image 2.5 This is pretty solid, though not premium. There are enough small creatures in this set that it sometimes give you a 2-for-1, but it isn’t that impressive against larger creatures, though weakening them still has some value.
Pack 2 Pick 5: Cartouche of Knowledge
Renewed Faith image 2.0 You will almost always end up cycling this. Two mana for 2 life and a card is pretty decent. Three mana for six life and no card isn’t, but you do have the option to do that, and sometimes you’ll want to – like if you’ll die without doing it.
Cartouche of Knowledge image 3.5 This Cartouche draws you a card to get around the risk of getting 2-for-1’d, and I’m all for that. This actually gives you a lot for only two mana, as Flying and +1/+1 is no joke.
Scarab Feast image 1.0 This format has a lot of graveyard stuff, but you still mostly won’t play this. The only reason it isn’t just a sideboard card is because of Cycling.
Marauding Boneslasher image 2.0 This has decent stats and a useful creature type, so you’ll play it a decent amount of the time.
Hekma Sentinels image 2.0 Opponents do have to respect that this might turn into a ¾ out of nowhere, but it isn’t exactly like a ¾ is a world beater to begin with.
Bloodlust Inciter image 2.5 This kind of card isn’t always very good, but this format is fast enough that the Inciter is actually pretty decent. Giving Haste to every creature you play is quite nice, especially the ones that have scary Exert effects.
Fan Bearer image 3.5 Master Decoy-type creatures are good in most Limited formats, and this one comes with a relevant creature type.
Quarry Hauler image 3.0 Quarry Hauler brings a decent body to the table, and its ETB trigger will be useful a surprising chunk of the time. You can use it to add -1/-1 counters to opposing things, subtract them from yours, add +1/+1 counters, and so forth.
Nef-Crop Entangler image 3.0 This is yet another Exert two-drop who, once it starts exerting itself, can attack pretty much all game long.
Naga Oracle image 1.0 This isn’t very good. A 4-mana 2/4 needs to do something pretty relevant to be good, and it just doesn’t. It gives you a bit of card selection/graveyard stocking, but that’s not really enough.
Pack 2 Pick 6: Fervent Paincaster
Steward of Solidarity image 3.5 In the early game, this can just attack as a two mana 2/2, and in the late game in can give you a 1/1 token every other turn, which is a very relevant ability.
Fervent Paincaster image 2.5 A 3-mana 3/1 that can ping the opponent is kind of okay, and adding the ability to exert to ping anything is pretty nice, and certainly a problem for any deck with lots of X/1s.
Onward image 1.0 It is temping to look at this thing as a card that will just end the game on the spot, but the sad thing is – it really won’t very often. Just pumping power a bunch isn’t that impressive – your creature already has to get through for damage or be able to win combat for it do anything, and then the Victory half is only a Sorcery, and that means you can’t also use it in the same turn unless you do everything pre-combat, and that’s pretty ugly.
Sidewinder Naga image 2.0 This will sometimes be a 4/2 with Trample, which is fine, but it wouldn’t be an incredible card even if it was always a 4/2 with trample.
Anointer Priest image 2.5 This is a solid little token/embalm payoff. A two mana 1/3 isn’t great, but the bit of life gain it gets + the fact it comes back from the graveyard in the late game is pretty nice.
Seeker of Insight image 2.0 This doesn’t have the most impressive spell payoff effect there is, but looting with this sometimes is solid.
Desert of the Mindful image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Desert of the Fervent image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Oasis Ritualist image 3.5 This card is really nice. It has enough toughness to stand up to most common Exert creatures, and it provides significant fixing and ramp.
Pack 2 Pick 7: Seeker of Insight
Pathmaker Initiate image 2.0 Making small creatures unblockable definitely has a place in this format, especially when you can exert them to make them bigger after you make them unblockable.
Feral Prowler image 2.0 It is unfortunately pretty hard to trade Feral Prowler for anything, since basically all the best small creatures in the format can evade it or get to big when they are exerted. That doesn’t make it terrible, but it is definitely worse here than in most sets.
Blur of Blades image 1.5 Sometimes this will get a blocker out of the way and damage your opponent, and suddenly their dead to an Alpha strike. That makes it a reasonable inclusion in aggressive decks, especially because it will always have a pretty decent effect in those decks.
Seeker of Insight image 2.0 This doesn’t have the most impressive spell payoff effect there is, but looting with this sometimes is solid.
Anointer Priest image 2.5 This is a solid little token/embalm payoff. A two mana 1/3 isn’t great, but the bit of life gain it gets + the fact it comes back from the graveyard in the late game is pretty nice.
Oketra's Avenger image 3.5 When this is Exerted, it is pretty darn hard to block – and that’s true pretty much all game long, making this an excellent two drop.
Thorned Moloch image 2.5 When this attacks, it isn’t very hard for it to be a 3/3 with First Strike, and that’s not an easy creature to block.
Desert of the True image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Pack 2 Pick 8: Puncturing Blow
River Hoopoe image 3.0 If you can get to the part of the game where River Hoopoe can start using that ability, you’re going to feel pretty great. The life gain really helps you stabilize, and the cards you draw will allow you to ultimately overwhelm your opponent. The problem is, getting to that point of the game isn’t always easy, and if that’s the case, this is just a two mana 1/3 Flyer – and that’s not a body that is particularly good at blocking in this format. Still, the mid-to-late-game upside is very real.
Firebrand Archer image 2.5 This performs surprisingly well as a spell payoff, and can really chip in a ton of additional damage, while also providing pretty good reach in the later part of the game.
Strategic Planning image 1.0 You just won’t want to do this most of the time. It has a very minimal effect that doesn’t impact on the board, and it is very replaceable.
Desert of the Mindful image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Slither Blade image 1.5 This is a great place to put Cartouches and stuff like that since its unblockable, but it is pretty unimpressive in most other decks.
Puncturing Blow image 3.5 This is definitely a clunky sorcery, but it also kills almost everything in the format, and the “Exile” clause actually matters in this format. This gets into the lower range of “premium” removal for me.
Unquenchable Thirst image 3.0 It isn’t that difficult to get enough deserts for this to do the more powerful thing. Not tapping the creature when you don’t have a desert definitely isn’t great, but that is a pretty reasonable floor on a card that can shut down most creatures in the format for only two mana.
Pack 2 Pick 9: Fervent Paincaster
River Hoopoe image 3.0 If you can get to the part of the game where River Hoopoe can start using that ability, you’re going to feel pretty great. The life gain really helps you stabilize, and the cards you draw will allow you to ultimately overwhelm your opponent. The problem is, getting to that point of the game isn’t always easy, and if that’s the case, this is just a two mana 1/3 Flyer – and that’s not a body that is particularly good at blocking in this format. Still, the mid-to-late-game upside is very real.
Fervent Paincaster image 2.5 A 3-mana 3/1 that can ping the opponent is kind of okay, and adding the ability to exert to ping anything is pretty nice, and certainly a problem for any deck with lots of X/1s.
Desert Cerodon image 2.5 Like a lot of creatures with cycling, this doesn’t have great stats, but the fact you can throw it away for a new card when the 6/4 isn’t worth it makes it pretty solid.
Marauding Boneslasher image 2.0 This has decent stats and a useful creature type, so you’ll play it a decent amount of the time.
Hekma Sentinels image 2.0 Opponents do have to respect that this might turn into a ¾ out of nowhere, but it isn’t exactly like a ¾ is a world beater to begin with.
Pitiless Vizier image 2.5 This guy has a very real threat of activation. A 4/2 hits hard, and there aren’t that many creatuers that can block this and survive, and in those situations your opponent has to gauge whether or not you have the Cycling card that just blows them out entirely.
Pack 2 Pick 10: Trespasser's Curse
Liliana's Defeat image 0.5 This will be great against Black and terrible against everyone else. Leave this in your sideboard.
Mighty Leap image 1.5 This is always a decent trick that has the upside of giving you some reach in the late game.
Trespasser's Curse image 0.5 This doesn’t do anything apart from the life drain effect, and that just isn’t going to be worth a card most of the time.
Binding Mummy image 3.0 This has a baseline of a 2-mana 2/2 and it has some very real upside. This set is loaded up with Zombies – and remember, anything that is Embalmed comes back as a zombie too, so the Binding Mummy tends to be quite good at tapping down blockers and letting you go all out.
Dissenter's Deliverance image 1.0 There aren’t a ton of Artifacts in this set, but this does Cycle, so you’ll put it in your main deck some.
Pack 2 Pick 11: Liliana's Defeat
Crypt of the Eternals image 1.0 Filter lands very rarely impress me, and this one can only filter into the Grixis colors, making it worse than most versions of this we’ve seen before! Gaining 1 life doesn’t make enough of a difference. If you need fixing in these colors, you might play this, but otherwise, steer clear.
Liliana's Defeat image 0.5 This will be great against Black and terrible against everyone else. Leave this in your sideboard.
Pouncing Cheetah image 1.5 This is kind of okay. It can flash in and ambush block stuff, but there’s not much that it can survive blocking because of its mediocre stats.
Hekma Sentinels image 2.0 Opponents do have to respect that this might turn into a ¾ out of nowhere, but it isn’t exactly like a ¾ is a world beater to begin with.
Pack 2 Pick 12: Soulstinger
Ancient Crab image 1.0 This format has lots of cheap creature who can gain evasion or stats boosts as a result of exerting or other effects, and that makes Ancient Crab pretty unimpressive here.
Oashra Cultivator image 1.0 This isn’t very good. An 0/3 body just doesn’t stand up very well in this format, since all the Exert creatures can just manhandle it, and its ability to search up a basic land is clunky and slow. Sure, if you need fixing and/or ramp, you’ll play the cultivator, but you kind of hope you end up with some of the better ramp in the set, like Oasis Ritualist.
Soulstinger image 2.5 All on its own, Soulstinger is a 4-mana 2/3 that puts two -1/-1 counters on something when it dies. That’s the kind of card that can really create 2-for-1s, and that’s sort of the baseline here. You can also just play the Soulstinger as a larger creature if that’s what you need, and put the counters somewhere else.
Pack 2 Pick 13: Renewed Faith
Renewed Faith image 2.0 You will almost always end up cycling this. Two mana for 2 life and a card is pretty decent. Three mana for six life and no card isn’t, but you do have the option to do that, and sometimes you’ll want to – like if you’ll die without doing it.
Scarab Feast image 1.0 This format has a lot of graveyard stuff, but you still mostly won’t play this. The only reason it isn’t just a sideboard card is because of Cycling.
Pack 2 Pick 14: Anointer Priest
Anointer Priest image 2.5 This is a solid little token/embalm payoff. A two mana 1/3 isn’t great, but the bit of life gain it gets + the fact it comes back from the graveyard in the late game is pretty nice.
Pack 3 Pick 1: Magma Spray
Dusk image 3.0 In the right deck, Dusk can be fairly one-sided. Though, keep in mind, some opponents won’t have big enough creatures for Dusk to effect that much. Still, even if you just kill a single thing on your opponent’s board with the Dusk half, you’ll feel pretty good. Especially because you get the Dawn half in your graveyard to use later in the game.
Edifice of Authority image 4.0 This is great, and one of the better non-rare first picks in the format since it is colorless and powerful. At first, it can only stop a creature from attacking, but it does for only one mana, so that’s not too bad! Eventually, it gets enough brick counters to reach the point where you can just completely shut down a creature until your next turn, and that’s pretty awesome. You can use it offensively or defensively, and it is basically removal that can move from creature to creature as needed, and that’s awesome.
Honored Crop-Captain image 3.5 RW is very aggressive int his format, and Honored Crop-Captain is a big part of that! It has great stats as a two mana 3/2, and pumping the power of your whole board is quite potent, especially in combination with exert.
Liliana's Defeat image 0.5 This will be great against Black and terrible against everyone else. Leave this in your sideboard.
Dissenter's Deliverance image 1.0 There aren’t a ton of Artifacts in this set, but this does Cycle, so you’ll put it in your main deck some.
Marauding Boneslasher image 2.0 This has decent stats and a useful creature type, so you’ll play it a decent amount of the time.
Pursue Glory image 2.0 This is a very inefficient Trumpet Blast, but unlike Trumpet Blast it can actually do something even when you aren’t able to do lethal with it! You can cycle it away.
Binding Mummy image 3.0 This has a baseline of a 2-mana 2/2 and it has some very real upside. This set is loaded up with Zombies – and remember, anything that is Embalmed comes back as a zombie too, so the Binding Mummy tends to be quite good at tapping down blockers and letting you go all out.
Desert of the Mindful image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Strategic Planning image 1.0 You just won’t want to do this most of the time. It has a very minimal effect that doesn’t impact on the board, and it is very replaceable.
Magma Spray image 3.5 One mana for 2 damage is pretty much always premium, and Magma Spray can even deal with pesky embalm creatures permanently.
Lethal Sting image 2.5 This is a cheap way to kill any creature, and the downside can turn into upside in some situations. Still, the set up is real, and that makes it hard for it to be premium.
Greater Sandwurm image 2.5 This is a solid finisher, and when he’s not what you’re looking for, you can just cycle him away.
Horror of the Broken Lands image 3.0 In the early game, you can cycle this away, and in the late game it can be a very legitimate finisher in a deck with a reasonable amount of Cycling. It has a very reasonable floor, and a decent enough ceiling.
Pack 3 Pick 2: Open Fire
Nest of Scarabs image 0.0 // 3.0 Obviously, this is a build around, and one that will mostly only work in the BG deck, which is all about -1/-1 counters. If you have few or no ways to make counters, Nest of Scarabs is terrible. However, if you get there on a critical mass of -1/-1 counter cards, and it is doable in this format, Nest of Scarabs gets pretty crazy, since it will start spitting out a significant number of tokens.
Crocodile of the Crossing image 3.0 On its own, this is basically a 4-mana 4/3 with Haste, something quite reasonable! And of course, like all of these -1/-1 counter cards, you can put the counter on a different creature to make the Crocodile even larger.
Cryptic Serpent image 3.0 Lowering the cost of this to around 5 isn’t too difficult, and sometimes you’ll be able to go even lower. Still, it isn’t like you’ll be slamming this on turn three or four or anything like that.
Thorned Moloch image 2.5 When this attacks, it isn’t very hard for it to be a 3/3 with First Strike, and that’s not an easy creature to block.
Pursue Glory image 2.0 This is a very inefficient Trumpet Blast, but unlike Trumpet Blast it can actually do something even when you aren’t able to do lethal with it! You can cycle it away.
Open Fire image 4.0 This kills a ton of creatures in this format, and it can even go to the dome, so its definitely premium removal.
Binding Mummy image 3.0 This has a baseline of a 2-mana 2/2 and it has some very real upside. This set is loaded up with Zombies – and remember, anything that is Embalmed comes back as a zombie too, so the Binding Mummy tends to be quite good at tapping down blockers and letting you go all out.
Desert of the Indomitable image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Strategic Planning image 1.0 You just won’t want to do this most of the time. It has a very minimal effect that doesn’t impact on the board, and it is very replaceable.
Bitterbow Sharpshooters image 2.5 This thing has pretty good size to stop many of the creatures in this format, and also attacks pretty well.
Aven Initiate image 2.5 4-mana 3/2 flyers are okayish. Adding Embalm here is quite nice, since it will give you another copy of the Initiate in the late game, albeit at a very steep price.
Trespasser's Curse image 0.5 This doesn’t do anything apart from the life drain effect, and that just isn’t going to be worth a card most of the time.
Final Reward image 3.0 This is expensive, but it also answers any creature – and because it exiles them, it can even shut down annoying cards with Embalm. This is premium removal.
Pack 3 Pick 3: Sand Strangler
Sand Strangler image 4.0 This feels like Flame-Tongue Kavu most of the time in this format. It adds to your board while subtracting from your opponent’s, and that is always a big deal. Getting 2-3 deserts really isn’t that much of a challenge here, though if you have Sand Strangler and some other awesome Desert payoffs, you should probably try to get even more than that.
Gravedigger image 3.5 Gravedigger is always a pretty nice card in Limited, as he is very easy to create 2-for-1s with. In this format, he also has a very nice creature type!
Watchful Naga image 1.5 This has sub-par stats but a pretty nice Exert ability. Even if the Naga is dead to blockers when it attacks, you do at least get a card. The most ideal scenario, of course, is to attack when your opponent can only trade with it at best, in which case they find themselves having to just take the hit or get 2-for-1’d, but that situation isn’t around for a super long time in most games.
Zealot of the God-Pharaoh image 2.5 A 4-mana 4/3 is reasonable, and this has an ability that is a solid enough mana sink.
Unburden image 2.0 Mind Rot usually isn’t very good in Limited, but you can use that part of the card when its good, and Cycle it away when its not, which makes it somewhat playable.
Supply Caravan image 2.0 A 5-mana 3/5 isn’t something you want, but this will give you a 1/1 token like half of the time, and that makes it decent.
Aven of Enduring Hope image 2.5 A 5-mana 3/3 flyer isn’t great, but the +3 life effect plays surprisingly well in this format, and can help you stabilize while adding a flying threat to the board.
Spellweaver Eternal image 3.0 Afflict and Prowess on a two mana 2/1 is a pretty good deal. The Eternal will make sure it does damage to the opponent one way or another in most scenarios, and because of Prowess your opponent has to be pretty careful about how they block. This is yet another impressive two drop in a format that is loaded up with them!
Dissenter's Deliverance image 1.0 There aren’t a ton of Artifacts in this set, but this does Cycle, so you’ll put it in your main deck some.
Dauntless Aven image 2.5 A 3-mana 2/1 flyer is reasonably playable already, so adding the ability to untap something definitely matters. You can use this on the Aven itself, or more ideally, use it on an Exert creature so it can attack and Exert again on the very next turn.
Desert of the Fervent image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Blighted Bat image 2.0 A 3-mana 2/1 that can gain Haste is alright, and it comes with a useful creature type!
Pack 3 Pick 4: Ipnu Rivulet
Ipnu Rivulet image 2.5 This is the weakest of the cycle, mostly because milling isn’t that relevant in the format, but it is still a desert with some upside.
Wasteland Scorpion image 2.5 Deathtouchers can trade with anything, and that’s pretty nice! That does mostly make this a defensive card, though. And, like a lot of cards in the set, you can also cycle this away when it isn’t very good.
Initiate's Companion image 2.0 Thing is fine. A two mana 3/1 is, as usual, a decent aggro creature, and its combat damage to a player effect kind of matters. Its most notable use is untapping an exerted creature.
Soulstinger image 2.5 All on its own, Soulstinger is a 4-mana 2/3 that puts two -1/-1 counters on something when it dies. That’s the kind of card that can really create 2-for-1s, and that’s sort of the baseline here. You can also just play the Soulstinger as a larger creature if that’s what you need, and put the counters somewhere else.
Oasis Ritualist image 3.5 This card is really nice. It has enough toughness to stand up to most common Exert creatures, and it provides significant fixing and ramp.
Desert Cerodon image 2.5 Like a lot of creatures with cycling, this doesn’t have great stats, but the fact you can throw it away for a new card when the 6/4 isn’t worth it makes it pretty solid.
Zealot of the God-Pharaoh image 2.5 A 4-mana 4/3 is reasonable, and this has an ability that is a solid enough mana sink.
Forsake the Worldly image 1.5 Because of Cycling you can main deck this and have it be kind of okay. In an ideal world, you probably still start in your sideboard.
Mighty Leap image 1.5 This is always a decent trick that has the upside of giving you some reach in the late game.
Aerial Guide image 3.5 This is a great Common. Wind Drake stats are kind of passable, and giving another attacker Flying is a pretty big deal, and Aerial Guide can quickly account for a ton of damage as a result of that ability.
Strategic Planning image 1.0 You just won’t want to do this most of the time. It has a very minimal effect that doesn’t impact on the board, and it is very replaceable.
Pack 3 Pick 5: Magma Spray
Synchronized Strike image 2.5 Tricks with 2-for-1 potential are always nice, and that’s certainly what you have here. When you have this in your hand, you’ll be surprised how often you can just attack with everything and then use the Strike to blow up blockers and save your creatures. Because the creatures untap, it can also be used defensively, though that’s generally the sub-optimal use of the card.
Final Reward image 3.0 This is expensive, but it also answers any creature – and because it exiles them, it can even shut down annoying cards with Embalm. This is premium removal.
Hieroglyphic Illumination image 2.5 4 mana to draw 2 at instant speed isn’t the greatest thing ever, but this has an alternate mode where you pay a single Blue to draw a card, and having both of those options is pretty nice.
Bitterbow Sharpshooters image 2.5 This thing has pretty good size to stop many of the creatures in this format, and also attacks pretty well.
Naga Oracle image 1.0 This isn’t very good. A 4-mana 2/4 needs to do something pretty relevant to be good, and it just doesn’t. It gives you a bit of card selection/graveyard stocking, but that’s not really enough.
Oasis Ritualist image 3.5 This card is really nice. It has enough toughness to stand up to most common Exert creatures, and it provides significant fixing and ramp.
Winds of Rebuke image 2.5 Two mana to bounce a nonland permanent is always an okay card in Limited. It doesn’t let you trade 1-for-1 all the time, but the tempo is sometimes worth it. On occasion, you may also mill something useful into your graveyard.
Cartouche of Solidarity image 3.0 The whole Cartouche cycle is quite nice. +1/+1 and First Strike is already the kind of boost that makes a creature significantly more formidable, and this also makes sure to give you a spare 1/1 body, which helps the threat of a 2-for-1 not loom quite as large.
Magma Spray image 3.5 One mana for 2 damage is pretty much always premium, and Magma Spray can even deal with pesky embalm creatures permanently.
Forsake the Worldly image 1.5 Because of Cycling you can main deck this and have it be kind of okay. In an ideal world, you probably still start in your sideboard.
Pack 3 Pick 6: Sunscorched Desert
Gate to the Afterlife image 1.0 Gaining 1 life and looting every time a creature dies is decent, though probably not something you would play very often. I think the only one this becomes worth playing is if you also have God-Pharaoh’s Gift, since it can search it up.
Vile Manifestation image 2.0 This underwhelms as a Cycling payoff for the most part. This is largely because it doesn’t have any evasion to speak of. It will often start life as a two mana 0/4 and slowly grow, which isn’t terrible of course, but it is a pretty intense build around with a pretty mediocre ceiling.
Sunscorched Desert image 1.0 So, you mostly don’t play this Desert, since it isn’t good for your mana at all. However, sometimes you might end up in a mono-colored deck, and if its an aggressive mono-colored deck that has a few Desert payoffs, Sunscorched Desert actually makes the cut. That doesn’t happen a ton, but I’ve seen it happen a few times.
Bloodlust Inciter image 2.5 This kind of card isn’t always very good, but this format is fast enough that the Inciter is actually pretty decent. Giving Haste to every creature you play is quite nice, especially the ones that have scary Exert effects.
Floodwaters image 1.5 This kind of card is always kind of unimpressive. Sure, it can really enable a great attack, but until the extreme late game it won’t really do anything, and even then bouncing two creatures just won’t matter often enough. However, because this has Cycling, you can utilize this card when it is at its best, and just Cycle it away when it isn’t.
Wasteland Scorpion image 2.5 Deathtouchers can trade with anything, and that’s pretty nice! That does mostly make this a defensive card, though. And, like a lot of cards in the set, you can also cycle this away when it isn’t very good.
Bitterbow Sharpshooters image 2.5 This thing has pretty good size to stop many of the creatures in this format, and also attacks pretty well.
Spellweaver Eternal image 3.0 Afflict and Prowess on a two mana 2/1 is a pretty good deal. The Eternal will make sure it does damage to the opponent one way or another in most scenarios, and because of Prowess your opponent has to be pretty careful about how they block. This is yet another impressive two drop in a format that is loaded up with them!
Cartouche of Zeal image 3.0 There aren’t enough artifacts in this set for this to be remotely worth putting in your main deck.
Pack 3 Pick 7: Watchers of the Dead
Watchers of the Dead image 2.0 This is a two-mana 2/2 that can hate on the graveyard a bit in a set that has graveyard stuff, so its fine.
Farm image 3.5 This is a pretty impressive card. Neither half of these are exactly efficiently costed, but the fact that this card does both of these things is great. Farm lets you kill any attacking or blocking creature, and while htat’s somewhat restrictive, it does deal with anything that decides to enter combat in one way or another, and there’s a whole lot of that in this format. The Farm part likely would be a solid playable all on its own, so the Market half giving you a double loot effect in the later part of the game is really nice, and will improve your card quality.
Horror of the Broken Lands image 3.0 In the early game, you can cycle this away, and in the late game it can be a very legitimate finisher in a deck with a reasonable amount of Cycling. It has a very reasonable floor, and a decent enough ceiling.
Oasis Ritualist image 3.5 This card is really nice. It has enough toughness to stand up to most common Exert creatures, and it provides significant fixing and ramp.
Cartouche of Zeal image 3.0 There aren’t enough artifacts in this set for this to be remotely worth putting in your main deck.
Dauntless Aven image 2.5 A 3-mana 2/1 flyer is reasonably playable already, so adding the ability to untap something definitely matters. You can use this on the Aven itself, or more ideally, use it on an Exert creature so it can attack and Exert again on the very next turn.
Initiate's Companion image 2.0 Thing is fine. A two mana 3/1 is, as usual, a decent aggro creature, and its combat damage to a player effect kind of matters. Its most notable use is untapping an exerted creature.
Greater Sandwurm image 2.5 This is a solid finisher, and when he’s not what you’re looking for, you can just cycle him away.
Pack 3 Pick 8: Crash Through
Farm image 3.5 This is a pretty impressive card. Neither half of these are exactly efficiently costed, but the fact that this card does both of these things is great. Farm lets you kill any attacking or blocking creature, and while htat’s somewhat restrictive, it does deal with anything that decides to enter combat in one way or another, and there’s a whole lot of that in this format. The Farm part likely would be a solid playable all on its own, so the Market half giving you a double loot effect in the later part of the game is really nice, and will improve your card quality.
Vizier of Deferment image 2.0 This can be nice in conjunction with ETB abilities, or to remove an Aura based removal spell from one of your creatures, but those things just don’t seem to happen enough for this to be especially good.
Bloodlust Inciter image 2.5 This kind of card isn’t always very good, but this format is fast enough that the Inciter is actually pretty decent. Giving Haste to every creature you play is quite nice, especially the ones that have scary Exert effects.
Crash Through image 1.5 In the UR spell deck this is okay, as just triggering all your Prowess stuff and drawing a card, AND giving trample to your board is worth the one mana.
Spellweaver Eternal image 3.0 Afflict and Prowess on a two mana 2/1 is a pretty good deal. The Eternal will make sure it does damage to the opponent one way or another in most scenarios, and because of Prowess your opponent has to be pretty careful about how they block. This is yet another impressive two drop in a format that is loaded up with them!
Feral Prowler image 2.0 It is unfortunately pretty hard to trade Feral Prowler for anything, since basically all the best small creatures in the format can evade it or get to big when they are exerted. That doesn’t make it terrible, but it is definitely worse here than in most sets.
Aven of Enduring Hope image 2.5 A 5-mana 3/3 flyer isn’t great, but the +3 life effect plays surprisingly well in this format, and can help you stabilize while adding a flying threat to the board.
Pack 3 Pick 9: Desert of the Mindful
Liliana's Defeat image 0.5 This will be great against Black and terrible against everyone else. Leave this in your sideboard.
Dissenter's Deliverance image 1.0 There aren’t a ton of Artifacts in this set, but this does Cycle, so you’ll put it in your main deck some.
Pursue Glory image 2.0 This is a very inefficient Trumpet Blast, but unlike Trumpet Blast it can actually do something even when you aren’t able to do lethal with it! You can cycle it away.
Binding Mummy image 3.0 This has a baseline of a 2-mana 2/2 and it has some very real upside. This set is loaded up with Zombies – and remember, anything that is Embalmed comes back as a zombie too, so the Binding Mummy tends to be quite good at tapping down blockers and letting you go all out.
Desert of the Mindful image 3.0 Deserts are pretty important in this format. Not only do they provide some significant flood insurance thanks to Cycling, they also power up several cards in the format that pay you off for having Deserts. As a result, you should actually value them relatively highly, taking them over most medium cards.
Horror of the Broken Lands image 3.0 In the early game, you can cycle this away, and in the late game it can be a very legitimate finisher in a deck with a reasonable amount of Cycling. It has a very reasonable floor, and a decent enough ceiling.
Pack 3 Pick 10: Strategic Planning
Nest of Scarabs image 0.0 // 3.0 Obviously, this is a build around, and one that will mostly only work in the BG deck, which is all about -1/-1 counters. If you have few or no ways to make counters, Nest of Scarabs is terrible. However, if you get there on a critical mass of -1/-1 counter cards, and it is doable in this format, Nest of Scarabs gets pretty crazy, since it will start spitting out a significant number of tokens.
Thorned Moloch image 2.5 When this attacks, it isn’t very hard for it to be a 3/3 with First Strike, and that’s not an easy creature to block.
Pursue Glory image 2.0 This is a very inefficient Trumpet Blast, but unlike Trumpet Blast it can actually do something even when you aren’t able to do lethal with it! You can cycle it away.
Strategic Planning image 1.0 You just won’t want to do this most of the time. It has a very minimal effect that doesn’t impact on the board, and it is very replaceable.
Trespasser's Curse image 0.5 This doesn’t do anything apart from the life drain effect, and that just isn’t going to be worth a card most of the time.
Pack 3 Pick 11: Aven of Enduring Hope
Zealot of the God-Pharaoh image 2.5 A 4-mana 4/3 is reasonable, and this has an ability that is a solid enough mana sink.
Supply Caravan image 2.0 A 5-mana 3/5 isn’t something you want, but this will give you a 1/1 token like half of the time, and that makes it decent.
Aven of Enduring Hope image 2.5 A 5-mana 3/3 flyer isn’t great, but the +3 life effect plays surprisingly well in this format, and can help you stabilize while adding a flying threat to the board.
Dissenter's Deliverance image 1.0 There aren’t a ton of Artifacts in this set, but this does Cycle, so you’ll put it in your main deck some.
Pack 3 Pick 12: Forsake the Worldly
Desert Cerodon image 2.5 Like a lot of creatures with cycling, this doesn’t have great stats, but the fact you can throw it away for a new card when the 6/4 isn’t worth it makes it pretty solid.
Forsake the Worldly image 1.5 Because of Cycling you can main deck this and have it be kind of okay. In an ideal world, you probably still start in your sideboard.
Strategic Planning image 1.0 You just won’t want to do this most of the time. It has a very minimal effect that doesn’t impact on the board, and it is very replaceable.
Pack 3 Pick 13: Hieroglyphic Illumination
Hieroglyphic Illumination image 2.5 4 mana to draw 2 at instant speed isn’t the greatest thing ever, but this has an alternate mode where you pay a single Blue to draw a card, and having both of those options is pretty nice.
Winds of Rebuke image 2.5 Two mana to bounce a nonland permanent is always an okay card in Limited. It doesn’t let you trade 1-for-1 all the time, but the tempo is sometimes worth it. On occasion, you may also mill something useful into your graveyard.
Pack 3 Pick 14: Floodwaters
Floodwaters image 1.5 This kind of card is always kind of unimpressive. Sure, it can really enable a great attack, but until the extreme late game it won’t really do anything, and even then bouncing two creatures just won’t matter often enough. However, because this has Cycling, you can utilize this card when it is at its best, and just Cycle it away when it isn’t.
Draft Pick Overview