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Premier Draft MID 23 September 2021

23 September 08:37 - Jollto13 7 Wins - 2 Losses
Maindeck
Creature (19)
1 Jadar, Ghoulcaller of Nephalia image
1 Ritual Guardian image
1 Mourning Patrol // Morning Apparition image
1 Liesa, Forgotten Archangel image
2 Fleshtaker image
1 Hobbling Zombie image
2 Siege Zombie image
1 Candlegrove Witch image
1 Clarion Cathars image
3 Gavony Silversmith image
1 Ecstatic Awakener // Awoken Demon image
1 Shady Traveler // Stalking Predator image
1 Unruly Mob image
1 Gavony Trapper image
1 Ambitious Farmhand // Seasoned Cathar image
Instant, Sorcery, Enchantment, Artifact (5)
1 Rotten Reunion image
1 Crawl from the Cellar image
1 Eaten Alive image
1 Olivia's Midnight Ambush image
1 Defenestrate image
Land (16)
8 Swamp image
8 Plains image
Sideboard
1 Candlegrove Witch image
1 Arrogant Outlaw image
2 Vampire Interloper image
1 Stromkirk Bloodthief image
1 Candlelit Cavalry image
1 Festival Crasher image
1 Rootcoil Creeper image
1 Immolation image
1 Duress image
1 Devious Cover-Up image
1 Blood Pact image
1 Join the Dance image
1 Angelfire Ignition image
1 Sacred Fire image
1 Bladebrand image
1 Burn the Accursed image
1 Overgrown Farmland image

Pack 1 Pick 1: Liesa, Forgotten Archangel
Liesa, Forgotten Archangel image 5.0 A 5-mana ⅘ with Flying and Lifelink would always make the cut in your deck. It would probably be a B at worst -- that’s a great French Vanilla creature! Liesa also has the ability to return creatures of yours that die to your hand, and she also hates on graveyard strategies a bit by exiling your opponents creatures when she dies. That’s a lot of action, and she’s definitely a bomb. She even impacts the board righta way sometimes, where you can suddenly attack because you know your creatures will come back when they trade! And, if you untap with her in play, she’s going to start making the race impossible for your opponent
Infernal Grasp image 4.0 This is obviously incredible. An Instant that kills a creature for only two mana is incredible, and there aren’t even any limitations here like we usually see. Now, you do have to have 2 life, but that’s not really a big ask. This is a candidate for best Uncommon in the set.
Spellrune Painter image 3.5 A 3-mana ⅔ that gets +1/+1 when you cast an instant or sorcery is a pretty solid little card to begin with. It has the kind of stats that make it kind of a pain to block or attack into against an opponent who has mana up and cards in hand. It would probably be a C if that’s all this card was. But, of course, its a werewolf, and if its night time, you get a bigger creature that gets even bigger when you cast an Instant or Sorcery! This thing looks like it will be a real beating.
Foul Play image 3.0 So, it is somewhat narrow in what it can kill, but the fact it gives you a Clue token is massive, since it will mean a 2-for-1. This card sort of pulls me in two directions -- on the one hand, there will be a lot of creatures it can’t kill, bu on the other -- there will still be a significant number of creatures it can kill. So, is it premium? I’m inclined to say it falls a little bit short. IT will certainly feel great to kill something with, but even with the extra card, it is narrow enough that it doesn’t quite get there for me.
Falcon Abomination image 3.0 This is a Wind Drake with some reasonable upside. Obviously this Zombie token doesn’t give you quite as much value as most Zombie tokens, but it still adds to the board in a way that will have at least some impact. The two bodies will be nice sacrifice fodder, and they’ll also just be good at pressuring your opponent.
Gavony Silversmith image 2.5 If you have at least one other creature in play, you’re getting a 4-mana ¾ and putting another counter on a creature who can attack that turn, and that’s a solid enough deal. Sometimes you’ll be able to add 2/2 to the board that can attack right away too. It can also help you get coven by diversifying your creatures’ power.
No Way Out image 1.0 Tacking a Decay zombie on to Mind Rot isn’t that great, especially in a format where people will happily discard many of their cards.
Evolving Wilds image 3.0 This is always really nice fixing, and I tend to like it even more than the rare dual lands here, especially because it throws itself in the graveyard and that definitely matters in this set.
Bird Admirer image 2.5 A 3 mana ¼ with Reach makes the cut reasonably often in most Limited formats, and this will sometimes be a much larger creature. Seems like a solid Common to me! I’m giving it a 2.5.
Falkenrath Perforator image 2.5 In a set where this had no synergy at all, this would probably be a 1.5. The stats aren’t good, and the 1 damage just isn’t enough to make up for that. However, this set’s BR archetype has a lot of cards that give you extra effects if your opponent lost life, and this is one way you can make that happen. Plus, its a vampire, and while the tribal themes for vampires aren’t massive int his set, they are still there! I think all of that is enough to bump this up to a solid playable.
Geistwave image 2.5 This is a neat design for a bounce spell.. Bouncing an opposing nonland permanent for two mana is usually a decent card. It doesn’t give you the value of a whole card unless you use it in response to a trick or something, but it gives you some reasonable tempo and has that blow out upside. Using this to bounce your own thing is actually pretty interesting, since you do net a card, and if what you’re bouncing gives you some value from bouncing it, that’s going to feel pretty good! Especially if you do it in response to removal or something like that. Its probably just a C, but the “bounce your own stuff” upside is very real.
Duel for Dominance image 2.5 This isn’t going to be premium removal. It will simply be 1G to Fight often enough that it just can’t get there. When you do get the +1/+1 bonus it will feel good for sure, and if it always did that, it would be premium, but as it is, I think it falls short of that designation. Its still decent Green removal of course, but not the kind you go after super hard.
Jack-o'-Lantern image 1.5 Well, if this set wasn’t screaming “Halloween!” at you already, it is now! This card looks kind of alright for Limited. Exiling a problem card in a graveyard and drawing a card for a total investment of two mana really isn’t that bad, and then it is fixing from your graveyard too, which seems fine. I definitely don’t think you always run this, but it seems like it will be your 23rd card sometimes, especially if you’re interested in the fixing.
Candlegrove Witch image 2.5 This is a Bear that will often, though not always, have flying in the late game. Flying helps it stay relevant throughout the game, which is nice. Seems like a solid two drop.
Pack 1 Pick 2: Fleshtaker
Stromkirk Bloodthief image 3.5 Gray Ogre stats are always ugly, but this does some pretty real stuff! If you play it in your second main phase and end your turn, you’ll get that counter a decent chunk of the time. Keep in mind too, it can put the counter on itself, so you don’t even have to be all in on Vampire tribal to make use of the ability. It is a 2/2 that can grow throughout the game, and when you have other vampires around, it gets even better. You won’t always be able to damage your opponent of course, but both Black and Red are pretty well equipped with nice ways to do it.
Fleshtaker image 4.0 This looks like a pretty strong signpost Uncommon. It starts with solid base stats, and every time it attacks your opponent really has to take stock of just how big it might become! On top of that, it is a more general sacrifice payoff, which works with itself as well as other cards, and gaining life and scrying is pretty nice additional value to add to sacrifices.
Mystic Skull image 2.5 Two mana for an artifact that filters is horrendous! If that’s all this was, it would be a 0.0. Obviously though, this is Innistrad, so this can transform into a scary thing -- Mystic Monstrosity. The Monstrosity not only has some pretty nice stats, it also provides great fixing. This is neat, because filtering usually isn’t very good in Limited, though it can help you out in a pinch, so the fact this turns into much better fixing is cool! Your total investment of 7 mana is a bit steep for a ⅚ of course, but it isn’t too crazy either, and you pay it installments. Note too, that this can be transformed at Instant speed, something that certainly matters.
Falkenrath Perforator image 2.5 In a set where this had no synergy at all, this would probably be a 1.5. The stats aren’t good, and the 1 damage just isn’t enough to make up for that. However, this set’s BR archetype has a lot of cards that give you extra effects if your opponent lost life, and this is one way you can make that happen. Plus, its a vampire, and while the tribal themes for vampires aren’t massive int his set, they are still there! I think all of that is enough to bump this up to a solid playable.
Burn the Accursed image 2.5 This isn’t exactly premium, but is an instant that kills most stuff, damages your opponent, and even exiles creatures, which certainly matters here.
Bat Whisperer image 2.5 If this always gave you a bat, it would be at least a 3.5. One nice thing about the bat too is that it might help you enable future cards that give you a bonus if your opponent has lost life on a particular turn. Sometimes it will be a 4-mana 4/2 though, and that’s pretty bad.
Clarion Cathars image 2.5 We see this basic card a lot, and its always solid. Two bodies for four mana is nice, and the reasonable stats distributed across them is pretty good.
Candletrap image 3.0 This is pretty cheap removal. Before you get Coven online, it definitely isn’t great removal, because allowing the creature to still block is usually not what you want to be doing. It can’t do damage at least, but it still a presence on the board, and that means you aren’t trading a full 1-for-1. But its nice than in the later game, you can just get rid of that creature entirely. Still, it is probably a little too slow and clunky to be premium.
Drownyard Amalgam image 2.0 This sets up some graveyard value for you and has a decent defensive body, not to mention an ability that will sometimes help you close out a game. A lot of the time though, it just won’t do enough. Seems reasonable in some controlling decks.
Candlelit Cavalry image 2.5 On a base level, this is a 5-mana 5/5, something that makes the cut in some Green decks anyway, and it will gain trample sometimes. Seems decent enough.
Neonate's Rush image 2.5 When you manage to kill a creature with this, it is going to feel incredible. When you can’t, this is less true. However, it is an enabler for all the pseudo-bloodthirst in the format and it replaces itself, AND it will often only cost two mana, making the outcome a lot more palatable.
Lunarch Veteran image 2.5 A two mana 1/1 with the life gain effect certainly isn’t impressive. The Disturb effect really matters though, as getting back a flyer that can also gain you some life. Neither half of this card is going to be letting you trade very often because they are so small, but this still seems like a solid Common.
Shipwreck Sifters image 1.5 A two mana ½ who loots is fine, and this one can get bigger. I don’t think you’ll want to discard a spirit or a card with Disturb to it all that often, since the power of those cards is often in the fact that you get the two bodies, but you’ll discard those things sometimes and it’ll get bigger.
Pack 1 Pick 3: Overgrown Farmland
Overgrown Farmland image 3.0 Like with virtually every Rare dual land cycle, these are pretty nice for fixing, and you’ll take them over most medium cards, but you don’t want to go after them super hard or anything.
Arcane Infusion image 2.0 This is UR’s signpost uncommon, and it tells you that you want to jam a ton of instants and sorceries into your deck. If you can do that, you end up with something pretty nice. If you can’t do that, this will be pretty ugly, because you can’t really afford to wiff with it on either activation. Still, getting 10ish spells is pretty doable, especially in UR. Over the course of a game, you can end up getting a 2-for-1 thanks to the Flashback too! I could give it a build around grade, but I think that UR decks will naturally find themselves with the right composition often enough that we don’t need to go there. That said, it also isn’t a signpost uncommon that pulls you into the color pair, either.
Shipwreck Sifters image 1.5 A two mana ½ who loots is fine, and this one can get bigger. I don’t think you’ll want to discard a spirit or a card with Disturb to it all that often, since the power of those cards is often in the fact that you get the two bodies, but you’ll discard those things sometimes and it’ll get bigger.
Candlelit Cavalry image 2.5 On a base level, this is a 5-mana 5/5, something that makes the cut in some Green decks anyway, and it will gain trample sometimes. Seems decent enough.
Neonate's Rush image 2.5 When you manage to kill a creature with this, it is going to feel incredible. When you can’t, this is less true. However, it is an enabler for all the pseudo-bloodthirst in the format and it replaces itself, AND it will often only cost two mana, making the outcome a lot more palatable.
Galedrifter image 3.0 This isn’t quite a hard counter, but its pretty close, and adding to the board while you counter a thing isn’t bad, even if what you’re adding is a token that can’t block and can only attack once. 55 – Galedrifter – 3.0 A 4-mana 3/2 Flyer is a 1.5, so getting a second body out of this, even if it isn’t the most efficient one when you Disturb it, is going to be some nice additional value.
Morkrut Behemoth image 2.5 The idea here is to sacrifice something to it that isn’t a big deal, like a Zombie token, and if you do that then yeah – a 7/6 with Menace on turn 5 is pretty imposing. You can also just straight up pay 7 for it, which isn’t great but its not a disaster either. This seems like some decent top curve for some Black decks in the format – especially UB and BW – but I think you’ll find you cut it a pretty significant chunk of the time for cards that are just better.
Festival Crasher image 0.5 // 2.5 This has a very mediocre baseline. A two mana ⅓ these days is probably a D-. It does have some real upside though, and the threat of activation is pretty real! If your opponent just has a 2/2, and you attack with this and leave mana up, they just can’t afford to block it! Chaining multiple spells together is obviously the dream, but don’t count on doing that a ton in Limited. This will make the cut in decks with a decent number of spells, and probably be something you pass on in any other deck.
Consider image 1.5 This format has a spells matter deck in UR and it has various graveyard synergies, so this seems like a decent inclusion. It is a lot like Opt, and that’s not a bad comparison! That said, it is also pretty darn replaceable, especially if you’re not in a deck that cares about the graveyard or spells, and it will often be an easy card to cut in those situations.
Otherworldly Gaze image 0.5 Loading the graveyard is important in this format, its true, but a card that pretty much only does that, while giving you some card selection, isn’t something I’m interested in. You never get the card back. There are so many cards that load the graveyard while doing actual other things!
Flare of Faith image 2.0 This seems like a decent trick if you’re a White aggro deck with lots of Humans in it. It gives a decent stats boost that will often allow your creature to win combat. Two mana for just +2/+2 is pretty mediocre for a trick, but the Human upside will make it worth running often enough
Dawnhart Rejuvenator image 3.0 We have basically seen this card before -- Centaur Nurturer in War of the Spark, and it was pretty nice. It gives you fixing, and while it might not be the most imposing creature, the life it gains you can help you get to your next turn, where you can make use of that mana.
Pack 1 Pick 4: Hobbling Zombie
Sacred Fire image 3.5 This is pretty good. It kills small things and gains you life, which is a good way to respond to your opponents two or three drops. Then, in the late game, you can use it out of your graveyard. And yes, it isn’t efficient when you flash it back, but as I keep saying, that doesn’t really matter! This gives you something to do with your mana late if you run out of gas, and it is a pretty real effect. I think the whole package here is good enough to be premium removal.
Delver of Secrets image 1.0 // 3.0 Obviously, this is a multi-format all star in constructed and one of the best creatures ever printed. This is because in constructed, you can make a deck where it is trivially easy to flip this, effectively making it a one mana 3/2 with Flying. In Limited that’s...not going to be quite as easy. Even a spell deck that really gets there probably has 10 Instants and Sorceries, so yeah. It will usually take a few triggers to flip. The good news is, a 3/2 Flyer is relevant pretty much all game long, so even if you play this on turn one and it doesn’t flip until turn 4, you’re going to feel okay about it. Thing is, though, if you’ve just got like 3-5 spells, this is unplayable. I think this needs a buildaround grade as a result. It is probably going to be a D or worse in your typical Blue deck, but if you 10+ Instants and Sorceries, it is a quality card.
Drownyard Amalgam image 2.0 This sets up some graveyard value for you and has a decent defensive body, not to mention an ability that will sometimes help you close out a game. A lot of the time though, it just won’t do enough. Seems reasonable in some controlling decks.
Burn the Accursed image 2.5 This isn’t exactly premium, but is an instant that kills most stuff, damages your opponent, and even exiles creatures, which certainly matters here.
Bird Admirer image 2.5 A 3 mana ¼ with Reach makes the cut reasonably often in most Limited formats, and this will sometimes be a much larger creature. Seems like a solid Common to me! I’m giving it a 2.5.
Pestilent Wolf image 2.5 That’s a lot of mana to give a bear Deathtouch! Still, it starts out as a two mana 2/2, and has the ability to trade with anything later in the game. Wolf is also a somewhat useful creature type. I think the whole package is probably a 2.5
Thraben Exorcism image 0.5 Against some opponents this will feel really good -- namely, against UW -- but against other decks it just won’t have targets often enough to be worth it.
Hobbling Zombie image 3.0 We often see 3-mana 2/2s with Deathtouch, and they are usually like a C. The ability to trade for anything is nice, after all! But this can do that and make a Zombie token. Obviously, it is a big down grade from a regular 2/2 zombie, but it is still enough additional upside for this to move up to 3.0.
Clarion Cathars image 2.5 We see this basic card a lot, and its always solid. Two bodies for four mana is nice, and the reasonable stats distributed across them is pretty good.
Timberland Guide image 3.0 This is a reprint, and even if it wasn’t, we see cards like this a lot, and I also like them a decent amount. They are nice as two drops, as they can be two mana 2/2s, and then in the later game you can put the counter somewhere more relevant. There isn’t a +1/+1 counter deck in this format, but the counter this guy brings with him can really help you set up Coven, since you add him to the board and put the counter somewhere else, and you’re already 2/3 of the way there!
Component Collector image 1.5 This has decent stats and an ability that will give you a bit of value, though it certainly isn’t exciting
Pack 1 Pick 5: Siege Zombie
Grizzly Ghoul image 3.0 A 4-mana 4/3 with Trample is already pretty decent, though not incredible, especially for two colors of mana. Still, that’s the baseline of this card. On a lot of turn 4s, creatures go down, so this being a 5/4 or even a 6/5 after a trade isn’t exactly far-fetched. There will also be times where it is just absolutely massive, but don’t count on that happening super often. So yeah, there’s a reasonable baseline here, and a pretty nice ceiling.
Voldaren Ambusher image 2.5 On its own, this will sometimes just be a 3-mana 2/2 that does 1 to a thing. If that’s what it always was, it would be solid, but there are some significant hoops to jump through. First, your opponent has to have lost life some way. Most typically, that will be from an attack, but there are also other means that allow you to do that. Second, you can upgrade it if you have enough vampires. I do think this BR deck will be a real pain to play against sometimes, because you might just end up having to block more riskily in some situations to keep a card like this from being really good. But yeah, this does have a super high ceiling, where it will feel like Flame-Tongue Kavu, but sometimes it will just be a Gray Ogre, and that’s abysmal. I think that awful floor really holds it back.
Dawnhart Rejuvenator image 3.0 We have basically seen this card before -- Centaur Nurturer in War of the Spark, and it was pretty nice. It gives you fixing, and while it might not be the most imposing creature, the life it gains you can help you get to your next turn, where you can make use of that mana.
Burn the Accursed image 2.5 This isn’t exactly premium, but is an instant that kills most stuff, damages your opponent, and even exiles creatures, which certainly matters here.
Duel for Dominance image 2.5 This isn’t going to be premium removal. It will simply be 1G to Fight often enough that it just can’t get there. When you do get the +1/+1 bonus it will feel good for sure, and if it always did that, it would be premium, but as it is, I think it falls short of that designation. Its still decent Green removal of course, but not the kind you go after super hard.
Unblinking Observer image 2.5 This will help you cast enough stuff that it seems like a solid Common. It fits nicely in the UR spells deck and the UW deck, which will be the most disturb heavy deck in the format. I’m giving it a 2.5.
Startle image 2.0 I don’t normally play most Blue “combat tricks” that shrink the power of a creature, but this tacks on enough additional stuff that it seems like it will be pretty solid. The problem with this kind of card is it isn’t always possible for you to trade card-for-card with it, since your creature has to already be big enough to kill the other creature. However, this lets you draw a card and makes you a Decay Zombie, and that’s quite a bit for only two mana! The times where you are able to use this card to help you kill an opposing creature it will feel insane!
Arrogant Outlaw image 2.0 When this is just a 3-mana 3/2, it won’t feel great. But sometimes, it will drain the opponent two life, which will feel like you’re getting your mana’s worth. You’ll probably cut this a significant chunk of the time, but playing it isn’t a disaster.
Bat Whisperer image 2.5 If this always gave you a bat, it would be at least a 3.5. One nice thing about the bat too is that it might help you enable future cards that give you a bonus if your opponent has lost life on a particular turn. Sometimes it will be a 4-mana 4/2 though, and that’s pretty bad.
Siege Zombie image 2.0 This seems passable, as in the early game it has alright stats, and in the late game it can be a real source of reach. It can also help you activate cards that give you a bonus if an opponent has lost life. Still, it does ask for a lot to make the opponent lose that 1 life, and it just won’t always be doable.
Pack 1 Pick 6: Immolation
Flame Channeler image 2.5 So, in Limited, you generally just won’t have enough spells that do damage for this to be super easy to transform. It is still a two mana 2/2 with the upside of becoming a 3/3, but then you have to cast more burn spells to actually get more than just the 3/3. This definitely feels more like a constructed card than a Limited card because of those limitations.
Famished Foragers image 3.0 A 4-mana 4/3 is sort of passable already, and this will often be able to come down and give you some mana, which -- if nothing else, you can use to rummage using its ability. Sometimes, it will enable a pretty impressive double spell turn too, which will feel amazing. You won’t always be making that happen, but the card has a very reasonable baseline and a pretty nice ceiling.
Shipwreck Sifters image 1.5 A two mana ½ who loots is fine, and this one can get bigger. I don’t think you’ll want to discard a spirit or a card with Disturb to it all that often, since the power of those cards is often in the fact that you get the two bodies, but you’ll discard those things sometimes and it’ll get bigger.
Flip the Switch image 1.5 This isn’t quite a hard counter, but its pretty close, and adding to the board while you counter a thing isn’t bad, even if what you’re adding is a token that can’t block and can only attack once.
Devious Cover-Up image 1.0 This is a hard counter, but four mana is a ton to have to have available at the right time, and the additional value this gives you just isn’t going to make up for that.
Immolation image 2.5 This is like Red “Dead Weight.” It isn’t quite as good as Dead Weight is, at least as removal, because you don’t really want to pumping the power of a creature -- you want to be outright killing it. But it does have the additional upside of pumping your larger evasive creature so that you can do lethal or something. I do think the ability to kill X/2s for a single mana is pretty nice, but this definitely isn’t premium removal.
No Way Out image 1.0 Tacking a Decay zombie on to Mind Rot isn’t that great, especially in a format where people will happily discard many of their cards.
Festival Crasher image 0.5 // 2.5 This has a very mediocre baseline. A two mana ⅓ these days is probably a D-. It does have some real upside though, and the threat of activation is pretty real! If your opponent just has a 2/2, and you attack with this and leave mana up, they just can’t afford to block it! Chaining multiple spells together is obviously the dream, but don’t count on doing that a ton in Limited. This will make the cut in decks with a decent number of spells, and probably be something you pass on in any other deck.
Path to the Festival image 2.0 This is pretty clunky since it doesn't add to the board at all. It can do it again from the graveyard though, which can potentially really turbo your mana. It is also reasonable fixing, and if you're splashing a third color, that Scry will be nice.
Pack 1 Pick 7: Rotten Reunion
Turn the Earth image 0.5 This is mostly here to hate on graveyards. And, even in a format with lots of graveyard stuff going on, I don’t love it. It has one pretty narrow purpose that just isn’t worth using up a card for in a Limited deck. This is for the sideboard. It will be an F in your main deck, and maybe a C- against an opponent who has lots of graveyard shenanigans, but even then I’m not super interested in this.
Lambholt Harrier image 2.0 This is a Bear that stays relevant all game long thanks to its ability. Now, that ability is pretty pricey, and you’ll normally only be able to make one thing unable to block, but it is an ability your opponent has to account for in the late game, as making one thing unable to block can really help someone find lethal out of nowhere.
Immolation image 2.5 This is like Red “Dead Weight.” It isn’t quite as good as Dead Weight is, at least as removal, because you don’t really want to pumping the power of a creature -- you want to be outright killing it. But it does have the additional upside of pumping your larger evasive creature so that you can do lethal or something. I do think the ability to kill X/2s for a single mana is pretty nice, but this definitely isn’t premium removal.
Pack's Betrayal image 1.0 Rummaging a few times a came with this seems fine, but not exactly game breaking. It does have decent stats to go along with that ability.
Crossroads Candleguide image 1.0 You’ll play it you’re desperate for a creature or fixing, but you really hope you don’t have to, because it doesn’t do either thing particularly well.
Otherworldly Gaze image 0.5 Loading the graveyard is important in this format, its true, but a card that pretty much only does that, while giving you some card selection, isn’t something I’m interested in. You never get the card back. There are so many cards that load the graveyard while doing actual other things!
Rotten Reunion image 1.5 Hating on a couple graveyard cards and getting a couple of Zombies that can either pressure your opponent or act as sacrifice fodder seems alright for a three mana investment.
Might of the Old Ways image 2.0 This looks like a decent enough trick. Two mana for +2/+2 isn’t incredible, but when you can make the Coven thing happen, it turns into a draw spell, which will often mean a 2-for-1. You’ll end up playing this in aggressive Green decks.
Pack 1 Pick 8: Crawl from the Cellar
Pithing Needle image 0.0 This is a great card for constructed sideboards, but its terrible in Limited. Your opponent won’t frequently have a card worth naming, and even when they do, the card is hardly worth it because it will only shut down some small part of most cards in Limited, and that’s not worth spending a card on most of the time. It does shut down planeswalkers entirely -- but, again -- not really a thing to worry too much about in Limited.
Crawl from the Cellar image 2.0 This is an interesting take on the usual Sorcery that lets you return two creatures to your hand. The first time you cast this, the value is going to be pretty nice, provided you have a zombie, as it effectively replaces itself while making a creature bigger. The second time is less efficient, but in the you pay 5 mana for a 2-for-1 and two +1/+1 counters, which actually isn’t too bad. Now, you really would prefer to be putting these counters on zombies that don’t have decay to get full value out of them, but a significant chunk of the time that’s probably where the counter goes, and you may also just not have anywhere to put the counter in the first place.
Otherworldly Gaze image 0.5 Loading the graveyard is important in this format, its true, but a card that pretty much only does that, while giving you some card selection, isn’t something I’m interested in. You never get the card back. There are so many cards that load the graveyard while doing actual other things!
Crossroads Candleguide image 1.0 You’ll play it you’re desperate for a creature or fixing, but you really hope you don’t have to, because it doesn’t do either thing particularly well.
Mounted Dreadknight image 2.0 This has a decent baseline, and sometimes it will be especially big. Not a bad thing to have at the top of your curve.
Unblinking Observer image 2.5 This will help you cast enough stuff that it seems like a solid Common. It fits nicely in the UR spells deck and the UW deck, which will be the most disturb heavy deck in the format. I’m giving it a 2.5.
Ritual Guardian image 2.0 If this was a 3-mana 3/2 that always had Lifelink, it would probably be a 2.5 or 3.0. The fact this won’t always have it, and in fact probably won’t have it a decent chunk of the time, makes this significanlty worse than that, because a 3-mana 3/2 is just an ugly stat line these days.
Pack 1 Pick 9: Candlegrove Witch
Spellrune Painter image 3.5 A 3-mana ⅔ that gets +1/+1 when you cast an instant or sorcery is a pretty solid little card to begin with. It has the kind of stats that make it kind of a pain to block or attack into against an opponent who has mana up and cards in hand. It would probably be a C if that’s all this card was. But, of course, its a werewolf, and if its night time, you get a bigger creature that gets even bigger when you cast an Instant or Sorcery! This thing looks like it will be a real beating.
No Way Out image 1.0 Tacking a Decay zombie on to Mind Rot isn’t that great, especially in a format where people will happily discard many of their cards.
Falkenrath Perforator image 2.5 In a set where this had no synergy at all, this would probably be a 1.5. The stats aren’t good, and the 1 damage just isn’t enough to make up for that. However, this set’s BR archetype has a lot of cards that give you extra effects if your opponent lost life, and this is one way you can make that happen. Plus, its a vampire, and while the tribal themes for vampires aren’t massive int his set, they are still there! I think all of that is enough to bump this up to a solid playable.
Geistwave image 2.5 This is a neat design for a bounce spell.. Bouncing an opposing nonland permanent for two mana is usually a decent card. It doesn’t give you the value of a whole card unless you use it in response to a trick or something, but it gives you some reasonable tempo and has that blow out upside. Using this to bounce your own thing is actually pretty interesting, since you do net a card, and if what you’re bouncing gives you some value from bouncing it, that’s going to feel pretty good! Especially if you do it in response to removal or something like that. Its probably just a C, but the “bounce your own stuff” upside is very real.
Jack-o'-Lantern image 1.5 Well, if this set wasn’t screaming “Halloween!” at you already, it is now! This card looks kind of alright for Limited. Exiling a problem card in a graveyard and drawing a card for a total investment of two mana really isn’t that bad, and then it is fixing from your graveyard too, which seems fine. I definitely don’t think you always run this, but it seems like it will be your 23rd card sometimes, especially if you’re interested in the fixing.
Candlegrove Witch image 2.5 This is a Bear that will often, though not always, have flying in the late game. Flying helps it stay relevant throughout the game, which is nice. Seems like a solid two drop.
Pack 1 Pick 10: Clarion Cathars
Burn the Accursed image 2.5 This isn’t exactly premium, but is an instant that kills most stuff, damages your opponent, and even exiles creatures, which certainly matters here.
Bat Whisperer image 2.5 If this always gave you a bat, it would be at least a 3.5. One nice thing about the bat too is that it might help you enable future cards that give you a bonus if your opponent has lost life on a particular turn. Sometimes it will be a 4-mana 4/2 though, and that’s pretty bad.
Clarion Cathars image 2.5 We see this basic card a lot, and its always solid. Two bodies for four mana is nice, and the reasonable stats distributed across them is pretty good.
Neonate's Rush image 2.5 When you manage to kill a creature with this, it is going to feel incredible. When you can’t, this is less true. However, it is an enabler for all the pseudo-bloodthirst in the format and it replaces itself, AND it will often only cost two mana, making the outcome a lot more palatable.
Shipwreck Sifters image 1.5 A two mana ½ who loots is fine, and this one can get bigger. I don’t think you’ll want to discard a spirit or a card with Disturb to it all that often, since the power of those cards is often in the fact that you get the two bodies, but you’ll discard those things sometimes and it’ll get bigger.
Pack 1 Pick 11: Candlelit Cavalry
Arcane Infusion image 2.0 This is UR’s signpost uncommon, and it tells you that you want to jam a ton of instants and sorceries into your deck. If you can do that, you end up with something pretty nice. If you can’t do that, this will be pretty ugly, because you can’t really afford to wiff with it on either activation. Still, getting 10ish spells is pretty doable, especially in UR. Over the course of a game, you can end up getting a 2-for-1 thanks to the Flashback too! I could give it a build around grade, but I think that UR decks will naturally find themselves with the right composition often enough that we don’t need to go there. That said, it also isn’t a signpost uncommon that pulls you into the color pair, either.
Candlelit Cavalry image 2.5 On a base level, this is a 5-mana 5/5, something that makes the cut in some Green decks anyway, and it will gain trample sometimes. Seems decent enough.
Festival Crasher image 0.5 // 2.5 This has a very mediocre baseline. A two mana ⅓ these days is probably a D-. It does have some real upside though, and the threat of activation is pretty real! If your opponent just has a 2/2, and you attack with this and leave mana up, they just can’t afford to block it! Chaining multiple spells together is obviously the dream, but don’t count on doing that a ton in Limited. This will make the cut in decks with a decent number of spells, and probably be something you pass on in any other deck.
Otherworldly Gaze image 0.5 Loading the graveyard is important in this format, its true, but a card that pretty much only does that, while giving you some card selection, isn’t something I’m interested in. You never get the card back. There are so many cards that load the graveyard while doing actual other things!
Pack 1 Pick 12: Sacred Fire
Sacred Fire image 3.5 This is pretty good. It kills small things and gains you life, which is a good way to respond to your opponents two or three drops. Then, in the late game, you can use it out of your graveyard. And yes, it isn’t efficient when you flash it back, but as I keep saying, that doesn’t really matter! This gives you something to do with your mana late if you run out of gas, and it is a pretty real effect. I think the whole package here is good enough to be premium removal.
Thraben Exorcism image 0.5 Against some opponents this will feel really good -- namely, against UW -- but against other decks it just won’t have targets often enough to be worth it.
Component Collector image 1.5 This has decent stats and an ability that will give you a bit of value, though it certainly isn’t exciting
Pack 1 Pick 13: Arrogant Outlaw
Burn the Accursed image 2.5 This isn’t exactly premium, but is an instant that kills most stuff, damages your opponent, and even exiles creatures, which certainly matters here.
Arrogant Outlaw image 2.0 When this is just a 3-mana 3/2, it won’t feel great. But sometimes, it will drain the opponent two life, which will feel like you’re getting your mana’s worth. You’ll probably cut this a significant chunk of the time, but playing it isn’t a disaster.
Pack 1 Pick 14: Festival Crasher
Festival Crasher image 0.5 // 2.5 This has a very mediocre baseline. A two mana ⅓ these days is probably a D-. It does have some real upside though, and the threat of activation is pretty real! If your opponent just has a 2/2, and you attack with this and leave mana up, they just can’t afford to block it! Chaining multiple spells together is obviously the dream, but don’t count on doing that a ton in Limited. This will make the cut in decks with a decent number of spells, and probably be something you pass on in any other deck.
Pack 2 Pick 1: Vampire Interloper
Croaking Counterpart image 2.5 This is a fun card, and a nice callback to Cackling Counterpart. However, it doesn’t seem incredible in Limited. Three mana to make a 1/1 copy of a thing will sometimes not feel too badd -- like if a creature has a bunch of abilities and stuff, but there will be plenty of times where paying 3 for that 1/1 doesn’t accomplish much other than making a chump blocker. Even with Flashback, I don’t see this lining up well regularly enough to be very good. It certainly has a high ceiling, one dependent on what is in play, but the floor isn’t so good.
Fangblade Brigand image 4.0 Just the Human side would be something you always play! It has passable base stats a very real activated ability that will make it a challenge to attack into or block And then, when it transforms, it becomes even more imposing, adding +1/+1 and an additional powerful activated ability.
Diregraf Rebirth image 3.0 5 mana to reanimate thing from your graveyard normally isn’t a great card in Limited -- but this has two things going on that certainly upgrade it. Sometimes, it will cost less mana, and it has Flashback. The cheaper cost applies for when you flash it back too, which is nice! If you do Flash this back, it means you’re getting a 2-for-1. Now, it still has the limitations of most reanimation spells in Limited -- you won’t always have a thing worth reanimating, but this format is graveyard-centric, and doing it in this format looks far more doable than in most. I still thinkt he set up here is real enough that it isn’t quite enough to pull me into the color pair.
Thermo-Alchemist image 3.5 Looks who’s back! He was around for our last trip to Innistrad, and he was a COMMON, if you can believe that. He was an excellent spell build around, and did a ton of damage. The great thing about him too, is a two mana 0/3 that can tap to do 1 to your opponent is already kind of a passable card, so the fact that sometimes it will be doing 2 or 3 damage a turn is amazing. I don’t think one really has to give this a build around grade, because the floor is so reasonable.
Bat Whisperer image 2.5 If this always gave you a bat, it would be at least a 3.5. One nice thing about the bat too is that it might help you enable future cards that give you a bonus if your opponent has lost life on a particular turn. Sometimes it will be a 4-mana 4/2 though, and that’s pretty bad.
Bounding Wolf image 2.0 Reach is extra good in this format because there are a ton of flyers as a result that everything that has disturb comes back as a Flyer. So if you’re in Green, you’re going to need a way to stop that. Bounding Wolf can do it, and it even ambush block thanks to flash!
Drownyard Amalgam image 2.0 This sets up some graveyard value for you and has a decent defensive body, not to mention an ability that will sometimes help you close out a game. A lot of the time though, it just won’t do enough. Seems reasonable in some controlling decks.
Vampire Interloper image 2.5 This has nice aggressive stats, and looks like a decent enabler for all the Black-Red cards that care about your opponent losing life.
Jack-o'-Lantern image 1.5 Well, if this set wasn’t screaming “Halloween!” at you already, it is now! This card looks kind of alright for Limited. Exiling a problem card in a graveyard and drawing a card for a total investment of two mana really isn’t that bad, and then it is fixing from your graveyard too, which seems fine. I definitely don’t think you always run this, but it seems like it will be your 23rd card sometimes, especially if you’re interested in the fixing.
Harvesttide Infiltrator image 2.5 This has a decent fail case as a 3-mana 3/2 with Trample, and sometimes it will be bigger.
Candlegrove Witch image 2.5 This is a Bear that will often, though not always, have flying in the late game. Flying helps it stay relevant throughout the game, which is nice. Seems like a solid two drop.
Brimstone Vandal image 2.5 A 3-mana ⅔ with Menace is already something you play a decent chunk of the time, so the addition Night and Day value here is pretty great! On its own, it is a 3-mana ⅔ with Menace, and will do a a bit of damage over the course of the game. This is a quality common.
Plummet image 0.5 This format has lots of flyers as a result of Disturb, so Plummet might be a bit better here in the main deck than it is in most formats, but I think you’d still prefer to bring it in out of your sideboard. It is hard to guarantee it will have enough targets against some of the color pairs.
Flare of Faith image 2.0 This seems like a decent trick if you’re a White aggro deck with lots of Humans in it. It gives a decent stats boost that will often allow your creature to win combat. Two mana for just +2/+2 is pretty mediocre for a trick, but the Human upside will make it worth running often enough
Pack 2 Pick 2: Gavony Silversmith
Wake to Slaughter image 3.0 This is going to give your opponent a pretty hard choice sometimes. They have to choose between giving you the better thing right away and giving it haste, which probably means taking damage, or returning the better thing to your hand so that it can become a more permanent problem on a future turn. Now, sometimes the choice just won’t be difficul for your opponent, and sometimes you won’t have good things to get back with it, but I think this will pan out more often than it won’t. The Flashback it has is also pretty nice, as if your graveyard is really well stocked, you can cast this on back to back turns, which has the potential to really break your opponent. Now, it doesn’t quite give you a 2-for-1 up front most of the time, since the creature that goes on the battlefield gets exiled, but it is also giving you more than a 1-for-1. After you flash it back, I think it will feel like a 3-for-1 altogether. Still, the set up, and in particular the need for ideal creatures in your graveyard does hold it back. The times where you just can’t make your opponent have a hard choice are going to be bad.
Covert Cutpurse image 3.5 This has a very high ceiling. If you kill something when you play it, then trade with the 2/2, and then use the Disturbed creature to trade (which will be easy because deathtouch), you’re getting a 3-for-1! That said, that ceiling isn’t super realistic, mostly because it can only kill things that have been damaged, and a good chunk of the time, you’ll have to give up a creature to make that happen. Still, you’re getting a pretty good deal, even keeping that in mind. You get two bodies out of one card, and both are quite capable of trading, and that’s going to feel pretty good.
Sacred Fire image 3.5 This is pretty good. It kills small things and gains you life, which is a good way to respond to your opponents two or three drops. Then, in the late game, you can use it out of your graveyard. And yes, it isn’t efficient when you flash it back, but as I keep saying, that doesn’t really matter! This gives you something to do with your mana late if you run out of gas, and it is a pretty real effect. I think the whole package here is good enough to be premium removal.
Celestus Sanctifier image 2.0 If you are changing between night and day a lot, this gives you some decent card selection, and even lets you load the graveyard a bit -- like with Flashback or Disturb cards. That said, it has mediocre stats, and the ability isn’t incredible, and it won’t always be easy to get going in the first place.
Consider image 1.5 This format has a spells matter deck in UR and it has various graveyard synergies, so this seems like a decent inclusion. It is a lot like Opt, and that’s not a bad comparison! That said, it is also pretty darn replaceable, especially if you’re not in a deck that cares about the graveyard or spells, and it will often be an easy card to cut in those situations.
Eccentric Farmer image 1.5 Lands will end up in your graveyard more often than normal in this format because of self-mill, and the Farmer brings some of that mill with him! You’ll get a land out of this reasonably often, and making sure you hit your next land drop and loading your graveyard has decent value.
Lambholt Harrier image 2.0 This is a Bear that stays relevant all game long thanks to its ability. Now, that ability is pretty pricey, and you’ll normally only be able to make one thing unable to block, but it is an ability your opponent has to account for in the late game, as making one thing unable to block can really help someone find lethal out of nowhere.
Shady Traveler image 3.0 A 3-mana 2/3 with Menace is a card you’ll play sometimes – probably a 2.5, and it will come into play as or transform into Stalking Predator pretty regularly, in which case you’re getting an amazing deal!
Gavony Silversmith image 2.5 If you have at least one other creature in play, you’re getting a 4-mana ¾ and putting another counter on a creature who can attack that turn, and that’s a solid enough deal. Sometimes you’ll be able to add 2/2 to the board that can attack right away too. It can also help you get coven by diversifying your creatures’ power.
Devious Cover-Up image 1.0 This is a hard counter, but four mana is a ton to have to have available at the right time, and the additional value this gives you just isn’t going to make up for that.
Brimstone Vandal image 2.5 A 3-mana ⅔ with Menace is already something you play a decent chunk of the time, so the addition Night and Day value here is pretty great! On its own, it is a 3-mana ⅔ with Menace, and will do a a bit of damage over the course of the game. This is a quality common.
Siege Zombie image 2.0 This seems passable, as in the early game it has alright stats, and in the late game it can be a real source of reach. It can also help you activate cards that give you a bonus if an opponent has lost life. Still, it does ask for a lot to make the opponent lose that 1 life, and it just won’t always be doable.
Revenge of the Drowned image 2.5 4 mana to Time Ebb a creature isn’t amazing. It does let you trade 1-for-1 with what you target, since your opponent has to redraw that card again, and that’s nice. The 2/2 Zombie of course can’t block, so you can’t really manufacture a huge blowout most of the time. It is a body that will be relevant when you untap though.
Pack 2 Pick 3: Ecstatic Awakener
Curse of Silence image 0.0 This is pretty bad in Limited. Predicting what your opponent has is virtually impossible, so most of the time this does stone nothing. Even if you do name a card they have, there’s a good chance they won’t ever draw that one copy of that card anyway, and it won’t matter! You can name cards with Flashback or Disturb with it, but even then you’re not doing much. The one time where I could see this maybe working out is if you side it in again someone who has like 3-4 copies of a really strong Common or Uncommon, because it has a better chance of disrupting that opponent than most, but even then I’m not thrilled about this.
Join the Dance image 3.0 Don’t underestimate the Flashback here. Like a lot of Flashback cards, neither the original cost nor the flashback cost is efficient, but the fact remains that over the course of a normal game of Limited, this will give you 4 tokens for only one card, and that’s pretty nice. Just having the Flashback cost to do in the later part of the game is a nice mana sink too. Obviously, GW is all about going wide too, so it will be extra useful there.
Morkrut Behemoth image 2.5 The idea here is to sacrifice something to it that isn’t a big deal, like a Zombie token, and if you do that then yeah – a 7/6 with Menace on turn 5 is pretty imposing. You can also just straight up pay 7 for it, which isn’t great but its not a disaster either. This seems like some decent top curve for some Black decks in the format – especially UB and BW – but I think you’ll find you cut it a pretty significant chunk of the time for cards that are just better.
Unruly Mob image 2.0 This is a reprint from our other two visits to Innistrad, and it wasn’t very good either time -- a 1.5 at best! It does grow as the game goes on, but it starts really small and grows pretty slowly. Only growing when your creatures die is tricky too. However, this will probably be better in this format than we’ve seen in the past, mostly because BW is a sacrifice deck this time around, and that combos pretty well with the Mob. The GW deck has lots of tokens too, so yeah, I think maybe this ends up being a solid playable this time around.
Otherworldly Gaze image 0.5 Loading the graveyard is important in this format, its true, but a card that pretty much only does that, while giving you some card selection, isn’t something I’m interested in. You never get the card back. There are so many cards that load the graveyard while doing actual other things!
Ecstatic Awakener image 2.5 One mana 1/1s are pretty bad, they just lose relevance quickly. The Awakener gets around that to some extent as a result of its ability to transform into Awoken Demon. Transforming it is a little bit steep at 3 mana and sacrificing something, but there is going to be some significant sacrifice fodder in both Black/White and Blue/Black, so it won’t hurt quite as much as it might look at first. Still, you aren’t really doing incredible when you transform this into a 4/4.
Dawnhart Rejuvenator image 3.0 We have basically seen this card before -- Centaur Nurturer in War of the Spark, and it was pretty nice. It gives you fixing, and while it might not be the most imposing creature, the life it gains you can help you get to your next turn, where you can make use of that mana.
Pack's Betrayal image 1.0 Rummaging a few times a came with this seems fine, but not exactly game breaking. It does have decent stats to go along with that ability.
Sungold Barrage image 2.5 This is far from premium removal, as cards with 4 toughness aren’t incredibly common to see on the table. They will be a little more common in this set thanks to DFC creatures, who tend to be larger on one side. It can kill a lot of scary things for sure, but it is too situational to be anything more than solid.
Falcon Abomination image 3.0 This is a Wind Drake with some reasonable upside. Obviously this Zombie token doesn’t give you quite as much value as most Zombie tokens, but it still adds to the board in a way that will have at least some impact. The two bodies will be nice sacrifice fodder, and they’ll also just be good at pressuring your opponent.
No Way Out image 1.0 Tacking a Decay zombie on to Mind Rot isn’t that great, especially in a format where people will happily discard many of their cards.
Candletrap image 3.0 This is pretty cheap removal. Before you get Coven online, it definitely isn’t great removal, because allowing the creature to still block is usually not what you want to be doing. It can’t do damage at least, but it still a presence on the board, and that means you aren’t trading a full 1-for-1. But its nice than in the later game, you can just get rid of that creature entirely. Still, it is probably a little too slow and clunky to be premium.
Pack 2 Pick 4: Eaten Alive
Fangblade Brigand image 4.0 Just the Human side would be something you always play! It has passable base stats a very real activated ability that will make it a challenge to attack into or block And then, when it transforms, it becomes even more imposing, adding +1/+1 and an additional powerful activated ability.
Larder Zombie image 1.5 So, a one mana ⅓ isn’t amazing, especially with Defender! But at least it can block and kill X/1s. Its ability asks for several creatures in play, and I guess the idea is that you’ll be making Zombie tokens so doing that might not be too hard! The ability itself isn’t bad -- as it can give you card selection and/or help you load up the graveyard. Still, I don’t see this being especially good overall.
Baithook Angler image 3.0 This looks like a nice Common. A two mana 2/1 can trade with lots of stuff, and then the fact that you can get another reasonably costed body out of your graveyard is pretty amazing. I mean, that’s 4 mana for a 2/1 and a ½ Flyer. And sure, you don’t get the bodies at the same time, but that’s still a pretty nice card.
Duress image 0.5 As always, this is a sideboard card. It misses too often to be worth it in your main deck. Even when you can hit stuff with it, it might have Flashback!
Gavony Trapper image 3.0 Master Decoys are always pretty nice in Limited. They can act as removal of sorts and stay relevant all game long. This has the additional upside of being a 0 power creature – which might not sound like upside, but in Coven decks having a creature with 0 power can really matter.
Secrets of the Key image 3.0 Paying one Blue to investigate isn’t great, even to me, and I love Clue tokens! However, the additional flashback on it is very real, and means that in the end, this card end sup being a 3-for-1, even if it does it kind of slowly. You end up paying 5 mana for three Clues, and that’s not too shabby. Between Flashback, Investigate, and Disturb, this format looks to be kind of slow and grindy, and if that’s true, Secrets of the Key will be something you want one of in virtually all of your Blue decks, as the card advantage is very real. I thinkt he first copy will be a 3.0, though they do have diminishing returns after that because it doesn’t really impact the board.
Bramble Armor image 2.5 This is a pretty decent boost when it equips for free, and it will also help you get coven online if that’s what you need. Equipping it after that first time is a little rough for sure, but if it keeps giving you coven or making creature sin to threats, that is reasonable.
Return to Nature image 0.5 Its nice that this does three different things, making it a more reasonable main deck card, but I’m still pretty skeptical about main decking it on a regular basis. This format has artifacts and enchantments, but not a ton of them, and while exiling something from a graveyard is nice, yo’ure often only getting half a card of value when you do it, since your opponent already cast their spell with flashback or their creature with disturb. I think this should probably still start in your sideboard.
Harvesttide Sentry image 2.5 This has decent base stats and if you can get coven going, it becomes a lot harder to easily block this thing.
Eaten Alive image 3.5 There is a lot of sacrifice fodder int his format, so casting this for only one Black is very real, and the fail case is that you pay 5, which is perfectly fine. Exiling stuff has extra value in the format too.
Mounted Dreadknight image 2.0 This has a decent baseline, and sometimes it will be especially big. Not a bad thing to have at the top of your curve.
Pack 2 Pick 5: Gavony Silversmith
Sunrise Cavalier image 4.0 This is a pretty nice signpost for Blue Red, as it is simultaneously a cost reduction effect for spells and a win condition for those spell decks. It will often be a 4/4, especially in a set with flashback! It seems strong enough to me that it can pull you into its colors and is worth a first pick sometimes.
Blood Pact image 2.0 Its nice this is an Instant, it makes it a lot more palatable that it is. Instant speed Divination for three mana is pretty nice, and most Black decks will play the first copy of this. In a pinch, you can also use it to do 2 to your opponent, either to finish them off or trigger a bunch of your pseudo-bloodthirst effects, but mostly you’ll want to be drawing the cards.
Component Collector image 1.5 This has decent stats and an ability that will give you a bit of value, though it certainly isn’t exciting
Gavony Silversmith image 2.5 If you have at least one other creature in play, you’re getting a 4-mana ¾ and putting another counter on a creature who can attack that turn, and that’s a solid enough deal. Sometimes you’ll be able to add 2/2 to the board that can attack right away too. It can also help you get coven by diversifying your creatures’ power.
Lunarch Veteran image 2.5 A two mana 1/1 with the life gain effect certainly isn’t impressive. The Disturb effect really matters though, as getting back a flyer that can also gain you some life. Neither half of this card is going to be letting you trade very often because they are so small, but this still seems like a solid Common.
Falkenrath Perforator image 2.5 In a set where this had no synergy at all, this would probably be a 1.5. The stats aren’t good, and the 1 damage just isn’t enough to make up for that. However, this set’s BR archetype has a lot of cards that give you extra effects if your opponent lost life, and this is one way you can make that happen. Plus, its a vampire, and while the tribal themes for vampires aren’t massive int his set, they are still there! I think all of that is enough to bump this up to a solid playable.
Unblinking Observer image 2.5 This will help you cast enough stuff that it seems like a solid Common. It fits nicely in the UR spells deck and the UW deck, which will be the most disturb heavy deck in the format. I’m giving it a 2.5.
Sungold Barrage image 2.5 This is far from premium removal, as cards with 4 toughness aren’t incredibly common to see on the table. They will be a little more common in this set thanks to DFC creatures, who tend to be larger on one side. It can kill a lot of scary things for sure, but it is too situational to be anything more than solid.
Devious Cover-Up image 1.0 This is a hard counter, but four mana is a ton to have to have available at the right time, and the additional value this gives you just isn’t going to make up for that.
Pestilent Wolf image 2.5 That’s a lot of mana to give a bear Deathtouch! Still, it starts out as a two mana 2/2, and has the ability to trade with anything later in the game. Wolf is also a somewhat useful creature type. I think the whole package is probably a 2.5
Pack 2 Pick 6: Stromkirk Bloodthief
Rite of Oblivion image 3.0 Its nice this can exile any nonland permanent, and even nicer that it has flashback! However, the cost of giving up your own nonland permanent is very real. Now, if you have some Clues and/or Zombie tokens, it won’t hurt too badly, but a lot of the time you’ll be straight up 2-for-1ing yourself. And, that’s something that it is worth doing sometimes. Giving up your worst permanent for their best is reasonable, but going down the full card is still pretty rough. I think the first copy of this looks like an auto-include in BW decks, but beyond that first one, I’d be skeptical.
Flame Channeler image 2.5 So, in Limited, you generally just won’t have enough spells that do damage for this to be super easy to transform. It is still a two mana 2/2 with the upside of becoming a 3/3, but then you have to cast more burn spells to actually get more than just the 3/3. This definitely feels more like a constructed card than a Limited card because of those limitations.
Stromkirk Bloodthief image 3.5 Gray Ogre stats are always ugly, but this does some pretty real stuff! If you play it in your second main phase and end your turn, you’ll get that counter a decent chunk of the time. Keep in mind too, it can put the counter on itself, so you don’t even have to be all in on Vampire tribal to make use of the ability. It is a 2/2 that can grow throughout the game, and when you have other vampires around, it gets even better. You won’t always be able to damage your opponent of course, but both Black and Red are pretty well equipped with nice ways to do it.
Immolation image 2.5 This is like Red “Dead Weight.” It isn’t quite as good as Dead Weight is, at least as removal, because you don’t really want to pumping the power of a creature -- you want to be outright killing it. But it does have the additional upside of pumping your larger evasive creature so that you can do lethal or something. I do think the ability to kill X/2s for a single mana is pretty nice, but this definitely isn’t premium removal.
Consider image 1.5 This format has a spells matter deck in UR and it has various graveyard synergies, so this seems like a decent inclusion. It is a lot like Opt, and that’s not a bad comparison! That said, it is also pretty darn replaceable, especially if you’re not in a deck that cares about the graveyard or spells, and it will often be an easy card to cut in those situations.
Unblinking Observer image 2.5 This will help you cast enough stuff that it seems like a solid Common. It fits nicely in the UR spells deck and the UW deck, which will be the most disturb heavy deck in the format. I’m giving it a 2.5.
Bat Whisperer image 2.5 If this always gave you a bat, it would be at least a 3.5. One nice thing about the bat too is that it might help you enable future cards that give you a bonus if your opponent has lost life on a particular turn. Sometimes it will be a 4-mana 4/2 though, and that’s pretty bad.
Blood Pact image 2.0 Its nice this is an Instant, it makes it a lot more palatable that it is. Instant speed Divination for three mana is pretty nice, and most Black decks will play the first copy of this. In a pinch, you can also use it to do 2 to your opponent, either to finish them off or trigger a bunch of your pseudo-bloodthirst effects, but mostly you’ll want to be drawing the cards.
Ritual Guardian image 2.0 If this was a 3-mana 3/2 that always had Lifelink, it would probably be a 2.5 or 3.0. The fact this won’t always have it, and in fact probably won’t have it a decent chunk of the time, makes this significanlty worse than that, because a 3-mana 3/2 is just an ugly stat line these days.
Pack 2 Pick 7: Siege Zombie
Lunar Frenzy image 2.5 This seems like a solid trick for aggro decks. For one Red, it can give first Strike and Trample, and sometimes that’s all you need! But if you have extra mana lying around, it can turn a situation into a nightmare for your opponent, since it will allow pretty much any creature to win combat and do significant damage. The fact it is customizable is quite nice! Still, its a trick -- and those tend to only be worth it in really aggressive decks, and even then can be risky.
Snarling Wolf image 2.0 Rootwalla is back, albeit in Wolf form! This kind of card tends to feel pretty good early, as your opponent just can’t block it because of the threat of activation, and then the fact it can become a 3/3 keeps it relevant in the later game too. Seems like a solid playable for aggressive Green decks.
Siege Zombie image 2.0 This seems passable, as in the early game it has alright stats, and in the late game it can be a real source of reach. It can also help you activate cards that give you a bonus if an opponent has lost life. Still, it does ask for a lot to make the opponent lose that 1 life, and it just won’t always be doable.
Stuffed Bear image 1.0 This set doesn’t have much of an Artifact theme. If it did, the BEar would be a little more interesting. As it is, it is a creature that you have to pay mana for every turn to actually make into a creature. And, while that activation isn’t so bad the first time around, you eventually end up having to pay a ton of mana for this to actually be a card on the board that matters, and I don’t really think you want to be doing that.
Candlegrove Witch image 2.5 This is a Bear that will often, though not always, have flying in the late game. Flying helps it stay relevant throughout the game, which is nice. Seems like a solid two drop.
Morkrut Behemoth image 2.5 The idea here is to sacrifice something to it that isn’t a big deal, like a Zombie token, and if you do that then yeah – a 7/6 with Menace on turn 5 is pretty imposing. You can also just straight up pay 7 for it, which isn’t great but its not a disaster either. This seems like some decent top curve for some Black decks in the format – especially UB and BW – but I think you’ll find you cut it a pretty significant chunk of the time for cards that are just better.
Falkenrath Perforator image 2.5 In a set where this had no synergy at all, this would probably be a 1.5. The stats aren’t good, and the 1 damage just isn’t enough to make up for that. However, this set’s BR archetype has a lot of cards that give you extra effects if your opponent lost life, and this is one way you can make that happen. Plus, its a vampire, and while the tribal themes for vampires aren’t massive int his set, they are still there! I think all of that is enough to bump this up to a solid playable.
Tapping at the Window image 2.5 This gives some decent card selection while also loading your graveyard, and you end up with a 2-for-1 after you cast it the second time – and you’ve also seen a ton of cards!
Pack 2 Pick 8: Olivia's Midnight Ambush
Olivia's Midnight Ambush image 3.5 This is decent removal if it is day time or neither night nor day, and when it is night time, its just insane. If it was only the night time mode it would be an easy 4.5! As it is, I think it has a reasonable enough base line and a high enough ceiling that we can call it premium.
Dawnhart Rejuvenator image 3.0 We have basically seen this card before -- Centaur Nurturer in War of the Spark, and it was pretty nice. It gives you fixing, and while it might not be the most imposing creature, the life it gains you can help you get to your next turn, where you can make use of that mana.
Ritual Guardian image 2.0 If this was a 3-mana 3/2 that always had Lifelink, it would probably be a 2.5 or 3.0. The fact this won’t always have it, and in fact probably won’t have it a decent chunk of the time, makes this significanlty worse than that, because a 3-mana 3/2 is just an ugly stat line these days.
Eaten Alive image 3.5 There is a lot of sacrifice fodder int his format, so casting this for only one Black is very real, and the fail case is that you pay 5, which is perfectly fine. Exiling stuff has extra value in the format too.
Blood Pact image 2.0 Its nice this is an Instant, it makes it a lot more palatable that it is. Instant speed Divination for three mana is pretty nice, and most Black decks will play the first copy of this. In a pinch, you can also use it to do 2 to your opponent, either to finish them off or trigger a bunch of your pseudo-bloodthirst effects, but mostly you’ll want to be drawing the cards.
Candlelit Cavalry image 2.5 On a base level, this is a 5-mana 5/5, something that makes the cut in some Green decks anyway, and it will gain trample sometimes. Seems decent enough.
Raze the Effigy image 1.5 This format doesn’t have a ton of artifacts, but having the option to destroy an artifact on a decent combat trick certainly makes it more flexible.
Pack 2 Pick 9: Candlegrove Witch
Fangblade Brigand image 4.0 Just the Human side would be something you always play! It has passable base stats a very real activated ability that will make it a challenge to attack into or block And then, when it transforms, it becomes even more imposing, adding +1/+1 and an additional powerful activated ability.
Bat Whisperer image 2.5 If this always gave you a bat, it would be at least a 3.5. One nice thing about the bat too is that it might help you enable future cards that give you a bonus if your opponent has lost life on a particular turn. Sometimes it will be a 4-mana 4/2 though, and that’s pretty bad.
Jack-o'-Lantern image 1.5 Well, if this set wasn’t screaming “Halloween!” at you already, it is now! This card looks kind of alright for Limited. Exiling a problem card in a graveyard and drawing a card for a total investment of two mana really isn’t that bad, and then it is fixing from your graveyard too, which seems fine. I definitely don’t think you always run this, but it seems like it will be your 23rd card sometimes, especially if you’re interested in the fixing.
Harvesttide Infiltrator image 2.5 This has a decent fail case as a 3-mana 3/2 with Trample, and sometimes it will be bigger.
Candlegrove Witch image 2.5 This is a Bear that will often, though not always, have flying in the late game. Flying helps it stay relevant throughout the game, which is nice. Seems like a solid two drop.
Plummet image 0.5 This format has lots of flyers as a result of Disturb, so Plummet might be a bit better here in the main deck than it is in most formats, but I think you’d still prefer to bring it in out of your sideboard. It is hard to guarantee it will have enough targets against some of the color pairs.
Pack 2 Pick 10: Shady Traveler
Sacred Fire image 3.5 This is pretty good. It kills small things and gains you life, which is a good way to respond to your opponents two or three drops. Then, in the late game, you can use it out of your graveyard. And yes, it isn’t efficient when you flash it back, but as I keep saying, that doesn’t really matter! This gives you something to do with your mana late if you run out of gas, and it is a pretty real effect. I think the whole package here is good enough to be premium removal.
Lambholt Harrier image 2.0 This is a Bear that stays relevant all game long thanks to its ability. Now, that ability is pretty pricey, and you’ll normally only be able to make one thing unable to block, but it is an ability your opponent has to account for in the late game, as making one thing unable to block can really help someone find lethal out of nowhere.
Shady Traveler image 3.0 A 3-mana 2/3 with Menace is a card you’ll play sometimes – probably a 2.5, and it will come into play as or transform into Stalking Predator pretty regularly, in which case you’re getting an amazing deal!
Devious Cover-Up image 1.0 This is a hard counter, but four mana is a ton to have to have available at the right time, and the additional value this gives you just isn’t going to make up for that.
Brimstone Vandal image 2.5 A 3-mana ⅔ with Menace is already something you play a decent chunk of the time, so the addition Night and Day value here is pretty great! On its own, it is a 3-mana ⅔ with Menace, and will do a a bit of damage over the course of the game. This is a quality common.
Pack 2 Pick 11: Unruly Mob
Join the Dance image 3.0 Don’t underestimate the Flashback here. Like a lot of Flashback cards, neither the original cost nor the flashback cost is efficient, but the fact remains that over the course of a normal game of Limited, this will give you 4 tokens for only one card, and that’s pretty nice. Just having the Flashback cost to do in the later part of the game is a nice mana sink too. Obviously, GW is all about going wide too, so it will be extra useful there.
Unruly Mob image 2.0 This is a reprint from our other two visits to Innistrad, and it wasn’t very good either time -- a 1.5 at best! It does grow as the game goes on, but it starts really small and grows pretty slowly. Only growing when your creatures die is tricky too. However, this will probably be better in this format than we’ve seen in the past, mostly because BW is a sacrifice deck this time around, and that combos pretty well with the Mob. The GW deck has lots of tokens too, so yeah, I think maybe this ends up being a solid playable this time around.
Pack's Betrayal image 1.0 Rummaging a few times a came with this seems fine, but not exactly game breaking. It does have decent stats to go along with that ability.
Sungold Barrage image 2.5 This is far from premium removal, as cards with 4 toughness aren’t incredibly common to see on the table. They will be a little more common in this set thanks to DFC creatures, who tend to be larger on one side. It can kill a lot of scary things for sure, but it is too situational to be anything more than solid.
Pack 2 Pick 12: Duress
Duress image 0.5 As always, this is a sideboard card. It misses too often to be worth it in your main deck. Even when you can hit stuff with it, it might have Flashback!
Secrets of the Key image 3.0 Paying one Blue to investigate isn’t great, even to me, and I love Clue tokens! However, the additional flashback on it is very real, and means that in the end, this card end sup being a 3-for-1, even if it does it kind of slowly. You end up paying 5 mana for three Clues, and that’s not too shabby. Between Flashback, Investigate, and Disturb, this format looks to be kind of slow and grindy, and if that’s true, Secrets of the Key will be something you want one of in virtually all of your Blue decks, as the card advantage is very real. I thinkt he first copy will be a 3.0, though they do have diminishing returns after that because it doesn’t really impact the board.
Return to Nature image 0.5 Its nice that this does three different things, making it a more reasonable main deck card, but I’m still pretty skeptical about main decking it on a regular basis. This format has artifacts and enchantments, but not a ton of them, and while exiling something from a graveyard is nice, yo’ure often only getting half a card of value when you do it, since your opponent already cast their spell with flashback or their creature with disturb. I think this should probably still start in your sideboard.
Pack 2 Pick 13: Devious Cover-Up
Unblinking Observer image 2.5 This will help you cast enough stuff that it seems like a solid Common. It fits nicely in the UR spells deck and the UW deck, which will be the most disturb heavy deck in the format. I’m giving it a 2.5.
Devious Cover-Up image 1.0 This is a hard counter, but four mana is a ton to have to have available at the right time, and the additional value this gives you just isn’t going to make up for that.
Pack 2 Pick 14: Blood Pact
Blood Pact image 2.0 Its nice this is an Instant, it makes it a lot more palatable that it is. Instant speed Divination for three mana is pretty nice, and most Black decks will play the first copy of this. In a pinch, you can also use it to do 2 to your opponent, either to finish them off or trigger a bunch of your pseudo-bloodthirst effects, but mostly you’ll want to be drawing the cards.
Pack 3 Pick 1: Defenestrate
Grafted Identity image 4.5 Mind control effects are always super strong, because they allow you to simultaneously remove your opponent’s best creature and give it to yourself. That is a game changing effect! This does it for only four mana which is great -- and even pumps the creature! But it is balanced by the fact that you have to sacrifice one of your own creatures. Even with that requirement, Grafted Identity seems quite strong, especially because this format has so many cards that give you two bodies for one -- between things that make Zombie tokens and cards with Disturbed, among other things. You still take your opponent’s best thing and put it on your side of the table, and having to give up a creature for that -- while a real downside -- is still very worth the price, and this is still a bomb.
Defend the Celestus image 2.0 4 mana combat tricks are normally something I steer away from. That’s a ton of mana for an effect that might help you win combat but is also quite risky. But this card does a few things that make this a solid combat trick. First, the boost is permanent because of the counters, and second, because you can distribute the counters, this will sometimes get you a 2-for-1, and even more rarely get you a 3-for-1, and that is definitely worth the mana! It also helps you get Coven. Don’t get me wrong -- it is still a trick -- and a clunky one, but I think the first copy of this seems reasonable in aggressive Green decks.
Beloved Beggar image 3.5 This looks pretty good. You play it early as a reasonable blocker, until it inevitably dies, and then in the late game it can come out of your graveyard and be a very real win condition. Six mana for a 4/4 with Flying and Vigilance certainly isn’t insanely efficient, but it isn’t that far off from what I’d be willing to pay. The 0/4 side won’t ever allow you to actually trade with anything, but keeping your opponent at bay with has some value, especially since it becomes a win condition later. Also, keep in mind you can put this in your graveyard by other means and just skip the 0/4 part sometimes. It also can help you get Coven!
Join the Dance image 3.0 Don’t underestimate the Flashback here. Like a lot of Flashback cards, neither the original cost nor the flashback cost is efficient, but the fact remains that over the course of a normal game of Limited, this will give you 4 tokens for only one card, and that’s pretty nice. Just having the Flashback cost to do in the later part of the game is a nice mana sink too. Obviously, GW is all about going wide too, so it will be extra useful there.
Locked in the Cemetery image 3.0 So, if this always tapped the thing you attached it to, it would probably be premium removal. Two mana for that effect is pretty great! However, in the early game, making it do that is going to be pretty challenging. By the mid-game it becomes much more doable. Overall, I think having to have a loaded up graveyard to make this work does keep it from being premium, but it still a pretty good Blue common.
Bat Whisperer image 2.5 If this always gave you a bat, it would be at least a 3.5. One nice thing about the bat too is that it might help you enable future cards that give you a bonus if your opponent has lost life on a particular turn. Sometimes it will be a 4-mana 4/2 though, and that’s pretty bad.
Thraben Exorcism image 0.5 Against some opponents this will feel really good -- namely, against UW -- but against other decks it just won’t have targets often enough to be worth it.
Defenestrate image 3.5 This looks like premium removal -- and its flavorful too! Throwing a flyer out the window wouldn’t accomplish much. Anyway, this can kill most stuff for only three mana. And yeah, sometimes a flyer will be what you need to kill, but this efficiency is great.
Geistwave image 2.5 This is a neat design for a bounce spell.. Bouncing an opposing nonland permanent for two mana is usually a decent card. It doesn’t give you the value of a whole card unless you use it in response to a trick or something, but it gives you some reasonable tempo and has that blow out upside. Using this to bounce your own thing is actually pretty interesting, since you do net a card, and if what you’re bouncing gives you some value from bouncing it, that’s going to feel pretty good! Especially if you do it in response to removal or something like that. Its probably just a C, but the “bounce your own stuff” upside is very real.
Hedgewitch's Mask image 1.5 This is a decent, albeit unimpressive, piece of Equipment. One to play and two to equip is kind of alright, and the upside of being unblockable by bigger stuff doesn’t hurt. It can help you get Coven. Still, this format doesn’t seem to have a huge equipment theme, and that probably means this gets cut a lot.
Diregraf Horde image 3.0 This is an interesting use of these new Decayed Zombies. Obviously, if this was a 5-mana ¾ that made two 2/2 Zombies and exiled stuff from graveyards it would be like a B+. That’s just a whole lot of bodies for a good cost. To evaluate this card we have to figure out how much worse these Decayed zombies are from your normal tokens. And uh, yeah -- they are substantially worse for sure. They can’t block, so this card won’t stabilize you quite as effectively as other cards like it can, and they can only attack once. But still, imagine this was a 5-mana ¾ that gave you single 2/2 Zombie. That’s still a very nice card for Limited! And that’s probably about what this will feel like. The extra bodies will feel great as sacrifice fodder, or if you have Zombie synergy, too.
Harvesttide Infiltrator image 2.5 This has a decent fail case as a 3-mana 3/2 with Trample, and sometimes it will be bigger.
Pack's Betrayal image 1.0 Rummaging a few times a came with this seems fine, but not exactly game breaking. It does have decent stats to go along with that ability.
Candlelit Cavalry image 2.5 On a base level, this is a 5-mana 5/5, something that makes the cut in some Green decks anyway, and it will gain trample sometimes. Seems decent enough.
Pack 3 Pick 2: Fleshtaker
Foul Play image 3.0 So, it is somewhat narrow in what it can kill, but the fact it gives you a Clue token is massive, since it will mean a 2-for-1. This card sort of pulls me in two directions -- on the one hand, there will be a lot of creatures it can’t kill, bu on the other -- there will still be a significant number of creatures it can kill. So, is it premium? I’m inclined to say it falls a little bit short. IT will certainly feel great to kill something with, but even with the extra card, it is narrow enough that it doesn’t quite get there for me.
Fleshtaker image 4.0 This looks like a pretty strong signpost Uncommon. It starts with solid base stats, and every time it attacks your opponent really has to take stock of just how big it might become! On top of that, it is a more general sacrifice payoff, which works with itself as well as other cards, and gaining life and scrying is pretty nice additional value to add to sacrifices.
Bloodtithe Collector image 3.5 If this always made your opponent discard, it would be an easy 4.0 Only doing it some of the time obviously downgrades it significantly, but it is still a decent flying body as a fail case.
Candletrap image 3.0 This is pretty cheap removal. Before you get Coven online, it definitely isn’t great removal, because allowing the creature to still block is usually not what you want to be doing. It can’t do damage at least, but it still a presence on the board, and that means you aren’t trading a full 1-for-1. But its nice than in the later game, you can just get rid of that creature entirely. Still, it is probably a little too slow and clunky to be premium.
Might of the Old Ways image 2.0 This looks like a decent enough trick. Two mana for +2/+2 isn’t incredible, but when you can make the Coven thing happen, it turns into a draw spell, which will often mean a 2-for-1. You’ll end up playing this in aggressive Green decks.
Galedrifter image 3.0 This isn’t quite a hard counter, but its pretty close, and adding to the board while you counter a thing isn’t bad, even if what you’re adding is a token that can’t block and can only attack once. 55 – Galedrifter – 3.0 A 4-mana 3/2 Flyer is a 1.5, so getting a second body out of this, even if it isn’t the most efficient one when you Disturb it, is going to be some nice additional value.
Crawl from the Cellar image 2.0 This is an interesting take on the usual Sorcery that lets you return two creatures to your hand. The first time you cast this, the value is going to be pretty nice, provided you have a zombie, as it effectively replaces itself while making a creature bigger. The second time is less efficient, but in the you pay 5 mana for a 2-for-1 and two +1/+1 counters, which actually isn’t too bad. Now, you really would prefer to be putting these counters on zombies that don’t have decay to get full value out of them, but a significant chunk of the time that’s probably where the counter goes, and you may also just not have anywhere to put the counter in the first place.
Blood Pact image 2.0 Its nice this is an Instant, it makes it a lot more palatable that it is. Instant speed Divination for three mana is pretty nice, and most Black decks will play the first copy of this. In a pinch, you can also use it to do 2 to your opponent, either to finish them off or trigger a bunch of your pseudo-bloodthirst effects, but mostly you’ll want to be drawing the cards.
Path to the Festival image 2.0 This is pretty clunky since it doesn't add to the board at all. It can do it again from the graveyard though, which can potentially really turbo your mana. It is also reasonable fixing, and if you're splashing a third color, that Scry will be nice.
Famished Foragers image 3.0 A 4-mana 4/3 is sort of passable already, and this will often be able to come down and give you some mana, which -- if nothing else, you can use to rummage using its ability. Sometimes, it will enable a pretty impressive double spell turn too, which will feel amazing. You won’t always be making that happen, but the card has a very reasonable baseline and a pretty nice ceiling.
Vampire Interloper image 2.5 This has nice aggressive stats, and looks like a decent enabler for all the Black-Red cards that care about your opponent losing life.
Evolving Wilds image 3.0 This is always really nice fixing, and I tend to like it even more than the rare dual lands here, especially because it throws itself in the graveyard and that definitely matters in this set.
Moonrager's Slash image 4.0 3 mana to do 3 to any target is already a premium removal spell, and this will sometimes just be Lightning Bolt! This is easily premium, and easily Red’s best Common.
Pack 3 Pick 3: Gavony Trapper
Angelfire Ignition image 3.5 This is pretty spicy! It isn’t really a combat trick because it’s a sorcery, but when you find a window to cast this, it is going to make any creature you use it on into a big problem. Even if your opponent can just block it, it is indestructible and has lifelink so you get some value. And that’s the fail case here, frequently it will make a creature into a big problem. And then you can flash it back, so the nightmare isn’t over for your opponent! You do have to be very careful about when you use it to avoid getting 2-for-1’d, but the ceiling is pretty insane.
Mystic Skull image 2.5 Two mana for an artifact that filters is horrendous! If that’s all this was, it would be a 0.0. Obviously though, this is Innistrad, so this can transform into a scary thing -- Mystic Monstrosity. The Monstrosity not only has some pretty nice stats, it also provides great fixing. This is neat, because filtering usually isn’t very good in Limited, though it can help you out in a pinch, so the fact this turns into much better fixing is cool! Your total investment of 7 mana is a bit steep for a ⅚ of course, but it isn’t too crazy either, and you pay it installments. Note too, that this can be transformed at Instant speed, something that certainly matters.
Crawl from the Cellar image 2.0 This is an interesting take on the usual Sorcery that lets you return two creatures to your hand. The first time you cast this, the value is going to be pretty nice, provided you have a zombie, as it effectively replaces itself while making a creature bigger. The second time is less efficient, but in the you pay 5 mana for a 2-for-1 and two +1/+1 counters, which actually isn’t too bad. Now, you really would prefer to be putting these counters on zombies that don’t have decay to get full value out of them, but a significant chunk of the time that’s probably where the counter goes, and you may also just not have anywhere to put the counter in the first place.
Might of the Old Ways image 2.0 This looks like a decent enough trick. Two mana for +2/+2 isn’t incredible, but when you can make the Coven thing happen, it turns into a draw spell, which will often mean a 2-for-1. You’ll end up playing this in aggressive Green decks.
Candlegrove Witch image 2.5 This is a Bear that will often, though not always, have flying in the late game. Flying helps it stay relevant throughout the game, which is nice. Seems like a solid two drop.
Falcon Abomination image 3.0 This is a Wind Drake with some reasonable upside. Obviously this Zombie token doesn’t give you quite as much value as most Zombie tokens, but it still adds to the board in a way that will have at least some impact. The two bodies will be nice sacrifice fodder, and they’ll also just be good at pressuring your opponent.
Gavony Trapper image 3.0 Master Decoys are always pretty nice in Limited. They can act as removal of sorts and stay relevant all game long. This has the additional upside of being a 0 power creature – which might not sound like upside, but in Coven decks having a creature with 0 power can really matter.
Festival Crasher image 0.5 // 2.5 This has a very mediocre baseline. A two mana ⅓ these days is probably a D-. It does have some real upside though, and the threat of activation is pretty real! If your opponent just has a 2/2, and you attack with this and leave mana up, they just can’t afford to block it! Chaining multiple spells together is obviously the dream, but don’t count on doing that a ton in Limited. This will make the cut in decks with a decent number of spells, and probably be something you pass on in any other deck.
Shady Traveler image 3.0 A 3-mana 2/3 with Menace is a card you’ll play sometimes – probably a 2.5, and it will come into play as or transform into Stalking Predator pretty regularly, in which case you’re getting an amazing deal!
Revenge of the Drowned image 2.5 4 mana to Time Ebb a creature isn’t amazing. It does let you trade 1-for-1 with what you target, since your opponent has to redraw that card again, and that’s nice. The 2/2 Zombie of course can’t block, so you can’t really manufacture a huge blowout most of the time. It is a body that will be relevant when you untap though.
Abandon the Post image 0.0 // 2.5 I’m not a huge fan of this type of card, mostly because it basically does nothing unless you win the game with it. That said, if you have six mana available to cast it both times in a single turn, it does stand a pretty good chance of stealing a win out of nowhere. A card like this is soo all-in on aggro though that I think we do need to give it a buildaround grade If you are an aggro deck, you’ll probably play one copy of this and feel alright about it. Otherwise you pretty much can’t play it.
Hedgewitch's Mask image 1.5 This is a decent, albeit unimpressive, piece of Equipment. One to play and two to equip is kind of alright, and the upside of being unblockable by bigger stuff doesn’t hurt. It can help you get Coven. Still, this format doesn’t seem to have a huge equipment theme, and that probably means this gets cut a lot.
Pack 3 Pick 4: Ambitious Farmhand
Ambitious Farmhand image 3.0 This seems pretty nice! A two mana 1/1 that draws you a card is always playable in Limited, and this one makes sure you hit your next land drop. And, because he can transform into a 3/3 with Lifelink, that means he can stay relevant all game long. Now, you do have to jump through a few hoops to get him to transform, and assembling a coven won’t always be a walk in the park, but it is also reasonably doable. Note, by the way, that he can transform at Instant speed.
Moonsilver Key image 2.5 This gives you fixing, and one is often in the market for that in Limited, since splashing bombs is usually a good idea. You won’t have many artifacts to get with the Key, though there are a few of them.
Defenestrate image 3.5 This looks like premium removal -- and its flavorful too! Throwing a flyer out the window wouldn’t accomplish much. Anyway, this can kill most stuff for only three mana. And yeah, sometimes a flyer will be what you need to kill, but this efficiency is great.
Voldaren Stinger image 2.0 Your opponent does have to respect this as an attacker if you have the mana up, so this gives you a good way to chip in for one damage to activate your Bloodthirst stuff.
Bramble Armor image 2.5 This is a pretty decent boost when it equips for free, and it will also help you get coven online if that’s what you need. Equipping it after that first time is a little rough for sure, but if it keeps giving you coven or making creature sin to threats, that is reasonable.
Return to Nature image 0.5 Its nice that this does three different things, making it a more reasonable main deck card, but I’m still pretty skeptical about main decking it on a regular basis. This format has artifacts and enchantments, but not a ton of them, and while exiling something from a graveyard is nice, yo’ure often only getting half a card of value when you do it, since your opponent already cast their spell with flashback or their creature with disturb. I think this should probably still start in your sideboard.
Ritual Guardian image 2.0 If this was a 3-mana 3/2 that always had Lifelink, it would probably be a 2.5 or 3.0. The fact this won’t always have it, and in fact probably won’t have it a decent chunk of the time, makes this significanlty worse than that, because a 3-mana 3/2 is just an ugly stat line these days.
Immolation image 2.5 This is like Red “Dead Weight.” It isn’t quite as good as Dead Weight is, at least as removal, because you don’t really want to pumping the power of a creature -- you want to be outright killing it. But it does have the additional upside of pumping your larger evasive creature so that you can do lethal or something. I do think the ability to kill X/2s for a single mana is pretty nice, but this definitely isn’t premium removal.
Tireless Hauler image 3.0 Like with most of the werewolves, just the front side of the card is reasonable – a 4/5 with Vigilance can do some decent work! But it also has its werewolf side, where it has the potential to really dominate a board.
Raze the Effigy image 1.5 This format doesn’t have a ton of artifacts, but having the option to destroy an artifact on a decent combat trick certainly makes it more flexible.
Tapping at the Window image 2.5 This gives some decent card selection while also loading your graveyard, and you end up with a 2-for-1 after you cast it the second time – and you’ve also seen a ton of cards!
Pack 3 Pick 5: Mourning Patrol
Fangblade Brigand image 4.0 Just the Human side would be something you always play! It has passable base stats a very real activated ability that will make it a challenge to attack into or block And then, when it transforms, it becomes even more imposing, adding +1/+1 and an additional powerful activated ability.
Ominous Roost image 0.0 // 3.5 Obviously, if you don’t have enough Flashback going on, you can’t really play this. It is going to be an F in many, many decks. 3 mana for a 1/1 flyer that can’t block is abysmal! However, if you can get 3 or more tokens with this, and some decks will be able to do it, it is going to be a pretty real win condition in grindy decks with lots of flashback.
Rotten Reunion image 1.5 Hating on a couple graveyard cards and getting a couple of Zombies that can either pressure your opponent or act as sacrifice fodder seems alright for a three mana investment.
Hedgewitch's Mask image 1.5 This is a decent, albeit unimpressive, piece of Equipment. One to play and two to equip is kind of alright, and the upside of being unblockable by bigger stuff doesn’t hurt. It can help you get Coven. Still, this format doesn’t seem to have a huge equipment theme, and that probably means this gets cut a lot.
Burn the Accursed image 2.5 This isn’t exactly premium, but is an instant that kills most stuff, damages your opponent, and even exiles creatures, which certainly matters here.
Falkenrath Perforator image 2.5 In a set where this had no synergy at all, this would probably be a 1.5. The stats aren’t good, and the 1 damage just isn’t enough to make up for that. However, this set’s BR archetype has a lot of cards that give you extra effects if your opponent lost life, and this is one way you can make that happen. Plus, its a vampire, and while the tribal themes for vampires aren’t massive int his set, they are still there! I think all of that is enough to bump this up to a solid playable.
Mourning Patrol image 2.5 A 3-mana 2/3 with Vigilance is fine, so the fact that this can come back as a 2/1 with Flying and Vigilance is pretty nice! Both halves in this case very capable of trading, too.
Stolen Vitality image 1.5 This is a decent trick that give you lethal out of nowhere on an attacking creature, and one that can also be used defensive quite effectly thanks to the First Strike. Now, using this kind of card defensively is definitely not optimal, but it is upside for sure. I don’t love that it only bumps toughness by 1, since if you’re the one attacking, there’s still a good chance your creature will die.
Unblinking Observer image 2.5 This will help you cast enough stuff that it seems like a solid Common. It fits nicely in the UR spells deck and the UW deck, which will be the most disturb heavy deck in the format. I’m giving it a 2.5.
Timberland Guide image 3.0 This is a reprint, and even if it wasn’t, we see cards like this a lot, and I also like them a decent amount. They are nice as two drops, as they can be two mana 2/2s, and then in the later game you can put the counter somewhere more relevant. There isn’t a +1/+1 counter deck in this format, but the counter this guy brings with him can really help you set up Coven, since you add him to the board and put the counter somewhere else, and you’re already 2/3 of the way there!
Pack 3 Pick 6: Gavony Silversmith
Moonsilver Key image 2.5 This gives you fixing, and one is often in the market for that in Limited, since splashing bombs is usually a good idea. You won’t have many artifacts to get with the Key, though there are a few of them.
Path to the Festival image 2.0 This is pretty clunky since it doesn't add to the board at all. It can do it again from the graveyard though, which can potentially really turbo your mana. It is also reasonable fixing, and if you're splashing a third color, that Scry will be nice.
Bladebrand image 1.5 This is a reprint, and it is one that is pretty mediocre. Giving death touch + a cantrip is pretty nice in combat, but it is a very narrow card overall because it is only useful in combat. Sure, I guess you can cast it just to cycle it, but that’s pretty rough! There are some silly things you can do with it sometimes, like give death touch to something that is being triple blocked, but a lot of the time you just use this and trade a creature on the table for one in your library. And, while that’s fine, it is certainly not a great card, and not one that makes the cut more than half the time.
Siege Zombie image 2.0 This seems passable, as in the early game it has alright stats, and in the late game it can be a real source of reach. It can also help you activate cards that give you a bonus if an opponent has lost life. Still, it does ask for a lot to make the opponent lose that 1 life, and it just won’t always be doable.
Gavony Silversmith image 2.5 If you have at least one other creature in play, you’re getting a 4-mana ¾ and putting another counter on a creature who can attack that turn, and that’s a solid enough deal. Sometimes you’ll be able to add 2/2 to the board that can attack right away too. It can also help you get coven by diversifying your creatures’ power.
Consider image 1.5 This format has a spells matter deck in UR and it has various graveyard synergies, so this seems like a decent inclusion. It is a lot like Opt, and that’s not a bad comparison! That said, it is also pretty darn replaceable, especially if you’re not in a deck that cares about the graveyard or spells, and it will often be an easy card to cut in those situations.
Cathar Commando image 2.5 You can flash this in to ambush block an X/3, and most X/3s will cost more than the Commando, so that’s nice! The additional utility of blowing up artifacts and enchantments doesn’t hurt either. This is a solid Common.
Drownyard Amalgam image 2.0 This sets up some graveyard value for you and has a decent defensive body, not to mention an ability that will sometimes help you close out a game. A lot of the time though, it just won’t do enough. Seems reasonable in some controlling decks.
No Way Out image 1.0 Tacking a Decay zombie on to Mind Rot isn’t that great, especially in a format where people will happily discard many of their cards.
Pack 3 Pick 7: Jadar, Ghoulcaller of Nephalia
Jadar, Ghoulcaller of Nephalia image 3.5 So, this is a two mana 1/1 that will also give you a 2/2 on your end step. That’s a pretty great deal, even if the creature comes with “decayed.” You can just send that 2/2 in every single turn, since you’ll get it back for free. There will definitely be times where a 2/2 Zombie that can’t block isn’t awesome, but there will be lots of times where its pretty nice. If you can find a way to sacrifice it every turn, you’re going to have an engine on your hands!
Search Party Captain image 3.5 A 4-mana 2/2 that draws you a card is like a 2.0, and decreasing that cost even by 1 is a huge upgrade. So, the fact that sometimes you can play this for two or one mana and then cast what you draw seems really good. This is one of White’s better Commons.
Brimstone Vandal image 2.5 A 3-mana ⅔ with Menace is already something you play a decent chunk of the time, so the addition Night and Day value here is pretty great! On its own, it is a 3-mana ⅔ with Menace, and will do a a bit of damage over the course of the game. This is a quality common.
Drownyard Amalgam image 2.0 This sets up some graveyard value for you and has a decent defensive body, not to mention an ability that will sometimes help you close out a game. A lot of the time though, it just won’t do enough. Seems reasonable in some controlling decks.
Stuffed Bear image 1.0 This set doesn’t have much of an Artifact theme. If it did, the BEar would be a little more interesting. As it is, it is a creature that you have to pay mana for every turn to actually make into a creature. And, while that activation isn’t so bad the first time around, you eventually end up having to pay a ton of mana for this to actually be a card on the board that matters, and I don’t really think you want to be doing that.
Novice Occultist image 2.5 It won’t always be easy to trade with this and get a 2-for-1 since it’s a ½, so ideally you will sacrifice this to something for value, in which case you don’t really go down a card at all! I could see this ending up as a key common for both BW and UB.
Unruly Mob image 2.0 This is a reprint from our other two visits to Innistrad, and it wasn’t very good either time -- a 1.5 at best! It does grow as the game goes on, but it starts really small and grows pretty slowly. Only growing when your creatures die is tricky too. However, this will probably be better in this format than we’ve seen in the past, mostly because BW is a sacrifice deck this time around, and that combos pretty well with the Mob. The GW deck has lots of tokens too, so yeah, I think maybe this ends up being a solid playable this time around.
Hobbling Zombie image 3.0 We often see 3-mana 2/2s with Deathtouch, and they are usually like a C. The ability to trade for anything is nice, after all! But this can do that and make a Zombie token. Obviously, it is a big down grade from a regular 2/2 zombie, but it is still enough additional upside for this to move up to 3.0.
Pack 3 Pick 8: Rootcoil Creeper
Rootcoil Creeper image 4.0 This is a very nice card. Its a bear that can tap for mana of any color, and that’s something I would sign up for all day long! That’s great fixing and ramp. The additional Flashback upside is a big deal, too.
Raze the Effigy image 1.5 This format doesn’t have a ton of artifacts, but having the option to destroy an artifact on a decent combat trick certainly makes it more flexible.
Otherworldly Gaze image 0.5 Loading the graveyard is important in this format, its true, but a card that pretty much only does that, while giving you some card selection, isn’t something I’m interested in. You never get the card back. There are so many cards that load the graveyard while doing actual other things!
Thraben Exorcism image 0.5 Against some opponents this will feel really good -- namely, against UW -- but against other decks it just won’t have targets often enough to be worth it.
Pestilent Wolf image 2.5 That’s a lot of mana to give a bear Deathtouch! Still, it starts out as a two mana 2/2, and has the ability to trade with anything later in the game. Wolf is also a somewhat useful creature type. I think the whole package is probably a 2.5
Consider image 1.5 This format has a spells matter deck in UR and it has various graveyard synergies, so this seems like a decent inclusion. It is a lot like Opt, and that’s not a bad comparison! That said, it is also pretty darn replaceable, especially if you’re not in a deck that cares about the graveyard or spells, and it will often be an easy card to cut in those situations.
Falkenrath Perforator image 2.5 In a set where this had no synergy at all, this would probably be a 1.5. The stats aren’t good, and the 1 damage just isn’t enough to make up for that. However, this set’s BR archetype has a lot of cards that give you extra effects if your opponent lost life, and this is one way you can make that happen. Plus, its a vampire, and while the tribal themes for vampires aren’t massive int his set, they are still there! I think all of that is enough to bump this up to a solid playable.
Pack 3 Pick 9: Join the Dance
Join the Dance image 3.0 Don’t underestimate the Flashback here. Like a lot of Flashback cards, neither the original cost nor the flashback cost is efficient, but the fact remains that over the course of a normal game of Limited, this will give you 4 tokens for only one card, and that’s pretty nice. Just having the Flashback cost to do in the later part of the game is a nice mana sink too. Obviously, GW is all about going wide too, so it will be extra useful there.
Thraben Exorcism image 0.5 Against some opponents this will feel really good -- namely, against UW -- but against other decks it just won’t have targets often enough to be worth it.
Hedgewitch's Mask image 1.5 This is a decent, albeit unimpressive, piece of Equipment. One to play and two to equip is kind of alright, and the upside of being unblockable by bigger stuff doesn’t hurt. It can help you get Coven. Still, this format doesn’t seem to have a huge equipment theme, and that probably means this gets cut a lot.
Harvesttide Infiltrator image 2.5 This has a decent fail case as a 3-mana 3/2 with Trample, and sometimes it will be bigger.
Pack's Betrayal image 1.0 Rummaging a few times a came with this seems fine, but not exactly game breaking. It does have decent stats to go along with that ability.
Candlelit Cavalry image 2.5 On a base level, this is a 5-mana 5/5, something that makes the cut in some Green decks anyway, and it will gain trample sometimes. Seems decent enough.
Pack 3 Pick 10: Vampire Interloper
Bloodtithe Collector image 3.5 If this always made your opponent discard, it would be an easy 4.0 Only doing it some of the time obviously downgrades it significantly, but it is still a decent flying body as a fail case.
Crawl from the Cellar image 2.0 This is an interesting take on the usual Sorcery that lets you return two creatures to your hand. The first time you cast this, the value is going to be pretty nice, provided you have a zombie, as it effectively replaces itself while making a creature bigger. The second time is less efficient, but in the you pay 5 mana for a 2-for-1 and two +1/+1 counters, which actually isn’t too bad. Now, you really would prefer to be putting these counters on zombies that don’t have decay to get full value out of them, but a significant chunk of the time that’s probably where the counter goes, and you may also just not have anywhere to put the counter in the first place.
Blood Pact image 2.0 Its nice this is an Instant, it makes it a lot more palatable that it is. Instant speed Divination for three mana is pretty nice, and most Black decks will play the first copy of this. In a pinch, you can also use it to do 2 to your opponent, either to finish them off or trigger a bunch of your pseudo-bloodthirst effects, but mostly you’ll want to be drawing the cards.
Path to the Festival image 2.0 This is pretty clunky since it doesn't add to the board at all. It can do it again from the graveyard though, which can potentially really turbo your mana. It is also reasonable fixing, and if you're splashing a third color, that Scry will be nice.
Vampire Interloper image 2.5 This has nice aggressive stats, and looks like a decent enabler for all the Black-Red cards that care about your opponent losing life.
Pack 3 Pick 11: Angelfire Ignition
Angelfire Ignition image 3.5 This is pretty spicy! It isn’t really a combat trick because it’s a sorcery, but when you find a window to cast this, it is going to make any creature you use it on into a big problem. Even if your opponent can just block it, it is indestructible and has lifelink so you get some value. And that’s the fail case here, frequently it will make a creature into a big problem. And then you can flash it back, so the nightmare isn’t over for your opponent! You do have to be very careful about when you use it to avoid getting 2-for-1’d, but the ceiling is pretty insane.
Mystic Skull image 2.5 Two mana for an artifact that filters is horrendous! If that’s all this was, it would be a 0.0. Obviously though, this is Innistrad, so this can transform into a scary thing -- Mystic Monstrosity. The Monstrosity not only has some pretty nice stats, it also provides great fixing. This is neat, because filtering usually isn’t very good in Limited, though it can help you out in a pinch, so the fact this turns into much better fixing is cool! Your total investment of 7 mana is a bit steep for a ⅚ of course, but it isn’t too crazy either, and you pay it installments. Note too, that this can be transformed at Instant speed, something that certainly matters.
Festival Crasher image 0.5 // 2.5 This has a very mediocre baseline. A two mana ⅓ these days is probably a D-. It does have some real upside though, and the threat of activation is pretty real! If your opponent just has a 2/2, and you attack with this and leave mana up, they just can’t afford to block it! Chaining multiple spells together is obviously the dream, but don’t count on doing that a ton in Limited. This will make the cut in decks with a decent number of spells, and probably be something you pass on in any other deck.
Hedgewitch's Mask image 1.5 This is a decent, albeit unimpressive, piece of Equipment. One to play and two to equip is kind of alright, and the upside of being unblockable by bigger stuff doesn’t hurt. It can help you get Coven. Still, this format doesn’t seem to have a huge equipment theme, and that probably means this gets cut a lot.
Pack 3 Pick 12: Ritual Guardian
Return to Nature image 0.5 Its nice that this does three different things, making it a more reasonable main deck card, but I’m still pretty skeptical about main decking it on a regular basis. This format has artifacts and enchantments, but not a ton of them, and while exiling something from a graveyard is nice, yo’ure often only getting half a card of value when you do it, since your opponent already cast their spell with flashback or their creature with disturb. I think this should probably still start in your sideboard.
Ritual Guardian image 2.0 If this was a 3-mana 3/2 that always had Lifelink, it would probably be a 2.5 or 3.0. The fact this won’t always have it, and in fact probably won’t have it a decent chunk of the time, makes this significanlty worse than that, because a 3-mana 3/2 is just an ugly stat line these days.
Raze the Effigy image 1.5 This format doesn’t have a ton of artifacts, but having the option to destroy an artifact on a decent combat trick certainly makes it more flexible.
Pack 3 Pick 13: Burn the Accursed
Burn the Accursed image 2.5 This isn’t exactly premium, but is an instant that kills most stuff, damages your opponent, and even exiles creatures, which certainly matters here.
Falkenrath Perforator image 2.5 In a set where this had no synergy at all, this would probably be a 1.5. The stats aren’t good, and the 1 damage just isn’t enough to make up for that. However, this set’s BR archetype has a lot of cards that give you extra effects if your opponent lost life, and this is one way you can make that happen. Plus, its a vampire, and while the tribal themes for vampires aren’t massive int his set, they are still there! I think all of that is enough to bump this up to a solid playable.
Pack 3 Pick 14: Bladebrand
Bladebrand image 1.5 This is a reprint, and it is one that is pretty mediocre. Giving death touch + a cantrip is pretty nice in combat, but it is a very narrow card overall because it is only useful in combat. Sure, I guess you can cast it just to cycle it, but that’s pretty rough! There are some silly things you can do with it sometimes, like give death touch to something that is being triple blocked, but a lot of the time you just use this and trade a creature on the table for one in your library. And, while that’s fine, it is certainly not a great card, and not one that makes the cut more than half the time.
Draft Pick Overview