Draft Deck Meta

Murders at Karlov Manor Draft Deck Metagame

Draft deck metagame only consists of decks with the maximum number of wins (3 wins in Traditional and 7 wins in Quick and Premier drafts).
Select an archetype to see the popular cards used in winning decks of that group.

Simic card breakdown - 123 decks, 5.47% of meta

Creatures

3 This is best in a heavy green deck, but even outside of that, it helps you ramp your mana and will be a reasonable size. 3.8 1x in 24%

2.5 A 5-mana 5/5 is pretty beefy, and this one has some Disenchant upside. Feels like most Green decks will want one of these. 2.5 1x in 25%

3 If this didn’t have Disguise, it wouldn’t be very good. The stat-line is bad and the type of evasion it has just…doesn’t do enough most of the time. But, when you mix in the Disguise part, you end up with a Man-O’-War of sorts, and that seems pretty sweet. Bounce effects have gotten worse over the years, in a world of ETB abilities and the like, but this still looks pretty nice to me. It adds to the board while giving you some tempo, and the fact you can do it at instant speed gives you some serious blowout potential. 4.3 1x in 27%

4 A two mana 1/1 that can tap for green is already a C-level card, and this has legitimate potential to grow throughout the game, which means it can stay more relevant than most mana dorks. Of course, if you draw it late it isn’t the most impressive thing ever, but playing this on turn two and playing a couple of Disguise creatures seems like a super common play pattern. This Common looks quite good. 4 1x in 28%

2 If you need to play a two drop well…it is one. A pretty bad one, but one nonetheless. Then if you need something on three you can disguise it, and then in the late game it can become a big monster. Now, this card isn’t ever going to make you feel like you’re doing something busted, as it’s kind of medium at all three points in the game, but the fact it can do all those things is enough for it to be fine. 2.3 1x in 28%

3.5 These days, they give us lots of Common one drops that do a whole bunch of little things, and almost all of them have been impressive in Limited – I think this is another one of those. A one mana 1/1 with Surveil 2 is probably playable to begin with, especially if you’re a graveyard deck. Add to that the ability to put a counter on something, and this card just feels like it will do a ton of work. 2.4 1x in 28%

2.5 5 mana for three 1/1s isn't great, but you can attack with all three tokens the next turn and really give your opponent a headache. At that point, you are definitely getting your mana's worth. 3.2 1x in 29%

2.5 A three mana 3/2 that loots on ETB is decent, and looting with this more than once isn’t impossible. 3.2 1x in 29%

3 A two mana 2/2 isn’t what it used to be, but that’s the fail case here, and this has the upside of fixing your mana. Note, by the way, that it can grab this format’s dual lands, should you pick one up. 3.8 1x in 30%

2 So…without Disguise this wouldn’t be very good. A 6-mana 5/5 just doesn’t move the needle, especially one that can only do something if it hits your opponent. Disguise does enough to make this playable, though, because you can get it on the board much earlier of course, but you can also find a way to sneak it in and get that clue more easily. 2.5 1x in 31%

3 A 4-mana 3/3 Flyer isn’t what it once was, but it’s not a bad stat-line, and this one replaces itself with a valuable Clue and it has a useful creature type. 3.1 1x in 36%

2.5 So, if you’ve got some spare stuff in your graveyard, this can turn it into cards, and it gives you a repeatable way to collect evidence, something that seems particularly useful for payoffs that give you something when cards leave your graveyard. Still, I do wish this was both an enabler and a payoff for collecting evidence. As is, it doesn’t feel strong enough to pull me into the color pair. 3.5 1x in 37%

2.5 This fixes your mana well and sets up Collect Evidence 6 in the early game, and in the late game it's a passable creature. 3 1x in 40%

2.5 You're not usually going to be able to unlock this cards full power on turn two, and while a ⅓ with reach isn't a disaster for two mana, it isn't remotely close to good either. The good news is that the ETB is useful pretty much all game long. 2.6 1x in 42%
Instant, Sorcery

2.5 The Flotsam side helps you set up graveyard shenanigans and replaces itself, and the Jetsam side gives you a free spell. Neither are going to feel like the most efficient thing in the world in most cases – You have to pay 4 total mana to mill three and draw a card with Flotsam, and Jetsam isn’t usually going to give you back the mana you spent, and if either of this card was only one or the other it would be too narrow and mediocre. But, having both makes a big difference – that’s what is great about split cards. Both plays might be kind of meh, but the fact remains you have a card that does something useful and something early late, and most cards don’t have that kind of flexibility. 1.6 1x in 10%

3.5 We’ve seen a lot of 4 mana blue cards lately that let you get rid of a nonland permanent by giving your opponent the option of put it on top or bottom of the library, and they’ve fared pretty well. None of them have been amazing, but they let you trade 1-for-1 and you can do it at instant speed. So, add in the ability to also do this with spells on the stack, and I think we’re talking about a fairly high quality card. 2.4 1x in 10%

4 4-mana for two 2/2s is a pretty nice deal, especially because it’s likely you grabbed a couple of cards that won’t be 2/2s for long. 4.6 1x in 11%

3 5 mana to make a token copy of a permanent isn’t that great. Obviously, it’s highly dependent on what you copy, but when you’re evaluating a card like this you have to think about how often you’re getting that 5 mana worth of value and, there will probably be more times where you don’t get your mana’s worth. Still, when you cast this you’re going to get a copy of whatever the best permanent on the battlefield is – most of the time you’ll be going after creature, and that means you either have a copy of your best creature, or a copy of your opponent’s best creature. 4.4 1x in 13%

2 I like that this can ultimately give you a 2-for-1. I don’t like that it’s a Sorcery that doesn’t add to the board in any meaningful way. It definitely fixes your mana, and in games that go long enough that Clue is gonna feel pretty nice, but not doing anything to add to the board on turn three has been a liability in most formats of late. I kind of hope this is a format where you can do stuff like this, but I’m going to err on the side of caution. 2.2 1x in 16%

2 This can hit any type of spell, but your opponent can also ignore it with spare mana. As usual, that type of card is never amazing, although it can feel pretty nice in the early game. 2 1x in 18%

2 This card is always pretty decent. You go down a card in most cases, but you get some nice tempo, and Surveil 1 can improve your next draw and/or load your graveyard. It is hurt a little bit by the absence of a dedicated spell deck in the format. 2.1 1x in 22%

3 This trick gives +1/+1 as a floor, and it can give a way bigger boost than that. We've seen this card before without the Reach, and it's always a good trick. 2.5 1x in 23%

2.5 This is a nice little card draw spell, because it ultimately gives you a 2-for-1, and there’s lots of additional upside for making Clue tokens in the format. You probably don’t want too many of these because they don’t really add to the board. 2.6 1x in 24%

3 because leaving up mana and hoping your opponent plays into it can be a really serious problem. You have to be careful about using them. 3.3 1x in 30%

3.5 They have really been pushing these punch effects lately. There once was a time where one mana for a straight up fight effect was a nice Limited card, but now we get a one-sided fight for the same cost! Obviously, it’s pretty darn good. You do need to have a sizable enough creature around to make it do its thing the best, and you have to pick your spots because removal is an utter blowout, but we’re still talking about a one mana removal spell…this’ll feel like a Green Swords to Plowshares pretty often. 3.9 1x in 31%

3 We’ve seen Run Amok in the past, and it has a strictly worse text box because it can only target attacking creatures, and Run Amok was an absolute beating in aggro decks. I think this will be too. The stats boost + trample can just wreck combat in so many ways, and make damage lethal out of nowhere. The boost is enough to save a creature from some removal spells in a pinch too. You’re going to want to keep this card in the back of your mind any time you’re playing someone who is in Green. 2.5 1x in 31%

3.5 If you aren't collecting evidence, this is pretty darn clunky. And clunky is dangerous on a removal spell like this, since your opponent interacting can 2-for-1 you. Still, if you choose your spot carefully, this is likely to kill most opposing stuff, and the stats boost might also really improve your attacks. Combine that with the Evidence upside and I think this manages to just sneak into “premium removal” range. 3.7 1x in 37%

2 I’m not always a huge fan of cards that just Stun things, as it often doesn’t feel like they do enough to be worth a card. Sure, you can get two creatures out of the way for two attacks and two blocks, but if you don’t have the game in-hand by the time they untap, you’re going to be in trouble. But because this gives you a Clue, it gives you that card back. I still don’t really think you want more than one, but this looks like a pretty good version of this effect. It can even hit Disguised creatures without you having to worry about Ward. 2.5 1x in 39%
Enchantment, Artifact

3 It’s nice you get a clue up front, and if your deck has enough artifacts in it, you can definitely end up animating that clue or something else into a 4/4 flyer. Blue is adept enough at making clues that I don’t think this needs a build around grade. 3 1x in 5%

2.5 Auras that cost one blue and give a creature +1/+1 and the ability to draw you a card when they hit your opponent have a pretty good track record in Limited. This is because it can allow you to ensure that you’re going to at least break even on cards even by hitting your opponent once, and the card advantage can quickly bury your opponent. Getting a clue is a bit worse than drawing a card straight up, even in a format with clue payoffs, but this still looks like a nice card, especially in decks that have cheap evasive creatures. 2.1 1x in 6%

2.5 The Cluequipments in Blue and Red might just be the best since the Blue-Red deck is so into sacrificing artifacts, but lots of decks in the format like Clues too, and this one can help set up collect evidence. 2.2 1x in 6%

2 If this were always 1 to Equip, it would probably be a 2.5, just because that’s a fairly efficient boost – one that’s easy to move around. Detectives are plentiful enough in this format that this still looks solid. 1.6 1x in 7%

2.5 This sort of has two modes, and you can access both at the same time. You can use it to stun your opponent’s board, which can be useful when you’re trying to close out a game – but you can also use it to protect your creatures. It also just sticks around and gives your tapped creatures hexproof after that point. Still, those modes are all situational enough that this doesn’t seem amazing. -0 1x in 8%

2.5 This is a very interesting version of this “Frogify”-type effect. Lately it seems like they are doing their darnedest to design one that’s actually solid in Limited, and they’ve had some success with that lately. I think they’ve done it again here. The usual problem with this type of card is that you don’t really entirely remove a creature when you turn it into a 1/1, so you’re often coming out behind. However, this adds a couple of important wrinkles. First, it has Flash – so you can turn something into a 1/1 at instant speed, which all-but-guarantees that it’s going down. Second, if your creature is a detective, this is a powerful combat trick. It’s also really nice that they made it only buff detectives you control, otherwise this card would be super frustrating. 1.5 1x in 8%

3 This Aura looks quite good. Obviously, the ideal situation is to cast it in response to removal, in which case you’re left with a buffed evasive creature, and you’ve already taken a card of value away from your opponent. But this also has the upside all Flying auras do, w hich is that you can just…slap it on some big monster and quickly win the game. 2 1x in 8%

0.0 / 3.5 The idea here is to play cards with Collect Evidence alongside this, and if you have enough of that going on – and enough creatures in your deck – this has the potential to be a fairly absurd engine, since it effectively gives you 2 cards every time you Collect Evidence. The problem is that this does absolutely nothing up front. Still, the upside is kind of insane, and I think accessible enough in some decks for this to get a buildaround grade. 2.6 1x in 9%

5 This is an unblockable three mana 3/2 with all kinds of upside. Upside because it might actually grab you a creature you want to turn face up, and upside because it can bounce back to your hand and make a new body for itself even when you don’t have any other creatures around. 4.9 1x in 10%

3.5 The fact this draws a card up front is a pretty big deal, especially because if you play it before combat on your turn, this amounts to being a two mana draw 1 that puts a +1/+1 counter on something, and that in itself is a solid card. So, if you can combine this with Clues and other draw effects, it can really augment your board. Still, getting that going is easier said than done, and I think most of this card’s value comes from what it gives you on that first turn – but that’s a pretty nice baseline. 4.3 1x in 11%

2.5 A 4-mana 3/3 that makes a Clue is fine, and this will be a 4/4 Vigilance from time to time. 3.8 1x in 19%

2 When you can use this correctly, it can be an absolute beating. It can work as a decent trick that leaves the buff behind, and it can blank removal. Turning off Suspect will usually be more upside than downside, too. Still, it's tricky to leave up this much mana. 1.8 1x in 20%

3 What this gives you up front is fairly acceptable, and Green decks will certainly be capable of solving this. Once you do, buffing an attacking creature every turn is going to feel pretty good. Still, it doesn’t do a ton up front. 3.3 1x in 24%

2.5 Three mana Blue Auras that tap a creature down usually aren’t anything special. The problem is that they don’t entirely remove the creature in all situations, so abilities are still relevant, and if your opponent has a way to sacrifice or otherwise utilize the tapped down creature you end up feeling like you’re really far behind. The Accusation’s activated ability adds an interesting wrinkle to this, since now you can get rid of the creature if it has problematic abilities and everything. The downside is your opponent might draw it again later. 2.2 1x in 27%
Planeswalkers
Lands

3.9 1x in 3%

3 This looks like a pretty solid source of fixing. You’re not always gonna want to tap your creatures to make mana, as that can be a very real cost, but at least this can also produce colorless mana normally, it has useful typing as both an artifact and a clue, and you can of course throw it away for a card. This means all your eggs aren’t in that mana-fixing basket, so it will almost never feel terrible, while still having the upside of shoring up your mana. 2.8 1x in 7%

2.5 This is another nice source of fixing, even if it does require you to jump through a few hoops. Being able to only tap a Clue or something once when you play it is nice. 2.5 1x in 9%

3.6 1x in 11%

3 This is Evolving Wilds with upside, and that upside can allow you send in an unblockable Disguise creature. 3.7 1x in 21%
Top Rated Cards

4.0 Tricks usually aren’t that impressive in Limited, but this is a pretty insane trick. Distributing +9/+9 worth of stats amongst your creatures is massive, as it can generate huge blowouts where you help three creatures win combat – or it can lead to lethal damage out of nowhere! It doesn’t have the usual downside of tricks most of the time, because if your opponent kills one creature you use this on, you still have the other two, and it has way more upside than most tricks too! 3.8 1x in 1%

4.0 This thing is a monster. It starts out with good stats, and then gets bigger and gains Trample – while also granting trample to a significant portion of your board. It is an excellent Uncommon for all Green decks. 0 1x in 1%

4.5 I’m already thrilled about a 4-mana 4/4 that gives Haste to your stuff, so…the fact that this has insane face-down card synergy is amazing. If you’ve got a Disguised creature and you attack with it with Yarus in play, your opponent either has to let it through and let you draw a card, or kill it and pray that the disguised creature won’t be that scary when it comes back. Of course, if the best they can do is trade with a 2 toughness creature, that will be an especially brutal beating. The whole haste thing combos nicely here, because it means your disguised creatures will make your opponent make those decisions even more quickly. 4.6 1x in 1%

4.5 In a lot of Simic decks, Zegana just feels like a 4-mana 4/4 that draws you a card when it ETBs. Even if you can’t draw a card with her when she comes down, she comes with the ability to become absolutely massive. Keep in mind, she will gain trample when she gets counters, as will all of your other creatures. 0 1x in 1%

4.5 This is an Uncommon, but its also a bomb. You have a very efficient creature to start with, and then it comes with an incredible +1/+1 counter payoff – and it’s a payoff that it can generate all on its own thanks to Adapt. Freezing creatures down is a huge deal, especially when you have a big Fish Octopus Crab that can now get in there thanks to tapping something down. It gets really insane if you find a way to put counters on it even after you adapt! 0 1x in 1%

4.5 This is an awesome two drop. The ⅔ stat-line is a nice one, and if you have the mana you can also make it a 4/4 Vigilance right away – or even a 7-mana 5/5 that makes your creatures indestructible. Obviously enough, you’re usually going to pay in installments, but the fact that you can draw this early and have it be an amazing threat or draw it late and have it be an amazing threat makes it an excellent card. 4.8 1x in 1%

4.5 A a 4-mana 8/4 is probably a 3.0 or 3.5. Those are some way above rate stats. And Anzrag comes with a bunch of extra upside too! Getting extra combat phases is notoriously an effect that sounds super powerful but generally underwhelms, but attaching the effect to an 8/4 is pretty sweet. It’s kind of hard for your opponent to just take 8 to the face in most situations, but that’s what they’re going to have to do sometimes. I mean, if they can block Anzrag but not kill him, there’s really no point, since this effect will just keep happening each time they block. And this is only talking about having Anzrag around, by the way – if your board is well developed your opponent is in for even more of a problem. The ability to force stuff to block him is kind of silly, because in the late game it’s pretty likely your opponent can block him with a couple of 2/2s or something. But…still, you get that extra combat phase, which you might just be able to take advantage of. 5 1x in 2%

5 5 mana for a 3/2 lifelink and a 5/5 trampler is an incredible rate. Tolsimir's ability to make stuff block the wolf can be pretty nasty too, but this card gets most of its value from giving you two very real bodies for a very low cost. 4.6 1x in 1%

5 It spits out clues like crazy and grows throughout the game, it's a massive bomb. 4.7 1x in 1%

5 Ezrim offers really great stats, and his ability to gain powerful keywords is amazing, especially because he gives you the clues to sacrifice to protect him with hexproof. Most of the time, you’re gonna wanna wait to play Ezrim until you can leave that mana up, because at that point your opponent is probably entirely unable to deal with Ezrim, and that’s a problem because he ends the game in just a few swings. The card’s biggest downside is the mana cost. Double-white double-blue isn’t always that easy to assemble in Limited, and the longer you have to wait to cast Ezrim, the less impressive it is. 4.6 1x in 2%

5 A 4-mana 4/2 with flying, lifelink and ward 2 can do a ton of work, and if your opponent can’t find a way to deal with it quickly – something that is difficult thanks to Ward, it’s going to end up causing all kinds of problems for your opponent. The race will get completely out of control! You’re frequently just going to play this face up because of that. But it also has some really insane late game upside, where you play it face down and then turn it face up. The exile effect is reminiscent of Angel of Serenity, in that the stuff it exiles can go back to player’s hands. This means that you can do double duty with that type of effect. You can use it to remove stuff of your opponents – but for insurance, you can also exile some of your own graveyard stuff, so that if your opponent does find a way to kill the Vindicator, you’re going to get some cards back too. I think the whole package here is a bomb. 5 1x in 2%

5 This will usually either be a 5-mana 2/2 with Flash that draws 3, or a 5-mana 3/3 with Flash that draws 2, and in both cases it also stocks the graveyard. That's nuts. 4.8 1x in 7%

5 This reminds me of Ishkanah, and that’s good company to keep. In black green, this will be a 6 mana 5/4 with Menace thar makes two 2/1s with Menace and reach more often than it isn't, and on rate alone that's a bomb. Throw in the ability to make more spiders every time it attacks, and the ability to give up tokens for value, and this might just be the biggest bomb in the set. 4.7 1x in 7%

5 This is an unblockable three mana 3/2 with all kinds of upside. Upside because it might actually grab you a creature you want to turn face up, and upside because it can bounce back to your hand and make a new body for itself even when you don’t have any other creatures around. 4.9 1x in 10%

Boros	2590 matches	314 decks
13.96% of Metagame
Orzhov	1830 matches	227 decks
10.09% of Metagame
Selesnya	1860 matches	226 decks
10.04% of Metagame
Azorius	1542 matches	185 decks
8.22% of Metagame
Golgari	1285 matches	155 decks
6.89% of Metagame
Izzet	1226 matches	154 decks
6.84% of Metagame
Rakdos	1269 matches	153 decks
6.80% of Metagame
Simic	1000 matches	123 decks
5.47% of Metagame
Dimir	832 matches	103 decks
4.58% of Metagame
Gruul	787 matches	96 decks
4.27% of Metagame
Naya	643 matches	79 decks
3.51% of Metagame
Bant	598 matches	73 decks
3.24% of Metagame
Jeskai	395 matches	49 decks
2.18% of Metagame
Sultai	394 matches	48 decks
2.13% of Metagame
Mardu	402 matches	47 decks
2.09% of Metagame
Abzan	347 matches	45 decks
2.00% of Metagame
Esper	293 matches	36 decks
1.60% of Metagame
Temur	232 matches	29 decks
1.29% of Metagame
Jund	240 matches	28 decks
1.24% of Metagame
Grixis	209 matches	25 decks
1.11% of Metagame
Four Color (Non-black)	75 matches	10 decks
0.44% of Metagame
Mono Green	80 matches	9 decks
0.40% of Metagame
Four Color (Non-blue)	49 matches	7 decks
0.31% of Metagame
Five Color	61 matches	7 decks
0.31% of Metagame
Four Color (Non-red)	52 matches	6 decks
0.27% of Metagame
Four Color (Non-white)	34 matches	4 decks
0.18% of Metagame
Four Color (Non-green)	25 matches	3 decks
0.13% of Metagame
Mono Red	27 matches	3 decks
0.13% of Metagame
Mono Black	24 matches	3 decks
0.13% of Metagame
Mono White	16 matches	2 decks
0.09% of Metagame
Mono Blue	9 matches	1 decks
0.04% of Metagame

Decks by color

Enter The Battlefield Prepared

With the MTGA Assistant deck tracker

Murders at Karlov Manor Draft Deck Metagame

Simic card breakdown - 123 decks, 5.47% of meta

Creatures

Instant, Sorcery

Enchantment, Artifact

Planeswalkers

Lands

Top Rated Cards

Enter The Battlefield Prepared