Hello again and welcome back to Constructed Criticism! Today we’re going to talk a bit about M10 Limited. The release events have started on Magic Online and I’ve been looking forward to drafting it for a few weeks now. As many a writer before me has already stated M10 is not a good sealed deck format. Often your pools will lack the synergy required to produce a winning deck leaving you in a place where you either have to get lucky or your opponents have to get really unlucky in order for you to do well. However drafting M10 is a different animal completely. I haven’t found anyone yet that doesn’t like drafting the new set and no one has done a “Drafting with…” for M10 so I figured I might be the 1st! I’m no Olivier Ruel but it is always helpful to hear other opinions about limited. Drafting is a complex equation that rarely has a perfect solution and you can get to the finish line along many different routes.
In my last draft article I made a lot of mistakes but still ended up winning the draft. This is no excuse for mistakes and should be disregarded when speaking of drafting in a vacuum. The decisions you make should ultimately push you towards a higher winning percentage and we should never be results-oriented when examining data. Sometimes there are clear decisions that can be made while others are a bit tougher and require a lot of thought and knowledge about different aspects of the draft pod and format. These include:
1. What you’re passing.
2. What you’re being passed.
3. What you’re expecting to be passed.
These three things should be what is constantly zooming through you head while you pick cards and you should rarely just autopick a card because it is the best one in the pack. You should memorize the cards you are passing figure out what the person next to you should be playing and continue from there. It is difficult to remember every single card you are passing but it is relatively easy to remember the best three or so cards to give yourself an idea of what to expect in the second pack when your neighbors to the left will be passing back to you.
While all of this may seem elementary to the experienced crowd sometimes people just need to read it to grasp it. I’m probably not the person you should be taking all of your Limited advice from as there are plenty of pros that have more experience than me but no one is perfect at drafting and having different ideas can never hurt. This is my first M10 draft online and only something like my 4th draft of the set overall so it should be a learning experience for us both.
Anyway onto the draft!
(One more thing… this is an 8-4.)
Pack 1 pick 1:
My Pick:
This pack is full of a few goodies. Rhox Pikemaster and Pacifism are great White cards but there is only one good Black card in the pack. If I start to cut the black off early then I might get the goods flowing in pack 2. Also if I took the Pacifism and passed the Pikemaster it would be a horrible signal to the guy on the left. If the two cards we were choosing between had a wider difference in power level this pick would be different but as it is the Doom Blade is on-par with Pacifism so we take the card which leads to better signals.
Pack 1 pick 2:
My Pick:
Hrm. The rare is gone which in an MTGO draft could mean anything. Serra Angel is definitely the best card in the pack with nothing coming close. Since its early in the draft this might not be a signal to go White but the disparity in card power is too great to take anything but Serra Angel here.
Pack 1 pick 3:
My Pick:
BW is not a horrible color combination in M10 but I really hate 3rd picking a Child of Night. Unfortunately Celestial Purge is not nearly as good in M10 draft as it is in Alara Block draft. It is still a great sideboard card and sometimes maindeck if you desperately need another removal spell. The rest of the pack is fairly weak and Black cards (like Tendrils of Corruption or Nightmare) get stronger the closer to mono-Black you are so Child of Night it is.
Pack 1 pick 4:
My Pick:
Speaking of Tendrils of Corruption here is a beauty. 4th pick Tendrils in pack 1 is a huge signal that we are in the right color and we can keep passing that Blinding Mage to solidify our friend to the left as a White base. While we may cut him off a card or two he should be fairly happy with our signals.
Pack 1 pick 5:
My Pick:
W00t. Everything we wanted is coming true and we are still passing decent White.
Pack 1 pick 6:
My Pick:
While Dread Warlock is not the greatest creature black common creatures are rather lacking in general. Having “fear” is something that I feel to be underestimated in M10 as there are a great number of instances where the board becomes gummed up only to be fought through by a creature with Evasion. “Fear” is a great form of evasion when you aren’t playing against another Black deck. Against another Black deck he still trades with the infinite x/2’s that make up the creature base.
Pack 1 pick 7:
My Pick:
Here I waffled momentarily on Excommunicate over the Warpath Ghoul but decided that staying mostly Black was a better plan as to help my double Tendrils.
Pack 1 pick 8:
My Pick:
Deathmark much like Celestial Purge is an okay maindeck card but I would rather have it in the board. However it is absolutely nuts after boarding against a Green deck with a ton of fatties or helping to keep your opponent from going nuts with soldiers.
Pack 1 pick 9:
My Pick:
I took the creature but Kindled Fury was probably the better pick since its one of those cards that can surprise you in combat and leave you feeling violated. There’s not a lot of value with any of these picks for us.
Pack 1 pick 10:
My Pick:
This is a pretty late solid creature and I’m happy to pick him.
Pack 1 pick 11:
My Pick:
While this proxy may have been unplayable in Shards Block he’s actually fine in M10. Mono-Black has few creatures with greater than 3 power so this guy shines in combat when facing off against a Craw Wurm or something similar that outclasses the rest of your goons.
Pack 1 pick 12:
My Pick:
This guy is really annoying and shouldn’t be coming around this late.
Pack 1 pick 13:
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 14:
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 15:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 1:
My Pick:
I’m not the hugest fan of Rise from the Grave and I’m still considering the White “splash” since I don’t really want my Serra Angel to sit on the sidelines. I value Blinding Mage highly and would rather splash it than play Rise from the Grave.
Pack 2 pick 2:
My Pick:
There isn’t a good card here for my deck and hate-drafting should be ok when the card you’re taking is worth 7-10 bucks not to mention that I don’t want this card to just trounce me in the finals. However the fact that the guy on our left probably isn’t White is bothersome.
Pack 2 pick 3:
My Pick:
At least he’s not Black either. Pack two looks pretty strong for us so far.
Pack 2 pick 4:
My Pick:
Looming Shade is great in a heavy-Black deck and nothing else in the pack looks very good anyway.
Pack 2 pick 5:
My Pick:
This one was tough and I probably made the wrong decision. I took the Wall of Bone over the Mind Rot but at this point I don’t have very many creatures and two of the creatures I want to play are White so I took the Wall of Bone as an early defensive creature to allow my Tendrils to take control of the late game.
Pack 2 pick 6:
My Pick:
Pretty easy pick as I don’t want too many white cards in my deck.
Pack 2 pick 7:
My Pick:
A flier is always welcome as long as it isn’t completely horrible. The bats aren’t amazing but they’re fine overall. With the removal suite we’ve got so far I just need something to fly over and kill my opponent.
Pack 2 pick 8:
My Pick:
Ice Cage is probably the best card here both on power level and against my deck. I don’t have anything that targets without being a removal spell so Ice Cage is basically Arrest against me.
Pack 2 pick 9:
My Pick:
Another guy is always welcome when I’m running low.
Pack 2 pick 10:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 11:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 12:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 13:
My Pick:
I’ve never played with the card but I rarely like playing Auras on my own creatures unless those Auras immediately win me the game (Armored Ascension) or gain me some significant value even if the creature dies (Griffin Guide). Still it’s the rare.
Pack 2 pick 14:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 15:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 1:
My Pick:
This pack is just horrible for me. I really wanted to take the Goblin Artillery because it kills every creature in my deck but Child of Night is a decent beater and like I said I’m a bit short on those at the moment.
Pack 3 pick 2:
My Pick:
Since Black has some of the weakest creatures in M10 Gorgon Flail is a strong upgrade for my ‘random dorks’ deck allowing me to trade profitably with my opponent’s creatures or even race. I almost took Harm’s Way because it is an insane combat trick but I’m still uncertain that I’ll actually be playing White in my deck.
Pack 3 pick 3:
My Pick:
Hurray! A bomb! Consume Spirit is similar to Fireball in that it can win games out of nowhere. It is sometimes even better than Fireball since the lifegaining aspect can often be relevant if you’re removing a blocker from their side of the board in a race.
Pack 3 pick 4:
My Pick:
Another Doom Blade! Looming Shade is in the pack as well but it might lap.
Pack 3 pick 5:
My Pick:
I’ve actually never played with Duress in my maindeck of M10 Limited and removal is always welcome at my door. I would like to hear what everyone thinks about Duress as a maindeckable card.
Pack 3 pick 6:
My Pick:
I was pretty close to picking the Whispersilk Cloak as it can sometimes just win games by itself. However I will rarely pass Doom Blade even if it is my 4th.
Pack 3 pick 7:
My Pick:
Another solid guy.
Pack 3 pick 8:
My Pick:
Nice.
Pack 3 pick 9:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 10:
My Pick:
I’m pretty happy to see this here since I picked zero Sign in Blood. This is my only source of true card advantage.
Pack 3 pick 11:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 12:
My Pick:
Sick late sideboard card.
Pack 3 pick 13:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 14:
My Pick:
I’ll take it.
Pack 3 pick 15:
My Pick:
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Here is how my deck ended up:
1 Gorgon Flail
4 Doom Blade
2 Child of Night
1 Whispersilk Cloak
1 Mind Rot
1 Dread Warlock
1 Kelinore Bat
1 Looming Shade
2 Vampire Aristocrat
1 Wall of Bone
4 Warpath Ghoul
2 Tendrils of Corruption
1 Zombie Goliath
1 Consume Spirit
17 Swamps
Notable cards in the sideboard:
1 Serra Angel
1 Blinding Mage
2 Deathmark
1 Duress
1 Assassinate
I only had 13 creatures in this configuration and I think that Whispersilk Cloak and Gorgon Flail are better cards than Assassinate for my deck. All of my other removal is clearly better than the Assassinate hence why it stayed on the sidelines. I also didn’t want to dilute the potency of Tendrils and Consume Spirit with too many plains for Serra Angel and Blinding Mage so this is what I ended up with. And now onto the action!
Round 1 against UR
There are replays available for only half the games you play on Magic Online currently so I’ll do my best. I’ll go into great detail on the games with replays but try my best from memory to recall what happened in the games without a replay.
Game 1 my opener is 4 lands Consume Spirit Dread Warlock and Zombie Goliath on the draw. It’s not the greatest but it’s definitely okay if he isn’t playing a really aggressive deck. His first play is a turn 3 Phantom Warrior and he’s playing UR. I opt to play a Warpath Ghoul instead of the Dread Warlock on turn 3 hoping to race. However he has a Lightning Bolt and starts putting me behind. I try for a second Warpath Ghoul that gets Essence Scattered. On turn 5 I try Zombie Goliath and it gets Cancelled. Next I try for a Dread Warlock that sticks and later another Warpath Ghoul. At this point I’m at 10 and he’s at 13 from a few swings. I draw the 4th Warpath Ghoul play it and sit on Consume Spirit and a Doom Blade in hand. I’m wanting to save the Consume for a Fireball effect to end the game and bait him with Doom Blade on his Phantom Warrior. He has Negate and I turn my guys sideways and try to finish him with a 7 point Consume Spirit. He has another Negate but no other blockers and is dead to my creatures in play.
Game 2 he mulligans to 5. I sided into Duress and have an early Duress for his Cancel and Mind Rot for most of his hand. I play a few dorks use Tendrils and Doom Blades to off his blockers and the game is over quickly when he doesn’t draw any bombs.
Round 2 against Br
This round is fairly awkward since my Doom Blades are basically dead cards. Luckily game 1 is a war of attrition and I get the upper hand by not drawing many. I play a Child of Night after getting my Whispersilk Cloak Duressed and he attacks me with his own Child of Night. I play a few Warpath Ghouls to match his Vampire Aristocrat and Howling Banshee. I draw Consume Spirit and play a Zombie Goliath that dies instantly to Tendrils of Corruption. A few turns later he has to play defense with the Banshee and I use Consume Spirit to off it and attack but he has a second Tendrils of Corruption to stifle the bleeding. However he fails to play another blocker and we’re off to game 2.
This is a great example of sideboarding as I was forced to sideboard out the 4 Doom Blade as all of his creatures were Black. I sided in Duress and the “white package” of Plains Serra Angel and Blinding Mage as well as the Assassinate.
There isn’t a replay of Game 2 but I remember winning pretty easily. I drew White mana early for my Blinding Mage. I used it to tap his early creatures while playing a few Warpath Ghouls and Children of Night. I drew my Tendrils this game and put his blockers away before he could put up much of a fight. I also drew the Whispersilk Cloak to make racing very difficult for him as his removal couldn’t touch my unblockable 3/2.
Finals against GW
My opener is decent having 2 Child of Night Doom Blade Kelinore Bat Looming Shade and 2 Swamps. I play a Child of Night and attack into his Deadly Recluse before playing the Kelinore Bat. He plays Pacifism on the bat and I play Warpath Ghoul to his Emerald Oryx. We both play some dorks that gum up the board but I draw Whispersilk Cloak to make things interesting. He plays Cudgel Troll while I play the Looming Shade. If I equip the Cloak and start bashing I can outrace him as long as he doesn’t draw any more huge monsters. However he draws the huge monsters and I have to use removal and play blockers instead of pumping the shade making me lose the race rather quickly. One Howl of the Night Pack later and I’m virtually dead on board.
In game 2 I mulliganed into a 1 lander and shipped it back for a fresh five. The five was good but not good enough. My opponent played turn 3 Centaur Courser and followed it up with 2 Cudgel Trolls. I had no outs since Doom Blade isn’t Terror so I lost in swift fashion. I don’t know if I would have been able to handle his draw even if I had kept a good 7-card hand as Cudgel Troll is such a monster and two is just absurd.
Overall I was happy with my deck and happy to make the finals on my 1st M10 online draft. I’m sure I made some mistakes in picks and probably a few while playing. Let me know what you think in the forums and I’ll be sure to respond! If I get enough positive responses I might make this a semi-regular thing! Thanks again to everyone who commented last week about my Nationals performance. It was a great ride and it can only get better from here.
That’s all for this week. Next week I’ll try to talk a little more about the new Standard since the format keeps changing and there are still a few PTQs left. Unfortunately I’ve had to sell most of my MOL collection in order to go on these trips to Nationals as well as my honeymoon.
Good luck on the battlefield.
Todd
strong sad on MOL