I’m coming off a weekend at Grand Prix Orlando where I was undefeated up until round 14 and came just short of Top 8 and the coveted Pro Tour invite,
finishing just outside in tenth place. A key part of the tournament for me was the first draft of day 2 when I was the featured drafter in Pod 1 where I
forced B/W Warriors. Sadly, the fellow to my right first-picked Anafenza, the Foremost pack 1 pick 1 which left me with slim pickings in the first and
third packs. I was still able to piece together enough parts and have a small green splash that was enough to carry me to 3-0 in the pod.
Going into Grand Prix Orlando, my favorite archetype to draft was B/W Warriors, and I still feel that it’s one of, if not the strongest strategies
available. The best part is that it’s a proactive strategy that has fallback plans of landing into Mardu or Abzan if the parts don’t come together. Today
I’ll break down the important cards in the archetype and talk about how their power levels change when you’re a warrior-centric deck.
Each card has two rating numbers. The first number is how powerful the card is to B/W Warriors specifically, while the second number is how strong the card
is to the rest of the table, including Mardu, Abzan, and various four and five color decks. This should give you an idea of how often you may expect to get
key cards late if you miss them or decide to pass them hoping that they’ll make the lap back to you.
Warrior Cards
B/W Warriors Rating: 4
Generic Rating: 1
The best part about this card is that it tends to be underrated at the moment, and that there ought to be nobody else at the table that wants it, so it’s
likely to come back around if you pass it early. You often have a swarm of creatures with low power, and the +1/+0 to all of your creatures (not just
warriors) helps you fight in the midgame. Of course, the ability to draw cards is the biggest selling point of the card, pricing your opponent into making
unfavorable blocks.
B/W Warriors Rating: 5
Generic Rating: 3.5
Even though Chief of the Edge matchups up a bit poorly in a world of 2/2s, it still ranks higher in my book than Chief of the Scale. The reason is because
a lot of your warriors can be ignored without a complementary piece to help out. Examples include early Mardu Hateblade beatdown and making 1/1 warrior
tokens into real threats. It also turns Sage-Eye Harrier into a realistic evasive clock. Even attacking this 3/2 into their morph on turn 3 isn’t the worst
thing in the world. They may not block or you may have a card like Feat of Resistance, and if you don’t then you traded your two mana creature for their
three mana creature.
B/W Warriors Rating: 4.5
Generic Rating: 3
Great on the play or the draw to stop their two-drop or the morph creature. You want as many of either Chief as possible and you take them over basically
anything. Given the choice of which one is more important to your deck, you want to evaluate how high the power and toughness of the warriors you’ve picked
so far are. If you’ve gotten a bunch of Mardu Skullhunters and Krumar Bond-Kins, this warrior increases in value as it allows those creatures to fight
better in combat than they did before.
B/W Warriors Rating: 3
Generic Rating: 1.5
Too often compared to Sanctified Charge from M15, Rush of Battle has largely been dismissed as a worse version. You’ll sometimes get into clumped
boardstates where this will pull you out. You’ll need to attack into a variety of bigger creatures and be able to survive the crack back, which is where
the lifegain from the warriors comes into play. You want one in your deck (sometimes two) and can usually bank on getting at least one pretty late in the
draft.
Other Warriors
B/W Warriors Rating: 4
Generic Rating: 2.5
A key low-drop that you want as many copies of as you can get. It’ll will get through for a few damage early and will threaten to trade with anything they
have. If you can increase its power, it becomes really tough for them to ignore it for long.
B/W Warriors Rating: 4
Generic Rating: 3.5
The body on this thing is huge. You ought to have enough early threats to enable its raid without a problem. Very solid on its own and the fact that it’s a
warrior is just icing on the cake.
B/W Warriors Rating: 4
Generic Rating: 2.5
A rare, so you might not get him often, but it is exactly what the deck is looking for. Triggers raid great without any real commitment and becomes really
powerful as a 3/1 with help. Of all the archetypes, this is the one where Bloodsoaked Champion is the strongest.
B/W Warriors Rating: 3
Generic Rating: 2
A role player and does great work to fill the curve as a one-drop and something to do on turn 2. All of the outlast creatures are sweet since they can grow
to become the biggest threat on board given enough time. The 0/4 body blocks to conserve your life total against other aggressive decks until you can build
up a big enough board to take over.
B/W Warriors Rating: 2
Generic Rating:1.5
Mostly filler. The unmorph cost is fairly high for how poorly it trades. I will often cast this for its market price on turn 5. Gets considerably better if
you have Chief of the Scale.
B/W Warriors Rating: 4
Generic Rating: 3
A very important creature to B/W Warriors. The token is often very relevant with your warrior-specific cards, and this is exactly what you want to be doing
on turn 3. Curving this into Raiders’ Spoils is the dream scenario.
B/W Warriors Rating: 3
Generic Rating: 2
Works best in multiples. The first card that they discard may be a land that fuels delve but the second may be a key spell. You have a healthy number of
one-drops like Disowned Ancestor and Mardu Hateblade that enable this on turn 2.
B/W Warriors Rating: 3
Generic Rating: 1.5
In this deck, it pairs excellently with Raiders’ Spoils as a way to gradually get ahead on cards without exposing yourself too much. Five toughness is a
ton and will block nearly any flyer or things like Abzan Guide until you have time to assemble a strong warrior army.
B/W Warriors Rating: 4.5
Generic Rating: 4.5
For a two-drop, this guy is incredible. It’s the second best uncommon that I want to open, barely behind Murderous Cut. It goes in every archetype and
swings the race in your favor in large chunks and very quickly.
B/W Warriors Rating: 4
Generic Rating: 3
I like this a lot and take it highly even in non-warrior decks. You don’t have many options in terms of evasion, and a 3/3 body matches up very well
against the other common flying creatures in the set. You won’t have much else going on that requires delve.
B/W Warriors Rating: 3
Generic Rating: 2.5
This guy’s strength is largely dependent on how many Mardu Hateblades you get. Outside of that, he’s optimally bringing back Seeker of the Way, Mardu
Skullhunter, or Ainok Bond-Kin. If you have a build with five+ low drops that you can reasonably expect to be trading off in the early game, this becomes a
nice inclusion. However, without the requisite targets this can reach the realm of unplayable.
B/W Warriors Rating: 1.5
Generic Rating: 1.5
Only a filler card. The warrior tag is nice but not really enough to push it to the next level. It’s nice that Raiders’ Spoils and Chief of the Edge boost
its power to where the first strike ability becomes more relevant. That said, you ought to be able to find better warriors and be able to get these late if
you don’t end up with them.
B/W Warriors Rating: 2.5
Generic Rating: 1.5
Creating six power is much stronger than creating just three in the cases that you have a Chief of the Edge or a Raiders’ Spoils. That said, five mana
quite a bit and the tokens may be lost in a ground stall. I like to pick up one of these in case I play against someone with Dead Drop.
Non-Warrior Creatures
B/W Warriors Rating: 4
Generic Rating: 4.5
White’s best common. Ainok Bond-Kin is great in every deck and becomes insane in a deck that utilizes +1/+1 counters in multiple ways. Left alone, it can
grow to take over a game within a few turns. It’s not a warrior so it doesn’t get the bonus from your warrior cards, but that doesn’t mean you should pass
these.
B/W Warriors Rating: 4
Generic Rating: 4.5
As with any Limited format, evasion is a huge deal. After outlasting just once, a 3/4 flyer will be bigger than most any other creature in the air. As with
Ainok Bond-Kin, the Falconer’s power level increases with every outlast piece you assemble.
B/W Warriors Rating: 4
Generic Rating: 4.5
There aren’t many ways to gain life within black or white so this guy’s ability is very welcomed. With Feat of Resistance and other outlast creatures, this
can get out of control quickly.
B/W Warriors Rating: 2.5
Generic Rating: 3.5
Not as much of a necessary role player as it is in other decks, the stats are just a tad bit low. You do want some number of flying creatures though, and
these get played if you don’t get Sultai Scavengers or Sage-Eye Harriers.
B/W Warriors Rating: 1
Generic Rating: 2
The worst two-drop you could be playing. You don’t want to play this unless things go horribly wrong. You won’t have many instants to trigger its prowess,
and its body just sits around on the ground alongside your warrior ground creatures.
B/W Warriors Rating: 1.5
Generic Rating: 2
If you have no other lifegain you might want him. Sidisi’s Pet is a card I like to have in my sideboard against the aggressive decks, but you ought to be
built fine against those decks anyway. Becomes better if you have Molting Snakeskin, as a 3/4 lifelinker that regenerates will be a big deal.
B/W Warriors Rating: 3.5
Generic Rating: 3
A great evasive creature. You may not get many shots at flyers or lifegain and this fills both roles nicely. You’ll be playing a higher number of white
spells than others so its unmorph cost will be active more often than in other decks.
B/W Warriors Rating: 2.5
Generic Rating: 3.5
This card is sweet, and like Watcher of the Roost, you will be able to unmorph it more easily than others, but it will often fill the same role as Mardu
Hateblade while not being a warrior. A good card overall, but not necessary to the archetype’s gameplan.
Removal
B/W Warriors Rating: 2.5
Generic Rating: 3.5
Good, but not as good as it is in other decks. What you want with warriors are the creatures and the cards that work well with them above the one-for-one
removal. You’re a highly synergistic deck that doesn’t particularly want to play attrition against your opponent.
B/W Warriors Rating: 2
Generic Rating: 2
Slow and clunky, but sometimes a necessary evil. The snake is often irrelevant but can become a real threat if you have Raiders’ Spoils or Rush of Battle.
I like to start one if I have to, or have one in the sideboard against an outlast deck.
B/W Warriors Rating: 2
Generic Rating: 3.5
You don’t want to be leaving up mana very often with the deck. It looks very awkward if you chose not to outlast when it’s obvious that you should have. If
you take Kill Shot, I recommend not starting it but siding it in against aggressive decks on the draw.
B/W Warriors Rating: 3
Generic Rating: 3.5
A bit slow, but exactly what you want to kill their biggest threat in the later turns of a game. I like having one but not more, as it’s not proactive and
doesn’t punish them for their slow draws.
B/W Warriors Rating: 5
Generic Rating: 5
Premium removal. Kills anything at any time and often for one or two mana. Never pass this unless it’s for a Wingmate Roc, a Sorin, Solemn Visitor, or
you’re already pretty good on removal already.
B/W Warriors Rating: 5
Generic Rating: 4.5
The same goes for Suspension Field. You’r creatures will often be mid-sized and are apt to be roadblocked by a slightly bigger creature. This is the most
efficient spell to removal the threat and push through in the midgame.
B/W Warriors Rating: 4
Generic Rating: 4
Great in a world of morph creatures. Debilitating Injury is key for maintaining aggression in the early turns to push through your warriors, optimally when
you have an active Raiders’ Spoils going. They do have a bit of diminishing returns though, and you could be left in a situation where you don’t have any
targets that it will outright kill in the later turns of a game. I like to have two in my deck, but I will pass on drafting the third over a good creature.
B/W Warriors Rating: 2
Generic Rating: 3.5
Ten mana is a big number. You want to spend your delve on Sultai Scavengers for the most part, and Dead Drop ends up being too slow for what you want to be
doing. In a deck that wants a big board presence and to play on selective removal, Dead Drop will be getting their worst two creatures in a clogged board.
Other Spells
B/W Warriors Rating: 3.5
Generic Rating: 4
A great trick in any deck. This card gets stronger if you have outlast creatures. I find the surprisingly best use for it is to double-block a 4/4 with two
2/2 creatures then using Feat of Resistance on whichever blocker they placed first. They’ll have to assign lethal damage to the first and one damage to the
second, allowing both of your creatures to live, which ends up feeling like a one-for-zero.
B/W Warriors Rating: 1.5
Generic Rating: 2
I like to draft these when I have a lot of Sultai Scavengers. Against a grindy opponent like a five-color control deck that I know will choose to play
first, I like to side in these on the draw.
B/W Warriors Rating: 1.5
Generic Rating: 2
Similar to Rakshasa’s Secret, Bitter Revelation is good with delve cards and against opponents that aren’t putting much pressure on you. If you don’t get
many key cards like the Chiefs or Raiders’ Spoils but really need to draw one to win the game, then I can see playing this to ensure you see them more
often.
B/W Warriors Rating: 1.5
Generic Rating: 2
A card that is typically fine to cycle if it’s not relevant to just get in an extra damage or to dig to your better cards. Outside of Seeker of the Way,
you won’t have much use for this as its best use is to trigger prowess. If you get a high number of delve cards, this card’s value can go up slightly.
Every now and then it will enable attacks that you otherwise couldn’t make, but overall you’d rather have a normal card.
B/W Warriors Rating: 2.5
Generic Rating: 1
I’ve started to like this card quite a bit. A lot of your warriors have high toughness, and you want to increase their power. A Molting Snakeskin on
something as simple as a Sage-Eye Harrier can create a threat that will end up winning you the game on its own. Molting Snakeskin’s main weakness is that
it leaves you open to a two-for-one, but when placed on a creature that survives something like a Bring Low or Throttle, then you’re safer in more
situations, making it a stronger overall card.
Lands
B/W Warriors Rating: 2
Generic Rating: 3.5
I like to have one but rarely more. The nice thing about playing two colors is that your deck functions well off just basic lands. Drawing a land that
enters the battlefield tapped can be the difference in casting your four-drop on time, being able to unmorph a creature, or being able to use outlast.
Khans Limited is largely an eightteen land format, and you will usually want eighteen in B/W Warriors if you have a decent number of outlast creatures or
have to play Rite of the Serpent as your top-end removal. However if you get a good, lean build, seventeen lands is where you want to be. A lot of the need
for eighteen lands stems from manafixing, and with two colors that shouldn’t be an issue.
Even though I came up a bit short at Grand Prix Orlando, I believe that B/W Warriors is one of the best archetypes in Khans of Tarkir. Hopefully this
article gave you some more insight on the powerful strategy and why I tried so hard to lean this way on day two of the GP.