First I’d like to apologize for the recent delays in my column and my lack of feedback on the forums but as I’m spending more time on planes than on the ground it is difficult for me to connect to the internet very often. I played this draft in Thailand in a web caf and I was not able to send it until my arrival in Japan. Thanks for your understanding!
Pack 1 pick 1:
My Pick:
Quite an easy pick here as I only take a few elite rares over Mind Control. What do we have here? Hive Mind? I don’t think so. Doom Blade is by far the second best card in the pack but it is far worse than the Control Magic.
Pack 1 pick 2:
My Pick:
1) Stormfront Pegasus
2) Centaur Courser
No good Vlue card here and actually only two possible picks: Stormfront Pegasus and Centaur Courser. The cards are pretty close but I like the flyer a little more and I’ve posted many UG drafts already anyway!
Pack 1 pick 3:
My Pick:
1) Snapping Drake
2) Griffin Sentinel
3) Divination
4) Giant Spider
I would have taken the Spider if my pick two had been Courser but the best Blue/White card here clearly is the 3/2. Then I’d pick the Griffin Sentinel as I value creatures a lot more than drawing spells in a U/W archetype which should generally be quite aggressive and in which you therefore don’t want to pass turn 3 or 4 without playing a guy. Giant Spider is the best card in the pack but it’s not superior enough to the Drake to make me consider a switch already.
Pack 1 pick 4:
My Pick:
1) Silvercoat Lion
2) Glorious Charge
Glorious Charge can be a very good card but in order to be good it needs to be in a deck with lots of creatures and a very solid curve. I’d rather focus on that part as I should be able to receive one of these sooner or later.
Pack 1 pick 5:
My Pick:
Nothing I really want here; I’d better consider a splash. Open the Vaults could possibly be playable as I do have Mind Control but the probability I switch to Green is far higher.
Pack 1 pick 6:
My Pick:
1) Griffin Sentinel
2) Cancel
I like both cards about as much but the 1/3 is still an obvious pick to me for two reasons. First as I said earlier I pick guys over spells of the same value in UW. Then White has a lot more playables than Blue in M10 so I’m very likely to run more Plains than Islands in which case Cancel will become worse.
Pack 1 pick 7:
My Pick:
It’s quite close with the playable Zephyr Sprite but the 1/1 would probably not make the cut while Divine Offering is both a pretty good sideboard card and a hatedraft (Mind Control and possible Pacifism/Ice Cage).
Pack 1 pick 8:
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 9:
My Pick:
I guess one could call that a signal.
Pack 1 pick 10:
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 11:
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 12:
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 13:
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 14:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 1:
My Pick:
1) Lightwielder Paladin
2) Elite Vanguard
Quite a difficult pick here. My deck is now extremely aggressive and has almost nothing but two-drops. In this situation what is the best between a two-power one-drop or a high drop but stronger card? I’d rather go for the second as I think what my deck needs now is not just another way to deal pressure but a card that can survive Rod of Ruin pingers and the Red removal spells in general. It’s also a card that can gum up the board while the flyers do the offensive job or it can win games on its own.
Pack 2 pick 2:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 3:
My Pick:
1) Veteran Swordsmith
2) Palace Guard
3) Sage Owl
Swordsmith is both a fine blocker (it trades with most creatures in the format) and a much better attacker than Palace Guard which is not very good when you don’t have any combos. I’d usually even pick Sage Owl over it but I’m starting to wonder if I’m not simply going to play Mono-White and even if I do play Blue I’d rather pick a three-drop as I have lots of two-drops at the moment.
Pack 2 pick 4:
My Pick:
Another good reason to think of not playing Blue anymore.
Pack 2 pick 5:
My Pick:
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Much better than anything else here.
Pack 2 pick 6:
My Pick:
Finally a one-drop. Even if I must give up on Blue my deck is becoming very strong.
Pack 2 pick 7:
My Pick:
1) Pacifism
2) Divine Verdict
3) Wind Drake
I’d pick the Verdict over the Drake as removal spells are pretty much the only thing my deck lacks at the moment.
Pack 2 pick 8:
My Pick:
1) Veteran Armorsmith
2) Celestial Purge
Purge is a brilliant sideboard card but I don’t consider it worth a main deck slot. Also if I want to go Mono-White I am still a little short on playables.
Pack 2 pick 9:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 10:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 11:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 12:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 13:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 14:
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 15:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 1:
My Pick:
I should definitely try and stick to Mono-White from now on.
Pack 3 pick 2:
My Pick:
1) Gargoyle Castle
2) Blinding Mage
What a hard decision! I think the two things my deck needs the most are a second wave and removal spells and I must choose between two cards which answer those characteristics. As I’m passing Pyroclasm I decide to go with the land.
Pack 3 pick 3:
My Pick:
1) Goblin Artillery
2) Palace Guard
I’m short in playables but there is a card which actually destroys me while the only one I’m interested in would not be great in my deck. I pick the Artillery but will live to regret it.
Pack 3 pick 4:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 5:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 6:
My Pick:
1) Silvercoat Lion
2) Righteousness
My deck is so aggressive that I’m not planning on blocking and risking a two-for-one trade. If I face a Green deck the pump spell would be better but I think I’ve a great matchup versus Green anyway.
Pack 3 pick 7:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 8:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 9:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 10:
My Pick:
Not a card I want to face!
Pack 3 pick 11:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 12:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 13:
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 14:
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Pack 3 pick 15:
My Pick:
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12 Plains
5 Island
1 Gargoyle Castle
1 Soul Warden
4 Stormfront Pegasus
3 Silvercoat Lion
1 Veteran Armorsmith
1 Blinding Mage
1 Veteran Swordsmith
2 Griffin Sentinel
1 Razorfoot Griffin
1 Snapping Drake
1 Lightwielder Paladin
3 Pacifism
2 Armored Ascension
1 Mind Control
Sideboard
1 Fog
2 Solemn Offering
1 Windstorm
1 Jackal Familiar
1 Centaur Courser
1 Wall of Fire
1 Canyon Minotaur
2 Island
1 Coral Merfolk
1 Celestial Purge
2 Jump
1 Sparkmage Apprentice
2 Swamp
1 Naturalize
1 Mountain
1 Angel’s Feather
1 Swamp
1 Goblin Artillery
I regret not picking the 1/4. I know must play 5 Islands for Snapping Drake and Mind Control when I could have stuck with Mono-White but had to run Divine Offering and Celestial Purge main deck in order to do so. As Armored Ascencion should still be pretty good with over 10 Plains I consider splashing Blue the right option.
In the first round I faced another White/Blue deck and destroyed him once with Soul Warden on the first turn which gained me countless life in a very long game and one with a double Pegasus draw when he chose to draw first.
Round 2 was much harder; twice I had to face Rod of Ruin and twice I barely won. Once with the Paladin I was very glad I had picked over the 2/1 and once with the Armored Ascension I had been holding for a while until I was sure he didn’t have any removal. As he was RB and had Rod of Ruin and Weakness I took out the Blue for Purge and 2 Divine Offering which made the deck even more efficient.
The same happened in the last round versus RG. I lost one game to Pyroclasm but won one despite the mass removal as my Paladin came into play right after it and claim the win. In the third game he played Pyromancer but I had Gargoyle Castle and Pacifism for his Giant Spider allowing my 3/4 to give me the win!
Until tomorrow…
Oli