Pro Perspective – Pimp My Draft #2

Next week is Grand Prix: Massachusetts. There’s no real Two-Headed Giant action going on around here, so there’s no new tech from me today. But as playing a little Magic between events never hurts, and as this column seems to create some enthusiasm, I drafted for you yesterday with Matt, and will report the action here.

A few words before starting:

* I found the program to make the remote draft possible — actually, onefiddyone helped me with that. However, I’m still encountering problems making it work. It’s not that I’m bad with computers, but there are some things I can’t fix on my own. Someone is working on the problem, and the system will hopefully be operational soon.

* I’ll also talk to Mr DraftCap Mark Schmit soon, to fix the Missing Cards problem.

* In the forums, I’d like to answer your reader-based questions, and implement them for the next issue of the column:

1: After which pick should I take over?
I still believe after pick 3 or 4 is correct.

2: Who should host the draft? By that, I mean, should I share my MTGO window and play the matches out afterward, with you watching the game? Or should you host the draft and play the games, with me watching and helping?
To make the experience more interactive, I think the reader should be hosting the draft, with me telling him what to do. I would help him out during the games if he wants me to, although there could be time issues, unless the communication system is flawless. We would be using an instant messenger program such as AIM, Yahoo, MSN, whatever, along with microphones, to save the pain of the typing (and therefore we can save time). The other problem is that the player would need to use an improved and tweaked version of DraftCap. Nothing that can’t be fixed, but it’s worth mentioning.

All of the above are subject to change, but having a good stable basis going forward could make things easier.

Everything should be ready for when I get back from GP: Massachusetts. By then, I will have posted the instructions somewhere on the forums.

Here we go for another draft walkthrough!

Matthieu was the second player to take part in the experiment. He is a more experienced drafter than Yohan from last week, but he still misses any decent accomplishments in Limited. As the remote draft system isn’t set up yet, we drafted on my account. This is how it went:

Pack 1:

Castle Raptors, Chromatic Star, Tolarian Sentinel, Flowstone Channeler, Trespasser il-Vec, Spinneret Sliver, Watcher Sliver, Blazing Blade Askari, Glass Asp, Traitor’s Clutch, Durkwood Tracker, Plated Pegasus, Opaline Sliver, Ixidron, Hail Storm

Pick: Ixidron

Pick 1: I’ve never been a huge fan of Ixidron. I used to say that it’s a very good card in bad decks, or when you have bad creatures. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a nice one, but not as exciting as people say. But I have to admit that it’s still the correct pick here. The other possible picks are Castle Raptors and Trespasser il-Vec. Ixidron just has more potential, especially as a first pick.

Pack 2:

Tolarian Sentinel, Orcish Cannonade, Errant Ephemeron, Strangling Soot, Venser’s Sliver, Clockspinning, Bogardan Rager, Sangrophage, D’Avenant Healer, Locket of Yesterdays, Tectonic Fiend, *, Magus of the Scroll, Ovinomancer

Pick: Errant Ephemeron

Pick 2: Errant Ephemeron and Strangling Soot are the best two commons in the set. The debate about which one is better was probably started when Time Spiral was released. After you first picked Ixidron, there’s no real question which to take here. While Strangling Soot wouldn’t be that bad a pick, it would put you in Black and ask you to add some Red too. Not quite the commitment you want on your second pick. Ephemeron is a better and a safer pick.

Short note: Magus of the Scroll is a lot weaker than the two cards above. It’s very slow and demands too much before it’s efficiently active.

Pack 3:

Fathom Seer, Flamecore Elemental, Gemhide Sliver, Feebleness, Thrill of the Hunt, Plunder, Brass Gnat, Dream Stalker, Harmonic Sliver, *, Stuffy Doll, Avoid Fate, Shadow Sliver

Pick: Fathom Seer

Pick 3: The best card of the pack is in the colors of your first two picks, and that’s without mentioning its synergy with Ixidron. Stuffy Doll is not nearly as good as Fathom Seer. If there were no Fathom Seer in the pack, I would have taken Gemhide Sliver over Stuffy Doll. The artifact is sure colorless and would fit a Blue deck with fliers, but I think Gemhide Sliver is superior. It opens a lot of possibilities during the draft, like an easy third color splash (sometimes a fourth, if you open a Dragon in Planar Chaos).

I took over from there. I agreed 100% with all the picks Matt made, so let’s see how the draft went on.

Pack 4:

Mana Skimmer, Durkwood Baloth, Fathom Seer, Chromatic Star, Mwonvuli Acid-Moss, Viashino Bladescout, Ophidian Eye, Molder, Children of Korlis, Haunting Hymn

Matt / Raph: Fathom Seer

I’m starting to wonder why Blue is so underdrafted these days. Fathom Seer is one of my favorite card in the set, and I get to see one in both pack 3 and 4 (and yes it’s 8-4… I’m not sure that means as much as it used to). Durkwood Baloth is not an option here. You’re the Blue mage, you take the best Blue card… makes sense.

Pack 5:

Deathspore Thallid, Flowstone Channeler, Herd Gnarr, Clockspinning, Sidewinder Sliver, Viscid Lemures, Mwonvuli Acid-Moss, Two-Headed Sliver, Dementia Sliver

Matt: Herd Gnarr or Flowstone Channeler
Raph: Flowstone Channeler

That’s where you’ll have to make a decision. There’s no Blue card in the pack, and you have to choose which way your draft will go. It’s where your knowledge of the format kicks in. From the signals you received earlier, you can’t really figure what’s going on to your right. You can imagine that you’ll be delivered Blue cards in Planar Chaos, but don’t really know about the other colors. Green is probably open as you’ve been passed Gemhide Sliver and Durkwood Baloth, but those are not strong enough signals. The options here are Herd Gnarr and Flowstone Channeler. Both picks make sense, as you could go for the Gnarr and hope Green will be open, or you go for the Channeler, and hope for a couple ofRred spells to support your Blue deck.

I personnaly like the Red plan better, and went for the Channeler. It doesn’t put you on Red, as you don’t just commit to a color with only one pick, but you’re almost sure to play it if you run Mountains, which is not as certain with the Gnarr and Forests.

Pack 6:

Grapeshot, Scarwood Treefolk, Slipstream Serpent, Gaze of Justice, Blazing Blade Askari, Shadow Sliver, Ophidian Eye, Watcher Sliver

Matt / Raph: Grapeshot

That’s exactly the kind of spell I wanted to see when I picked the Channeler.

Pack 7:

Mindstab, Gaze of Justice, Coral Trickster, Wormwood Dryad, Mystical Teachings, Two-Headed Sliver, Prismatic Lens, Evil Eye of Urborg, Fungal Reaches

Matt: Coral Trickster or Prismatic Lens
Raph: Prismatic Lens

At this point, you don’t really need to send signals anymore. It’s pack 7, and you haven’t passed any Blue so far. So passing a playable is not going to have much impact on the second booster. The Lens is better than the Trickster as it gives you the one resource Blue/Red doesn’t have much access to: mana. You have some card drawing already with two Fathom Seers, and probably more to come, and you need mana when you bounce your Islands. You may need the Lens to power up a potential Empty the Warrens, and along with one or two Dreamscape Artists, you may have access to a third color more easily.

Pack 8:

Gorgon Recluse, Herd Gnarr, Coal Stoker, Viscid Lemures, Ground Rift, Dream Stalker, Wormwood Dryad, Spell Burst

Matt / Raph: Coal Stoker

One of the best Red cards for your deck. Not only have you just grabbed a Grapeshot, but you have morphs to go along with it. With several ways to use it, this is definetely an 8th pick you’re happy to see.

Pack 9:

Tolarian Sentinel, Watcher Sliver, Glass Asp, Traitor’s Clutch, Durkwood Tracker, Plated Pegasus, Opaline Sliver

Matt/Raph: Tolarian Sentinel

A fine card. The Watcher Sliver isn’t worth hate-drafting.

Pack 10:

Tolarian Sentinel, Clockspinning, Bogardan Rager, Sangrophage, D’Avenant Healer, Tectonic Fiend

Matt/Raph: Bogardan Rager

I don’t think you want more than one Tolarian Sentinel in a deck.

Pack 11:

Plunder, Brass Gnat, Harmonic Sliver, Skittering Monstrosity, Shadow Sliver

Pick 11-15: Junk (for some reasons, draftcap didn’t record those picks).

With eight good cards and two playables after pack 1, this is the kind of draft you want to start with.

Pack 12:

Lightning Axe, Mogg War Marshal, Temporal Isolation, Think Twice, Ashcoat Bear, Momentary Blink, Ancient Grudge, Greenseeker, Foriysian Interceptor, *, Thick-Skinned Goblin, Sporesower Thallid, Firewake Sliver, Reiterate, Mirari

Matt / Raph: Lightning Axe

No real question here. Lightning Axe is far superior to the second best card for you, Think Twice.

Pack 13:

Drudge Reavers, Goblin Skycutter, Cancel, Penumbra Spider, Pentarch Ward, Aetherflame Wall, Detainment Spell, Thallid Shell-Dweller, Bewilder, Call to the Netherworld, Faceless Devourer, Basalt Gargoyle, Assembly-Worker, Magus of the Candelabra

Matt: Goblin Skycutter or Basalt Gargoyle
Raph: Basalt Gargoyle.

With the secret hope that the Thick-Skinned Goblin I opened wheels, I took the Gargoyle. Not a creature I like too much, but it’s a good sideboard plan (in case you don’t run it main deck), against decks that lack fliers and removal.

Pack 14:

Tendrils of Corruption, Think Twice, Errant Doomsayers, Sage of Epityr, Divine Congregation, Thallid Shell-Dweller, Jhoira’s Timebug, Weatherseed Totem, Voidmage Husher, Fool’s Demise, Fungus Sliver, Avalanche Riders, Plains

Matt: Think Twice or Avalanche Rider
Raph: Avalanche Rider

Please little goblin, wheel! While the deck would make a good use of Think Twice, a walking Stone Rain wouldn’t hurt either. Great against multicolored decks.

Pack 15:

Zealot il-Vec, Ironclaw Buzzardiers, Temporal Eddy, Tendrils of Corruption, Cyclopean Giant, Brass Gnat, Savage Thallid, Screeching Sliver, Ghostflame Sliver, Return to Dust, Restore Balance, Nicol Bolas

Matt: Ironclow Buzzardier
Raph: Tendrils of Corruption

This is a typical hate draft setup. There are no cards you really want from the pack. You could take the Buzzardiers that are very likely to end up in your sideboard, or you could take a card that will be likely to turn a game against you. In this particular case, I take the Tendrils. I’m not very happy about it, but it’s “the least worst” option.

Pack 16:

Amrou Seekers, Cancel, Empty the Warrens, Icatian Crier, Psychotic Episode, Sprout, Aetherflame Wall, Pit Keeper, Durkwood Tracker, Angel’s Grace, Undertaker

Matt / Raph: Empty the Warrens

Here you go! The draft plan is working and you’re collecting all the pieces you need to build the perfect Blue/Red deck.

Pack 17:

Pentarch Ward, Viscerid Deepwalker, Ashcoat Bear, Flickering Spirit, Ghitu Firebreathing, Bewilder, Detainment Spell, Knight of the Holy Nimbus, Stormcloud Djinn, Soltari Priest

Matt: Stormcloud Djinn or Viscerid Deepwalker
Raph: Viscerid Deepwalker

The Djinn is obviously made to be played in a Blue/Red deck, but the Homarid is just better. Five mana is a lot when you can spend only one on turn 1. They have different impacts on the gamet, but the cost for the djinn is too important, when what you get in the end isn’t much better for what you invested.

Pack 18:

Aether Web, Temporal Eddy, Mogg War Marshal, Jedit’s Dragoons, Savage Thallid, Ancient Grudge, Flickering Spirit, Volcanic Awakening, Benalish Cavalry

Matt / Raph: Mogg War Marshal

This is not the kind of deck in which you need Temporal Eddy. In an aggressive White/Blue or Green/Blue deck it’s fine, but not in a “control” Red/Blue deck like the one we’re drafting. The goblin might be a good sideboard card (or maindeck card… it depends on how the deck ends up), especially against fast weenie deck or fatties, as you’ll need to buy some time.

Pack 19:

Urborg Syphon-Mage, Cloudchaser Kestrel, Drifter il-Dal, Subterranean Shambler, Mindlash Sliver, Havenwood Wurm, Faceless Devourer, Return to Dust

Matt/ Raph: Subterranean Shambler

A very underrated common that can turn the game in our favor if the set-up is correct. We won’t be able to take full advantage of it here, as we don’t have a Dream Stalker nor a Snapback (and probably won’t get the Thick-Skinned Goblin). Tolarian Sentinel works well with it, but it’s unsure that we’ll actually be playing the Sentinel.

Pack 20:

Mogg War Marshal, Think Twice, Ancient Grudge, Greenseeker, Foriysian Interceptor, Basal Sliver, Reiterate

Matt / Raph: Think Twice

Think Twice will make it to the main deck for sure, while a it’s less than likely that we’ll play two Mogg War Marshals.

Pack 21:

Drudge Reavers, Pentarch Ward, Aetherflame Wall, Detainment Spell, Bewilder, Call to the Netherworld

Matt: Aetherflame Wall or Bewilder
Raph: Bewilder

I may have picked the wrong one here. None of the cards are really exciting. I would play the Bewilder if I have a couple of Merfolk Thaumaturgists in my draft. The wall could have come up handy if the deck ended up being too slow.

Pack 22:

Divine Congregation, Jhoira’s Timebug, Voidmage Husher, Fool’s Demise, Plains

Matt / Raph: Jhoira’s Timebug

Nothing better in the pack.

Pack 23:

Ironclaw Buzzardiers, Brass Gnat, Screeching Sliver, Return to Dust

Matt / Raph: Ironclow Buzzardiers

Glad we didn’t pick that one earlier!

Pack 24:

Cancel, Psychotic Episode, Sprout

Matt / Raph: Cancel

A nice gift with three cards left in the pack.

Pack 25:

Ghitu Firebreathing, Detainment Spell

Pick: Ghitu Firebreathing

Pack 26:

Ancient Grudge

Pick: Ancient Grudge

Pick 14-15: Junk

So far, we have a solid Red/Blue deck, with a fair share of card advantage. We may be missing a way to end the game quickly, which is not absolutely necessary in Red/Blue, but it is something that you’re always happy to have.

Pack 27:

Dreamscape Artist, Aven Riftwatcher, Cradle to Grave, Dead / Gone, Reflex Sliver, Aquamorph Entity, Firefright Mage, Blightspeaker, Bog Serpent, Primal Plasma, Simian Spirit Guide, Auramancer’s Guise, Rough / Tumble, Damnation, Voidstone Gargoyle

Matt: Rough / Tumble
Raph: Bah… Damnation? Nah, Rough//Tumble

Rough / Tumble is one of the best cards you could open in Planar Chaos. Sure you’re passing a Damnation, but it’s not as good against you as against a real aggressive deck.

Pack 28:

Poultice Sliver, Spitting Sliver, Veiling Oddity, Fury Charm, Evolution Charm, Reality Acid, Deadly Grub, Gossamer Phantasm, Seal of Primordium, Circle of Affliction, Deadwood Treefolk, Pyrohemia, Temporal Extortion, Deadwood Treefolk

Matt / Raph: Pyrohemia

Now that’s board control, and there’s no match in this pack.

Pack 29:

Erratic Mutation, Midnight Charm, Needlepeak Spider, Ghost Tactician, Wistful Thinking, Dash Hopes, Reality Acid, Primal Plasma, Vampiric Link, Timebender, Circle of Affliction, Riptide Pilferer, Intet, the Dreamer

Matt: Erratic Mutation or Intet the Dreamer
Raph: Intet the Dreamer

I tend to avoid drafting Erratic Mutation when I have a one-mana card in my pile already. With that in mind, it’s not too hard to set myself on Intet. I said I needed a reliable kill… and here it is. With a Prismatic Lens already drafted, and many card drawing spells, it’s worth the dead card for a couple of turns. From there, I’ll just hope for a Dreamscape Artist to show up.

Pack 30:

Saltfield Recluse, Veiling Oddity, Midnight Charm, Uktabi Drake, Blightspeaker, Aquamorph Entity, Pallid Mycoderm, Fa’adiyah Seer, Merfolk Thaumaturgist, Sunlance, Serra’s Boon, Darkheart Sliver

Matt: Veiling Oddity or Merfolk Thaumaturgist
Raph: Merfolk Thaumaturgist

Veiling Oddity isn’t going make it to the deck anyway. And I like the Merfolk better with Fathom Seers and Bewilder… it could end up in the sideboard, but I might as well draft one.

Pack 31:

Spitting Sliver, Veiling Oddity, Synchronous Sliver, Dawn Charm, Blightspeaker, Ghost Tactician, Fury Charm, Healing Leaves, Prodigal Pyromancer, Rough / Tumble, Psychotrope Thallid

Matt / Raph: Rough / Tumble

I guess going Red showed good intuition after all.

Pack 32:

Synchronous Sliver, Dawn Charm, Whitemane Lion, Brain Gorgers, Keldon Marauders, Brute Force, Mana Tithe, Mycologist, Aeon Chronicler, Ridged Kusite

Matt / Raph: Aeon Chronicler

Is no one Blue at all?

Pack 33:

Synchronous Sliver, Needlepeak Spider, Evolution Charm, Fury Charm, Vitaspore Thallid, Deadly Grub, Skirk Shaman, Rebuff the Wicked, Keen Sense

Matt: Needlepeak Spider or Skirk Shaman
Raph: Skirk Shaman

Nothing really exciting here. I wouldn’t play the spider, but I could play the shaman.

Pack 34:

Utopia Vow, Spitting Sliver, Pallid Mycoderm, Keldon Marauders, Dust Corona, Healing Leaves, Revered Dead, Aeon Chronicler

Matt / Raph: Aeon Chronicler

WTF? If you haven’t tried this guy yet, you should do so asap. Along with the two Fathom Seers they’re what made the deck absolutely ridiculous.

Pack 35:

Dreamscape Artist, Reflex Sliver, Aquamorph Entity, Firefright Mage, Bog Serpent, Primal Plasma, Simian Spirit Guide

Matt/Raph: Dreamscape Artist

We’ll play the Dragon!

Pack 36:

Spitting Sliver, Fury Charm, Reality Acid, Deadly Grub, Gossamer Phantasm, Seal of Primordium

Matt: Fury Charm or Gossamer Phantasm
Raph: Gossamer Phantasm

Not much to say here. Two mediocre cards, so I took the creature.

Pack 37:

Ghost Tactician, Wistful Thinking, Dash Hopes, Reality Acid, Vampiric Link

Pick: Reality Acid

Pack 38:

Veiling Oddity, Uktabi Drake, Pallid Mycoderm, Fa’adiyah Seer

Pick: Veiling Oddity

Pack 39:

Veiling Oddity, Synchronous Sliver, Ghost Tactician

Pick: Veiling Oddity

Pack 40:

Keldon Marauders, Ridged Kusite

Pick: Keldon Marauders

Pack 41:

Deadly Grub

Pick: Deadly Grub

Pick 11-15: picked the playables.

Draft recording done by Blargware‘s MTGO DraftCap. Support Blargware!

It’s hard to judge how “hard” this draft was, I’d rather leave it up to you, but Matt and I mostly had same opinions about which card to pick, and I didn’t think there was a particularly tough choice. The Flowstone Channeler may have been the key pick of the draft that some players may have missed.

Before moving to deck construction, I’d like to confess something… I did take the Damnation. I’m testing for block after all! In a GP or a PT, I would have taken the Rough / Tumble… but here… come on!

Here’s the final build:

Relevant sideboard cards:

Avalanche Rider
Jhoira’s Timebug
Cancel
Mogg War Marshal
Basalt Gargoyle

I felt that was a solid game 1 build. Most of the sideboard cards listed above could have made it to the main deck. I think I boarded every one of them at least once in my three matches.

The deck had everything a Blue/Red deck needs: card drawing, removal, and finishers. All of them were high quality.

We played all three matches out, winning an epic third game in the finals after being dominated on the board for the first 8 or 10 turns. I drew five cards from two Aeon Chroniclers, with the help of a Timebug to speed up the process, they (the Chroniclers) hit the board as 7/7s and turned a difficult board position into a quite favorable one.

Next time I’ll be drafting with one of you, so stay tuned for the instructions!

Raph