Hi all. So first blog and that. You may (or may not) have read what I've had to say in the forums, and I figured it's about time to bring it here. And if you do read what my posts in the forum, you'll notice here that I'll actually use capital letters and avoid ellipses... occasionally. I consider myself a better limited player than constructed player (which is funny because my ratings are identical right now), but I enjoy playing both. So anyway, on to more important things, like drafting. Oh and my real name? Just call me Mike D. (for Destroyer, get it?)
The other day after FNM six of use decided to draft some Shadowmoor. I was talking to a buddy (who drafted with us) about draft strategy, and he said he likes to force U/W. Wonderful. So draft begins and immediately he says: "I'm sending you the biggest signal ever and you will play red" (not to me, to his left hand neighbor of course). He passed a Knollspine Invocation, which basically reads "Pay X, discard a dead card in your hand: BURN." Pretty good. So needless to say, he took the Knollspine.
Looking around the table (from me and moving left) the draft colors were: Rg (that's me), Br, U? (didn't see the deck much), UW, Gr (Knollspine man), and UWb (he first picked a Reaper King, and took scarecrows). So on to the deck and some discussion on my strategy.
2 Scuzzback Scrapper
2 Intimidator Initiate
2 Rustrazor Butcher
1 Bloodmark Mentor
1 Devoted Druid
2 Power of Fire
2 Puncture Bolt
1 Sootstoke Kindler
1 Chainbreaker
1 Hungry Spriggan
1 Giantbaiting
1 Boggart Arsonist
1 Tattermunge Duo
1 Scuttlemutt
1 Heartmender
2 Runes of the Deus
1 Valleymaker (Oooh! Shiny!)
10 Mountain
7 Forest
Significant bench players:
Smash to Smithereens
Gleeful Sabotage
Elvish Hexhunter
Traitor's Roar
Barkshell Blessing
My first pick was (Oooh! Shiny!) Valleymaker, and this card is a house. 5/5 for six isn't bad, but with Shard Volley attached? Sign me up. The rare was Vexing Shusher, but that we were re-drafting rares at the end anyway, so I took the house. Pick 2 was a blur, but pick 3 was a Ballynock Cohort. I know, right? was looking to go RW at the point thinking white was open. But I would be incorrect, and fortunately it was my only white pick (save a late Inquisitor's Snare or some other hateful card).
I love me some Power of Fire. Slap it on a wither dude and you are in business. Which is nice because my wither dudes quickly get outclassed in combat. But if you haven't received the memo, wither + first strike is where it's at. It's reason enough to play the Bloodmark Mentor. So that ended up being my strategy. Get some quick chumps and wither away their board. Or clog it up. Then put Runes of the Deus on the Valleymaker and win.
PS - Persist hates wither.
So on to the matches.
Round one was my bud who forced UW. Pretty uneventful. He had some tricks, and some decent bodies, but not enough to outclass the flamethrower that is Rustrazor Butcher + Power of Fire. He had a few Cerulean Wisps (aside: Cerulean, like from the crayola box, not on the card, is probably my favorite color ever), but was overall disappointed with them. He also failed to use a Mirrorweave properly, trying to use it for offense but should have used it after I hit a conspired Giantbaiting, but I still had the game. The second game he saw a mana flood anyway. We played another for fun, and I think I won that one too.
Round two was the Br player to my left. His deck was a solid aggro with Demigod of Revenge, two Ashenmoor Gougers, a few black and red initiates and an Incremental Blight. Both games he saw a quick Gouger, but I dropped a Heartmender, which just so happens to block all day long. A Withering Flamethrower and Runes on a Tattermunge Duo ended game one and game two, Valleymaker poked his head out, failed to see his shadow, and decided there would not be six more weeks of this game. We played a few more games for fun and he took one of them thanks to Fists of the Demigod on a Gouger.
Quick aside now: God enchantments. I think Runes is underrated right now. I see everyone's ranking system, and I disagree with it. I have to say Steel of the Godhead is the best (one of which was flying around the table), followed by the Runes. Sure indestrucible and flying are great, but with all of the -1/-1 going around, it can be unimpressive. The trample and double strike for the Runes is just out of this world. In a stalled board, throw it on a Morselhoarder and basically Wrath their team or else they die. And you can hold it back for an opening if your opponent takes a swing, and just mash the game right there. I put Shield next after Runes, Fists after that, then the Helm. I'm not a fan of the Helm, but it can be good in the right deck (one with lots of evasion). And in case you haven't been told already, make sure you have some enchantment removal, and even run it main (Like Elvish Hexhunter or Gleeful Sabotage. They will almost always have targets). //End Aside
Alrighty... finals... woooo! UW Reaper King deck. I actually didn't see a ton of scarecrows, but Wingrattle was good for him. A 2/2 with flying for 3 is pretty solid, even if it doesn't persist. He also had a Heartmender in his deck, but both of the times it was played it promptly ate a Puncture Bolt, the first time earning the response: "That card is so random." But double Flamethrowing Meatcutters ended game one in style.
Game two I had stabilized at 2 life, with no flyers, and he had Thistledown Duo and a Wingrattle Scarecrow with a few ground punders. I kill the Scarecrow with a Smash to Smithereens when it would have killed me and drop Valleymaker on my turn, and he plays an Order of Whiteclay on his next. He attacks into my creatures who are all untapped and having a party, which kills the Order but brings back Wingrattle. His small army swings for the fences and he plays Turn to Mist on one of his attackers (when he probably should have hit my Valleymaker). But this makes Thistledown Duo fly alongside a Wingrattle. I go to block Duo with Valleymaker when he says, "it flies now" and I say "Gloomwidow's Feast?" and block his Wingrattle with the fresh Spider token. His response: "Why are you playing all these bad cards?" I just think to myself, "because they are beating you." I show him Runes of the Deus to which he scoops, and take the Vexing Shusher as prize that I opened in pack one anyway. I end up with a Runed Halo, Mirrorweave, and my Oooh! Shiny!
So lessons learned?
Assume your opponent has every card that can beat you, and play bad cards that will beat your opponent.
Persist hates wither.
First strike is wonderful in this format, especially with wither.
Play enchantment removal.
Scuttlemutt is really good. (And he didn't even get a metion in the match reports. You should play him, and I really don't feel like writing about it right now. Keep in mind it shuts off God enchantments.)
This set is really fun to draft.
Swans deck loses to Sudden Death (oops, that's a lesson I learned at the FNM.)
Whew. That's a lot of words. and a lot to learn from one draft. I didn't think I had it in me.
Until next time, may you play bad cards that will beat your opponent.
Mike D
Tags: Magic Draft Limited Shadowmoor Wither
Related to:
Magic: the Gathering
