Hello and welcome back to another limited article. This time we are going to have a look at M10 drafting strategies and pick orders. I have a lot of M10 drafts under my belt now and would like to share some insights with you about the format. It is fun to play and the fact that a lot of cards are worth a bunch of tickets makes it a good choice for anyone that wants to try drafting for the first time.
This article is for you if
- you have not drafted M10 before and need a guide to give you some valuable information
- you drafted before but you would like to see pick orders for the different colors
- an archetype guide for different color combinations is of interest for you.
If you are still here let’s dive right in – M10 is a core set draft and therefore has certain characteristics that where prominent in previous core sets. Core set tend to
- be more bomb driven
- be slower in nature and favor control strategies rather then pure aggression
- be light on card draw tools
- Offer less synergies then expansions sets (there is for example no huge tribal synergy as in Lorwyn or artifact synergy as in Alara block).
All this is a little bit less prominent in M10 then it was in previous core sets (10th, 9th, etc.) but we have to keep it in mind when drafting. If you try to build a hyperaggressive deck that wins fast be warned – it is possible but the cardpool is not favoring you. Due to the inherit controlish nature of M10 it is often right to draw first instead of play first.
Mana fixing is very light in M10 and therefore any attempt to play multiple colors runs the risk of getting color screwed. The game plan should be to run 2 colors and only consider a third one if you can easily splash it (only one colored mana) AND have at least a little fixing. In contrast to Alara block where you are often rewarded for playing multiple colors (domain), M10 is working the opposite as several cards are getting drastically better the more of the corresponding basic land you control. Have a look at the following examples:
This leads to an interesting situation during the draft where card valuations from player to player change dramatically depending on their commitment to the certain color. Even if I am splashing Red for a Fireball or Lightning Bolt I will not value Seismic Strike as playable – if you are running a mono red deck on the other hand…
I emphasize this early to make clear that the pick order presented here are only for the “color density” neutral cards that do NOT scale with the number of lands you control of that specific color.
Lets start with an overall evaluation of the colors in M10 and then move to pick orders and some underrated gems (please be aware that they are my opinion based on about 20 M10 drafts I did so far).
1.) Black
The key to win M10 drafts are evasion creatures, removal and card draw. Black has all of that and therefore deserves to be put on top of the pack. The disadvantage Black has is that it is very “color greedy” and often wants you to play as much swamps as possible to be effective. If you are trying to fight for it with to many players you are probably in trouble as it can get very shallow very fast. Signals are important here and if you see you get cut of you should probably just splash it and use another color as main.
Here are the TOP FIVE black commons in order
Tendrils of Corruption gains a lot of value if you are heavy into black and can easily reach the number one spot in a nearly mono colored deck. Because card draw is quite scarce Mind Rot is a strong card, too and I would definitively play it in a black deck. I also believe that Duress is completely undervalued right now. Yes, it does not strip creatures from your opponents hand but the games are so often decided by non-creature bombs such as Overrun, Fireball, Sleep, Mind Control etc. that the opponent is holding for the “right moment” – with Duress that right moment might never come…try one, you will not be disappointed.
2.) White
White is a very flexible color in M10 and quite deep. There are many playable cards and White can either go controlling or try the more aggressive route with the soldier sub-theme. It is less color greedy then black and there are no play worthy commons that scale with the number of plains in play.
TOP FIVE COMMONS
Some comments are necessary. A few of you probably stare in disbelief at #3 – Safe Passage. Let me tell you that I play this card every time I get the chance and it is a blast! It goes often so late that I don’t pick it high because I know it will come back. If that changes I am going to pick this as a very high pick in the future. Safe Passage works as fog to buy you time, makes combat a safe bet for you, “counters” Fireball, Earthquake, Overrun, Tendrils, Lightning Bolt and many more. A very strong card.
The value of the soldiers goes up with the number you are able to pick. A single Swordsmith is not a very impressive card but if you can combine it with several other soldier cards its quite nice to have.
3.) Blue
A lot of writers seem to dislike blue commenting how weak the creature base is. I believe that Blue is an excellent color (I once was able to draft a mono blue deck and the draft was not even close). Blue has a few cards that do not seem to be very exciting but are rocking the house…
TOP 5 COMMONS
Merfolk Looter as #1? Are you serious? YES. I am dead serious. So many games are decided on the back of one Merfolk Looter filtering through your library while your opponent is drawing lands. As indicated earlier card draw is rare in M10 and the Looter provides you with a tool to get rid of all the useless land you will be drawing later OR find the land you need early. Divination provides you with a neat card drawing tool always worth playing. The reason why Ice Cage does not rank here is that it can be a better Pacifism against some decks and nearly worthless against others. If your opponent is packing tons of targeted spells and effects better look for other means to shut down his creatures.
4.) Green
I will probably get bashed for this but I am not that impressed with Green. Yes, it has very strong and efficient creatures and some of the rare mana fixing in the set but it seems that the lack of evasion and tricky non-creature spells hurts – a lot. It can be the solid foundation if combined with other colors but the pool itself just plays out worse then the cards might indicate.
TOP 5 COMMONS
Green has a lot of playable commons and a few that did not make the list such as Giant Growth, Craw Wurm, Elvish Visionary are fine cards and will end up in your deck to. Many commons are close in power and which one you pick depends on your overall deck and the cards you have already picked up. If you have a strong splash for a bomb (Fireball, Doom Blade, etc.) the Borderland Ranger becomes even better. The extensive pool of playable creatures makes green an interesting choice as main color to be combined with another that has a bit more tricks. One card you should also watch out for is Oakenform. While the “Damocles Sword” of removal is hanging over you it is a very strong card on a flyer and can end a game quickly if not answered. It also has the benefit of getting rid of Ice Cage and protecting from damage removal if played early.
5.) Red
At the bottome of our list we find Red. The commons are mostly unimpressive with a few exceptions (I am looking at you Lightning Bolt). Also red is quite color greedy and for some of the commons to show their potential you need to commit heavy to Red. This fact however makes it an interesting choice for someone who opened a few of Reds amazing uncommons and rares (Fireball, Shivan Dragon, etc.). It is not uncommon that very good red cards get passed around quite a bit and if you can focus on catching those you might be rewarded with multiple Lightning Bolts, strong firebreathing creatures such as Dragon Whelp, etc. Overall the color is just harder to play and more risky.
TOP 5 COMMONS
Yeah, not very impressive. But as mentioned earlier, combine this with some of the really good uncommons and rares and the fact that probably not many people with fight you over them you can make a pretty decent deck. I can ensure you that mono red is a viable option and can be very strong if you pick a few of the good cards along the way.
UNCOMMON ARTIFACTS?
Let’s talk briefly about the uncommon artifacts you will find in the set. Both Gorgon Flail and Whispersilk Cloak are better then you might think and should be picked rather high. The provide you with two vital abilities that are rare to find – evasion and pseudo removal. The Cloak can easily resolve a stalemate in your favor and protect your utility creatures from removal whereas the Flail trades your small critters against their bigger ones and can pump your guys to push through all the 4 toughness blockers present in the format.
Both are good. Pick them high especially if you are playing Green the Cloak is very valuable.
COLOR COMBINATIONS
We briefly touched on the point that M10 is not rewarding you for playing multiple colors as Alara block did. There are no shards, amazing synergies and domain to compensate for the lack of consistency you suffer for playing multiple colors. Therefore I do not recommend to play more then two colors unless
1. You have an amazing bomb as splash that does not require more then one colored mana symbol (Fireball would qualify, Overrun obviously not, sorry)
2. You went down a path that did not work out. You started with a color and got cut of brutally. Now you would have to play a dubious deck to stay in two colors. Then you should take the risk to play 3 if you have some solid cards in the third color to compensate.
If you are planning on playing/splashing a third color you better pick a Terramorphic Expanse. This card is even fine in 2 color decks but really shines if you are splashing a bomb. If you are in green than Rampant Growth and Borderland Ranger are very high picks, too.
Let’s talk about some color combinations and their respective strength
Black works very well as mono color deck. It has plenty of removal and common card draw. Some of the cards get ridiculous in a pure Black deck. A late Tendrils not only kills nearly any creature but also works as instant “Stream of Life”. Looming Shade goes very late and is a beast in this type of deck. Black is especially good against Green fatties as it has Drudge Skeletons and Wall of Bone to stall the ground while using evasion and cheap flyers to kill. Be careful though – if you have a few other Black fanboys at the table you might end up with very little of what you are looking for and end up with a shallow pool. Watch out for signals early and adapt fast if the cards don’t keep coming. My recommendation is to combine Black with a few selected Blue or White cards for additional firepower. Cards like Merfolk Looter, Essence Scatter, Negate, Blinding Mage, Safe Passage work very well as splash and give you more protection against bombs such as Overrun or nasty creatures (White Knight is not good news…). Generally Black works well with any color if you use it as splash color.
White can be color intense and is best played with a splash color that supports it either with removal or card draw. If you are able to get into a soldier theme do it as the synergy is quite nice to have in combat. Cards such as Captain of the Watch in an early pack make it worthwile to explore this path. The advantage of White is that it can be played very aggressive or more control and some of the best White cards work in both archetypes (Blinding Mage, Divine Verdict)
Blue works best either as splash or combined with one other color and is hard to play mono colored because of the thinner creature base. There are some amazing uncommons that can decide games such as Sleep and Mind Control and the common flyers can do a lot of damage quickly. I personally like Blue with Black a lot and in one draft I had so much card draw and filtering that I had to stop using them midgame to prevent decking myself…
Green is lacking in the tricks department and removal and works nicely with most colors. I do not like it very much with Red, though. Somehow those two colors that traditionally have nice synergies just don’t play out well in M10. I need to explore a bit more but meanwhile I would recommend to stay away from it unless you have bomb reasons to do so. If you happen to play it with Blue consider Levitation as it is much better with Green then with any other color.
Red is a strange beast. I would either use it only as small splash for bombs such as Lightning Bolt, Earthquake or Fireball or go heavy mono color with it. There are to many cards that show their potential only if you have access to tons of Mountains but its a risky play. If you are already in Red and see a lot of Red cards passed to you it might be worth it. I would personally not play Red as main color unless I am nearly completely in Red.
SUMMARY OF MY FINDINGS SO FAR
1.) Control strategies have an easier time as there are so many defensive cards that will stop early creature rushes.
2.) Creatures that do not have evasion need a pretty good reason to be in your deck.
3.) Removal in most forms is very valuable and even spells that would not find its way in other formats are worth playing (Ice Cage…).
4.) Black and Red work best mono colored or nearly mono colored.
5.) Card draw and discard are strong. Divination, Sign in Blood, Mind Rot and Duress are not only playable but really good.
6.) You should probably draw first if you have the choice as the format is slow.
7.) The format is driven by bombs and the lack of removal for opposing bomb creatures is a safe way to say goodbye to your chances of winning.
8.) Safe Passage is better then you think. Trust me…
9.) The lack of fixing makes it hard to play more then two colors. Only do it if you have to or you have bombs in a splash color. Even then you better have some mana fixing.
10.) The format is more fun to play then the Core sets before and worth trying even if you “hate” core set drafts.
I hope this short overview will help you with your M10 draft experience. Let me know if you have any comments,
Plejades
