Pack 1 pick 1:
My Pick:
Blood Baron of Vizkopa seems like a strong pick. I haven't had the privilege to draft him before, but I am excited to this time. I doubt I will ever see his second ability go off, but even without it, he's definitely a game-changer. My only worry is how much black there is in this pack. If I had to pick something else, Turn//Burn would be my first pick, and after that, Beetleform Mage. Each is very strong in their own respect.
Pack 1 pick 2:
My Pick:
Going with the Orzhov theme, Fatal Fumes is great removal. This is a good pack for green for sure, with Thrashing Mossdog and Armed//Dangerous. The Rubblebelt Makka is also a good pick. I hope Hired Torturer wheels so I can pick him up.
Pack 1 pick 3:
My Pick:
Lots of cluestones here. I'm hoping to pick up more extort along the way, so Tithe Drinker will fit in nicely. Far//Away is excellent removal, and it was a shame to pass that up. If I wanted to go more aggro, Gleam of Battle could have been a nice pick. I imagine I'll see one of the maze beasts or the Hidden Strings wheel, and I'd be more than happy to pick any of those up for pick 11.
Pack 1 pick 4:
My Pick:
I'm fairly sure I'm going heavy Orzhov, or will try to force it, so I pick up the guildgate. There's nothing else particularly amazing in this pack, though it does signal red is open.
Pack 1 pick 5:
My Pick:
No amazing monoblack or monowhite cards, so it's time to look for a splash. Blue, red, and green all have excellent picks in this pack, but I prefer card draw, so I pick up a Pilfered Plans. Maybe that Dimir Guildgate from last pack will come back around?
Pack 1 pick 6:
My Pick:
I wasn't so sure about this pick at the time; either Runner's Bane or Pilfered Plans also could have been a good pull. In hindsight, it was the right choice.
Pack 1 pick 7:
My Pick:
Fatal Fumes wins over Runner's Bane for removal, and I never really liked saccing creatures, so Maw of the Obzedat is out. If I had previously picked up Gleam of Battle, I would have taken the Boros Guildgate here.
Pack 1 pick 8:
My Pick:
These packs are looking awfully similar. Protect//Serve is a good combat trick, but I don't have many creatures. If I were to pick a non-creature, I would probably opt for Hidden Strings, but I take the Maze Abomination instead.
Pack 1 pick 9:
My Pick:
More options - removal, creature, or card draw. I pick the card draw, since I already have a bit of everything else.
Pack 1 pick 10:
My Pick:
Nothing I could use here. If Take were less situationally useful, I would have considered it. As is, I don't want to face up against Fluxcharger, so I'll pick that with no intention of using it.
Pack 1 pick 11:
My Pick:
I'm already solidly in not-red, so I take the Maze Glider. (What do you know, it did wheel.)
Pack 1 pick 12:
My Pick:
A Hired Torturer also wheeled. I'll take that. It's pretty clear few people are in blue.
Pack 1 pick 13:
My Pick:
It's been taunting me long enough. No intent to play Gleam of Battle though. Sinister Possession is just another non-creature I wouldn't use, so I won't pick it up.
Pack 1 pick 14:
My Pick:
Another Pilfered Plans? I'm perfectly okay with this, especially at pick 14. Nobody in Dimir, it seems.
Pack 1 pick 15:
My Pick:
Riot Piker if I decide to splash red instead of blue. Not bad. But with three Pilfered Plans, I don't think I'm giving blue up.
Pack 2 pick 1:
My Pick:
Tons of white in this pack; this has me a little worried. Luckily, none of it is amazing, though the Gift of the Orzhova is a welcome pick-up. In hindsight, Mind Grind should have competed a little harder, it's a wincon to itself.
Pack 2 pick 2:
My Pick:
I really needed more creatures here, and Daring Skyjek made a little more sense than Court Street Denizen. If I weren't in such need of creatures, the Dimir Guildgate would have been welcome, as well as the Psychic Strike.
Pack 2 pick 3:
My Pick:
Hands of Binding really is an excellent card. Given that blue hasn't been heavily drafted, it might even wheel. I pick up Balustrade Spy for a flier and miller.
Pack 2 pick 4:
My Pick:
I got greedy and thought I had a chance of splashing red, so I picked up a Wojek Halberdiers. It would have been better to stick with the worse, but in-color, Slate Street Ruffian, or Agroaphobia.
Pack 2 pick 5:
My Pick:
Lots of blue still. It's inevitable, I think, that someone else will go into blue. I pick up the guildgate for the sweet, sweet, mana fixing.
Pack 2 pick 6:
My Pick:
Cartel Aristocrat may have been a better pick than Boros Elite, but I've never liked sac effects without some combo in mind.
Pack 2 pick 7:
My Pick:
Nav Squad Commandos is a good pickup. Knight Watch might have been a better pick though. Not too much stress over this one, however, since they're both siutationally useful.
Pack 2 pick 8:
My Pick:
I got greedy here and picked up another Wojek Halberdiers. Armored Transport would have been a more ubiquitously playable creature.
Pack 2 pick 9:
My Pick:
I don't plan on having huge creatures, so Spell Rupture is out. If I had a counterspell already, I would have picked Devour Flesh, but I didn't. Martial Glory makes that red splash look more appealing though...
Pack 2 pick 10:
My Pick:
Purge the Profane is the only thing remotely in my colors. Towering Thunderfist would also have been excellent. In hindsight, dropping blue for red may not have been a bad idea.
Pack 2 pick 11:
My Pick:
Still a lot of blue here. Not many blue creatures, so Sage's Row Denizen is out. Hands of Binding is just great, so I pick that up over the Psychic Strike.
Pack 2 pick 12:
My Pick:
Way of the Thief has great synergy with Stealer of Secrets, and not just because they both reference theft.
Pack 2 pick 13:
My Pick:
Paranoid Delusions isn't terrible for pick thirteen.
Pack 2 pick 14:
My Pick:
Mortus Strider is possible to play. Don't know if I ever will though.
Pack 2 pick 15:
My Pick:
Game-changer right here. Nastiest zero-drop in the world.
Pack 3 pick 1:
My Pick:
The greedy player in my wanted Archon of the Triumvirate, but Stab Wound is too amazing not to pick up here.
Pack 3 pick 2:
My Pick:
Another Stab Wound, but picking up a low drop creature wins out. Especially since it's Stealer of Secrets. Knightly Valor is also not a bad card.
Pack 3 pick 3:
My Pick:
I didn't want the double white symbols, so Azorius Justicar was not a choice. Lyev Skyknight did bring that same detain to the table, and was pretty much better than anything else in the pack. Maybe I should have opted for the Knightly Valor though.
Pack 3 pick 4:
My Pick:
Stealer of Secrets is too fun not to get. Had I gone red though, this pack would also be a good pick with Splatter Thug though.
Pack 3 pick 5:
My Pick:
Runewing won over Sunspire Griffin since Sunspire needed double white.
Pack 3 pick 6:
My Pick:
Sewer Shambler isn't the worst three drop out there.
Pack 3 pick 7:
My Pick:
Soul Tithe makes for good removal.
Pack 3 pick 8:
My Pick:
A toss-up between Hussar Patrol and Isperia's Skywatch. I figured that the Patrol synergized better with my maze beasts, though the single color could have worked out better.
Pack 3 pick 9:
My Pick:
While I chose the creature here, Paralyzing Grasp could have been the better pick for removal.
Pack 3 pick 10:
My Pick:
I wouldn't play Tablet of the Guilds in this deck, so I remove Towering Indrik from the field instead.
Pack 3 pick 11:
My Pick:
Destroy the Evidence meshes well with the mill I've been drafting.
Pack 3 pick 12:
My Pick:
Mizzium Skin is playable I suppose.
Pack 3 pick 13:
My Pick:
Trained Caracal also possibly playable.
Pack 3 pick 14:
My Pick:
A trivial pick.
Pack 3 pick 15:
My Pick:
In spite of last pick, I can't avoid the forest.
In the end, I went 1-2 again; I definitely struggled with deck construction. I think my problem was that I didn't go for a particular color or set of colors hard enough, but instead ended up with equal portions of white and blue, where I couldn't cut either color, and was dependent upon drawing blue, black and white sources. That was not a good position to be in. It seemed like most of my opponents also drafted black as a main color, which would explain my difficulty in getting more black cards. The Baron was especially useful here but there were also equal amounts of removal I missed out on. In the end, I didn't have enough creatures or focus on a color to make my deck effective. Since blue was so prevalent in the packs, I think I should have cut white other than 2-3 cards, and focused on a Dimir mill strategy.
That's all for this time! I'll be back soon!
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