I hate to hand it to Jace Beleren under these circumstances (or ever), but Reality Fracture is a really incredible set. That goes for Limited too. We’ve had a couple of planeswalker-focused draft formats before, but it’s still a rare treat – and none before have done it quite like this. Leaning into his worst self as “The Theorist”, Jace’s …
With each new set comes new Commander precon decks to review, and this week we’re breaking down the gameplay and decklist of the new black deck, Wretched Ranks! AN INTRODUCTION TO NECROMANCY Despite releasing alongside the Reality Fracture set, Wretched Ranks is actually billed as a Foundations precon – there’s no new Jace-related cards in this one, just the groaning …
I love playing Draft, as a casual perusal of my output on this blog will show. But even I can admit that it’s a little hard to get into, especially for newer players who may have only played Commander. The fact you don’t need to buy any cards to start playing Draft should make it accessible, but the unfamiliar dynamics …
Standard is Magic’s “what have you done for me lately” format. Even with the timeline of rotations being stretched out in recent years, top cards and decks still only get a few short years in the Standard sunlight. Once they’re past that expiry date, even the most dominant archetypes are instantly consigned to history’s dustbin, rarely meriting so much as …
It’s that time of year again everyone. A heretofore unimaginable cosmic threat imperils the very fabric of the Magic multiverse and the lives of all its inhabitants, requiring desperate resistance from planeswalkers and commonfolk alike. This time it’s Jace! Yes, one of Magic’s long-time protagonists has finally lost his grip on morality. Heartbroken by the catastrophes he has witnessed, Jace …
After years of writing guides on how to approach Draft strategy for specific sets, I wanted to provide a companion piece: a more general guide to good Draft gameplay. Last week I began that guide by explaining from first principles my mindset for Limited: one which looks at the net loss and gain of resources triggered by each decision. It’s …
I play Draft quite a lot. It’s my most-played format by a significant margin, and that experience helps me author Card Kingdom’s Draft guides for each new set that comes out – the ones you can read on this very blog! Those guides focus on explaining which cards in that set are important, which decks are there to draft, and …
Over the years, Magic has invented a multitude of mechanics to build decks around, each with its own unique advantages, dedicated support cards, and memorable payoffs. But when all of those archetypes are thrown together into the grand melting pot of Commander, a few top-tier choices stand out. They offer versatile deck building options, consistent performance across different areas of …
I always feel an added sense of mystery and adventure when I draft a Universes Beyond set. In order to faithfully adapt the source material, these formats often make fundamental changes to how booster packs are constructed, the size of the card pool, or other factors that lead to a weird and warped Limited experience. But in The Hobbit, I …
Wizard of the Coast has caught players off-guard recently, banning several pivotal cards to improve the Standard metagame for upcoming tournaments. This regularly scheduled update to the Banned and Restricted list was announced through magic.wizards.com on August 10th. An accompanying interview with the Play Design team was posted to the Magic YouTube channel the next day, expounding on the reasoning …
