Limited can be hard. Building decks and reading signals in Draft can be stressful and difficult. This was never truer than in the Lorwyn block, when you had to not only worry about drafting within your color but also within your tribe. Then Mornigntide added another complexity, shifting the tribal focus from race to class.

Complexity can be great for competition, but Jumpstart provides another option. Rather than building our own decks we can simply shuffle two packs together and play at our kitchen table. Many of these packs focus around a recognizable tribe. I've already designed one for warriors, including the iconic Boldwyn Intimidator. This week we're being even more classy, thanks to the Zendikar Rising mechanic of party.

Red Party | Jumpstart | AE Marling

• Creatures (10)
• 1 Burning-Tree Vandal
• 1 Goblin Spymaster
• 1 Grotag Bug-Catcher
• 1 Pathmaker Initiate
• 1 Priest of Urabrask
• 1 Shatterskull Minotaur
• 1 Stonework Packbeast
• 1 Thundering Sparkmage
• 1 Tormentor Exarch
• 1 War-Spike Changeling

• Instants (2)
• 1 Blades of Velis Vel
• 1 Synchronized Spellcraft

• Lands (8)
• 7 Mountain
• 1 Thriving Bluff

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Rather than trying to build synergies with creatures of the same type, we're visiting our local tavern to gather a variety. As any RPG expert knows, a balanced party will be more powerful than one with, say, four rogues. (This is true except when the game has extreme power disparity between the classes, but that's another conversation.) For the party mechanic we're seeing DnD influence Magic, and I would be very surprised if the ability doesn't return for the upcoming card set of Adventures in the Forgotten Realms.

Back to our pack, Synchronized Spellcraft can end a game outright if you have multiple classes in play, and your 2-drop of Grotag Bug-Catcher can attack for as much as five damage. Now that's a grub-stomping party! As we know, though, getting all your friends together at the same time is difficult, especially when they each have to fulfill a specific role. As you could guess, there are barely any Red clerics. I had to pick ones you may never have heard of.

I wanted to include two of each of the class type, plus two wild cards. Previously I've mentioned how much I enjoy changelings in Jumpstart, as they will gain the benefits of all tribal synergies, no matter what pack. They are essential when you're trying to build a party. A changeling counts for any one (but not more than one) class you're missing, and the same is true for Stonework Packbeast.

For each of these party packs, I added two changeling cards. In this case, one of them was Blades of Velis Vel. No, this isn't a strong Red instant, but every Jumpstart pack includes one or so cards that are more interesting than powerful. Remember, our primary goal is to have fun. And it will be exciting to shuffle one of these packs together with say, a pack of vampires. Then the class of each of the Black creatures will be relevant whereas it wasn't before. It will be exciting to discover Vito, Thorn of the Dusk Rose is also a cleric. He will fit right in with our Emeria Captain.

White Party | Jumpstart | AE Marling

• Creatures (10)
• 1 Audacious Infiltrator
• 1 Avian Changeling
• 1 Dawnglare Invoker
• 1 Emeria Captain
• 1 Goldmeadow Dodger
• 1 Inspiring Cleric
• 1 Irregular Cohort
• 1 Kor Castigator
• 1 Shepherd of Heroes
• 1 Squad Commander

• Instant (1)
• 1 Allied Assault

• Enchantments (1)
• 1 Journey to Oblivion

• Lands (8)
• 7 Plains
• 1 Thriving Heath

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This color had more party cards than I could include. Some of those I did are immensely powerful. With a full party, Allied Assault will grant two instances of +4/+4. Talk about a surprise party. I added a powerful wizard in Dawnglare Invoker and a weaker rogue in Goldmeadow Dodger. As you can guess, White isn't renowned for its sneaking.

What White can be proud of is its creatures working together to achieve something greater. We see that exemplified in Squad Commander, which gives us an additional bonus for a full party. A great party is a thing of beauty. Everyone brings the dish they're asked to. You have chips to go with the salsa, enough to drink and entertainment. When it all comes together you and your friends become indestructible.

For White's changelings I chose Avian Changeling and Irregular Cohort. Given the power of the latter, I counted it as an uncommon. Modern Horizons is a strong set, and a single card that fills two positions in your party is as great as the perfect birthday present. Now let's open our next party favor.

Blue Party | Jumpstart | AE Marling

• Creatures (10)
• 1 Amoeboid Changeling
• 1 Cascade Seer
• 1 Eternal of Harsh Truths
• 1 Naga Oracle
• 1 Nimble Trapfinder
• 1 Proven Combatant
• 1 Sea Gate Colossus
• 1 Sea Gate Oracle
• 1 Seafloor Stalker
• 1 Turtleshell Changeling

• Instants (1)
• 1 Frogify

• Sorceries (1)
• 1 Skyclave Plunder

• Lands (8)
• 7 Island
• 1 Thriving Isle

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Though I didn't go out of my way to make these packs Zendikar specific, Sea Gate Oracle fits right in beside Sea Gate Colossus. We are interested in reaching the late game. Early creatures with higher toughness help us survive, including Turtleshell Changeling and Naga Oracle.

Our preferred board state is a standoff. Play out your ground blockers. Save your removal for their evasive threats, and when the time is right, throw a party. Skyclave Plunder is the phat loot you've been questing for, and it'll propel you from a stalemate to a speedy victory.

I am delighted to include the squishy Amoeboid Changeling. The gooey buddy can fix two spots in your party of four, and I think that's worth the card slot. It can also slime away all creature types from an opponent, disrupting any of their tribal synergies. That is a lot of utility. Still, some games the card will be just a 1/1 for two, and that's ok. Its silliness is of greater importance.

As we approach our fourth and final pack for this week, you may well wonder which color didn't get the party invite. Sad to say, Green has no class. It had the fewest party keywords in Zendikar Rising. This may make sense, in that Green features more beasts and dinosaurs, creature types that make do without a profession. That's not to say that Ripjaw Raptor isn't a professional badass, but for our purposes, we will have to move along to the most decadent party in town.

Black Party | Jumpstart | AE Marling

• Creatures (10)
• 1 Acquisitions Expert
• 1 Caligo Skin-Witch
• 1 Disowned Ancestor
• 1 Drana's Silencer
• 1 Grixis Battlemage
• 1 Magus of the Will
• 1 Malakir Blood-Priest
• 1 Skeletal Changeling
• 1 Tenacious Dead
• 1 Venomous Changeling

• Instants (1)
• 1 Deadly Alliance

• Sorceries (1)
• 1 Thwart the Grave

• Lands (8)
• 7 Swamp
• 1 Thriving Moor

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I designed this pack to be even more defensive. We have recursive skeletons and other strong blockers in Disowned Ancestor and Venomous Changeling. We will win in the late game with our blockbuster Thwart the Grave. We can even invite Yawgmoth's personal DJ.

Jumpstart provides a great opportunity to include pet cards we can't otherwise find a place for. Magus of the Will has incredible power but is a bit slow for Legacy and a bit fragile for Commander. The card will be strong in Limited but not ridiculous, since you aren't recasting Dark Ritual and Black Lotus.

For one of the less-powerful cards of the pack I chose Grixis Battlemage. The creature won't be able to do any party tricks, unless shuffled together with mountains or islands. Still, if what you need is a wizard to fill out your party, the battlemage will still be most welcome.

What sort of Jumpstart packs would you like to see next week? Leave a comment.