Drafting with Big Nass, DII #2

Posted on March 19, 2012

Before we get started, I want to thank everyone who took the time to comment on my last article. Yes, even the people who called me terrible. One of the ways to get better is to hear honest feedback from your peers, and if you’re never challenged, you can never know if your way is the right way. I also want to give a shout out to anyone who subscribed to my YouTube channel. I posted a bonus Draft last week, which you can check out here.

It was intended to be used for this week’s article, but I got the full Kunkel Round 1 (that is to say, I won Game 1 and lost the next two games to mana screw or mana flood). It was a sweet deck, though, and the only reason I posted it up as a bonus video was that it was really short. You can expect to see a lot more content there starting May . . . that is assuming Diablo 3 doesn’t take over my life.

And now for the Draft! As always, a text recap follows the video links.

Draft	Draft
Match 1	Game 1	Game 2
Match 2	Game 1	Game 2
Match 3	Game 1	Game 2

Pack 1, Pick 1:

My Pick:

There’s nothing really bomby that jumps out at me. There are solid cards in every color, but I think I’d rather take an artifact and see what’s open. I don’t know if my deck will have enough Humans to make Avacyn's Collar amazing, but it is potentially the most powerful card in the pack, and we’re not giving up much to take it.

Pack 1, Pick 2:

My Pick:

I just can’t help myself from taking a Death's Caress. What can I say? I love unconditional removal spells. It also helps that it’s easily the best card in the pack.

Pack 1, Pick 3:

My Pick:

While I think the Stormbound Geist is the best card, I want to make some effort to make that Avacyn's Collar good, so I’m going to value Humans a little higher. Gather the Townsfolk works especially well with the Equipment, and there’s a good chance we can settle into some sort of W/B tokens style deck.

Pack 1, Pick 4:

My Pick:

Speaking of cards that go well with Avacyn's Collar . . .

Pack 1, Pick 5:

My Pick:

Midnight Guard is a very solid man. 2/3s are good in general in this format, and pseudo-vigilance is a nice ability. Also, if we manage to pick up a Wolfhunter's Quiver, that would be quite the combo.

Pack 1, Pick 6:

My Pick:

Black seems to have dried up, so I’m hedging my bets here. If I end up W/U, I’d rather have this than Break of Day.

Pack 1, Pick 7:

My Pick:

On the other hand, white seems to be reasonably open. Both the Ironwright and the Griffin are solid, but in the interest of keeping the curve low, we’ll pick the Gavony Ironwright.

Pack 1, Pick 8:

My Pick:

This pack is more or less a miss. I’ve played Heavy Mattock before as a twenty-third card, and it’s fine if you have a lot of crappy Humans. Let’s hope we won’t have to play it.

Pack 1, Pick 9:

My Pick:

That was a nice wheel for us. I’m having dreams of having two of these in play, being at 5 life, and casting a Gather the Townsfolk.

Pack 1, Pick 10:

My Pick:

Burning Oil is a bit of a trap since R/W isn’t very good, but it shouldn’t go this late. We don’t have any removal yet, so I’m entertaining the prospect of splashing it.

Pack 1, Pick 11:

My Pick:

Pack 1, Pick 12:

My Pick:

Pack 1, Pick 13:

My Pick:

Pack 1, Pick 14:

My Pick:

Pack 1, Pick 15:

My Pick:

Pack 2, Pick 1:

My Pick:

And just like that, we’re back in black. AC/DC would be proud. Let’s hope the total lack of black cards we passed in the first pack works in our favor.

Pack 2, Pick 2:

My Pick:

I’m tempted to pick the Sturmgeist here, but I think we’ll be better off if we just stick to W/B. Splashing the Burning Oil is still a possibility, but let’s hope we pick up enough removal that we don’t have to.

Pack 2, Pick 3:

My Pick:

Ask and ye shall receive. Dead Weight is definitely better than Tribute to Hunger, and now it’s looking more likely that we’ll be straight W/B.

Pack 2, Pick 4:

My Pick:

I don’t usually like playing Corpse Lunge, but it might make the cut. It’s probably going to be better than Spare from Evil.

Pack 2, Pick 5:

My Pick:

We don’t have nearly enough tokens to make Intangible Virtue good.

Pack 2, Pick 6:

My Pick:

This is super-late. Geistcatcher's Rig is almost an auto-include in every deck. I have no idea why I’m seeing one sixth pick.

Pack 2, Pick 7:

My Pick:

Okay, this makes even less sense, but I’ll take it.

Pack 2, Pick 8:

My Pick:

I like Doomed Traveler a little more than Elder Cathar—mostly because we already have a bunch of 3-drops and we don’t have any sacrifice outlets.

Pack 2, Pick 9:

My Pick:

Pack 2, Pick 10:

My Pick:

Pack 2, Pick 11:

My Pick:

Pack 2, Pick 12:

My Pick:

Pack 2, Pick 13:

My Pick:

Pack 2, Pick 14:

My Pick:

Pack 2, Pick 15:

My Pick:

Pack 3, Pick 1:

My Pick:

DING! Geist-Honored Monk is among the best rares in the set, and I’m pretty happy to slam it down.

Pack 3, Pick 2:

My Pick:

It’s no Geist-Honored Monk, but still a great rare for our deck. So far, these past couple picks are better than the rest of the deck.

Pack 3, Pick 3:

My Pick:

The hits just keep on coming.

Pack 3, Pick 4:

My Pick:

This was a mispick; I should have taken the Altar's Reap. I didn’t see it for some reason.

Pack 3, Pick 5:

My Pick:

There was a good green deck to be found somewhere in this Draft, but I’ll have to be satisfied with a Rebuke.

Pack 3, Pick 6:

My Pick:

Pack 3, Pick 7:

My Pick:

If I still wanted to splash the Burning Oil, I could take the Traveler's Amulet here, but I have no such desire.

Pack 3, Pick 8:

My Pick:

Pack 3, Pick 9:

My Pick:

Pack 3, Pick 10:

My Pick:

Pack 3, Pick 11:

My Pick:

Pack 3, Pick 12:

My Pick:

Pack 3, Pick 13:

My Pick:

Pack 3, Pick 14:

My Pick:

Pack 3, Pick 15:

My Pick:

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This is how the deck ended up:

"W/B First-Picked Collar"

Lands (17)
10 Plains
7 Swamp

The deck is kind of loose, but it does have some powerful cards such as Geist-Honored Monk and Avacyn's Collar. It can beat down decently well, and it’s capable of grinding out a long game.

The Geist-Honored Monk definitely did some heavy lifting, but my random collection of Humans did their fair share as well, so I successfully took down the Draft.

I hope you guys enjoyed the recap, and until next time, good luck in your Drafts.

Nassim Ketita

www.youtube.com/nketita

arcticninja on Magic Online

TAGS articles, draft, limited, drafting, dark ascension, innistrad, nassim ketita, recap