Cards I'm considering: Kessig Cagebreakers
I think the only other card that comes close in power level is Avacynian Priest, but it's not close enough. My opinion of Skirsdag Cultist has gone down a lot over these drafts.
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 2:
Cards I'm considering: Splinterfright, Elder Cathar
Is this a SPLINTERFRIGHT deck??? Elder Cathar is a good b&b card in the best archetype so I consider it, but Splinterfright allows me to stay open, combos nicely with my first pick, and it might let me pursue this U/G mill deck I've heard so much about.
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 3:
Cards I'm considering: Elder Cathar, Spectral Rider
Not much besides white cards. I'll pretty much always take Cathar over Traveler, unless I have a glut of 3s or the Stitcher's Apprentice deck (where a 1/1 flyer is sometimes of more value than two +1 counters), so it comes down to Cathar vs. Rider. I think Spectral Rider is more powerful, but I take Cathar because it's more versatile and less of a commitment to white. I'm willing to admit this pick might be wrong.
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 4:
Cards I'm considering: Ambush Viper, Hollowhenge Scavenger
I at least consider the scavenger, but I'm starting to prefer cheaper cards in this format. Viper even kills some guys that scavenger can't, like makeshift mauler.
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 5:
Cards I'm considering: Villagers of Estwald, Orchard Spirit
The mauler is curious, since in theory I could still be U/G mill and he's good in that deck, but I haven't exactly seen blue flowing, and I already kind of have G/W in my mind because of how good that archetype is in general. This means it comes down to Villagers vs. Orchard Spirit. I don't know foor sure which one is generally better, but I think it's villagers.
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 6:
Cards I'm considering: Silverchase Fox, Demonmail Haulberk
I at least consider the haulberk, since it would be nice with cathar and also for getting dudes into my yard, but I don't have any evasion guys or anything, and I'd rather build a solid aggressive base.
My Pick:
Pack 1 pick 7:
Cards I'm considering: Abbey Griffin, Somberwald Spider
I feel like the griffin keeps up the assault better and that's what I'm trying to go for with this deck.
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Pack 1 pick 8:
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Pack 1 pick 9:
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Pack 1 pick 10:
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Pack 1 pick 11:
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Pack 1 pick 12:
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Pack 1 pick 13:
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Pack 1 pick 14:
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Pack 1 pick 15:
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Pack 2 pick 1:
Cards I'm considering: Spider Spawning, Chapel Geist
I'm not entirely sure of this pick. Chapel Geist is a safe B&B card, but I've heard that Spider Spawning decks are very powerful, and I could still build one (since I have some good rares for it). I'm not exactly sure what made me go with Spawning. I think it was the power potential of Spawning combined with the fact that I haven't really signed any contracts with white, since I only have 1 decent guy and 2 mediocre guys in that color. This pick might just be bad.
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 2:
Cards I'm considering: bleargh
This pack has no serious green or white cards and lots of blue. The reason I didn't have any considerations is because I was pretty sure I'd end up taking white cards still, so I just didn't know what to do. After ruminating, my decision comes down to "cutting stalker because it's miserable to play against" vs. "taking alchemy because if I do somehow end up U/G/b mill that card is freaking awesome in it." I went with the more disciplined pick.
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 3:
Cards I'm considering: Elite Inquisitor, Doomed Traveler
Yay back to white! Unlike Spectral Rider, I feel like Elite Inquisitor is strong enough to warrant its WW cost.
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 4:
Cards I'm considering: Midnight Haunting, Blazing Torch
This was kind of a calculated pick. I really love the card Midnight Haunting, but I don't have any Travel Preps yet and I kind of have a deck that just wants to bash every turn and fill the yard with guys. Given that, I feel like Haunting might not be as effective in my deck and go with the removal instead.
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 5:
Cards I'm considering: Avacyn's Pilgrim, Mulch
This was actually a pretty hard pick for me. Mulch goes a long way in making my two rares & uncommon awesome, but Pilgrim is such a critical engine card for these GW decks. I end up deciding the pilgrim will potentially do more for my deck than mulch will, since it's more likely I end up with a ton of tiny idiot losers than more Mulches (which is like the only thing I'd be able to take to make a G/W mill deck).
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 6:
Cards I'm considering: Avacyn's Pilgrim
I'm not sure if I'm angry about having two pilgrims, or angry about not getting to have a pilgrim AND a mulch. Either way, I don't even consider the Gallows Warden and I'm OK with that.
My Pick:
Pack 2 pick 7:
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Pack 2 pick 8:
Cards I'm considering: Moldgraf Monstrosity, Grizzled Outcasts
Grizzled Outcasts is kind of closer to my deck's vision (play a guy on every early turn, attack), but Moldgraf Monstrosity is a huge board warper that's only dealt with effectively by blue cards (and priest I guess).
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Pack 2 pick 9:
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Pack 2 pick 10:
Cards I'm considering: Woodland Sleuth, Moonmist
Is Woodland Sleuth playable?
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Pack 2 pick 11:
Cards I'm considering: Spidery Grasp, Screeching Bat
Wow, super late bat. I don't generally like having 2 grasps in my deck in this format, so I choose to cut here. This might be flat wrong. How good is having 2 grasps? I didn't consider the cathar at all here, would you?
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Pack 2 pick 12:
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Pack 2 pick 15:
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Pack 3 pick 1:
Cards I'm considering: Mayor of Avabruck, Splinterfright
A DOUBLE splinterfright deck would be sick, but I don't think it's as strong or reliable as Mayor.
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Pack 3 pick 2:
Strongest card in the pack and a welcome addition to my deck.
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 3:
Cards I'm considering: Chapel Geist
Lots of good blue in this pack.
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Pack 3 pick 4:
Cards I'm considering: Grave Bramble, Bramblecrush
I'm not likely to play a card out of this pack. I think Grave Bramble would be a more useful sideboard card than Bramblecrush.
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Pack 3 pick 5:
Cards I'm considering: Ambush Viper, Silver-Inlaid Dagger
I'm passing dagger more than I should, I think. I took viper here because it's a 2 drop, it can function as removal, and although I have a decent number of humans, I don't have much in the way of evasion.
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 6:
Cards I'm considering: Moorland Haunt
All I care about is money and the city that I'm from.
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 7:
Cards I'm considering: Ulvenwald Mystics, Moment of Heroism, Full Moon's Rise
I at least consider the other two cards because I've been told that I underrate them, but I decide the good man is the safest pick.
My Pick:
Pack 3 pick 8:
Cards I'm considering: Selfless Cathar
It feels silly to take this card over the bat when I didn't even consider it over the bat in pack 2, but I decide that I actually need more cards like this. I do have a travel prep now I guess.
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Pack 3 pick 9:
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Pack 3 pick 11:
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Pack 3 pick 12:
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Pack 3 pick 15:
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I don't think this deck is excellent, but I'm pleased with it. I'm not sure if it's right to play a swamp for the Spawning. I didn't start one because my colors are kinda demanding, but spawning is only half as good if you can't flash it back, so I don't know. I did end up boarding a swamp in for a match I felt might go long, since my colors would hopefully fix themselves in those games.
R1
Game 1, I have a pretty good curveout with T1 pilgrim, T2 cathar, T3 festerhide boar. He has a civilized scholar going, and he's filtering through a ton of lands. I have a spider spawning in hand, so I keep trying to be aggressive and trade as much as possible so that I can end the game with a bunch of spiders. He keeps playing guys (to trade with mine), and eventually my gameplan switches to Moldgraf Monstrosity. After the monstrosity recurs my festerhide boar (HOW RUCKY) and (for some reason) he mills me a free creature with his Selhoff Occultist in the process, I spawn up a bunch of spiders and overwhelm him.
Game 2, I mulligan into kind of a slow hand and recover respectably with T3 villagers T4 mystics, but he has a turn 4 Bloodline Keeper that I can never kill or keep up with. I keep trying to abyss him with my huge guys (thanks to Travel Prep) but he eventually finds a mauler to eat them, and then a Mayor of Avabruck. I get him down to 1 and threaten a lethal Elite Inquisitor (since he has nothing to block it), but he has Gnaw to the Bone to go up to 5 life, and his Mayor flipped during my upkeep so he'll have tons of wolf blockers soon. I don't draw anything to deal with a vampire and a wolf every turn, and I die to his rares.
Game 3, I mulligan once into the double Pilgrim draw and manage a turn 3 (and 4, thanks to his stupid silent departure) Grizzled Outcast. He's stuck on 4 lands without anything besides a Darkthicket Wolf and a One-Eyed Scarecrow, and I'm making it difficult for him with my Grizzled Outcasts and Chapel Geist, both prepared for travel. I play out my hand and he never draws a fifth land for his flashback, and I overwhelm him.
R2
Game 1, I have a bunch of crappy guys on a curve (T1 cathar, T2 fox, T3 pilgrim [shut up]) while his first play is T4 Thraben Sentry. I make some tricky attacks threatening a trade (which he isn't interested in) and play a T4 Abbey Griffin. His turn 5 is Angel of Flight Alabaster, which is bad, but I draw Blazing Torch, which gives me an interesting decision. I could crash my guys into it and torch to kill it, but that would flip his Sentry. I'm at 20, so I decide it's worth it and do just that. His only other cards for the rest of the game are a Scourge of Geier Reach, a Brimstone Volley, and a Rally the Peasants (which doesn't do much besides keep an ulvenwald mystics from flipping), and I manage to trade the board away favorably for me and dodge a second brimstone volley to kill him with my Abbey Griffin.
Game 2, I mulligan into an awk hand on the draw (plains plains boar villagers mayor pilgrim), but decide it's worth it to keep because I have 9 forests and if I draw one I'm in great shape. I draw a fox to play on turn 2, and his turn 2 is avacynian priest. I draw a forest on turn 3 and choose to deploy Mayor first. His next play is Kessig Wolf. I draw an Ambush Viper that lets me pass to flip my mayor and still develop my board, so I do that (I'm stuck on 3 lands though). His turn 5 is Angel of Flight Alabaster, and he starts an air race. I just keep crashing my guys into his and dealing him damage at no major loss, and he eventually has to stop attacking with his angel (which is lucky for me because if he ever drew Brimstone Volley he could set up to kill me). He's a little more flooded than I am (7 spells and 7 lands to my DI spells and 4 lands), and can't keep up with my guys despite his best efforts to trade with and remove them, and I win.
I split the finals.
Well, I finally did it. I cashed in an Innistrad draft. This is just the beginning though. I have two more sets to draft with now, so that's at least 2 more drafts for me to write up and post. I feel like I'm learning a lot about this format, but not drafting in general, and it still leaves me with some questions.
How do better players pick up limited formats so fast?
What general drafting principles should I be learning from this?
This format is very different from any other format I've drafted because I feel like a lot of normal principles of "good Magic" don't apply as much. Would you be able to identify this just by looking at the spoiler? If so, how?
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