Disclaimer: After going over these picks for comments, I'm shocked at half of them. I wonder if I even looked at the packs before grabbing cards. Already played two 8-4 BTTs, Sealed Daily, and a Prerelease Sealed today before starting this draft past midnight. Must have gotten bored.
------ JOU ------
Pack 1 pick 1:
Humbler of Mortals
Nyx Infusion
Harvestguard Alseids
Returned Reveler
Kruphix's Insight
Ajani's Presence
Dreadbringer Lampads
Supply-Line Cranes
Thassa's Devourer
Desecration Plague
Sightless Brawler
Dakra Mystic
Knowledge and Power
--> Hydra Broodmaster
Plains
Good card is good?
Pack 1 pick 2:
Hubris
--> Satyr Hoplite
Akroan Mastiff
Humbler of Mortals
Font of Return
Triton Shorestalker
Renowned Weaver
Bladetusk Boar
Cruel Feeding
Spite of Mogis
Blinding Flare
Stormchaser Chimera
Revel of the Fallen God
Island
Revel and Stormchaser both looked interesting but too strong commitments to their colors. I mean, yeah I guess Hoplite also pushes me in RG, but it's more flexible.
This has to be one of the top commons, right?
Pack 1 pick 3:
Aerial Formation
Eagle of the Watch
Font of Fertility
Pharika's Chosen
Font of Fortunes
Sigiled Starfish
Desecration Plague
Starfall
Cast into Darkness
Rollick of Abandon
Skyspear Cavalry
--> Akroan Line Breaker
Forest
I really wanted that Font of Fertility but pick3 is a bit early for ramp. In retrospect, Font is much better fixing than anything else in B or T so maybe it's worth picking it aggressively to keep options open. Evasive heroic also seemed good though...
Pack 1 pick 4:
--> Rouse the Mob
Font of Vigor
Oakheart Dryads
Oppressive Rays
War-Wing Siren
Satyr Grovedancer
Flurry of Horns
Dreadbringer Lampads
Stonewise Fortifier
Colossal Heroics
Pull from the Deep
Mountain
Could have taken Lagonna to force RW Heroic. But this vigilance guy was surprisingly strong at the prerelease. War Wing Siren is probably better though.
I don't even... I think I stopped reading the cards because the small print on my monitor was giving me a headache.
Pack 1 pick 7:
Godhunter Octopus
Font of Vigor
Kruphix's Insight
Flamespeaker's Will
Aspect of Gorgon
Oppressive Rays
--> Pin to the Earth
Agent of Erebos
Plains
Pack 1 pick 8:
Godhunter Octopus
Font of Vigor
Kruphix's Insight
Flamespeaker's Will
Aspect of Gorgon
Oppressive Rays
--> Nyx Weaver
Forest
How did this wheel? Late Pin too? Ok, blue might be open.
Pack 1 pick 14:
--> Returned Reveler
Swamp
Pack 1 pick 15:
--> Plains
------ BNG ------
Pack 2 pick 1:
Griffin Dreamfinder
Eye Gouge
Evanescent Intellect
Fearsome Temper
Hold at Bay
Setessan Starbreaker
Karametra's Favor
Stratus Walk
Nyxborn Shieldmate
Pheres-Band Tromper
Archetype of Endurance
Siren of the Silent Song
Dawn to Dusk
--> Nessian Wilds Ravager
Swamp
Double green fat. Alright, probably going RG Monsters or GU Tempo.
Pack 2 pick 2:
Scouring Sands
Charging Badger
Floodtide Serpent
Felhide Brawler
Ephara's Radiance
Grisly Transformation
Nyxborn Rollicker
Sudden Storm
Aspect of Hydra
Claim of Erebos
Stormcaller of Keranos
Ornitharch
--> Mischief and Mayhem
Forest
Makes me cry to pass Ornitharch but double off-color and white will be aggressively drafted. Mischief is still decent and cuts green.
Wait, I don't remember ever seeing a Sudden Storm in any of my packs. I would have been all over that. Epic fail.
Pack 2 pick 3:
Forsaken Drifters
Excoriate
Scouring Sands
Chorus of the Tides
Felhide Brawler
--> Swordwise Centaur
Elite Skirmisher
Oreskos Sun Guide
Divination
Nyxborn Rollicker
God-Favored General
Plea for Guidance
Mountain
Pack 2 pick 4:
Revoke Existence
Nyxborn Wolf
Evanescent Intellect
Epiphany Storm
Great Hart
Elite Skirmisher
Mortal's Resolve
Akroan Skyguard
--> Oracle's Insight
Unravel the Æther
Glimpse the Sun God
Mountain
Should have been Nyxborn since I didn't need card Inspired enablers.
Pack 2 pick 5:
--> Setessan Oathsworn
Rise to the Challenge
Nyxborn Triton
Warchanter of Mogis
Eye Gouge (FOIL)
Culling Mark
Necrobite
Kragma Butcher
Vanguard of Brimaz
Sanguimancy
Island
Pack 2 pick 6:
Hold at Bay
Marshmist Titan
--> Nyxborn Wolf
Floodtide Serpent
Griffin Dreamfinder
Claim of Erebos
Impetuous Sunchaser
Deepwater Hypnotist
Drown in Sorrow
Mountain
Got lucky and found another.
Pack 2 pick 7:
Satyr Wayfinder
--> Retraction Helix
Bolt of Keranos
Reckless Reveler
Nullify
Cyclops of One-Eyed Pass
Necrobite
Akroan Conscriptor
Island
Seems late. Blue open?
Pack 2 pick 8:
Satyr Wayfinder
--> Retraction Helix
Reckless Reveler
Nullify
Necrobite
Pillar of War
Graverobber Spider
Forest
About that.
Pack 2 pick 9:
Griffin Dreamfinder
Eye Gouge
Evanescent Intellect
Hold at Bay
Archetype of Endurance
--> Siren of the Silent Song
Swamp
Pack 2 pick 10:
Scouring Sands
Charging Badger
Ephara's Radiance
--> Aspect of Hydra
Claim of Erebos
Forest
Pack 2 pick 13:
Warchanter of Mogis
--> Sanguimancy
Island
Pack 2 pick 14:
--> Claim of Erebos
Mountain
Pack 2 pick 15:
--> Island
------ THS ------
Pack 3 pick 1:
Nylea's Presence
Fleetfeather Sandals
Demolish
Lagonna-Band Elder
Lost in a Labyrinth
Pharika's Cure
Rage of Purphoros
Feral Invocation
Boulderfall
Sedge Scorpion
Akroan Hoplite
Rescue from the Underworld
--> Warriors' Lesson
Firedrinker Satyr
Plains
Maybe Sedge instead. I figured Nylea's Presence would wheel.
Pack 3 pick 2:
Cavalry Pegasus
--> Nylea's Disciple
Stymied Hopes
Pharika's Cure
Defend the Hearth
Leonin Snarecaster
Priest of Iroas
Read the Bones
Wavecrash Triton
Cavern Lampad
Horizon Scholar
Chronicler of Heroes
Favored Hoplite
Island
Wavecrash also looked good. Horizon not so much, already have enough 6 drops.
Pack 3 pick 3:
Chosen by Heliod
Mnemonic Wall
Viper's Kiss
Griptide
Commune with the Gods
Hopeful Eidolon
Spark Jolt
Mountain (FOIL)
--> Traveler's Amulet
Akroan Crusader
Rescue from the Underworld
Sentry of the Underworld
Mountain
Not Griptide?? I've stopped trying to understand...
Pack 3 pick 4:
Battlewise Valor
Loathsome Catoblepas
Omenspeaker
Feral Invocation
Fate Foretold
Thassa's Bounty
Lagonna-Band Elder
Priest of Iroas
--> Staunch-Hearted Warrior
Hunt the Hunter
Dauntless Onslaught
Forest
Pack 3 pick 5:
--> Nessian Courser
Lash of the Whip
Minotaur Skullcleaver
Thassa's Bounty
Priest of Iroas
Fade into Antiquity
Returned Centaur
Setessan Griffin
Triton Shorethief
Shipwreck Singer
Swamp
Pack 3 pick 6:
Stymied Hopes
--> Satyr Hedonist
Satyr Rambler
Leonin Snarecaster
Feral Invocation
Fate Foretold
Boon of Erebos
Chronicler of Heroes
Artisan's Sorrow
Island
Figured I'd board in the Aerial Formation if I thought I needed more flying or more Heroic enablers (or if one of the other enablers was dead). MD this or Warrior's Lesson was a tight pick but the heavy green manabase pushed me to maxing out on green enablers before non-green.
Oracle's Insight vs grindy matchups like UB control or the GB Constellation deck.
Rescue from the Underworld vs heavy removal.
Desecration Plague if I was desperate for enchantment removal.
The matches:
Round 1 -- RW Aggro
Game 1: I lose the die roll. I keep 4 lands + two 4-drops + a 6-drop. He goes T1 Favored Hoplite, T2 Akroan Hoplite. Oh boy. But he has no Ordeals or cheap bestow to pile on the beats, so it's just those two coming at me for a manageable amount of damage. He stalls on 3 lands, blowing a maindeck Spark Jolt on his own Hoplite to grow it and scry into land. I stabilize with Ravenous Leu on turn 4. He blows a combat trick to kill it. Nylea's Disciple stabilizes the game for me until I hit 6 lands on turn 6 and drop Hydra. He stops attacking altogether. I hit 7 lands on turn 7. Mana flood is usually bad, but 3 3/3 tokens seems good. He gets stomped.
Game 2: This one is close. I almost stabilize with Hydra again. My mouse has been wonky lately. Sometimes it double clicks by accident. I attempt to Retraction Helix at a very key point in time. I click on my creature once as a target to cast Helix. Somehow my mouse triple clicks by accident, so instead of just targeting a creature with Helix I also tap the creature to return itself... Had I not done that, I would have stabilized to his flyers and killed him on the back swing. Because of my tempo loss, he was able to squeeze through just enough unblockable attacks before I could kill him.
Game 3: He keeps a 1-lander with Plains, Hopeful Eidolon, the 2/1 flyer for W, and Oppressive Rays. Not bad for a 1-lander. He never draws a second land though. I kill his Eidolon with a combat trick and Stone Rain his only land. He concedes. Karma gets me back I guess?
Round 2 -- BW Constellation
Game 1: War-Wing Siren goes Voltron and he loses quickly.
Game 2: He gets double Underworld Coinsmith. We get into a grindy race. He can't block my Voltron, but the ground is pretty stalled. I Nyx Weaver into Hydra but he casts Gild. My mouse fails me again, dropping Retraction Helix on a creature with Oppressive Rays (and < 3 mana untapped) instead of the creature right next to it. I could have bounced my Hydra, countering his Gild, replayed it next turn and won soon after. Instead, I lose both Hydra and Helix. I have to blow a 2nd Helix later and run out of tricks early, which is dangerous in this format. I still drop him down to 2 while I'm much higher. But he uses some tricks to both disable my blockers and pump his guy just enough to bring me to 1, then gets to activate Coinsmith exactly once to kill me (could not activate it twice because he was at 2). I could have lived if I even just had that Helix or had used it for any tempo play whatsoever worth at least 1 life.. Sigh.
Game 3: I goldfish him in 7. He plays guys but they're kind of irrelevant. T3 War-Wing. T4 Oathsworn. He attacks right into my open mana and lets me blow a Heroic enabler to grow my Oathsworn and eat his best attacker. He taps out post-combat, so I T5 Mischief and Mayhem my two heroic guys for a ton of damage. He lets it through (15-ish damage), hoping to gang block and kill them next turn. He Hopeful Eidolons something, so I just Pin it to the Earth and smash through his remaining guys. Turning creatures sideways FTW
Round 3 -- RG
Game 1: He has a LOT of burn. Magma Spray, Magma Jet, Bolt of Keranos, Rage of Purphoros. Maybe more. He times all his removal perfectly, stopping me from stabilizing, 2-for-1ing me on a heroic trick, and then trampling my face. Good deck and he definitely outplayed me.
-Warriors Lessons, +Aerial Formation. Think I squeezed in another creature somewhere too. My goal was to avoid getting blown out and win a grindy game.
Game 2: He just plays untapped Mountains for 4 turns. I see ya burn coming. I play more carefully, dropping Heroic guys always with 1 extra mana open since he's putting no pressure on me. He tries to Magma Jet an Oathsworn, but Aspect of Hydra saves the day. He's forced to throw a Bolt on it too. After overeagerly Magma Spraying something else, he runs out of removal early. Having 5 1cc instant heroic enablers was key in this matchup. I start smashing his face on the ground with a Voltron. He tries to race with Bladetusk Boar, thinking he can get in some unblockable damage early and then chump my guy when it would start threatening lethal. He's playing just a little too loose. I've been sandbagging the Aerial Formation to make that last attack unblockable, GG.
Game 3: Heroic to the rescue again. He blows burn on my 2-drop but I manage to stick a T5 War-Wing Siren with 2 lands open. He taps out to play Goldenhide Ox and attacks into my 1/3 Siren with 4/3 Borderline Minotaur, forcing the block. Seems bad, right? I blow both Retraction Helix and Aspect of Hydra (X=0) to make Siren a 3/5, killing the Minotaur. Although I 2-for-1 myself, I kill his biggest attacker and protect my only creature on the board. At 5 toughness it's above burn range for later. I untap, play a 6th land and drop Nessian Wilds Ravager. He pauses a long time wondering whether to let me eat his Ox. He finally declines, leaving me with a 12/12. I start beating him in the air. He tries to Voltron his Ox and use the constellation triggers to force me to block other dorks, letting his bigger Ox get through. But I have Pin to the Earth and more creatures to follow up. He can't get through the 12/12 wall and quickly gets mauled.
3-0.
In conclusion, UG seems like it falls in just the right spot on the midrange spectrum. Can only imagine how my deck would have done with that free Sudden Storm and other goodies I passed. Traveler's Amulet was amazing though. Glad I grabbed it early. Nyx Weaver was worth the splash, essentially functioning as a tutor for Hydra or Heroic spells.
Retraction Helix tapping Nyx Weaver, attack with everything, in declare attackers exile Weaver to return Helix, Helix on vigilance guy, bounce a second creature, go. That was a thing.
Pack 1 pick 1:
Humbler of Mortals
Nyx Infusion
Harvestguard Alseids
Returned Reveler
Kruphix's Insight
Ajani's Presence
Dreadbringer Lampads
Supply-Line Cranes
Thassa's Devourer
Desecration Plague
Sightless Brawler
Dakra Mystic
Knowledge and Power
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Hydra Broodmaster
Plains
Good card is good?
Pack 1 pick 2:
Hubris
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Satyr Hoplite
Akroan Mastiff
Humbler of Mortals
Font of Return
Triton Shorestalker
Renowned Weaver
Bladetusk Boar
Cruel Feeding
Spite of Mogis
Blinding Flare
Stormchaser Chimera
Revel of the Fallen God
Island
Revel and Stormchaser both looked interesting but too strong commitments to their colors. I mean, yeah I guess Hoplite also pushes me in RG, but it's more flexible.
This has to be one of the top commons, right?
Pack 1 pick 3:
Aerial Formation
Eagle of the Watch
Font of Fertility
Pharika's Chosen
Font of Fortunes
Sigiled Starfish
Desecration Plague
Starfall
Cast into Darkness
Rollick of Abandon
Skyspear Cavalry
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Akroan Line Breaker [color=red]Your first couple picks are solid![/color]
Forest
I really wanted that Font of Fertility but pick3 is a bit early for ramp. In retrospect, Font is much better fixing than anything else in B or T so maybe it's worth picking it aggressively to keep options open. Evasive heroic also seemed good though...
Pack 1 pick 4:
--> Rouse the Mob
Font of Vigor
Oakheart Dryads
Oppressive Rays
[color=red]>>>>[/color]War-Wing Siren
Satyr Grovedancer
Flurry of Horns
Dreadbringer Lampads
Stonewise Fortifier
Colossal Heroics
Pull from the Deep
Mountain
Could have taken Lagonna to force RW Heroic. But this vigilance guy was surprisingly strong at the prerelease. War Wing Siren is probably better though.
I don't even... I think I stopped reading the cards because the small print on my monitor was giving me a headache.
Pack 1 pick 7:
Godhunter Octopus
Font of Vigor
Kruphix's Insight
Flamespeaker's Will
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Aspect of Gorgon
Oppressive Rays
--> Pin to the Earth
Agent of Erebos
Plains
Pack 1 pick 8:
Godhunter Octopus
Font of Vigor
Kruphix's Insight
Flamespeaker's Will
Aspect of Gorgon
Oppressive Rays
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Nyx Weaver
Forest
[color=red]At this point, we've diverged in likely colors. I think I'm headed towards blue black. Blue is clearly open and green seems choked. You opened a very bomby green card, but I'm not totally sold on it. Then again, my black is weak enough thus far that I could be swayed by some good green in pack 2.[/color]
------ BNG ------
Pack 2 pick 1:
Griffin Dreamfinder
Eye Gouge
Evanescent Intellect
Fearsome Temper
Hold at Bay
Setessan Starbreaker
Karametra's Favor
Stratus Walk
Nyxborn Shieldmate
Pheres-Band Tromper
Archetype of Endurance
Siren of the Silent Song
Dawn to Dusk
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Nessian Wilds Ravager [color=red]There it is! If it keeps coming...[/color]
Swamp
Double green fat. Alright, probably going RG Monsters or GU Tempo. [color=red]The possibility I drift into UG is higher now.[/color]
Pack 2 pick 2:
Scouring Sands
Charging Badger
Floodtide Serpent
Felhide Brawler
Ephara's Radiance
Grisly Transformation
Nyxborn Rollicker
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Sudden Storm
Aspect of Hydra
Claim of Erebos
Stormcaller of Keranos
Ornitharch
--> Mischief and Mayhem [color=red]wat.gif[/color]
Forest
Makes me cry to pass Ornitharch but double off-color and white will be aggressively drafted. Mischief is still decent and cuts green.
Wait, I don't remember ever seeing a Sudden Storm in any of my packs. I would have been all over that. Epic fail.
Pack 2 pick 3:
Forsaken Drifters
Excoriate
Scouring Sands
Chorus of the Tides
Felhide Brawler
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Swordwise Centaur [color=red]This or Chorus. The lack of G and 2CMC guys made this decision for me./color]
Elite Skirmisher
Oreskos Sun Guide
Divination
Nyxborn Rollicker
God-Favored General
Plea for Guidance
Mountain
Pack 2 pick 4:
Revoke Existence
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Nyxborn Wolf
Evanescent Intellect
Epiphany Storm
Great Hart
Elite Skirmisher
Mortal's Resolve
Akroan Skyguard
--> Oracle's Insight
Unravel the Æther
Glimpse the Sun God
Mountain
Should have been Nyxborn since I didn't need card Inspired enablers.
Pack 2 pick 5:
--> Setessan Oathsworn
Rise to the Challenge
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Nyxborn Triton
Warchanter of Mogis
Eye Gouge (FOIL)
Culling Mark
Necrobite
Kragma Butcher
Vanguard of Brimaz
Sanguimancy
Island
Pack 2 pick 6:
Hold at Bay
Marshmist Titan
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Nyxborn Wolf
Floodtide Serpent
Griffin Dreamfinder
Claim of Erebos
Impetuous Sunchaser
Deepwater Hypnotist
Drown in Sorrow
Mountain
Got lucky and found another.
Pack 2 pick 7:
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Satyr Wayfinder [color=red]Blue is definitely open by this point, so I'm hoping to pick up a Helix in a later pick, it's common enough[/color]
--> Retraction Helix
Bolt of Keranos
Reckless Reveler
Nullify
Cyclops of One-Eyed Pass
Necrobite
Akroan Conscriptor
Island
Seems late. Blue open?
Pack 2 pick 8:
Satyr Wayfinder
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Retraction Helix [color=red]heh...didn't matter either way[/color]
Reckless Reveler
Nullify
Necrobite
Pillar of War
Graverobber Spider
Forest
About that.
Pack 2 pick 9:
Griffin Dreamfinder
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Eye Gouge [color=red]get out of my draft[/color]
Evanescent Intellect
Hold at Bay
Archetype of Endurance
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Siren of the Silent Song
Swamp
Pack 2 pick 10:
Scouring Sands
Charging Badger
Ephara's Radiance
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Aspect of Hydra
Claim of Erebos
Forest
Pack 2 pick 13:
Warchanter of Mogis
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Sanguimancy
Island
Pack 2 pick 14:
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Claim of Erebos
Mountain
Pack 2 pick 15:
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Island
[color=red]Def. going UG now.[/color]
------ THS ------
Pack 3 pick 1:
Nylea's Presence
Fleetfeather Sandals
Demolish
Lagonna-Band Elder
Lost in a Labyrinth
Pharika's Cure
Rage of Purphoros
Feral Invocation
Boulderfall
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Sedge Scorpion
Akroan Hoplite
Rescue from the Underworld
--> Warriors' Lesson
Firedrinker Satyr
Plains
Maybe Sedge instead. I figured Nylea's Presence would wheel.
Pack 3 pick 2:
Cavalry Pegasus
--> Nylea's Disciple [color=red]mehhhhhhhhhhh[/color]
Stymied Hopes
Pharika's Cure
Defend the Hearth
Leonin Snarecaster
Priest of Iroas
Read the Bones
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Wavecrash Triton
Cavern Lampad
Horizon Scholar
Chronicler of Heroes
Favored Hoplite
Island
Wavecrash also looked good. Horizon not so much, already have enough 6 drops.
Pack 3 pick 3:
Chosen by Heliod
Mnemonic Wall
Viper's Kiss
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Griptide [color=red]hrrrnnnnnnn![/color]
Commune with the Gods
Hopeful Eidolon
Spark Jolt
Mountain (FOIL)
--> Traveler's Amulet
Akroan Crusader
Rescue from the Underworld
Sentry of the Underworld
Mountain
Not Griptide?? I've stopped trying to understand...
Pack 3 pick 4:
Battlewise Valor
Loathsome Catoblepas
Omenspeaker
Feral Invocation
Fate Foretold
Thassa's Bounty
Lagonna-Band Elder
Priest of Iroas
--> Staunch-Hearted Warrior
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Hunt the Hunter
Dauntless Onslaught
Forest
Pack 3 pick 5:
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Nessian Courser
Lash of the Whip
Minotaur Skullcleaver
Thassa's Bounty
Priest of Iroas
Fade into Antiquity
Returned Centaur
Setessan Griffin
Triton Shorethief
Shipwreck Singer
Swamp
Pack 3 pick 6:
Stymied Hopes
--> Satyr Hedonist
Satyr Rambler
Leonin Snarecaster
[color=red]>>>>[/color]Feral Invocation
Fate Foretold
Boon of Erebos
Chronicler of Heroes
Artisan's Sorrow
Island
Yeah, some of my picks got questionable. My first JBT draft and I definitely undervalued how powerful War-Wing Siren is. I played against it in Sealed and it was pretty bad for my opponents, but they were low on heroic enablers and their decks were questionable. With enough cheap enablers, wow. Won several games for me. Need to start thinking of it as Akroan Skyguard with +2 toughness for a colorless, more resilient to cheap removal and very splashable.
Count on Helix later than pick 7? I always counted it as the second best blue common in BNG after Sudden Storm, especially strong in UG or UW. I mean blue was open and there was another one but I'm surprised you would have waited for it. Do people not take this card as aggressively in JBT? I guess NO one was in blue with War-Wing Siren wheeling, so maybe. But I wouldn't have known that if I grabbed the Sirens earlier like you did. Double helix was good for me all games, can't complain.
P1.2 I might have gone with Bladetusk Boar. It's less Aggro than Hoplite but requires less help. (It still really likes the help.) Hoplite is a commitment to a very focused strategy and one that does not really include Hydra Broodmaster.
P1.4 I really don't like the choice of Rouse the Mob here. Yes you have 2 good Aggro Red Heroes but Rouse is one of the less powerful tricks in the block. Notably it doesn't really help you win combat, it's just like a Lava Axe. I would have considered Oakheart Dryads maybe if you wanted to stick to Green, or War-Wing Siren as the best signal in the pack.
P1.6 This is where your two-faced drafting really started going off the rails. In pick 4, you essentially abandoned your first pick which is fine because you have to read signals, but then for picks 5 & 6 you went back to forcing it. I don't even think this is a bad pick but it just makes that Rouse pick look worse and worse.
I'll stop there because we would have drafted differently, resulting in different future picks. It looks like this worked out for you in the end, but my suggestion would be to lay off the Rouse. Card's not that good.
As for deck construction, the splashed Nyx Weaver seems a little loose. It's a solid card but I don't know if it's worth it if you're playing it late. Same deal with Siren of the Silent Song. Your mana base is kind of a mess though that's more a function of getting pulled in different directions early.
I would have taken the Siren out and played Aerial Formation. The problem with ditching Black altogether is you wind up with not enough creatures to support your Auras. I guess there's no ideal solution.
If your mouse is misclicking on you, frankly you need a new one! Think about the cost of a mouse vs. how much you spend on a draft. You could probably get a cheap not-broken mouse for less than the $15 entry fee.
P1.2 I might have gone with Bladetusk Boar. It's less Aggro than Hoplite but requires less help. (It still really likes the help.) Hoplite is a commitment to a very focused strategy and one that does not really include Hydra Broodmaster.
P1.4 I really don't like the choice of Rouse the Mob here. Yes you have 2 good Aggro Red Heroes but Rouse is one of the less powerful tricks in the block. Notably it doesn't really help you win combat, it's just like a Lava Axe. I would have considered Oakheart Dryads maybe if you wanted to stick to Green, or War-Wing Siren as the best signal in the pack.
P1.6 This is where your two-faced drafting really started going off the rails. In pick 4, you essentially abandoned your first pick which is fine because you have to read signals, but then for picks 5 & 6 you went back to forcing it. I don't even think this is a bad pick but it just makes that Rouse pick look worse and worse.
I'll stop there because we would have drafted differently, resulting in different future picks. It looks like this worked out for you in the end, but my suggestion would be to lay off the Rouse. Card's not that good.
As for deck construction, the splashed Nyx Weaver seems a little loose. It's a solid card but I don't know if it's worth it if you're playing it late. Same deal with Siren of the Silent Song. Your mana base is kind of a mess though that's more a function of getting pulled in different directions early.
I would have taken the Siren out and played Aerial Formation. The problem with ditching Black altogether is you wind up with not enough creatures to support your Auras. I guess there's no ideal solution.
If your mouse is misclicking on you, frankly you need a new one! Think about the cost of a mouse vs. how much you spend on a draft. You could probably get a cheap not-broken mouse for less than the $15 entry fee.
Thanks for the comments!
Rouse was clearly a mistake. First few picks were an attempt to force RW aggro, my default from BTT. That deck is all 1-3 drops and combat tricks. Dynacharge that triggers Heroic seemed better than it probably is in practice. And then red dried up and white didn't look open, so P1P5-6 I started looking back into green (since I had Hydra). I should have picked up on the blue signal with those War-Wing Sirens floating around. After seeing War-Wing be pretty useless for my opponents in Sealed at the prerelease, I think I seriously undervalued the card, thinking blue could not abuse +1/+1 Heroic as much. My opponents were probably just using it poorly. I now realize how good that card is.
Re mouse:
It was only minorly finnicky before (missing an attack maybe once in every 50 combat phases, sometimes relevant, sometimes not). But last night it started performing even worse at clutch times. Definitely getting a replacement.
Re deck construction:
I boarded in Aerial Formation often, but ran Siren and Nyx Weaver in the end because of low creature count. Dropping below 14 seemed bad with so many tricks that are dead with no creature out. Especially with JOU giving better removal. I think this was wise, as I already got blown out round 3 game 1 by drawing too few creatures and too many tricks, losing to endless removal. I only drew Siren (and cast it) in one game. Already had that game in the bag, so couldn't evaluate its impact. Probably glad I didn't see it more. Seemed awkward. I drew and cast Nyx Weaver several times and it was amazing.
Nyx Weaver late is surprisingly good. Still blocks most flyers. You don't get to exploit the self-mill as much, but playing it late you have mana open. With mana open and so many 1cc instants in the deck it acts as a Snapcaster Mage to give you back-up tricks even when you have an empty hand. Getting back any trick I want at instant speed is a lot of flexibility and a lot for the opponent to be afraid of. Thinking of going Voltron? Remember that Retraction Helix in my yard. Thinking of beating me in combat? Oh hai Aspect of Hydra after blockers. It also dug me into Hydra Broodmaster in two games. So flexible!
Manabase was surprisingly solid since most of my cards and costs were green. Deck just needed X Forests and 1 Island to function, with Swamp optional for Nyx Weaver tricks. Luck and good mulliganning were probably factors, but I was never color-screwed in any relevant way.
Lessons learned:
1) War-Wing is amazing. Draft earlier.
2) Rouse is bad.
3) Get new mouse
4) Should try to stick to colors earlier than in BTT, since JOU packs are stronger than BNG packs and you need to exploit the higher card quality. Nice thing about BNG first is that you can just grab top cards of all colors, waffle around and then decide when you see Theros. I think that is a mistake in JBT since pack 2 is not much to look forward to...
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Draft:
Disclaimer: After going over these picks for comments, I'm shocked at half of them. I wonder if I even looked at the packs before grabbing cards. Already played two 8-4 BTTs, Sealed Daily, and a Prerelease Sealed today before starting this draft past midnight. Must have gotten bored.
------ JOU ------
Pack 1 pick 1:
Humbler of Mortals
Nyx Infusion
Harvestguard Alseids
Returned Reveler
Kruphix's Insight
Ajani's Presence
Dreadbringer Lampads
Supply-Line Cranes
Thassa's Devourer
Desecration Plague
Sightless Brawler
Dakra Mystic
Knowledge and Power
--> Hydra Broodmaster
Plains
Good card is good?
Pack 1 pick 2:
Hubris
--> Satyr Hoplite
Akroan Mastiff
Humbler of Mortals
Font of Return
Triton Shorestalker
Renowned Weaver
Bladetusk Boar
Cruel Feeding
Spite of Mogis
Blinding Flare
Stormchaser Chimera
Revel of the Fallen God
Island
Revel and Stormchaser both looked interesting but too strong commitments to their colors. I mean, yeah I guess Hoplite also pushes me in RG, but it's more flexible.
This has to be one of the top commons, right?
Pack 1 pick 3:
Aerial Formation
Eagle of the Watch
Font of Fertility
Pharika's Chosen
Font of Fortunes
Sigiled Starfish
Desecration Plague
Starfall
Cast into Darkness
Rollick of Abandon
Skyspear Cavalry
--> Akroan Line Breaker
Forest
I really wanted that Font of Fertility but pick3 is a bit early for ramp. In retrospect, Font is much better fixing than anything else in B or T so maybe it's worth picking it aggressively to keep options open. Evasive heroic also seemed good though...
Pack 1 pick 4:
--> Rouse the Mob
Font of Vigor
Oakheart Dryads
Oppressive Rays
War-Wing Siren
Satyr Grovedancer
Flurry of Horns
Dreadbringer Lampads
Stonewise Fortifier
Colossal Heroics
Pull from the Deep
Mountain
Forcing red heroic a little.
Pack 1 pick 5:
Lagonna-Band Trailblazer
Market Festival
Hubris
Pensive Minotaur
Akroan Mastiff
Bloodcrazed Hoplite
Oreskos Swiftclaw
War-Wing Siren
--> Ravenous Leucrocota
Interpret the Signs
Mountain
Could have taken Lagonna to force RW Heroic. But this vigilance guy was surprisingly strong at the prerelease. War Wing Siren is probably better though.
Pack 1 pick 6:
--> Humbler of Mortals
Nyx Infusion
Harvestguard Alseids
Returned Reveler
Kruphix's Insight
Dreadbringer Lampads
Thassa's Devourer
Desecration Plague
Thoughtrender Lamia
Swamp
I don't even... I think I stopped reading the cards because the small print on my monitor was giving me a headache.
Pack 1 pick 7:
Godhunter Octopus
Font of Vigor
Kruphix's Insight
Flamespeaker's Will
Aspect of Gorgon
Oppressive Rays
--> Pin to the Earth
Agent of Erebos
Plains
Pack 1 pick 8:
Godhunter Octopus
Font of Vigor
Kruphix's Insight
Flamespeaker's Will
Aspect of Gorgon
Oppressive Rays
--> Nyx Weaver
Forest
Pick 8 God seems good.
Pack 1 pick 9:
Nyx Infusion
Harvestguard Alseids
Returned Reveler
Kruphix's Insight
--> Desecration Plague
Dakra Mystic
Plains
Should have been Dakra Mystic, I think. Wonder if this was a misclick.
Pack 1 pick 10:
Font of Return
Triton Shorestalker
Cruel Feeding
--> Spite of Mogis
Blinding Flare
Island
Pack 1 pick 11:
--> Aerial Formation
Font of Fortunes
Desecration Plague
Cast into Darkness
Forest
Pack 1 pick 12:
Font of Vigor
--> Oppressive Rays
Pull from the Deep
Mountain
Pack 1 pick 13:
--> War-Wing Siren
Interpret the Signs
Mountain
How did this wheel? Late Pin too? Ok, blue might be open.
Pack 1 pick 14:
--> Returned Reveler
Swamp
Pack 1 pick 15:
--> Plains
------ BNG ------
Pack 2 pick 1:
Griffin Dreamfinder
Eye Gouge
Evanescent Intellect
Fearsome Temper
Hold at Bay
Setessan Starbreaker
Karametra's Favor
Stratus Walk
Nyxborn Shieldmate
Pheres-Band Tromper
Archetype of Endurance
Siren of the Silent Song
Dawn to Dusk
--> Nessian Wilds Ravager
Swamp
Double green fat. Alright, probably going RG Monsters or GU Tempo.
Pack 2 pick 2:
Scouring Sands
Charging Badger
Floodtide Serpent
Felhide Brawler
Ephara's Radiance
Grisly Transformation
Nyxborn Rollicker
Sudden Storm
Aspect of Hydra
Claim of Erebos
Stormcaller of Keranos
Ornitharch
--> Mischief and Mayhem
Forest
Makes me cry to pass Ornitharch but double off-color and white will be aggressively drafted. Mischief is still decent and cuts green.
Wait, I don't remember ever seeing a Sudden Storm in any of my packs. I would have been all over that. Epic fail.
Pack 2 pick 3:
Forsaken Drifters
Excoriate
Scouring Sands
Chorus of the Tides
Felhide Brawler
--> Swordwise Centaur
Elite Skirmisher
Oreskos Sun Guide
Divination
Nyxborn Rollicker
God-Favored General
Plea for Guidance
Mountain
Pack 2 pick 4:
Revoke Existence
Nyxborn Wolf
Evanescent Intellect
Epiphany Storm
Great Hart
Elite Skirmisher
Mortal's Resolve
Akroan Skyguard
--> Oracle's Insight
Unravel the Æther
Glimpse the Sun God
Mountain
Should have been Nyxborn since I didn't need card Inspired enablers.
Pack 2 pick 5:
--> Setessan Oathsworn
Rise to the Challenge
Nyxborn Triton
Warchanter of Mogis
Eye Gouge (FOIL)
Culling Mark
Necrobite
Kragma Butcher
Vanguard of Brimaz
Sanguimancy
Island
Pack 2 pick 6:
Hold at Bay
Marshmist Titan
--> Nyxborn Wolf
Floodtide Serpent
Griffin Dreamfinder
Claim of Erebos
Impetuous Sunchaser
Deepwater Hypnotist
Drown in Sorrow
Mountain
Got lucky and found another.
Pack 2 pick 7:
Satyr Wayfinder
--> Retraction Helix
Bolt of Keranos
Reckless Reveler
Nullify
Cyclops of One-Eyed Pass
Necrobite
Akroan Conscriptor
Island
Seems late. Blue open?
Pack 2 pick 8:
Satyr Wayfinder
--> Retraction Helix
Reckless Reveler
Nullify
Necrobite
Pillar of War
Graverobber Spider
Forest
About that.
Pack 2 pick 9:
Griffin Dreamfinder
Eye Gouge
Evanescent Intellect
Hold at Bay
Archetype of Endurance
--> Siren of the Silent Song
Swamp
Pack 2 pick 10:
Scouring Sands
Charging Badger
Ephara's Radiance
--> Aspect of Hydra
Claim of Erebos
Forest
Pack 2 pick 11:
Forsaken Drifters
Scouring Sands
Felhide Brawler
--> Divination
Mountain
Pack 2 pick 12:
Evanescent Intellect
Epiphany Storm
--> Great Hart
Mountain
Pack 2 pick 13:
Warchanter of Mogis
--> Sanguimancy
Island
Pack 2 pick 14:
--> Claim of Erebos
Mountain
Pack 2 pick 15:
--> Island
------ THS ------
Pack 3 pick 1:
Nylea's Presence
Fleetfeather Sandals
Demolish
Lagonna-Band Elder
Lost in a Labyrinth
Pharika's Cure
Rage of Purphoros
Feral Invocation
Boulderfall
Sedge Scorpion
Akroan Hoplite
Rescue from the Underworld
--> Warriors' Lesson
Firedrinker Satyr
Plains
Maybe Sedge instead. I figured Nylea's Presence would wheel.
Pack 3 pick 2:
Cavalry Pegasus
--> Nylea's Disciple
Stymied Hopes
Pharika's Cure
Defend the Hearth
Leonin Snarecaster
Priest of Iroas
Read the Bones
Wavecrash Triton
Cavern Lampad
Horizon Scholar
Chronicler of Heroes
Favored Hoplite
Island
Wavecrash also looked good. Horizon not so much, already have enough 6 drops.
Pack 3 pick 3:
Chosen by Heliod
Mnemonic Wall
Viper's Kiss
Griptide
Commune with the Gods
Hopeful Eidolon
Spark Jolt
Mountain (FOIL)
--> Traveler's Amulet
Akroan Crusader
Rescue from the Underworld
Sentry of the Underworld
Mountain
Not Griptide?? I've stopped trying to understand...
Pack 3 pick 4:
Battlewise Valor
Loathsome Catoblepas
Omenspeaker
Feral Invocation
Fate Foretold
Thassa's Bounty
Lagonna-Band Elder
Priest of Iroas
--> Staunch-Hearted Warrior
Hunt the Hunter
Dauntless Onslaught
Forest
Pack 3 pick 5:
--> Nessian Courser
Lash of the Whip
Minotaur Skullcleaver
Thassa's Bounty
Priest of Iroas
Fade into Antiquity
Returned Centaur
Setessan Griffin
Triton Shorethief
Shipwreck Singer
Swamp
Pack 3 pick 6:
Stymied Hopes
--> Satyr Hedonist
Satyr Rambler
Leonin Snarecaster
Feral Invocation
Fate Foretold
Boon of Erebos
Chronicler of Heroes
Artisan's Sorrow
Island
Very low on 2 drops.
Pack 3 pick 7:
Asphodel Wanderer
Two-Headed Cerberus
--> Vulpine Goliath
Annul
Felhide Minotaur
Stoneshock Giant
Sealock Monster
Psychic Intrusion
Swamp
Sealock didn't seem much better.
Pack 3 pick 8:
Ephara's Warden
Fleshmad Steed
Returned Centaur
--> Fate Foretold
Portent of Betrayal
Scholar of Athreos
Cutthroat Maneuver
Island
Pack 3 pick 9:
--> Nylea's Presence
Fleetfeather Sandals
Demolish
Lost in a Labyrinth
Boulderfall
Rescue from the Underworld
Plains
Wheeled as predicted.
Pack 3 pick 10:
Stymied Hopes
Pharika's Cure
Defend the Hearth
--> Leonin Snarecaster
Chronicler of Heroes
Island
Pack 3 pick 11:
Viper's Kiss
Commune with the Gods
Mountain (FOIL)
--> Rescue from the Underworld
Mountain
Could be a fun splash...
Pack 3 pick 12:
Loathsome Catoblepas
Thassa's Bounty
--> Priest of Iroas
Forest
Pack 3 pick 13:
Thassa's Bounty
--> Triton Shorethief
Swamp
Pack 3 pick 14:
--> Stymied Hopes
Island
Pack 3 pick 15:
--> Swamp
Deck:
1 Swordwise Centaur
1 Satyr Hedonist
1 War-Wing Siren
1 Setessan Oathsworn
1 Nyxborn Wolf
1 Nyx Weaver
1 Siren of the Silent Song
1 Nessian Courser
1 Ravenous Leucrocota
1 Staunch-Hearted Warrior
1 Nylea's Disciple
1 Vulpine Goliath
1 Hydra Broodmaster
1 Nessian Wilds Ravager
2 Retraction Helix
1 Aspect of Hydra
1 Warrior's Lesson
1 Fate Foretold
1 Pin to the Earth
1 Nylea's Presence
1 Mischief and Mayhem
//Mana: 18
1 Traveler's Amulet
2 Swamp
10 Forest
5 Island
1 Aerial Formation
1 Desecration Plague
1 Rescue from the Underworld
1 Oracle's Insight
Figured I'd board in the Aerial Formation if I thought I needed more flying or more Heroic enablers (or if one of the other enablers was dead). MD this or Warrior's Lesson was a tight pick but the heavy green manabase pushed me to maxing out on green enablers before non-green.
Oracle's Insight vs grindy matchups like UB control or the GB Constellation deck.
Rescue from the Underworld vs heavy removal.
Desecration Plague if I was desperate for enchantment removal.
The matches:
Round 1 -- RW Aggro
Game 1: I lose the die roll. I keep 4 lands + two 4-drops + a 6-drop. He goes T1 Favored Hoplite, T2 Akroan Hoplite. Oh boy. But he has no Ordeals or cheap bestow to pile on the beats, so it's just those two coming at me for a manageable amount of damage. He stalls on 3 lands, blowing a maindeck Spark Jolt on his own Hoplite to grow it and scry into land. I stabilize with Ravenous Leu on turn 4. He blows a combat trick to kill it. Nylea's Disciple stabilizes the game for me until I hit 6 lands on turn 6 and drop Hydra. He stops attacking altogether. I hit 7 lands on turn 7. Mana flood is usually bad, but 3 3/3 tokens seems good. He gets stomped.
Game 2: This one is close. I almost stabilize with Hydra again. My mouse has been wonky lately. Sometimes it double clicks by accident. I attempt to Retraction Helix at a very key point in time. I click on my creature once as a target to cast Helix. Somehow my mouse triple clicks by accident, so instead of just targeting a creature with Helix I also tap the creature to return itself... Had I not done that, I would have stabilized to his flyers and killed him on the back swing. Because of my tempo loss, he was able to squeeze through just enough unblockable attacks before I could kill him.
Game 3: He keeps a 1-lander with Plains, Hopeful Eidolon, the 2/1 flyer for W, and Oppressive Rays. Not bad for a 1-lander. He never draws a second land though. I kill his Eidolon with a combat trick and Stone Rain his only land. He concedes. Karma gets me back I guess?
Round 2 -- BW Constellation
Game 1: War-Wing Siren goes Voltron and he loses quickly.
Game 2: He gets double Underworld Coinsmith. We get into a grindy race. He can't block my Voltron, but the ground is pretty stalled. I Nyx Weaver into Hydra but he casts Gild. My mouse fails me again, dropping Retraction Helix on a creature with Oppressive Rays (and < 3 mana untapped) instead of the creature right next to it. I could have bounced my Hydra, countering his Gild, replayed it next turn and won soon after. Instead, I lose both Hydra and Helix. I have to blow a 2nd Helix later and run out of tricks early, which is dangerous in this format. I still drop him down to 2 while I'm much higher. But he uses some tricks to both disable my blockers and pump his guy just enough to bring me to 1, then gets to activate Coinsmith exactly once to kill me (could not activate it twice because he was at 2). I could have lived if I even just had that Helix or had used it for any tempo play whatsoever worth at least 1 life.. Sigh.
Game 3: I goldfish him in 7. He plays guys but they're kind of irrelevant. T3 War-Wing. T4 Oathsworn. He attacks right into my open mana and lets me blow a Heroic enabler to grow my Oathsworn and eat his best attacker. He taps out post-combat, so I T5 Mischief and Mayhem my two heroic guys for a ton of damage. He lets it through (15-ish damage), hoping to gang block and kill them next turn. He Hopeful Eidolons something, so I just Pin it to the Earth and smash through his remaining guys. Turning creatures sideways FTW
Round 3 -- RG
Game 1: He has a LOT of burn. Magma Spray, Magma Jet, Bolt of Keranos, Rage of Purphoros. Maybe more. He times all his removal perfectly, stopping me from stabilizing, 2-for-1ing me on a heroic trick, and then trampling my face. Good deck and he definitely outplayed me.
-Warriors Lessons, +Aerial Formation. Think I squeezed in another creature somewhere too. My goal was to avoid getting blown out and win a grindy game.
Game 2: He just plays untapped Mountains for 4 turns. I see ya burn coming. I play more carefully, dropping Heroic guys always with 1 extra mana open since he's putting no pressure on me. He tries to Magma Jet an Oathsworn, but Aspect of Hydra saves the day. He's forced to throw a Bolt on it too. After overeagerly Magma Spraying something else, he runs out of removal early. Having 5 1cc instant heroic enablers was key in this matchup. I start smashing his face on the ground with a Voltron. He tries to race with Bladetusk Boar, thinking he can get in some unblockable damage early and then chump my guy when it would start threatening lethal. He's playing just a little too loose. I've been sandbagging the Aerial Formation to make that last attack unblockable, GG.
Game 3: Heroic to the rescue again. He blows burn on my 2-drop but I manage to stick a T5 War-Wing Siren with 2 lands open. He taps out to play Goldenhide Ox and attacks into my 1/3 Siren with 4/3 Borderline Minotaur, forcing the block. Seems bad, right? I blow both Retraction Helix and Aspect of Hydra (X=0) to make Siren a 3/5, killing the Minotaur. Although I 2-for-1 myself, I kill his biggest attacker and protect my only creature on the board. At 5 toughness it's above burn range for later. I untap, play a 6th land and drop Nessian Wilds Ravager. He pauses a long time wondering whether to let me eat his Ox. He finally declines, leaving me with a 12/12. I start beating him in the air. He tries to Voltron his Ox and use the constellation triggers to force me to block other dorks, letting his bigger Ox get through. But I have Pin to the Earth and more creatures to follow up. He can't get through the 12/12 wall and quickly gets mauled.
3-0.
In conclusion, UG seems like it falls in just the right spot on the midrange spectrum. Can only imagine how my deck would have done with that free Sudden Storm and other goodies I passed. Traveler's Amulet was amazing though. Glad I grabbed it early. Nyx Weaver was worth the splash, essentially functioning as a tutor for Hydra or Heroic spells.
Retraction Helix tapping Nyx Weaver, attack with everything, in declare attackers exile Weaver to return Helix, Helix on vigilance guy, bounce a second creature, go. That was a thing.
Yeah, some of my picks got questionable. My first JBT draft and I definitely undervalued how powerful War-Wing Siren is. I played against it in Sealed and it was pretty bad for my opponents, but they were low on heroic enablers and their decks were questionable. With enough cheap enablers, wow. Won several games for me. Need to start thinking of it as Akroan Skyguard with +2 toughness for a colorless, more resilient to cheap removal and very splashable.
Count on Helix later than pick 7? I always counted it as the second best blue common in BNG after Sudden Storm, especially strong in UG or UW. I mean blue was open and there was another one but I'm surprised you would have waited for it. Do people not take this card as aggressively in JBT? I guess NO one was in blue with War-Wing Siren wheeling, so maybe. But I wouldn't have known that if I grabbed the Sirens earlier like you did. Double helix was good for me all games, can't complain.
P1.4 I really don't like the choice of Rouse the Mob here. Yes you have 2 good Aggro Red Heroes but Rouse is one of the less powerful tricks in the block. Notably it doesn't really help you win combat, it's just like a Lava Axe. I would have considered Oakheart Dryads maybe if you wanted to stick to Green, or War-Wing Siren as the best signal in the pack.
P1.6 This is where your two-faced drafting really started going off the rails. In pick 4, you essentially abandoned your first pick which is fine because you have to read signals, but then for picks 5 & 6 you went back to forcing it. I don't even think this is a bad pick but it just makes that Rouse pick look worse and worse.
I'll stop there because we would have drafted differently, resulting in different future picks. It looks like this worked out for you in the end, but my suggestion would be to lay off the Rouse. Card's not that good.
As for deck construction, the splashed Nyx Weaver seems a little loose. It's a solid card but I don't know if it's worth it if you're playing it late. Same deal with Siren of the Silent Song. Your mana base is kind of a mess though that's more a function of getting pulled in different directions early.
I would have taken the Siren out and played Aerial Formation. The problem with ditching Black altogether is you wind up with not enough creatures to support your Auras. I guess there's no ideal solution.
If your mouse is misclicking on you, frankly you need a new one! Think about the cost of a mouse vs. how much you spend on a draft. You could probably get a cheap not-broken mouse for less than the $15 entry fee.
Thanks for the comments!
Rouse was clearly a mistake. First few picks were an attempt to force RW aggro, my default from BTT. That deck is all 1-3 drops and combat tricks. Dynacharge that triggers Heroic seemed better than it probably is in practice. And then red dried up and white didn't look open, so P1P5-6 I started looking back into green (since I had Hydra). I should have picked up on the blue signal with those War-Wing Sirens floating around. After seeing War-Wing be pretty useless for my opponents in Sealed at the prerelease, I think I seriously undervalued the card, thinking blue could not abuse +1/+1 Heroic as much. My opponents were probably just using it poorly. I now realize how good that card is.
Re mouse:
It was only minorly finnicky before (missing an attack maybe once in every 50 combat phases, sometimes relevant, sometimes not). But last night it started performing even worse at clutch times. Definitely getting a replacement.
Re deck construction:
I boarded in Aerial Formation often, but ran Siren and Nyx Weaver in the end because of low creature count. Dropping below 14 seemed bad with so many tricks that are dead with no creature out. Especially with JOU giving better removal. I think this was wise, as I already got blown out round 3 game 1 by drawing too few creatures and too many tricks, losing to endless removal. I only drew Siren (and cast it) in one game. Already had that game in the bag, so couldn't evaluate its impact. Probably glad I didn't see it more. Seemed awkward. I drew and cast Nyx Weaver several times and it was amazing.
Nyx Weaver late is surprisingly good. Still blocks most flyers. You don't get to exploit the self-mill as much, but playing it late you have mana open. With mana open and so many 1cc instants in the deck it acts as a Snapcaster Mage to give you back-up tricks even when you have an empty hand. Getting back any trick I want at instant speed is a lot of flexibility and a lot for the opponent to be afraid of. Thinking of going Voltron? Remember that Retraction Helix in my yard. Thinking of beating me in combat? Oh hai Aspect of Hydra after blockers. It also dug me into Hydra Broodmaster in two games. So flexible!
Manabase was surprisingly solid since most of my cards and costs were green. Deck just needed X Forests and 1 Island to function, with Swamp optional for Nyx Weaver tricks. Luck and good mulliganning were probably factors, but I was never color-screwed in any relevant way.
Lessons learned:
1) War-Wing is amazing. Draft earlier.
2) Rouse is bad.
3) Get new mouse
4) Should try to stick to colors earlier than in BTT, since JOU packs are stronger than BNG packs and you need to exploit the higher card quality. Nice thing about BNG first is that you can just grab top cards of all colors, waffle around and then decide when you see Theros. I think that is a mistake in JBT since pack 2 is not much to look forward to...