MTG Salvation

Crusher. Stay out of a firm color commitment, and try to see what everyone else is doing before going firmly into a color and all that.

It'd be a tossup for me between the Battlement and the Predator, Guard Duty would be my third pick.

I am amazed at how underrated the Enclave Cryptologist is. Slow formats with big bombs means that card advantage is key.

Remember, you'll be able to pick up big fat guys much later. There are 3 packs of RoE in this format. There's not as much card advantage, so Cryptologist should be prioritized. You can fill out your deck with defenders and fat later.

This pick is pretty easy to me. I'd probably try for UW and hopefully pick up some number of Wall of Omens and other card draw, along with counterspells. From what I can tell, counterspells are going to be the easiest way to deal with Eldrazi. Hopefully the Mnemonic Wall will wheel, in which case that's a sure sign that blue is open and your deck is about to get sick over the course of the draft.

I really dont see why people are gushing over the looter here. In this set im certainly not going to want to throw away a (hopefully) good spell ive drafted and im definately not gonna wanna toss land if im playing with any late game sha-bang. So unless your absolutely certain you can force an agressive U/x deck then i wouldnt pick it. Espicially in this pack with all the goodness here.

I really like the Bala Ged dude here as he's a 4 power on turn three an nearly all the walls we've seen max out at 4 toughness, but there is just too much power green in this pack for me. A savvy drafter would let green go and be fought amongst the other drafters while you scoop up on something else.

The only removal we see in this pack is Guard Duty which really isnt even very good considering u just turned a big attacker into a big wall problem.

Usually for me I go with the removal, but I've spent alot of time thinking about the Crusher and I think he's the right pick. As others have mentioned he keeps u open to see what ur getting passed, it seems more than likely enough that you could cast him on turn 6, and the annihilator 2 ability is incredibly more powerful than annihilator 1. I imagine it wouldnt be that difficult to grab the red wall that can grant haste at some point in the draft which equals ultra power to combine those two cards together. So Its Crusher for me as a strategy decision.

I think the predator is the pick here. Eldrazi spawn are very important and expenisve bombs can always be picked up later in this format. The only other card that comes close,imo, is the Beastbreaker since 4 power on turn three is scary even in a format full of fat defenders.

First Pack First Pick...Beastbreaker. Only b'coz Predator is common and it's more likely to pick up one later. But green is the color of choice. Then probally the cryptologist. Hyena Umbra and the Crusher comes next.

I would take Guard Duty any day.
It's pseudo removal at 1, stops anything even Emrakul, and it's very splashable.

Bombs like Ulamog will be available to pick up throughout the draft, but removal is scooped up quickly (wasn't the most drafted card in ZZW Hideous End?). I'm not going to be the deck that is lacking in that department.

Definitely a tough pack to choose. Im leaning either towards ulamog's crusher or knight of cliffhaven. Beastbreaker is definitely the strongest card in the pack or close to it but the green in the pack is very strong and likely will get split among a few people down the line with not enough support to properly run the card and be able to level it quickly. Taking knight seems like a very good play here. The set so far does not look to have a lot of evasion especially flying so getting one that can potentially be a 4/4 if very helpful

The best pick is the looter because it can set up amazing advantage through the game.

But I'd pick Vent Sentinel and go all in on walls, just to see if I can.
Guard duty is also a decent option, as is the flying knight, because evasion will be very important in the format.

Quote from rowtheboat

I would take Guard Duty any day.
It's pseudo removal at 1, stops anything even Emrakul, and it's very splashable.

You can't target Emrakul with Guard Duty; It has protection from coloured spells.

I take the Predator, because it's a respectable body which will help us power out more Eldrazi later. Also, our deck becomes much more consistent if we get him in multiples.

Quote from rowtheboat

Bombs like Ulamog will be available to pick up throughout the draft, but removal is scooped up quickly (wasn't the most drafted card in ZZW Hideous End?).

This type of logic is called Mirroring, where one person assumes that others will think and act in the exact same matter as themselves. The problem with this is that no, not everyone thinks the way any individual does. We all have different ways of weighing the values of cards and there uses. If you and I were at the same table, you will not get any crushers, sorry. You can have all the guard duty's tho .

Like I said in my post before removal is usually where i go for my first picks, but Guard Duty is not exactly a removal card and can still be dealt with by disenchant effects like demystify. But there does exist a category of cards i will pick BEFORE removal and that is game winners/threats. If there wasnt so much green in this pack i would have taken the aura gnarlid, but crusher is the strategically better first pick.

Ulamog's Crusher because you get a bomb, it's not color dependant, and its alternate cost makes it ubsurdly good.

I've been hitting refresh and watching as the numbers scale in, and I just thought it'd be interesting to say what the trend has been as of this moment:

Predator, Beastbreaker, and the sum of the two eldrazi have remained almost entirely even.
There are moments when one will peek up above the others, but then they even out again.

Currently the breakdown is 32, 33, 16, 15.

Honestly I think that the cryptologist should be posting similar numbers, but for some reason it's not.

Just thought I'd share.
~Lon-Pii

In this format having enough ramp > having enough fat. With two eldrazi at common and lots of random fat throughout the rarities, it's better to cut the color you want to be and make sure you have enough spawns and spawn generators. Kozilek's Predator is the pick here and it's... not close, really.

I wouldn't take the cryptologist just because blue doesn't seem all that powerful, but it's a better merfolk looter. So you have to pick it, especially since there isn't any removal in this pack. Although I think a couple other picks are very sound.
I think the top picks here are

Ulamog's Crusher: doesn't commit you to a color, the best common eldrazi I think. every deck needs late game bombs in draft

Enclave Cryptologist: drawing is good, and eventually you don't even have to discard. you can pump out threat after threat while your opponent waffles. The ONLY downside is blue may not be powerful, but that's why you have two colors. Plus you can maybe wheel the blue card.

Knight of Cliffhaven: Flying is always relevant, especially in draft, this guy is insane. Also, most drafters would pick up green seeing this pack, which frees you up to jump on any ship you see, and keeps you flexible for pack two. IMO the best part about this card is its colorless level up cost. Practically a new Kor Skyfisher.

Aura Gnarlid: This guy is underrated. Very close to being unblockable, he can't be chumped. Has no trouble getting through walls, and if you slap a Boar Umbra on him, he will win you the game. I would first pick him simply because most people are hesitant to pick up auras simply for the possibility of getting 2 for 1'ed. This guy makes it worth it. I'm hesitant because he's green and pack two you might not see that much. A solid pick four or five, but probably not before that.

Beastbreaker of Bala Ged: the green first pick, but I wouldn't go with him. The other picks are safer for color choices, and usually first pick you don't want to commit to a color.

So I'd probably go:

1. Knight of Cliffhaven

2. Enclave Cryptologist

3. Ulamog's Crusher

4. Aura Gnarlid

that's my take on this pack

Quote from Radical Serbian

This type of logic is called Mirroring, where one person assumes that others will think and act in the exact same matter as themselves. The problem with this is that no, not everyone thinks the way any individual does. We all have different ways of weighing the values of cards and there uses. If you and I were at the same table, you will not get any crushers, sorry. You can have all the guard duty's tho .

Like I said in my post before removal is usually where i go for my first picks, but Guard Duty is not exactly a removal card and can still be dealt with by disenchant effects like demystify. But there does exist a category of cards i will pick BEFORE removal and that is game winners/threats. If there wasnt so much green in this pack i would have taken the aura gnarlid, but crusher is the strategically better first pick.

Mirroring it may be, but the assumption that there will still be common Eldrazi fat to pick up later in the draft is definitely correct, no matter how you look at it. They are commons. You just prioritize them in pack 3 if you haven't gotten any already.

I would take either the Beastbreaker or the Cryptologist, considering that all of the other cards are GOOD, but they are common, so you have a high chance of picking them up later in the draft.

Level up creatures are strong in limited. The bestbreaker is definitely good.

I picked Predator, and I stand by it for now, although I'm not 100% certain it's correct. Three creatures for 3G is quite a steal, and the tokens have all kinds of uses.

Quote from Agradite_Auramancer_Adept

You can't target Emrakul with Guard Duty; It has protection from coloured spells.

I take the Predator, because it's a respectable body which will help us power out more Eldrazi later. Also, our deck becomes much more consistent if we get him in multiples.

Once the Guard Duty hits the table and can actually enchant something it is no longer a spell, but a permanent. So it CAN hit Emrakul. Granted, the extra turn from Emrakul will make him an unlikely target because the game is practically over already.

Though let's say you could hit an Emrakul, or the more likely scenario of hitting a Kozilek or Ulamog as your mythic Eldrazi of choice. Would you rather deal with a 15/15, 12/12, or 10/10 with Annihilator when it attacks or a big wall? You can swarm around the wall for the win or have the ability to burn to the dome, or buy more time to deal with the big wall in front of you in case Guard Duty was ever killed.

I'm still pretty adamant that I'll be happier dealing with the fatties and bombs everyone else is taking with my early choices. There WILL be bombs in later packs. There are so many spoiled cards that are total bombs, and COMMONS. With huge Eldrazi at common and uncommon I can almost be sure that I'm going to have one passed to me or open one up in a later pack, where as removal isn't as guaranteed.

Another thing to consider that I haven't seen mentioned. Look at how many really good green cards are in this pack. Every green card there is solid, and definitely playable. You can be sure that the people near you are also going to look at those green cards and want to take them. The more people near you playing green, the worse off you are later on when you are competing for the same color.

Hyena Umbra. It's such a great card, especially in limited.

The problem is, of course, signaling. If you take the Beastbreaker(best card in a vacuum), you stand a high chance of being cut off from green in pack 2 (having at least two people downstream who will want green). If you take any Eldrazi early, then you'll have to prioritze ramp/fixing (over, say, removal) to make them playable--if you take fixing early, the fixing can be used on something else if someone upstream grabs all the Eldrazi, though. Enclave Cryptologist can be an advantage engine over time...but you need a way to get there first. Would be a great pick later (and has the highest chance to table of the 'favorite' picks). For these reasons, I'd go with Guard Duty; it's the only removal in the pack, answers many aggro creatures, and leaves no strong white card in the pack (cliffhaven is ok, but not strong enough to draw someone into white). As others have noted, it's weird to have a 15-card pack that's short a color already.

Quote from rowtheboat

Once the Guard Duty hits the table and can actually enchant something it is no longer a spell, but a permanent. So it CAN hit Emrakul.

This is incorrect. WotC, in their infinite, uh, something-or-other, decided to make Auras the only kind of permanent spell that targets something while on the stack. Emrakul has protection from colored spells, and thus cannot be targeted by Guard Duty. This is different than, say, Oblivion Ring, which works off of an ETB trigger.

The question here is really, which is more important: the Beastbreaker's ability to punch through all the common walls and force your opponent's hand with the removal they might otherwise save to spend on your Eldrazi? Or the predator providing a relevant body, two chump blockers, and acceleration all at once?

If the common walls see heavy play, the beastbreaker is the obvious choice here, IMO. If they don't, the Predator is probably bettator.

Another thing that's worth mentioning is that, while the level up creatures are really good in limited, it's possible to have too many of them. They get less efficient the more of them you have, as they all demand the same limited resource (mana), and they're not that good if you have don't enough to spare on each of them. The same is not true of the token producers, however, which get substantially better in multiples. Probably not a deciding point, but a relevant one I think.

Quote from rowtheboat

Once the Guard Duty hits the table and can actually enchant something it is no longer a spell, but a permanent. So it CAN hit Emrakul. Granted, the extra turn from Emrakul will make him an unlikely target because the game is practically over already.

You seem to misunderstand how auras work. They must have targets when you cast them, and then come into play attached to the target. You can't target Emrakul since it's a spell while choosing targets. Some cases place auras on the board first, but they're odd and mostly not used these days. One such case where Emrakul would have a guard duty on is Hypergenesis. You put the Guard Duty out, then attach after things resolve. But in most cases, you declare the target as you cast the aura, rather than casting the aura, then moving it onto a creature.

Edit: After looking over the cards again, I went with Beastbreaker. People are saying aggro will not work in this format, but they'd better pick up those walls first. A 4/4 is pretty intimidating, and even if it sees some of those 0/4 awesomewalls, it can level more to outclass those too. Kozilek's predator is tempting, but it seems everyone is going for the 'Rush Eldrazi Out' strategy, so I'd attempt to pick up removal next, and outclass their non-bombs with average levellers. Next picks would be the Cryptologist and Guard Duty, in no order. Cryptologist because it looks like blue is scarce in this pack, and I think it's a strong color for RoE, and guard duty because it fits with my plan of letting my opponent ramp away, and then not annihilate.

Aura Gnarlid. Initially, it's somewhat worse than the beastbreaker, but put so much as a spider umbra on it and it's comparable to the beastbreaker's final form. It's the kind of card you can form an entire deck around, so I'd want as many multiples as possible.

That, and you can pick up Guard Duities and Narcolepsies and chuckle heartily at the interaction.