Hi guys, I'm interested in people's opinions on the above scenario. A friend and I were discussing this and agreed it's a fairly tough pick. What would you take, and why? (assuming those are the 2 best cards in the pack by far).
In general, taking a two drop is better than taking a five drop all things being equal, since you need more two drops than five drops. Plus, in this case it's not even equal. The cavalry is strong but quite replaceable, but whereas the aether chaser is considered by many to be the best common in the set, and red is a marginally better color to be in than green (though that last part is more debatable).
All in all, it's not a particularly close comparison, Aether chaser is the slam dunk pick and you move on to the next pack from there.
I disagree. I think it's Lifecraft Cavalry (though I do think the pick is fairly close). I think cavalry is better both in terms of the overall value of the card and in color preference. While I agree with Dorvan that all things equal, it's better to go with the cheaper card, I don't think two drops are at a premium any more like they were in Kaladesh so I'd rather just take the more powerful card. In my experience Aether Revolt drafts aren't the curve out aggro fests that triple Kaladesh often was; most of the games I've played have come down to who was able to drop the most beef or uncontested fliers. I don't agree that cavalry is "quite replaceable", it's substantially better than Riparian Tiger, for instance, because it's huge both on offence and defense, provided you can turn it on. And turning it on is usually quite easy if you draft right, in which case it is just much bigger than anything else around on turn 5.
Dorvan is right on this one. In high level drafts, prioritizing 2-drops is really important, and Chaser is one of the best in the set in one of the more preferable colors in the format.
It's an aggressive environment, and even if midrange or control decks exist, hedging toward aggression with a first pick is generally a far better strategic play than taking a 5-drop, unless the expensive option is significantly more powerful. Cavalry is fine, but it's absolutely not at a premium, nor is it likely even green's best common (Scrounging Bandar takes that crown, IMO). If this were Ridgescale Tusker, it wouldn't even be a conversation, for example.
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I agree that Scrounging Bandar is better than Cavalry, but it's also better than Chaser because it's a two drop that still has late game value. Chaser is a card that pretty much has to come down turn two to be good, after that it frequently just get brick walled too easily to attack profitably. Even on turn two it's not guaranteed to be good. There are multiple X/3's for two at common that can hold it off, and if you're on the draw it's quite easy to get outclassed with a three drop.
I think you guys are a bit stuck in the triple Kaladesh mindset. It's much easier to get quality two drops these days. Just looking at Aether Revolt commons, you have Scrounging Bandar, Druid of the Cowl, Aether Poisoner, Aether Swooper, Countless Gears Renegade and Welder Automaton that are of a comparable quality to Aether Chaser. Some are a bit better, some are a bit worse, but I wouldn't feel too bad about replacing Aether Chaser with Welder Automaton in my red deck, for instance. On the other hand, what finishers are there in Aether Revolt at common that are comparable to Lifecraft Cavalry? Dawnfeather Eagle and that's it. And unlike the Chaser/Automaton swap, my deck would really suffer if my curve topped out at something like Aether Herder instead of Cavalry.
You're seriously misevaluating Aether Chaser. First strike is a very relevant ability that allows the chaser to maintain relevance in the late game. Moreover, this *is* an aggressive format...the Pro Tour drafts are just one place where you can observe this, but in watching various streamers there's a broad agreement on this.
5-drops have rarely been hard to come by, and this format is no exception. I often see Cavalry going around pick 5-6, because you only need a couple of five drops. Yes, I would prefer cavalry over tiger, but they're both good options. If I'm in pack two and I'm still lacking a top end, then I might pick differently, but you just don't need many finishers, and therefore it's not something you need to be jumping to grab.
You're also comparing across a lot of different colors, when color matters a fair bit in this format. I'm much happier starting in red than I am in blue or white.
To add to Dorvan's response, each color has maybe a couple playable 2s in Aether Revolt, and they're not going to come around very late. Green has the most, but black has just one, and while other options exist in Kaladesh, it's only 1/3 of the draft pool now. I drafted BR in the top 8 of a pptq a couple weeks ago, and I was lucky to get the 2s I had, and it was at least somewhat thanks to a glut of them in my colors in Kaladesh and reading the draft well. After pack 2, I had a measly pair, and I prioritized them highly.
Chaser is easily the best common 2-drop in the set, as it simply outclasses every other option, synergizes with Improvise, crews vehicles well later, and adds energy, all at a low cost in a format that simply IS aggressive.
Nobody is claiming Cavalry is bad, but it's not so much better than other options at 5 that it's even in consideration over a card of Chaser's caliber.
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LSV indicated that his CFG pro tour testing group found that Aether Chaser is the best common, period. I don't know that I would agree with that, but I would first pick it over Lifecraft Cavalry by a country mile (i.e. it's not close).
Lifecraft Cavalry is a 5 drop and I only want a small number of 5+ drops in any deck. Consequently, by taking it first I would significantly alter the rest of the early part of my draft to avoid additional 5+ drops. The first-pick cavalry is just not worth that. By contrast, I will take pretty much all of the good 2 drops I could get. There are not many good 2 drops, and a 2/1 first strike for 2 is good even without the additional energy abilities.
Also, revolt is in my view not reliable. Even if I have implements in my deck there are games in which I need to sacrifice the implement before turn 6 when I would cast the cavalry so that I can draw a card to advance my board. On top of that, a turn 6 6/6 with trample is good but not great. I like the cavalry better than a vanilla 6/6 for 6 (Cowl Prowler), but there are times when a cavalry would be just a 4/4 trample for 5 which in my view is slightly sub-par (though it is okay). Despite my comments I like the cavalry overall quite a bit and I want one or two in my green decks, but I want to avoid taking it too early.
In general, taking a two drop is better than taking a five drop all things being equal, since you need more two drops than five drops. Plus, in this case it's not even equal. The cavalry is strong but quite replaceable, but whereas the aether chaser is considered by many to be the best common in the set, and red is a marginally better color to be in than green (though that last part is more debatable).
All in all, it's not a particularly close comparison, Aether chaser is the slam dunk pick and you move on to the next pack from there.
It's an aggressive environment, and even if midrange or control decks exist, hedging toward aggression with a first pick is generally a far better strategic play than taking a 5-drop, unless the expensive option is significantly more powerful. Cavalry is fine, but it's absolutely not at a premium, nor is it likely even green's best common (Scrounging Bandar takes that crown, IMO). If this were Ridgescale Tusker, it wouldn't even be a conversation, for example.
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I think you guys are a bit stuck in the triple Kaladesh mindset. It's much easier to get quality two drops these days. Just looking at Aether Revolt commons, you have Scrounging Bandar, Druid of the Cowl, Aether Poisoner, Aether Swooper, Countless Gears Renegade and Welder Automaton that are of a comparable quality to Aether Chaser. Some are a bit better, some are a bit worse, but I wouldn't feel too bad about replacing Aether Chaser with Welder Automaton in my red deck, for instance. On the other hand, what finishers are there in Aether Revolt at common that are comparable to Lifecraft Cavalry? Dawnfeather Eagle and that's it. And unlike the Chaser/Automaton swap, my deck would really suffer if my curve topped out at something like Aether Herder instead of Cavalry.
5-drops have rarely been hard to come by, and this format is no exception. I often see Cavalry going around pick 5-6, because you only need a couple of five drops. Yes, I would prefer cavalry over tiger, but they're both good options. If I'm in pack two and I'm still lacking a top end, then I might pick differently, but you just don't need many finishers, and therefore it's not something you need to be jumping to grab.
You're also comparing across a lot of different colors, when color matters a fair bit in this format. I'm much happier starting in red than I am in blue or white.
Chaser is easily the best common 2-drop in the set, as it simply outclasses every other option, synergizes with Improvise, crews vehicles well later, and adds energy, all at a low cost in a format that simply IS aggressive.
Nobody is claiming Cavalry is bad, but it's not so much better than other options at 5 that it's even in consideration over a card of Chaser's caliber.
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Lifecraft Cavalry is a 5 drop and I only want a small number of 5+ drops in any deck. Consequently, by taking it first I would significantly alter the rest of the early part of my draft to avoid additional 5+ drops. The first-pick cavalry is just not worth that. By contrast, I will take pretty much all of the good 2 drops I could get. There are not many good 2 drops, and a 2/1 first strike for 2 is good even without the additional energy abilities.
Also, revolt is in my view not reliable. Even if I have implements in my deck there are games in which I need to sacrifice the implement before turn 6 when I would cast the cavalry so that I can draw a card to advance my board. On top of that, a turn 6 6/6 with trample is good but not great. I like the cavalry better than a vanilla 6/6 for 6 (Cowl Prowler), but there are times when a cavalry would be just a 4/4 trample for 5 which in my view is slightly sub-par (though it is okay). Despite my comments I like the cavalry overall quite a bit and I want one or two in my green decks, but I want to avoid taking it too early.
Maybe if you are already green or already looking for a fatty. I think even if I P1 green implement I'm second picking aether chaser.