It can be tricky trying to draft a new Magic: The Gathering set, but there are some core basics you need to consider that will increase your chances of putting together a competitive deck and grabbing some wins in your subsequent games.
We’ll cover card picking tactics, land selection, and whether or not the set, in general, is going to be worth spending your time and hard-earned money on to draft, either through events or between friends using a TMNT product like the draft night box.
What To Look For When Drafting TMNT
For a deeper dive into the five best TMNT archetypes for drafting, including specific color combos and cards to look out for, you can check out our dedicated guide. However, we have a few tips to make things super simple for this set and any other.
First things first, when you get your first draft pack, you want to gravitate towards the rare(s) in that pack as a priority. That doesn’t mean you have to take it, but be sure to take a good look at the card and its abilities. If it has a keyword or ability that you know is strong in the set, such as alliance, sneak, disappear, or it creates mutagen tokens, then it’s probably a good idea to take the card, as it’ll be much easier to build around.
Building around a keyword or ability is a great idea, but make sure you’re keeping your options open in terms of mana color, as you shouldn’t be trying to draft a mono deck; you want to be looking for at least a two-color deck.
If the card is fairly generic, like Prehistoric Pet, which has its fair share of utility but is far from a worthwhile card to build a deck around, given the lack of obvious strengths, then pass on the card and start looking towards the uncommon cards instead.
There’s no shame in taking a look at card lists and databases before a draft to get an idea of what cards are worth looking for, but don’t get too married to the idea of a specific build before you open your first pack. The fun of drafting is the fact that you can’t predict what cards will be available when it’s time to pick, and making adjustments on the fly is a requirement.
Magic: The Gathering – Best Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Archetypes
If you’re getting ready for some TMNT drafts over the prerelease week and after launch, here are the archetypes you need to look out for.
How Many Lands Should You Use When Drafting?
This is an ongoing debate, but a fairly pointless one when viewed generally, as each deck will have different requirements. However, 17 lands is generally considered the average starting point.
Naturally, this number may come down slightly if you end up with a deck that has a lot of low mana creatures, and you’ve drafted with aggression in mind.
Likewise, if you’ve ended up with more of a controlling deck, taking one or two extra lands into a game is advised. This is why the debate is often fruitless, as you won’t know how many lands you need until you’ve already drafted your deck.
Is TMNT A Good Draft Set?
Time will tell whether the TMNT set is a good draft set, but early indications are that it won’t be an elite set for drafting, largely because it is oversaturated with legendary creatures (a common complaint with Universes Beyond Standard sets) and its heavy reliance on keywords added as part of the set.
If you’re not drafting according to one of the recommended archetypes, there are very few other synergies to find, and instead, you’ll just end up with a poorly fitting deck that you have to try and brute force wins with, rather than by using a solid strategy.
Magic: The Gathering – Complete Lorywn Eclipsed Drafting Guide
If you need help getting the best out of Lorwyn Eclipsed on draft night, we can help you assemble a powerful deck to take down your opponents.
