Thread by @rcsaxe

My current strategy for #MTGKHM Draft:

starting with my top-10 commons for context:

1. Behold the Multiverse
2. Demon Bolt
3. Sarulf's Packmate
4. Berg Strider
5. Shimmerdrift Vale
6. UR land
7. Axgard Cavalry
8. Squash
9. UG land
10. GR land

Honorable mention: Mistwalker

1/8

Can you see a pattern with the above list? It's all Temur, with a bias towards Izzet. This may look like forcing, but it doesn't actually close you off. You know how a hybrid card is actually more flexible than a mono-colored card? This strategy is kind of like that.

2/8

Let's say I'm open to drafting all color-pairs as long as they intersect with either R or U. That leaves me with 7/10 guilds. If that is my strategy, and I bias towards UR, I can still pivot into one of those other 6 guilds while throwing away very few of my first picks.

3/8

IMO Izzet is in the top three archetypes in the set. U and R also have the deepest suite of commons, which makes pivoting from one U/R archetype to another easy. By biasing towards Izzet, I stay relatively open while maximizing the probability I draft a top archetype.

4/8

So, why is Axgard Cavalry ahead of Squash?

UR has a curve of 4/4s that loves Axgard Cavalry. It's worse than Squash in UR, but Prioritizing Cavalry makes it easier to pivot to aggressive decks like Boros when that lane presents itself. And that flexibility is important.

5/8

R-aggro and G-snow are the pillars of the format. Similar to Cavalry as a hedge to pivot R-aggro, the G lands in my top10 are hedges to pivot G-snow. Lands also end up played in UR to turn on Icebind Pillar, Avalanche Caller, Berg Strider, etc. I also like to splash Svella.

6/8

But isn't snow bad when you don't get a ton of snow lands?

5-color snow is bad without that. However, a Temur deck full of good cards doesn't actually need that many snow lands. This is why Frostbite isn't present in my top-10. It's going to be Shock way more than Bolt.

7/8

In short, this strategy is not forcing some color-pair, but instead is about positioning yourself to access the best commons in the format without closing yourself off to too many alternatives. And thanks to the depth of U and R at common, you'll rarely find both colors dry.

8/8