Justin Vizaro
7/8/2011 10:01:00 AM
Magic is one of the most wildly successful games ever created, and part of that success is attributed to the variety that exists in the ways in which we can play the game. Magic's sealed and draft formats offer completely different play experiences and require incredibly different skill sets to achieve success than their constructed counterparts. Limited formats are also quite appealing to those players that don't have the resources to drop $500+ on singles every six to twelve months, but who also still have a desire to play the game or to acquire more cards. The other benefit of Limited formats is the ability (often by necessity) to utilize cards and strategies that never have the hope of making it into constructed. With that in mind, it's important to understand the difference in power levels of cards between constructed and limited. For example, cards like Spread the Sickness and Corrupted Conscience, while incredibly slow and often too inefficient for constructed play, are terribly powerful and often considered top picks in drafts. To help you out with your upcoming sealed and draft events during the M12 limited season, I will try to give you a breakdown of the cards you should watch for in this environment. Please understand that I won't go through card by card, but I will make an effort to identify the ones that should make you look more closely at a particular color or strategy. Another thing to remember is that in a single-set limited environment like the one that will be upon us, cards that require multiple copies are also more powerful because of the increased likelihood of being able to draft the amount necessary to have success.

Ratings are based on a maximum score of 10 and are related to the key indicators of quality when analyzing card pools in limited events. Creatures are often vital in base-set limited events because of the general lack of alternative win conditions that come as a result of having a flavorless set from which to draw strategies.

White

Overall Power Level: 7
Rares: 7
Uncommons: 9
Commons: 7
Creatures – Base Stats: 7
Creatures – Combat Abilities: 6
Creatures – Non-Combat Abilities: 7

The Rares in White will often be enough to force you into the color, as many of them are bombs, but do require a significant commitment to the color like with Honor of the Pure or any of the double color requirement curve-toppers. The only rare in the set that's completely useless is Personal Sanctuary, and odds are good that if you open a White Rare or Mythic Rare, you're feeling pretty good about it. There aren't any Rares that absolutely force you to splash or play the color with the exception, maybe, of Sun Titan because of its ability to reclaim lost cards. Simultaneously, however, if you have enough cards to make White a reality, most of the Rares can really put you in a good place.

Uncommons and Commons often make or break a color's successfulness in limited because of the support they provide and because players will simply rely more upon them because of volume. The Uncommons in White for M12 are pretty heinous all-around, and are arguably the best of all colors in this set. The same can't be said about the commons, but the combined power level of the commons on the whole is pretty good. There are solid creatures all the way up the curve, and among those creatures, evasion is fairly well-represented. Non-combat abilities of White creatures are a bit unimpressive, but vanilla creatures go much further in limited than they do in constructed.

Notable limited white cards include:

Gideon's Lawkeeper - a tapper that only costs 1, and it's a common, so you can expect it to give people problems all day long. Creatures that tap others are inexhaustibly powerful in Limited, so expect people to value Lawkeeper very highly in drafts. Because it's a common and drafts will be triple M12, you can also expect to have trouble beating face with large vanilla creatures to win games if you have little or no removal.

Oblivion Ring - fortunately printed as an Uncommon for the first time, Oblivion Ring is absurdly powerful, and is arguably the best removal spell in the set. It can lift Creatures, Artifacts, and Planeswalkers, so its versatility makes it nearly invaluable. If you're fortunate enough to have Oblivion Ring in your Sealed or Draft pool, it's worth splashing even as your only White card.

Pacifism - this card has always been powerful in limited, so there's no reason to leave it out of this article. Pacifism is also worth considering if you need a 23rd card and you have the ability/need to splash White.

Spirit Mantle and Stave Off - both of these cards are incredibly powerful in Limited, particularly Spirit Mantle. Protection is an ability that provides evasion in the event that you need a win condition, but it also allows you to stay alive while you set up other win conditions. Usually it's tough to rely on auras as they set you up for the two-for-one scenario, but this aura is good enough to warrant consideration, and the relatively large number of Hexproof creatures makes it even more appealing in draft.

Timely Reinforcements - This card is very strong in constructed because of the presumed power level of RDW in the next few months, but it can also be a Wrecking Ball in Limited as well. The shift in game state that occurs because of one Timely Reinforcements is pretty devastating. The effectiveness of gaining life is hard to gage in limited, with some of the cards being game-changers and others being downright unplayable like Whitesun's Passage. Usually lifegain spells are only good when they come with another ability that does something more relevant, and Timely Reinforcements is just the right kind of spell. Other spells that produce multiple creatures often end up being top picks in draft, and while I don't see people first-picking this all too often, I know you'll be hard-pressed to see it beyond pick 4.

Blue

Overall Power Level: 6
Rares: 6
Uncommons: 8
Commons: 6
Creatures – Base Stats: 4
Creatures – Combat Abilities: 7
Creatures – Non-Combat Abilities: 8

Most people don't play Blue in limited because of the bombs, but more likely because of the evasiveness of the creatures and because of the ability to manipulate the game state in ways that don't involve killing and playing creatures. Blue “limited bombs” if they ever exist are usually of the Sphinx variety, or they involve stealing your opponent's best threats or putting an exorbitant amount of cards from one's library into the hand or graveyard. Mill is actually a viable strategy in most limited formats because of the small deck sizes inherent to limited play. A card that puts 10 or more cards into the graveyard can be absolutely crippling, especially if the caster gets lucky and hits some of the opponent's best spells. Because the opening hand is generally 7 cards and we can assume most games to last at least 6 turns, a player running a mill strategy technically only has to burn through roughly 25-27 cards to win. If you have one card (like Archive Trap) that nets more than 40% of the total goal, it's legitimate to give the strategy a try. Jace and Jace's Archivist are both rares that would encourage you to check your common and uncommon pool for cards like Belltower Sphinx, Merfolk Mesmerist and Jace's Erasure.

The Uncommons and Commons in Blue aren't nearly as powerful as those in White, but Mind Control and Azure Mage are both extremely powerful cards that ought not be looked over when analyzing a sealed pool or draft pick options. I'd say that the Blue cards as a whole in M12 are quite ordinary by comparison with other sets, but they do have many of the qualities that typically push people into Blue like flying creatures and the ability to draw cards.

Notable limited blue cards include:

Azure Mage - This guy is a total house. Removal is sparse in limited, so even though his 1 toughness makes him vulnerable to every single spell and creature, his ability more than compensates for it. In the mid-game, this guy gives you the gas to drag the game into the later stages during which Blue traditionally takes control of the game, and in the late game it adds necessary reach for the deck often drawing 2 cards per turn.

Mind Control - obviously one of the most powerful Blue cards in the limited environment because of its ability to both neutralize an opponent's threat and to provide one for you.

Turn to Frog - many people look past cards like this all the time, but this type of effect is extraordinarily powerful when you're trying to deal with creatures that are definitively more powerful than your own, or if you don't have any “hard removal” because of its ability to get rid of major threats in combat. Snakeform was great because it also drew you a card, but 9 times out of 10 you didn't spend 3 mana to cycle the card and trigger the Mimic, but rather used it as a removal spell.

Levitation - this card is one that people both over-value and under-value. It's powerful, but usually in a deck whose creature base is mostly Green or Red. A large portion of Blue creatures fly already, and the same is true for White, so the card is less beneficial in those colors, and while Black doesn't usually have a terribly large amount of fliers, its creatures tend to be evasive for other reasons or because they're surrounded by removal.

Illusionary guys and Ice Cage - it's important to consider the playability of these cards with regard to the other cards in the set. As a rule, these cards have been extremely successful against other blue-based decks, but not so much against other colors. You might be tempted to run these characters if you get the Illusion lord, but just remind yourself of how bad your deck will be if you don't draw that guy in games. If you plan on keeping him in your lap for the entire tournament, I suppose you should go for it, but unless you're planning to run the cheats, stay away as a general rule.

Chasm Drake - This guy is good for sure, and reminds me of the 5-drop 3/3s of Worldwake that pretty much determined the winners and losers of limited tournaments in those days. As far as Fliers go, 3/3 is usually the break point between “good” and “good because it flies.” The fact that he lets another dude of yours hop on his back and ride into combat makes his evasion even more effective.

Aven Fleetwing - This guy is begging to get equipped or enchanted. If he's in your pool and you have the ability to splash effectively, he might be worth a look if you have some powerful modifiers.

Jace, Memory Adept and Jace's Archivist - as mentioned in the discussion of the Rares, Mill is viable if you have a card or two that nets 40% or more of the deck. Jace's Archivist is really powerful, and looks to be constructed worthy as well, but in Limited, forcing an opponent to draw large amounts of cards once per turn can help a mill strategy along pretty quickly. His ability to stock your hand with good spells is appealing as well. Jace is probably the most playable Planeswalker in the set from a limited perspective with Garruk as a very close second.

Black

Overall Power Level: 9
Rares: 9
Uncommons: 8
Commons: 9
Creatures – Base Stats: 7
Creatures – Combat Abilities: 7
Creatures – Non-Combat Abilities: 8

Black is typically one of the strongest colors in Limited play mostly because it often has the most removal of any color along with a large quantity of relatively strong creatures. The Rares in Black for M12 are pretty powerful on the whole, and is arguably the best limited Rare suite of any color in the set. Most of the Black rares are good enough to make you say “I'm going Black” when you see them, so I suppose we're safe in calling them bombs. Next to Grave Titan, Royal Assassin and Call to the Grave might be 2 of the 5 best rares you can open in this set from a Limited perspective. Recurring removal is downright unfair, and between those two cards and Vengeful Pharaoh, Black is stacked to the tipping point.

Black is at least dead even and could possibly be ahead of White in the Common and Uncommon department, as nearly every single one of its spells would make the list of top 20 playables in a given player's card pool, with hardly any of them (maybe Zombie Goliath) falling outside of the “23rd card” designation. Don't fail to notice the fact that the reprinted Sengir Vampire is at the Uncommon slot, and try to remember when that card was considered a “bomb rare” in previous limited environments. It's like having Serra Angel at the uncommon slot again… oh, wait…

Notable limited black cards include (all of them except Zombie Goliath):

Royal Assassin - if you open this guy and “can't” go Black, you're probably not trying hard enough to do so.

Call to the Grave - the only excuse for not running this card is if you are playing a deck that runs this and 22 other cards that are all non-zombie creatures.

Vengeful Pharaoh - he's greedy, but you can make it happen.

Devouring Swarm - Fallen Angel is good in pretty much all of its forms- this one is no different and is one of the cheapest ones that has ever been printed. I'm pretty certain that it's the cheapest one with built-in evasion.

Tormented Soul, Taste of Blood - with Bloodthirst as a very prevalent mechanic in Black, these cards are actually very good enablers. Tormented Soul would be good regardless of whether you had a single spell with Bloodthirst, but Taste of Blood is very good when it comes to getting more mileage out of your creatures. At the very worst, you use it as a Lava Dart.

Bloodthirst creatures: yes, they're all pretty good, and yes, you can usually expect to hit the Bloodthirst trigger in the environment we will be expecting.

Red

Overall Power Level: 6
Rares: 5
Uncommons: 6
Commons: 6
Creatures – Base Stats: 6
Creatures – Combat Abilities: 7
Creatures – Non-Combat Abilities: 6

Red Rares are always hit or miss in Limited, and the split is usually something like 60/40 in favor of bad ones. This time I'd say it's closer to being split down the middle, but I also think there are a few very powerful Rares in the color. Both of the Dragons are obviously strong, but I also think Warstorm Surge will prove to be one of the most understated and troublesome cards at sealed or draft events over the next few weeks. Pandemonium was flat-out too powerful at 4 mana, but paying 6 for the same effect isn't really back-breaking unless you consider your opponent's perspective. At least with Pandemonium you had to worry about your opponent's creatures, but with Warstorm… it's a different ballgame.

As far as Commons and Uncommons go, Red can't compete with Black, but it's got a pretty strong suite of removal and early to mid-range creatures that gives it a solid standpoint. A lot of the problem with Red is that enough of the good cards care about creature type or specific situations in order to perform to their best ability. Red might be the least consistent of all of the colors, but when it's on its game, it will be tough to beat.

Notable limited red cards include:

Volcanic Dragon - He comes down and slams for 4 right away, and he does it in the air. This card is powerful, but with White and Black both packing 4/4 flying creatures at the uncommon slot for only 5 mana, Volcanic Dragon will be impressive only if you can back him up with removal like Chandra's Outrage or if you plan to take advantage of the surprise factor and get there on the Haste.

Crimson Mage - speaking of Haste, nobody said it was a bad idea to rely on that as a path to victory. Haste, in fact, is one of the most powerful combat-related abilities in limited because of the ways in which it can be abused. While Crimson Mage doesn't exactly afford you the opportunity to take full advantage of the surprise factor, it serves as a constant reminder of that surprise and can often be a strong bluff that buys you the time you need to pull out a win.

Stormblood Berserker - This could be one of the strongest pickups in Red for constructed, and I imagine it will dish out a large amount of pain in limited as well. His evasion is good and his ability to draw multiple blockers and put decisions in your hands will be very critical to winning games.

I shouldn't have to tell you that Fireball, Shock, and Incinerate are good, and the same goes for Chandra's Outrage.

Goblin Fireslinger and Goblin Arsonist - Both very good, and if you're playing more than 6 red cards in your deck, these guys need to be included in the party. These two are also just about as automatic as Tormented Soul when it comes to enabling Bloodthirst (which will be wildly powerful) so they are definitely worth including in your 23.

Gorehorn Minotaurs - Very powerful in this environment, and with the number of little creatures in the set, you should always count on getting a Blastoderm.

Goblin War Paint - Like I mentioned earlier, some Auras are worth the chance of getting 2-for-1 trades, and this is one of them. If your opponent doesn't have instant-speed removal, it's going to be Volcanic Hammer at the worst because you're not likely to slap it on a creature with power less than 1. We already mentioned how good haste is, so the only other note left to mention is the fact that it also pushes Stormblood Berserker into the category of things that win games by turn 6.

Blood Ogre - This is probably the most solid all-around 3-drop in the set. This guy will be the common slot all-star man for Red-based decks, and might even be one of those things worth splashing if you have multiple copies and the ability to get them in.

Green

Overall Power Level: 6
Rares: 5
Uncommons: 7
Commons: 8
Creatures – Base Stats: 8
Creatures – Combat Abilities: 6
Creatures – Non-Combat Abilities: 6

Green Rares hardly ever get the blood pumping in limited, and with the exception of the second-most powerful limited planeswalker available, not much is different this time around. Green is unique in the sense that it doesn't rely upon its rares to provide large creatures because the majority of the creatures in Green are naturally large to begin with. People will likely have something to say about my thoughts on Garruk being the 2nd most powerful Walker in the limited setting, but having the ability to make a 3/3 every turn starting as early as turn 4 is pretty powerful. Shocking a creature or player each turn is nice, but not having an ultimate that outright wins the game like Jace and Garruk puts walkers like Chandra, Gideon, and Sorin in the backseat for this ride. Garruk's +1 ability is one of the most powerful, and his ultimate is the one that most closely means game over. His second ability is pretty powerful as well, but can be hit or miss.

The Uncommons and Commons in Green often decide whether or not a player chooses to run with the only color that is completely devoid of removal. I hate being Green in limited unless I know that my dudes are powerful enough and come down quickly enough to serve as removal spells themselves. All the Garruk's Companions in the world can't force me into Green, but I would consider them more closely if they were surrounded by cards like Titanic Growth and/or Hunter's Insight.

Notable limited green cards include:

Overrun - One of my first “pet cards,” when I got a hold of these in Tempest, I never put them down. I was running Llanowar Elves, Birds of Paradise, Skyshroud Elf, Wall of Roots, Spined Wurm, Cockatrice and Overrun all day every day and I couldn't get enough. It has long since been one of the most powerful Green spells in limited, and not much has changed. Overrun can often be enough to make a player go green regardless of the lack of removal, mostly because Green creatures have the unique ability of being able to hold down the fort until it's time to draw Overrun and perform the alpha-strike. Other times the deck just beats face early and packs up the cards on turn 5 when it seals the deal with this spell.

Jade Mage - might be the best mage that isn't Azure Mage. Making guys in Limited is never bad, and as I mentioned when discussing Timely Reinforcements, making multiple guys with one card is even better. Azure Mage has the ability to take over the game just as easily as Ant Queen and Sprout Swarm, and for that reason alone, it might be worth running Green or splashing for this one card.

Hunter's Insight - this card will be good enough to see play in constructed I'm pretty sure, and I see absolutely no reason why it won't be used heavily in Limited as well. Green hardly every gets the chance to draw cards, so having a spell this efficient is quite rare and will be very powerful.

Hexproof guys - play them- play all of them. Green is a color you should turn to if you open a large amount of modifiers, particularly ones like Angelic Destiny or Spirit Mantle. Even if you don't go mono-green, Dungrove Elder is good enough to play.

Stampeding Rhino - This guy always makes waves in Core set limited, and I'm not entirely sure why, but I think it has something to do with his trample and his ability to come down early and in decks of all colors.

The artifacts don't really warrant much discussion for limited because you almost always squeeze in useful colorless spells. All I have to say are these two things: don't play lucky charms in the maindeck unless you absolutely must to avoid playing a 3rd or fourth color, and second: play Kite Shield.

Kite Shield is really good in this limited format mostly because there are a large number of creatures with power 3 or less, but there are a much larger number of creatures with power 6 or less. Knowing that the average toughness for creatures in most sets is somewhere around 3.3, Kite Shield gives your creatures immunity from 1-on-1 combat with a large number of dudes. It is particularly effective equipped to certain creatures as well, for example:

Bloodstorm Berserker (3/6 can't be blocked by fewer than 2 dudes)
Royal Assassin (1/4 protect him from removal)
Aven Fleetwing (2/5 Flying Hexproof)
Serra Angel (4/7 Flying Vigilance)
Any Mage to protect it from removal

Swiftfoot Boots might also be one of the most powerful cards in the set. Haste and Hexproof on any creature is absolutely devastating.

Manalith goes in every deck.

To summarize, I hope you found the ratings at the beginning of each color analysis beneficial. Please understand that this is simply a guide, and there are a wide range of possibilities that exist from the combinations of colors that could change the core value of each color's playability ratings. Going based on what we have listed above, you would conclude that Black is the strongest color, followed by White, and then Blue, Green, and Red are equally less powerful than the other 2 from a limited perspective. My expectation is to see Bloodthirst as the most actively drafted mechanic in the set because of how easy it is to “turn it on” (there are no cheap walls worth talking about in this set with the exception of Pride Guardian).

I wish you all good luck in what will be a very short-lived limited season. I know everyone is anxiously looking ahead to the release of Innistrad, but let's enjoy a relatively easy-to-build limited season of Core Set.