I use a random card generator to generate a hand of 5 cards from a complete singleton set of Epic, which includes the Core, the Tyrants, and new Uprising sets. I will then analyze the hand and decide what I would tend to pick if I were to draw that hand in the Dark Draft format of play. I will decide which card to pick if I got that pack, as well as which 2 cards I'd pick if I got the remaining 4. For the sake of consistency, I will assume this is the first pack I open.
For your information and as a reminder, here are the Dark Draft rules from the official website:
Dark Draft (2 players)
- Shuffle a stack of at least 120 cards. Deal 5 to each player.
- Each player takes 1 card out of their hand of five cards and drafts it, then passes the other 4 to the other (at the same time).
- Each player takes 2 cards out of their new hand of four cards and drafts them, then discards the remaining two cards into a shared face-down discard pile.
Both players now have drafted three cards. Repeat nine times to get to a 30-card deck, shuffle and play.
This is a fun, fast, and skill-testing draft format for two players. Many of our competitive events use this format in the playoff rounds. This format is used in our World Championship. Source: http://www.epiccardgame.com/formats-draft/
So what's up, doc?
A battle between 0 cost Recyclers! First of all, feel sorry for yourself that you have to give 2 of these to your opponent, but be thankful you at least get to choose first.
Blind Faith - I love this card in Limited. I also love this card in Constructed. I think it's stronger in Limited though because there are certain cards like Steel Golem and other giant monsters that can be difficult to deal with. This gives you an opening to wipe them out normally. This gets rid of the biggest evasions out there like Untargetable, Unbreakable, Airborne, etc.
Second Wind - Health gain in Limited can be, shall we say, limited. A Drain Essence is almost always a sure first pick. Second Wind is just a simple amount of health gain that can replace itself. It can save your life or give you that second wind you need to pull off a win (see what I did there?)
Word of Summoning - This card has been underestimated I'd estimate. I really like it. A 4/4 body for free is a wonderful chump block, but it's a decent amount of damage if it attacks on your turn as well. Plus, it's Evil, so it can help you out with those loyalty triggers that Evil usually needs.
Spike Trap - This is one of those cards that rarely makes its way into Constructed decks, but is almost always drafted in Limited. It's probably because Sage has so many awesome 0-cost cards that this one gets the shaft, but it is a good one, especially in Limited. For 0 gold, you have the ability to destroy a vast amount of attacking champions. It even hits untargetable and unblockable and airborne champions as well! Also, if for some reason your opponent decides to attacking with a group of weenies (because they are afraid of a Ceasfire), or they want to force you to block with a bigger champion), you can wipe them all out with this card. Fun stuff. Plus, it's Sage, which is an always desirable faction for loyalty triggers.
Wolf's Bite - I think this is a card that really grew in popularity leading up to Worlds last year. It's a very solid card. With Thought Plucker and Muse and other low health champions being auto picks for Limited, this is bound to find a target. It's useful as an offensive as well as defensive tool. Getting a weenie blocker/attacker, and replacing itself with Recycle is just delicious sugar-frosting (none of that whipped crap thank you very much), not to mention helping out Wild loyalty triggers which is a personal favorite of mine.
This one is rough. I think it comes down to Blind Faith, Spike Trap, and Wolf's Bite. I like Second Wind and Word of Summoning, but I think these others are better. In terms of loyalty triggers Spike Trap and Wolf's Bite are better than Blind Faith, but only because I don't care for Good as much in Limited. Blind Faith is an amazing card though. I think that I might prefer Wolf's Bite over Spike Trap, only because I know I will always need it to hit certain champions, or chump blockers, and it gives me a free blocker/attacker, while Spike Trap does not. So now it is Blind Faith vs Wolf's Bite. I think I have to go with Wolf's Bite. This really is a tough one because Blind Faith has saved me in many games, but it isn't always a guarantee that my opponent finds and picks those juicy targets. I feel more confident that I will completely need and use Wolf's Bite in a game than Blind Faith. I really couldn't blame someone from going for it though, I doubt they would be disappointed.
If I got this pack I would be very happy. What I would pick would greatly depend on what I chose from my pack. If I picked something Evil, I'd definitely grab Word of Summoning for one of my picks. If I grabbed something Sage, I'd definitely grab Spike Trap as one of my picks. In a void I'd probably choose Spike Trap and Blind Faith.
Do you guys agree? Let me know. And happy gaming!
I've not played much of the reboot but I surmised similarly.
ReplyDeleteI figured that WoS, Blind Faith and Bite were the strong options.
WoS has loads of flexibility - unlike the other two, you can toss it out there just about whenever if you need the draw, and still get the full value of the card, plus it's large enough that it'll likely bait a one-cost response from your opponent. It's also my favourite colour for loyalty, and you're left passing a pack of non-evil cards.
I think I agree with your choice though, Bite occupies a role in your deck that you always have to fill - incidental removal of low health utility minions. Once I take that, I've a little more freedom in the rest of my picks. I will feel less bad about passing the good utility minions and am not forced to grab the next free removal spell I see.