Welcome to Kaldheim

 

The new Magic the Gathering set is out two weeks ago and I had stored up 40,000 gold, enough for 4 drafts. This time I was planning to concentrate just on Best of Three instead of Best of One, so there was some risk that the Gem rewards were going to be more lacking, but I was willing to try as I've been finding the Best of Three format to feel less frustrating as I know the variance gets spread over 2 or 3 games instead of just one.

I went into the limited format feeling a little overwhelmed. There is a lot of words and mechanics and things at play and after enjoying the straightforwardness of Zendikar Rising I was worried it was going to end up being another Theros Beyond Death experience for me.

I'm happy to report that I've done better than I hoped:

KHM
2021-02-03 12:00	UW	2 - 1
2021-02-02 12:04	WB	2 - 1
2021-02-01 7:43	UG	1 - 2
2021-01-31 20:47	RG	2 - 1
	WB	1 - 2
	UW	3 - 0
2021-01-29 12:30	RB	2 - 1
2021-01-28 12:05	UW	1 - 2

One trophy and I've earned enough Gems for 5 more drafts (still have one draft to go so wish me luck) and I feel like I have a moderate handle on the format. 

So far my favourite deck was the RB Berserker/Giants that was pure gas fun.

Deck

2 Deathknell Berserker (KHM) 83

1 Demonic Gifts (KHM) 84

2 Draugr's Helm (KHM) 88

1 Elderfang Disciple (KHM) 93

1 Feed the Serpent (KHM) 95

1 Jarl of the Forsaken (KHM) 100

1 Karfell Kennel-Master (KHM) 101

1 Raise the Draugr (KHM) 105

1 Skull Raid (KHM) 111

1 Basalt Ravager (KHM) 122

1 Doomskar Titan (KHM) 130

1 Dual Strike (KHM) 132

2 Frost Bite (KHM) 138

1 Immersturm Raider (KHM) 141

1 Provoke the Trolls (KHM) 144

1 Run Amok (KHM) 147

1 Shackles of Treachery (KHM) 150

2 Tuskeri Firewalker (KHM) 157

1 Kardur, Doomscourge (KHM) 216

1 Blightstep Pathway (KHM) 252

2 Snow-Covered Swamp (KHM) 281

8 Mountain (KLR) 298

6 Swamp (KLR) 293

My trophy deck was a busted Blue White Foretell deck that won more than a couple games on the back of the Niko planeswalker who is very powerful in limited

Deck

1 Battlefield Raptor (KHM) 3

1 Clarion Spirit (KHM) 6

1 Codespell Cleric (KHM) 7

2 Doomskar Oracle (KHM) 10

1 Kaya's Onslaught (KHM) 18

1 Stalwart Valkyrie (KHM) 31

1 Starnheim Courser (KHM) 32

2 Valkyrie's Sword (KHM) 36

1 Augury Raven (KHM) 44

1 Bind the Monster (KHM) 48

1 Brinebarrow Intruder (KHM) 49

1 Cosima, God of the Voyage (KHM) 50

1 Depart the Realm (KHM) 53

1 Draugr Thought-Thief (KHM) 55

1 Giant's Amulet (KHM) 59

1 Karfell Harbinger (KHM) 65

1 Mists of Littjara (KHM) 67

1 Mistwalker (KHM) 68

1 Niko Aris (KHM) 225

1 Niko Defies Destiny (KHM) 226

1 Funeral Longboat (KHM) 238

2 Gates of Istfell (KHM) 256

1 Shimmerdrift Vale (KHM) 267

7 Island (KLR) 290

7 Plains (KLR) 288

I'll continue drafting and let you know in a month how things are shaking out.

IN OTHER NEWS...

Magic the Gathering Arena Mobile has been released for early access and I got it on my phone and I can confirm that it works pretty good. It uses the same account as the PC version and all my decks are there, I can play games with no issue against opponents on PC or mobile, and the experience has been pretty solid. 

That being said, I did a test draft on it, from Pack 1 to Pick 1 to all three matches and I found that more difficult. I like to build my deck as I go and this limited size made that much harder. And I found the gameplay in the more competitive environment more stressful. I noticed at one time that I had 5 fewer minutes left on the match clock than my opponent because it takes longer to do anything.

Overall, I'd recommend the mobile version for doing daily quests on the go, or just passing time. I'll stick to the PC for more competitive Magic games I play.