DTK Draft: Green Uncommons

Going Green

Hi there! Today I'll try to touch a bit specific topic in draft: Spotting good green uncommons when you draft DTK-FRF! Okay, a lot of of question I believe. For starters, I'd recommend you to read some basic draft guide from wizards.magic.com or other sources especially about card roles (BREAD) and signals, when you're done lets go on! 

Why such guide? First, because I believe by recognizing good cards you could easily tell if a color is open (in this case, green). Open color is a color that another player(s) didn't pick, and when you pick an unpicked color, chances are you'll get cool cards passed to you in that color! And as Uncommon usually have better card than common, it could provide an even better insight. Second, why green? because when I see green cards in DTK FRF draft I could hardly judge whether a card is good or not so I hope I can improve my draft ability as well! How about rares? well, you only get three rares at most and you can hardly count them on being green card, but when it does, you can expect it will be powerful enough to guarantee your pick in that pack! 


Do note I that merely group them in same power level, the way they are sort are according to their converted mana cost and whether they are creatures or noncreatures.

The Amazing Tier

This will be my version of best green uncommons when you draft Dragons of Tarkir, opinions are very welcome as I sought to know better as well!

so keep these in your mind:
1. when you are passed these, chances are, player before you are not drafting green (yet)
2. when you are not playing green (for example, you are playing blue), by passing it, you'll give a strong signal to the next player that he/she should play green. When the draft switches direction he'll pick green cards and left good blue cards for you.

Scaleguard Sentinels
2/3 for 2 mana is already very good, winning over any other 2 drops (except 3/1 ones) and also morphs. Revealing a dragon will guarantee your early game to be really smooth.

Enduring Scalelord
He ranges from mediocre to very good depending on your other picks. When you have a number of good bolster (preferably one that can be used continuously, such as Dromoka Captain, Echoes of Kin-tree) or counter-generating cards (such as Salt Road Quartermaster), he'll continue to be a growing, flying threat. Because of that many conditions he really is a borderline amazing tier, but an ever-growing bomb is not to be underestimated.

Abzan Beastmasters (FRF)
I believe it won't be hard for green to have high toughness creature on board especially when you also draft white. I haven't found surefire easy way to accomplish it but let's see what when I review other cards.

Temur Sabertooth (FRF)
Bounce your card to save it or reuse its battlecry (it's a hearthstone term) and at same time have a 4 power threat. I actually never have the chance to use it so I'd like to test it when I can.

Battlefront Krushok (FRF)
Cannot be blocked by more than one creature is rather special. This card could potentially break stalls as your opponent would be forced to slowly chump away their creatures (if they don't have a line of big creatures).

Inspiring Call
Just having counters on your creatures won't be hard too, and when this resolves, it really gives a ton of advantage for you. It is also an Instant so you can use it as combat trick.

Fruit of the First Tree (FRF)
Attach this to lets say 3 toughness creature and trade it, then you draw 3 cards and also gain 3 life. When this card goes off it gives you cards and life to play it. Be careful not to get it destroyed though.

Sight of the Scalelords
4 toughness creature would already be strong enough on its own. Give it +2/+2 and no reason to not attacking (vigilance) and suddenly you have monsters. I personally like vigilance very much, as you get to both attack and defend at the same time.

The Good Tier

Now this group is a rather tricky one. Even though I named it Good Tier, I don't think they are very good. Most of the time, they are mana efficient or provide a special role so you should consider really well whether you need them or not. Out of these I honestly would only sure-pick Ainok Survivalist, Salt Road Quartermaster, Cached Defenses, and Sudden Reclamation. When you find an amazing common of green or another color, you could pick that instead.

Ainok Survivalist
There are many game-breaking Enchantment that you want to destroy but sometimes too little space to put that Naturalize in or even side it in. Ainok Survivalist is also cheap to morph as well. His only downside is that he doesn't get an evasion ability like his peer in his cycle do, but that's enough for seeing your opponent's expensive enchantment pop and he doesn't get to improve his tempo at all.

Salt Road Quartermaster
First things, 3/3 for 3 mana is great. The fact that he can distribute the +1/+1 counter to any card is great. The cost to do so though (3 mana), is a little bit steep although a great tactical advantage. I'd pick him for his tempo strength alone.

Circle of Elders
2/4 for 4 is not that bad..Green have many stat boost and that vigilance will be useful fast. When you set on formidable, 3 extra mana could drop your bomb real real fast. Or just drop an extra morph. Didn't it begin to look good?

Salt Road Ambusher
Stat-wise he's good enough as 3/3 and 4 mana. His ability looks very promising, having to put 2 +1/+1 counters easily on your creature sounds awesome. Then again, I don't consider him very exciting because you have to go through a lot of hoops (having a number of morph, play him, have enough cost to morph) to get his effect, not to mention megamorphs aren't the most cost-efficient creatures around.

Savage Ventmaw
Stats of a dragon, not bad (also nothing special). That six extra mana can pay a lot, provided you have a lot of nonland supply that late in the game, so you might think to look for ways to trigger that Abzan Beastmasters.


Cached Defenses (FRF)
3 mana to bolster 3 is efficient compared to Dromoka's gift that bolster 4 for 5 mana. This will also easier to use and far more relevant earlier when you can have a creature with good ability bolster-able.

Press the Advantage
Two Tread Upon on one card? Interesting. On the right moment, press the advantage could make your creatures kills each of their blocker and deal nice amount of damage thanks to trample. You will have to be able to make that favorable attacks though.

Sudden Reclamation (FRF)
I believe this is not something green often to do and that makes it interesting. Basically it let you to pick two of four card from top of the deck (like anticipate), or pick a land and a powerful creature killed the turn before. All in all, very interesting green pick and adds a new dimension (and supports Delve, if you have those). It's an instant on top of that!

The O.K. Tier

Now I believe this tier have its name very, very right. They are mostly ok. They could be interesting but I still don't know if they really would make impact. When you have a other good card in your pack, you should really really check whether there are other good cards or not before you pick those.

Abzan Kin-guard (FRF): This card almost do what Champion of Arashin (a common) does.
Lurking Arynx: You can pay mana (and already have formidable) to surgically strike one of your opponent's key creature (like Abzan Beastmasters). An Interesting card but mediocre stats.
Destructor Dragon (FRF): It's ok to have him when you have no other dragon to play. He could trade for 2 for 1 too.
Herdchaser Dragon: Unlike its red counterpart, he doesn't always win battle, unlike its blue counterpart, your opponent could use a removal on it, unlike its black counterpart, it doesn't always trade, and unlike its white counterpart, he doesn't make you further away from death. He does extra little damage and thats what he do.
Arashin Warbeast (FRF): Summoning one manifest a turn is not that exciting. And having the mighty 6/6 beast to tap to do so is not that exciting either. Expensive, also
Display of Dominance: Sideboard material, quite effective at what it's doing though, as blue have some annoying enchantment and black have scary removals.
Winds of Qal Sisma (FRF): Neat combat trick, only good only when you have ferocious though.
Explosive Vegetation: It could smoothen your draws as it immediately thins 2 land out of your deck. Be sure that you could do appropriate tempo swing after as turn 4 is quite important.
Ruthless Instincts (FRF): None of its effect is bad, it's only that it only does such simple things at an uncommon and 3 mana.
Dromoka's Gift: Bolster 4 is really big, but wouldn't this card took to long too cast? and leave you too little room to use your mana?

Although I rate some dragons low, if you lack any means of late game or flying creature, feel free to pick them up! Even Scion of Ugin (a vanilla 4/4 6 mana dragon) is useful in the draft.

Whether it is DTK or FRF, it appears that green's uncommon strong point is its creatures. So you can have your early pick gathering strong creatures that will be backed up by powerful commons.

"This article is too long! I already don't remember what the amazing cards are!" lol ok sorry it seemed that I still struggle to keep things simple so here is TL;DR

When you are drafting DTK, the best choices are:
1. Scaleguard Sentinels
2. Enduring Scalelord
3. Inspiring Call
4. Sight of Scalelords.

Good enough cards to pick are:
1. Ainok Survivalist
2. Salt Road Quartermaster
3. Salt Road Ambusher
4. Circle of Elders
5. Savage Ventmaw 
6. Press the Advantage

For the other uncommons, check whether there are better card in the pack or not.

When you are drafting FRF, the best choices are:
1. Abzan Beastmasters
2. Temur Sabertooth
3. Battlefront Krushok
4. Fruit of the First Tree
Good enough cards to pick are:
1. Cached Defenses
2. Sudden Reclamation

For the other uncommons, check whether there are better card in the pack or not.

Thanks for reading, till next time!

FYI: Cards have undergone rank changes by the time I made this article, I used to put Arashin Warbeast at Good tier when I finally decided that it is just ok as it only have small impact and is very expensive. I also moved down Salt Road Quartermasters down from amazing, I still like the card though.