Usually I'm a bit weak in the drafting part of VS limited, so today when I got two X-men packs as part of my prize, I decided to open them and on the way home I tried to figure out what my first picks would be.

I think this is a good exercise for everybody on here, and I'd appreciate knowing what your opinions are. I haven't drafted the set before, only played a bit of sealed and read some of the strategy on Metagame. Feel free to post your own packs for us to discuss too, but please make them real packs, not computer generated ones.

Pack one:
Erg, Electric Eye
Viper, White Warrior Princess
Iceman, Deep Freeze
Pyro, Freedom Force
Hemmingway, Gene Nation
Leech, Inhibitor
Genis Vell <> Photon, Transformed
Sebastian Shaw, Black King
Feral, Maria Callasantos
Nightcrawler, Swashbuckler
Retribution
Freedom Force
Cardinal Law
Blackbird Blue

I narrowed the picks down to:
Viper
Erg
Iceman
Retribution
Blackbird Blue

I eventually chose Blackbird Blue because it seems crazy, even if X-Men isn't the best team in draft (From what I've heard anyways). +2 attack and flight to all your guys is well worth the resource point it costs to play. Erg the Morlocks guy seems really nuts too though, perhaps taking him and forcing Morlocks (Argueably the best team in draft from what I've heard) is better?

Pack Two:
Rem-Ram, Acolyte
Sage, Tessa
Rachel Summers <> Phoenix, Phoenix of the Future
Tommy, Runaway
Donald Pierce, White Bishop
Colossus, Organic Steel
Witch Woman, Linda Littletrees
Shinobi Shaw, White King
Julia Carpenter, Freedom Force
Turnabout
The Evil Eye
Memory Probe
X-Treme Maneuver
X-Corp Paris, X-Corp

I narrowed it down to:
Sage
Shinobi Shaw
Julia Carpenter
Turnabout

Turnabout seems like the obvious pick here. Blues are always strong, and +3/+3 is completely nuts.

Now out of those two packs, lets say that yoru first two picks are Bluebird from pack one and Turnabout from pack two. You get passed the pack that you didn't pick from with the card the last person took missing.

If I started with pack one and took bluebird, its rather unfortunate that the Turnabout is missing, because that would have been the start of a good X-men deck. We have to deal with whats left though, and out of that I think maybe you take Julia and go for X-Men Brotherhood? Or you could grab Sage/Shaw and head for X-Men HF club, but the "one character visable" theme and X-men really don't mesh.

If I started with pack two and first picked Turnabout, its once again too bad that the other guy took Blackbird. But in any case, I think Iceman is right here as he's on team, he's big and, if you go to 7, his ability is a killer. However, you do have to get energy to make him work, so second picking him might not be correct. Perhaps Viper would be better as then you can go for some kind of HF club/X-Men off curve thing?

Anyways, I'd love to hear your opinions and critique. Also, once again, feel free to post your own packs for us to tinker with. Hopefully this is a fun and helpful exercise for everybody!

i'd have taken the following:

pack 1:

viper A 2 drop and utility in her effect
Nightcrawler, Swashbuckler a 3 and high attack helps out on inish or off.

pack 2:

rachel ( i try to always take the 8 drop just in case)
colossus big guy with a decent effect that might not matter

In this format, Colossus is often a blank 6 drop with just 13/12 stats. There are probally better 6 drops that will come around. You don't need to waste a first or second pick on him. Considering that many games are ending on 6, playing a 8 drop, especially in draft instead of sealed, seems like a waste of a card slot to me.

Plus, except in rare cases (Gorilla Grodd being one) usually good blues or locations are better then characters, and are thus picked higher. Characters stats are roughly around the same area no matter how bad the characters ability is, so plot twists are what will make or break combat more often then a decent character.

Of course, I'm no limited master so feel free to correct me.

I'd probably go blackbird then turnabout if it was still there.

In the second pack, there weren't too many things that I was personally impressed with. Most people go for their blue first, which makes sense to me, but I like my characters better, so I try to go for them earlier, as this usually gives first pick of the people.

Now, this is not to say that if a shrapnel blast comes around I won't grab it first, but again, it is situational. And my first instinct looking at this selection in these 2 packs, The card pool is likely shallow and a later game may be needed. Taking the one 8 drop may be the deciding factor based on this, but again, without seeing the rest of the packs, this is the play I would make, and why I'd do it. :)

If your drafting with decent players you could probally try and wheel the 8 drop if you really wanted it that bad.

But then again, I'm the one asking for advice here. :)

See the thing about X-Men draft is that it's got this whole flow to it. You can't just pick generics until people start to get into teams. I just find the first pick in X-Men to be really hard.

However, my order of preference is probably -

Pack One:

- Retribution (Morlocks are nuts in draft)
- Blackbird Blue

The rest is not really first pick material, or at least I don't think so. Erg isn't the greatest pick for Morlocks, sure he's on team, but it's evasion you're looking for more than anything else.

Pack Two:

Turnabout
Tommy
Sage

This all depends on your archetype. I can tell you what card will be last pick though, Rachel Summers. Maybe not if T'Challa is drafting, but otherwise...

i won the jla sealed, because my opponents passed me 2 un general assemblies and 2 8 drops to go along with the gorillar grodd or 2 i got.

In xmen, most games have been ending way too fast for 8's but since i plan to draft morlocks if opportunity presents itself, making sure no one else can turn against me what i myself may very well need later, i'd grab the 8.

Now, this is entirely based on just the first pick of the first 2 packs.

I'd be gambling that other stuff would come around that I could use really soon.

Maybe it's because I'm really tired, and I might be confused as a result of that, but did you just say you'd run an 8 in Morlocks? Do you think they're a stall deck or something?

I'd take her to make sure that noone else got her, and i'd run the one of her just in case, sometimes you won't get the twists you want, so you have to plan ahead, and that is how i plan ahead. If i got enough stuff feel comfortble sealing the deal before 8 i wouldn't add her to the deck, and maybe that would be where i'd wish i'd grabbed that tommy...maybe, but i'd feel safer knowing that no one else got her to use against me in case i don't get all of the twists i'd like to get.

Okay. I'm clear now. You're hate drafting 8 drops.

Good luck with that.

tchallas views on limited are unique, to say the least. They seem to work for him though.

Usually Morlocks are pretty fast. I would be happy if my opponent picked the 8 drop and put it into his/her deck, because then they are wasting a card.

If you don't get good plot twists or characters for your morlocks deck, you may have more problems then worring about your opponent playing a 8 drop.

Pack one:
Iceman
Blackbird
Viper


Iceman is huge. His ablity is great. But most of all he has BUILT IN FLIGHT.

With the low amount of flight in the metagame, hes def a first pick IMO. just make sure you pick up a brave new world, District X, or just a few enegery cards. there should be more than enough.

Black bird Saves you from doing the thing that usually dooms you in draft/sealed: Under dropping. Suddenly, you have a veyr nice board.

Viper: Good stats, got ablity, maybe not first pick,but def very nice.


Pack 2:
Turnabout
Sage (Sage+tarot+distrect X+Fitzroy-My pwning my opponent in Sneak Peak)

Rem Ram/Evil Eye

Turnabout wins games. Period.

Sage is a very nice card, very under picked IMO

Rem ram is insane, but if you havent got a decent amount of reserveists, hes passable.

evil eye works very nicely for me. A 5 to the dome can turn games around.

Black Bird/or Iceman then Turnabout

or


Shaw then Pierce .




I dont see how Tchalla would win drafting like that . No offense tchalla , but if you pick a 8 drop in this set that isnt a 13-14 pick then good luck on that. and the only reason I would pick it 13th is cuz the 8 drop would be a rare and even then the other card would have to be complete crap.