Bettorup - 7-2 Destruction DRAFT - June 15

Hello. I'm Nolyn, AKA Bettorup. I realized recently that some folks were posting draft decks on Warcry. I think it's a good idea and good for the game, so I've decided to follow suit.

I don't typically draft 'aggressive' decks unless a bomb pulls me in that direction. In this case, it was Strange Gladiator. Aggressive 3-color decks typically find it difficult to land a meaningful curve, but it can be done with the help of a little fixing and especially with the help of all-star Unfamiliar Interloper Of course, 1/1 stats aren't exactly aggressive, but the utility of landing card draw or additional 1/1s via Covetous Stranger or Fanatical Stranger, as well as the ability to cast the rest of your dudes on curve moving forward makes up for this puny little body. Oh and he can still chump a giant with the best of 'em.

Something I've learned about drafting aggressive decks, is that they really do need a lot of removal in order to function properly. Preferably hard removal over pump spells. Unfortunately, good removal is hard to come by. So, for destruction colors, we must rely upon weapons like Furyblade, Assault Shield, and Bandit's Flail. If you're lucky, you may find a defile or sear at instant speed to wreck your opponent's tricks, something a weapon cannot do.

Side note, if you ever see the card Combust and it's anywhere near your colors, definitely consider running it as a splash. It's arguably the best removal spell in the format. Most decks can support losing a dude or two, but especially decks with Warhorn and Fanatical Stranger on top of your typical corrupted bodies.

The best plays of this run centered around a well-timed Swirl the Sands and/or Edict of Grodov. In general, I've found bounce effects to be very powerful in this format. Just wait to pull the trigger until your opponent loads up a unit-weapon, combat trick, or double/triple block and you will be rewarded with VALUE. The tempo generation is also pretty sweet.

Notice the un-sexy roll-players in Back-Alley Bouncer and Dusthoof Brawler. They seem lame/under-statted, etc, but do one thing well and that is hit the face for a good chunk of damage. They are the meat and potatoes in a deck with enough supportive removal to justify their inclusion.

(Good) trades are your friend in this sort of deck. Keeping the board clear will set up your weapons to potentially go face, which is truly the place.

16 power was perfect in this run, with our curve topping at 4 for the most part. Kindling Carver was just enough to keep our foot on the gas, while recursive cards like Triumphant Return and Turn Back Time played a similar burst of continued action. I'm sad to say that the invoke of Kazuo, Melee Virtuoso was never activated this draft. He was only played twice and immediately killed or silenced. RIP.

The two losses: An optimistic keep of one unit, removal and power. And your typical 'stuck on power' scenario. Most games were relatively quick and easy, but there were a few slogs in there too.

Anyway, that's gonna do it for this pile of words. I'll plan to post something like this for my 7-win decks moving forward, if anyone finds them useful.

Thank you for reading! I hope it was helpful and will give you an idea of what cards to look out for when building a similar strategy.

Good luck out there!

- Bettorup