Now that Pro Tour Oath of the Gatewatch is behind us, people are starting to see what the new draft format is all about. It turns out drafting two packs of the new small set drastically changes the world of Battle for Zendikar. Who could have predicted that? The message hasn’t full sunk in yet, but that means you have an edge because you listen.
Selesnya (green-white) Support is one of the best archetypes in Oath draft. Play a bunch of cheap creatures, keep making them bigger, and keep turning them sideways. I recently drafted this fantastic deck online and took it to an easy 3-0 without dropping a game.
GW
My draft started with Eldrazi Displacer, Isolation Zone, and Relief Captain. Hard to have a better start than that. From there I mostly took green cards, which flew openly as people still don’t realize green is good now. Stasis Snare was a great open in pack three, and the deck really came together. The most notable feature of drafting this deck, however, is the ability to take and play whatever two drops come along. They are all good with plenty of support. Once you hit a critical mass of cheap creatures and support, your deck will win consistently.
Hedron Crawler and Loam Larva are the worst two drops in the deck. Normally you’d try not to play them, but they help Eldrazi Displacer do more than just be an efficient creature. Loam Larva isn’t too bad anyway. It lets you keep land-light hands and a 1/3 is solid to support onto. Makindi Aeronaut is much better, as it has flying, but any two drop with stats and upside will be good. Felidar Cub was great, as it gives you the free ability to blow up a problem enchantment.
Ondu War Cleric was actually one of my worst two drops because I had so few allies, but Grizzly Bears is exactly what this deck wants anyway. You also can play some one drops, which no other deck wants to do. Kitesail Scout is pretty good with a counter or two, and Cliffside Lookout is the stone nuts. Usually the all in small creature decks are gimmics in a draft format—think Faerie Miscreant or Madcap Skills—that is only successful because it is unexpected and picks up cards nobody else wants. But Selesnya Support is a dominant strategy, not vulnerable to removal, and not dependent on card disadvantage.
Relief Captain is basically Hero of Bladehold.
This is the fastest deck in the format, and it matches up very well against removal. You might get hurt by Radiant Flames or Planar Outburst, but those don’t show up very often. Removal spells are horrible when your plan is to play a bunch of interchangeable two drops and spread counters on them. The most efficient kill against this deck is to Reality Hemmorhage a two drop in response to a support trigger, and that’s still not great. You laugh at Oblivion Strike and Isolation Zone, which are the answers most deck lean on strategically.
I cruised through through my three matches. Only one game was close, the second of round two against Izzet Surge. I had to slog through Chandra, Flamecaller by taking it down with Loam Larva and Felidar Cub over a few turns. I was lucky to have both Stasis Snare and Isolation Zone to clear his two big blockers. From there I eventually got eight mana with Oran-Rief Invoker and closed out the game after taking a ton of damage from Chandra. When you can win a game like that with a deck full of small creatures, which Chandra should eat alive, that’s a sign the archetype is for real.
Right now this has to be the best deck to draft, assuming the cards come your way. White is strong and fought over in each draft, but all you need are a few early picks to justify white. Until green starts getting respect, and people start taking Saddleback Lagac highly, you’ll be able to fill out the deck with plenty of interchangeable parts. Tricks like Lead by Example and Vines of the Recluse table frequently and provide good late filler.
Travel Preparations is back. Maybe Oath draft will prove as deep as Innistrad—we can hope—but until the format develops, Selesnya Support is the best deck. Go take some Lagacs and win some packs!
Carrie O’Hara is Editor-in-Chief of Hipsters of the Coast.