Welcome all to the Daily Dose of Ixalan. This week I’ll be talking about how you can prepare yourself for your local Ixalan prerelease. Today and tomorrow, instead of focusing on the flashy rares or mythics that you might pull from your packs, I'll be paying attention to the utility cards that are commons and uncommons.
The key to remember when building a deck is that usually you'll only be playing three or four of your rare cards in your deck, which means you need 19-20 other cards to fill in the bulk of your deck. That’s when it pays off to know which commons and uncommons are worth including. So, here are the best commons that you want to have in your deck at the Ixalan prerelease.
Legion’s Judgment – It would have been nice if this was still an instant, but even with it being a Sorcery I guarantee that you will be able to take out a huge threat with this card. Limited games tend to go longer, so this is the perfect card to get rid of that creature that's outclassing your side of the battlefield.
Looming Altisaur – It’s not often that you can get seven toughness on a creature for only four mana. At 1/7, this is pretty much a wall, and will allow you to survive until you can get your better threats out later in the game.
Slash of Talons – One-mana removal spells should not be overlooked. Despite only doing two damage, this card could give you the boost needed to trade up and kill a creature that's been giving you trouble. It can also remove a blocker if your opponent tries to double block one of your attackers.
Vampire’s Zeal – Here's another one-mana combat trick that will catch your opponents by surprise. Even if you don’t get the first strike part of the ability, giving your creature +2/+2 will help you win the battle more often than not.
Dive Down – This spell can be used in two ways. First, you can use it in combat to make sure your creature survives and your opponent's creature dies in combat. Another use for this spell is as a counterspell for any removal spells your opponent might play against one of your creatures.
Run Aground – This blue removal spell can really change the tempo of the game. It can void an opponent’s turn, and negate them from getting a new card the following turn. When used properly during tricky combat situations, this card can make sure that you're ahead at the end of combat.
Contract Killing – Treasure tokens are something that will be great if you're playing three or even four-colour decks during prerelease. Cards like this not only serve a purpose (creature kill), but they can also help you cast cards on future turns.
Duress – There are plenty of noncreature spells that can make or break a game. Spells like combat tricks or card advantage spells. Using Duress before combat could allow you to make sure that the coast is clear for a major attack. You can also use Duress to deal with a removal spell that might take out a large threat of yours.
Vanquish the Weak – This is a great instant removal spell that's able to target most creatures on the battlefield. At only three mana, it’s one of the cheaper removal spells in the format.
Dual Shot – There are 23 creatures in the format that only have one toughness, compared to 16 one-toughness creatures in Amonkhet. This gives you ample targets for Dual Shot. You can also use it to trade up during combat by providing that last point of damage on a creature or two.
Firecannon Blast – In most Limited games, triggering Raid will be easier as you'll be playing more creatures and there's less removal in the format. Getting six damage on a creature is nice, but most often even three damage will do the trick.
Rummaging Goblin – This type of looting creature has been seen before, and they've been great every time. This card allows you to improve your card selection and prevent yourself from getting flooded or having dead cards in your hand.
Ancient Brontodon – Simply the largest creature in Ixalan, this will be a tough creature for your opponent to deal with. Getting eight mana in a format that doesn’t have many ramp cards could be an issue, but if it does enter the battlefield on your side it's sure make a large impact.
Commune with Dinosaurs – This is a great card draw spell in both the early and late game. Early game, you can search for a land and make sure you hit your land drops each turn. Later on, it can help you find that much needed threat to put on the battlefield.
Hopefully now you have a little better knowledge of what to look out for when opening your packs this weekend. Remember to not just skip over your commons and go straight for your rare card. Every card you open in your six packs will be important in building your deck. Thanks again for joining me on the Daily Dose of Ixalan. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow where I’ll be talking about the best uncommons for the Ixalan prerelease.
