I absolutely love this format! Interesting deck All i can say guys is, come out bring w/e deck you can scrap together and enjoy the madness that is this new playground we've been given :)
Just a note: Wizards says that the new Commander product will be coming to MTGO, but that there is no official date for the online release. Sad times for us online players.
Thanks for pointing that out! :-) This was the first Double Elimination tournament for me and since I left after round 4 I really had a hard time to figure out what really had happened.
Thank you for hosting and congratulations for your victory!
I'm following the SOM Block results and I see that WU Control is rising in popularity. Even though Black has much better cards than White, at the end it comes down to being able to destroy artifacts and this is what White does. So UB is out and WU is in.
After I submited this article, the WU Control deck also changed a bit; even though just slightly. Venser is now maindecked as a one-of and it has two Sunblast Angels instead of one.
I would personally try to squeeze in one Elesh Norn into this deck somehow. Maybe replacing one Karn with Elesh Norn could be an option (that's a maybe!).
4x Steel Sabotage also makes a lot sense to me. The current WU Control deck plays two in the main deck. It can easily become four and move those two Volition Reins' to the sideboard. Volition Reins isn't that interesting against Steel, and mono Red has very few targets for it.
So yeah, 4x Steel Sabotage should be tested. I'm not so sure about 3x Venser though.
I'm trying a UW control myself for the upcoming TNMO Block events. That list looks interesting if a little bit random. Especially if the evaluation of the current meta speaks about the proliferation of Steel decks. I'm especially not sold on that huge 28-land count. I understand the need for consistent drops, but that could bite you back in late game when you have to deliver your punch, and you end up mana flooded instead. Also, if Venser is benched because he's too slow, what about Karn being there? If the curve allows 7cc spells, then even Elesh Norn becomes an option here.
Tell me what you think of this: I was wondering if a deck like that could try and survive the early turns by using full sets of Gitaxian Probes and Psychic Barriers main deck, to be eventually replaced with more removals and Stoic Rebuttals if the matchup calls for that (against control heavy decks - you shouldn't bother to counter Tempered Steel if you already countered the key creatures and still retain the option to revoke it later). Along with the much needed full set of Steel Sabotages (I'm all for maximize a spell's presence in the low mana curve, and use singletons/couples for more expensive spells instead), the tempo gain of countering important stuff one turn earlier could be crucial, couldn't it?
Also, I would like to still try and go with the 3 Venser + 3 Elspeth package, taking advantage of a moderate wellspring ramp, and a singleton Exclusion Ritual, which is just too much of a temptation for Venser to let go. As far as 6cc spells goes, I would like better to exile that Obliterator and preventing other ones to come (try and bomb a 6cc enchantment!), than using a Phyrexian Rebirth on it (which against Steel would be mostly useless anyway), only to probably end up with an unimpressive 1/1 on my side and an Obliterator in the graveyard waiting to be called back somehow, or his loyal brother in hand ready to resume the carnage. Am I so terribly wrong?
Although fliebana did get his spot due to seeding, Owain and SupergrooveRock actually played a match to determine who got the last Top 8 spot. But the match is not included in Gatherling.
Excellent article as always. Thanks for your hard work in creating these week after week.
Kind of funny we're discussing this, then today I drafted this concoction (comp didn't have "record draft" on unfortunately, this has been rectified) ... I think it shows well what I'm talking about, using Triumph of the Hordes as a true 'Overrun' but not as Plan A, and using the non-infect cards to supplement the strategy (things like proliferate!!! - I took Contagion Clasp over Precursor Golem p3p1).
I swept a 4322 (yeah, I know) without dropping a game. I had enough to not run the U splash, but it was nearly free (curve and colored mana costs allowed it), and Viral Drake alone is worth it. For me, this deck feels much more focused - it's only doing one thing, but it isn't a one-trick pony, you have so many angles and methods of attack (and no rares!).
Shriek Raptor
3x Priest of Norn
Revoke Existence
Apostle's Blessing
Lost Leonin
Brutalizer Exarch
Plaguemaw Beast
Triumph of the Hordes
Slice in Twain
Tangle Angler
Lead the Stampede
Blight Mamba
Pestilent Souleater
Core Prowler
Blinding Souleater
Throne of Geth
Shrine of Loyal Legions
Contagion Clasp
Razorverge Thicket
3x Island
6x Plains
7x Forest
I don't consider Legionnaire or Tanadon "utility" at all - they're beaters, and don't really even beat without Triumph (that or they have to go all the way themselves).
Here, though, you have actual utility - Shrine, for example, combos incredibly with Triumph, but also with Clasp, Throne of Geth (creates artifacts) and Plaguemaw (creatures). Other non-infect creatures are all removal (souleater, anatomist, exarch) or the plaguemaw, a psuedo-infector.
Definitely informative, and a good mix of info. Also, nice draft - going T2 Occulus -> T3 Architect/Tanadon seems absurd, especially on the play - nice T3 replica, just bashing for 5 here.
Only quibble: a Splicer is like the best thing to lose to Blisterstick ... it basically turns the potential 2-for-1 into a 0.25-for-1 or whatever.
I see what you are saying about the Legionnaire and my comments.
1-drops: 3
2-drops: Divine Offering and Porcelain Legionnaire
3-Drops: 4, only the Rot Wolf for a creature, Dispense Justice, Arrest, Barbed Battlegear, which I would rather play as a 5-drop.
4-drops: 5, 4 of which are creatures and Triumph
5-drops: 4
6-drops: 3, including the Tanadon
2 Untamed Might
No acceleration, 17 lands, top heavy, only Divine Offering, Dispense Justice and Arrest for removal.
Mirran Mettle, and 2 Untamed Might I want for finsishers (more so the UMight) but are combat tricks.
Then there was the Brutalizer Exarch, too.
Sideboard Cards I never played:
Loxidon Partisan, Tangle Hulk, Phyrexian Digester, Lead the Stampede and 2 Origin Spellbombs. I had the mana available on turn three because I had so little to play there and it was available very late. There were more situations when I had it and it was useful, than either I had it and didn't have the mana available or had it and it wasn't useful.
The only non-infect/ infect utility cards in the final build:
Fangren Marauder, Brutalizer Exarch, Thundering Tanadon, Acid Web Spider, Porcelain Legionnaire.
They are all excellent utility creatures that work well with Triumph.
What I'm saying is that my vision is that 50/50 is okay. In the end it led me to this, which I think is a pretty good deck. It only got this good because Green(any) and White infect were open, but that's the story of most drafts.
Although Priests are awesome walls, the Vigilance and boardsate often lead to, "Why not!" And how many times have you have a piece of equipment lying around and suddenly, that Priest is a Beast.
To clarify what I meant on Legionnaire - your explanation for p1p3 is that your deck, as currently composed, would pair best with white, hence taking Legionnaire ... I'm merely pointing out that Legionnaire isn't committing, nor necessarily a signal to go into white. I still prob take Scorn there, but it's definitely debatable, Shatter is at its lowest value right now in my opinion.
What I'm saying about dedicated decks is almost self-evident to the point of tautology - I'm merely saying that having a deck that has a well-developed plan will be better than one whose plan is fractured. I do agree that often, post-NPH decks will require a split plan because of the nature of how infect is spread among the packs - no issues there, my point though is that shouldn't be a goal from p1p1 in my opinion. I'm open to other ideas though, if you want to explain further?
AFA Priests of Norn:
-Would play 100% in any white deck looking to win via infect damage.
-Would play nearly all the time in a midrange-y white deck that needed early defense (although in GW I'd prefer Rot Wolf and Cystbearer for this purpose, as they serve it better AND are better infectors).
-Would play only if absolutely needed in the "white skies" deck that is becoming somewhat more popular, as I'd much rather use my t3 for something like Skyguard, Invisimancer or Scudder in a deck attempting to win via evasion.
Those are really the three main white archetypes, in my mind, and Priests goes from excellent/necessary common to chaff I'm hoping to cut. Obviously sometimes the plan changes mid-stream, but that's the fun of drafting anyway.
Dispense Justice fits into the same category - in your deck (which is hoping to tap out for threats and use pump spells proactively to push threats, and has a sorcery-speed bomb to boot), how often do you even have 2W open? It seems fine in a stall, but isn't it about the worst card in the deck in your opening hand? Did you have anything in the sideboard that could further the main plan, instead of holding out for a stall?
Priests of Norn (and Blightwidow) are pretty poor examples in the argument of trying to go only one way; they're inherently defensive cards, and you only win by attacking, so they don't count for as much.
Oh, and since MBS, I've been watching all of the videos from the Pros. The first came out today. That's where I start to refine my card evaluation and pick orders. After a few weeks of those, I can usually predict their picks.
The first videos are up today. I can't wait to watch them.
I commented on some article here regarding my theory on this format. I couldn't find it which is too bad because it would have proved that I was envisioning a 50/50 deck.
Basically the theory boiled down to:
SoM SoM SoM: needed focused Black and Green
MBS SoM SoM: infect got 'weaker' because Green's commons were splahable and the curve got higher. The amazing infect deck got harder to build.
NPH MBS SoM: Now every color gets itfect. There will be even fewer focused infect decks and 50/50 will not only be okay, but is expeceted.
That's the main idea. Don't take the vocabluary too seriously.
So that was the idea I went in with. I ended up two-thirds infect btw.
Speaking of taking vocabulary seriously, you said, "and a deck dedicated to one plan will always be WAY better." So, are you saying that if you were in White you wouldn't want something like a Priests of Norn? I'm just getting picky here, I get what you are saying I just see it a little differently.
I 'get' the Porcelain Legionnaire. Did I play it turn three or something? I can't read the article while on this screen. I think I remember playing it third after the Acolyte when a Perilous Myr was on the table. I remember playing it turn three and taking a 2-life hit when I had Mirran Mettle and Opponent saw my hand. I also, 'get' the Tanadon. I'm not sure why you think I don't. Early play plus trample means that he is getting through for lots of damage, many times because the opponent won't chump. I know Triumph gives everything trample.
I did not play any at all. I read set reviews from LSV, Conley Woods, and listened to Limited Resources. I did not play the beta. In general, I pretty much took what they said and formed my own opinion. Yeah, I would say that I had a little help, but mainly I felt like the deck was my own idea.
I did play Dispense Justice(DJ). I also played Mirran Mettle without much of a chance at metalcraft. I had three spiders and some fatties and two Shriek Raptors. If I wanted to force a boardstate where Opponent could only swing with one guy, it was pretty easy. It didn't help much when I was behind, but it worked out nicely. Like the next poster said, there is more than one way to play that card.
Thank you for your post. I like the info on the Shrines as well as the 'debate.'
I really like your open criticism of your own play and pointing out your mistakes. You keep it real. Classic is so much a game of inches; I can't count how many games I lost to one "minor" misplay or misclick.
I probably like mediocre cards better than most but I actually think Dispense Justice is ok even without metalcraft (unless you're taking it instead of straight removal, which would be silly). It's true that if you don't have blockers it will just take out their worst attacker but if you have blockers your opponent will generally attack with his best creatures (or with evasive creatures that you can't block anyway) and in this case removing a creature that you can't block or one that will require a bad trade for you for 2W at instant speed is not to be underestimated.
OFC if you're far behind you will still be far behind but still... one down.
First, you really "envisioned" a 50/50 deck from pick 1? Why? I don't get it at all - why shoot for that? I don't think your first pick ties you to anything resembling that, and a deck dedicated to one plan will always be WAY better.
Second, the Shrines ... other than the green shrine, all four are very good, and the white/red ones are absurd, and definite first pick material. The white and red both create untenable game states when dropped on turn 2, and are only bad topdecks when pretty far behind (note: most things are terrible when far behind). Blue always cycles in a pinch, and at x=7 or 8 lets you dig for bombs/answers/etc. Black is really the only one that loses value after turn 3, but the lack of timing restriction means it will generally be at least 1:1.
Third ... you really have to get used to the unique valuations in NPH or you'll drown. Porcelain Legionnaire, for example, is NOT a white card - it's an artifact with white upside (if you have it in the opening hand, it's correct to play for 2 so often that it might as well not even have the W in the cost, so the W portion is a late-game life bonus). Tanadon is a great card in a midrange or dinosaur G deck, but can go into others, and can get startlingly aggro ... but you're paying for the trample (in part), which if you're mistakenly already building around p1p1, you don't need. Any fat will do.
It's probably just inexperience with the format - did you play the beta at all? Who do you read to get ideas/examples from? But yeah - there are some valuation issues still, even though the deck wound up pretty OK (for example: does your deck actually play Dispense Justice? Why?).
I second Scartore on the conceptual articles thing. Good topic with good pacing that did everything it needed to do nicely. I especially liked the opening paragraph; it's just a good way to explain the game.
A question: In Constructed formats with rarity restrictions, like Pauper (commons-only) and Peasant or SilverBlack (some uncommons) with less-awesome rare removal, but less-awesome rare creatures, do creatures in generatl naturally increase or decrease in value?
Also, I don't think the screenshots were too small; they could be bigger, but one can understand the situations in context.
Mehhh...I found all the decklists but GWB...hopefully its the good one. RUG really let me down.
http://bit.ly/irk7w8
I absolutely love this format! Interesting deck All i can say guys is, come out bring w/e deck you can scrap together and enjoy the madness that is this new playground we've been given :)
Just a note: Wizards says that the new Commander product will be coming to MTGO, but that there is no official date for the online release. Sad times for us online players.
Thanks for pointing that out! :-) This was the first Double Elimination tournament for me and since I left after round 4 I really had a hard time to figure out what really had happened.
Thank you for hosting and congratulations for your victory!
I'm following the SOM Block results and I see that WU Control is rising in popularity. Even though Black has much better cards than White, at the end it comes down to being able to destroy artifacts and this is what White does. So UB is out and WU is in.
After I submited this article, the WU Control deck also changed a bit; even though just slightly. Venser is now maindecked as a one-of and it has two Sunblast Angels instead of one.
I would personally try to squeeze in one Elesh Norn into this deck somehow. Maybe replacing one Karn with Elesh Norn could be an option (that's a maybe!).
4x Steel Sabotage also makes a lot sense to me. The current WU Control deck plays two in the main deck. It can easily become four and move those two Volition Reins' to the sideboard. Volition Reins isn't that interesting against Steel, and mono Red has very few targets for it.
So yeah, 4x Steel Sabotage should be tested. I'm not so sure about 3x Venser though.
Thanks for the comment.
LE
Great analysis as always, Erman.
I'm trying a UW control myself for the upcoming TNMO Block events. That list looks interesting if a little bit random. Especially if the evaluation of the current meta speaks about the proliferation of Steel decks. I'm especially not sold on that huge 28-land count. I understand the need for consistent drops, but that could bite you back in late game when you have to deliver your punch, and you end up mana flooded instead. Also, if Venser is benched because he's too slow, what about Karn being there? If the curve allows 7cc spells, then even Elesh Norn becomes an option here.
Tell me what you think of this: I was wondering if a deck like that could try and survive the early turns by using full sets of Gitaxian Probes and Psychic Barriers main deck, to be eventually replaced with more removals and Stoic Rebuttals if the matchup calls for that (against control heavy decks - you shouldn't bother to counter Tempered Steel if you already countered the key creatures and still retain the option to revoke it later). Along with the much needed full set of Steel Sabotages (I'm all for maximize a spell's presence in the low mana curve, and use singletons/couples for more expensive spells instead), the tempo gain of countering important stuff one turn earlier could be crucial, couldn't it?
Also, I would like to still try and go with the 3 Venser + 3 Elspeth package, taking advantage of a moderate wellspring ramp, and a singleton Exclusion Ritual, which is just too much of a temptation for Venser to let go. As far as 6cc spells goes, I would like better to exile that Obliterator and preventing other ones to come (try and bomb a 6cc enchantment!), than using a Phyrexian Rebirth on it (which against Steel would be mostly useless anyway), only to probably end up with an unimpressive 1/1 on my side and an Obliterator in the graveyard waiting to be called back somehow, or his loyal brother in hand ready to resume the carnage. Am I so terribly wrong?
Although fliebana did get his spot due to seeding, Owain and SupergrooveRock actually played a match to determine who got the last Top 8 spot. But the match is not included in Gatherling.
Excellent article as always. Thanks for your hard work in creating these week after week.
Nice Deck. :)
Kind of funny we're discussing this, then today I drafted this concoction (comp didn't have "record draft" on unfortunately, this has been rectified) ... I think it shows well what I'm talking about, using Triumph of the Hordes as a true 'Overrun' but not as Plan A, and using the non-infect cards to supplement the strategy (things like proliferate!!! - I took Contagion Clasp over Precursor Golem p3p1).
I swept a 4322 (yeah, I know) without dropping a game. I had enough to not run the U splash, but it was nearly free (curve and colored mana costs allowed it), and Viral Drake alone is worth it. For me, this deck feels much more focused - it's only doing one thing, but it isn't a one-trick pony, you have so many angles and methods of attack (and no rares!).
Shriek Raptor
3x Priest of Norn
Revoke Existence
Apostle's Blessing
Lost Leonin
Viral Drake
Veldaken Anatomist
Chained Throatseeker
Brutalizer Exarch
Plaguemaw Beast
Triumph of the Hordes
Slice in Twain
Tangle Angler
Lead the Stampede
Blight Mamba
Pestilent Souleater
Core Prowler
Blinding Souleater
Throne of Geth
Shrine of Loyal Legions
Contagion Clasp
Razorverge Thicket
3x Island
6x Plains
7x Forest
I don't consider Legionnaire or Tanadon "utility" at all - they're beaters, and don't really even beat without Triumph (that or they have to go all the way themselves).
Here, though, you have actual utility - Shrine, for example, combos incredibly with Triumph, but also with Clasp, Throne of Geth (creates artifacts) and Plaguemaw (creatures). Other non-infect creatures are all removal (souleater, anatomist, exarch) or the plaguemaw, a psuedo-infector.
Next week can w get an Ev on the med sealed events?
Definitely informative, and a good mix of info. Also, nice draft - going T2 Occulus -> T3 Architect/Tanadon seems absurd, especially on the play - nice T3 replica, just bashing for 5 here.
Only quibble: a Splicer is like the best thing to lose to Blisterstick ... it basically turns the potential 2-for-1 into a 0.25-for-1 or whatever.
Thanks
I see what you are saying about the Legionnaire and my comments.
1-drops: 3
2-drops: Divine Offering and Porcelain Legionnaire
3-Drops: 4, only the Rot Wolf for a creature, Dispense Justice, Arrest, Barbed Battlegear, which I would rather play as a 5-drop.
4-drops: 5, 4 of which are creatures and Triumph
5-drops: 4
6-drops: 3, including the Tanadon
2 Untamed Might
No acceleration, 17 lands, top heavy, only Divine Offering, Dispense Justice and Arrest for removal.
Mirran Mettle, and 2 Untamed Might I want for finsishers (more so the UMight) but are combat tricks.
Then there was the Brutalizer Exarch, too.
Sideboard Cards I never played:
Loxidon Partisan, Tangle Hulk, Phyrexian Digester, Lead the Stampede and 2 Origin Spellbombs. I had the mana available on turn three because I had so little to play there and it was available very late. There were more situations when I had it and it was useful, than either I had it and didn't have the mana available or had it and it wasn't useful.
The only non-infect/ infect utility cards in the final build:
Fangren Marauder, Brutalizer Exarch, Thundering Tanadon, Acid Web Spider, Porcelain Legionnaire.
They are all excellent utility creatures that work well with Triumph.
What I'm saying is that my vision is that 50/50 is okay. In the end it led me to this, which I think is a pretty good deck. It only got this good because Green(any) and White infect were open, but that's the story of most drafts.
Although Priests are awesome walls, the Vigilance and boardsate often lead to, "Why not!" And how many times have you have a piece of equipment lying around and suddenly, that Priest is a Beast.
Utility with in upside is what I'm saying.
To clarify what I meant on Legionnaire - your explanation for p1p3 is that your deck, as currently composed, would pair best with white, hence taking Legionnaire ... I'm merely pointing out that Legionnaire isn't committing, nor necessarily a signal to go into white. I still prob take Scorn there, but it's definitely debatable, Shatter is at its lowest value right now in my opinion.
What I'm saying about dedicated decks is almost self-evident to the point of tautology - I'm merely saying that having a deck that has a well-developed plan will be better than one whose plan is fractured. I do agree that often, post-NPH decks will require a split plan because of the nature of how infect is spread among the packs - no issues there, my point though is that shouldn't be a goal from p1p1 in my opinion. I'm open to other ideas though, if you want to explain further?
AFA Priests of Norn:
-Would play 100% in any white deck looking to win via infect damage.
-Would play nearly all the time in a midrange-y white deck that needed early defense (although in GW I'd prefer Rot Wolf and Cystbearer for this purpose, as they serve it better AND are better infectors).
-Would play only if absolutely needed in the "white skies" deck that is becoming somewhat more popular, as I'd much rather use my t3 for something like Skyguard, Invisimancer or Scudder in a deck attempting to win via evasion.
Those are really the three main white archetypes, in my mind, and Priests goes from excellent/necessary common to chaff I'm hoping to cut. Obviously sometimes the plan changes mid-stream, but that's the fun of drafting anyway.
Dispense Justice fits into the same category - in your deck (which is hoping to tap out for threats and use pump spells proactively to push threats, and has a sorcery-speed bomb to boot), how often do you even have 2W open? It seems fine in a stall, but isn't it about the worst card in the deck in your opening hand? Did you have anything in the sideboard that could further the main plan, instead of holding out for a stall?
Blightwidow is far from being inherently defensive. Just look at it as a 4/4 that deals unrecoverable damage. ;-)
Priests of Norn (and Blightwidow) are pretty poor examples in the argument of trying to go only one way; they're inherently defensive cards, and you only win by attacking, so they don't count for as much.
Oh, and since MBS, I've been watching all of the videos from the Pros. The first came out today. That's where I start to refine my card evaluation and pick orders. After a few weeks of those, I can usually predict their picks.
The first videos are up today. I can't wait to watch them.
I commented on some article here regarding my theory on this format. I couldn't find it which is too bad because it would have proved that I was envisioning a 50/50 deck.
Basically the theory boiled down to:
SoM SoM SoM: needed focused Black and Green
MBS SoM SoM: infect got 'weaker' because Green's commons were splahable and the curve got higher. The amazing infect deck got harder to build.
NPH MBS SoM: Now every color gets itfect. There will be even fewer focused infect decks and 50/50 will not only be okay, but is expeceted.
That's the main idea. Don't take the vocabluary too seriously.
So that was the idea I went in with. I ended up two-thirds infect btw.
Speaking of taking vocabulary seriously, you said, "and a deck dedicated to one plan will always be WAY better." So, are you saying that if you were in White you wouldn't want something like a Priests of Norn? I'm just getting picky here, I get what you are saying I just see it a little differently.
I 'get' the Porcelain Legionnaire. Did I play it turn three or something? I can't read the article while on this screen. I think I remember playing it third after the Acolyte when a Perilous Myr was on the table. I remember playing it turn three and taking a 2-life hit when I had Mirran Mettle and Opponent saw my hand. I also, 'get' the Tanadon. I'm not sure why you think I don't. Early play plus trample means that he is getting through for lots of damage, many times because the opponent won't chump. I know Triumph gives everything trample.
I did not play any at all. I read set reviews from LSV, Conley Woods, and listened to Limited Resources. I did not play the beta. In general, I pretty much took what they said and formed my own opinion. Yeah, I would say that I had a little help, but mainly I felt like the deck was my own idea.
I did play Dispense Justice(DJ). I also played Mirran Mettle without much of a chance at metalcraft. I had three spiders and some fatties and two Shriek Raptors. If I wanted to force a boardstate where Opponent could only swing with one guy, it was pretty easy. It didn't help much when I was behind, but it worked out nicely. Like the next poster said, there is more than one way to play that card.
Thank you for your post. I like the info on the Shrines as well as the 'debate.'
Finally had time to watch these. Good work.
You need theme music. ;P
I really like your open criticism of your own play and pointing out your mistakes. You keep it real. Classic is so much a game of inches; I can't count how many games I lost to one "minor" misplay or misclick.
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I probably like mediocre cards better than most but I actually think Dispense Justice is ok even without metalcraft (unless you're taking it instead of straight removal, which would be silly). It's true that if you don't have blockers it will just take out their worst attacker but if you have blockers your opponent will generally attack with his best creatures (or with evasive creatures that you can't block anyway) and in this case removing a creature that you can't block or one that will require a bad trade for you for 2W at instant speed is not to be underestimated.
OFC if you're far behind you will still be far behind but still... one down.
First, you really "envisioned" a 50/50 deck from pick 1? Why? I don't get it at all - why shoot for that? I don't think your first pick ties you to anything resembling that, and a deck dedicated to one plan will always be WAY better.
Second, the Shrines ... other than the green shrine, all four are very good, and the white/red ones are absurd, and definite first pick material. The white and red both create untenable game states when dropped on turn 2, and are only bad topdecks when pretty far behind (note: most things are terrible when far behind). Blue always cycles in a pinch, and at x=7 or 8 lets you dig for bombs/answers/etc. Black is really the only one that loses value after turn 3, but the lack of timing restriction means it will generally be at least 1:1.
Third ... you really have to get used to the unique valuations in NPH or you'll drown. Porcelain Legionnaire, for example, is NOT a white card - it's an artifact with white upside (if you have it in the opening hand, it's correct to play for 2 so often that it might as well not even have the W in the cost, so the W portion is a late-game life bonus). Tanadon is a great card in a midrange or dinosaur G deck, but can go into others, and can get startlingly aggro ... but you're paying for the trample (in part), which if you're mistakenly already building around p1p1, you don't need. Any fat will do.
It's probably just inexperience with the format - did you play the beta at all? Who do you read to get ideas/examples from? But yeah - there are some valuation issues still, even though the deck wound up pretty OK (for example: does your deck actually play Dispense Justice? Why?).
Thanks for the post!
I second Scartore on the conceptual articles thing. Good topic with good pacing that did everything it needed to do nicely. I especially liked the opening paragraph; it's just a good way to explain the game.
A question: In Constructed formats with rarity restrictions, like Pauper (commons-only) and Peasant or SilverBlack (some uncommons) with less-awesome rare removal, but less-awesome rare creatures, do creatures in generatl naturally increase or decrease in value?
Also, I don't think the screenshots were too small; they could be bigger, but one can understand the situations in context.