Innistrad Remastered’s release is now less than two weeks away, and the set’s entire card list has been revealed. As expected, the set is very nostalgic, and there are tons of expensive reprints for players and collectors to get their hands on.
Of course, one of the cool things about Innistrad Remastered is that it contains thematic reprints from throughout MTG’s history. This should create a fun and fresh environment for those who enjoyed Innistrad Limited and want to take a trip down memory lane.
This set is incredibly synergistic with some unique and unusual Draft archetypes. As such, it might be a bit difficult to know exactly how to approach drafting Innistrad Remastered.
If you’re worried, fear not, because we’re here to give you a rundown on the strongest cards to look out for. Even if you don’t open any mythic rare bombs, these commons and uncommons can give you a strong sense of direction and help you navigate your way to victory!
Top Tier Archetypal Payoffs
First things first, some important cards to look for during your draft are the archetype-defining gold uncommons. Each color pair has one, and most of them are pretty good. A few, though, are stronger than others.
At the top of the list, we have Bloodtithe Harvester. According to 17lands.com (a site that tracks MTG Arena user draft data), Bloodtithe Harvester had the highest win rate when maindecked of any uncommon in Innistrad: Crimson Vow. We don’t expect much to change here.
By itself, Bloodtithe Harvester is insanely strong. It has three power, so it trades with bigger creatures. You can always sacrifice it to kill a problematic small creature (or bigger if you can generate more blood tokens). This doesn’t even factor in Madness synergies with cards like Stormkirk Occultist that actually pull you ahead on resources thanks to the Blood token.
All this power on a two-drop is spectacular, but Bloodtithe Harvester isn’t the only two-drop that heavily rewards you for playing a specific color pair. Bladestitched Skaab is another uncommon that completely overperformed in its original draft environment.
Bladestitched Skaab is a simpler creature but is not difficult to maximize. Dimir is chock full of Zombies, and the more copies of Bladestitched Skaab you can find, the scarier your army becomes. Not all the signpost uncommons are created equal in Innistrad Remastered, but we expect both of these to remain elite options once again.
Flexible Support Cards
While Bloodtithe Harvester and Bladestitched Skaab are indeed powerful pillars to the Rakdos Madness and Dimir Zombies archetypes, as multicolor cards, they are a bit narrower in application than some other premium picks. One of the nice things about Innistrad Remastered is that there’s a lot of archetypal overlap.
You may be incentivized to pick more versatile options early in the draft that are strong in a variety of different decks. The key is knowing the various draft archetypes and recognizing the cards that fit into multiple strategies.
Lingering Souls is a prime example. In a vacuum, Lingering Souls is already incredible. If you’re playing Orzhov Aristocrats, you’ll want the card. However, Lingering Souls is also excellent alongside Rally the Peasants in a go-wide Boros shell. The tokens generated are Spirits, making Lingering Souls a great card to splash in Azorius if you can pick up an Evolving Wilds or two.
Even in a Rakdos deck with limited ways to splash, discarding Lingering Souls via a blood token and flashing it back is totally fine. This flexibility makes Lingering Souls an even higher pick in draft than it otherwise would be since you have a higher likelihood of being able to facilitate Lingering Souls regardless of what path you go down.
Cards in a similar boat are Morbid Opportunist and Town Gossipmonger. Morbid Opportunist is great in Orzhov thanks to sacrifice outlets like Fleshtaker. It’s also excellent in Golgari alongside Grizzly Ghoul and friends since it triggers off opposing creatures dying, too. Rakdos shells will want Morbid Opportunist to pair with all the removal available. If you’re playing black, chances are this card will be great.
Similarly, Town Gossipmonger shines bright in Boros go-wide decks but fits into Orzhov and Selesnya all the same. Getting passed one of these cards as well as any generically strong removal spell, such as Fiery Temper, should serve as a strong signal that color is open.
Common Signals
Beyond just uncommons, some multi-archetype staples at common should serve as signals all the same. White has two premium commons in Lunarch Veteran and Thraben Inspector that are great pretty much no matter what white deck you end up in.
Meanwhile, red has Abrade and Voldaren Epicure. Abrade is a first-pickable card, so if you see one fourth or fifth pick, that’s a signal that red is open.
Voldaren Epicure is a bit of a different case because it’s at its best by far in Rakdos. What this means, though, is that if Rakdos is indeed open in your seat, you may be able to wheel Voldaren Epicure. Being able to pick up a great card for Rakdos late in the pack since other red decks don’t want the card as much is a huge luxury to have.
The other colors don’t seem to have commons quite on the level of Thraben Inspector or Abrade. Regardless, seeing a late Tower Geist or Tragic Slip can give you a hint about what others around you are drafting.
At the end of the day, there’s no need to fret if you don’t get any busted rares or mythic rares. If you find the open lane and make sure your cards synergize with each other, you’ll be in good shape.
