Foreword
In this article, I go through an entire sample Epic Open Draft. I will be drafting 40 cards per deck and cutting 10 each for 30 card decks. I am picking for both decks, but, since the cards are visible to both players constantly in this format, I don’t have to pretend that I don’t have complete knowledge. So I think it works. (This wouldn’t work for Dark Draft; however, you can expect to see something involving Dark Draft soon.)
After showing my picks, I explain why I picked the cards for each deck. Anytime I say A thinks this or B thinks that, I am referring to my own thought process. I use A and B to (hopefully) make it easier to follow as two separate drafts.
Round 1 (Player A First Pick)
Player A 1st Pick: Medusa
Player B 2nd/3rd Picks: Fireball and Pyromancer
Player A 4th Card: Infernal Gatekeeper
1st Pick Explanation (Player A): None of the 4 cards are incredible faction independent cards. So, A decided to commit to Evil, since Medusa is a really strong Evil card.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player B): B really doesn’t value Infernal Gatekeeper strongly, even though B knows A wants Evil cards. Fireball and Pyromancer are also decent cards, but picking them might be a mistake. If B were to decide to take the Infernal Gatekeeper instead, B would probably take Fireball with it.
Player A:
Evil
Infernal Gatekeeper
Medusa
Good
Sage
Wild
Player B:
Evil
Good
Sage
Wild
Fireball
Pyromancer
Round 2 (Player B First Pick)
Player B 1st Pick: Palace Guard
Player A 2nd/3rd Picks: Thundarus and Priest of Kalnor
Player B 4th Card: Djinn of the Sands
1st Pick Explanation (Player B): Palace Guard is an incredible card in draft. Easy pick. B will have to draft answers for Thundarus, but B would do that anyway.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player A): Thundarus is strong if unanswered and A thinks both Djinn of the Sands and Priest of Kalnor are weak. A picked Priest of Kalnor since it has been doing work in constructed recently. There is a decent chance both Priest and Djinn will be cut.
Round 3 (Player A First Pick)
Player A 1st Pick: Muse
Player B 2nd/3rd Picks: Blue Dragon and Corpse Taker
Player A 4th Card: Hunting Raptors
1st Pick Explanation (Player A): Muse was by far the best card in the 4, no question.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player B): Blue Dragon draws a card and kills Muse. So B picked it even though B doubts B‘ll run Djinn of the Sands. B is not a big fan of Hunting Raptors and neither player has much Wild yet, so B passed on it. That left Corpse Taker which is a decent card.
Round 4 (Player B First Pick)
Player B 1st Pick: Guilt Demon
Player A 2nd/3rd Picks: Unquenchable Thirst and Wolf Companion
Player B 4th Card: Drinker of Blood
1st Pick Explanation (Player B): Guilt Demon is once again the best card of the 4.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player A): Unquenchable Thirst is strong since A plans on having more Evil cards. A is not a big fan of Drinker of Blood, although it has done well at times. A really likes the idea of Wolf Companion: +2/+2 for 0 that can be recalled to get a wolf token. It may be the “wrong” choice, but A takes Wolf Companion here.
Round 5 (Player A First Pick)
Player A 1st Pick: The People’s Champion
Player B 2nd/3rd Picks: Standard Bearer and Dark Knight
Player A 4th Card: Memory Spirit
1st Pick Explanation (Player A): None of the cards here are great for A‘s deck, so A went with the pure counter pick. A didn’t want B to get both Standard Bearer and The People’s Champion when B already has Drinker of Blood. The People’s Champion is also a pretty decent card.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player B): On the flip side, B doesn’t want to give A Standard Bearer and The People’s Champion either. Neither side has great events yet, but they will, so Memory Spirit is viable. B ended up taking Dark Knight though, since it is a decent card, and it denies A Evil for Medusa and Unquenchable Thirst.
Round 6 (Player B First Pick)
Player B 1st Pick: Secret Legion
Player A 2nd/3rd Picks: Crystal Golem and Wolf’s Call
Player B 4th Card: Rampaging Wurm
1st Pick Explanation (Player B): In combination with Standard Bearer, Drinker of Blood, and the fact that B got the Fireball, B is beginning to be seduced by the idea of a token deck (even though B doesn’t think they are particularly viable currently). Crystal Golem is generally a better card, but B has decided to chase tokens. Courageous Soul would be very strong to get later.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player A): Crystal Golem is the best of the 3 cards remaining. A doesn’t value Wolf’s Call or Rampaging Wurm highly, but since B is going for tokens, A will take Wolf’s Call.
Round 7 (Player A First Pick)
Player A 1st Pick: Zombie Apocalypse
Player B 2nd/3rd Picks: Hurricane and Divine Judgement
Player A 4th Card: Avenging Angel
1st Pick Explanation (Player A): A wants both Hurricane and Zombie Apocalypse, since both can stop tokens. In this case, A goes with Zombie Apocalypse since it is Evil.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player B): Hurricane is an obvious choice because it is powerful and strong against tokens. Divine Judgement is a board clear or Draw 2, so strong stuff. B still thinks Avenging Angel is too fragile, but B doesn’t have reliable ways to deal with Avenging Angel, let alone Thundarus, yet. So, this might be a mistake.
Round 8 (Player B First Pick)
Player B 1st Pick: Kong
Player A 2nd/3rd Picks: Juggernaut and Thought Plucker
Player B 4th Card: Rain of Fire
1st Pick Explanation (Player B): Kong is amazing, and it has strong synergy with Hurricane. Unfortunately for B, Juggernaut and Thought Plucker are also really strong. If A takes both though, Rain of Fire is a nice card against both of those.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player A): A does indeed take both Sage cards. A is somewhat firmly Evil/Sage. B still isn’t fully committed to any faction.
Round 9 (Player A First Pick)
Player A 1st Pick: Sea Titan
Player B 2nd/3rd Picks: Mighty Blow and Lying in Wait
Player A 4th Card: Vital Mission
1st Pick Explanation (Player A): Now we have a situation where all 4 cards are powerful. A is going to take Sea Titan though, since A does believe it to be that powerful. Vital Mission would be strong with A‘s Thundarus and The People’s Champion. Lying in Wait is amazing, and Mighty Blow is excellent for token decks.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player B): Mighty Blow is picked since this is a token deck. Lying in Wait to deal with that Sea Titan (in addition to it just being an incredible card). This does give A Vital Mission, which is not ideal, but B thinks it is worth it. This could be a mistake.
Round 10 (Player B First Pick)
Player B 1st Pick: Steel Golem
Player A 2nd/3rd Picks: Succubus and Hasty Retreat
Player B 4th Card: Thrasher Demon
1st Pick Explanation (Player B): B is a big fan of Steel Golem; a 13/13 untargetable is insane, especially with Blitz. Unfortunately, it probably won’t have blitz for B, currently. Hasty Retreat would be a strong way to slow down both Thundarus and Avenging Angel. A also probably wants both Evil cards for loyalty. B does love Steel Golem though, and there is Hurricane. The People’s Champion could be annoying against Steel Golem but still worth it.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player A): A really wants both Evil cards, but Hasty Retreat would be too powerful against A‘s deck. In addition, Hasty Retreat is generally a better card than Thrasher Demon.
Round 11 (Player A First Pick)
Player A 1st Pick: Sea Hydra
Player B 2nd/3rd Picks: Plentiful Dead and Ogre Mercenary
Player A 4th Card: Demon Breach
1st Pick Explanation (Player A): Easy first pick as only Sea Hydra is decently strong. It also denies Sea Hydra into Hurricane for B.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player B): B took Plentiful Dead to deny it, since it could chump a few of B‘s big champions. Ogre Mercenary over Demon Breach since Demon Breach is so bad, in my opinion. That might be a mistake since it does give A another Evil card, but A might not even run it.
Round 12 (Player B First Pick)
Player B 1st Pick: Angel of Light
Player A 2nd/3rd Picks: Warrior Golem and Priestess of Angeline
Player B 4th Card: The Risen
1st Pick Explanation (Player B): 4 fairly bad cards for draft. Angel of Light probably won’t get loyalty. Priestess of Angeline won’t get many ally triggers. The Risen could work with B‘s 0-cost Evil champions, but they all already have blitz. Warrior Golem probably won’t have blitz. So, a 5/6 ambush, airborne, 5 health gain champion (possibly 10) seems like the best choice. Decent chance it gets cut though.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player A): Warrior Golem for A does actually have a solid chance of getting blitz. Priestess of Angeline might heal some health, and it does at least recycle. A knows The Risen would probably get cut anyways.
Round 13 (Player A First Pick)
Player A 1st Pick: Turn
Player B 2nd/3rd Picks: Flame Strike and Rage
Player A 4th Card: White Knight
1st Pick Explanation (Player A): Turn is incredible and A currently has all of the bounce, only Erase is left. Flame Strike is quite strong, but Turn against all of B‘s big champions is excellent.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player B): Flame Strike and Rage are the picks no question. Flame Strike is great, and B has a lot of strong targets for Rage. Giving away White Knight also isn’t an issue.
Round 14 (Player B First Pick)
Player B 1st Pick: Wave of Transformation
Player A 2nd/3rd Picks: Lurking Giant and Wither
Player B 4th Card: Surprise Attack
1st Pick Explanation (Player B): Wave of Transformation is the best constructed card in the game (my opinion as of 3/14/16). It answers literally any threat for a turn, unless of course Wolf’s Call is used after or something. Wither would be nice for triggering B‘s own Drinker, but B literally can’t pass up Wave of Transformation. It is also an answer for Thundarus.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player A): Wither is a nice way to stop tokens or at least 1 for 1 trade with a lot of B‘s 0-cost Evil minions. It also counter picks it from being used against Muse, and it helps the Evil loyalty. Lurking Giant is a solid big ambush champion. Surprise Attack is just a luxury in draft.
Round 15 (Player A First Pick)
Player A 1st Pick: Angel of Mercy
Player B 2nd/3rd Picks: Banishment and Inheritance of the Meek
Player A 4th Card: Angelic Protector
1st Pick Explanation (Player A): Angel of Mercy causes A to shift the focus of their draft. A‘s Evil cards are pretty lackluster, but A‘s Good cards are pretty strong. So, A is going to stop pursuing Evil cards and focus on Good/Sage going forward. Angelic Protector would also be strong since it works with Sea Hydra and Angel of Mercy. Banishment would be nice since B has a lot of big champions it can hit. Inheritance of the Meek would be strong to hit Steel Golem, but B does have some token strategy as well which it can’t stop.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player B): Banishment is counter picked so it can’t be used against B‘s big champions. Inheritance of the Meek is to hit Sea Titan and Crystal Golem if needed. Unfortunately, this does give A Angelic Protector, which could be a mistake.
Round 16 (Player B First Pick)
Player B 1st Pick: Amnesia
Player A 2nd/3rd Picks: Final Task and Trihorror
Player B 4th Card: Soul Hunter
1st Pick Explanation (Player B): Amnesia is the only super strong card in the group. Using it to completely stop someone from drawing out in draft is incredible. Final Task is okay since B does have Kong and Palace Guard, and it can draw 2. It definitely isn’t strong though.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player A): Final Task is picked for the draw 2 option. Both Soul Hunter and Trihorror are weak to the excessive banish of B, but Trihorror (if not cut) does work nicely with Final Task.
Round 17 (Player A First Pick)
Player A 1st Pick: Courageous Soul
Player B 2nd/3rd Picks: Frost Giant and Rally the People
Player A 4th Card: Dark Assassin
1st Pick Explanation (Player A): A could not let B have Courageous Soul. Since B has some token capability and a decent number of 0-cost champions, Courageous Soul would be very dangerous.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player B): Frost Giant is incredible and Rally the People works with the token/0-cost champions. If B was paying less attention, a counter pick of Dark Assassin could make sense. Dark Assassin is super strong, and it did seem that A was going Evil early on. Looking at A‘s cards though, a Evil deck would be weak.
Round 18 (Player B First Pick)
Player B 1st Pick: Time Bender
Player A 2nd/3rd Picks: Forcemage Apprentice and Army of the Apocalypse
Player B 4th Card: Fire Shaman
1st Pick Explanation (Player B): Time Bender is a counter pick and potentially playable. B really doesn’t want A to get Time Bender. Forcemage Apprentice and Fire Shaman would both be pretty decent, since B has some investment in both. Army of the Apocalypse could work with the 0-cost champions.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player A): Forcemage Apprentice because of the decent amount of Sage. Army of the Apocalypse since A seems light on drawing.
Round 19 (Player A First Pick)
Player A 1st Pick: Psionic Assualt
Player B 2nd/3rd Picks: Transform and Necromancer Lord
Player A 4th Card: Bitten
1st Pick Explanation (Player A): A has 4 excellent cards to choose from. Necromancer Lord could make it worth going back into Evil over Good, but that would make Angel of Mercy less useful. A could still go Evil/Good though, instead of Sage. Bitten and Transform are both solid removal capable of hitting Thundarus. Psionic Assault is incredible especially with Thought Plucker. A wants to pivot back into Evil for Necromancer Lord, but A is too afraid of Psionic Assault. Being in 3 factions weakly is also not a great idea. And, even without first picking it, A could still get Necromancer Lord.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player B): Transform is taken since it is so strong. Necromancer Lord is counter picked since it could be super powerful for A.
Round 20 (Player B First Pick)
Player B 1st Pick: Noble Unicorn
Player A 2nd/3rd Picks: Winter Fairy and Lord of the Arena
Player B 4th Card: Cave Troll
1st Pick Explanation (Player B): B really doesn’t want A to have Noble Unicorn. Noble Unicorn is a lot of card draw especially with Angel of Mercy.
2nd/3rd Picks Explanation (Player A): Neither player can make amazing use of Cave Troll, so A took the other 2 decent cards.
Final Decks and Explanations
A decided its Evil wasn’t strong enough to support an investment in it. Its Evil cards were also some of its worst. So, Demon Breach, Infernal Gatekeeper, and Trihorror were cut because they are bad. Dark Assassin, Medusa, and Unquenchable Thirst were cut because there wasn’t enough Evil remaining.
Wolf’s Call and Courageous Soul were cut because they are bad (in this deck). Hunting Raptors was cut because it isn’t great, especially without Wild support.
Army of the Apocalypse was cut because A‘s deck isn’t particularly well-tuned for it, the draw 2 isn’t needed, and the Evil investment isn’t needed.
Plentiful Dead, The Risen, and Djinn of the Sands were cut because they are bad. Necromancer Lord was cut due to a lack of Evil. Rally the People was cut because it probably wouldn’t do much unless played with Secret Legion. Rampaging Wurm, Cave Troll, and Surprise Attack were all cut because they don’t fit into the deck well.
Soul Hunter is kept so it can be discarded against Psionic Assault and Thought Plucker.
Draft Conclusions
I am a big proponent of counter picking. So, it makes sense that, when I draft against myself, neither deck is amazing. I believe that is what happened here.
A opened with Medusa and Infernal Gatekeeper, but B was able to sap the Evil enough that neither of those cards made it into the final deck. Necromancer Lord was the big steal, but Corpse Taker, Dark Knight, Guilt Demon, and Thrasher Demon would all have been helpful. Not all of those were specifically counter picks, but enough of them were to neutralize the Medusa, Dark Assassin, and theoretical Necromancer Lord. This in turn effectively neutralized Evil for both decks.
On the other hand, A was able to counter pick enough to prevent B‘s token strategy from becoming incredibly viable as well. Courageous Soul, The People’s Champion, and Wither would all have been excellent for B. As it is, the token strategy is still slightly kept because of Drinker of Blood.
With both decks, the factions largely fell into place because of the strong cards of those factions picked. Evil was contested and largely made irrelevant, but both decks had decent showings in Good and Sage. A was able to focus more, and B had to add in a decent amount of Wild. This is part of the reason why I think A‘s deck is better.
I also think A‘s deck is stronger because it has better specific cards/combinations. Angel of Mercy is incredible, and A has enough decent Good cards to make it worthwhile. In addition, Psionic Assault + Thought Plucker is excellent. Untargetable champions (mainly Sea Titan) are also crazy strong.
I am not entirely sure how B wins. It does have the weak token strategy, and it did get both Kong and Palace Guard. Noble Unicorn is also strong, and 0-cost blitz champions can do work. But, I think A‘s deck deck would do better for the reasons listed above.