I suck at draft. How do i get better
Limited forum
Posted on May 27, 2016, 11:23 p.m. by AwesomeOctopus
I draft almost every week, and have been for almost 2 years. But since origins I haven't gone better than 1-3 in a draft except maybe once. In origins i think I only did well because it was a core set and a monkey could draft something with such basic mechanics.
I Always loose the first 2 rounds, the only matches I do win are the 3rd which because of swiss pairings means am playing otjer shitty players.
I generally have fun, buts its disheartening to always lose even when you think you drafted well. And the fact that I have been doing this for 2 years and show no improvement makes me consider quitting unless i can stop sucking. I have some decklists where i kept track of what i drafted on my profile and i know you guys cant see what i was passed or what went on but maybe I can get some advice
SpringingTiger says... #3
Have you tried listening to Limited Resources, watching draft videos, and/or reading strategy articles, such as those on channelfireball.com?
May 27, 2016 11:42 p.m.
When in doubt, mono-color aggro. Or look at the spoilers for those cards and try and figure out what colors/tactic would be best. Example, for the current one (Shadows over Innistrad), white is solid color, lots of chumps and removals; or you could try and pull off an Investigate deck. Which is really freaking annoying.
Of course, it would depends on the pull you have. I tend to either work around a color or two, or focus around a rare/mythic pull. Example, you pull a Anguished Unmaking, really good removal, build around that via colors. Pulled the New Jace? Guess you're going blue/x(?).
May 28, 2016 12:18 a.m.
Limited resources is the way to go for sure. The best one IMO that I've listened to is called quadrant theory revisited. It's very informative. They also have a list on their site of the top ~10? Best podcasts they've done.
But I would also pay attention to who drafts in your store that does go 4-0/3-1 consistently. Ask them for advice. A little advice varies from format to format for sure, but a lot of the advise you'll get will improve your drafting as well as your normal game in general.
May 28, 2016 4:20 a.m.
I seldom do well at draft, too, even though it's probably my favorite format. I am almost never the winner for my own cube.
May 28, 2016 8:35 a.m.
fadelightningmm says... #7
I draft very seldom but I use to try forcing green because I enjoyed it. Around BFZ I started taking it more seriously. But what I noticed was try playing fast decks. The faster the deck the better. Additionally fliers (even vanilla 2/2s) are extremely powerful
May 28, 2016 9:14 a.m.
My first draft was innistrad and I went werewolves because I noticed that the packs had lots of synergy with them while I was picking for value the first round.I think I may have gotten lucky because I think the other players were value picking the whole time.
Since then I tend to win some / lose some. Maybe going for value that first round while looking for synergy is a good idea. Others will be able to see the same things that you see, though.
I should probably look at videos, too. I know it goes bombs-answers-evasion or something like that. I'm missing a step there but there is also hate and value to consider.
May 28, 2016 9:15 a.m.
JANKYARD_DOG says... #9
In my own experience, having won my fair share of drafts, I would decide what I was drafting on the first packs rare. If mono colored I'd decide a splash usually by the 3rd/4th pass. If multicolored I would still make one primary color and a splash. Again, in my own experience, removal is everything. The more the better, because of the limited card pool and assuming nearly half of it is lands (14-17 cards. I find 16 is my magic number.) you can usually go card for card or better until you gain the upper hand. Now, I haven't had the opportunity to draft SOI yet, but looking at the cards I believe the same strategy is possible. Don't be afraid to try different things, once you get to know the cards in the set you're drafting you'll find different combos/synergies you can use. Hope it helps, but remember to have fun at least.
May 28, 2016 11:01 a.m.
Piling on to what others have said, listening to Limited Resources is a good start. If you play MTGO at all, another thing is to record and rewatch your drafts (you can also share them online, if you can deal with the trolls). It's a good tool to be able to sit back both during the draft and game play and just watch yourself pick/play, especially if you are good at thinking out loud (to be able to analyze your decision process, not just the decision itself).
May 29, 2016 11:42 p.m.
I usually find that reading LSV's set review articles to be the most help.
They can all be found HERE
Make sure you look at the 'Limited', and read through each of the 5 colors, as well as the colorless/multi-color articles. (As well, take note that he is usually talking about Draft, but sometimes he's talking about Sealed)
After that, any other 'Pro' articles will be useful. - This includes any articles LSV posts that states 'changes' to cards evaluations (sometimes he over/under estimates cards), but other Pro's will have different view points and may think that different draft strategy/synergies are more relevant.
The hard part then is to put it all into practice. If you enjoy drafting/playing online, go there and play a lot. You can get a lot of practice in quickly, at a relatively low cost.
May 30, 2016 10:57 a.m. Edited.
insertcleverid says... #12
I also spent a couple of years being bad at drafting. The one thing I did to most improve my game in the shortest amount of time is what others have said above: Listen to the Limited Resources podcast. Start here on their sub-reddit's level-up list. There's probably a dozen titles that will immediately interest you. Without seeing you draft it would be hard to know which ones would help you the most, but in general I would recommend the episodes on draft navigation (#325 or 224), quadrant theory (#248) and CABS theory (#296) as great places to start.
The next thing to do is watch draft videos. Channel Fireball or Drafting with Numot are popular for good reason, but there are endless choices. Hearing the sheer volume of thought and decision-making that goes on in the head of an accomplished drafter can be a level-up all by itself.
Good luck!
June 1, 2016 9:29 a.m.
AwesomeOctopus says... #13
Thanks guy I have actually started taking some advice and listening to the limited resources podcast.
June 2, 2016 12:23 a.m.
TheRedMage says... #14
Limited Resources is a very good place to start. Some of the solutions that some previous commenters have proposed - like forcing, or sticking to mono-colored aggressive decks - can get you started and are not bad ways to start getting some wins, but ultimately they are crutches that someone that is seriously interesting in learning how to draft should look to abandon as soon as they are ready.
One of the first things you need to build up is card evaluation. In most formats (and granted, that has not been true for BFZ and SOI, but it is true in most cases) if you just build a deck that has 23 good cards and a solid curve in two colors, you can win games without the need to get fancy. But figuring out which cards are the good cards is not always easy. Start by reading (or listening up) on card evaluation tools (the vanilla test, quadrant theory, and so on) and when you have the tools to at fully understand what a reviewer is talking about, make a point to read or listen to a set review early in the format. As you become a better drafter, you'll find yourself relying on card-by-card reviews less, but they are a good place to start.
June 20, 2016 1:22 p.m. Edited.
AwesomeOctopus says... #15
Update: I have been listening to LR cast and it really helped. The first week I went 2-1 which hasn't happened in a while. last week I didn't do well, but I was trying out their advice on how to build a control deck in limited which was something I had never done before so it was new ground, and my second match the guy was sitting next to someone who had never drafted before and passed him rediculously good cards. he cast relentless dead and then prized amalgam on curve and there was nothing i could do. I went 1-2 as usual but i did win the first match which is pretty rare
June 20, 2016 11:11 p.m.
insertcleverid says... #16
Congratulations! The thing to remember is there will always be room for improvement, and everybody, even the best players I know, hit losing streaks or find there are formats that they never quite master (Origins was tough for some reason).
I've been actively working to become the best limited player I can since Khans and I still have goals to reach and challenges to overcome. Never stop never stopping
June 24, 2016 12:53 p.m.
TheRedMage says... #17
Speaking of Limited Resources - some of what insertcleverid says about losing streaks ties into something that Marshall and the other cohosts talk about a lot on the show, which is Results-Oriented Thinking. (I believe the first episode devoted to the argument is episode 137.
Basically the idea is that magic is a game of variance and sometimes you can do everything right and still lose. As such, you should focus on the decisions you make, and not on the results that come out of them. If you take the right decision, sometimes it will still lead to a loss, but on average it will raise you win percentage.
This cuts both ways. Sometimes you lose because you didn't make the right decision, and it's important to recognize that and not blame variance.
Obviously figuring out what the correct decisions are can be hard, but getting to the point where you can be honest about when you did something that could have been better executed, and when you were simply punished by variance, is one of the most important skills to learn in order to grow as a player faster.
June 24, 2016 3:21 p.m.
strictlyWorse says... #18
i am also a fan of drafting, who usually wipes during a draft. i draft weekly, and in my past 2 years of drafting i have learned that you can never have enough kill.
still... it does have a lot to do with your pool.
ducttapedeckbox says... #2
I'm kind of in the same boat.
I only get to draft occasionally, due to my flipping between school and home. Because of that, I only draft each set a few times- not enough for me to get a feel of what to do.
Here are some recommendations if you're able to consistently draft:
Hope this helps.
May 27, 2016 11:40 p.m.