Top Commons and Uncommons in Dominaria (Part 1)
Hello everybody!
As I have done with the last few sets, I will be covering what I believe are the best commons and uncommons for each color in Dominaria.
This is written in the perspective of drafting, but a lot of it will hold true for sealed as well – especially team sealed. While I have done a few drafts now, I still expect many of these evaluations will change as I draft the set more, but hopefully, this provides you with some direction in this new format.
Today, I will be covering White, Blue and Black. In my next article, I will be rounding it off by discussing Red and Green.
White's Top 3 Uncommons:
1) Serra Angel
One of White's most iconic creatures is back – and as per usual, it looks to be one of the best uncommons in the set. A five mana 4/4 flying would already be above the average rate, but she even has vigilance, which makes it a formidable force on both offense and defense.
2) Seal Away
Seal Away can be compared to Immolating Glare, but it is even better, as you can remove creatures that are tapped as opposed to attacking. That means you can exile creatures with tap abilities such as Aryel, Knight of Windgrace, or tap down a creature with Merfolk Trickster or Icy Manipulator before removing it.
It is also worth noting that Seal Away exiles the creature as opposed to destroying it, which is relevant as there a few ways to return creatures from graveyards such as Soul Salvage. Note, that since this is an enchantment, be careful to play around instant speed enchantment removal such as Blessed Light and Invoke the Divine.
3) Danitha Capashen, Paragon
Choosing the third best uncommon was a tough pick between Danitha Capashen, Paragon and On Serra's Wings. Ultimately, I went with the former. While the aura is pushed on power level, there is also a lot of removal in this set.
Danitha Capashen, Paragon's baseline stats are already above average for a three drop, but beyond that, you can build around her due to her cost reduction ability on auras and equipment. Casting her on turn three, and then curving into a Jousting Lance allows you to attack with a four power, first strike, lifelink and vigilance creature on turn four!
White's Top 3 Commons
1) Blessed Light
Although five mana is expensive and can be clunky, Blessed Light is an unconditional removal spell, which is an effect you are always happy to have in your limited deck – especially since Dominaria has quite a few bomb rares.
Being able to remove enchantments is also nice, as there are a few enchantment removal spells such as Seal Away and Deep Freeze, as well as bomb rares such as Haphazard Bombardment and various Sagas.
2) Gideon's Reproach
Gideon's Reproach is a solid removal spell, and while it may not be as powerful as Blessed Light, it is a lot less clunky and you are happy to have multiple copies of it in your deck.
It is better in a control deck than it is in an aggro deck as they get to block before you destroy the creature, but you would be happy to play this in any deck. It is also better in Dominaria as this set has fewer pump spells than previous sets, so there are less chances for you to get blown out – though Adamant Will is particularly strong against it.
3) Pegasus Courser
Pegasus Courser is great in any aggressive deck, as it represents a large chunk of damage in the air. However, it is also a decent blocker, as a 1/3 allows it to hold the fort against two drops and other flying creatures such as Academy Drake.
While it is not as good as Aerial Guide, as it is worse on offense and that matters more, it is still better on defense, which makes it not that much worse.
Blue's Top 3 Uncommons
1) In Bolas's Clutches
Mind Control has always been one of the best uncommons in the set, and while In Bolas's Clutches may cost one more mana, it is still powerful enough to be one of the best uncommons in Dominaria. In fact, unlike Mind Control, it can also steal non-creature permanents including Planeswalkers, and it is a legendary spell so it can trigger Historic.
2) Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive
While it may not look powerful on the surface, Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive has been great whenever I have drafted it, and is a card I would be happy to first pick. It is also powerful enough to be worth building around – and I especially like it in Blue-White, where you can turn your Knight of New Benalia into a three power unblockable creature.
3) Merfolk Trickster
Merfolk Trickster has a lot of flexibility for a two drop, as it can tap down a creature before combat, or tap down a creature at your opponent's end step to set up an attack on your turn. It is worth noting that you can also choose to tap their creature after attackers are declared or after they have blocked your creature with theirs, as you can then use it to remove a key ability, such as first strike, from their creature, and blow them out in combat.
The only downside to Merfolk Trickster is its double mana cost, which can make it slightly difficult to cast on turn two.
Blue's Top 3 Commons
1) Academy Drake
While Wind Drake is nothing exciting, it has historically been a staple for any aggressive Blue deck. However, Academy Drake also has the potential to become an Air Elemental, which is a much more powerful creature.
I especially like Academy Drake, because while seven mana is a lot, you will presumably be kicking this when the game drags out and/or you are flooding out, and in those situations, a large flying creature is often exactly what you need to either close out the game or come back into it.
2) Cloudreader Sphinx
I was a big fan of Shining Aerosaur in Ixalan, and Cloudreader Sphinx is just that but with an additional Scry 2 ability attached to it. Granted Dominaria is quite high in power level, Cloudreader Sphinx is still a powerful five drop for a common, and one I would be happy to have in any blue deck – both aggressive and defensive.
3) Deep Freeze
While Deep Freeze is close to an unconditional removal spell, it is situational in terms of which deck you can put it in. If you are a ground-based creature deck, it is not very good, as you will just leave them with a blocker.
However, if you are a defensive control deck or a fliers deck, then this is a great removal spell to have at common. It is worth noting that Deep Freeze also removes the creature's abilities, which matters against cards such as Tetsuko Umezawa, Fugitive.
Black's Top 3 Uncommons
1) Cast Down
Although Cast Down may not be able to kill many of the most powerful creatures in the set, it is still a two-mana instant removal spell and can kill enough creatures for it to be a top uncommon.
2) Settle the Score
Settle the Score is essentially a reprint of Impale from Rivals of Ixalan, but it has the bonus of exiling the creature instead of just destroying it – making it better against potential graveyard resurrection effects such as Yawgmoth's Vile Offering. It also becomes much better if you were lucky enough to open a Planeswalker.
3) Knight of Malice
Knight of Malice has great stats for a two drop, and unlike its predecessor, Black Knight, Knight of Malice actually gets bigger if you control a white permanent as well.
Although it is very close to Knight of Grace, I think Knight of Malice is slightly better, as black has fewer options at two drops, and a 3/2 first strike creature is generally better against white decks than it is against black decks.
Black's Top 3 Commons
1) Eviscerate
Essentially the same as Impale/Settle the Score, but easier to cast as it is only one black mana in its casting cost. I actually prefer Eviscerate to Settle the Score, as it is easier to cast and can be splashed in other decks.
2) Vicious Offering
Although it can be compared to Moment of Craving, I think that Vicious Offering is actually quite a different card, as you will be casting this with Kicker a large portion of the time.
Being able to trade your redundant two drop for a big creature is huge, and almost to the point that it does not feel like a one-for-two. Vicious Offering is at its best in the GB Saprolings deck, where you will be happy to sacrifice a token to make Vicious Offering a two-mana removal spell that can kill almost anything in the format.
3) Thallid Omnivore
I initially did not have Thallic Omnivore as one of the top commons in Black, but after playing against it multiple times, I found the card to be great in the Green-Black Saprolings deck. While it is somewhat narrow as it is only good in this archetype, it is one of the key cards for the deck and can make combat a nightmare for the opponent.
I hope you enjoyed this article as I went over what I believe are the best commons and uncommons in White, Blue, and Black in Dominaria. In my next article, I will be finishing off the series by covering Red and Green, so be sure to come back to check that out!
Until next time!
Zen Takahashi
@mtgzen on Twitter