In booster draft, we can spend some time talking
about how we might not want to commit to a green
creature deck with our first pick, how we might
prefer to draft a powerful rare or a removal
spell, but the fact is, if there is a Call of
the Herd in the pack you open, you draft it.
It’s rare, it’s valuable online and in 3D as
well. (3D Magic is the kind you play with the
actual cardboard cards with your actual fleshy
hands) Call of the Herd is a simple, blunt
instrument in limited play, but it is extremely
effective. So when you first pick a Call of the
Herd, which, let’s face it, is about the only
way you will ever see one in a draft, feel free
to pat yourself on the back. You’re not just
rare drafting, you’re taking the best card in
the pack for your deck.
This is an interesting one to review. It also
shows how times can change. When CotH was first
printed, the card was ridiculously amazing. Now
that there are a lot of high quality cards in
Standard and Extended, it's getting overshadowed
a bit. I'm not going to recommend you use them
as coasters or anything. I'm just saying that
it's harder to find space for CotH in decks
these days.
For a vanilla 3/3 creature, 3G is a decent price
to pay in Limited. A mere 2G is a decent price
in any format. Being able to get two 3/3 off of
one card is especially nice, particularly since
a vanilla 3/3 is not usually sufficient for a
cardslot in Constructed. Being able to get 2
3/3's out of one card is card advantage, my
friends, and that's what helps win games. Any
creature that your opponent has to kill twice is
a worthy inclusion into any Limited deck, and a
contender for a Constructed cardslot as well.
Constructed- 3.8
Casual- 3
Limited- 4.2
Aethereal
Call of the
Herd
So now the theme is more like U/G aggro-control
week. Anyway, this card used to be very powerful
back when it was first released, and it's still
powerful today. It goes into any aggro deck with
green in it, most notably U/G and R/G/x. You get
a body with P/T equal to the mana cost, and then
can get another one for one mana more without
spending another card. Two 3/3s on the board is
great for the aggro deck, and the ability to do
it with just one card is even better. The
definition of card advantage.
In casual, play it in your green aggro decks and
have fun gaining card advantage.
In limited, if you're playing green, this is
first-pick material. It's great card advantage,
and getting two creatures for one card can help
win the damage race.
