MTG - Kaladesh Prerelease Guide: Everything You Need to Know!

[@dangelobenjamin]

Wedge, the content you make is a blessing to the MTG community. Your friendly nature, knowledgebase, insight and passion all keep me and other veteran players gleefully entertained, as well as reel in newer players. That's something that not every channel offers. To top it off, this type of very in-depth set review for the limited format is something you would find at a Channel Fireball round table meeting before the pro tour. Definitely not something I'm used to seeing on my average KZbin subscriptions. You've been at this for a few years now, I know. You put your best into this because you care about your audience. I'm just here to say: It really shows! Every video gets better. Huge bravo. Keep up the great work and hope your Kaladesh prerelease is as wonderful as you! :)

[@TheManaSource]

:') Thank you for the kind words. I truly appreciate them.

[@NotetoSelf9292]

May your pool be excellent and your packs full of masterpieces everyone!

[@ashzciwobuz1277]

thanks you too

[@TheManaSource]

And pulls be with you!

[@shmergulflargamish7686]

Hi Wedge!

[@BlackBullNDN]

Please Aether Vial Masterpiece!

[@JamansteelYuGiOh]

And to you

[@michaelevans824]

Wedge. I wanted to thank you and TMS. This is the second time I have watched your pre-release primer for a set and I cannot be happier with the outcome. I created "card lists" based on your suggestions and built decks around what I pulled versus what you and your team suggested. I had great success. I am HORRIBLE at deck building so having some kind of starting place was such a life saver. Thank you all again! Please Please PLEASE keep making content like this It helps people like me so much!

[@jaredvargas5785]

Popping this in here for those who don't know, mtgmirror essentially lets you open a Sealed pool and practice building a deck from it, over and over. It's a great way to get used to building in Sealed, and also lets you get acclimated to all the cards.

[@yellow_jacket3260]

mtgmirror? never heard of it

[@JP-ep8gq]

what is that mtg mirror? i want to try

[@Lukester44]

Really enjoyed the format for this years pre-sealed video, much better then the last ones. Extremely informative and useful for people who may not have researched things going in! thanks wedge!

[@latinkingzgl]

I hope we all get first at every Kaladesh pre, launch, and game day. Unless youre at my lgs, then imma take that 1st myself

[@Lightshade49]

spending an extra 5 dollars just so I can play with my friend at his store down south from my home, just sucks cause they offer less in terms of winnings there (my store offers more if you win 4 and 3 times, and even give an extra pack to those who win only 2 times, while his store doesn't do that) but I'll be playing with one of my best friends and the person who taught me magic. hope the rest of you out their have a fun pre-release as well!

[@trondragon44]

Wedge you forgot to mention that you also get a cool little thopter that you can build

[@urastupid333]

So, here's what the colors are good for this time: White: Flying Numerous Controllers Red: Energy Aggro Vehicles Green: Pumpy Big Pumpingtons Blue: Tempo Supporting Scrylords Black: Killer Energy Support Artifacts: Skynet that you can ride on

[@letsplaythatgame]

Just a few more basic tips, that were not covert in this video: 1. it's OK to play 3 colors, but only if u find yourself some good dual lands. 2 color decks are normally more consistent, though. 2. watch your mana curve. even though the games tend to go longer (because of the limited card pool), a solid base of 2 and 3 drops is the backbone of every sealed deck. if you can curve out, you will most of the time simply overwhelm your enemy. 3. try to find some kind of combo. fabricate and energy are amazingly cool mechanics in limited. try to build your deck around one of those two. having a game plan is always good. 4. it is even possible to build more than 1 deck. if (for example) you can not decide between green/blue energie or white/red aggro, you can build both decks and change them in your sideboarding phase. if your enemy is extremly slow, the aggro deck might be the better choice. also it does throw your enemy off if you suddenly play a whole new color - also his sideboarding will propably be bad, because he did it against an other deck. have fun :)

[@rubilina1357]

I'm incredibly stoked for this set. I hope it ends up being as good as it looks.

[@blackriderbob8053]

green seems really strong funny for an artifact set

[@ryur2521]

funny how it feels mostly WR artifacts instead of UR

[@sirbig89]

I may just do my first pre-release this Saturday . lets hope this guide helps me do well

[@manuelaguilartirado8674]

This is one of the best guides I've seen so far, removal is king, this set looks to go wide so you should try that.

[@Finkeldinken]

I hope you crack all the on-colour rares and have all the fun! 2nded re: bringing your own presleeved lands and extra sleeves - saves you a lot of much needed time. And prereleases tend to run very long and can be super exhausting because of all the new cards and mechanics, so remember a sandwich or something along with something to drink or you'll crash. Best of luck!

[@babooncocoon3218]

Cool, looking forward to doing the pre release on Saturday :D

[@stephanwyrsta376]

Same, I was planning on going on a Friday since my LGS is closed on Sunday, but it's at Friday, so I will go to the Saturday prerelease with 5 rounds. I'm so excited for the set, and I'm even thinking of buying some booster boxes for future investments

[@Hero-er9oj]

I wanted to thank you for making this video. It convinced my friend and I to go even though we just started playing and have really only played against each other.

[@urmanascrewed]

These are the best videos! I really only go to the prerelease anymore so these help me out a lot and catch me up with the new cards.

[@mageKnightz]

Great video. I just participated 2x in a row in the Prerelease here in Brazil. I did horribly, but boy did I have fun. Prereleases are amazing.

[@reymarkable]

Thanks for the refresher course in pre release! I'm hyped.

[@esands36]

I'm definitely going. Thank you for all the tips

[@clarticustv1908]

This is my first event here in the UK. Your videos of spoilers and guides have helped out alot...im new and so excited to do this! please keep it up. Ill let you know how I do but i expect to loose alot. Id be happy to attend but at least 1 win would be cool

[@lmendz4]

Always, the best review to watch before prerelease

[@jacobgozdziak6233]

Hey Wedge, keep up the great work! Love your videos and I wish you the best of luck at your Prerelease!

[@MyTyler89]

Thanks for the help hopefully going to my first prerelease today, wooooooooooooot

[@zakscherer1757]

Thanks so much for the guides! Got invention minds eye and hangarback walker!

[@aarongalloway9750]

A friend of mine got really lucky at our local game shop's prerelease. He pulled a masterpiece invention Sword of Light and Darkness. Us guys who were there nearly crapped ourselves when we heard him say the name.

[@hyperam4594]

WHY YOU NO DO TOP 10 BEST CARDS FROM HOMELANDS!!!!!

[@KalanzoHI]

Because they all suck equally.

[@ianshurtleff806]

Honestly, the best card is probably apocalypse charm.

[@socalwanderer4867]

*Chime

[@activeguy2008]

Homelands would be good, also Fallen Empires!!!!

[@socalwanderer4867]

DEFINITELY a Dragon's Maze-devoted video too

[@TheJeeeeeeeeeep]

Solid helpfull vid, that's why i keep watching this channel

[@MasonzeroDigitalWorks]

Rob Alexander is going to be at my prerelease. So that'll be fun. ALL the signings.

[@Heyropips]

This just made my day

[@nicholaswood7402]

I've got a kaladesh tournament tomorrow. I'm so hyped. it's my first tourney and im really hoping i do well

[@jadaalvarez9753]

I probably won't be able to attend the prerelease, but I will definitely stop by and pick up a kit! my LCS gives an extra pack too so that's nice :)

[@bizdaretz8679]

AETHER THEORISTS IS AMAAAAAZZIIINGGG

[@Azza1241]

Doing 6 pre releases over the weekend! Should be fun! :D

[@eetuutriainen8617]

White-Red and White-Green decks might be powerful. Good luck in the prerelease!

[@halocombat43]

You could play U/W control like Blake Rasmussen. draw all your cards, get all the energy, and go to time with each match!

[@riddick1128]

God damn those dice are pretty as fuck

[@nezix]

Last prerelease I had literally 0-1 removal spells per color. Not something I was happy about but somehow I went 4-0. So don't despair if you open crap, sometimes it can work out. That seems unlikely to happen this time around though as there are so much common removal in Red/Black/White

[@bibow77]

Thanks for your help!

[@Matteo_the_Plague_Doctor]

When you do the prerelease guide for Aether Revolt, please cover the artifacts to watch out for. I feel a lot of people missed out on playing certain artifacts at my prerelease because they were focusing too much on the colors and didn't really notice the synergies of artifacts. I threw a ton of removal for artifacts into my deck only to not really face it a whole lot. I totally bombed on my first prerelease because I focused too much on removal and not enough on how to throw out answers of my own. Removal isn't always key. It's you trading off with better creatures that usually wins you a prerelease. Removal helps but it doesn't win you the games.

[@paw1927]

I can't wait 😊

[@itsvenom6301]

Hoping to run a nice black/green ambush if i pull my needed cards 👍

[@Perseus3248M]

Kaladesh is gonna be a fun set :)

[@meatrace]

I had a ton of Unglued, and Unglued lands, but they were ruined in a flood and I had to throw them out.

[@Azninjazn]

i wish there was unhinged land pack, those lands are soooooo good even for only one artwork

[@jedlicka1227]

Did the cards come unglued with all of the water.. ;)

[@jonathanwilliams7161]

This is a great intro into the event, as I had to learn alot the hard way by getting my butt handed to me!! lol

[@WilyWiley1]

As important as removal is, the core of any limited deck is your creatures. It's all too easy for a new player to see all these sweet kill spells or burn spells in their packs and build a deck with them only to realize that they don't have enough creatures. Creatures win games in limited, and while removal is fantastic, you can't cast a destroy creature spell on your opponent.

[@doicheman]

nice tips, gonna use them

[@Bladeofwar94]

I usually look at my cards in this order of importance: Bombs Removal Evasion Aggression Defensive. Bombs are the creatures your opponents must answer. Removal kills or deals with creatures you must answer. Evasion helps you get around your opponents creatures you couldn't answer. Aggression let's you hit your opponent as hard as possible. Defensive is your least favorable choice of cards, but at the very least a defensive card needs to slow your opponent. Avoid defender and other fat toughness creatures if all they do is provide a wall to block with. Mainly focus on the first three and you should find which colors are good and which are completely worthless.

[@freddiejamjam]

Hey Wedge, how about a primer on Two-Headed Giant? How to go about making two decks that work together and how to play together

[@xomgTomx]

But Wedge what about BREAD?

[@holdencole4896]

Came in last at my prerelease but pulled a promo Chandra, the Mind Sculptor. I think I won anyway.

[@snacktime2756]

Casually forgets the white nighthawk

[@scriptkid_rs]

I'll probably end up in white / blue (if my pulls allow it). I've done some online prereleases of kaladesh (tabletop simulator) and 9/10 i ended up in that. I'm ofcourse tonight gonna play what allows me but wish me luck

[@thenerdyeel3092]

So story time. I wasn't going to go to prerelease and I was really bummed out cause kaledesh looks like a great set and I wanted to get some early play with it. But turns out my weekend freed up and I had the money to preregister today so I did and I came straight home to watch this video. You alway give great advice wedge so kudos to you man. Gotta say this set looks like it's going to be extremely fun to play limited with. And will definitely mix up standard. Wedge I want your opinion personally. The card Blossoming defense.... modern Infect playable?

[@tinss619]

Could you also tell me what artifacts I should be looking out for? I've debated in my head which ones were worth running but I'm just curious on like the 2/3 flying crew 1 card or just those puzzlebox things. Thanks!

[@jaredvargas5785]

Sky Skiff is certainly pretty good, though I wouldn't run more than maybe 3 Vehicles total. Bomat Bazaar Barge is really good, since it cantrips and occasionally smashes faces. I'd run an Inventor's Goggles if you end up in W/X, since most of the Fabricators will be Artificers. Dukhara Peafowl is quite good if you're in U/X, same with Narnam Cobra in G/X. I think the breakpoint for Self-Assembler is 3, though certainly playable with just 2. I probably wouldn't play any of the Puzzleboxes. Filigree Familiar is a good filler creature, as are Iron League Steed and Snare Thopter. Chief of the Foundry is great if you have a good amount of Fabricate. I think Whirlermaker is a trap, that is a lot of mana for not a lot of board presence, though I think it's mainly up to personal taste. For rares, they're pretty much all good sans; Deadlock Trap, Bomat Courier, Ghirapur Orrery, Panharmonicon, and Aetherflux Reserve, with Multiform Wonder being very good.

[@owmacohe]

The Puzzleknots are terrible. Never play them.

[@damanstover2035]

the blue puzzleknot is good. I would put it in a deck even if it didn't have blue.

[@guftders]

So basically, once again, WG are the colours to be in for Pre release, with Blue being alright, and black and red only good if you pull the removal/artifacts for it

[@int6336]

Went 2-3 and 2-2 on my prerelease. Opened 2 planeswalkers tho!

[@WrightJustice1991]

Just remember that Kathleen opened 5 on colour mythics (including an invention) during the LRR Pre-prerelease and she still lost her games to mistakes.

[@graysondenton3942]

Sooooo helpful!!

[@eliseorios9073]

funny, I decided to start up Magic after not playing for 7 years. good time to start I guess because this set looks pretty good

[@eliseorios9073]

buying my first pack/deck this week

[@damanstover2035]

also why didn't he add aerial responder as a broken white uncommon I mean come on it's a 2/3 for three with flying vigilance and LifeLink Easy Choice for any white deck. the only downside to it is double white cost. But other than that extremely good choice for Limited.

[@revengedealer]

You forgot to mention if you pull a masterpiece. If you pull a masterpiece, try not to have a heart attack. You need to be able to play the event in order for a shot at more packs and possibly more masterpiece goodness :D XD >_>

[@jonasgompel5592]

What about Lawless Broker, Wedge? I think its the best common in a void after Removal.

[@fulltime4545]

In an energy-based Deck, Riparian Tiger is insane...

[@darthnater9819]

Hey Wedge, thanks in part to your advice, i was able to 3-1 my prerelease, now i want you to do a U/W gearhulk control deck for standard, i normally play either golgari or gruel, but i pulled dovin baan and a torrential gearhulk in my prerelease pool and prize pack, i want to make use of them, do you think you could do it, i'm sure it'll make you happy being the azorious control player you are.

[@GuardianOfAkros]

lol, lsv said black was the best colour pie in limited. RIP wedge

[@TheMonyarm]

blue red seems good.

[@TeshnosFire]

No mention of Vehicles / Artifacts D: ?!

[@urmanascrewed]

Oh yeah, hopefully that isn't my downfall. I haven't really been following the set.

[@TeshnosFire]

It's an artifact set though. xD

[@urmanascrewed]

No I don't Luckily it wasn't. I was discerning enough with the artifacts I pulled, like Smugglers Copter. I played that and it was great!

[@TeshnosFire]

I love smugglers copter! Did you play a red deck?

[@urmanascrewed]

No I don't No, Green/Black

[@Ripster40]

To be honest i think Gruul is extremely powerful in this set, energy token spawning, fabrication and removal is just all to good.

[@grifzor9346]

Welp, if I pull anything even vaguely resembling an elf, I'm forcing green. It's decided.

[@damanstover2035]

so if I have enough to make two different decks how would that work out if I want to swap while playing somebody?

[@BlackBullNDN]

I would think Ariel Responder is a great motivation to go into white.

[@Tomathana]

Hey Wedge! I REALLY appreciate your time and effort in making these videos. They are top notch! However, I do find videos like these go very fast and therefore are hard to follow for me. It's just a personal point of view and I have no idea what could be done to make it better for me (slow it down, yes, but in which way?). Like, a lot of cards are put in my face at the same time. I'm not a very good magic player and everytime I sit at pre release and wish to apply your strategies and mentioned cards at the table, I find the amount of card information overwhelming. I just thought I'd give you this feedback. In worst case, I have only said what I wanted to say. Cheers!

[@bcmaledragon]

You forgot Harness Lightning in red for removal.

[@qazwsxedcrfv80]

Why didn't you mention notable artifacts? It would be nice to know about what are auto includes etc.

[@eathonhowell7414]

So Wedge, what are some good archetypes to look for in the pre-release?

[@jaredvargas5785]

You can't really seek out an archetype in Sealed like you can in Draft since you open the cards you open, and if there's no (X)-archetype support, you just can't play it. That said, aggro decks are generally worse in Sealed because you can't get always get the volume of 2-drops you need, so I'd lean away from something like R/W and towards something like G/B. Or do what my friend does and force U/W fliers in literally every Sealed pool he opens.

[@RedJackz]

I still can't beleive they printed Ever After in Shadows over Innistrad. That card has won me a prerelease hands down. (Maybe also because I had Avacyn and Sigarda)

[@Kestral287]

Sweet commander card too. :D

[@bretttrimble1173]

Thriving rats, Thriving rats, Artherborn Marauder,Gearseeker Serpent. The winning curve when all of your rares are junk.

[@tigerwarrior1787]

Dang... wish I had 40 bucks to drop for the Sealed Pre-Release... would probably help me get cards for a Malfegor Commander, ESPECIALLY the removal power in Black and Red.

[@Kestral287]

Check and make sure that's actually what your lgs is charging. Mine's at $25 and that comes with some prize support, free food, and cheaper subsequent prereleases.

[@redbadge767]

What about the artifacts and vehicles? Vehicles are honestly the hardest to evaluate, as I have no play experience with them.

[@AedalinSolaris]

Could pulling a masterpiece affect what color you play?

[@ashah241]

depends on the masterpiece

[@KalanzoHI]

Short answer; if you get a gear hulk then sure it will affect color. Even shorter answer; no

[@manuelaguilartirado8674]

If you get sol ring, put it in your deck and mulligan into it :P, but being serious, the gearhulks are the only color dependant masterpieces, if your masterpiece gearhulk is the only good car in that color you coul try splashing for it

[@archwingdragon9411]

other than the gearhulks they're all colorless

[@jaredvargas5785]

Also worth noting that not all Masterpieces are autoincludes. Apart from something like Painter's Servant that functionally has no text in Limited, some cards could be actively detrimental to your gameplan. If you open Mana Crypt and attempt to put it into a slow control deck, it's very possible that it just kills you.

[@SnakeBrine12341]

This will be my first preview weekend i will be going to... Any tips NOT said in this video?

[@jaredvargas5785]

Bring something to mark your energy counters with, along with plenty of dice as you'll likely have 2 or more Servos on board each match along with +1/+1 counters. Make sure you read every card, don't get screwed because you forgot what an obscure rare does. Lastly, try to balance out a mana curve, don't play too many high cost creatures. Good luck dude :D

[@Kestral287]

Don't be afraid to ask questions. "Do you mind if I read that card?" is the one that should come up the most but a lot of people just don't do it. Asking opponents anything about the game state is perfectly fine and no player worth anything will ever get irritated by that. Look over /all/ your cards. One thing I try to do is see if I have a playable second deck. If I decide to build green-white, do I have a good enough black-red deck? There are two purposes to this. One is to make sure you really do take a hard look at every card you run. The other is that, because there are no restrictions on the number of cards you can sideboard, you can literally swap your entire deck out between games. That can give you an edge if your decks are built to do different things. Try to playtest too. Ideally you have a buddy going with you, if not just try to find somebody sitting near you who seems chill. During the deckbuilding time, after you've finished your deck, ask them if they'd go a game or two with you. See how your deck runs. Incidentally on deckbuilding: the general ratios are 23-24 nonlands to 16-17 lands (depending on your curve and preference), roughly twice as many creatures as noncreatures for most decks (though some can break it; if you have a good Blue/X spellslinger deck you can go places). Kaladesh's vehicles introduce a monkey wrench to this, but don't think of them as creatures. Think of them as pump spells and haste enablers. Bring some sleeves along. You really want to play that masterpiece Sol Ring if you crack it, but you really don't want to play with it unsleeved. Dice too, as Jared mentioned. Above all else? Relax. Have fun. The less tense I got at prerelease events, the better I got.

[@b2falcon]

So I'm really new to prerelease events. How many lands should I put in my 40 card deck?

[@zachvassar1691]

like 16

[@thepeopleseason]

The general rule is 17 lands for a 40-card deck.

[@damanstover2035]

yeah you would most likely want to build 2 color and not anything above it. Mono color if somehow you pulled a lot of that color and it is over all good but generally to color is what everyone does and 16-18 lands is just about what everyone does. Too Many Lands and obviously you will be spell blocked but too few lands and you might get landlocked from a color.

[@raze667]

my 41st card is the manavault I'm going to open. Of course. :P

[@kingpinbp]

My strategy was to not get Chandra and cry, but I got Chandra...

[@robertnethery1043]

I GOT A CHANDRA PROMO!!!!

[@bloodschuch]

weeeeedge!!

[@maxwellcarreiro5607]

sep 25 is my birthday im going to get a card with my birthday on it :)

[@martypunker]

Removal THEN Bombs? That's not how you spell BREAD! (I jest)

[@nathang7601]

archetypes? vehicles?

[@tsweeney21]

Micky mouse polo FTW!

[@jordangreene7952]

Sees 28second old vid click immediately. Hey wedge how's it goin

[@ppppppppppp1890]

I'm 14 and most people who play at my lgs seem like 17 and up, I know you said you should go but do you think they'd mind a younger player?

[@ferdithetank7535]

Wedge, how could you forget about telling people of AWESOME thopter figurines inserted in each pre-release kits? Also, Worst Cards Ever. We don't forgive, we don't forget. (I found one for you by the way. It is Selfless Exorcist)

[@Wiseguy150]

No mention of the white vampire nighthawk (I forget the name) as a solid uncommon? wut

[@jessesilva6429]

already mentioned in a previous video :)

[@MrBollockscom]

wedge what about combat tricks? u theres a good handfull of these and you didnt even mention these?

[@Anomen1010]

hypezzzzz

[@Nicalapegus]

Who rates a set without looking at the removal? Very odd choice there Wedge.

[@damanstover2035]

yeah but removal is removal you should know it when you see it he could have at least rated some of the removal but most likely you're not going to pull a lot so you would want to put as much as possible in your deck.

[@TheManaSource]

If we're talking about sealed, you're going to want to play 99% of the on-color removal that you see, but most players have issues figuring out which colors are deepest. Everyone can see a card that says "destroy target creature" or "this doesn't untap." Everyone sees those cards. What the vast majority of players need help with are the rest of the cards. The common and uncommon creatures and non-removal spells that make up the rest of your pool. When you look at a piece of removal, you know its removal. When you look at a creature, not everyone knows if its good or not. This video was made in response to the vast majority of players and what they want.

[@damanstover2035]

yea I think the same will go with vehicles, you will know if its good or if you could easily "crew" it.

[@andy4an]

For ME, I wish pre-releases were draft. I understand that sealed is far superior for less enfranchised players, but I definitely enjoy it less.

[@gimmickaccount650]

Are masterpieces standard legal?

[@jaredvargas5785]

Oh god no. Sol Ring is already banned/restricted in every tournament format, same with Mana Crypt/Vault. Masterpieces are only legal in formats that they already were legal in.

[@ImBriskyy]

Also legal in limited

[@kmalsom01]

If you are getting charged $40 for a pre-release, go somewhere else and give that store bad reviews on the store locator.