With the Into the Inklands release in our rearview mirror and plenty of drafting ahead of us, let's dive into some tips and tricks for Limited in this set. Disney Lorcana drafts are straightforward, with each player receiving 4 packs of 12 cards each. Then, without any ink restrictions, you draft cards to build a 40-card deck. This means each pick is incredibly valuable since you'll only cut 8 cards. If you're new to the TCG world, choosing 48 cards at a table can seem daunting. If you're familiar with other TCGs you'll note how tight the deck count to card picks is compared to other games. No matter where you are on that experience spectrum here are a few things to consider at the table.

Uninkables

Given you play with the minimum of 40 cards, you should have fewer than 9 uninkable cards in your deck. This is the primary mistake players make when making picks and constructing decks. If you go higher than this you're likely to draw opening hands that are borderline unplayable - and even if they're playable you're likely to get stuck by turn four. You'll either run out of cards you want to ink or cards you can play. You need to have a consistent deck, something with a reliable number of inkable cards and playable cards. Keep this in mind especially as you open packs 3 and 4. Remind yourself between packs how many you have so that you don't accidentally grab too many. Once you get into the deck-building portion of the draft, make sure you settle your uninkable cards first - choose 8 and cut the rest.

Characters Win Games

No matter what your strategy, you need characters. You need more characters than you think you do, and even more than that. Location cards are game changing in this set, and they give you plenty of lore at the beginning of your turn. However, you'll need characters to take advantage of the abilities on those locations and to take out challengers that might attack your locations. Actions and Items will help facilitate your characters or make them more efficient, but at the end of the day characters will win you the game in a draft.

Commons Make Your Foundation

There are a lot of good commons in Into the Inklands, and these will make up the bulk of your deck. We've been blessed with two great 1-ink cost commons which are always great to just have a body on the board so grab Robin Hood - Beloved Outlaw or Kida - Atlantian if you see them. Other commons come equipped with built-in synergy, so if you grab a few Location cards, whether they're good Locations or not, pair them with Cubby - Mighty Lost Boy or Magic Carpet - Flying Rug.

If you're looking for some of the evergreen commons that will always help you out, look no further than Joshua Sweet - The Doctor. The Doctor isn't very expensive, but will help keep your other characters alive while he nets you a sweet 2 lore. You could also take McDuck Manor - Scrooge's Mansion for the same ink cost. The Manor will also net your 2 lore, but is much more difficult to take out with a firm 9 Willpower. And with enough survivability to shake a stick at, we've got Eeyore - Overstuffed Donkey. As if his 4 Strength and 5 Willpower weren't enough, he's one of the few instances of Resist in the new set.

Win Conditions

Find around 4 cards that are closers. Something that either gains you a large chunk of lore in a single turn, or an effect that sets you up to gain that lore. Take Milo Thatch - King of Atlantis as an example. His 3 lore for questing is above average, but that doesn't make him a closer. Paired with his ability of returning every character to your opponent's hand makes him a closer. This gives you a free turn without the risk of being challenged or your opponent taking the win from your grasp. Instead, you freely get to quest with all your other characters and gain all their lore. Another option is John Silver - Greedy Treasure Seeker who needs only a few locations to become a lore power house with great survival. I would even go so far as to recommend Simba - Scrappy Cub strictly based on how early you can get him out. These kinds of cards will help you cinch the end of your game.

Removal

If you've been following my other articles you'll know how much I value utility cards. Effects that provide more than one metric of benefit. In draft, the best utility is removal. Removal cards are anything that reduces your opponents board presence. If you're desperate for removal you can always grab Stitch - Little Rocket which is effectively a 3 damage Action. Ba-Boom! can also be helpful if your opponent is relying on locations. For some fun you can play Della Duck - Unstoppable Mom and remove a small character, then use Dive Bomb to immediately get a second use out of her. If you're lucky, you can also grab King of Atlantis from above for mass removal!

Card Advantage

There are plenty of effects that will draw you cards or reduce your costs. Here we're talking about maximizing your options. Rule number one? Grab Morph - Space Goo. If you're looking for ramp, grab yourself Mama Odie - Mystic Maven and a handful of songs. Or if you're interested in using all your characters again grab Moana - Born Leader and take advantage of a whole extra turn! You can especially utilize characters like Captain Hook - Master Swordsman so that he can keep readying and challenging an enemy character.

Make sure you also grab cards that will draw, or at least replace themselves, so that you maintain that advantage. Songs like It Calls Me and Strike a Good Match are good in just about any situation, and if you can find Genie - Supportive Friend or Shenzi - Hyena Pack Leader claim it immediately. Given that those characters are so rare that you might not see them in your pool, be on the lookout for as many copies as Sumerian Talisman as you can. This might be the best draw engine in the set, and having two in play when a character gets banished can really change the tempo.

Summary

Into the Inklands is a fun set to draft, with lots of closers and supports many different strategies. Don't forget that you can run any ink color and you'll do just fine. Keep on the look out for card draw, as that seems to be the sets weakness overall. Good luck on your drafts. If you wanna share your pre-release pulls with me, tag me on Instagram or @wlsobel.