Nothing like the smell of a new set! You smell them, right? I think Duskmourn: House of Horror has some fun, new mechanics, and I’m going to provide some ratings and tips to help you win the early drafts & prereleases!
I’m going to keep the same format j2sjosh had established, now that he’s safely in my basement.
5.0: Disgustingly powerful and basically unbeatable. Either answer it the turn it comes down or just pack up your cards. (Gruff Triplets, Virtue of Persistence, The Eternal Wanderer)
4.5: Incredible bomb that still gives your opponent a slim chance. (Virtue of Loyalty, Imodane's Recruiter, Realm-Scorcher Hellkite)
4.0: Great rare or the absolute best uncommons and removal. (Faunsbane Troll, Gumdrop Poisoner, Talion’s Messenger)
3.5: Great role filler or removal that you never cut. (Candy Grapple, Hearth Elemental, Torch the Tower)
3.0: Good playable that I’m basically never cutting. (Shrouded Shepherd, Spellscorn Coven, Sharae of Numbing Depths)
2.5: Decent playable and the bar I hope nearly every card in my deck to reach. (Evolving Wilds, Archon's Glory, Flick a Coin)
2.0: Mediocre filler that normally is your 20-23rd card(s). (Mintstrosity, Ice Out, Grabby Giant)
1.5: Replaceable, overall bad filler. Could also be decent sideboard cards. (Titanic Growth, Scarecrow Guide, Territorial Witchstalker)
1.0: Bad filler. Gets cut most of the time. (Dark Tutelage, Kindled Heroism, Impact Tremors)
0.5: Very unhappy to main deck this, but maybe it has fringe sideboard applications. Cards that “could” be situationally decent, but bad in most situations. (Smothering Tithe, Rhystic Study, Mana Flare)
0.0: Unplayable in every possible situation. They rarely print cards this bad these days. (Hew the Entwood, One with Nothing)
Attack-in-the-Box
Rating: 1.0 // 5.0
One way to take advantage of this card is sacrifice it during your post main combat phase, after attacking with it as a 6/4. Other than that, it’s a pretty unreliable three drop, and I haven’t seen a deck where I would want to include this yet.
Bear Trap
Rating: 1.0 // 5.0
If you really need some removal, this can work, but it’s a pretty poor option. It does help delirium, adding an artifact to the graveyard at least.
Conductive Machete
Rating: 2.0 // 5.0
This is decent filler for most decks, creating a 4/3 and leaving behind the equipment. I’m not excited to put this in most decks, but it’s perfectly playable.
Dissection Tools
Rating: 4.0 // 5.0
There are times where this gets awkward, and you’re unable to re-equip it efficiently, but most of the time this is a bomb that warps the game.
Found Footage
Rating: 1.5 // 5.0
This can be played in slower delirium decks, but this is definitely a very slow card, and could end up being a liability against faster decks.
Friendly Teddy
Rating: 1.0 // 5.0
It’s hard to imagine a deck that needs a two drop this badly, but if you really need one, this can do the job.
Ghost Vacuum
Rating: 2.0 // 5.0
This can act as some late game assurance if your concerned about being able to close out games. It can also interrupt reanimation effects, as well as interrupt opponents deliriums. It is pretty expensive to activate, and can be a little inconsistent, but overall seems like a decent cards for decks that need it.
Glimmerlight
Rating: 2.0 // 5.0
This can be solid in some of the more aggressive decks, alright in the midrange builds, and bad in the slower decks.
Haunted Screen
Rating: 1.5 // 5.0
There aren’t a ton of decks that would want a Manalith, but there are a few that do. This can be perfectly suitable in those decks, and should be avoided pretty much everywhere else.
Keys to the House
Rating: 1.5 // 5.0
You play this card almost exclusively for the first ability, though the second ability may come up, to lock a room you want to reactivate. It’s a decent piece of mana fixing if you need it.
Malevolent Chandelier
Rating: 1.5 // 5.0
This can be playable in some of the Simic builds that can mill themselves very quickly. I still wouldn’t be excited to put it those decks, but it is an option you have.
Marvin, Murderous Mimic
Rating: 1.0 // 5.0
There’s very few meaningful activated abilities to copy from commons or uncommons this set. This is a two drop with extra words.
Saw
Rating: 1.5 // 5.0
This feels like a win-more card more than anything else. You won’t always have extra permanents to cash in, the proper attacker, or the mana to cast/equip this.
Trisklands
Rating: 2.0 // 5.0
These are nice to speculate on early, to help enable splashes more easily.
Verge Lands
Rating: 2.0 // 5.0
These are a bit better than the “trisk” lands above, as they always come in untapped.
Terramorphic Expanse
Rating: 2.0 // 5.0
This is helpful with activating delirium, and I’m normally happy to put one in most decks, including two colored ones.
Valgavoth’s Lair
Rating: 2.0 // 5.0
This works well enough as a mana fixer, but adds a couple of bonuses. The first is that it can trigger eerie, and the second being that you can sacrifice it to most cards like, Final Vengeance, or Disturbing Mirth
The common and uncommon artifacts leave a lot to be desired this set, which makes sense being an enchantment based set. They do help to activate delirium, but most of them are filler at best.
Lose and Learn, Learn and Win!
