Core Set 2020: Limited Tips, Tricks and Combos
Today we are going to dive deeper into the limited format of Core Set 2020, the best Core Set to be released by Wizards of the Coast in many, many years and that is saying a lot, as there has been some great ones!
This limited environment, whether it be draft or sealed, has numerous tips, tricks and interactions that you need to be aware of, as they could rapidly shift the tide of battle for, or against you.
We will now explore a number of these, some of which you may of already seen and others of which will undoubtedly be completely new to you. Let’s go.
Ogre Siegebreaker
The first card that we are going to look at is Ogre Siegebreaker, a gold card that is good value at a power of four and toughness of three for four mana cost, without even reading the text written on the card.
This card is stellar in a red / black mana based deck that is looking to either push through the opponents lines of defenses, or simply sit back and control the board state.
The true trick to making this card go to the next level, is by including a number of other decent cards in your deck, that on their own may seem mediocre, but when combined with Ogre Siegebreaker make him a ruthless killing machine.
Retributive Wand, Mask of Immolation and Heart-Piercer Bow are three cards that can be easily included in any deck that includes one or more Ogre Siegebreakers.
These cards are easy ways to continuously “ping” your opponents defenders for small amounts of damage.
This is where Ogre Siegebreaker comes in, activating his ability and finishing off the damaged creature, no matter how big or small it may be.
The best part of this combo is that Ogre Siegebreakers activated ability doesn’t require you to “tap” it when activating, meaning that you can continue to attack into them, damaging their health and still use the ability when and how you please.
This one combo can rapidly wipe your opponents creatures out and win you the game in a matter of just a few turns.
Blood Soaked Altar, Moldervine and Bag of Holding
The next combo that we are going to show allows you to outpace your opponents in card draw, before they even know what hit them.
Bloodsoaked Altar is at the heart of it, and of which has been a surprisingly good card in any black mana based deck in the Core Set 2020 limited environment.
This card allows you to pay 2 life, discard a card, sacrifice a creature and then turn that creature into a 5/5 black Demon creature WITH flying.
Sure, this card has a few drawbacks, but when paired with a number of cards that reward you for killing your own creatures / discarding your own cards, then it all of a sudden becomes a net positive any way you look at it.
Two of these cards are Bag of Holding and Moldervine Reclamation, both of which are powerful card draw engines.
Bag of Holding, when used in conjunction with Bloodstained Altar, mitigates the text on Bloodstained Altar that makes you discard a card, as now Bag of Holding will simply “catch” that card and put it in its “bag”, allowing you to access it whenever you have the mana to withdraw it and the other cards currently in your Bag of Holding.
Meanwhile, Moldervine Reclamation turns the negative of having to sacrifice one of your own creatures when using Bloodstained Altar and turns it into a positive, allowing you to replace that card by drawing a new one, while also adding 1 life to your total.
Soon enough with this combo you will have a sky full of Demons ready to finish off your opponent, while at the same time, a hand full of cards, keeping the whole process churning along flawlessly.
Steel Overseer and Manifold Key
The final combo that we are going to talk about today involves the mighty Steel Overseer, who has been a fantastic card so far with this set release, “steeling” game after game.
Steel Overseer is a great card, that should be highly picked when drafting Core Set 2020, or strongly considered as an include in your next sealed league deck, as it can easily be included in any deck, no matter the colors.
Costing only two colorless mana, this creature may come onto the battlefield small as a 1/1, but don’t let those stats fool you. In a matter of just a few turns this card will grow into a powerhouse that your opponent has to find a quick answer to.
However, what makes this card insanely powerful, is when it is combined with a number of other easy to acquire artifact creatures, as Steel Overseer adds a +1/+1 counter to not only itself, but each and every other artifact creature that is currently on the battlefield.
As you can see, this will result in a board state of ever increasing power and toughness creatures, turning even your worst cards into massive “bombs” that can run away with the game in just a few quick attacks.
Still, the final piece of this combo is one that takes it to the next level.
Manifold Key allows you to pay 1 and untap any other artifact, including your artifact creatures, or simply allow a creature to be unblockable for a cost of 3 mana.
Both of these abilities are great on their own when this card is included in a heavy artifact based deck, but as you can see, when combined with a Steel Overseer, can have devastating results.
This allows you to tap your Steel Overseer, add a +1/+1 counter to all your artifact creatures, untap the Steel Overseer and then do it all over again!
We’ve seen this combo go off and it truly is a sight to behold.
In Conclusion
Some of the tips, tricks and combos highlighted throughout the course of this article could help you build an unconventional limited deck that you may have never even considered before.
Some will help you see your opponents game plan well in advance of piecing it together, allowing you to put a stop to it before it becomes unbeatable.
However, these are just a few of the hidden gems contained within Core Set 2020 and we would love to hear of some of the wacky, insane combos that you have been able to piece together and make work?
Let us know in the comments below and as always, thanks for reading!