Today, we’re joined by our guest contributor, wooooo! This is the seventh in a multi-part series on draft for SWU. We’re excited to watch him break down every card in the game for its utility in draft. Check out his initial guidelines for these ratings in the intro article here. Take it away wooooo!
Rare Card Grades
Bombing Run [r]: (C+)
You want to enable a two-for-one with this card, which isn’t always easy since you need to not only have the proper targets for it, but also not have your units get caught in the crossfire. I think mostly this is decent, and can get you some value, but nothing game breaking going on here.
Emperor Palpatine [r]: (A)
Yeah, he’s good. As long as you don’t die before you can play this, Palpatine will catch you right back up in a game, or close the door on your opponent if you were ahead.
Fallen Lightsaber [r]: (B+)
Upgrades are safer in limited due to removal being less prominent, and this does a good job no matter what it’s attached to. Best use is obviously on a force unit, but most things do a good job holding a saber, and leaders are fantastic targets for upgrades most of the time.
For A Cause I Believe In [r]: (F)
A constructed all-star just won’t do the thing in limited. It’s quite hard to fill your deck full of heroism cards, and if this card isn’t reliably doing 3+ damage, you don’t want it in your deck. Aggressive limited decks also tend to be a bit more “midrange” than full blown base rush, which lowers the potential here even more.
Heroic Sacrifice [r]: (C+)
You generally want to use this to trade one of your units up in value, and then get your card back, and that’s pretty solid.
K-2S0 [r]: (B+)
K-2 has solid stats and a very good on death effect. Most of the time in limited I think the discard effect will be the go-to, but the potential for base damage is not to be overlooked. K-2 is a good droid, and a high value pick.
Red Three [r]: (B-)
This can help push quite a lot of damage as long as it doesn’t instantly die. This is one of those cards that can lead to some snowball games if your opponent can’t interact in space in the early turns.
Saw Gerrera [r]: (F/A-)
Unfortunately for Saw, it’s very unlikely that you’ll be playing mono-red, so it’s very unlikely you’ll want to put him in your deck.
Seventh Sister [r]: (B+)
This inquisitor can put a beating out. She has a lot of health so even though she doesn’t provide immediate value, she generally sticks around. Getting even one attack out of her can prove extremely valuable.
Smoke And Cinders [r]: (F)
I think this card was designed for the Twin Suns format.
Wolffe [r]: (C+)
3/2 for two, decent card. Loses relevant traits that other 3/2s have, but gets saboteur.
Admiral Ackbar [r]: (B-)
Ackbar can often finish off a unit or take out a smaller unit, and both are valuable enough to warrant a high pick. The body isn’t great, but being a pseudo “removal” card props up his value.
Agent Kallus [r]: (B+)
Ambush is good. Single aspect is good. Sometimes drawing a card? Also good.
Bail Organa [r]: (C-)
Similar to the card Alliance Dispatcher, the value for Bail goes up when you go first, so try to do that more. He can also snowball a game if your opponent leads space and you play an Echo Base Defender turn two. The floor is very low though.
Emperor’s Royal Guard [r]: (C)
Mostly, this is a 3/4, so the grade is similar to Homestead Militia. If you are drafting for Palpatine, the value goes up, and if your leader is an official, the value goes up as well.
Frontline Shuttle [r]: (D-)
Hard for this to provide a lot of value. You’re giving up a card to get an extra attack from another unit, which has potential upside (Steadfast Battalion is a pretty good target for it). I just gravitate away from cards that require a lot of synergy/setup in draft.
General Krell [r]: (F/C-)
Barely even good in mono green because his body is poorly stated for the cost.
Relentless [r]: (C-)
It’s incredibly expensive, and the event clause on it often won’t matter all the time in limited. It’s not an awful closer, but you can do better a lot of the time.
Rukh [r]: (A-)
You like two-for-ones? This can sometimes be even more than that. Rukh can destroy some really big units and live to do it again.
The Emperor’s Legion [r]: (D+)
Think of this is a two-cost card that draws one to two of your units, sometimes. It’s fine, but it’s another card that requires a lot of setup to generate value.
Traitorous [r]: (B+)
Stealing a three-cost card is like killing one and playing one for one action. The upside is capped because it can’t target big units, but as a single aspect card, this is very valuable. I would just try to trade off the stolen unit quickly to dodge upgrade removal.
U-Wing Reinforcement [r]: (B+)
Not as easy to get full value off of this in a limited deck because your curve might not be as tight as it is in constructed. Nevertheless, it provides a lot of value, and also lets you play some cheeky off-aspect cards in your deck.
Wedge Antilles [r]: (B+)
Wedge is pretty scary when he’s in play, and once again, it’s harder to punish these slow chunky units in draft. If you have some vehicles in play or in your hand, Wedge will be a powerhouse.
Bodhi Rook [r]: (D-/C+)
Draft decks don’t run that many events, so outside of mono-cunning I wouldn’t be running this.
Chimera [r]: (D+)
It’s big and it’s slow, and its ability is kind of bad. If you’re in the market for a finisher you can run it, but there’s enough generic big guys that are better that it’s never a priority.
Chopper [r]: (D+)
Too low impact. If you somehow have a bunch of spectre’s, it becomes slightly better than pure filler.
Don’t Get Cocky [r]: (C-)
I like removal, but this is pretty random, and you have to pick your target before you know how much damage you’re doing. Treat this as a four cost deal four to be safe, and you’ve got a playable, yet unexciting card.
Fett’s Firespray [r]: (C+/A+)
If you have Boba, this is a bomb. If you don’t, it’s basically a Gladiator Star Destroyer. Just have Boba.
Han Solo [r]: (A+)
Big time bomb. if not immediately removed, your opponent is basically not allowed to play ground units.
I Had No Choice [r]: (D)
Incredibly slow and gives your opponent too much agency (they just bounce their better unit).
Jabba The Hutt [r]: (C+)
Jabba lingers around the battlefield for a long time, so even though his power is low, he can dish out a few attacks. It’s important to be on the lookout for tricks when drafting. If you have 3+ tricks, the grade pushes up to the B range. If you have none, then it’s probably a skip.
Lando Calrissian [r]: (B+)
I actually really like Lando in draft. The body is meaningful and the ability to “draw” some cards, especially payoffs that you may have had to resource early, is really strong.
Sneak Attack [r]: (D)
There is a caveat here. If you have a very aggressive deck and also have some very strong enter play/leave play abilities (K-2S0, Ruthless Raider), then you can probably run this. Otherwise, it’s too much card disadvantage.
Spark Of Rebellion [r]: (C)
The value goes up if your opponent has some bombs in their deck. It’s a negative tempo play in a tempo-oriented format, but being able to snag a key card is valuable.
Strafing Gunship [r]: (B+)
This card is incredibly annoying to deal with, and if your opponent does not have a good space presence, it can put in a ton of work. Single aspect flexibility as well.
Bendu [r]: (F/C+)
Not a consideration outside of mono-vigilance, and not even amazing there unfortunately.
Count Dooku [r]: (A-)
Tons of value to be had here, and the only thing keeping it from the high A’s is that he can’t come in and take out something big. Just a bit of nitpicking.
Del Meeko [r]: (C-)
The stats are too low for minimal payoff. Not a high value pick.
Electrostaff [r]: (C)
It’s a slightly better Academy Training so it gets a slightly better grade.
Gideon Hask [r]: (B+)
A big body that provides a recurring payoff. If you have some trades to make the turn you play this, you can snowball really hard.
It Binds All Things [r]: (C+)
The grade here assumes you have a few force units to actually trigger it. It’s decent when you do, but still highly situational.
Jedi Lightsaber [r]: (B+)
Basically, everything that was said about Fallen Lightsaber applies here. It’s actually a bit better than it’s villain counterpart when you have a force unit to put it on.
Obi-Wan Kenobi [r]: (B)
He’s a solidly stated sentinel that leaves behind value. The two experience can be incredibly impactful.
Redemption [r]: (B)
A big ship I’d be excited to run. Helps stabilize space while also providing healing in games where you need it. This is the sort of immediate effect you need to rise in the ranks of the 8+ cost cards.
Regional Governor [r]: (D)
This is the kind of card you can bring in from the sideboard if your opponent is playing something key you can target. Otherwise, the body is too middling. Limited decks are generally not the kinds of decks that get hosed by this effect.
Search Your Feelings [r]: (F)
I have no feelings.
You’re My Only Hope [r]: (C-)
It’s fine. Limited decks don’t usually have more than six to eight two or lower cost cards, so generally you can get something decent out of it. It’s just completely unpredictable. And you need to play it with other resources available in case you spike something really big.
Galactic Ambition [r]: (F)
Don’t try it.
Legendary Card Grades
Reminder from Part 1: “The double aspect cards in this review are given two grades. The first grade is what I would rate them if you were paying a +2 aspect penalty to play them, and the second is the grade I would give them if you were in a mono-colored deck. Keep in mind that it is very unlikely that you will be able to draft a good mono-colored limited deck, but it isn’t impossible, and will usually require a few double aspect cards to get opened and passed around the table.“
Aggression [L]: (C+/A-)
It will enable a two-for-one, it just won’t be an incredibly high value two-for-one at six cost. Still mostly playable in any aggression deck.
Black One [L]: (C)
Much better when drafting for Han Solo. Otherwise, it’s hard for this to draw 2+ cards, which is what you’d want it to do.
Force Lightning [L]: (B)
Assuming you can enable it frequently enough, it’s just a really strong single target removal event. Being able to one shot leaders or large units gives it huge upside. This grade only applies if you have a few force units and/or a force leader.
Mace Windu [L]: (B+)
Ambush is good, but let’s not forget that this has the same power as Syndicate Lackey’s, which comes out two turns earlier. Obviously, you’re running Mace, but his upside is a bit more limited when compared to some of the other seven cost bombs. The dream scenario here is that your opponent has a few small units in play, and Mace cleans them all up (and maybe hits your opponent’s base for five while he’s at it.
Command [L]: (B-/A-)
You should be able to get decent value out of this at six cost (most commonly by buffing a unit you control and destroying something your opponent has). There’s also some upside to being able to ramp if you are playing a 7+ cost leader.
Darth Vader [L]: (A+)
A big ambush body that will bring a friend with him. This is just a huge value play, and is the kind of card that can close out a game pretty easily. The fact that he leaves behind a body even if immediately answered is incredibly valuable.
Devastator [L]: (C)
This is wildly expensive, but it does basically close out games if you can get it out. I don’t find it to be a high priority pick, but if you have a few ramp cards in your deck, it’s not a bad idea to have this kind of inevitability.
Home One [L]: (B+)
A really solid finisher, similar to Redemption in that it gives immediate value. It’s less of a stabilizing force than it’s blue counterpart, but has more value potential, and bringing a unit back insulates you a bit from this getting removed immediately.
Boba Fett [L]: (A-)
Probably the best three cost unit in the game, makes ground combat incredibly annoying for your opponent.
Change of Heart [L]: (C+)
Ideally you use it on a unit that can then attack and trade with another one of your opponent’s units. Sounds easy enough, but in reality, it doesn’t line up so smoothly all the time.
Cunning [L]: (C-/A-)
I think this one is a bit weaker than the other three double aspect Legendary cards when paying six for it. This is a pure tempo card, and the extra cost punishes it a lot.
Millenium Falcon [L]: (A-)
It hits hard and fast. Do note that I think the best use of this is usually to take out some other ships with it, because if it sticks around too long, it can put you at a major resource disadvantage. Don’t be shy about bouncing it back to your hand if you have a big play to make that needs that resource.
Avenger [L]: (C+)
Another decent finisher, but nine cost really is tough, and although it has an immediate impact, it won’t always be able to stabilize the board enough.
Luke Skywalker [L]: (A+)
Yeah, he’s good. Comes down, chops something up, leaves behind one of the most powerful ground bodies possible. He even starts healing you cause he’s such a nice guy.
Superlaser Blast [L]: (B-)
People won’t be playing around this too often in draft (especially not game one), so you can get some pretty big blowouts. The value of this will depend on how efficient you are controlling the board early, and whether or not you or your opponent has a better follow up.
Vigilance [L]: (B-/A-)
This will finish off a smaller unit, and I’d wager that the next most relevant ability will be a well-timed shield. This one is pretty versatile, as the heal can come in handy. Also note that since limited decks are usually 30 cards, the potential for a “mill” victory is possible with this. It’s not the primary mode, but in a long drawn out game, this can win you the game that way.
Closing
I’ll start this off by saying that some of the cards in this list are worth real world money. It’s up to you what your threshold is for passing any of them in draft, and it’s perfectly fine to draft cards you don’t intend to play for your collection.
Overall, I think the rares and legendaries are interesting to work with. I also think the developers did a good job of keeping a lot of the power in the lower rarity pool as well. You can win plenty of drafts without having big bombs in your deck.
wooooo’s Draft Cheat Sheet
Previous Articles in the Series
Garbage Rollers 
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