Last updated on May 17, 2024
Onward // Victory | Illustration by Grzegorz Rutkowski
WotC had this idea to branch out its main product in 2020, offering different booster experiences to different players.
Say you want to pick up some foils and cards with altered art. You’re not going to find that in your usual boosters. Maybe you’re a new player that digs mono red. In this case you should look for a product with a higher concentration of red cards, and maybe a red rare that fits your deck.
Today I’m not talking about these specific booster packs, but the old booster that you know and love. What we simply refer to as… the “draft booster.”
What's a Draft Booster? What's the Purpose?
Unity of Purpose | Illustration by Jason Felix
Simply put, a draft booster was a pack highly recommended for the players that like to draft. Since the rarities are balanced with only one rare, the packs are designed to be drafted with. Before play boosters, it was the main way to play Limited.
What Comes in a Draft Booster?
A draft booster has 10 commons, 3 uncommons, 1 rare/mythic rare, and 1 token/marketing card. Sometimes one of the commons will be replaced with a foil card of any given rarity, usually common but they can be of a higher rarity if you're lucky.
#15. Ravnica Remastered
Ravnica Remastered is the last set with draft boosters for the foreseeable future. This set is chock full of retro frame cards and a mix of several Ravnica sets. The expected power level is higher than the decks you see. So if you've drafted any previous sets from the plane of Ravnica, this is a payoff several years in the making since you'll see cards that have never been in a booster pack before, and the new context for guildmages in Ravnica Remastered draft boosters is pretty exciting.
- BECOME A CARD-CARRYING GUILD MEMBER—There’s no place like Ravnica; walk through familiar streets with a bustling crowd of reprinted favorites from Ravnica’s past and the ten unique guilds that keep the city running
- RETRO CARD IN EVERY PACK—Take a turn down memory lane with the inclusion of a special Retro card in every booster!
- RARE OR MYTHIC RARE IN EVERY PACK—Every pack contains at least 1 card of rarity Rare or higher and may contain up to 3, including 1 possible Rare or Mythic Rare with a shining Traditional Foil treatment
- BEST BOOSTERS FOR DRAFTING—Draft Boosters are designed to draft a deck and play with friends; everyone grabs 3 packs and passes them around to pick cards. Add some lands and you're ready for epic 2-player battles
- PLAY A GAME THAT FUSES ART, STORIES & STRATEGY—Magic: The Gathering is a collectible card game that weaves deep strategy with art and mechanics that explore the themes of a particular world and story—whether you want to play a casual game with friends, collect cool cards, or get competitive, Magic welcomes you to The Gathering
#14. Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate
The Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate draft boosters might appeal to you even if you'd never said “Baldur's Gate” before. Here are three reasons why, 1) draft, face it, that's what you're here for, 2) Commander for variety and flavor, and 3) Value. Combine draft, commander, and value into one Magic experience and you have a great time.
The cards mentioned on Draftsim.com show up quite often from CLB. Major cards for Commander like planeswalker commanders, backgrounds, and Battlebond lands show up in these 20-card packs built for Commander Draft. Not many boxes of draft boosters go for cheap like sub-$100 prices, even if the box has just 24 booster packs.
- 24 Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate MTG Draft Boosters
- 20 Magic cards per CLB Draft Booster
- 1–4 cards of rarity Rare or higher in every pack
- At least 2 Legendary cards and 1 Traditional Foil card in every pack
- Grab 3 boosters, pick 2 cards at a time, and build a 60-card Commander deck
#13. Wilds of Eldraine
Wilds of Eldraine draft boosters make for a balanced draft experience and the Enchanting Tales cards are quite a treat. The introduction of role tokens is cool, and there might be a few more rat tokens running around than you're used to, but fan favorites like faeries and food are great returning themes in Wilds of Eldraine.
- A TALE ONLY YOU CAN TELL—Venture into the untamed Wilds of Eldraine, a fairy tale-inspired world in the Magic multiverse, and free the kingdom from a curse of endless slumber
- BEST BOOSTERS FOR DRAFTING—Draft Boosters are designed to draft a deck and play with friends; everyone grabs 3 packs and passes them around to pick cards. Add some lands and you're ready for epic 2-player battles
- BEWITCHING BORDERLESS CARDS—Every Draft Booster contains at least 1 Borderless Enchanting Tales card with alt-art that looks right out of a storybook or may even feature special anime-inspired art
- RARE OR MYTHIC RARE IN EVERY PACK—Every pack contains 1 card of rarity Rare or higher and may contain up to 3, including 1 possible Rare or Mythic Rare with a shining Traditional Foil treatment
- PLAY A GAME THAT FUSES ART, STORIES & STRATEGY—Magic: The Gathering is a collectible card game that weaves deep strategy with art and mechanics that explore the themes of a particular world and story—whether you want to play a casual game with friends, collect cool cards, or get competitive, Magic welcomes you to The Gathering
#12. Innistrad: Crimson Vow
Crimson Vow introduced us to the blood mechanic, which is basically another way to rummage or discard cards you don’t need to try to find better ones (like cycling). This feature makes Limited play very nice and Crimson Vow draft boosters a decent buy.
And aside from some game-breaking bombs like Toxrill, the Corrosive and Avabruck Caretaker, the gameplay is very good. Cards you want to look out for are the slow lands, Sorin the Mirthless, Chandra, Dressed to Kill, Olivia, Crimson Bride, and control staple Hullbreaker Horror.
- 3 Innistrad: Crimson Vow MTG Draft Boosters
- 15 Magic cards per Draft Booster, including 1 Showcase Eternal Night Land
- At least 2 double-faced cards in every pack
- Return to the gothic horror plane of Innistrad for a sumptuous vampire wedding—as honored guest or delicious entrée
- Just draft, add lands, and join the sinister celebration
#11. Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths
The set that brought us 10 different companions. There are still reasons to go after Ikoria boosters even though most of the companions are banned. The cycle of Ultimatums along with companions like Lurrus of the Dream-Den, Kaheera, the Orphanguard and Jegantha, the Wellspring among others.
For those who like Limited, Ikoria: Lair of the Behemoths Draft is one of the most interesting experiences out there. You can draft a deck around a mechanic like vigilance or trample, some different versions of a cycling deck, and plenty of creative build-arounds, not to mention mutate decks.
#10. Streets of New Capenna
Cards like Ledger Shredder and Raffine, Scheming Seer are amazing, and the New Capenna tri-lands are the most sought-after cards from the set. If you need a Sealed or Draft event, go after those Streets of New Capenna boosters.
- 3 Streets of New Capenna MTG Draft Boosters—the best SNC packs for booster draft play
- 15 Magic cards per Draft Booster
- 1 Rare or Mythic Rare card in every pack
- Metropolis Full-Art Land in 33% of boosters
- Just draft, add lands, and play
#9. Strixhaven: School of Mages
Each Strixhaven booster has a guaranteed card from the Mystical Archive since it’s on-theme with the set, and they’re all reprints of instants and sorceries with special art treatment, like Electrolyze, Lightning Bolt, Duress, and even Mind's Desire. The Limited experience is okay, but the power level isn’t that high if you’re looking to boost up a Commander deck.
- The Strixhaven Draft Booster Pack includes 15 cards.
#8. Innistrad: Midnight Hunt
If you like to draft Dimir () zombies, the Midnight Hunt boosters are the packs to get. Midnight Hunt’s Draft is very interesting, but it clearly has a best deck and isn’t short of nice cards to collect from all-star werewolves Arlinn, the Pack's Hope and Tovolar, Dire Overlord to other Constructed staples like The Celestus, the slow lands, and Graveyard Trespasser.
- The Innistrad Midnight Hunt Draft Booster Pack includes 15 cards.
#7. Zendikar Rising
Zendikar Rising was the set that introduced modal double-faced cards, which in this case are cards that can be played on either side. This adds loads of flexibility in what you can put in your deck. Plus there are full-art lands available in each Zendikar Rising pack (even foil full-art lands), which are consistently in demand by a lot of players.
Powerful cards you’re looking for here are Skyclave Apparition, Emeria's Call, Omnath, Locus of Creation, and the cycle of Pathways.
- The Zendikar Rising Draft Booster Pack includes draft booster packs each containing 15 cards.
- FULL-ART LANDS AND DOUBLE-FACED CARDS IN EVERY PACK. Zendikar Rising brings a special kind of double-faced card to MTG: play the spell on one side or flip it over and play it as a land instead.
- INTRODUCING "PARTY." Assemble a party from four adventuring classes (Cleric, Rogue, Warrior, Wizard) and become stronger together with rewards for each class joining you on the battlefield.
- LANDFALL AND KICKER RETURN. Two of Magic's most popular mechanics are back! Landfall rewards you for playing land cards, and Kicker makes your spells more powerful—if you have enough mana.
- PERILOUS RISKS AND PRICELESS REWARDS. On Zendikar, danger is the norm: wild terrain, cunning predators, and "the Roil"—violent ripples of change—all make life precarious and full of adventure.
#6. Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty
An especially interesting Standard set, Neon Dynasty is impactful on to its format. The Limited experience is also one of the most interesting.
You can draft powerful sagas even at common, and decks that care about enchantments, artifacts, or both work great here. Eternal format players would like to open multi-format star The Wandering Emperor, Greasefang, Okiba Boss, or the cycle of rare channel lands, including Boseiju, Who Endures.
- 3 Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty MTG Draft Boosters
- 15 Magic cards per booster
- Ukiyo-e Land in 33% of Draft Boosters
- Just draft, add lands, and play
- With cyberpunk cards full of color and chrome—the future is bright in Kamigawa
#5. Commander Legends
Commander Legends was a set designed with the Commander experience in mind. So this isn’t your average MTG collection since cards were designed or reprinted specifically for EDH.
This set has important staples for Commander like Hullbreacher and Opposition Agent alongside lots of legendary creatures for your commander. Rounding up the set are powerful reprints like Vampiric Tutor, Austere Command, Mana Drain, and Rings of Brighthearth.
- COMMANDER DRAFT IS HERE: Draft with the first ever Booster Packs designed for Commander.
- BATTLE YOUR FRIENDS: Commander is a different way to play Magic: The Gathering. It's all about legendary creatures, big plays, and battling your friends in epic multiplayer games.
- 24 DRAFT BOOSTERS: Grab 3 packs, pick 2 cards at a time, and add in some lands for a 60-card Commander deck—then show it off in exciting free-for-all games with up to 8 friends.
- 2 LEGENDS PER PACK: Enhance your deck with reprints of classic MTG commanders or 1 of the 71 commanders introduced in the set.
- INTRODUCING FOIL ETCHED CARDS: Commander Legends debuts foil etched cards - a special kind of foil with beautiful metallic frames. In some Commander Legends Draft Boosters you can find a foil etched showcase legend or regular foil borderless Planeswalker..CONTENTS: 24 Commander Legends Draft Booster packs—20 Magic cards + 1 ad/token per pack, with 2 legends, at least 1 rare, and 1 foil each.
#4. Time Spiral Remastered
Time Spiral Remastered boosters brought a cool novelty: each booster has a reprinted card with MTG’s old frame. So you can have versions of cards like Rakdos Charm, Ponder, and Eternal Witness in old frames to customize your EDH decks or Cubes.
There are several interesting cards in the Time Spiral block, like Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth, Living End, and Pact of Negation. You might even find a foil card inside the booster sometimes.
The Time Spiral Remastered Limited experience is one of the best, and folks who drafted the Time Spiral block usually refer to this as one of the best set Drafts ever.
- 3 Time Spiral Remastered (TSR) Magic: The Gathering Draft Booster Packs
- 1 card with a retro Magic frame in every pack
- Reprints of the most memorable cards from Time Spiral, Planar Chaos, and Future Sight
- At least 1 rare or mythic rare in every pack
- 15 Magic cards per pack
#3. Throne of Eldraine
Throne of Eldraine was a spike in power level. Lots of cards from this set see play in various formats like Pioneer and Modern. Plenty of cards have been banned too, like Oko, Thief of Crowns and Once Upon a Time.
The Draft format is very solid, with lots of viable strategies and a weird incentive to draft mono-color decks, which isn’t something that happens every day. The interesting part about a Throne of Eldraine booster box is that a lot of uncommons and commons are powerful too, not just the rares.
- Expand your collection. With 36 throne of eldraine booster packs, each with 15 magic cards, The possibilities are nearly endless. Choose your favorite cards, PA your deck, and battle!
- These fairy tales fight back. Throne of eldraine spins grimm’s fairy tales and Arthurian legend as only Magic: The Gathering (Mtg) can. Create your own story as you battle your way to victory with your favorite fabled creatures!
- Devise your strategy. Plan your attack, develop new tactics, and adapt your plans on the fly As you battle your way to victory.
- Join the community. Magic: The Gathering (Mtg) fans have come together for decades to share their love of the game. Become a part of one of the largest gaming communities in the world.
- Play the game that started it all. The original strategy card game, Magic: The Gathering (Mtg) has inspired more than 20 million fans over 25 years.
#2. Double Masters
Double Masters boosters have two rares per pack instead of one, and it’s a set of reprints aimed at eternal formats. Double the rares, double the fun!
There are lots of premium cards for Commander and Cube in Double Masters, like Breya, Etherium Shaper, Blightsteel Colossus, and Atraxa, Praetors' Voice. There’s also Dark Confidant, Force of Will, and Jace, the Mind Sculptor for 60-card Constructed decks.
The experience of Draft may not be your cup of tea if you don’t like powerful strategies, but getting two rares from each pack and two picks in Draft is certainly exciting.
- TWO RARES. Each of the 24 Double Masters Draft Booster Packs inside your booster box contains not 1 but 2 rare or mythic rare Magic cards—at least.
- TWO FOILS. All 24 packs have twice the shine, with 2 foils in each booster (can be any rarity).
- TWO BOX TOPPERS. Each Double Masters Draft Booster Box contains 2 special box topper cards with beautiful borderless treatments.
- TWO FIRST PICKS. Every pack of Double Masters has two rares—and when you booster draft, you can pick them both.
- TOO POWERFUL. Play with some of the most powerful Magic cards ever, whether you're into Commander, Pioneer, Legacy, or all of the above.
#1. Modern Horizons 2
Modern Horizons 2 is one of the most powerful sets in Magic, and a set that changed the landscape of Modern (and other formats). The reprint of the Zendikar enemy-color fetch lands is a huge boost to this set, not to mention the introduction of Modern staples like Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer and the cycle of elementals.
The MH2 Draft experience is top notch, with draft-able archetypes like reanimator, storm, and discard matters/madness, which are usually fun and interactive with lots of overlap between color pairs. Another crazy archetype to draft is “tokens matters” in Simic (), which cares about cards that produce creature tokens, as well as treasure and clue tokens.
Although the price of Modern Horizons 2 draft boosters is higher, it’s worth it for the Limited experience and the possibility to crack powerful and expensive rares and mythics.
- 3 Modern Horizons 2 (MH2) Magic: The Gathering Draft Boosters
- 15 MTG cards per Draft Booster
- 1 New-to-Modern reprint in every pack
- 1–2 Rares and/or Mythic Rares in every pack
- Introduces powerful cards and beloved reprints to the Modern format
What's the Difference Between a “Regular” MTG Booster and a Draft Booster?
Aside from the name, a draft booster and a regular booster are the same thing. WotC rebranded the “regular” MTG booster into a draft booster some time ago to differentiate it from other products. You first saw “draft booster” on packaging during Zendikar Rising which introduced the set booster and set apart during Throne of Eldraine discussions which had the first collector boosters.
How Many Packs Are in a Draft Booster Box?
A draft booster box contains 36 packs. Although you’ll only need 24 boosters or less if you want to fire an 8-player draft, you can join up to 12 drafts (with three boosters each time) with your friends or at your local game store if you bring the boosters with you. Some non-Standard sets come in booster boxes with exactly 24 packs, as if the intended use for a draft was not already clear.
Are Draft Booster Boxes Worth It in General?
I’d only recommend buying a draft booster box if you’re a Limited fan and enjoy drafting a specific set. They’re worth it for the value of the rares and mythics that can be opened, as well as the experience of cracking packs, or just drafting with your friends. If you like Limited at all and draft or play Sealed, then the value of those draft boosters (and the draft booster boxes) goes up.
Nowadays, Collector Boosters provide the ultimate value when it comes to cracking packs for the heck of it.
Are Draft Boosters Discontinued?
Yes, draft boosters are discontinued. Murders at Karlov Manor introduced the play booster and killed off both draft and set boosters. The play boosters have all of the fun and exciting cards from your average set booster but are assembled in a way that can be played in Limited. Certainly stores still sell draft boosters from older sets, but new draftable sets will not have draft boosters unless WotC turns a big corner.
How Many Rares Are in a Draft Booster Box?
Each draft booster has a rare or mythic rare card and a 33% to have a foil card. MTG sets also have a buy-a-box promo card nowadays, which is usually a mythic rare. So you should get an average of 40 rares/mythics from a draft booster box. You can get some extra rares and mythics in some sets that have special configurations like Strixhaven’s Mystical Archive.
How Many Mythics Are in a Draft Booster Box?
There’s a 1 in 7 chance that your draft booster will contain a mythic rare, so you can expect four or five mythics in a draft booster box.
Are Draft Boosters Limited Release?
No, draft boosters were supplied to stores as long as there was demand. They used to be the most sought-after products from a given set and the most sold, not to mention that they were also the cheapest.
Do Draft Boosters Have Cards from The List?
No, cards from The List are found in other packs like collector and play boosters.
How Many Draft Booster Boxes Are in a Case?
A draft booster box case contains six booster boxes with 36 boosters each, totaling 216 draft boosters. It’s usually how stores handle the product, buying directly from the distributor.
Wrap Up
Dramatic Finale | Illustration by Steve Argyle
WotC offers us a few ways to buy Magic products nowadays. They need to sell boosters to make a profit, and one of the main ways that they sell is to players looking for Draft.
What do you think of my draft booster rankings? Do you have a favorite set to draft with? Let me know in the comments below or join the discussion in Draftsim’s official Discord.
May you crack plenty of boosters and find your expensive foil mythic rares!
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