The Booster Draft format is a challenging and exciting way to play, as it requires players to think on their feet and make strategic choices based on the cards available to them. Starting with 3 packs, you draft cards one at a time as the packs are passed around the table. With every pack you receive, you’ll need to make quick decisions about your draft pick to create a balanced and powerful deck. Once your deck is drafted, you’ll face off against other players to see who has the best strategy and skill. Booster Draft is a thrilling and dynamic format that will put your abilities to the test and give you a chance to discover new strategies along the way.
The following only covers the basics and recommendations for Booster Draft. Please refer to the Tournament Rules and Policy for more complete details on running a Booster Draft tournament.
Quickstart
- Each player drafts cards from 3 boosters (~45 cards, depending on the set)
- 1 young hero card from the set
- Start with 30 cards in the deck
- Any amount of each unique card
- 35 minutes per round, best of 1
Drafting
To draft cards, players are arranged into pods. The suggested number of players for a pod is 8 (no less than 4 and no more than 11). Each player is given 3 booster packs to draft, and then the drafting begins.
Simultaneously, all players open 1 of their 3 booster packs and remove the last 1 or 2 cards from the pack (the basic slot cards). Players then choose (draft) 1 card from among the cards remaining in the pack and place it face down into a single pile in front of them. The remaining cards are then shuffled and passed to the player seated on their left. Players pick up the cards passed to them and repeat this process until all cards in the pack have been drafted.
The second pack is drafted the same as above, but packs are passed to the player on the right.
The third pack is drafted the same as above, but packs are passed to the player on the left.
While the drafting of booster packs is in progress, players may not look at the cards they have already drafted. Before the opening of both the second and third booster packs, players may look at the cards they have drafted. At the end of the review period, each player must return the cards to a single face-down in a single pile in front of them.
Players keep all of the cards they draft.
Card-Pool Construction Rules
In Booster Draft, each player registers any young hero card from the set and the cards that they have drafted. A player’s card-pool includes every card that they’ve drafted, and any number of basic rarity cards from the set. Any non-basic rarity card removed from the basic slot of a booster is not legal to include in a player’s card-pool, including expansion slot, cold foil, extended art, Legendary rarity, Fabled rarity, and non-young hero cards (depending on the set being drafted).
Basic rarity cards (formerly token rarity cards) include the heroes, their weapons, and Cracked Baubles, but may also include equipment (e.g. Proto Base set) and/or other deck-cards (e.g. Phoenix Flame). If a player cannot construct a 30-card deck from the cards they have opened, they add Cracked Baubles to their deck until the number of cards in their deck is 30. Basic rarity cards are typically pooled together after opening packs so players can use the cards they need for their card-pools.
Some earlier sets have less restrictions on deck size, requiring only that you start with a minimum of 30 cards. Unless stated under Set-Specific Additional Rules, the default rule is to start with EXACTLY 30 cards, no more, no less.
A player can only start the game with a card from their card-pool if the card’s class/talents are a subset of the hero’s class/talents (e.g. a Light talent card can only be included if the hero has a Light talent). Generic cards can be used with any hero.
A card-pool can contain any amount of each unique card (e.g. If you draft 6 Sink Below (red) from your boosters, you can play with all 6 in your deck).
These rules are subject to the effects of the hero or cards in the card-pool, which may allow or limit what cards can be included. (e.g. Heroes with “Essence” allow certain talented cards to be included, even if the hero doesn’t have the same talent).
The Legendary keyword only applies to constructed format decks (Classic Constructed, Living Legend, etc), so if your Booster Draft card-pool contains multiple copies of the same card with the Legendary keyword, you are allowed to play all of them.
Some specific sets include a Macro. Players start the game with the designated Macro in the arena, just like they would with their hero and weapon(s). The Macro does not contribute to the player’s deck size, inventory, or card-pool. Some sets may have a single Macro that is shared by both players (e.g. Treasure Island), or it may have a Macro that each individual player starts with (e.g. Sanctuary of Aria).
SET-SPECIFIC ADDITIONAL RULES
Some specific sets have additional rules regarding how Booster Draft is played:
Super Slam
- Only 1 card is removed from each booster pack, and it is removed from the front of the pack.
- No weapons are used.
High Seas
- The game starts with a single shared Treasure Island in the arena.
Rosetta
- Each player starts with a Sanctuary of Aria in the arena.
Part the Mistveil
- Equipment with the cloaked keyword are not revealed during the start of game procedure, as they begin the game equipped face-down. At the end of the game, if the opponent or a tournament official asks you to show your remaining face-down cloaked equipment, you MUST do so.
Heavy Hitters
- Minimum 30 cards. Maximum 40.
Bright Lights
- Minimum 30 cards. Maximum 40.
Outsiders
- Players can use Legendary rarity cards.
- Minimum deck size of 30 cards. No maximum.
Uprising
- Players may add up to 3 Phoenix Flame and 1 Helios Mitre to their card-pool.
- Players can use Legendary rarity cards.
- Minimum deck size of 30 cards. No maximum.
Tales of Aria
- This set also contains Majestic rarity weapons. Players may only use these if they draft them.
- Players can use Legendary rarity cards.
- Minimum deck size of 30 cards. No maximum.
Monarch
- This set also contains Majestic rarity weapons. Players may only use these if they draft them.
- Players can use Legendary rarity cards.
- Minimum deck size of 30 cards. No maximum.
Arcane Rising
- Players can use Legendary rarity cards.
- Minimum deck size of 30 cards. No maximum.
Welcome to Rathe
- Players can use Legendary rarity cards.
- Minimum deck size of 30 cards. No maximum.
For tournaments that do not require card-pool registration, players may change their hero between rounds. If the tournament requires card-pool registration, you can find the official forms in Tournament Forms.
Tournament Structure
The following is the recommended structure for a Booster Draft tournament, which may be altered at the discretion of the Tournament Organizer.
- Matches: Best of 1
- Deck Construction: 15 minutes
- Round Time: 35 minutes
- Pod Size: 8 players (minimum 4, maximum 11)
| Players | Swiss Rounds | Playoff (optional) |
|---|---|---|
| 4-11 | 3 | None |
| 12-16 | 3 or 6 | Top 8 |
| 17-64 | 6 | Top 8 |
| … | … | … |
This document was last updated on 16 May, 2024