Modern Horizons 3 Best Commons and Uncommons

Last updated on June 28, 2024

Galvanic Discharge | Illustration by Zoltan Boros

Modern Horizons MTG sets are among some of the most complicated to navigate in recent memory. Even if you’ve read all of the cards and perhaps read the excellently written MH3 Limited Set Review and MH3 Sealed Guide, it still might be tricky to know what to do in Modern Horizons 3. Even in a world where, thanks to Play boosters, there are more rares and mythic rares in our sets, it’s still commons and uncommons that are the backbone of Draft and Sealed formats, so today I’m going to go over my early picks for the best commons and uncommons in each color. If you're looking for a more holistic view of the Draft format, I'd highly recommend Bryan's MH3 Draft guide. He's rank 1 on the MTGO leaderboard with over 50 trophies!

For Outlaws of Thunder Junction, I produced a list of five commons and three uncommons in each color. That won’t quite work for this set. There are only 12 commons versus 17 uncommons in each color. Instead, I’ll be doing four of each rarity for each color plus a couple of honorable mentions that don’t fit into these categories.

Best Commons in Modern Horizons 3 Draft

Tune the Narrative | Illustration by Marzena Nereida Piwowar

White

#4. Inspired Inventor

I’m always interested in any card that is two creatures in one, plus we’ve seen some huge energy payoffs that make me really excited to see a common like Inspired Inventor.

#3. Expel the Unworthy

This white sorcery isn’t the best removal spell in the world, but I think Expel the Unworthy does the job pretty nicely. Not being an instant is a bit of a shame, but it can get rid of anything. Settle Beyond Reality really overperformed in Modern Horizons 1, and I think this card might end up being better.

#2. Dog Umbra

The flexibility of a Pacifism that also saves your creature from removal or combat is exactly the kind of thing I expect out of a Horizons set. It’s hard to get better white removal than an aura like Dog Umbra at common.

#1. Hexgold Slith

White looks like it wants to be aggressive in this set, and Hexgold Slith is a strong 2-drop that slots perfectly into all of white’s archetypes. Whether you care about energy or modifications, this annoying card should be the perfect way to start your curve.

Blue

#4. Aether Spike

Quench with late game relevance has proven itself to be quite a potent card in recent sets. Counterspells like Aether Spike are how blue typically removes threats and it does a pretty good job of that at all points in the game.

#3. Serum Visionary

You can never go wrong with a 3-drop 2/2 that draws a card. Look at how busted Phyrexian Rager has been every time it’s been printed, and the same goes for Vault Plunderer. Serum Visionary draws cards without losing board presence, which is just great.

#2. Tune the Narrative

1 mana for an extra card plus 2 energy sounds weak at first, but look at all the ways we have to spend that energy. It’ll often amount to about a card’s worth of extra value, making Tune the Narrative basically a 1-mana two-for-one in the right deck.

#1. Deem Inferior

I don’t know how often Deem Inferior is going to cost 1 mana, but it should always be cheap enough to be a great, efficient way of dealing with any threat. Blue decks often need access to cards like this and with so many big Eldrazi in the set, it should enable some big tempo swings.

Black

#4. Refurbished Familiar

I keep remembering how good Liliana's Specter was back in the day, and Refurbished Familiar is very likely better. The artifact aggro deck looks pretty well supported, and when reliably costing 3, 2, or even 1 mana, this zombie rat starts looking extremely powerful.

#3. Gravedig

I can’t resist the allure of a great value spell. I’ll be hard pressed to cast Gravedig without the entwine cost, but it’s technically an option you could use.

#2. Wither and Bloom

Cheap, effective removal is valuable in every Limited format, and Wither and Bloom is no exception. Aggressive decks look quite good, and this black instant is going to be necessary to stem the bleeding.

#1. Breathe Your Last

You can never go too wrong with a good 3-mana removal spell. The best black common is likely to be either Breathe Your Last or Wither and Bloom, but this is my pick simply because of how good the Eldrazi decks look. They could easily swap places by the end of the format.

Red

#4. Glimpse the Impossible

Red has three exceptional commons, and then there’s a significant drop off to fourth place with Glimpse the Impossible. This red sorcery looks like a very important card to enable Eldrazi decks, and the red/green version looks particularly well supported. The deck is bound to be good, and this red card looks like a very important piece for it to come together.

#3. Skoa, Embermage

The first common legendary creature in over 25 years really isn’t pulling any punches. Flametongue Kavu variants are almost never common, let alone able to just nuke an opponent in one hit like Skoa, Embermage. I also love the drafting mini game of seeing how many copies of this red creature you can possibly get in the same deck, because this goblin wizard works incredibly well in multiples, which you can’t say about most 6-drops.

#2. Fanged Flames

It’s so weird that Fanged Flames isn’t the strongest common burn spell in this set. 4 direct damage to any creature or planeswalker plus exiling it is absurd for only 2 mana, and there are definitely some creatures that need to be exiled.

#1. Galvanic Discharge

This red instant has to be the best common in MH3, at least at this early stage. Galvanic Discharge is a 1-mana removal spell that kills a lot of early plays and can scale up to kill anything later on. Strong 1-mana removal rarely comes up these days, even in sets like this, and this is one of the best we’ve ever seen.

Green

#4. Eldrazi Repurposer

Whether you’re going wide in red/green or ramping in blue/green, this devoid green creature is going to be among the best plays you can make on turn 3. Eldrazi Repurposer commits a lot of power and toughness to the board while advancing both Eldrazi strategies, which is exactly what I’m looking for to make these decks come together.

#3. Nyxborn Hydra

This is a weird green enchantment creature. To me, Nyxborn Hydra looks like it has the power level of a good uncommon or a rare. At the same time, I don’t feel like I’ll miss it if I don’t pick any up, even in the right archetypes for it. This hydra will be very powerful, just not an integral piece of any particular deck.

#2. Nightshade Dryad

We need to be able to ramp in this set, and this dryad the easiest way to do it. Better yet, Nightshade Dryad fixes for colorless mana as well as all colors, and it works incredibly well with the bite spells. It’s basically the perfect common mana dork.

#1. Horrific Assault

Green’s bite spell isn’t always the best common for the color, but they also don’t usually cost 1 mana and gain you some life a lot of the time. Horrific Assault is incredibly efficient and a very important piece to allow the Eldrazi deck to keep up with the rest of the format.

Best Uncommons in MH3 Draft

White

#4. Ajani Fells the Godsire

5 mana is a lot, but Ajani Fells the Godsire answers a lot of problematic creatures, particularly Eldrazi, and then it gives you a ton of additional value on top. Big value plays will be the name of the game in winning long games, so keep an eye on this white enchantment.

#3. Proud Pack-Rhino

Shield counters have proven to be excellent, meaning Proud Pack-Rhino will often be a great value play, trading for ideally two of your opponent’s cards while being good in any white deck. Plus, it plays nicely with modifications, so that’s always something to look out for.

#2. Static Prison

Answering anything for 1 mana is always worth paying attention to. It seems each color has access to a way of doing this, and Static Prison is simply white’s option. Efficiency is one of the most key features of a good removal spell, so this is always good to see.

#1. Glyph Elemental

This white elemental is my pick for the best 2-drop in MH3 Limited. White looks aggressive, making Glyph Elemental an essential white card to pick up. Despite being a great 2-drop, its power actually lies in bestowing it on a later turn, but whichever way you play it it’s just an excellent card.

Blue

#4. Twisted Riddlekeeper

Tapping and stunning two creatures is a big tempo swing, but what really makes Twisted Riddlekeeper deserve a spot on this list is the fact that it’s an 8-drop to trigger all the cards that care about that, while only costing about 3 or 4 thanks to emerge. The ramp deck is going to need cards like this Eldrazi sphinx that can fill multiple roles on the curve.

#3. Hope-Ender Coatl

At 3 mana, this Eldrazi snake can slot into basically any blue deck, and it’s very dangerous. Hope-Ender Coatl doesn’t direct you into a particular archetype, but it’s a good value card that makes me want to play blue. I’d be very happy spending an early pick on it.

#2. Depth Defiler

All three modes of Depth Defiler are great, so what puts this over the top is the fact that you can choose to do whatever you need with it. The ramp deck needs to stall for time and dig for threats, which this does beautifully.

#1. Kozilek’s Unsealing

Getting to draw three cards whenever you cast a 7-drop is unreal. The Eldrazi ramp deck looks very strong and Kozilek's Unsealing is one of the best build-around cards that will pull me into drafting it.

Black

#4. Arcbound Condor

I’m keen to see how the black/red artifacts deck plays out and Arcbound Condor really makes me want to try it out. The strongest uncommons are typically efficient removal spells, great value cards and strong archetypal support and this black bird actually does a little bit of all three.

#3. Marionette Apprentice

While this human artificer definitely slots better into some archetypes than others, it’s just a great value card that I’ll play anywhere. These kinds of cards can definitely slip under some players’ radars, so make sure you don’t miss out on Marionette Apprentice.

#2. Wurmcoil Larva

I keep talking about how good value plays are and this deathtouching Phyrexian wurm is one of the best. Without a way to exile it, Wurmcoil Larva will happily go about its business and trade for at least two or three cards from your opponent. It’s not looking to fit into a particular archetype, it’s just a good black card for any black deck.

#1. Fell the Profane / Fell Mire

Wurmcoil Larva is probably the better card in terms of raw power level, but I don’t think you can ever pass up on a land that’s also a removal spell. To be honest though, you’re never cutting either of the Larva or Fell the Profane / Fell Mire from your black decks.

Red

#4. Pinnacle Monk / Mystic Peak

This slot is between Pinnacle Monk / Mystic Peak and Amped Raptor, but I just can’t resist an Archaeomancer. On balance, having this be a red land first and foremost is probably what actually clinches the spot on this list.

#3. Ghostfire Slice

Ghostfire Slice, one of the best devoid cards in MTG, doesn’t need to cost 1 mana to be a very good removal spell, yet it will probably be that more often than you realize. It’s also the only one of these burn spells that can target a player, giving all red decks that bit of extra reach that they need.

#2. Spawn-Gang Commander

Green/red is all about going wide, so four creatures in one card like Spawn-Gang Commander is about as perfect as it gets. But it doesn’t even matter which deck you play this Eldrazi goblin in, because it’s just dumb in every deck. It’s incredibly similar to the original Siege-Gang Commander, a broken rare in its own right.

#1. Reiterating Bolt

Reiterating Bolt is my pick for the set’s mythic uncommon (though there may very well be a few of them). It’s almost like a Mizzium Mortars that you don’t need to pay extra mana to overload. I can’t even believe I just typed that. If you have enough energy, you could replicate this red sorcery enough to end up killing all your opponent’s creatures for just 2 mana. An uncommon just shouldn’t be capable of doing that, yet here we are.

Green

#4. Wumpus Aberration

Even though Wumpus Aberration is basically just a hugely efficient vanilla creature, it’s more than big enough to make an impact. Green looks unusually aggressive in this set and this Eldrazi beast is a solid fit in all of green’s potential archetypes.

#3. Bridgeworks Battle / Tanglespan Bridgeworks

The fact that Bridgeworks Battle / Tanglespan Bridgeworks is a strict upgrade over Savage Smash while also being a modal double-faced land feels so weird to me. I’ll literally play this in every green deck and be very happy with it.

#2. Annoyed Altisaur

I can’t stop gushing over this cascading green dinosaur. Annoyed Altisaur fits perfectly in this set with the Eldrazi ramp theme that cares about 7-drops. I hope it won’t take too long before I get to cast this with a Kozilek's Unsealing in play.

#1. Signature Slam

Clear Shot is one of green’s best-ever removal spells and basically always one of, if not the best nonrare green card in any given set. Signature Slam is a strict upgrade over that, so it stands to reason it’ll be one of the best green cards in this set.

Honorable Mentions

Titans’ Vanguard

Don’t sleep on this Gruul () Eldrazi. Each color combination has two signpost cards to pull you into their respective archetypes, and Titans' Vanguard looks like the strongest one of the bunch. The fact that you don’t even need to be heavily focused on the archetype for the card to have an impact says everything for me. Red/green looks very well supported, particularly with a number of the other strong common and uncommon cards, and this is icing on the cake.

All the MDFC Dual Lands

I talked about this a lot in my full MH3 Limited Set Review, but modal double-faced lands are exceptional. There’s so little cost involved in including these in your deck. You’d basically always play a dual land in your colors, but other dual lands aren’t also spells when you don’t need extra lands. You could easily have a deck with 17-18 lands where 3-4 of them are MDFCs and double up as spells, increasing the likelihood that you draw relevant cards as the game goes on. These cards are incredible, especially Drowner of Truth and Stump Stomp.

Wrap Up

Stump Stomp | Illustration by Volkan Baǵa

Well, that’s it for the best commons and uncommons in Modern Horizons 3 Limited. What do you think of the set? Is there a deck that you’re particularly excited to draft? Let us know on our socials.

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Until next time, take care of yourselves!