How the lists of each archetype are built, and what that does to the cards you open with.
Worked out exactly from the card lists of 100 published decks, not sampled from games. Cards count by name, so two prints of one card are one card.
By archetype
| Archetype | Different cards | At 4 copies |
|---|---|---|
| All published decks100 decks | 16.7 | 58% |
| Blue/Purple Control17 decks | 16.1 | 66% |
| Blue/Red Control13 decks | 16.5 | 62% |
| Green/Purple Control12 decks | 18.1 | 47% |
| Blue/Red Midrange8 decks | 16.9 | 57% |
| Mono-Purple Control6 decks | 16.3 | 60% |
| Green/Purple Ramp5 decks | 14.6 | 69% |
| Blue/Green Control4 decks | 14.8 | 72% |
| Green/Purple Midrange4 decks | 22.0 | 24% |
| Mono-Red Midrange4 decks | 18.5 | 50% |
| Purple/Red Control4 decks | 14.5 | 72% |
| Blue/Green Midrange3 decks | 15.3 | 69% |
| Blue/Red Aggro3 decks | 17.7 | 51% |
| Green/Red Midrange3 decks | 20.3 | 40% |
| Mono-Green Aggro3 decks | 10.3 | 79% |
Not shown, under 3 published decks each: Blue/Green Ramp (2), Green/Red Ramp (2), Purple/Red Midrange (2), Blue/Green Combo (1), Green/Purple Combo (1), Green/Red Combo (1), Mono-Green Ramp (1), Mono-Red Aggro (1).
How to read it
Different cards is the number of distinct card names in the 50. Fewer means more repeats, which is more consistent and less flexible.
At 4 copies is how much of the list sits in cards run at the four-copy limit.
Different in hand is the expected number of different cards among the 5 in an opening hand, and Repeat in hand is the chance at least one card shows up twice or more. Both are exact for a shuffled deck, averaged over the decks of the archetype.
Archetype averages need at least 3 published decks. For the odds of drawing a particular card, see draw odds.