MTG Commander Draw Packages: Burst Draw vs Engines vs Looting

This post helps Commander players build MTG Commander draw packages by picking the right mix of burst draw, draw engines, and looting, so you stop topdecking like it’s a lifestyle.

TLDR

Burst draw is your “refill now” button. Great when you’re behind or need to reload after a wipe.
Draw engines are steady income. Great when you’re ahead or can protect them. Also great at getting you targeted.
Looting (draw then discard) is usually card selection, not true card advantage. It’s still excellent when your deck wants graveyard fuel or wants specific cards, fast.
A practical default for many decks is 10 to 14 total card-advantage pieces, split between engines + burst, with a few looters if you benefit from selection or graveyard setup.

Commander is a 100-card singleton format, which means your deck has exactly one copy of every important card and exactly zero sympathy for you when you miss land drops. That’s why MTG Commander draw packages matter. If you don’t plan your draw, you will eventually sit there holding two lands and a dream while the Simic player “just happens” to have eight cards and a smile.

Let’s sort card draw into three buckets you can actually build around.

The three buckets: burst, engines, looting

Think of these as roles in your deck, not just “cards that say draw.”

Quick comparison

Type	What it does	What it’s best at	The catch
Burst draw	Big one-time refill	Stabilizing, rebuilding, finding answers	Costs mana up front, can be clunky early
Draw engines	Repeated draws over time	Snowballing advantage, keeping you stocked	Needs time, gets removed, paints a target
Looting	Draw then discard (or discard then draw)	Fixing hands, digging for key pieces, fueling graveyard	Often not net cards, can run you out of gas if overused

One more cousin worth naming: impulse draw (common in red) exiles cards you can play for a limited window. It’s card advantage, but with a timer and emotional damage.

Burst draw: the “refill now” plan

Burst draw is what you want when:

You’re behind and need to hit land drops plus answers.
You just got wiped and need to rebuild.
Your deck is mana-hungry and wants to convert extra mana into cards.
Your engine got removed because you dared to feel joy.

Burst draw staples (by vibe)

Clean refill spells: Think draw two, lose some life, or draw X style effects.
Big green payoffs: Cards that draw a bunch based on your biggest creature are classic “I have a board, now I also have a hand.”
Blue instant refills: The best versions let you hold up interaction and refill at the end step.
Wheels: Everyone discards and redraws. Strong, swingy, and sometimes the reason your friend now has the perfect seven.

Burst draw traps (the ones that look fine until you play them)

Overpriced sorcery draw in a deck that doesn’t ramp hard. If your draw spell costs five and draws two, that’s not “value,” that’s a cry for help.
All burst, no engines in a slower pod. You’ll keep refilling, then running out, then refilling, like you’re doing groceries one snack at a time.

Rule of thumb for burst

If your deck expects games to go long, you want enough burst draw to recover from disruption. In many mid-power Commander decks, that’s often 4 to 7 burst pieces depending on your curve and commander.

Draw engines: the “steady income” plan

Engines are permanents (or repeatable effects) that keep cards flowing. They’re what you want when:

You’re trying to stay ahead instead of catch up.
Your deck can trigger draw repeatedly (tokens, ETBs, attacks, sacrifices).
You can protect a key piece or your group is not in full “kill on sight” mode.

Engine categories that show up constantly

1) Tax engines (opponents “choose” to feed you cards)
These are the classics. They are strong because multiplayer means lots of spells, lots of triggers, lots of “are you paying?” conversations that definitely do not slow the game down. Totally fine. No notes.

2) Turn-based engines (you draw on your upkeep or end step)
These are steady and simple. You pay once, you get paid each turn. Great until someone removes it right before your upkeep, which is a famously polite thing to do.

3) Synergy engines (your deck’s mechanics become draw)
These are the best-feeling engines because they reward you for doing your thing:

Attack-based draw for creature decks
ETB-based draw for creature chains
Sacrifice-based draw for aristocrats
Artifact draw for artifact decks

Engine traps (how engines betray you)

Too many engines, not enough interaction. You draw cards… and then die with ten cards in hand because you spent turn four drawing instead of not dying.
Engines that don’t match your deck’s reality. If you rarely attack, “draw when you hit” is aspirational fiction. If you rarely cast creatures, “draw on creature ETB” is also fiction.
Not respecting table threat perception. Some engines don’t just draw cards. They also draw removal, side-eye, and a new pod next week.

Rule of thumb for engines

Most Commander decks like 3 to 6 engines depending on speed. Faster decks want cheaper engines. Slower decks can afford pricier engines that take time.

Looting: the “selection” plan (and why it still matters)

Looting is usually not real card advantage. It’s card quality advantage. You see more cards, then keep the best ones.

Looting shines when:

You need to find specific pieces (combo assembly, key removal, land drops).
You want graveyard fuel (reanimator, flashback, delirium, recursion).
You’re in colors that struggle with clean draw and need selection tools.

Also: people say “looting” to mean “draw then discard.” “Rummaging” is often used for “discard then draw.” Red does the second one a lot because red is all about living in the moment, including the moment you realize you discarded the wrong card.

Looting traps

Looting as your only draw plan. If you loot eight times and never actually net cards, you are not “sculpting,” you are slowly deleting your own resources.
Looting without payoff. If your deck doesn’t care about the graveyard and doesn’t need selection, looting can become busywork.

Rule of thumb for looting

In decks that want it, 2 to 6 looting pieces is common. In decks that do not want it, the correct number is “probably zero, plus maybe one if your commander demands it.”

How to build MTG Commander draw packages that actually work

Here’s a framework you can apply in two minutes without opening seventeen tabs and losing your evening.

Step 1: Decide your deck’s draw posture

Pick the sentence that’s most true:

“I need to catch up.” You want more burst draw and a few safe engines.
“I want to stay ahead.” You want more engines, plus burst as insurance.
“I need to find specific cards.” You want loot/selection plus efficient burst.
“My commander draws cards.” Congrats, your commander is your draw package. Now build around protecting it and converting cards into wins.

Step 2: Start with a baseline count

A practical starting point for many Commander decks:

10 to 14 total card advantage pieces
- 4 to 7 burst draw
- 3 to 6 engines
- 0 to 4 looting/selection (only if you benefit)

Then adjust based on reality:

High curve, slower deck: lean more burst (you need refills that matter).
Low curve, faster deck: lean cheaper engines + efficient burst.
Graveyard deck: lean more looting (because it’s secretly doing two jobs).

Step 3: Use this evaluation checklist

When you’re deciding if a draw card belongs, ask:

Mana fit: Can you cast it on the turns you actually need it?
Timing: Does it work at instant speed, on your turn, or only when you’re already winning?
Floor: What happens when you’re behind?
Ceiling: Does it scale in multiplayer, or does it pretend Commander is 1v1?
Synergy: Does it trigger off what your deck already does (ETBs, attacks, sacrifices)?
Heat level: Will it make you the table’s main character? (Sometimes that’s fine. Sometimes it is not.)

If a card fails the floor test and also paints a target, it better win you the game. Otherwise it’s just a very polite way to lose.

Three “starter packages” by power and speed

These are templates, not laws. Commander has no laws, only feelings.

1) Battlecruiser / precon-ish pods

Engines: 4 to 6 (slower, value-focused)
Burst: 4 to 6 (midgame refills)
Looting: 0 to 2 (only if relevant)

2) Mid-power pods

Engines: 3 to 5
Burst: 5 to 7
Looting: 1 to 4

3) High-power (not necessarily cEDH)

Engines: 2 to 4 (cheap, immediate impact)
Burst: 6 to 8 (efficient, lower curve)
Looting: 0 to 3 (mostly for combo digging or graveyard plans)

Common mistakes (so you can avoid them and feel superior quietly)

Counting cantrips as real draw. Replacing itself is nice. It is not a plan.
Running only engines. Your engine will die. It always dies. Plan accordingly.
Running only burst draw. You will refuel, then stall, then refuel, then stall. Like a lawnmower.
Ignoring your pod’s speed. If games end on turn seven, your six-mana “value engine” is a decorative object.
Treating looting as card advantage. Looting is selection. Selection is great. Just don’t confuse it with actually having more cards.

FAQs

How many draw spells should I run in Commander?

A common starting point is 10+ card advantage pieces (often 10 to 14), then adjust for your commander, curve, and pod speed.

Is looting “real” draw in Commander?

Looting is usually card selection, not net cards. It’s still excellent when you need specific pieces or you want cards in your graveyard.

Are wheels burst draw or their own category?

Functionally, wheels are burst draw. Socially, wheels are “I hope you like surprises.”

What if my commander already draws a ton of cards?

Treat your commander as a draw engine and shift slots into protection, interaction, and win conditions. Drawing 20 and doing nothing with it is a classic Commander moment, but it does not have to be your moment.

Where do impulse draw cards fit?

Impulse draw is closer to burst draw, but it plays differently because of the time limit. It’s great in proactive decks and worse when you need to hold answers.