Kaijudo Booster Pack Analysis

Let me preface this post by stating that this isn't just about The Dojo Edition or the Base Set; this is about Kaijudo booster packs in general.  Also, most of what I'm inferring is based on the limited information that we've been given by Wizards of the Coast.  They seem to not like to give us any information until the packs are actually released, but we know enough to make these assumptions.

The old Duel Masters packs had 10 cards each with 6 Commons, 3 Uncommons, and 1 Rare per pack.  There would be a holo (Very/Super Rare) card in every third pack, which would replace one of the Commons.

We know that there will be 9 cards in each Kaijudo booster pack.  So far, we have one spoiler of a booster pack that someone who went to the San Diego Comic Con got:

Rumbling Terrasaur
Skeeter Swarmer
Drakon Weaponsmith
Skull Cutter
Sun-Stalk Seed
Aqua Commando
Brave Giant
Star Lantern
Gigargon

From the Battle Decks and online game, we know some of the rarities of those cards.  Rumbling Terrasaur, Skeeter Swarmer, and Skull Cutter are Commons.  Aqua Commando and Brave Giant are Uncommons, and Gigargon is Rare.  Based on the grouping of the cards in the spoiler, it's safe to assume that the first five cards, including Drakon Weaponsmith and Sun-Stalk Seed, are Commons, and that the next three cards are Uncommons, including Star Lantern.

So, that means that Kaijudo booster packs will most likely have 5 Commons, 3 Uncommons, and 1 Rare per pack.

Next, let's look at the set ratios for the Kaijudo booster packs.  So far, we know of The Dojo Edition (a 60-card set) and the Base Set (a 180-card set).  Normal Duel Masters sets always had a number of cards that was a multiple of 60.  So, it would also be safe to assume that the rarity distribution for Kaijudo sets would be similar to that of Duel Masters sets.

For a 60-card set for Duel Masters, there would be 5 Super Rares, 5 Very Rares, 15 Rares, 15 Uncommons, and 20 Rares.  For larger sets, these numbers would be multiplied.  So for a 120-card set, there would be twice as many of each rarity, and such.  It's very likely that The Dojo Edition will have exactly the same rarity distribution as a 60-card Duel Masters set.

Looking even closer, we'll see that the number of cards from each Civilization is equal in these booster packs.  So, in a 60-card set, there would be 12 cards from each Civilization.  This equality also applied for each rarity.  So since there are 5 Super Rares, there would be one from each Civilization, and such.

Lastly, from this information, we can infer an expected rarity distribution for a booster box of any Kaijudo pack.  Assuming that there is a holo in every three packs, a booster box (24 packs) would yield 8 holos.  The expected ratio would be three Super Rares and five Very Rares, or something around that.  As for the rest of the box, you could expect to pull:

• 24 Rares (1 per pack)
• 72 Uncommons (3 per pack)
• 112 Commons (5 per pack, minus the 8 holo cards)

Therefore, you would statistically pull about 1.5 of each Rare, almost 5 of each Uncommon, and almost 6 of each Common in a box.  Looking at these numbers in a vacuum, a booster box is a very good investment.  Most cards in these booster packs are playable, and it could be useful to have several copies of staple Commons and Uncommons.  Rares, Very Rares, and Super Rares would be harder to get, of course.

However, with the numerous reprints that we'll see in the Base Set (110/180 cards in the Base Set will be reprints), it may not be that great of an idea to stock up on all of these Commons and Uncommons from The Dojo Edition.  Of course, we barely know any of the cards in either set, so it's too early to tell.  I'd say that half a box of The Dojo Edition is a good investment if you already have Battle Decks.  It's still hard to tell, but I suppose that we'll see in a week or so what exactly is in The Dojo Edition.

That's basically it.  If you couldn't tell, I've been looking very deeply into Kaijudo.

And, now it's time for some Dojo Edition-specific analysis.  It would seem that the new Sun-Stalk Seed (which we don't have a picture of at the moment) is a Common.  Based on the analysis above, there would be exactly four Light Civilization Common cards in The Dojo Edition.  While Sun-Stalk Seed is a great card, I'm still hoping for Thunder Cruiser and Jade Monitor.

However, Sun-Stalk Seed and Blinder Beetle are two Common Light cards that are in The Dojo Edition, so the chances of Thunder Cruiser and Jade Monitor being the other two Common Light cards are slim.  We might get some stuff like Luminar and Nimbus Scout instead, which would be somewhat disappointing.

Regardless, Star Lantern would be a very nice replacement for Jade Monitor, so I wouldn't be too disappointed, I suppose.  And, Sun-Stalk Seed is basically in between Thunder Cruiser and Jade Monitor, Level and Power-wise.  It's also a Light Reef-Eye that can attack Creatures, which is great.  Sorry Reef-Eye, but you've just been outclassed.

And, let's not forget that we still have the Bull Rush starter deck that will be released alongside The Dojo Edition booster pack.  If one of the Civilizations that the deck includes is Light, then it'll be a good way to get Light staples, like Stormspark Blast... Of course, that probably won't happen, but we can still hope...

UPDATE: Based on set numbers that we've gotten, Stormspark Blast will not be in The Dojo Edition.  Also, Star Lantern is indeed an Uncommon, as shown by some new card spoilers on kaijudo.com.