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What is a snake-style draft?
A snake-style draft is a drafting system designed to keep things fair.
Instead of the picking order restarting from the top every round, the order reverses each round — like a snake zig-zagging back and forth.
For example, in a 4-person draft:
| Round | Order |
|---|---|
| 1 | Alice → Bob → Charlie → Dana |
| 2 | Dana → Charlie → Bob → Alice |
| 3 | Alice → Bob → Charlie → Dana |
…and so on.
Why do drafts work this way?
Because picking first is a huge advantage.
If the draft order reset every round, the person with the #1 pick would also get the #5 pick, the #9 pick, the #13 pick… and would slowly assemble a terrifying superteam while everyone else spiraled into resentment.
Snake drafts balance things out by giving later pickers back-to-back picks at the turn.
So while the #1 picker gets first choice overall, the last picker gets two rapid-fire picks in a row. That tradeoff makes drafts dramatically more interesting.
The psychology of the snake
Snake drafts create strategy in a bunch of sneaky ways.
The turn matters
If you pick at the beginning or end of a round, you have to think ahead differently. Someone drafting at the turn might gamble:
"Can I survive 12 more picks before this gets back to me?"
Meanwhile, middle pickers get steadier access but less control over runs. There's no universally "best" draft slot — which is exactly why snake drafts work.
It creates chaos (good chaos)
Snake drafts are perfect for fun topics because they create:
- surprise reaches,
- devastating steals,
- accidental galaxy-brain strategies,
- and moments where everyone collectively screams:
"HOW did that make it back to you?!"
That emotional rollercoaster is basically the entire point.
Why we use snake drafts
Because they're:
- fairer,
- more strategic,
- more dramatic,
- and way more fun.
Also, watching your friend panic because they won't pick again for 14 selections is objectively hilarious.
Which, if we're being honest, is the true spirit of drafting.