So my friends finally suckered me into making a Commander deck, aka "EDH". And it is a fun way to play magic, but with my past experience playing group games, as that is how I started playing, I wanted to pick something fun, not very political, and something that didn't target a whole lot of things or people.
I picked up the new Mirror Mastery pre-constructed box set from WoTC. I liked some of the cards and especially liked making copies (making copies!) and it looked innocent enough. I made some card changes here and there, packed it up, and headed to Comic Town to play a few games. I had some fun and all around good man Reuben Bresler made some top notch suggestions after I encouraged him to play my deck. He wanted to try something different anyway. Some guys and I later played some at a local Tee Jays. I liked what I had but felt something was amiss.
A few days later, and with a fresh perspective, I gathered up the deck, some cards and sat at the computer looking for ideas. I looked at things that stole opponents lands or destroyed them. That didn't seem very fun, but was an idea I could use later down the road if I felt like being "the Dick" at the table some FNM or two.
Stacking some cards together and seperating some piles, I noticed I'd forgotten about the other Generals in the pre-con. One in particular was new. Called Animar for URG, he was an interesting 1/1 with protection from black and white, and got bigger for each creature you cast. That seemed cool, but what really caught my eye was the last part of the text box: "cost one less".
So after some goldfishing and a few pick up one v one games, I had a list. It doesn't have any duels or power nine aside from the pre-con Sol Ring and a tricked up Mana Vault, but it looks solid and a loads of fun!
Artifacts
Swift Boots
Lightning Greaves
Crystal Shard
Simic Signet
Darksteel Ingot
Wurmcoil Engine
Manalith
Sol Ring
Mana Vault
Birthing Pod
Red
Bogardan Hellkite
Urabrask
Flametongue Kavu
Colorless
Artisan of Kozilek
Multi-Color
Coiling Oracle
Blue
Shrieking Drake
Augury Owl
Sphinx of Uthuun
Mulldrifter
Merfolk Looter
Phyrexian Metamorph
Keiga, the Tide Star
Jin-Gitaxias, Core Augur
Phyrexian Ingester
Dreamscape Artist
Djinn of Wishes
Deep Analysis
Riftwing Cloudskate
Frost Titan
Consecrated Sphinx
Words of Wind
Equilibrium
Green
Chord of Calling
Wood Elves
Primordial Sage
Brutalizer Exarch
Garruk's Packleader
Garruk's Horde
Genesis Wave
Pelakka Wurm
Explore
Vorinclex, Voice of Hunger
Explosive Vegetation
Kodama's Reach
Cultivate
Yavimaya Elder
Wickerbough Elder
Krosan Tusker
Hydra Omnivore
Drumhunter
Tooth and Nail
Acidic Slime
Loaming Shaman
Deadwood Treefolk
Sylvan Ranger (over Sakura-Tribe Elder for the moment. see Joraga Treespeaker)
Druid of the Anima (should be a Quirion Elves)
Joraga Treespeaker
Fierce Empath
Wall of Roots
Oracle of Mul Daya
Lands
7 Island
8 Forest
4 Mountain
Reliquary Tower
Homeward Path
Terramorphic Expanse
Halimar Depths
Strip Mine
Arena
Mosswort Bridge
Grull Turf
Simic Growth Chamber
Izzet Boilerworks
Temple of the False God
Breeding Pool
Steam Vents
Flooded Grove
Command Tower
Rupture Spire
Rootbound Crag
Vivid Creek
Vivid Grove
Vivid Crag
I don't mind not having Grim Monolith, Moxen, or any of the like in here. The few things I would like for it are the Quirion Elves and Cascade Bluffs. It's possible I have too much mana for the deck, but I really would rather be mana flooded than mana screwed. I am sure there are other cards I could put in my deck, but I've no idea what they would be. Down below is a list of cards for consideration and a wish list.
I really like the addition of Shrieking Drake. I thought about Man-O-War, but I already have Riftwing Cloudskate, which is a fine man in many more situations than just bouncing a guy. Shrieking Drake I wasn't too sure about till someone suggested it when I told them the general I was using.
I had Garruk in the deck originally, but wasn't too excited about him. The new Garruk, Primal Hunter, however, is something I would love to have. Some cards I just don't own. I assume Sphinx of Uthuun is a fine guy, but Garruk, Primal Hunter would fill that spot easily and Inferno Titan would rap up the ETB trigger.
I like Drumhunter, but Solomn Simulacrum does the same basic thing, although Drumhunter has the possibility of actually drawing more cards. Maybe both should be played?
I like Chord of Calling, but I think Green Sun's Zenith is better by miles, especially with cards like Eternal Witness, Primeval Titan, and Dryad Arbor.
I love Primal Command. It could easily replace Pelakka Wurm, but I think they can be a powerhouse together.
Over time I am sure I will figure out what's best, but I am just happy to pick up Animar over just making copies. The mana constraints are too harsh and I feel that it'd be just better to play more of a spell heavy deck with the Mirror.
Wishlist
Solomn Simulacrum <- Drumhunter
Garruk, Primal Hunter <-Krosan Tusker
Inferno Titan <-Sphinx of Uthuun
Primeval Titan <-Explore
Dryad Arbor <-Forest
Green Sun's Zenith <-Chord of Calling
Eternal Witness <-probably a basic mountain
Primal Command <-IDK
Considerations
Jace Beleren
Splinter Twin
Deciever Exarch
Pestermite
Beast Within
Predator Flagship
Asceticism
Nest Invader
Kozileks Predator
Sakura-Tribe Elder
Spike Feeder
Spike Soldier
Spike Weaver
Sylvan Library
Greater Good
Harmonize
+1
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Friday, July 8, 2011
Juxtaposition or The New Card Smell
That new card smell.
In the next week a lot of M12 booster packs will be cracked for drafts, titans, and new EDH staples. When M10 came out I thought "why have they not done this sooner!?" and fell in love with the base set for the first time since 4th Edition. It felt natural to me and I've felt that base sets should be special since, after all, they were the base set.
To me the base set should pull the nerd into the world of what Magic: The Gathering is: fantastical creatures, mysterious beasts, powerfully secret wizards, gritty scar covered warriors, and of course a few scantly clad ladies. The artwork should let the kid in all of us fall into an epic world! M10, M11, and now M12 are by far my favorite sets. Rise of the Eldrazi certainly holds a special place as do much older sets, but these new base sets really have me yearning for my older days of enchanting Drudge Skeletons with Feast of the unicorn.
I recently told some friends of mine I really don't like drafting the base sets, which for the most part, is true. But do I love the flavor. I love the creativity of the cards. The hard work put into their design. I can imagine the great time the boys in R&D had in making the sets. I prefer to just opening the packs in a greedy way. I need to see the cards in my hand to remind me of the days when I first bought Ice Age and 4th Edition boosters. Some love the smell of new cars, I think I get a high from sniffing crisply opened packs and the softly glowing sheen of new cards. I can't think any Magic player doesn't and would call them a liar to their face if they said they didn't.
A Standard and Legacy shake-up.
With the new base set releases has come an expectation that they are bound to shake up the environment for Standard. What's not as expected is how well they will impact older formats. It took a while for Preordain and Fauna Shaman to fully get a little bit of respect from the Legacy brewers. I still think people undervalue these two cards in the format. Not going using hardcore data to prove any thoughts on the matter will mean what I believe to be true means I have my doubts anyone will consider anything useful. That and I'm pretty much a nobody.
Most people are willing to accept the usefulness of a card in Standard or even Extended, before they accept the card in Legacy, unless it's just a bonkers card. This is a problem that many in the Legacy community has yet to admit fully either out of sheer arrogance or fear of being laughed at. It took a while for Jace, The Mindsculptor to be integrated into Vintage decks. Once that happened, people started trying him out in Legacy. It's kind of sad, in my opinion, that Vintage players are more willing to think outside of the box than their Legacy counterparts. Looking at Praetor's Grasp taking slots in Vintage makes it only a matter of time till people start using it for sideboards in Legacy. I personally can't wait for people to start playing Spreading Seas in Enchantress decks. I have weird love for this pile of shit.
One card that hasn't taken footing is Lotus Cobra. I'm pretty sure he's shown up a few times, but not become a staple like Dark Confidant. The card screams potential and is ripe for abuse especially with Mental Misstep causing many players to cry when they didn't get their way with Mom & Dad. I will guarantee this card will see serious play soon.
BTW...why is no one playing Krosan Grip as much anymore? W-T-F!?
My picks for Legacy playable cards are a little odd, but I love using cards that mirror other cards. Here's a list of criminally underplayed cards as well as picks from the new set.
Grim Discovery - Getting back Wasteland and a Stoneforge Mystic is pretty awesome. Remember the Fallen is in the same league, but less powerful in a format where Goblin Welder sees very little play. Which baffles me even if Mental Misstep is legal. Goblin Welder deserves much more love. I played Grim D. in GP Col. and it was amazing, second only to my Engineered Plagues.
The Five Deadly Titans - Sweet ass kung-fu movie references aside, these bad asses should see more play. I don't care what anyone says about the six mana cost of these cards, this is Legacy, who the fuck cares about mana cost. Make it work. Talking out my ass isn't uncommon for me, but Frost Titan on the second turn will steal games and give your opponents the "wtf did just happen look". I'm certainly not advocating that all of the Titans will make it, but there isn't any harm in trying to make it happen. Who wouldn't love to Sun Titan a Dreadnought into play?
Master Thief - A new card out from M12, I do wonder if it can find it's way into sideboards. Doubtful with cards like Krosan Grip and Trigon Predator, but I loves me creativity!
Visions of Beyond - This card is scary, but we have Misstep to help in checking it into the glass. I don't know where it would fit entirely, but just like everyone else, dredge pops into mind. Although, it could fit into the Standstill decks that are popular right now.
Vengeful Pharoah - "What an amazing card for Dredge" was my first thought. I didn't see the word "target" initially. It still kills Emrakul, which is seeing more play than Progenitals right now.
Chandra, the Firebabe - Holy Toledo...I love this card. It's just as good as the old Elspeth. There I said it. I almost want to say it's just as good as Jace, TMS, but who am I kidding? I see no reason to not try fitting this into AIR decks, Dragon Stompy, or (where it belongs) in Aggro Loam.
Doubling Chant - Wow. Is this card absolute bonkers in Elves! Not just Legacy Elves, but every friggin elf deck. Okay. Maybe I'm being overzealous. Maybe.
Sundial of the Infinite - Enough has been said about this card already. Is it playable? If it cost one to cast, then my answer would be yes. At two, possibly. It's going to be just as fringe as everything else I talk about, but has more potential for abuse just because it's colorless.
Dispatch - Affinity says thank you.
Puresteel Paladin - I really love this guy. In a format where Stoneforge Mystic, Jitte, Sword of Fire and Ice and Aether Vial are legal, he should and will see more play.
Urabrask, The Hidden - The card is pretty solid in Standard and I believe what Dragon Stompy didn't know was missing from it's list.
Birthing Pod - A new favorite for Standard, the card gets more use in Legacy with the it's cavalcade of ridiculous creatures. The downside of being an artifact is also it's upside as it's playable in any color. Couple that with the vast amount of fast mana the format has, Enlightened Tutor, etc, it's a matter of time till it scares the shit of someone. Who plays Pithing Needle anyway?
Beast Within - God, this card is sexy!
Spellskite - Will be a staple in about every fucking deck. If you haven't picked up a playset (like me) for Standard, hurry. Painter-Grindstone probably benefits the most from the "Skeet-Skeet", while Merfolk may not even want this. It's still possible Merfolk can side into a playset of Skeet-Skeets, but for what match-up I am not entirely sure. Reanimator would love this card too! SOooooooooooooo goooooooooooood!
Vault Skirge - Cranial Plating anyone?
Assuredly, some of picks of mine are completely and utterly worthless. But what's the harm and trying them out? What's the point in playing if we don't give new cards a whirl? Shrug of discerned looks, the laughs, and watch as they lose to Burning Wish being forked by Chandra or how Spellskite just fucked up their world. I for one would love to pound people in the face with Frost Titan on turn 2.
The Jace Effect.
Card prices are slowly climbing in demand since Jace and SFM have been banned. I expect the market to be more healthy than it's been in the past several months for singles. The release for M12 and the timely bannings is just what the market needed. What stores and even dealers booths at events needed, was this market fluctuation to happen. It appears, as many are starting to realize, that there was a Jace effect that not only suppressed the metagame, but suppressed the secondary market as well. I really can't remember a time this has really happened aside from Skullclamp effectively shutting out the entire metagame when it was legal. I wonder if it was blind luck that I didn't really play until the end of it's days. Even Mercadian Masques block had a lot of singles sold while in print.
Many people these days hunt for sleepers such as Skullclamp and Stoneforge as WotC gets better and better at set designs. Time will truly tell in the next few weeks how much of an impact Jace had on the format. Now that the 4th of July is over, the new set is out, and Starcity Games starts up again with a fresh breath of air, attendance will go back up at FNM, online and regional PTQ's. People will find the cards they've had stuck in their binders, decks and deck lists sitting on their shelves have potential now.
There is a contingent of thought that Stoneforge Mystic oppressed the format more than Jace did. I believed this as well. But think for a moment how dominating Stoneforge was WITH jace. Without Jace, Stoneforge wouldn't have that ability to immediately get back into the game as well with Jace in it's back pocket. Artifact and creature removal is abundant. Dismember is one of the best removal spells ever. So yea, I actually do believe the problem was Jace and that either one would have been fine for the format so long as the other wasn't available to play.
I do find it funny reading Ben Bleiweiss' article on SCG's. At some point from beginning to end I feel as though some ethics violation just happened. At the moment I'm not sure how to feel other than confusion in regards to the general acceptance with the public on how "things will go" for <cardname>. He's Magic's own Ben Bernanke. Maybe Martha Stewart could bake me some cookies to make me feel better.
+1
In the next week a lot of M12 booster packs will be cracked for drafts, titans, and new EDH staples. When M10 came out I thought "why have they not done this sooner!?" and fell in love with the base set for the first time since 4th Edition. It felt natural to me and I've felt that base sets should be special since, after all, they were the base set.
To me the base set should pull the nerd into the world of what Magic: The Gathering is: fantastical creatures, mysterious beasts, powerfully secret wizards, gritty scar covered warriors, and of course a few scantly clad ladies. The artwork should let the kid in all of us fall into an epic world! M10, M11, and now M12 are by far my favorite sets. Rise of the Eldrazi certainly holds a special place as do much older sets, but these new base sets really have me yearning for my older days of enchanting Drudge Skeletons with Feast of the unicorn.
I recently told some friends of mine I really don't like drafting the base sets, which for the most part, is true. But do I love the flavor. I love the creativity of the cards. The hard work put into their design. I can imagine the great time the boys in R&D had in making the sets. I prefer to just opening the packs in a greedy way. I need to see the cards in my hand to remind me of the days when I first bought Ice Age and 4th Edition boosters. Some love the smell of new cars, I think I get a high from sniffing crisply opened packs and the softly glowing sheen of new cards. I can't think any Magic player doesn't and would call them a liar to their face if they said they didn't.
A Standard and Legacy shake-up.
With the new base set releases has come an expectation that they are bound to shake up the environment for Standard. What's not as expected is how well they will impact older formats. It took a while for Preordain and Fauna Shaman to fully get a little bit of respect from the Legacy brewers. I still think people undervalue these two cards in the format. Not going using hardcore data to prove any thoughts on the matter will mean what I believe to be true means I have my doubts anyone will consider anything useful. That and I'm pretty much a nobody.
Most people are willing to accept the usefulness of a card in Standard or even Extended, before they accept the card in Legacy, unless it's just a bonkers card. This is a problem that many in the Legacy community has yet to admit fully either out of sheer arrogance or fear of being laughed at. It took a while for Jace, The Mindsculptor to be integrated into Vintage decks. Once that happened, people started trying him out in Legacy. It's kind of sad, in my opinion, that Vintage players are more willing to think outside of the box than their Legacy counterparts. Looking at Praetor's Grasp taking slots in Vintage makes it only a matter of time till people start using it for sideboards in Legacy. I personally can't wait for people to start playing Spreading Seas in Enchantress decks. I have weird love for this pile of shit.
One card that hasn't taken footing is Lotus Cobra. I'm pretty sure he's shown up a few times, but not become a staple like Dark Confidant. The card screams potential and is ripe for abuse especially with Mental Misstep causing many players to cry when they didn't get their way with Mom & Dad. I will guarantee this card will see serious play soon.
BTW...why is no one playing Krosan Grip as much anymore? W-T-F!?
My picks for Legacy playable cards are a little odd, but I love using cards that mirror other cards. Here's a list of criminally underplayed cards as well as picks from the new set.
Grim Discovery - Getting back Wasteland and a Stoneforge Mystic is pretty awesome. Remember the Fallen is in the same league, but less powerful in a format where Goblin Welder sees very little play. Which baffles me even if Mental Misstep is legal. Goblin Welder deserves much more love. I played Grim D. in GP Col. and it was amazing, second only to my Engineered Plagues.
The Five Deadly Titans - Sweet ass kung-fu movie references aside, these bad asses should see more play. I don't care what anyone says about the six mana cost of these cards, this is Legacy, who the fuck cares about mana cost. Make it work. Talking out my ass isn't uncommon for me, but Frost Titan on the second turn will steal games and give your opponents the "wtf did just happen look". I'm certainly not advocating that all of the Titans will make it, but there isn't any harm in trying to make it happen. Who wouldn't love to Sun Titan a Dreadnought into play?
Master Thief - A new card out from M12, I do wonder if it can find it's way into sideboards. Doubtful with cards like Krosan Grip and Trigon Predator, but I loves me creativity!
Visions of Beyond - This card is scary, but we have Misstep to help in checking it into the glass. I don't know where it would fit entirely, but just like everyone else, dredge pops into mind. Although, it could fit into the Standstill decks that are popular right now.
Vengeful Pharoah - "What an amazing card for Dredge" was my first thought. I didn't see the word "target" initially. It still kills Emrakul, which is seeing more play than Progenitals right now.
Chandra, the Firebabe - Holy Toledo...I love this card. It's just as good as the old Elspeth. There I said it. I almost want to say it's just as good as Jace, TMS, but who am I kidding? I see no reason to not try fitting this into AIR decks, Dragon Stompy, or (where it belongs) in Aggro Loam.
Doubling Chant - Wow. Is this card absolute bonkers in Elves! Not just Legacy Elves, but every friggin elf deck. Okay. Maybe I'm being overzealous. Maybe.
Sundial of the Infinite - Enough has been said about this card already. Is it playable? If it cost one to cast, then my answer would be yes. At two, possibly. It's going to be just as fringe as everything else I talk about, but has more potential for abuse just because it's colorless.
Dispatch - Affinity says thank you.
Puresteel Paladin - I really love this guy. In a format where Stoneforge Mystic, Jitte, Sword of Fire and Ice and Aether Vial are legal, he should and will see more play.
Urabrask, The Hidden - The card is pretty solid in Standard and I believe what Dragon Stompy didn't know was missing from it's list.
Birthing Pod - A new favorite for Standard, the card gets more use in Legacy with the it's cavalcade of ridiculous creatures. The downside of being an artifact is also it's upside as it's playable in any color. Couple that with the vast amount of fast mana the format has, Enlightened Tutor, etc, it's a matter of time till it scares the shit of someone. Who plays Pithing Needle anyway?
Beast Within - God, this card is sexy!
Spellskite - Will be a staple in about every fucking deck. If you haven't picked up a playset (like me) for Standard, hurry. Painter-Grindstone probably benefits the most from the "Skeet-Skeet", while Merfolk may not even want this. It's still possible Merfolk can side into a playset of Skeet-Skeets, but for what match-up I am not entirely sure. Reanimator would love this card too! SOooooooooooooo goooooooooooood!
Vault Skirge - Cranial Plating anyone?
Assuredly, some of picks of mine are completely and utterly worthless. But what's the harm and trying them out? What's the point in playing if we don't give new cards a whirl? Shrug of discerned looks, the laughs, and watch as they lose to Burning Wish being forked by Chandra or how Spellskite just fucked up their world. I for one would love to pound people in the face with Frost Titan on turn 2.
The Jace Effect.
Card prices are slowly climbing in demand since Jace and SFM have been banned. I expect the market to be more healthy than it's been in the past several months for singles. The release for M12 and the timely bannings is just what the market needed. What stores and even dealers booths at events needed, was this market fluctuation to happen. It appears, as many are starting to realize, that there was a Jace effect that not only suppressed the metagame, but suppressed the secondary market as well. I really can't remember a time this has really happened aside from Skullclamp effectively shutting out the entire metagame when it was legal. I wonder if it was blind luck that I didn't really play until the end of it's days. Even Mercadian Masques block had a lot of singles sold while in print.
Many people these days hunt for sleepers such as Skullclamp and Stoneforge as WotC gets better and better at set designs. Time will truly tell in the next few weeks how much of an impact Jace had on the format. Now that the 4th of July is over, the new set is out, and Starcity Games starts up again with a fresh breath of air, attendance will go back up at FNM, online and regional PTQ's. People will find the cards they've had stuck in their binders, decks and deck lists sitting on their shelves have potential now.
There is a contingent of thought that Stoneforge Mystic oppressed the format more than Jace did. I believed this as well. But think for a moment how dominating Stoneforge was WITH jace. Without Jace, Stoneforge wouldn't have that ability to immediately get back into the game as well with Jace in it's back pocket. Artifact and creature removal is abundant. Dismember is one of the best removal spells ever. So yea, I actually do believe the problem was Jace and that either one would have been fine for the format so long as the other wasn't available to play.
I do find it funny reading Ben Bleiweiss' article on SCG's. At some point from beginning to end I feel as though some ethics violation just happened. At the moment I'm not sure how to feel other than confusion in regards to the general acceptance with the public on how "things will go" for <cardname>. He's Magic's own Ben Bernanke. Maybe Martha Stewart could bake me some cookies to make me feel better.
+1
Monday, July 4, 2011
From the Thunderdome.
Sunday I went to a PTQ held by PES. I had went 0-3 the day before with Blue-Black control. Tears...
I ran into my friend Tam inside the hall where he heard me discussing metagaming strategy with another friend. He asked how I did and if I was going to play in the Sunday PTQ. He offered me a chance to borrow his Blue-White control deck and I hesitantly accepted. The reason being is Tam likes to make his decks sparkle and I wasn't too comfortable being responsible for the amount of money the deck cost to make. He persuaded me he had faith I would be a fine.
I Went 5-2-1 with it. Resolving Venser was actually awesome and I had a great time with all of my opponents. "The Tam" was missing two Gideon's and a FNM PROMO Wall of Omens. He told me this as he drove away, so I took that as "buy it for me."
This is what I ran:
4 spreading seas
4 mana leak
4 condemn
2 Venser
1 gideon
1 stoic rebuttal
1 deprive
2 shrine of piercing vision
4 preordain
4 blade splicer
2 day of judgement
4 wall of omens
2 sun titan
4 glacial fortress
4 celestial colonnade
2 kabira crossroads
2 plains
4 seachrome coast
4 tectonic edge
5 island
Sideboard
1 deprive
3 flashfreeze
3 celestial purge
2 rovoke existence
2 oust
2 dismember
2 jace beleren
My all-stars for the day were Venser, Tectonic Edge, Spreading Seas, Condemn, Flashfreeze, and Dismember. I liked Condemn waaaaay better than if it were Tam's Journey to Nowhere's. I cut one Venser for the Gideon Mike Beecher lent me, and let me tell ya, the planeswalkers worked their asses off.
Shrine of Piercing Vision I figured would have been better than Sea Gate Oracle, and today it was. It let me get out of holes because of the many extra cards I was able to see. That said, I don't think I would play it again. Foresee or Jace's Ingenuity would have been fine if not better.
I feel as though the sideboard needs a third Dismember, a third Day of Judgement, and a third Oust; taking out 1 Deprive, and the 2 Revoke Existence. The Revokes I believe are for Volition Reigns, Tempered Steel, and the Tezz match-up (indestructible artifacts, etc). I never sided them in, but probably should have vs Mark Walker. I still think they're "meh."
Another card I wanted to play was Leyline of Sanctity. I'm not sure what could be taken out for it, but 2-3 copies wouldn't be too bad. Maybe 2 somewhere in the main and a third somewhere in the sideboard.
Blade Splicer is a fine card, but I feel it was too gimmicky and would have been happier with Tumble Magnet. I think another avenue would have been to just play Trinket Mage with "the package" of Elixir, Origin Spellbomb, and Basilisk Collar. The fourth slot could be taken up by Jace Beleren, which I sided in often, depending on the match-up and who was going first.
1st round was Valakut. I thought I was going to lose this one, but Venser Ultimated and two Spreading Seas "Stone Rained" 4 lands in game three. Games one and two were so blisteringly fast, I can't really remember them, aside from a freaking amazing top deck from my opponent with Avenger of Zendikar, plotting ten plants and raising them into 1/2's. This was the only time Condemn looked sad in my hand, but Journey to Nowhere wouldn't have been much better.
It was after this round my friend Kevin Butcher texted me saying:
"Awesome!! keep winning bro. you're a great player. you can hang with anyone."
2nd round I lost to Greg Hilner's Red-Green LD special. This was somewhat tilting. For some reason when I play vs Greg, I always get nervous. I never know what he's gonna throw at me. Needless to say, while I was outside smoking I heard a few others lost to Greg's crazy shenanigans as well. It felt somewhat cathartic to know I'm not the only one Greg throws into life-tilt.
Game one wasn't close. Beast Within (two), Acidic Slime, Tectonic Edge, and Pelakka Wurm (WTF >_<)
Game two Blade Splicers Administered some Beats.
Game three I kept a 6 lander and Mana Leak draw. I am going to defend this keep. Greg had more than enough resource denial and I didn't want to get blown out. On top of that his was a slow deck. I was fine for a while till I made the decision to play Blade Splicer to tag along with my Jace Beleren instead of Tectonic Edging one of his Rootbound Crag's. His next turn he drew, looked at his card and immediately plopped it down. My heart sank and I saw him tap six mana for Inferno Titan. My next draw and my Spreading Seas failed to yield either Day of Judgement or Condemn. GG
I remembered what Kev said and pulled my stomach up from my feet. I wasn't going to let myself lose again if I could help it.
3rd round I lost a great match vs Patrick Hickman's friend playing Kuldotha Red(!!). I forget his name (as I do with everyone's), but we had a blast. A great opponent to play against and a nice guy! He took game one with style and I nabbed game 2 shattering the glass with two Sun Titans, Spreading Seas and his two lands.
Game 3 was a Chuck Norris kick to my face. It was over in 5 minutes, three of which was me trying to figure out a way out of the beatdown being administered.
4th round I played vs another mono red deck, but this time piloted by a less experienced player. It was his first PTQ and he was just happy to be playing and plans to go to more.
Game one was mine with Spreading Seas flooding his Mountains. Game two he took me over to the shed. Game 3 went to time. I had been setting up a Day of Judgement + Gideon turn forever, but I was short on lands coming into play UN-tapped. I finally hit the mana I needed and on the fifth and final turn Gideon and two Blade Splicers pulled a KO for me.
5th round I played Vampires. I happened to know what the kid was playing as I saw him play it the day before at the top tables of the MWM event. A few rounds earlier I saw someone Surgically Extract his Bloodghast's.
I was nervous. Sure that he was going to roll me. Well, turns out that Spreading Seas is pretty good in this match-up as well! Game one was mine. Day of Judgement, Spreading Seas, and ESPECIALLY Condemn took it home for me. The second game was too fast and easy for him. Game three came down to setting a turn up with Gideon and Condemn's. Wrath and Spreading Seas wrapped it up.
Round 6 I played vs Grixis-Twin. UGH! This can be a tricky match-up.
Game one he combo'd off and got some in my eye.
Game 2 was all about timely topdecks on my part with removal, Spreading Seas, and Flashfreeze.
Game 3 was simply, no lies, Spreading Seas and Tectonic Edge. I shut him out of Black and knocked his land count to three for consecutive turns, until he just went for it. I showed him Flashfreeze and he put his hand out. He was a great opponent. He seemed relatively new but played very well and piloted his deck expertly. More than a competent player. I want to say I can actually see him being on the pro tour.
Round 7 was another disgusting match.
I knew as soon as I saw "Forest into Bird" he was RUG-Twin. The first game I Mana Leaked his Deceiver, Spread the Sea, and Vensered.
The second game was the "ow...my eye" game, when I stupidly Dismembered his Bird of Paradise. It's natural reaction from years of seeing first turn Birds to shoot the fuckers out of the sky. I'm not gonna lie, I hated myself for doing it as I saw him tap out another Bird and pass the turn. Please be advised: Birds are not your enemy. Heh.
The third game was true grit. He had first turn Bird again and went for Deceiver at my End Step and into a Mana Leak. As the game progressed, Spreading Seas isolated his Red sources. I drew and played a Venser tapping out to one mana, hoping to have two untapped on his turn. He responded to my Venser activation with Deceiver shutting out my untapped Colonnade. My Vensered Plains sat there alone, bluffing a Dismember (or at least attempting). All I had in my hand was Flashfreeze and Mana Leak. My heart began to sink as he untapped, played a mountain, tapped four mana, and played a
URABRASK on top of his Deceiver!!!!!
I nearly fell out of my chair! I could feel my eyes well up as he looked at me waiting for me to scoop. I looked down and tapped the Urabrask with my finger. He looked down and said "omg...all I saw was a Red card and just figured it was Twin!"
Interlude: My round 7 opponent is one of the players that plays cards facing his opponents and holds his cards upside down in his hand. End Interlude.
I was so relieved I could care less when he took out my Wall with Dismember and then Venser with combat damage. It was at this stage of the game I drew another Spreading Seas, another Venser, a Dismember, and a Flashfreeze. Aside from one of my opponents friends saying I drew a card already from my Spreading Seas that I Vensered, which I didn't, it was smooth sailing from there. Good Lord, this match was awesome and my opponent was just as pleasing to play against. This is by far one of my favorite matches I've played in some time and I doubt I will forget it.
My opponents name is a different story....
Round 8 was a bit of a let down.
I was paired versus Mark Walker, a local player at the comic book store I play FNM at. He's alright fella and this was his third PTQ. Game one took forever. He molested my hand with disruption early and rightly took notes of the contents.
The game came down to me top decking a Venser and shutting out his Vampire Nighthawk with Colonnades with the Condemns sitting in my hand. I Balanced Lilian's discard by Vensering one of Spreading Seas. I have no idea why he wasn't using her -2 ability to Vamp-tutor, and I wasn't going to complain, but I was able to set up a plan.
After he made me discard my last "known" card in my hand I had to hope he came in with his Nighthawk at my Venser. And he did. I had to hope he didn't have a removal spell for my Colonnade as well or my plan wasn't going to work. Nope. :D
Block. Trade. Untap. Ultimate Venser. Play stuff. Exile all your relevant stuff.
I did forget to level my Venser for 2 turns (when I had almost nothing - no excuses though, right?) out of being so exhilarated by the aggressive Nighthawk. But he couldn't capitalize :P mise.
A turn or two later he drew and played Life's Finale. He pilfered through my deck and picked out my last three "real men". All I had left were Colonnade and a Gideon. Eventually, I was able to man-land him to death from 30, but there wasn't too much time left in the round.
Game 2 Was all his. Stuck short on lands, he resolved Memoricide on Gideon, Pilfered my hand with Duress, and landed Wurmcoil Engine while I was attempting to rid my world of Karn.
On to game 3 ....nevermind. The Clock ran out and we drew as neither of us had no real ways of beating each other within three land drops (sorry - this isn't Legacy, Bro). I was a little disheartened, but I was still glad to have finally play against Mark. He's a good fella and hope to see him more at PTQ's and other large non-Legacy events.
Overall, my day was pretty awesome. I ended it in 20th place and got paid with 6 packs of New Phyrexia. While it doesn't seem that awesome, I have noticed my plays more clearly recently, be they good or bad. And I have felt I am a little out of my league, or see a giant learning curve, when I sit down to face my opponents of late. But that doesn't mean it's true. My friends advice is exactly what I needed. If I continue to second guess myself, then so will everyone else. Including my opponents.
Btw, I opened a Karn. Snoochie boochies!
I ran into my friend Tam inside the hall where he heard me discussing metagaming strategy with another friend. He asked how I did and if I was going to play in the Sunday PTQ. He offered me a chance to borrow his Blue-White control deck and I hesitantly accepted. The reason being is Tam likes to make his decks sparkle and I wasn't too comfortable being responsible for the amount of money the deck cost to make. He persuaded me he had faith I would be a fine.
I Went 5-2-1 with it. Resolving Venser was actually awesome and I had a great time with all of my opponents. "The Tam" was missing two Gideon's and a FNM PROMO Wall of Omens. He told me this as he drove away, so I took that as "buy it for me."
This is what I ran:
4 spreading seas
4 mana leak
4 condemn
2 Venser
1 gideon
1 stoic rebuttal
1 deprive
2 shrine of piercing vision
4 preordain
4 blade splicer
2 day of judgement
4 wall of omens
2 sun titan
4 glacial fortress
4 celestial colonnade
2 kabira crossroads
2 plains
4 seachrome coast
4 tectonic edge
5 island
Sideboard
1 deprive
3 flashfreeze
3 celestial purge
2 rovoke existence
2 oust
2 dismember
2 jace beleren
My all-stars for the day were Venser, Tectonic Edge, Spreading Seas, Condemn, Flashfreeze, and Dismember. I liked Condemn waaaaay better than if it were Tam's Journey to Nowhere's. I cut one Venser for the Gideon Mike Beecher lent me, and let me tell ya, the planeswalkers worked their asses off.
Shrine of Piercing Vision I figured would have been better than Sea Gate Oracle, and today it was. It let me get out of holes because of the many extra cards I was able to see. That said, I don't think I would play it again. Foresee or Jace's Ingenuity would have been fine if not better.
I feel as though the sideboard needs a third Dismember, a third Day of Judgement, and a third Oust; taking out 1 Deprive, and the 2 Revoke Existence. The Revokes I believe are for Volition Reigns, Tempered Steel, and the Tezz match-up (indestructible artifacts, etc). I never sided them in, but probably should have vs Mark Walker. I still think they're "meh."
Another card I wanted to play was Leyline of Sanctity. I'm not sure what could be taken out for it, but 2-3 copies wouldn't be too bad. Maybe 2 somewhere in the main and a third somewhere in the sideboard.
Blade Splicer is a fine card, but I feel it was too gimmicky and would have been happier with Tumble Magnet. I think another avenue would have been to just play Trinket Mage with "the package" of Elixir, Origin Spellbomb, and Basilisk Collar. The fourth slot could be taken up by Jace Beleren, which I sided in often, depending on the match-up and who was going first.
1st round was Valakut. I thought I was going to lose this one, but Venser Ultimated and two Spreading Seas "Stone Rained" 4 lands in game three. Games one and two were so blisteringly fast, I can't really remember them, aside from a freaking amazing top deck from my opponent with Avenger of Zendikar, plotting ten plants and raising them into 1/2's. This was the only time Condemn looked sad in my hand, but Journey to Nowhere wouldn't have been much better.
It was after this round my friend Kevin Butcher texted me saying:
"Awesome!! keep winning bro. you're a great player. you can hang with anyone."
2nd round I lost to Greg Hilner's Red-Green LD special. This was somewhat tilting. For some reason when I play vs Greg, I always get nervous. I never know what he's gonna throw at me. Needless to say, while I was outside smoking I heard a few others lost to Greg's crazy shenanigans as well. It felt somewhat cathartic to know I'm not the only one Greg throws into life-tilt.
Game one wasn't close. Beast Within (two), Acidic Slime, Tectonic Edge, and Pelakka Wurm (WTF >_<)
Game two Blade Splicers Administered some Beats.
Game three I kept a 6 lander and Mana Leak draw. I am going to defend this keep. Greg had more than enough resource denial and I didn't want to get blown out. On top of that his was a slow deck. I was fine for a while till I made the decision to play Blade Splicer to tag along with my Jace Beleren instead of Tectonic Edging one of his Rootbound Crag's. His next turn he drew, looked at his card and immediately plopped it down. My heart sank and I saw him tap six mana for Inferno Titan. My next draw and my Spreading Seas failed to yield either Day of Judgement or Condemn. GG
I remembered what Kev said and pulled my stomach up from my feet. I wasn't going to let myself lose again if I could help it.
3rd round I lost a great match vs Patrick Hickman's friend playing Kuldotha Red(!!). I forget his name (as I do with everyone's), but we had a blast. A great opponent to play against and a nice guy! He took game one with style and I nabbed game 2 shattering the glass with two Sun Titans, Spreading Seas and his two lands.
Game 3 was a Chuck Norris kick to my face. It was over in 5 minutes, three of which was me trying to figure out a way out of the beatdown being administered.
4th round I played vs another mono red deck, but this time piloted by a less experienced player. It was his first PTQ and he was just happy to be playing and plans to go to more.
Game one was mine with Spreading Seas flooding his Mountains. Game two he took me over to the shed. Game 3 went to time. I had been setting up a Day of Judgement + Gideon turn forever, but I was short on lands coming into play UN-tapped. I finally hit the mana I needed and on the fifth and final turn Gideon and two Blade Splicers pulled a KO for me.
5th round I played Vampires. I happened to know what the kid was playing as I saw him play it the day before at the top tables of the MWM event. A few rounds earlier I saw someone Surgically Extract his Bloodghast's.
I was nervous. Sure that he was going to roll me. Well, turns out that Spreading Seas is pretty good in this match-up as well! Game one was mine. Day of Judgement, Spreading Seas, and ESPECIALLY Condemn took it home for me. The second game was too fast and easy for him. Game three came down to setting a turn up with Gideon and Condemn's. Wrath and Spreading Seas wrapped it up.
Round 6 I played vs Grixis-Twin. UGH! This can be a tricky match-up.
Game one he combo'd off and got some in my eye.
Game 2 was all about timely topdecks on my part with removal, Spreading Seas, and Flashfreeze.
Game 3 was simply, no lies, Spreading Seas and Tectonic Edge. I shut him out of Black and knocked his land count to three for consecutive turns, until he just went for it. I showed him Flashfreeze and he put his hand out. He was a great opponent. He seemed relatively new but played very well and piloted his deck expertly. More than a competent player. I want to say I can actually see him being on the pro tour.
Round 7 was another disgusting match.
I knew as soon as I saw "Forest into Bird" he was RUG-Twin. The first game I Mana Leaked his Deceiver, Spread the Sea, and Vensered.
The second game was the "ow...my eye" game, when I stupidly Dismembered his Bird of Paradise. It's natural reaction from years of seeing first turn Birds to shoot the fuckers out of the sky. I'm not gonna lie, I hated myself for doing it as I saw him tap out another Bird and pass the turn. Please be advised: Birds are not your enemy. Heh.
The third game was true grit. He had first turn Bird again and went for Deceiver at my End Step and into a Mana Leak. As the game progressed, Spreading Seas isolated his Red sources. I drew and played a Venser tapping out to one mana, hoping to have two untapped on his turn. He responded to my Venser activation with Deceiver shutting out my untapped Colonnade. My Vensered Plains sat there alone, bluffing a Dismember (or at least attempting). All I had in my hand was Flashfreeze and Mana Leak. My heart began to sink as he untapped, played a mountain, tapped four mana, and played a
URABRASK on top of his Deceiver!!!!!
I nearly fell out of my chair! I could feel my eyes well up as he looked at me waiting for me to scoop. I looked down and tapped the Urabrask with my finger. He looked down and said "omg...all I saw was a Red card and just figured it was Twin!"
Interlude: My round 7 opponent is one of the players that plays cards facing his opponents and holds his cards upside down in his hand. End Interlude.
I was so relieved I could care less when he took out my Wall with Dismember and then Venser with combat damage. It was at this stage of the game I drew another Spreading Seas, another Venser, a Dismember, and a Flashfreeze. Aside from one of my opponents friends saying I drew a card already from my Spreading Seas that I Vensered, which I didn't, it was smooth sailing from there. Good Lord, this match was awesome and my opponent was just as pleasing to play against. This is by far one of my favorite matches I've played in some time and I doubt I will forget it.
My opponents name is a different story....
Round 8 was a bit of a let down.
I was paired versus Mark Walker, a local player at the comic book store I play FNM at. He's alright fella and this was his third PTQ. Game one took forever. He molested my hand with disruption early and rightly took notes of the contents.
The game came down to me top decking a Venser and shutting out his Vampire Nighthawk with Colonnades with the Condemns sitting in my hand. I Balanced Lilian's discard by Vensering one of Spreading Seas. I have no idea why he wasn't using her -2 ability to Vamp-tutor, and I wasn't going to complain, but I was able to set up a plan.
After he made me discard my last "known" card in my hand I had to hope he came in with his Nighthawk at my Venser. And he did. I had to hope he didn't have a removal spell for my Colonnade as well or my plan wasn't going to work. Nope. :D
Block. Trade. Untap. Ultimate Venser. Play stuff. Exile all your relevant stuff.
I did forget to level my Venser for 2 turns (when I had almost nothing - no excuses though, right?) out of being so exhilarated by the aggressive Nighthawk. But he couldn't capitalize :P mise.
A turn or two later he drew and played Life's Finale. He pilfered through my deck and picked out my last three "real men". All I had left were Colonnade and a Gideon. Eventually, I was able to man-land him to death from 30, but there wasn't too much time left in the round.
Game 2 Was all his. Stuck short on lands, he resolved Memoricide on Gideon, Pilfered my hand with Duress, and landed Wurmcoil Engine while I was attempting to rid my world of Karn.
On to game 3 ....nevermind. The Clock ran out and we drew as neither of us had no real ways of beating each other within three land drops (sorry - this isn't Legacy, Bro). I was a little disheartened, but I was still glad to have finally play against Mark. He's a good fella and hope to see him more at PTQ's and other large non-Legacy events.
Overall, my day was pretty awesome. I ended it in 20th place and got paid with 6 packs of New Phyrexia. While it doesn't seem that awesome, I have noticed my plays more clearly recently, be they good or bad. And I have felt I am a little out of my league, or see a giant learning curve, when I sit down to face my opponents of late. But that doesn't mean it's true. My friends advice is exactly what I needed. If I continue to second guess myself, then so will everyone else. Including my opponents.
Btw, I opened a Karn. Snoochie boochies!
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