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Drafting With LSV – Shards of Alara #6

Monday, December 29th – Canadian maestro Rich Hoaen has downed tools for good, as work and real life intrudes apace. As a replacement, we have Luis Scott-Vargas, who shares each pick from a Magic Online 8-4 queue. He talks us through the difficult decisions in the forums… do you agree with his choices?

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1 Obelisk of Grixis
1 Kederekt Leviathan
2 Courier’s Capsule
1 Soul’s Fire
1 Tidehollow Strix
1 Grixis Battlemage
1 Sigil of Distinction
1 Fire-Field Ogre
1 Puppet Conjurer
1 Skeletonize
1 Dreg Reaver
1 Sharuum the Hegemon
1 Scavenger Drake
1 Blightning
1 Sedraxis Specter
2 Skeletal Kathari
1 Dregscape Zombie
1 Obelisk of Esper
1 Resounding Thunder
1 Infest
1 Goblin Deathraiders
4 Island
1 Seaside Citadel
6 Swamp
4 Mountain
1 Plains
1 Jungle Shrine

Sideboard
1 Plains
1 Plains
1 Marble Chalice
1 Demon’s Herald
1 Swamp
1 Sphinx’s Herald
1 Forest
1 Thorn-Thrash Viashino
1 Excommunicate
1 Lush Growth
1 Shore Snapper
1 Cathartic Adept
2 Onyx Goblet
1 Metallurgeon
1 Coma Veil
1 Vectis Silencers
1 Incurable Ogre
2 Naturalize
1 Guardians of Akrasa

My opening pack was pretty ridiculous but it really narrows down to Sharuum against Oblivion Ring. While the Oblivion Ring is more consistent Sharuum is definitely more powerful. It also gives you a good direction from the start allowing you to draft around a game-winning card. I got forced into Grixis eventually but I would still take Sharuum over O-Ring p1p1 again given the chance.

P1p4 Leviathan over Bone Splinters. It looked like I was heading into Esper where Splinters is much less good. Also Leviathan is quite strong in a deck that aims to go for the long game as Esper usually does.
P3p1 Jungle Shrine over Sculler. Sculler is good and all but I value manafixing pretty highly and Sculler isn’t the easiest card to cast. Since I ended up Grixis in the end it worked out even better.

Round 1 versus Sam Stein
Having to battle Sam round 1 wasn’t awesome but what can you do.

Game 1
He just kept playing Plains and Forests indicating a need for his third color. Eventually I equipped Sigil onto my Sedraxis Specter and hit him for eight prompting a concession.

Game 2
I don’t have the Island for the turn 3 Specter but his double Knight of the Skyward Eye plus Rhox War Monk would likely not care either way.

Game 3
He plays turn 1 Akrasan Squire turn 3 Esper Battlemage (with no Black mana) turn 4 Rhox War Monk. Unfortunately my Dreg Reaver (23rd card) showed up instead of say Sharuum and his “good” cards defeated my “bad” ones. I put up a fight with Soul’s Fire and Skeletal Kathari but it was ultimately not enough.

Until tomorrow…

LSV