Grand Prix: Los Angeles was a few days ago, and the previously slightly miserable Extended format seems to have received a rejuvenating jolt of new life.
Pro Tour: Berlin seemed to imply a broken format dominated by the previously (to some) secret Elves! deck. Faeries and Zoo showed up, but where were the Affinity, Storm, and B/G Loam decks that Chapin said were supposed to be good?!?
Ban Nettle Sentinel? Ban Glimpse of Nature? Wizards of the Coast decided to take a chance. Let’s see what Worlds looks like, now that everyone knows what the format is really about…
Worlds arrives, and the question on everyone’s mind is what sort of presence will Elves have? Will we see 40% Elves? The thing is, everyone could figure out how to beat Elves if they tried (and they all did… try, that is).
What are you playing?
“Faeries”
“Faeries”
“Tron”
“Faeries”
“Zoo”
“Faeries”
“Burn”
“Elves!”
“Faeries”
Interesting.
By the end of the competition, the three most popular decks were all Faeries, ranging from Nassif Mono-Blue Wizards with Shackles, Venser, Repeal, Moxes, and Thirst, to Japanese U/B with Sowers, Glen Elendras, Visions, Stifle, and sideboard Bitterblossoms.
Zoo was now number 2, whereas in Berlin it had been the most popular deck on Day 1. Elves followed at number 3, with a variety of other decks ranging from Plasma Swans to Tron to All in Red all making solid appearances.
Was this what it had come to? Faeries was certainly the best performing deck at Worlds, with Nassif probably getting the trophy for best Extended deck of the tournament. Was the format just another Faeries-dominated bore?
The PTQ season started promising, with a variety of interesting winners. Affinity anyone?
The talk at GP: LA was that everyone would be playing Faeries. I decided to walk around the hall the day before the GP and survey the Trials. Some interesting things became clear.
First of all, Faeries was in fact the most popular deck, no question, although there did seem to be a variety of interpretations of the archetype, usually using Nassif as the base. Some added a little Black, others some Red and Green.
The most interesting thing, though, was that B/G was the second most popular deck. Really? When did this happen? I guess the theory is that most people feel they can beat most Faeries decks with B/G. Herberholz tells me that if the Faerie player plays tight and sideboards Relic, he can overcome the new B/G. Remember this point when we get to Michael Jacob B/G deck.
So, B/G was the new It Girl. What does this mean? Looking around, I noticed some other trends. The Elves, Affinity, and Burn all made appearances, but where were the Zoo decks? All in Red? Tron? What is really going on in this format?
By Day 2 of the GP, an interesting metagame shift had developed.
Faeries 26%
B/G Loam/Crime (Mostly Death Cloud) 11%
TEPS (More Tendrils than Swath) 9%
Affinity 9%
Zoo 7%
Naya Burn 7%
Mono-R Burn 6%
ELVES! 5%
All in Red 3%
Swans 3%
Misc. 12%
So what does all this mean? We can observe much from this chart.
First of all, Faeries is still by far the defining deck of the format. The vast majority of Faerie decks are all derivative of Nassif-Blue, including many that splash other colors, such as West Coast Faeries or Next Level Faeries. Faeries is actually about as popular as the next three most popular decks combined. If you want to win an 8 round PTQ, you will probably have to face Faeries around three times.
Second of all, various Loam/Crime decks, TEPS, and Affinity have moved past Elves and Zoo to take over the battle for the number 2 spot. Loam/Crime, TEPS, and Affinity, you say? It’s funny how things work out. Some times it just takes the real world a while to catch up.
Next we see the decline of Zoo. This is easily understood once we examine the huge popularity of Burn. Mono-Red Burn may have only took up 6% of the field, but Naya Burn (called R/W/G Zoo by some) is really just another Burn deck, though one built to beat Faeries.
Once we start to view Zoo, Naya Burn, and Mono-Red Burn as one spectrum, we start to see that various R/x aggro decks are actually 20% of the field. The thing is, it is too hard to lump them all together, as Mono-Red Burn is really a combo deck and Zoo is an aggro deck, with Naya Burn falling into the somewhat obscure Aggro-Combo role.
All in Red, Swans, and Elves have all fallen in popularity, with combo players switching to TEPS or Burn (or away from combo altogether).
Finally, a look at the 10 most played decks, as well as the 10 most successful decks has a glaring omission. Where is Tron?
Recently, GerryT suggested that Tron was, at best, the tenth best deck in Extended. He received some criticism for this position, but as it turns out, he was correct. Tron, in its current incarnation, very clearly does not have what it takes.
It is not that no one good tried to make it work. I mean, even Wafo-Tapa gave it a shot at this event. In the end, Tron was not quite as popular as Martyr of Sands. However, it managed to tie with Narcomoeba-Bridge (Dredge) on account of its one player on Day 2. Suffice to say, if Tron is going to work, it needs to evolve.
This is not to say that it cannot be made to work. A year ago, we saw Tron eventually rise to be the only major archetype to be a reasonable candidate to be listed next to Dredge and Next Level Blue in the Tier 1. It is possible that Tron could rise again. For now, though, no one has the winning formula yet.
My approach to this format after Worlds was to begin with Nassif Blue and incorporate what I had learned from the Gifts decks that I played in Berlin and Memphis. The core concept was a Wizards skeleton that had a superior endgame on account of the Gifts Engine.
Once Manuel Bucher got his hands on my deck, we ended up adding Bitterblossom as a metagame call to prey on a field of Faeries and B/G. This is what I played (Manuel played an Azami, Lady of Scrolls instead of the third Gifts maindeck).
Creatures (9)
Lands (25)
Spells (26)
I will not go to in depth about the deck here, as Manuel Bucher will be writing about it this week in his tournament report. I would like to include my sideboard plans against Elves, Affinity, and Storm, as he has not gotten to play those match-ups enough to be able to suggest workable options.
Elves:
+1 Island, +1 Izzet Boilerworks, +3 Firespout, +2 Flashfreeze, +1 Trinket Mage, +1 Threads of Disloyalty
-1 Watery Grave, -1 Ghost Quarter, -1 Vedalken Shackles, -2 Spell Snare, -2 Bitterblossom, -1 Sower of Temptation, -1 Ancient Grudge
Affinity:
+1 Izzet Boilerworks, +1 Bitterblossom, +2 Firespout, +1 Threads of Disloyalty, +1 Sower of Temptation
-1 Tolaria West, -1 Vedalken Shackles, -1 Umezawa’s Jitte, -2 Engineered Explosives, -1 Triskelion
Storm:
+2 Flashfreeze, +1 Bitterblossom, +1 Relic of Progenitus
-1 Vedalken Shackles, -1 Firespout, -1 Sower of Temptation, -1 Umezawa’s Jitte
For more in-depth analysis and sideboard plans against Faeries, B/G, Zoo, and Burn, as well as what direction you might take the deck from here, look for Manuel Bucher article later this week. [That’s tomorrow! — Craig.]
Another deck I want to talk about a little today is Michael Jacob B/G Brew, Bitterblossom Rock. Unlike most B/G Loam/Crime decks, MJ has passed on board sweepers like Death Cloud, Damnation, Engineered Explosives, and Crime/Punishment. Instead, he has chosen to focus on a more traditional Rock build, including Tarmogoyf for beating down, Thoughtseize for more disruption, and Darkblast over Smother as a metagame call.
The night before the tournament, MJ was looking for a replacement for Vexing Shusher, as a two-drop that was good against Faeries. The problem was that Vexing Shusher was just miserable against everyone else, such as B/G. I suggested Bitterblossom, sparking his interest. Once I pointed out that he would have the biggest Tarmogoyfs in the room, he was in (amusingly, one of his opponents actually discarded a Jace to a Thirst for Knowledge, putting MJ’s Goyfs up to 8/9).
Bitterblossom is truly an incredible card, right now. As good as it is against Faeries, it is actually even better against B/G. This card allowed MJ to have a nice edge in semi-mirrors, as well as attack Nassif Blue from a new angle (allowing him to edge out Herberholz in the Swiss).
Creatures (8)
Lands (26)
Spells (26)
- 3 Umezawa's Jitte
- 4 Darkblast
- 4 Life from the Loam
- 3 Putrefy
- 2 Slaughter Pact
- 3 Thoughtseize
- 3 Bitterblossom
- 3 Raven's Crime
- 1 Worm Harvest
Sideboard
I am not sure what all MJ would change, though I do know that he sideboarded out a Jitte every round and said he should only be playing 2. Maybe GerryT and I can convince the reclusive MJ to share the story of his weekend with everyone.
I can say that this seems like a much better deck than the B/G Death Cloud version that was terribly popular on Day 1, then fairly popular on Day 2, then absent in the Top 8. Mark Herberholz put it well:
“If you are good, you can figure out how to beat Death Cloud with Faeries. They have a lot of trouble with Archmages and Relic of Progenitus. The only B/G deck that I saw that looked like it could be a problem was (MJ’s) because of Bitterblossom, Darkblast, and fewer bad cards.”
If you like Loam/Crime as a strategy, try MJ’s deck as a starting point. It has many subtle strengths, and it’s further evolved than most B/G decks.
I chose not to write a full-blown tournament report, as Bucher’s will be more interesting. My performance was limited by my scooping to someone who needed to qualify (and ended up making Top 8). I do have a few stories to tell from the weekend.
I arrived in LA on Monday night, several days before the tournament. My wonderful sister Beth put me up until the tournament started, as well as provided a place to stay for Bucher, MJ, Brian DeMars, and Dan Clark when they arrived a couple of days later.
At one point I received a call from my girlfriend asking me what the temperature was where I was. “I guess it is about 80 degrees,” I replied, though the humidity made it feel even hotter.
“It is -30 degrees here, with the windchill. It is the coldest day ever (for this date).”
Wow. I now understand why my parents had decided to spend a couple of months in California instead of Michigan. It is literally over 100 degrees warmer.
I got to do the whole LA club scene on Tuesday night with a DJ/Banker I know in LA, helping set the tone for a festive week in Cali.
By the time Bucher and the others showed up, it was time to get down to business. MJ worked on B/G, while Bucher switched from Elves to my deck, with which DeMars and Clark were already on board.
Manuel will talk about the evolution of the deck from the form that I gave to Zac Hill, listed here, to what we ended up playing at the GP.
Friday night was fairly uneventful, as Bucher and I spent most of the evening trying to stay awake, rather than actually doing anything. We were on a crazy sleep schedule and were determined to make it until 10:30pm before sleeping. Of course, life has an interesting sense of humor.
Jamie Park showed up around 10pm, and we went about discussing last minute changes to the deck. David Williams called me and let me know he was getting on a plane and flying over and needed me to help him build a copy. By the time everything was resolved, it was past one in the morning. Eh, what are you going to do?
The next day, the tournament did not bring much excitement my way. I suffered some bad beats. I got stalled out (which is just as much my fault for not successfully convincing the judge what my opponent was doing). I eventually scooped to someone who needed to qualify, as we were both under the impression that a second draw would eliminate us both.
I dropped, only to later discover that the new Day 2 policy drastically lowers the bar regarding what sort of records make it into Day 2. You live and you learn. At least Mat Marr ended up making Top 4, making the most of the opportunity.
Saturday, I ended up drafting with Gabe Walls, Ben Rubin, Ben Lundquist and company until the wee hours of the morning. Eventually, I announced my retirement from Limited (though it was later pointed out to me that this will make Kyoto somewhat awkward for me).
Sunday, I finally caught up on my sleep, eventually moving back to the convention hall, rooting on Bucher, MJ, Heezy, LSV, DJ Kastner, and Gabe Walls, among others at the top. Congrats to LSV for keeping the momentum going!
I asked Heezy if he was back, to which he replied,
“Don’t call it a comeback. I’ve been here for years.”
Congrats to MJ for another Top 8. Aren’t you glad Pam (of RIW Hobbies) and I forced you to go?
Sunday night, I was supposed to go out on the town with one of my LA friends, but his girlfriend’s daughter ended up needing to go to the emergency room and I was left to find entertainment at the player hotel.
After a partying a little in the Dave Williams suite with the usual troublemakers, I ended up exploring the labyrinth of secret passages found throughout the hotel with DeMars and Clark. We checked out a local bar, downed several bottles of Champagne, and eventually decided to try our hand at the elevators.
Why is this such a big deal, you may ask? You have to understand how messed up these elevators were. There were four, and each had their own quirks. One didn’t stop on the fifth or ninth floor. One would forget what floors it was supposed to stop on. One went to the Penthouse and stayed for five minutes every time it went up! One didn’t actually ever leave the penthouse, even for a minute.
The most bizarre part of the elevators was that they all had a tendency to get stuck on the penthouse level. Every so often, the elevators would just go to the top floor automatically and stay there for a minute or more. You can imagine how much time this wasted, causing many, many people to opt for the stairs, even when dealing with nine or more flights.
The other crazy thing is that the penthouse is very much under construction. When you reach it, the doors open to reveal a room of about 500 square feet. There are no visible doors or windows and you can’t make the elevators leave the floor. It is actually very much what I would picture one of the levels of hell to look like (in fact, by the end of the weekend, we took to referring to it as hell, as once you go there, you can’t leave).
Most veterans of the hotel came to utilize the technique of pushing the 12th floor button once they realize that the elevator is shooting up out of control. Hopefully you can get out on 12 and wait for another elevator or use the stairs. Once you hit the Penthouse (floor 13) you are stuck until the elevator lets you go (though you can get out and switch elevators easily, as all 3 operational elevators would open on the penthouse regularly on their own.
On Sunday night, DeMars, Clark, and I decided to go to the penthouse by our own volition. The elevator eventually opened to take us to the top, when we were so startled by what we saw, we didn’t even enter the elevator before it closed and left without us.
A woman wearing an evening gown appeared in the doorway, with the most notable aspect of her attire being the fact that the front of the dress was not actually there, making her appearance worthy of a hard R rating.
She seemed to have business elsewhere and departed without us. We took the next elevator up and easily managed to get stuck at the Penthouse.
We got out and decided to hang out there for a while. The most interesting game we played up there was “You are Doomed!”
The way this game works? When the doors to an elevator opened, if it was occupied, we’d all cry out..
“Oh no! You guys are stuck too? You are doomed!”
Many people had been stuck at the top before, and this didn’t seem to phase them. However, we did hit a couple of rookies who had never been to this floor. After a couple of laughs, we showed them the best elevator in which to try to escape, as well as the secret passage we found that led to a stairwell.
Sunday late night and Monday early morning were filled with much Werewolf. Werewolf is the actual greatest game ever conceived. It is a Richard Garfield creation, based on the game Mafia.
The way Werewolf works is this:
You have 1 Moderator and X players. Depending on what X is, there are different rules. A typical game features 9 players or 11 players (odd numbers are better).
Moderator acts as a storyteller, making the game possible for the others. The players each have a role, assigned to them at random and secret before the game begins.
Two players are werewolves (knowing each other) and are against everyone else. The villagers are the good guys and have no special attributes. The Seer is a villager as well, but has the ability to gain information about the others.
The game begins with the players discussing who they think is a werewolf. The round ends when the players vote with a majority to kill someone they think is a werewolf. After the player dies, they can no longer speak or impact the game, though the villagers find out if they are a wolf.
Then night falls and the moderator instructs the players to close their eyes. The moderator then has the Werewolves open their eyes and point to someone to kill in the night. Then the werewolves are told to close their eyes, and the Seer is to open his or her eyes. They point to a person to learn their status, to which the moderator silently reveals if they are a wolf or a villager.
When everyone awakens the next day, the moderator reveals who the werewolves killed in the night, and again that player must stay silent, no longer impacting the game. Then the mystery continues. The players discuss what they know and what they have learned and vote off another person when they are ready.
Things continue in this fashion until both wolves are dead or all of the villagers are dead. The game is relatively simple, yes, but there are so many levels to it, it truly has to be experienced.
Bucher and I are back in Detroit, for now, so I suppose I will end things for today. We are flying out to the large prerelease in Denver in a little over a week to do some gunslinging. Next is the Magic Cruise. Then we take off for Kyoto. Talk about a crazy schedule!
Heezy and Nassif get into town in a few days, so we will really be able to get down to business breaking open Standard with Conflux. Extended is cool and all, but I look forward to playing some Standard, which I thoroughly enjoy.
See you guys next week!
Patrick Chapin
“The Innovator”