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Through The Wizarding Glass

Here, on the first day of the new year, Glenn Jones reflects on his long strange 2014, the significance of the Magic life he’s led, and the thrill of heading to Wizards for the next step. We’ll miss you, Glenn!

This is a weird article to write, because it’s the last article I can foresee writing for some time and (hopefully) the last that I’ll be writing for SCG.

Many writers have taken this week to reflect on the past year and plan for the next, but I’ve been doing that for months now. To say I had great
expectations for 2014 would be an understatement. Starting a new job with a seemingly generous company in PHD and a new life in southern California was
very exciting to me. I’d become filled with a sense of malaise and felt certain that the change of scenery and routine would be invigorating.

To be blunt, it didn’t work out that way. While I made tons of new friends, reconnected with old ones, and enjoyed many elements of SoCal, neither my work
nor my emotional well-being landed in great places for a variety of reasons. The slam dunk I’d planned for didn’t show up, and I felt myself sliding.

A few months into the year, I noticed that Wizards of the Coast had an opening for some kind of editing position. I didn’t apply for it–truthfully, I
wasn’t certain that it was precisely the kind of work I would be qualified for or interested in. I very much enjoy editing, but my own lack of familiarity
with things like templating made me wary. As I make a habit of only applying for jobs I’m certain I can perform, I didn’t apply for this one.

Some time later, Tim Aten wrote an article for the mothership
advertising more details about the position. My curiosity piqued, I decided to apply. I was out of love with my job in California but definitely not
leaving it unless I found a strong opportunity, so I figured no pressure. I took a couple of tests, which I thoroughly enjoyed executing. I had an
interview in which I felt I’d acquitted myself well–it’s funny given the amount of camera work I’ve done, but I’m paranoid about phone interviews because
I’ve never gotten a job after doing one.

So yeah, I didn’t get the job this time either.

It wasn’t supposed to be a big deal–my primary purpose had been to get a measuring of sorts, so doing well but ultimately falling short wasn’t supposed to
hurt. In fact, it was one of the better results.

But it did hurt. In fact, it sunk me for a full day and gnawed at me for several more. I hadn’t realized how much I wanted the job until I’d known
I wasn’t getting it! Truly a depressing epiphany, as epiphanies go. It wasn’t just my optimism for the position though–it was also the realization that I
wasn’t happy with my life. I’d gotten a glimpse of somewhere I could envision myself finding professional fulfillment, only to watch the opportunity drift
off.

Shortly after, I was diagnosed with some medical issues that I’ve continued to adjust for, which worsened my perspective substantially. If you met me in
the months of July or August, you were definitely not dealing with my best self–and I’m kind of a jerk to start with! After a month or two of general
dissatisfaction, I realized that being unhappy because I didn’t like where I was sitting was uncharacteristically moronic of me. Nobody had shackled me to
my life; lethargy and cowardice were my only manacles, and they were self-imposed.

It didn’t take much to make me feel better. I began producing more personally fulfilling creative content, including a ton of personal writing and drawing
as well as my articles here and the Masters of Modern podcast that continues in my absence. I explored new
career opportunities, weighing my ability to enter the marketplace as an entrepreneur, and I knew my time at PHD needed to end. A confluence of factors
resulted in me deciding to resign without a position waiting anywhere, so I lined up some freelance editing work, began planning some big Magic content,
and started looking for the elusive dream job. In fact, I made plans to spend the end of the year in Seattle with friends, figuring I’d poke around a city
I loved and maybe find something there, with Wizards nearby to aspire to.

About two weeks later, an email informed me that Wizards once again had an opening for an editor, and I was formally offered the position. I start January
5th, 2015, on a six-month contract in Magic R&D.

Must, is.

The last few months have been a blur. With a compelling opportunity on the horizon and no major commitments, I decided to make the most of my last few
months with sanctioned Magic and play every event I could feasibly attend. Coincidentally, I also enjoyed some of my best results in years, handily paying
off all of my moving expenses and getting set up for life in the northwest.

That was 2014 for me in a nutshell. I’m certainly hoping for a less challenging year come 2015!

Having three months to think about working at Wizards has been a strange experience, and I’ve run through the full range of enthusiasm and anxiety twice
over at this point. I’m eager to get started, eager to learn what the next chapter of my life will look like. I’ve got high hopes that these six months
will set the stage for a longer career, but most importantly, I have an opportunity to learn even more about Magic and editing from a cast of talented and
knowledgeable people. My life has revolved around the former for years, and I’d love to make the latter just as central.

The year 2014 wasn’t what I expected, and that stung. However, as I sit in my room after a day of gaming with friends and future coworkers following a
fantastic weekend with my family, it’s certainly difficult to complain about how it ended.

When I left my full-time job at SCG last year, I retained so much of it via Twitter and Facebook and this column and the Open Series that, at times, it was
as though I hadn’t left at all–like I was on vacation. This time around, it definitely feels different. You won’t see me at tournaments or gracing these
fine pages, and I’ll likely be less present on social media, at least for a while. Magic and its community have been such a massive part of my life for so
long that this transition is honestly a bit scary! What do people do on the weekend when there aren’t tournaments to battle in or broadcasts to run?

I guess I’m going to have to figure that out. Hopefully it involves cubing.

It’s been a long strange trip, and I’m very grateful to have had such excellent company.

We’ve all got a 2015 ahead of us; hello and good luck.

<h2>Bonus Decklist: The Slowest and Baddest</h2>

You didn’t think I’d leave without posting one more decklist, did you?

Unfortunately, given that it’s my last one, I’ll be subjecting you to one of my personal favorites. Ever since Commander 2014 came out, I’ve been messing
with Daretti, Scrap Savant. Slobad, Goblin Tinkerer has long been one of my beloved decks, but I had a feeling Daretti’s power level would be too high to
justify sticking to the second-best Squire ever printed.

Fortunately, I was wrong! Daretti’s a sweet card, but I definitely didn’t like the deck I got after adjusting for the change. Hide your children, hide your
wife–Slobad’s back!


I’ve made some relatively significant revisions from my last published version.

Valakut was a suggestion I got from David McDarby and dismissed; however, David promptly had me revisiting that decision after he used his own Valakut to
Bolt me to death before corralling the table over the remaining turns with triggers.

My mana rocks are now exclusively either cantrips or rocks that net more mana than they cost, with Mana Crypt an exception solely due to its synergy with
Salvaging Station. Speaking of Station, Flayer Husk is on my radar if I find a combo enabler that makes it worthwhile, but nothing has spoken to me quite
yet… and it’s still just a Flayer Husk when all is said and done.

I’ve also eschewed Rings of Brighthearth, as without the Monoliths for infinite mana it wasn’t impressing me that strongly, and I’m interested to try a
leaner version of the deck. More card draw is my primary interest, but I’m going to add it slowly as things are pretty inefficient.

The Vandalblast is probably too weak for the maindeck without Mycosynth Lattice, a card I’m not overly fond of, but we’ll see. Vicious Shadows is, of
course, always a consideration, but this deck’s not that great at triggering it significantly without Myr Battlesphere, and there are many engines with
which to abuse Myr Battlesphere. Still, its power level is really high, and I could probably use some nitrous in the fuel lines.

I don’t want to burn a bunch of inches going deep on this deck, but if anyone wants to chat Slobad, hit me up in the comments. I’ve tried a ton of stuff,
but I’m always willing to try more. Wizards Commander play has already revealed itself to be Serious Business, so it’s time to turn up the heat–at least
as high as a tinkered-together Goblin oven can go.