Tuesday, June 3rd – Yesterday saw the most sweeping changes to the Vintage Banned and Restricted list for a number of years, with a swathe of Blue tournament staples becoming mere one-ofs in future decklists. Today’s renamed So Many Insane Plays sees Vintage World Champion Stephen Menendian analyze the changes, and evaluate the disappearance of Brainstorm and pals…
Monday, May 26th – Last week, Vintage World Champion Stephen Menendian shared his ponderous run in Day 1 of the recent StarCityGames.com Power 9 tournament weekend. While he didn’t lose a great deal, he did pick up a slew of unintentional draws. Today, he investigates why that may be, and takes us through his far more successful Day 2 performance…
Monday, May 19th – At the StarCityGames Mega-Magic Weekend, Stephen Menendian took full advantage of two days of competitive Vintage play. Unfortunately for the Vintage World Champion, things didn’t quite go his way on an intriguing Day 1…
Monday, May 12th – This past weekend saw the Vintage community power to The StarCityGames Power 9 tournament… and current Vintage World Champion was there! Today’s So Many Insane Plays sees Stephen go over his choice for the first tournament, and he also breaks down his Top 10 of best unrestricted spells in the format. Do you agree with his assertions?
Monday, May 5th – While the current Vintage metagame is perhaps the most vibrant we’ve ever seen, it’s safe to say that there are a number of core strategies that pepper the format. However, while these strategies appear simple at face value, some are more tricksy than others. Did you know that Tyrant Oath isn’t actually an Oath deck? Or that Quirion Dryad is a Storm card? Let Stephen explain all…
Monday, April 28th – Vintage… the Format of Kings. Traditionally, a successful Vintage deck would both require a king-sized brain to pilot, and a king’s ransom to assemble. However, in these modern times, it seems that tournament structure allows a lot more flexibility in deck creation, and the ultra-diverse metagame means there are many options open to the cash-strapped Eternal spellslinger…
Monday, April 21st – The Shadowmoor prerelease is now in the books, and Constructed minds now turn to the strengths and weaknesses of the fresh meat on offer. Stephen Menendian looks at the new set from a Vintage perspective, and analyses the cards with an eye on slotting them into Magic’s most broken format…
Monday, April 14th – Last week’s excellent So Many Insane Plays saw Vintage master Stephen Menendian break down an exciting Tyrant Oath versus Flash matchup. Oath triumphed 2-0 that day, mainly on the back of excellent draws. Will the Tyrant’s luck hold out this week…?
Monday, April 7th – Today’s So Many Insane Plays sees Stephen Menendian walk us through one of the most pertinent Vintage matchups in the modern metagame. Tyrant Oath is putting up excellent results worldwide, and the power of Flash is simply undeniable. Who’ll take the crown in this battle of the titans?
Monday, March 31st – Last week’s So Many Insane Plays saw Vintage World Champion Stephen Menendian bring us his thoughts on what some folk are heralding as the best deck ever created: Vintage Hulk Flash. Today, Stephen continues his thorough examination of the archetype, and draws some exciting conclusions…
Monday, March 24th – Vintage Magic is currently going through somewhat of a renaissance, but there are still universal truths. For example, everyone knows the format is the most broken format in the game. Today, Stephen Menendian breaks down what some people have called the best deck ever made. Do you agree with his assessment?
Monday, March 17th – At present, Vintage is full of entertaining and powerful options. The metagame is packed with great decks that run the gauntlet of Magical strategies. Today’s So Many Insane Plays sees Vintage World Champion Stephen Menendian break down the important Vintage results from January and February… so, exactly where is the metagame headed?
Monday, March 10th – Stephen has been working overtime this week… In today’s edition of So Many Insane Plays, the Vintage World Champion brings us the lowdown on every single playable deck in the format! From the top decks, to the Contenders, to the Marginal Players, to the Dark Horses, this article has it all. Brilliant stuff from the format’s finest…
Monday, March 3rd – Stephen returns to the Monday slot, and talks about an argument that’s as old as the hills… is the role of Luck in Magic greater than the role of Skill? Does Luck devalue Skill in the overall scheme of the game? Strangely, Stephen believes that, far from inhibiting the skillful, Luck makes Magic a more skillful game… and he’s got the mathematical proof to back up his claim.
Wednesday, February 27th – At present, the Vintage metagame is evolving at an alarming rate. With successful deckbuilds in a state of constant flux, it pays to be flexible when planning for events. For a recent Vintage tournament, Stephen decided to shelve a deck on which he’d lavished months of attention in order to run with the New Guy in Town: Rich Shay’s innovative Tyrant Oath. This is his story…
