CategoryMagic The Gathering

Fishing Lessons – Taking a Walk in the Fog

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Tuesday, May 11th – The trouble with Fog decks is that they suck. The strategy is inherently flawed: You wait out their gameplan and then kind of incidentally kill them. The problem is that, in order to fuel your Fogs, you need to play Howling Mine effects which makes sure that your opponent has enough gas to finish you off if you ever stumble. So why am I here to tell you to play a TurboFog deck?

Feature Article – In Response: Money For Nothing

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Tuesday, May 11th – I was privileged enough to be able to speak with Doug Linn about his most recent article on Legacy speculation before it went live, and we found a few areas where we disagreed. Considering my main body of work deals with speculating on cards and adding value to your collection by buying, trading and selling in the most informed and efficient way possible, I’m glad to have the opportunity to weigh in on the subject.

Black Magic – Understanding Card Choices for U/W in Standard

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Tuesday, May 11th – With Nationals Qualifiers approaching fast, and Grand Prix: Washington DC on the horizon, Sam Black examines the best way to adapt the current Most Popular Deck in Standard: U/W Control. He takes us through the basic elements that the deck requires, suggests a strong list, and provides an entirely different bonus take on the color pairing!

Embracing The Chaos – The Advantage of Second-Best

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Tuesday, May 11th – I’ve long been a proponent in multiplayer games that being best isn’t always best. Building a power base while others are charging out of the gate and becoming the threat—which must immediately be dealt with—has served as a strong strategy for as long as I’ve played EDH. We’ll see how that strategy plays out in the latest installment of Armada Games’ EDH League.

So Many Insane Plays – Grand Prix Madrid Nearly Killed Me, and I Wasn’t Even There

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Tuesday, May 11th – Stephen Menendian brings us an extensive examination of the Grand Prix: Madrid Legacy metagame, including statistical breakdowns of all the top performing archetypes. This exhaustive article also includes the top 64 decklists, unmissable if you’re after a Legacy deck for your next tournament!

Constructed Criticism – My New Super Friends

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Tuesday, May 11th – Grand Prix: DC is just around the corner, and there are a lot of things to discuss. First of all, Jund is still a big contender in the metagame, despite what some people might say/think. It did get second at the StarCityGames.com Atlanta Standard Open, and if built differently it could have a much better chance against the new Super Friends (Planeswalker) deck.

Thirst for Knowledge – Planeswalking

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Monday, May 10th – I ran some games with UWR Planeswalkers against Jund, and the results were pretty positive. Or, rather, at first they were very poor – but after looking at the Top 16 decklists for Atlanta, it became apparent that most players weren’t playing Vengevine in their Jund lists, and therefore our Jund list was pretty ahead of the curve when it came to beating the Planeswalker deck.

Flow of Ideas – The Control Killer: Turbo Open the Vaults in Standard

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Monday, May 10th – Looking for something new to play this weekend? What if I told you I had a deck that was a 90 percent favorite versus U/W Control and U/W/r Planeswalkers? What if I told you that deck was also favored against Jund? Would you play it?

The Combat Phase – Of Wolf And Mana

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Monday, May 10th – In today’s edition of The Combat Phase, Jamie Wakefield continues the engaging tale of his return to Magic. He shares his current Mono Green deck, which now involves a selection of cards suggested by the Forum Folk last week. And as always, his article is peppered with enjoyable life tales and fun times.

Too Much Information – StarCityGames.com Standard Open: Atlanta

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Monday, May 10th – The StarCityGames.com Standard Open in Atlanta gave us our first real look at the format post Rise. Jund was present, but did not dominate the event. There were breakout decks and new twists on old favorites, but do the numbers back up Jund€™s demise as The Best Deck?

Innovations – Building a Modern Blue/White Control Deck

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Monday, May 10th – With Blue/White Control taking over Jund as the top deck in Standard, Patrick Chapin shares his latest build, bringing us a deck that straddles the world of Tap-Out and pure Control. He also brings us an Esper deck from the fevered mind of Gerard Fabiano!

Duel with Ruel – Rise of Eldrazi Standard: Grim Ultimatum versus Jund

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Friday, May 7th – In today’s edition of Duel With Ruel, Antoine Ruel tries an updated version of Manuel Bucher’s Grim Ultimatum deck against Jund, piloted by his brother Oli. With Rise of the Eldrazi rocking Standard in a plethora of ways, can Jund still Blightning its way to the top?

You Lika The Juice? – Mythics & the Cost of Playing

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Friday, May 7th – Amid all the excitement that each new set brings over the past year or so, there’s also an undercurrent of dissatisfaction that I’m constantly hearing from everyday Magic players, and I’m feeling it myself. As a long-term fan of Magic, I’m a little worried about Mythic Rares and their impact on the cost of playing.

The Dragonmaster’s Lair – The New Standard

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Friday, May 7th – Nationals Qualifier tournaments are on their way, and the Standard PTQ season is in full swing. Brian Kibler takes a look at two emerging strategies from the flowering metagame – UWR Planeswalkers and Mythic Conscription – and offers his thoughts on their strengths, weaknesses, and place in the format.

The Magic Show #187 – Rise of the Eldrazi Standard

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Friday, May 7th – Hello everybody, and welcome to another edition of the Magic Show. This week we’ve got some awesome footage from the StarCityGames.com Open in Atlanta, discuss the hot new decks that showed up there, and go over the the decks you will expect to see across tournament tables for the next few months. Let’s go!