MTGCast #195 – Like Oprah for MTG
Wednesday, February 24th – On this week’s edition of MTGCast, the guys discuss Pro Tour: San Diego, Phyrexia vs. the Coalition decks, Bannings, the Magic Cruise, and much more!
CategoryMagic The Gathering
Innovations – On To The Next: Pro Tour San Diego, Part 1 *14th*
Wednesday, February 24th – Patrick Chapin rocked up to Pro Tour: San Diego with a cool new deck: U/W Control. Backed by the power of Jace, the Mind Sculptor and Everflowing Chalice, he bartered the deck to a 14th-place finish. Today, he discusses the genesis of the strategy, and shares some of the thinking behind the exact build and sideboard…
Embracing The Chaos – Judging and EDH at Pro Tour: San Diego
Wednesday, February 24th – Pro Tour: San Diego was a pretty good weekend for Judges. Two of them made Top 8, one of them won the whole thing, and we promoted the clean sweep of judges all the way from Level 1 to Level 5.
Duel With Ruel – Tezzerator Versus Zoo: The Tezzerator Perspective
Tuesday, February 23rd – In the fifth edition of Duel With Ruel, Antoine battles Manu with a deck that was presumed dead: Tezzerator! Manu slings the Zoo spells, and Antoine analyses the matchup from the Tezzerator perspective. He also shares his innovative Standard deck from Pro Tour: San Diego!
Thirst for Knowledge – After the Dust Has Settled: Standard Strategies
Tuesday, February 23rd – Another Pro Tour has come and gone, and this one is quite a doozy. If you had told me a month ago that I’d be thrilled to play Standard, I’d have called you a liar (I feel like I’ve said that before). However, here I am, unfathomably eager for March to roll around for the StarCityGames.com Open in Indianapolis…
Legacy’s Allure – From The (Lim-Dul’s) Vault
Tuesday, February 23rd – This week, Doug looks at a powerful Blue uncommon from Alliances with lots of text on it… no, not Force of Will, Lim-Dul’s Vault! How does the card compare to Vampiric Tutor, a card that’s too cool for school in Legacy? How can we exploit the deck stacking ability with a new Worldwake card that’s already caused a lot of excitement? Find out that and more in this week’s Legacy’s Allure!
Black Magic – Pro Tour: San Diego *24th*
Tuesday, February 23rd – Sam Black set off for Pro Tour: San Diego feeling confident, focused, and well prepared. Armed with an excellent deck from Zvi Mowshowitz, and some great Limited skills, he posted an excellent finish, one that ranks as a personal Pro Tour best. He tells his tale today… [Editor’s Note – Patrick is experiencing travel difficulties, and will be here tomorrow!]
Constructed Criticism – A Grand Prix: Oakland Report, Part 2
Tuesday, February 23rd – In continuation from last week’s article, after starting the Grand Prix off 7-2, I was pretty happy to make Day 2 but very disappointed that I wasn’t able to break through at 8-1. With an 8-1 record, it is much more likely that I can Top 8, as I have a bit of breathing room. With two losses, I’m in pretty bad shape with my back against the wall, and I will likely only make Top 8 if I go undefeated.
Flow of Ideas – Bitten By The Dark Depths Poison: A Grand Prix Oakland Report
Monday, February 22nd – As I shuffled the deck, I felt a powerful craving, like Saruman must have felt when Sauron tempted him. This was nothing like other decks. My mind twisted and the knees of my thoughts buckled. The card sleeves gave me a paper-cut, and poison flowed into my veins…
The Long & Winding Road – Vintage: Gateway Decks
Monday, February 22nd – As I’ve taken to writing about primarily Vintage over the past six months, one of the most common questions I’ve received is, “I’m interested in playing in a Vintage tournament but I have no idea how to get into the format – where should I start?” My article today is going to cover that topic.
Feature Article – Extended Analysis and Pauper Fun
Monday, February 22nd – Quentin Martin examines a selection of Extended strategies in the wake of Grand Prix: Oakland. He also goes searching for some Magical fun by looking at the Online Pauper metagame.
So Many Insane Plays – The Vintage Market Report
Monday, February 22nd – In today’s enlightening edition of So Many Insane Plays, Stephen Menendian breaks down the market forces in play on the current top strategies in Vintage. He also investigates the state of the current metagame, with reference to a myriad of tournaments held around the world…
The Chump Block – Crab, Go
Monday, February 22nd – I have been playing online, with a high degree of success, a deck that I thought was under wraps but, apparently, is widely known these days. I’ve simply been calling it “Crab, Go.â€
Insider Trading – The Cost of Cards: Mr. Bleiweiss goes to Washington (Part 2 of 3)
Friday, February 19th – On January 18th of this year, Wizards of the Coast brought Ben to their headquarters for an important meeting regarding the Reserved List. In today’s edition of Insider Trading, find out what was discussed at that meeting, Ben’s thoughts about the recent clarification of the Reserved List policy, and how this all relates to the cost of Magic cards!
You Lika The Juice? – EDH Griefer Anonymous
Friday, February 19th – In an EDH game, players aren’t locked in to playing against the griefer at the table. They are free to respond in a couple different ways. First, they can gang up on the player to eliminate the griefer before he can get his misery engine going; it’s pretty difficult to stand against a table united against you, especially early on.