CategoryMagic The Gathering

Removed From Game – Lessons From Elsewhere, Part 1

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Tuesday, May 19th – ‘Blimey Harry, yer a wizard.’ Yes, it’s yet more groundbreaking journalistic action from Rich as he takes you into a world of Hogwarts, Hermione, and Harry, with a look at the Harry Potter TCG. Why? Because it turns out you can learn a lot about Magic from playing (gasp) something else. Lessons from Elsewhere. In this case – Scunthorpe.

Tribal Thriftiness #69 – Regionals and the Golden Fatty

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Tuesday, May 19th – The date: Thursday night. The setting: My dining room. Six Magic players are sitting around a large wooden table, testing out decks, playing Magic, trying to finalize their decisions before Saturday’s Regional Championships. Five of them have a very real idea of the deck they are playing. One does not.

Constructed Criticism – Finding Spectral Procession

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Tuesday, May 19th – After battling in my local Regional Championships this weekend, I can safely say that the metagame is shaping up to be a very interesting one. There are a lot of good archetypes, but the problem is that most of them rely on the same engine: Spectral Procession and Windbrisk Heights. This combination can lead to devastating effects, and completely turn a game in one person’s favor, one who has no business winning the game.

Sullivan Library – The Chicago Regionals: Examining 270 Decklists

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Tuesday, May 19th – For Regionals this past weekend, Adrian Sullivan audibled into Turbo-Fog at the last moment. Sadly, it didn’t work this time. However, it did mean that Adrian had the time to prepare considerable analysis on the 270-deck metagame makeup from the Chigaco tournament. There’s also an interview with the winner!

Black Magic – Regionals and Cascade Assault

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Tuesday, May 19th – The Regionals results continue to roll in, and Sam Black is ready with some innovation. While he never played Regionals himself, he did witness an interesting combo deck pick up a qualification in Chicago. Today, he presents the idea for those of us with Standard tournaments on the horizon, while also suggesting that the demise of the Fae is not as foregone as we may assume…

The Kitchen Table #285 – What is Wrong With You Commander Players?

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Monday, May 18th – I’ve written articles on Elder Dragon Highlander before, and I enjoy the format. Other writers talk about it more often, so I’ve allowed them to take up the space on this format, but I still like it. EDH is enjoying a great bout of sunshine as the casual format du jour, and no one knows whether it will be long lasting or not.

The Long & Winding Road – Regionals Wreckage

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Monday, May 18th – You know that feeling you get when you know you’re making a mistake, but you feel helpless to stop yourself? For example, have you ever been at the bar and known that this drink, the one you have in your hands, is the one that’s going to push you over the limit? That was how I lost two matches at Regionals.

Legacy’s Allure – Test Smart!

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Monday, May 18th – Do you make the most of your testing time? Do you sit around after an event, thinking you should have spent more time solving how your deck handles Blood Moon? Do you feel like your friend wastes your time when you get together to test out new, rogue decks for Legacy? Get the answers inside, in an article that promises to help not only the Legacy regular, but a player in any competitive format. Use your time to test smart, not hard!

Drafting With Olivier – Shards/Shards/Conflux #32

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Monday, May 18th – Hall of Famer Olivier Ruel takes us through an 8-4 draft queue on Magic Online. He shares some comprehensive thoughts about both the picks and the games, and talks us through each step of the way! If you’re looking to improve your Limited game, this is the article series for you!

So Many Insane Plays – Exploring Possible Unrestrictions: Designing for Balance, Channel, and More!

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Monday, May 18th – Last week, Vintage maestro Stephen Menendian explored the problem of a Vintage format dominated by Mana Drain strategies. Today, Stephen takes a look at some innovative solutions for answering the questions asked by this dominance. He analyses the Banned and Restricted list, and suggests that unrestriction may be a way to balance the teetering metagame…

Innovations – Five-Color Blood in Regionals, and Decks I Dislike

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Monday, May 18th – Regionals have come and gone, and results should be rolling in soon. Today’s Innovations sees Patrick Chapin discuss Five-Color Blood and its place in the evolving metagame, before moving on to an illuminating breakdown of the decks that Patrick doesn’t believe can cut the mustard in modern Standard…

You Lika the Juice? – Surprise… It’s Regionals Already!

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Friday, May 15th – Last week I wrote about a couple of decks, and I pretty much had settled on two for the PTQ weekend, one of which was the Black/Green “Neo-Elves” Rock deck. The other deck was a Cascade deck…

Magical Hack – Hacking Regionals 2009

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Friday, May 15th – Previous analysis for the Conflux Standard format showed that Cedric Phillips’ Red/White Kithkin deck was pretty much awesome, and one of the highest-competing decks in the format by the numbers. Success rates were dramatic for the few people who chose to play the deck at Pro Tour: Kyoto. But with the change of the format to include Alara Reborn, I asked a very simple question: what happens if we cut the Red for Black, and play Zealous Persecution?

The Magic Show #142a – Your 2009 Regionals Metagame

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Friday, May 15th – Hello everybody, and welcome to another edition of the Magic Show. This week we’re back, and we’re just twenty-four hours from one of the biggest tournaments of the year: Regionals. This week we’re going to look at what everyone else is playing, what you should be playing, and what I’m wielding in this wacky, wild and token-filled metagame. Let’s go!

Drafting With Olivier – Shards/Shards/Conflux #31

Draft with Olivier Ruel... at StarCityGames.com!
Friday, May 15th – Hall of Famer Olivier Ruel takes us through an 8-4 draft queue on Magic Online. He shares some comprehensive thoughts about both the picks and the games, and talks us through each step of the way! If you’re looking to improve your Limited game, this is the article series for you!