CategoryMagic The Gathering

Michaelj Monday – The Breakdown of Theory

Read Mike Flores every Friday... at StarCityGames.com!
Last week, Flores Friday made way for the return of Zvi Mowshowitz. In this Michaelj Monday, Flores presents a bold new framework to redefining and understanding Magic theory. Is everything we’ve read and learned to this point wrong? It’s not the Grand Unified Theory of Magic: The Gathering, but it’s the closest thing we’ve got.

My Worlds Part 2 – Standard Matches and Draft Preparation

My Worlds by Zvi Mowshowitz
Last Friday, Zvi Mowshowitz talked us through the decision processes that led him to his powerful Blue/Black Faeries deck for the Standard portion of Worlds 2007. Today we see the deck in action – five rounds against the best players the world has to offer. Zvi then moves on to tales of his preparations for triple Lorwyn draft…

[Part 1 – Standard Preparation.]

Insert Column Name Here – The God Of Rares Leaves Me Awash In Blue

Read The Ferrett every Monday... at StarCityGames.com!Not one, not two, but three insane Blue rares, all in one little tidal pool. And lo, it is a crazy good deck piloted by a crazy (if not good) player. But how did it perform… And what terror lies underneath The Ferrett’s Christmas tree?

Magical Hack – Obvious In Hindsight

Read Sean McKeown every Friday... at StarCityGames.com!
Looking at the Hideaway lands, it’s very easy to misinterpret their values. The Blue one is reasonably easy to trigger in Limited, but a good deal closer to useless in sixty-card formats, while the Black one more or less seems terrible all around… though sadly I can confess to having won a game with it out of nowhere in a draft, because it required my opponent to be an idiot in order for me to do so.

The Magic Show #74 – Worlds 2007, Part 1

Watch Evan Erwin every Friday... on StarCityGames.com!
Hello everybody and welcome to another edition of the Magic Show. This week I fight through hardware failures and flight cancellations to bring you the first half of my Worlds 2007 experience. I talk to Patrick Chapin, Mark Rosewater, Tiago Chan, Zac Hill, Paul Cheon and more while I chronicle my Friday and Saturday experiences at the biggest Magic tournament of the year, and it’s all thanks to your support.

Drafting With Tiago – LLL #19

Draft With Tiago Chan... every day at StarCityGames.com!
Tiago Chan, Portugal’s Level 6 Magic dynamo, takes us by the hand and leads us through the choppy waters of a triple-Lorwyn draft on Magic Online. He shares each and every pick, from one to forty-five, and supplies expert commentary on the draft and the games. For more detailed information, visit the forums!

Levelling Up – World Championships: Standard

Read Tiago Chan every Friday... at StarCityGames.com!Level 6 Mage Tiago Chan needed a superlative performance at Worlds to reach the dizzy heights of last year’s showing. Unfortunately he fell short this time… but his passion for the game is not in question. Today’s Levelling Up brings us Tiago’s take on his preparation and Day 1 performance at Worlds. For part 2, be sure to return next week!

My Worlds, Part 1 – Standard Preparation

My Worlds by Zvi Mowshowitz

That’s right, folks… Zvi’s back! Today we start a multi-part series that chronicles Hall of Famer and Magic Legend Zvi Mowshowitz’s preparation and play at the 2007 World Championships. The first part deals with his thoughts going into the event, and his extensive preparation for the five rounds of Standard. He also updates his deck for the post-Worlds metagame! Check back in on Monday for part 2…

Tribal Thriftiness – Budgets Are For Movies and Dads

Read Feature Articles every Monday and Thursday... at StarCityGames.com!
Historically, the tribal mechanic has included the ability to make competitive decks without going overly expensive. Lorwyn is no different, and the recent success of the Faeries deck is just the tip of the iceberg of good, inexpensive, and successful Tribal decks that you can build.

[Editor’s Note – Dave will be replacing Chris Romeo until Chris returns… enjoy!]

The Kitchen Table #211 – The Next Deckbuilding Challenge

Read Abe Sargent every Thursday... at StarCityGames.com!
Welcome back to our corner of cyberspace where the articles are dedicated to the realm of the casual. Last week, I told you about the loss of my laptop for a while, which had about five or six articles already written on it. Therefore, I had to write an article quickly for the week. It still hasn’t come back, so I am had to write another article and find a new idea.

The Beautiful Struggle – The Art of Simplicity in Magic

Read Mark Young every Thursday... at StarCityGames.com!
The learning curve can slope both ways; while you have to learn a lot of stuff to go uphill from “bad” to “decent,” at some point too much knowledge can screw up your head and send you back downhill to “bad.” Eventually, improvement becomes an issue of thinking less about the game, rather than more. The higher level of players you face, the more your game needs to simplify, rather than get increasingly complex.

Drafting With Tiago – LLL #18

Draft With Tiago Chan... every day at StarCityGames.com!
Tiago Chan, Portugal’s Level 6 Magic dynamo, takes us by the hand and leads us through the choppy waters of a triple-Lorwyn draft on Magic Online. He shares each and every pick, from one to forty-five, and supplies expert commentary on the draft and the games. For more detailed information, visit the forums!

Down And Dirty – The Top 10 Decks of 2007

Read Kyle Sanchez every Thursday... at StarCityGames.com!
Today’s Down And Dirty sees Kyle in a reflective mood. With pos-Worlds ennui setting in, he gazes back across the Magical year and chooses his personal Top 10 Decks of 2007. Is there space for the Chapin Mono Red Dragonstorm? What about Extended… did Gaea’s Might Get There, well, get there? Read on to find out!

Feature Article – From The Desk Of The Constructed Specialist

Read Feature Articles every Monday and Thursday... at StarCityGames.com!
Another week, another bile-fuelled rant from John Friggin’ Rizzo! In today’s offering, the mighty JFR lays into Limited, advertizing executives, and himself, with his usual acerbic style. He also updates his funky Red/Black Madness deck in Standard, and reveals his New Year’s Resolutions! As always when reading Rizzo, remember: buyer beware.

Removed From Game – Surprise? Surprise!

Read Rich Hagon every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Some of you may know that the Magic World Championship happened this weekend. Some of you may know that Rich Hagon was there, and that he writes a column here on a weekly basis. This is that event. This is that man. This is that column. Late.