It’s rare that we get an article this amusing, particularly by a submissionist. Therefore I demand that you read it right now, oh ye few readers who know enough to scroll all the way down the page to the Humor section. We’ll even form our own club and have T-Shirts that say something catchy like “I scrolled all the way down StarCityGames.com and all I got was this lousy humor article.” Anyway, enough rambling. I promise the article inside is much funnier.
Sorry, but those of you looking forward to my Bounceland draft walkthrough are going to have to wait another day. I know, it’s torture for me too. At least I get the opportunity to tie up a few loose ends, as well as some that aren’t very loose at all.
Yep, this is one of those random, mixed-bag, kitchen-sink type articles all writers do once in a while when they’re struggling (except the good ones). Did I say struggling? I meant thriving!
Rizzo chokes a horse with his page count in this mammoth undertaking, but it includes his thoughts on basically everything Magic, Sex, and the Internet. Oh yeah, and it’s got a heaping helping of roguetastic decklists for those who enjoyed that element of the other Jonny Magic and pictures are back too.
Most writers have a file of articles and article ideas – stuff they’ve put off, or haven’t got quite right, or that they really want to write about when they get time. I was cleaning out that folder and pulled together – hey, who am I kidding? It’s a pile of unrelated topics, including my PT LA, MTGO rants and problems, poker, broken cards and other random topics. Enjoy.
If yesterday’s exploration of a league build-in-progress_ was a departure from my typical article, then so will this be. A departure. Sort of. It’s about a new draft archetype that may or may not be good, but after this article will certainly exist at least, and that’s something.
Back when I was a regular on the tournament scene, you’d see people show up with decks like that one that they peeled off a Pro Tour deck listing, and yet didn’t put in the requisite test drives. Believe it or not, no deck really drives itself, no matter how good the engine is. It may seem like it, but it just can’t, and people who say it does are really underestimating player ability as a deciding factor in deck creation and performance.
During my last daily deck-a-thon, there was a forum comment regarding the fact that a lot of my decks couldn’t be played online, because I like using older and unusual cards to fill out slots in my decks. So I created four fun decks that can be built Online for a reasonable price… And a very whacky theme deck!
Extended, fresh off rotation with that new car smell still in the air is ripe to be broken… with Beasts? Indeed, dear reader don’t look for technology in old Extended, nor even in good Type Two decks of now dead formats. You must dig deep into the likes of Onslaught Block Constructed for the golden technology I wish to impart.
LA had all the potential to be the best memory ever. Sometimes memories are tarnished. Sometimes the game gets in the way. This is not a Gadiel-esque whine. This is about something that happened by the judges and the DCI that was wrong. It is not a tale of mana screw or of runner, runner gutshot. It is about something that went wrong that shouldn’t have, it is about an issue that needs to be brought to public attention.
Those of you who have followed my work over the past few years will likely have noticed that I try to push the envelope in my writing, to stretch outside the boundaries of the standard Magic article, to innovate. Nothing evokes this sense of adventure and discovery like a bajillion draft walkthroughs. Sure, the Eisels and Willses of the world might give you umpteen or even eleventy walkthroughs, but I’m the first and last to break the bajillion walkthrough barrier – and they said it couldn’t be done.
Still, I’m not sure that’s enough, so this week I’m going to blow your mind. This means I’m going to do the same old thing, but also do some slightly different things. Shazam!
Why should you read this final part of a four-part series discussing Legacy Threshold decks? Because this past weekend, at the first Legacy Grand Prix ever, no less than three Threshold decks appeared in the Top 8, suddenly catapulting this archetype into “Deck to Beat” status, that’s why.
When we last left our intrepid hero he was massaging a dredgeariffic budget deck online. How has the deck morphed since that time, and is it good enough for you to want to play for yourself? The answers are inside.
Chris’s special ode to the man that draws few hotties, but who Chris still feels produces the best Magic art out there.
Many of you have enjoyed reading the trials and trevails of one Richard Feldman and his attempts to qualify for the Pro Tour. We’ll spoil this one a bit for you and tell you that he once again made the Top 8, but did he qualify? You’ll have to check inside for details on that and the 4-1-1 on his suggestions for improving your game in future PTQ seasons.
Master Flores takes time out of his busy schedule of self-promotion to run a deck that someone else designed this week. Greater Good combo decks are a blast to play and did quite well in a number of states last month, but are they any good in the new metagame?
