Wednesday, December 17th – With both Pro Tour: Berlin and the World Championships now in the books, and the upcoming PTQ season concentrating on Extended, it’s time to examine the format and figure the metagame. Borrowing from Mike Flores and his SWOT analysis, Richard Feldman takes us through the runners and riders…
Tuesday, December 16th – Nick continues his Drafting With series, bringing us a triple Shards of Alara draft from the 8-4 queue on Magic Online. Along with Rich, he shares his pick process and draft thoughts with each one, and supplies more detailed analysis in the forums.
Tuesday, December 16th – Newly-promoted Level 6 mage Gerry Thompson stepped away from Five-Color Control for Worlds in order to bust heads with the popular White/Black Token Standard deck. He came away from Day 1 with a solid 5-1 record. Today, he takes us through the deck he played, the build he’d run today, and the sideboarding plans he’d implement for the major players in the field…
Tuesday, December 16th – After a sterling start and a 5-1 Standard performance, the wheels fell off Patrick’s Worlds wagon when the field took up the forty-card decks. Today, Patrick brings us the deck he played to 5-1, a Cruel Control build developed by himself, Manuel Bucher, Guillaume Wafo-Tapa, and the Ruels…
Monday, December 15th – Nick continues his Drafting With series, bringing us a triple Shards of Alara draft from the 8-4 queue on Magic Online. Along with Rich, he shares his pick process and draft thoughts with each one, and supplies more detailed analysis in the forums.
Monday, December 15th – Down the years, Vintage Maestro Stephen Menendian has championed the cause of many maligned cards, cards that have been banned, restricted, or have received errata. Today, he brings us the story of Shahrazad, banned but not forgotten, and presents the argument for its reintroduction into Vintage…
[Editor’s Note – As usual, Worlds has impacted our article schedule. Rest assured that all scheduled articles will appear later in the week!]
Friday, December 12th – It’s been awhile since we’ve showcased a pure theory article here on StarCityGames.com… so it’s about time we remedied that! Today’s Sullivan Library brings us a deep investigation of the very nature of information itself. How can we make the most of the resources at hand, and how does collective intelligence inform our Magic decisions?
Thursday, December 11th – In his last article, Ben outlined some mechanics he would include in 11th Edition. In the follow-up article, Ben tackles the meat of the issue – which cycles should be in 11th Edition? Which Mythics should be included to maximize sales of the set without hurting the Standard environment? Is there such as thing as too many good cards in the base set? And what mechanic, never included in the base set, is the absolute no-brainer slam-dunk to include? Find out in today’s edition of Insider Trading!
Thursday, December 11th – With the pros and cons of “results-oriented†the current hot topic in both articles and forums alike, Richard Feldman takes a closer look at such thinking in an attempt to settle the argument once and for all. With fine reasoning for both sides of the debate, he examines why results-oriented thinking can be both a help and a hindrance…
Wednesday, December 10th – With The StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open now in the books, Kyle Sanchez looks at some of the more interesting decks in the Top 16. In his usual acerbic style, he looks at the strengths and weaknesses of the successful builds with an eye on the upcoming Worlds tournament this weekend!
Wednesday, December 10th – Gerry Thompson has long been a supporter of the “grind ‘em out†style of control deck. As the dust settles on the “Cruel Ultimatum of No†battlefield, Thompson brings us an insight into the grinding strategy he finds so appealing. With Tap-Out Control strategies being the control weapon of choice in recent times, has the tide turned toward the traditional attrition plan? Gerry reveals all!
Tuesday, December 9th – For his final edition of Peebles Primers, Benjamin Peebles-Mundy brings us the development of his weapon of choice for the recent StarCityGames.com $5000 Standard Open. While he didn’t quite set the venue alight, he still believes it’s a fine choice in the current metagame. Thanks for all the great articles, BPM!
Tuesday, December 9th – In today’s excellent feature article from Paulo Vitor Damo da Rosa, he outlines a selection of interesting scenarios in order to make us better players. With Worlds around the corner, and our eyes and hopes pinned to the next big tournament, these lessons could propel us to the next level. Enjoy!
Monday, December 8th – Vintage, by its very nature, is hardly budget-friendly. Excluding possible cards is somehow against the purity of the format. However, Stephen Menendian believes it’s possible to build creative budget options that aren’t necessarily suboptimal…
Monday, December 8th – Last week, Patrick “The Innovator” Chapin took us through the beginning of his career in Magic, and shared with us many lessons he’d learned along the way. Today he continues this journey, presenting some solid thoughts on drafting and the benefits of team testing. He also brings us a spicy little Legacy deck…
