Monday, May 12th – This past weekend saw the Vintage community power to The StarCityGames Power 9 tournament… and current Vintage World Champion was there! Today’s So Many Insane Plays sees Stephen go over his choice for the first tournament, and he also breaks down his Top 10 of best unrestricted spells in the format. Do you agree with his assertions?
Monday, May 12th – It appears that Patrick “The Innovator†Chapin has finally gone mad. Today’s Innovations is a definite break from the norm. Of course, Patrick wouldn’t be Patrick without some fresh spin on the Constructed metagame, and today’s spin is eerily similar to a StarCityGames $5000 Standard open Top 8 decklist…
Friday, May 9th – Block Constructed is coming, and now Shadowmoor is in the mix all bets are currently off. Yeah, we know that U/B Faeries is probably the deck to beat… but what other sweetmeats are on offer at the Lorwyn Block Constructed table? Adrian brings us three different takes on the Elemental tribe, including a funky deck that abuses the five-color Horde of Notions…
Friday, May 9th – Today’s Flores Friday sees Mike hop into his Wayback Machine to revisit some of the classic strategic modeling from some of the top players and thinkers in the game. He casts his modernist eye over the various Schools of Magic, and updates them with a nod toward their importance in the current metagames. What can the strategies of the past teach us about the formats of the future?
Thursday, May 8th – It appears that the great and good of Star City Games are currently going crazy over Combo decks in Shadowmoor Standard. We’ve had Patrick Chapin’s take on the Seismic Swans deck… today, we have Kyle Sanchez walking us through a plethora of intriguing Enchanted Evening options. He takes the combo pieces and throws them in with literally every card under the sun. Will one of these builds prove strong enough to storm the Star City Games Mega-Magic Weekend? Read on to find out!
Thursday, May 8th – In the never-ending quest for fresh Standard decks, Richard Feldman takes a leaf out of the Chapin Playbook today and tries some “innovative†builds of Red Deck Wins. He also revisits an old favorite, pumping in a fresh angle and some new cards… with surprising and exciting results.
Wednesday, May 7th – The Star City Games Mega-Magic Weekend is nearly here, and Benjamin Peebles-Mundy is looking for another Top 8 performance. Today’s Peebles Primers sees BPM sharing his test group’s Standard brainstormed decks, including their latest take on the intriguing Green/White Big Mana archetype. Will these decks manage a breakout performance before the Pro Tour?
Wednesday, May 7th – In his first article for StarCityGames.com, Constructed master and Grand Prix Top 8 stalwart Gerry Thompson, fresh from his cameo appearances in Patrick Chapin articles, brings us the lowdown on the Standard format going into Pro Tour: Hollywood. These ten invaluable tips are in perfect time for the Star City Games Mega-Magic Weekend! If you’re looking for an edge on the competition, look no further…
Tuesday, May 6th – When we roll up to a large Constructed tournament, we like to think we’re prepared. We’ve quietly and thoroughly honed our deck and sideboard with a myriad of tweaks and a plethora of gauntlet test games… right? If things haven’t gone to plan, we could be scrambling for cards in the hour before the tournament. So how do we maximize our chance of success when we’re working on no preparation whatsoever? Let Tom show us how!
Tuesday, May 6th – Last week, Nick Eisel brought us his thoughts on the strongest color pairing in triple-Shadowmoor Limited – Blue/White Aggro. This week, it’s the turn of the flip-side of that particularly powerful coin – Black/Red. Is drafting the under-drafted a viable Shadowmoor strategy?
Monday, May 5th – While the current Vintage metagame is perhaps the most vibrant we’ve ever seen, it’s safe to say that there are a number of core strategies that pepper the format. However, while these strategies appear simple at face value, some are more tricksy than others. Did you know that Tyrant Oath isn’t actually an Oath deck? Or that Quirion Dryad is a Storm card? Let Stephen explain all…
Monday, May 5th – Pro Tour: Hollywood is approaching, and people looking for a little meat in the current Standard environment. While most folk currently dine on Aggro faire, swinging for two again and again, there is more to the metagame than attacking. Today, Patrick Chapin explores two combo decks. Will these builds make a splash in Hollywood?
Friday, May 2nd – Playtesting. Everyone does it. Thing is, the actual nuts and bolts behind the process is shrouded in mystery. We throw the decks against a gauntlet, hoping to gain knowledge through games and matches… but what do our results actually mean? And can our data be trusted? Adrian reveals all…
Friday, May 2nd – The power of a deck’s sideboard is something that is often difficult to quantify. Sure, we may fill our fifteen with cards that should impact the match in Games 2 and 3, but sometimes our meddling does little but dilute our core strategy. Today’s Flores Friday draws on the current Basketball Playoffs to investigate just how we can work to our strengths…
Thursday, May 1st – With Pro Tour: Hollywood looming large on the tournament calendar, Kyle Sanchez kicks off his preparations with a look at a cavalcade of exciting Shadowmoor-powered Standard options. There’s the ubiquitous Red/Green, Mono-Black Control, the much-discussed Enchanted Evening Combo deck, and an update on his popular Wizards deck!
