Friday, March 7th – This week, Mike turns away from the vagaries of the seemingly endless Extended season. Instead of thrashing out metagame data, he turns to deeper theory. He tackles the concept of “never settling,” a fine adjunct to his popular article How To Win A PTQ. After that, he moves into practical tips on how to improve one’s mental and mechanical game, offering sage advice on a number of interesting topics…
Thursday, March 6th – In the current Extended metagame, there are a number of powerful strategies available to the discerning spellslinger. Perhaps the most powerful is Dredge, a turn 2 combo deck that has something like an 80% win percentage against the rest of the field… for game 1. Game 2 is trickier, as people bring their hate… but Kyle believes he’s fixed the problem…
Thursday, March 6th – Both Dredge and Enduring Ideal have been under fire from hate since the beginning of this PTQ season. While Dredge is still largely under fire, it seems the Ideal hate has dimmed in comparison. Today’s Deep Analysis sees Richard Feldman examining options available to the Ideal pilot. He asks whether the metagame is right for the deck… is it the ideal time for Ideal?
Wednesday, March 5th – A few weeks ago, Benjamin Peebles-Mundy powered into the Top 8 of the StarCityGames.com $5K Standard Open on the back of a Reveillark Combo deck. Today, BPM outlines his preparation before the event, including his deck selection process, deck-tweaking techniques, and advice for maintaining focus on the tournament floor…
Tuesday, March 4th – In his first Premium article, Tom LaPille examines the nature of being “under the radar†in the current Extended metagame. With so many options, and a plethora of powerful decks, how can we leverage our deck choice into those vital wins? Can we capitalize on the size of the format in order to run through the rounds without facing hate? Maybe we can… and Tom shows us how. [Editor’s Note: Adrian Sullivan will now run later in the week… so stay tuned!]
Tuesday, March 4th – Morningtide has finally emerged into the light on Magic Online, and Lorwyn/Lorwyn/Morningtide drafts begin later this week. Today, Nick takes us through six of the more popular tribal archetypes and examines the tricks and traps each deck may spring. If you’re looking to maximize your online draft potential, look no further!
Monday, March 3rd – Stephen returns to the Monday slot, and talks about an argument that’s as old as the hills… is the role of Luck in Magic greater than the role of Skill? Does Luck devalue Skill in the overall scheme of the game? Strangely, Stephen believes that, far from inhibiting the skillful, Luck makes Magic a more skillful game… and he’s got the mathematical proof to back up his claim.
Monday, March 3rd – This week, Patrick takes a break from creating decklists, defining formats, and presenting theories. Instead, he offers a history lesson, and takes us through his personal list of the greatest Magic players of all time. By looking at their qualities, and remembering their dominance, we can begin to grasp just what it takes to become a truly exceptional mage…
Monday, March 3rd – In this rare Monday outing, Mike Flores performs an exhaustive SWOT analysis on a whopping twelve of the strongest Extended decks in the current metagame. He breaks down each archetype into Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, providing invaluable insight into the inner workings of these powerful builds. For anyone serious about the current PTQ season, this article is unmissable.
Friday, February 29th – In the last Levelling Up article for the forseeable future, Portugal’s Tiago Chan walks us through his second draft from Pro Tour: Kuala Lumpur. He also tells us how he views his future, and his standing in the Pro Tour and Magical communities, before hanging up his hat and strolling into the sunset. Thanks for the articles, Tiago. Good luck in all your future endeavors!
Thursday, February 28th – While there are many aggressive options for the combat-loving mage, it seems that the whole Magic community has fallen in love with Obsidian Battle-Axe. The Japanese brought us the Green elf versions of the deck, and today Kyle brings us his own spin on the archetype. He thrashes it through some games against the other top contenders in the metagame, with pleasing results. Intrigued? Then read on!
Thursday, February 28th – The results from Grand Prix: Vancouver are in… and the Top 8 decks are a genuine shock to the metagame. Blue/Green Tron, TEPS, Previous Level Blue… and no Doran or Dredge decks?! For those of us slogging it out at the PTQ, what exactly does this Top 8 mean to the local metagame scene? Richard takes us through the ins and outs of processing Top 8 results…
Wednesday, February 27th – Each week, Benjamin Peebles-Mundy takes us through some of the more intricate and popular Standard decks, examining builds and showing us the way to success. At the StarCityGames.con $5000 Standard open, it was time to put his money where his mouth is. If you followed Evan’s video coverage this past weekend, you’ll know he did well. Click here for the story straight from BPM himself!
Wednesday, February 27th – At present, the Vintage metagame is evolving at an alarming rate. With successful deckbuilds in a state of constant flux, it pays to be flexible when planning for events. For a recent Vintage tournament, Stephen decided to shelve a deck on which he’d lavished months of attention in order to run with the New Guy in Town: Rich Shay’s innovative Tyrant Oath. This is his story…
Tuesday, February 26th – The popularity of Tournament Reports tends to ebb and flow with the tides. Today, Adrian Sullivan brings us a report on his latest Extended PTQ, in the style of the classic reports from the days of USENET. He also brings us his latest version of Miser’s Rock, a deck he backs for success in future tournaments…
