A while ago, I wrote one of my first articles on the topic of preconstructed decks. In that article, I stated that recent precons had really disappointed me, because they largely displayed bland deckbuilding skills. Sometimes they featured a keyword or mechanic that was relatively boring, and sometimes they did the same thing over and over again. Then Planar Chaos was printed and I found a good precon! Then I found another! And finally a third!
Having pummeled the format into submission with Tenacious Tron (and Richard Feldman), Zac takes a look back over the recently-departed Extended season, and asks just what it was that made the format so damned fun. He breaks down the essential components required to make a Constructive format zing, and explains to the masses just why he hates Block Constructed.
Today’s Online Outlook isn’t really about Magic Online at all… it’s about What Really Grinds My Gears. Don’t worry, I’ve not gone all Romeo on you. But I do have a few things that need saying. Of course, I couldn’t write a MTGO article without a little online content, so there’s a Premier Event tournament report for your amusement and ridicule.
We’re going to explore something of a new format this week – one that was new for me, even. It’s not entirely new, but it’s more of a mish-mash of a few other variant formats all tied into one big stew of oddball play. Plus, it ties in with some of the out-loud musing I did at the end of last week’s article (how fortuitous!), so I figured hey, why not? Let’s prep this patient for an exam, shall we?
One of the most common questions I get from people who haven’t played Time Spiral Block yet is if there are any viable swarm or weenie aggro decks that are viable. Most of them have heard people like me go on about how slow the format is, and that White Weenie was doing well before Planar Chaos came onto MTGO… Today, I take a closer look at White Weenie.
I’m continuing with the Ultimate Extended Tournament. Round 1 is in progress. Some matches are done. What won? Force of Will — almost every time. What lost? Beatdown. Can modern decks compete? Maybe. One made it through round 1. A few matches have not yet finished, but we have judges watching them for slow play.
Mark, fresh of a demoralizing Two-Headed Giant PTQ loss, turns to Constructed formats for sweet succor. He takes a look at a couple of interesting decks, one for Time Spiral Block and one for Standard, and brings us a breakdown of the upcoming tournaments that will impact the Constructed scenes.
When I first scoped out the Planar Chaos preconstructed decks, I was much more excited about what I saw than I was about the Time Spiral decks. The decks just looked more solid. I don’t know if that’s a function of the designers having more cards to work with (although the current set is supposed to be the majority of the cards in any precon) or just designing more attractive decks.
Is Mono-Black Control a viable idea with the printing of Damnation and Extirpate? One’s initial response would be “well, duh,” but Dave decided to put it to the test, starting with Jeroen Remie’s original decklist and going from there… Did his experiments succeed? Read on to find out!
This week you have twenty-five tricky trivia questions to answer. How much obscure Magic knowledge do you possess? This is the final week in the second competition, and four people are still in contention. Today’s challenge will determine who will become the next puzzle master.
In the past, Bennie had a beta beef with the availability of City Champs… but that doesn’t stop him hunting down new tech! This week’s You Lika The Juice brings us an interview with a runaway points leader Tom Leveille, and the Standard decklist that his behind his success…
This week’s pool is insane, with multiple dragons and crazy happy legends. But can you work the mana to get it right? And can you have enough mana? All that, plus a rant on Hollywood, and more!
In today’s edition of the Real Deal, Ben spins some yarns about his current vacation in New Orleans, and tells tales about some of the more interesting collections he’s bought for StarCityGames.com over the years. Ever been mailed a used toilet instead of a Mox? Ben has…
Hello everybody, welcome to another edition of the Magic Show. This week we’re going to highlight a comment from the forums and talk about just what goes in to making the show.
Sean shells out fifty dollars on a string of zeroes and ones, and pilots his mid-range block aggro deck through a field of eight-man Magic Online Constructed queues. With Time Spiral Block Constructed looking to be a varied and interesting format, it’s now the perfect time to get a leg up on the opposition!
