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Magical Hack – Hacking Regionals 2009

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Friday, May 15th – Previous analysis for the Conflux Standard format showed that Cedric Phillips’ Red/White Kithkin deck was pretty much awesome, and one of the highest-competing decks in the format by the numbers. Success rates were dramatic for the few people who chose to play the deck at Pro Tour: Kyoto. But with the change of the format to include Alara Reborn, I asked a very simple question: what happens if we cut the Red for Black, and play Zealous Persecution?

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You Lika the Juice? – Surprise… It’s Regionals Already!

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Friday, May 15th – Last week I wrote about a couple of decks, and I pretty much had settled on two for the PTQ weekend, one of which was the Black/Green “Neo-Elves” Rock deck. The other deck was a Cascade deck…

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PV’s Playhouse – Drafting Masterclass

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Thursday, May 14th – Drafting successfully is, in part, an incredible juggling act. There are many balls to keep in the air at once. Rating cards on the fly, knowing when to hate draft, choosing between a fringe playable and a solid sideboarding option – all these skills go toward creating a 3-0 deck. Today, Paulo takes us through some of the more esoteric concepts behind the forty-card format…

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Deep Analysis – On Deckbuilding

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Thursday, May 14th – Richard Feldman has created a plethora of powerful rogue creations down the years, with some of his builds propelling their pilots to the pinnacle of the game. Today, in his penultimate article, he brings us some invaluable insight into his personal deckbuilding process…

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Flow of Ideas – Preparing For Regionals 2009

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Thursday, May 14th – It’s the week of Regionals and everyone is scouring about for the latest in technology. Alara Reborn is being added into the mix, and it’s making quite an impact. What’s easy to forget is how much information is out there about the format.

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The Justice League – Mixed Bag

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Thursday, May 14th – Every judge, at the beginning of their journey, was not a judge. Also, every judge has to have started as a player at some point. I think this assertion is easy to prove – you learn so much about the game just by attempting to play it, that I can’t really see how you can effectively judge without playing the game.

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Yawgmoth’s Whimsy #275 – Waiting for the Reborn Prerelease

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Thursday, May 14th – An Online Prerelease. It is, according to the forum trolls, a disaster which no one will attend. It will destroy Constructed Magic, the singles market, and the Championship series. It is a conspiracy, an Epic marketing fail, and the cause of swine flu. It will also destroy this week’s column, because I am going to spend most of it laughing at the forum posts.

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Next Level Magic Preview – Chats with Jon Finkel and Patrick Chapin

Thursday, May 14th – The following are passages from “Next Level Magic,” Patrick Chapin’s Strategy Guide that is being released as an e-book, here on StarCityGames.com, at the end of the month. Each week this month, there will be an excerpt from the book for your enjoyment. Today: Chats with Jon Finkel and Patrick Chapin.

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Positive EV – Discussing Draft #5: Esper, Grixis, and Jund in Alara Reborn

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Wednesday, May 13th – Over the last few weeks, Olivier Ruel and Manuel Bucher have provided us with a comprehensive ranking of the cards in Shards of Alara and Conflux, with regard to all the relevant draft archetypes. Today, they move onto the cards we’ve all been waiting for… Alara Reborn!

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Down And Dirty – Standard Reborn: My Regionals Choices

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Wednesday, May 13th – Regionals approaches, and you can bet Kyle Sanchez has a few fresh and funky lists up his jumper. In preparation for this coming weekend, and by extension Grand Prix: Seattle, Kyle shares a selection of cool Standard decklists that overflow with rogue potential. If you’re looking for something off the beaten track, this is the article for you!

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Drafting With Olivier – Shards/Shards/Conflux #30

Draft with Olivier Ruel... at StarCityGames.com!
Wednesday, May 13th – Hall of Famer Olivier Ruel takes us through an 8-4 draft queue on Magic Online. He shares some comprehensive thoughts about both the picks and the games, and talks us through each step of the way! If you’re looking to improve your Limited game, this is the article series for you!

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Chatter of the Squirrel – Archetypes in Booster Draft

Read Zac Hill every week... at StarCityGames.com!
Wednesday, May 13th – I do not employ hyperbole when I say that the positioning of a Booster Draft deck is one of the least-understood, least appreciated, least talked-about skills in Magic amongst your average PTQ-level players.

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At The Gathering – Trial and Error

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Wednesday, May 13th – This past weekend, I had a chance to play in a Grand Prix Trial for Seattle. I was all set to shuffle up a new Faeries build as of Wednesday, but further testing showed all I did was weaken my manabase and still lose to Volcanic Fallout too much. So, this week, I’m going to give you a quick rundown of my games and show you some glaring mistakes.

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MTGCast #154 – M10, New Duel Decks, and

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Wednesday, May 13th – In this week’s edition of MTGCast, there’s talk of M10, rumor mills, Duel Decks, and more!

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Feature Article – More Input: 2 Days, 318 Deck Lists, 1 Answer

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Wednesday, May 13th – If there is one lesson that this past weekend’s dual PTQ in Richmond has for those of us attending the upcoming Regionals, it is that you have two choices: Beat Black/White Tokens, or Play Black/White Tokens. Today, I take a look at the statistics that resulted from the entire weekend, and come up with a comprehensive metagame plan for the coming Regionals tournaments… Enjoy!

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