Monday, August 25th – That’s right, folks… Rich is back! For those not familiar with the format, Canadian draft maestro Rich Hoaen takes us for a stroll through an 8-4 draft on Magic Online, from pick 1 to pick 45, and shares his special insights after the draft and in the forums. Welcome back, Rich… we’ve missed you!
Friday, August 22nd – The study of Economics, and how it relates to Magic, is something that’s been touched upon in countless articles down the years. Today’s Flores Friday sees Mike in inspired form, looking at the value inherent in certain strategies, and investigating the very nature of the battles we should be looking to fight, above the battles we are actually fighting.
Friday, August 22nd – Standard is constantly evolving, with a plethora of diverse decks occupying the top slots across a number of high-profile events. Faeries, Red, Swans, Elves… as always, the question is What To Play. Adrian answers some of the questions posed by the format, talks more on his Hall of Fame selection process, and presents a new take on Kithkin in Block Constructed!
Friday, August 22nd – This week I was graced by the presence of the one and only Patrick Chapin Inside we’ll talk about anything and everything, including (but not limited to) the Invitational, Kenji Tsumura, Vintage, Strategic Planning, Runed Halo and Demigod of Revenge, Prerelease changes, Gleemax (and what might’ve been), how Affinity got me back into Magic, the lack of draws on Magic Online, and more. Let’s go!
Friday, August 22nd – To break from the monotony of over-analyzing Lorwyn Block Constructed, I decided I might have a little fun doing small-set draft on Magic Online. Having opened a decent number of packs of Eventide now on MTGO, I feel confident in saying that Runed Halo is in fact from Shadowmoor, no matter how many times I say it’s from Eventide.
Thursday, August 21st – Richard Feldman continues his search for value in the unwinding Lorwyn / Shadowmoor Block Constructed format. He outlines some of the key considerations of the format and metagame as a whole, and shares his latest thoughts on the innovative Counter Elves strategy. Richard also brings us a tweaked Fulminator Elementals list… could this be the key to PTQ success?
Thursday, August 21st – Hold on to your hats, folks… Kyle’s kicking it old school. Today’s Down And Dirty is certainly not for the faint-hearted… deck lists and tech given in freestyle rap format. Kyle rocks out with Relic and Teachings lists while busting out fresh lyrics and flow, and calls in some favors from the Magic Elite to hook up some rhymes and tech: Gerard Fabiano, Ben Lundquist, and Patrick Chapin all grab the mic. [Editor’s Note: I must apologise for this intro… I’m a 34-year old middle-class Englishman, and hip-hop scares me.]
Thursday, August 21st – The Wizards forums have an interesting thread, titled “What Would it Take to Get You to Play Constructed Tournaments.” The topic is a good one, because Constructed play is hurting online. The Sealed PEs fire, as do most of the Standard and Block Constructed events. Other events – Extended, Classic, Momir Vig, etc. – don’t reach 24 players, so they do not happen. This is bad, and something has to be done.
Thursday, August 21st – Hello my friends, and welcome back to the weekly column dedicated to the realm of the casual. I am your host, back from a long list of posts on the Five Color Ruling Council group, here to let you know all of the stuff happening in Five Color right now.
Wednesday, August 20th – Tarmogoyf rose from bulk rare to $50 Standard powerhouse over the course of a few months, and stayed there for nearly a year. How did this Rare break all Standard-price records and end up the most expensive Standard-legal card in Magic’s history? Will there be another like it in the future? In the latest edition of Insider Trading, Ben examines the Tarmogoyf phenomenon from beginning to end.
Wednesday, August 20th – Magic Online Version 3 has a funky new feature – it outputs draft picks in text format. Benjamin Peebles-Mundy has taken the text file and gone one further, providing image-packed draft walkthrough information for everyone to share. Today, he brings us an episode of Drafting With BPM, and shares his thoughts on Standard and Block Constructed too!
Wednesday, August 20th – In my younger years, I was a huge fan of Olivier Ruel. He was charismatic, funny, traveled the whole world, and told great stories. He was also a very strong Magic player. Oli is one of the best candidates on the Hall of Fame ballot this year. But, in my opinion, Olivier shouldn’t be there. Because he’s a cheater.
Wednesday, August 20th – Last week I mentioned the “deck tech” from GP: Denver featuring Conley Woods’ Kelpie deck. I found it really exciting since I’d been kicking around the idea that River Kelpie hadn’t been getting the respect it deserved as a card advantage engine, not only just for Persist cards and Makeshift Mannequin, but the also the new Retrace mechanic.
Wednesday, August 20th – When was the last time you could have a gross amount of fun playing a tournament-quality deck that relies on a sorcery that costs a brazillion mana, but leaves you with more creatures and your opponent with little to no chance of recovering? Okay, which of you smart-alecks said “with Tooth and Nail in Mirrodin block?” Dave never got into Tooth and Nail, but he is enjoying Warp World – and you can too!
Tuesday, August 19th – Gerry T rocked up to Denver with a deck and a plan. After some hearty collaboration with Patrick “The Innovator†Chapin, he was ready to take on all comers with the powerful Justice Toast deck. Today, he spins the tournament tales and talks us through some intricate game situations. Congratulations, Gerry!
