Hello everybody, and welcome to another edition of the Magic Show. This week’s show is a very special occasion—we’re dedicating the entire running time to Wizards of the Coast’s own Aaron Forsythe. Yes, the man, the myth, the legend himself, Aaron is King Crap of Turd Mountain in the Magic world, and it’s time he got his due.
It is impossible to play a control deck in Legacy without a concrete understanding of the metagame, and the role in which each deck fits within it. There is simply too much range of strategy to cover all bases at once, without knowing specifically what aspects of strategy you must contain in any given matchup. A player new to Legacy is unlikely to pick up a deck like Landstill and pilot it with success, because control in Legacy is extremely complex.
What to know what’ll be hot (and what not?) in Tenth Edition? Need to know which cards to give and get at Magic Game Day this Saturday? If you care about the value of your cards, or don’t want to be ripped off on trades, this is a must-read article!
Richard Feldman continues his comprehensive guide to U/B Teachings in Block Constructed with a thorough examination of his current decklist. He walks us through the thought processes behind his most recent changes, and shares his sideboard tactics and matchup strategies. This is a wonderful article that breaks down the mystery behind the proclaimed strongest deck in the format… can you afford to miss it?
You all know the drill by now… Rich Hoaen, Canada’s finest and grumpiest draft export, takes us by the hand and drags us through the rollercoaster ride of an 8-4 TPF Draft on Magic Online. From pick 1 to pick 45, Rich shares them all, and his final deck and draft performance are analyzed in the article, the forums, and beyond. Come join in the fun!
We’re at the bi-annual time when I look back at the cards that were in the Core (nee Base) set to which hardly anyone paid any attention, and with which you won’t be able to play in Standard once the new Core/Base set becomes Standard legal. In other words, the cards we missed in Ninth Edition that aren’t coming back in Tenth Edition (a.k.a. X).
Lots of people think Green/White is a poor beatdown deck, because it has no one-drops and runs only-slightly-relevant cards like Edge of Autumn. Lots of people point out that a beatdown deck will often win a big event, but a control deck proves to be the best choice for the PTQ field. Lots of people think they beat Green/White. Lots of people are wrong.
I expect to move shortly. If I get the word that I am moving, then I won’t have long to actually pack and move. As such, I am preparing now for the move. The grad school I applied to last week is overseas. I can’t take that many things with me if I go. I want to take Magic, sure, but the move itself demands that I cut off a lot of my possessions and that means winnowing my Magic collection to the bare essentials. How does one go about doing that?
Stephen takes a break from brain-melting play-by-play action in order to bring us an overview of the runners and riders in today’s Vintage metagame. He brings us five of the strongest players in the format, and talks us through their strengths and weaknesses in order to fully prepare anyone coming fresh to the Vintage tournament scene. This is an excellent primer article on the current state of Vintage, and a fine refresher for those coming in with more experienced eyes…
For today’s Peebles Primer, Ben takes us back to Grand Prix: Montreal, and talks us through the important matchups that will make up your typical PTQ experience. He then pilots the deck in a PTQ of his own, and gives us a report on the games played and the final result. If you’re looking for a fringe strategy with strength and versatility, maybe this is the deck for you…
You all know the drill by now… Rich Hoaen, Canada’s finest and grumpiest draft export, takes us by the hand and drags us through the rollercoaster ride of an 8-4 TPF Draft on Magic Online. From pick 1 to pick 45, Rich shares them all, and his final deck and draft performance are analyzed in the article, the forums, and beyond. Come join in the fun!
I’ve been really theory-intensive for the last several weeks, so I’m going to shift gears today and simply talk about decks. We’ve got two rogue lists to look at – both of which were designed by other people—and a concept I’ve been toying with that I bet some of y’all could make work if you put the time and effort into it.
By the time this goes up, I’m sure my fellow columnists (and likely those on) other sites will have weighed in on the significance of the Tenth (X) Edition rotation. Typically, these columns will talk about specific cards leaving the base set, specific cards being added, and how that will impact various metagames. As someone who spends far too much time musing on Magic, I’ve got my own opinions on this too, but I thought I’d approach it a little differently…
As you read this, Magic Game Day will be just three days away. Magic Game Day is the equivalent of a prerelease for Tenth Edition, and a lot of stores will have special events. It’s more widespread than official prereleases — almost any store that runs FNM may well have Magic Game Day events. These stores will have special foils, etc — but the main reason to attend is because the cards look good.
After falling at the final Day 1 hurdle in Grand Prix: Montreal, Craig “The Professor” Jones headed for the sunny shores of San Diego, ready to thrash the Two-Headed Giant format into oblivion. As we know, he failed in a spectacular fashion… but that didn’t stop him having a grand old time. Prof shares some snapshots from the city, and brings us an intriguing snippet of Game Theory that could explain why the success of the Sliver Kids was not as random as it might appear…
