Can it be true? Has Jamie finally succumbed? Has he joined the Dark Side, and picked up an Island or two? Is he coming round to the Way of the Control Mage, ready to leave mana open and counter spells left, right, and center? There’s only one way to find out… Read on!
Today’s Deep Analysis brings us Richard’s take on an interesting “tournament report” from an Extended PTQ Top 8, in which the writer involved made a series of terrible plays yet still managed to make the final table. Mr Feldman dissects the report from top to toe, and highlights each mistake in order to stop us falling into similar traps. Another excellent article from one of the top writers in the game today.
When I left you last week, I was doing quite badly with a Black and White deck inspired by and built around Necrotic Sliver. Part of the reason was that I had run in directly into a gauntlet of tournament-winning decks. The other part was that the deck sucked. I was in a bit of a pickle. I have called Necrotic Sliver one of the two best non-rare creatures in Planar Chaos. Of course, I had to build a deck to prove that point, or no one would believe it.
I’m continuing with the Ultimate Extended Tournament. The concept is simple — take two dozen of the best Extended decks from seasons past, add some of the best decks from this season, and let them all battle it out. Round one is now over. We have upsets! The number one seed — JarGrim — is out!
Across the board sat a Merfolk Thaumaturgist, a Dream Stalker, and a recently played morph with UB open. My opponent had three cards in hand. It’s the start of the combat step, I’m at 10 from the Stalker / Thaumaturgist combo, and he’s at 17 from my Shaman attack last turn.
This article is all about the question: What’s the play for me?
This week, my brain arguably melted down. I’m about to tell you that what I built was almost certainly the wrong thing, and by a large margin, and I turned away from a reasonably easy, fattie-based build into something needlessly tricky. But what happened?
Before setting out for Grand Prix: Boston, Nick played an IPA Qualifying event on Magic Online. He walks us through his Sealed cardpool and deckbuilding choices, and brings us a game-by-game rundown of his journey toward the Top 8. Did he qualify for the chance to rip a foil Pernicious Deed? Read on to find out!
The Turn 1 Kill… it’s an achievement as celebrated as it is derided. No deck in Vintage, despite many attempts, has ever been truly successful at executing a consistent turn 1 kill. However, Stephen believes that the surprising Goblin Charbelcher deck may have finally achieved the unthinkable. If you’re looking for a fun and competitive alternative to the usual Vintage powerhouses, then this could be the deck for you!
Bennie Smith, a.k.a. King Dredge, reveals the very moments he fell in love with the graveyard-abusing mechanic, and shares some of the original decks that inspired his allegiance with the Green/Black guild. He also takes a peek at the current Standard metagame, and has a few words of warning for those misguided folk planning on selling their card collections…
When it comes to video games, I am a big fan of the “lost game” genre. For example, Mario the Lost Levels, and all of the previously unreleased Final Fantasy games are among my favorites. When it comes to Magic cards? Let’s just say that Coldsnap was not my choice set. Today, and next week, we will explore a different direction with lost Magic cards: the lost puzzle. Enjoy!
Eli greets us from a blustery Japan, and brings us an interesting Time Spiral Sealed cardpool for us to dissect and discuss. White, Blue, Black, Red, Green… a rainbow of options for us to investigate. Grab a pen and paper, or fire up Magic Online, and play along at home!
Last week’s Flores Friday has mutated into a special michaelj Monday… and it’s a corker! Mike discusses that most elusive of skills: cohesive strategy. By fixing a blueprint of plays, one path to success involves cutting off the important end game of your opponent. Just how do we go about this? Plus, Mike brings us a Standard deck to throw against the field: White Wafo-Tapa, updated.
With Mike Flores taking a mini-break until Monday, we’ve got the next best thing (if you believe the results from our 2006 Awards article)… Patrick “The Innovator” Chapin! Today, his mercurial eye turns to the Time Spiral Block Constructed format, and he presents four decks for our consumption. Some are new twists on old favorites, while some are new offerings. Enjoy!
Craig “The Professor” Jones brings an interesting technical and ethical question to the table this week: is imprecise play part and parcel of the tournament experience, or is it something to be vilified and removed from our glorious game? Where do we draw the line between bluffing and misrepresentation? With some fantastic in-game examples, Craig attempts to separate the White Hats from the Black Hats…
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 TTP Draft on Magic Online. From pick 1 to pick 45, Rich shares them all, and his final deck and draft performance are analysed in the article, the forums, and beyond. Come join in the fun!
