The best cars are made with the best components. The same goes for Magic decks.
It’s real simple in the world of Magic. The cards which accomplish the most, at the cheapest cost, at the most efficiency (in terms of cost and return on investment), and just plain outshine all others in their type (i.e. the best creature in this color, the best enchantment in that color) are those which define the format.
With Nationals just around the corner, it’s time to focus on the Standard scene and hone our weapon of choice. Today we have the thoughts of one of England’s premier Constructed minds, Pro Tour regular Stuart Wright. His personal choice for the strongest deck in the format? U/R Vore. Stu presents his own take on the deck, shares his sideboarding strategy, and runs through a few sample games. Looking for the perfect mana-denial strategy? Then read on…
Rich returns for another walk through the Draft streets of Ravnica. As usual, he presents each pick of his draft, from pick one to pick forty-five, and appends a brief overview on his final deck and performance. For a more detailed draft deconstruction, come join the forums!
For his Independence Day article, Chris cooks up a Red, White, and Blue special! If you’re looking for a patriotic deck to cut a swathe through your local tournament scene, then this is the deck for you. Even so… Izzet Chronarch? In Standard? Surely some mistake! Ah well, if the deck don’t thrill ya, the cheesecake will…
When you think of a deck “engine,” what comes to mind? Is it the fueling of resources, a la Affinity? Is it the fueling via tutors, a la Tooth and Nail? Is it the synergy of types, such as Kamigawa Block Legends decks?
All of these decks work with one another in different ways. Whenever you think of two cards providing each other an advantage (fueling a win condition with an Urzatron piece, making another spell cheaper as a result of it being play), then that is a part of the deck’s engine to win.
In the days of yore, back when I was the managing editor of This Here Site Here, I used to hold an amnesty day, wherein all articles sent to me to be published on my birthday were published without any editing at all. This is now a proud tradition of StarCityGames.com, and it helps to make you all understand just how much work we do here to make the articles appear, you know, readable. But alas, what can I do to give myself a birthday prezzie in an article?
In our neverending quest to bring you the best writers and theorists, today sees Daniel O’Mahoney-Schwartz join our ever-growing ranks of Featured Writers. In his first article, Dan shares his thoughts on some of the undersung heroes of Ravnica Block Limited. Do some of those fifteenth-pick “powerhouses” require a second look?
We have a second StarCityGames Featured Writer making his debut today – Paul Jordan, one-third of the Flores/Sadin/Jordan team for Pro Tour Charleston, Two-Headed Giant. In his first article, Paul takes us through his drafting process, providing a full RGD Draft walkthrough from first to last pick. He shares his opinions behind each chocie, and runs through the games he played with the resulting deck.
Rich continues his excellent series of RGD Draft walkthroughs, presenting each pick as it happened and highlighting each card chosen. He shares his final decklist, and gives us a brief overview of his results and processes. As usual, for more detailed draft deconstruction, come visit us in the forums!
Ingrid, my wife, was out of town for a few days. I had Thursday off, and nothing but some chores over the weekend. I had a couple dozen tix, a virtual pile of unopened packs, and some ideas for new decks I wanted to try out. I was ready to play Magic — what could possibly go wrong?
Engines in Magic are relative to the cards around them. They are, at their best, pure synergy. The cards in an “Engine,” whether that is a combo, aggro, or control deck, work best when they’re all in play. When you draw all of them, you almost always win. Your “engine” is running. Your “game” has begun.
While Grand Prix Torino is naught but a distant memory for most, it still lingers in the darkest depths of Craig Jones’s fractured psyche. Luckily for us, the format is still very relevant – the qualifiers for Pro Tour Kobe are all RGD Sealed Deck – and so the Professor’s take on the Limited format is welcome. Add to this the fact that Craig’s report is packed with the usual good times and excellent writing, and we have a sure-fire winner!
Another day, another draft from the Canadian Limited master! As usual, Rich presents his full 45 picks, and shares the decklist and some brief analysis on both build and performance. For more detailed description on the thoughts behind each choice, be sure to join us in the forums!
In today’s edition of Magical Hack, Sean looks back at the results from Grand Prix Tolouse. As we know, the Japanese ran rampant through the field… but does their deck construction technique follow the pattern of four-color “greedy” madness that others espouse as the Great Way Forward?
It was, charitably, a disaster. Though my venture at the Two-Headed Giant Limited State Championship ended in the Top 4, the Individual Limited Championship last Saturday saw my Two-Headed teammate David and I collectively going 2-7-1 over the course of the main event and two side drafts, with our friend Chris contributing an additional 2-3. I myself managed to play two rounds in the main event and another in a side draft without winning a single game.
