I’ve had a very interesting time the last few weeks. I went to Regionals using someone else’s decklist, and lost. I used another new decklist today, and performed better. In either case, their builds were strange to me, and while I was comfortable with the archetypes, I wasn’t comfortable with some of the choices. Allow me to share with you the lessons I learned when I used someone else’s deck.
Quentin Martin looks back at his successful season, littered with Grand Prix Top 8 appearences and capped by a Sunday showing at Pro Tour Prague, and shares the highs and lows of his wild ride. The Limited expert waxes lyrical on the RGD Draft format, and touches on the Block Constructed format for those attending Pro Tour Charleston.
Your sense of smell doesn’t get enough respect. I knew a person once who had no sense of smell, the poor guy. He couldn’t enjoy so many subtle things. The food was worse, the flora was worse. You don’t get to bond with your car mates when driving past a stinky field and everyone starts screaming “Oh… my… God.” and “Dude!” and “Why the hell aren’t you driving 100 mph, man?!”
I’ve been teaching some of the kids at the Youth Club how to play Magic. Tobias, one of the kids, likes Snakes. One game, we were drawing our first seven cards, when Tobias piped out in surprise. He revealed his fledgling hand, pointing angrily to a pair of Sosuke, Son of Seshiro. There must, he told us, have been a mistake. Two of the same legendary creature in one deck? How had that happened?
Chris took his Mono-Red deck to Regionals, and won more matches than he lost. His maindeck tech caught people off their guard. Opponents conceded without taking damage. How high did he finish? Read on to find out…
If you’re looking for Ravnica Block Limited or Constructed strategy, then scroll up to Quentin’s article or check our extensive back catalog. If, however, you’d prefer a piece that’s light on the tech but heavy on the good times, then Terry Soh’s Invitational report is the article for you!
After a one-stop gap in Japanese Top 8 appearences, Pro Tour Prague saw two men from Japan grace the Sunday tables. While Takuua Oosawa went on to take the top prize, Shuhei Nakamura made the semi finals with the self-named “worst deck ever drafted.” Even so, it was an outstanding performace from Shuhei, and today he shares his patented RGD draft theories, and dares to suggest that the bouncelands aren’t all that…
Zvi Mowshowitz dubbed the Meandeck Tendrils deck “the fastest deck in the history of Magic.” Stephen Menendian, the original creator, has found a way to make it even faster. With a SCG Power 9 tournament looming on the Vintage horizon, is it time to revisit this archetype and brush it up for tournament play? Steve presents some sample goldfishes, and the power of the build is undeniable.
Standard is very diverse right now. Just looking at the Top 8 decklists doesn’t do that diversity justice: at Northern Regionals, 195 players competed and a lot of good decks missed the Top 8. The Top 8 lists are here, but I’ll also review the entire field to show you just what Dissension has added to the mix.
Besides the occasional foray into the Limited realm, I also enjoy dabbling with the intersection of Real Life and this silly fantasy game. In that vein, this week the offer is five articles detailing the interaction between Magic and our five senses. Five senses, five articles. It’s nice when things work out.
Mike Flores describes the deck he and apprentice Julian Levin use to a combined 12-2-2 Swiss record at Southern New England Regionals. This mysterious deck – which plays essentially no Guildpact or Dissension spells – was passed over for States when they finished first and second in New York… but was reappropriated for a tournament with two more sets added. The answers to all your questions and the round-by-round blow-by-blows are contained within!
While Nick is primarily known for his forty-card prowess, it wasn’t always that way… Constructed Magic played a big part in his development. Today, he gives us the lowdown on the base-Green Dovescape deck that propelled him to second place at Pennsylvania Regionals! In-depth game-by-game analysis, sideboarding tips, and a full matchup breakdown… what more do you need?
In the third of our Regionals-based Premium articles, Richard takes us through the play-by-play with his Black/White Orzhova Maxima deck. It qualified three people for the Nationals… out of the four that played it. This proves it will be a force in the growing metagame, but was Richard one of the lucky three? Read on to find out!
Sean took an innovative Blue-White Control build to his Regionals tournament. In a metagame packed with aggro, it seemed a strong choice. Did our Magical Hack make it to the top, or was the lure of the LARP too much to bear?
So what do we have for the fans, Alex?