Yesterday, I told tale of my Second Grand Prix. I placed fourth, winning the allotted prize for my finish plus the cash bonanza that accompanies the title of Highest Placed Amateur. My Constructed ranking gained almost 300 points overnight and I was able to treat my friends in Team Leeds to a slap-up Chinese meal. But most importantly… I was qualified for the Pro Tour!
It’s rare that a submissionist comes along who writes well enough to make us promote them after only a couple of articles, but that’s exactly what happened last week with Kelly Digges. Check out the funniest new writer on the site as he tackles the truth and the lies behind Coldsnap.
From July through October, Stax did pretty well in Vintage. Not only was it the most predominant deck in Top 8s, it was by far the most successful. Although Stax was only a fifth of Top 8s, it comprised 40% of all tournament winning decks. Therefore, I decided it was time to dissect this archetype and see just what makes them tick.
When I left off two articles ago, I had thrown together an Extended deck predicated on disruption. Despite the fact it had little or no testing, I wanted to create a starting point. Sure enough, it was – but it’s far from an end point. Today I’ll take what we started with, test it, tweak it, and see if we can end up with something good and quite rogue.
My first Grand Prix, GP: London 2001, was fun. At least, I think it was. I can’t remember a single thing about it. According to the DCI, I went 2-4, or something. Nothing special happened, or I’m sure I’d remember. My second Grand Prix, however, saw fireworks.
Mike went 5-0-2 in the swiss of his most recent PTQ with… well, isn’t it obvious? A full PTQ report with matchups plus a Flores-approved decklist for what is suddenly the hottest deck on the planet. Confused? Click the friggin’ link.
Yesterday, I spoke of my first Magic match. While it wasn’t at a tournament, and thus it never counted as a true competitive contest, it was my first series of games against a tournament-savvy opponent.
I was determined to break the streak. I hadn’t made money in a Magic tournament since Grand Prix: Chicago aside from appearance fees (I even had to look it up because I couldn’t remember the last time I made money). Worlds was a chance to make a difference, because if I didn’t, I was done.
The creator of Extended’s hottest new deck takes but a moment to bask in the glory of his elevation from scrub to cool kid on the block before going right back to telling you exactly what is on his mind.
Yesterday, I told you of my first forays into the Realms of Magic. Simple games played with my friend Sene, cards dealt on the living-room rug in front of a two-bar electric fire. Drinking Dr Pepper, laughing, and swinging with Vizzerdrix. That was how I learnt to play Magic.
Today, I’ll tell you how I learnt to play Magic.
It’s Extended season. The metagame is vast and varied, and PTQ attendance seems to be way up. I played in Madison, along with 195 others, and I’ll break down what worked, what didn’t, and what to expect at the PTQs. With 15 decklists, including a Top 8 Reanimator list!
Phil Stanton has recently retired from the supercomputer business. Since no one else has stepped up, and since I inspired his template, I have decided to take over where he left off. Thus I give you the full Vintage Metagame Breakdown, complete with musings on the format and whether certain cards have crossed the threshold from broken to bannable.
If you read last week’s column — and if you didn’t, I hope Mr. Hankey the Christmas Poo leaves you a loaded dirty diaper for Chrismahannakwanika — you know that I was trying to develop a cheap “creatureless” Mono-Black Control deck. After a week of reader suggestions and a bunch more testing, I think we may actually have something.
So I didn’t have a great Worlds, but what I did have was an awesome Standard deck that might just be one of the best decks in the format. Dark Confidant in a Blue Control deck? Oh yes, we’re just that crazy.
For my Daily Series, I faced a dilemma. I’m not as clever as some authors, nor as funny as others. I’ve no uber-tech to share, or wacky decklists. While I’ve been to the Big Show, I’ve never eaten at that bloody sword restaurant or mised onto the Price is Right.
So what can I bring to the table?
