In a typically scene-setting fashion, the players who participated in the Invitational were recently allowed to give their ever-valued opinion on Standard by playing it for three rounds, conveniently giving us all a taste of what to expect at Regionals, short of whatever we get from Saviors of Kamigawa.
‘Cept they was just having fun, yo.
Dominick gives you the rundown of the odd and the confusing from Saviors of Kamigawa – perhaps one of the more oddball rules sets in recent memory.
There are numerous elements involved in proper Vintage tournament preparation. This article is going to concisely focus on just one: testing.
To preface the discussion of these Universal Truths [tm], we must first examine the actual cards which are defining Standard at present. Hell, I’m a man who enjoys lists – let’s make a list. I can’t even resist the foul temptations of gibberish such as “The Top 10 Most Disgusting Habits of Single Men” at a magazine stand. It’s not something I’m proud of. What was I talking about? Oh yeah, the cards and the rules of Regionals Standard as we know it.
Today StarCityGames.com welcomes Magic Invitationalist and mad drafter Sam Gomersall to the fold. In his first article, Sam takes a peek at what Saviors of Kamigawa White and Blue have to offer in Limited, including general advice on where you should be picking each card in those colors and a smattering of pithy English wit to boot!
Welcome to the first Vintage daily series! This week I have been given a platform to rant. I will delve into five topics that I would not normally write about because they aren’t worthy of a full-length article. To begin the week, here is a list of ten things Vintage could really use more of and things that Vintage really does not need (even though we might think we do).
My back is against the wall and I have to win my next three matches to have a shot at the Top 8. Oh well, I like a little pressure. I won eleven straight matches in San Diego to make my first Top 8 so winning just three matches should be nothing. Then I hear my name being called for a feature match vs. the best player of all time, Kai Budde. Whoopee!
So here we are boys and girls, we’ve finally reached the end of this block. We all know what that means… more annoying and completely wrong guesses at what will be good. I feel it’s my duty to try anything like this once though, so I’ll give it a shot and will surely look like an idiot in a few months. Because this is a Vintage review only though, it’d be stupid to cover every card. I’m only reviewing cards that I think may have a place in some decks, a few mockable ones and ones the pique my interest.
Errant coverage writer and dethroned former “King of Gaijin” Eli Kaplan recalls his laptopless birthday weekend on the wacky vacation isle of Shikoku.
The vacationing Romeo delivers not just one, but two possible decks for players on a budget. The Genju Control deck is simply an improved version of a deck he’s worked on before, but what is this “Fork You” deck he speaks of?
To wrap up his week of un-Reweaveable content, Mark would like to address some suggestions that appeared in the forums this week, most of them focusing on Saviors cards.
This is it, folks, the massive conclusion to Zvi’s Saviors of Kamigawa set review. Which Green cards and artifacts are worth playing? What card gets the award for best design? Which cards make Zvi’s Top 10 list for the entire set? The answers to these questions and more are just a click away.
Gadiel wraps up the tale of his Pro Tour victory with the inside scoop on the events of Day 2 right through the finals, including some stark refutations of what the commentators thought he should be doing versus what the right play actually was. This article is worthwhile for the Flores and Buehler beatings alone!
As a quick review of this series’ previous articles, let’s list all of the cards worthy of consideration in the final build of a Mono-Green deck. Beside each of these cards’ names will be notations, each of which will have playability rankings. If a particular build of Mono-Green isn’t mentioned, it’s because the card in question is unsuitable there; for example, although Rhox might have a place in Big Green, it’s definitely not going into Green Weenie. For the purposes of this article, I’ll assume that Elf-based Green Weenie and Medium or Big Green with equipment are bad ideas. This latter point is highly controversial, and you’re free to play whatever form of Mono-Green you like, but it’s key to my understanding of the deck.
Given the results of French Regionals and the Last-Chance Philadelphia qualifiers, it’s probably safe to say mostly-Green (it’s not mono-Green, so stop calling it that) is, if not Tier 1, knocking at the door. I’ve been testing the hell out of Green Party, the deck from my last article, and I’ve made the some discoveries and learned some lessons about the strengths and weaknesses of the deck.
