“Dude, that B/R Control deck looks like crap.”
“Of course it looks like crap. It is crap. When have I built a good deck?”
“Never, dude.”
“This is no exception. But it was fun, let me tell you.”
“So did it win any matches at all?”
“Surprisingly…”
Hulk Smash was the big story of the Vintage Championships last GenCon, but a lot of people forget about the finalist’s deck: Vengeur Masque. Masque has since established itself as Type I’s premier aggro deck. The philosophies behind The Funker and Stacker 2 merged somewhat into Benjamin Rott’s Tools ‘n’ Tubbies, which was in turn supplanted by Vengeur. The two are very similar in spirit, with Survival of the Fittest providing the card advantage for both, but with Illusionary Mask playing the key tempo booster for Vengeur.
I won’t soon forget those guys. From beginning to end, the trip to Pro Tour: Boston was a life-changing experience for me, probably the least worldly of young men. Not only did I learn a lot about myself, but I got to see new places, meet new people – it was the epitome of a great trip. I can only hope that someday I get a chance to head back Pittsburgh way, where the hills are steep and the network cables always abuzz.
I figured that since my first two cards in the draft happened to be a combo, I should try drafting a combo deck in the last rounds. Most people might stick to the plan and play it safe with a top 8 on the line. Me? I do things my way. I can draft the best deck ever and I will 1-2. If I draft a pile of bad cards that I can have fun playing with, I will defeat the world.
We’ve just made another update, but the results and reports are STILL pouring in! As always, StarCityGames.com is the one place you can find it ALL!
Nick wanted to follow one of his own drafts, but he couldn’t keep up in real life… So he decided to follow Mike Turian, who’s the man the pros turn to when trying to figure out how to break Limited formats. Walk with Mike Turian, as Nick goes over the picks in detail and talks about what cards are strong in Mirrodin draft!
Play in Champs. Send us your report. So long as it gets past our esteemed editor, it’ll get posted right here on StarCityGames.com and be automatically entered into into our weekly submissions contest. But that’s where routine ends, and the REAL fun begins… [SUBMIT CHAMPS REPORT!]
Every year, StarCityGames.com compiles the most extensive collection of top eight Champs decklists in the world! If you have access to the top eight decklists from your Championship, or know of a website that has posted them, please let us know… [SUBMIT CHAMPS TOP EIGHT DECKLISTS!]
I think the common perception going into this month is that Welder Mud, Keeper, and Dragon are the only viable decks. The picture as I now see it is far more complex. It may be presumptuous to say it this early, but I don’t think any more testing is going to get me much further, or lead me to a radically different answer: We have one of the most balanced, complex, and interesting metagames I have ever seen in Type One. With that said, let me show you two updated builds of Keeper and a new, Chalice-proofed Sligh!
Peter discusses three”cute” decks that he idly considered bringing to States but had to discard in the course of testing – decks like the Pentavus/Mana Echoes infinite mana combo, the Zur’s Weirding lock deck (with, of course, Words of Wisdom), and U/R Land Destruction with Mindslaver!
Jason knew he didn’t want to play Affinity for the same reasons I didn’t: Too many weaknesses. He also didn’t like Goblins because of the fact that it was something everyone would be ready for…. So we needed another option. I liked Slide and thought that it would be solid without Wild Mongrels and Circular Logics giving it hell, so I agreed. He came up with a list and I assembled it. We played a few games, but basically didn’t have time to test it at all. I had to rely on what I knew about Slide from the past to guide me.
It’s now becoming an annual event; Rizzo shows up at States with a sucka duck deck with Terror in it, reads cards to find out what the heck it is they do, loses horribly. But how could he possibly make that interesting, you ask? By whoring out his side job and writing a screenplay of how it went, complete with flashbacks, flash forwards, and a living talking Bruce who may or may not look uncannily like Brad Pitt in Fight Club.
I’m not here to present what you should have played at States, or what could have won you the State Championships. I’m here to tell you my story. I’m one of the players who thinks that States is nothing more then a social event; a tournament that is best held in the presence of good friends. Much more relaxed than a Pro Tour Qualifier, but much more difficult than, oh, your local Friday Night Magic. And yet still I managed to come in fifth out of a hundred and sixty-six people.
Alas, Ted didn’t manage to make the Top 8 this year – but he did prepare for his upcoming coverage of New Orleans this weekend by covering the Quarterfinals, the Semifinals, and the Finals of the West Virginia State Championships! Witness the U/B Mesmeric Orb vs. Goblin Bidding matchup, see Shane”Second Place At The Vintage Championships” Stoots attempt to take the Championship, and witness”The Jankiest Deck Ever To Make A Top 8″ versus U/B Zombies!
…And to further cement the coverage, Ted interviews the Top 8 to see how they developed their decks and what they thought their chances were!
Why isn’t there a dedicated group of Magic Online testers that are given the time to really test out the system? Each Magic expansion has a core set of testers that plays and practices with the product extensively to make sure none of the cards are too powerful or too weak such that it will ruin the enjoyment of the game. In fact, this is the hallmark of Magic that Wizards is proud to trumpet. So in light of the sad and unprofessional cancellation of Chuck’s Virtual Party this weekend, where is the core group of testers for the Online game to make sure that our enjoyment isn’t ruined?
