Category Archives: Magic the Gathering

Magical Monday 6.9.14

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Yesterday i thought i had come upon the holy nut, i was using gatherer for standard legal cards in the colors of white and black. Like normal i had the sort on converted mana cost and was just going down the list and i hit Swords to Plowshares.

Mic drop. Nut busted. Any overly good thing you can think of as an expletive. Jump on Facebook and asked the question is it just me or is Gatherer just fucked up? Then i did a little looking and yes Gatherer is just fucked up.

Are the cards in Conspiracy legal in other formats? Some of the cards seem like they won’t or can’t work outside the confines of a draft environment.

The vast majority of the cards in Conspiracy can be played in Vintage, Legacy, Commander, (and on kitchen tables), but Conspiracy’s big twist is that each booster contains one card that cares about the fact that you’re drafting (in place of the normal basic land). The ones with the card type conspiracy need to be drafted to work and thus aren’t legal in other formats. But they’re fun additions to cubes!

Guess things like Brainstorm, Fact or Fiction, Sakura-Tribe Elder and Squirrel Nest are just too much fun to allow in Standard.

Oh well.

I haven’t gotten the chance to draft Conspiracy yet. Looks fun but i just haven’t hit it up yet. But i did get to draft trip Journey to Nyx again last night with the fam and a few friends. We just pool into a big multi-player pile and tear it up. But i have learned that i am the biggest dog at my kitchen table. I just sit some times building up other times just waiting with nothing but mana out and somehow around turn 7 the boys start saying kill Samius and then one attack two attacks and i am picking up my permanents. Almost 100% of the time after that the next most experienced player, Dan goes down and then we do a kind of judge/commentary as to how the rest of the game will play out. We all most always call it right.

It is almost as much fun as the draft part.

I think it might be time to look at some of the other formats for multi-player games that we could do. Maybe build some kind of Reject Rare Draft Cube??? Or I could start building my Cube, the boy is grounded for not doing his chores this last week i could set him on task of cube building out of my pile….

I still would like to see Wizards to print a starting cube. Gold border and maybe a unique back just to insure no tournament play. Sell it for 60-80$ have updates or new “special theme” cubes once a year and print even more money.

Anyway hope to have a few new deck lists next week.

<3s

Magical Monday 6.2.14

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My magic life is real good right now. The whole fam is up for drafting almost at a whim. And they are getting fairly good. My son still tends to draft around life gain but he is at least winning a good amount of time. He and the wife are planing on doing a two headed draft at Gencon this year and he already has enough tixs for like 3 drafts for times when the wife and i are doing things he is just not into, like role playing for couples. Man i wish that was an event. Maybe i need to plan it out and host it myself in a few years.

Anyway as i said my magic life is doing well we even got some friends to come over the other day for a triple Journey draft with all my packs from FNM wins (and the box we bought) and i started to notice a personal trend both at the store and at home unless there is a money rare i wont pass…

The thing is i will always go for the junk constellation build almost every time it is available. Last weeks FNM, i tried to diverge and draft blue/black agro and it was just not good enough. Ended up 1-2-drop. In my defense the wife was also “done” and i was also fairly close the end of my rope as my head had turned up to six on the old pain dial and i was not in the mood for random bullshit like calling over a judge when i attacked into a tapped-Pinned to the Earth-Swarmborn Giant and a Nyx Infusioned-Monsterous-Ravenous Leucrocota with my sryfish and a bloodcrazed hoplite that became my own 6/6 and 7/7 post blocks thanks to a Polymorphous Rush. My opponent who just won a few simi-large events tried to argue that my guys would be 0/6s. I almost strangled him. It was just a thing were he was trying to squirm out of a loss. But i was pleased when the judge came over and smashed him down. Didn’t help that before we even started this player refused to move to me because he had “to much stuff” even though i was sitting next to my wife and she was already started the match. Asshole.

Sorry for the derail, my point is that in constellation is just so much value that i can’t seem to get away. I need all the value!

Pretend that this is a pic of LSV

and it says “I don’t always draft” “But when i do it is for Value”

I watch all kinds of draft videos/coverage and i just yell at the screen what the pick clearly is and somehow most of these people find ways to win in other archetypes. I don’t know how they do it. I could draft other archetypes pre-Nix but not now. Hell we even did a draft the other week with a core set over a Born because the shop didn’t have enough Born for all the drafters and constellation was still all the value.

Soo good.

What are your top 3 uncommons/commons?

<3s

Magical Monday 5.26.14

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Wow, i realize now that i took most of last week off of writing. I was not feeling well and just didn’t write anything exciting or fit for public reading. Today however that is going to change because it is Magical Monday and i have new deck lists!

In one of my Mtg Facebook groups i said that i was working on a B/W Constellation agro list for block and there was SOME interest. But then when i posted the list it was all crickets and i was not happy.

List 1: Block B/W Constellation

Mans: 33
3 Hero of Iroas
4 Pain Seer
2 Aegis of the Gods
4 Brain Maggot
4 Nyx-Fleece Ram
4 Underworld Coinsmith
2 Athreos, God of Passage
4 Grim Guardian
4 Spiteful Returned
2 Eidolon of Countless Battles
not mans: 7
2 Thoughtseize
2 Hero’s Downfall
3 Banishing Light
Lands: 20

This is running on the back of all the constellation triggers mostly the strength of Underworld Coinsmith + Grim Guardian. We don’t interact a ton 6 steal a card effects and 5 removal spells but we are very willing to attack if we find Athreos. i could even see cutting the 2 Aegis of the Gods for 2 more Athreos but i didn’t want to get stuck with blanks if i drew too many gods.

Okay list 2: standard B/G Constellation

Mans 27
4 Brain Maggot
4 Lotleth Troll
4 Courser of Kruphix
2 Boon Satyr
3 Herald of Torment
2 Pharika, God of Affliction
4 Eidolon of Blossoms

Not Mans 14
2 Bow of Nylea
2 Strength from the Fallen

4 Thoughtseize
2 Hero’s Downfall
4 Abrupt Decay

This list i am less sure about. I think it covers most of the field fairly well. But i saw Sam Black play something starting along the same lines really working Strength from the Fallen and i think that i might want to really work that line some more. If i did that deck would look a lot more like this.

Okay list 3: standard B/G Constellation Combo????

Mans 31
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Elvish Mystic
4 Brain Maggot
4 Satyr Wayfinder
4 Herald of Torment
4 Nyx Weaver
3 Pharika, God of Affliction
4 Eidolon of Blossoms

Not Mans 9
4 Commune with the Gods
1 Bow of Nylea
4 Strength from the Fallen

20 lands

And run more like a combo deck, land an evasive man or clear away their ability to block with non-game winning triggers of Strength and then set up for the blowout. Sam was running Renowned Weaver which was fairly sweet. Another 1 drop that fills the graveyard while firing off Strength at instant speed. I could see them replacing my Brain Maggots but it is hard to remove all interaction….

Although, cutting Maggots could be the right call. After all we are just looking for a evasive fatty to carry the game home. I could see pulling the 4 maggots for 2 fatties (Master of the Feast) and 2 Weavers.

Sorry again for the lack of posts last week, this week will be better.

<3s

Magical Monday 5.19.14

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Welcome to my Magical Monday. Tobril basically told me to get regular on my writing schedule again. So i am going to try. If i have things i have to fit into my week, i tend to get them at least mostly done.

So lets look at two master pieces from this last weeks FNM the first is my deck the second is my son’s. Sorry for the grainy images, I will do better in the future. We drew in the finals to clinch first and second for like 12+ boosters.

2014-05-16 23.05.26

2014-05-16 23.08.28

First off better lucky then good, opening Pharika (easy first pick) was a good sign for the night as i wanted to go “Constellation” knowing that we had a weird draft set of Journey, Theros, Core M14. I was passed Underworld Coinsmith second, another card i wanted to try out for myself. So i knew i was base black and willing to go 3 color so i needed to value color fixing fairly highly. A third pick supply line crane put a twist into my plans but i pushed on.

In pack two the black gods were calling my name with Erebos just begging to be slammed down. A couple time to feeds, a wingsteed rider and a grey merchant where clear winners from this pack.

I had high hopes from Core 2014, a Blightcaster would have been the nut but a first pick Strionic Resonator with all my Constellation/come in to play triggers was also amazing. Then i picked up Dismiss into Dream kinda late. But i thought i could make it work, and it did in the fun games vs my son that we played but the only time i drew it on the way to undefeated land my opponent killz it right away. He knew the power!

Over all the deck was really strong. A good control shell and ramp shell with some real fat finishers. For the record wingsteed rider and trollhide are more or less glued together. I don’t think i ever drew one with out the other a card or two behind.

One game really stands out to me where i had a devotion to 4 on board and a grey merchant in hand but i waited until i could also activate the Strionic Resonator and drain for 12. Then let the Underworld Coinsmith due its thing. Speaking of Strionic Resonator, there was a moment where i played Banishing Light and ate 2 dudes. Oh come into play triggers you are the best!

In the fun games Remmie was able to agro me out 2-1. I guess that Suntail hawk + cheep bestow guys is also a way to win. But he loves to draft live gain decks and with Angelic Accord he had ways to gain live and make flying ladies.

Hope this was fun for you all. Look forward to more Magic every Monday.

<3s

Mtg Plus Samius Equals AMAZINGBALLZ!

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My artistic abilities are limited, ie i am not a physical artist. Werds are my colors and the mind is my canvas. Example i say orange and pink spotted wang and you think amazing, right? Right.

But sometimes i wonder what it would be like to have a talent that makes art for everyone to see. I am always sending off ideas to Clankenbeard for Samius/Lessah artwork, most go into his trash box i think because i assume he needs to be inspired to do his thing. I am not a jealous person, but i am jealous of those people that have a talent for turning ideas into reality. I would very much like to make some of my ideas happen.

I mean just look at some of these alters:


Or dozens of other amazing mtg alters over at http://www.alteredmtgcardart.com/

But how great would it be to have a full set of basic lands Samiused?

Like that but with even more smexy, 25 Big Eye Samius Islands! Maybe with a word bubble saying “I am going to tap you for blue!” or “Pants are for losers!”

SamiusBigEyes

Maybe some Lessah Plains:

And Morah Mountains:

I might have to become a red mage. Just damn….

Clanky, if you see this you know you want me to send you like 1000 cards. You know you do. 🙂

<3s

“Rocking On Once Again” a MtG Deck

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I have talked about being a Magic the Gathering player in the past i am not sure if everyone even knows what that means, but some of you will and everyone else can look at the pictures and develop and interest.  But for now know that whatever nerdy topic you have come to read about will be back soon.

 

Mean while for you MtG players i have a new standard deck for you to look at: Rocking On Once Again.

RockingOn v1

I am a huge fan of Rock style decks and i think that this might just fit the bill for today’s standard.

Starting things off is the combos of Agent of the Fates ( A personal favorite card of mine at the moment) /Pain Seer plus Burst of Strength.  But truthfully, Burst of Strength is just real good and i am not sure why people are not running it.

Then we have the sweet pile of fatties/removal/closers  in Reaper, Polukranos and Scavenging Ooze. I had Deathrite in that list for a while and while he has some reach, he is not really a closer all alone. But i can see him teaming up with a burst to push the last 4 damage through some board states.  And I feel that the Caryatid is the best fixing available at the moment, but i can totally see Astral Cornucopia going in this slot if Burn Decks die down some.

I have the normal removal/discard setup available to B/G with Downfall, Abrupt Decay,Vraska and Thoughtseize plus i added a sweeper in Gaze of Granite just in case.

The Bow is just a sweet utility card that adds a ton of power for the slot. I mean how can Burn ever beat this card?

Sideboard is just a lot of what you might expect, answers to Blood Barons and other blue/white cards. I added a Puterfy because call it a feeling that an odd artifact or two will start seeing more play soon and i want an answer that also hits Master of Waves.

 

I don’t know if it is good or not but i have been tinkering with a Rock style deck for a while now and this is my current happy place with the deck. Now i just need to gather some Pain Seers and a Vraska.

 

Leave the Feedbacks,

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Mostly One

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So last night I was watching some Theros drafts on Channel Fireball while I mindlessly rocked a few hard vale quests when the brew bug bit me and a deck idea entered my brain. Using things I new I had only. I didn’t want to buy anything for a “fun” deck.

First draft:

4 Young Pyo
4 Akroan Crusader
4 Nivmagus Elemental
4 Sedge Scorp
4 Gladecover Scout or
2 Rakdos crackler or Blistercoil Weird or Dryad Militant

4 Coordinated Assault
4 Warriors’ Lesson
4 Giant Growth
4 Titan’s Strength
2 Ranger’s guile
4 Shock

20 land Mountains and Forests.

I didn’t win a game in the test match vs Remmie right after I scrambled to pull the list together. But I feel some of that was hitting a big land pocket in both matches. That could been me only shuffling maybe 6-10 times total, the lands just didn’t have enough time to really get dispersed through the deck. In both games I had the game in my grasp early but then Remmie would get something down with a fat ass and was able to use it to stall things out and recover. Where had I gotten some gas it would have been a different story maybe… Maybe not…

I think we could cut to 18 lands and add two more dude, but Young Pyo and Akroan Crusader were huge workhorses. I really wish I could run more of them… But like all wennie decks it wants more draw or card selection. The boy and I started to talk about a white version but it doesn’t help in draw or card selection departments. But I can see going blue if I was willing to lose Giant Growth/Sedge Scorp and was willing to raise the curve some… But then the next thing you know your playing the blue devotion deck or the normal red burn deck…

Oh well not every fun deck works.

<3s

Kicking Midgets

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For the last few months now my Friday’s have been spent at my local #FNM draft. This last week was no exception. The shop had a Standard and a M14 draft queued up. But last week was our two local high school’s “rivalry” game, aka vs each other. So after 15 mins past the start time neither event was going to fill.

After some debate some of the standard players come to the draft if we draft Theros, which was not what I was in the mindset for but hell we are all giving a little to make this draft happen…. A quick aside, we switched formats because 2 people would not M14 due to it “being a bad finical call.” Wtf? #FNM is meant to be fun and those of us that have drafted Theros every Friday and some Saturdays since the pre-release wouldn’t have minded/was looking forward to a change of pace….

I drafted a really solid G/U heroic deck, at one point after drafting I remember thinking is there any way for me to lose? The answer is yes, the curse hit hard.

I ended up 2 and 2, the 2 matches I lost I didn’t lose to the other player or their deck I lost to my deck. In the first match I lost; one game I died on turn 12, with 12 lands in play and 3 lands in my hand after drawing 2 extra cards. Another I kept a fair 3 land 4 spells, played out my 2 and 3 drops and never drew a 4th land.

And the last match I had a shot at still winning the draft. Not a great shot but a fair shot (had I won I would have taken 2 overall but at the time I had a shot). I was never in it. I kept a 3-land hand and proceeded to draw nothing but lands. My few spells were removed or countered and I lost to a really bad control deck. But if you stumble vs a control deck it can take control and win. Game 2, which as another aside I either won in 2 or lost 1-2 except this last match where I lost 0-2, think I took a mull to 5 due to a 1-land hand twice and landed on a 5 land had where I drew nothing but lands the whole game as I was beat down by a 1/3 flyer…

That’s magic, some day’s you are just unlucky and you have to roll with the punches.

I did two Mtgo drafts over the weekend; I thought both of my decks were unbeatable. And the second draft that was true, when you draw lands and spells in the proper numbers (even if you get 2 or 3 in a row sometimes) a good deck can win. The second was not the case, even though I was able to get the booby prize. I will admit I had a few misplays in the first round. Well not really misplays vs my opponent having a ton of removal but when I had an opening to punish my opponent for burning all his removal I was unable to draw gas and once again died again and again to the land flood.

The second round my opponent conceded the match due to real live while I pondered my opening hand (I was on the play). In MtGo you have the option to peak after a game at what you would have drew had you gotten more time. I drew a few cards and I really hope there is some kind of MtGo thing where if your opponent doesn’t get to draw the deck is stacked…. But if not then I took a screen shot for proof of my weekend…

Screen Shot 2013-10-22 at 8.38.57 AM

I showed my coworker and he thinks I must have kicked a few midgets to get that kind of bad luck. Maybe I did…. If I did, the universe punished me really well and I never to it again…

<3s

White/Blue Weenie

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Last night I got a txt message from a friend asking me for help on building a cheep yet competitive MtG deck. Right now cheep and competitive are kinda at opposing scales as I understand the metagame.

Metagame- The highest level of strategy in many complex games, metagame refers to any aspect of strategy that involves thinking about what your opponent is thinking you are thinking.

And in MtG terms how to build a deck to attack the other decks you think might be floating around. So this is a real challenge, tasty.

So around 9 or so I went to get started putting money cards into a trade binder thinking I might go hang on Thrusday night go get some fun games in and maybe make some trades…

As I was sorting cards I started to hit on a fairly straight forward build that I am going to share.

Dudes:
4 Hopeful Eidolon
4 Phalanx Leader
2 Cavalry Pegasus
2 Fabled Hero

2 Battlewise Hoplite
1 Daxos of Meletis

3 Triton Fortune Hunter (Wavecrash Triton)
2 Stealer of Secrets

Spells/Heroic Enablers:
2 Dauntless Onslaught
4 Gods Willing
1 Ethereal Armor
4 Aqueous Form
1 Triton Tactics
2 Celestial Flare

Lands:
8 duals (4 shock lands, 4 tap lands)
plains and islands to 23

Side Board thoughts:
Gainsay
Glare of Heresy
Pacifism

This is just what I had handy while I was sorting so final numbers are off but it is a fine starting point. You may or may not want more Daxos. I think you do. The life gain is huge. And over at Channelfireball.com he is less then a dollar. I know going to four Ethereal Armor is the right call, but I only have the one but as they are a common they should be cheep. Fabled hero is an all star, going to 3 or 4 is a no brainer and could be worth cutting the Battlewises to make room for them.

There are some sweet interactions with this deck.

Cavalry Pegasus makes humans fly when it attacks, and other then the Triton Fortune Hunter and the Hopeful Eidolon all our dudes are humans.

Ethereal Armor, gives +1/+1 for each enchantment and Hopeful Eidolon is an enchantment dude, that is an interesting interaction. Caught Remmie in play testing more then once thinking I was attacking with a 2/2 first striker and I was really attacking with a 3/3 first striker because of the enchantment dude.

Speaking of enchantments Aqueous Form is exactly what this deck is looking for, it is both a heroic trigger but it is also allows you to attack with out worry about blocks and fixes your draws.

I think the number of Triton Tactics, Dauntless Onslaught and Gods Willing are questionable. They all trigger heroic, Tactics and Onslaught trigger 2 dudes and they still wins. Gods Willing is also a nice trick save a dude or make attack easy or hard. I think 3 of each might be a good place to start.

Speaking of places to start I added 5 dudes that draw cards. In a weenie deck card draw is key because your guys normally get out classed real quickly. Maybe less so with all this heroic giving +1/+1 counters…. But I can see sideboarding or even main deck switching to some number of Wavecrash Tritons to go more controly vs BIG guys.deck depending on your meta.

I know for those of you that are not Magic players this was not the most compelling read but if you think you might want a low cost deck for the current standard that can totally grow as you can add money this is a fair start.

<3s

Magic the Gathering Vs DDo?

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So I am on the up ramp for MtG taking over my life again. Pre enchantment pass my thoughts were mostly filled with thoughts of DDo, alts to level, builds to try, gear to grind and that was good. Then the pass hit and now I am all like okay do I abandon this guy and TR him now or wait until the new super TR is out? Where is the value?

Oh see there it is, “that Magic talk.” A line like “Where is the value?” is right out the MtG player handbook. But don’t panic, I am not giving up DDo, at least not yet. ☺ I am just doing things like Friday Night Magic events and the rare Saturday thing. But if you are not a MtG player you might get a little intro as I ramble on. But I have always seen/written about DDo through the eyes of a MtG player and I will more then likely be doing so even more then before. So if you start to see things that are a little strange, even for me, ask and I will most likely explain with “In Mtg ….”

So how has this week been in DDo?

Not bad. Still mostly playing my Rogue and or my “healer/caster” druid. I am digging the new Season line on him at least. On Java, what little I have played, has been me shouting, “Damn it, I am in summer!” then some more colorful additives for the next few mins, then rejoicing when returning to winter. Aka think there will be no more Season’s Herald on Dog form fighting guys…

For those of you that don’t follow me on twitter, @samiusgurobo, the satellite box/DVR crapped out. So while that was down (new one should be installed over lunch today) I would play DDo on one screen and then stream video from Starcitygames or ChannelFireball. Sure I don’t know what is going on in the newest Breaking Bad or Dexter (and if you spoil it for me I will killz you) but my nights weren’t that bad. I even found a sudo drafter site to “practice” draft picks and my builder brain is back to making decks vs making DDo builds. But I am leveling slowly but surely.

Lets talk just a little about leveling. With the xp changes it is fairly worth wild if you know your going to be slow rocking a level to plan a little head. Ie flag an opener for high xp quests and have a plan for “daily” runs. God, I hate that idea. Makes me think of WoW… But that is kinda just how it is right now. Last week I was running a Pit, Tear and a Qwylan’s and then logging off or swapping to my rogue and hitting a eHVon3 before logging to play Magic with the boy before bed. This week I set my low level opener for things like Necro4 and … I feel like there were some other things…. But if there was it is slipping my mind. I know that later tonight I will start the daily runs of Shadow Crypt. ☺

Laters
<3s