Tag Archives: Draft

Magical Monday 5.18.2015

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Welcome back, Once again it is time for another Magical Monday. This past weekend was a beating in the world of MtG.

First of all i was able to get sealed deck tournaments in the monthly Friday Night Magic rotation and last Friday was Sealed day and i missed it due to some BS at the other job. The whole ordeal was super disappointing. I thought i had an understanding with the boss about Fridays but i guess i will just have to stop going in altogether on Fridays sooner then i expected. I can’t do the things i need to do on Friday’s at the shop if i am working over at Old D until late. When i finally make it to the shop i learn that one of the pods didn’t even fire. That means that for the last 3 weeks we have had one of our events not fire. I wasn’t around to fire up the crowd or bolster the numbers. Not having events fire is a huge deal.

There was a little bit of good news on Friday however, we had a few new players to the shop. Even in it cost Remmie some packs. I guess the young man he was playing was not the most experienced PAPER MtG player. He is a Mtgo player however so things like going through the steps and timing his cards is controlled for him by the program. Also he was just slow over all. I sat with him for a game and helped with the steps and whatnot. Helping him put the match to 1 and 1 with about 5 minutes left on the clock. I asked another judge to watch the table so i could handle something up front and be impartial during the play. But as i got up Bilal, the person that brought and paid for Jeremy (think that is the right name), told him to concede if they went to time. Jeremy said okay and Bilal and i went up front. A few minutes later the other judge i asked to watch the table came up and reported 1-1-1. I asked what happened with that concession and was told that was how Remmie reported. Remmie ended up winning the rest of his rounds until he played the eventual winner but that draw was practically a loss for finial standings.

Saturday, was Graduation Day for my niece (Salutatorian btw) as well as the Store Vs Store at home vs the Wichita team.. When i arrived 2/3s of the Wichita team didn’t even show. To have something for those that made the trip we held a special Win a Box for a MM2 box at a heavily reduced price. The Wichita draft team wanted to draft, but a lot of my draft team bailed and i was left with some good drafters but not those that had signed up. So we were all on different plans. Seemed like the whole table was in black, i know i was due to opened bomb black rare and getting passed 3 or 4 great black rares then nothing. I was able to move into green which was fairly open and got a fairly solid deck out of the deal. But just had massive amounts of mana issues all day long, often ending on turn 10-13 not missing a land drop and lands in hand. It was just a beating. 0-4.

I was told after the games finished up that i punted real bad in my first match. My opponent, Nathan said I was up a game and was in the race game 2. I had a Return to the Earth and i used it to kill a Jeskai Runemark to knock Nathan’s creature out of the sky. I was informed that i could have killed his flier… He had a removal spell for my guy and was able to 7 me twice thanks to Artful Maneuver, as i drew lands. But i think he was confused. I remember his guy being a manifest from a Cloudform that he had battle shipped into a 5/x. I had to kill the Cloudform to have a shot at removing his guy. If i am right then i didn’t punt even if they play was not great. But even so i can’t help but feel bad.

Game 3, we were back and forth. He was down to his last guy 4/x and i attacked for game but he had a removal spell. I had one of the cards i had splashed red for in my hand and then drew my only other red spell with no red source to cast them. Had i drew any other spell or a mountain i would have won.

I did my best to be a good sport and take my lumps but i thought my 2 and 2 would be my worse record but i was wrong. Oh well, i still had fun and i guess i will just have to try and be more aggressive next time.

<3s

Magical Monday 4.20.15

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Welcome back, it was another busy one magic-wise for me this last weekend. My shop, The Arena, had our game day tournament and i actually got to play. I took a deck that i wanted to try and thought was a lot of fun but wasn’t a “good” deck. But i knew that going into the event. Ended up going 1 and 3 loosing to the winner of the tournament, the guy that took second and the wife who was not having fun and we were having a good time so i might have “let her win” game 2, then she just smashed my face game 3 super badly. Which i think made her smile a little bit. So it was worth it.

Sunday, was an away game vs Hays in our Store Vs Store series as is the norm i was on the draft team. While i feel good about the format i was unsure about the Hays guys and their draft style. My last two away games were not great for me going 2 and 2 i believe. Spoiler alert i drew my first round which is my normal play for winning out the rest of the matches. Which i did.

This is my deck….

2015-04-20 23.37.09

 

I know that some of the cards are hard to read so i will hit the highlights.

Qarsi High Priest, insane every time i had it other then the one game where it was my only guy for like 4 turns.

S Faithful, I had 2 of these guys and while i only main decked the first one; the second one was huge in many games.

P Familiar/J Sage, 2 drops that drew a card when they die are good. Go figure.

Hand of “the bad touch” Silumgar, 2 power deathtoucher? Yep, he went almost all the way one game before trading way up.

M Loremaster/Spell-Eater, these guys did a ton of work. One game i was able to trade while regrowing the Foul Renewal to regrow/kill a card advantage dude and another real threat.

Marang River Prowler/Skeleton, MVPs! Not kidding. These guys are real. And they carried a ton of weight. At one point i was Attacking with the prowler then sacking him to the high priest then replaying him for the value. So good!

O Interceptor x 2, 4/2 fliers. Yep, Good.

Write into Being, I want this card in constructed deck. It did everything for me this weekend. Hit morphs, found or buried lands as needed. Just an limited all star.

M Adept, just yep. There was one play where i was facing down a huge flyer and my opponent cast the rebound protection spell on it naming blue (my only flyer and this guy) but i had a Coat with Venom (another all-star) giving a morph flying and deathtouch and blowing out my opponent.

V Aven/ G Drowner, these guys just drew me so many cards it was insane. I only think there was one time the Drowner found anything other then great spell, land, land, land. The games where it found Foul Renewal i was unbeatable.

A Statue, I love this guy if i have any value guys OR if my opponent is on white/x. Pacifism, is a real spell in the format. This just eat it and rebuys the value while just making a super killer.

Coat with Venom, I think this is one of the best black commons. Top 5 for sure.

Mirror Mockery, Also super good. There were a lot of places where i could but it on their guy and “blue Pacifism” it. Which i did a few times. And there was as many times where i was just able to get value by cloning my Avens/Drowners.

Whisk Away/Flatten, good removal spells. There was an attack where the warrior agro deck attacked me with 5 or 6 2 or 3/2 and he had the warrior that made all his warriors require two blockers. I was able to flatten him after baiting him into an attack. Then i lined up all these complicated blocks opening myself up to taking like 10 damage (via the pump warrior). But the opponent decided to go for the big blow out with a butcher’s glee on my M Adept/V Aven block on his 3/2 first striker. Away with you nasty 6/2 first stikeing life linker.

Foul Renewal, my first pick another one of them all-stars. If you can get one and regrow it, do it!

Reach of Shadow x 2, 5 mana removal…. Still good in limited.

Sideboard super helpers Shambling Goblins x 2, i brought them in against the warrior deck and they were huge.

 

Well that was it, between the boy and myself we got 11 packs for 30$ and i picked up a lot of important points in the Store v Store scoring. I just need to keep it up.

 

Alright kids it took me an hour to type this up and i need to get to bed.

<3s

Magical Monday 12.15.2014

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Werds Kids. Good to be back, sorry for missing last week my grownup project needed my attention fairly hard core until Friday and then my Community Manager job for my local cardshop kept me fairly swamped.

So what have you all missed? Well i did make it to FNM the last 2 weeks. We drafted trip Khans and i was able to draft a sick little Abzan deck, rocking some great rares and Archers Parapets. Parapets are quickly becoming one of my favorite cards in the set. It just does everything. Then last Friday, like i said i was busy so i had to take my back up modern deck with no real idea of the local meta or anything. Thought i would lock out everyone, but ran to time second match and hit a draw. Moving me to a lower bracket where people were a little more ready for off the cuff decks. Had some poor draws, either flooding out or having double Dig through Times just miss when looking for answers… And ended up 1-2-1 for the night. Crazy.

Then Saturday we went to McPherson, for a Store V Store event. Basically it is a ploy to get people that might not travel to play Magic out and playing others in the area while at the same time let others in the area know that we are here. We had full teams for each sub event, ie Standard, Commander and Draft. Then each member of team played each other player from the other store’s team. Four rounds of magic vs people you don’t play against every week is a good change, with only store pride on the line.

I want to share a few things i went undefeated in the draft. Although i did end up drawing match one due to a weird moment where i was on the draw and letting my opponent take his mulligan/s. I had a so so hand where i had planed to mull if my opponent kept 6-7 cards and he mulled to 6 then played a land tapped. And said go. And i was all like wish you had asked if i was ready…. Oh well i am already up a game and proceeded to have a super slow draw play out super slow. When i knew the game was over I scooped to move to game 3 (which i felt i am favored to win normally fairly fast in the match up), i asked about time and was told that we were over time. I heard a couple minutes over. Later after we were all done I was told it was more like 30 secs. So i was a little salty all night over a misunderstanding, but it did motivate me to play super tight and really watch the clock.

Also i want to talk just a little bit about how i like to draft. I am often asked what to do in draft, by people. And what i try and due is find my seat. I know it is easier said then done, but that is my goal. Just watch for the signs and be ready to move. This deck should have been a 4-0 deck, no question. I started out red/white/black or Mardu. I took the rare from a weak pack, then a morph black card, then a few good white cards but then there was nothing in my colors…. So i start taking the good morph cards. I was reading the signs that the people on my right were in black for sure. And i thought red also so i better move or be ready to jump ship anyway. And i loaded up on the solid morphs. Then pack two i was rewarded with a Trail and more great morphs. In side i was just smiling. Then in pack three around pick 4 or 5 i got a second Trail then a Secret Plans super late and was in winner winner chicken dinner mode.

Okay the deck:

traildraft

Like i said this deck was just nuts. I did drop 2 games all night. One where i scooped them up for time and the other was in the last round where i thought i won when my opponent dropped 3 singing bell strikes over 2 turns and then was able to get in with a 1/1 flyer for the win as i never drew a 6th land to untap and win.

I would draft this 100% of the time if i could, the deck was great and i had a blast. But would i try and force it? No. But if it open, i will be on it!

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 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

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