None Of The Above

When I arrived at NG Galleria at around 11am, there was a looong line all the way up to Filbars. When I got near the counter a few minutes later, we were told that we will have to be placed on the waiting list. Damn. If I had just arrived a bit earlier. I think I was around 5th on the waiting list.

Eventually though, at around 12:30pm, with the tournament already starting at the 4th floor, we were told that we could still play, but we would have to do it inside the crowded store, standing up or on the floor. Oh well. For the love of the game.

Here's the deck that I used -- Doran Rock LD:



// Lands
4 [MOR] Murmuring Bosk
3 [LRW] Gilt-Leaf Palace
4 [10E] Llanowar Wastes
4 [TSB] Gemstone Mine
2 [FUT] Horizon Canopy
1 [TSB] Pendelhaven
1 [PLC] Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
3 [UNH] Forest
1 [UNH] Swamp

// Creatures
3 [LRW] Doran, the Siege Tower
3 [FUT] Tarmogoyf
4 [10E] Llanowar Elves
4 [10E] Birds of Paradise
2 [LRW] Garruk Wildspeaker
3 [10E] Troll Ascetic
1 [MOR] Chameleon Colossus
2 [LRW] Shriekmaw

// Spells
2 [LRW] Profane Command
4 [TSP] Mwonvuli Acid-Moss
3 [MOR] Bitterblossom
2 [PLC] Damnation
4 [LRW] Nameless Inversion

// Sideboard
SB: 2 [LRW] Oblivion Ring
SB: 4 [PLC] Extirpate
SB: 4 [10E] Rain of Tears
SB: 2 [PLC] Damnation
SB: 2 [LRW] Cloudthresher
SB: 1 [LRW] Primal Command

Round 1: vs. BG Elves

My very first hand of the day was apparently a sign of things to come. One land, no mana elf. Mull to 6. I kept a 1 land hand with a BOP & an Elf. It still wasn't enough though because the 2nd land didn't come until the 3rd turn, and by then, my opponent was swinging with an army of Vanquishers. Game 2 was hard-fought. Me with Doran and BOPs and elves, he would Damnation. Him with 2 Perfects and some mana elves, I would Damnation. Finally, with me at 3 life and my opponent at 4 life, it was down to who would draw his Profane first. Unfortunately for me, he drew it first.

Game standing: 0-2
Match standing: 0-1


Round 2: vs. UB Faeries

Game 1 was a battle of attrition, with me getting all the way down to 1 life due to my Bitterblossom. But with Garruk online, I swung with my army of faeries. Overrun ftw. On game 2, my opponent was stuck at 2 lands, and I ended the game the same way as the first. Another Garruk overrun ftw!

Game standing: 2-2
Match standing: 1-1


Round 3: vs. RG Mana-ramp

I lost game 1 easily due to a single attack of a double-charged Colossus. While boarding for the second game, I just suddenly realized that I had not much answers to Colossi MD -- just the 2 Damnations. I then decided to board in the remaining 2 Damnations in my SB and the 2 Oblivion Rings. That's 6 cards in all... that SHOULD be enough. But apparently, it was NOT. I drew just 1 Damnation the whole game (killing 1 Colossus), but he drew another Colossus ftw. I asked my opponent (who eventually made top 4 in the tourney) after the match how many Colossus he had on his deck, because I didn't see any other creature from him (normally Mana-ramp decks have various sorts of fatties). He said he only had 3 Colossi. Oh well.

Game standing: 2-4
Match standing: 1-2


Round 4: vs. Reveillark

For round 4, we were finally merged to the main tourney area in the 4th floor -- so I no longer had the disadvantage (and excuse) that we were playing while standing up. My opponent had the version of the Reveillark combo deck that used the Bonded Fetch method, so that he could discard combo pieces onto the graveyard... and he did. By bouncing all my permanents. GG. I had lots of SB for his deck though, so I wasn't affected much. In: 4 Extirpates & 4 Rain of Tears. Let's see if that happens again. Unfortunately, I just couldn't draw ANY of my SB. But it was ok, because I was beating him down... all the way down to 2 life... and then suddenly... another combo. GG.

Game standing: 2-6
Match standing: 1-3


Round 5: vs. RG Tarox

In game 5, I finally got matched up against a non-Tier 1 deck. Sure enough, I easily beat him in the first game. But AGAIN unfortunately, I got beat up by some pretty sick draws by my opponent, most notable of which was a Might of Oak'd and Grandeured 22/21 Tarox Bladewing. And I was "comfortably" at 17 life at that time. GG.

Game standing: 3-8
Match standing: 1-4


Round 6: vs. UB Faeries

For round 6, I got faced against a relatively familiar face. I knew this guy topped-4 at a recent FNM. And I knew this guy had a powerful faerie deck. I was wondering then... why was he matched up against me, in my 3-point table? I soon found out why. Apparently, he was a relative noob as well, just like me. In fact, he was more of a noob than me, because he kept on reading and misunderstanding Doran's ability. I easily won the match in 2 games.

Game standing: 5-8
Match standing: 2-4

Round 7: vs. Reveillark

I was once again against a familiar face. I knew my opponent had a Reveillark deck. In fact, when the player beside me was chatting and talking about his recent game that had a Reveillark player go up from 2 life way up to 23 life via Riftwatchers, I told my opponent, "Wag mo gagawin sa akin yun ah." :)

Things didn't start very well because I mulliganed to 4....although it WAS a pretty sick hand, with 2 lands and 2 Bitterblossoms. I eventually found out that 2 Bitterblossoms, plus a Garruk, apparently, equates to a win. :) My opponent was pissed off. Losing to a mulligan to 4 does that to you. On game 2, I lost due to a SB mistake... I forgot to board in my Oblivion Rings, and I had no answer to a Teferi's Moat for Green. Game 3 was well fought. Me down to 3, and my opponent at 5, I lost to flyers which I couldn't block -- he had a Porphyry Nodes disabling my Bitterblossom.

Game standing: 6-10
Match standing: 2-5


It was already 9pm, and I decided to drop because I knew that with 250+ players, I had no chance of getting the Imperious Perfect that we so badly wanted (Sorry Jovs!).

Another tournament, another disappointing result. Maybe I should stick to FNM's in the meantime...

Doran or Perfect?

The City Championships will be tomorrow, March 29. Top 8 players will win a Doran EA card, while top 9 to 120 players will get the Imperious Perfect EA card.



Which deck will be most prevalent?

Which deck will win it all?

Will it be the new combo deck?

Or will it be the recent GP champion deck?

Or perhaps the world champion deck?

Or maybe one of the decks gaining popularity?

One thing is for sure -- I'm playing with a different deck this time around (no more teenie weenie Kithkins tomorrow). I've set my goals high, and I expect to have a fun time (hopefully by winning a lot of games) tomorrow.

Will it be a Doran or a Perfect? We'll find out soon. :)

Shadowmoor Orb of Insight

Type any word (or number) and the Orb tells you how many times that word appears on Shadowmoor cards (excluding flavor text).


Apparently, the two "future-sighted" cards are Mistmeadow Skulk and Graven Cairns.

And I thought it was Poison. :)

Upcoming Expansions - 2008

Shadowmoor
Pre-Release - April 19-20
Release - May 2


Eventide
Pre-Release - July 12-13
Release - July 25


Shards of Alara
Pre-Release - September 20-21
Release - October 3

Shadowmoor Previews

Shadowmoor is the next Magic expansion after Morningtide. To be released on May 2 (just in time for my birthday, woohoo!), with pre-releases on April 19-20, it will be the large set of the next mini-block after Lorwyn.

The official MTG website has recently shown a sample booster pack of the upcoming set -- and it was very interesting, to say the least, because of the presence of:

A White Elf:


A Blue Kithkin:


A Colored/Colorless Hybrid Mana:


And this seemingly annoying/powerful card:


I wish it was April 19 already... ;-)

Standard Tournament - Mar 8, 2008

Not to be discouraged at my poor performance at the previous night's FNM, I joined the regular Standard tourney the following day at Galleria.

I used a slightly upgraded version of the Kithkin deck I used in the FNM 2 weeks ago. Basically:

1. I upgraded the landbase by adding a 3rd Flagstones of Trokair and putting in 3 Horizon Canopies (thanks to Kotzen of NG forums for arriving early!) and 1 Pendelhaven.
2. Instead of the 3 Trios and 1 Ajani, I put in 2 Calciderms and 2 Griffin Guides.
3. For the 1-drops, I put in 2 Mosquito Guards to replace 2 of the Goldmeadow Harriers.



// Lands
5 [UNH] Plains
4 [MOR] Rustic Clachan
3 [TSP] Flagstones of Trokair
2 [LRW] Windbrisk Heights
4 [MOR] Mutavault
3 [FUT] Horizon Canopy
1 [TSB] Pendelhaven

// Creatures
4 [LRW] Goldmeadow Stalwart
4 [MOR] Cenn's Tactician
2 [LRW] Goldmeadow Harrier
2 [MOR] Mosquito Guard
4 [LRW] Knight of Meadowgrain
4 [TSP] Serra Avenger
4 [MOR] Kinsbaile Borderguard
2 [PLC] Calciderm

// Spells
4 [PLC] Sunlance
4 [LRW] Oblivion Ring
2 [LRW] Militia's Pride
2 [TSP] Griffin Guide

// Sideboard
SB: 2 [TSB] Tormod's Crypt
SB: 4 [PLC] Mana Tithe
SB: 2 [TSB] Disenchant
SB: 1 [TSP] Tivadar of Thorn
SB: 2 [10E] Paladin en-Vec
SB: 3 [CS] White Shield Crusader
SB: 1 [10E] Wrath of God

Round 1: vs. BG Warriors

In game 1, I had Sunlances ready for each warrior that he was casting, and I had an Oblivion Ring ready for his Chameleon Colossus. He, on the other hand, didn't have much answer to my Kithkins and lost. Game 2 was reaaaaly good -- too bad I can't remember the exact board set-up though. I think I was at 6 life, my opponent was at 1 life, and it was his turn. We both have a few creatures, but I had 1 creature more than he did. He had a Profane Command in hand, but it wasn't enough no matter which modes he chose -- I was just going down to 1 -- even if he aimed at me, my defenders, or putting Fear on some of his creatures. He did it anyway, and when it was my turn, I had enough attackers to push the final point of damage on him. Match score: 2-0; Standing after 1 round: 1-0.

Round 2: vs. WG Mana Ramp

First game was one-sided in favor of my opponent. Second game was one-sided in favor of me. The third game was well played and went down the wire... but I eventually lost to, just like the previous night, an Akroma, Angel of Wrath. Match score: 1-2; Standing after 2 rounds: 1-1.

Round 3: vs. BG Elves

All I can remember from this match was that the first thing I did was to Sunlance a 2/3 Tarmogoyf. So I started the game happy. The last thing that happened though was I got Garruk-overran by an army of elves. Not good. Meaning, I lost. Good thing his deck was 10 times more expensive than mine (exag), so no bad feelings there. ;) I still wish I had Tarmogoyfs and Garruks though... Match score: 0-2; Standing after 3 rounds: 1-2.

Round 4: vs. Mono-red Crusher

I won the first match, thanks to a costly mistake by my opponent. Down to 7 life, he attacked with all his creatures, I thought for a moment, took all the damage and was down to 10. Problem was, I had an 8/8 flying Borderguard. I again thought for a while and decided to attack with it. No blockers. Stack damage? Ok. When he looked at his life, he just smiled, and scooped his cards. The second and third games were no fun though. It just seemed like his whole deck was an anti-Kithkin deck, when I got faced by numerous Sulfur Elementals and Blood Knights. And when he wasn't casting those, he was burning my face with Incinerates and Shard Volleys -- all while he had a Countryside Crusher in play. GG. Match score: 1-2; Standing after 4 rounds: 1-3.

Round 5: vs. Mono-blue Merfolk

I kept on reading my opponent's cards on this match, because I was unfamiliar with the Merfolk cards. It was also an unorthodox Merfolk deck because first of all, it was mono-blue, and his strategy was aggro first (via Lord of Atlantis, Merrow Reejerey and other cards that grant islandwalk), and library second (via Grimoire Thief). It was a funny match though because both of us made a couple of stupid mistakes on the game. One time, I attacked with all creatures thinking that I could get him down to zero life even if he blocked my larger creatures. However, when we computed the math at end of combat, he was actually just down to 1. And I had all my creatures tapped. Good thing he didn't draw either of the Merfolk lords on his draw, or he would have been able to push enough damage to kill me. Match score: 2-0; Standing after 5 rounds: 2-3.

Round 6: vs. Dragonstorm

This match proved that practice is SOOOO important in this game. I knew about his deck inside out, having used it the night before, so I easily won the match. It did have some scary moments though when he was able to activate Spinerock Knoll, only to reveal a Sulfurous Blast underneath. That didn't kill the Paladin en Vec though, due to Pro-Red, so he got beat by my first striking Knight. Match score: 2-0; Standing after 6 rounds: 3-3.

Round 7: vs. UBrw Mannequin-Control

My Kithkins raced to a blazing start and I won very quickly in the first game. This created a problem for my second game though, because I didn't know what to side-in. I only knew that his lands covered 4 colors -- UBRW -- and that he cast a few black removal spells. This made me decide to side-in the White Shield Crusaders and the Paladin en Vecs. Problem was, on the second game, he beat me with Mulldrifters, and a few Shriekmaws. Confused for the third game, I decided to just restore my deck to its original config. The third game was long but exciting. Unfortunately though, my opponent's deck revealed its true form in that game, when he cast a few Pyroclasms to clear out my Kithkins, Liliana to disrupt my hand, and Makeshift Mannequin on his Mulldrifters and Shriekmaws. Match score: 1-2; Standing after 7 rounds: 3-4.

Final rank: 39th place among 60+ players. Still on the bottom half of the curve... :(

FNM - Mar 7, 2008

The thing with playing a Dragonstorm deck is that your match results are pretty much like flipping a coin -- because it largely depends on how lucky your draw is. Problem is, I'm not very lucky with coin flips. And that was exactly the case in last Friday's FNM.

Here's the deck that I used -- a modified version of the original DS deck, without the Pyromancer's Swath-Rift Bolt combo, but with a more controllish theme, via the maindeck Sulfurous Blasts and Siege-Gang Commanders:



// Lands
4 [LRW] Spinerock Knoll
4 [TSP] Fungal Reaches
4 [TSP] Molten Slagheap
8 [UNH] Mountain
3 [MOR] Mutavault
1 [10E] Karplusan Forest

// Creatures
4 [TSP] Bogardan Hellkite
2 [10E] Siege-Gang Commander

// Spells
4 [TSB] Dragonstorm
4 [TSP] Lotus Bloom
4 [CS] Rite of Flame
4 [10E] Shock
4 [TSP] Rift Bolt
4 [10E] Incinerate
2 [MOR] Shard Volley
4 [TSP] Sulfurous Blast

// Sideboard
SB: 2 [TSB] Tormod's Crypt
SB: 4 [TSB] Dodecapod
SB: 3 [FUT] Ghostfire
SB: 3 [TSP] Ignite Memories
SB: 3 [TSP] Krosan Grip


Round 1: vs. Mono-red burn

Burn after burn after burn... Mogg Fanatic, Keldon Marauders, Incinerate, Rift Bolt. And I drew no Dragonstorm despite having sooo much mana. Match score: 0-2; Standing after 1 round: 0-1.

Round 2: vs.UB Reanimator

Four words -- Akroma, Angel Of Wrath. And on both games. I did get a chance to Ignite Memories for 5 though, with him on 12 life and 3 cards on hand -- I only hit a Shriekmaw once, and a land 4 times. Apparently he had 1 Shriekmaw and 2 Underground Rivers on hand. Match score: 0-2; Standing after 2 rounds: 0-2.

Most players would drop the tourney at this point. It was still quite early though, so I decided to play another round before heading home.

Unfortunately, my 3rd and 4th round opponents were one of those "0-2 and drop" guys, and they no longer showed up on our table. I won those matches by default, and my standing after 4 rounds was a miserable 2-2.

Spring Cleaning

Hi, I'm Benj and I'm an MTG Addict.

I just noticed that I've been posting about nothing but Magic: The Gathering for the past couple of weeks, so I finally decided to just move all MTG-related posts here and try to keep my main blog Magic-free.

Standard Tournament - Mar 1, 2008

Yes, I'm blogging about a tournament that probably just ended an hour ago. That's how badly the day went.

Here's the deck that got ran over today:



// Lands
4 [10E] Sulfurous Springs
4 [LRW] Auntie's Hovel
2 [FUT] Graven Cairns
4 [UNH] Mountain
4 [UNH] Swamp
1 [TSP] Kher Keep
1 [FUT] Keldon Megaliths
1 [TSB] Pendelhaven
1 [MOR] Mutavault

// Creatures
4 [10E] Mogg Fanatic
4 [TSP] Mogg War Marshal
4 [LRW] Knucklebone Witch
4 [MOR] Taurean Mauler
2 [MOR] Earwig Squad
2 [LRW] Boggart Mob
2 [10E] Siege-Gang Commander
2 [TSP] Greater Gargadon

// Spells
4 [10E] Incinerate
4 [MOR] Shard Volley
2 [LRW] Eyeblight's Ending
2 [LRW] Fodder Launch
2 [LRW] Boggart Birth Rite

// Sideboard
SB: 4 [PLC] Extirpate
SB: 3 [10E] Deathmark
SB: 4 [10E] Cryoclasm
SB: 2 [LRW] Profane Command
SB: 2 [TSP] Word of Seizing

Round 1: vs. UB Faeries

My day didn't start so well with my first creature, Mogg War Marshall, getting Rune Snagged. After that, it was just me trying to fend off my opponent's 1/1 flyers with removal, and even though I eventually got to cast a Boggart Mob, his Bitterblossom just made a blocker every turn. I lost when, after Incinerating a pre-damage stack Scion of Oona, he cast another one of those faerie lords, and I got ran over by slightly larger faeries. Game 2 was much better, with me racing to a blazing start with Fanatic, War Marshall and Maulers. He quickly conceded after getting stuck at 3 lands and 6 life. Game 3 however, was much like the first one, because he once again succesfully cast 2 Scions of Oona -- and I didn't have any removal for the first one this time -- giving all his faeries shroud, and me my first loss of the day. Match score: 1-2; Standing after 1 round: 0-1

Round 2: vs. Mono-white Kithkins

I felt good when I got matched up with the deck that I had the most practice with, and the deck I'm most familiar to play against. Unfortunately, my opponent was extremely lucky, with a turn 1 Stalwart, turn 2 Banneret, and turn 3 Stalwart, Banneret, Mirror Entity. There's not much I can do to a bunch of 4/4 Kithkins but block. Eventually, I ran out of blockers and lost. Game 2 was a bit better, because I got to Deathmark his Mirror Entity. However, I had no answer to a second Mirror Entity, and he was just Sunlancing my Taurean Maulers. I once again bowed to a bunch of, this time, 5/5 Kithkins, even though I got to delay it a bit by bluffing to hold removal (he was afraid that I'd chump block and Incinerate his ME). The inevitable happened, with me drawing land after land, and I once again lost the match. Match score: 0-2; Standing after 2 rounds: 0-2

Round 3: vs. Mono-green Aggro

This was really quick. Game 1 -- Warhammered Ascetic? Nuff said. Game 2 -- turn 4 Spectral Force, turn 5 another Spectral Force, and Scryb Ranger. GG. Match score: 0-2; Standing after 3 rounds: 0-3.

Maybe I should just play Pokemon. :(

After that last bit of bad luck, I just dropped from the tourney, texted Beej, and we proceeded to watch Dan In Real Life. Good thing the movie was nice.