So here we are in Lincoln down at the post office club, the Premier Event venue for Comic Culture our local shop. With the World of Warcraft regional being today, Karl, our TO, has booked a larger venue. We have WOW, Yu GI OH and Magic taking place in the same venue today.
Whilst WOW is the main focus today we have been offered several sanctioned events in whatever order we want to play them. After a quick vote it is decided that Standard will be our initial event to break everyone into the day with decks they are familiar with.
Round 1
Cue Sniggering! Yes, the Angel Martyr Proclamation deck has to go one on one with Snow Control Martyr Proclamation yet again. We really do need to drag a few more people through the door at Lincoln before we bore each other to death with the same decks. Much like two weeks ago the decks are very evenly balanced though both have seen some serious upgrades and main deck strategies since Planar Chaos came out.
The match-up looks like it is heading for a draw as Jester’s Scepter is killing many of my threats as I try to cast spells, though fortunately I have Extirpated my opponents Martyrs to keep him marginally over one hundred life to my four hundred and eighty seven. Akroma, Angel of Fury is in play and slapping for 20 per turn! However, things take a turn for the worse when Scepters two and three come into play. Suddenly my opponent’s deck takes on a whole new meaning: he’s going to deck me as I am at least ten cards further into my library with no graveyard manipulation in my deck.
Time is called and I have six cards left in my deck, will it be enough to see me through to a draw? NO! The last Jester’s Scepter is played and I am going to be unable to draw in my last turn. I offer my hand to a great game plan by Ollie.
Round 2
In this round we are shocked to hear Ollie has finally suffered a reverse with the life gain deck. It’s my other deck piloted excellently by Rochelle who batters Ollie game 1 before he can gain any life or stop the Griffin Guided Moldervined Monstrosity of beats, which if memory serves me right was a Watchwolf. Game 2 sees a Loxodon Warhammer on a similar beastie and Rochelle ends up with 253 life plays 116 life to win the match up 1-0.
In my match for this round I get to play Paddyo – yes, it is Twincast’s Lincolnshire branch playing one another again. Paddy is still dressing to the left for regular readers of my articles and playing a black white Orzhov style weenie beatdown deck. The first game is won at a canter, finishing on 37 life. Paddy cannot generate the damage and with Condemn, Helix and Mortify to keep his threats at bay, a Firemane Angel is never going to die to Sunlance.
The second game though and no life gain for me and an evading Soltari Priest is more than a tad annoying as I am taking damage. However, play morph and reveal morph for Akroma, Angel of Fury for a pumped up alpha strike of a win.
Round 3
Nick Philips is a regular from the Grimsby magic club we set up and now coming to Lincoln as regularly as he can. Playing Nick in friendlies has been an interesting affair. Nick is running a Megrim card draw and discard deck. I need immediate life gain as I have seen this deck deal 20 or 30 points of damage in one turn with the Magus of the jar and a few Wistful Thinking. Fortunately I am able to get the Martyr and Proclamation lock to gain a silly amount of life but I cannot get a kill strategy out and so Nick’s life total is not moving. When I do get it down I have to then Condemn his Draining Whelk before my own flying horde takes the win with a couple of minutes left on the clock. It is a narrow one nil win for me.
Sonny Jensen is the winner with a Searing Meditation – Tamanoa Deck that shoots most creatures before going for the head.
1.. Sonny Jensen 9
2.. Louis Frith 6
3.. Rochelle Wadner 6
4.. Mark Pinder 6
5.. Ollie Frith 3
6.. Nick Philips 3
7.. Paddy 3
8.. Kate 0
Poor old Kate providing Paddy’s only win and no tea when he gets home!
With six points on the board I wasn’t too concerned as the deck seems to be still working despite everyone in the local area adopting anti-life-gain strategies. Kavu Predators suddenly become targets as soon as they hit play!
So onto the next event and we have decided to go out on a limb and play block constructed for a change. We all have no manner of weird and wonderful decks.
Round 1
I play Louis who is borrowing the deck Sonny rejected, which is black red beat and burn whilst I am playing blue red suspend counter-burn. In game 1, I can’t keep a creature in play for more than two turns and his horde of Blood Knights swing before a Sudden Shock for an easy win.
Game Two and I have to say Big Game Hunter discarded and activated for its Madness cost really does well against Errant Ephemeron. No matter what I resolved it got removed and Louis put my deck to the sword. I am never in the game and I am now concerned that I may be about to scrub out here.
Round 2
I play Ollie Frith again and the whitewash by both brothers is on the cards. Ollie is playing red white Slivers and starts well but I am at least drawing burn to keep the Slivers at bay. Luckily I manage to morph and reveal Akroma for the win.
Game 2 becomes an interesting affair as I pull Mistform Ultimus more than once from my deck, each one drawing away my opponent’s Slivers and trading with them, only for me to drop another as my Ephemerons swing for some hefty beats. Well at least I have a win.
Round 3
And I have to face Sonny Jensen who is playing blue white Slivers, the tactic being something we had seen Craig Stephenson use in a TS draft, linking Psionic and Essence Sliver with Watcher Slivers to survive. The Psionic Slivers kill the board and the Essence Slivers put the life total out of reach of most decks. As Sonny is using my playset of Essence and Psionic Slivers this could be bad for me. Sonny has hardly been under pressure in his other match-ups so far.
Game 1 and my deck only goes and works like it is supposed to! Kill anything that moves or cancel it before the suspended ephemerons fly over for the win.
Game 2 and sideboard time. This match though is so unfair to Sonny as whilst he draws land it is the wrong colour for his hand and he stalls, a suspended lotus bloom helps Akroma morph turn 4 and an unfair win against a blue white deck unable to stop my threat.
We play the third as a friendly and would you credit it my deck does nothing ! Come time for the next event I’ll be playing something new.
There have been some very strange results with people knocking one another over and some strange pairings.
1.. Sonny Jensen
2.. Mark Pinder
3.. Rochelle
4.. Louis
5.. Ollie
6.. Nick
7.. Paddy
8… Kate
So here we are six rounds of Magic and you’d think we’d have had enough but no. We aren’t going to be kicked out of the venue for another couple of hours and have an Extended event sanctioned so out comes our third set of decks.
Round 1, or is it round 7?
I’ve upgraded by Boros deck with a splash of green since last time by splashing out on a playset of Grim Lavamancers and making the deck more Zoo than Boros with Wild Mongrels in for the synergy with the Lavamancer.
I play Ollie and cannot believe what I am seeing – he is only trying Snow Control Martyr in Extended but using real Counterspells and other nasties. However, luckily for me I am playing a really fast deck. I play Stomping Ground and drop Kird Ape, then a Mongrel and, well, lots of creatures before Ollie can see a Martyr or a Counterspell.
Game 2 and early beats are Condemned before the beat down starts from a Wild Mongrel together with a Grim Lavamancer which is burning away my graveyard. I am actually happy with my play as I never feel threatened in either game.
Bye Kate, bye Paddy ! (Who now depart early).
Louis is in a state of shock, that cad and bounder Sonny has only played Engineered Plague naming goblins. I don’t think Louis plays a spell after that!
Round 2
And Nick Philips has just narrowly beaten Rochelle and her White Weenie with Ravager Affinity. This is one match up I feel confident with as I have sideboard tech for Nick.
Nick cannot believe my luck as a Mongrel with an Armadillo Cloak just beats away unfettered and the match is over turn 5 with help of a Lavamancer and some discarded cards.
Game 2 and you know that Armadillo Cloak is rapidly becoming a favourite of mine as I get all my life back from playing shock lands untapped and keep out of my opponent’s range. I never get to draw my shattering spree but do get to Flashback an Ancient Grudge to wipe out blockers and see an Atog meet a Sudden Shock.
Allegedly I am a control player but I can do a bit of aggro as well it seems.
Round 3
Screams from the other side of the room as Louis, who finished second last time round in Extended with his Goblins, is in the cellar match against my girlfriend’s home brew White Weenie. Suffice to say protection from red is bad for Louis and game 2 when the Paladin en-Vecs come out to play led by Tividar of Thorn it gets very messy indeed.
And Sonny has been on fire all day.
The match starts off really well for me battering Sonny down as Trinket Tog seems to do nothing. Then I over-extend and Sonny draws his Engineered Explosives whilst on seven life and the win on the board next turn for me. BOOM! All my creatures are CC 2 and are wiped from the board. Then Counterbalance and Sensei’s Diving Top stop me from resolving another creature and the accursed Tog beats the dog.
Game 2 and this time the deck is under starter’s orders and is a horde of drops supported by burn as the game is controlled from start to finish. I swing for the win and it’s 1-1.
Game 3 and I do something very stupid – I forget what his real threats are and I tweak the deck swapping a couple of cards in the sideboard. I am so tired I make a really bad call on my deck construction. I may get away with it as I play turn 1 Stomping Ground and Kird Ape and Sonny plays an Island. I play Wild Mongrel and Sonny plays Spell Snare! Balls! And at this point things go really badly for me as the Gemstone Mines I put in to try to stabilise the mana of the deck (as I don’t own any fetch lands) effectively kill my mana base and Sonny can come back from a 4 card mulligan for the win.
1. Sonny Jensen 9
2. Mark Pinder 6
3. Ollie frith 6 What the hell!?! Martyr in Extended?
4. Rochelle 3 White Weenie Meltdown ….
5. Nick 3 Affinity
6. Paddy 3
7. Kate 0
8. Louis 0 Goblins
The day has been a long, hard one and before I play 9 rounds again I am going to have to improve my stamina as my play in the last match was riddled with mistakes on my part which Sonny was able to use to his advantage like a pro.
Sonny gets player of the day with an 8-1 record and wins a bonus prize of a Kamigawa wall hang.
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