December 4, 2017
October 30, 2009
October 11, 2009
October 10, 2009
Naya/Jund Combo/Aggro
Had a chance to play against Eoin's deck last week when I sat out for a bye. Only not against Eoin, but he lets Emma use it because they're good like that. Discovered I need way more removal/protecrtion spells to get much of anything going. So here's what I'm thinking:
60 card deck = 20 lands, 20 offense, 20 defense
Or to put it another way:
60 card deck = 20 lands, 20 for the attack, 20 for prevention
60 card deck = 20 lands, 20 offense, 20 defense
Or to put it another way:
60 card deck = 20 lands, 20 for the attack, 20 for prevention
First Zendikar Draft
played 4 rounds, 7 games; had 1 win, 1 bye = tournament score 1-3
Seems like the biggest way to win at Zendikar draft is beefing up your creatures as much as possible. Unsure of what to pick when I opened up the first pack, I opted for the green/red dual land, Kazandu Refuge, passing up the fetch land so many are chomping at the bit for.
It put me in a very good spot for red, although next time I'll be focusing less on picking creatures and more on artifacts and spells that make my creatures big enough to stomp ass.
Vampires are definitely the hot topic around town, with mil decks coming in a close second, thaks to our little friend the Hedron Crab. I prefer the off-the-wall, what-the-fuck-was-that combo wins myself. So if I'm still having trouble with the Naya/Jund combo/aggro constructed deck, I'll definitely be working on Lifebringer as a viable option, especially since I traded a fetch land last week for 3 Celestial Mantles and practicaally a whole shopping bag full of other nifty stuff. Actually, it was two fetch lands, and after I found out how much they were really worth I realized just how much of a bad trade that was for me.
Need to get some stickers to put on the pages in my book, so I can write the prices and not have to worry about getting jipped again.
Seems like the biggest way to win at Zendikar draft is beefing up your creatures as much as possible. Unsure of what to pick when I opened up the first pack, I opted for the green/red dual land, Kazandu Refuge, passing up the fetch land so many are chomping at the bit for.
It put me in a very good spot for red, although next time I'll be focusing less on picking creatures and more on artifacts and spells that make my creatures big enough to stomp ass.
Vampires are definitely the hot topic around town, with mil decks coming in a close second, thaks to our little friend the Hedron Crab. I prefer the off-the-wall, what-the-fuck-was-that combo wins myself. So if I'm still having trouble with the Naya/Jund combo/aggro constructed deck, I'll definitely be working on Lifebringer as a viable option, especially since I traded a fetch land last week for 3 Celestial Mantles and practicaally a whole shopping bag full of other nifty stuff. Actually, it was two fetch lands, and after I found out how much they were really worth I realized just how much of a bad trade that was for me.
Need to get some stickers to put on the pages in my book, so I can write the prices and not have to worry about getting jipped again.
October 4, 2009
October 3, 2009
Regional vs. Local Events
Last night was my first Release Party at the local store. Even though I wasn't prepared for decklists, I had a great time! It's much more relaxed there than it was at the Regional Prerelease. More people are starting to know my name, so I get to see those familiar faces and meet some new people every time. It's a good balance. Plus, everyone is super friendly.
The Regional Prerelease was way different. There were three times as many people, no one seemed interested in open dueling, and there were a lot of good players in the tournament (once it was finally time for my flight to start). I was surprised at how well people seemed to know the new cards, since it was the first time anyone had actually played with them, and the absence of decklists made it super easy to trade out cards from previous flights between rounds -- I only entered one flight, so I'm not talking about me here. I'm just saying that some people had suspiciously good decks that day.
The regional Prerelease was my first time in a sealed format, so I'm disappointed but not surprised that I had zero wins. A fourth-round bye was a nice finish, though! They were a bit behind schedule so we were only given 30 minutes to build our decks. My stragety was way off, too. I opened all the packs and sorted them by color then sifted through them to find the "best" color choices.
For the release event back at the local store, I was ready to take a different approach and take the first best card out of every pack, then the second best card, the third best, and so on -- kind of like a six pack personal draft. So yeah, decklists threw that theory right out of the water becase we didn't get to keep the pool we opened.
I did find a lot of fliers, and when they were on the board they were a force to be reckoned with. Getting them out there was the tough spot. Final score last night was 2-2 (with another fourth round bye... can you believe it!)
Next week: draft techniques.
The Regional Prerelease was way different. There were three times as many people, no one seemed interested in open dueling, and there were a lot of good players in the tournament (once it was finally time for my flight to start). I was surprised at how well people seemed to know the new cards, since it was the first time anyone had actually played with them, and the absence of decklists made it super easy to trade out cards from previous flights between rounds -- I only entered one flight, so I'm not talking about me here. I'm just saying that some people had suspiciously good decks that day.
The regional Prerelease was my first time in a sealed format, so I'm disappointed but not surprised that I had zero wins. A fourth-round bye was a nice finish, though! They were a bit behind schedule so we were only given 30 minutes to build our decks. My stragety was way off, too. I opened all the packs and sorted them by color then sifted through them to find the "best" color choices.
For the release event back at the local store, I was ready to take a different approach and take the first best card out of every pack, then the second best card, the third best, and so on -- kind of like a six pack personal draft. So yeah, decklists threw that theory right out of the water becase we didn't get to keep the pool we opened.
I did find a lot of fliers, and when they were on the board they were a force to be reckoned with. Getting them out there was the tough spot. Final score last night was 2-2 (with another fourth round bye... can you believe it!)
Next week: draft techniques.
September 27, 2009
Hello & Howdy Do
But like every good player, I have to start at the bottom and work my way up. You can't just walk into a room (or a PTQ for that matter) and expect to beat every single player on your first try. I don't know anybody who's that good. And frankly, if it were that easy, it would get boring mighty fast and I'd be on to something else that feeds my ego.
The challenge of the game is, in part, why I like it. The new card rotations keep things fresh and interesting, the tournaments are a great way to meet people who (let's face it) are every bit as geek-smart as myself. Plus, think of the perks! Once you go pro there's all kinds of goodies waiting for you down the line. Three-round byes, appearence pay, comped airline tickets and hotel rooms, exotic worldwide tournament locations, and let's not forget the fat stacks of cash that come with every major win. What's not to love?
When my opponent asks me what got me interested in Magic, that's what I tell them. I love to see the surprised look flash across their face for a brief second... but it's the truth. I might not be good yet, but fellas, watch out!
What got you interested in playing Magic?
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