Sorry boys, my home computer is for watching free porno ONLY, so no updates throughout the long weekend :P. It was nice to actually just relax and spend some time with my girlfriend watching movies and playing (regular) cards. Sometimes it feels like you have so much to do that you miss out on the little things like sleep and eating properly to try and squeeze in that last little bit of cleaning or shopping or playtesting. Then before you know it, it’s back to work, frantically trying to put together a lunch that is more than just a few crackers and cheese, and skipping breakfast because you have no milk for your Cheerios.
That’s right, It’s one of those days… I can’t wait to get home and go back to bed! Lol
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Sept 02 / 2011. While most of the hardcore players were happily settling down in PT Philly, us casuals were getting ready for a classic battle at FNM.
I’ve been playing a RUG Twin deck for the past few weeks because I’m just in love with the “combo”. Being able to randomly Cast Deceiver Exarch on turn 2, then Splinter Twin turn 3 FTW feels really good. The combo just lets you take games that you shouldn’t be able to.
Mono red burn got you at 5 and you have no board position? Twin and win.
Caw Blade tap out to play Sun Titan and bring back a Phantasmal Image? Twin and win.
At 9 poison counters and your opponent activates an Inkmoth Nexus? Twin and win.
My deck is VERY different from the standard, as I like having the combo as an “Ooops, I win” in the deck, but I like being able to win without it. This way a random Memoricide or Surgical Extraction doesn’t just destroy me, AND you keep your opponent guessing as to what you’re playing. Half the time they don’t even see the combo coming, so don’t prepare for it, then they sideboard as though they’re facing a dedicated Twin deck and lose to my beaters.
Here is my list:
4x Birds of Paradise
4x Lotus Cobra
3x Fauna Shaman
1x Sylvan Ranger
4x Deceiver Exarch
2x Sea Gate Oracle
2x Vengevine
1x Thrun, the Last Troll
2x Acidic Slime
1x Consecrated Sphinx
1x Inferno Titan
4x Preordain
2x Garruk, Wildspeaker
4x Splinter Twin
3x Raging Ravine
4x Misty Rainforest
3x Scalding Tarn
4x Mountain
4x Island
7x Forest
Sideboard
4x Obstinate Baloth
2x Nature’s Claim
4x Arc Trail
2x Creeping Corrosion
3x Spellskite
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Round 1: Andrew DiLullo – Caw Blade
Oh boy, I get to face our tournament organizer round 1! How exciting!! :S
Andrew is not only our TO, but a super nice guy and a very competitive player as well. He’s running a standard Caw Blade list, which is fine by me. As long as I can get some early pressure going I should be able to seal the deal before he drops a sun titan and rolls me. I’m pretty sure he knows I run the combo, so I’ll have to be careful of his spell pierce!
Game 1:
I apply early pressure with a Lotus Cobra and Vengevine but he eventually Oblivion Rings my Vengevine and his Squadron Hawks fly over and stab me a couple times with a Sword of Feast and Famine. He gets a Sun Titan online as well to recur blockers for my team and to keep bringing Tectonic Edge back to keep me off double red and Splinter Twin.
Game 2:
Andrew mulls to 5 but has a Squad Hawk for the “unmulligan”. I play T1 BoP into T2 Fauna Shaman. He’s got a squad hawk in play and casts Timely Reinforcements. I play a land on my turn and pass. He taps out for an O-Ring on my F-Shaman so I tap it in response to search out an Exarch and play it EoT. I Twin on my turn.
Game 3:
We both play out some creatures, and he lands a Spellskite to start blocking my guys. He equips it with 2x Sword of Feast and Famine and starts swinging. I have to block with things like Sea Gate Oracle and tap it down with Exarchs to stay in the game. We both end up deploying troops and the board is looking pretty clogged. I know that all it will take him is a Gideon or Day of Judgment to turn the game around so am getting desperate. I tap out for a Consecrated Sphinx and start drawing cards and swinging for 4. I get in a couple times to bring him low on life, then he taps out to play his OWN Sphinx! My turn comes up and he draws 2 off my draw step… so I draw 4 off his 2. Then he draws 8 off my 4, and I draw 16 off his 8. He’s all tapped out so can’t stop the multiple Exarchs I had drawn and scoops when I start tapping down his blockers with them.
Close games!
1-0 / 2-1
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Round 2: Andrew Ewer – Mono Red Burn
I’ve played Andrew before and he’s always got a great deck fully equipped with any rares / mythics that it may need. I live in fear of a T1 Goblin Guide!
Game 1:
He’s just rolling me with damage in the forms of burn and 2x Chandra’s Phoenix. I’m at 10 and he taps out to play a Hero of Oxid Ridge. “GG?” he asks as he threatens to swing for lethal. I play Exarch on his attack phase to tap down Hero and Twin on my turn. Dreams = crushed!
Game 2:
He’s on the play and mulls to 6. His T1 Goblin Guide almost goes all the way! I draw / play nothing at all except a Seagate Oracle (which gets Bolted). Fortunately, he’s stuck on 1 land and only draws the second the turn before I Twin him out. He flashes me the Act of Aggression after the game to show that if he’d had that last mana he could have won!
Better lucky than good I guess?
2-0 / 4-1
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Round 3: Micheal White – Mono Red Burn
I don’t know Micheal very well, but he seems like a really nice guy… especially since he traded me a foil full frame Zendikar Mountain! Thanks again! :)
He leads with a mountain. “Got a Goblin Guide to go along with it?” I ask. “I don’t own any…” he replies. The awkward silence is broken by “Play a furnace scamp?”. “That’ll do pig… that’ll do.” I have nothing except for a Raging Ravine that managed to hit him twice, and he gets me to 5. He’s got 3 cards in hand and had just played a Grim Lavamancer… I’m pretty sure I have no ways out. I draw my card… Inferno Titan! I play it, kill his Lavamancer and deal him 2. He draws again, and passed with 4 cards in hand. I activate Ravine and swing with the team and he shows me 4x Mountains in his hand.
Game 2:
I keep a hand with 2x Islands and 2x Mountains with 2x Sea Gate Oracle and a BoP. I figure that I’ve got 2x Oracles to draw into a Forest, and the oracle bodies themselves should be nice little walls to stop his initial onslaught. I draw Garruk, Slime, Fauna Shaman, BoP, nothing on either Sea Gate and I die.
Game 3:
I stick a T2 Fauna Shaman and he doesn’t answer it right away. This lets me Shaman up an Obstinate Baloth to play. He learns his lesson and bolts my Shaman, but it’s already too late. My Baloth puts me out of reach and the team comes out to shut him down.
Made it to the finals!
3-0 / 6-2
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Round 4: Mark Conlon (AKA: The Ancient Hellkite) – Mono Black
Mark has been playing for a long time, and since he’s turning 50 next year he’s been dubbed the name Ancient Hellkite! We’ve been really back and forth lately with our matches, and I’m pretty sure I took him out last time we’d played so he’s hungry for vengeance!
Before we play we agree to draw so that we’ll each be guaranteed a prize pack. First and second earn a free booster and promo foil, and we both just wanted to ensure we’d get that pack! We decided whoever won this match would be the “unofficial winner” and get bragging rights, but we would let the computer choose the REAL winner based on tie breakers.
Game 1:
He gets the Vault Skirge T1 / Nighthawk T3 plays and looks like he’ll take it home T4 when he plays a Lashwrithe… but he misses a land drop! Oh boy!! I’ve just got random beasts and bears on the table but manage to ultimate my Garruk to give them and a Raging Ravine trample to win!
Game 2:
He has T1 Vault Skirge, T3 Nighthawk, T4 Lashwrithe so basically my only way to win is through the combo because of all his life gain. I’ve got exarch in hand and I draw a Twin! Exciting. I have a raging ravine and a Lotus Cobra in play so I have the 2x R to cast it on my turn if I draw a land! He plays a Tectonic edge and destroys my Ravine. Eugh. He also doomblades my Cobra. I see. I take more flying lifelink beats and have to play my Exarch just to keep his Lashwrithe equipped Skirge out of combat. I don’t draw a red source for the next few turns and die.
Game 3:
Is basically a replay of game 2. He brings out the quick lifelinkers, I have the combo but no red. He takes this one easily, and even plays out 2x Phyrexian Obliterators to truly stomp me.
Good games Hellkite!
3-0-1 / 6-2-2
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Andrew (our TO) adds all the matches to the system and lo-and-behold I end up in “official” first place! I’m happy just to get my pack, but wait a minute… special announcement… the first place finisher also gets 2x Byes to the “Niagara Magic Weekend” main event! Hmmm… now if only I could make it there! Maybe a romantic weekend at the Falls with the GF is due? She can go out shopping while I play in the tournament?? I’ll have to cook her a nice supper, give her a massage and slip in the question! Haha
(More info HERE: Niagara Super Magic Weekend)
(More info HERE: Niagara Super Magic Weekend)
Will I play this deck again? Oh yea. I think I’m safe adding a few Copperline Gorge instead of a Forest or two, as the loss in the finals was directly related to mana issues, and I only really need the G available for a T1 BoP. We’ll see if I can find my foils :P
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I'd like to take a quick second to give a shout out to my friend Paul Dobbs who didn't do so well last Friday. His innovative "Big Red / Destructive Force" deck went 1-3 so he wasn't feeling so great about his performance. I managed to convince him to come to the casino on the way home because obv winning some $$$ and drinking free pop makes everything better. We always play roulette because we have a "system", and a timely "00" (double zero) earned us EACH a quick $15 (big money! lol) and we were back on our ways home. We got to my place and were forced to drink and play more cards with our cronies who had stayed awake waiting for us. It's good to be loved! <3
Cheers,
Carl Szalich
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