Date: 17 Dec 97 14:31:45 -0700 From: Nathan Donovan To: "hahn@bway.net" Subject: Re: IN RESPONSE TO: >Subject: Sideboard >Date: Wed, 3 Dec 1997 05:48:58 -0500 (EST) >From: Puckfan31@aol.com >To: hahn@bway.net > I would like to use your War College forum to discuss the enigmatic >sideboard. The 'board as I will call it is a pro magic players most versatile >tool to victory or "meta- game" strategy. A great player with great 'board >skills can have huge advantage over some scrub with a KDD (killer Dojo deck). > Personaly I feel I 'board by the seat of my pants, I play then I throw in >cards I wish I would have seen game 1, then I throw cards in on game 3. Sure >I put a lot of time into finding the best cards to counter my decks "hosers". >and I can do my homework and watch deck trends too, but I often feel >overwhelmed with options. I ask you for your wisdom. Is there a method or are >great 'board skills genetic like "top-decking"? > If I could have the Masters of the War College feedback on this subject I >would be most grateful. These are some of my many questions; >1) Do you build a deck, then make the board defensive vs other deck types? >Why not 15 COP's? When you are designing a deck, it is important to realize that successful decks at best can usually defeat 60-70% of the field, taking into account the sideboard. There is no such thing as a deck that cannot be defeated, so the first step you will want to take is to playtest against several popular deck types: burn, weenies, prison, control, time/disruption, etc., and see what "holes" exist in your deck design. If there are too many, then you will want to reconstruct the main deck before thinking about the sideboard. If there are only a few, then think about which decks will exploit those "holes" the most and begin preparing a sideboard for those deck styles. If it is a specific card which appears in lots of decks that will give you trouble, like armageddon or winter orb, then you should think about sideboarding a few cards to deal with those cards specifically. If, for example, you seem to be able to handle a G/R fairly well, until the winter orb hits the table, just worry about the winter orb. If you are handling the burn and critters ok, being able to stop the orb will allow you more time to find flaws in your opponents deck and exploit them. >2) Do you make the 'board aggro vs certain decks? Or a combo of the best cards? A lot of the advanced players' sideboards tend to use specific cards which do not 'protect' their own deck per se, but contain cards which can clearly disrupt the gameplay of deckstyles which give their main deck problems. In other words, they are sideboarding cards which kill certain components of what these opposing decks do, whether its inhibiting mana, the attack, or other resources. For instance, if Necrodecks give you trouble, then good sideboard cards might include the following: 1) Anvil of Bogardan --> Stops card draw from Necro 2) Forsaken Wastes --> Stops life gain which is critical to Necro. 3) Pro Black creatures --> not as strong IMO, but still good SB cards for added defense and opening up a hole for consistent damage dealing each turn. 4) Disrupting Scepter --> Inhibits hand size which = life in a necro deck. If you are facing problems with mono blue, here are some examples of good SB cards against mono blue: 1) Winter Orb ---> Inhibits mana production which is *crucial* for blue to survive. Blue also has limited permanent removal which makes Worb strong. 2) City of Solitude ---> Shuts down counterspelling ability. Until this card leaves play, you have successfully killed 1/3 of a blue deck's cards with this one card. 3) Pyroblast/Red Elemental Blast ---> No-Brainer if you are playing red. These are not 'end all be all' examples, but they are all proven, effective cards against these specific decktypes. Again, these cards mainly focus on rendering components of certain deckstyles useless, or inhibited, which is one kind of sideboarding technique. >3) Do you 'board cards straight in your main deck to cover the "meta-game"? >What!!!! you play with a COP red?!?! This question directly ties in to your previous one, because you will need to assess the meta-game in your area if you expect your sideboard (and deck) to be successful. Will you see lots of Burn? Big Blue? PropaOrb? WW? Stompy?..It is important not only to recognize what deck types you can expect to see but also to understand what kinds of cards or strategies in each of those decks will stand out as possible problems for you. This is usually the most difficult aspect of playing tournament magic, because even if you are successful at assessing the meta-game for a given tournament, that does not mean you will have an easy time of things. Sideboarding for the meta-game includes what I described above, about using specific cards to shut down components or parts of other deck styles, while either helping yours or not hurting it at all. Other meta-game sideboarding strategies include questions like "Is it better to use disenchant over aura of silence?" "Should I sideboard C:ops for defense? or earthquakes for offensive disruption against necro?" These are the kinds of questions that sideboarding for the meta-game will ultimately bring, and it is important to be able to see cards which are globally useful against multiple deck types as well as specific cards for specific deck types. Earthquake, for example, is a wonderful sideboard card against almost every weenie deck there is, but it is more inefficient at killing your opponent straight off than say a fireball. Winter Orb is generally a strong SB card against decks which gain control slowly, like mono blue, counterhammer, or counterpost decks. City of solitude is generally effective against decks which are reactive and utilize spells during your turn. >4) Do you ' board vs deck archetypes or specific cards or both? Both. But what you will find when attempting to do both is that a lot of cards overlap. Cards you have used for specific deck types will actually turn out to be generally useful, and cards you thought would be good cards in general might turn out to be too narrow. >5) Is it wise to simply stregthen your deck with the 'board? "I'll add my 3rd >Wrath and my 4th disenchant." In my opinion there are three major reasons behind sideboarding. 1) to enhance the program/strategy that already exists in your deck. If your deck is doing well in testing, but you notice that you should really have 4 swords instead of three, or 4 disenchants instead of 3, find out which of these cards you tend to need most, and either alter the main deck before sideboarding, or set them aside as additions to your sideboard "pool" of cards. 2) Sideboarding gives your deck balance against other kinds of deck styles if your main deck is really narrow (i.e., sligh, gun, stompy are examples of decks which tend to be fairly narrow, but strong nonetheless) You will notice that a lot of sligh decks these days run boards with 3-4 disenchants, 2-3 forsaken wastes, and possibly winter orbs. These kinds of cards are cheap, but can be really effective in disallowing your opponent to capitalize on the narrowness of just creatures and burn. 3) To shut down components of opposing decks you know will give you trouble. As stated under your second question, this is an important kind of sideboarding if you know a lot of people play certain deckstyles in your area which will give you trouble. >6) What do you take out?!?! You tune your deck and now your expected to alter >the delicate color or mana ratios??!!!?? This is why it is vital to practice sideboarding when you are testing a deck out. A lot of players just playtest their main deck, and then construct a sideboard at the last minute. This may work for a few people who are so familiar with all of the cards in the field, and are so comfortable with the deck they have that they need very little time to think about sideboards, but for most of us, this is a big mistake. Building your sideboard should reflect similar mana ratios, and casting costs, so that your are not going to get color screwed or in a situation where you are fighting your own deck rather than your opponent. What I usually do is write my decklist down on paper, and make one sentence notes about how to sideboard against 6-10 decks that I expect to see. This is where you will notice overlap of certain cards you have in the sideboard. This will help when it comes time to trip down your sideboard from 20-25 possible cards to 15. >7) How much do you commit? "OH, your running Sligh... I was ready for you, >I'll 'board in 14 cards! Game 2 I'll win for certain" I don't call that >ready. When it gets down to these kind of specifics, it basically will depend upon how well you know your deck, your sideboard, and your opponents deck. Sideboarding against a specific deck that you are prepared will never guarantee you a win, and those who expect to win after sideboarding will often times make the most mistakes and play a little sloppier. Even after sideboarding it is essential to play mistake free, observantly, and thoughtfully. This helps you get your gameplay into a momentum you are comfortable with, and when your sideboard cards come up for you (if), their aid factor will seem all that much more beneficial. >8) Should there be an exact system, or plan. "vs burn I remove my Pups and >add my Keepers" >I could go on and on with this line of questions. I think that 'boarding is >one of the most underated and seldom discussed topics in M;tg but I think It >can be one of the most important. Maybe the fact that there is no template, >as each matchup is so different from the next. I have seen many "newbies" who >will show up without 'boards at all. The sideboard is quite obviously a very >advanced game mechanic (and I thought "timing" was rough) and I leave it to >the War College to make simple sense of it all. Yes, I agree totally.. Building a competitive deck also involves building a sideboard which will help it survive through rough spots. Being able to sideboard effectively involves understanding the momentum of your deck and which cards will be optimal helpers most of the time. Cards which look good for you to use, but are too expensive, too defensive and not disruptive enough, can sometimes prove ineffecient in situations where they should work. In essence, poor sideboard choices will force you to struggle with your own deck, rather than help you capitalize on holes you could otherwise produce in your opponents game play. > Thanks in advance. I'm just glad that I get a full 5min to 'board I can use >every minute. > PTLA come to daddy > -Keith Sincerely, Nathan Donovan nated@greatwave.com