Subject: MD States Report
Date: 18 Nov 98 19:50:20 EST
From: Andrew Brokos AndrooBrokos@netscape.net
To: webmaster@classicdojo.org

Why is a state championship being held the same weekend as PT:Rome? All of the truly great players will be playing for thousands of dollars in rome, not a box of Urza’s Saga. Well, thanks to such poor planning, the competition was a bit (but not much) slacker, I found my way into the Top 8, where I was promptly thrashed by the only Academy deck to make the cut. Is that deck broken? Probably not, but it’s damn annoying. But that’s another article.
I arrived at the tournament with about half of my “team”, my friends Mitesh Patel and Mike McGillen. My brother was grounded and couldn’t go, so his friend didn’t go either. They usually comprise the other half of the “team”. Neither Mike nor Mitesh had decks, so we spent the night before building a White Weenie and a Necro deck, both of which went 3-3. This is the actual report part. Some names may be incor-, err..., changed, to, uh, to protect the innocent, that’s it! Some I just plain forgot.
First, the deck:

4 Hermit Druid
4 Survival of the Fittest
4 Living Death
3 Recurring Nightmare
3 Spike Feeder
4 Wall of Blossoms
4 Birds of Paradise
1 Great Whale
1 Shivan Hellkite
1 Wood Elves
1 Spike Weaver
1 Cloudchaser Eagle
1 Tradewind Rider
1 Monk Idealist
1 Anarchist
1 Fallen Angel
1 Scroll Rack
1 Lobotomy
1 Thrull Surgeon

SB:
4 Pyroblast
3 Disenchant
3 Lobotomy
1 Dark Hatchling
1 Scragnoth
1 Shard Phoenix
1 Carrion Beetles
1 Spike Feeder

Round 1: Adam Dale playing a similar Living Death deck

His deck was similar to the many other Death decks there in that he used Stroke of Genius, and I don’t think any Hermit Druids. I consider this to be a mistake as the Druid is key in many matches, including Death vs. Death, and with Druid, you can’t depend on having Stroke in hand to finish after the combo. Plus, he had 3 Tradewinds. They were good in the old, controllish Death decks. Now, it’s better to just get the combo and go off. I’ve since removed all the Tradewinds. Anyway, the first game went quickly as I beat him to the combo because of Druid. I sided in a Beetles, a Tradewind, 3 Lobos, and a Disenchant, taking out 3 Spike Feeder, 1 Spike Weaver, and 2 Living Death. We both started similarly, I with a Druid and he with a Survival. He went first and had a Wood Elves, so he was considerably ahead in lands. On my third turn, I looked at my hand and saw 2 Recurs and 2 Lobos. If he Loboed on his turn and got the Recurs, I knew it was over, so I cast one of them. On his turn, he made a critical mistake by casting a Disenchant instead of Lobotomy. I turned around and Lobotomied him, taking out all of his Lobos, and went off the next turn. He was a nice guy with a good deck, and managed to make it to 4-1 before losing a match that would’ve put him in the top 8.

Round 2: Steven Forsythe playing Academy

His first draw was just abysmal. I couldn’t go off until the seventh turn, but in that time he had nothing but Academy the first 6 turns, and got out a Key and a Scroll Rack on the seventh. Second game, I made a huge mistake playing a Volrath’s Stronghold instead of a City on my first turn. He Windfalled and I got 2 Pyros, but didn’t have red mana. I put out a Survival and a Bird, plus a few lands and he was having trouble going off. I finally put down a Karplusan Forest (sure am glad I put those in), and he was forced to be more cautious. He Intuitioned, but I didn’t have to Pyro because he had already Windfalled away two Powersinks. He forced one of my Pyros, but I used Volrath’s Stronghold to put a Druid on top of my library, Survivaled for a Whale, and went off. I really didn’t deserve this win. I think everyone who does well at a tournament owes it to at least one lucky match, and this was mine.

Round 3: Steven McKay playing Stompy w/ Gaea’s Cradle

After the first round, I played a couple fun games with him, and his deck was too fast for mine. My friend suggested that perhaps that was a problem, but I said what are the odds of me meeting someone with it? Well, I met him. First game he started off with a Pouncing Jaguar, then another, then 3 Elves. Luckily I had a Wall and a Feeder and was desperately Druiding. I hit the combo and went off without too much trouble. Second game I had too many Cities, and he Symbiosised to kill my Walls. I put out a Hellkite, but I couldn’t hit the Whale with a Druid, and an Argothian Wurm finished me. The third game was very similar to the first, except I took longer to go off, but was able to kill his weenies with a Shard Phoenix, making his Cradle useless. Against this deck, Druid is key to playing a land every turn, which is necessarry to go off ASAP. You can’t stay alive against this deck with less than five mana.

Round 4: Ed Lormore playing Fire Elves

He starts with a Lyrist and I with a Birds, at which point he suggests that we are playing the same deck. Thinking he means Death, I play the Surgeon in my hand, which he Disintegrates. It occurs to me what he’s playing, but drawing out the Disintegrate proves vital. I put out a Druid, and he Fireballs it and the bird. I play another Druid and a Feeder, and he Fireballs the Druid and me. Without Druids, I am forced to wait until I have enough lands to play Survival and dump Whale into the graveyard before his Lyrist can destroy it. Luckily, he wasted too much burn early on killing Druids, and I topdeck the swamp I need the turn before he gets a Disintegrate. Second game I decide to leave the Lobo in, which is not standard procedure vs. Weenies. My draw is not as solid even after a mulligan, and he whiddles me down quickly. My Phoenix eliminates his mana horde, though, and thus the possibility of a big Fireball. He drops a Winter Orb, which he says are main deck. It hurt him more than me, and Whale eventually untapped everything anyway. Another really nice and friendly player, I was lucky that way. I don’t remember anyone I played being a prick, which is rare in the world of Magic.

Round 5: ????? playing Sligh

This guy was REALLY nice, and an excellent player with an excellent deck. I play him like any weenie deck, and keep a hand with Druids and Birds, usually good against weenies. He burns them all and gets HUGE positional advantage with Goblin Lackey. I go down to a horde of screaming Moggs. Second game I keep a two-land hand after mulliganing with a Wall of Blossoms. He Bursts the Wall, Fanatics a Bird, and I don’t see another land until the turn he kills me. I’m glad I got my manascrew against him, since I probably would’ve lost anyway. The Lackeys are great Tech, he explains, as they get past Chill and control, plus they’re just damn fast and empty your hand for Scroll. The deck is truly innovative and, as he testifies, a lot of fun. I wish him luck, and we continue to chat after the round. I’ll probably write something about his deck, as DoW seems not to have anything on Sligh, and this was an excellent deck.

Round 6: ????? playing Death
Going into this round, I figure I have about a forty percent chance of playing Academy, and thus a sixty percent chance of making Top 8. I was so relieved to see his Forest, Birds. I come out with the God draw: Forest, Birds. Swamp, Survival, survival for Druid. Pool, Druid, Wall. Forest, Survival for Whale, survival for Idealist, druid and hit Nightmare. Forest, Cast Idealist, survival for Wood Elves. Pool, Cast Wood Elves, cast Nightmare, win. His deck contained two Whales, and I didn’t see a discernible kill card. Very interesting. I start the second game with a Beetles, then a Druid, he with a Survival. His hand is not good, as I see when I delay Druiding to Lobotomize him. I take a Thrull Surgeon, and he has nothing left with which to survival. I have a fat graveyard, but am forced to survival Whale into the graveyard. When I hit the seven mana mark, I am very low on life from attacking Feeders. Up until this point, he’s been very friendly. I cast Survival, discard a Wall for a Whale and a Whale for a Wall, then Recur the Whale into play, untapping my lands. At this point, I am quite sick of going throught the combo and since I had demonstrated it last game, I asked if he would concede. He suggested that since I had two Cities, I couldn’t stay alive. I told him I’d use a Feeder, and he said demonstrate it. I tap seven, cast Nightmare, and leave GGRB in my pool. I sac the Whale, and realize I’ve sided out all my Spike Feeders, so I’ll have to do a big Death, which is no problem as he has no hand and no graveyard. I apologize for suggesting that I had a Feeder, and say I cast Recur, intending to go for Anarchist and get back a Living Death. He stops me and says I have only 2 mana in my pool. We argue as I try to demonstrate exactly what happened, but he swears I never put a Whale into play and casting Survival and Recur leave me with only two mana, and he is becoming visibly angry. Finally, we had two judges over as I slowly went through everything I did that turn. I don’t believe he was trying to cheat me, because he finally agreed. I apologize for any lack of clarity on my part as attack with a horde of creatures, but he very curtly shakes my hand and tells me to be careful in the future. I guess he was just angry about missing his spot in the top 8, but really, even if I couldn’t have cast the Death that turn, he still would have lost. My deck is amazing against other Death decks.

I am assured a spot in the Top 8, but during the 40 minute interval (70 minute rounds?! What the hell?!), I am haunted by memories...

It is the Exodus qualifier, and I am 5-1. There are 8 people who are 4-1, and 2 undefeated people who are forced to play the 5-0-1 people who ID’d the previous round. I win my match, and gleefully figure that 6-1 is in. They announce the Top 8, and my name is called. I move quickly to the table, and as I look for my name, I hear it called from the other end of the table. I figure it is my opponent, and I head in that direction. “Androo Brokos?” says a man in a Judge’s shirt. Why is the judge calling me? We made a mistake. Both the 5-0-1 people won, so the 6-1 with worst tie-brakers was out. Guess who that was?

There was no mistake this time, and I am in. The top 8 consists of:

3 Sligh (including the Lackey one)
1 Burning Bridge
1 Living Death (me)
1 Suicide Black
1 Academy
1 Blue control with Lobotomy

Clearly, I want to face Academy the least. Unfortunately, I play Academy. The first game is his, I can do nothing. Second game I have a Bird, a City, a Feeder, and two Pryos in hand. He’s taken a lot of City/Tomb/Vault damage, and it is looking good. For some reason, I cast a Survival, which he of course Power Sinks. Fearing a tap-out, I Pyro, forgetting I don’t have to tap Birds. Then, next turn, I attack and bring him to 2. On his turn, he Spirals and I Pyro, stupidly, with the Bird. He Power Sinks, I am tapped out, and draw a Pyro that I am powerless to cast. He goes off and ends my championship run. The fact that he had the advantage the next game is in the back of my head, but it frustrates me that I lost because of playing mistakes. WotC reprinted a better version of Wheel of Fortune and made it Blue. They reprinted a better version of Timetwister (in that deck). They reprinted Mox and re-usable Loti (Academy and Mana Vault). They reprinted Ancestral Recall (Meditate). They reprinted a better version of Braingeyser. It’s like Type 1 all over again with the Academy deck.
The prize for Top 8 was 9 packs of Saga, and the admission price was $15. That’s not even twice what I paid to get in, and I assure you making top 8 took alot of work. I felt a bit gypped, but it was much better than I expected to do, so I am not disappointed.