From: "Alan M. Newman" Newsgroups: rec.games.trading-cards.magic.strategy Subject: NY PTQ Report Date: Sun, 07 Sep 1997 21:53:25 -0400 Just a brief update and a few reflections on M/V/W. Five of us (me, Carl Li Bassi, Erik Rodriguez, Chris Donovan & Jim MGovern) went to Neutral Ground's spiffy new headquarters in the Big Apple for the final NY PTQ. I was quickly warned by one of the proprieters to expect a sweeping change in the environment, but having tested against and played Jim's mono-blue for three weeks and noting Brian Kibler's win plastered all over the net, it was easy to figure out that mono-blue would be much more in evidence. No surprise here. Jim & Carl both played the mono-blue, which incidentally, Jim got courtesy of the creator, Brian Schneider, a loooong time ago. I *almost* played it. Erik played a funky R/G, mostly SRB and 2 Elephant Grasses standard. Chris & I both played a close version of the R/G I went 5-1-1 with in Edison (John Pennock's "Greenfire" that won the Seattle PTQ), but Chris had 4 Aether Flashes in the sideboard. My sideboard was a lot more traditional. I was the only one who had any luck that day, as everyone else seemed to plunge into the wrong match-up or whatever. Just a rotten day, I guess. My first round was an easy win. In round 2, I faced Bob Wagner of Chicago, who eventually went on to at least the semis (don't know what happened after). Bob played Ertai and won the first game handily. In the second, I had him down to 8 with one Fireblast in hand. I was at 10 with a Necrotog on the other side. I could recurse a Hammer, but did not have enuf mana to cast that and an Incinerate if I drew one, so I had to pray for another Fireblast. The gods delivered 3 points in the form of an Incinerate, so I could bring Bob down to 1. Joy. Oh well. I died to a huge-ass Necrotog. In both games, I was held back by mana problems. Quicksand and Undiscovered Paraise are not the preferred draw. In round 3, I meet Alex Shvartzman (mono-blue), the only player I met all day with an equal rating. This is a deck I usually crush in testing. I totally dominated the first game, but the roles were reversed in game two as Alex was able to deploy very quickly, whereas I was somewhat screwed. Eventually, I had 3 mountains and an Undiscovered on the board and when Alex Shimmered the Mountains away, it was time to fold my hand. Game 3 probably would have been a different story had I not had early mana problems, but I was a little too late in developing. With Alex at 6, it would have only taken one or two turns to win the match. Next three rounds are all easy. Nothing to write home about. In round 7, I meet George Dolgy (Ertai) who I beat a few weeks earlier in Edison. I win again as he is mana-screwed two straight. Primary observation: in almost all the rounds I played, mana-screw played a major role. I lost a few, won a few, but far too many games were decided by one player developing normally and the other player having to wait, wait, wait until a few lands showed up. Y'know what? Intelligence and skill don't enter into the equation in circumstances like this. There's got to be a way to solve this problem, once and for all. Secondary observation: the environment did indeed shift for this tournament, probably due to Kibler's win with the mono-blue. Meanwhile, the M/V/W field has been pretty much constrained to several (too few) deck types due to intense net exposure. Apparently, most players are no longer interested in even attempting the creative route and just pick up on what they find at the Dojo. Bad for the game? Perhaps. Heck, even I played a deck that was only one card shy of Pennock's net-listed deck. Tertiary observation: Those of you who know me, know how much I deplore cheating. Well, last night, one of my teammates observed a *VERY* highly ranked player as he went through a series of turns *not* taking damage from his own Phyrexian Furnace with an Urborg Stalker out on his side of the table. This player was at 4 life and would have lost the match against a player who was obviously ignorant of the situation. This kind of shit has got to stop. I wound up 5-2, and probably didn't even pick up any rating points. Tied for 9th, as usual. A waste of time? No way. I was with friends and we had a great time anyway. If you're in Manhattan, you gotta see Neutral Ground. Great place. Oh yeah, the R/G. This is a great deck and in our play sessions, dominated both Ertai and mono-blue. It had some problems with Hazerider U/W, but Tropical Storms in the sideboard cure that problem nicely. John Pennock's "Greenfire" had one less Twister and one more Sandstalker. 4 Suq'Ata Lancers 2 Viashino Sandstalkers 4 Wall of Roots 4 River Boa 4 Kaervek's Torch 4 Incinerate 4 Hammer of Bogardan 3 Fireblast (should have been 4!) 4 Thunderbolt 3 Savage Twisters (never hurt to have one in hand) 4 Mountain Valleys (should cut to 2 or 3 - had 2 or more too many times in opening hand) 4 Forests 12 Mountains 3 Quicksands (probably better off with only 1 and adding 1 Mt. and one Forest) 1 Undiscovered Paradise (always showed up when I didn't want it) Sideboard 3 Emerald Charms (Shimmer, Tombstone Stairwell, Aether Flash) 1-3 Serene Hearts (Pacifism, Abduction, Mind Harness) 2-3 Wildfire Emissaries (Aether Flash, SOT - can't be targeted by Equipoise) 2 City of Solitude 1-3 Tropical Storms (Hazerider) 3 Elephant Grass (Black, Ertai) Regards, Al "Papa Bear" Newman ______________________________________________ Whatever creativity is, it is in part a solution to a problem. - Brian Aldiss ______________________________________________