From: Marcus <106234.374@CompuServe.COM>
Subject: Tourney Report: PTQ Arhnem (long)
Date: 10 Nov 1996 18:20:31 GMT

Dallas Pro-Tour Qualifier Tournament Report 
Arhnem, The Netherlands 11/3/96

At 8:45 a.m. Marco Keiwrit, Mike van Rooyen, and
myself set off by car from Eindhoven to
Arhnem.About 1 1/2 hours later we arrived at the
House of billiards where the tournament was to be
held. We filled in our decklists and waited for
the tournament to start. The format of this
tournament was Type 2 Ice Age/Alliance using the
Swiss system.  There would be 6 rounds with the
matches counting(not the duels), with 2 points
for a win, 1 for a draw, and 0 for a loss. There
would be a final round with the 8 players with
the most points advancing. First prize:
qualification and ticket to Dallas Pro-tour and
Second prize: qualification for the Pro- Tour.

After a short delay the tournament began. I was
playing a White/Red/green Jokulhaups deck
(decklist is at bottom of report). 

Round 1: vs Sander Westerhof (R/G Rade SpiderDeck) 
 game 1-Immediatley he starts playing a horde of creatures
Phyrexian War Beasts, Storm Shamans, and Spiders. I hold
off these creatures with my direct damage. I get out an Icy
and a Blinking Spirit, but he continues to play creatures.
Eventually I am overwhelmed as I cannot tap all his
creatures and my Blinky had to keep returning to my hand.
 game 2- I draw only one land in my opening hand, luckily my
first draw is a Thawing glaciers. I slowly build up my mana
sources as he starts playing creatures. At one point he has
2 Deadly Insects and a spider in play. I am holding them
off with a COP:Green I sideboarded in after the first game.
He has no way to get rid of the circle and eventually I
Jokulhaups and finish him off with a Blinking Spirit.  
 game 3- We run out of time.  
Results 1-1, 1 point for each of us.

Round 2: vs Abel Gilsing (W/R/g Deadly Insects + DD)
 game 1- He doesn't do much initially as I bring out a 
Blinking Spirit and an Ivory Gargoyle, after disenchanting his
Stormbinds (he had two Stormbinds out at the same time!). I 
then finish him off with a Lava Burst. 
Note: during the game I was capped losing 2 pillages and 
an Ivory Gargoyle.
 game 2- Manascrew! He gets out a Deadly Insect. I'm dead in  
a few turns.
 game 3- I start out with plenty of land and a Thawing
glaciers. Bringing out 2 Blinking Spirits and an Outpost
I keep hitting him with the Spirits and the dudes. After he
sets up a defense I Jokulhaups leaving him with nothing. I
recover with the glaciers and bring out my 2 Blinking Spirits
to finish him off.
Results 2-1, 2 points for me.
Total- 3 Points

Round 3: vs Dax (W/R/g Swedish deck w. Cop: Green standard)
 game 1 and 2- We both use Ivory Gargoyles and Kjeldoran 
Outposts. In the first game we both lose several draw phases
to the Ivory Gargoyles. After both his gargoyles and Deadly
Insects are out of the way I kill him with a Blinking Spirit 
accompanied with a Lava Burst. O n the second game it's mostly the
same stuff with him getting out an outpost as well. After many turns
of holding off dudes I get him again with a Blinking Spirit and a 
lava Burst.
Results 2-0, another 2 points.
Total - 5 Points

Round 4: vs ? (U/W/r Permission/Blinking Spirit/Direct
Damage) 
 game 1- He gets the upper hand, countering my key
spells. He caps me 2 times noting that there were alot of
things he wanted to remove from my deck. I am low on life
from the early attacks of the Blinking Spirits and he Lava
Bursts me. 
 game 2- I sideboard in Pyroblasts, Outpost,
etc. This time I start out faster with Blinking Spirits and
Deadly Insects. Since he counters so of my initial spells I
get out an Ivory Gargoyle and Jokulhaups (with the help of
a pyroblast). He dies after many turns with no land. 
 game 3- This game starts out similar to the second ,but
I'm not able to get out any creatures. He builds up alot of
resources. I try 2 times to Jokulhaups but it gets
countered (despite my pyroblasts).  I start thawing alot of
land out of my library and eventually have enough mana to
kill him. I lava Burst, he counters it. I can't get out any
threats, he's either countered or capped them. I continue
to Thaw lands out my library, trying to get my last Lava
Burst. When the Round is almost over he says it's my turn.
The Judge calls time, but I can finish my turn, I draw my
Lava Burst and do him for 14 points.  He doesn't have a
counter.
Results 2-1, 2 points
Total - 7 points

Round 5: vs Steve Easton (U/W/r/g Counter/Outpost/Pheldagrif)
 game 1- He is playing a very strong and versatile deck focusing
on eliminating threats with Counterspells and White removal and 
killing the opponent with Outposts. After a long game I fall 
against his dudes.
 game 2- This game was similar to the first but with the extra 
help from my sideboard I am able to get out my Outposts first
destroying his whenever they popped up. He suffered the same fate
I suffered last game.
 game 3- He gets started quickly and starts making lots of dudes.
I Jokulhaups getting rid of lots of his stuff. Unfortuneatley I 
can't recover quickly enough after the 'haups. By the time I have
enough land to get dangerous again he has cast a Pheldagrif which 
starts hitting me for four points a turn. I am able to hold it off 
for a long time, getting out an Icy and an outpost,but the 
Pheldagrif just keeps coming back. I eventually die to it.
Results 1-2
Total - 7 points

The next round will decide who goes to the QuarterFinals. It is 
calculated that 9 or possibly 8 points are needed to make it 
through.I just need to win the next match to make it.

Round 6: vs ? (U/G Browse/Counter/Creatures)
 game 1- This is a strange but original deck that I hadn't
seen before.
It used Browse to gain card advantage as well as
counterspells. It used lots of green weenies and a few big
creatures to finish the job. I get alot of mana early. He
brings out weenies which I pyroclasm. Soon comes a sibilant
Spirit which I plowshare. I get out an Ivory Gargoyle and
Jokulhaups. He counters. Next turn I try again, it works.
There is nothing out except my gargoyle and Stormbind and
his Browse. I'm not getting any land but I keep hitting him
with my gargoyle. With his Browse, he recovers and is able
to get out a big Lhurgoyf(especially with all the dead
weenies in his graveyard). He starts attacking,but my
gargoyle kills him first. 
 game 2- Manascrew! I only have
one land and it doesn't get much better. He starts to
Browse bringing out lots of creatures. I slowly recover but
I am on the defensive now. Despite me StPing and
Incinerating his creatures, he already has a big card
advantage and I can't come back. A Sibilant spirit ends it.
 game 3- I have to win this duel to get to the
quarterfinals.  Noooo! MANASCREW!!! I have only a few lands
which he uses his Thermokarsts on. Enventually I get out
some defense but far too late. Green weenies keep coming.
Then the Sibilant Spirits.

Well I just missed the QuarterFinals so I I'm not going to
Dallas.  Overall though I didn't do too bad as I was
something like 11th out of the 70 or so participants.
Marco who was playing a B/W Necro Deck made 5 points while
Mike who had a R/G/w Deadly Insect/Ritual of Subdual deck
made 7 points.

The decks that did the best were The W/R/g
Gargohaups/Insect, R/G Land Destruction/Direct
Damage/Spider decks, U/W/r Outpost/ Blinking
Spirit/Permission decks and a few other decks that did well
but weren't so common like the Browse deck that I played
against.


My Jokulhaups Deck:

3 Jokulhaups
2 Pyroclasms
3 Incinerate
3 Pillages
2 Lava Bursts
2 Stormbinds
3 Swords to Plowshares
2 Disenchants
3 Icy Manipulators
2 Loadstone Baubles
1 Zuran Orb
3 Ivory Gargoyles
2 Blinking Spirits
2 Deadly Insects
3 Thawing Glaciers
2 Kjeldoran Outposts
2 Brushlands
4 Karplusan Forests
1 Forest
9 plains
7 Mountains

Sideboard:
3 Pyroblasts
1 Kjeldoran Outposts
1 Pillage
1 Jester's Cap
2 Exiles
1 Swords to Plowshares
1 incinerate
1 Ivory Gargoyle
2 Pyroclasms
1 COP: Green
1 COP; Red


Well I hope this Report has been informative to 
those who read it.

Marcus Colak
-- 
M