Subject: Report
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1998 14:28:22 PDT
From: "Jonas Ekenvall" <jonkseke@hotmail.com>
To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com

This is my report from the ptq in gbg, sweden

Me and a couple of friends(Jocke Falk, Adam Kmet and Kristoffer "AT"
Åslund) arrived at studentkåren, where the tourney was, about an hour
too early. They'd just opened, and since we didn't feel like helping out
any, we decided to pay McDonalds a visit.After a quick breakfast, we
went back, and they were just about to open and register the decks. I
felt my bad luck (and my hangover) throughout the registration, as I
first had to wait for a pen, and then opened the dream deck. As you
know, you had to switch decks, and when I got my playing deck, I
couldn't believe it... I had almost only sucky cards, and a threecolour
deck would have contained fewer good cards than your average 2c deck. I
had the opportunity to play a really shitty 2c deck, though, and I went
with it, since I didn't want to play a manascrewed AND shitty deck. Well
here's my deck (appr.):
1Servant of Volrath
1Serpent Warrior
1Grollub
1Spinal Graft
1Dark Ritual
1Dauthi Slayer
1Mind Games
1Killer Whale
1Brush with Death
1Cannibalize
1Cursed Flesh
1MindWarper
1Theft of Dreams
1Leap
1Escaped shapeshifter
1Wall of tears
1Blood Pet
1Manta riders
1Thalakos Mistfolk
1Rootwater diver
1Thrull surgeon
1Carnophage
1Foul Imp
1Phyrexian hulk
1Maze of shadows
7Island
9Swamp
Maybe you can see why I started planning going to the Norwegian ptq:s.
Well, anyway, I don't remember any names, so don't be offended if I call
you random guy, ok?
Match 1
I got to play the standard champion of gothcon 98. This was three very
exciting games, as I almost ran out of time and cards in the last game.
The first game was a really slow one, and not because either of us
thought much, but because I drew my Killer Whale, and he drew about 3-4
flyers. As I was low on life, I couldn't attack with the whale, and as I
wasn't low enough on life for him to make an allout attack, it was a
regular standoff game. Finally, though, my shadow creatures and the Mind
Games won me the game. The second game I don't remember much of, except
that both of us were manascrewed. He drew his mana first, and my all
black hand and my only Islands in play wasn't much.
The 3rd game, though, was a really interesting one. It starded out like
the 3rd game, except I was lower on life, and had to mind game his
flyers to stay alive. I had my Killer Whale, but it wasn't enough. He
had the red wall that can block shadow creatures in play, so my Dauthi
Slayer didn't do much. When I got the mana to both mind game and play
the shapeshifter, I did so, and that made standoff again. He was on 20
life when the game turned, and as I still had to use the mind game
defensively, I played cursed flesh on my dauthi, and hit him for 1 each
turn. I think I did like 14 points with the slayer, and I finished the
game with no cards in library by at the end of his turn mind game his 3
mountains(he had furnace broos in play), play spinal graft on my slayer,
and brush with death him twice.
After these games I felt even less confident about my deck, since I had
2 really great draws, and still almost lost. I felt like I was lucky
throughout the games.
In match 2, I played Anders Warrby, the top 8 finisher from nationals.
I'd never played him before, but I knew he was a good player, and a nice
guy. I beat him in 2 straight games, and both of them were farely alike:
I go dark ritual 3/3, he goes land, I go land dauthi slayer, and he
couldn't do much. After both games he showed me his hands, and he had
drawn only land, but was still missing land for his GG cards. I really
felt like my deck was shitty, but luckbringing.
The 3rd match I played a familiar face (I said face not name). I'd
played him 3 times before, eventhough he's not from stockholm. All three
times were ptq:s, and all three times I'd beaten him. Well we (I mostly)
joked about coincidences, and beat him. He was mana screwed most of the
time, I think. At 3-0, I was still not confident, and I almost knew my
loss was coming now(In the last 2 ptq:s I went 3-0 and then lost). When
I saw that I was paired up against Markus "harklas" Angelin(playing
R/G/w), I felt my spirit sink. I always beat him when we play draft, but
when it comes to tourneys, I don't think I've ever beaten him (well
almost never), but I took a deep breath, and it began as I thought it
would. He got the perfekt "halonengiv"(a really good draw)and, though I
got a decent draw, I couldn't do anything about his 3rd turn Hill
giants. The second game, I drew a decent hand, and he did too. What won
me the game, though was my Killer Whale, and my cannibalize/spinal graft
combo. My Mind Games was also very helpful.
In the 3rd game, I drew a really shitty start hand(5 lands, a leap and
the Hulk), but since I don't like abusing the Paris mulligan, and since
I saw that he also was thinking of mulliganing, I kept it. He was short
on green mana, but he drew it, and played a Spike Colony, and I played
my first creature, the Shapeshifter the following turn.
He then played a Hulk, and attacked for 4. I played my own hulk, but I
was confident that my combo cannibalize/spinal graft would save me
again. He attacked for 9, and it was me. I killed the two creatures
playing spinal graft on one, and then playing cannibalize, and attacked
for 8. At this point, I thought the game was over, as I had drawn mostly
land, and should draw some cards. That wasn't the case, though. He
played a multitude of creatures, and was down to 6, I think. But with as
much land as the two of us had drawn, it was his two
buybackspells(elvish fury, seething anger) that won him the game. He
finally killed me off with a gigantic elf, I think. I was a bit
irritated (you know me) and I told him that had I drawn any of my
buybackspells I would have won. Well well.
My 5th match was one of the most unusual matches I've played.
I was paired up with a random player from göteborg(wearing a white cap).
In my opening hand I had only islands and black cards, but I figured,
that since the top card of my deck was a land(revised lands rock!!!),
and I had a ritual in my hand, it would be a great draw. Nope. It was an
Island, and with only blue mana I couldn't do anything. When I drew the
swamp the next turn, I ritualed out a slayer and a 3/3. He was rapidly
gaining contorll, though, and when he was at 17, he had a Helm of
Possesion, a bombardment and a Spike Weawer on the table. I was ready to
concede, but I had my Brush with death in my hand, and needed only one
more swamp to get it going. At this point I noticed he kept drawing
lands, and 2 turns later, when I had the Brushlock, he had not played
anything but lands. I was taking 1 and he 2, so I hoped that he would
keep drawing lands. If he had drawn a creature during the whole game, he
would have won. The only nonland card he drew, though, was a rampant
growth, and I killed him with my brush(he took 18 from it). The second
game I got a speedy draw, and he drew lands. He showed me his hand, and
it consisted only of lands. I could't argue his bad luck, and I (almost)
appologized.
At 4-1, I needed to win the next game to be able to draw the last round
for a top 8 spot. When I saw I was playing Carl Thille, I immediately
offered a draw, since I figured I couldn't play a better player.
Evidently he reasoned likewise, and we drew. When we later played for
fun, he beat me 5-0, so I was pretty happy about the draw.
In the last round, I had to win. When I saw I was playing a 4-2 player
who had no chance to qualify,  I started to make discreet suggestions
(not a scroll? well how about a hundred crowns?:)). He (Morgan
Karlsson)wouldn't hear of it though. We played, and I lost, though, just
to spite him I must say he played like a shithead. For instance, he
countered a spell targeting his spinal grafted creature, killing it
anyway, and making the cardeconomy 3-1 instead of 2-1. He also forgot to
ping my grollub with his rootwater hunter when he was on 2 life. Oh
well. 4-2-1 was not an unexpected result (4-2, 4-2 was my last two).
Top 8 consisted of: Harklas, Kmet, Aggroshortsas, Martin Jönsson, Carl
Thille, a norwegian and two random guys. I didn't watch much of the
drafting, as I was playing money draft (loosing horribly to Svedis).
I only watched one top 8 match closely; the one between Kmet and
Aggroshortsas. Kmet played an allblue deck with lots of flyers, while
shortsas played a monogreen fatty deck. As I watched the game, I saw
several mistakes from both sides, but they splitted the first two.
At 1-1, it was getting exciting, and they both seemed nervous. They both
drew pretty good the 3rd duel, but it came down to the round where
aggroshortsas would kill Kmet, or die the next turn. He had the cards to
do it, all he had to do was attack with all his creatures but his
Heartwood giant(4/4, 3GG, T:sacrifice a forest, does 2 damage to any
player), and throw a forest in Kmets head with that. He didn't, though.
He attacked with all his creatures, leaving it up to Kmet to make the
right block. Kmet was at 8, and had 2 blockers. Shortsas had a Colony,
the Giant and 4 1/1 creatures. All Kmet had to do was block the Giant,
and a 1/1 creature. But he blocked the Colony, and aggroshortsas
finished the game by moving 4 counters to a 1/1 creature. That's all
fine, as you're more likely to make mistakes when your nervous, but what
isn't fine, is the way Shortsas took his victory. He laughed Kmet in his
face and said: I won because you're senile!!! All you had to do was bla
bla!!! Offcourse, Kmet was anoyed, and not a little angry with himself
(and shortsas).Fyffes ( a malmö player) had watched the whole game, and
he told me to come watch closely. When I saw what was happening, and
later heard Shortsas comment, I was really pissed off. I mean, if you
whine when you loose (like me) that's not good, but if you do it when
you win, you need a good lobotomy. Fyffes was also pissed, and he told
Shortsas of his mistakes. At first Shortsas wouldn't listen, and tried
to push Fyffes away (AGGROshortsas), but when he finally understoof, he
came with some lame excuse or another("I've never played with the giant
before")
Before this incident, I kind of liked Shortsas. I mean, swedish magic
could use character. Now I see, he's just stupid, and if I were Kmet, I
probably would have insulted him so bad he would've Aggroed me(I almost
did anyway). He got the name at the sthlm ptq (see picture), where
shortsas is obviously from his shorts, aggro comes from his spontaneous
outbursts of rage at the sligtest manascrew.

Jonas "Jonks" Ekenvall
AKA The Sealed Deck King
jonkseke@hotmail.com
ICQ 12511230

If anyone is offended (except aggroshortsas) I humbly appologize.

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