Subject: [TOURNAMENT] Type 1 (Disruption Necro) SARNIA, ONTARIO, CANADA Date: Sat, 29 Aug 1998 04:55:47 -0400 From: GLyM To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com Here's a little tourney report for you magic players who just like reports for no reason to mull over. It was a type 1 tounament with only 2 of the 13 players owning type 1 power cards. They were the favorites, but I figured since the entry fee was only a measly $5, I could swing it. The format is double elim. to a final 8. I decided that I'd play something to wreck control, as the field was going to be chock-full of blue-playerly goodness and I wanted to tool them with extreme predudice. To play a type 1 Necro with large amounts of disruption seemed prudent, and that what I set out to do. Here's the decklist: 4 Hypnotic Spectre 4 Order Of The Ebon Hand 3 Mindstab Thrull 2 Knight Of Stromgald 4 Hymn To Tourach 4 Sinkhole 4 Drain Life 4 Dark Ritual 1 Demonic Tutor 2 Demonic Consultation 3 Necropotence 1 Ivory Tower 1 Zuran Orb 2 Nevinyrall's Disk 18 Swamp 2 Lake Of The Dead 1 Strip Mine SB: 2 Nevinyrall's Disk 4 Spinning Darkness 2 Oath Of Ghouls 3 Bottomless Pit (I thought these would wreck control, but they were ineffective- theoretically they should have worked) 3 Gloom 1 Dystopia (AIH....d'oh!) In hindsight, there should have been a 4th Necro in there because I really needed to ritual one out 1st turn versus heavy control a few times to make winning all the easier. Well, here goes: I arrived at Future Pastimes around 11:00 with the tourney to start at 12:00. There was no registration, no certified judge, no nothing. It was small-time, but it was home, and that's all I can ask around here. The prize was store credit in singles. 13 people showed up on the scene- and scouting was rampant. I kept my deck under tight wraps because I knew that these cheese-mongering nerds would hose me any chance they got (though they are all too dumb to sideboard effectively against discard). After a bit of idiocy, we get started. I draw number 8 and my opening rround opponent is.... (obnoxious drumroll...) Round 1- vs. Brendan Smith (over the top discard w/ Megrims and burn) Great. I was hoping no one would be playing any burn (which was a dumb assumption around here). Brendan played against me in the finals of the last tourney I was in, and I tooled him thooughly with Bloom. Should be interesting. Game 1- His first turn Coercion takes my Hymn, but he stalls out from there after bolting a thrull because I sinkhole his red land, get out Necro, draw more sinkholes and drains, and kill him. I sideboard 2 more disks for his Underworld Dreams (Italian) and Megrims, plus I ssupect he might have Anvils, and that would SUCK. Game 2- He gets out a quick Megrim and Hymn's me, taking nothing of consequence, and then after I disk he throws down Underworld Dreams. I have Necro out at the time. I tool him with drains and too many threats as sinkhole again deprives him of mountains. Brendan and me shake hands and I tell him I hope to see him in the final 8. Games (2-0) Matches (1-0) I sit back and relax while my second round opponet plays games for fun and finally gets around to playing me. I discover while I'm waiting that I'm up against: 1 Turbo-Stasis (this was one of the power nine guys) 1 Straight Burn w/ 4 Apocalypse main (the most innovative and surprisingly effective deck there) 1 Burn w/ Goblins (this guy tried to goblin recruit a goblin king on more than 1 occasion) 1 Discard/Burn (I just wasted him 2-0) 1 u/g Recursion with milling guys like Tolarian Serpent+Ertai's Familiar and Gaea's 1 fish (lots of weak cards here) 1 of those decks with 36 counters, a grindstone and a Soldevi digger 1 Hermit Misery (he forgot the combo at his house and ended up playing with like 1 Shallow Grave and no Necratog or Misery- only was to win was creature damage or a Revenant) some other stuff I don't remember, and now it's time for Round 2- vs. Bruce (Illegal) I don't quite know what to expect from this guy. He got a bye first round and I never saw his deck. This would turn out to be the weirdest game of the day if nothing else. Game 1- I lay swamp, consult for a Necro, go. He goes swamp (hmm...) ritual, ritual, (here I expect something earth-shattering, like a Juzam with Unholy Strength or at least a Sengir) .....MIND WARP for 1! He takes the Necro. To make a long story short he has a nearly empty hand now and I've lost a Necro. I win, all he does is Brainstorm!! a few times, lay an Ivory Tower with 1 card in hand and die. He sideboards 15!!!! cards against me, I sideboard none. Game 2- This one was just a disgrace. I start off quick, with a Hymn taking an island and svylunite temple, he groans in dismay. He drops a Black Vise (CRAP)....I drop a disk a few turns later and don't yet have a Necro out anyhow so my hand size is low. I drain an Erg Raiders for 3. He finally gets a second swamp, then an island. He Brainstorms (TYPE 1 POWER BABY!!!) again, lays a Kjerldoran Dead with no creature to sac (he asks to takeback, I make him bury it) and says go. I Hymn him, pulling a Vise and swamp. I look at the 2 Vises in his graveyard. ... ... ... JUDGE!! Well, that was quick. Games (4-0) Matches (2-0) After the game I went up to the front of the store to get a drink and Bruce comes up to me. He says that I'm a prick for playing so tight against him and also rags on my for getting him disqualified. He says I was rude to him while we were playing and that I've caused him to waste $5 and now he's done for the day. I come back with: "I'm sorry you feel that way". He's like: "Give me liberty or give me death!" I'm like: "These boots were made for walking..." whoops...sorry, got sidetracked. Anyway, I'm you're going to bring a deck with 4 Vises to a tourney even if it has no reg, prepare to get DQ'd. Anyhow, I'm into the final 8 for sure, being (2-0,4-0) and I'm top seed too. I wait some more for the 8th seed to get decided, as the 8-9th guys are playing off to see who gets in. I sit on my ass in the meantime and due some highly illegal scouting (gotta love these low budget tournies!). finally- It's time for: Quarterfinals- vs. Toner (Hermit Misery w/o the combo) Toner looks drunk, stoned, or both. I decided that I should win without much trouble. Game 1- I win, don't remember much. He never got out much and I emptied his hand quick. In go 4 Spins to aim at his Walls, Birds, Druids, etc etc.... Game 2- He goes forest, Mox Diamond. I go swamp. He goes Vampiric at the end of your turn. I wonder if he can somehow pull it off with one Shallow Grave and one Revenant. He Vampirics two more times and then I hymn the stuff he tutored for out of his hand, Spin two druids, and basically make a complete nuisance of myself. Toner scoops after I drop a Hypno with 2 orders on the table and him at like 3 life. I'm in the final 4! Semifinals- vs. John L. (playing Turbo Stasis) John has the unfortunate distinction around here of being the Holy Grail of magic, as the proud owner of the power nine plus other broken cards such as Mana Drains, Moats, Library Of Victory etc... The assistant manager of the store talks about him like he's the God of MTG or something which must get uncomfortable after a while. Anyhow, I have at least as many broken cards as he does in my deck (though less expensive, Hymns, Hypnos and Necros are still broken, so is Demonic Tutor) Round 1- I disrupt, disrupt, disrupt. I lay many creatures and such. See John. See John lay Stasis. See John with no Howling Mine. See John draw no land. See John bury Stasis. See me win. (I disked away 2 mines and a Despotic Sceptre). Round 2- Chronatog comes out for some lovin'. I sideboard totally ineffectively and when he drops the lock on me and I have one land untapped, I have neither spins to kill the Chronatog or the ability to get out a Dystopia because my own pit would make me chuck the ritual I need. Whatever...SCOOP! Round 3- John smiles inwardly- he has the whole combo in his hand: 3 Kismets, 1 Stasis, 1 Chronatog, and the mana to cast it...he's basically into the finals. I Hymn- I take the stasis and the chronatog. His hand of three Kismets and some land looks much worse now...I win. Sorry John- you deserved that win. I'm into the finals. Finals- vs. Nathan (36 counters and a digger) His deck wasn't quite that extreme, but you get the idea. It had 4 Ephemerons main, a Grindstone, a Digger, Balance, Zuran Orb, and other goodies. Lots o' Counters, too. Game 1- This was the greatest game of my Magic career. The early game is a blur, with lots of hymns getting countered, but I do sneak through an Order, and Nathan's deck has no way to deal with permanents whatsoever. No quicksands, even. Anyhow, it pings him for damage and such and we both eventually get out Zuran Orbs. I force out another pumpknight and he's in trouble. He mysticals at the end of my turn for the burly protectorship of BALANCE. He casts it, I sac all my land to my Orb, he does the same and he's at 19 life with a Sol Ring out, I'm at 38, but due to Demonic Consultation for a Hymn early, he's going to deck me quick. Surprisingly, despite the Sol Ring, I recover faster and get out a knight and hypno. It comes down to this: Me with 6 cards or so in library, he's at like 2 land and 7 life, and lays the burly GRINDSTONE, he grinds me during his turn. Only two cards get milled. I draw, I now have 3 cards left in library. I attack- he takes 6 damage from the hypno and pumper. His turn, he grinds me. He mills more than two cards and that's game- I flip em' and see swamp, and some black card. YES! I draw my last card and attack for seven, and even saccing 2 land he still dies. Great game. Game 2- This was a good one, too. I ritual out a Hypno and he keeps his poker face. His StP quickly explains it. I gain two life due to his kindness and we go from there. I have board control with a disk so he can't lay a digger which he hasn't drawn anyway. I think I'm going to deck him this time. He lets me get Necro out, but he gets a Zuran Orb that I want to get rid of and I have 2 disks in hand to I fill my hand, and disk away my Necro and Ivory Tower, and lay a creature and another disk. He counters tons and tons of my guys and then somehow kills my hypno (balance again I think). But then I demonic tutor. No counter. Oath Of Ghouls, Nate? I cross my fingers...no counter. That's game. (He doesn't realize it, but it is. After I start recursing pumpknights he's like "I should have countered the Oath." Oops. Nathan's a great player so I'm sure this experience did him some good.) I win the tourney! Props: Jersey- for his original Apocalypse deck which tooled both recursion and stasis 2-0 Nathan- for a great performance and for having lots of endurance- his matches all lasted years John L.- for having to endure scrubs who take 10 turns before they even realize they are stasis locked ("I'm gonna win for sure now- this guy's giving me free turns!") Slops: Bruce- sorry man, but you have to expect tight play even at a cheap-ass touney like this one John Silvestri- for scrubbing out 0-4 when he's a better player than I am ------------------------------------------------------------ GLyM ptait@ebtech.net