Subject: Tourney Report: Harbringer's Oath Date: Sun, 13 Sep 1998 22:39:36 -0500 (CDT) From: oash@webtv.net (michele oasheim) To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com Hello, this is Dillon again. After doing well with my Harbringer's Oath deck last week I gave It a try again last saturday, September 12th. There where 34 people that day, and the format was type 2 single elimination. My oath deck is actually better than it looks, and this was reinforced Saturday. The decklist is the same except I switched out the Spike Soldiers for Aboroths and added Deathgrip to the sideboard. The Aboroths sucked total ass, and almost cost me several games, using unsacrificeable creatures like that just didn't work, and to make matters worse they shrink immediately after they get oathed in. Total crap. Round 1 - B/U Lots of black weenies backed up by lots of counters and couple of Air Elementals. Game 1 He started off by playing a bunch of Islands so I just waited for a opening, occassionaly bating him with a Pit. He taps out for a Air Elemntal so I edict it at the end of his turn, and follow it up with a Oath, Pit and Scroll. I just walk all over him. Game 2 - I sideboard in 3 Tsunami and 2 Hall of Stone, along with the Lifeforces Were both manahosed, and he plays a first turn Unholystrenthed Vampire Bats and starts beating me down. I comback with a Oath and a pair of Scrolls, followed by a Pit. He tries to get out with a buyback Capsize, but pics the wrong target and losses it to the Pit. Round 2 Winter's Portal, with a few changes like Spitting Hydra. I have to play against a good friend of mine, and he's using a deck I built for him. He doesn't play alot, but he's spectacular with any R/G deck regardless of the composition. I put some cards in the sideboard just to combat my deck, so I'm more than a little worried. Game 1 He plays a bunch of elves and I edict and charm all of them. I can't seem to draw anything of value, and a Sylvan Library yields three land. A Viashivan soon appears and I die horribly. Game 2 - In go the Deathgrips. It doesn't start off very well, I get to watch all my Oaths and land disappear, and a Tranquilit devestates me. A Geae's back in three Oaths, and am lucky enough to draw one right away. This one stays, but the Viashivan is back. I gained a little life form a few one time Oaths earlier on, but I don't think it's enough. Over the next few turns I manage to Oath out a Harbringer, play another, and get an Aboroth. He can't attack me without dying from the counter attack, so we wait. I know he has a Shattering Pulse (He killed a scroll with it), so the ones in my hand are useless. I edict the 1/1 Viashivan (damn pumping ability), a Pit eats the pulse and the scrolls go all the way;. All it would of taken was a Fireball to end the game, but he never drew it. Game 3 Simple mana screw on his part and I stomp him with a pair of Feeders and a Aporoth. I feel bad because the game should of been alot more interesting. Oh, well. Round 3 Straight black shadow weenie with a lot of extra garbage like Mergrim and Howling mine. He was just some little kid who had a easy first round and a second round bye. Game 1 I get hosed very badly and am beseiged by shadow creatures. I've got the Oath, but only one swamp in play. I finally get land, followed by a Oath and Scroll and almost eek it out. The scroll kills one creature, I'm at one, and get a Harbinger during my upkeep that kills all his creatures. I'm holding all 4 damn Spike Feeders but never get the second forest I need to win and get Drained. Game 2 - In go the Lifeforces A second turn Maze slows him down, and a oath stops him cold he tries to break out with a Howling Mine and a Nightmare, but I counter himwith a Lifeforce and Edict. He's totally locked down at this point and I take my time killing him. Game 3 Pretty much the same as game 2, the Force/Pit combo locks him down, and I win an easy one as he's slowly killed by Scrolls. Round 4 - Suicide Black Game 1 I lose this one so fast my head spins. All I can remember are several Unholystrengthed Sacromancy and Carnophages. Very, very painful. Game 2 I actually draw Oath's and Scrolls this game but it's still very close. A lucky pair of Harbingers neutralize a Bad Moon and all his creatures. He concedes once the Force hit's the table. Game 3 Another blazing fast start puts me on the defensive quickly, and I have to use Feeders to kill Carnophages instead of just blocking and sacing. I pull it out with a Oath, but it's close, too close. Fiinals I had planned to split first and second with the other person, but he refused. You see, I play AD&D every Satuday after the Tournament. Our DM is actually Gary Gygax's son and Gary occasionally DM's which is really cool. I'm really unhappy that he wouldn't split. The differance is prizes is litteraly 2 Dollars (18 and 16). To make matters worse he's playing Cuneo Blue with two changes Treause Trove instead of Whispers and Silver Wyvern instead of Steel Golem. I lose both games terribly due to drawim way to much land. I'm getting mad so I start trash talikng him. Calling him a deck copier and unimaginative among other things made me feel better. I missed D&D that day, but the entire party was killed so I felt alot better. I just wan't to say now that I never, ever cheat, and Trash Talk only once in a while. I really hate that kid. He beat me months ago with a Counter Post deck. I was playing a cool R/B deck of mine that used Frenetics, Rainbow Effreets, Bogarden Phoenixes, and Pitch spells combined with Jokulhaps. It was pretty creative (at that time I didn't even know the Dojo existed) and I wasn't happy to lose to him them either. He always has a smug look on his face that you just want to wipe offwith a Baseball Bat. Thanks alot if you kept reading through this and put up with my ranting. Harbringes's Oath is a okay deck, and fun to play. Thanks again, Dillon "Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups."