Subject: Tournament report for Rath Cycle constructed. from Troy Gould
Date: Sun, 5 Jul 1998 16:14:20 EDT
From: TGould0701@aol.com
To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com

Mayhem Comic Shop in Des Moines, Iowa held a Tempest-Stronghold constructed
tournament the other day.  Cursed Scroll WAS legal (it was before July 1) and
Exodus was not.  Not knowing what decks are really strong in this format, I
just decided to play a very speedy shadow white weenie.

THE DECKLIST:

4 scrolls
(will be pacifisms from July on)
4 warrior en-kor (the key card)
3 soltari champion
4 priests
3 disenchant
4 tongs
4 soltari emissary
1 shamen en-kor (not needed, this deck is too aggressive)
1 orim, samite healer (same, way too passive)
4 nomads en-kor
4 monks
4 soltari foot soldiers
20 plains
Side:
4 warmth
4 light of day (never used surprisingly)
1 disenchant
1 serene offering (v good vs propaganda and leg.allure)
2 bottle gnomes
2 torture chambers
1 cop white

ROUND 1:
I play a very nice guy with a very suspect deck containing the likes of pit
imps and sadistic glees to name a few.  No highlights here...easy 2-0 win.
                 Match record 1-0

Round 2:
Now it starts getting tough.  I have to play a friend, Travis (who our
teammates call affectionately "public school"). He is a brilliant player who,
at age 12, waxed us all at regionals and qualified for nationals.  He's
playing some kind of Living Death-Tradewind deck.  Game one I get a very quick
start and barely put him away about one turn before he gets total Tradewind
control going.  Game 2 he gets a turn 1 dread of night out on me.  This slows
me down until I can draw a disenchant.  Then I start laying the goods.  The
lock comes a bit too slowly for Travis and I take it.
          Match record 2-0

Round 3:
I have to play one of my best friends who doesn't play in a lot of tournaments
but is a solid player.  He is playing a very speedy sligh deck.  Even after
Parising game 1, he still gets the jump on me with pups and fanatics.  Luckily
my deck loves the matchup versus red.  I got out a priest and 4 en-kors thus
virtually clinching up game one.  (Luckily, he did not see either a scroll or
a torture chamber!!)  Game two his start is just too slow.  I pull it out as
he again doesn't see his desperately needed anti-weenie cards, torture and
scroll.
            Match Record 3-0

Round 4:
Since there is only five rounds, my friend Mike Howland and I decide to ID.
We play for fun and I barely scrape by in a tough 3 (he is playing a very
solid Mind Games-Static Orb deck).
               Match Record 3-0-1

Round 5:
I have no reason not to draw again as I will get in if I do and my opponent
will also get in with a draw (he is 3-1).  We ID.  We play for fun but his
blue-green deck doesn't get going either game.
               Match Record 3-0-2

Final 8:
I came in as the 3 seed and play the 6 seed, John Demaris....another team
member and friend.  John wins the originality award for the day for his
Portcullis-Intruder Alarm deck (I have not seen this on the DOJO).  The deck
is solid, although slow.  John gets a one land draw AFTER parising once and
that really ended game one before it started.  I take it easily.  Game two he
draws like 10 land to 7 non-land cards wich also equals game to me (my mana
draws were lucky all day, although with 12 one casting cost spells I was often
able to keep one land draws).

SEMIS:
I play I think his name is Andy.  He has been dominant so far in the tourney
with a Tradewind-Awakening deck (Manakins were everywhere today to help speed
up the Tradewind decks so they could compete with the weenie decks!).  Game
one is very intense and I almost have him when I make my big mistake of the
day.  He has a Legacy's Allure out and I cast my Orim, Samite Healer.  He
steals in and proceeds to counteract every time I scroll something for the
rest of the game!  I get him to one life anyway but then he seizes control and
I die (concede).  Game 2 I play a bit smarter and take the game as he has
problems getting green mana for his flagpoles and the Awakenings.  Game 3 is
another close one which I pull out....very fun match!!!!

Finals:
Me and my friend, Jeremy Wickman (sp?) work out a deal to split first and
second prize (a box of Exodus and a minty Abyss).  We play anyway.  Both games
are close but he takes it mostly due to fatty Staunch Defenders.

DECK OBSERVATIONS:
Torture Chambers were key!  Serene Offering was HUGE as well because of all
the Propagandas and Allures.  White Weenie is sooooo fast with 15 or so shadow
creatures (plus sideboards for White are very strong).
              Troy Gould