Subject: My workhorse Deck Date: Fri, 16 Oct 1998 19:00:44 EDT From: DrPed@aol.com To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com Ped's Tourny Report Date: 10/10/98 Tournament: PTQ Rome in Indianapolis, IN Format: Rath Constructed Participants: 54 T.O.: George Pratt At the weekly Type B tourny on 10/8, I was debating between 2 decks to play for the Rome PTQ. I was strongly considering playing mono-red with a heavy anti-Death and anti-awakening sideboard. I thought that would be the most consistent deck. I also had built a silly Workhorse Infinite Living Death deck. I decided that I would be playing just for fun since I didn't think I would be able to go to Rome anyways. So I went WILD. I borrowed some card from Mike Stuller (Thanks alot) History of the deck. Ken Roth and I were at the Rome PTQ in Muncie. We were driving home after a long day. In order to keep ourselves awake, we were throwing out random Rath Cycle ideas. One thing that came up was the Hermit Pile deck. That deck that plays with no basic lands and hermit druids. You activate the druid and get your library into the graveyard. The first kill that came to mind was corpse dance with a Revanent. My feeling was that this was too fragile. Then I came up with Living Death. The following things need to be done when living death is cast with the library in the graveyard (this was my initial thoughts) 1. Get living death back-Anarchist 2. Don't deck self- No wall of blossoms 3. Generate BB3 or more each cycle: 4 Blood pets and Workhorse 4. Must be able to kill Anarchist before casting LD again-Altar of Dementia 5. Grab Altar of Dementia from the graveyard- Treasure Hunter So I came up with a LD deck with no basic lands. This proved to be too difficult. And If I didn't get the kill, the deck would die. Then I was surfing the Dojo and looked at the Standard Living Death decks. I took out the elements that weren't necessary for the combo and replaced them with the Combo. In the end, my deck looked like this 8 Forest 3 Swamp 1 Island 4 Pine Barrens 1 Vec-Township 1 Skyshroud Forest 1 Cinder Marsh 2 Reflecting Pool 1 Volrath's Stronghold 1 Rootwater Depths 2 Mox Diamonds 1 Lotus Petal 4 Blood Pets 1 Skyshroud Elf 2 Workhorse 33 cards dedicated to Mana Production 4 Wall of Blossoms 1 Cloudchaser Eagle 1 Treasure Hunter 2 Anarcist 1 Spike Feeder 1 Spike Weaver 1 Thrull Surgeon 1 Shard Phoenix 4 Hermit Druid 23 Creatures 1 Recurring Nightmare 4 Living Death 4 Survival of the Fittest 1 Canabalize 1 Lobotomy 1 Altar of Dementia 1 Scroll Rack Total: 62 Cards Sideboard: 4 Oath of Ghouls, 2 Boil, 1 Shattering Pulse, 1 Verdigris, 1 Cloudchaser Eagle, 1 Thrull Surgeon, 2 Lobotomy, 2 Spike Feeders, 1 Tranquility Overall, the deck worked much better than I thought it would. I had to stay overnight at the hospital on friday since I was on call. I got done with my work at about midnight. I went to the sleep room and played a few hands out against a goldfish. I was unhappy when I couldn't draw the Death. So that's when I threw in the Scroll Rack. I also had some trouble getting red mana. I considered putting in a mountain in place of the island, but the Lobotomies in the side was more important. So after a few trial runs, I went to sleep with a Jackie Chan marathon on TV. I wake up at 6:30am and drive to Indy. I get there a little after 9am and am registered as #22. Small tournout. I run into Leonard and he is asks about the Infinite LD death Ken and I had been working on. (We discussed it a bit at PT chicago) I told him that I was playing my WILD deck. He was wondering how it won. I didn't want to give too much away but i did tell him that I win by casting LD about 15-20 times all in one turn. I get a hint that he is playing tradewind awakening. I look back at my sideboard and realized I forgot to add Constant Mists for anti Capsize. I was planning on using Boil. 54 people signed up. Match 1: Paul Givens Tradewind Awakening. Game 1: I go first. He gets out wall of blossoms. I get out an early survival and hermit Druid. I mill and survival the combo into the graveyard. On his turn 6, he lays a skyshroud forest (his 4th land) and taps 2 green for a Wall of Blossoms. He has 1 island untap. I draw my 5th land and go infinite. I take about 25 minutes going through the motion. I end up having to Canabalize my own wall of blossoms so i don't deck myself. He concedes when he realizes that he will end up drawing his entire deck. Game 2: I side in my Lobotomy, Eagles, Surgeon, and Tranq. I get out a turn 4 lobotomy when he taps out for a spike weaver. His hand: Capsize, Tradewind Rider, 2 Counters, 1 forbid, and land. I took the tradewind. He ends up with 2 awakenings on the table and I couldn't break the lock. I concede with about 15 minutes left Game 3: He gets me locked down, but can't kill me in time. So we draw. Matches 0-0-1. Games 1-1 After the Round 1, I speak with Leonard about my mistake about the lobotomy. He then mentions I should have sided in Oath of Ghouls. Round 2: Steven Tubbs UG Overrun/Counter Beatdown Game 1: He's playing green weenies. He get's me down to 15 when I go WILD. Game 2: I start the game with a Mox and a land. I have a Blood pet and a survival. My plan was to play a turn 1 BP and a turn 2 survival. But I don't draw land for too many turns. Everything gets countered. I die. Game 3: He lays his creatures. I get a druid going. I have a living death but I just wasn't ready to play it yet. I scroll rack for a bunch of cards. On my turn. At the end of his turn, I survival forgetting about the Living Death I had left on my library. I get the combo i need into the graveyard, but i'm just missing the living death. I get beat down for a few more turns almost killing me. He ends up tapping out to play a rootwater hunter. I scroll rack to a LD and beatdown with a workhorse and company. Matches 1-0-1 Games: 3-2 Round 3: Bedford Crenshaw Red Weenie I beat him in Muncie with my WW. He wanted revenge, but didn't get it. Game 1: I survive long enough to Living Death and beatdown with workhorse. I end at 4 life. Game 2: I get out lots of walls and the survival. He has 2 pups in play when I go infinite with Shard Pheonix. He takes 4 damage with each cycle. I was gaining 4 with my feeder. Matches 2-0-1 Game 5-2 Round 4: Ralph Oakley WWeenie Game 1: I get beat down early down to 4. I was able to survival fetch a Weaver. With a recurring nightmare, he couldn't finish me off. I eventually cast LD and beat him down with my BB3 casting cost army. Game 2: I was able to Living Death, but no anarchist. I did get a couple pets, a treasure hunter, and a workhorse. The hunter fetched a lotus petal. I used it for blue to cast my Lobotomy and snagged a Cataclysm. I win soon thereafter. Matches 3-0-1 Games 7-2 Round 5: Brad Taylor Living Death/Recurring Nightmare Game 1: I win the survival war. I have plenty of time and go infinite. Game 2: I was really afraid of Lobotomy. I sided mine in. He has a survival out, but no creatures in hand. I get out hermit druids and eventually get the combo in the graveyard. Matches 4-0-1 Games 9-2 Round 6: Leonard Richardson We discuss drawing into the final 8. We do the math and we both safely get in Matches 4-0-2 Games 9-2 Final 8 (in order) 1. Chris Hamm (5-1) BR burn/suicide/splash white for disenchant 2. Leonard Richardson (4-0-2) Tradewind Awakening 3. Timm Mikenna (4-0-2) Counter Pheonix 4. Ped Bun (4-0-2) Workhorse Infinite Living Death 5. Brad Taylor (4-1-1) LD/Recur 6. Sammy Gilly (4-1-1) Mono Blue 7. Jeff Burton (4-1-1) White Weenie 8. Robert Gardner (3-0-3) Recur Infinite Time Warp Round of 8: Brad Taylor Game 1: He mulligans down to 6. I am getting beatdown by a spike weaver. I hermit druid lots of creatures into my graveyard. I living death to get back to balance. And I start to go infinite when I draw another living death. Game 2: He mulligans down to 6. He gets out a survival, but has no creatures except a weaver. I eventually go inifinite. Round of 4: Chris Hamm Game 1: He gets Acidic sliver, foul imp, carnophage, sarcomancy beat down. I end up dying to burn. Game 2: I get out an early Oath of Ghouls and wall of Blossoms. I go infinite when he has 2 Foul Imps in play. Game 3: I get out an early Oath of Ghouls again but it gets disenchanted quickly. Using scroll rack and survival, I get what I need and go infinite. Once again killing him with his own foul imps. Finals: Leonard Richardson We both really want to go to Rome. So we decide to play it out. We decide to do a split of the prize. Winner gets invite. Loser gets the money. Game 1: I get out an early survival. He gets out an early awakening. I use the extra mana each turn to survival. I end up with all my creatures in the graveyard. I was trying to thin out my deck to increase the probability of drawing the Death. I just drew land. I get capsized locked. Game 2: In goes the Oath of Ghouls. I get turn 2 Oath of Ghouls. And then I cast the surgeon 5 turns in a row to empty his hand. I eventually cast my flyers and beat him down. Game 3: I get a turn 2 Oath of Ghouls. I hit 4 mana and surgeon him over and over. He eventually plays out a Tradewind with 2 walls in play. I canabolize his tradewind, but he is able to bounce it back to his hand. I lobotomize him. He also had a capsize in his hand. I took the capsize. I go on to win with a workhorse and Shard Pheonix. Final Record: 7-0-2 Games 15-4 I Qualified!!!!! I'm back on the Pro-Tour again. Props: George Pratt: Very well run tourny. On time. Leonard: Thanks for the tips. Slops: $6 for a Chicken Salad sandwich and a soda. Then I drive back to Urbana. I get home and write this report. See you in Rome Thanks for reading Ped