Subject: PTQ Grand Forks [Report] Date: 22 Sep 1997 09:41:09 GMT From: mgurney@escape.ca (Michael Gurney) Newsgroups: rec.games.trading-cards.magic.strategy Hello all. I have been reading reports for a long time and thought that I should write one. Also a bit because I did so well. A bit of an introduction. I am Mike Gurney...a member of a newly formed team in Winnipeg called The Horsemen of the Apocalypse (THOTA...it sounded cool). I am currently(or at my last check) ranked #9 in the world in Limited(#4 in Canada I believe). Though this doesn't include my last few tourneys. This will be the third PTQ I have attended in and the second I have won. The other was Alice and I got 9th after the swiss not making the final 8. This was the closest PTQ to my home with a drive of a mere 2 hours and a bit. The other two were in Regina and Minneapolis. In my opinion it is quite unfair that all the PTQs are held so far away from anywhere in central Canada...you shouldn't have to drive 8 hours to get to the closest PTQ. And there are alot of good players around here that I believe are worthy of going to a PT. I attended one Pro Tourney b4. The booster draft in L.A. on the Queen Mary. I had a blast but panicked during the booster draft and drafted Green/white...though I don't believe I had much of a choice since the boosters our table had were pretty bad(1 person of the 8 person table made the top 64, while people like Chalice got two Disints) Oh well..such is magic sometimes. The night before we ran a limited tourney with the same format as the PTQ was going to be. I got the worst sealed deck I have ever seen. Usually I can find SOMETHING to do with a deck. But this deck was horrendous with nearly no creature removal(3 in fact..all diff colors..all color intensive) and played a green/white creature deck led by an Archangel. With no way to deal with my opponents creatures outside a Serra's Bestiary(blah) I found myself lucky to manage a 2-1-1 with my loss coming to Sam Lount(a fellow teammate who is a great player but seems to get nervous at big events(as you will see)). Hoping I used up all my bad luck the night before...me and my battered rating headed home to get the prerequisite 3 hours sleep before an important tourney..=) I hopped over to get a ride from Shawn Baker and after a 2 hour and a bit drive we ended up at the mall. The mall seemed shabby, but the flood may have been the cause of that. BTW, Shawn was going to judge and is Wpgs only Level 3(?) judge...and runs most of our tourneys. This is too bad because Shawn is a very good sealed player and probably would have done quite well. Anyways, we get there and there is a line. So I walk over to watch a couple people playing extended. I was in for a shock...here is what happened: One player was thawing for a land. He was going through his deck and moved a Mishra to the bottom. I thought perhaps he was just breaking up a mana clump or something. He proceeded to get a mtn, fake shuffle and cut the mishra to the top. His opponent must have been one of those trusting people who don't have to cut their opponents deck after every shuffle and just let it be. He proceeded to draw the mishra. At this point I asked them whether the game was for fun or for ante. They responded that they were testing extended decks. I just shook my head and walked away to inform the rest of the Winnipeggers to watch out for him especially and cheaters in general...it was a sad thing to have to see right off the hop. Nice first impression. The tourney was 84 people(85?) and was bursting out of the store where we were playing. But it wasn't too bad and we got our decks to register. Mine was unremarkable and I hoped I didn't get it back. A friend of mine sitting across from me(Christian) registered an AWESOME deck. He really hoped he got it back. We wrote em down and after a short wait they started handing out decks. Neither of us got our original decks back. Fortunately Christians deck went to another Winnipegger(Ryan Rusaw - more on him later). The deck I got follows: Artifact Black Nev's Disk Howl from Beyond Fellwar Stone Evil Presence Grapeshot Catapult Bog Rats Cloak of Confusion LAND Touch of Death Jungle Basin Drain Life Sand Silos Pestilence Urza's Crappy Land Aku Djinn Desolation BLUE Wicked Reward Phantom Monster Tar Pit Warrior Glacial Wall Crypt Rats Krovikan Sorcerer Infernal Harvest Psychic Venom Dark Privilege Dark Maze Dandan GREEN Shrieking Drake Wall of Brambles Undo Craw Giant Impulse Carapace Breezekeeper Ghazban Ogre War Mammoth RED Cat Warriors Orcish Oriflamme Creeping Mold(2!) Flashfires Mortal Wound Eternal Warrior Warthog Brothers of Fire Qhirion Ranger Goblin War Drums Elven Cache Giant Strength Panther Warriors Hulking Cyclops Talruum Champion WHITE Suq'Ata Lancer Tundra Wolves Dwarven Vigilantes Aysen Bureaucrats Hearth Charm Shield Bearer Cop:red Breeding Pit(forgot to put above) Cop:Black Blessed Wine Crusade Tithe Longbow Archer Parapet Righteous Aura Righteous Aura Hope Charm I may have mixed a couple cards up. They got mixed with some other cards on the ride home. But this is close(maybe 2-3 MINOR cards off). I went B/u/g...with most of the obvious choices in those colors. I wasn't happy because my creature destruction was all black and I was deathly afraid of boas and warthogs killing me. Thank god I never saw 1 Boa for the entire tourney. On to the Matches: First round: (I don't remember names of most of the people I played...I am bad with names). Game 1. He plays 3 islands in a row...I lay a 3rd turn tar pit...he forgets to play any more land til two turns later when he lays his 4th island...I finish him with an Aku Djinn tar pit and a war mammoth a couple rounds later. Game 2. He gets a Ftn of Youth and begins to gain life while I draw nothing special for a bit. Then he gets out a Righteous Aura and I think I may be in trouble. He makes a couple mistakes...like attacking me with a Cloud Elemental when I have a tapped Breezekeeper and a Quirion Ranger. But it doesn't hurt him in the end...he wins with a breezekeeper of his own as well as a zephyr falcon...he won the race thanx mostly to his little combo. Game 3. I draw 6 assorted land and a fellwar...groan...but I draw and play a war mammoth 3rd turn. He lays a few blockers and I pick up and play my disk with 5 land or so in my hand still. This seems to stall him as he plays nothing worth making me disk(I was waiting for his fliers). A little later I count that I have had 13 mana sources(of 18) and 5 non and I begin to pick up good stuff. He either had a big mana glut draw as well or misplayed it and didn't force me to disk...next few turns I put out a pestilence, wall of brambles and a phantom monster and beat him up by pestilencing away blockers and hitting him. WLW 1-0-0 Round 2. Against fellow Winnipegger named Bill. First game is his QUICK...he plays a red swarm and I stare at my one black mana with a pestilence in hand as he kills me with a bunch of x/2's Game 2. I get out 3rd turn Tar Pit. 4th Turn pestilence and he never plays a creature tough enough to survive the 2-3 pt pestilence before my attacks. Game 3. Same as 2...tar pit/pestilence...though he force spiked my 5th turn Aku...=( LWW 2-0-0 At this point out of my team of 4...3 are 2-0 and 1 is 1-1... Round 3. Another fellow Winnipegger Jeff...a pretty good player...but seems to play VERY slowly when he is losing. Game 1. I get an ok start but my offense is stopped by a Gossamer chains. He is attacking with a Teferi's Honor Guard(with 2 blue untapped all the time) and a double flanker...but thanx to my brambles I am only taking 2 a turn. I pestilence away the flankers when he taps out and the board is mostly clear except for brambles of course. Eventually I get out a Mindstab... he returns his chains to his hand and I make him discard it...I kill him with a war mammoth a short time later...though I was at one life. Also during this game he managed to spell blast a 12 point howl that would have killed him...how annoying. Game 2. Slow start...he hits me hard and fast for 2-4 a turn with various flankers. Eventually I create a stalemate with Wall of Brambles and get out a crypt rat. A little while later we both have a small force of creatures on each side (2 on mine 3 on his) and I try to cast my Aku... thinking i could clear the way with my rats...plus an undo in my hand... he DESERTIONS it...so I think a minute...and decide not to undo it since I have my brambles so I won't take too much damage. He attacks...I rat almost everything away and take like 4 trample from the aku...I did enough damage to the aku to kill it but he didn't put it in the graveyard...and before I could say anything he casts relentless Assault...then I tell him the Aku is dead...because of the rats and the 3/4 brambles...being a fellow Winnipegger I let him take it back(since essentially we had to go back a wee bit and put that Aku in my graveyard anyways). I recover a bit quicker than him from this board clearing and beat him..again with 1 life. CLOSE. WW 3-0-0 Round 4. I am playing Frances Keyes(?I think that is it). He pulls out a mat and I am thinking that I am finally getting to the bigger players and am in for a hard match. he is playing green/blue/black like me. Game 1. He forgets to play a second mana. I get out a 3rd turn Warthog, 5th turn Mammoth but I have no black mana...while he is slowly picking up land and starting to cast stuff. He can't stop the Hog and it eventually kills him. He only saw my blue/green so I thought maybe this would help me out. Questionable play on his side: First turn barbed sextant...I think I would probably have blown it for a burn to get the mana...he said he prolly should have after the match... Game 2. He is without black mana this game...while I am not having any mana problems. I get out a flier and a forestwalker...and am hitting him for a bit of damage while he is a bit slow in getting a defense up. He gets out a cockatrice but still no black. I whittle him to 4 and cast a Warthogs...I think I have him now even though he cast a flood...because my quirion is out. I declare my attack..he taps the Warthog...I untap it and attack with the Cat Warriors and Hog to kill him. He packs up his cards, obviously very ticked at the mana he pulled...when he says something like 'Oh shit...I DIDN'T HAVE ANY SWAMPS'...Neither of us noticed it at all I say to him 'maybe we don't belong up here at the top table...we're both dumb'...a friend who was judging came up after and said 'nice bluff'...I tell him 'haha...no...I am an idiot...I had no idea..thank god neither did he' WW 4-0-0 One more and I can draw in. Ryan Rusaw, Mike McKinnon and Shane (forget last name) are also 4 and 0...I hope I don't have to play them. The rest of the team is 3-1 3-1 2-2. round 5: I don't remember his name..nice guy...a bit quiet. Playing b/w/g. I am still fearing the boa. Game 1. I play a third turn Mindstab. He plays a Jamuuran Lion (he went first but forgot to lay a land 3rd turn). I infernal it for one and attack making him discard 3 cards. Next turn he picks up a swamp and plays the card he kept...a Carrion ants. he beats me a bit with it...and plays a double flanker. HE goes all out for a quick kill but on my turn I drop a ratbomb and clear the board. After that I beat him up. Game 2. He gets a jamuuran lion and a double flanker out. I have a creeping mold in hand and creep his one white. Take the 5 and next turn I Undo them both and he is forced to discard 3 cards the next turn when he has no more mana to lay..much less white. I take quick advantage and kill him shortly thereafter. WW 5-0-0 After this round there are only 3 of us at 5 and 0. Mike McKinnon and Ryan Rusaw (Ryan is from winnipeg and Mike is from Vancouver now but he used to live in Winnipeg til 6 months or so ago and played most of his magic here...so we lay claim to him..=) ) Round 6. Ryan Rusaw. He had an amazing deck and I was happy not to have to play him til now. How do people put it...'Nice game Ryan' 'Nice game Mike' D 5-0-1 Round 7. Against Craig(?)...the North Dakota State Sealed champ. Two of my teammates who are at 4-2 want me to play...but i have no faith in my deck at this high in the swiss and after I ask him what his rating is...I am happy to accept his offer of a draw. Ryan and Mike draw...My Team ends up as follows: 5-2 5-2 6-1 and me 5-0-3 The top 8 are: 1. Melissa (forget last name..pretty girl from Minneapolis...but I'd swear that I was watching her play her last round at the Alice tourney and saw her draw two cards...and I have heard some things like that about her but she certainly seemed nice enough...though very hyper...and she is most certainly a good player...even though her last round opponent got ejected giving her a free win) 2. Sam Lount (fellow THOTA member...seems to get really nervous in the finals) 3. Ryan Rusaw 4. Mike McKinnon 5. Me 6. Lawrence Genaille (player from Wpg...seems to do REALLY good..or REALLY bad) 7. Craig (?) 8. Don't remember his name...seemed a good player. Top 8 is a booster draft...5th then visions/visions. I draft a decent U/B deck...very creature poor...only 10...but some nice removal etc. I am paired against Mike McKinnon...BTW..the booster was very fun and light hearted...with us making a few jokes while the crowd watched us booster draft...its kind of nerve racking to draft with a crowd of 10 or so watching and analyzing your every pick. Funny moment...2-4 rares in the fifth boosters that i saw were Gauntlets of chaos...hehe...3 gauntlets all in a row...I got one when it came around again...nothin better. Back to the match...Mike is an old friend...he asked me advice about what he should draft for if he made the top 8 (though he was very pessimistic about his chances..as he always is...always underestimates himself). I told him to go red or blue or black depending on what broken cards he could get like pestilence flood/grasp or disint/fireball. He knew that I would do the same so he kind of counter-drafted to beat black/blue decks. My deck had: 1 drain, 2 infernal harvests, 2 breezekeepers, 1 waterspout, 2 inspiration + assorted creatures(chronatog!) and a triangle of war (my only non-black removal). Quarter final: Game 1. I find he is played a straight red weenie swarm...with songs of blood and piles of 1-3 costing red creatures. only 15 land. He starts to beat me up but I get out a couple blockers. I am hitting him here and there with an erg and a phasing breezekeeper. So we are pretty even finally he casts his key card...Song of blood. 3 + creatures in the next 4 will kill me. He turns them over...mtn, mtn, mtn, mtn...he Groans and attacks ... eventually i kill him...winning the game at two life. He had a heat wave which really hurt...since most of my creatures are blue. Bad luck..he should have won probably. Game 2. Same kinda thing happens...this time when he songs of blood he gets mtn , mtn, mtn, creature...and I hit him hard with an unstable Breezekeeper and cast another. He is at 6...I am at 3..he has two 2/2/s...I have two breezekeepers and a fallen askari. He picks up...and packs up his card.. for some reason not realizing that next turn my keepers would phase and he would live to see another turn. He groans again...but we check out our next cards...I would have picked up a triangle of war and managed to squeek it out anyways... We play a game for fun..and I beat him again..so he doesn't feel too bad. Sam loses to Craig Melissa loses to Lawrence Ryan beats the other guy. Me vs Lawrence. He is playing black red...I am expecting a hard fight since black/red has alot of elimination and i have but 10 creatures. First game he starts off too slow...I run him over with breezekeepers and a spout. Game 2. We both start off slow..but he gets out a ftn of youth. I get no creatures for a while...then i get a spout and he vampirics for a terror and kills it. He puts out a Talruum champ..i betray it but he attacks anyways. Then I make a DUMB mistake..I panic..fearing the fireblast/direct damage and harvest to kill the Champ. He plays another the next turn and this one kills me when I am too slow to put my swamps back down for my other infernal. Game 3. He starts a bit faster and i take early damage...but I drain a creature here, infernal a creature there and kill him eventually with a wake and a spout. Ryan beats Craig Me vs Ryan Rusaw. Ryan is playing a very nice blue/white deck. Game 1. We both start off ok...but I quickly find out what kind of deck he drafted as he man o wars, shrieking drake, undo, mano war, etc etc... He knocks me to one with his weenies...no cards in his hand...has 9/9 power and toughness of creatures on the table..I draw infernal harvest with like 9 swamps on the table...unfortunately one of his creatures is a white knight. I die. Game 2. He stalls at 3 mana...but proceeds to undo my two creatures 3 YES 3! times in a row...but it is just stalling...eventually they beat him down...murk dwellers like no blockers! Game 3. He stalls at 3 mana...undos once...plays a flooded shoreline(!) and I get out a murk dweller...he mano wars..I play murk and kill mano war he plays knight o mist...I kill it and hit him...I knock him down to 6 after a bit longer and get down three more creatures...he taps out to undo one two of my 4..leaving me with an askari and chronotog...and him with a 2/2 blocker...I play a Triangle..skip my next turn...use the Triangle on the chronotog and attack to kill him. He should have won in my opinion...but his mana count was a bit weird... 6 plains(he had 3 double whites) and 12 islands...enough mana..but should have been split more evenly..he ended the game with a buncha white cards in his hand. But he was mana screwed anyways...which i felt bad for him about...but he is qualified for chicago..so hopefully he can get in that way. So I went 8-0-3 for the day...though with a 19XX rating you go up SO SLOW. Will I go to Mainz? I'd LOVE to...but I don't know if i can afford it. Anyone want to sponsor me?...I have a travel voucher...but going to Germany is EXPENSIVE. Oh well..we shall see. Thanx for reading my novel...=) Mike Gurney