Subject: Here's a denver proqual report... Date: Tue, 16 Dec 1997 13:17:39 -0700 (MST) From: Jason To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com It's been nearly 4 days now since the Denver ProQualifier ended. At first I didn't feel like writing a report, but then I decided I would. Of course, being the lazy person I am and being a great fan of football...I put it off until now. Only 60 people showed up at the Denver Qualifier. I've been in college in Minnesota for the past few months, and when I returned to Denver I had attended a few small tourneys where I saw a plethora of new players...yet when it came time for the qualifier to roll around only 60 people showed up! Only sixty! Oh well, perhaps we'll draw more next time. I just think rookies, and scrubs don't like playing constructed formats as much...especially extended where they don't own all the cards. I guess that's not entirely true, I mean, who needs to own dual lands to play in this format? noone. I had playtested for extended alot, and read up on the net about a few decks. I created a buried alive deck R/U/B, a R/G Vineyard deck, a lake-drain Necro, a Standard Necro, and a R/U/W multi-pronged attack deck. When I play tested them against each other, the R/U/W would always lose, but when I play-tested the R/U/W against other people, I would always win with it. Since it was a favorite deck of mine, I decided to play it at the pro-qual. Unfortunately I hated mana screw...and since the U was only for disrupts, frenetics, and waterspouts, I chose to ditch it and go R/W. That way I could use boil and bloodmoon against fruity pebbles decks, and the lovely Land-tax. I still don't know if it was a wise decision, but the deck performed very well for me. I ended going wityh white knights instead of Savannah lions, and added Warbeasts mainly to avoid Nekrataal. Let's just say that black terror just toar me up in play-testing before changing these things around. I had believe the meta-game would be B/R and WW/r too, but my deck was mainly built around being anti-B/R. Whoops was I wrong! I should have built it more around R/W... Usually, I go to tournaments with a group of friends...but since I left for college they have all quit playing magic. One of them, Kelvin Tang, decided to come however, and what a wise decision it was! He hadn't played magic in months...and we only play-tested his R/U/W like 5 games the night before, but he played great... Here's the deck (I guess I should go downstairs and get it...my memory just isn't this good...): 4 Soltari Priests 3 White Knights (These and moggs were the only boltables...) 4 Phyrexian Warbeasts 4 Wildfire Emmisary's 2 Mogg Fanatics (these were good, but not great :( ) 2 Mishra's Factory 1 Keldjoran Outpost (I thought this would suck, but it won me a game) 1 Earthquake 4 Lightning Bolts 4 Incinerates 2 Guerilla Tactics 2 Serrated Arrows (One of the best cards of the day) 2 Disenchants ( I had three originally, but they were often dead cards...I knew I couldnt beat pebbles before sideboarding) 3 Tithes (Tithe = god) I was manascrewed so many times...without tithe that is.... 1 Land Tax 3 Wastelands 2 Gemstone Mines 4 Plateaus 8 Plains 4 Mountains Sideboard: 3 Swords to Plowshares (should have been main deck) 3 Honorable Passages (Same here...were originally main deck) 2 Disenchants 1 Aura of Silence 1 Guerilla Tactics (My main deck should have had swords instead of these) 2 Boils 2 Red Blasts 1 Blood Moon On to the tourney: First Round: I forget his name...its been four days! Playing R/G Game 1: It wasn't pretty...for him. Lets just say, his face gave away alot...like when he attacked with his Elvish archers...I knew he had giant growth waiting. So I just bolted it in response. I ended up getting out mass outpost token advantage and beat him down with them. Ahhh the outpost. He ended up playing a Havoc main deck too wierd. Game 2: Well, this game was like the first. Except I just swordsed or bolted every creature he played and killed him with a soltari priest. The guy was playing with wall of diffusion...? I have no clue why as it is not an answer to the priest at all. I think a first turn land tax this game ended up getting all that basic land out of my deck, and a second turn tithe took care of 2 plateaus. For some reason, I dont mind discarding alot of cards on the second turn if they are all basic lands, and I know my opponent doesnt have armaggedon. I do remeber at one point in the game I had out a warbeast, which he double incinerated...whoops I'll honorable passage the second incinerate. I love creatures that must be hit by more than one bolt. Games: 2-0, Match: 1-0 Round 2: I get paired up with Ryan Cole, a great player playing G/R/W Last thrusday, we met in a Sanctioned Type II. I got mana-screwed the third game and had to discard for 6 turns before getting beat down by 2 maro's with 1 land on the table. I was holding 3 edicts in my hand. Gotta love mana-screw! Game 1: When he played his first land, a savanah, I knew I would lose this first game. I had not prepared for erhnams...and with swords In the sideboard I was going to get janked. I did manage to get out a first turn land tax, but it didn't help me...I still drew land in the form of gemstones and plateaus even after taxing all my basic stuff out of my deck. I get beat down by an erhnam and serra...and my soltari priests get swordsed away. Game 2: In goes the bloodmoon, swords and passages. Gotta love em. Game 1, he plays a priest...swords, I play a priest...it gets swords. He lays an erhnam, I swords it...I lay another priest, and another priest, and he doesnt find an answer...he dies to Soltari beatdown. Game 3: This was his turn to get mana-screwed he drew just one mishra and 1 wasteland the entire game...and I drew a god draw with a wasteland, land tax, 2 war beasts, and 2 priests. It wasnt pretty. We wish each other good luck, and move on to our next opponents...little did I know I'd be playing Ryan again later...and losing. Round 3: Jason Heinz Playing R/W tax/scroll rack Game 1: Damn, I hate playing against land tax. He annihalates me this game. I remember getting out a white knight, and a war beast...and him firestorming them away with his excess land..then punishing me with his own knights...I drew one bolt as my only creature removal...geez. Game 2: This game, he gets kinda mana-screwed...and gets swamped by my warbeasts and priests. Game 3: This was one of the best games of my life... John shuler sums this type of game up best, "Holy Pikula!" I was mana-screwed at 2 land with an aura of silence in my hand..my third turn I cannot drop the aura...his third turn, he has an undiscovered and a plains in play, then drops 2 taxes. Great googily moogily. Next turn, he drops a scroll rack. Shit. Im still mana screwed. He keeps dropping Savannah Lions...I bolt three in a row. He then drops some knights...I bolt them. Im stuck at three land until the seventh turn when I can finally aura his rack. I then draw a fourth land and drop a wildfire. I'm at like 12 life...He attacks me with a priest...I swords it...I attack with wildfire, It gets passaged...He trys to double bolt wildfire, I passage a bolt. He drops a longow archer, I drop a serrated arrows, he disenchants the arrows, but I hit the archer for a counter. If you can even get a picture of how the game looks, I'm proud of you...cause I just can't seem to describe it right! He's at 8 life, I have 4 lands and a wildfire out, I'm at 4 and he has a 1/1 longbow and a soltari priest out...I attack with the wildfire, and pump it up brining him to 4. He then looks at his library and seems to pray as he draws...he attacks me bringning me to one...and drops savannah Lions! Next turn, I attack with my wildfire, pump it up for 4 and kill him. I survived mass mana-screw, double land tax, scroll rack! yeah baby! yeah! Games: 6-2, Match:3-0 Round 4: Dan Kerber Playing...you guessed it R/W tax Game 1: Without swords and enchantment removal I have no chance...he gets out a 4th turn empyrialed freewind, and beats me down for 5 every turn, I just cannot keep up with a stupid pro-red beat down chicken. Game 2: I sideboard in my swords, aura, and disenchants, and chose to leave my wasteland in knowing he must have a outpost...I saw a goblin bombardment the first game. Why have that if you don't have outpost? They go so well together...He gets out a fast soltari priest armor...and I haev 2 passages in my hand, and a wildfire In play. I think I can beat him out on damage...but he drops a land tax, and a winter orb. shit. Then hits me for 8, and I take it...next turn I draw a swords...on his next turn, he taxes, then trys to armor the priest again...whoops swords gives me a three for 1, and his own winter orb hurts him more than me as I have board control with wildfire, and cheap easy removal. Game 3: He is slightly mana-screwed and is forced to sac a plains to lay outpost just to get that extra white mana...and Of course I'm holding a wastelands, which I left in the deck for jsut such an occasion...The wastelands does the job, and so does wildfire, and a war beast. Games: 8-3, Match: 4-0 Round 5: Matt Johnson R/U/W I playtested a bit with Matt, and I know he is a good player. I even gave him some Ideas on his deck...unfortunately for him...as I know its contents. :). My friend Kelvin had beaten him earlier...so he is 3-1, and needs this win over me, god knows how I got paired up against a 3-1 when I was top seed in this round of swiss...err wiat I was second seed, maybe that is why. Game 1: He thinks I'm playing R/U/W...I was last time I played him. Frenetics hit me for a bit, but I ignore them...I have 5 bolts, and a tactics in my hand, and have hit him a few times with a priest and warbeast...guess what happens next? I'll give you a hint, his one counterspell wasn't enough to hold off the burn. Game 2: He gets out frenetics...and I cannot ignore them forever...I get hosed, but do get him down to 4 life. The turn he kills me, I am at 1, he has 2 frenetics, a city of brass, and an Island in play. I have 4 cards in hand and 4 lands untapped..he is at 4...and because of my "poker stare" nearly taps that city before attacking...whoops. Nearly that is... Game 3: I get out a serrated arrows early, Red blast a frenetic, and pound him with a wildfire and War beast. This game was closer than it sounds, yet still not all that close. Games: 10-4, Match: 5-0 Round 6: Kelvin Tang Playing R/U/W tongoesque deck Damn wouldn't you know, my friend and I are seeded first and second...And he wasn't even going to come. :). We decide to take the intentional draw, and realize that I will still be seeded first...there were alot of draws before the top 8, so 16 points at 5-0-1 will seed me first, and based on Kelvins record he won't be last seed so that means we will meet in the semi's at the earliest. The Top 8 looked something like this: Me playing R/W "Meta Game" Sam Guetirrez (sorry I cannot spell sam!) Playing "fruity Pebbles" Mike ? Playing U/W/g control with blessing's mishra's and outpost? Josh Napper playing B/R/W Necro not lake drain however Mrs. Napper... I should know her name by now, playing R/G burn Ryan Cole playing Big fatty R/G/W Dan Kerber playing R/W Kelvin Tang Playing R/U/W the names are not in the order of seedings... Round 1: Josh Napper Necro I've played Josh alot before, well not alot..maybe once come to think of it. He is an excellent player. He beat me when we met in the state Type II semi-finals with his R/U frenetic deck. Unfortunatelly I had prepared to play R/B all day...and here it was. Game 1: I get out 2 priests, he has no way to deal with them...he Necros for 6 hoping to get an arrows, or a drain...gets none, and gets double bolted and priested to death. Game 2: I get 2 priests again. He gets off one lucky hymn pulling a passage and a warbeast. His diabolic edicts become useless after I played my outpost...gotta love the post, and he is forced to consult for an arrows to save him from the priests...by then it is too late as direct damage finishes him off. Round 2: Kelvin Tang R/U/W Kelvin was thinking of letting me win this, but he plays it out, like he should, to the best of his ability. Game 1: Ouch...I get out a fast start with tithes, Ignore his frenetic with my burn, and target him instead and trash him with priests and a warbeast or two. Game 2: Holy Pikula! I draw 1 land, a gemstone mine, and a wasteland...I end up drawing one more plains, then lay a warbeast, which gets disenchanted. I feel I had to take the gamble with the beast, and would have done it over again. I lay a priest, and have 1 counter left on my mine..kelvin lays a firewalker...damn the texas ranger. I hit him with the priest, and on his next turn he lays another walker...ack! On my turn I draw an earthquake, and quake for 1 hoping he doesnt have the counterspell, he doesnt!. He kills my priest, and I am stuck with one plains...next turn I draw a tithe...still no counterspell. I tithe for two plateaus, I play them, and seeing as it is better to bolt him than discard, start bolting him...and honorable passaging his one frenetic in play. He then wastelands one of my plateaus and I am down to two land again with no creatures...but due to all my burn, I get him down to 2 life. I figured..If I get him that low on life, everything becomes a must counter situation. I then draw a priest, and play it...he control magics It, I attempt to disenchant the control magic, but he uses his force of will...putting him at one. I draw...a direct damage spell! and finish him off...Holy Pikula! The game probably doesn't seem that great here...but when I was down to two lands for 90% of the game, and still won it was amazing... Finals: Ryan Cole R/G/W fatty deck During the last round of swiss, I Explained to Ryan that I was like the Denver Broncos. I had clinched home-field advantage way to early in the season, and that I would blow it in the playoffs. And that proved so true... Game 1: I know I'm going to have a rough time against erhnam fat before sideboarding... I get Ryan down to 12 life...with a priest, and he has a wildfire and a serra in play, I have 5 lands, the priest, 2 bolts, 1 earthquake, and 1 land in hand. I figure he's dead next turn...he then taps 5 mana, and I think cool another serra angel...then He geddons...shit, I'm dead. Being at 8 life, I am forced to double bolt his serra, rather than him, and die fast... Game 2: I forget this came to be honest...I think he gets a slow mana-start and I beat him down with priests. Game 3: Lets just say this was ugly, I land tax...make a mistake with tithe by tithing on my turn for no reason, I thought it was upkeep for a sec and thought I could improve my draw with the tithe...god am I an idiot. Oh well I discard alot of land, but all is ok. Ryan only opens the game with 2 land, but has 2 or three swords in hand, and he uses them on my early war beast, and priest. He then starts drawing land...plays a bunch of fat creatures, and beats me down. I drew no swords the entire game, and made one more playing error. I should have layed a second warbeast to double block erhnam. That would have made one of his passages less effective at the least...and would have given me two chances to kill the erhnam...as I drew only 1 bolt that game...1 bolt, no swords...oh well. So is life. I'm happy that Ryan won, as he deserved it. He meta-game very well with his big fatty's. The deck would have died to Nekrataal...but I never saw one of those guys all day. Josh Napper had them, but he didnt play one against me. Anyway, it turns out...even if I did win I couldn't go...I think I have finals on the 7th and 8th, due to my odd tri-mester system at college. At least I proved that I can still play magic after a few months of slacking off. I think the card of the tourney, and you have probably heard this many times befor was soltari priest. That guy is the shit. If you cannot deal with him, you will die fast. And in that respect, Serrated Arrows also gets my vote for a card of the tournament. It deals with frenetics well, and the stupid priest, aswell as firewalkers, pump knights, and savannah lions. It also allows you to use 1 bolt per wildfire or war beast. I also feel that R/B Necro is gone...R/W land Tax scroll rack seems to be a very strong deck in this format...of course disenchant and aura of silence can ruin the day for those players, but I saw the combo pop out on the third turn alot...I mean a third turn lands edge. Its killer. Hope this report helps someone out there, Jason Schickli