I'm so coming back for that.

I'm going to walk right into Smmenen's "OMG it's a trap" moment and state the obvious: Because unless you are eqipped with a Fastbond and two lands, chances are that you will not have two Islands to pay for Gush's alternate mana cost on turn one. Of course, you could generate mana, and I know the old Gifts skeleton for one is capable of that, but still... GI seems to have a point. But if you open Mox, Lotus, Land, wouldn't you probably do something else than Gushing?

BTW, the old Misdirection on Mind Twist was a fun staple of classic 4cc on 4cc battles (if they ran Twist).


It should certainly play less Gifts.^^

//aside: This doesn't belong in this thread, I think.// Apart from that, Scroll + Gifts was the central card-finding engine, so if you want a blue-based Storm deck, you have to look for another one of those. It is likely that you'll have to rely less on graveyard-based strategies (Will, Recoup) and instead go for a proper Storm kill, just as the Gifts deck was wont to pull off anyway most of the time. You don't need Recoup for Will to go off, and now that you have three less ways to set it up, I'd think you'd better forego the idea. As a simple recovery spell, Regrowth is better... if you even want one. Coupling fast mana and card drawing, you could try a Ritual-Gush-Hybrid or go the Smmenen route with Regrowth and Fastbond. You will still be playing a blue-based storm combo deck either way.

I think this deserves less *wink*. This is an example of faulty logic employed by R&D, I think. Both Black Vise and Gush have been argued in the past to be too powerful to actually unrestrict either one, and they have -- on the surface -- entirely opposite effects. I wouldn't put it past R&D to have thought along the lines of "ok - Gush fills your hand and takes away one turn in land, so there will be an upkeep where Vise can hit hard". Flawed logic. The Gush-decks will not be hit by Black Vise, which is a mid-game card. Black Vise hurts "real" control decks like we used to have back in the day, namely Keeper/ 4cc, BBS, even Tog.

Those decks are gone. I have been out of the Vintage loop for a while, so please correct me if I'm wrong, but Fish-style decks should get hit hardest by the Vise. Decks that take longer than five-six turns to win will suffer. Those are not the top decks, though. Black Vise, of course, is also a possible win condition in lock-decks like Stax (or Stasis, as has been briefly mentioned before). It will not keep the new generation of Gush decks in check. In fact, Gush may prove to powerful in the end to remain unrestricted, but Black Vise may not. I sense a problem coming from flawed logic on R&D's side, although it is a nice shake-up.

This restriction may even be a new try to use the restriction list more as a tool to shake up Vintage than in the past. Standard profits from rotation, as we all know, Vintage doesn't. Since Vintage is only refreshed by the B&R announcement, this may even be a shake-down (-up?) on purpose.

On Mind Twist and Voltaic Key, I have no problem with either one. Especially Mind Twist will allow some randomly broken openings that generate stories, but which are not distorting in any way. In slanted light, Mind Twist looks like a Gush solution on paper, too (if well-timed, it can really set a player back who just Gushed), but again: Before Mind Twist becomes active in that respect, proper Gush decks will already have won. I'm looking forward to Stephen's article on Monday to read in-depth thoughts on the subject.

Well, I forgot to ask about the Vintage Pro Tour, but I took the chance to speak to Randy Buehler and Mark Rosewater at the staff dinner on Sundy night about this. Turns out, it isn't much different than we already knew. They are watching the tournaments and TMD to see if anything requires action. They are keeping an eye out for anything that may be disturbing the player base or the format.

When designing cards, both Maro and Randy confirmed that they don't care specially about Vintage, because the format is already busted. I got the feeling that it isn't considered part of normal magic. There are some cards especially in Mirrodin block that prompted some Vintage thinking when they were designed, notably Chalice of the Void, but according to Maro, Trinisphere wasn't one of them.

Randy mentioned how he had enjoyed playing Vintage and that it was fun for him. There's noone actively watching Vintage at all times in R&D. "We don't check daily", but they do look to TMD occasionally, especially when there's an issue they need opinions on. So basically, nothing new: R&D is aware of Vintage but treats it as an animal of it's own. Vintage is basically the free-roaming stepchild of Magic, riding in on its Harley whenever a family gathering is announced, but never invited to anything else.

As a side note, Randy was surprised at how many people in the 180 man Vintage tournament actually had power. I didn't get the Top 8 lists (believe me, I tried), because they were lost in the gigantic scuffle that side events was, but it seemed like a fun event.

So that's it for now. Worlds was great, I got to meet & greet Pyro, rvs, Lunar, Wompi and probably some other guys I didn't recognize, and CF came in 11th. It was a great week!

That... that was a really sad story. *sniff*

Time to get better! Free Hugs!

Also, if you really are down and need to be cheered up... 1:40 min full of the very contagious laughter of quite a funny child. One of the most popular YouTube vids.

Wii launch for Germany is Dec. 8th, and I'm definitely getting up early on that day. Since I expect the target audience to be stopped by uni or school, I don't expect big difficulties in picking one up without pre-order. Most major chains here didn't even take pre-orders, as well as amazon.de which has also stopped a while ago.

What I'd me most interested in is what you picked up for launch. I'm not a console gamer and the Wii is going to be my first, but the controls are just far too intriguing *not* to have one. My plan is Wii + Wii Sports, an extra Wiimote (maybe with Wii Play, if it's available), Zelda, and either Rayman or Super Monkey Ball. I tend to Rayman because it has crazy bunnies instead of weird monkeys, but I'm really not sure. Red Steel doesn't excite me with Far Cry: Vengeance already announced, and Excite Truck -- meh, I'm not into racing games, though it's probably fun. Trauma Center looks quite weird to me and not like my style.

So what did you get?

I haven't reared my roaring voice in a while, but I'll be going to Worlds as part of magicthegathering.com's online coverage team. That means I'll be there and on site available for any TMD'ers who want to say hello. I know Toad is judging, and lots of Germans are going, too. So if you should happen to be in Paris, seek me out and say hello, if you want to.

The other thing is: I'll probably have a chance to talk to R&D notables about Vintage. Is there anything you'd like to have answered from Aaron Forsythe, Randy Buehler, Devin Low or Mark Rosewater that you haven't had the chance to ask them yet? I can't promise anything, but I'd certainly try to get the answers either on here or in the coverage. So, anything?

It actually should be "Target game loses player." Because... in Soviet Russia, games quit you!

Good job, BrassMan! Now let us know as much as you can on these boards how your contest goes... stand up to MaRo, don't let yourself "be kicked off the island", as Randy aptly put it on the PT Kobe webcast!

So, in accordance with the recent Flores theories (now saying that Skred is the best in Standard), I've cooked up a version of his "Karstenbot Babykiller" idea. Basically, it is the idea of the 8-Stone-Rain.dec from JP Nationals but condensed into an R/G Snow build. Skreds serve as main removal, while Demonfire is additional burn and finisher. Flores recently advanced the idea that "if you win with Demonfire" (as so many decks do), the game plan changes. Just clog the game up, stay alive and fry 'em out of nowhere -- you'll find the mana somehow.

I believe that both Skred and Ohran Viper plus the 8 Stone Rains are well suited to the task, only I like having an extra fat body to help out. I haven't seen a list that combines Skred and Rumbling Slum, but it seems pretty obvious to me. Here's my list which I am going to take for an outing as soon as I get the chance:

4 Birds of Paradise
4 Boreal Druid (Llanowar Elves?)
4 Ohran Viper
2 Stalking Yeti (not sure yet how good these are. Flores says two is the right number...)
4 Rumbling Slum

4 Skred
4 Demonfire
4 Stone Rain
4 Cryoclasm
4 Into the North

1 Mouth of the Ronom
4 Scrying Sheets
4 Highland Weald
4 Stomping Ground
4 SNC Mountain
5 SNC Forest

No SB as yet. (Oh yeah, and I'm going post-Kamigawa T2 with this, so no Jitte!)

Boreal Druids complement the snow count, as do Highland Wealds. Like I said, this is basically a Flores rip-off, and it has yet to go through the testing routine. Still, I feel comfortable taking the deck to an FNM. I'm not sure if the Wealds actually work because of the CIP-tap, but they add to the snow count (28), which is necessary to operate the Sheets properly. I think you could argue for 3 Sheets and less Wealds, but that is a matter of testing.

It's slower than Gruul or Boros, but has much more consistent mana than Zoo and a draw engine that can easily match the control decks, with the acceleration that makes it possible. Ohran Viper is a beating, and the deck has a lot of reach, owing to the Demonfires and Skreds (the one-mana-kill-all). I omitted the Kird Apes because the deck doesn't want to get the beats on in the first three turns, but rather accelerate into Viper and/ or Stone Rain to follow that up with Slum or additional LD. Sheets shouldn't become active in the first three turns, but ensure a steady stream of threats after that.

I can, by the way, see this kind of deck profiting from Lotus Bloom, giving it a gigantic fourth turn.

Initial comments?

Looks good. The semi-circle is the more elegant version. The Oval just looks fat, and quite unproportioned. You can do Ovals when you have so much space that nobody will really notice it's an oval, or when you need to cover space that is wider than high. This is apparently not the case here, so I'd go semi-circular.

I'd love to see Moat, and I consider it a possible in the environment. Alas, Moat is on the Reserved List and, as such, has no chance of ever being reprinted as long as the policy is in effect. Looking at the Time Spiral "totem" cycle, the Reserved List seems to be rather an inspiration source, though. We might see an "anti-Moat", something that stops fliers only. That could be fun!

As for what they could reprint, Lotus Petal would be awesome, but unlikely. In an environment where Bob and Sensei's Divining Top are accepted, I think Sylvan Library could be a legitimate successor (even though it's green). Another one of my old favorites is Razor Pendulum, which hasn't had a chance to shine, really, but could be quite a lot of fun. I'm not sure if it is tournament viable, but the card certainly could be around for a while just to see what happens. I'd also love Misdirection to come back, which I don't see as too unlikely. It's a long shot, but would be great.

Force of Will, by the way, is not on the Reserved List. A reprint is very unlikely, though.

Did you ever feel you had to protest against gas-guzzling street giants? Did you ever get the feeling you had to represent your digust at the modern consumerist society in public? Do you hate big, militaristic cars? Or are they even... YOUR FETISH?

Then IHumpedYourHummer.com is the right place for you! (Find their statement here.)

Personally, I think it's awesome. If I ever see a Hummer in Germany and I have a cam around, I'll contribute.

/edit: Oh yeah, I forgot: Throw an eye on the Google Adsense ads on that site. Isn't it ironic?

F'ing A! That's so awesome. That's... I'm totally out of words. Thanks for posting that!

This alone is worth the word filter.

The thing itself is an amazing thing to happen. Maybe the goods got too hot, and while trying to fence them, the thief ran into a wall? However, many happy returns to Moxlotus and his cards.

I'd call him Flynn, or MCP, because it... er, he, is disc-shaped.

Maybe he's buying for SCG, and doesn't want to it on the SCG account? They are out of Grim Tutors, and stocking on Ascetics because those won their You Decide vote. Star City sells Grim Tutor at 135$, so I guess he's actively seeking them out on eBay if he can get a margin for the store.

I think they are just trying to lure you into replaying and will then bombard you with the usual porn-spam, in the hopes that you subscribe to one of their sites and give them money. Although the "need money for grandmother's funeral"-line could also be.

Or maybe they are really trying to hook you up with a hooker? You'll never know until you answer.

It's considered more powerful because Timetwister wasn't in the broken Urza Block Academy decks. In a Vintage context, Timetwister is obviously stronger, but Time Spiral just did more during the time it was legal in a "current" format. Also, if you don't have fast mana to deploy from your hand (read: Moxen), but rely on Academy instead, the untap-effect of Time Spiral is pretty important. Sure, Twister is the objectively more powerful card, but not in the minds of the majority of players who never had a chance to play with Twister or, indeed, don't even know it exists.

After German Nationals, we sat in a hotel room on Sunday night, and at about 3 a.m. we started to fling the Coldsnap cards from the draft out of the open window, one by one. Next morning, I was walking past the hotel with one of the judges (who also had been there), and he's like: "Hey look, Magic cards on the street! Where the helll do those come from?" I looked at him in disbelief and pointed up to the hotel window.

Also, that very night I heard the story (not verified) that someone has learned to throw Magic cards hard enough to knock the plaster off the walls. I'd sure love to see that!

For Wizards, it's between a rock and a hard place -- ban him and lose Olivier, or treat him gently and risk compromising the DCI's stance on cheating. Even though he got an Unsportsmanlike Conduct ban, and was not banned for Cheating, if the DCI decided on this infraction, they had to give out the appropriate penalty. I don't think they had a real choice.

It's sad that Olivier has decided to give up Magic. (His short statement can be found here.) I don't think he will be gone forever, though. If he is a gamer at heart, he'll come back, and the suspension seems very harsh for the infraction in my mind... but then again, that's the policy. It seems like the suspension caught Oli out of the blue, though, which is surprising because he should know the DCI people well enough to be aware of their steely stance.

It's unfortunate that it is Olivier who had this happen to him, but he provoked it himself by doing what he did. All in all, it seems hard but fair, and Oli should be happy that he did not get banned for cheating, which is a much worse stain on his record and might even have lead to a longer suspension.

Link Fixed. -Klep

We drink raw tea on the south-wing veranda, yo! RSVP!

Words fail me.

There is an easier way to do it, if you use Magiccards.info. They have ready-made UBB and HTML code you can just copy like so: Helldozer, and you don't have to set the tags yourself. You can find the links below the cards when you click on them.

Also, if you ever trade something away or sell it, make sure that your insurance policy covers the remaining stuff. If you have to present your insured goods everytime they change, for example when you have individual cards noted down as "most valuable" or something like that, it could become quite a hassle. Make sure with your insurance agent how the policy is actually going to work, and also if you are still covered when you're at a tournament. I could imagine that the extra security hazard isn't covered in a regular contract, so I'd make sure to point out that the cards will be in use in the public.

Have you contacted Mark Rosewater? He was heavily involved in the early Pro Tour, and might give you a lead to who else was important during that time. Digging through my Duelist 5-year-anniversary issue (the only issue I ever kept), I found Tom Wylie was the headjudge of Pro Tour Columbus 1996, the one Olle Rade won. Godder already mentioned Skaff Elias. I'm pretty sure Beth Morsund could send you on the right track, too, if you can track her down somehow. The current high-level judges are a veritable information mine, and most notably Scott Larrabee of WotC should be able to give you helpful hints. Oh yeah, and Henry Stern, formerly of R&D, should also be pretty informative.

I can't think of or find anything else that might lead you to your information right now, but I'll say good luck in your research! I'm definitely interested in the outcome.

I was thinking something along the lines of "Alok Hitler", but I've been looking at far too much Hitler-related comedy in the last week. When you're desperately looking for something to keep you away from learning Renaissance Humanism in Eastern Europe, that's the kind of stuff you come across.

Then again, "Atoll Hiker" is great. Fits well with any Tropical Islands present, and also lends itself to "The Atoll Hiker's Guide to the Orchards".

That's not stupid. Old cards can fail the bend test, but the ink on the cards stays water repellant for a very, very long time. I have a beta Fireball whichs (sp?) authenticity has been disputed before. This particular card will fail the bend test because it has a small horizontal crease on the border at about half the card height. This little crease will extend to the whole card when you bend it, that's unavoidable. The ink, though, repels water as ever. I've done the water test with it sucessfully, no problem there.

The easiest way to test this is to just wet your finger and let a drop of water fall on the card from there. Just one drop, mind you! You should see the drop "pulling" itself together and staying together, not running across the card. If the edges of the drop of water aren't clearly defined, and the water begins to seep into the card almost immediately, it's most likely not a Wizards of the Coast print. Dap the drop off with a napkin or towel, which is easy because it should stay confined anyway.

Roland, Jacob --
I really hope you get your cards back. It's unlikely they'll make it to Europe, but if I see any being sold or hear about it, I will notify you. The cards are pretty recognizable, so the overall chances to find them is there.


That's exactly why I always take my cards with me whereever I go. I have never left my P9 deck in control of somebody else, even in the care of a friend, at a public event. That way, I maintain full control of it, and also if something happens to it, it's entirely my fault and nobody else has to feel bad. Granted, I don't carry as much power and pimp as Roland did here, so it's pretty easy to pick it up every time. But I feel far to uncomfortable when I don't have immediate access to my powered deck to enjoy the time. Even half a minute away from it makes me feel real itchy. Overly protective? Maybe, but as Roland's sad case shows, it seems to be necessary.

Again, sorry to you two. I hope for you and us all that you find the cards, the thief and he gets the appropriate punishment.

What, didn't you instruct your voters to punch through their ballots clearly and with enough force to penetrate the voting field? I object to the recount. Not enough people want to kneel, Bram...