Wrong. The Ooze wouldn't get the triggered ability, but would get all the activated ability, included the last sentence.

Yes, in g2 he has both, but in g1 he said his Hellkite was chumpblocked by his opponent's, so he should have only a lone duplicant. Obviously I don't know the rest of the gamestate, so I was just courious as to what happened (moar details->happy readers!).

And yes, Duplicant stays a 2/4 because that's what happens when the removed card isn't a creature (as written on the card).

Congratulations for the win and the awesome report, I'll wish you much more wins if you promise reports like this one to become an habit

Just one thing:
He couldn't find an answer to the 2/4 duplicant in time, or did you believe it was a 5/5?

LOL

It was a pleasure to meet you (again) and your friends (for the first time)
Hope to see you all in Annecy next year, I'll try to be there this time!

Actually, it's a cycle.

http://www.wizards.com/magic/magazine/article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/feature/107

About ANT:
Kind of fun how the maindeck hasn't almost changed in more than one year.

Unfortunately I believe the deck to be unplayable given the bad MUD matchup, and its recent strenghtnening thanks to the printing of Lodestone Golem, even if I admit I didn't spend much time to test the deck after last summer. Still a friend of mine has just rebuilt it, and it seems still a bomb against the other decks in the meta.

I'm curious to know what are your sideboard solutions, since it's the deck most variable part.

Did you show him his misplay?

@ Dr Evil:
Congratulations for your performance with the deck! And mad props for citating me (even if the name is Roberto).

I'm wondering tough, if you tested any different configuration and reverted back to that list based on metagame and overall performances, or just sticked conservatively to it.
For example, I'm always shifting the protection package (Pact/Thoughtseize/Spellpierce) and have long since abandoned Xantid Swarm (I need the sb space to fight much worst mus like 9spheres).

Also, is it possible to have a report? How was the lone BFreeze?

Still Gratz,
Roberto "weird egg" Maffei 

PS: hope to see some Dutch to Worlds this weekend!!

(I wasn't able to send you a pm, so I'll keep responding here) It would be nice if you could contact him, I may either give you my mail or msn contact (or even facebook ).

I'd like to contact the winner of the tournament, does he have a TMD account?

It depends on the definition of "big" 
Anyway, there will probably be another Ovinogeddon in september (in Milano), the smaller eternal Italian championship (vintage and legacy, ~120 pls each) in Rimini this august, and probably a side event during the Worlds in Rome at december. 

Hi there, I'm Roberto (rnd6)

That's a real pity that you didn't make top8! (expecially after beating me ).

To integrate you report:
g1- upon seeing you with a spirit token in you dice carrier I happily though you were playing Oath, so i decided to keep my duress to protect my turn 2 play... that never arrived

g3- you Tinker on your second turn, but I'm pretty confidant to find an out (either comboing or using an Hurkyll, since i sided all 3 in expecting Inkwell). Unfortunately it doesn't happen. I must admit i was really happy when you flipped Tendrils in the first 3 of Demonic Consultation (I only saw one when Extirpating in g2), was a bit puzzled but even happier when you flipped a second one as the sixth card (that would have been luck!), and then I felt really bad when you found the third one (really BAD surprise )

Anyway, as I already said you, it was a pleasure to meet, and I really hope that there will be a chance to meet again! (perhaps at next year's BOM ).

Ps: I dropped after the 8th round (to go eat something with mi gf) on 5-1-2 after losing to Tyranth Oath (with one Tendrils main) that comboed faster than me

@ Chill79
I think I never used Ad Nauseam as a counter bait.
That's because the deck runs a good amount of disruption, and:
- In the first turns disruption should be enough to force it trough, while baiting with it would require the expenditure of precious rituals and having another in hand, which is less probable that having disruption.
- Especially late in the game you should be able to use a counterwar to ramp up enough storm to win even without Ad Nauseam.

From your list I really don't like the Repeal that is strictly inferior to Chain of Vapor and Mind's Desire that, while a bomb on it's own sucks with Ad Nauseam. Timetwister, I think, is a matter of personal choice, but I found it absolutely underwhelming. Likewise I used to run Tolarian but cut it (and added the 4Th Chrome Mox) because i found the deck really  hungry. Also, not playing Demonic Consultation looks to me just a plain mistake.

---

@ meadbert
-This. That by the way is the reason why i switched 4xThoughtseize+1xPact of Negation (to grab with Merchant) -> 4xPoN+1xSeize.
-Plus, apart from Ad Nauseam we have no Drain sinks.
-Also, Drains benefits a defensive strategy, whereas the deck is inherently offensive.

What worries me is the chance a shop player drops chalice@2 and two other lock pieces (2xspheres, sphere and chalice@1). Unfortunately we don't have FoW and we can't always race the lock, and I don't really like not having outs. In the list I posted EE served that purpose, but I'm not sure about it being the best solution (Rebuild while more damaging off Nauseam might be tutorable with some insight).

No questions about Confidant or Pact in place of Thoughtseize?

I shudder at the thought of what the google translation might look like

My initial thoughts were along the lines of the deck being too much inconsistent to play in a competitive event (that is, some busted hands and many more mediocre ones). Eventually I had the chance to test a little more and, as the more I play it, I noticed that it's much better than at first sight. So, before dismissing it, players should REALLY take their time TESTING (and golfishing is NOT testing).

Overall, I felt the deck very solid and found each matchup almost positive, altough I dind't face workshop decks which should be the worst opponents. If I were to play a deck in the immediate future, I would probably bring the exact same list (maybe just adding a Rebuild in the SB).

I used Necropotence 3 times (and that's not a lot in 11 rounds by my standards ) twice in the swiss and once in top8 (that's not covered in the report due to time costraints and memory lapses) and, if I recall correctly, I used a mini Tendrils only the first time (didn't found it straight away the second time, having enought gas in hand for the kill the third one). Still, had I found (or given the chance to succesfully cast) it, I wuold have probably used Necro much more. It's just a bomb since the format slowed down, the deck runs discard and chrome moxes.

Hope this covers your questions

A couple of weeks ago there was a 183 players tournament near Firenze (the "D-Day", there were also some SCG salesmen).

I won the event with this list:


Facing:


For those who can read italian, here's the report.

Well, nice article (even if I haven't got the time to read all of it).

While I've found some debatable statements about my building choices, I feel this is not the place to discuss it, but I'd like just to point out a little mistake:
Picasso is (and i thought it ovious ) the name of the deck, while the player's alias is +|3eowulf+.

Anyway, good job, I'll be waiting eagerly for the rest of the articles.

Last sunday 2 Painter.dec have split in the finals of, respectively, a 35 and 42 players tournament. So you might want to take a look

Scarecrow @ ICBM Open #4 TO Report and top 8 lists

Picasso @ [04/05/2008 - TPC#9 - Roma] - Results (yes, I know it's in italian)

The second one was piloted by me, in a sea of unfavorable matchups
Round 1 - Goblin R/b [2-1]
Round 2 - Mana Ichorid [2-1]
Round 3 - Gift [0-2] !!
Round 4 - Aggro Workshop [2-1]
Round 5 - Goblin R [2-1]
Round 6 - i.d.
Top8 - TPS [2-1]
Top4 -  Pentastax Aggro [2-0]

For sure, I'd recommend the following changes:
-1 ponder +1 mana drain
-3 threads + whatever

It has been banned for the same reason Falling Star and Chaos Orb are:
it doesn't belong to competitive play.

The whole SUBGAME thing (other than requiring a lot of rules), it's really unpractical in a tournament enviroment:
- do you and your opponent take your decks and move to a free table?
- do you and your opponent take your decks and move under the table?

It's been held in Madrid. Last year there was one with 8 Lotus as prizes, this year there was this one.

How could I forget Brain Freeze? Looks like (at least control) decks have a minimum size.

- Island
- ESG
- Mox
- Brain Freeze
- Force of Will
- Force of Will
- Force of Will

SB:
- Leyline of the Void
- Mox
- Mox
- Mox
etc.

Notes:
- Mulligans on the draw
- Always has 1 protection on the draw
- On the play (maindeck) kills anything with less than 15 cards (if opponent doesn't play counters, we counter a mox to up the storm), or 12 cards (opponent counters a copy o BF, we counter his counter) or 9 cards (opponent counters 2 BF and we counter 1 of his counters).
- After sideboarding can foil blessing with LotV.
- After sideboarding can up the storm count substituting FoWs with moxen.

Ps: it's a bomb!

EDIT: Congratulations to Orlove for presenting the first aggro-control (?) deck of the topic. I think tough that you should replace Leyline of Singularity with another one since it could backfire.
Also in my deck the third FoW is really a random blue card, that should probably be Chain of Vapor (in this case even Snapback would work)

What about this? Another 7 cards combo, but with disruption.

- Black lotus
- Channel
- Fireball
- Tinder Wall
- Mana Crypt
- Force of Will
- random-blue-card

Notes:
- mulligan on the draw
- beats leyline
- on the play loses to double counter
- on the draw loses to discard/prison if doesn't have FoW+blue card in hand
- on the draw loses to first turn deck if doesn't have FoW+blue card in hand

I tested a bit this list, with the following modifications:

-4 Pact of Negation
-1 Helm
-1 Bazaar
-1 Tendrils

+4 Unmask
+1 Rite of Flame
+1 Burning Wish
+1 Empty the Warrens

Overall, I noticed that the bleeding caused by tutors, fetches and cyclers really weakened the effect of Bargain and Necropotence.
Adding the fact that one costs 6 mana and the other requires to pass the turn, plus the possible use of Empty the Warrens as a finisher, led me to believe that they might be cut.
Also, I've found Mana Vault a liability, since it can't produce the colored mana i'm so hungry for.

Specifically testing against Gift and siding like
-2 Cabal Ritual
-1 Mana Vault

+2 Pyroblast
+1 Empty the Warrens

I found it an unfavorable match even post-side, because they have more counters/protection, and a tutor engine that works also as card advantage.
Usually games went with both of us hindering ours gameplan and then be left in topdeck mode, with him usually able to resolve sooner a gamewinning Yawgmoth's Will.
I felt the need of graveyard removal, a card advantage engine and more protection.
While the graveyard removal (that should consist of about 2-3 Tormod's Crypt) and might be too narrow and space eating, we might add 4 Dark Confidant (switching out the Wraiths) that are useful also in the prison mu, and up to 3 the Pyroblast count.

Ps: Many times I've casted the Simian Spirit Guide and attacked for the win, you should change the deck name to Simian Aggro or something like that. Seriosly 

Yes, it works the way you think. Also in the legacy forum (the source) there's already a deck development that involves this cards as a combo, FoW and PoN as protection and Gemstone Caverns+Spirit Guides for a nice turn0 kill.

From today's mtg article:
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=mtgcom/daily/aa245

As a player of monoblack myself, i felt necessary to splash red in the deck to deal with workshop.dec, which was one of my worst mu (probably even more than oath).

I'd like to know how do you play against any prison deck with your stricly black list.

In fact you actually need  each turn to copy the Time Vault with Mizzium Transreliquat.

@ Illisius:
The errata for Lion's Eye Diamond is (as you guessed) because with Mirage-era rules you couldn't play a spell in you hand with it (that is, announce the spell then break the Diamond to pay for it).

Edit: i'm so slow!

@ TopSecret:
Unlike changes to the b/r lists, oracle wording is in effect as the last version available, so if the new wording on Time Vault is official, you should fear the Mizzet thing this weekend. Still the Gatherer is having some problems, so i don't really know what's the Oracle wording of any card right now, being the Gatherer the official and only source for the wording...