Well, I finally lost.
I'll give you a little bit of background on the deck. I have played Uba Stax for the last 3 Dreamers tournaments, just over a month ago I won my first piece of power with the deck, a split Time Walk. The guy I played in the finals was a good matchup (Gifts), but I had lost at the previous tournament in a favorable matchup (Mono Brown [Rivers Affinity, I hate that name] vs. some weird 4 Color Control, which the only win condition was either Tinker -- Colossus, or Crucible/Fastbond/Zuran Orb and Stroke of Genious you out) because of terrible draws. I needed the money, to pay for my phone company screwing me over, and charging me waay more then they said they would on international calls. Instead of the $0.06 a min, they charged me an awesome $0.89 / min.
Being a 16 (17 now) year old kid, who's only job is Magic, the thought of a $200 phone bill is very very scary. So, I split for the Time Walk for cash. The next tournament, the
Tournament of Champions, was for an Ancestral Recall. Once again, I took Uba Stax to the finals, but this time played it out. I beat the 3 Color Anti-Everything deck with a Solemn Simulacrum resolving.
Alright, enough random chaff about old tournaments, I'm sure noone really wants to hear about those. If you do, well... There ya go. Now its time for some random Pre-Tournament chaff.
So on Saturday, I still didn't know if I had a ride down to Dreamers. My usual ride didn't think he was going, so I wasn't expecting to go. My only hope, was Travis Suer (If you've ever seen him, you'll know him. 6'7, 315 lbs.) and he doesn't play this game very much or competitivly anymore. So, I call. Voicemail, awesome. My hopes dashed, I sit down at the computer and play some Counter Strike. The phone rings. It's Travis, and he asks me if I want to go. Yes! Time for more Counter Strike, and possibly some Magic Online.
So, morning rolls around, and I wake up at 10. *Aside* This is probably my favorite thing about Type 1. SLEEPING IN. For PTQs, I usually have to wake up at 7am, if not earlier. This is a big no-no for a guy who doesn't like going to bed 'till 3 or 4am. *End Aside* Get ahold of Travis as he throws together what he can for the deck. Clean, Shower, do other things that set me apart from a lot of magic players. *Aside #2* I don't know if it's just in Minnesota, but most Type 1 players actually shower! Even more, DEODORIZE. Another reason I <3 Type 1 *End Aside #2*
We'll skip what I had for breakfast, (glass of orange juice) and what happened on Yu-Gi-Oh. Ah, let's just fast forward to 12:55PM. We look to actually be making it on time to this one, then this giant orange sign seems to come out of nowhereÂ
Detour Ahead Oh well, we'll only be like five minutes late, at the most.Â
Road Closed awesome. The detour brought us to a closed road. Some calling ensues, and the T.O. (Jason Webster, Owner) says he'll hold it for us. We make it there at 1:15, and pairings go up. I didn't take any notes or anything, so this is all from memory.
Oh yeah, I was half way into round 1 and I remembered that I should probably have a decklist.
4 Goblin Welder
2 Gorilla Shaman
2 Solemn Simulacrum
2 Duplicant
1 Sundering Titan
1 Karn, Silver Golem (right?)
4 Smokestack
3 Uba Mask
3 Crucible of Worlds
3 Null Rod
1 Wheel of Fortune
1 Trinishpere
4 Chalice of the Void
5 Mountain
4 Mishra's Workshop
4 Bazaar of Baghdad
1 Barbarian Ring
1 Tolarian Academy
4 wasteland
1 Strip Mine
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mana Vault
1 Sol Ring
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Pearl
Sideboard
3 Vashiano Heretic
3 Rack and Ruin
2 Maze of Ith
1 Uba Mask
2 Jesters Cap
2 Lava Dart
1 Triskelion
1 Duplicant
The sideboard is a mess, the Racks were decent but should have been Orb of Dreams. The Jesters Caps were garbage, but I didn't want to think anymore. I'm not a type 1 player.
Round 1, Nice guy playing Gifts
Game 1: He plays Island, Go. Isn't type 1 so broken? My turn 1 is the best possible play in type 1 ever. Workshop, Mox, Solemn. Solemn resolves, and he never plays another land. Solemn beats ensue, followed later by a 2/4 Duplicant and a Gorilla Shaman.
Sideboard: -1 Wheel of Fortune -1 Chalice of the Void +2 Maze of Ith
I didn't know for sure what he was playing, as he was discarding impulses.
Game 2: He mulls. Then again. Land go. I follow up with a turn 1 smokestack. He scoops them up.
Afterwards, we play a fun game. I keep a terrible hand, where its first play is a turn 4 Solemn. He tinkers out the big guy, and I lose.
As I walk around, I see two more (!) people playing Uba Stax, and I applaud them both. Sadly, they both 1-2 drop.
Round 2 Jon playing Oath.
Game 1: I blindly chalice for 2 on turn 1. He scoops.
I board out 2 Gorilla Shaman, Karn, Wheel, 3 Uba Mask and something else for:
2 Maze of Ith, 2 Jesters Cap, 2 Lava Dart, 1 Duplicant 1 Triskelion.
Game 2: I try casting smokestacks, and chalices, and fun stuff. It all gets drained or oxidized or Forced. So I'm sitting there, crucible in play and a bunch of lands / moxes and a Trinisphere. He plays Oath with an Orchard. So I bash with my 1 spirit token, then waste his orchard. He oaths up the big girl, attacks me for 6 and says go. Knowing I cant really win this game unless I draw a duplicant, I just attack. He blocks!!! I get hit down to 8 again, and I Oath up Welder. I play my 2nd bazaar, and say go. He attacks me down to 2. I bazaar twice endstep. Dont hit a duplicant. Draw: Another bazaar. I play it and say go. He attacks, I bazaar. Missed. Bazaar. Missed. Bazaar. Duplicant AND maze of ith. Yes, I dont think I can lose this game. I weld in big Dupes, and beat him down with it, backed up by double mazes.
Whew, I hate the oath matchup. Its not terrible, but its not good either.
Round 3 Steve? KCI. Never have seen this until today, but he says he was a win out of top 8 of Chicago.
So, scouting is a very good thing.
Game 1: I mull.. I mull again.. My 5 are: Mox, Mox, Null Rod, Smokestack, Uba Mask. Knowing that he cant beat null rod very well, I run it. Turn 1 Null Rod. We play draw-go for a long time, with him just playing a bunch of artifacts and stuff. I eventually, on like turn 7 draw some mana sources. I don't remember much about this game, but I eventually drew good cards and beat him.
Sideboarding: I'm an idiot.. All I know is I didn't bring in Lava Darts....
Game 2: Turn 1 Null rod again
. He gets an active welder, and we play dumb games for a loong time. He starts going off, and I rack and Ruin him. The next turn, He plays Jar. Sacs it, I rack and Ruin him and he legends the tolarians, not on purpose though. Yet again, I don't remember how I won but I did.
3-0, 1 win from double drawing into top 8!
Round 4 Very cool guy, playing Workshop Aggro with Artifact Lands
Game 1: I play a early Null Rod, and shut down all his lands. Duplicant a Juggernaut, and I have a 5/3 guy that DOESNT have to attack each turn! I am the winner! He can be blocked by walls though, so.. If he played a Wall of Stone, I'd be done for.
Sideboard- In: some heretics and rack and ruins, darts and mazes. Out: Uba Masks, Chalices, something and Wheel
Game 2: He mulls to 6 and me to 5, and goes land, go. I go smokestack, go. The smokestack starts eating his board, and I play a second. He goes perminant less, and I sac everything but a workshop, with 0 cards in hand. Can anyone tell me what the best draw would be right here? If you said Pikachu, you're right. I drew a crucible. Not AS good as pikachu, but it'll do. He scoops after I draw a welder.
4-0 Yay!
So, I draw with the guy playing Gifts that I split the Time Walk with. He's been on a roll lately too. I go eat some of that delicious Panda Buffet, and get back in time to draw with Tom (moxpearl). He wrote the other report, and is responsible for Oath of Auriok or whatever its called now. I remember losing to him at the Monster Den for a Library, because I was playing my Hyper Mud deck (dang do i <3 workshops) and couldn't draw another non-workshop manasource to tap his colossus down with Staff of D and attack for the win.
Top 8Â (Methuselahn) Workshop aggro
Game 1: He crushed me. I got Triskelioned and Juggernauted to death.
SB: same as before
Game 2: I get an early smokestack that decimates his board, and drop a welder.
Game 3: He goes Lotus Tormods Crpt Emerald Sol Ring or somethin to that extent, I go welder. He sac's his lotus, and plays a welder and i Dart it. I drop a Gorilla Shaman and just start welding stuff out for lotus, then eating it. I eventually play a Trinisphere for the win with a Waste in the yard and a Crucible in play.
At the last two non Tournament of Champions tournaments, I've played him in the top 8... Both times my draws were superior and he's mulled. Probably one of the better players in our area, and definatly tests more then most.
All 3 of these games were super one sided, and the same goes for:
Top 4 Jon playing Oath (again)
Game 1: He goes Orchard, Mox, Oath.
Game 2: I play a smokestack after he mulls to 5, then a 3sphere
Game 3: This game is just stupid. I draw an insane amount of workshops and 2 duplicants. He drops back to basics, Energy flux, ground seal and oath. I lose the game because I couldn't, well I couldn't do anything. He drew more sideboard cards then I did, and if I saw any non-caps I would've won.
So, I finally lost.. 23 Rounds without a single match loss. Broken, because he drew better. Oh well, I cant complain. It happens.
On the way home, on 494 we get stuck. Big time. From St. Louis Park to Plymouth, normally a VERY short drive, it took us well over 30 min. Stupid one lane, but we did see evidence of somebody playing cone hockey, going into the closed lane and hitting damn near every cone they see.
Hope you liked my report, it kept me busy for awhile.
