[Results] July 15th Monster Den and split-1st finish with Rector Flash

[moxpearl]

13 people showed up today for the monthly Vintage tournament at the Monster Den in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

First, the Results:
The field:
1 Rector Flash
1 Sliver Flash
2 GAT
1 TPS
1 SS
1 5c Bob Stax
1 5c Staxless Stax
1 UB Fish
1 UWB Fish
1 Green Aggro
1 Bomberman with Mindcensors
1 Ichorid

Top 4 after four rounds:
GAT (4-0) vs. Bomberman (3-1) – Bomberman wi ns
Rector Flash (3-1) vs. UW Fish (3-1) – Rector Flash wins

Bomberman and Rector Flash split a $120 top two purse.

Next, my Report:
I’ve basically played the same deck three tournaments in a row.

Rector Flash – Ms. Rector Needs a Shave
2 Polluted Delta
3 Flooded Strand
3 Underground Sea
2 Island
1 Tundra
1 Tolarian Academy

1 Black Lotus
1 Lotus Petal
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Sol Ring
4 Dark Ritual

4 Academy Rector
1 Form of the Dragon

1 Yawgmoth's Bargain
1 Cabal Therapy
1 Tendrils of Agony
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Yawgmoth's Will

4 Flash
4 Brainstorm
3 Merchant Scroll
4 Force of Will
3 Daze
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Gush
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Time Walk
1 Chain of Vapor
1 Echoing Truth

Sideboard:
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Rebuild
4 Leyline of the Void
2 Gush
2 Duress
3 Razormane Masticore
1 Tinker
1 7/10

Round 1 - Kevin with 5c Bob Stax
Game 1 – He opens with Workshop, Mox, Chalice for 0, Smokestack.  I Force the Smokey, drop a fetch and pass the turn.  He drops  another Smokestack.  I drop an island and Flash in Rector.   Being tapped out and with Chalice in play, I’m going to have to pass the turn, so I draw to seven cards and pass.  He adds a counter and I think drops a welder.  I draw to 2 life, sac Bargain to Smokestack, draw for the turn, and cast echoing truth on the Chalice and have enough gas to combo out that turn.
Game 2 – First turn, he crop rotations for a Workshop, drops Crucible which I Force.  I play lotus, petal, land, Razormane.  He bounces my Razormane, but I’m able to eventually recast it and it swings for the win.
Matches 1-0, Games 2-0

Round 2 – Daniel with UB Fish
Game 1 – First turn, I cabal therapy for Force.  He drops a land.  I’m able to drop land, mox, mox and hard cast Rector, flashback therapy, and draw to 3 for the win.
Game 2 – After a few turns, I think a dark ritual helps cast an early Razormane, which beats for the win.
Matches 2-0, Games 4-0

Round 3 – Jeff  with Staxless Stax
Game 1 – I have Land, Mox, Flash, Rector in my opening hand, but he opens with 2sphere and I think welder.  I drop a land.  He untaps.  I drop a land and try to fetch, but he drops a mindsensor (I hate seeing that card.)  After a few turns, I’m able to brainstorm three times trying to get an enchantment on the top of my library, but to no avail.  When I’m at 3 life, I eventually just try to Flash but Form of the Dragon is not in my top four cards.
Game 2 -  Jeff gets another early 2sphere.  And it’s followed with a Mindsensor that I’m able to Daze.  Eventually, I get a Razormane down and he’s forced to tinker away his 2sphere for Duplicant.  On my turn, I’m able to mystical for Will, cast dark ritual, and storm out for the win.
Game 3 – Another epic battle.  Jeff gets out a 2sphere and Crucible and a recurring Strip Mine.  I eventually have to counter a hardcast 7/10.  He drops another 2sphere and I figure I have one shot left.  His Cities of Brass and an earlier Mana Crypt (now welded out) have brought him down to 6 life.  I have Hurkyl’s Recall, Mox, and Tendrils in hand.  On his EOT, I Hurkyl’s his 2Spheres.  All I need to do is topdeck any blue spell or artifact mana and I win, but I draw Rector.  I lose.
Matches 2-1, Games 5-2

Round 4 – Chris with GAT
Game 1 – I play land, mox, and Therapy naming and grabbing a Force and pass the turn.  Chris casts a Dryad.  I drop land, mox, and hardcast Rector, flashback therapy, he vamps in response.  I draw down to 5 but with no sapphire, jet, petal, or lotus drawn, I can’t combo out.  I pass the turn.  He attempts to cast Yawgmoth’s Will, I force to  4.  He swings for 3 and I’m down to 1.  I untap, Flash another Rector for Form of the Dragon.  Drawing 4 each of our turns is too much for him and eventually I storm out.
Game 2 – I mull to 5 and keep a Jet, Ancestral, Flash, Scroll, Ritual hand.  He Duresses my jet, and then my ancestral, but neither of us draw a land for probably 5 turns in a row.  Eventually after some Gushing and counterspells, he’s eventually down to a Tormod’s Crypt on the board, another Crypt, and lands in hand from a Gush.  I have chain, echoing truth, flash, rector.  I chain his crypt, flash in rector, and draw to 4 for the win.
Matches 3-1, Games 7-2

Semifinals – Brad with UWB Fish
Game 1 – My opening hand is Lotus, Mana Crypt, Tolarian Academy, Sea, Daze, Form of the Dragon, and Yawgmoth’s Will…why not.  Brad drops a land.  Ok, here are two opening turns with this deck you will NEVER see again.  I play Lotus, Crypt, Tolarian Academy and hard-cast FORM OF THE DRAGON!  He Forces.  His turn, he drops a land and casts Standstill.  On my turn, I top deck Ritual.  I cast ritual, breaking the Standstill.  I cast Yawgmoth’s will, replay the Ritual and Lotus, and hard-cast FORM OF THE DRAGON AGAIN!  He’s able to drop a couple Bobs, which I ping away, and eventually Form of the Dragon carries the win.
Game 2 – I have Fetch, Brainstorm x 2, Flash, Scroll, Force, Rector so I keep.  Brad drops a land.  I draw an island and I’m able to brainstorm into more lands and eventually we’re in a position where he has Sea, Wasteland, Factory and I have Sea, Island, Tundra, Sol Ring.  I could have Flashed earlier, but I know his deck and I’m worried about Extripate and I’m waiting for him to tap the black so I can Flash out.  Since can always win with my Razormanes, I eventually decide to just go for Flash.  I cast Merchant Scroll, which he Disrupting Shoals, and then I Flash and Rector resolves.  I draw down to 4 and win.

I split the top two prize with Ari playing Bomberman.
Final Record: Matches 4-1, Games 9-2

I might write more later, but just wanted to throw the results and report out there.

Props as always to Jason for hosting these tournaments!
And props also to Luke, Matt, and Jeremy for dusting your Vintage decks off and driving a ways to come to the tournament. 

[Methuselahn]

I think our round 3 match was very interesting.  For me, it was all about sideboarding tactics.  Knowing that you played with Razormanes, I purposely left my Leylines in the sideboard for games 2 and 3, also siding in Duplicant and Artifact Mutation!   Not sure if this is a great idea, but somehow I won the match.   Welding in Titan and then Mutating it in order to attack into your Rector was some fun.  Anyway, now I have to reevaluate how to approach your deck as now I realize that you leave in 2 flash and 2 Rectors. 

As always, good games, thanks for the report, and I look forward to our next meeting.

-Jeff

[someone_unimportan]

Argghhh! I was so sad that I missed the tournament, but I had other things I had to do . . . but I'll be back next month! Congratulations on doing well yet again.

[FishyFellow]

Congratulations once again Tom!  I'm tired of losing to you in every tournament.  Your draws against me were insane  Maybe you were just trying to trick me when you said a drawback to Form of the Dragon is that you can't get the mana to hardcast it.  Then, you go and do it turn 1 and turn 2 of the same game.  The funny thing is that I was in good shape against flash, since I had a disrupting shoal off the standstill.  You've convinced me to just give up and copy your deck.  It's incredibly consistent and fast.

[thelfj]

In general this tournament was great. Next time maybe we will have to play out the finals at least for fun.
We really need to find a way to attract more people, Especially since a couple of us will be leaving for college in late august.

- Ari

[moxpearl]

Yes, it's going to be tough for our vintage scene when you guys head to college.  Your Team Xiphosura is usually a 1/3 of our attendance.  (as an aside, why in the world have you named your team after some scientific animal family including the horseshoe crab?)  Well, you and your teammates are the ones playing in the other formats, so try to recruit others.  I often wonder if it's demoralizing for new players to come into this format and play against Flash and Ichorid.  While the decks stumble against appropriate boarding, the decks only reinforce the stereotype that the format has really stupid fast wins.  At least losing against GAT or Bomberman, it feels like you lost to what seems like real magic plays.  Even against Long, the win is elegant.

Maybe you were just trying to trick me when you said a drawback to Form of the Dragon is that you can't get the mana to hardcast it.  Then, you go and do it turn 1 and turn 2 of the same game. 

I'll never see an improbable magic play like that again.  I'm going to have to switch Form of the Dragon for Mythic Proportions to try something different.

I think our round 3 match was very interesting.  For me, it was all about sideboarding tactics.  Knowing that you played with Razormanes, I purposely left my Leylines in the sideboard for games 2 and 3, also siding in Duplicant and Artifact Mutation!  

Next time, I'm going to fake the boarding and play my maindeck again...well, if it wasn't for those pesky Aven Mindsensors.

Tom

[thelfj]

I think that the major problem with other people joining the format is that most of the costs for the decks come upfront.
When playing standard, it might in the long run be more expensive, but it is in small increments. I firmly believe that overall
playing vintage is less expensive (especially with 15 proxies). But the initial investment is much greater. Just a thought

-Ari

[breed]

I think that the major problem with other people joining the format is that most of the costs for the decks come upfront.
When playing standard, it might in the long run be more expensive, but it is in small increments. I firmly believe that overall
playing vintage is less expensive (especially with 15 proxies). But the initial investment is much greater. Just a thought

-Ari

That's true, but Vintage is so much funny!