This is going to be VERY short, because I only remember very specific details. I sat down and tried to remember the events of the day, but after a weekend of draining (pun 1/2 intended) play, my mind was/is fried. This will just be very short, so you readers can understand what occured.
The night before was insane. I drive from Grafton to Milwaukee and meet my girlfriend for about an hour before I head out. From there I meet up with Jamison Bryant, and we're off to Jimmy McCarthy's. Traffic was awful! We ended up about 45 minutes out of our way in order to meet with Nat Moes, Nam Q Tran, Jerry Yang, Mark Trogdan, Pierce, Smemememememmen, Brian DeMars, CJ, Twaun, Jaco, and Brian Fisher (hmm, I could 7 power won from that table this weekend).
I discuss my deck with Meandeck and Brian DeMars is discussing Meloku. Jimmy is convinced, and after thinking about it a long long time (Man flipping a 5 off bob sucks against aggro), I decide to run 2 smother and 1 Meloku as well. Everyone knows about the Sphinx now, so I don't need to go anywhere, except that I convinced DeMars and Jimmy to run it.
Round 1:
Tommy, Paul Mastriano, James King, Dan Carp, Steve and I sit out with byes.
Round 2: I believe this was pierce.
Game 1 he just crushes me. I have a bob and he Paths it. I tinker, and he paths it.
Game 2 I win, but I really can't remember how.
Game 3 I sit on a darkblast, which his deck can't deal with outside of Trinket Mage. Eventually I top into Will, and then draw and cast it. He forces, but I cast my brainstorm to get my clutch spell that was hiding from top: Red Elemental blast.
Round 3: Danny Friedman
Game 1: I outcounter him and set up a savage yawgmoths will with my top, and Key-Vault him. Game 2 he gets his side of the counter-everything and then kill me. Game 3, he counters my A-Call, casts Intuition for AK, then AK's for 3 and 4, and then plays Recall. I end up casting yawgmoths Will, and he welds out my key (Tezz is RFG). I end up casting Demonic tutor and get Tinker and then play relic at like, 6 life with him havin 2 welders and a Viashino Heretic in play. He does nothing, so I tinker Sphinx, and cast time walk. I then hit with sphinx and play confidant, and use my top to make sure I always have a counterpsell.
Round 4: Mike Mohring (shop aggro)
Game 1 I mulligan to 6 on the draw, and he opens Shop-> Trinisphere. I draw, play a land, and pass. He plays Shop, Trike. Must be nice, right? I miss my land and scoop to game 2.
Game 2: I have Sapphire, Jet, and Pearl, as well as a drain, mystical tutor, and another good spell I can't recall. I play my jewelry and pass. He then draws, plays a mountain, and passes back. This game obviously doesn't go well for him, as I demonic for Academy, play a emerald, drop meloku, and I hardcast Sphinx too, while he's got a thorn and some wastelands.
Game 3 is really frustrating. He opens with sphere, so I play SC-Island and Sapphire. he plays a Simulacrum, and I play a fetchland, representing Drain Mana with a unwasteable manabase. Unfortunately, he has strip mine. For a minute I think it's not the worst, because I can Vamp for recall, and then get drain mana back and pass. Well, he has other plans, as he also has Gorilla Shaman. Frowntown. So I still vamp for recall, already behind seriously, and then on my turn play confidant. He has one of his 80 Triskelions and I just die when recall gives me nothing good.
Round 5: Rhyno with Jamison Beats
Game 1: I set up mystical->Tinker with Key in hand, and with confidant out. However, my deck loves me and I Flip Tinker, and then draw Time Vault for the Knockout.
Game 2: I recall turn 1, and counter his turn 2 seal of primordium, with tezzeret in hand, hoping to play out Time Vault before he can attack my Plainswalker. Unfortunately, he also plays a Goofus and Fanatic. I draw for turn, and it's yawgmoth's Will. Suddenly I use my Alara mythic to find Black Lotus, figuring I can recall and have mana. I cast will, re-cast lotus and recall, and Hardcast Sphinx. His only out at this point is Sculpting steel, but I have Echoingg Truth + Mana Drain to make sure his Imposter-Sphinx doesn't stick around. He doesn't get sphinx, and I end the game >30 life.
Round 6: Sam with UR Fish.
This game is abyssmally bad.
Game 1: He casts recall, counters my stuff (mana leak wtf?!) and I just die to beingg unable to do anything off gifts ungiven.
Game 2: He applies a ton of pressure, but I resolve Gifts with Key in hand. I gifts up Yawgmoth's Will, Time Vault, Meloku, and Time Walk. He knows he can't give me time walk + meloku, and he obviously can't give me Will. I get time vault and play it. I then play key, and he responds with Rebuild. There was some confusion here which was pointed out after the match, but either way, I respond by drawing off top. Rebuild resolves, and I recast my mox, my lotus petal, and play out the land off top and replay my key (I put the wrong card in my hand). he scoops up, and the spectators (Tommy Kolowith) mention my error. We both call the judge, who rules that because he scooped up, it's a win for me. I would have conceeded the match had I not had it fairly, but as I still had the mana to drop the time vault, so I don't feel bad. He should have responded to my Key Activation, and he'd have a piece of power.
Game 3: I resolve gifts, and again set up key vault the turn before I die.
Round 7: Derek Wochinski
ID
Top 8: Tim Bartlett.
Game 1: He literally force of wills my first 2 spells, plays tezzeret, and finds vault. on his next turn, he untaps vault, and I bounce it. So he replays it, and I force, and he forces back AGAIN, and it's onto game 2.
Game 2: I resolve a turn 1 confidant, and this game is over quickly. I can't even recall it.
Game 3: Again I resolve confidant, but abuse Sensei's Top and eventually my hand is Mana Drain, Force of Will, Time Walk, Yawmgoth's Will, Tinker, Demonic Tutor. I let him just waste his hand on my spells while I grind my Dark Confidant.
Top 4: Jeff Rabovski
game 1: I mulligan to 6, and Play Lotus, Pearl, Island, Tinker with U in pool and Island untapped. I find sphinx, then merchant scroll for force. This game is over as my hand is Force Force Drain.
Game 2: I get into an interesting situation with his Vendilion Clique. I have 3 mana Untapped, and my hand is Mystical, Sapphire, Time Walk, and something else that doesn't matter. If I don't mystical here, I'm drawing dead. But he's applyin serious pressure so I need to do something fast and he has 1 card left. So I mystical for tinker. if he takes sapphire, I just time walk, draw a mystery card after drawing tinker to the clique, and have my 6/6 in play. If he takes my time walk, I just play my sapphire and tinker with my 2 mana in play already after casting mystical. If he takes nothing, I cast walk. I push my chips in, and his last card is vampiric Tutor. He finds his edict, and I die.
Game 3: I bend over. HARD.
So I end up with a Sapphire. I was stoked. All was well.
DAY 2
Round 1: Ed with BUG/Faeries
Game 1: I play awfully. I have 5 mana floating, and consult for Dark ritual BEFORE I demonic for Will. I remove will, and the game ends when I tendirls for 16 life, and he comes back to bash me becuase I was already at low life when I cast Tendrils.
game 2: I play Land, Xantid, Lotus, necro. It's still close as I am playing way too loose with my necro.
Game 3: I play a little better, and he never hits a 2nd mana to top it off. I win.
Round 2: Lawrence with BUG
Game 1: I play an attrition war with confidants. Eventually, I grind through and Win.
Game 2: He gets a null rod in play, but brainstorm in response and am left with a hand of lotus and Chain of vapor, plus gas. I chain it EOT, and cast a Wheel with 5 available mana. I then play Wheel, and cast yawmoths will with like, 5 rituals and a Demonic Tutor in the graveyard.
Round 3: Jimmy McCarthy with Twaunstax
Game 1: he locks me out before knowing what I'm playing. Good thing he puts me on tezz.
Game 2: he locks out my mana, but doesn't actually stop me from doing things. He has a welder, a crucible, 2 null rods, a chalice@0, a smokestack with 2 counters on it, and a Tangle Wire. I EVENTUALLY draw a F-ing swamp, and cast Dark Ritual, Cabal Ritual, Cabal Ritual, 2 moxes, then cast will, recast 4 rituals (1 in the bin), 4 moxes, and tendrils.
Game 3: He plays Welder + Chalice @1. I wasn't paying much attention and think he played it at 0, so I play land go. He then beats and passes. I notice the chalice is at 1, so I draw, play a second fetch, an emerald, and a Jet, and confidant. He EOT darkblasts, which I point outis countered. He dredges it, and hits smokestack. Welds in smokestack, and then Darkblasts my confidant. My hand at this point is Rebuild, Hurkyls, dark Ritual, Cabal Ritual, Minds Desire. I EOT Rebuild knowing I can desire for 5. I draw my 3rd mana source, and am able to also hurkyls myself for +3 storm. desire for 8 takes it home.
Round 4: ? Painter-Vault.
Game 1: I keep an island + black cards and a bounce spell hand, knowing he's playingg somethin blue. I end up gettingg 3 bobs in play, and he has the echoing truth. I then resolve necropotence, and he resolves time Vault + Voltaic Key. Two problems here though. He's at 12 and played out mana crypt, AND he also had a painter. I think had he found Grindstone, he would have just grinded me and passed turn, in which case I point out necro's replacement effect, and kill him with what's in my hand. I don't need to, as his Mana Crypt gets the job done with him takingg every turn.
Game 2: He forces my turn 1 play. Drains my turn 2 play, forces my turn 3 play, and drains my turn 4 play. I eventually get in a situation where he has painter and grindstone, and my hand has hurkyls recall, as well as the ability to play either necro or wheel (leaving a Black mana in pool). If I play necro, he grinds me out and I must either get will or a lethal tendrils, while making sure I don't go too low where his Painter can turn sideways and get me. I decide to go for wheel, and I don't hit a single Ritual. I do hit a duress, and I duress him. He recalls in response, and reveals:
Tormods Crypt, Mystical Tutor, Mana drain, Demonic tutor, Red Blast, Pyroclasm, Painter, and other spells. I take DT, and he mysticals and I die. At least, he should. He untaps, plays a painter, and passes. I draw, play a bob, and pass back and he rebs the bob. He then casts his 1 rando-card, thirst for knowledge. he discards Mana Drain and something else useless, and then untaps and doesn't cast Will. Wow, I am still in this game. Guess not, he rawdogged Yawgmoth's will.
Game 3: He forces my first spell. He drains my second spell. He forces my third Spell. I just die.
Round 5: Paul Mastriano with Tezz
I'm quite confidant I can win this, and am even moreso after I win the roll. I Mulligan to 6 into a Dark Ritual Duress and Bob. I duress him, and his hand is:
Mox Jet, Island, Mana Drain, Fact or Fiction, Nights Whisper, Demonic Tutor, and something else huge and not important. I decide to bank on it, and take jet. I would have taken Demonic, but he could just play Nights Whisper, hit a land and possibly duress (which I didn't know he wasn't playing) and if I take the jet and he draws a land, he has to either Demonic for a card I could possibly just duress out anyway, he could cast nights whisper, or he could represent the Mana Drain. It works out and I get seriously 4 or 5 time walks off the confidant. Eventually I cast stuff into his counters and storm him out.
Game 2: I can't really recall much except that he gifts for Lotus Academy Force and Recall, and I give him force and Academy (he had already cast fow). He Imperial Seals, and passes. I extirpate Will, leaving him empty. I then cast Time Walk and Timetwister, and twist into lotus bob bob. That combined with a xantid swarm seal the deal when I eventually storm out.
Round 6: Ben Schwartz playing Dredge
This game is abysmal.
Game 1 I keep a hand of a bunch of mana, knowing I need to draw somethingg insano to win anyway. I odn't, and die.
Game 2 goes back and forth awhile after he opens turn 1 Acall, turn 2 bazaar. I crypt him a couple times and finally seal the deal with will.
Game 3 I play even worse. I fear Cabal Therapy way too much. I extirpate Narcomoeba, and he has 2 more in hand. I apparently fail to find one as he hardcasts it later. I eventually am facing down lethal next turn for sure, and I have a top (which i activated to draw) and mystical, as well as cabal ritual and tendrils. I am super-stressed as I never tested against Dredge and I also was playing for money, so I get another cabal ritual. I also have ponder in hand. so I have 4 cards to find Demonic X2, Tendrils x2, Yawgmoths Will. I find will off ponder and mise the shit out of the game, even though I could have mysticaled for will and outright won ( I missed a Ritual in my bin that I needed for mana ).
Round 7: Pierce
ID
Top 8: John Donovan GW Beats
Game 1: I can beat his turn 1 Cannonist with my hurkyls, but I can't beat his turn 2 Gaddock Teeg.
Game 2: I land a bob or two, duress him and he responds with enlightened tutor for lotus, and shows me a bunch of guys (i kept in 1 duress and 1 thoughtseize and unfortunately didn't draw thoughtseize). AGAIN turn 2 he has Gaddock + Cannonist, and AGAIn I have answers to cannonist, but not Gaddock Teeg. I lose 2-0 when He only plays 1 real vintage card the whole match.
I get a pearl this day. I'm also the only one this tournament to back2back top 8, which I'm psyched about. I sell my power to pay back some debt with Ben Carp, Help out the store owner (he will be using my power as prizes in the future) and I buy a 4th German BB Sea, a 3rd nongerman BB volcanic, a Beta Regrowth, and 2 German Tropical Islands. I also keep $100 for the Pittsburg trip.
Props:
Ben Carp for holding.
EVERYONE in our hotel for being awesome.
Xtreme Games for being awesome.
Everyone who ran Sphinx of the Steel Wind day 2, for inflating My ego.
Jeremy Seroogy, for convincing me that I don't have many opportunities to play big tournaments for power, and I should play a real deck.
Emily's pancake house for being the nuts.
GWS for showing support. Everyone knows I am no longer "officially" a member, but my teammates (Brian Fisher, Rhyno, John Donovan, and Twaun) still consider me one.
Dark Confidant. You're the nuts.
Slops:
Everyone who didn't come out, that could have.
Gaddock Teeg.
