[Report] Top 8 at Cape Cod with Control Slaver

Andy (Hyperion), Jamie (Who isn’t on tmd), and I arrived at The Gathering in the Cape after following questionable MapQuest directions which included such helpful instructions as turning into oncoming traffic one a one-way road. The store itself had comfortable chairs, good prices on booster packs, and free pizza.

There were 41 people. Here’s what I played (Thanks to Toad for the Cunning Wish suggestion):

// Creatures
1 Platinum Angel
1 Pentavus
4 Goblin Welder
// Counter
4 Mana Drain
4 Force of Will
// Drawing
4 Thirst for Knowledge
3 Brainstorm
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Memory Jar
3 Fire/Ice
// Other
2 Mindslaver
1 Tinker
1 Time Walk
2 Cunning Wish
// Black
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Demonic Tutor
// Mana
1 Mana Vault
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Jet
1 Sol Ring
1 Black Lotus
// Land
1 Library of Alexandria
2 Underground Sea
4 Flooded Strand
4 Volcanic Island
1 Seat of the Synod
6 Island
// Sideboard
SB: 2 Blood Moon
SB: 1 Fire/Ice
SB: 3 Rack and Ruin
SB: 2 Hibernation
SB: 4 Red Elemental Blast
SB: 3 Chalice of the Void

Round 1: Ben “Deathwish” Goodman (Ridiculous Hat) with Deathlong
Round one, game one, I must have been tired from the drive down, because I viciously misplayed this one. Let me just say that I forgot to force his turn one Xantid Swarm, and it was all downhill from there.

Ben kicks off the second game by going to six cards. I drop a turn one chalice for zero. From there, backed up by a little bit of counter magic, a pair of Goblin Welders beat him to death.

In the third game, Ben follows his tradition by mulliganing again. I Force his second turn Windfall, but am pleased to allow him to resolve a third turn Deathwish. I counter his fourth turn Diminishing Returns and Tinker up a Platinum Angel. I Drain his Naturalize on my Angel and Force his second Diminishing Returns. The Angel swings in twice and wins the game for me.

1-0

Round 2: Dave with Mono Blue Back to Basics Control
This game was long and intense. Dave wins the roll and starts playing Islands. I have an equally dull start, spending my first two turns dropping Underground Seas. On his third turn, Dave casts a Disk. I Drain and he Forces pitching Stifle. On my third turn, I play a Thirst and pass the turn. Dave draws a card and passes back. After a few unexciting turns, I play a welder, to which Dave responds by hard-casting a Force of Will. I cast Yawgmoth’s Will, and get back my Welder. Dave takes his turn and Disks away my Goblin and a Mox of mine. We both enter draw-go mode for a while, during which time I Wish for a Red Elemental Blast. Dave breaks the stalemate with a Morphling who runs into my Blast. I get a pair of welders out, but have no artifacts, so they start attacking. Dave goes for Back to Basics, which I Drain. Then, on my turn, with Mindslaver in my yard, I got for the bomb: I cast Mox Perl. I’ve never seen a larger counter war over a Mox; Dave and I both have two counters, so eventually it hits. From there, it becomes a Mindslaver. I use the Slaver turn to ruin Dave’s hand and the Welders go all the way.

In the second game, we both have a black lotus and a few lands. I thirst away a Mindslaver at the end of his third turn. I have two welders in my hand, one of which is countered, the other of which resolves. On his turn he Blue Blasts my Welder and drops Back to Basics. We draw-go for a while, until I Red Blast his Basics and play my third welder. I take his turn and flashback both of his Deep Analyses at myself. I draw into Memory Jar and it was pretty much over from there.

2-0

Round 3: Master Tap with Ponza
I often see Master Tap at Your Move Games in Providence. He never fails to have an innovative deck which I had not been expecting to see. In the long tradition of Nullrod Keeper and Rotting-Giant-Sui, today he was played Ponza. He starts the first game with a first turn Sol Ring which casts Ankh of Mishra. He wastes my first Volcanic Island and Lava Blisters my second, to which I am unwilling to lose the six life. Once I have a few lands on the board, Master Tap plays a Disk and Chain Lightnings me down to seven. I Cunning Wish for Rack and Ruin and destroy his Disk and his Ankh two turns later. Then I cast Yawgmoth’s Will.

In the second game, Master Tap opened with a Mox Monkey and a Tormod’s Crypt. His second turn involves double Lightning Bolting me. On the third Turn, I Mana Drain his Ankh, but do lose a land to Lava Blister. I then Tinker into Platinum Angel and she goes the distance.

3-0

With 41 people in attendance and five rounds, I and the other three 3-0’s sat down and did some math. It was in all of our interests to ID the next two rounds. We spent the extra time drafting and enjoying the free pizza. Then, the top 8 started.

3-0-2

Round 1 of Top 8: Ray Robillard (iamfishman) with Workshop Slaver
Ray had done a great job running the Waterbury tournament. I had never played this matchup before and was interested in seeing how it would work out. Ray mulligans to five in the first game. I Force his turn one welder, and soon Tinker into a game-ended Pentavus.

The second game was equally one-sided, but in his favor. He has the Workshop this time, as well as three Moxes; by the end of his second turn I was staring at a Mindslaver. I Rack and Ruin his slaver and a Mox before he can activate the Slaver. However, he has a Gilded Lotus and another Mindslaver. He Slaves me and drops a Welder on the next turn with quite a few artifacts on the board. I don’t scoop for a while, but he soon has another welder on the board and enough artifacts to be guaranteed a win.

The third game was closer. I start things off with a Welder. Ray’s first turn involves Blue Elemental Blasting my Goblin, and using his Lotus and a Mox to Fact or fiction. I split the cards into the following piles: 2 Thirsts and a Wheel; or a Gilded Lotus and a Sol Ring. He takes the mana pile. I play a Memory Jar and he Workshops out a Mindslaver. I pop the Jar and my only good option is to play a land and Rack and Ruin his Mindslaver and his Sol Ring. I pass the turn. We draw-go for a while. He attempts to cast Pentavus, which I Drain. I use the mana to play and use Mindslaver. He has some land out and his hand consists of Grim Monolith, Karn, and a Triskelion. I play and tap the Grim and the Triskelion is cast and shoots itself and Ray. I take my turn and play my fifth land, confident with the pair of Force of Wills in my hand. Ray plays the Karn which I saw, and stops my Force with the Red Elemental Blast which he drew that turn. The Karn spends the next few turns eliminating me from top 8.

3-1-2

Overall, it was a very fun day and I would not hesitate to play this deck again.

Props:

Ray for telling me that my last-round opponent and I were playing for 9th place at Waterbury

Dan for 2-0’ing in the draft (He was on my team)

Andy for navigating

Jamie for letting me borrow a Chalice

The tournament staff for a well-run event

Free Pizza for being the best