1st in Sandusky w/ Bomberman Aug 4

Having just moved to Ohio a few weeks ago, I felt that it would be a good idea to get into vintage since there seems to be a better scene for it here than in Wisconsin. I decided to make my Ohio vintage debut in a town with really fucked up streets called Sandusky. As you may have been able to figure out from the title, my serious skills (pun intended) got me all the way to first place.

Here's the list that I ran for reference:
(Also, props to Jeremy Seroogy for making me play Bomberman and helping me tune the list a little.)

1. Sam Krohlow - Bomberman

4x Force of Will
4x Mana Drain
2x Auriok Salvagers
3x Aven Mindcensor
4x Trinket Mage
1x Black Lotus
1x Mox Jet
1x Mox Sapphire
1x Mox Pearl
1x Mox Ruby
1x Mox Emerald
1x Sol Ring
1x Mana Crypt
1x Aether Spellbomb
2x Sensei's Divining Top
2x Engineered Explosives
2x Mental Misstep
3x Jace, the Mind Sculptor
1x Grafdigger's Cage
1x Misdirection
2x Spell Snare
1x Ancestral Recall
1x Flusterstorm
1x Merchant Scroll
1x Time Walk
1x Thirst for Knowledge
1x Cavern of Souls
3x Tundra
1x Misty Rainforest
1x Scalding Tarn
1x Library of Alexandria
4x Flooded Strand
1x Tolarian Academy
1x Plains
3x Island

Sideboard
1x Engineered Explosives
1x Grafdigger's Cage
1x Blightsteel Colossus
1x Tinker
3x Kataki, War's Wage
2x Steel Sabotage
1x Pithing Needle
1x Tormod's Crypt
4x Swords to Plowshares

I'll go through a little report on the day first and then discuss a few changes that I think would improve the deck.

In order to prepare for tournaments, I like to get plenty of sleep the night before, eat a good breakfast, and leave with plenty of time. Well, things don't always go as planned. I ended up getting completely hammered the night before and getting up late and driving 2.5 hours from columbus feeling like a bag of shit.

About halfway there, I end up getting pulled over by a state trooper while I was going 70 in a 55. He comes up to my window and asked "Why are your eyes so bloodshot?" For a split second I wanted to be a smart ass and say that I've been smoking a lot of weed, but I go the honesty route and tell him I'm super hungover. He has me get out of the car and walk back to the cop car with him. He is clearly watching how I walk to see if I'm still drunk. He pats me down and has me sit in the passenger seat. He says that he can't smell any alcohol on me so I'm good to go for that at least. He then says I can just wait while he writes out my ticket, so I proceed to bullshit with him and say how this is my first time sitting in the FRONT seat of a cop car and shit like that. Other than the $123 ticket that I got, he was a relatively nice guy and I enjoyed chatting with him.

Alright, I get to Sandusky and eventually to the store with enough time to fill out my list and what not. Pairing go up and the show is on.

Round 1: (Forgot his name)-RDW
He is very new to vintage and his deck has a few good spells and power, but for the most part, not a lot of action.

Game 1: He played Solemn Simulacrum, Blood Moon, and Vexing Devil and a few other things before I combo out with salvagers. I don't think I even sided anything in.

Game 2: This game was a little more interesting because he tried to cast a couple Strangleholds, but I ended up countering them each time. I was trying to draw a trinket mage for most of the game so I could just combo out, but it never came. He got my life total dangerously low with some beats and burn, but I ended up killing him in the 5th turn of turns with the beatdown plan. I think I ended at 2 life or something like that.

1-0

Round 2: William Rosa-Tezzeret
We're shuffling up and he realizes that he has 61 cards and it's supposed to be 60, so he counts it over and over and eventually goes up to the counter to review his deck list. He figures out the extra card and comes back. Shuffles up and realizes he only has 59 cards. We both count it to make sure. He goes back up to the counter and eventually finds that he dropped his Yawg Will last time he was up there. We're finally ready to start and there's maybe 20-25 minutes left on the clock and we weren't able to get an extension, so he offers that if we go to time, he will give me the win in that game. Seems fair enough so I agree.

Game 1: I had a pretty decent hand and I was able to get salvagers out fairly quickly with a lotus and then use top and Engineered Explosives to draw my deck and do broken things. I think I just brought in Tinker, Blightsteel, and Pithing Needle.

Game 2: I keep a hand without force hoping he doesn't have the nuts. He has the nuts and gets out tez turn one and gets Time Vault. I'm unable to get a trinket mage out to get pithing needle and he gets it.

Game 3: I get an early trinket mage this time and name Time Vault with Pithing Needle. It goes to time and e is unable to close it out by the end of turns so he gives me the win like we agreed.

2-0

Round 3: (Forgot his name, too)-Goblins

Game 1: He mulls to 4 and gets out an early Tinkerer and Piledriver through Cavern of Souls so my hand full of counters sucks balls. He ate my moxes and did 6 damage with Piledriver over 6 different turns. I slow him down with Mindcensor, but can't combo by the time he starts dropping Nullrods. I bring in Tinker, Blightsteel, Swords, and Steel Sabotage.

Game 2: He has a more explosive draw this time, but I'm able to counter his null rods. I'm topping for a few turns looking for a lotus or trinket mage so I can combo out. He gets my life low enough where I need to combo out this turn. I top and see lotus, gg.

Game 3: I had a turn 1 or 2 tinker and he can't stop Blightsteel.

3-0

Round 4: Duane Haddix-Forgemaster MUD

We id. Play a few games for fun and I think he beat me more than I beat him.

3-0-1

Round 5: Jon Neal-Dredge

We id and play one game for fun. I get a turn 1 or 2 Trinket Mage for Grafdigger's Cage and ten turns later Trinket Mage gets there.

3-0-2

Make it into top 8 in 2nd place.

Quarter Finals: Kevin Poenisch-Dredge
Him and Duane leave because they want to get back for a party, so they both scoop.

Semi Finals: William Rosa-Tezzeret

Game 1: I mulligan and keep 6 without a force. He punishes me for it and takes a million extra turns. I bring in Blightsteel, Tinker, Pithing Needle, and Steel Sabotage.

Game 2: I get out a turn 1 pithing needle on Time Vault. He eventually gets out a Bob. I know he has a Mindbreak Trap in hand so I need to play around it. I have Tinker and decide that I just need to go for it before he starts drawing too much with Bob. I sac the Pithing Needle to it and force his vamp tutor on his turn and Blightsteel gets there.

Game 3: I'm pretty sure that I just had an early Tinker that he Forced and then I Forced back and it got there.

Finals: Jon Neal-Dredge

I feel that this matchup is really in Bomberman's favor, and so does he. I want to go home, so I offer a money split with me getting the win and he accepts. We each get $120 and my speeding ticket is nearly paid for.

Alright, now for a few card choices and things I would change.

Mindcensor has been really good in testing, but his ability didn't really make a difference in the tournament. However, he helps to give you a clock when you aren't able to combo out. I guess it depends on what you plan on facing.

Trinket Mage is insane. It gets around pretty much all of the situational counters and finds whatever answer you need.

The Pithing Needle should have been mainboard. It stops so many things and I sided it in a lot.

I'm sort of thinking the same thing for Tinker and Blightsteel. I don't really have a way to search for it in this build, but I sided it in a lot and it won me a lot of games.

Engineered Explosives was initially a 3-of mainboard because I expected a lot of aggro, but I ended up putting one in the board. It would probably be fine as a one of in the main board. I really only used it to combo with top and salvagers.

Sensei's Divining Top was really good all day. 2 is probably the right number still.

The one of cavern was nice, it didn't come up a lot, but I feel enough that it warrants a spot. Only one, though, otherwise your mana gets a little rough for Drain.

I think I may want the Plains to be another Island or another Tundra instead, but I didn't really play against many wastelands, so that could be wrong.

There should also be one spell mainboard that can deal with resolved artifacts. Either Steel Sabotage or a Hurkyl's Recall I think. Just so you aren't dead to a Time Vault or Null Rod.

Other than that, though, I felt that the list was pretty solid and would consider playing it again with those few changes. If anyone has any questions about the list, feel free to ask.

It was pretty nice only having to play 4 rounds of magic in a 5 round, cut to top 8 tournament, though. lol I recommend it to those that haven't tried it.

Thanks to everyone from Team Serious for putting on a great event. It was a lot of fun and I met a lot of awesome people from the area. I'll definitely be back.

Thanks again,

Sam