Its Saturday night, I am lying down with my girlfriend after running around and getting all my gear ready for Sunday, when I jokingly say "Hunny you should go tomorrow, it'd be great to have you around all day". Immediately she responds with "I'd love to", my heart sinks. Is the reason I am always on the run from the law my apparent latin mind control powers? Perhaps.. Not much later I recieve a phone call, a local wants to join me and wants to play the Fish deck that I was going to play, I agree and tell him i'll swing with some big artifact creatures. I wake up the next morning and get ready, meet up with the local ninja (damn ninjas.) and grab some SAVAGE dunkin donuts tech, and make a trip to the rest room. Upon returning there is an Elderly fellah chill-laxin with my girlfriend and buddy, evidently his wife and him were speaking about loosing a block of cheese? I also heard that they were speaking of a shortage of Priests in some region, the number 60 got tossed around and I thought to myself... My good friend is a 60 Troll Priest (World of Warcraft /rawr.), wonder if that could help?
We finish up, take the T-tops off my car and drive a million miles an hour to West Springfield, our intention was to get there at 11, we meet up there at 10:30. Hatch is glad to see me, and everyone greets with a warm "OOUUUTTTLAWWW". I purchase shiny stuff, and begin to equip my deck reg sheet with my sexy list. Yes this is pretty much Rico Suave's list, but with some huge changes.
Large Outlaw-ed Latinos (L.O.L)
4 Mishra's Workshop
1 Tolarian Academy
2 Flooded Strand
2 Polluted Delta
4 Volcanic Island
1 Island
1 Strip Mine
4 Wasteland
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Pearl
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
1 Black Lotus
4 Goblin Welder
4 Juggernaut
2 Razormane Masticore
2 Triskelion
1 Karn, Silver Golem
1 Duplicant
1 Sundering Titan
1 gorilla shaman
4 Chalice of the Void
3 Crucible of Worlds
1 Memory Jar
4 Thirst for Knowledge
2 Rack and ruin
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
1 Tinker
1 Rack and Ruin
2 BEB
3 REB
3 Tormod's Crypt
3 Damping Matrix
3 Spawning Pit
This is the first time I have ever actually swung with creatures not using mana drains, and not use a sensei's top in the longest time. My last experiance with Workshops was poly-chromatic stax and it was terrible. Tourney starts a bit late, and its a 1000 degrees in the room, but I'm excited. I appologize if I screw up names, or have none at all, and I could perhaps screw up how games go, if I do just correct me please.
Round 1: Random dot Ninja with Deathlong
I win the roll, and shuffle up and draw a really nice hand that involves a turn one welder and chalice for 1. Pretty good when I soon find out that he is playing deathlong. I apply quick beats with a turn 2 or 3 juggernaught, followed by a titan and he bounces all my jazz and cant find enough gas to kill before my beats comes down again.
Now you must understand, I could have the best combo matchup in the entire planet, but I have a mental issue with playing agaisnt combo because of a lack of testing vs. it and the fear of creating a very small window for them to sneak in. I side in some rebs to hit brainstorms (not much else I can bring in) 1 razormane, 1 trisk and a dupe come out.
Game 2 I manage a chalice for 0 and apply quick beats. He gets down very low and I reb a brainstorm just to see an Ancestral pop out right after, he plays his land and had previously vamp'ed for a card (mind's desire!) and he storms off for 6. My heart drops, this is the window I speak of with combo, I had him beat next turn and the flop is Duress, land, land,duress, brainstorm.... and... memory jar. Terrible because of the jar, my heart drops again when he plays it out and drops the jar like its hot, cracks it all open and.. dies to me next turn. I exclaim how i've slain my first ninja for the day.
Round 2: Corey Fraser with Affinity
First turn Arcbound crusher... Awesome for me as I go, pearl, sol ring, land, thirst. He is under the impression that I am playing control slavery, until I thirst out a juggernaught turns later. I take some beats, and he starts going insane with all these artifacts and other things. We both have a pretty nice board, I have no cards in hand and have something like ruby waste - waste and some creatures. I rip one of two cards that can save me, Rack and ruin... BANG BANG! I swing true for the win.
Game 2 I side out welders and side in a Rack and Ruin and 3 damping matrixes. He gets turn one Arcbound ravager and some other stuff, I do nothing and loose to a trisk machine gunning me down. I joke around and tell him I should do something about ravagers ability.
Game 3 I get an early damping matrix and he stares at it, and I apply quick beats after Racking a few things. Rawr.
Round 3: Keith Johnson with TPS
I gold fish game 1, and have no clue at all what he is playing. I know it involves blue, and I believe it to be Sensei.
Game 2 Rebs come in, and Duplicant comes out. He gets a first turn 11/11 trampler via Tinker!! I loose this 2 turns later. No Weldars for me
Game 3 I manage to Tinker in my big 7/10 splitter and eat his board and eat his board some more. He hurkyls me and I respond by welding out my titan (hitting his stuff again) for another artifact, return everything and replay it next turn and swing soon after.
Dollar hot dogs!! SO GOOD. My girlfriend is melting and becoming dehydrated but she says nothing cause im doing so well. Free ice water, and we all know why it was free. DAVE FEINSTEIN!!!!! Mixing Mike is flabbergasted because top/r did very well and he didn't listen when I told him to kick it with top/w. I'm at the top table for the next few rounds.
Round 4: Rich Shay with CS (what else?)
Rich Shay joke around how we've never played each other in a tourney and what not, after repairing we realize we are playing each other. He tells me he has a bad feeling about this, and looks at 3 cards and says' he'll keep. I get early beats, and I have him down to nearly nothing. He manages to slave me and I ditch artifacts so he cant use my welder to keep him going. He ninjutsus a nice yawgmoth's will.
Game 2 rebs tormods and bebs come in. Everyone crowd's around us, ( I heart huge crowds, makes me feel important). I manage to crush game 2 with really really early beats, with a nice turn one tinker with reb back up.
Game 3 we fight it out, I have a pretty stupid opening hand. Keep in mind, i'll get repayed later for slaying this ninja.
Round 5: Yawgwin
I win the roll and keep a very questionable hand, he knows what im playing and I do not know what he is playing. I take a guess and say workshop aggro. My hand is lotus, thirst, welder, juggernaught, crucible, chalice. I crack the lotus and thirst, finding juggernaught, mox ruby and something else. I throw the Juggy to the bin, and play the ruby, welder and chalice for 0. He plays wasteland and says go, I draw (still no land!) another chalice, and weld in the lotus for the chalice and play a juggernaught from hand and drop a chalice for 0. He plays wasteland and says go, I weld in Juggernaught and he takes 10 to the dome and I beat him with him having waste - waste on the board (1 basic island ftw!). I have no clue what the hell he is playing so I trickily side in 3 cards then side them right out.
Game 2 I rack stuff after he mulls to 5, and I win shortly after.
Round 6: ID with Rob (U/R Fish)
I joked around with Mike Lydon as I saw parings and asked him for the ID, I was scared of being paired down and I had to be an ass and break the news to him.
Round 7: ID with Mike (Workshop Aggro)
The top 8 consists of Caleb Rozwenc (U/r stax + Juggs), Mike Lydon (Workshop Aggro), Crossman Wilkins (Workshop Aggro), Marc Tuttle (Stax), Myself (Workshop Aggro), Steve Bates (Rector Oath), Rob Al'fonso (U/R Fish), Rich Shay (Control Slavery).
Top8: Steve Bates with Rector Oath
Juggernaughts and a Titan seal the deal here, and I didnt see very much from him at all. Not sure if Oaths were in the side or main but I knew he was bringing them in.
Game 2 Spawning pits and some rebs come in, he plays a fetch and passes, I drop a first turn spawning pit. He reads the card and allows it to resolve. He tinkers in the big guy, I drop a welder and he swings. I thirst out a duplicant and eat his big guy, and swing next turn. He drops an oath and smiles, I proceed to tell him "thats fine with me". He oaths out a Rector, I eat my 11/11 duplicant with my spawning pit and weld him back in and remove his Rector. RAWWWRR! I win this game and proceed to top 4.
Top4: Rob Al'fonso with U/R fish
Rob's deck was geared to eat mine alive, and I managed to pull out the win both games. My teammate Crossman Wilkins was felled by Rob in top 8, I needed to avenge him while on the same note keep good relations with Rob (hes a cool cat and a friend of mine). Either way were all walking away with a few bucks. Mike Lydon is RFG'ed by Rich Shay.
::Key Mortal Kombat Music::
Finals: Rich Shay vs. Outlaw
We joke around after trying to find a legit split (I forgot he had an extra lotus....) I tell him I am honored to play him, and he says how much I should know his list. I reply in question if he remembered when I walked up to him at Waterbury 5, and shook his hand because he was a hero to me. He did, which made me feel great. Both games he slayed me with an opening lotus mox land tinker, nothing I could do reply with "Thank you sir may I have another?". I was going for 3-0 on Ninjas and ended up 2-1 frowns. I recieve a sapphire for my troubles, since I own one I traded it for an Ancestral. I realize life is great, the day was fun and we drive home.
Props to Kowal, he suggested the mainboard Rack and Ruins.
