[Report] First Place at GPT Louisville

It was 5:30 in the morning when I realized I needed to go to bed. Of course, I had to be up at 6:45 to shower and wait for my ride at 7:15. Well, I did all that, and found myself in Louisville, Kentucky at 9:15 waiting around for the Legacy GPT that started at 4. Yes, that's what we call waiting 7 hours for Legacy. Yes, I am that dedicated to the format, someone give me a medal now.

6 very uneventful hours pass and I get to register. I made a few changes since

Golden Grahams GPT Columbus Version 2

Lands: 20
1 Bayou
1 Scrubland
1 Savannah
2 Windswept Heath
2 Bloodstained Mire
2 Polluted Delta
2 Snow-Covered Swamp
2 Snow-Covered Forest
1 Wooded Foothills
1 Badlands
2 Swamp
1 Plains
2 Forest

Creatures: 5
3 Gamekeeper
2 Auriok Salvagers

Spells: 36
4 Living Wish
4 Duress
4 Cabal Therapy
4 Lion's Eye Diamond
1 Pyrite Spellbomb
4 Tainted Pact
3 Pernicious Deed
1 Chromatic Star
4 Sylvan Library
4 Dark Ritual
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Chromatic Sphere

Sideboard 15
SB: 1 Gamekeeper
SB: 1 Auriok Salvagers
SB: 1 Phyrexian Tower
SB: 1 Orzhov Guildmage
SB: 1 Gorilla Shaman
SB: 2 Harmonic Sliver
SB: 3 Massacre
SB: 1 City of Brass
SB: 1 Pernicious Deed
SB: 3 Infest

Or for those that don't read my other lists, the changes were as follows.

Main:
-2 Innocent Blood
-1 Underground Sea
-1 Aether Spellbomb

+1 Forest
+1 Snow Covered Swamp
+1 Sylvan Library
+1 Chromatic Sphere

SB:
-1 Xantid Swarm

+1 Pernicious Deed

After my beatings from Goblins in Indy, I was tired of having so much wastelandable mana sources/not enough basics, so I crammed in 2 more, a Chromatic Sphere (to functionally replace the AEther Spellbomb I wasn't running anymore), the 4th Sylvan Library was because I was expecting so much control, and to an extent I read the metagame well.

My SB changes were a way to make a 4th deed hit the list somehow. I sided it in every game, but I wanted to be flexible on what got sided out. I can't remember who I read talking about doing that (It might have been Flores honestly) but someone wrote in an article that they had a card they wanted maindeck, but they would side out different things for it come game 2.

Round 1: Kevin (W/r Rifter)
I sit down and notice the guy I'd been talking to about Golden Grahams for a good hour sit down across from me. Crap. Well at least he told me what he was playing when he switched from Golden Grahams to something else. W/r Rifter, which isn't bad preboard, but then the hate comes in post board and well, not so saucy.

Game 1: I had to mulligan once and kept my 6, my notes (which were very meticulous until I figured out I couldn't do very good notes and play the game at the same time around his turn 9), say I Cabal Therapy-ed away a Humility and an Abeyance. He cycled a Decree of Justice for 6 in there, and Deed made its presence known. I comboed off at 12 life, which makes me think something got hit with Swords to Plowshares.

SB: My notes say that Puff Daddy came in for a Liberal, or a Left Wing.

Game 2: My notes are next to nil from here out, just Therapy/Duress notes. Deed was the all star here, with it taking care of Humility at the right moment, along with a few Soldier tokens too. I got whittled down to 3 before cleaning the board and taking care of business.

I win 2-0
My Record: 1-0

Round 2: Arthur (U/g Madness/Threshold/Life From The Loam Control)
I really don't know what to say about his deck, or to even call it. There were Mongrels, Werebears, Force of Wills, Dazes, Mana Leaks, Wastelands, Mishra's Factories, Standstills, Nevinyrral's Disks, Waterfront Bouncers, Treetop Villages, Wonder, and other lands. There might have been an Academy Ruins in there too, but I didn't see it.

Game 1: He starts off with the good aggro-control set up with counters and critters. I see Waterfront bouncer, and realize I have to kill that before I go off. He keeps it from dying with bouncing itself a few times, and then kills me when he goes crazy with Mongrel and Life From the Loam.

SB: Sean John Combs once again traded with John Kerry.

Game 2: I Duress and Cabal Therapy a lot, taking out his cards, and he starts Life From the Loaming, his hand is all lands by the end of the game, but that's okay because I combo off and kill him. He makes me go through the motions, and I show him the fun sideboard card of Orzhov Guildmage.

Game 3: An early chalice for 1 starts this game off right, but I living Wish for a Harmonic Sliver and take care of business. The Therapy x2 and Duress that were harmlessly sitting in my hand suddenly start chewing at the bit, and I let them go to town. This game gets close at the end, but I play masterfully, dropping Salvagers to block, and when he swung me down to 1, I ripped Deed and dropped it on the board after checking his hand with Duress. He swings in with 2 Factories and I kill them (leaving me at 1), and I cast Pact on the next turn, getting the Diamond I need. Good Game.

I win 2-1
My Record 2-0

Round 3: Curb (U/G/w Threshold)
Oh hell. Curb is the one person I know in the tourney, and he's actually playing my deck, as I'd built it for him and given it to him around 3:30 with the tourney starting at 4ish. We'd tested the Golden Grahams Threshold matchup for a bit and it was about even. We get deck checked before we start, and sit around bored and start singing Dick In a Box, just because we can. Then the people around us start laughing, (which you should never do because it encourages us), and suddenly the Red Aggro player is getting theme songs for each card he plays. "Ball Lightning?! *sings the Jurassic Park theme from a Family Guy episode*" Which even got better because the U/w/r landstill player and his opponent to our right start randomly singing that a few times during their match. Yes, it is that contagious. Also, we get our decks back, and both of us need new sleeves. Not fun.

Game 1: He plays Needle (Salvagers), and 2 Mages (Pyrite Spellbomb, and Deed). He gives me the 'scoop face', and I give him a Harmonic Sliver on the Needle, and Engineered Explosives for two. He goes to frownstown, population: him.

SB: 4 cards out, and 3 Massacre/1 Deed in.

Game 2: He pounds the crap out of me when I don't get answers, and he gets threats. Ouch.

Game 3: See game 1 where I do good things with my hate-answers. I think Massacre got Force of Willed at some point, which is fine when Massacre turns into Pact of Wrench Mind.

I win 2-1
My Record: 3-0

After this, the guys around us are nice enough to help us with our sleeve search. One of Curbs friends buys him new sleeves, and takes my old ones (which weren't that bad). And the other guys around help us sleeve up real fast. Suddenly I feel less mad at Magic players as a whole.

Round 4: Tony (Red Sligh)
We sit down, and the four 3-0 players have a little chat. We decide to draw into top 8.

I draw 1-1-1
My Record: 3-0-1

Round 5: William (B/w Pikula)
We bitch at Chris Waits for making us wait for the match slips, and when he brings them, we scribble ID on it.

I draw 1-1-1
My Record: 3-0-2

At this point, I'm tired of waiting, but Curb drew in with a Golden Grahams player (who he swore he couldn't beat, even though his list wasn't mine with Deeds, Sylvan Library and good stuff in the sideboard), and then he starts worrying about losing out on breakers. (It was set up so there were 6 3-1's, and 4 of them drew in. That way, there'd be one 3-1-1 that would lose out) It ended up that the guy who was to my left and was sure he would absolutely make top 8 with his breakers made 9th. *snicker*

So, here's the top Eight parings.

Thresh (Curb) v Goblins
Landstill v B/w
Sligh v U/g Madness/Thresh/Life from the loam control
Golden Grahams v Golden Grahams

Top Eight: Larry (Golden Grahams)
I about died when Larry sat across from me. Crap. I never expected this matchup, and I never tested it either. Fortunately, I know what beats me, so I at least can wreck him. Right? Right.

Game 1: He mulls and Duresses turn 1, I play turn 2 Sylvan Library. That's all she wrote, right? Wrong. I get horrible draws, and he ends up getting the combo off. Grr.

Ed leaves to get a bottle of water from the vending machine.

Game 2: I turn 1 duress and take his duress, turn 2 is all about the therapy taking 2x Wish. Sylvan Library came down turn 3, and turn 4 involved a Living Wish (crack 2x LED) and get Salvagers with a Chromatic Sphere in the yard.

Ed comes back as we're shuffling for game 3. His wtf face was classic.

Game 3: I can't remember this one at all. It comes down to the end with him with a Gamekeeper in play, and me with a Salvager and a Diamond in play. We're racing for our own answer (me for A Star/Sphere/Spellbomb him for a Therapy/Innocent Blood) I rip mine a turn before he rips his and I advance to top 4.

I win 2-1
My Record: 4-0-2

The top 4 breaks down to this:

Goblins v Landstill
Golden Grahams v U/g Madness/Thresh/Life from the loam control

Top 4: Arthur (U/g Madness/Threshold/Life From The Loam Control)
Hey. This guy again. I beat him once.. barely. But I prefer this to insane sligh.

Game 1: I rip his hand apart and resolve Sylvan Library. I win this game.

Game 2: I rip his hand apart and resolve Sylvan Library. I win this game. There was a bit more to this one with me getting beat down to 1 with Moat-keeper on the table and a Salvagers with me looking for a kill condition for my Keeper (he had Wonder in the graveyard). I have City of Brass in play, and push it off my play mat. No way is that getting tapped. I pact into good stuffs, and get what I need when I need it. That's what the deck does ladies and gentlemen.

I win 2-0
My Record: 5-0-2

Finals: Alex (Goblins/w)
I walk over to my friends who have been waiting for me, and tell them I'm not splitting in the finals, because I want my box and my byes. They walk over and watch.

Game 1: I fall asleep and mutter the words "I keep" as I keep a hand with LEDx2, Badlands, Duress x2, Cabal Therapy, and a Living Wish. Somehow I am able to cast duress whilst snoozing and see some cards. Wasteland comes down turn two and kills my only land. I get a nice nap while playing draw go for turns while he kicks my teeth in.

I wake up later to find myself shuffling for game 2. I look through my deck and notice that 3x Infest 3x Massacre and 1x Deed got sided in and 4x Sylvan Library and 3 other cards got sided out.

Game 2: Goblins does its thing, plus he drops Pyrostatic Pillar and I wince. Tainted Pact comes down and I get Deed. I end up with Salvagers, and Deed in play, plus Diamond. I have a Swamp untapped and Ritual in hand. End of his turn, I ritual into Deed for 2, and in response, I pop Diamond for WWW, and regrow the Diamond and the Pyrite Spellbomb. His critters and Pillar die, and I win the next turn.

Game 3: Oh yeah. All the Marbles. He gets Lackey turn 1, turn two Piledriver and Fanatic. I smirk at his Plateau and I massacre turn 2. He reads the card, and the crowd that has amassed laughs when they realized I 3 for 1ed him without using any resources except a card in hand. He's spent from there and just pounds in with 2x lackey, getting nothing off their triggers. I need a land to win the game after I pop a Chromatic Sphere, and my best friend Bayou is happy to oblige.

I win 2-1
My Record: 6-0-2

Props:
The vending machine, I kept myself from dying of hunger for the full day, and only for $2.
30ish people for showing up, I like big tourneys.
Sylvan Library and Pernicious Deed. They're new to the deck, and have proven their weight is more than pulled.
Curb for getting into top eight with a Threshold deck with a Temple Garden in it. That's right. I said it.
Me. For winning a tournament with 1 hour of sleep and 7 hours of waiting.

Slops:
~~Swords to Plowshares. It didn't kill me or anything, I just needed something to call a slop.~~
Being Deck Checked and having to buy new sleeves.