So, I went to my first event since January of this year, the
Meandeck Open in Columbus, OH on July 27, 2008. Sixteen players showed up. Here’s a quick and dirty report.
I was really, really torn between running UW Fish and Pitch Long. I went back and forth between the two decks at least four or five times. Ultimately, while I thought UW Fish could be good, I realized that I could not tune it to the level that I wanted for the event. Consequently, I netdecked
Rich Shay's recent list for the most part, making a few changes to fit my own little quirks and to reflect changes he felt were good ideas. So, here is what I ran, in no particular order:
Pitch Long,
mostly by Rich Shay, but David Earley piloted it.
4 Polluted Delta
2 Bloodstained Mire
3 Underground Sea
1 Swamp
1 Tolarian Academy
1 Bayou
1 Darksteel Colossus
1 Lotus Petal
1 Black Lotus
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mana Vault
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
4 Force of Will
3 Duress
2 Cabal Ritual
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Time Walk
1 Misdirection
1 Ponder
1 Brainstorm
2 Tendrils of Agony
1 Gifts Ungiven
2 Grim Tutor
1 Mind’s Desire
1 Yawgmoth’s Will
1 Yawgmoth’s Bargain
1 Necropotence
1 Rebuild
1 Chain of Vapor
4 Dark Ritual
1 Tinker
1 Memory Jar
1 Sensei’s Divining Top
1 Windfall
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Timetwister
= 60 cards
Sideboard:
2 Tormod’s Crypt
2 Xantid Swarm
3 Dark Confidant
1 Yixlid Jailer
2 Hurkyl’s Recall
4 Tarmogoyf
1 Bayou
= 15 cards
I was overall pretty happy with the list. While the vulnerability to Wasteland that the deck suffered from did show itself eventually in a match against UW Fish, the deck was fairly solid overall. So, let's give a quick rundown. As usual, all accounts are just as I remember them and may contain inaccuracies. I apologize where I made mistakes and encourage corrections.
Round 1 - Stephen Menendian (reigning Vintage World Champion) playing LongI wandered over to the pairings and was surprised to see myself paired against Steve for the first round. While I had wanted to play Steve at some point, I didn't really want to play him in the first round. As I said earlier, I haven't played in an event since January, so I was a little rusty. Regardless, the prospect of being able to beat the world champion was pleasing.
Game 1 - I win the roll and play. I fetch for Underground Sea and play Duress. Steve shows Duress, Duress, Dark Ritual, Mox Jet, Vampiric Tutor, Tendrils of Agony, and Mana Crypt. Staring down the choice between picking Jet and Vampiric Tutor, it was at this point that I realized I had a sensation I had not had in a long time playing Magic. I'll admit it: I was nervous. Between having not played in so long and staring down such a legend of Vintage, it made it difficult to concentrate. I guess as time wore on while I stared down Steve's hand, I felt like I should have already made my decision and the longer I took the more inexperienced I appeared, at least as far as the current metagame went. Oh, and this is not to imply that Steve did anything to make me feel bad or uncomfortable; far from it - he was very sporting the whole match. Instead, I just was never really ever able to get on top of my game, for whatever reason. Finally, I picked Vampiric Tutor, figuring the probability of Steve drawing a black source was relatively high, which would spell bad news for me. I pass the turn. Sure enough, Steve draws and plays a Swamp. Some other things happen and I do a mini-tendrils for 10. I foolishly play Moxen and Mana Vault instead of holding back with them. Had I done so, when I drew my second Tendrils I probably would have been able to win the match. Steve is at 5 with Mana Crypt in play and after choosing between Tendrils for 4 and Tinker, I decide to Tinker for DSC, figuring that Steve has been kind of dragging for a while and a certain win next turn was a very good proposition. Steve wins the Crypt roll, plays Bargain, draws three cards, and manages to own via Will.
Game 2 – I sideboard in Tarmogoyf x4 and Tormod’s Crypt x2; I don’t remember what I took out. I mulligan to 5 and keep a hand I probably shouldn't have kept. Steve Tinkers on turn 1 for Memory Jar. I eventually try to play Bargain in 2 or 3 turns; Steve Forces. Steve answers with his own Bargain and has his way.
Round 1 games: 0-2
Overall games: 0-2
Overall matches: 0-1
Well, I blew my chance to defeat a reigning world champion. As dad astutely put it when I got home, "I choked". While game 2 I don't think I could have done much, I could have played a better game 1. I guess that's why practice is important; going in cold can make somewhat difficult plays very difficult. Don't take this to demean Steve's play; he played very well. Instead, it is just an introspection of what I could have done differently to perhaps give myself a better chance of winning.
It was at this point that I discovered that the Vintage players had been invited to partake of the food which was brought in by another group of gamers playing some sort of high seas tabletop RPG (which dominated the store). I had a chocolate chip cookie, which was delicious, and moved on to my next match.
Round 2 - Will Schilling with False Cure.decOver the course of the match, I would discover that I had apparently played this gentleman about six years ago in a casual match at my cousins’ house.
Honestly, I don’t remember much about the match other than the fact that he never really got going. Both wins involved Tendrils and probably Will. I know I didn’t sideboard for game 2. I did notice that he had a real Imperial Seal, which I am pretty sure he got off my cousins at some point. If only I had been quicker in acquiring their collections, it could have been mine. Alas.
Round 2 games: 2-0
Overall games: 2-2
Overall matches: 1-1
Round 3 – Randal Witherell with StaxApparently my win was not enough to liberate me from the bottom half of tables, which were stuck in the non-air conditioned half of the store, although they weren’t that much worse than the so-called air conditioned top tables. But, as with any tournament, there are a number of factors players have to sometimes tolerate in order to win including: no air conditioning, no heat, no table space, no food, no drink, no restroom, no judge, no tournament software. I mean, would it really be a tournament without having to put up with at least one of those things?
Game 1 – He wins the die roll and mulligans to 4. I am holding double Force of Will with two extra blue cards, but only had a Pearl for mana. After thinking a bit, I decide that muling is the proper choice. I end up mulling to 5. He plays Ancient Tomb and passes the turn. I Duress and he shows Triskelion, Tangle Wire, and Smokestack. I think for an unnecessarily long time and pick Tangle Wire. He would soon get Chalice for 1 on the table. I get Bargain in play somehow and am feeling pretty good. I debate whether I should pass the turn or not and start drawing a few cards. I see Dark Ritual, Dark Ritual, Mystical Tutor, Ancestral Recall, Chain of Vapor, and Windfall. Now, I was feeling pretty good at this point, figuring I could combo out pretty easily with all those Rituals and such. Then I realized, as I’m sure you do at home, that five of my six cards can’t be played because they call have CMC of 1. I think for a while and somehow (it might have been the next turn, though my gut says I just went for the win), get Rebuild and bounce everything. I play my Rituals and win.
Game 2 – I side in Hurkyl’s Recall x2, Tarmogoyf x4, Dark Confidant x3, Bayou, Tormod’s Crypt x2. I get some crazy artifact mana early, but he plays Null Rod, which is a thorn in my side. I end up having to Hurkyl’s him (around a Sphere of Resistance), play Rebuild bouncing three Moxen plus Tormod’s Crypt, replay all of them, blow up Crypt hitting nothing in his graveyard, play Will to replay Crypt, then have exactly enough mana to finish him with Tendrils.
Round 3 games: 2-0
Overall games: 4-2
Overall matches: 2-1
Round 4 – Jason Houston with UB FishGame 1 - This was Jason’s first Vintage tournament, which made me relax a bit. I win the roll. Jason and I were talking before the first game and he mulled to 6. Unfortunately for him, he drew 7 cards when he mulled. We had a short discussion regarding how to handle this. Of course, the proper thing to do here is to call a judge. However, this is unsanctioned Vintage we’re talking about and with all due respect to the store owner, I didn’t really trust him to make the right call. That, and I tend to like to keep the decisions at the table at unsanctioned events with questionable judging. My understanding of the rules was that doing this meant a mandatory mulligan; meaning, Jason would have to mull to 5. Jason apparently had been dealt a game loss by a particularly vicious judge for this mistake at some point, but that didn’t seem right either. So, Jason mulled to 5 and kept. I would later ask Woapalanne, judge extraordinaire over on MTGSalvation what the proper ruling is. Apparently the rule has changed since I last confronted this issue:
213....If the player has drawn too many cards, the judge will remove one more than the number of excess cards from the hand at random and shuffle them into the deck. The player may continue mulliganning from that point if they wish.
So, the outcome was close, but not exactly correct. In any case, I would somehow win game 1. I think it involved breaking Memory Jar, I played Lotus, he Forced, I Ancestral Recall in response, he Misdirected. That all resolved. I then played 2 more Moxen and proceeded to win. The Ancestral he got didn’t help him.
Game 2 – I sideboard in Tarmogoyf x4, Bayou, and Xantid Swarm x2. He had a brutal opening hand involving Wasteland and Strip Mine. Fortunately, I had Ruby and Sol Ring so I was able to at least play spells whenever I drew land. I lost a counterwar over him Stifling my Fetchland. We did draw-go for what seemed like ten turns until he hardcasted Ninja of the Deep Hours. Then he got Mishra’s Factory. I managed to get Tarmogoyf in play (only to have the Bayou obliterated by Wasteland). I block Ninja and Factory gets through, dropping me to 8. He also had Cursecatcher at some point. I end up playing another Tarmogoyf for reasons unknown to me (instead of Tinkering for Darksteel Colossus; I’m really not sure why I didn’t do this). I end up going down to 1 and he Demonic Tutors for Spellstutter Sprite and I scoop.
Game 3 – I keep the same sideboarding. I play Black Lotus, a Mox, and Sol Ring, play Memory Jar. Holding Grim Tutor, Brainstorm, and Force, I decide to go for the jugular. I break Memory Jar and am greeted with Tarmogoyf, Tarmogoyf, Xantid Swarm, Dark Ritual, Time Walk, Swamp, and Sapphire. I play Swamp and Sapphire and play Time Walk. He can’t counter it and I discard my hand. I draw my next card (I think it was Cabal Ritual). I have just enough for threshold and play Cabal Ritual to play Grim Tutor, getting Will. Will resolves and I go nuts, cracking Lotus for Green to play Swarm and Tarmogoyf to get the storm count up high enough to go lethal. He points out that it was a turn 1 win, which I didn’t even realize.
Round 4 games: 2-0
Overall games: 6-3
Overall matches: 3-1
My nine points are enough to top 4 and we decide to split the $180 (after the store owner took his 25% cut of $60, which I thought was a bit much). So, I collect my $45, shake some hands, wish some people luck at Vintage Worlds next weekend and start the long drive back to Parkersburg, WV. I think I ended up down $10 or so after gas costs and the $15 entry fee.
So, overall, I felt Long performed very well. I will go so far as to make the overarching statement that I think this is the best deck in the metagame right now. Yeah, I don’t have a lot to support that, but in my gut that’s what I think. I’m not sure what changes I would make. Windfall didn’t really thrill me, though I was tempted to play it once or twice. The manabase is admittedly unstable; I’m not sure how to fix it though without testing. I personally am still very underwhelmed by Dark Confidant. Some people seems to think he is so great, but I simply do not see it. I don’t. You play him and he sits there. One turn later, you get your one card back, lose some life possibly, and possibly get 2 damage (so, I guess that’s 1 storm). That being said, I played him because I couldn’t come up with anything else to play in his stead and, honestly, was just lazy about netdecking. So, I guess I’m the pot calling the kettle black. In any case, I don’t like Confidant. Otherwise, I really like this build. There is surely a tweak here and there, but overall I like it.
That’s it for this report. On a somewhat unrelated note (which I will probably post in a separate thread at some point to get more attention), I am transferring from Duke Law this coming year. Instead, I will be attending NYU Law in New York City. So, while I will be leaving the North Carolina metagame, I hopefully will be landing in a new one (I really have no idea what sort of tournaments I can get to without a car up there or what kind of time I will have). In any case, I am very excited about the move. Hopefully I will get to meet some new faces in the Magic world as a result of this change.
Props:
High seas RPG people for sharing their food
My opponents for all being good sports
Long for rolling
Slops:
Gas prices
25% prize pool cuts for the store owner
Nonexistent air conditioning
Excessively low entry fees - $25 would probably be better in the future
Flooding restrooms
As always, comments, questions, snide remarks, etc. are welcome and encouraged. Thanks for reading!
