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Author Topic: Top 8 Decklists! Metagame Breakdown MEANDECK OPEN RESULTS (11/22/09)  (Read 9805 times)
Smmenen
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« on: November 29, 2009, 07:11:33 pm »

11/22/09   Columbus, Ohio Top 8


First of all, let me say THANK YOU to everyone who attended this event.    It was an incredible tournament.   We had folks from Michigan, Kentucky, Indiana, and all over Ohio, Cincinnati, Columbus, and Cleveland.   There was real regional competition for Vintage in the Ohio valley for the first time in recent memory.  

Over $450 was paid out in this tournament, from 1st through 8th!!

The Kentucky crew really cleaned up, putting 4 of their 5 in the top 8.   I have no doubt that playing in a tournament the day before helped.   I hope that this regional competition continues, with the Meandeck Open as the venue.    Paul Mastriano will undoubtedly attend the next event, and bring some folks with him, so we'll have PA, MI, IN, OH, and KY all going at it, if everyone can make the next event.  

But more than the competition, I think the tournament had a great atmosphere.  I think everyone had a good time and much fun was had.  

Also, the free side event was a huge success.  This was the first time that almost everyone stayed through the whole tournament.    If there are suggestions to make this event more fun, let me know.

For our next event, our target should be 33 players.   There are VERY few 6 swiss round Vintage tournaments these days, let alone in the USA.   We only need a few more players to meet that target.  Will it be difficult?  Definitely.   We had an amazing convergence of events to have everyone attend this one.   But we should always shoot higher.   There is nothing like competing in a 6 round Vintage tournament.   Let's do it!  

So a bunch of us went to Thurmans afterward, and I was VERY Impressed that Brian Demars was able to eat a Thurman burger.  He ate this!



 All he had to do was finish the fries and he would have been able to paste a dollar to the wall.   Maybe next time Smile  

Without further adieu, here are your top 8 decklists!

Top 4 Split

(Tobi, when you post these on morphling.de, please label this: "Columbus"   Thanks!)

1st Place after the swiss and made top 4, therefore 1st place:

Robert Graves

The Deck

1 Gorilla Shaman
1 Sower of Temptation
1 Sundering Titan
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Brainstorm
1 Darkblast
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Ponder
3 Spell Snare
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Diabolic Edict
1 Fire/Ice
1 Life From the Loam
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Regrowth
1 Cunning Wish
1 Time Walk
1 Thirst For Knowledge
1 Tinker
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Gifts Ungiven
4 Force of Will
2 Leyline of the Void
1 Helm of Obedience
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Sol Ring
1 Tropical Island
2 Underground Sea
2 Volcanic Island
1 Island
4 City of Brass
1 Strip Mine
4 Wasteland
1 Flooded Strand
1 Misty Rainforest
2 Scalding Tarn

Sideboard:
 4 Tarmogoyf
2 Sower of Temptation
2 Pyroblast
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Diabolic Edict
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Ravenous Trap
1 Goblin Bombardment
2 Leyline of the Void

Robert played The Deck the day before, and made top 8 in Louisville:

http://www.themanadrain.com/index.php?topic=39325.0  (3rd place).

2nd Place: Stephen Menendian
Tezzeret Control

4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
1 Misdirection

1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
1 Brainstorm
1 Ponder
2 Sensei’s Divining Top
4 Dark Confidant

1 Time Vault
1 Voltaic Key
1 Tinker
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Inkwell Leviathan
1 Yawgmoth’s Will

1 Demonic Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Imperial Seal
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Gifts Ungiven

1 Fire/Ice
1 Hurkyl’s Recall
1 Darkblast

3 Island
1 Swamp
4 Polluted Delta
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Scalding Tarn
2 Underground Sea
3 Volcanic Island
1 Tolarian Academy
1 Library of Alexandria
1 Black Lotus
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mana Vault
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet

Sideboard:
2 Red Elemental Blast
1 Pyroblast
2 Sower of Temptation
2 Rack and Ruin
3 Greater Gargadon
4 Leyline of the Void
1 Extirpate

3rd Place: John Adams

BUG Fish
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Dark Confidant
4 Vedalken Heretic
2 Rootwater Thief
1 Time Walk
4 Force of Will
4 Spell Pierce
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Hurkyl's Recall
4 Duress
4 Thoughtseize
1 Demonic Tutor
4 Null Rod
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Sapphire
3 Polluted Delta
2 Verdant Catacombs
1 Misty Rainforest
4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
3 Underground Sea
3 Tropical Island

Sideboard:
1 Darkblast
2 Seal of Primordium
2 Sower of Temptation
2 Ravenous Trap
3 Yixlid Jailer
3 Energy Flux
2 Umezawa's Jitte

4th Place: Isaac Siegmund with Tezzeret Control

4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
3 Thoughtseize
2 Repeal
1 Echoing Truth
1 Fire/Ice
1 Rebuild
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Brainstorm
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Ponder
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Thirst For Knowledge
1 Time Walk
1 Tinker
1 Yawgmoth's Will
3 Dark Confidant
1 Darksteel Colossus
1 Time Vault
1 Voltaic Key
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Sol Ring
1 Tolarian Academ,y
2 Flooded Strand
4 Polluted Delta
3 Island
3 Underground Sea
3 Volcanic Island

Sideboard:
2 Mystic Remora
2 Red Elemental Blast
3 Ingot Chewer
2 Smother
4 Leyline of the Void
1 Tormod's Crypt
1 Pithing Needle

5th Place: Will Cutler with Oath
1 Hellkite Overlord
1 Akroma, Angel of Vengeance
1 Iona, Shield of Emeria
4 Force of Will
4 Impulse
3 Spell Pierce
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Brainstorm
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Lat-Nam's Legacy
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Thirst For Knowledge
1 Vampiric Tutor
3 Duress
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Gaea's Blessing
1 Ponder
1 Time Walk
4 Oath of Druids
4 Chalice of the Void
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Sensei's Divining Top
4 Forbidden Orchard
2 Flooded Strand
2 Island
2 Polluted Delta
2 Tropical Island
2 Underground Sea
1 Strip Mine
1 Scalding Tarn

Sideboard:
2 Pernicious Deed
2 Pithing Needle
4 Ravenous Trap
2 Spawning Pit
1 Ancient Grudge
1 Arcane Laboratory
1 Trinisphere
2 Oxidize

6th Place: Jerry Yang with Bob Tendrils
4 Underground Sea
3 Polluted Delta
2 Swamp
1 Flooded Strand
1 Island
1 Scalding Tarn
1 Snow-Covered Island
1 Snow-Covered Swamp
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Sol Ring
4 Dark Ritual
4 Dark Confidant
3 Duress
3 Thoughtseize
2 Sadistic Sacrament
2 Tendrils of Agony
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Brainstorm
1 Chain of Vapor
1 Demonic Consultation
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Mind's Desire
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Necropotence
1 Rebuild
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Tezzeret the Seeker
1 Timetwister
1 Time Vault
1 Time Walk
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Voltaic Key
1 Yawgmoth's Will

Sideboard:
4 Leyline of the Void
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Chain of Vapor
1 Darkblast
1 Duress
1 Helm of Obedience
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Rebuild
1 Sower of Temptation
1 Thoughtseize
1 Tinker

7th: Korey Age with Empty Control

1 Sundering Titan
1 Gorilla Shaman
4 Dark Confidant
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Darkblast
1 Thirst For Knowledge
1 Fire/Ice
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Rebuild
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Brainstorm
1 Fact or Fiction
4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Ponder
1 Tinker
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Empty the Warrens
1 Time Walk
1 Wheel of Fortune
2 Mystic Remora
3 Scalding Tarn
3 Polluted Delta
1 Tolarian Academy
2 Island
2 Volcanic Island
3 Underground Sea
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Mana Vault
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
1 Black Lotus
1 Lotus Petal
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Sapphire

Sideboard:
1 Arcane Laboratory
3 Energy Flux
1 Magus of the Unseen
1 The Abyss
1 Threads of Disloyalty
2 Spawning Pit
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Tormod's Crypt
2 Extirpate
1 Pyroblast
1 Red Elemental Blast

8th Place: Mike Shean with Mono Red Stax

4 Mishra's Workshop
4 Barbarian Ring
3 Mountain
4 Bazaar of Baghdad
4 Wasteland
1 Strip Mine
1 Toloarian Academy
1 Black Lotus
1 Mox Emerald
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mana Vault
1 Sol Ring
1 Mana Crypt
4 Smokestack
4 Tangle Wire
4 Chalice of the Void
4 Crucible of Worlds
4 Null Rod
1 Memory Jar
4 Goblin Welder
4 Sphere of Resistance
1 Trinisphere

Sideboard:
4 Greater Gargadon
3 The Tabernacle at Pendral Vale
3 Shattering Spree
2 Ensnaring Bridge
4 Tormod's Crypt

In the Top 8:
Robert Graves defeated Mike Sheen
John Adams defeated Jerry Yang
Steve Menendian defeated Kodey Age
Isaac Siegmund defeated Will Cutler

Top 4 Split

Metagame Breakdown

5 Tezzeret Control
3 Stax
 - 1 Mono Red Stax
 - 1 5c Stax
 - 1 Twuan Stax (B/R Stax)
2 Workshop Aggro
2 The Deck
2 Oath
2 Bob Tendrils
2 Ad Nauseam
2 Fish
- 1 UWG Fish (Selkie)
- 1 BUG Fish
1 Grow
1 G/W/x Beats (Meandeck Beats)
1 Mono Blue Aggro-Control
1 Time Spiral Combo
1 Mystic Remora Control w/ Esperzoa
1 Dredge
1 Reanimator (with Iona and Hexmage combo)
1 Empty Control

28 Total Decks

* 9 Drain Decks
* 5 Workshop Decks
* 5 Dark Ritual Decks
* 4 Bazaar of Baghdad Decks
* 7 Null Rod Decks (Fish, Beats, and some Stax decks)

There it is!  

The next Meandeck Open will be on either January 17th or January 24th.   As soon as I get a firm date, I'll post the announcement.  Just an FYI at this point.
« Last Edit: November 30, 2009, 12:04:04 am by Smmenen » Logged

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« Reply #1 on: November 29, 2009, 08:01:11 pm »


8th Place: Mike Sheen with Mono Red Stax

Mike Shean   Very Happy
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« Reply #2 on: November 29, 2009, 09:40:45 pm »


Robert played The Deck the day before, and made top 8 in Louisville:

http://www.themanadrain.com/index.php?topic=39325.0  (3rd place).

No drains? Helm as the maindeck win condition???

I understand the list from Louisville...but this is an interesting direction to take....
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Smmenen
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« Reply #3 on: November 29, 2009, 10:22:36 pm »


Robert played The Deck the day before, and made top 8 in Louisville:

http://www.themanadrain.com/index.php?topic=39325.0  (3rd place).

No drains? Helm as the maindeck win condition???

I understand the list from Louisville...but this is an interesting direction to take....

I agree.     Chapin wrote about using Helm as a win condition a few months back, with two Leylines main.    Robert did the same thing.   I REALLY like his Spell Pierces over Drains, actually.    It better synergizes with the Mana Denial strategy, and is really easy to play.    Spell Pierce is better than Drain against Shops and combo anyway.   Drain is just best in the Drain mirror, but you have Red Blasts post board for that.   

I really like The Deck right now. 
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« Reply #4 on: November 29, 2009, 11:25:09 pm »


Robert played The Deck the day before, and made top 8 in Louisville:

http://www.themanadrain.com/index.php?topic=39325.0  (3rd place).

No drains? Helm as the maindeck win condition???

I understand the list from Louisville...but this is an interesting direction to take....

I agree.     Chapin wrote about using Helm as a win condition a few months back, with two Leylines main.    Robert did the same thing.   I REALLY like his Spell Pierces over Drains, actually.    It better synergizes with the Mana Denial strategy, and is really easy to play.    Spell Pierce is better than Drain against Shops and combo anyway.   Drain is just best in the Drain mirror, but you have Red Blasts post board for that.   

I really like The Deck right now. 

FYI you typed Spell Snare in his list, not Pierce.  I'm guessing it should be Pierce then?
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« Reply #5 on: November 29, 2009, 11:36:21 pm »

There are 57 cards in Roberts list. I believe one of them is a tinker target time walk and a bounce spell. Thanks Steve for putting this up I really enjoyed myself at the tournament. It's a shame I wasn't there at thurmans to eat that monster but as Ive said before there is always next time  Wink .
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« Reply #6 on: November 29, 2009, 11:58:53 pm »

Fixed.

It was Regrowth, Sundering Titan, and TIme Walk.  

Also, just an FYI, the next Meandeck Open will be in late January: either the 17th or the 24th.   I'll let you know exactly which date it is this week, and post the announcement. 
« Last Edit: November 30, 2009, 12:05:01 am by Smmenen » Logged

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« Reply #7 on: November 30, 2009, 12:15:15 am »

Fixed.

It was Regrowth, Sundering Titan, and TIme Walk.  

Also, just an FYI, the next Meandeck Open will be in late January: either the 17th or the 24th.   I'll let you know exactly which date it is this week, and post the announcement. 

FYI you typed Spell Snare in his list, not Pierce.  I'm guessing it should be Pierce then?

So was it Snare not Pierce?
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« Reply #8 on: November 30, 2009, 12:18:37 am »

So, I just looked at the decklist and it was indeed Spell Snare.    I mentally interpreted that as Spell Pierce, for some reason.    Whoops!  Sorry for the confusion.  

Long Live The Deck.  
« Last Edit: November 30, 2009, 12:47:51 am by Smmenen » Logged

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« Reply #9 on: November 30, 2009, 12:56:19 am »

Chapin wrote about using Helm as a win condition a few months back, with two Leylines main.  

Missed this. Anyone got a link?
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« Reply #10 on: November 30, 2009, 12:58:04 am »

Chapin wrote about using Helm as a win condition a few months back, with two Leylines main.  

Missed this. Anyone got a link?

Here ya go:

http://www.starcitygames.com/magic/vintage/17886_Innovations_The_Deck_2009_Bringing_Back_the_Glory_Days_of_Vintage.html

Decklist at the bottom   
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« Reply #11 on: November 30, 2009, 02:58:44 am »

Akroma, Angel of Vengeance - does such as thing exist ? Smile 5th place Will playing Oath.
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« Reply #12 on: November 30, 2009, 03:24:34 am »

curious why you decided on inkwell over the ever so popular sphinx .

I agree its a better choice for tezz but you are just about the only person I've seen run it as a robot target.
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« Reply #13 on: November 30, 2009, 05:01:21 am »

@the deck: -1 City, +1 factory.  Just tested this against Sacrament.fairy.dec.  won 2/3, but got capped all three games. 

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« Reply #14 on: November 30, 2009, 06:56:30 am »

curious why you decided on inkwell over the ever so popular sphinx .

I agree its a better choice for tezz but you are just about the only person I've seen run it as a robot target.

I seen more than just Steve playing it. It's an Ohio thing I believe.
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« Reply #15 on: November 30, 2009, 11:07:03 am »

Inkwell is a great tinker target, i have been running it for months and have bene happy with it, though I have begun to test Sphinx...but in a metagame full of landsitll, I much prefer inkwell, perhaps not just an Ohio thing afterall.

But thanks for posting the results, I love The Deck, and think it is a amazing throwback to my early days in vintage.
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« Reply #16 on: November 30, 2009, 11:27:18 am »

curious why you decided on inkwell over the ever so popular sphinx .

I agree its a better choice for tezz but you are just about the only person I've seen run it as a robot target.


Hiromichi itou also ran inkwell.   I hate sphinx, whom I affectionately refer to as sphincter of the foul wind.   I think that many lists need the life gain because they run too many high cost cards.   
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« Reply #17 on: November 30, 2009, 11:36:18 am »

Nah, actually many lists needs the life gain because their opponent is hitting them with Goyf's...

I think that either sphinx or DSC is the optimal choice right now, either the un-raceable immune to welder and qasali sphinx...or the good ol' 11 damage/turn robot.

Inkwell is sorta the middleman.
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« Reply #18 on: November 30, 2009, 11:44:34 am »

@Steve, am I mistaken or did your original 'tez control' list have a lower mana count?  That curve seems like you'd get flooded if you don't find Top.
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« Reply #19 on: November 30, 2009, 12:16:42 pm »

I'm not sure which list you are referring to. 'original tez control'?

My article on scg today explains how this list was built
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« Reply #20 on: November 30, 2009, 12:34:23 pm »

Right, my mistake, I got Confidant Control mixed up with Tezzeret Control.  Still, the average Tez list runs 24 sources (almost exclusively ranging from 23 to 25).  Going with 26 seems like a lot, espeically given that you've lowered the curve compared with a lot of those decks.  Higher mana counts are a detriment against Tez and Oath, so why the extra mana?
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« Reply #21 on: November 30, 2009, 01:13:40 pm »

lol, any idea what the "Time Spiral Combo" player's record was at the end of the tourney?
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« Reply #22 on: November 30, 2009, 10:14:46 pm »

lol, any idea what the "Time Spiral Combo" player's record was at the end of the tourney?

Not well.   According to final standings, that player had accumulated 1 point. 
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« Reply #23 on: November 30, 2009, 11:07:42 pm »

curious why you decided on inkwell over the ever so popular sphinx .

I agree its a better choice for tezz but you are just about the only person I've seen run it as a robot target.


Hiromichi itou also ran inkwell.   I hate sphinx, whom I affectionately refer to as sphincter of the foul wind.   I think that many lists need the life gain because they run too many high cost cards.   

I know in KY inkwell is almost always the target, he may win one turn slower but shroud is SOOO worth it. 
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« Reply #24 on: December 01, 2009, 03:28:19 am »

Is see a list that plays 3 Greater Gargadon sideboard, what was the idea behind that?
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« Reply #25 on: December 01, 2009, 03:32:15 am »

Is see a list that plays 3 Greater Gargadon sideboard, what was the idea behind that?
Suspending it is an uncountable way to get rid of Orchard tokens.
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« Reply #26 on: December 01, 2009, 04:27:52 am »

Is see a list that plays 3 Greater Gargadon sideboard, what was the idea behind that?
Suspending it is an uncountable way to get rid of Orchard tokens.

That makes sense. Nice tech.
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« Reply #27 on: December 01, 2009, 07:37:28 pm »

Right, my mistake, I got Confidant Control mixed up with Tezzeret Control.  Still, the average Tez list runs 24 sources (almost exclusively ranging from 23 to 25).  Going with 26 seems like a lot, espeically given that you've lowered the curve compared with a lot of those decks.  Higher mana counts are a detriment against Tez and Oath, so why the extra mana?

You are correct -- the additional mana is a disadvantage against Tezzeret and Oath.   Many of my teammates, Paul M, in particular, raised precisely the same question.  

However, the explanation for the higher mana count lies in the method by which I derived this decklist, as explicated here.   Without fully elaborating on the specifics, which are laid on the article, the basic gist is that I expected, as you can see in Step 1, that my metagame would consistent of 20% Tezzeret (including myself) and 10% Oath.  My metagame prediction was prescient, and I was only off, in both case, by only 3% (17% Tez and 7% Oath).   More importantly, if you look at my expected metagame, I expected greater parts Workshops, Fish and Beats, which also proved true (5, 2, and 1 respectively).  

Given these ratios, I concluded that the advantages of a higher mana base outweighed the costs.  

I observed the fact that Tezzeret has been a strong performer of late.   However, I also observed here that despite this performance Tezzeret failed to win a single tournament, and clustered at 2nd place.   My hunch, based on the evidence, is that this is because Tezzeret pilots, by and large, are not giving due respect to certain archetypes in top 8 play, where those archetypes, such as Stax, Fish or Dredge, are piloted by the best pilots of those archetypes.  So, for example, I've watched my teammates, such as Paul Mastriano, Jimmy McCarthy, and Solymossy (who is not a full member yet, but has been participating on my team for several months now), lose in top 8 matches to Workshop Aggro, Stax, and Fish respectively.   They can, quite correctly, claim to have winning records against those archetypes.  But that point misses the larger point that they are generally far more skilled than any opponent they might face.   The test is not whether you beat these archetypes in the swiss rounds, but if you manage to win in top 8s.   My view is that these archetypes, and the field in general, is gearing itself to beat Tezzeret.   I, like Hiromichi, wanted to create a very metagame sensitive list that would adapt to these efforts, and counter them.   I also expected at least a few copies of The Deck, which would also attack my mana base.  

Given that my goal was to win the tournament, not simply make top 8, I wanted to weigh my deck against those decks that I felt other Tezzeret pilots were not duly respecting, particularly in Top 8 play, and, more importantly, against the facts rather than some notion of an objective best deck. If you look at the mana base I propose in step (2)(a) of my article, wherein I design a mana base for the Tezzeret mirror, there are no basics at all, and the mana base falls into the ratio you prescribe.  Yet, I decided that designing a deck, specifically tailored for an expectant metagame, was superior in approach than relying on some notion of what an 'average' list or false notion of what an 'objectively optimal' list might look like.  

What about the costs?   Well, I think by a sensible accounting the benefits outweigh the costs.  After all, my composite methodology is inherently a cost/benefit approach, since the greater proportion of the metagame, as a general matter, is given priority.    

However, I also think that the costs, as a qualitative matter, are overstated.   I ran a 17 land mana base and an additional mana artifact, giving myself 2-3 more mana sources than a 'standard' or 'average' Tezzeret list (whatever those terms might mean).  Such differences are not inherently disadvantages.  For example, with my mana base I dramatically reduce the number of no-land hands and 1 land hands that would be drawn if I were playing only a 15 land mana base.   Also, there are many situations in the control mirror where additional land drops gives me greater power in certain situations, such as winning counter wars due to mana superiority.   Additionaly, there general life advantages from being more likely to flip lands with Bob (for example, being able to win Bob races more effectively, or being less vulernable to a single swing from a Tinker target), and also the fact that Bob and Top both compensate for a lower mana base. Finally, and more generally, there is something to be said for trying to rely on technical playskill.   Although it could result in card quality disadvantage, wherein my opponent is more likely to top deck business while I draw lands, I also hope to rely on my ability to outplay opponents in the control mirror, where skill, and making fewer errors, plays an even larger role.    Therefore, whatever modest disadvantage I might suffer from having fewer 'qualty' topdecks can be outweighed by those factors, if not the math.  

Your question might just as well have concerned the draw engine.    If I were gearing my draw engine for the Tezzeret and Oath matchup, I would not have run Bobs.  Instead, I would have run intuition + AK (again, see step (2)(a) in my article), or perhaps some highlander draw engine, or Night's Whispers.   Yet, I presume, the ubiquity or 'normalness' of using Bob as a draw engine did not cause you to question my draw engine, just the unusual features of my mana base.   Yet, just because something is a norm doesn't mean it is right.  Certainly, facts give rise to presumptions, but I see my selection of draw engine as the same function as the design of my mana base, as the article illustrates.

In any case, there was not a single game where I was flooded.  
« Last Edit: December 02, 2009, 12:40:49 am by Smmenen » Logged

Savo
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« Reply #28 on: December 02, 2009, 06:02:19 am »

Hello everyone
I'm curious about the "esperzoa remora" list... what's that? Do you think it's a viable deck?
thanks
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Odd mutation
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« Reply #29 on: December 02, 2009, 07:46:44 am »

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the info and congratulations on your result! The article you did on building this Tezz list was really interesting to read as well! It's really interesting to read about the role of certain cards in different matchups.

Can we expect a tournement report?

I've built your Tezz list with some slight changes:

  • Echoing Truth instead of one Sensei's Divining Top. I didn't really know what to take out and I want the Top back in but I'm not really sure what to cut. Echoing Truth always has been and still is huge for me. Do you have a suggetsion?
  • I removed the Extirpate and one Red Elemental Blast from the sideboard and added a Tormod's Crypt and one Pithing Needle. How was Extirpate for you? Do you side it in for other matchups then Dedge? I could see bringing it in against control matchups.
  • I've had Mana Vault in my Tezz list for a few weeks now and it has been better then I would have imagined!

Greetings,

Robrecht.
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