It had been a while since I last played in a Magic tournament but on Sunday 16th of May I played non-sanctioned Vintage in Breda, the Netherlands. I always enjoy playing in Breda. It’s a very nice venue with food and drinks for reasonable prices, a great atmosphere and competitive players. Some of the best (Vintage) players from the Netherlands and Belgium usually make the trip to Breda. Today we missed some because they chose to go to one of the largest tournaments in Europe for Vintage and Legacy: Bazaar of Moxen 4 in Annecy, France.
And this time I’ve done some playtesting! For some time now I’ve been playing Terastodon Oath, which has been performing really well:
Maindeck (60)1 Terastodon
1 Inkwell Leviathan
1 Iona, Shield of Emeria
1 Voltaic Key
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Brainstorm
1 Thirst for Knowledge
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Sensei's Divining Top
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Time Vault
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Ruby
1 Mox Pearl
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Emerald
1 Black Lotus
1 Gifts Ungiven
1 Tezzeret, The Seeker
1 Tinker
1 Jace, The Mindsculptor
1 Time Walk
1 Regrowth
1 Sol Ring
4 Force of Will
4 Spell Pierce
3 Mana Drain
4 Oath of Druids
1 Mana Crypt
1 Echoing Truth
4 Forbidden Orchard
4 Misty Rainforest
1 Library of Alexandrie
1 Tolarian Academy
1 Forest
1 Island
1 Snow-covered Island
1 Tropical Island
3 Underground Sea
Sideboard2 Yixlid Jailer
2 Show and Tell
1 Massacre
1 Pithing Needle
1 Ravenous Trap
1 Terastodon
3 Thoughtseize
1 Tormod's Crypt
3 Nature's Claim
As you can see I made some minor changes to the main deck. I chose Inkwell Leviathan instead of Sphinx of the Steel Wind because Inkwell proved to be a much better choice for the Fish matchup. As soon as I made the change, I was winning 8 out of 10 games versus fish, only losing to mana problems! In some matchups the Sphinx is definitely better but in preparation for this tournament I made a list of 6 decks that I was likely to face in Breda and added scores of how likely it was I would face them. Judging from that list, Inkwell Leviathan looked like the better choice. I didn’t miss the Sphinx during the tournament but this slot is still under debate. Options are: Inkwell Leviathan, Sphinx of the Steel Wind and Emrakul, the Aeons Torn.
During testing, I wasn’t too fond of Thirst for Knowledge so I went back to an old time favorite: Echoing Truth. I didn’t use the Echoing Truth once during the tournament, so maybe it just doesn’t belong in the deck. On the other hand, I didn’t really miss the Thirst for Knowledge either. The Echoing Truth just makes me feel more secure…
The sideboard has been very good to me. The one
Massacre, together with the extra
Terastodon and the
Show and Tells have proven to be enough versus Fish.
I went up to 3
Thoughtseizes because of a lousy combo matchup during testing (Drain Tendrils). I had Duress there first but I decided that I wanted Thoughtseize because of all the creatures that get played nowadays. The one great drawback of Thoughtseize is not the life loss but the fact that it can be Misdirected… which happened during testing… and, of course, in the tournament!
Yixlid Jailer is great versus dredge because dredge lists don’t seem to be prepared to deal with the zombie anymore. I don’t mind Oathing into one of these guys versus dredge.
The
Tormod's Crypt is there versus dredge and combo.
The
Pithing Needle is a great answer for a lot of things and I initially had two. It is worth it to have two, I just couldn’t fit the second.
The second Terastodon gets sided in a lot but I’m thinking of changing it to an Emrakul, the Aeons Torn.
So, we arrive at the venue and I see a lot of the regular faces: play level will be high. There’s also a National Qualifier going on, so the room is packed but with more then enough room for everybody and their cards. Some regular Vintage players have chosen to play standard, their mistake really…
We start the tournament with 41 players, so that’s six rounds of Swiss and a top 8. Main price is a Mox emerald, second price is a Mana Drain, a Tropical Island for third and a Tundra for fourth. Off we go…
As always, if I get anything wrong, please correct me and sorry if I didn’t get your full name, or if I spell it the wrong way. All my opponents were friendly and cool.
First round comes up and I’m a little bit nervous. It’s been a while since I last played a tournament and ready or not, I always like to play well and get some result. My aim is to always top 8 and then see what I can get. Last two tournaments I got 9th but was happy nonetheless: I didn’t play too badly, made several mistakes but was able to spot them.
I believe you should set yourself a goal but also enjoy the experience and at least learn as much as you can. Playing Magic with your friends at the club every week is an entirely different experience then actually playing in a tournament. You’ll face people you don’t know as well, neither will you know their decks.
Round 1: Sybrand with Salvager ComboGame 1: I see an Ancient Den and a Seat of the Synod so I’m a little bit confused what I’m up against and put him on some sort of affinity (In hindsight, his opening lands might actually have been just a Plains and an Island. They were foil and from my perspective looked to be the artifact lands…). I assemble Oath of Druids and Forbidden Orchard and Inkwell enters play. At my end of turn step, Sybrand Repeals his Spirit token and I let it resolve. In his upkeep I could have given him a new token with my Forbidden Orchard but I wanted to keep my mana open for the Mana Drain in my hand. I also thought he wouldn’t Oath into something really threatening because I was expecting a ravager or something similar. I’m totally caught off guard when I see Auriok Salvagers hit play and he finishes me off with a Force of Will for my Mana Drain. First game and I lose… nice…
I made a mistake here. Well, maybe several but the most important one was this: in my turn I played Tolarian Academy to destroy his Tolarian Academy and thus depriving him of some mana. If I would have played my other land –I believe it was an Underground Sea- I could have given him a token with my Forbidden Orchard and still have two blue mana up for my Mana Drain. Moreover, it was futile to deny him the mana from the Tolarian Academy because he had two land and a Sol Ring (and a tapped Mana Vault) on his side of the battlefield. He wouldn’t have been able to Oath and I would have been still alive…
For the first time ever, I wrote down my sideboard strategies before the tournament to save me some headaches during play. Thanks to testing, I came up with strategies that may not be the best but at least seemed to work. Of course, I never tested the Salvagers matchup so I still had to think of something new:
+3 Thoughtseize, +1 Tormod’s Crypt
-1 Forest, -1 Island, -1 Spell Pierce, -1 Merchant Scroll
Game 2: is a lot better on my part. I resolve Oath and get Terastodon, which nukes his mana sources and wins the game together with Iona, Shield of Emeria on blue.
+1 Pithing Needle
-1 Island
Game 3: goes great. I think I resolved Time Vault + Voltaic Key here.
Round 2: Brenda Schurkens with Terastodon OathI’ve faced Brenda a few times in Vintage and Legacy tournaments and it’s always fun. Too bad for her I’ve tested the mirror sufficiently. The Thoughtseizes – they also grab creatures if necessary- and Show and Tells make a lot of difference.
I win in two games. In the second game I open with Thoughtseize and see 3 Forbiddan Orchards! I just have two copies, so I take her counter backup and counter her Oath of Druids.
+3 Thoughtseize, +2 Show and Tell
-1 Forest, -1 Island, -3 Oath of Druids
See you next time Brenda!
Round 3: Alex with a very peculiar kind of FishAha! A chance to test my deck against a Fish variant in tournament play! I was very interested in this matchup because in testing my deck looked superior. Now came the time to prove it in tournament play.
Game 1: I lose… He surprised me with his very strange build, including Shorecrasher Mimic and Favour of the Overbeing. It was a close game and in the last turn, he topdecked Favour of the Overbeing to fly his now 7/5 Shorecrasher Mimic-do-everything over my Inkwell Leviathan for the kill.
+2 Thoughtseize, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Massacre, +2 Show and Tell, +1 Terastodon
-1 Tezzeret the Seeker, -1 Voltaic Key, -1 Time Vault, -4 Spell Pierce
Game 2 and 3: I just need to get Oath of Druids down and Qasali Pridemage off the board –or Pithing Needled- and I know I’ll win. Massacre and Show and Tell help a lot too. Inkwell Leviathan can still be raced but not with Massacre backup. One 9/9 elephant and 3 3/3 Elephants helped a lot too. I win.
So far so good…
Round 4: Gerwin Ruijterkamp with DredgeAnother matchup I tested… but with less satisfying results. It’s a coin flip, your opening hand just needs to really be good enough. Don’t hope to draw anything, mulligan until you’re happy/confident! Be very fast or have enough hate after sideboard. Don’t think you can hold on to your cards for more then a turn because Cabal Therapy WILL rape you.
I’ve seen Gerwin play before and I know he’s a good player, so I need to step up.
Game 1: there’s just nothing I can do to stop him, even though he didn’t hit a dredger for two turns… so obviously, I didn’t mulligan enough! Always mulligan until you’re happy/confident!
+2 Yixlid Jailer, +1 Ravenous Trap, +1 Tormod’s Crypt, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Terastodon
-1 Forest, -1 Island, -1 Merchant Scroll, -1 Inkwell Leviathan, -2 Mana Drain
Game 2: I don’t mulligan until I’m happy/confident, so… I lose! Always mulligan until you’re happy/confident!
Sigh… I know what I did wrong and I’ll never do it again, I promise!
I stay focused and remind myself to have fun and take things as they come. Just stay focused and enjoy the tournament.
Round 5: Jeroen Schaffhausen with Show and Tell/Sneak Attack an Eldrazi into play.deckI’ve met Jeroen several times as well, in Legacy and Vintage tournaments and games are always very intense. I like playing against him because I cannot make any mistakes or I’ll lose. He’s a very good player and he punishes you if you screw up with the rules. He’ll always call a judge on you and you’ll get warnings or worse. It may seem harsh sometimes, especially in a vintage setting where a lot of people come to play just for fun, but I think he does the right thing. Even though I don’t like it sometimes, it’s the only way you’ll tighten up your play…
Game 1: I saw Jeroen Show and Tell an Emrakul into play earlier on the day so I put him on Oath, even though I noticed the Volcanic Islands. I should have watched that game a little longer because he surprised me with a Sneak Attack, after I countered his first Show and Tell.
But by then, I had already messed things up myself: I had cast two Oath of Druids off a lotus and a fetchland. There’s absolutely NO reason to do that, especially if you have a Spell Pierce in your opening seven… I sit with two Oaths and no mana to spare as he casts his Ancestral Recall in his first turn. Two turns later I’m toast. I’m not sure if the outcome would have been different but it was definitely a big mistake on my part.
Another matchup I’m not prepared for (I didn’t even know the deck existed)! So I cook up this:
+3 Thoughtseize
-1 Forest, -1 Island, Oath of Druids (I feel like I should have sided out the extra Snow-Covered Island instead)
Game 2: goes long and I keep drawing land. On my first turn I’ve played an Underground Sea, Mox Ruby and Voltaic Key. I decide I’m going to rush him and on his first turn I Vampiric Tutor for the Time Vault. Ok, again, there was NO reason to do that really. If testing has shown me anything it’s that you don’t need to rush things. Take your time, you’ll get the mana sources, the countermeasures and then you can safely –as best as possible- go for the win. I guess I got a little scared of Emrakul showing up in a hurry. Luckily for me I decided to hold on to that Time Vault and play my mistake as best as I could.
I start drawing Oaths of Druids and play those to draw counterspells, threatening to have gotten Forbidden Orchard with my Vampiric Tutor. He counters my Oaths and I keep on playing lands and moxen while he doesn’t really develop his board. At some point I have a Black Lotus sitting in my hand next to my Time Vault for a few turns and seven permanents on the board, counting the Voltaic Key. Jeroen goes for a Sneak Attack, putting Emrakul into play and attacking. I drop to two life, sacrifice my 6 mana sources, leaving my Voltaic Key on the battlefield, thinking I need to draw a land in my next two draws to win, or I’ll just lose. I draw one of my creatures and drop the Black Lotus and Time Vault to take an extra turn… and… in that extra turn… I draw… an Underground Sea! I win!
Jeroen lets me play it out to see if I make any mistakes but I don’t and so I win with Tinker for Inkwell Leviathan.
I fake some sideboarding but don’t really change anything… heh
Game 3: Terastodon nukes his mana sources, I Regrowth a Mana Drain just to be sure and win with the big elephant and one of his smaller brothers.
Hard games! I’m sure to see you at the next tournament Jeroen and congratulations with your frightening build. Jeroen just missed top 8.
Round 6: ID with Bram Patelski playing Salvagers Combo (there were a lot of those present, two made top 8)I can’t believe it but I’ve finally made top 8 again. Off course I’m happy but I want to consolidate and get something more out of it!
Top 8, round 1: Gerwin Ruijterkamp with DredgeAi! Dredge again… my round 4 opponent. But this time I won’t make the same mistake, I’ll mulligan until I’m happy/confident!
Game 1: I get to start and my opening seven is insane with Black Lotus, Misty Rainforest, Gifts Ungiven, Yawgmoth’s Will, Tinker, Forbidden Orchard and Force of Will. I play the Gifts Ungiven for Time Vault, Voltaic Key, Time Walk and Mana Crypt. The Time Walk should have been a Mox because he could have given me Voltaic Key and Time Vault and I would have had to wait a turn, which can easily mean death against Dredge. He gives me Mana Crypt and Voltaic Key and I win the next turn because he cannot Cabal Therapy me enough to get rid of the Yawgmoth’s Will!
How about that, I won the first game against Dredge!
Ok, yes my hand was insane…
+2 Yixlid Jailer, +1 Ravenous Trap, +1 Tormod’s Crypt, +1 Pithing Needle, +1 Terastodon
-1 Forest, -1 Island, -1 Inkwell Leviathan, -3 Mana Drain
Game 2: I don’t take a mulligan when I should and… you know… I lose! Always mulligan until you’re happy/confident!!! Dammit!!!
Game 3: ok, so you’d think I’d have learned my lesson now don’t you? Well… Yes I did because I take a mulligan! And my six are devastating: Tormod’s Crypt, Pithing Needle, fetchland, Mox Ruby, Ravenous Trap and Spell Pierce. Gerwin has to mull to 5. This looks good and indeed, I soon win with a Time Vault from Tezzeret. Jace also helped to look at a lot of cards really fast.
Top 8, round 2 Bram Patelski with Salvagers ComboGame 1: he starts with a Mox, Tolarian Academy, Voltaic Key and Time Vault and I don’t have a Force of Will… and one draw to solve this. Nice… I draw a creature, lay down Library of Alexandria and draw another creature, I’m dead.
+3 Thoughtseize, +1 Tormod’s Crypt, +1 Pithing Needle
-1 Forest, -1 Island, -1 Snow-Covered Island, -1 Spell Pierce, -1 Merchant Scroll
Game 2: goes long and I take several hits from my Mana Crypt (it could have been worse. Maybe I need to sideboard the Crypt out more in control matchups but I like it’s explosiveness too much. Maybe I should put a land back in for the Mana Crypt?). He gets a proxied Seal of Cleansing on the battlefield and I’m stuck with Time Vault in my hand and Voltaic Key on my side of the battlefield. But I also have Tinker in hand which I would like to resolve.
So I threaten with Time Vault, also to get him to go below 7 cards in hand because he has Library of Alexandria, he counters (forgetting about his Seal of Cleansing which is just a Mountain with text on it), I get it back with Regrowth, he Seals it. I Thoughtseize him, he Misdirects it back to me –I told you it was going to happen- and I Force of Will his Misdirection. I see two Auriok Salvagers, a Swords to Plowshares, a Force of Will and two lands. I decide to take his Force of Will and then I’m ready to go for Tinker for Inkwell which resolves. He plays both his Auriok Salvagers and with that I cannot attack him anymore with Inkwell Leviathan because I’m at 7 life… Two turns later he combos and I cannot stop him from doing so.
Going this route, I think I should have taken an Auriok Salvagers with my Thoughtseize so I could race with Inkwell Leviathan.
In hindsight, what I really should have done, was to Tinker for Pithing Needle naming Seal of Cleansing and then play my Time Vault. I knew at the time that I was playing it wrong. You live, you learn…
So I played the semi-finals and think I’m 4th but looking
here I seem to have ended 7th. Whatever, I’m very happy with the result and I get a very nice looking Tundra for my efforts!
All in all a great day! I played a lot, learned a lot and had a great time!
Thanks Arjan en Marius for the great event and see you next time.
Thank you reader for getting this far, I hope it was worth your time.
Greetings,
Robrecht
P.S. Sorry Arjan, it’s not RND Oath. I’m playing with Mana Drains so I have to credit mister Carp for this version!
Also thanks to Team RND and Rich Shay for the starting list! Rich Shay in particular for his
very insightful report.
EDIT: spelling and confidant is not the same as confident... thanks duncan!
