Wednesday, March 25, 2009

PTQ:Seattle

So I had a week to dwell on my card choices and made a few changes which I thought were stronger though maybe didn't reflect in my performance. It could be weaker but I think I just got paired against some interesting metagame opponents. Here is the new list:

BG/w Reliquary Loam
: 60 cards

2 Overgrown Tomb down from 4
1 Temple Garden down from 2
1 Godless Shrine

4 Windswept Heath up from 2
1 Bloodstained Mire
1 Polluted Delta

2 Swamps
2 Forest up from 1
1 Plains

1 Mutavault
2 Ghost Quarter down from 3
3 Barren Moor down from 3
4 Tranquil Thicket

3 Crime // Punishments ( swapped in for Engineered Explosives )
3 Path to Exile (the new Swords to Plowshares replaced 2 Smother and a Putrefy )
2 Putrefy down from 3
2 Slaughter Pact
3 Darkblast up from 2
3 Raven's Crime down from 4
4 Life from the Loam
1 Seal of Primordium
1 Worm Harvest

Smallpox was cut to add more threats as it was great vs non-Affinity aggro but not good vs much of anything else.

3 Knight of the Reliquary I added these as threats and mana fixing removing the Sakura-Tribe Elders
4 Kitchen Finks up from 3 I needed more life gain and stumbling blocks against aggressive decks.
4 Tarmogoyf up from 2! These are amazing but I couldn't find them last week.

Sideboard: 15 cards
1 Seal of Primordium Affinity, Vortex, Jitte, Worship, etc.
2
Krosan Grip Similiar to Seal it helps vs Jitte and Affinity the most.
2 Damnation Wrath effects are good vs all forms of Aggro.
4 Thoughtseize Combo and Faeries primarily
2 Kataki, War's Wage Die, you Affinity bastards! Die! (Crime // Punishment improved this matchup a bunch so I dropped to 2)
2 Extirpate Mirror, Slide, Martyr-Proc and probably not Faeries
2 Pithing Needle These are good vs Affinity, Faeries and Planeswalkers


Round 1 - Red Deck Wins (or Mono Red Burn)

First game he applies the classic early pressure that the red deck needs and then drops two Sulfuric Vortex. I can't find removal or race fast enough to balance his early pressure so 5 min. in we are on to game two. As I recall, I side in Grips and my Seal as well as two Damnation and do a much better job stablizing. I resolve a seal a turn after he drops vortex and break it after we both take two unfortunatly I am pretty low from his early pressure and don't see another finks to help me out. I kinda wish I had left the Circle of Protection: Red in but I hadn't seen anyone play this deck last week and against Naya Zoo they were a bit weak. Crappy vortex for the win.

0-1-0

Round 2 - Beasts

BEASTS! I didnt' think anyone would be playing this deck. I am not prepared for this matchup in any way so I am playing on my toes. He tells me I am playing slow, I contest 'Not Really' and he tells me actually I am. I respond by saying I am playing as fast as I need to play and he pretty much shuts up as he knows no judge would support his bullshit claim. He is a jerk, btw. He should have scooped game one as he mulled twice and I got loam going. He tried to scrape his way back in but I have too much advantage and we move to game two after I apply beats with goyfs. In game two he crys when I darkblast his first two Birds of Paradise telling me I should have sided it out because it isnt' that good against him. It seemed to work well as it got me dredging on turn two and kept him from accelerating. Seems good to me. He plays multiple Ravenous Baloths and I quarter a couple Contested Cliffs making finks and goyfs to slow his attack then he drops Elspeth! I did not see this coming from the primarily red and green beast deck. He equips Jitte on a baloth, Elspeth gives it flying and he pounds my face in three turns. Game three he has an interesting decision when time is called. He is on turn 1 of 5 remaining he just attacked for 9 dropping me to 9 and thus giving me about one turn less the potential finks in my hand. He decides to play Cranial Extraction instead of playing another creature. Knowing the rough contents of my hand from an earlier thoughtseize he knows he can pick Crime // Punishment, Kitchen Finks or some other targeted removal I can't remember. He can take the targeted removal which I can cast on my next turn and hope I dont' draw land to sweep his board with Punishment or he can take Punishment and hope to get through on turn 5 with more creature drops that he would play on turn three. He makes the riskier play and takes the targeted removal hoping I won't draw a land in a deck that is almost 50% land. I do and sweep and push us to a tie. He asks me if I want to concede to him. I do not.

0-1-1

Round 3 - MartyrProc

He plays a first turn Martyr of Sands. : ( Fortunatly he doens't have much else in terms of action and I am able to beat him on the offensive. Game two he plays Detritivore, Wrath of God, and finally Eternal Dragon for the win. Game three we tie with no great offensive plays coming from either of these two hulking behomoths. Nice guy and level two judge who has had to give a game loss to Corbett (my last round opponent who I have to sit next to in this round) in the past for unsportsman like behavior.

0-1-2

I have no chance at Top 8 but enjoy playing so I stay in to practice and play Magic!

Round 4 - Astral Slide

This deck is very similiar to mine as we both seek to abuse Loam and cycle constantly. He gets his Loam engine up very early game one and again game two. He didnt' know about the end step Astral Slide trick so we had to call a judge to verify that his creature stayed out till the next end step on his turn. He played well, but not knowing that and playing that deck kinda makes you wonder. Oh well.

0-2-2

Round 5 - Affinity

Game one Path his Arcbound Ravager on the end step and then I blow up lands and a pumped ornithopter with Punishment. I finish it off with quarter. Game two I drop a turn two Seal, turn three Punishment and turn four Path and quarter. I later Punishment again and he finishes the game with no permanants in play. It looks like my 75 has too much Affinity hate, I need to spread some around.

Final Results: 1-2-2

My friends pressure me into dropping so we can all go get food. It turns out they hang around for almost another full round. I should have just played it out. I had a good time and a copy of my deck made it to top 4. I just need to play faster and tighter.

3 comments:

  1. all this mtg talk has got me stoked. It's been a while and I can't afford to invest in cards or mtg online but I'm all for apprentice if any one else has the itch.

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  2. I want to play some internet magic but would rather play with a web cam setup. We can capture the tabletop with the cam and still chat, using deckcheck.net for full card-size proxies. Could be awesome!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I'd be in but I don't have a webcam or an active card collection.

    ReplyDelete