New front page image! Constantly.

Hey guys, I need to update that user picture. It was way back when? Around the time I was building red/white aggro in Scar Scars Scars draft, just before Besieged came out (man that was a great format). I made the artwork myself, for anyone wondering. I'm quite a hand at Adobe, having used some of it before.

The latest article actually uses some, Goblin Piker and Coral Merfolk slaggin' each other off and a resume for Angel of Flight Alabaster. REGARDLESS, I did the artwork for here and need some more. It's sad to see Mirrodin/New Phrexia rotate, but then again it'll be nice to PLAY a creature safely again.

So that's where you come into it. SUGGEST A PICTURE FOR ME. It can be your favourite creature, or enchantment, or whatever. Just keep it relevant, so either "really hot in format X right now" or Standard/Sealed/Draft relevant.

Points for cuteness, something like Birds of Paradise rockin' a Rancor is really cool.

Blokey Stuff's event

Tonight’s deck was very slow and janky, by which I mean it played control, and played it well. My arse was big, having about eigth 5+ drops, but they were all worth it. Nefarox makes everyone wet their pants. Hamletback Goliath is always the biggest creature on the field. Switcharoo is just about always great (except when on the back foot with one creature only). Public Execution doesn’t just change a race in your favour but de-tooths the opponent, and Gem of Becoming, when it fetches the full three Lands, is VERY becoming indeed.

I played with the swell chaps and ladies at Blokey Stuff, a cool store in Parramatta. Half bookstore, half “blokey stuff” they run one event a month – 6 booster sealed on the last Thursday. For $30, there is a plenty of worse ways to spend your Thursday. Rony and his mate Josh originally joined me, but parted ways to meet with females of some sort. Pffft!

Chatting with the regulars it was apparent that this was a nice and casual affair, so I opened my six boosters and saw the following. Kind of. The “simple stupid” build was green/white. Green had good creatures all up the curve, but nothing special or amazing. If I creatured, and they controlled, even a little, I’d lose it.

My red wasn’t crash hot but the splashes were there, but blue was even worse being too “wait and see” for my tastes. Rony did stick around while people were building, and he was right in pointing out Talrund’s Invocation as the best blue card. Problem was, that was it. A Switcheroo was also there, so I took that aside for splashing.

Looking at black, we had Nefarox, Ravenous Rats (early disruption against sketchy hands wins games), the Crimson Muckwader, Harbor Bandit, and Bladetusk Boar (or Intimidate Pig). They formed the basis of my attackers while everyone played tackle/block duty. Atleast I imagined so. Looking at it all, my red was aggressive while black could be supportive, and a single Island with Gem of Becoming would be brilliant.

Actually playing the games, you learn so much more than just looking at cards. Harbor Bandit, for example, looks great as a 3/3 unblockable. But without that Island? He is an appaling 2/2 for three mana, kinda worse than a morph. Considering two situations where I wanted two blue sources (Switcheroo and unblockable in the one turn, ALSO having a 2/2 for three do-nothing) I think a second Island would’ve been justified in this build, probably in place of the Hellion Crater. Hellion Crater is a card, but it’s more “insurance.” And most often, you pay for insurance you never need. As a straight creature it’s slow and costly, 6 mana for only a 4/4 haste they see coming a million away. But if you know they have Wrath? Mutilate and Planar Cleansing are both dick-balls against it, so there is that.

Mindclaw Shaman was brilliant to amazing. Even when I cast him and saw nothing useable (a Prey Upon when all my creatures wouldn’t even trade with my opponent’s) it was still valuable to know the opponent’s hand, plan accordingly and have a bum blocker. When he was brilliant, he did the followings:

+cast my opponent’s Divination, which he had just returned with Archaemancer.
+Suspecting more than 1 Fogs against the green/white player, I attack into Fog 1 and then snatched my opponent’s Safe Passage.
+Raise dead my own creature that I had to discard, having drawn too many cards with Sign in Bloods.

In short, it’s great and don’t ever don’t play it. When you suspect your opponent has something, go for it. He only wont work against counter spell players, and even then he ate a counterspell. If it a killspell (Murder, yes) they cast it in response, so you either empty their hand of useable spells or get their second best spell and have a 2/2 to compensate for the killed creature.

The one game I lost was also due, in part, to Gem of Becoming. I had a six card opener with Gem in the opener, so I figured without a quick start from my opponent I could spend turns 3 and 4 casting and using Gem. Only I never did. Turn 4 I cast a monster, who was biggest on the field until they dropped 5/6 Wurm. That thing is HUGE! For the next few turns I couldn’t manage my mana. I wanted to keep mana open to regenerate as I blocked with my 3/2 Crimson Muckwader, but I also wanted 3 to use the Gem. But I also wanted to cast another creature to block with…!

In the end, I succumbed to way too much punishment (that Tormented Spirit really can deliver… eventually) and my Hamletback Goliath showed up too late. My Switcheroo showed up at this point in things, but on 4 life and facing down 4 attackers, with a Deadly Recluse playing full-back for the opposition I couldn’t kill my opponent, even with an 8/8 Goliath, and a lethal Fireball in hand. Le sigh.

After the games (I won three of three rounds, came second outta 10) we got to trading. There was a chance to do some casual, no store-checking trading but I opted for it anyway. It helped to keep trades fair, so I wouldn’t rip anyone off. Mutilate for Increasing Devotion is almost fair, right? Just something else to sweeten the deal, like a Gem of Becoming. Check prices. $4 on Mutilate, $1.50 on Increasing D, $1 on random other card? OK, take something else outta my folder.

It was a good night and I’m certainly going to make it a regular event. Especially seeing it’s only monthly, there is plenty of time to enjoy my games and think about my plays in between. And did I mention the guys n gals were all cool? Yeah, games were quite fun and never all that hair-pulling. This was good times for sure.

Props to Blokey Stuff for running the event, and Paul who traded me 3 boosters for Thragtusk. Opening two Lands (one foil) Krenko and Diabolic Tutor is quite worth it, methinks.

M13, university and general chit-chat

So right now, M13 has been released and MAAAN was it fun! Fun aside, man is it GOOD. They've changed the basic cards, while keeping the same basic elements there. I'm impressed.

Not only that, but MAAAN I'm good. No really, for an article writer, judge and aspiring "great player" I'm certainly seeing a pay off for all my hard work, study, play and otherwise. I went in two flights and came 2nd and 1st.

Burwood Good Games was my place of contention, where the small pocket of 4-5 great players play. The first PR event was your basic thing. Build, play duels. I get to the final pretty alright, and wonder HOW my round 3 opponent got as far as he did, seeing his deck had enough auras and Glorious Charges' to assemble five seperate Voltrons. I tweaked his deck afterwards, and he wins his last round and I same good on 'im.

I get paired again Prads in the 3-0 slot, for top place. Pretty great game, I've written more of an article about it, which I don't think I'll preview here.

James showed up at this point, and sans Ammy, so I nab him for 2HG he didn't plan to go in. There's a few people looking for teammates, and I tell James if he plays, I'll sponsor the entire team. He gets my expertise and the chance to try out a new format, sans money. He resisted, oh yes, but seeing his other mate was playing (he couldn't leave him high and dry, being the only lift) he agreed.

We crushed opposition and won the 2HG. It's thanks to 2HG being a format that's the same set after set. I don't think certain rules will ever be changed, simply because of the format, seeing it's so largely changed from normal duels.

Turtle. Evasion. Kill spells. Nukes. That's about it. And for the love of God, wai...t.

Tonight I think I'll run another M12 4 pack sealed on Magic Online. I'll try and record it, but no promises and if it's just a string of loses does anybody really want to see that? "Don't play like this. Also, here's a format that's about to go bunk." May be not.

Winning, however, you can always gleam winning attributes from.

And in other dream-like news, I have passed uni COMPLETELY and will be a certified writer, now. "Penniless" just didn't want me anymore. Add to this a group of Magic players who want to move closer to the usual scene, and me joining them, and you've got a recipe for some very good everythings.

For me atleast. I hope you're having a good time too.

Hallo hallo! M12 is about to leave us, and M13 will replace. Don't you love new cards?

To celebrate M12, I've done a Last Kick's M12 Sealed, 4 pack. 4 pack is a fun quick format, that really makes Magic light and fun. If you want that, then here it certainly is.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRHz4wySljU&feature=youtu.be

The video is one giant thing, but I've given you time indications of when the next Round/Game starts, so you can watch some, skip ahead, or come back to it later.

Having one video IS easier, but it's also messy, especially if you don't want to load an entire video in go. However, this is a trial so SPEAK UP, LET ME KNOW WHAT YOU THOUGHT!

Also, hilarious fun. Expect some M13 and some Izzet Spike videos very soon as well.

Cheers, Fox.

ps. Even with capped internet, I'm able to play, record and upload Magic videos. Who knew?

Maybe this post will make it easier? Ta da!

Future Standard, and Modern.

Hello scrubbers. I'm thinking. About the new coming M13, and the shape of Standard as it'll be once we've gotten around to GP Auckland. I'm going. I'm getting revved up proper. I hope it all comes together.

So first off, current Standard:

If you ask me, zombies are winning. The worse thing is how easy it rebuilds from killing it's creatures, so things like DoJ do nothing. Thankfully we have Terminus. And Pillar of Flame, because that just eats Gravecrawler forever, right?

The problem with building "the answer" deck is that you then have to WIN as well. Does the red/deck exist that can do that, though? Control the early game, exiling threats instead of just killing them?

Not only that, but Zombies has some natural answers to any "exile" removal, in the cute form of Falkenrath Aristocrat, who can simply "wrath off" an Terminus style fun. When mentioning exiling a creature you naturally think of Fiend Hunter first, who has a cute interaction WITH Terminus, come to think of it.

"When Fiend Hunter DIES...return foo."

"Put all creatures on the bottom of their owner's library."

I don't see the word "destroy" anywhere there, so our humble hunter has a hidden permanet exile clause (when mixed with Terminus buddy).

The problem is that the above mostly makes for a cute bunch of interactions, which all need the right cards to come at the right time. True, both cards don't "kill" other cards in the traditional sense, so even on their own they're giving YOU value by denying it to the Zombie-board, but again does the red/white deck even have a realistic face?

It would immediately seem to be Aggro oriented, and a faster, more resilient aggro deck is, you guessed it, ZOMBIES!

So with those few thoughts in mind, I'm aiming to test out a red/white verison of an Anti-Zombie deck, then I'll see whether it's worth persuing an actual "hey, this could work" kind of deck.

4 Clifftop Retreat
4 Pillar of Flame
4 Terminus (possibly 3, starting with one in-hand is like a mulligan)
4 Fiend Hunter

True that's only a starting fragment, but we have to wait for M13 to be fully revealed, AND Ravnica Return to will be upon us and NO Mirrodin, so we will have a very different Standard by the time November and GP Auckland are upon us.

And who knows how to flight cheap? Because MAN I've flown 4 times already this year (3 times for Magic) and it ain't cheap.

NEXT ONTO MODERN

This is more of a "secrets I shouldn't tell you" but, because it's decktech. And not decktech. Probably old, boring, and forgotten. The perfect kind of thing to really come back outta nowhere, and take the world by storm.

I'll just say "Izzet Guildmage" and "Kamigawa" and we'll see what lightbulbs went on in your head.

...

Any?

If you can remember a few specific cards, Izzet Guildmage and a Lava Spike with Desperate Ritual spliced on is an instant win. This can be done as early as turn 2 (1 if you wanna get technical and run every possible mana accelerant in the format) but it basically works really cute. And in a way I can't demonstrate without some kind of cute graphics. Seeing my current graphics monkey is dead, just read this:

With Izzet Guildmage and 5 mana.
Cast Lava Spike, splicing on Desperate Ritual.
While that's still on the cast, cast the Desperate Ritual (you keep a spliced card) and add RRR to your pool.
Copy the Lava Spike/Desperate Ritual spell. Opponent takes 3, you get another RRR.
Repeat ad nauseum.

Now I don't know how exciting the deck was when it was first around, despite being a player at the time. I do recall this trick showing up, and it being "cute" then. I just think now it's got much better countermeasures to everything that'll be trying to kill it, and an easier time finding it's own pieces.

There is the natural danger of combo-hate that already exists for the Splinter/Exarch Twin deck overlapping as duplicate-sideboard material against "Izzet Spike" (my term for the deck) but there are different things at play. You do have to protect a non-Flash creature for a turn, but there are tricks around it. Get creative!

For example, you can cast Guildmage with Pact of Negation back up. If you get around to your next upkeep and had to use it, then in response (before you pay/don't pay) you can always go Quick, then begin your combo. This means you'll need 6 mana, sure, but it's alternate path, and one so far completely unseen. Unlike the Exarch Twin combo, this doesn't rely on the combat step, nor having a positive power, so Elesh will still wreck this combo, but an Ensnaring Bridge from the opponent's sideboard wont, for example.

No real decklist, just a bunch of the essentials really:

4 Izzet Guildmage
4 Izzet Signet
4 Remand
4 Boomerang
4 Eye of Nowhere
4 Temporal Mastery
4 Lava Spike
4 Desperate Ritual
4 Glacial Ray (more Splicing fun!)

That's 36 right there, so I'd probably build that and play it against the Modern Gauntlet to see how it did, how well it flopped on it's face, etc. Obviously the Glacial Rays are TOO greedy, after all where's the cantrips, hey?

THATS ITS FOR TODAY.
FOX.

PS. I will endevour to have a video up for you tomorrow.