Greetings! I hope everyone who attended the live M11 prerelease this past weekend had a blast and opened lots of (Baneslayer Angel)s. My son and I made it down to the Seattle prerelease, but due to a much-delayed start to the 2HG flight we came for, we unregistered and entered the “Open Play” event instead. In Open Play, you pay $15 for a random preconstructed deck, play some matches, and claim a one-pack prize afterwards. That ended up being just about right for us, and we had a good time despite not entering a true Limited event.
I didn’t miss playing in M11 sealed anyway, frankly. I think the new approach to core sets is great on many levels, but in the end, it’s still a core set. While there are certainly going to be differences between drafting M10 and M11, particularly in terms of the rares, it’s not nearly as compelling a Limited puzzle to solve as your average expert-level set is. To that end, I am still working out the puzzle of Rise of the Eldrazi drafting, and I still find it to be a blast. I imagine I’ll walk through at least one M11 draft once it’s online, but I’m definitely not through with Rise drafting. Let’s ROE ROE ROE this boat, shall we? 8-4 time!
The Draft
(Flash-free version of the draft)
Deckbuilding
This is too much of a control deck for the (Distortion Strike)s or the (Traitorous Instinct), and this is also why I run the (Lay Bare) narrowly over the (Might of the Masses). I’m not greedy enough to throw in a Swamp and double-splash for the (Induce Despair), but perhaps with another fixer or two I would have, particularly another (Prophetic Prism), as it can splash multiple colors with one card.
R1G1
I win the roll and make the play/draw choice. Magic pro Luis Scott-Vargas has strongly advocated choosing to draw with basically anything but an aggressive blue-white leveler deck in his draft video series. I’ve been putting a lot of thought into it since LSV snapped me out of my “always play” mentality, and I’ve chosen to draw in spots where I’d have chosen to play before. While it’s clear to me that I had been choosing to play too much, I also think LSV might be taking the draw choice to unwarranted extremes. It has been feeling correct to play with aggro in general, not just blue-white levelers, especially against another aggro deck. It’s an interesting question though, and I’ll continue to think about as I play the format.
In the case of this deck, though, the answer is more obvious: draw, draw, draw! I’m planning to clog up the ground and survive to cast difficult-to-stop threats, and with that strategy, I want the extra card far more than the faster start. Villain keeps on the play, and I snap-keep a fine starting seven:
A hand that accomplishes my early agenda of ramp and defense, setting up the ability to cast anything I draw.
Villain opens on an Island, and I draw (Deprive) before dropping a Forest and passing. A plains from Villain leads into (Hada Spy Patrol), and it looks like I’m facing the one deck LSV advises playing with: blue-white levers. Not only that, the first threat is one that I will have to race if it reaches stage three, which is certainly not what I want to do with this deck.
I pull a (Drake Umbra), which might help me race, play a Mountain, and cast the (Overgrown Battlement). Villain drops a second Island and taps out to level the spy patrol before hitting me for 2 (18 – 20). (Ulamog's Crusher) off the top gives me another racing tool if I can ramp to it in time. I drop a Forest and cast the (Ondu Giant), hunting up an Island before passing the turn. (Venerated Teacher) from Villain vaults the patrol to stage three, it attacks me for 3, and I’m way back on my heels (15 – 20). Villain’s missed land drop gives me some hope, but even I don’t face another threat, the patrol has me on a five-turn clock. The pressure is on!
I draw and play an Island, and face my first real decision in the game. Am I looking to put the (Drake Umbra) on my (Ondu Giant) and race in the air, or am I playing (Guard Gomazoa) to boost the (Overgrown Battlement), accelerating out (Ulamog's Crusher) next turn?
If Villain has no answers and no flyers, turning the (Ondu Giant) into a dragon and swinging away is clearly the play. After all, I would win in four swings, which beats the clock Villain has on me. On the other hand, Villain is stuck on three lands and has five cards in hand. If one of those five cards is a (Guard Duty), (Narcolepsy), (Regress), or (Oust)—all fairly likely holdings—I will hit once before having my Voltron disassembled. Does my situation improve if I play the gomazoa? Let’s play it out assuming Villain has removal, and I don’t draw anything else relevant.
Cast the Drake Umbra
- Cast the umbra, attack for 5 (15 – 15).
- Giant neutralized, hada hits for 3 (12 – 15).
- I cast (Guard Gomazoa).
- Hada hits for 3 (9 – 15).
- I cast the crusher.
- Hada hits for 3 (6 - 15).
- I attack with crusher, it’s chumped.
- Hada hits for 3 (3 – 15).
- Crusher damage is taken and I’m dead the next attack.
Cast the Guard Gomazoa
- I cast the Gomazoa, attack (15 – 18) and pass.
- Hada hits for 3 (12 – 18), Villain probably plays something.
- I cast crusher and potentially make it through with the giant again (12 – 16).
- Hada hits for 3 (9 – 16), crusher is neutralized.
- I umbra the giant and swing for 5 (9 – 11).
- Hada hits for 3 (6 – 11), maybe I have triple blue to counter something.
- Giant hits for 5 (6 – 6).
- Hada hits for 3 (3 – 6) and I definitely counter something if I didn’t before.
- Giant hits for 5 (3 – 1), but I die on the counterattack.
Unfortunately, both scenarios show a loss for me unless I draw some help, or Villain fails to have removal. The second scenario needs less help to turn a loss into a win, though, so that is the route I take, attacking Villain for 2 (15 – 18) and dropping the gomazoa. Villain misses another land drop and casts an almost-irrelevant (Ikiral Outrider) before attacking for 3 and passing (12 – 18). A third Island doesn’t change too much, although it sets up the ability to umbra and leave (Deprive) mana up next turn. This turn, though, I attack for 2, tap out for the crusher and pass (12 – 16).
Villain draws and plays and Island, and I brace for a nullified crusher, but luck is with me and Villain casts a (Dawnglare Invoker) instead before I lose another 3 to the patrol (9 – 16). I take back the turn, draw another Forest, and play the Island. Given that Villain appears out of removal, is the play to umbra up the crusher or the giant in this spot?
Normally I’m an advocate of diversifying my threats: a 5/7 flyer and an (Ulamog's Crusher) are better than a vanilla 2/4 and an 11/11 flying annihilator 2. In this case, though, the crusher would need to hit twice to win, while the umbra’d giant would need to hit four times to win. I only have three attacks before I’m dead, so I need to make that crusher evasive. Assuming the invoker chumps once and I counter anything that would accelerate Villain’s clock or slow mine further, a flying crusher will win me this game. I slap on the aura and swing with both non-defenders. Villain sacrifices an Island and the outrider to the crusher, chumps with the invoker, and takes 2 (9 – 14).
Villain untaps, plays a second Plains, then attempts a second (Dawnglare Invoker), which I (Deprive). A (Hyena Umbra) bolsters the (Venerated Teacher), but it appears to be annihilate fodder as the patrol drops me by another 3 (6 – 14). I take back the turn, hoping to draw insurance. Instead I draw another land, but I still hit for 11 as Villain sacrfices the umbra and a land (6 – 3). I’m sure villain has a ton of outs at this point, as any of the aforementioned removal spells or a flyer will get the job done. None of those outs materialize, and Villain scoops after the draw phase.
I have once again failed to take good sideboarding notes, but I believe I bring in (Leaf Arrow) for one (Jaddi Lifestrider). I might have brought in the (Spider Umbra) too, but that’s fairly borderline. It’s solid defense against flyers, but against a color that can really punish umbras. If I were sideboarding right now, I’d make the arrow/lifestrider swap only, and I think that’s what I did in the actual match.
R1G2
Villain keeps on the play, and I check my seven on the draw:
This will do just fine, although it presents some interesting questions about which land to play first. Villain opens with an Island, and I draw a second one. What is your approach to the first-turn land drop? No screen shot required, but I’ll see you in the next paragraph when you’ve thought it through.
I really want to use that (Evolving Wilds) to fetch my Mountain, but if I get unlucky and fail to draw a timely Forest, things could turn ugly. Between (Prophetic Prism), (Ondu Giant), seven Forests, and a Mountain, I have a 10 in 32 chance of drawing something next turn that will clarify how I want to use the fetch land—10.5 if we give partial credit to (See Beyond). Since I have a turn-one play off an Island, I go that route, dropping an Island and casting (Skywatcher Adept). (Halimar Wavewatch) from Villain puts up a quick defense that threatens to turn into a brutal offense 10 mana from now.
I rip one of my ten outs to color clarity in (Prophetic Prism), but it still leaves me with a subtle choice: Evolving Wilds or Island/prism this turn?
Having three mana available next turn for either leveling or (Staggershock) is desirable to me, so I play out the (Evolving Wilds). I don’t want to hit the wavewatch with (Narcolepsy) until Villain has sunk more mana into it, and the (Overgrown Battlement) doesn’t have anything to accelerate me into anyway right now, so I can set up for a turn four prism/battlement or prism/Narcolepsy play without losing much. When Villain spends his third turn leveling up the wavewatch and enchanting it with (Hyena Umbra) though, I change my plans. With no targets out, I’m unlikely to cast the (Staggershock) next turn, so I might as well fetch the Forest for the battlement instead. I take 1 from the wavewatch before cracking the wilds (19 – 20).
I draw my second (Staggershock), play my Island, and cast (Overgrown Battlement) before swinging for 1 and passing (19 – 19). Villain spends his fourth turn leveling the wavewatch to three, but holds back on attacking because of my wall. I draw (Jaddi Lifestrider) and have more options. Now what’s the play?
Option one is to level up the adept and hit for 2, letting Villain spend another turn leveling, meaning I’d take 7 before the inevitable (Narcolepsy) on the wavewatch. Option two is to cast the (Prophetic Prism), potentially draw the land to enable the level-up play or holding back for (Staggershock), with the fallback plan of putting the wavewatch to sleep right now. I like the prism play. I can probably afford to take 7 from the wavewatch, but that’s a bit greedy when I can nullify nine mana and two cards with two mana and one card right now.
Casting the prism does lead to another Forest, and I play it out. Looking at it now, I like being greedy, and just leveling up and attacking. Yes, I’ll take 7, but Villain will have spent his entire game buffing up a creature I can render useless for two mana, but I think the more important point is that by leveling up the adept now, it’s less of a telegraph next turn when I pass with three mana up. It’s still somewhat of one, but it’s a lot more suspicious to leave the adept as a wimpy 1/1 than it is to leave it as a 2/2 flyer when leveling up doesn’t move it to stage three. Nonetheless, in the actual game I hit the wavewatch with Narcolepsy and pass.
Villain has a fifth land, and spends four mana on a (Hada Spy Patrol) and a (Time of Heroes). I had to physically restrain my Staggershocks, who erupted into an argument over which of them was going to blow out Villain in response to the next attempt to level up the spy patrol. I draw and cast (See Beyond). Which card are we shuffling back, here?
It quickly boils down to (Leaf Arrow) or (Jaddi Lifestrider). I decide on the (Leaf Arrow), since I brought it in primarily for the two (Dawnglare Invokers) I saw in game one. There are only a couple of flyers that the arrow hits and the Staggershocks don’t, so I opt to keep the lifestrider and ship the arrow. Now I have to telegraph my (Staggershock) by passing the turn with an unleveled adept, but that’s fine. Even if Villain knows with 100% certainty that I have the Staggershock, there’s no good way to play around it unless I’m up against a (Deprive) or an (Emerge Unscathed). The latter seems unlikely, as Villain would have left a Plains untapped for this turn, and I decide I’m willing to risk the (Deprive) for the bigger blowout, and pass.
Villain has land number six and immediately attempts to level the patrol, which meets (Staggershock) in response (the regular one, FWIW). Villain casts a (See Beyond) to mirror mine before passing back the turn. The rebounding (Staggershock) goes to the dome for 2 (19 – 17), and I draw (Deprive). I could level up twice, but leveling up once with (Deprive) and (Staggershock) mana ready seems like the better play, since I can then level up twice next turn and still hit for 4. For now, I hit for two through the air and pass (19 – 15).
A Forest comes down for Villain, and the splash is explained immediately after with a (Kazandu Tuskcaller). Is this a good (Deprive) target? I decide not, since Staggershock kills it. I let it resolve. The follow-up play is (Champion’s Drake), and is the last card in Villain’s hand. Counter this?
This time, I think countering is correct. The sleeping wavewatch will still make it a 4/4, and while my adept will be able to trade with it, it seems better to just win with my four-powered flyer than it would be to turn it into removal. In the game, I didn’t counter it, and I don’t remember if it was failure to account for the wavewatch and me thinking I would 2:1 with staggershock, or if I really decided that racing or trading with 4-powered flyers was the best path to victory. I’m inclined to think I had forgotten about the “out of mind” wavewatch as a drake pumper, but an error either way. Failing to (Deprive) also forces me to Staggershock at the end of the turn so that I have all six mana ready for the level.
I shock the tuskcaller, and the rebound zaps Villain for another 2 (19 – 13). Drawing (Wildheart Invoker) offers the alternative play of playing the 4/3 and leaving (Deprive) mana up, but I’d rather just get on with the 4/2 flyer. I level up twice, attack, and Villain opts to trade flyers before taking back the turn. No play and no land drop, so I quickly take the turn again, drawing my (Sphinx of Magosi) off the top and casting it. Villain has the (Narcolepsy) bailout, leaving me with a card-drawing engine instead of a game-winning engine. I draw (Enclave Cryptologist) and plan the turn:
While the idea of going nuts with card drawing has some appeal, extra cards are ultimately a means to a means to an end, while the (Wildheart Invoker) cuts out the middle man and provides a means to an end. I drop the invoker and leave (Deprive) mana up instead of casting the cryptologist. Anything relevant will be countered, and anything irrelevant will be ignored. Villain draws and casts (Caravan Escort). Is this relevant enough to spend a (Deprive) on?
In the game I elected not to counter it, but I question that decision now. My thinking was that even fully leveled, the 7/7 (Caravan Escort) still wouldn’t be able to break through my eventual (Jaddi Lifestrider), and that with the inevitability of my card drawing and crusher, the only thing that would prevent me from winning this game is something truly back-breaking, and therefore that’s what I should be saving my (Deprive) for. That’s not a terrible line, but with Villain topdecking, I think the thing to do is just clear the path for my 4/3 and end this as quickly as possible. Either way, it’s going to be hard to lose this game. After the escort gets a few level counters, I untap, draw an Island, and play it. Plans?
First, I think an attack is safe, as Villain is counting on holding the ground with the 7/7 first strike next turn, so I swing for 4 and connect as expected (19 – 9). Plenty of options post combat. I’d love to get to 8 mana next turn, but really, it’s pick your path to victory at this point. Keeping (Deprive) mana open seems wise, and to that end I like casting the lifestrider and passing. Because I am apparently not wise until I’m viewing replays, though, I cast the crypto, cast the lifestrider, and tap all but the lifestrider to gain 4 (23 – 9). Seeing gamble-laden decisions with little upside like this in my replays (surely he won’t topdeck anything relevant!) remind me that while I’m an above-average Limited player, I won’t be an elite player as long as I continue make these kinds of sloppy plays. The game felt so unloseable that I just stopped being careful, and elite players never stop being careful.
I draw (Drake Umbra), and victory is all but assured. The invoker goes all dragon on Villain’s life total with the help of the umbra, and I finally use the (Deprive) on a (Champion's Drake), which earns the concession shortly after. I won, but I definitely made some questionable decisions along the way.
Stay Tuned…
Round one is in the bag, but the rest of the games will have to wait. The good news is, part two is almost done and should follow part one in short order instead of the usual, possibly tomorrow if that’s how the fine folks at PureMTGO want to present it.
In the meantime, in an effort to be more transparent about my overall drafting results, and to provide a look into more than just the drafts I turn into articles, I have been posting lots of uncommented drafts to www.raredraft.com under the tag Waiting for Godot. I’d been reluctant to share my uncommented drafts in the past because I wasn’t comfortable throwing up my decisions for the world to see without also providing explanations to go with them. However, in the interest of transparency and easy extra content, I’ve let go of that complex and put it all out there, so feel free to browse some drafts and make some comments. If people have questions or comments about any given picks, I’ll back-fill them with comments as appropriate. You can also see my entire draft history from the beginning of Zendikar on my publicly-viewable Google doc. If you’ve been thinking of tracking your draft results (which I recommend), you can check out my template and adjust it to fit your needs.
Also, while there is much to love about www.raredraft.com, it is an ongoing work in progress, and one current flaw is that you can only search up the ten most recent drafts from someone. As a workaround until this is addressed, I’m embedding any drafts I upload in a post to Waiting for Waiting for Godot, the blog I use as a single, RSS-able source for announcing any Magic content I put up on the web. You can always view the drafts from there.
Happy drafting, and I’ll be back to wrap this up shortly!
Intro 2
Hey everyone! Welcome back to part 2 of this 84 ROE draft walkthrough. Head on back in time to catch up with the draft and round one if you missed it. The executive summary is that I started out with (Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre) thinking green-red or green-black ramp, but the blue became impossible to ignore and I ended up green-blue control splashing red for a couple of (Staggershocks). You can check out the decklist here. I won round one in two games against a blue-white leveler deck splashing green for a (Kazandu Tuskcaller), and I’m back and ready to take you through the rest of the draft.
Round-Two Scouting
Scouting didn’t show anything I was particularly concerned about:
Hopefully my (Staggershock)s and (Narcolepsy)s will 2:1 any Boar Umbra shenanigans. It’s worth noting that (Lust for War) showed up in each of the three games scouted, so it’s possible Villain has two. I didn’t pass any, though, so it may just be a single copy plus some variance. The question is, did I not see the red removal Villain splashed for in the replays, or is it just not in the deck?
R2G1
Villain wins the roll and elects to play, which is fine with me. After a Villain mulligan, I quickly keep these seven:
I guess we’ll find out if Villain is splashing burn, because if my (Enclave Cryptologist) doesn’t die in a fire, it ought to just win it for me with the (Narcolepsy) and countermagic in hand to buy some time.
Villain opens on a Mountain, and I draw a third Island and run out the cryptologist. A second Mountain has me wondering if I scouted the right replays since none of the games I saw showed more than one, but again, more variance. I draw a Mountain of my own, drop a Forest, level up, and pass. Villain has (Prophetic Prism) and a Forest, and I loot to find and discard an Island before untapping and drawing (Jaddi Lifestrider). I drop a second Island and level up again. I could keep (Deprive) mana up, but I’d rather give Villain a one-turn window here, then move to stage three next turn with (Deprive) at the ready.
Villain has (Beastbreaker of Bala Ged) and (Ancient Stirrings) revealing a Plains, which he fails to play before the end of the turn in a mental mishap. Looting produces a Forest, and because I am about to start drawing two cards a turn, I see no need to keep land over spells and I ship the Forest to the bin. I would ditch the Island and keep the second Forest, but I need three Islands to level up and Have (Deprive) mana ready. I draw a second Forest anyway, level up the crypto, and draw another Island off of him. I can (Narcolepsy) the beastbreaker now or save the mana for a possible (Deprive). What’s your play?
I feel solidly in control, and I don’t mind taking 4 from the beastbreaker, as next turn I’ll be able to (Narcolepsy) the 4/4 while keeping (Deprive) mana up. About the only thing that would really hurt right now is (Lust for War) on the cryptologist, so I’ll protect against it. Villain takes back the turn, plays the Plains this time, and levels up the breaker to hit me for 4 (16 – 20). I draw (Wildheart Invoker), then (Ulamog's Crusher) off of the cryptologist. I drop a Forest and follow through on the Narcolepsy-with-Deprive plan, and pass. Villain goes for a (Kozilek’s Predator). Do we counter this?
While I have the (Jaddi Lifestrider) to contain the predator, I’m fine with countering this simply because I can. The ramp could be important, and I have (Lay Bare) as backup (although we’ll see how easy it is to leave four mana open in the coming turns). I counter the predator, bouncing an Island. I draw (Nest Invader) and (See Beyond), then replay the Island. The trouble with an unfettered (Enclave Cryptologist) is the flood of options! These are the Magic problems we like to have. I could just get my aggro on with the (Wildheart Invoker), but I’m overcome with temptation to have even more options, and decide to go with the (Nest Invader)/(See Beyond) pair. (See Beyond) adds a Forest and an (Overgrown Battlement) to my hand, and since I have more than enough mana at hand to be able to cast the crusher, I shuffle the Forest back into my library and pass.
Villain has a (Rapacious One) and passes, and I silently thank the (Jaddi Lifestrider) with the gigantic butt that is about to stave off mass token creation for the bad guys. I pull an Island and (Sphinx of Magosi) off my double draw, play an Island, and plot.
How absurd is an unchecked cryptologist? Just look at this board! There is an eight-card difference between our two libraries at this point, and Villain is down to two cards while my hand is overflowing. Sick. With seven mana at my disposal, I like casting the (Overgrown Battlement), then the lifestrider, tapping the battlement and (Nest Invader) to go back to 20. While technically the (Sphinx of Magosi) could also hold off the (Rapacious One), I’d rather put a 2/8 I don’t mind losing in the line of fire before one of my deck’s finishers. I gain four life on the play, and pass the turn (20 – 20). Villain manages an innocuous (Makindi Griffin) before sending the turn back without a land drop, suggesting two spells in hand.
I draw Forest and (Skywatcher Adept), and once again consider my options.
I could get cute at this point and start playing four drops with (Lay Bare) mana, but one-for-one trades just add to my inevitability at this point and don’t need to be countered. Villain needs a (Disaster Radius) or an (All Is Dust) to equalize things, and while I could play around a rare and a mythic, I’m going to go with one of the earliest bits of general Magic strategy I remember processing: “If you have them by the balls, don’t just wriggle, squeeze!” The internet attributes this quote to Henry Stern, and it had a profound impact on my early Magic mindset despite (or perhaps because of) its straightforward message. this case, I don’t just wriggle, I crush, dropping my 8/8 Eldrazi before passing, which blanks (All Is Dust) as an out. Villain has (Guard Duty) in response, swings with the griffin, and makes another one before passing (18 – 20). I draw a couple of Islands and cast (Sphinx of Magosi) with enough mana left over for activation.
Villain has an Aura Gnarlid that has a long way to go before it can attack unblocked past my crusher. Villain also makes a land drop to empty his hand, and with (Lay Bare) now ready, ending the game is a simple matter of busting through a couple of griffins without decking myself. Between the sphinx and the crypto, I add (Narcolepsy), (Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre) and (Staggershock) to my hand. Thanks to the (Guard Duty) pumping the (Overgrown Battlement) I am able to cast Ulamog, destroying a griffin. The surviving one chumps the sphinx, and Villain concedes after the next draw.
R2G2
Having seen no flyer that (Leaf Arrow) will actually take out, I leave the deck as is and head back into battle, again happily on the draw. Villain keeps, and I have a hand similar to the opener for R1G2:
An uncomfortable keep with two (mana=U)(mana=U) counterspells and no Islands, but the (See Beyond) and turn-two (Overgrown Battlement) make this one good enough. We’ll see if my first draw clarifies what the (Evolving Wilds) should fetch. Villain drops a Forest, and I draw a second Forest. Do you set up the turn-two battlement off the two Forests, or do you pop the wilds? If so, for what?
Holding out to draw an Island or my Mountain naturally in the next two turns is tempting, but because I really need two Islands to get this hand going anyway, I should just bite the bullet and fetch one now. I still have three other ways to make red, so I’m likely to find one before the game is over. I don’t have to wait long, though. Villain drops a Plains and passes, and I draw my one Mountain after fetching an Island before my untap. I cast the (Overgrown Battlement) and pass. Villain casts an (Aura Gnarlid) and it’s on me again.
A (Jaddi Lifestrider) off the top isn’t very significant, so I play the Mountain and pass, preparing to shock the beast in response to any aura shenanigans. No auras hit play, and I’m facing an attack. Are you using the (Staggershock) now, or are you waiting to see if we can bait out a 2:1?
At 20 life, I’m willing to be a little greedy here. The most likely result based on what I’ve seen so far is a (Makindi Griffin), but just in case, I go ahead and take 2 (18 – 20). It turns out to be an also-unshockable (Kozilek's Predator), I go ahead and take out the gnarlid at end of turn and one of the tokens on the rebound. Two to the dome might seem like the better play than burning an 0/1 token, but If I’m going to win the game, it’s going to be through inevitability after taking firm control. Leaving Villain with extra mana is more likely to undermine my plan than leaving him with extra life.
(Nest Invader) is on the top, but before I cast it, I decide to (See Beyond) instead. What are we shuffling back in here?
(Lay Bare) is basically my 22nd card, and with a (Deprive) already in hand to catch anything nasty for half the price, I shuffle back the four-mana counterspell. In doing so, I realize I’ve made a subtle mana-tapping error. While I correctly reasoned that paying for the (See Beyond) with a Forest would still leave me with green to cast (Nest Invader) while saving my Mountain for a possible (Staggershock), the problem is it forces me to tap the (Overgrown Battlement), which effectively costs me 3 life since now I can’t block the predator. It wasn’t worth the certain cost of 3 life for the chance that I would draw and keep mana open for my second (Staggershock). I play out the (Nest Invader) anyway and pass.
I take 3 from the predator as expected (15 – 20), and Villain sacrifices a spawn token to cast and level an (Ikiral Outrider) post combat. I draw another Forest, and tap all my lands for the (Jaddi Lifestrider). The question is, which creatures do I tap for lifegain, and why?
Tapping the spawn token for 2 is a no-brainer, but then it gets interesting. At first I thought I would tap everything but the lifestrider, but that didn’t make sense because without the wall to block, Villain can simply attack with both and I take the 2 damage I gained, and from a vigilant creature to boot so I don’t even get a tapped creature out of it. Then I realized that the (Nest Invader) and the lifestrider could threaten to gang block and trade the 2/2 for the predator. By leaving those two up and tapping the rest, I should be able to prevent any attack while still gaining four life. I gain 4 (19 – 20) and pass. I really appreciate cards like (Jaddi Lifestrider) from a design perspective. Every time I cast it, it’s a little “what to tap” puzzle to solve, and that makes the game all the more fun while providing a way to outplay your opponent.
The plan works as hoped, with Villain declining to attack, instead adding a second outrider to the board and leveling it up once. I’m unconcerned about the outriders; they just don’t do much against my real win conditions. I take the turn back and cast a freshly-drawn (Ondu Giant), finding a third Island and leaving (Deprive) mana available before shipping the turn. Villain curiously has no play at all, not a land drop nor level up. I take the turn back and draw (Wildheart Invoker), which promptly hits the board before I pass.
Villain’s only play is to level up an outrider, before it’s on me again. I draw a Forest, giving me ten mana available with the spawn token. What’s the best attack, and assuming it involves pumping with the invoker, is it correct to use the spawn token to activate, leaving up mana for a telegraphed (Deprive)?
The giant would become a 7/9 with the +5/+5, which is big enough to kill anything that blocks it while withstanding a triple block as well. I decide to send it in, and when it goes unblocked, activate the +5/+5 with the spawn token. I don’t care that Villain knows I have a (Deprive), but really, given my (Deprive), I should have sent in the invoker instead. I’m protective of it because right now it’s the difference in the game, but with (Deprive), sending him into battle will not be fatal and does an extra couple damage. I live with the 7 damage and pass (19 – 13).
Villain has (Guard Duty) for the (Wildheart Invoker), which I feel no need to counter since it’s his ability that has turned the game in my favor, not his ability to attack, and it doubles the battlement’s mana production to boot. That means I don’t even have to draw a land to stay at pump + (Deprive) mana. I draw (Skywatcher Adept) and decide if it changes anything. What’s your play?
There are two ways I can handle the endgame, both of which start with an attacking, pumped giant. It again goes unblocked (19 – 6). Now I have two real options: a safe win in two turns, or go for a risky win next turn.
The safe, two-turn win involves passing the turn, waiting for the inevitable level up, taking back the turn, casting the adept and leveling it up twice, passing, and then pumping it the turn after for the win. With (Deprive) mana at the ready the whole time and a narcolepsy in hand, it is highly unlikely that Villain will have the two spells he’ll need to thwart this plan, since the first one will be (Deprive)d, and any flyer will be put to sleep.
The riskier plan is to forego (Deprive) protection, cast the adept now, hope to draw a land, level up the flyer once, and swing for the pumped win. Since the only removal Villain has shown is already on my (Wildheart Invoker), it feels like the unnecessary risk in this plan is that I have to draw land off the top for it to work, otherwise, the clock is exactly the same, but with me exposed without (Deprive) ready. Given that, the protected, two-turn option seems clearly superior to me. In the game, I threw caution to the wind and dropped the adept, looking for the one-turn checkmate, again abandoning my countermagic after several turns of carefully protecting myself with it.
Villain didn’t have anything spectacular, but a (Prophetic Prism) and a (Makindi Griffin) later, and I was two turns away from a win even if I did draw a land. As it is, I drew a prism of my own which drew me a land. I played it, leveled the adept, put the griffin to sleep, and passed with (Deprive) mana back up. That was good enough for Villain, who scooped after drawing.
My play with counterspells in the two matches so far underscores my lack of comfort with them in Limitede. I have erred multiple times with (Deprive) in this event so far: once by failing simply to use the damn thing instead of waiting for a perfect target, and twice by carefully protecting my position with it, only to abandon the protection to apply unnecessary additional pressure. Sometimes sqeezing and not wriggling means keeping your countermagic defenses up instead of adding additional threats sooner. I will make a point of being more mindful of this the next time I’m holding countermagic in Limited.
Perfect counterspell usage or no, though, it’s on to the finals!
Finals Scouting
I had five matches to scout my finals opponent, and this is the partial decklist that came of it:
R3G1
Villain wins the roll, opts to play, and keeps. I have these seven on the draw:
Good enough! Against green-white I wish that one drop were (Enclave Cryptologist), but I’ll make do. Villain opens on a Forest, but thankfully no (Joraga Treespeaker). I pull a (Staggershock), and again face a fetch-land conundrum that I can put off for a turn by running out the (Skywatcher Adept) first. Villain plays a Plains, taps a Forest, and then enters combat without spending the mana. It’s unclear whether that was a meaningless misclick or if Villain is cursing at his computer, staring at an unplayed two drop, but probably the latter. Either way, I take back the turn, drawing a forest to get off the hook with (Evolving Wilds). I play the wilds, attack for 1 and pass (20 – 19).
Villain casts (Knight of Cliffhaven), which must have been the intended play the turn before. I draw a Forest, and am again put in that awkward position created when levelers meet instants: the blatant telegraph. I have yet to find a spot where the the benefits of a successful fake telegraph outweigh the risks, by the way. Everyone imagined the “bluff no-level” as soon as the mechanic was understood, but in practice you just never want to do it. It’s terrible to pass up the opportunity to spend mana in an effort to convince your opponent to do the same. Most of the time it’s correct to play into a leveler-telegraphed instant anyway unless you have something else to do, and in both of those cases, the bluff non-level looks utterly miserable.
The question here is, am I Staggershocking the leveler now, or telegraphing and seeing if I can extract a 2:1 anyway, but giving Villain a chance to untap? We’ve seen (Emerge Unscathed) and (Might of the Masses) in the scouting…
No matter what, I’m going to throw Staggershock at the knight before my next turn. Even telegraphed, Staggershock has the potential to put Villain in a spot where all options lead to a turn that results in either a 2:1 or three wasted mana. I need to make Villain play around it given all the umbras in the scouting, so I pass with my Staggershock effectively face up.
After playing a third Forest, Villain goes for a (Boar Umbra) on the knight, which surprises me because anyone who reads me for the Staggershock is at least going to choose leveling up the knight and wasting three mana over offering up the 2:1. Is it a trick or a mistake? I cast the (Staggershock) to find out, and a (Might of the Masses) steps in to clarify the situation. Shortly after, I’m taking 6 from the mighty knight-boar, a fact that would concern me more if not for the (Narcolepsy) in hand (14 – 19).
I shock to the dome (14 – 17) and draw (Prophetic Prism), which draws me into (Enclave Cryptologist) before I tuck the boar-knight in for a nap and attack for 1 (14 – 16). Villain turns some lemons into lemonade with a Plains and a (Momentous Fall) on the 5/5, drawing five cards and gaining 5 life (14 – 21). I draw another Island and play it. What’s your plan for the turn?
With Villain at seven cards, it feels fruitless to sit on (Lay Bare). I need to catch back up on cards, and that means getting the cryptologist going. Still, I can play land number six next turn and level all the way to stage three, leaving me the mana this turn to cast the cryptologist, but then level the adept and swing for 2 before passing, so that’s what I do (14 – 19). Villain’s first turn after the fall sees (Tajuru Preserver) and (Mul Daya Channeler) entering the battlefield, revealing a (Joraga Treespeaker) on top. I’m probably going to have to get lucky on the channeler reveal to win this one.
A Forest on top doesn’t help my cause. What’s the plan for this turn?
My natural instinct here is to push the cryptologist to stage three and draw a card as I’d planned to do before Villain’s last turn, but leveling to stage one and then looting is far superior. Sure I’ll have to ditch a land, but in exchange I’ll have four mana available for whatever I draw. if it’s a blank, then I can sink the rest of my mana into leveling the cryptologist. Instinct takes over though, and I fully level the crypto before processing that it was incorrect. To salt the wounds, the draw then produces an (Ondu Giant), which would have been a great play after looting. Now that the giant is coming, though, are we attacking with the adept, or leaving it back on defense?
This is a close call. In general, I don’t like trading an evasive man for a creature that I will neutralize with my next play, but after that huge (Momentous Fall), I can expect the pressure to continue, and I may need to trade while I can. If I can stabilize here, the cryptologist will catch me back up on cards quickly. In the game I decide I can go on defense next turn and swing for 2 now (14 – 17). Looking back, I see that as a failure to identify who is aggro. I can win later with one of my big hitters as long as I make it to “later,” so I should sit back on D and try to make trades in this spot. I could end up taking 7 on the counterattack if I’m unlucky with the card under that (Joraga Treespeaker), and that seems like cutting it too closely against that fistful of cards.
A Forest is under the treespeaker so I don’t take 7; in fact, the good news is I only take 2! The bad news is it’s because the (Mul Daya Channelers) help power out a (Pelakka Wurm) instead of attacking, making it 12 – 24 and giving me a 7/7, trampling problem. There’s enough mana left over for the treespeaker too, and I take the turn back, looking desperately for answers. The Island off the draw is not helpful, but the (Sphinx of Magosi) off the cryptologist is. I drop an Island and play the 6/6 to start the hopeful comeback.
Villain untaps, draws the Forest, revealing a (Spider Umbra) underneath, and adds a (Stomper Cub) and a (Lone Missionary) to my troubles after leveling the treespeaker (12 – 28). The (Pelakka Wurm) and (Tajuru Preserver) charge in. What are our blocks?
I can’t afford to lose the sphinx at this point because it can ultimately grow to pelakka-blocking size, so I throw it in front of the preserver, taking an uncomfortable 7 from the wurm (5 – 28). I draw (Wildheart Invoker) off the top, but at five life, it’s not even certain that I should use the cryptologist main phase in case I need to chump. The channelers give me a nice insight into what I’ll be facing, though, in this case a (Spider Umbra). I play a Forest and work on a way to assume board control. What are the important considerations, and what’s the best defense plan for Villain’s upcoming attack phase?
The first thing to note is that the (Spider Umbra) is almost certainly going on the (Pelakka Wurm). I probably can’t win this game if lose my sphinx without at least trading for the Pelakka Wurm, so my plan can’t be to sink mana into the sphinx to make it an 8/8, as then it will just trade with the (Spider Umbra). I could use the sphinx ability once and save (Lay Bare) for the umbra, but then I’m in a terrible spot against all the non-wurm creatures across the battlefield. I want to be able to survive an all-out attack while gang-blocking the wurm with 8 points of damage. If I play both the (Ondu Giant) and the (Wildheart Invoker), I can put those two and the adept on the wurm, the sphinx on the (Stomper Cub), and chump the (Mul Daya Channelers) with the cryptologist and end up taking 3, and then I’d untap with the adept, the sphinx, 10 mana, 2 life, and hope.
I play out the invoker and the giant and pass the turn. Villain draws the umbra and shows a Forest off the channelers, then casts (Kozilek's Predator) needlessly precombat, and needlessly off the treespeaker. The umbra hits the wurm as expected, and Villain makes a favorable attack for me, swinging with the cub and the wurm only. This makes the blocking plan all the better, as instead of dropping to 2 and losing my cyrptologist, I stay at 5 life and retain my card-drawing engine while taking out the (Stomper Cub). As an added bonus, Villain orders the blockers such that my (Ondu Giant) lives instead of the adept, giving me a much better blocker for next turn.
The cryptologist gives me a (Nest Invader) before I untap and draw (Guard Gomazoa). Now what?
It’s great to know that Villain is drawing a blank next turn and has no cards in hand. It is critical that I make the sphinx an 8/8 so I have a single creature that can hold off the wurm. That will use up six of my 10 mana, and with the remaining four I can play the (Guard Gomazoa), or I could play the (Nest Invader) and sacrifice the token to also cast the gomazoa. Knowing what Villain has coming, I’m OK with just casing the gomazoa, as an all-out attack would still be favorable for me. I would take 3 or 4 damage, but then I will have solidly stabilized. Still, having the extra 2/2 would render an attack even more unwise, maximize my mana, and only cost a spawn token, so that’s the optimal play.
It’s possible that the draws from the sphinx moving to 8/8 will change the plan, but it’s important to assume that all draws will be blanks and plan accordingly. Also, since Villain has made his share of mistakes this game, I want to hold off on the second activation and encourage a possible attack into the sphinx. The first draw adds an Island to my hand, and from there I cast only the gomazoa and pass.
Villain draws the Forest, revealing (Kozilek's Predator) #2 on top of the library. More good news. With no profitable attack, Villain levels up the treespeaker and ships it back. I make the sphinx an 8/8 and use the cryptologist before untapping, and add (Mnemonic Wall), (Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre), and (Overgrown Battlement) to my hand before my next main phase. I play my Island, but then what?
Now I’m feeling in great shape. Ulamog is going to dominate, and I’ll have (Lay Bare) next turn to take care of any potential monkey wrench from there. So, pretty simple, just cast Ulamog, take out one of the opposing creatures, and march to victory. I tap out to cast Ulamog, targeting (Pelakka Wurm) with the destroy ability since it’s clearly the biggest threat, and in doing so I promptly lose the game.
Wait, what?
Yes, I promptly lose the game. The wurm dies, Villain draws the predator off of the wurm’s death trigger, and reveals the next card down:
Wow, did that really just happen? Yes, that really just happened. What a gut punch!
An utterly winnable game slips away from me due to one too many mistakes. If I had played both the (Nest Invader) and the (Guard Gomazoa) the turn before, for example, I’d have enough blockers to avoid losing to the (Might of the Masses), or if I’d destroyed something besides the wurm, I’d have (Lay Bare) ready for the might one turn later. I also made small mistakes early that if I had caught in time would have helped me stabilize sooner.
Was the chance that (Might of the Masses) could be the next card down a reason to destroy something other than the (Pelakka Wurm)? While it’s clearly Villain’s biggest threat, it’s a threat that is contained by two of my creatures now anyway, so the super-safe play is to not allow that extra card draw. With all of Villain’s draws exposed to me, there’s no reason not to play it safe and let the wurm live in that spot. Frankly, I didn’t consciously say, “I’ll let Villain draw a card and destroy the wurm,” I simply looked at the board, identified the biggest threat, and took it out.
It was brutal to lose a game after fighting so hard to recover, but the good news is that I feel my deck is the favorite in any given game in this matchup. Green-white has nothing to permanently deal with my best cards, so if I can do a better job of stabilizing, I like my chances. Nothing to do now but win a couple games in a row. I believe I found room for my (Naturalize), probably for (Lay Bare), but I failed to take sideboarding notes here.
R3G2
I elect to draw, and Villain keeps. My opener:
Given that Villain’s only answer to (Sphinx of Magosi) appears to be a flyer and (Smite), this is a happy keep. It’s worth noting at this point that game one was epic and chewed up significant clock, and at the start of game two I was sitting at just under 20:00, and Villain just over 16:00. Villain drops a Forest, and I peel one off the top myself, which allows me to run out the (Evolving Wilds) for a Mountain. Another Forest but no spells from Villain bodes well for me since my biggest concern is an aggressive start. I rip (Ondu Giant), play a Forest, and cast (Nest Invader). I’ll start noting Villain’s clock parenthetically, since it starts to matter (15:52).
A Plains and a (Soul's Attendant) do nothing to change my expectations, as it’s not a good card against me in the matchup. I don’t much care what life total I’m up against as long as I won’t deck myself before one of my finishers can whittle it to zero. I pull (Mnemonic Wall) with no targets in sight, and I drop an Island. (Ondu Giant) now, or save the spawn token for the sphinx?
Since it doesn’t change what turn the sphinx comes out to play, I might as well get the (Ondu Giant) out now. I mistakenly fetch an Island, thinking that I had to in order to cast the (mana=u)(mana=u)(mana=u) sphinx on turn five, but fetching a Forest and then dropping consecutive Islands would have done the trick. Villain gains 1 but then loses 2 on the attack before I pass (20 – 19, 15:20).
A (Joraga Treespeaker) and (Knight of Cliffhaven) join the opposition (20 – 21), but Villain misses his third land drop. I pull and play a Forest to bail me out of my incorrect fetch decision, and attack for 4 before casting the (Wildheart Invoker) to give 1 back (20 – 18, 13:57). After finding a fourth land, Villain levels the treespeaker and drops a (Kozilek's Predator) to gain 3 (20 – 21). An (Overgrown Battlement) off the top does nothing to change my plans for a turn-five sphinx (not that there is anything in my deck that would change that plan) (20 – 22). I now have no profitable attacks, and pass (12:27).
Villain untaps, draws, double clutches on mana tapping, and tanks a bit, finally casting (Jaddi Lifestrider) and tapping all but the the 2/8 itself for a gain of 11 (20 – 33), passing back the turn with 11:45 on the clock. I draw (Deprive) and start tackling the question of whether to play spells in hand or invest mana into (Sphinx of Magosi) pumping.
My options increase greatly at 8 mana, as then I can use the invoker or I can pump twice and still have (Deprive) mana up. With (Mnemonic Wall) in hand, I can bring back a spent (Deprive), so I like pumping the sphinx once and playing the battlement with Deprive mana up. I draw an Island off the sphinx and attack for 7 before playing the wall to give back 1 (20 – 27, 10:26).
Being stuck on four lands doesn’t necessarily mean much when you are playing green in ROE Limited, as Villain adds two from the treespeaker and sacrifices a spawn token to cast a (Pelakka Wurm), which is a fine target for the (Deprive). With the ground fairly well stalled out, I take back the turn (10:02). (Ulamog's Crusher) off the top offers even more options for 8 mana. What are the top priorities?
I could go through calculations to establish how my opponent’s damage clock rises or falls as I add counters to the sphinx, but I don’t think that’s the relevant concern. Besides the inevitability the sphinx affords just by being in play against a green-white deck, the exact number of turns Villain has becomes insufficiently predictable with the (Soul's Attendant) in play. The important thing is that I stay in control of the board, and that is best served by getting back that (Deprive). I can cast the wall with (mana=u)(mana=u) up, and draw a card at the end of next turn if the Deprive is unneeded. The attack for 7 and the creature hitting play again net 6 damage for the turn (20 – 21, 7:45).
Note the drop in Villain’s clock this turn. The correct clock management play would have been to be constantly ready with the F4 (“Pass priority for the rest of my turn unless Villain does something”), or perhaps just F6 (“Pass priority for the rest of this turn except to declare blockers”). (Spawning Breath) on the spawn token is about the only play that would need a response, and if I’m splashing the breath (unlikely), I’d use it on the attendant anyway. A turn that should have cost Villain two and a half seconds for some reason cost nearly two and a half minutes! Given the clock management I’m seeing, it has to be a factor in my decision making now. With the sphinx and the known (Deprive), it’s probably close to correct for Villain to concede and use the remaining clock to try for game three. I don’t know how many outs to the sphinx there are in that deck, though, so it’s hard to say with certainty when Villain should give up on this game and try for the third.
Villain untaps, has a fifth land, levels up the (Knight of Cliffhaven) and the treespeaker, and passes, while I draw a (Prophetic Prism) off the sphinx (15:15 – 5:36). Again, I use 15 seconds, and Villain uses two minutes. It didn’t feel like a multi-tabling situation, it felt like tanking to come up with the right plan for the sphinx, but I can’t say for sure. Either way, Villain is virtually conceding the match to me through poor clock management in this game.
I draw a Forest, play an Island, and consider how best to stretch out the game without losing it, since Villain seems so inclined to waste clock.
One thing to note is that Villain leveled the treespeaker once, but not twice, leaving two mana unspent. (Smite) is almost a certainty, but the real question is whether or not (Might of the Masses) would be enough to finish the sphinx after the Smite is Deprived. Some quick math shows that as long as I can activate the sphinx’s ability, might won’t get the job done, so I attack with my 8/8. I counter (Smite) as expected, and with 8 mana left I could have also used the (Wildheart Invoker)’s ability to get 10 through, but I opt for a post-combat crusher instead (20 – 22).
Villain has a land and one of the two cards that, combined, could actually be annoying for me: (Daggerback Basilisk) (20 – 23). However, part two, (Spider Umbra), is not forthcoming. It wouldn’t even be that annoying anyway, as the crusher could take one for the team while the sphinx dug for a (Narcolepsy). Given that I scouted 18 cards from the deck and saw a 19th in Kozilek, I’m having a hard time manufacturing a scenario where I lose this game, which is why Villain ought to be conceding. Instead, I take back the turn (4:29).
I pull (Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre), attack with the sphinx and the crusher, and activate the card draw ability to find (Staggershock), which I cast on the basilisk. Should I have? Letting the crusher fall to the basilisk may have given Villain more hope and thus used more time, but it’s hard to turn one’s mentality from winning the game of strategy to winning the game of the clock. In any case, if I pull a solid draw next game, I’m already thinking the clock win is virtually secured, especially after Villain chews up more than a minute between my declaration of attack and the Staggershock play. After some chumping, annihilating, and another sphinx activation, it’s 20 – 13, and the board looks like this. Surely it’s time to concede (3:25)?
No. Villain untaps, draws, plays a land, and taps out for (Kozilek, Butcher of Truth). Perhaps it was the hope of Kozilek saving the day that sent the game on much longer than it strategically should have. I was never really worried about Kozilek earlier because Villain had been stuck under ten mana, and by the late game, I could block and kill it with an invoker-pumped sphinx if I didn’t feel I could simply race it. I finally earn the concession, and all I need to do now is hold out for 3:10 in game three.
R3G3
I’m on the draw, and my opener looks a lot like a mull to five, but can it get the job done?
Wow, this is right on the edge! If I draw literally no other plays, it may not be enough. The (Skywatcher Adept) should be good for a trade with one of the many bears in Villain’s deck, and it’s quite appealing to have an answer at the ready for any (Boar Umbra) shenanigans that might arise. It was tight, but in the end I decided to put my faith in the (Narcolepsy) and keep. I’m curious where others fall on this one. Is this starter good enough to last three minutes, or should I have shipped it back and risked something worse?
Villain starts by evolving some wilds into a Plains, and I draw a (Nest Invader), which is perfect if I can find a Forest for it. I bring down the adept and pass. Villain has the old turn-two (Glory Seeker) for the immediate pressure. A (Jaddi Lifestrider) is no help at the moment, so I play an Island and pass (2:50). A (Lone Missionary) adds additional pressure, and I take 2 from the seeker (18 – 24, 2:41). A fourth Island is not the land I want to see, but I at least level up to a 2/2 and prepare to block (2:39). My adept leaps in the way of the (Glory Seeker) shortly after, but a (Might of the Masses) keeps both threats alive as I take 2 and lose my adept (16 – 24). Fortunately, Villain has no further play (2:27).
I rip a glorious Forest, which is a relief because without it I have to use a (Narcolepsy) on a 2/2 this turn. Instead, I drop the (Nest Invader) and prepare to trade again. Villain suddenly finds the F6 key, not losing a single second on my turn (2:27). The subsequent attack and trade take a mere four seconds, but the invader trades successfully with the (Lone Missionary), although it should have been the (Glory Seeker) (14 – 24). I take back the turn with no further play, but my plans for a (Jaddi Lifestrider) change when I pull (Sphinx of Magosi) off the top with the mana to cast it. I drop the bomb, and things turn ugly as Villain takes back the turn and casts (Soul's Attendant).
"You’re bad at Magic" is a very nebulous, subjective claim (and awfully suspect coming from someone who made many mistakes and then handed me the match on a silver clock-management platter), but from the right perspective, you could argue he's correct—I certainly made a fistful or errors over the course of this draft. I'll say this, though: regardless of my actual skill level versus Villain's, I'm certain I left this draft with a higher degree of self-improvement (and dignity) than he did, because I at least see and own up to my mistakes in my ongoing effort to avoid their repetition. Villain doesn’t appear to be looking inward on this one, at the cost of his own self-improvement. And yes, I'm going out on a limb and assuming "he" here. I've met and played with plenty of female Magic players, but I've never met one who would go out like that. Here’s hoping he’s young with plenty of time to learn to take a loss and not old and permanently broken!
Thanks for reading, and until next time, happy drafting!
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