Monday, May 9, 2016

Old School 93/94 - Resources, Links and Discussion

As I mentioned in my last post my newest obsession is the 93/94 format. For those of you who are not familiar then please take a read of the below resources, or maybe you are familiar and want to take a look at some sweet decklists.

Resources/Links :

http://oldschool-mtg.blogspot.com/p/historik.html

http://www.eternalcentral.com/oldschool/

https://www.reddit.com/r/oldschoolmtg

https://www.instagram.com/oldschoolmtg/?hl=en

http://www.understandingancestral.com/

Star City Games Article about Old School Magic

Old School - Europe: Facebook Page

Old School - Europe: YouTube Channel

East Coast 93/94 Discussion and Marketplace

Old School '93-'94 - Europe: Facebook Group

Midwest USA 93/94 Old School Magic

Magic '95 Homepage

Danny Friedman's Vintage & Old School Blog

http://www.manaleak.com/mtguk/2015/11/uk-old-school-magic-the-gathering-the-beginnings-of-a-format-by-rod-smith/

http://www.channelfireball.com/articles/new-format-old-school/

Discussion:

As readers and those who know me know I mostly play Legacy with the occasional dabble in to Standard when I feel like burning someone's face off. My local store (Asgards) has a great group of legacy players who occasionally have forays in to Vintage. With the opening of Asgards new bar (AKA AssGayBar) myself and others were quick to latch on to a "casual" format that could be played in between rounds of legacy or alternatively at the bar between a few people during the afternoon. The current target audience is these legacy/vintage players who already have deep legacy/vintage card pools. While I appreciate the ethos behind the original Swedish players 93/94 set of rules we are going to more closely follow the Eternal Central Rules. Firstly, we are also in the US so if I ever travel to play Old School it is more likely to be using these rules. Second, increasing the card pool means more decks are viable. Third, I want to promote more people playing with old Magic cards. I don't really care if those cards are from Chronicles or Arabian Nights. One of the great things about Legacy is that some people have super sweet and super pimp decks, while other people have barely cobbled together a deck of playable. For a non-sanctioned Magic format more people = better.

One of the first thing I did after reading all the above articles and blogs was to start looking at 93/94 decklists. This naturally led me to going through each set to identify playable cards. Over the next couple of weeks I am going to do a blog article for each set that is legal in the format (Alpha - Fallen Empires). There are a few cards that don't see play that are playable in the format and for those that don't want to pore over set lists they can have a short cut for finding the playable cards.

-Cheers-

Official Chaos Orb Flip Tracker- 1/2 = 50%

Thursday, May 5, 2016

Old School 93/94 - Time Flies

Wow...does time fly when you are busy with work, family and the general rigmarole of life.


I am going to start re-blogging a little bit more often after almost 1 year of hiatus.

You are warned.

Also as an FYI my current obsession is 93/94 Old School Magic. So expect to see a few blog posts about that.

Watch this space.

-Cheers-

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Magic Online / MODO / MTGO Daily Event Legacy - July 2015

GP Lille has come and gone. What did it show us? There were a lot of Delver decks on coverage, especially grixis delver. Surprisingly it was the more "traditional" 4 colour / Castelvania Delver decks that made the top 8 rather than the newer Angler versions of the deck. The big take away for me is that Dig Through Time is excellent. I already knew that but after watching a bunch of games play out and playing with Dig Through Time more on MODO I am even more convinced of its power. I will be jamming as many decks with Dig Through Time over the coming months. Dig Through Time feels almost as good as treasure cruise and that is likely not a good sign for the card or the health of legacy...

The two decks (other than the 4c Delver) that interested me the most were the following:

http://www.mtgtop8.com/event?e=10022&d=257797&f=LE 

I have Infect built online and I have played it to a few good finishes, including my first daily event 4-0. This update is similar to one that Tom Ross has talked about several times. I have always been a little leery of the white splash in the past, as I am not sold on whether it is needed or not. In such a large and diverse field having access to the powerful white sideboard cards seems to have paid off in this case.

http://www.mtgtop8.com/event?e=10022&d=257800&f=LE

Saito's Grixis Delver is the other deck that interested me. While Saito did not top 8 he did go 9-0 on day 1 with his take on Grixis. The main thing of note is the Dig Through Time's replacing what used to be Treasure Cruise.

I have played the deck in 1 daily event so far and went 3-1. I lost to MUD through a game where he was on the play and went turn 1 COTV. Then I lost another game because I misclicked on my brainstorm and put the cards back in the wrong order which meant I didn't have a blue card for his Trinisphere...and I never drew a 3rd land.  The main deck looks pretty perfect to me but I think there is some work in the sideboard. I would like to shoehorn in a Rakdos Charm since it gives another artifact hate card as well as a graveyard hate card which is something the deck currently has 0 of.

Oh yeah and before I forget, I have finally bought my power 9, set of Mishra's Workshops and Bazaar of Baghdad's online. So I should be able to start jamming some vintage in the near future.

Cheers,
Simon

MTG Origins Legacy & Modern Set Review

It's that time again for my Legacy and Modern Review of the newest set MTG Origins!

Despite being a "Core Set" with several reprints and only a handful of new cards, there are some pretty spicy cards in this set. My prediction is that MTG Origins has the largest impact of any core set on Standard and Modern. In addition, the card prices from this set could be very interesting to watch. We will have to wait and see how popular the draft format is but traditionally core set chase cards have gone for some serious money (see Baneslayer Angel, etc.). This time around I think we have more sleepers compared to chase rares like Baneslayer Angel but sometimes it is the slow and steady gainers that you want to keep track of.

White

Hallowed Moonlight - More ways to disrupt Reanimator and Elves are always appreciated but costing 2 mana in legacy is a tall order (especially when we could just play containment priest). For modern we probably don't have enough targets to make this worthwhile but it is worth mentioning that it has some interesting interactions with Kikki-Jikki and Splinter Twin. Buying you 1 turn though is likely not enough.

Vryn Wingmare - Thalia is the best of these effects but Vryn can also trade with a Delver of Secrets which is a nice bonus. More 1 butt's in Death and Taxes seems like it could be asking for trouble though. When Death and Taxes first came around as a deck some people were really high on Glowrider and Vryn is a big upgrade from that.

Starfield of Nyx - Enchantress has been aching for some new cards for the past several blocks. Enchantress lovers thought that their time had come when Theros block was announced but they were left wanting. Starfield of Nyx adds a win condition and a slow Replenish effect to the deck, all while being an enchantment while you are "going off." Also this card will likely look awesome in foil because of the art and colouring.

Blue

Harbinger of the Tides - Holy Tempo batman. This guy is pretty sweet, as a quasi time walk you can put your opponent quite far behind all while laying out your army of little fish. The added bonus of using him later as a Venser creature bounce is also a nice option. This guy is going to make racing merfolk quite difficult for fair decks. The downside is that if your opponent is not sure whether they should attack, then not is often the answer now because of the creature being tapped clause.

Jhessian Thief - Is it too much to ask for Ophidian to be playable again? This is likely the best Ophidian that we have seen in a while with the exception of Ohran Viper who I still think is an excellent creature and wildly underplayed. This little thief will probably see 0 play but that doesn't mean that I wont try and play it in some format...Maybe Pauper or Vintage?

Mizzium Meddler - This guy could see some play in modern, he survives lightning bolt and can mess with your opponents Splinter Twin, etc.

Black

Dark Petition - An obviously powerful Tutor + Dark Ritual. In legacy 5 mana is a huge wall to overcome. If people start playing this, then I think I will be dazing and spell piercing a lot of these. For Modern, there aren't any black rituals so I am not sure how good this card is. Also worth mentioning is that flipping this to an Ad Nauseam will hurt a lot.

Gnarlroot Trapper - This guy is like a reverse elves of the Deep Shadow that has an extra ability! Unfortunately, his mana ability only casts elves which means he is probably a no-go in legacy due to having to cast Natural Order  and Glimpse of Nature but for modern this guy is sweet. This guy lets elves play defense as well, which is something that elves have often struggled with in the past.

Green

Animist's Awakening - I have no doubt that Travis Woo will try something with this card. For legacy, the easiest deck to look at is lands. Honestly, I am not sure if lands is the right home for this card but this is the powerful sort of card that could change how a deck plays. What other land win conditions are there other than Thespian Stage + Dark Depths and Man Lands? If there is something spicy out there, we could have a fun brew on our hands.

Dwynen, Gilt-Leaf Daen - This guy has the right stats to block Delver and pump your elf team. He is probably a little corner case and may be a sideboard card but fetching him up with Green Sun Zenith and attacking with your team is going to gain you a lot of life.

Evolutionary Leap - I like where Wizards head is at, this card could be totally busted or complete trash, only time will tell. This is probably more of a modern card than anything else though. For modern I think we want to utilize Persist, Dredge, Vengevine, etc. to gain some value. In legacy, I am not sure what we want to do with creatures in hand... 

Herald of the Pantheon -  This guy isn't going to resurrect enchantress from the dead but he will be a welcome addition to the sideboard of the people who still play the deck (anybody out there?). He can buy you some time which is all you really want if you are playing that deck.

Red

Abbot of Keral Keep - I think we will end up calling this guy the red Snapcaster Mage. He seems very good for both Standard and Modern. Could UR Burn become a thing in modern with this guy and Snapcaster Mage? I don't see this guy being strong enough in legacy, if he had flash then we could talk.

Goblin Piledriver - A reprint for legacy but a first printing for modern. This little guy will put goblins on the map but the world is pretty hateful to goblins with all those bolts, etc. I also do not think pro-blue is particularly valuable in modern at the moment, with the exception of merfolk and Pestermite / Deceiver Exarch.

Magmatic Insight - A potential combo card for Goblin Charbelcher/ Empty the Warrens, or some other red based combo deck in Legacy or Modern? Someone more combo inclined will have to bust this card but it is definitely on my "to watch list."

Molten Vortex - This might be my favorite card in the set (until I start losing to it). A small upfront mana investment, a largely irrelevant downside and its in the correct colour. I have been mulling the idea of putting Cursed Scroll in more decks lately (mostly Delver decks)...this is likely just better and slightly harder to kill. I think most decks only want 1 or 2 of this effect but if you can get two activations from this in an aggressive deck then you have likely won the game. It also "combos" well with Grim Lavamancer by putting lands into the graveyard.

Pia and Kiran Nalaar - A human siege-gang commander but with tokens that have evasion? There is a Death and Taxes list which is currently popular online that runs Imperial Recruiter and Magus of the Moon. I could see wanting one Pia and Kiran Nalaar in the 75 since you can search for it with Imperial Recruiter. It is very awkward that Pia and Kiran Nalaar costs 4 mana since you never want to set your vial to 4...also worth noting is that with Pia and Kiran Nalaar in play you have a use for those extra dead Aether Vials, Phyrexian Revokers and any additional Equipment. Also worth mentioning is that Cavern of Souls on Human will help you pay for an uncounterable Pia and Kiran Nalaar. Note - Pia and Kiran Nalaar is an annoyingly long name...I vote we rename it PKN which sounds like a political party from North Korea..

Land

None.

Artifact

Hangarback Walker - I like this guy quite a lot. He can fit in most parts of your curve and can gain some value if you have some time. I see this guy having potential in Modern (Affinity) and Legacy (MUD). The fact that he insulates you from spot removal and sweepers is very nice and providing flying attackers/blockers is icing on the cake. This guy is also a complete and utter house in Standard, I see this guy being played a lot in all sorts of archetypes...

Gold

Shaman of the Pack - Shaman of the Pack could be the missing piece of the Modern Elves deck to push it into true Tier 1 status.

This is the biggest bunch of potential payable's in a while from ANY Magic set. I think Magic Origins will be an understated hit in eternal formats.

Cheers,
Simon

Monday, June 29, 2015

Magic Online / MODO / MTGO Daily Event Legacy - June 2015

It finally happened...I have RUG built on MODO.

http://mtgo-stats.com/decks/player/samuraisocks

http://mtgo-stats.com/decks/17953

http://mtgo-stats.com/decks/17749

See above for the RUG lists I have been playing. The deck has been doing great other than I keep losing my last round to Miracles or Jeskai Stoneblade... The main deck is pretty stock minus the Forked Bolt / Dismember split. There is a lot of Grixis Delver running around at the moment with Gurmag Angler so I could see going back to x2 Dismember. As a general rule, I hate having dismember in my deck since it is dead vs. combo decks and control decks (usually) but it has been pretty good for me online so far.

Moving to the only part that I am not sure of...the sideboard.

Sideboard 1:
1 Blue Elemental Blast   
1 Envelop   
2 Flusterstorm   
1 Spell Pierce   
1 Forked Bolt   
2 Grim Lavamancer   
1 Pyroblast   
1 Sudden Demise   
1 Sulfuric Vortex   
3 Destructive Revelry   
1 Grafdigger's Cage

Sideboard 2:

1 Blue Elemental Blast   
1 Envelop   
2 Flusterstorm
 
1 Spell Pierce   
1 Vendilion Clique   
1 Forked Bolt   
2 Grim Lavamancer   
1 Pyroblast   
1 Sudden Demise   
3 Destructive Revelry   
1 Grafdigger's Cage   


I like that I have managed to cut the targets for Wear/Tear against Miracles in sideboard 2. The downside it is that it makes me cut the cards that are best against Miracles. I haven't fully fleshed out if it is better to have the powerful cards or turn off 1/2 of their post sideboard cards.

The cards I am talking about are:

Pithing Needle
Null Rod
Sulfuric Vortex
Sylvan Library
Winter Orb

The jury is still very much out on this one.

The rest of the sideboard feels very good. I think I am still the only person running 3 Destructive Revelry but it is good for me every time I cast it. I have blown up several Counterbalances and Bloodmoons which always feels good. Ancient Grudge doesn't do that.
 
  
-Cheers-  
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
 



   
   
   
   
   

  

  

  

  
  
   
  

-Cheers-

Wednesday, May 27, 2015

Magic Online / MODO / MTGO Daily Event Legacy - May 2015

I finally got around to playing in my first Legacy Daily event thanks to the huge mother of a storm that came through Houston and flooded most of the city.

For those not in Houston:

http://www.weather.com/safety/floods/news/houston-flooding-wildest-images

Hence work was cancelled, daycare was cancelled, court was cancelled, etc. Having the day at home with the family was great and thankfully we had electricity and Internet!

My weapon of choice for the Legacy Daily was Infect. I have played infect a few times in small legacy events in paper and I played quite a lot of modern infect online several months ago. I felt pretty comfortable with the deck since it bridges the gap between Modern Infect and Legacy Delver. I had just bought my Wastelands, so I had the entire deck complete minus 1-2 cards which are not 100% essential to run (Stifle & Karakas). After playing 1 random match in the tournament practice room versus a Storm opponent (Won 2-1) to get rid of the MODO rust, I was ready to enter my first Legacy Daily.

List:

(Will link to Daily Decklists)

For some reason I am not having any luck finding the daily decklists for the event I played in. I will list the event # and maybe someone who is more familiar with MODO can help me out.

Round 1 - Miracles

G1 - He played land go and I just chipped away at him until he died.

G2 - I beat his Bloodmoon because I had  a guy in play and then force of willed his removal spell.

2-0

Round 2 - Storm

G1 - Quick clock and a few counterspells is good enough to get it done.

G2 - My opponent went lotus petal, brainstorm. I force of willed his brainstorm and then won from there.

2-0

Round 3 - UR Delver (or Mono Red with Gitaxian Probe)

G1 - My opponent probed me and played some red spells.

G2 - I dazed his Eidolon of the Great Revel and then he conceded...

2-0

Round 4 - COTV Affinity

G1 - I am ahead but we are racing when my opponent plays Tezzeret and uses the get an artifact in the top 5 ability. He finds...and Ornithopter which will work great against my Inkmoth Nexus...I manager to squeak out the game anyway but it feels way closer than it should be.

G2 - I counter his COTV and slowly grind him out from there.

2-0

Playing 4 rounds and winning each 2-0 is pretty nice. The deck played very well but I would probably add the 2 cards into the deck even though I didn't miss them too much for this tournament (Add +1 Stifle, +1 Karakas & Remove -1 Crop Rotation, -1 Spell Pierce).

Now I need to decide what to do with the 11 Tempest Remastered Booster Packs I won...

Next purchase is a playset of Tarmogoyf's when Modern Masters comes out...I hope they drop to around $50 a pop from the $65 or so that they are at right now.

Cheers,
Simon

MODO SN - samuraisocks

Wednesday, May 6, 2015

May Update

Life has been super busy. Work + Baby + Wife has left me with little time for Magic (paper or electronic).

Next week I will be in Norway/Sweden so things are not going to calm down any time soon.

Hopefully when I get back I can buy some cheap MODO wastelands. While I am gone you guys need to get busy drafting Tempest Masters...

-Cheers-