Tuesday Night Magic - 05.07.11

As Jace, the Mind Sculptor and Stoneforge Mystic left the format peacefully at the end of last week, I was driven to try my hand at control in the new format. The lack of Oblivion Ring held me back from playing UW Control, despite the draw of Venser, and instead I helped a friend build up the UW list as an experiment. Though the desire to experiment with interesting decks was strong, I naturally crumbled and fell back into the clutches of UB Control. The lack of Mind Sculptors hurts the deck considerably, but without swords seeing heavy play the ability to draw out the game with spot removal before dropping overpowering bombs was too tempting to resist. The list I went with can be seen below, though do note that my lack of Surgical Extractions is the only reason for their absence! Space should definitely be made for them in the sideboard.

UB Control Main Deck

UB Control Side Deck

Round 1 - UW Venser - 1-0-1

A thoroughly interesting match, with bombs causing swings back and forth throughout each game. Blade Splicer proved to be particularly powerful, but lucky timing on my part let me keep the board under control with Black Sun Zenith whilst my discard kept his utility at a minimum. As game 1 took a relatively long time to tie up, game 2 set me the aim of drawing for the win. Any hope of a fast win vanished as he began to establish board control, but spot removal and well timed discard kept him from finding a win condition, despite having a Venser ready to fire off his ultimate. 

Round 2 - Myr Twin - 2-0-0

This deck certainly caught me off guard by combining arguably the most powerful and most forgotten combos in standard into a single disruptive deck. In game 1 I manage to gain control fairly effectively and push for a win. Game 2 draws out for far longer as I struggle to find win conditions. I push through a couple of Memoricides to remove his Splinter Twins and Red Sun Zeniths (!), but seeing he still has Lightning Bolts and was still beating face with Myr, the fear set in. A lucky top deck of a Consecrated Sphinx allowed me to tap out knowing he has to top deck one of his three remaining Lightning Bolts to win before I can start to overcome him with draw. Thankfully he doesn’t draw the Bolt for several turns whilst I carefully pick off targets on board and push with a Wurmcoil Engine pulling me back into safety. If this match taught me anything it is to be very careful not to miss timing with Consecrated Sphinx. Though I won in the end, I still missed 2-3 triggers with the Sphinx throughout both games by letting my attention be trapped by the cards in my hand whilst the opponent starts off their turn.

Round 3 - MBC - 2-0-0

This round gave me the excellent opportunity to see the new, and highly promising, Mono Black Control deck in action. Though a few elements were different to those gaining popularity online, the shell of the deck was very much the same. His discard and removal were arguably stronger than mine, and if he could land a Lashwrithe the game would be over very quickly, much like how Korlash once ended games alone. Both games were good up to a point, but unfortunately he stumbled in both games in drawing land or irrelevant answers whilst I managed to push through with Creeping Tar Pits.

Round 4 - UB Control - 1-2-0

Unsurprisingly it was a mirror match that ended my winning streak. Each game was a battle of attrition, with Planeswalkers and discard proving vital in seeking the opportunity to land and protect a threat. Tectonic Edge played a violently disruptive role in each and every game, and this match alone just reminded me of how attempting a deck running more than two colours is simply impossible right now. As the last game drew to time, I was fighting off a bouncing Batterskull with my Karn Liberated, resisting fatal damage for several turns, before mistakenly thinking I had a turn to pump him up again whilst blocking with a Creeping Tar Pit. In my haste I missed his remaining Tectonic Edge, and handed over the game on turn 3 of time. I was now painfully aware of how many misplays I was making, my lack of experience proving very disheartening when it comes to control mirrors in which I should be playing better.

Round 5 - UW Venser Fish - 1-2-0

The final round for the night proved very unexpected. Despite having spoken to the player about the deck earlier in the evening, the sheer ferocity and utility of an equipment engine post-Stoneforge certainly caught me off guard. Puresteel Paladin is an absolute monster, especially whilst people are still ignoring the fact that Swords of X and Y are all extremely powerful on their own, and that Squadron Hawk is still pure advantage. Painfully we both pass each other games based on mana screw, before playing a real game in game 3. I attempt to control the board with a Precursor Golem before he fights back with a Phyrexian Metamorph. Dismayed by the incredible clone, I drop a Wurmcoil Engine and ready to defend when his equipment becomes active. A second Metamorph becomes a Wurmcoil Engine, and via Puresteel Paladin his Mortarpod and Basilisk Collar combo allows him to slaughter my defenders.

Conclusion - 3-2

After a strong start, I disappointingly end with a very average standing. Having expected a very RDW and Valakut focused meta, my lack of good options to board against control hurt, but nowhere near as much as my own misplays did. Once M12 arrives, practice will be key if I intend to fight the good fight at Nationals again this year, and that includes practicing the dreaded M12/M12/M12 draft.

UB Control is still a powerful deck, but this event reminded me of the importance of patience and focus in playing the deck. It is an incredibly demanding beast to handle, and certainly punishes misplays horrifically. Despite playing the proactive disruption package of discard spells, UB Control still plays far too carefully and reactively to impact a mixed field. With the popularity of UB Control and the imminent rise in RDW, it seems very likely that Mental Misstep will make its first major debut into Standard, taking up a role very much like the splashes of Spell Snare back in Kamigawa/Ravnica Standard to control tempo by stopping Scab-Clan Maulers, Umezawa’s Jitte, Castigate and, most importantly, Signets.

On a side note, the UW list I helped a friend build before the event ended up winning, beating my round 4 opponent in the finals. Having admittedly made many misplays throughout the day, it seems that UW Control is the more forgiving deck to work with, and is likely to become even more so with the return of Oblivion Ring. It is highly likely that I will end up focusing on UW Control simply due to its more proactive, tap-out nature. Hopefully M12 stirs the game up as required, because banning a couple of cards certainly hasn’t made the format as interesting as promised.

Road to Nationals - M12 Impact

In the run up to the UK Magic National Championship this year I will be discussing the Standard format as it evolves globally and locally. Whilst the banning of Jace, the Mind Sculptor and Stoneforge Mystic has blown the format wide open, it isn't until the arrival of this year's Core Set, Magic 2012, that we can fully begin to gauge what direction the format might take. In this post I would like to discuss the cards revealed thus far that will most impact Standard for Nationals. I emphasise, this is not a review and is not looking forward to rotation or anything like that. The purpose of the "Road to Nationals" posts to build and prepare for the single most important event in the nation.

Stating the Obvious

Only one card at the beginning of the spoiler season had an immediate home, and that was Rampant Growth. With Valakut already showing a dominant presence in new Standard, the return of Rampant Growth will be receive a warm welcome from the many players seizing their opportunity to rise above the competition now that the Stoneforge fuelled clock of Caw-Blade is a fading nightmare.

The other Primeval Titan based strategy to benefit from this return is Eldrazi, with the lack of Jace around to disrupt the deck in its setup phase. Though the Splinter Twin combo poses a tremendous threat to "do nothing" strategies like Valakut and Eldrazi, the sheer amount of easy hate for the combo allows the big green strategies to flourish.

White Blight

It will come as no surprise to those who know me that the thought of losing to a weenie deck of any kind is a thoroughly depressing experience for me. Thankfully, successful rush strategies are fairly rare, with success stories rising infrequently of crazy Ezuri combo's and perfectly curving into a Ball Lightning with Teetering Peaks. White, however, hasn't truly seen a successful weenie rush strategy since Kithkin, back at the start of Lorwyn standard, and BW Tokens at the end of the same format. After the disappointment of the Quest for the Holy Relic combo builds, white has earned a few aggressively priced tools to work with.

Grand Abolisher is the latest in the series of white-based bears with anti-control abilities tacked on. Whilst many of these bears have seen a good amount of play in the past, this particular beast is most reminiscent of Gaddock Teeg in his prime. Remember when Kithkin curved out perfectly with Goldmeadow Stalwart into Wizened Cenn, whilst you comfortably wait with Cryptic Command and Wrath of God sitting in hand. Then they summon Gaddock Teeg whilst you're sat waiting with Vivid lands. Teeg locked players out of their solid and reliable strategies, and most importantly out of their comfort zones. Grand Abolisher promises to do the same this format.

Fans of SCG's "The Magic Show" will undoubtedly be able to recall Evan Erwin's memorable response to the reveal of Spectral Procession. His words "Three. Dudes. Seriously." can yet again be put into action by taking a look at Timely Reinforcements. Yet again we have a 3cc Sorcery that makes tokens, but only if your opponent is ahead. While these tokens don't fly, Timely Reinforcements shows strong potential as a counter-strike card for a deck dedicating space to Honor of the Pure and Student of Warfare. Spot removal will be rampant in new Standard, but so will walls. Wall of Omens and Overgrown Battlements will be widely played, making the curve of Honor of the Pure > Timely Reinforcements > Ajani Goldmane and swing for 9 perfecly do-able. Time will tell if it is worth it, and if a splash into black or red can make better use of the dead first turn.

The final aggressively designed white card in fact evokes the spirit of a classically played control win condition. Angelic Destiny is a difficult card to crack, as it is quite difficult to compare reasonably to anything in the past. The boon for enchanting a creature is certainly worthwhile for the cost, but the initial fear is resolving the enchantment safely. Aura's have traditionally seen minimal play due to the ability to claim a 2-for-1 in killing the target and forcing the enchantment to fizzle. The fear of losing both creature and aura after resolution, however, is non-existent thanks to the fact that this card jumps back into the hand when the creature dies. This reminds me of how Griffin Guide allowed for a continual and determined push from aggro decks in Time Spiral Block, but as the Guide never really graduated into Standard play it's difficult to gauge whether this card stands a chance. If it does, it will be on the shoulders of Grand Abolisher and his game warping effect.

Blood Red

Though white appear to have the potential to flourish following M12, Red decks are already quite a common sight. Red provides a difficult clock to beat, punishing decks like Valakut for taking them too lightly. Of the cards showing potential in M12, red definitely dominates in numbers. Incinerate returns in M12, and will see play immediately, however the big reprint is that of Grim Lavamancer. While most will likely remember Lavamancer for his punishing finisher potential in Zoo decks of Extended's past, his most recent action has actually been in Legacy blue-based control decks splashing red just for him! The lack of need to swing past walls is just as strong as the ability to pick off creatures of toughness 2 or less every turn, and I expect Grim Lavamancer will find a home in a wide variety of decks.

Red decks will also be presented with an interesting choice with M12. Throughout Scars Block we saw a gradual push towards playable Goblins, and M12 brings the catalyst for the deck in the form of Goblin Grenade. With the sheer number of strong goblins we have to work with, it shouldn't be hard to form an incredibly fast clock.

Chandra's Phoenix, however, provides red with an option somewhere between Vengevine and Hell's Thunder. That comparison alone shows that the Phoenix is in good company, and will undoubtedly see play in Red Deck Wins during the Nationals season. I myself ran RDW last year due to the sheer speed and reliability of the Unearth mechanic, and this little bird is already tempting me to tap Mountains again!

Illusion or Delusion?

Despite the obvious quality of Lord of the Unreal, I simply dismissed the potential of an Illusion aggro deck on the fact that a Bear and Djinn that die to Grim Lavamancer without their Lord (who ALSO dies to Lavamancer...) simply cannot hold itself together. The revelation of Phantasmal Image turned things around pretty fast however. Phantasmal Image is not only a half-price Clone in a format full of Titans, but it's a clone that is absolutely unreal entering the battlefield as Lord of the Unreal. A 3/3 Hexproofed Anthem for 2 you say? It's definitely worth keeping an eye out for these illusive wanna-be Fish.

Maintaining Control

As a control player I'm happy to see that initial results from the new format suggest that a wide variety of strategies are alive and well, even in the fact of Valakut. Spreading Seas and Tectonic Edge are clearly the tools necessary to defeat the enemy, but M12 certainly provides some powerful treats for the more patient players out there. First and very much most importantly is the card that Wizards themselves realised should not have left standard: Oblivion Ring. That's right, the most reliable, main deck-able removal card in white is back, and it couldn't have picked a better time! With Jace, the Mind Sculptor banished from the format, players have desperately sought other 'walkers to dominate with in the late game. Whilst Karn and Liliana have received an adequate amount of respect, it is Venser, the Sojourner who has seen the most significant boost in popularity. UW will now have access to Wall of Omens, Spreading Seas, Oblivion Ring, Blade Splicer, Jace Beleren, Sun Titan and undoubtedly more for Venser to blink in and out of existence before the Nationals season is over. Oblivion Ring strengthens UW strategies considerably, and is definitely where I intend to starting working on the format myself.

Every new set leads a horde of players to rant in unison that Mono Black Control is here again. With Jace gone and Sword of Feast and Famine a rare sight, MBC has already seen an increasing presence in Standard. Phyrexian Obliterator and an assortment of powerful removal and discard seems like a fair strategy, and the reprint of Distress works to reinforce MBC. Though we currently have an abundance of 1cc discard spells, we can no longer assume which versions are best for the metagame without a dominant powerhouse to target. Inquisition of Kozilek will likely remain the best discard choice, but supporting it with Distress could well prove safer than having cards end up dead in hand. This core set shockingly also sees the return of Smallpox to Standard. This will prove to be a difficult card to break without any obvious engines, but it certainly can't be ignored in a format with Vengevines and Planeswalkers retaining the advantage.

All being said, the most important card thus far in M12 for control has to be Solemn Simulacrum. Wizards has made it perfectly clear that it wants slower decks to be rewarded with powerful win conditions like Titans, and the reprint of Solemn Simulacrum reinforces this. I expect Solemn Simulacrum to see widespread play, from splashes in stable decks like Valakut to much needed acceleration in decks dedicated to our two favourite Artificers, Tezzeret and Venser. The versatility of Solemn Simulacrum is obvious, but reaches incredible new levels when used in conjunction with these two 'walkers. The interaction may even be enough to warrant a push towards a UBW list utilising the two. Unfortunately, the need for Tectonic Edge will likely make us wait for such a deck to form post-rotation instead.

Planeswalkers?

Throughout this post I have decided to stay quiet regarding our newcomer Planeswalkers, but that does not mean I do not think they're good cards. Jace, Garruk and Chandra will likely struggle to find a home during this National season. I have already made my thoughts clear regarding Jace, Memory Adept, and I will follow up soon enough with my thoughts on the other two. But as far as Standard goes for the next couple of months, expect Jace Beleren, Koth, Tezzeret, Gideon, Liliana, Karn and Venser to see play over any of our latest additions. They simply can't compare right now.

This concludes my first look at the evolution of Standard with the arrival of M12. I will follow up soon with comments on any further potential revealed by the set, as well as a few initial lists of my own and those to look out for from the events starting off the season.

Wednesday Night Yu-Gi-Oh! - 29.06.11

I was ecstatic on Monday that my T.G. Hyper Librarians had finally arrived, and as we aren't running officially yet it would provide a good couple of weeks testing for the future. Despite playing Junk Doppel for so long before now, the addition of Extreme Victory certainly makes deck building far more of a complex task than before. I dedicated my initial testing run to a build running Reborn Tengu, assuming he'd be just as good as I'm sure we're all used to by now. Surprisingly, Tengu plays horrendously in the deck, and due to (yet again!) a severe lack of time in which to test I put together a list largely reminiscent of the generic Japanese list, but favoring Solemn Warning over excessive numbers of Limit Reverse. Limit Reverse is vital in the Japanese meta due to the loss of the priority rule, making Lonefire Blossom very vulnerable to a variety of threats.  We maintain our priority rules for the foreseeable future, Warning is far more important as we have Reborn Tengu to answer.

Round 1 - Scraps - OXO

I manage to sweep game 1 without too much difficulty, as I've heard Trishula's pretty good these days. Game 2, however, took a very long time. My opponent synchro'd into 2 Scrap Dragons and 3 Scrap Twin Dragons during the game, and threatened to go again if possible. I picked off each threat, but a couple of painful errors in judgment (and, admittedly, card reading...) eventually cost me the game. In game 3 we swing back and forth, and as I'm readying an alpha strike time is called. He manages to disrupt my push with an unexpected and problematic Lava Golem (!). Thankfully I squeeze a small amount of damage through his defenses and stall out the last turn of time on higher life.

Round 2 - Fabled - OO

Having tested pretty exclusively against this deck in my most recent testing run, I shuffled up expecting him to swiftly dispose of me via turn 1 Reborn Tengu, turn 2 OTK. Whilst he managed the first turn Tengu, I was lucky enough to be able to pick apart the rest of his attempts with well-timed responses followed but a synchro rush. In game 2 he starts yet again with a Reborn Tengu and 3 set spell/traps. Obviously I manage to draw MST off the top of the deck and by sheer luck pick off his set (card name)! Back and forth pushes and stalling end with a pivotal Book of Moon on his tuner before I synchro rush for game.

Round 3 - Agents - XX

As a powerful deck with a wide variety of competitive structures to work with, I eagerly anticipated this matchup to see the performance of whatever variant he was running. I very suddenly regretted being so eager as the match reached its swift, brutal conclusion. Game 1 involved Pot of Duality into (card name) into Agent of Mystery - Earth, finally tutoring Agent of Creation - Venus, which was followed by minimal action by me allowing him to use Venus to swarm with Mystic Shine Balls and synchro into a devastating Trishula, which he rides to the win. I approach the second game optimistically thinking I just needed to start more effectively, and going first should help in that respect, but my optimism is ripped away when Valhalla lands and allows him to special summon Archlord Kristya. I stall for several turns, trying desperately to find an answer whilst he struggles to hit another monster. Ryko eventually provides me a window, but by this time he is easily able to respond to my attempts to strike back. He ends up finishing me swiftly with two copies of Master Hyperion cleaning up the board for the kill.

Round 4 - KMP - XOX

This match was a true testament to the power of the combo-enabling cards in the game right now. Each game came down to the activation of either a Giant Trunade or a Trap Stun, making Solemn Warnings feel like dead weights whilst combo loops are carried out without fail. A total lack of Effect Veiler action with him going first in games 1 and 3, I don't really need to say much as to how resilient the combo is. Chimeratech Fortress Dragon led me to my win, but my deck is far less refined and practiced in performing its combo's than KMP. And it showed clearly.

Conclusion - 2-2

Though I'm obviously fairly disappointed in what was expected to be an explosive debut for T.G. Hyper Librarian, I am now more eager than ever to unlock the potential of the card. Without Shooting Quasar Dragon at our disposal we lack the utterly dominating combo finisher a deck like this needs. A few of us at the event, by sheer coincidence, ran T.G. Halberd Cannon, and the more I see it in action the more convinced I am in its potential. But for me, this list was clearly sub-par and needs a dramatic amount of work to stand against a format of reliable powerhouses like Samurai and Agents. I'll follow up soon with my thoughts on potential routes to take.

Jace, Memory Adept

Feeling Blue...
Monday saw the announcement of Jace, the Mind Sculptor's ban from Standard play. Over the past couple of weeks rumours have been building regarding new version of Jace, Chandra and Garruk in M12 based on the start of their names seen in the Japanese D12 trailer not matching their current naming structure. Whilst Jace, the Mind Sculptor being reprinted in a core set was an obvious impossibility, the idea of a new engine to work with that might be more rewarding than Beleren certainly caught the attention of blue mages everywhere. And then, as the week reached its end, we were put out of our misery...

Well, maybe not so far from misery just yet. Jace, Memory Adept has experienced quite a mixed response thus far, but it certainly seems the majority are negative. The initial disappointment is the cost. With his previous incarnations at 1UU and 2UU, the cost of 3UU shows us clearly that this Jace is a completely different card to approach. 4cc and below Planeswalkers generally see solid levels of competitive play working as core of a deck or as an engine to drive to advantage in the mid-late game. 

Jace's past and present.

Planeswalkers of 5cc and above have generally seen less play, unless they are either a reliable win condition (Gideon Jura) or utterly breakable in a specific format (Tezzeret the Seeker in Vintage). High cost Planeswalkers have, on occasion, made splashes into competitive decks, such as Liliana Vess sneaking into UB Control lists recently and Venser, the Sojourner seeing a surge in testing for the post-CawBlade era. Each successful end game Planeswalker has had at least 2 worthwhile abilities and a high starting loyalty. So how does Jace, Memory Adept stand against such company? 

How does Jace compare?

For the first time, Jace enters the battlefield and doesn't need to activate in order to survive a Lightning Bolt! 4 starting loyalty is solid enough to work with, and should the game be under your control (you ARE playing blue after all...) then he can prove to be a 2 for 1 at least, without activating. However, this assumes his abilities make him a target that needs to be removed.

Jace's +1 is a fair Jace's Erasure, essentially acting as Jace Beleren's -1 whilst not being utterly insane like Jace, the Mind Sculptor's 0 brainstorm ability. Currently, the mill 1 is largely irrelevant, but with Innistrad confirmed to at least have Flashback as a mechanic it is far from inconceivable that players would want to make themselves dump a card in an attempt to dig deeper (more on this later!). Overall, a solid ability to work with.

At 0 Jace returns to his roots by casting Glimpse of the Unthinkable. Whilst a powerful effect, especially in being so easy to repeat, it has no effect on the board. The inability to protect himself feels like a major weakness coming from the Mind Sculptor's -1 to Unsummon, and so the requirement of having control before starting to use Jace's 0 ability gives him a feel of being a win-more card. This has been a make or break rule for Planeswalkers in the past, but as time passes we increasingly encounter exceptions to the so-called rule. If Liliana can see successful play in UB Control right now without means of protection beyond the deck's own removal, I can't see this rule applying to a well supported win condition.

For his ultimate, Jace forces players of your choice to draw 20 for -7. Hmm. Whilst destined to make and break friendships around the table during a Commander game, Jace's ultimate feels a bit lacking in constructed, but the sheer strength of the ability cannot be ignored. The primary use of this ability is obvious, forcing the opponent to deck out just as his previous core set incarnation did. A powerful combo to utilize with this would be to follow up with the aptly named Jace's Archivist, but this is admittedly kitchen table stuff as maintaining Jace and an Archivist on the board leaves the combo easy to pick apart with removal.

I remember watching a feature match at GP Birmingham in which a Mind Spring for 10 was cast from a 6 card hand. At the time the very idea perplexed me, as no combo was being sought for. However, this brute force approach allowed him to carve a far superior hand to drive out of a stalemate and win the game. Mind Spring saw similar power play during the Jund era, but Blue Sun's Zenith has failed to repeat it's success in the CawBlade dominated format. I certainly don't believe Jace, Memory Adept would ever be played purely for his ultimate, but the ability to dig deep for a very specific solution or means to win the game is always nice when the mill itself won't be enough to win.

Draw enough yet?

In terms of power level, I'd put him on par with Venser, and possibly even Liliana. Solid abilities, but slow and requiring work to support. Innistrad's introduction to Standard will be the big test for Jace, as whilst the loss of Beleren, Valakut, Eldrazi and even Bolt will act in his favour, the set itself may force his abilities to be analysed once more. I suggested that his +1 could be used to dig 2 cards deep, his random mill acting much like Card Trooper and the like act in Yu-Gi-Oh! right now. If cards in your graveyard or retrievable, reusable or can be recurred then why not? Taking this a step further, could milling yourself 10 cards be better than milling the opponent in future standard? Consider the impact dredge had due to such future-shifted cards as Narcomoeba and Bridge from Below. Should any interaction remotely similar to this crop up in the next year, Jace could become a powerful engine in his own right. Time alone will tell how this one turns out, but for those wanting a real replacement for the Mind Sculptors, I'm sure Tezzeret and Beleren will happily oblige.

Dueling Network, Revived?!

DN Lives!

Well this has certainly been a memorable week. Starting with the good news, it seems that Dueling Network is live once more, and this is how:

That's right. By replacing the image of the card back with their own! This supposedly removes it from being the intellectual property of Konami. Time will tell if this lasts, but in the mean time it's definitely a tool worth using. The one colossal weakness to DN right now has to be the lack of ability to test out Xyz, so let's hope that will be worked in sometime in the near future as they become a relevant force in the TCG as well as the OCG.

Fool's Gold and a falling Net

Due to an incredibly heavy workload this week I haven't been able to attend any events. Instead, I decided I'd make a brief couple of comments on the latest news in Yu-Gi-Oh!.

Gold Series 4 - The Original Series

Now that we've seen the full spoiler for Gold Series 4, it isn't hard to feel disappointed. Only one high demand, competitive Gold Rare (Doomcaliber Knight) and no Synchro reprints in sight? Looking closer at the set reveals what we all should have feared once the name was backed up by the included playmat designs...this set is entirely focused on the original series.

No Absolute Zero, Fossil Dyna or Kristya. They're GX cards.

No Brionac, Formula Synchron or Black Rose Dragon. They're 5D's cards.

As a result of this thematic design, we have been painfully deprived of many cards that are in serious need of reprinting to prevent the price barrier growing out of control. Thankfully, it does appear that the first wave of tins this year will each include 1 reprint monster that isn't currently legal outside of the US (The Shining? Wisel?), 2 rare and in demand monsters (Kristya and Fossil Dyna?) as well as 1 high demand spell card. Now, most spells currently played in the vast majority of decks have seen common reprints, special edition reprints and/or gold series reprints. Is Pot of Duality too much to ask for? In this game, probably. But hope remains!

The Fall of the Dueling Network

Unfortunately the inevitable has happened, and Konami has filed a DMCA on Dueling Network. Though not without its flaws, DN was a fantastic tool for deck builders to test out new ideas and prepare for big events by testing with friends. It seems now we'll all have to return to paper proxies, as the state of the current Yu-Gi-Oh! Online offering is still far from the overnight success of DN, and further still from the money making engine that is Magic Online. I guess we can hope that Konami take a few hints from the site's popularity, but I'm sure we all know the more likely outcome...

MTG News - B&R Update

Today is a day that will be long remembered by players of the colour blue. Jace made an entrance to the game much like a hushed whisper. His powers were mysterious, his potential evident to but a few. In a format dominated by the destructive cascades of the Bloodbraid tribe the little mage decided to bide his time, carefully devising a means to conquer.

Last year I won my first real tournament when I won the Manchester Nationals Qualifier, and I did so with Jace at my side. I spent my day drowning out forests, swamps and even mountains, before calling upon Jace to seal my victory. By nationals I lost faith in the Mind Sculptor and decided to dabble in fire and lightning, a thrill of an experience that was as short lived as it was minimally successful.

This year, determined to make up for the error of my ways, I called upon Jace once more and qualified for Nationals yet again. However this time it pains me that Jace will no longer be welcome at the table once I reach Sheffield in August. I owe much of my success and enjoyment of Magic over the past two years to Jace, the Mind Sculptor, much as I did to Cryptic Command before him. Did Jace truly deserve his banishment? His strength is undeniable, but cannot be wielded by those lacking experience. Jace tests skill and patience, but the sheer number of players seeking the challenge of putting him to use simply could not be met by demand.

Can Jace be replaced? Will Tezzeret rise to power? Can anything overcome the might of Valakut? All I know is that Jace will be missed, until Extended season lets him return to competitive action. And until then, there's always Legacy!

Note - I have no sympathy for Stoneforge Mystic. She had it coming.