Writing about Magic

I'd like to write about Magic more, but I haven't done any serious writing in a few months. I plan on writing again very soon, and I want to use the blog post to outline my thoughts about writing about Magic (so meta, I know!). First, the primary factor for not writing has been a lack of time to write. I've been extremely busy with school this semester, and the few breaks I've had I've spent playing Magic instead of writing about Magic. That said, I've still had plenty of time to think about Magic, and have a few article ideas I'm contemplating for the near future.

When people ask me what I want to write about, usually in conjunction with offers to write for their store's site, I find it hard to answer. There are many different types of Magic articles you can write, and while I know I won't be limited to just one type, I don't want to force myself into doing something I'm not fully interested in. When I write, it will be because I have something to say, and not just to meet a deadline or because a new set came out or a new deck has shown up. I think many of the things I say in articles are obvious, or at least written about before, and that is challenging to stay motivated to write. It's reached the point where I don't even read Magic articles anymore outside of interesting tournament reports, because I don't learn much that I haven't heard before. I don't want to do this to my audience, but I think I might be overestimating the amount of exposure people have to the kinds of things I want to talk about.

In general, I'm interested in writing about Magic on a theoretical level. Unlike others who attempt theory every now and then, I'm not trying to create a Formal System of Magic Theory, since there wouldn't be much gained from that anyway. What I want to provide are tools that can be used to look at game states, new magic cards, deck building, etc. that you can take away and apply to different formats and environments. Occasionally I will write about decks, but from a "ground up"-"piece by piece"-"why are we playing this?"-type method (to say that Zvi is my favorite Magic writer would be a huge understatement). I think my goal in writing is (if this analogy puts you off then ignore it) to be Mike Flores, but without all the self-promotion, over-confidence, name-dropping, and just general shenanigans. (I find the things Mike writes about to be the things I want to write about. His methods I find questionable, but he is good at what he does!)

So as for specific articles I want to write, I'll just leave a list here so you can hold me accountable:

Article on the "Pillars of Legacy", focusing on how and why you should use Wasteland
Article on Stoneblade in Legacy, of which many of my opinions differ from the "norm".
Article about "not getting got", which is about inducing bad play from your opponent, but just through game decisions. (I've written most of this article, just need to rearrange some of it and maybe add a bit)
Mega-Article about Cheating in Magic, focusing on Regular REL (probably going to be 4 parts if I ever get around to starting. I have an outline in the works. I also would like any stories you have about cheating to include in the article. contact me on twitter if you have something you want to share!)

SCG Atlanta Invitational Report

This past weekend was the Star City Games Invitational, in Atlanta again. This was only the second invitational I've attended, and also the second one at the Gwinnet Center in Duluth, Georgia. I like the tournament site, but it is too far from the rest of the city.

For the legacy portion of the event, I played Wizard Stoneblade again. This was my list:

4 Tundra

4 Flooded Strand

3 Polluted Delta

1 Marsh Flats

3 Island

2 Plains

2 Riptide Laboratory

1 Karakas

1 Cavern of Souls

1 Academy Ruins

1 Glacial Fortress

3 Spellstutter Sprite

3 Snapcaster Mage

3 Vendilion Clique

4 Stoneforge Mystic

1 Venser, Shaper Savant

4 Force of Will

4 Jace the Mindsculptor

4 Brainstorm

4 Swords to Plowshares

1 Counterspell

1 Spell Snare

1 Spell Pierce

1 Umezawa's Jitte

1 Sword of Feast and Famine

1 Batterskull

1 Detention Sphere

Sideboard:

2 Envelop

1 Familiar's Ruse

1 Spell Snare

1 Spell Pierce

2 Detention Sphere

3 Supreme Verdict

3 Rest in Peace

1 Pithing Needle

1 Hydroblast

I swapped a spellstutter for a snapcaster since the last time, and added the 23rd land. I may write an article about Stoneblade in Legacy later, but the reason you would play this version is because it’s better vs. combo / unfair decks than Esper, and plays "different cards" which can be great in a format like legacy. It's weaker to Liliana and Hymn to Tourach I think, but I didn't expect as much Jund. I thought it would mostly be Jace decks, Show and Tell, and Storm.

Round 1 - Storm

Game one he floods out after I take his tutor with Vendilion Clique. Game 2 I have spellstutter and familiar's ruse to set him way back, and when he finally goes for it I had the envelop for his tutor.

1-0

Round 2 - UWR Delver

Game 1 he keeps one lander but his blind flip delver and stifle are enough to get him there. Game 2 I pitch supreme verdict to force of will instead of snapcaster mage, and then lose 4 turns later to geist of saint traft. I think I could have played game 2 better.

1-1

Round 3 - Red MUD

He has welders and faithless lootings, so I feel safe from Chalice on 1. He does have trinisphere, but I'm able to force of will that. Game 2 my batterskull and Jace race his Wurmcoil Engine, I was in control the whole match.

2-1

Round 4 - Reanimator

Game 1 I counter his reanimation spells, and we both play off the top. I put venser into play and deal him 20 before he draws another reanimation spell. Game 2 I play turn 2 rest in peace, but he has turn 3 show and tell and was on the play, so my vendilion clique wasn't able to stop him. Game 3 he mulligans to 5, and then manages to still have a shot but he punts by not reanimating my snapcaster mage to flashback duress prior to exhuming, but I had envelop.

3-1

My standard deck:

4 Stomping Ground

4 Rootbound Crag

4 Kessig Wolf Run

9 Forest

2 Mountain

4 Arbor Elf

4 Avacyn's Pilgrim

4 Strangleroot Geist

4 Gyre Sage

4 Borderland Ranger

4 Champion of Lambholt

4 Wolfir Silverheart

1 Zealous Conscripts

3 Domri Rade

1 Garruk Relentless

4 Increasing Savagery

Sideboard:

4 Bonfire of the Damned

3 Ground Seal

3 Ranger's Guile

2 Zealous Conscripts

3 Triumph of Ferocity

I'm still not sure if this deck isn't just unplayable garbage. I went 1-3, only beating Naya Blitz by miracling bonfire, but all the other matches (aristocrats, Jund aggro, Reanimator) were close. Tough to say, but I didn't make day 2 and had a bad taste in my mouth so I didn't play the standard open on Saturday.

However bad I felt about my standard deck, I felt that good about my legacy deck. I was ready to win the legacy open on Sunday. Here's how that went:

4 Tundra

4 Flooded Strand

3 Polluted Delta

1 Marsh Flats

3 Island

2 Plains

2 Riptide Laboratory

1 Karakas

1 Cavern of Souls

1 Academy Ruins

1 Glacial Fortress

3 Spellstutter Sprite

3 Snapcaster Mage

3 Vendilion Clique

4 Stoneforge Mystic

1 Venser, Shaper Savant

4 Force of Will

4 Jace the Mindsculptor

4 Brainstorm

4 Swords to Plowshares

1 Counterspell

1 Spell Snare

1 Spell Pierce

1 Umezawa's Jitte

1 Sword of Feast and Famine

1 Batterskull

1 Detention Sphere

Sideboard:

2 Envelop

1 Negate

1 Spell Snare

1 Spell Pierce

2 Detention Sphere

3 Supreme Verdict

3 Rest in Peace

1 Pithing Needle

1 something else

I added negate to the sb at the advice of Woodrow. It took the place of the hydroblast. I also played something instead of the Familiar's Ruse, but I don't know what it was. Maybe it was the Ruse, and I just stopped boarding it in ever.

Round 1 - Rug Delver

I lose a quick game 1 as he land screws me and kills me with delver. I win game 2 as he doesn't have red land and I stick a spellstutter sprite and a jitte. Game 3 goes incredibly long. I have Rest in Peace in play but he gets me to 7 before I stick a batterskull, I get back up to 24 before he deals with the germ, and then he gets me back down to 5 with just delvers and 1/1 mongoose. Eventually I draw out his force of will so it’s safe for me to return the batterskull and replay it, and I win from there.

1-0

I've started siding out Jace vs. rug delver, but I still don't think you want to play less than 4 main deck. The sb plan vs. RUG is almost transformational (-snapcasters and jace, + rest in peace and verdicts) that I think it’s worth it to cut jace.

Round 2 - Bug Delver

I steal game 1 when he sees nothing but land and no answer to my stoneforge and batterskull. I win game 2 as well, with rest in peace to stop his deathrites and goyfs. Same plan as with RUG, but you don't need detention sphere to answer sulfuric vortex and you don't have to worry about pyroblast.

2-0

Round 3 - UR delver

Spellstutter Sprite and Umezawa's Jitte have always been insane vs. burn, and this was no different. I think I hard cast Batterskull both games as well.

3-0

Round 4 - Blue Maverick (Shane Remelt)

Shane was staying in the hotel with me, another Houston guy. We play legacy against each other occasionally at Asgard Games. His maverick list with blue for geist of saint traft was very impressive, and I was on the back foot both games. In the end, I couldn't deal with his gaddock teeg to cast supreme verdict, and I lost. We played a best of 5 match after the tournament for dinner, and I lost that 0-3, but I still think it's not a terrible matchup. I'm probably wrong.

3-1

Round 5 - RUG Delver (Kenny Castor)

Game 1 He draws like 5 lands and no real pressure, so eventually I get him with stoneforge. Game 2 I have a good hand, and I manage to Force of Will his first Sulfuric Vortex, but he gets me with the second one. Game 3 he keeps a one lander without any blue spells, and never casts anything so I kill him with stoneforge again.

4-1

Round 6 - UWr Miracles (Chi Hoi Yim)

Game 1 I have cavern on wizard, but I get too aggressive and cast vendilion cliques into his Swords to Plowshares which lets him resolve a jace. I manage to get a Spellstutter in play with a sword on it, but he makes 3 Angels with Entreat. His jace slowly gets him ahead, and I’m about to die but I draw detention sphere to kill his angels. He has terminus to save his jace, and then tutors for counterbalance and fateseals me out of the game. He had a chance to tutor for Helm of Obedience with RIP in play, but he told me after the match he just forgot rest in peace was in play, so he went for the counterbalance. Game 2 is an interesting game. I get needle down on Top, and he has to use his needle on my Jace. Without top to help his draws, he gets slowly killed by my stoneforges, revealing 3 tops in hand when he dies. There was only 7 minutes left for game 3, so I boarding back up to 4 stoneforge, hoping to win fast. My hand was insane, with Spell Pierce, Negate, Countespell, Snapcaster, and lands. I draw a second snapcaster and basically counter everything he does. He doesn't draw terminus, so I kill him with about a minute to spare.

5-1

Round 7 - Esper Stoneblade

Game 1 he keeps a 1 lander and locks himself out with brainstorm. He concedes to my jace on turn 4. Game 2 he floods out without drawing any relevant action after our first few cards neutralize each other. He does get me good with Cabal Therapy, but my vendilion clique beats him down before he can draw out of the flood.

6-1

Round 8 - Jund

They finally do feature matches for the legacy open now that the invitational is over. I wasn't on camera, and it was a good thing since the games were completely uninteresting. Both games he has turn 2 dark confidant, and I didn't have the counter and never found a swords to plowshares, so I died.  I almost managed a comeback game 1, but he got me with deathrite shaman, and game 2 I could have recovered with supreme verdict, but I never drew one either. Disappointing loss.

6-2

Round 9 - RUG Delver

Guy wanted to split money and work out something for who wanted the open points more, but we both wanted them so we played, no splits. I made short work of another delver opponent, and he was complaining the whole time about how well I was drawing. It kind of upset me, but whatever. When I finished my match, I turned to Will Craddock sitting next to me and asked if he won vs. Drew Levin. He said that he did, so I offered my hand to him and said "Good tournament." And it was, for the most part.

7-2, 17th place, $100.