2256 registered players for the Grand Prix marks the largest premier regional event in recent years but am pretty sure the upcoming Grand Prix Chiba (Modern Masters 2) would easily top this number with rumours expecting a turnout of close to a whopping 4,000 players! The format for GP Shizuoka is the twilight triple Khans of Tarkir Limited with now close to four full months since its release. Since the finale of the World Magic Championship Qualifiers, I have been lining up my Limited events – Grand Prix Shanghai, PTQ Fate Reforged (Bangkok) and GP Shizuoka, in order to have a focused practice. Overall, I have done around a dozen sealed decks and close to 60 drafts. There was not much more I could have done to “prepare” myself.
With my customary 2 round byes and sleep in special, (“SIS”) I arrived at the event hall around 10am only to be ushered to a holding area with other SIS players. The normal check in time was 11am, but today they required the players to check in at 10:30am which was slightly unusual given that Round 1 was only part way through. But after we were seated everyone found out that DCI new policy was to have all players register their individual cards and do a deck swap. So now the SIS perks were reduced to just “sleeping-in” which is not a big deal anymore to pay an extra USD30. Mental note for next event.
The pool I registered was very peculiar. It had a unusual large number of blue cards notably five blue rares & mythic in Icy Blast, Dig Through Time, Kharu Spellsnatcher, Thousand Winds and Clever Impersonator. The final count was 21 blue cards (a ratio of 3.5 blue cards a pack), which also included solid playables like a pair of Distainful Strokes and Crippling Chills, Force Away and a Glacial Stalker. Other colours were slightly shallow, but I didn’t pay much attention anymore as I was focused on Kenji Tsumura who was seated opposite me two seats on my right. Chances are players were to pass decks two seats to their left and I would likely be beneficiary of Kenji’s deck. I caught a glimpse of a See the Unwritten, Rattleclaw Mystic and a pair of Wooly Loxodons, which was a good sign. But as Kenji flipped through his pool for a final check to his registered list, I noticed the lack of other rares in his card pool. But when he got to his land section that’s when I spotted a Polluted Delta, Wooded Foothills and Bloodstained Mire. I remembered letting out a brief shrug.
But when deck swap was announced, we were all passing to the right! Three times in fact. I did a quick check of my pool and first thing I looked was the land section. Only five fixers. The pool had a decently selection of Jeskai with Sage of Inward Eye, Mindswipe, Jeskai Ascendancy, Efreet Weaponmaster, Warden of the Eye, Mystic of Hidden Way, Arrow Storm, Abzan Falconer and Mardu Heart-Piercer. But none of my fixers produced a combination of red white and blue. All my fixers had a green symbol which led me towards my other half of my pool containing Siege Rhino, Armament Corps, Dead Drop, Bitter Revelation and Wooly Loxodon. Alternatively I had Mardu with Hordling Outburst, Trumpet Blast, Mardu Ascendancy, Mardu Warshrieker , Ponyback Brigade and Mardu Roughrider. But one thing I learnt was playing without fixers spell doom and with a Rhino and Corps to anchor my green, this was the direction I had to take and registered the following:
When the cards were laid out, it didn’t seem too bad. But only after I submitted the deck and started shuffling up, the deck was spitting unusual hands of a broken manabase despite having a fair number of fixers. I reach for my sideboard to try alternatives, but nothing seemed to work. The only option I didn’t try (which I probably should have on hindsight) was the Jeskai part of my deck. But the disadvantages of travelling alone didn’t give me a chance to bounce off ideas or test my theories, which now I will consider before attending anymore limited events going forward.
I walked around the event hall to cool my head a little and just took some random shots of things you don’t normally see in a regular GP.
GP Feature Match Area.... nah but it was the area for Big Magic Legacy open Finals
Arcade!
And don't forget the "magical" wheel which "wins" you lots and lots of prizes.......But this time they were giving away the sweet custom made Rebecca Guay playmate hanging above the mystic wheel
Back to business. In Rounds 3 and 4, the deck churned out like a well-oiled machine. It did stumble a little with some flooding but that’s a norm in KTK limited especially with 18 lands. I took both wins and started 4-0 in my return to Shizuoka. In round 5 I was matched with Ken Yukihoro and kept a starting hand on a draw with Temur Charger, Wooly Loxodon, Siege Rhino, Armament Corps, Swamp, Plains, Forest. You cant really ask for a better hand against the Japanese professional. He was on a quick black white warriors and had a fast turn 1 Bloodsoaked Champion into a turn 3 morph. I had a turn 3 morph as well but I continued to miss my land drops for next four turns and it was a quick end as I sat holding my Rhino, Heart Piercer, Corps and Alabastar Kirin. This is when things started to slide downhill real fast. Ken applied quick pressure early in game 2, but I was stabilizing with a Kirin and had just cast a Dragonscale Boon on my morph (Sage-Eye Harrier) during my combat phase to strike down his own Kirin. For a brief moment I thought I had the tempo advantage with me having a 4/4 morph and a Kirin and Ken with a 3/3 flying Highspire Mantis and a Mardu Hateblade. But on Ken’s turn, he spawned a morph and a Chief of the Scales shifting the tempo back to him and me sitting on 7 life. I had Dead Drop in my hand and with only 6 lands in play and 3 cards in the yard, I needed to draw a 7th land to even up the board. Alternatively I could leave up 7 mana to unmorph my flier and a Awaken the Bear backup. But I drew Opulent Palace. With limited options I can only pass the turn. Ken revealed his morph – Jeering Instigator. Game over.
I pushed aside the loss and headed into round 6 against a sweet Jeskai deck with Thousand Winds and End Hostilities. In the decider, I pushed my board hard and got him down to 3 life. My opponent was missing blue mana and I knew he didn’t have the sweeper in hand. But on the pivotal turn he drew and island off the top and Treasure Cruised for the sweeper. I had a Mardu Roughrider waiting in the wings and kept 3 open with only Awaken the Bear in hand and lands. His next play – Master the Way for 6. The instant saved my monster and trumped pass a hapless morph. My shaky mana base was acting up again this game but I breathed a sigh of relief going into round 7.
In round 7 my opponent started out with a super aggressive Jeskai and I drew a plains one turn too late as he had the tempo advantage and took game 1 with a Rush of Battle. In game two my aggressive start got him down to 7 life. I had a board of a morphed Wooly Loxodon and an Alpine Grizzly. I still had Sage-Eye Harrier and Highland Game in my hand with 7 lands in play. My opponent had just cast a Rotting Mastodon with no untapped mana. My options:
1) Attack witb both, he blocks Grizzly I unmorph and bring him to down 1. Next turn I play two creatures.
2) Attack with both, he blocks Loxodon, I unmorph and he goes to 4.
3) Play both my creatures and try to go wide.
I went for the third play and regretted it soon after. He continued to cast ground beater after ground beater. Had he gone to 1, my Harrier would have finished him off. Even if he had gone to 4, I may have been able to punch him to 1 in the following attack. But with the board stabilized I was only pecking away for a point and started to flood out drawing 4 lands in a row. I got him down to 3 life and that’s when he cast Villainous Wreath for 6.
Mardu Heart-piercer
Mardu Warshrieker
Dragonscale Boon
Awaken the Bear
Siege Rhino
Temur Charger
From that point I knew this GP was not meant to be. With my only out on the other side of the table I wished him good luck. My final win or go home round was very anticlimactic. My deck was based green white, splashing black and red. In games 1 and 2, I had Siege Rhinos in both my opening hands but never drew a white source in game 1 and a green source in game 2. It was not even a contest. But to be fair, my opponent did show me his Sorin + Wingmate Roc + Duneblast deck. I showed my Japanese opponent my Rhino and tried to tell him of my suffering. He smiled and laughed a little. Not sure if he understood what I said, or was just mocking me in his head – Bleh! Oh well…..
With that my GP Shizuoka was over and I decided to buy myself a souvenir to remind myself of another wasted opportunity.
Back to the training grounds for the upcoming PTQ in February and to finally welcome Ugin in Fate Reforged!
No comments:
Post a Comment