I never did get around to writing a real introductory post since I've been super busy the past few weeks, partially with the obligatory job hunting, but mostly traveling around and playing Magic.
SO: My name is Susan and I'm a Magic: The Gathering addict. My dream is to be the first woman to win a Pro Tour. I encountered MtG in college as a fun game some of my friends were into, but I didn't have the time or money to even consider picking it up. I finally did the demo two years ago at the Wizards booth at Wizard World Chicago and it was love at first sight. I jumped into the tournament scene shortly thereafter, though with kitchen table quality decks at first, and within a few short months was scouring the Internet for good strategy articles.
My main project now is trying to qualify for PT Amsterdam, but my chance are running out. I think I'm down to the Pittsburgh Midwest Masters Series/Sunday PTQ this weekend and Grand Prix Columbus at the end of the month, for which it looks like I'm borrowing a Legacy Zoo deck. And, reluctantly, Magic Online...I hate losing games I was winning because an unresponsive system or connection problem sends me into timeout or F6 doesn't work correctly.
I'm still running Jund and my list is a whole lot better now. My sideboard has also evolved from a vague plan to a potent metagamed weapon. After the Star City Games 5k in Philly (where I had a disappointing middle of the pack finish), I cut the Trace of Abundance in favor of extra Broodmate Dragons and Sarkan the Mad for a Midwest Masters Series tournament in Madison, WI, then replaced some dragons with Siege-Gang Commander and removal for the more typical Jund list popularized by Owen Turtenwald for the PTQ the next day, where I mulliganed out of the tournament anyway. I then decided the 5 and 6 drops were too clunky and I wanted something comparably threatening at 4 mana or less. I hit upon Abyssal Persecutor as the solution, stuck 2 in the deck along with an extra Sarkhan the Mad, and drove out to Columbus, OH with Mike Poszgay for another MMS/PTQ weekend, where I did ok the first day and rocked the deck to a 12th place finish the next. We playtested with the multi-talented Craig Wescoe when he joined us for Origins the next weekend and confirmed the awesomeness of this build. He wrote about the deck here: http://www.starcitygames.com/magic/standard/19650_The_Wescoe_Connection_Persecutor_Jund_and_M11_Spoilers.html.
We (mostly Poszgay) collectively smashed face in some Sealed events at Origins, then I stayed behind to PTQ unsuccessfully while they ditched Sarkhan and went up to 4 Terminates for the Star City Games 10K in St. Louis, where the deck continued to perform well. I ran pretty much the same list for a Chicago PTQ the next weekend, fought hard and...made the Top 8! So I finally have the shiny top 8 pin I've coveted practically since I started playing, but the accomplishment was bittersweet, because after making it all the way to game 3 of the finals, I just got attritioned out by infinite removal/Flashfreeze + 3 Spreading Seas, with a late late Gideon-Celestial Colonnade double whammy to finish me off while he was at 6 life and I was holding a hand of 2 Bituminous Blasts, Terminate, Goblin Ruinblaster and Lightning Bolt, but no red sources to play them. Heartbreaking...
Craig and I have since refined the list by replacing one land (25 now) and the 4th Bituminous Blast with 2 Borderland Rangers, which I've been very happy with. We made some sideboard changes too. I've been grinding out online PTQs with this list, but will probably switch to Obstinate Baloth Jund this weekend.
No comments:
Post a Comment