An almost Winter King
So, this is quite a bit after the actual event, but I haven’t much felt like writing. Anyway, the event was the Bluegrass Magic Winter King tournament. The deck I decided to play was Gifts Rock. I had been playing it for awhile, and talked with Tom LaPille for awhile and come to what I consider an amazing list.
I picked up the last cards I needed that morning, and the event began. In round one I was playing against Ben Stoll. He was playing Goblins. In game one I kept an opening hand with 2 Birds, 2 Tribe Elder, 2 Eternal Witness, 2 Lands. I didn’t really draw any spells, and all I could do was play my X/1 creatures. He got a Sharpshooter, and ended up attacking for lethal in the first combat. In game two it was basically a thirty minute game of me clearing the board, and waiting to draw Profane Command to kill him, which I eventually did. We had about twenty seconds left at the start of our third game, and so we drew. I kept an opener with 2 Tribe Elders, and a Smother. He couldn’t get in the kind of damage he needed with those out. So, M 0-0-1, G 1-1-1.
In round two I was playing against Jesse Adkins, playing Mono Blue. In game one he kept a two land hand, and stalled there for awhile, and I had time to build too powerful a board position, and I also ripped his hand up with tons of Cabal Therapies. In game two the match progressed slowly, and the end of the game had me with a bunch of lands, and a Pernicious Deed. He plays a Meloku, I Putrefy it. He plays another, I play Eternal Witness, and Putrefy. He plays a Spire Golem and has two Meloku tokens. I play a discard spell, and then use Deed. I beat him with Treetop, an d play a Witness. He plays a Trinket Mage, we race and it comes down to him at 5, and me at 4. He has a Venser, and a Golem that are tapped, and I have Treetop, and Witness. I go to combat he uses Divining Top, and plays Cryptic Command, which taps him out. I have Profane Command for five to kill him. M 1-0-1, G 1-3-1
In round three I play against the Doran deck piloted by Ian Sturgill. I don’t recall a lot of details, I just remember Doran was only in play once, and I used Pernicious Deeds to 3 for 1 several times in our match. M 2-0-1, G 1-5-1
In round four I was playing against Jeremy Zimmer, who was 3-0 with Ichorid. This was the beginning of me getting paired up for three rounds. In game one he mulligans to six, and keeps a hand with no discard outlet. It gives me time to play a Living Wish for Gaddock Teeg. He manages to get very close to going off the next turn, and if he would have seen the play, could have beaten me. He has 1 Narcomoeba, and all 4 Bridges, with Cabal Therapy in the graveyard, but passes turn. I untap, play a land, and Gaddock Teeg to stop the combo kill, and then activate my Treetop Village and sacrifice it to flashback Cabal Therapy removing all his Bridges. He despite the size of his graveyard only has one Ichorid, and I manage to play enough 4/4s to block them until I Profane Command to lose life, and fear to kill him. In game two he has another hand without an outlet. I get enough time to cast Gifts Ungiven, which he concedes to. I had Extirpate/Tormod’s Crypt post Gifts. M 3-0-1, G 1-7-1
In round five I was playing against Brain Reeves. He was also playing the Doran deck. Both games were basically him with a strong start that wasn’t enough, and a mana flood when he needed to draw something powerful. I ripped Hierarchs, and Eternal Witness several times when I needed to as well. M 4-0-1, G 1-9-1
In round six I would have played Tyler Winn, playing Psychatog. We did some math, and determined he would make the Top 8 with any result next round, and so he conceded, sealing the Top 8 for me.
In round seven I was paired against Tom LaPille, and we drew into the Top 8. Final record after the swiss was 5-0-2
Quarterfinals. I was playing against George Taylor playing Domain Zoo. He registered his sideboard wrong, and had a game loss. We start in game two, and I basically throw the game away with wrong play after wrong play for several turns. He wins. He wants to split the prize with me, and have one of us go on to play the Semifinals. We determine that I will play a Doran player next round, and so I get the match win.
Semifinals. I was playing against Owen Turtenwald playing the Doran deck. I win game one despite several play errors. He wins game two and I realize Leyline of the Void is more annoying than I thought. I also cast Akroma’s Vengeance for the first time in the event this round. I later decided that on a turn when I Damnation, I should have cast Faith’s Fetters on his Doran and raced two Birds of Paradise with Ravenous Baloth, and Loxodon Hierarch. In game three I mulligan to five cards, and put up as much of a fight as I can, but it’s just not enough and he wins.
I end up getting $150 which I have to split with George and Scott Schauf who I split with earlier when we thought we were going to have to play eachother. I give George $40 and Scott $55, and leave with $55 which is fine with me. It was an awesome day.
