Last second states tuning...

[Baskil]

Here's what I have right now.

4 Clear the Land
4 Scouting Trek
4 Death Pit Offering
4 Natural Affinity
3 Joreal, Empress of the Beasts
4 Massacre
3 Forced March
3 Thrashing Wumpus
4 Vampiric Tutor
1 Perish
1 Tsabo's Decree
2 Creeping Mold
11 Forest
11 Swamp
1 Rath's Edge
SB
3 Perish
4 Cremate
2 Kavu Chameleon
2 Creeping Mold
2 Squirrel Wrangler
1 Kill Switch
1 Tsabo's Decree

Yes, the deck loses to anything with the text 'Counter Target Spell', but I've decided to play something fun at states this year.
Deck expected (MI States):
Heavy amount of Rebel
Mild amount of Nether-Go, Stompy
Some Counter-Wrath, R/b Ponza, 5cGreen
A lot of decks I haven't thought of yet

Any thoughts? (Note: all "this deck's a pile" comments will be disregarded)

 

[K]

I like the way you said:

Yes, the deck loses to anything with the text 'Counter Target Spell', but I've decided to play something fun at states this year.

Very impressive. I like playing for fun myself.

I still wonder over and over again why you have included a single Perish. Are you that afraid of dear Blastoderm? You know, another Tsabo's Decree or Creeping Mold might be better in place of the Perish. You could also add Invasion's Black Regenerator, the one with the Kicker; can't remember its name. It both Regenerates, which I heard was great against all kind of stuff (which includes Blasto), and it has a Kicker cost which could make it a very annoying little boner towards the end.

I took me a while to realize why you had Clear the Land. I like the idea. Very well thought of.

I wish more people would play for fun rather for win. Its a game, not a job.

[Edited by K on 11-02-00 at 04:25 AM]

 

[Spiderman]

When it comes to high-stakes tourneys like States with something to win on the line, the best deck might not necessarily be the "funnest". Sure, you may have fun but if you lose and expect to lose, why bother entering such a tourney in the first place? That's what friends and local tourneys with less on the line are for.

This is not to say your fun deck can't WIN at States, just an observation/opinion that due to States' prizes, it's no shame and in fact encouraged to bring the best deck possible. Which may be a statement on the atmosphere of States itself...

Was that clear? I hope I didn't muddle it.

 

[Baskil]

Actually, I don't expect to lose per se...
Let me let you into my mind for a sec. This deck loses to Nether-Go and U/W (Unless I can pull off a win before they establish control). However, I have yet to lose a game to any kind of Rebel, LD, or Stompy. And at least at my states, I predict that there will be a *lot* of beatdown. There will also be a lot of rogue creations out there since, well, this is the midwest(see last extended season for evidence).

Here's what I've found:
When I decide what to play for a given tournament, at least in this area, I look at what is assumed to be the best deck. In this case it is Nether-Go or U/W control. Most players, in this area, try to play a deck that beats the best deck. So, in turn, I play something that can beat those decks (and still have a chance with the best deck).

Example: Feb PTQ, this year. The best deck was obviously Trix. In our area, however, there was a strong anti-Trix metagame. There were tons of people playing Three-Deuce and Piece of Crap. So, I decided to play a deck that beat those decks, yet still did well enough against Trix. I played Forbidian with 4 maindeck Back to Basics. I went 3-1 against three deuce, 2-0 vs Piece of Crap, 1-2 vs Sligh, 3-0 vs Hatred, and 0-0 vs Trix in two days.

FF to states, and in my testing, I found that Nether-go was the best deck (although Dark Ponza was a close second). However, I found the deck a bore to play. When I go to a tournament, I don't want to be bored, I want exciting games (which is why I enter a tournament, not to win: winning is a side-effect). So, I looked at what people would play to try to beat nether-go and u/w control. Then, I metagamed against those decks.
Hence, the deck above, with the boatloads of beatdown hate.

Hope that clears it up a little

 

[Spiderman]

That's pretty much the way to go: know the dominate deck(s), know the foils, and go for a deck that can beat them both yet remain unknown or underutilized.

 

[Ristik]

I highly doubt that this deck will do well, even in the fickle MI metagame. And being part of that metagame, I know how fickle it is. All the people I know who plan on attending States are packing either Fish or U/B control, featuring many cards that say not only "counter target spell" but in many cases say other things you don't want to see. The only exception is an old-school WW deck, which tends to drop turn 4 Arm of Geddon quite often. In addition, I feel that MI decks are going to tend to lean towards control, given that I heard much talk at the prereleases about how anxious people were to see Saga block go away so that they can play "real games". That said, I am very impressed with your deck. It seems very solid against beatdown and will almost certainly be the best cross-color deck there. And incidentally, since I can't go to States, could you possibly pm me some info on what decks are out there so I can tune my deck for the MI metagame? Thanks a bunch!

 

[Baskil]

The MI metagame is fickle, for sure. I'm not exactly married to this deck, but it seems like it'll be a lot of fun (especially if I see a lot of anti-armageddon decks and few counter decks). I'll be sure to post my results here probably the following monday. What should be interesting is how the other two people I know (who are using decks that I helped design) will do. One is using a U/W Cowardice deck with Sway of Illusion and Blind Seer. The other is playing a variant of the Dark Ponza deck I posted earlier, complete with (Zadok will love this) 3 Pyre Zombies.