Michael Keller
03-15-2010, 12:37 AM
http://www.wizards.com/mtg/images/daily/sf/sf48_Deathmark.jpg
It is quite certainly a paradox: For the last three tournaments, I have been in a funk, essentially drifting from deck to deck and trying to find something new to try. Unfortunately, I ended up trying Canadian Thresh (at SCG's Open in Richmond) and NO Bant (at Jupiter Games' Dual Land Draft). After performing less than mediocre with both of these decks, I received words of encouragement from teammates and friends to go back to building my own decks and what works best for me. So, after a disappointing performance at Jupiter that left a bad taste in my mouth, I decided to try out a deck I have been testing extensively which I call..."The Gate" (for reasons to be discussed). I pick up the cards from Jupiter the night before and prepare for Sunday's event further south.
We arrive at the tournament and get settled in. I register the deck and meet up with some of the other Virginia guys (Krieger, beastman. and Parcher). I traveled with Dave Price (quicksilver) and Phil (snorlaxx) to the event and we hang out for a little bit. 32 people show up for the event, but ultimately they worked it out so there were six rounds of play, so it worked out better for everyone.
For reference, here's the list I ran:
"The Gate" by Michael "Hollywood" Keller
//Creatures
[4x] Dark Confidant
[4x] Abyssal Persecutor
[4x] Gatekeeper of Malikir
[3x] Faerie Macabre
[3x] Vampire Nighthawk
//Spells
[4x] Bitterblossom
[4x] Innocent Blood
[4x] Deathmark
[4x] Duress
[3x] Cabal Therapy
[3x] Umezawa's Jitte
//Land
[16x] Swamp
[4x] Wasteland
//Sideboard
[4x] Painter's Servant
[4x] Grindstone
[3x] Relic of Progenitus
[3x] Nevinyrral's Disk
[1x] Tormod's Crypt
As you can see, the basic principle of the deck is to generate board control by playing sacrificial removal and targeted removal and setting yourself up for crushing an opponent with a systematic attack. You generate card advantage in so many ways in this deck (with Dark Confidant, Jitte, Bitterblossom, Faerie Macabre, Gatekeeper, etc.), it's not even funny. It's kind of late so I'm passing on what I boarded in (unless I distinctly remember) and go right into the report so you can get an idea how the deck plays and what it is capable of doing:
Round One vs. Berserk Stompy
Game One: I keep a decent hand with a fair amount of removal. I end up destroying every threat he processes and eventually dropped Abyssal Persecutor with Bitterblossom and Jitte. I Deathmark twice and eventually put him to the negatives and sacrificed Persecutor to flashback Cabal Therapy, ending the game.
Game Two: I mulligan to six on the draw hoping to pickup something relevant against his impending threats but I just couldn't find anything. Eventually, I drop Bitterblossom but he Might of Old Krosa (x2) with Rancor and Berserk attacks me and I block with a Faerie token, but it doesn't matter either way; I couldn't find any removal.
Game Three: I eliminate every threat he processes and beat him down systematically with Faeries and Persecutor with a Jitte out. I eventually kick Gatekeeper to sacrifice the Persecutor and win the game.
1-0-0 (2-1-0)
Round Two vs. Ichorid
Game One: I open with a Faerie Macabre and Innocent Blood. He plays Putrid Imp and I Blood. He discards a single Dredger and Bloodghast. I eventually blow him out with a Bitterblossom and Jitte knocking off his Ichorids and Bloodghasts and nixing his Bridges by killing my own Faeries.
Game Two: He mulls to five and I open with a Faerie Macabre after he Breakthroughs. I draw into gas and beat him down until it is too late to recover from two Vampire Nighthawks and a Dark Confidant.
2-0-0 [4-1-0]
Round Three vs. New Horizons
Game One: I let Dave Price know we won't end up playing against each other and we do (go figure). He indicates how bad the matchup is for him and I nonchalantly agree to his claims because he is a good man and I can't argue. He drops three Tarmogoys and a Knight of the Reliquary which are Deathmarked and Gatekeepered out. I end up discarding his Swords and he can't recover from Abyssal Persecutor and Nighthawk. I have a Therapy in my yard for the win.
Game Two: Dave tries to get some early gas going but I knock out his Daze with discard. I blow out his dudes with removal after removal and Gatekeepers allow me to setup the board nicely. I eventually have Bitterblossom with Persecutor and he can't recover at -4 with a Therapy in the yard.
3-0-0 [6-1-0]
Round Four vs. Reanimator
Game One: We end up having a friendly conversation before the match. He ends up going first and gets Iona in the yard with an Exhume in hand. He goes to cast Exhume, and I discard Faerie Macabre. SCORE! I get my dude in play, and he eventually gets beat down by Gatekeepers and a Vampire Nighthawk (one was Forced, another resolved).
Game Two: After mulling to five, I wind up with Disk, Swamp (x3), and a Relic. He Careful Studies and drops Iona and Archangel. I get the Relic going and he has no way of reanimating or stopping the Relic. I wind up getting Nighthawks with Jitte and an untapped Disk on board to keep him at bay. I wind up Faerie Macabring two more creatures he gets into his yard and he cannot recover. I allow him to get Blazing Archon in play. I Innocent Blood. Game over.
4-0-0 [8-1-0]
I I.D. the next two rounds into the Top 8 as the number one seed.
4-0-2 [8-1-2]
Top 8 vs. New Horizons
Game One: Dave is very disappointed he has to play me again after making it in. I reassure him that nothing is over until it's over. He winds up winning game one after I keep a one-land hand with some removal. I eventually bounce back after missing land-drops for the next three turns and I almost manage to pull it out in the end, but it was too little, too late.
Game Two: I open up with discard and Gatekeepers which effectively stopped him from elminating my threats. I cast Duress and knock out Brainstorm turn one. I then Therapy out the two Explosives I had seen, leaving him with just a Goyf, Swords, and some land. I just have too much removal for him to establish any board presence and destroy him with a Jitte-equipped Persecutor and Bitterblossom tokens.
Game Three. Similar story to game two; I end up eliminating three Goyfs and a Knight and he cannot recover. I two for one with Gatekeeper of Malikar and eventually beat in for the win with Persecutor. I Innocent Blood for the win (I could have Jitte'd out my Persecutor with six tokens on it, but decided to keep them in case).
5-0-2 [10-2-2]
Top Four vs. B/g/w Homebrew
Game One: Phil and I had tested the night before at Jupiter and the match was relatively even. I wind up with several Nighthawks and a Jitte on the table while putting Phil to 6 and myself at 33. He gets several Tombstalkers and Kitchen Finks, both of which are (kind of) annoying. I do hold off any impending attack of his, but he has a Sensei's Top going and I make the misplay of not attack through, stockpiling counters on Jitte, and perhaps killing him with the other Nighthawk. He finds answers to my threats and my slow-down approach cost me.
Game Two: Phil and I trade blows back and forth, and the game winds up pretty even. I nuke all his threats both of our hands are empty. He eventually beats me down with a Goyf and Putrid Leech. I kill the Goyf with Deathmark and I draw nothing for two turns. Phil also has nothing but a land in hand and Leech on the table. Lethal is now on board. I do have Relic on board, which I exile to draw an answer...nothing! I play another Relic, keeping the suspense going. I exile that one with one black mana left untapped. It's...a Gatekeeper of Malikir! But damn, I don't have enough to play or kick. It happens.
As I was playing throughout the day, I noticed how (devastatingly) effective the deck played against some of the most prolific decks in the format, including Reanimator (which won GP Madrid), New Horizons twice (which just won Jupiter's 106 person tournament), and Ichorid. The important thing I want to note is that it just fit my playstyle, and that is ultimately the point: You need to play a deck you feel comfortable running and the sky's the limit. Some people are just better at playing their own creations, and it was good to be back.
As far as sideboarding goes, the Painter's Servants and Grindstones were a transformational surprise that didn't see all that much play and will ultimately be taken out for more effective choices. I haven't decided yet because it is almost 1 am and I have to work in five hours, and as we all know Uncle Sam doesn't wait for anybody.
MVP:
http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=185698&type=card
I named the deck "The Gate" because of Gatekeeper of Malikir, which turned out to be the MVP of the day for me, being extremely efficient as creature removal and a body. He even helps knock off Persecutor or Bob if need be. Ultimately, I nabbed a Scrubland, two Orim's Chants, and a Verdant Catacombs for my troubles. Not too shabby for a day of Magic playing. I believe this deck can be a force in the current Legacy metagame and provides an anti-establishment approach of playstyle. Sorry to keep the report brief but I'll go more in depth on detailed card explanations and how the deck works tomorrow.
For now...
It is quite certainly a paradox: For the last three tournaments, I have been in a funk, essentially drifting from deck to deck and trying to find something new to try. Unfortunately, I ended up trying Canadian Thresh (at SCG's Open in Richmond) and NO Bant (at Jupiter Games' Dual Land Draft). After performing less than mediocre with both of these decks, I received words of encouragement from teammates and friends to go back to building my own decks and what works best for me. So, after a disappointing performance at Jupiter that left a bad taste in my mouth, I decided to try out a deck I have been testing extensively which I call..."The Gate" (for reasons to be discussed). I pick up the cards from Jupiter the night before and prepare for Sunday's event further south.
We arrive at the tournament and get settled in. I register the deck and meet up with some of the other Virginia guys (Krieger, beastman. and Parcher). I traveled with Dave Price (quicksilver) and Phil (snorlaxx) to the event and we hang out for a little bit. 32 people show up for the event, but ultimately they worked it out so there were six rounds of play, so it worked out better for everyone.
For reference, here's the list I ran:
"The Gate" by Michael "Hollywood" Keller
//Creatures
[4x] Dark Confidant
[4x] Abyssal Persecutor
[4x] Gatekeeper of Malikir
[3x] Faerie Macabre
[3x] Vampire Nighthawk
//Spells
[4x] Bitterblossom
[4x] Innocent Blood
[4x] Deathmark
[4x] Duress
[3x] Cabal Therapy
[3x] Umezawa's Jitte
//Land
[16x] Swamp
[4x] Wasteland
//Sideboard
[4x] Painter's Servant
[4x] Grindstone
[3x] Relic of Progenitus
[3x] Nevinyrral's Disk
[1x] Tormod's Crypt
As you can see, the basic principle of the deck is to generate board control by playing sacrificial removal and targeted removal and setting yourself up for crushing an opponent with a systematic attack. You generate card advantage in so many ways in this deck (with Dark Confidant, Jitte, Bitterblossom, Faerie Macabre, Gatekeeper, etc.), it's not even funny. It's kind of late so I'm passing on what I boarded in (unless I distinctly remember) and go right into the report so you can get an idea how the deck plays and what it is capable of doing:
Round One vs. Berserk Stompy
Game One: I keep a decent hand with a fair amount of removal. I end up destroying every threat he processes and eventually dropped Abyssal Persecutor with Bitterblossom and Jitte. I Deathmark twice and eventually put him to the negatives and sacrificed Persecutor to flashback Cabal Therapy, ending the game.
Game Two: I mulligan to six on the draw hoping to pickup something relevant against his impending threats but I just couldn't find anything. Eventually, I drop Bitterblossom but he Might of Old Krosa (x2) with Rancor and Berserk attacks me and I block with a Faerie token, but it doesn't matter either way; I couldn't find any removal.
Game Three: I eliminate every threat he processes and beat him down systematically with Faeries and Persecutor with a Jitte out. I eventually kick Gatekeeper to sacrifice the Persecutor and win the game.
1-0-0 (2-1-0)
Round Two vs. Ichorid
Game One: I open with a Faerie Macabre and Innocent Blood. He plays Putrid Imp and I Blood. He discards a single Dredger and Bloodghast. I eventually blow him out with a Bitterblossom and Jitte knocking off his Ichorids and Bloodghasts and nixing his Bridges by killing my own Faeries.
Game Two: He mulls to five and I open with a Faerie Macabre after he Breakthroughs. I draw into gas and beat him down until it is too late to recover from two Vampire Nighthawks and a Dark Confidant.
2-0-0 [4-1-0]
Round Three vs. New Horizons
Game One: I let Dave Price know we won't end up playing against each other and we do (go figure). He indicates how bad the matchup is for him and I nonchalantly agree to his claims because he is a good man and I can't argue. He drops three Tarmogoys and a Knight of the Reliquary which are Deathmarked and Gatekeepered out. I end up discarding his Swords and he can't recover from Abyssal Persecutor and Nighthawk. I have a Therapy in my yard for the win.
Game Two: Dave tries to get some early gas going but I knock out his Daze with discard. I blow out his dudes with removal after removal and Gatekeepers allow me to setup the board nicely. I eventually have Bitterblossom with Persecutor and he can't recover at -4 with a Therapy in the yard.
3-0-0 [6-1-0]
Round Four vs. Reanimator
Game One: We end up having a friendly conversation before the match. He ends up going first and gets Iona in the yard with an Exhume in hand. He goes to cast Exhume, and I discard Faerie Macabre. SCORE! I get my dude in play, and he eventually gets beat down by Gatekeepers and a Vampire Nighthawk (one was Forced, another resolved).
Game Two: After mulling to five, I wind up with Disk, Swamp (x3), and a Relic. He Careful Studies and drops Iona and Archangel. I get the Relic going and he has no way of reanimating or stopping the Relic. I wind up getting Nighthawks with Jitte and an untapped Disk on board to keep him at bay. I wind up Faerie Macabring two more creatures he gets into his yard and he cannot recover. I allow him to get Blazing Archon in play. I Innocent Blood. Game over.
4-0-0 [8-1-0]
I I.D. the next two rounds into the Top 8 as the number one seed.
4-0-2 [8-1-2]
Top 8 vs. New Horizons
Game One: Dave is very disappointed he has to play me again after making it in. I reassure him that nothing is over until it's over. He winds up winning game one after I keep a one-land hand with some removal. I eventually bounce back after missing land-drops for the next three turns and I almost manage to pull it out in the end, but it was too little, too late.
Game Two: I open up with discard and Gatekeepers which effectively stopped him from elminating my threats. I cast Duress and knock out Brainstorm turn one. I then Therapy out the two Explosives I had seen, leaving him with just a Goyf, Swords, and some land. I just have too much removal for him to establish any board presence and destroy him with a Jitte-equipped Persecutor and Bitterblossom tokens.
Game Three. Similar story to game two; I end up eliminating three Goyfs and a Knight and he cannot recover. I two for one with Gatekeeper of Malikar and eventually beat in for the win with Persecutor. I Innocent Blood for the win (I could have Jitte'd out my Persecutor with six tokens on it, but decided to keep them in case).
5-0-2 [10-2-2]
Top Four vs. B/g/w Homebrew
Game One: Phil and I had tested the night before at Jupiter and the match was relatively even. I wind up with several Nighthawks and a Jitte on the table while putting Phil to 6 and myself at 33. He gets several Tombstalkers and Kitchen Finks, both of which are (kind of) annoying. I do hold off any impending attack of his, but he has a Sensei's Top going and I make the misplay of not attack through, stockpiling counters on Jitte, and perhaps killing him with the other Nighthawk. He finds answers to my threats and my slow-down approach cost me.
Game Two: Phil and I trade blows back and forth, and the game winds up pretty even. I nuke all his threats both of our hands are empty. He eventually beats me down with a Goyf and Putrid Leech. I kill the Goyf with Deathmark and I draw nothing for two turns. Phil also has nothing but a land in hand and Leech on the table. Lethal is now on board. I do have Relic on board, which I exile to draw an answer...nothing! I play another Relic, keeping the suspense going. I exile that one with one black mana left untapped. It's...a Gatekeeper of Malikir! But damn, I don't have enough to play or kick. It happens.
As I was playing throughout the day, I noticed how (devastatingly) effective the deck played against some of the most prolific decks in the format, including Reanimator (which won GP Madrid), New Horizons twice (which just won Jupiter's 106 person tournament), and Ichorid. The important thing I want to note is that it just fit my playstyle, and that is ultimately the point: You need to play a deck you feel comfortable running and the sky's the limit. Some people are just better at playing their own creations, and it was good to be back.
As far as sideboarding goes, the Painter's Servants and Grindstones were a transformational surprise that didn't see all that much play and will ultimately be taken out for more effective choices. I haven't decided yet because it is almost 1 am and I have to work in five hours, and as we all know Uncle Sam doesn't wait for anybody.
MVP:
http://gatherer.wizards.com/Handlers/Image.ashx?multiverseid=185698&type=card
I named the deck "The Gate" because of Gatekeeper of Malikir, which turned out to be the MVP of the day for me, being extremely efficient as creature removal and a body. He even helps knock off Persecutor or Bob if need be. Ultimately, I nabbed a Scrubland, two Orim's Chants, and a Verdant Catacombs for my troubles. Not too shabby for a day of Magic playing. I believe this deck can be a force in the current Legacy metagame and provides an anti-establishment approach of playstyle. Sorry to keep the report brief but I'll go more in depth on detailed card explanations and how the deck works tomorrow.
For now...