Michael Keller
04-29-2007, 12:51 AM
(A more thorough examination of the deck will be posted in the New and Developmental Forum or the Open Forum at the Mods' discretion in the next few days).
I'm really not going to go too much into details about what I did when I woke up and my early morning habits, because that's just ridiculous :cool: Anyways I arrived at the tournament with the rest of Team Darkness with my list already filled out and ready to go. I suppose most people thought I was running Red Death today because I had all the cards pimped out for it. I decided to axe that and try something a bit different. I was probably still considered a long-shot to Top 8 at such a big tournament with great players...but I've always considered myself a solid player no matter what. I'm always humble and respectful to my opponents. So when I arrived, I just kicked back and let all my preparation and experience speak for itself.
At any rate, here it is:
http://www.agirlsworld.com/rachel/hangin-with/pix/polarex2.jpghttp://www.adventureson.com/images/smallpix/IA/3516.jpg
"The Polar Express"
//Main Deck
4x Duress
4x Brainstorm
4x Force of Will
4x Lim Dul's Vault
4x Shallow Grave
4x Buried Alive
4x Reanimate
4x Dark Ritual
2x Sutured Ghoul
2x Krosan Cloudscraper
2x Polar Kraken
4x Bloodstained Mire
4x Polluted Delta
4x Underground Sea
4x Watery Grave
4x Lotus Petal
2x Swamp
//Sideboard
4x Hydroblast
4x Engineered Plague
4x Stifle
3x Pithing Needle
The basic strategy of the deck is to combo out as fast as possible with Buried Alive. It's really that simple. You have enough backup in Duress and FoW to protect any shenanigans your opponent might present. Simple reanimation strategy - backed by some of the most potent cards in the format. Most people didn't give it much of a chance at first because I flashed 'Polar Kraken' at some of my fellow Syracuse players, earning a big chuckle. But as time had proven: If you're a bad little boy, the only present you'll get from Santa is a ludicrous thrashing straight from 1995. I know some of these matches aren't detailed as much as they could be, but honestly, my matches rarely went past turn 4. I also don't recall what I ultimately boarded in against specific matchups, but against most Stifles almost always came in on the draw along with Needles - with the obvious Plagues and Hydroblasts against Goblins/red. So on to the tournament:
Round 1 vs. Cody (43 Land/LftL)
Game One: I open up with a nutty draw and get a turn 3 possibility of winning. But after seeing Cody mill a Maze of Ith from a LtfL dredge, I proceed to scoop as there obviously is no answer for that first game.
Game Two: I go off turn 2 and he has no answer.
Game Three: I get a pretty good draw with Dark Ritual, Dark Ritual, Buried Alive....but no reanimation. I keep it and eventually have to deal with Chalice set at one. I can get around it easy...because I was going to Lim Dul's Vault into hopefully a Shallow Grave. Unfortunately, I plucked into 25 of my top cards and couldn't find it. By the time I did, he had lethal man-land damage on board. I lose.
0-1-0 (1-2-0)
Round 2 vs. Jon (Mr. Nipples w/ R/w Gobs)
Game One: I proceed to combo out turn 3. H ehas open Plateau. He tries a Swords. I Force. I win.
Game Two: He starts off with a hand that isn't too broken. I drop a land and Petal. I then proceed to Lim Dul's Vault at his EOT and nail two Engineered Plagues. I drop the first a turn later with a Ritual then turn three I drop another. He can't recover and scoops.
1-1-0 (3-2-0)
Round 3 vs. Greg (Nantuko Shady w/ Solidarity)
Game One: Greg is always a pleasure to play, a real class act. So, we meet again when it matters most. I go first and Dark Ritual out a morphed Cloudscraper. I beat for a few turns with some Duress backup. He goes down to about 11. After a previous Buried Alive, I decide to Shallow Grave my Sutured Ghoul. I only remove the other Cloudscraper - making him a 13/13. Greg musters enough strength to Turnabout my creature. So, with one card left in hand...I actually Reanimate Polar Kraken and take 11 damage - putting me down to two. He doesn't find an answer and I pay the cumulative upkeep and hit him for 13 - plus the morph.
Game Two: I combo out turn two and he can't recover or counter.
2-1-0 (5-2-0)
Round 4 vs. Brandon w/ Burn
Game One: He's playing burn, which is a match I never tested. I think my pre-board is pretty solid against him. I actually Reanimated off a Lim Dul's Vault and put myself down to four and won the game. He didn't have enough firepower and/or Fireblast ftw. I got it.
Game Two: I combo out turn two - and he can't recover.
3-1-0 (7-2-0)
Round 5 vs. Justen w/ Affinity
Game One: He dropped an Aether Vial turn one. I combo out turn 3 and his beaters can't match the might of a 26/26 trampler. Some of his creatures were also turned sideways to help.
Game Two: I can't recover from his early beats. Ornithopter with Cranial was absolutely devastating. I had Vault, but couldn't get it going enough to help.
Game Three: He drops a few Aether Vials and a Frogmite. I combo out turn four...and he has a Vial set at 2. He claims to have Atog in his grip to soak up alot of damage, but that to me was a serious bull shit detector. I Shallow Grave and swing for the win.
4-1-0 (9-3-0)
Round 6 vs. Matt (bigbear w/ Survival)
We I.D. and hope to make Top 8...it was tight but we felt it was the right call.
4-1-1 (9-3-1)
I wait around hoping to make Top 8. Once the standing are determined, one of the guys running the event handed me my set of Bolts I donated to ninth. I thought, "Oh shit". And he looked serious. But, he quietly snatched them back and informed me I made eighth seed. After running the gauntlet, everyone finally started taking full notice that 'The Polar Express' was in full force. I was glad to hear another member of Team Darkness made Top 8 as the one seed - A.J. Ryfun. Ironically enough, I had to play him next.
Top 8 vs. A.J. w/ R/g Goblins
Game One: I go first, and get the early advantage with land and two petals. A.J. Eventually gets me down to seven life before I Shallow Grave from a previous Buried Alive ftw. Whew.
Game Two: This game was a nightmare for me, because A.J. drew into two Crypts and for some God-forsaken reason I didn't board anything but Plagues in against him. I was shocked to realize that when I fetched and saw nothing. I had to hardcast Ghoul with Cloudscraper in the yard. he Crypts and eventually beats for the win.
Game Three: I combo out turn two and he has no Crypt.
5-1-1 (11-4-1)
Top 4 vs. John L. (Mulletus w/ his patented Survival build)
Game One: I didn't really have an overly sexy opening draw, but with a Vault I decided to keep anyways. He goes Duress, Therapy, Therapy, beats with FTK (offing his own Bird I believe) for the win.
Game Two: I combo out turn four with Force backup after I Vaulted and John can't deal with it.
Game Three: After resolving a Spore Frog and Survival things looked dim. I had Reanimates in hand to try and pick up his dead Survivaled guys. I might have changed the outcome ofthe game hadn't I not Reanimated Squee over E. Witness and then Genesis. I needed blockers and that apparently clouded my train of thought. John really had the advantage from the start in this one because I was put on the defensive.
5-2-1 (12-6-1)
So I ended up placing fourth and nabbing a set of Tropical Islands. Not bad for a deck with Polar Kraken :cool:. Ultimately, the Polar Express turned out to be the shocker of the tournament. But the truth is, I knew it had a shot from the beginning. That's why I decided to run it - because of the consistency the deck belts out. All in all a fantabulous showing for Team Darkness...and especially...myself and the Polar Express.
Props
- My brother first and foremost for discovering the deck idea from a few years back. If it wasn't for him I might not be posting this right now.
- Team Darkness for sticking together despite tremendous odds in the Syracuse metagame and the mix of good players from all around. Two of us made Top 8. We rock.
- My buddy Chris for helping me get the cards for the deck. Without him, I don't think it would have happened. He also named the deck after having a ton of beer.
- Matt A. for drawing the final round and placing ninth. You made out good though!
- Polar Kraken. No one else believed in you, but I do lol. 1996 Magic is where it's at, baby.
- Kadilak and Eli for putting together a good tournament. You can bet I'll be there next time. Piza was awesome, by the way.
- Anwar: Go go gadget FBB Badlands!
- 1996 Magic. I love you.
Slops
- Bryant for saying, "when was the last time you Top 8'ed at a major event :cool:. Never diss A Legend, youngin'...
- Bob: WtHell happened?
- Lands, because I lost to them round one and Mike (Mr. T) drew into about eight of them in a row in his match.
Other than that a solid showing and a solid performance by yours truly. I'll get more in depth in the next few days if anyone's interested. It's just kind if late and I'm really tired. In the coming days I'll post the list and strategies the deck uses and abuses. To quote "The Polar Express"...
"At one time most of my friends could hear the bell, but as years passed it fell silent for all of them. Though I've grown old the bell still rings for me, as it does for all who truly...believe.
Believe this: The Polar Express is tearing up the tracks, baby. Next stop...Columbus.
I'm really not going to go too much into details about what I did when I woke up and my early morning habits, because that's just ridiculous :cool: Anyways I arrived at the tournament with the rest of Team Darkness with my list already filled out and ready to go. I suppose most people thought I was running Red Death today because I had all the cards pimped out for it. I decided to axe that and try something a bit different. I was probably still considered a long-shot to Top 8 at such a big tournament with great players...but I've always considered myself a solid player no matter what. I'm always humble and respectful to my opponents. So when I arrived, I just kicked back and let all my preparation and experience speak for itself.
At any rate, here it is:
http://www.agirlsworld.com/rachel/hangin-with/pix/polarex2.jpghttp://www.adventureson.com/images/smallpix/IA/3516.jpg
"The Polar Express"
//Main Deck
4x Duress
4x Brainstorm
4x Force of Will
4x Lim Dul's Vault
4x Shallow Grave
4x Buried Alive
4x Reanimate
4x Dark Ritual
2x Sutured Ghoul
2x Krosan Cloudscraper
2x Polar Kraken
4x Bloodstained Mire
4x Polluted Delta
4x Underground Sea
4x Watery Grave
4x Lotus Petal
2x Swamp
//Sideboard
4x Hydroblast
4x Engineered Plague
4x Stifle
3x Pithing Needle
The basic strategy of the deck is to combo out as fast as possible with Buried Alive. It's really that simple. You have enough backup in Duress and FoW to protect any shenanigans your opponent might present. Simple reanimation strategy - backed by some of the most potent cards in the format. Most people didn't give it much of a chance at first because I flashed 'Polar Kraken' at some of my fellow Syracuse players, earning a big chuckle. But as time had proven: If you're a bad little boy, the only present you'll get from Santa is a ludicrous thrashing straight from 1995. I know some of these matches aren't detailed as much as they could be, but honestly, my matches rarely went past turn 4. I also don't recall what I ultimately boarded in against specific matchups, but against most Stifles almost always came in on the draw along with Needles - with the obvious Plagues and Hydroblasts against Goblins/red. So on to the tournament:
Round 1 vs. Cody (43 Land/LftL)
Game One: I open up with a nutty draw and get a turn 3 possibility of winning. But after seeing Cody mill a Maze of Ith from a LtfL dredge, I proceed to scoop as there obviously is no answer for that first game.
Game Two: I go off turn 2 and he has no answer.
Game Three: I get a pretty good draw with Dark Ritual, Dark Ritual, Buried Alive....but no reanimation. I keep it and eventually have to deal with Chalice set at one. I can get around it easy...because I was going to Lim Dul's Vault into hopefully a Shallow Grave. Unfortunately, I plucked into 25 of my top cards and couldn't find it. By the time I did, he had lethal man-land damage on board. I lose.
0-1-0 (1-2-0)
Round 2 vs. Jon (Mr. Nipples w/ R/w Gobs)
Game One: I proceed to combo out turn 3. H ehas open Plateau. He tries a Swords. I Force. I win.
Game Two: He starts off with a hand that isn't too broken. I drop a land and Petal. I then proceed to Lim Dul's Vault at his EOT and nail two Engineered Plagues. I drop the first a turn later with a Ritual then turn three I drop another. He can't recover and scoops.
1-1-0 (3-2-0)
Round 3 vs. Greg (Nantuko Shady w/ Solidarity)
Game One: Greg is always a pleasure to play, a real class act. So, we meet again when it matters most. I go first and Dark Ritual out a morphed Cloudscraper. I beat for a few turns with some Duress backup. He goes down to about 11. After a previous Buried Alive, I decide to Shallow Grave my Sutured Ghoul. I only remove the other Cloudscraper - making him a 13/13. Greg musters enough strength to Turnabout my creature. So, with one card left in hand...I actually Reanimate Polar Kraken and take 11 damage - putting me down to two. He doesn't find an answer and I pay the cumulative upkeep and hit him for 13 - plus the morph.
Game Two: I combo out turn two and he can't recover or counter.
2-1-0 (5-2-0)
Round 4 vs. Brandon w/ Burn
Game One: He's playing burn, which is a match I never tested. I think my pre-board is pretty solid against him. I actually Reanimated off a Lim Dul's Vault and put myself down to four and won the game. He didn't have enough firepower and/or Fireblast ftw. I got it.
Game Two: I combo out turn two - and he can't recover.
3-1-0 (7-2-0)
Round 5 vs. Justen w/ Affinity
Game One: He dropped an Aether Vial turn one. I combo out turn 3 and his beaters can't match the might of a 26/26 trampler. Some of his creatures were also turned sideways to help.
Game Two: I can't recover from his early beats. Ornithopter with Cranial was absolutely devastating. I had Vault, but couldn't get it going enough to help.
Game Three: He drops a few Aether Vials and a Frogmite. I combo out turn four...and he has a Vial set at 2. He claims to have Atog in his grip to soak up alot of damage, but that to me was a serious bull shit detector. I Shallow Grave and swing for the win.
4-1-0 (9-3-0)
Round 6 vs. Matt (bigbear w/ Survival)
We I.D. and hope to make Top 8...it was tight but we felt it was the right call.
4-1-1 (9-3-1)
I wait around hoping to make Top 8. Once the standing are determined, one of the guys running the event handed me my set of Bolts I donated to ninth. I thought, "Oh shit". And he looked serious. But, he quietly snatched them back and informed me I made eighth seed. After running the gauntlet, everyone finally started taking full notice that 'The Polar Express' was in full force. I was glad to hear another member of Team Darkness made Top 8 as the one seed - A.J. Ryfun. Ironically enough, I had to play him next.
Top 8 vs. A.J. w/ R/g Goblins
Game One: I go first, and get the early advantage with land and two petals. A.J. Eventually gets me down to seven life before I Shallow Grave from a previous Buried Alive ftw. Whew.
Game Two: This game was a nightmare for me, because A.J. drew into two Crypts and for some God-forsaken reason I didn't board anything but Plagues in against him. I was shocked to realize that when I fetched and saw nothing. I had to hardcast Ghoul with Cloudscraper in the yard. he Crypts and eventually beats for the win.
Game Three: I combo out turn two and he has no Crypt.
5-1-1 (11-4-1)
Top 4 vs. John L. (Mulletus w/ his patented Survival build)
Game One: I didn't really have an overly sexy opening draw, but with a Vault I decided to keep anyways. He goes Duress, Therapy, Therapy, beats with FTK (offing his own Bird I believe) for the win.
Game Two: I combo out turn four with Force backup after I Vaulted and John can't deal with it.
Game Three: After resolving a Spore Frog and Survival things looked dim. I had Reanimates in hand to try and pick up his dead Survivaled guys. I might have changed the outcome ofthe game hadn't I not Reanimated Squee over E. Witness and then Genesis. I needed blockers and that apparently clouded my train of thought. John really had the advantage from the start in this one because I was put on the defensive.
5-2-1 (12-6-1)
So I ended up placing fourth and nabbing a set of Tropical Islands. Not bad for a deck with Polar Kraken :cool:. Ultimately, the Polar Express turned out to be the shocker of the tournament. But the truth is, I knew it had a shot from the beginning. That's why I decided to run it - because of the consistency the deck belts out. All in all a fantabulous showing for Team Darkness...and especially...myself and the Polar Express.
Props
- My brother first and foremost for discovering the deck idea from a few years back. If it wasn't for him I might not be posting this right now.
- Team Darkness for sticking together despite tremendous odds in the Syracuse metagame and the mix of good players from all around. Two of us made Top 8. We rock.
- My buddy Chris for helping me get the cards for the deck. Without him, I don't think it would have happened. He also named the deck after having a ton of beer.
- Matt A. for drawing the final round and placing ninth. You made out good though!
- Polar Kraken. No one else believed in you, but I do lol. 1996 Magic is where it's at, baby.
- Kadilak and Eli for putting together a good tournament. You can bet I'll be there next time. Piza was awesome, by the way.
- Anwar: Go go gadget FBB Badlands!
- 1996 Magic. I love you.
Slops
- Bryant for saying, "when was the last time you Top 8'ed at a major event :cool:. Never diss A Legend, youngin'...
- Bob: WtHell happened?
- Lands, because I lost to them round one and Mike (Mr. T) drew into about eight of them in a row in his match.
Other than that a solid showing and a solid performance by yours truly. I'll get more in depth in the next few days if anyone's interested. It's just kind if late and I'm really tired. In the coming days I'll post the list and strategies the deck uses and abuses. To quote "The Polar Express"...
"At one time most of my friends could hear the bell, but as years passed it fell silent for all of them. Though I've grown old the bell still rings for me, as it does for all who truly...believe.
Believe this: The Polar Express is tearing up the tracks, baby. Next stop...Columbus.