Monthly Legacy FNM Cardiff

I have also posted this at Mtgnexus, the new site set up by MTGS staff, apologies if you are on both sites.

I am going to put a record of our store Legacy FNM events monthly here (and any comp REL we have) for anyone interested.
I will hopefully be able to get decklists for the comp REL events we hold a couple of times a year.
There might be the odd gap on the archetypes. Our events are typically 20-25 players, but because people travel from a fair distance we have a lot of different players who don't make every one, plus people own multiple decks as the community is well established now, leading to some interesting metas.

Event is at Firestorm Games, Cardiff, UK

Archetypes for this event as follows- if it appears twice it is because there were two players on it etc.
Mono-Red Sneak/TTB combo (splash white)
Miracles
Grixis control
Burn
Miracles
Miracles
Traditional pox
12 Post (big colorless Eldrazi, not Green Candelabra)
Delver
Stax (colorless/ Mono Brown)
UB Death's Shadow
DnT
DnT
Nic Fit (Abz)
Mono-B "the gate" with red splash
Unknown blue-X deck
Rug delver
Mana'd Dredge
Maverick GW (with thespian combo)
Mono-R Goblins
RUG Delver

The 12 points was...
Mana Dredge
9 pointers as follows
Stax (mono Brown)
Abz Nic Fit
Grixis Control
Goblins
Mono Red Combo
Mono B "the gate" with R splash

So not a good month for Brainstorm!

Cheers, till next month.

Here is another FNM, this time with a record turnout- sadly a record low of just 12 down from our regular 20-24. Not sure what happened- perhaps all the Brainstorm players had a convention, because they sure as hell were not about. I managed to lose the sheet of archetypes, but with just 12 players it was not so difficult to remember.
These archetypes are from the 4 round event
Depths
Depths Elves
Hogaak Depths
UW RIP helm (spicy landstill variant)
Hogaak dredge (manad)
Nic Fit

Goblins
12 Post
12 Post
RUG Delver
Burn
There was one more fair deck lurking, it was Maverick I think.

The results were 4-0 for depths, and 3-1 for Depths elves, by the time fourth is hit we are in 6 point bracket (which was the RIP helm). A good day for 20/20s in the top 3.

So half as many players, fewer playing Brainstorm than ever. Hopefully not all put off by the online meta. Three months ago there were about 4 Miracles decks alone- perhaps they all are having a tough time online and did not fancy it, perhaps they were just busy or saving themselves for REL comp event later in the month. Maybe the new unbanning/banning in Modern have distracted.

Here we go for another FNM.
Same story as last time really- low attendance- seems to be a storewide phenomenon, Modern before it was low too.
Just 12 hardy souls.

Top of the shop with positive records
20/20 Depths (mox diamonds, bobs, bunch of decays and handkill)
Elves - with 20/20s
Dredge (mana'd)
Maverick
After that some 6 pointers, in no particular order:
RBw reanimatior
Mono B Leyline /helm - Pox without even the err, smallpox.
Depths (KOTR included, but not Maverick- without the stoneforge/equipments or mana dorks/Thalia)
Mono Red combo
Then into, again no order
12 Post
Miracles (UWr)
Goblins
UB mill brew??!!

So pretty high on combo, maybe a three fair decks if we stretch a point- just two blue decks and one of them was a UB mill brew rather than anything recognised. The online meta of W6- Temur Delver and 4c good stuff perhaps has encouraged people to go another way, although it must be noted that a few of the decks above are good at ignoring W6 too.
No idea why this meta has settled like this- card availability is no issue for sure, but it seems that people don't want to play blue- whereas six months ago we had 20+ and half at least were Blue decks-miracles mirrors were everywhere. I feel like putting up a lost sign in the local newsagent- "lost: bunch of blue decks, answers to the name of Show and Tell, Jeskai Mentor, Miracles, or Delver"....

Another FNM.
Once again, 25 players in June has halved to 13.
Once again nobody wants to play blue. I guess the MTGO players are sick to the back teeth of RUG delver and pile. Certainly isn't that players don' t want them- I have a bunch of blue decks and nobody has asked to borrow one in ages, bar someone wanting RUG delver last month.
Literally can't give away sneak and show, miracles etc., at least for the evening.


the archetypes
2 Moon stompy
1 steel stompy (BW)
1 Dredge (mana)
1 Elves
1 RBx reanimator (green splash)
1 Medium depths
2 D N T (one spicy with sol lands and ballista)
2 Eldrazi cloudposts
1 Maverick
1 Nic Fit

12 was elves, and the dredge, depths, reanimator made 9.

And here is December's lot

Staff meal/night out days, so we were pleased to have gotten 11, with some regulars missing but some new to the format. Happy days

Some spicy lists.
BUG elves with Oko and Karn won it for some spice.
BW 8 rack was second for some more spice
DnT and
Medium depths
rounded out the 9 pointers I think.
Merfolk (with brazen borrowers)
Show and Tell (no cunning wish, 3 omniscience)
Infect (with Oko/Tef)
MUD (metalworker)
RB Reanimator
DnT 2
Pox
rounded out the 6-3 point bracket

So a bit more in the way of islands and a higher force count than previous months.
Nice to see how a paper meta goes in cycles- you would think that paper mtg at an LGS changes far more slowly than online, and yet when I look back at data from the first half of the year it looks completely different.
For one thing our events were always over twenty, now they are 10-12, with very different players each time.

Thanks for posting these! I never noticed them. Any chance players want to submit a Screenshot of their decklist and then some of us here can put it up in mtgtop8?

Also interested in the bug evles with karn. I know that Julian had played around with karn elves when it came out, but seemed a bit too gimmicky.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mistercakes

Thanks for posting these! I never noticed them. Any chance players want to submit a Screenshot of their decklist and then some of us here can put it up in mtgtop8?

Also interested in the bug evles with karn. I know that Julian had played around with karn elves when it came out, but seemed a bit too gimmicky.

---

Because it is FNM, I am not sure it would be possible to grab deck lists for MTG top 8, I can ask if people want to do that. It might be that I can get the lists for the top bracket, but we are often close to kickout time at the shop, there may not be time. Any comp REL events I will be able to get the data easily, of course. We normally have a couple a year.

That said I can get a significant portion of any list of interest as I know the players, and if you want to get the karn/bug/mana dork/elf deck I can ask for a list.

Here are the results for this month

Another FNM
12 Players, seems to have been this way for 4-5 months.

12 points was UG Infect with Oko (this list was put together using mtg top 8 etc. just before the event)

9 point brackets- classic medium depths, mono r goblins, parfait (Wg) (the list for this is on the Parfait thread here)

and then on 6 or less in order
bant miracles with oko, astrolabe etc.
sneak and show- no cunning wish tech, just classic sneak/show
mono red prison (karn GTC, moons, rabblemasters/war boss, chandra TOD etc.)
Bg painter (spicy black painter/grindstone list with discard, Lilly etc. and a hint of green, probably for Veil)
Bw aggro pox/8 rack
classic MUD
UW Miracles
UB death's shadow

Back to a healthy amount of blue again.

Another cardiff FNM, some different faces, some different decks, 12 players and the results below.

10 points- Mana'd dredge and Mono red Moons

on 9 in third was a slightly cobbled together Infect

at 7 we saw bant miracles

whilst there were five 6 pointers, which were
aggro eldrazi
white stax
uw miracles
show and tell
elves (karn-y elves)

filling out the archetypes

mono B painter
aggro pox
dnt



The 1st place dredge list

Creatures (24)
3 Putrid Imp black
4 Golgari Thug
4 Narcomoeba
4 Stinkweed Imp
3 Ichorid
4 Golgari Grave-Troll
1 Ox of Agonas
1 Hogaak, Arisen Necropolis
Spells
3 Breakthrough
4 Cabal Therapy
2 Careful Study
4 Faithless Looting
1 Dread Return
Artifacts
4 Lion's Eye Diamond
1 Lotus Petal
Enchantments (4)
4 Bridge from Below
Lands (13)
4 Cephalid Coliseum
2 City of Brass
3 Gemstone Mine
4 Mana Confluence
Sideboard (15)
1 Lotus Petal
1 Chain of Vapor
2 Silent Gravestone
4 Wispmare 2white
2 Leyline of Sanctity
3 Leyline of the Void
1 Ashen Rider
1 Iona, Shield of Emeria

The second place also 10 points list
Land
4 city of traitors
4 ancient tomb
6 snow covered mountain
5 mountain

artifact
4 chrome mox
4 chalice of the void
3 trinisphere
3 ensnaring bridge

enchantment
4 blood moon

creatures
4 simian spoirit guide
4 goblin rabblemaster
2 magus of the moon
1 hazoret the fervent
1 pia and kiran nalaar

planeswalkers
4 karn, the great creator
4 chandra, torch of defiance

sorcery
3 fiery confluence

sideboard
1 mycosynth lattice
2 grafdigger's cage
2 tormod's crypt
1 ensnaring bridge
1 liquimetal coating
1 scab-clan beserker
1 ratchet bomb
1 trading post
1 sorcerous spyglass
1 cursed totem
1 volcanic fallout
1 koxilek's return
1 walking ballista


The third place infectious pile list- I know the Island was due to forgetng a Trop rather than tactics
4 inkmoth nexus
4 windswept heath
2 must rainforest
2 wooded foothills
2 snow covered forest
2 tropical island
2 waterlogged grove
1 snow covered island
1 pendelhaven
1 scalding tarn
1 dryad Arbor
1 wasteland
1 flooded strand

4 daze
4 brainstorm
4 noble hierarch
4 glistener elf
4 blighted agent
4 invigorate
3 vines of vastwood
3 force of will
2 oko, Thief of crowns
2 ponder
1 sylvan library
1 crop rotation
1 become immense

Sideboard
2 spellskite
2 veil of summer
2 mystical dispute
2 force of vigor
2 spell pierce
1 force of will
1 crop rotation
1 wasteland
1 grafdigger's cage
1 oko, thief of crowns

7 points miracles
LANDS 20
5 snow-covered island
2 snow-covered plains
1 snow covered forest
4 flooded strand
3 misty rainforest
2 prismatic vista
1 tropical island
1 tundra
1 mystic sanctuary

CREATURES -6
1 ice-fang coatyl
3 snapcaster mage
2 monastery mentor

planeswalkers (7)
2 teferi, time raveler
3 oko, thief of crowns
2 jace, the mind sculptor

instants and sorceries
4 swords to plowshares
4 brainstorm
4 ponder
1 veil of summer
1 force of negation
1 council's judgement
1 entreat the angels
4 force of will
3 terminus


artifacts
4 arcum's astrolabe

sideboard
1 supreme verdict
2 dovin's veto
1 council's judgement
2 surgical extraction
1 flusterstorm
1 palace jailer
1 back to basics
1 ashiok dream render
2 veil of summer
1 return to nature
2 containment priest


The bant list not running 4 rainforests was purely logistical. The lack of volcanic and pyroblast was not- we have relatively few blue lists these past few months- when we got 20 or so players regularly the field would approach 45% blue, but recently it has dropped off.

Once again I continue in my mission to track the FNM paper scene here. This is March's offering.

15 players braving coronavirus and slinging cardboard of various flavours.

Much more blue than of late, although still just under 50% of the field, and a nice diverse set of decks.

12 points was Infect, with the obligatory Oko, because, well, it is Oko.

9s gave us

Regular elves
Parfait (LT scroll rack combo prison W with G splash)
Infect
BUG lands

and then 6 points.......
Sneak and Show
D N T
Enchantress (GWb, no living wish tech)
UR delver
Bant Miracles
Mono Red Moon stompy

And finally

D N T
Pox
Manaless dredge
Bant Miracles

So seven blue decks, and doubling up were Infect, Bant miracles, and D n T.

Well back again after a long hiatus, with some paper Legacy.
I believe this was the first paper UK Legacy event post lockdown to fire.
Four rounds of socially distanced paper Legacy.

23 players, a last minute drop out from the paid 24 was too late for our reserve list players to get there, sadly. We even kicked out Standard too from the schedule, I believe, spreading the gospel of Legacy. Players came from as far as west Wales and Reading for a memorable night of Mtg. I can safely say I have never had a temperature check on entry to a Mtg event before, and a "no touching other people's stuff" rule meant that we did not have to lean over the long tables. Masked faces were less of a barrier to communication than I would have imagined, and I have to say, it was a real pleasure to play cardboard.

Here are the decks. I don't normally include deck lists or player's names, partly so that people locally don't get their lists spoiled when they read this, but I have had permission for this.
Here is the breakdown of decks

combo
4c (non white) doomsday
GWb Enchantress (helm/rip and Emmy, no living wish)
UG Echo of eons/Painter (oko plan B)
12 post (colourless)
BG depths (mox diamonds, not turbo with petals)


aggro
2 UR delver
2 x d n t
2 Aggro eldrazi
BR goblins
esper vial
GW hatebears

control
UWr Miracles
2 snowko bant
2 red prison
8 rack

Control/combo
UWr RIP/helm
mono black Leyline/helm/Karn
MUD

By my reckoning that is just 9 Blue decks out of 23 and only 8 with forces (Echo narset Painter using blue for just echo/Narset/Emry and an obligatory Oko backup plan for when the combo does not execute early). The relative lack of blue is not due to lack of cards- I had complete blue decks going spare on the night such as Sneak and Show, Infect, Ninjas etc. and so duals were available in most colours alongside the obligatory Forces etc. I think it is more to do with player preference- over the years the area has always been both chalice/aggro and combo heavy because a lot of players like those archetypes, and once you are invested in an archetype it takes a lot to just start playing another archetype. Combos do seem to have proliferated with cards like Thassa's Oracle adding more choice and spice to existing decks. I personally love a good prison deck, but even then more than half my chosen decks these past few years have a combo in that can end the game in the early turns, although I will concede that a deck like UR delver may be chosen over RUG in paper as RUG always seems to be close to a ban thanks to cards like Oko and before it W6 giving it new toys, whereas UR delver is just always good.

The results:

On 12 points we have two decks, firstly, 4c doomsday, which did not drop a game.
It was played by the lovely James Johns, aka, Doishy online. You can get some info and discussion on this elegant deck at DDFT.wiki
Here is the list
1 Badlands
1 cavern of souls
1 Island
4 polluted delta
4 scalding tarn
1 swamp
1 tropical island
3 underground sea
1 volcanic island
4 brainstorm
4 dark ritual
4 daze
4 doomsday
1 duress
1 edge of autumn
4 force of will
1 ideas unbound
1 lim dul's vault
1 lion's eye diamond
3 lotus petal
4 ponder
1 predict
4 preordain
1 spell pierce
2 street wraith
1 thassa's oracle
2 thoughtseize

board
2 abrade
1 goblin cratermaker
1 echoing truth
1 massacre
2 pyroblast
1 Red elemental blast
2 surgical extraction
2 tormod's crypt
3 veil of summer

Also on 12 was UR delver- I did not get to see this list or chat to the pilot, but I have been assured it was UR delver and not RUG. I will try and get acquainted next time, but with the decks I play I don't get much time between rounds!

on 9, in no particular order was
GWb enchantress (this was a deck I loaned out and was, typically, the only deck I lost to, in a cracking 2/1 match. It is a pretty standard build, but does not run Wish tech or, indeed, Replenish as it runs 2 helm and 3 RIP main)
Mono- R prison- I believe it was a reasonably standard mono- r build- the other one fared rather poorly with just one point.
Snowko - conventional bant snowko, it does not run the volcanic and pyrobast in the board as there is not quite enough blue to justify it
Mono B leyline helm karn (which is my deck and I am always happy to share the list- generally I am on this, Parfait or prison decks- and happy to share lists)
MUD - I did not see the list or this in action, sadly.

That gives us a reasonably balanced top 7 with positive records: 1 tempo ( I guess you could call it aggro if you want), 2 control, 2 control/combo, 2 combo, split with 3 blue decks- doomsday, delver and snowko- and 4 non blue, with 2 dedicated chalice decks in that.


On 6, again in no particular order: UR delver, UWr Miracles, both Eldrazi Stompy decks, 12 post (colourless), GW hatebears, Depths (described as "extra medium" by its excellent and hugely experienced pilot, so I am not going to argue) and the second snowko.


So overall a great night, and we can do it all again next month- DV.