4th @End of the Year tournament in Hanau

[mort-]

Hi there!

So, this should be the last event of the year and naturally, we had to go. A weekend full of Legacy, and also one of the view bigger Vintage tournaments, had to be attended. Normally playing all kinds of unfair decks like Ichorid or Ad Nauseam, I decided to go for BUG Delver. I couldn't play it that well, I hadn't tested it enough, the sideboard was just random assumptions of what could be good. In short: I didn't think I'd win anything (spoiler: HELL YEAH!). Oh well, as the deck is pretty fun and I usually luck into prices with Ichorid in Vintage, I thought I could afford to totally scrub the Legacy event on day one.

Without further ado, here's the decklist and a report from the top of my head. This time without sideboarding info because I can't remember ;D

Florian Marx - "LE BAGUETTE JE T’AIME MMHHHMM"

1 Umezawa's Jitte

4 Dark Confidant
4 Deathrite Shaman
4 Delver of Secrets
4 Tarmogoyf

4 Abrupt Decay
4 Brainstorm
3 Daze
1 Dismember
3 Spell Pierce

1 Bayou
4 Misty Rainforest
4 Polluted Delta
2 Tropical Island
4 Underground Sea
4 Wasteland

1 Liliana of the Veil

4 Ponder
4 Thoughtseize

Sideboard:
2 Engineered Explosives
2 Grafdigger's Cage
1 Nihil Spellbomb
2 Pithing Needle
1 Darkblast
2 Divert
2 Flusterstorm
2 Golgari Charm
1 Life from the Loam


R1: Stefan with Aluren

He wins the dice roll and proceeds to fetch for a basic swamp, which saddens my Wastelands. I am able to Thoughtseize on my turn, seeing Island, Forest - yeah, my Wastelands cry out some more - Baleful Strix, Shardless Agent, Tropical Island and Aluren. I take Agent and daze Baleful Strix on his turn. My plan is in pretty good motion, seeing as I have a Spell Pierce left for his Aluren and am also able to waste his fourth land after I counter his Aluren. So I deploy a Delver while he just lands a land. Delver flips thanks to a timed Brainstorm and starts the beats. Stefan has other plans though. He casts Aluren and is able to counter my Pierce with a Force of Will. Luckily, he has to pitch his only creature and I am able lay out two Tarmogoyfs which help my Delver beating him to one, while he lays some more lands. At one though, he is able to cast Coiling Oracle, finding Shardless Agent, cascading into Coiling Oracle, finding Shardless Agent, cascading into Ancestral Vision. Luckily, he draws three lands and picks up his cards. Close call there.
The second game is a bit slower, I am able to resolve a Deathrite Shaman while he plays lands. We counter a bit, I waste a bit (finally!).. and then he casts Natural Order. Well.. can't do anything against the big man, so I concede.
After boarding Liliana of the Veil in again, I am able to disrupt him long enough to finish the job. I don't have any memories of this game, allthough I think he flooded a bit and my Goyfs made short work of his 1/1 creatures.
1-0

R2: Florian with BUG Control

I know him from the monthly Hassloch and he knows me too. Appearently, he just knows me by sight, not by name. So he thinks I play combo and ships a seven that would've totally wrecked me for a one-land-six. Well.. as I recognized his name, I pretty much knew what I was up against, making short work of his six. I got a little help from the fact that I could colorscrew him the first few turns. Shamans go alle the way.
I take a mulligan for the next game, looking at my notes it seems like we both had Shamans, which would soon be rendered useless by his Scavenging Ooze. He also finds a Thrun, the Last Troll while I deploy Tarmogoyfs to defend against his assault. Finally finding Decay for his Ooze, the game goes to time. The board is stalled, with him having Jace and Thrun, me having some flipped Delvers and a Tarmogoyf. I decide to kill his Jace, but not go for the win, as he isn't able to kill me if I play it safe and I'm also one up. Lame method, but works fine.
2-0

R3: Ralf with 9-Post

He wins the dice-roll and has to take a Mulligan to five. He lands a Sensei's Divining Top and gets some land, while I find a Dark Confidant and am able to waste a few of his non-basics. From a earlier Thoughtseize, I know that there's a Primeval Titan lurking in his hand, but I get lucky again and his deck bricks on finding the last land.
The next game starts equally slow, with him playing a Pithing Needle on Wasteland. I have a turn one Shaman and am able to Abrupt Decay his Needle, starting to play two Wastelands on Cloudpost. He plays Bojuka Bog, which renders the Loam I boarded in, but didn't see yet, pretty useless. Another Needle on Deathrite Shaman also sets me on beatdown mode. Shaman is joined by Delver of Secrets and Tarmogoyf. The team gets him to four, at which point I play the Needle in my hand. Before, I wasn't sure if I wanted to play it on Top or Candelabra, seeing that he didn't play any of both until now. I name Top, because his Candelabra, if he had it, would ramp him to 13 mana max, which wouldn't be enough for Emrakul, the Aeons torn. Long story short, he topdecks SDT and we both laugh and shake hands. Looking what his top three cards would've been, we see a Primeval Titan (which he could've cast), gaining him eight life with Glimmerposts, being then able to play Ulamog and Kozilek in his hand. This way, he can't do anything and has to concede. Pretty lucky again, as I think that his deck lost him a good matchup, seeing that my softcounters don't do anything against him and Wastelands aren't that good.
3-0

R4: Matthias with BUG Control

Wheee, my first won dice-roll. And it's an important one, as I can play Shaman, then waste his land and play Confidant. He tries to put up a fight, and even thought I had a very good start, he gets into the game well with Jace and a Goyf to block my assault. I have to lay my second Confidant to get more cards and also play a Liliana, so my attacks can keep going. He finds a Liliana of his own, but it's too late and the team takes the win, after we confirm that I will not die in my upkeep.
The second game is again, firmly in my grip as we counter and destroy permanents all over the place. Lone survivor is a Tarmogoyf.. wielding a Jitte. Not too bad. Sadly, he has a Pernicious Deed ready and enough gas to follow up, so he makes short work of me.
The last game is again, an attrition war, with me playing Pithing Needle on Deed. Spot removal it is for both of our creatures and the game goes to time again, with him being on three and me on fifteen. Still, he has an overwhelming board and I would've lost if this game would've gone only a bit longer.
3-0-1

R5: Tobias with Bug Control

Again, I win the dice-roll and land a Shaman. His deck continues to shit out lands, while mine provides me with some nice two drops. At some point, he missplays Darkblast, which changes the flow of the game completely. As he also continues to flood, I am able to remove his Blast with my Shaman and get a Confidant going. They are joined by a Tarmogoyf, so naturally, they go the distance.
Flooded game one, screwed game two. I get Shamans going and am able to destroy his Engineered Explosives at one with Decay two times. He concedes shortly after.
4-0-1

R6: Kai with UR Landstill

Ok, so these games were veeeery long and very grinding. In game one, he starts with a Delver of Secrets. I do the same. He forgets the trigger and plays Standstill. My Delver flips (first and only time without a cantrip in the whole tournament) and I start to beat down. His Delver flips, too and he strikes back. Meanwhile, he's not finding lands, so the moment he sets his Delver on defense, I break Standstill with a Decay EoT. He has to discard and I'm able to get more beats going with two Goyfs. He concedes shortly after.
Game two is dominated by him, as he's able to keep my creatures in check and is also one of the unfair players fetching basic lands. And he even plays Wastelands, too! Long story short, he makes short work of me and I can't keep up.
Game three goes to time again. As we both play very tight (at least I think so), control shifts almost every moment of the game. Which was both very tense and very enjoyable. I am able to beat him down to four with a Tarmogoyf and play a Delver, while he gets a Lavamancer going to kill my x/>2 creatures. He lands a Delver himself and also has a Mishra's Factory on defense. My Delver flips and I attack with both Tarmogoyf and Delver. He ponders and makes the right call, going to one, block Goyf with Factory, pump and shoot with Lavamancer. As I don't have a follow up play, he kills my Delver next turn and finally my lifepoints are reduced to zero in our last extra turn.
4-1-1

R7: Alexander with Esperblade

I don't remember too much. He has to mulligan to six, but also wins the dice-roll. So his turn two Stoneforge Mystic, fetching Batterskull, resolves. I get some Tarmogoyfs going, but sadly they are just 3/4, so I have to take some beats from Batterskull. As it's the rule of the tournament - or so it seems - if I'm in a tight spot, my opponents deck bricks. He finds a few lands while I'm able to deploy some Confidants. I doubleblock his Skull with a Tarmogoyf and a unflipped Delver, so my other Goyf grows to 4/5. A turn later, he tries to bounce Batterskull, in response, I destroy his Stoneforge Mystic. He plays another one, but I destroy it before he can cheat Skull into play again. A few Wastelands and a Spell Pierce later, Batterskull is in his graveyard and my Goyfs take down the victory.
He starts the second game with a mulligan again, while I get some creatures going. He has Swords to Plowshares and then a Snapcaster Mage, for some more Swords. The key moment of this game comes as he finds a Jitte to equip to his Snapcaster and attacks. I brainstorm and find Abrupt Decay, destroying his Jitte and now able to safely block his Snapcaster with my Goyf. The game shifts in my favor and I'm able to seal the deal a few turns later.
5-1-1

R8: Juha with BUG-Control

As usual for this matchup, I win the dice-roll. I play Thoughtseize and see two Snapcaster, Counterspell, Maelstrom Pulse, Mishra's Factory, Wasteland, Bayou. I think I take a Snapcaster and proceed to play a Tarmogoyf. I don't know how exactly the game went, but I am able to deploy two Confidants (which should work as bait for his Maelstrom Pulse, while I held a Spell Pierce). He doesn't take it, so I land double Tarmogoyf. He plays EoT Snapcaster without value and now has to go for Maelstrom Pulse. With two mana up, I pierce. He pays. But I also have a Daze now, so his Pulse gets countered. We see if I die to my Confidants (which I don't) and I show him Abrupt Decay. He shuffles them up.
Second game is probably the hardest beating I received all day. He plays Thoughtseize, taking Spell Pierce, leaving me without counters. I rip another one from the top. He has Standstill, I pierce and we both comment on my topdecking skills. Still, he has the Force of Will and his Standstill resolves. Seeing that he only has two cards in hand now and I'm not that much behind even if I crack his Standstill, I play Confidant. He draws three, goes in his turn, plays Innocent Blood, then Standstill. Again, I crack it with Confidant immediately. He untaps, plays Innocent Blood and follows with Standstill. I demand that we are even now and we both laugh as I pick up my cards for game three.
He has to mulligan to six and I discard a Brainstorm of his two Brainstorm, two Mishra's Factory, Misty Rainforest and Underground Sea hand. I play a Tarmogoyf with one black mana up. He brainstorms to find a counter, but fails. I then play the Thoughtseize I slowrolled the last two turns and hit the Standstill he missed to put on top of his library. This ultimately wins me the game as he has no business left and I can follow up with a Confidant.
6-1-1

So, I was 10th after R7 standings and am now praying to join the Top8. As they call out the players, only the first three have more than 19 points, so I feel pretty safe that I'm in. That is, until they go to 8th place without my name being called yet. The headjudge pauses.. "and with an oppscore as small as it could be... 0,006... at 8th: Florian Marx". One heartattack later, I sit down to play some more.

T8: Andreas with Ichorid

He wins the dice-roll. Bad. I assume he's playing combo, but it's worse. Two Cephalid Coliseum and two Lion's Eye Diamond later, I'm dead meat and start boarding. Judges cross our table, confused why we are shuffling again. That is, until they see what he's playing.
I start the second game with Explosives for zero and Nihil Spellbomb. He dredges very carefully while my deck supplies me with the goods, namely Deathrite Shaman, Dark Confidant and a Tarmogoyf. My Spellbomb doesn't even get used, as his dredges neither yield him Narcomoebas or Bridge from Below, while I EoT remove his Ichorids, denying him creatures. Goyf takes it home from there on.
He ponders long for the last game, while I tell him straight up and with a grin that I know what I'm going to do. After he keeps, I announce my mulligan and he complains that I shouldn't scare him so much, being so confident when having to Mulligan. My six isn't good either, so five it is. He starts with Cephalid Coliseum and Careful Study, without discarding a Dredger, but two Ichorid. I start with Explosives zero and Spellbomb. Yay hate. He ponders if the three damage from Ichorid are worth it and decides to reanimate one. He studies some more and misses with a Therapy. I land Dark Confidant, which finds some more hate, namely Grafdiggers Cage, Pithing Needle on Coliseum and a Shaman. Meanwhile, he started to hardcast stuff and takes my life to five points, before he has to concede due to two Tarmogoyfs.

T4: Guillaume with Junk

Again.. this is a huge "nothing is on the field for long"-game. His Scavenging Ooze works wonders but is destroyed finally, before the huge 7/7 monster could work on my life totals. I am able to land a Delver on an empty field, with both our lifes very low. I announce my trigger, flip the card... and tell my opponent that I'm going to get a gameloss. Delver flipped a Flusterstorm, which should be in the sideboard. So, I call a judge, tell them what's happenend and my opponent agrees when asked. I get informed that I may appeal to the headjudge, but seeing that I don't think I could change the fact that it's a gameloss, I don't. Moments later, the judge comes again and tells me to wait. Appearently, the, at this moment finalist, Michael went to the judge station and told them that this case happened at a GP too and that the gameloss was downgraded. I'm not sure if I thanked you afterwards, if I didn't: Thank you ;). So the headjudge comes and questions us about what happened. My opponent and I both agree, so he checks my decklist. Due to the fact that we didn't see the opponents decklists before the Top8 and I could've gone on without telling anything and without my opponent noticing that the card shouldn't be in my main 60, the headjudge announces that, due to my honest and immediate judgecall, he is able to downgrade the gameloss to a warning. We proceed to desideboard my deck, shuffle my library and the game continues (with the Delver being unflipped). We grind a bit back and forth but I am finally able to win.
Game two is short. He starts with a basic while I play my only blue mana source. I, for some reason, think I should let it untapped to use Spell Pierce instead of Ponder. Of course, this mistake gets punished immediately and I'm not able to find another blue land for the rest of the very short game.
Game three starts with us having nonbasics that get wasted pretty fast. I am able to use both of my Dazes on some important cards of his and can also deploy an Umezawa's Jitte. But that's as far as it goes, as he gets a Shaman running, which leads to Lingering Souls, which leads to, paired with his timed removal and my last five draws being lands, immediate demise.
I wish him good luck for the finals, excuse me again for the ruckus I caused in game one and go happily to collect my Time Walk.


Again, this was a very enjoyable tournament with lots of very nice opponents and I'd like to tell everyone of you that it was a pleasure playing against you.
If some of you want to have a situation correct, please tell me and I will edit it :)

[dsck]

Congrats!

Has any coverage or decklists been posted anywhere? How many players?

edit: http://pmtg-forum.de/wbb2/thread.php?threadid=7964

[Julian23]

Congrats on your finish! Was sitting next to you during the first round of Vintage ;)

[mort-]

Thanks.
You also saw how I screwed up soooo hard? :D