Current Standard

Its interesting to start out a blog with a picture but at this time it seems to be relevent. Im not one to always jump on bandwagons, but this is the most powerfull card in standard right now next to Jace 2.0. As you may know Valakut Ramp has been the strongest deck with the rotation, thanks to the fact that it lost almost nothing. Also in the same category is Eldrazi Green, it is a very strong deck and whats best is that it can win from nowhere (Also runs Primeval Titan). Luckily there have been a couple new emergences with States. Thats what I would like to talk about today.

Here is a list.

Format: Type II - SOM2010 TCGplayer.com WWS BostonFinished: 3rd - 4th Place

MAIN DECK

2 Jace Beleren

4 Jace, the Mind Sculptor

3 Wurmcoil Engine

3 All Is Dust

4 Doom Blade

3 Everflowing Chalice

3 Into the Roil

4 Mana Leak

4 Preordain

2 Stoic Rebuttal

2 Volition Reins

4 Creeping Tar Pit

1 Darkslick Shores

4 Drowned Catacomb

7 Island

1 Mystifying Maze

3 Scalding Tarn

2 Swamp

4 Tectonic Edge

Lands [26]

SIDEBOARD

1 Consuming Vapors

4 Disfigure

4 Flashfreeze

2 Mind Control

3 Negate

1 Skinrender

The most interesting one to me has been UB control. I actually built the deck last night for an opportunity to try to test against it. I think the deck is really good due to its versatility and ability to adapt to different situations. Here is my list of reasons why it has been strong over the last few weeks.

- Good removal (mass + spot)

- Countermagic

- Plays Jace 2.0 (lol)

- Multiple ways to win (flexibility)

I actually prefer the version that runs the tringet mage - elixir shenanigans, but just like UW control, there are several effective builds.

Next up is UR, the interesting thing about UR is that there are several different builds available that work differently. You have UR control/UR Force and Pyromancers Ascension. The only major difference between the normal UR and Force is obvious, other than that they are very close. Pyromancers Ascension is another carry over from pre-rotation with just some minor adjustments. I actually built that deck wayyyyy before it made top 8 anywhere but i thought it wasn't that great and I gave up on it too early. I think my mistake was that i ran double negative, lol.

There is also a deck out there called Mono white Quest. It is by far the most explosive deck available in that it can cause a turn 2 scoop. The problem is that it too heavily relies on you getting the right cards. I played against it during an FNM and saw it at its best and worst. Luckily for me I saw it mostly at its worst. If you are a super agro/combo player this is definately a good choice for you.

There are also several different decks that still run Fauna Shaman and Vengevine, but they are mixed into so many decks and have so many random builds that I wouldn't dare to try to properly categorize it all so therefore I'm just going to skip it. I know that I also skipped over UW control and some other decks but it just seems to me that the UW players are switching to UB due to the meta. I could be wrong but thats just me.

Last but not least i have RED. Now there are probably 4 red decks right now and they are all solid.

Boros

RDW

Big Red

Goblins

I actually use the lesser know of these 4 which is goblins for a couple of reasons. One, I thought it would be different, two it seems to be the most consistent. Here is the list.

22 CREATURES

3 Memnite

4 Goblin Guide

4 Goblin Bushwacker

3 Perilous Myr

4 Ember Hauler

4 Goblin Chieftan

16 SPELLS

3 Kuldotha Rebirth

4 Lightning Bolt

3 Searing Blaze

3 Staggershock

3 Burst Lightning

22 LANDS

3 Arid Mesa

3 Scalding Tarn

2 Teetering Peeks

14 Mountains

SIDEBOARD

3 Manic Vandal

2 Shatter

3 Mark of Mutiny

3 Combust

2 Tuk-Tuk

2 Forked Bolt

I fell in love with this deck just because of its versatility, speed and consistency. The things that hurt me the most don't completely handicap me. For instance pyroclasm is really good against me but with a lot of haste in the deck i can continue to apply preasure even immediatly and still have burn for backup. The second biggest threat is Kor Firewalker, who has recently fallen out of grace since UW control has lost followers. The great thing is that having Perilous Myr maindeck gives me a way to deal with it either through rebirth or burning him myself to get rid of the firewalker.

Well thats all I have for now, please comment and let me know of your ideas or if you have any comments for me. Let me know what your favorite deck is.

Next Level?

Well I would like to start by appologizing in advance for the crudeness of my first blog. My intention is just to share some of my ideas and just some random information. I guess I would start by telling you a little about me. I am 29 years old married with a beautiful wife and daughter and am working full time at Chase Bank. I have been playing Magic for about 14 years off and on. I am a huge fan of the game and love to spend my spare time playing it. In this acticle I plan to share my evolution as a person and player and how they relate.

I guess I should start by talking a little about my progression as a player. I started playing in Highschool when I saw some kids in the back of class trading cards and it got my attention. I started getting a few packs here and there and just built some decks and taught my step brother how to play. We really enjoyed it until my Aunt saw them and told my mother they were bad and convinced her to throw them away. I was really bummed but was happy I learned.

As a freshman in college, 3 years later I saw some guys playing in my dorm and decided to get back into the game. I was still purely a novice but started caring more about rarity since they added colored set symbols around this time. I began to learn from players better than me, but we were still crude in our deck building and play methods. I had no idea about type 2, extended etc. We just enjoyed the game and tried our best to beat each other.

Again as I transfered to another school a couple years later I found myself not playing. One day I found a local hobby shop near school and I began to meet more players and play FNM. Thats where my game really began to evolve. I learned how to build more competative decks and really grasp the rules and play against some solid competition. At this point I had my first taste of success, I attribute it to really having the time to focus on testing and having good test partners. I got 3rd place at a block PTQ in Houston for Los Angeles(2005). I played there for several years until I graduated and moved away.

Once I moved to DFW and got married I had to find another place to play, luckily there were several and I get to bounce around. I finally got to play regularly for a few years and have had the opportunity to tune up my game. I still have alot of work to do but I have gotten better thanks to some great competition and some skilled friends. I had my second taste of success as I got 3rd place at another PTQ Amsterdam here in Fort Worth (2010). Its a little tough to get to top 4 twice and never get that 1st place finish, but its hard to complain when I have only gone to 6 ptq's ever and have made top 8 twice. My plan is to go to more events but only if I am properly prepared. I asked myself what was different on those two top 8's and the answer I kept coming up with is that I had a deck I was comfortable with and had tested alot during FNM's etc. So my plan now is to only go if I have had proper testing.

Whats really interesting is I get my first shot at a sealed PTQ this weekend! And that is different from what I have ever done on this level but I am hoping for the best. I did get one good taste of it during the release event a few weeks ago and was very successfull 6-0 (100% MWP). But this is going to be far tougher with a higher grade of players. In fact what makes me nervous is that since then I have not had any practice with sealed or draft and I know the best players have been grinding and testing with friends and Magic Online. My only hope is that I run hot and play close to mistake free magic. But I am so excited and can't wait to try it out.

I will let you guys know how it go's and explain my experience and the reasons for eather my success or failure. Please comment if you have any questions etc. Thanks for listening to my story and I wish you "good gaming".