Vu Phan (UW Stoneblade) vs. Joe Veth (NO RUG)

Game 1

Vu won the die roll and elected to go first, but not before mulliganing down to 6. Mutavault came down from the Stoneblade player on turn 1 while Joe led with a Volcanic Island on his turn. Vu resolved a Stoneforge Mystic—a classic turn 2 play in Standard when it was legal—fetching a Sword of Feast and Famine, but the Mystic didn’t live long enough to flash in the Sword as Joe Lightning Bolted the Mystic at end of turn. A Tarmogoyf entered the battlefield under Joe’s control, threatening a quick game when Vu simply played the Sword of Feast and Famine on his turn and passed. The lone Tarmogoyf got in for 3 damage. With Joe missing his third land drop, Vu saw an opportunity to Wasteland Joe’s Volcanic Island. Joe cast Ice on Vu’s Tundra, making use of the Volcanic before it fell into the graveyard. Vu tapped the Tundra in response and used it to activate his Mutavault and swing back for 2 damage.

Joe drew a Dryad Arbor and played it, and then cast Green Sun’s Zenith on 0, fetching another Dryad Arbor. Joe then sent Tarmogoyf into Vu again, taking off another 3 points off of Vu’s life total, bringing him down to 13. However, Joe continued to struggle with his mana as Vu laid waste to one of his two Dryad Arbor after hitting Joe with a Mutavault equipped with a Sword of Feast and Famine. A suspended Ancestral Vision also threatened to give Vu the card advantage he would need to defeat Joe. Joe managed to draw into another mana source—a Noble Hierarch—and finally projected the magic number for Natural Order decks—4. The Tarmogoyf crashed in for 4 damage due to the Hierarch’s exalted trigger, taking Vu down to 9 life. Vu replied with another Sword-equipped Mutavault before tanking and considering his options. He decided to pass the turn and cast Vendilion Clique on Joe at the end of Joe’s draw step but what Joe revealed didn’t look good for Vu—two Natural Order, a land, and a Vendilion Clique. Vu sent the Natural Order to the bottom but Joe cast the other Natural Order for Progenitus and with Vu seeing no outs, it was on to game 2.

Vu Phan 0, Joe Veth 1

Game 2

Things started out poorly for Joe as bad hands forced him to go down to 5 while Vu kept a full grip. Vu started things off with a Tundra. Joe started his first turn with a Noble Hierarch. It managed to get in for 1 a turn later as Vu played another land and passed. Vu had another uneventful turn with just a Mutavault, but began the pressure when he cast Clique on Joe’s draw step. However Joe floated a blue manawith a Tropical Island then cast Daze on the Clique. When that resolved, Joe used the floating mana to cast Brainstorm. With three mana left, he used it all to Green Sun’s Zenith for a Tarmogoyf. Vu landed Jace, the Mind Sculptor the next turn and returned the Goyf to Joe’s hand. Joe hit Jace for 1 with the Noble Hierarch but lacked the burn spell to finish him off. He laid Tarmogoyf down and passed. Vu started to grind out the advantage with a Brainstorm from Jace, then hit Joe hard with Wrath of God. Wrath of God cleared the board and Jace’s fateseal soon began a turn later. A Stoneforge Mystic fetching Sword of Feast and Famine landed as well, and when Vu cast a Vendilion Clique, Joe packed it in.

Vu Phan 1, Joe Veth 1

Game 3

Unhappy with his first hand, Vu ships his first seven back and drew a new six. Joe kept his hand and led with fetchland into Noble Hierarch. Vu fired back with a Mental Misstep but Joe Dazed it. Vu had just a Scalding Tarn on his first turn and passed. On Joe’s turn 2, a Green Sun for x=1 fetched out another Noble Hierarch. Vu landed Stoneforge Mystic, getting out a Sword of Feast and Famine for the third straight game. With four mana, Joe decides to go for the Natural Order. As luck would have it, Vu had the Force of Will, pitching the Clique to stop the deadly spell. Vu had no play again, instead electing to flash in the Sword of Feast and Famine the next turn. Joe Green Sun’d for a Tarmogoyf in the meanwhile. Vu equipped the Mystic with the Sword, allowing it to get past the Tarmogoyf and hit Joe for 3 damage. Joe swung back with Tarmogoyf. They both traded blows again the very next turn. However, the Sword of Feast and Famine trigger took its toll on Joe, as he was forced to discard a Grim Lavamancer and Force of Will. Vu attempted to cast Spellstutter Sprite but Joe used the last card in his hand to stop it—a Pyroblast. Vu untapped and then equipped his Mutavault with the Sword and swung, leaving his Stoneforge back to block but taking Joe down to 6 life. Joe attempted to attack back, but Vu tapped two mana and tapped his Stoneforge—putting in a Batterskull that was simply too much for Joe to handle.

Vu Phan 2, Joe Veth 1