Hi! I’m Jason Abong and for those who don’t know me, I’m the administrator of this website and an avid Legacy player. These SCG events don’t come around the West Coast too often, and since I wasn’t able to make it to SCG: Las Vegas, as soon as SCG: Los Angeles was announced I made sure to keep that weekend open.
Since late October, I had been on RUG. I Top 4’d the Tarmogoyf tournament at Pop Culture Paradise in October, and since then, I had been on a hot streak. If I remember correctly, I only dropped one match with RUG from October till January, so I felt pretty good with the deck. However, I knew it would need some tuning since the LA metagame is vastly different than the Phoenix metagame.
Here is one of the lists I ran from October – January:
| Creatures (13) 4 Delver of Secrets 4 Tarmogoyf 2 Nimble Mongoose 2 Snapcaster Mage 1 Grim Lavamancer Spells (29) 4 Brainstorm 4 Ponder 4 Lightning Bolt 4 Stifle 4 Force of Will 3 Spell Snare 3 Daze 2 Dismember 1 Life from the Loam Land (18) 3 Scalding Tarn 3 Misty Rainforest 4 Tropical Island 4 Volcanic Island 4 Wasteland |
I know from the last SCG: LA and the various tournament reports on the Internet that SoCal is a combo-heavy metagame, so the first thing I did to adjust the deck was to remove Nimble Mongoose. Nimble Mongoose is a house but looks foolish when facing an ANT player. I figured Snapcaster was better in that slot, since flashing back Spell Pierces or Pyroblast is pretty awesome. The second choice was adding a Surgical Extraction maindeck instead of the Life from the Loam. Since Reanimator was popular in LA, having an out maindeck I thought would be nice, similar to the Karakas tech that some UW Stoneblade decks run (despite having no way to find the Karakas like Maverick).
I quickly learned though that the opportunity cost for Surgical Extraction was much higher than Karakas. Karakas taps for mana if it doesn’t have to return Emrakul, whereas Surgical Extraction cost me a draw step. It did work out a couple times when I tested at the guys at Majestix CCG (my cousin Pat’s shop in Costa Mesa and Huntington Beach, for those who don’t know), but Alex Gellerman suggested I remove them for Grim Lavamancers which is decent vs Maverick and randomly good versus everything else. I agreed, savoring the opportunity to go back to my roots and play with Lightning Bolts and Grim Lavamancers (I historically play Zoo and got into serious Legacy with burn).
Anyway, so my brother and I spent a couple days at Majestix testing, with him on Punishing Maverick and me on RUG, then on Saturday, we headed out to LA to meet up with a couple of the Arizona guys and play in the Legacy Challenge.
My first match is versus UW Stoneblade, and despite him running 25-26 land (from what he told me), I manascrew him game 1 and he keeps a basic Island/Brainstorm hand game 2, hoping to draw into a white source, but he doesn’t so I take the match.
I face off against Reanimator round 2, and I get demolished both games, losing to a double Show and Tell game 1 and Blazing Archon game 2. Unfortunately he had Reanimated Blazing Archon to fall down to 2 life and I had boarded out my Bolts :(
Round 3 I’m paired off against Jacob Kory, and again, I get demolished. Despite testing against my brother, I tell him that I’m still not sure about how to attack Maverick. A turn 1 Delver is basically the only way for me to stand a chance since Knight of the Reliquary, equipment, and Ooze is simply too much for my deck to handle. He suggests adding a basic Island (for the inevitable Path to Exiles that come in games 2 and 3), and a Phantasmal Image, since I had lost to Thrun game 2, as well as dealing with Reanimator. Really cool guy, I’m glad he Top 8’d too.
In the final round for the prize of one booster pack, I’m paired off against Enchantress and I draw double Delver game 1 and triple (!) Delver game 2 to make the match pretty quick.
I walk over to my brother’s match, where he’s 3-0 and paired up against Dredge. He manages to deck Dredge game 1 by removing Bridges and then killing the Ichorids one by one with Punishing Fire until he couldn’t recur the Ichorids anymore, which was pretty interesting to see. In game 2, he Enlightened Tutors for Dueling Grounds when time is called to make sure he doesn’t die and he takes the match 1-0, and is one of only two people to finish 4-0 in the Legacy Challenge which is awesome.
The Legacy Challenge finishes up at around 11pm, which is pretty scary considering we’re in downtown LA, but my brother and I manage to walk back unscathed, pick up some Subway and go to bed early to make sure we’re up in time for the Legacy Challenge.
We wake up around 7am or so, get some breakfast at the hotel, and we walk over to the Convention Center and register for the event. This is the final list I registered for the event:
| Creatures (14) 4 Delver of Secrets 4 Snapcaster Mage 4 Tarmogoyf 2 Grim Lavamancer Spells (28) 4 Brainstorm 3 Daze 2 Dismember 4 Force of Will 4 Lightning Bolt 3 Spell Snare 4 Stifle 2 Gitaxian Probe 2 Ponder Land (18) 1 Island 3 Misty Rainforest 3 Scalding Tarn 3 Tropical Island 4 Volcanic Island 4 Wasteland | Sideboard (15) 1 Engineered Explosives 1 Tormod’s Crypt 1 Phantasmal Image 2 Ancient Grudge 3 Pyroblast 2 Spell Pierce 3 Submerge 2 Surgical Extraction |
Out of all the cards, the one I get asked the most about is Gitaxian Probe. The answer is that I don’t like tapping out during my turn, especially turn 1, for just a cantrip isn’t all that great. Casting a Delver or Lavamancer is okay, but you can’t get much value out of a turn 1 Ponder. Also, with Gitaxian Probe, you get more value out of cards like Stifle or Brainstorm.
Anyway, let’s get to the tournament report! I didn’t take much notes but I remember most of the matches.
Round 1 – Justin (Dredge)
I win the die roll. The first thing I notice about the deck is when I Gitaxian Probe him turn 1 is that his deck is all foil. He reveals something like Putrid Imp, Bridge from Below, Careful Study, Golgari Grave-Troll, and Dread Return. I Force of Will his first couple plays but he overruns me with Zombie tokens.
Game 2, I start off with a turn 1 Ponder, Tormod’s Crypt. I Force his turn 1 play, then draw into a Delver of Secrets, then Wasteland his land. The Delver applies pressure while Crypt keeps him in check.
For Game 3, I mulligan into a Surgical Extraction and I Surgical his Narcomeba in response to the trigger. He Dredges into 3 Bridge from Belows. He recurs an Ichorid as well and Cabal Therapies me, putting 3 triggers on the stack but I Bolt my Delver in response to get rid of the Bridges. I proceed to draw into 2 Tarmogoyf and an Engineered Explosives for 0, which he Nature’s Claims but the life gain puts me ahead in the race and I take the win.
1-0
Round 2 – Eddie (Mono White Stax)
Yeah, Round 2 I’m paired against another guy from Arizona (just like last time I was here..) We talked beforehand and we both knew what we were up against. Well, maybe he thought I was my brother and was up against Maverick.
I don’t remember game 1 much, except that he Armageddons early. I’m lucky enough to have drawn a lot of land anyway, and when he plays Ancient Tomb after the ‘geddon, I play a Wasteland, kill it, and he doesn’t recover.
Game 2 was a blowout. I Bolt his turn 1 Mystic, but then he lands another one and a Trinisphere, gets a Hero of Bladehold and another Batterskull…yeah.
In game 3, he mulligans. I play a land and pass, he plays a land, Mox Diamond, and then he plays a Ghostly Prison, which I Spell Pierce. I land a Lavamancer and a couple other dudes, Wasteland his Tomb and manage to take the win.
2-0
Round 3 – Beaux (BW Stoneblade)
He starts off with a Scrubland and I Wasteland it and pass, then he plays a fetch for a basic and passes. He goes for Dark Confidant but I Force it, then I draw into a Tarmogoyf but he draws into Jotun Grunt. I Dismember the Grunt, and he plays a couple of Ethersworn Canonists & Tidehollow Scullers, but they just chump block as I slowly take down his life total with Goyf and Grim Lavamancer.
In game 2, he Thoughtseizes and Inquisitions me in the first couple turns, taking a Snapcaster and a Goyf. He manages to get a Sword of Fire and Ice out but I kill his guys in response to the equips. He can’t apply enough pressure and I am able to take out his guys with Grim Lavamancer and win with Delver of Secrets.
3-0
Round 4 – Omar (NO Bant)
I have no idea what he’s playing at first, but he mulligans to six. We both draw go for awhile, then I draw into 8 cards, so I decide to cast Goyf. He Snares it, then I make the mistake of Forcing back. He lets it goes, then he fetches for Dryad Arbor for Natural Order, which I Force but he Dazes (since I tapped out). Oops.
I start off with a turn 1 Delver. It flips and I guess game 1 didn’t reveal a lot of information about my deck. He didn’t know that I was playing Delver since he was taken surprise by it. He takes a hit from it then draws into a Swords to Plowshares for it, but I drop a Goyf and another Delver I think. I swing a couple of times. He Natural Orders for Progenitus while I’m at 21. I swing in to bring him down to 7. He swings with Progenitus to bring me down to 11, then he plays Tarmogoyf and Dryad Arbor to block. I Snapcaster Lightning Bolt back to bring him down to 4. I draw into a Brainstorm, which gives me a Dismember, Wasteland, and a land. I keep the Wasteland and play it, then he scoops.
He fetches for a basic Forest, then for Noble Hierarch, then I drop a Delver. It doesn’t flip turn one, but I still get in for 1 damage. He drops a Goyf, then I Force another Goyf & Bolt his Hierarch before exalted triggers to keep him off mana. He gets me down to like 15, but I drop another Delver. I Brainstorm during my upkeep to reveal land, land, Submerge. I reveal the Submerge, Submerge the Goyf to stall him, and my Delvers win the race.
4-0
Round 5 – David (UW Stoneblade) – Video Feature Match
Neither of us wanted to be on camera, but hey, what can you do? Unfortunately he tells me at the table that he may have lost his deck and he rushes off to go find it. Luckily, the deck was at the lost and found and we begin our feature match. I would have felt pretty bad if I was going to win because my opponent lost his deck.
I keep a hand with a fetch and 2 Wasteland. I Probe him to see Wasteland plus other cards, so I use the fetch to get a basic then play Delver, which he Dazes. I drop a Wasteland, play a second Delver and Waste a land. I drop a Snapcaster Mage flashing back the Probe and swinging in with Delver. I drop more Snapcasters and I overwhelm him. This game was an example of why I liked Probe – not only did it allow me to play around Wasteland, but it also allowed me to cast Snapcasters with only 2 mana and still get some value out of his triggered ability.
In game 2, I land a Delver but he Swords it. I get out a Snapcaster Mage and start beating but he eventually rids it with a Path to Exile and I Snapcaster Bolt at him and bring him down to a low life total. He lands Jace and I Bolt it in response to the Brainstorm instead of him (huge misplay) then I try to cast another Snapcaster but he Snares it. He then lands a Clique and starts beating face while I draw irrelevant cards, but I draw into a Pyroblast and I was forced to Pyroblast it. He gets up to seven land then casts Batterskull. I Spell Pierce it to force him to fetch from 4 life down to 2 to pay for it, then I cast a Snapcaster Mage after he pays for the Batterskull to flash back Bolt for the win. I had a Force in hand just in case he had a Snare (which he did).
5-0
Round 6 – Jason Bulkowski (Dredge, Top 8)
Finally, I reach the win-and-in round. This is my first time in such a position but I recognize his name from other SCG events, so obviously he’s not.
I have double Force of will to stop his early plays but he eventually overwhelms me with Ichorid and zombie tokens.
I have Surgical and Snapcaster in my opening hand so I keep. I Surgical Narcomebas when he Dredges into them, but he has Bridge from Below to get rid of my Snapcaster (I stupidly cast a Goyf to start a clock but I should have cast the Snapcaster because a 2/1 is still an OK clock but it gets rid of something) and I lose to Bloodghasts.
I congratulate him on his Top 8 as I gather my things. Cool guy, he definitely deserved it.
5-1
Round 7 – Lu Cai (RUG, 10th Place)
This time, this match had much more at stake. The winner is (almost) guaranteed a Top 8 while the other has to settle for the Top 16. He seems like he’s a very good player. Needless to say, I was pretty nervous going into this round.
We trade Bolts at our Delvers and stop each other’s Goyfs and we eventually get into topdeck mode. I use Snapcaster to flashback Brainstorms to gain card advantage and I have a full grip to his 6 cards. My Probe reveals a Tropical Island, Bolt, 2 Force of Will, a Dismember, and a Volcanic Island. I keep attacking with Snapcaster Mage and he Bolts it, then I drop a Goyf which he Dismembers, taking him down to 7, then I believe I get there with Delvers.
We draw, Wasteland, go for a little bit. I cut off his red mana, then I cast a Delver while he resolves a Sensei’s Divining Top, which was definitely surprising. He casts Counterbalance which I Snare, resolve a Goyf, then he resolves a Counterbalance which I Bolt him in response. He gets rid of the Goyf. I cast Ponder to force him to tap out for Counterbalance, which he does, then I use that opportunity to cast Phantasmal Image to copy Insectile Aberration which doubles the clock and nets me the game, and the match.
6-1
The standings go up and I’m in 7th place. While I know how to calculate standings, I didn’t feel confident enough to calculate it when so much was at stake, so I consult a couple of my friends. Most of them say that we would have to play it out for the Top 8, and at that point I’m worried. Unfortunately since the pairings go up soon after I had to go to the table, still undecided..
Round 8 – Ryan Martin-Patterson (Reanimator, 7th Place)
When he arrives at the table, he tells me that we can safely draw in – it was basically a 90-95% chance that we were in the Top 8. I trust him since I don’t want to risk a bad matchup so I decide to draw it.
6-1-1
It was probably the longest round of my life. Jeff forces me to eat but I couldn’t really eat too much but finally the standings are announced and I’m in 7th place!
We fill out our profiles and take the pictures for the coverage. I asked the photographer if we could get my brother in on the picture and he obliges which is awesome. My match is chosen for the video feature match, versus Punishing Maverick.
Top 8 – John Kassari (Punishing Maverick, 1st Place)
I’m pretty glad that I dodged the two matchups that I lost to in the Legacy Challenges all day long but I guess I actually have to play it out for once. Better in the Top 8 than in the Swiss rounds when it could knock me out of contention :D I tell him the match was basically hopeless and as it turned out, it basically was.
I mulligan to six both games and I’m never really into it. If I recall correctly, they may have been one of the only mulligans I made the entire day. I make the mistake of not Submerging the Mother of Runes game 2 to buy some time but I don’t feel that would have changed it all that much.
6-2- 1
So, good for 8th place and $200, which is pretty sweet. I’m definitely glad we made it out to Cali. Had a great time and of course, coming home with the Top 8 Pin is pretty sweet too.
The obligatory props & slops:
Props:
- My brother (of course) – and the fact that he agreed to wearing the Mario & Luigi shirts we’ve had for so long (serious he wouldn’t wear the Luigi shirt before LA).
- Everyone from Arizona – Unfortunately I don’t think we got nearly as many people as the last LA event, but it was cool seeing guys rep Arizona. Sam Meyer finished in the Top 16th of the Standard portion which is awesome. Sadly, Tony Murata failed to post a second Top 8 (and he started off 5-1 too :( ) and Jon Kornacki didn’t take the Standard trophy…don’t worry, we’ll get them next time! :D
- The Majestix guys (Chuck, Eder, Alex, Bean, Jacob, etc, you know who you are) – Was awesome testing with y’all, too bad we couldn’t stay too long in Cali.
- The guys I played – Everyone I played was chill and I enjoyed playing against every one of them.
Slops:
- I heard there were 5 DQ’s at the event. WTF?
- My brother finishing 1-2 in the Legacy event :(
- Not playing that well in the Top 8
Also, thanks to everyone who congratulated me. My Facebook and phone were blowing up when the Top 8 was announced which was pretty cool.
This was a long report, but I hope it was worth it. Thanks for reading!
Jason
Legacyis#1
Good read, but it’d be better if you took better notes :)