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Izulde · 01-19-2015, 05:19 PM

My first ever prerelease event. I was supposed to go to one back in 2010 or 2011, but the guys I was going with took off without me, then spent all the next few days talking about it. Needless to say, I was pissed. I've never quite forgiven them for it, either.

But this one I wasn't going to miss.

$30 charge, and the way it worked is this: You chose your clan: Abzan, Jeskai, Sultai, Temur, and Mardu, and got a special box for that clan. Guess which one I chose?

Duh. Though I was tempted by Temur and Sultai, as I've been toying with R/G/U and B/G/U decks respectively over the last few weeks, in addition to a R/B deck I've been contemplating.

Oh, and that's my new placemat beneath it. $7 for a plain green one until I can find a playmat I really like.

Inside the box was a package of clan-specific cards, four boosters of Fate Reforged, and one of Khans of Tarkir. We had 30 minutes to assemble a deck out of the cards we had, with a 40 card minimum.

First off, my promo card:

"Hi, I'm in ur game, stealin ur counterz"

Beyond that, I'm sorry to say, I didn't get much exciting, except for the following two cards:

I'm already drooling, envisioning a Modern deck I'm going to build around this possibly.

And then the most expensive card I drew:

$8.53 midpoint price. This dude would be freaking AWESOME in Mardu goblin token decks. Ping: BYU 14

So I'm sitting there, and I really, really want to find a way to force the dragon in the deck. But it's just not going to work, I finally decide. And in fact, it's getting 3 of this card that settle my direction:

The fact that this is a common is ridiculous, and I think we're going to see even more obnoxious Mardu aggro decks as a result of Harsh Sustenance and Brutal Hordechief.

I immediately snap up all the cheap casting cost creatures in B/G/W I can find and throw in some others, ultimately ending with this:

Fate Reforged Prerelease Tournament Deck
Lands
4x Forests
6x Plains
7x Swamps
1x Sandsteppe Citadel
1x Scoured Barrens

Note: Basic lands were provided free by the shop

Creatures
1x Abzan Skycaptain
1x Alabastar Kirin
1x Arashin Cleric
1x Archers' Parapet
1x Armament Corps
1x Brutal Hordechief
1x Daghatar the Adamant
1x Disowned Ancestor
1x Elite Scaleguard
1x Hewed Stone Retainers
1x Hooded Assassin
1x Mer-Ek Nightblade
1x Rakshasa Deathdealer
2x Sandsteppe Outcast
3x Sultai Emissary
1x Typhoid Rats
1x Wandering Champion

Instants
1x Abzan Advantage
1x Feat of Resistance
3x Harsh Sustenance
1x Pressure Point
1x Reach of Shadows

b]Sorceries[/b]
1x Seek the Horizons

Now what I didn't know was that you're supposed to go 23 non-lands, 17 lands and make a 40 card deck in this format. Instead, I went 28 non-lands and estimated the landcount to 19, for a total of 47 cards - or 7 over the ideal size.

I should also note that I was frantically sleeving my cards as time was counting down, after having to buy a pack of sleeves to sleeve stuff (green, of course). Really, really feeling the time crunch.

Six round Swiss. Top 8 advance

Round 1
This guy had great luck in terms of card value draw in that he got no less than *3* of the dragons. Unfortunately for him, it meant a shit deck in composition, though he tried with a Jeskai red/white/blue. We also started late because he, too, was slow to sleeve though I had mine down before we were to start. I wiped him out pretty easily both games, thanks to the Harsh Sustenance and Reach of Shadows for removal. Don't remember the creatures that knocked him out, though. At the end of the 2-0 sweep, he said, "Fuck it. I'm going in all in on a five color deck for my dragons." Another guy was like, "You're playing dangerous." Dragons Guy: "I don't care. I got screwed in stuff to construct with."

Round 2
Best battle of the whole night. He was running Sultai, I think, and our first game went 30 minutes before he conceded, and then I beat him handily the second game. The beauty of Daghatar and Brutal Hordechief made themselves known this round. Although I didn't use Daghatar to steal counters, I used him to transfer his counters to my flying spirit. Which leads me to one of the cool mechanics of Fate Reforged - that of some cards that have choices. Sandsteppe Outcast is one - it allows you to either put a +1/+1 counter on it *or* bring in a 1/1 flying Spirit token when Outcast comes into play. Hooded Assassin is another one - +1/+1 counter or destroy a creature that took damage this turn.

Round 3
I'm in total shock that I swept both opening rounds and am in play to maybe, somehow pull off a Top 8. Then I go up against someone, I don't remember what he played, but I won the first, he won the second because I was green mana screwed the entire game until the last couple turns, and by then it was too late. Third game, I'm losing, and I'm trying to stall for the draw. Time's called. I continue stalling. Then on Turn 5, the last turn, he hits me with everything... and beats me by 1.single.fucking.point. If I'd gotten one more blocker out during Turns 0, 2, or 4, I would have salvaged the draw. Instead, 0 points, and a 2-1 defeat.

Round 4
There are some people who got insanely lucky on their draws. One was my next opponent, who not only drew a Brutal Hordechief, but *2* of this next card - a promo, and then another one:

Yeah. First game he got both of those assholes out and stomped me. Second game I was able to get stuff out quick enough to beat him. Third game he won, and it's another 1-2 defeat.

Round 5
By this turn, I'm getting hungry, and I'm getting mad. To go from 2-0 sweeps to nut-kicked in one round and a shit opponent draw in the next was really pissing me off. So I was quite snappy and an ass during this round, when I kept getting spell-screwed in both games I lost. I felt bad about it afterwards, especially since it was against the kid I got my first tie against it. Oh by the way, he got Ugin,the Planeswalker. I still do not have a planeswalker that's standard legal after umpteen gazillion packs that I got for Christmas presents, plus the odd one-offs I've opened here and there.

Round 6
By this time, I know I'm not going to make Top 8, and I'm trying to find the hey it's fun to play Magic mood again. It helps when my last opponent is a Jeskai player who has a very, very slow deck. He wins the first one because he lasts until his stuff hits the board, but Games 2 and 3, I brutally crush him to salvage a .500 record and 9 points in my first prerelease event.

Before Top 8 drawings are announced, the raffle results are held. $5 a ticket, max 2 tickets per person. 3rd place is 5 Khans of Tarkir packs, 2nd place is 5 Fate Reforged packs, and 1st place is an expensive card.

3rd place comes... it's a guy who had to leave early, so his Khans packs are set aside.

2nd place comes... it's somebody in attendance, and he gleefully accepts his Fate Reforged packs.

1st place number is announced... I check my ticket.... You've got to fucking be kidding me.

Izulde won the raffle!

What did Izulde win?

Congratulations are offered all around, and a couple of guys tell me it's going for around $80 on eBay. Cool stuff.

I immediately get an offer for the card from a guy in back. "I'll give you $50 for it."

"...No."

"Give you 65."

"...No, I want to wait and check the value first."

Come to find out, that $50 price he offered first? That was the low price point on TCG. Even the 65 bucks was below the $75 midpoint price. I don't appreciate people who try to rip off of others, so I wouldn't have sold it to him even he offered the $75 then. I don't care that it's good negotiation tactics or business sense - I have a strong sense of ethics about that sort of thing.

Side Note: As the time of this post, the low price is up to $58, the midpoint price to $76

Honestly, I'm probably not going to sell it. Christmas is my favorite holiday to begin with, and it was kind of a special season for me. Biggest reason is Mom getting her liver transplant when she had a month left to live (as we found out afterwards), but also me getting back into Magic and developing the beginnings of potential friendships through it. Plus, I've never, ever owned a card that was worth that much.

Other New Mechanics
Bolster - Gives +1/+1 counters to the creature with the lowest toughness among those you have. I *love* this mechanic.
Manifest - Next card on your deck comes into place face-down as a 2/2 creature. You can then cast the card if it's a creature for its casting cost. This sounds great in theory, but it can really screw you over, as it did me in the first game of Round 5.

When Sultai Emissary dies, it manifests the next card. Guess what it manifested? Daghatar. And when a card manifests, all enter the battlefield effects are nullified, because it's already in the field when it's face down

So I have some thinking to do on whether to pursue the constellation route, bring back Avacyn's Meek to Mighty Warrior Horde, or pursue some other angles.

Semester starts again tomorrow, so I'll create a couple of decks to play with (and post them here, obviously).

01-19-2015, 05:19 PM	#109
Izulde Head Coach Join Date: Sep 2004	My first ever prerelease event. I was supposed to go to one back in 2010 or 2011, but the guys I was going with took off without me, then spent all the next few days talking about it. Needless to say, I was pissed. I've never quite forgiven them for it, either. But this one I wasn't going to miss. $30 charge, and the way it worked is this: You chose your clan: Abzan, Jeskai, Sultai, Temur, and Mardu, and got a special box for that clan. Guess which one I chose? Duh. Though I was tempted by Temur and Sultai, as I've been toying with R/G/U and B/G/U decks respectively over the last few weeks, in addition to a R/B deck I've been contemplating. Oh, and that's my new placemat beneath it. $7 for a plain green one until I can find a playmat I really like. Inside the box was a package of clan-specific cards, four boosters of Fate Reforged, and one of Khans of Tarkir. We had 30 minutes to assemble a deck out of the cards we had, with a 40 card minimum. First off, my promo card: "Hi, I'm in ur game, stealin ur counterz" Beyond that, I'm sorry to say, I didn't get much exciting, except for the following two cards: I'm already drooling, envisioning a Modern deck I'm going to build around this possibly. And then the most expensive card I drew: $8.53 midpoint price. This dude would be freaking AWESOME in Mardu goblin token decks. Ping: BYU 14 So I'm sitting there, and I really, really want to find a way to force the dragon in the deck. But it's just not going to work, I finally decide. And in fact, it's getting 3 of this card that settle my direction: The fact that this is a common is ridiculous, and I think we're going to see even more obnoxious Mardu aggro decks as a result of Harsh Sustenance and Brutal Hordechief. I immediately snap up all the cheap casting cost creatures in B/G/W I can find and throw in some others, ultimately ending with this: Fate Reforged Prerelease Tournament Deck Lands 4x Forests 6x Plains 7x Swamps 1x Sandsteppe Citadel 1x Scoured Barrens Note: Basic lands were provided free by the shop Creatures 1x Abzan Skycaptain 1x Alabastar Kirin 1x Arashin Cleric 1x Archers' Parapet 1x Armament Corps 1x Brutal Hordechief 1x Daghatar the Adamant 1x Disowned Ancestor 1x Elite Scaleguard 1x Hewed Stone Retainers 1x Hooded Assassin 1x Mer-Ek Nightblade 1x Rakshasa Deathdealer 2x Sandsteppe Outcast 3x Sultai Emissary 1x Typhoid Rats 1x Wandering Champion Instants 1x Abzan Advantage 1x Feat of Resistance 3x Harsh Sustenance 1x Pressure Point 1x Reach of Shadows b]Sorceries[/b] 1x Seek the Horizons Now what I didn't know was that you're supposed to go 23 non-lands, 17 lands and make a 40 card deck in this format. Instead, I went 28 non-lands and estimated the landcount to 19, for a total of 47 cards - or 7 over the ideal size. I should also note that I was frantically sleeving my cards as time was counting down, after having to buy a pack of sleeves to sleeve stuff (green, of course). Really, really feeling the time crunch. Six round Swiss. Top 8 advance Round 1 This guy had great luck in terms of card value draw in that he got no less than 3 of the dragons. Unfortunately for him, it meant a shit deck in composition, though he tried with a Jeskai red/white/blue. We also started late because he, too, was slow to sleeve though I had mine down before we were to start. I wiped him out pretty easily both games, thanks to the Harsh Sustenance and Reach of Shadows for removal. Don't remember the creatures that knocked him out, though. At the end of the 2-0 sweep, he said, "Fuck it. I'm going in all in on a five color deck for my dragons." Another guy was like, "You're playing dangerous." Dragons Guy: "I don't care. I got screwed in stuff to construct with." Round 2 Best battle of the whole night. He was running Sultai, I think, and our first game went 30 minutes before he conceded, and then I beat him handily the second game. The beauty of Daghatar and Brutal Hordechief made themselves known this round. Although I didn't use Daghatar to steal counters, I used him to transfer his counters to my flying spirit. Which leads me to one of the cool mechanics of Fate Reforged - that of some cards that have choices. Sandsteppe Outcast is one - it allows you to either put a +1/+1 counter on it or bring in a 1/1 flying Spirit token when Outcast comes into play. Hooded Assassin is another one - +1/+1 counter or destroy a creature that took damage this turn. Round 3 I'm in total shock that I swept both opening rounds and am in play to maybe, somehow pull off a Top 8. Then I go up against someone, I don't remember what he played, but I won the first, he won the second because I was green mana screwed the entire game until the last couple turns, and by then it was too late. Third game, I'm losing, and I'm trying to stall for the draw. Time's called. I continue stalling. Then on Turn 5, the last turn, he hits me with everything... and beats me by 1.single.fucking.point. If I'd gotten one more blocker out during Turns 0, 2, or 4, I would have salvaged the draw. Instead, 0 points, and a 2-1 defeat. Round 4 There are some people who got insanely lucky on their draws. One was my next opponent, *who not only drew a Brutal Hordechief, but 2* of this next card - a promo, and then another one: Yeah. First game he got both of those assholes out and stomped me. Second game I was able to get stuff out quick enough to beat him. Third game he won, and it's another 1-2 defeat. Round 5 By this turn, I'm getting hungry, and I'm getting mad. To go from 2-0 sweeps to nut-kicked in one round and a shit opponent draw in the next was really pissing me off. So I was quite snappy and an ass during this round, when I kept getting spell-screwed in both games I lost. I felt bad about it afterwards, especially since it was against the kid I got my first tie against it. Oh by the way, he got Ugin,the Planeswalker. I still do not have a planeswalker that's standard legal after umpteen gazillion packs that I got for Christmas presents, plus the odd one-offs I've opened here and there. Round 6 By this time, I know I'm not going to make Top 8, and I'm trying to find the hey it's fun to play Magic mood again. It helps when my last opponent is a Jeskai player who has a very, very slow deck. He wins the first one because he lasts until his stuff hits the board, but Games 2 and 3, I brutally crush him to salvage a .500 record and 9 points in my first prerelease event. Before Top 8 drawings are announced, the raffle results are held. $5 a ticket, max 2 tickets per person. 3rd place is 5 Khans of Tarkir packs, 2nd place is 5 Fate Reforged packs, and 1st place is an expensive card. 3rd place comes... it's a guy who had to leave early, so his Khans packs are set aside. 2nd place comes... it's somebody in attendance, and he gleefully accepts his Fate Reforged packs. 1st place number is announced... I check my ticket.... You've got to fucking be kidding me. Izulde won the raffle! What did Izulde win? Congratulations are offered all around, and a couple of guys tell me it's going for around $80 on eBay. Cool stuff. I immediately get an offer for the card from a guy in back. "I'll give you $50 for it." "...No." "Give you 65." "...No, I want to wait and check the value first." Come to find out, that $50 price he offered first? That was the low price point on TCG. Even the 65 bucks was below the $75 midpoint price. I don't appreciate people who try to rip off of others, so I wouldn't have sold it to him even he offered the $75 then. I don't care that it's good negotiation tactics or business sense - I have a strong sense of ethics about that sort of thing. Side Note: As the time of this post, the low price is up to $58, the midpoint price to $76 Honestly, I'm probably not going to sell it. Christmas is my favorite holiday to begin with, and it was kind of a special season for me. Biggest reason is Mom getting her liver transplant when she had a month left to live (as we found out afterwards), but also me getting back into Magic and developing the beginnings of potential friendships through it. Plus, I've never, ever owned a card that was worth that much. Other New Mechanics Bolster** - Gives +1/+1 counters to the creature with the lowest toughness among those you have. I love this mechanic. Manifest - Next card on your deck comes into place face-down as a 2/2 creature. You can then cast the card if it's a creature for its casting cost. This sounds great in theory, but it can really screw you over, as it did me in the first game of Round 5. When Sultai Emissary dies, it manifests the next card. Guess what it manifested? Daghatar. And when a card manifests, all enter the battlefield effects are nullified, because it's already in the field when it's face down So I have some thinking to do on whether to pursue the constellation route, bring back Avacyn's Meek to Mighty Warrior Horde, or pursue some other angles. Semester starts again tomorrow, so I'll create a couple of decks to play with (and post them here, obviously). __________________ 2006 Golden Scribe Nominee 2006 Golden Scribe Winner Best Non-Sport Dynasty: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty) Rookie Writer of the Year Dynasty of the Year: May Our Reign Be Green and Golden (CK Dynasty)