MTG FNM Report - URdrazi

It's a new Standard environment and luckily the URdrazi deck I've been playing recently didn't lose a lot to rotation. Here's what I played:

Mainboard	Sideboard
4x Kozilek's Sentinel 4x Dimentional Infiltrator 4x Herald of Kozilek 4x Vile Aggregate 4x Eldrazi Skyspawner 4x Eldrazi Obligator 2x Thought-Knot Seer 4x Reality Smasher 4x Spatial Contortion 2x Brutal Expulsion 1x Mirrorpool 2x Ruins of Oran-Rief 2x Sea Gate Wreckage 4x Corrupted Crossroads 4x Shivan Reef 1x Yavimaya Coast 5x Island 5x Mountain	3x Spell Shrivel 1x Void Shatter 2x Dispel 2x Negate 2x Roast 3x Seismic Rupture 2x Brutal Expulsion

I've been quite enjoying playing this deck, and even with the loss of Ghost-Fire Blade, I think it's got a lot of angles. It can play aggressive, with two ways to play a turn four Reality Smasher in Eldrazi Skyspawner and Herald of Kozilek, and can close out the game with a well-timed Eldtazi Obligator. It can also play the defensive roll as Kozilek's Sentinel and Herald of Kozilek block very effectively while Dimentional Infiltrator and Eldrazi Skyspawner can fly in for damage.

Round 1: 2-0 vs Counter Burn

I was excited to see this deck in the tournament. It looks like the idea was to flash in a Rattlechains while pushing tempo in the early game and use Pyromancer's Goggles with cards like magmatic insight to grind out value in the mid to late game. Unfortunately my opponent mulliganed to 5 in the first game and I swarmed over him. In the second game, I managed to get a Eldrazi Skyspwaner down early and it went the distance while my opponent was forced to deal with everything else.

Round 2: 2-0 vs RG Eldrazi Ramp

This is another deck that didn't lose a lot of cards to rotation. Thankfully I was able to keep up the pressure and close out the game before my opponent could start playing his big spells. Brutal Expulsion was absolutely fantastic in this match-up, remanding an Explosive Vegetation and exiling a Hangerback Walker was…. Brutal.

Round 3: 2-1 vs UG Eldrazi Agro

This was basically the mon-blue Eldrazi list splashing green for Sylvan Advocate and Lumbering Falls. I won the die roll, and while I think that made a huge the difference, I do think the UR version has advantage in the matchup. Vile Aggregate blocks Thought-Knot Seer and Sylvan Advocate fantastically, the Herald of Kozilek gives me an extra way to ramp out a Reality Smasher and Eldrazi Obligator can setup a massive alpha strike.

So I went 3-0 on a quiet night at FNM. I had a lot of fun and feel that the URdrazi deck is a solid choice in the early meta. 

-Odd

As easy to stop as it is to comprehend. - Flavour text, Reality Smasher

MtG Origins Prerelease Report - Saturday

After a decent run in the midnight prerelease, I stole a couple hours sleep and headed back to Outer Limits for the Saturday prerelease. I was much happier with my pool this time, though I didn't open any money.

Here's what I built:

Click to Enlarge

2-1 vs GB

I loved the deck I was playing, lots of burn and some fantastic bombs late. My opponent could control my early red aggression but then was out of resources when I started dropping fatties late.

2-0 vs RW

I managed to out race the aggressive deck with my red. The Scab-Clan Beserkers were a little awkward to get renowned, but once they were they were great against all my opponent's combat tricks. The Mage-Ring Bully was sweet with Titanic Growth and got my multiple 2-for-1s in this match.

2-0 vs Mono White

My opponent was playing the life gain artifact and multiple tappers, which I think is sub-optimal. Titanic Growth did a great job trumping other combat tricks and was lots of fun with the Menace on the Boggart Brute.

1-2 vs RW

This time I got out aggro'd by the other red deck. In game two I did manage to search with Woodland Bellower twice after he got exiled with Hixus, Prison Warden, which was sweet. Overall I played to my outs and was happy with my performance. 

2-1 vs UR Thopter Tempo

The Scab-Clan Beserkers were great against my opponent's multiple tempo spells and Chandra's Fury out of the board was fantastic. 

I went 4-1 on the day and came second. This format is tons of fun. From my two prereleases I have determined that red fantastic with lots of aggressive creatures and enough efficient burn to really push the damage. The Skysnare Spider did major work... I was super impressed with that card.

I will still be posting my results from FNM later in the week, so you can check back for that.

-Odd

"The only thing more ill-tempered than a griffin in a web is the spider that must subdue it." - Skynare Spider, flavour text

MtG Origins Prerelease Report - Midnight

As usual, I played in the midnight prerelease at Outer Limits in Melville. There were already four red players by the time I registered, so I went with green. The pool I opened was ok, though not hugely exciting. I did open a Nissa, which is value but not spectacular for limited play.

Here's what I ended up running:

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My green was by far the best colour I opened, and I chose to pair it with blue as it gave me the most interaction. It also provided me with some flyers which I find are very important in sealed as a lot of games end up in a board stall. 

2-1 vs Mono-White Artifacts

I managed to curve out and use the blue disruption to push through the last few points of damage. The Managorger Hydra was terrific in both game that I won and the Whirler Rogue was brilliant too. I lost the second game to Sentinel of the Eternal Watch... holy crap, that card is horrifying. I was in total control of that game until it came down and then it just took over. 

1-2 vs RW Agro

Turns out the red/white deck is super aggressive. He curved out in all three games and my under powered four drops were not enough to stabalise. I managed to steal the second game with Bounding Krasis, but got taken out in the third. Menace seems to be a relevant ability, especially when my three drop is a Scrapskin Drake that can't block. 

2-0 vs Mono-Black 

Game one went according to plan as I managed to curve out and use the blue spells to tempo my opponent out. Game two he got stuck on two land... but hey, I'll take whatever win is available.

2-0 vs GB and UW Skies

I managed to out value my opponent's mediocre GB deck in game one and outraced his UW flyers deck in game two with bigger creatures. 

I had great fun with this format and had a good enough record to come third. My big takeaways from this event were that I really enjoyed Whirler Rogue every time I played it, Red and White are frighteningly aggressive and Nissa was actually quite easy to flip but didn't have much impact when she did. 

I'll be posting my reports from my Saturday prerelease and from my FNM later in the week, so check back for that. 

-Odd

"Nissa had only the space of a heartbeat to react, her instincts steering her blade." 

    -Wild Instincts, flavour text