Two-Headed Giant Tournament Report
This is my report of the Magic tournament the_eleven and I went to on Sunday. It was 8 rounds and there's lots of stuff I can't remember, but since I'm about to leave for a week, it's now or never.
I picked up Andy at around 8 am; an uncomfortably early time for both of us. The drive to Charlotte went quickly and smoothly. Unfortunately, I got the feeling that my car still wanted to die upon leaving the interstate. Apparently the surgery performed on it a couple weeks ago didn't work. Luckily, I managed to avoid a stall, and eventually found parking for Heroes Con.
We went inside the Charlotte Convention Center, and were about 5 minutes late. However, this didn't turn out to matter, as the tournament started about 35 minutes late (apparently an ATM wasn't working so people couldn't get money for the entry fee). This is definitely a tournament worth finding the money for; 50 total booster boxes are being given as prizes, and there are only 40 teams playing! (9th-16th teams get 2 boxes, 5th-8th teams get 3 boxes, 3rd-4th teams get 4 boxes, 2nd gets 6 boxes, and 1st get 8 boxes and a pair of glass trophies.)
Cards were passed out: 1 Ravnica tournament pack, 2 Guildpact boosters, 2 Dissension boosters. The cards we opened had a very strong Selesnya guild (Watchwolf, Evangel, Hierarch, Vitu-Ghazi, etc); also good Dmir, Orzhov, Azorius, and a Golgari Rotwurm. It looked like everything wanted to cram into one amazing deck leaving the other almost empty.
This turned out not to matter to us, because after registering the cards, we passed them to the team across from us, and they passed theirs back. Regardless of how those decks should have been built, that team didn't do it; both of their decks included Green and White, and they left out such cards as Gruul Turf and Galvanic Arc.
Meanwhile, we examined our own cards. Mono-Green was quite good, and our creatures in general were solid. Izzet, Azorius, Orzhov, Simic, and Rakdos were all tempting, with a handful of cards representing the other guilds as well. They were tough decks to build, but we finally decided on UBR, and Guw with two Orzhov Signets for Vulturous Zombie and Witch-Maw Nephilim. Andy insisted that we have countermagic, so I included Overrule in my deck; we left out many other worthy cards.
Andy copied down, sorted, and alphabetized the decks and excluded cards:
Jonathan, Deck A
8 Forest
4 Island
2 Plains
1 Simic Growth Chamber
1 Azorius Signet
2 Orzhov Signet
1 Devouring Light
1 Fists of Ironwood
1 Moldervine Cloak (foil)
1 Ocular Halo
1 Overrule
2 Wildsize
1 Assault Zeppelid
1 Azorius Guildmage
1 Court Hussar
1 Elvish Skysweeper
1 Ghost Warden
1 Hunted Troll
1 Nullgame Shepherd
1 Protean Hulk
1 Root-Kin Ally
1 Simic Ragworm
1 Sky Hussar
1 Transluminant
1 Vigean Hydropon
1 Vulturous Zombie
1 Witch-Maw Nephilim
Andy, Deck B
6 Islands
5 Mountains
5 Swamps
1 Bottled Cloister
1 Dimir Signet
1 Rakdos Signet
1 Terrarion
1 Fiery Conclusion
1 Flash Conscription
1 Gaze of the Gorgon
1 Last Gasp
1 Shielding Plax
1 Wrecking Ball
1 Dimir House Guard
1 Gelectrode
1 Helium Squirter
1 Keening Banshee
1 Ogre Savant
1 Orzhov Euthanist
1 Rakdos Ickspitter
1 Snapping Drake
1 Steamcore Weird
1 Tattered Drake
1 Torch Drake
1 Vedalken Dismisser
1 Vedalken Plotter
1 Viashino Fangtail
Unused Card Pool
1 Duskmantle, House of Shadow
1 Leashling
1 Selesnya Signet
1 Blessing of the Nephilim
1 Blockbuster
1 Boros Fury-Shield
1 Brain Pry
1 Carom
1 Castigate
1 Conclave's Blessing
1 Consult the Necrosages
1 Cremate
1 Cry of Contrition
1 Dizzy Spell
1 Dryad's Caress
1 Gather Courage
1 Nettling Curse
1 Rain of Embers
1 Rain of Gore
1 Rally the Righteous
1 Runeboggle
1 Skyscribing
1 Steeling Stance
1 Strands of Undeath
1 Thrive
1 To Arms!
1 Barbarian Riftcutter
1 Beacon Hawk
1 Blind Hunter
1 Coalhauler Swine
1 Crystal Seer
1 Dimir Infiltrator
1 Drift of Phantasms
1 Dromad Purebred
1 Eigma Eidolon
1 Gatherer of Graces
1 Gobhobbler Rats
1 Gruul norodog
1 Infectious Host
1 Mourning Thrull
1 Ogre Gatecrasher
1 Ostiary Thrull
1 Revenant Patriarch
1 Sabertooth Alley Cat
1 Scorched Rusalka
1 Simic Initiate
2 Skyrider Trainee
1 Teysa, Orzhov Scion (foil)
1 Tin Street Hooligan
1 Undercity Shade
1 Vesper Ghoul
1 Votary of the Conclave
1 War-Torch Goblin
1 Wild Cantor
Clearly it hurt to exclude Teysa and her Orzhov friends. We could have built three very solid decks with these cards.
An abiding question all day was, "Is it better to play or draw?" Four times we got to choose, four times the opponents did. Each team always chose to draw; the team that was us always won. Not very useful evidence.
Round 1
Order and Chaos vs. Monkey Business
We chose to draw, our opponents took advantage of that with a very fast start. A turn 2 Mourning Thrull with a Taste for Mayhem ended up stealing 12 life from us before it gave its Last Gasp. Meanwhile, I drew 7 Forests and 4 Islands, but not many spells besides a Transluminant and Vigean Hydropon. Andy played his Bottled Cloister after they dropped an Indrik Stomphowler, but they used bounce and combat tricks to deal with most of what he played.
Our board was Transluminant, Hydropon (1/1), Viashino Fangtail (4/4), and Cloister. They had lots, both ground and flying. Life totals? 7 to 41. Not good for us. What do I topdeck?
Orzhov Signet.
I play the Signet, and use it to cast both Vulturous Zombie and Sky Hussar, to which I graft a +1/+1 counter. Andy casts Shielding Plax on the Zombie and plays Steamcore Weird to kill their Stinkweed Imp. The Zombie is now an untargettable 4/4. On their turn, they Dredge back the Imp. Zombie is 9/9. Their offense is stymied. Andy plays Veldaken Dismisser on the Imp, I swing for 14. They do something ineffective, I topdeck Azorius Guildmage and swing for 15. We win the next turn.
1-0
Round 2
Order and Chaos vs. Deja Vu
I really do feel like I've played these guys before; I ask, and yes, I apparently played one of them just last week. My memory must be going in my old age.
We again take early damage, getting down as low as 29-40. We then stabilize, however, finally winning the game with 22 life remaining.
2-0
Round 3
Order and Chaos vs. GiGi Star.tv
I think one of them has trouble getting blue mana, until the very end. They claim it would have been different if they'd drawn it, but we win with 26 life.
3-0
Round 4
Order and Chaos vs. Duke > World
Up against some Duke fans, apparently. Andy uses his Veldaken Plotter to swap a Mountain for a Boros Garrison. Near the end of the game, he uses that Garrison to provide White for a Flash Conscription on an Ordruun Commando, and the opponents concede at 42-3.
4-0
At this point I am relieved to learn that Mark Lovin's team is only 3-1, so we won't have to face them. Mark is ranked 2nd in the state in both Limited and 2HG, and their team had some pretty good cards.
Round 5
Order and Chaos vs. GG Braw (or Brawl, I'm not quite sure)
We sit down at table 1, our opponents aren't there. If ten minutes pass and our opponents don't show up, we'll be 5-0 and they'll be 4-1. They arrive after about four minutes, the judge says he'll have to give them a warning for being late. They're somewhat rude in response, "Go ahead", "You do that". Andy is annoyed and asks to see one set of their sleeves, which have black specks on them. A casual-play habit kicks in, and he unfortunately flips a few of the cards over to glance at them, before catching himself. The judge gives him a warning and forces the opponents to desleeve.
Andy uses his Veldaken Plotter on turn 3 to swap a Mountain for a Forest with a Utopia Sprawl (Black) on it. They unfortunately use that Mountain to drop a Rakdos Ickspitter, but Andy bounces the Ickspitter with an Ogre Savant, and plays his own Ickspitter.
At this point, they're starting to get worried; I have a 6/6 Fists of Ironwood Vulturous Zombie on the board. Hoping to draw a second blue source, the BWug player Forecasts Govern the Guildless on my Zombie during his upkeep, turning it red until the end of turn. Fortunately, he does not draw an Island, and I resolve always to keep counter mana open for my Azorius Guildmage, which I can use two times.
They decide to test that resolve a couple turns later. I attack with the 7/7 Zombie, and they block with a Demon's Jester (2/2), and a 1/1 Bat Token. Then the other player's Trophy Hunter begins pinging my Zombie. He has 10 mana available, including 5 Green. I counter the 4th activation, and ask Andy to ping the token with his Ickspitter. They respond with Withstand on the token. What will happen? Does my Zombie die? Will I be forced to use my second counter to save it?
No, the Withstand going to the graveyard makes the Vulturous Zombie bigger. I keep counter activation mana open, and we win at 36 life.
5-0
At 5-0, we hope to be able to intentionally draw a match, as 5-1-1 almost certainly suffices to make the top 4, and we would like a chance to eat and explore the convention. Unfortunately, there aren't any other 5-0's to get paired against.
I also learn that Mark's team has dropped with a 3-2 record. WHY? A 4-3 record probably wins 2 BOXES of cards. That's conservatively $130. Isn't that worth playing for two more hours? Maybe he's trying to protect his rating.
Round 6
Order and Chaos vs. Jaby Besus
Sure enough, our opponents are 4-1 and don't want to intentionally draw this round. We point out that since they need 5-1-1, they could draw now and win the next round, rather than the reverse, but they're not convinced. Oh well.
By carefully leaving the correct mana open, I'm able to Overrule a Last Gasp for 1. I don't really remember anything else about this game. We win with 39 life.
6-0
Round 7
Order and Chaos vs. Topdeck
Although there is a 5-1 team, it's GG Braw, and since we already played them, we don't get paired up against them. Instead we get to play 4-1-1 Topdeck, who can't afford to draw. No food for us.
I play turn 2 Signet, turn 3 Court Hussar, turn 4 Azorius Guildmage, Moldervine Cloak on the Hussar. Andy casts Shielding Plax on the Guildmage. Noting that one opponent has missed a land drop, he also Wrecking Balls a Selesnya Sanctuary, leaving that opponent with just 2 Swamps. Plumes of Peace still comes down on my 4/4 Assault Zeppelid, locking it until I play a Nullmage Advocate to free it. My opponent has a Seal of Doom, but doesn't consider the Nullmage worth the trouble; I teach him better when I untap and destroy the Golgari Signet he just drew. By then it's too late; my Guildmage can counter the Seal, and I destroy it with the Nullmage the following turn.
At 10 life they try to hold back our flying offense, but I Overrule their Flash Conscription. That was Overrule being useful, but the Azorius Guildmage could have tapped the Conscripted flier too. We win with 38 life.
7-0
We're in the top 4, along with Duke > World (5-1-1), GG Braw (5-2), and Team Time Tunnel (5-2).
Round 8, Semifinals
Order and Chaos vs. Team Time Tunnel
I start off with a Ghost Warden, they play Ghost Warden, Coiling Oracle, and Seal of Doom. Uh oh. I have an Azorius Guildmage in my hand, but only Simic Growth Chamber, Forest, Island, and Orzhov Signet on the board. I can cast the Guildmage, but I won't be able to keep 3 mana open to protect him on their turn. What do I do?
I use the Growth Chamber and Signet to cast the Guildmage, leaving B floating. With me ready to counter the Seal, Andy plays Shielding Plax onto the mage. Now that the Mage is safely protected, I counter my own Ghost Warden to avoid mana burn. Annoyed, they settle for Sealing the Ghost Warden.
A few turns later, they Repeal the Plax from the Guildmage, and attempt to lure him with a Burning-Tree Bloodscale (after learning it wouldn't work with the Plax still on). In response, I tap the Mage and my newly played Root-Kin Ally to give the Ally +2/+2. They settle for a Pillory of the Sleepless on the Guildmage (wouldn't the Ally be a better choice??) Andy replays the Plax, but really isn't casting much else; they're up 35 to 26. However, I finally start getting my big green creatures, and there's not a lot they can do. We let them kill the Protean Hulk (just to have it happen once), and the best I can search for is Sky Hussar + Elvish Skysweeper. They concede with life totals of 21-22.
8-0
This is it, the final round. The winning team gets 8 boxes and 2 trophies, the losing team gets 6 boxes.
Round 9, Finals
Order and Chaos vs. Duke > World
They offer me a split while Andy is outside smoking. Each team gets 7 boxes, we get the trophies. Given that it's 10:30 pm and we're still in Charlotte, not having eaten, I am favorably disposed to this plan. Andy returns, and we agree. We drive home with 7 boxes of cards and the title. Yay!
MVPs for the day: Azorius Guildmage, Vulturous Zombie, and Sky Hussar in my deck. Shielding Plax, Wrecking Ball, and Veldaken Plotter in Andy's.
I'm really happy with that outcome. 8-0 is by far the best I've ever done in a Magic tournament. Additionally, since David and I did so well at the 2HG state championships (conceding in the finals to Mark Lovin and Jason Rose in exchange for more packs), I was already ranked 39th in the world in 2HG (the format is less than a year old, or else it would take a lot more tournaments to be so high). When they finally get around to submitting these results, I might be #1 in the world! :)
I picked up Andy at around 8 am; an uncomfortably early time for both of us. The drive to Charlotte went quickly and smoothly. Unfortunately, I got the feeling that my car still wanted to die upon leaving the interstate. Apparently the surgery performed on it a couple weeks ago didn't work. Luckily, I managed to avoid a stall, and eventually found parking for Heroes Con.
We went inside the Charlotte Convention Center, and were about 5 minutes late. However, this didn't turn out to matter, as the tournament started about 35 minutes late (apparently an ATM wasn't working so people couldn't get money for the entry fee). This is definitely a tournament worth finding the money for; 50 total booster boxes are being given as prizes, and there are only 40 teams playing! (9th-16th teams get 2 boxes, 5th-8th teams get 3 boxes, 3rd-4th teams get 4 boxes, 2nd gets 6 boxes, and 1st get 8 boxes and a pair of glass trophies.)
Cards were passed out: 1 Ravnica tournament pack, 2 Guildpact boosters, 2 Dissension boosters. The cards we opened had a very strong Selesnya guild (Watchwolf, Evangel, Hierarch, Vitu-Ghazi, etc); also good Dmir, Orzhov, Azorius, and a Golgari Rotwurm. It looked like everything wanted to cram into one amazing deck leaving the other almost empty.
This turned out not to matter to us, because after registering the cards, we passed them to the team across from us, and they passed theirs back. Regardless of how those decks should have been built, that team didn't do it; both of their decks included Green and White, and they left out such cards as Gruul Turf and Galvanic Arc.
Meanwhile, we examined our own cards. Mono-Green was quite good, and our creatures in general were solid. Izzet, Azorius, Orzhov, Simic, and Rakdos were all tempting, with a handful of cards representing the other guilds as well. They were tough decks to build, but we finally decided on UBR, and Guw with two Orzhov Signets for Vulturous Zombie and Witch-Maw Nephilim. Andy insisted that we have countermagic, so I included Overrule in my deck; we left out many other worthy cards.
Andy copied down, sorted, and alphabetized the decks and excluded cards:
Jonathan, Deck A
8 Forest
4 Island
2 Plains
1 Simic Growth Chamber
1 Azorius Signet
2 Orzhov Signet
1 Devouring Light
1 Fists of Ironwood
1 Moldervine Cloak (foil)
1 Ocular Halo
1 Overrule
2 Wildsize
1 Assault Zeppelid
1 Azorius Guildmage
1 Court Hussar
1 Elvish Skysweeper
1 Ghost Warden
1 Hunted Troll
1 Nullgame Shepherd
1 Protean Hulk
1 Root-Kin Ally
1 Simic Ragworm
1 Sky Hussar
1 Transluminant
1 Vigean Hydropon
1 Vulturous Zombie
1 Witch-Maw Nephilim
Andy, Deck B
6 Islands
5 Mountains
5 Swamps
1 Bottled Cloister
1 Dimir Signet
1 Rakdos Signet
1 Terrarion
1 Fiery Conclusion
1 Flash Conscription
1 Gaze of the Gorgon
1 Last Gasp
1 Shielding Plax
1 Wrecking Ball
1 Dimir House Guard
1 Gelectrode
1 Helium Squirter
1 Keening Banshee
1 Ogre Savant
1 Orzhov Euthanist
1 Rakdos Ickspitter
1 Snapping Drake
1 Steamcore Weird
1 Tattered Drake
1 Torch Drake
1 Vedalken Dismisser
1 Vedalken Plotter
1 Viashino Fangtail
Unused Card Pool
1 Duskmantle, House of Shadow
1 Leashling
1 Selesnya Signet
1 Blessing of the Nephilim
1 Blockbuster
1 Boros Fury-Shield
1 Brain Pry
1 Carom
1 Castigate
1 Conclave's Blessing
1 Consult the Necrosages
1 Cremate
1 Cry of Contrition
1 Dizzy Spell
1 Dryad's Caress
1 Gather Courage
1 Nettling Curse
1 Rain of Embers
1 Rain of Gore
1 Rally the Righteous
1 Runeboggle
1 Skyscribing
1 Steeling Stance
1 Strands of Undeath
1 Thrive
1 To Arms!
1 Barbarian Riftcutter
1 Beacon Hawk
1 Blind Hunter
1 Coalhauler Swine
1 Crystal Seer
1 Dimir Infiltrator
1 Drift of Phantasms
1 Dromad Purebred
1 Eigma Eidolon
1 Gatherer of Graces
1 Gobhobbler Rats
1 Gruul norodog
1 Infectious Host
1 Mourning Thrull
1 Ogre Gatecrasher
1 Ostiary Thrull
1 Revenant Patriarch
1 Sabertooth Alley Cat
1 Scorched Rusalka
1 Simic Initiate
2 Skyrider Trainee
1 Teysa, Orzhov Scion (foil)
1 Tin Street Hooligan
1 Undercity Shade
1 Vesper Ghoul
1 Votary of the Conclave
1 War-Torch Goblin
1 Wild Cantor
Clearly it hurt to exclude Teysa and her Orzhov friends. We could have built three very solid decks with these cards.
An abiding question all day was, "Is it better to play or draw?" Four times we got to choose, four times the opponents did. Each team always chose to draw; the team that was us always won. Not very useful evidence.
Round 1
Order and Chaos vs. Monkey Business
We chose to draw, our opponents took advantage of that with a very fast start. A turn 2 Mourning Thrull with a Taste for Mayhem ended up stealing 12 life from us before it gave its Last Gasp. Meanwhile, I drew 7 Forests and 4 Islands, but not many spells besides a Transluminant and Vigean Hydropon. Andy played his Bottled Cloister after they dropped an Indrik Stomphowler, but they used bounce and combat tricks to deal with most of what he played.
Our board was Transluminant, Hydropon (1/1), Viashino Fangtail (4/4), and Cloister. They had lots, both ground and flying. Life totals? 7 to 41. Not good for us. What do I topdeck?
Orzhov Signet.
I play the Signet, and use it to cast both Vulturous Zombie and Sky Hussar, to which I graft a +1/+1 counter. Andy casts Shielding Plax on the Zombie and plays Steamcore Weird to kill their Stinkweed Imp. The Zombie is now an untargettable 4/4. On their turn, they Dredge back the Imp. Zombie is 9/9. Their offense is stymied. Andy plays Veldaken Dismisser on the Imp, I swing for 14. They do something ineffective, I topdeck Azorius Guildmage and swing for 15. We win the next turn.
1-0
Round 2
Order and Chaos vs. Deja Vu
I really do feel like I've played these guys before; I ask, and yes, I apparently played one of them just last week. My memory must be going in my old age.
We again take early damage, getting down as low as 29-40. We then stabilize, however, finally winning the game with 22 life remaining.
2-0
Round 3
Order and Chaos vs. GiGi Star.tv
I think one of them has trouble getting blue mana, until the very end. They claim it would have been different if they'd drawn it, but we win with 26 life.
3-0
Round 4
Order and Chaos vs. Duke > World
Up against some Duke fans, apparently. Andy uses his Veldaken Plotter to swap a Mountain for a Boros Garrison. Near the end of the game, he uses that Garrison to provide White for a Flash Conscription on an Ordruun Commando, and the opponents concede at 42-3.
4-0
At this point I am relieved to learn that Mark Lovin's team is only 3-1, so we won't have to face them. Mark is ranked 2nd in the state in both Limited and 2HG, and their team had some pretty good cards.
Round 5
Order and Chaos vs. GG Braw (or Brawl, I'm not quite sure)
We sit down at table 1, our opponents aren't there. If ten minutes pass and our opponents don't show up, we'll be 5-0 and they'll be 4-1. They arrive after about four minutes, the judge says he'll have to give them a warning for being late. They're somewhat rude in response, "Go ahead", "You do that". Andy is annoyed and asks to see one set of their sleeves, which have black specks on them. A casual-play habit kicks in, and he unfortunately flips a few of the cards over to glance at them, before catching himself. The judge gives him a warning and forces the opponents to desleeve.
Andy uses his Veldaken Plotter on turn 3 to swap a Mountain for a Forest with a Utopia Sprawl (Black) on it. They unfortunately use that Mountain to drop a Rakdos Ickspitter, but Andy bounces the Ickspitter with an Ogre Savant, and plays his own Ickspitter.
At this point, they're starting to get worried; I have a 6/6 Fists of Ironwood Vulturous Zombie on the board. Hoping to draw a second blue source, the BWug player Forecasts Govern the Guildless on my Zombie during his upkeep, turning it red until the end of turn. Fortunately, he does not draw an Island, and I resolve always to keep counter mana open for my Azorius Guildmage, which I can use two times.
They decide to test that resolve a couple turns later. I attack with the 7/7 Zombie, and they block with a Demon's Jester (2/2), and a 1/1 Bat Token. Then the other player's Trophy Hunter begins pinging my Zombie. He has 10 mana available, including 5 Green. I counter the 4th activation, and ask Andy to ping the token with his Ickspitter. They respond with Withstand on the token. What will happen? Does my Zombie die? Will I be forced to use my second counter to save it?
No, the Withstand going to the graveyard makes the Vulturous Zombie bigger. I keep counter activation mana open, and we win at 36 life.
5-0
At 5-0, we hope to be able to intentionally draw a match, as 5-1-1 almost certainly suffices to make the top 4, and we would like a chance to eat and explore the convention. Unfortunately, there aren't any other 5-0's to get paired against.
I also learn that Mark's team has dropped with a 3-2 record. WHY? A 4-3 record probably wins 2 BOXES of cards. That's conservatively $130. Isn't that worth playing for two more hours? Maybe he's trying to protect his rating.
Round 6
Order and Chaos vs. Jaby Besus
Sure enough, our opponents are 4-1 and don't want to intentionally draw this round. We point out that since they need 5-1-1, they could draw now and win the next round, rather than the reverse, but they're not convinced. Oh well.
By carefully leaving the correct mana open, I'm able to Overrule a Last Gasp for 1. I don't really remember anything else about this game. We win with 39 life.
6-0
Round 7
Order and Chaos vs. Topdeck
Although there is a 5-1 team, it's GG Braw, and since we already played them, we don't get paired up against them. Instead we get to play 4-1-1 Topdeck, who can't afford to draw. No food for us.
I play turn 2 Signet, turn 3 Court Hussar, turn 4 Azorius Guildmage, Moldervine Cloak on the Hussar. Andy casts Shielding Plax on the Guildmage. Noting that one opponent has missed a land drop, he also Wrecking Balls a Selesnya Sanctuary, leaving that opponent with just 2 Swamps. Plumes of Peace still comes down on my 4/4 Assault Zeppelid, locking it until I play a Nullmage Advocate to free it. My opponent has a Seal of Doom, but doesn't consider the Nullmage worth the trouble; I teach him better when I untap and destroy the Golgari Signet he just drew. By then it's too late; my Guildmage can counter the Seal, and I destroy it with the Nullmage the following turn.
At 10 life they try to hold back our flying offense, but I Overrule their Flash Conscription. That was Overrule being useful, but the Azorius Guildmage could have tapped the Conscripted flier too. We win with 38 life.
7-0
We're in the top 4, along with Duke > World (5-1-1), GG Braw (5-2), and Team Time Tunnel (5-2).
Round 8, Semifinals
Order and Chaos vs. Team Time Tunnel
I start off with a Ghost Warden, they play Ghost Warden, Coiling Oracle, and Seal of Doom. Uh oh. I have an Azorius Guildmage in my hand, but only Simic Growth Chamber, Forest, Island, and Orzhov Signet on the board. I can cast the Guildmage, but I won't be able to keep 3 mana open to protect him on their turn. What do I do?
I use the Growth Chamber and Signet to cast the Guildmage, leaving B floating. With me ready to counter the Seal, Andy plays Shielding Plax onto the mage. Now that the Mage is safely protected, I counter my own Ghost Warden to avoid mana burn. Annoyed, they settle for Sealing the Ghost Warden.
A few turns later, they Repeal the Plax from the Guildmage, and attempt to lure him with a Burning-Tree Bloodscale (after learning it wouldn't work with the Plax still on). In response, I tap the Mage and my newly played Root-Kin Ally to give the Ally +2/+2. They settle for a Pillory of the Sleepless on the Guildmage (wouldn't the Ally be a better choice??) Andy replays the Plax, but really isn't casting much else; they're up 35 to 26. However, I finally start getting my big green creatures, and there's not a lot they can do. We let them kill the Protean Hulk (just to have it happen once), and the best I can search for is Sky Hussar + Elvish Skysweeper. They concede with life totals of 21-22.
8-0
This is it, the final round. The winning team gets 8 boxes and 2 trophies, the losing team gets 6 boxes.
Round 9, Finals
Order and Chaos vs. Duke > World
They offer me a split while Andy is outside smoking. Each team gets 7 boxes, we get the trophies. Given that it's 10:30 pm and we're still in Charlotte, not having eaten, I am favorably disposed to this plan. Andy returns, and we agree. We drive home with 7 boxes of cards and the title. Yay!
MVPs for the day: Azorius Guildmage, Vulturous Zombie, and Sky Hussar in my deck. Shielding Plax, Wrecking Ball, and Veldaken Plotter in Andy's.
I'm really happy with that outcome. 8-0 is by far the best I've ever done in a Magic tournament. Additionally, since David and I did so well at the 2HG state championships (conceding in the finals to Mark Lovin and Jason Rose in exchange for more packs), I was already ranked 39th in the world in 2HG (the format is less than a year old, or else it would take a lot more tournaments to be so high). When they finally get around to submitting these results, I might be #1 in the world! :)