2008-09 Precon Championships: The Tinsman Division
Welcome back sports fans around the world and of all ages! We’re back with more exciting Precon Championships action today as we head on over to the other half of the Rosewater Conference, the Tinsman Division! You might recall that in the 2009-10 Precon Championships, the mighty Tinsman Division gave rise to the eventual Champion, Eldrazi Arisen. Will they be able to repeat that Magic here? Only time will tell, but one thing’s for certain: five decks will head into the arena today, and only one of them will be coming out. As we all know… Jace is waiting.
New ‘Magic Beyond the Box,’ and new Event Decks!
Two bits of news today!
1. Magic Beyond the Box took a break last week from the Precon Buyer’s Guide to talk about the New Phyrexia intro decks, but those who have been following the Buyer’s Guide will be pleased to know that it’s back today. The ‘Vintage’ Era covers from Judgment all the way back to Tempest, and is filled with retailer’s prices, tidbits, and trivia for each set. Come check it out!
2. Today on the mothership the New Phyrexia Even Decks were spoiled, and the lists look very promising! Unlike the first go-round for Mirrodin Besieged (Into the Breach and Infect & Defile), this time both decks have the appearance of quality, and will be very exctiting to see. And in case anyone was wondering- yes, there will be an Event Deck giveaway, so stay tuned!
New Phyrexia: Life for Death Review (Part 2 of 2)
At last, one of the set’s most anticipated intro decks shakes off its plastic casing and gets shuffled up in the field of battle. The flagship deck for the Phyrexian mana mechanic, Life for Death promises to be a deck quite unlike most any we’ve seen before. Boldly standing in its way is Jimi, who has opted to pilot the Devouring Skies deck. Will its air force and living weaponry have what it takes to put this Boros deck to rest?
New Phyrexia: Life for Death Review (Part 1 of 2)
One of the great enjoyments from the third set in any block is seeing how they mechanically represent the end of the line. Unlike the first set, where the introduced main mechanics can be fleshed out as the block goes on, the ones in the last set are assigned to have a rather more limited shelf-life. When exalted and unearth were launched with Shards of Alara, you got to see how they were tweaked in Conflux. Not so for Alara Reborn’s cascade– there, what you saw was what you got, and barring a future revisit of the mechanic, that was all you were getting.
Scars of Mirrodin brought a new crop of mechanics to the fold. Metalcraft loomed large early on, but has faded with the declining fortunes of the Mirrans. Meanwhile, infect– one of the Phyrexian’s mechanics- has been added to, layer upon layer throughout all three sets. As they say, to the victors go the spoils, and the new mechanic for New Phyrexia is very Phyrexian in both flavour and function: Phyrexian mana.
Guest Meddling: Doom Inevitable (Mirrodin Besieged)
Being invited for guest-meddling, I decided to look into the MBS deck that seems most appealing to me: Doom Inevitable. Although I’d rather get my after work drink with the Mirrans than the Phyrexians, the subtlety and wit with which they are pursuing their goals – though we already know the outcome – hint at a long-term master plan that needs to be admired.
New Phyrexia: Devouring Skies Review (Part 2 of 2)
For today’s epic matchup, Jimi selected Feast of Flesh to challenge my Devouring Skies. Feast is one of the most removal-packed decks in recent memory, though as we saw in our playtest of the deck its selection is a bit erratic and conditional, applying a bit of an artificial choke on the deck’s power. Still, there was more than enough killpower to give the creature-focused Devouring Skies a run for its money. Here is the writeup from the customary trio of games we played.
New Phyrexia: Devouring Skies Review (Part 1 of 2)
Typically, equipment-based theme decks have embraced a weenie/swarm strategy (usually White), looking to overwhelm your opponent early and using equipment to keep your little critters viable even when larger bodies start to come down in the midgame. Mirrodin’s Little Bashers was precisely this sort of deck, built with creatures that optimised when they were equipped. We saw the archetype rear its head again in Zendikar, with Kor Armory. And now with Devouring Skies, we return to the concept- but with a very distinct twist. Rather then going through our enemies… we’re going over them. As the name suggests, this isn’t a weenie deck- it’s a skies one.
What, that’s not enough of a twist for you?
2008-09 Precon Championships: Nagle Division
We begin the 2008-09 Season with the Nagle Division. Because of the large number of byes in this season’s diminished field, we’re able to bring you all the exciting divisional coverage in a single post! Unlike the other three divisions, by random chance the Nagle Division gets an entire first round of byes. Here’s the Nagle Division’s quadrant of brackets:
New Magic Beyond the Box Up… and Another Giveaway!
Today’s Magic Beyond the Box on Quiet Speculation takes a broad view of the five new Intro Decks from New Phyrexia, and highlights some very interesting trends we’re noticing in them. Oh, and if the Ertai’s Lament giveaway isn’t enough for you, we’re giving away an intro deck over there, too! Come check it out!
New Phyrexia: Artful Destruction Review (part 2 of 2)
The next in our shiny and new theme decks to test run, Artful Destruction is a tribally-themed construction with an Allies/Slivers-style twist. For the opposition, we have Jimi, who has selected the Phyrexian-mana-based deck Life for Death. Her deck promises speed in exchange for life… mine power in exchange for time. Which model will emerge victorious? Let’s find out…
Ertai's Lament 