Frank Lepore
11/18/2009

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Sometimes it just isn't your week.

Wait. Before I get ahead of myself, a little exposition:

I graduated with a degree in Creative Writing about four months back and I've been having trouble finding a job ever since. With my chosen major, I really have no one to blame but myself for my current lack of employment, but it's still frustrating and more than a little discouraging. If only I had stuck with Computer Science, or had more interest in Engineering or Mathematics, or any field really that lends itself to economic stability. But alas, no.

I found out Friday that two more jobs I had applied for were given to other candidates. Although I was indeed qualified for the positions in question, the employers had decided to go with an applicant that was better suited for the needs of the company. In order to quell my feelings of depression I decided to enter an 8-4 with the last three remaining packs I had to my name in an attempt to win more, lest I dive into my collection and sell singles; something I hate to do, but I'm just not in a position where I'm comfortable to spend money on MTGO currently.

I entered the queue and thought I had crafted a pretty solid mono black deck.

1 Mind Sludge
1 Vampire Hexmage
1 Disfigure
1 Vampire's Bite
1 Bog Tatters
2 Vampire Lacerator
1 Hagra Crocodile
3 Surrakar Marauder
1 Guul Draz Vampire
2 Crypt Ripper
1 Malakir Bloodwitch
17 Swamp
2 Soul Stair Expedition
2 Mindless Null
1 Feast of Blood
1 Blood Seeker
1 Giant Scorpion
1 Trusty Machete

Sideboard
2 Runeflare Trap
1 Grim Discovery
1 Savage Silhouette
1 Desecrated Earth
1 Mountain
1 Molten Ravager
1 Blood Tribute
1 Slaughter Cry
1 Goblin Shortcutter
1 Shieldmate's Blessing
1 Magosi, the Waterveil
1 Sadistic Sacrament
1 Turntimber Grove
1 Tempest Owl
1 Mindless Null
1 Beast Hunt
1 Living Tsunami
2 Nissa's Chosen
1 Bladetusk Boar
1 Hedron Scrabbler

There were some sub-pars, like Mindless Null, but I thought the deck was aggressive enough to at least win a match. This, however, was not the case. Despite only playing seventeen lands I managed to get flooded both games. Game one I keep Vampire Lacerator, Mind Sludge, Soul Stair Expedition, Feast of Blood, and three Swamps. I then draw four more swamps and a Giant Scorpion while he beats me down with a Hedron Scrabbler, a Steppe Lynx, and a Cliff Treader after disfiguring my Lacerator. Game two I'm already on tilt and keep an incredibly sketchy hand of a Mind Null, a Trusty Machete, and five Swamps. I draw a Marauder and a Hexmage, but in the meantime he's played a Vampire Nighthawk. I draw two more Swamps and he plays a Bog Tatters. I can't block the six a turn and he wins a few later. I don't blame anyone, as I should have mulliganed and such is Magic, but it just felt like another thing on top of the pile.

Cassidy sent me a text message and asked if I wanted Chick-Fil-A. I perked up a bit and told her I did. I told her I wanted a chicken salad and a small box of nuggets. I was having a craving for a salad and some honey mustard. When she got home I found out she had instead ordered me a Chicken Salad Sandwich, which she had always known me to get. I wasn't mad in the least – I mean how could I be? The gesture was incredibly sweet. I was just defeated. I couldn't take it. I got somewhat emotional and borrowed Cassidy's shoulder. It was just the straw that broke the camel's back.

Eventually I was made to smile and laugh and I shrugged it off as best I could, this sorry state I was in. I got ready for FNM with as much excitement as I could muster to play a UW midrange deck with Emeria that went 4-0 in a MTGO tournament (thanks bolov0). This was the kind of deck I love. I grabbed my bag and took off to my car. I stepped inside, turned the key and…nothing. Yes, akin to my spirits earlier that day, my car battery had also died. Like an actor struggling with a scene, what, I asked, was my motivation?

To my Rescue again, Cassidy let me use her car and I ended up thirty minutes late to Shortstops in order to take sign ups for FNM. This was really a nonissue, however, as I was told I wore my sorrow all over my face. This granted me some leniency it seemed. I went 3-1-1 with the deck, losing to mono-white in the swiss, and found myself playing against Jund in the top 8. This was great. Finally, a break! This deck was disgusting against Jund: two Devout Lightcaster, four White Knight, and four Veldalken Outlander main, as well as four Flashfreeze, two more Devout Lightcasater, and two Celestial Purge after board. This is not including the Paths, Emeria Angel, Baneslayer, and Negates main that are also good against them.

Game one I mull to five and keep a hand with two Island. In the next three cards, I draw two more Islands. There are only four Islands in the deck and I never see a white mana.

Game two I mull to six and keep a two lander with double Devout Lightcaster, and I don't see my third land for another three turns. Needless to say this is more than enough time for Jund to take over.

I loved playing the deck, and I don't necessarily advocate adding a 25th land with twelve two drops, four of which can search for a land, but I did feel like I had to mulligan a lot. I think 25 is the new 24.

After this match, I had to Restrain myself from throwing the deck at the wall. Clearly this is an anger management issue on my part, but really, I felt with the night I was having it might have been warranted. I declined and resigned myself to simply aggressively tossing it into the corner with my bag. After the finals were played out, Sal and I headed back to my house at around 2:30 AM to get some Sleep before the PTQ. This Sleep would only amount to about four or so hours.

The next morning we woke up and our friends Alex and Matt were on their way to pick us up, my car still being out of commission. This took longer than we anticipated however as most of the roads leading to my domicile were blocked off due to the Iron Man World Championship Race. When we were finally on our way, we followed the directions to the letter. Once having gotten a block within our destination we were somewhat vexed to find that the venue was nowhere in sight. We drove around for twenty minutes, in and out of parking lots, in and out of plazas, and nothing. We had no idea where the place was. It was now a mere three minutes until registration closed and a part of me was glad. Maybe we would be destined to head back home and avoid the nightmare that this PTQ would inevitably turn into. Yet, no. Lo and behold, across the busy intersection a sign was visible like a beacon in the night. As it turns out, the real address was 873 Good Homes Road, while the address on the Unity Entertainment homepage said 731 Good Homes Road. I'm sure it comes as no surprise to you that these are two completely different addresses.

Regardless, we were there. We registered, sat down, and got our pools.

1 Brave the Elements
1 Caravan Hurda
1 Cliff Threader
1 Journey to Nowhere
2 Kor Hookmaster
1 Kor Sanctifier
1 Kor Skyfisher
1 Mandiki Shieldmate
1 Narrow Escape
1 Quest for the Holy Relic
1 Shieldmate's Blessing
1 Windborne Charge
1 World Queller

1 Caller of Games
1 Lethargy Trap
1 Paralyzing Grasp
1 Quest for Ancient Secrets
1 Shoal Serpent
1 Trapfinder's Trick
1 Umara Raptor
1 Whiplash Trap
1 Windrider Eel

3 Desecrated Earth
1 Disfigure
1 Feast of Blood
1 Heartstabber Mosquito
1 Mind Sludge
2 Mire Blight
1 Sadictic Sacrement
1 Sorin Markhov
2 Soul Stair Expedition
3 Surrakar Marauder

1 Bladetusk Boar
1 Burst Lightning
1 Elemental Appeal
1 Goblin Ruinblaster
1 Goblin Shortcutter
1 Highland Berserker
1 Inferno Trap
1 Magma Rift
2 Molten Ravager
1 Murasa Pyromancer
1 Quest for Pure Flame
1 Runeflare Trap
1 Shatterskull Giant

1 Baloth Cage Trap
1 Baloth Woodcrasher
1 Greenweaver Druid
3 Khalni Heart Expedition
1 Oran-Rief Recluse
2 Oran-Rief Survivalist
1 Savage Silhouette
1 Tajuru Archer
1 Timbermaw Larva
1 Turntimber Basilisk
2 Zendikar Farguide

1 Adventuring Gear
1 Explorer's Scope
1 Spidersilk Net
1 Stonework Puma
1 Trusty Machete

1 Emeria, the Sky Ruin
1 Graypelt Refuge
1 Kabira Crossroads
1 Piranha Marsh
1 Sejiri Refuge
1 Soaring Seacliff
1 Teetering Peaks
2 Turntimber Grove
1 Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle

Before opening, I heard Lee Steht say he was going to jokingly place the Sorin Markhov on top of the stack so the recipient would get excited, only to learn the pool was somewhat mediocre. This did indeed work, although I thought the pool seemed decent after having come to the following list:

1 Journey to Nowhere
2 Kor Hookmaster
1 Kor Skyfisher
1 Disfigure
1 Heartstabber Mosquito
1 Mind Sludge
1 Sorin Markhov
1 Soul Stair Expedition
3 Surrakar Marauder
1 Baloth Cage Trap
1 Baloth Woodcrasher
1 Khalni Heart Expedition
1 Oran-Rief Recluse
2 Oran-Rief Survivalist
1 Tajuru Archer
1 Turntimber Basilisk
1 Adventuring Gear
1 Stonework Puma
1 Trusty Machete
1 Graypelt Refuge
7 Forest
3 Plains
7 Swamp

I didn't feel awful about the deck. I thought I had some solid threats, enough small creatures to keep up, and a bomb at the top of my curve.

Round one I played against Scott Kasliner. He's definitely someone you either love or hate, but our games were pretty friendly. He mulled the first game, then kept on six. He got an early Lacerator out and we played dorks back and forth before anything truly exciting happened. He got me down to ten life before Sorin Markhov took over. Game two I get stuck on six land with Heartstabber in hand and a Khalni Heart Expedition with two counters on it. I have a Surrakar Marauder in play with Adventuring Gear on it as well as an Oran-Rief Recluse that killed his Heartstabber last turn. Again, he gets me to ten by way of double Trusty Machete before I finally find my seventh land and play it with him at nine life. It puts the third trigger on my Expedition, and makes my Marauder a 4/3. In response to the trigger from the Adventuring Gear, he attempts to Burst Lightning the Marauder. I then crack the expedition, making the Marauder an 8/7 in the end. I play the Heartstabber and kill his only blocker, then swing for lethal.

1-0

Round two I played against Djamel Medragh. Game one he gets first turn Adventuring Gear, second turn Plated Geopede, then starts to swing for five a turn. Seems good in sealed. He plays other things, like a Zektar Shrine Expedition, but ultimately I can't deal with the second turn 5/5. Game two I feel a little more in the game. I get a board of Oran-Rief Survivalist, and Surrakar Marauder, and Stonework Puma. After getting me on the ropes, he plays Halo Hunter. I'm forced to double block it with the Puma and the Marauder, and he then plays…Vampire Nighthawk. Sigh. I draw…Tajuru Archer. Can anyone spot the irony here? I play the Archer and irrelevantly deal two to the Nighthawk before it eventually kills me.

1-1

Round three I played against Jonathan Lum. I don't remember much of our games except that his deck was again black/red. He beat me game one with Tuktuk Grunts and the like. Game two he quipped about how I would most likely respond with “must be nice” if I saw his hand. He played things like Bloodchief Ascension and Electrolyze and I was never really in it.

1-2 drop.

I thought the deck had enough early pressure to survive, with, what, six two drops? The fact that all three of my games were against players playing black/red is somewhat ridiculous. I know it's hailed as the best color combination, but it makes for such a stagnant limited environment. I thought I really enjoyed this sealed format because of the lack of complete bombs in the rare spot, but I guess they just took out bombs and replaced them with efficient 2/2s for two. Maybe it's not as much fun as I thought. I have to say the most fun I had playing Zendikar sealed so far was getting past the pool with the Sorin Markhov.

My luck, unlike my PTQ, was apparently not over. My friend Alex ended up buying me a draft since he owed me one, and I had a pretty solid deck. It was – you guessed it - black/red. I even managed to pick up a Scalding Tarn. Par for the course my opponent was somewhat of a jerk. After such hits as:

-Missing multiple Blood Seeker triggers.
-Attacking his Blood Seeker into my Plated Geopede. I block, and he thinks they both die.
-Casting Hagra Diabolist and not triggering the life loss with at least one other Ally in play.
-Attempting to Disfigure my Plated Geopede in response to me playing a Scalding Tarn. Myself and the player next to me had to explain how this works to him.

We get to game three. Late in the game I draw a Bloodchief Ascension. He gets to six life and I've been holding a Blazing Torch in hand. I end up drawing Burst Lightning. I nonchalantly play the Blazing Torch and wait a few seconds; he's been listening to head phones the whole time, so I've become accustomed to visual cues rather than verbal. I say, “equip,” and again wait a few seconds. Finally I say, “shoot you, I guess,” again, nonchalantly. He says, “wait, in response to the equip, Disfigure!” Sigh. We call over a judge, and after the initial judge leaves and comes back, he ends up siding with me. My opponent then appeals to the head judge, to which I lose the argument, and my opponent ends up winning the match.

I pointed out to the judge how poor his plays were in the hopes that he would see that a) my opponent was playing sloppy the entire game and b) that I have a familiarity with the rules. In doing so, I told the judge out loud - in front of my opponent, mind you - about my opponent missing the Diabolist trigger. After the head judge rules against me, what happens? Next turn my opponent casts Hagra Diabolist and forgets the trigger again. I couldn't help but laugh.

Ultimately, I had lost again.

I know there was a definite lack of strategic content up there, and for that I apologize. I also know that this may all just sound like a big sob story, but I wanted to make a point. My point was that this is Magic. But more so, this is life. By the end of the day I didn't care anymore that I was doing horrendously, because in the end, was I really? Alex and Matt had also both dropped after unsuccessful records and Sal was X-1. I had friends to hang out with, and friends who were doing well. We all go on tilt, we all have bad beats, and we all have runs where the end never seems to be in sight. I still don't have a job, I'm still nearly broke, and I'm still in a slump regarding my success in the game as of current, but despite all that I had a great time with great friends. When people say they're going to quit the game or stop playing, I simply don't understand it. Sure, I guess people can get tired of it (though I'm not certain), and it can get expensive, but when I pay for a tournament I feel like I'm paying for so much more than the games I play or the cards I receive. Every time there's an event, I always ask my friends to come, even adding, “if you don't want to play you should still come to hang out.”

I guess what I'm getting at is that the game is so much larger than our wins and losses.

I guess I just enjoy the microcosm Magic fashions around the people who play it.

I guess I just love Magic.

Thanks for reading.