Tarmotog's picture
By: Tarmotog, Naoto Watabe
Aug 27 2009 11:45am
0
Login to post comments
3593 views


Welcome to One Double O, the column dedicated to the 100 card Singleton format.
Here you see what happens in the format and to the format.

First off, here are the recent August bannings:

As you might already know, these cards come from the From the Vault: Exiled boxed set coming out on 31st August. Nothing banned from MED3 but do not let your guard down.

Today, I'll be discussing the commander decks, From the Vault: Exiled and MED 3 or rather, explaining what these have for your 100 card Singleton collection. Here, I assume that you have every other card that is already available online so that people who do will be able to see "What's new". For those of you who don't, chances are that most of what you can get now will be generally cheaper than the retail prices of the products.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Commander Decks

There are 2 commander theme decks in the store right now. They are hiding behind a Serra Angel 7th Ed Core Set box so don't get fooled by the display.
Each deck has 3 cards you can't get right now. The rest are already available online or will be in MED 3.

MED3 cards that are included: Ashes to Ashes, All Hallow's Eve, Jungle Lion, Concordant Crossroads, Chain Lightning, Illusionary Mask and the 2 commanders (both are foils).

Cost:20 USD each

Commander: Xira Arien

Commander: Rubinia Soulsinger

Verdict:

If you buy the boxed sets, you should want at least one of the 3 new cards for them to be worth it because at 20USD, you should be able to purchase every card from the deck at a cheaper price unless you want to play the MED3 cards early. This is especially so if you have most of the cards already. I do think newer players might want to get one of these because they are properly formed decks.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From the Vault: Exiled

With 3 new cards from the set of 15 preemptively banned, we are really left with the foil version of some cards we already have online and 2 new usable cards:
Channel and Goblin Lackey.

Of course, you'll have a foil Channel rather than the non-foil shown above.

Goblins, as mentioned last week, is very explosive but it is a rather narrow deck, making it vulnerable to highly interactive game plans. Still, Goblin Lackey is going to put the goblin tribe at a very explosive position.

Channel on the other hand looks like it belongs to some combo deck, probably not Channel+Fireball but in a deck that can use tons of colorless mana. (like storm) One could easily cast a turn 2 Grindstone + Painter's Servant + activate for the win. It's really up to one's imagination here.

Verdict:

This time, there are only 2 new cards for the price of 35 USD so I'm not sure how to say it is worth the money. It's value would go up if you have uses for the other cards as well.

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Master's Edition 3

The third of the Master's Edition set promises to be a impactful one on the format. Here are 35 cards that I think you might want to pick up:

First up:
5x Enemy Dual Lands!

Regardless of whatever you want to play, be sure to snatch up one of each! Use spare ones to trade for cards you need because these have high value. (Keeping them is of course better but if you want to expand your collection fast and you don't see a need for excess copies, trading them away is a viable option too.)

Burn Spells

Blood Lust is a 4 damage for 2 mana which requires you to play creatures. You might want to be careful with it.
Fire Ambush is another Volcanic Hammer.

Chain Lightning is similar to Lightning Bolt but do remember: YOUR OPPONENT CAN THROW IT BACK! Try not to randomly lose to that.

Rolling Earthquake is better than Earthquake because it hits flying creatures as well. Horsemanship for those who are not familiar with it is the Portal 3 Kingdom's version of flying... but I'm sure we don't see too many creatures with horsemanship.

Black Vise is at least 4 damage if you have it in your opening hand. Makes card draws hurt too.

Mana Fixing

One is a Nature's Lore #2 and one is a 3 mana friend of Farseek that lets you search out forests as well.

Specific Reprints

Wildfire, Time Warp and Breath of Life

Lands That Do Neat Stuff

Bazaar of Baghdad is a very powerful land. With it, I'm sure dredge gets a power surge and certain cards like Squee, Goblin Nabob and Krovikan Horror will see more play.

Karakas is really powerful. Tap to bounce an opposing Doran, the siege Tower or bounce your own Venser, Shaper Savant? It taps for W too.

Plain Powerful Cards

Mana Drain = Better than Counterspell counter magic, especially with the new "no mana burn" rulings. Just awesome.

Mind Twist is Mind Shatter but 2x as powerful. Every deck that can sneak a black mana  into the deck can just play this. I'm serious. I believe this card will see heavy play.

The Tabernacle at Pendrell is going to keep creature swarms in check. Sure elves can pay the upkeep but that would definitely buy you some time. A simple Winter Orb will clear the board.

Land Tax is pure card advantage but I can't think of how you would want to make use of it efficiently. I'll do that in my free time while I get 3 lands...

Grim Tutor is a card that I think I will never understand. I see it do storm combos in Vintage and it's crowned the best unrestricted tutor. The life loss is not a primary concern but it might be one in Singleton. Still, a usable tutor is good.

Odd New (Old) Cards

Copying creatures can be very powerful. I'm not too sure what decks would play this though.

Illusionary Mask is "make your own morphs". Traditionally played with Phyrexian Dreadnought because it negates its drawback by not having a come-into-play trigger. You cast the spell so it does not stop your cards from getting countered. Do read the text because it's quite long.

Mana Vortex is the ultimate technology in fighting decks that rely on rainbow lands. Get one down and it wrecks the game totally. Just try to have some pressure on your side so that you can get the upperhand from the symmetry.

Nether Void is some super storm hoser (unless you want to just add storm count) that slows down the game greatly. Uncounterable effects can be abused with this.

The Abyss is a card that can be played around via shroud or by having an artifact creature or man lands. A very strong prison card that does not go away even when the board is empty.

Boosts For Existing Decks

Jungle Lion is a G for a 2/1. That's quite good.

Kongming is another Glorious Anthem effect on a bear. Not too desirable but can fit into white weenie easily.

Lu Xun is a Thieving Magpie that is almost unblockable.

Strategic Planning will help reanimation decks as you dump cards into the graveyard.

Some More Cool Cards

Loyal Retainers is a reanimation spell for legends that costs 3 mana!

Old Man of the Sea has always been the eternal format's tool to fight fish decks (decks with small bears/fishes). I expect to see this in most blue sideboards.

Recall can be better or worse than Nostalgic Dreams (because of its mana cost but you don't throw the cards yet). It's blue and trading lands for blue spells can be rather powerful. Might see play in heartbeat combo too.

New Archetype

With Reset finally available online, can there be a new storm based archetype? I'm excited to find out.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

One Double O Tournament Center

After the last One Double O Tournament Center, the next Weekend PE was stuck in round 4 and the following one did not start as it had 23 players.
No news there.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Reminder: LAST CALL FOR myMTGO.com sponsored Singleton 100 tournament

Tweaker at myMTGO.com has sponsored a free Singleton 100 tournament that's really flexible in timings. I encourage anyone who is even slightly interested in the format to join. The only requirement is that you are a member of myMTGO.com (which does not cost you a cent).

If you don't have a myMTGO.com account, just sign up at myMTGO.com and have your MTGO client open.
When you make an account, you have to verify through infobot which is why you want your MTGO client to be open (It's really easy).

Once in, look for "100 card Singleton fans~" under "groups" (it's on page 3 right now) and join the group.
Stickied in the discussions tab is "register here" where you can sign up for the tournament.

Details for the tournament can be found here: http://mymtgo.com/Tweaker/blog/494/

General Information:

Cost: Free

Prizes:
#1 Force of Will (!!!)
#2 Grindstone
#3 Sword of Fire and Ice

Timing:
Arrange with your opponent in a span of a week.

Should I play?

If you are wondering whether or not to play, my advise is to go for it! You don't lose anything, you need minimal commitment and you might win something out of nothing.

If you don't have a deck, you can easily find one in the group's photos in the deck database on myMTGO.com.
Alternatively, you can take a look at the decks that have previously made top 8. Links can be found in previous One Double Os.

or

For those of you who have Commander decks, here are some tips to convert your decks into 100 card Singleton decks.

#1 Lower your removal count (Commander decks tend to have more spot removals for generals)
#2 Lower your mana curve (this means cards like Time Stretch)
#3 Check the banned list once to see whether or not you have a banned card in your deck.
#4 Add more cards that interact well at a 1 vs 1 level such as Duress.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Last Words

If you are wondering, I've bought the commander decks and I intend to get Ftv: Exiled. I don't really think they are worth the money because I have most of the cards already. If you are just starting out, the commander decks can be quite good because they have a variety of playable cards and some of them are worth quite a bit. Having a simple structure laid out for you is also helpful. Do try to play as much MED 3 as you can because you can get more than your pack's worth if I am not mistaken.

Do join the myMTGO.com's 100 card Singleton tournament too. Registration ends on the 29th. So please join it asap.

See you next time~

tarmotog@hotmail.com
tarmotog on myMTGO.com

16 Comments

Hi Tarmotog, Somehow I can't by Lord Erman at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 12:28
Lord Erman's picture

Hi Tarmotog,

Somehow I can't log in to mymtgo.com from my laptop. Can you please tell me when the deadline for registration is? I want to play but I can only do so after I return from vacation.

LE

Doesn't Tarmotog's last by ArchGenius at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 12:31
ArchGenius's picture

Doesn't Tarmotog's last sentence before his signature say registration ends on the 29th?

I really hope Goblin Lackey by ArchGenius at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 12:39
ArchGenius's picture

I really hope Goblin Lackey doesn't become too expensive on the secondary market. Goblins look like so much fun in 100 singleton. Especially with M2010. There's a new Goblin Lord, Goblin Artillery, and Gorgon Flail just in case you though Goblin Sharpshooter wasn't powerful enough...

Also, I hope you were kidding about what to do with lands from Land Tax. I could probably think of 20 good uses for them off the top of my head.

LE => Hmm.. a few of us can't by Tarmotog at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 13:27
Tarmotog's picture

LE => Hmm.. a few of us can't login now too... just try again tomorrow I guess.. I'm sure something can be arranged regarding ur vacation unless u can't make it back by the next wkend.. reg officially ends on the 29th.. (tweaker might be able to accommodate more but i'm not sure)

arch => I probably don't have 20.. but I definitely have a few that I want to try out =)
I think that lackey is going to be highly sought after since it's one of the few 4x card... I hope to get some from the msg boards too..

if you are a purely singleton by Urzishra (not verified) at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 14:13
Urzishra's picture

if you are a purely singleton player I think you can skip FTV exiled. Lackey will be available within the next year and Channel is a good candidate for MED4. I wouldn't get it unless you really play classic. But on the flip side, its a purchase that you will probably be able to flip pretty easily since some of the cards are going to be sought after.

the form by Paul Leicht at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 15:06
Paul Leicht's picture

The sign up form on mymtgo.com didn't not accept that my user name has a period in it. Since it does and it is not a problem unique to my user name perhaps this ought to be fixed. I sent an email to the webmaster of that site.

Which Commander Deck has the by Anonymous (not verified) at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 15:12
Anonymous's picture

Which Commander Deck has the Illusionary Mask?

I'm seeing the singleton fans by Motu at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 16:35
Motu's picture

I'm seeing the singleton fans group as private unable to join

You must not be logged into by platipus10 at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 17:44
platipus10's picture

You must not be logged into the site. once you have your user name set up and are logged in you can click the button that says "Join This Group" right under the picture icon for the group.

EDIT: If you are logged in and got into the group, but get the error when trying to open a thread there is currently something strange going on with the site. Tweaker, the webmaster for the site, is working on it.

I even changed my password by Lord Erman at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 16:46
Lord Erman's picture

I even changed my password and still can't log in. Something's definately wrong.

LE

Heyas... this is Neoshinji. by Anonymous (not verified) at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 16:50
Anonymous's picture

Heyas... this is Neoshinji.

We are now able to sign onto www.mymtgo.com I am not sure how this effects people that are trying to make a new account on mymtgo, but please report any issues.

Thanks,
Philip

MyMtgo log-in problems by ChrisKool (not verified) at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 17:04
ChrisKool's picture

You can try messaging "Tweaker" in game if you have any issues. Sometimes I have to clear all of my cookies to log-in properly...

I wasn't able to log on by platipus10 at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 17:42
platipus10's picture

I wasn't able to log on earlier and was just now able to. There must have been an issue earlier.

EDIT: Apparently there are still issues as I keep getting kicked off and cannot enter many of the threads.

I recieved an answering email by Paul Leicht at Thu, 08/27/2009 - 17:44
Paul Leicht's picture

I received an answering email from Thomas explaining that somehow everyone was banned from the site. I expect he remedied that. My issue however is still outstanding.

"Land Tax is pure card by Anonymous (not verified) at Fri, 08/28/2009 - 11:44
Anonymous's picture

"Land Tax is pure card advantage but I can't think of how you would want to make use of it efficiently. I'll do that in my free time while I get 3 lands..."

Try scroll rack or brainstorm.

Or Seismic Assault or Retrace by ArchGenius at Fri, 08/28/2009 - 12:02
ArchGenius's picture

Or Seismic Assault
or Retrace Spells
or Compulsion
or Azusa
or Nantuko Cultivator
or Armageddon/Ravages of War
or Spellshapers
or Zuran Orb
or Devasting Dreams
or Nostalgic Dreams
or sickening Dreams
or Terravore and a discard outlet
or Winds of Change
or Wild Research
or Psychatog
or Firestorm
or Trade Routes
or Zombie Infestation
or Careful Study
or Narcissism
or Solitary Confinement
or Anvil of Bogarden
or Razormane Masticore
or Peace of Mind
or Greater Good
or well you get the idea....