While there is no Standard PDC event with Euro friendly starting time, there is the block constructed PDC event run by Alotrel on Saturdays, APDC. It starts early enough and unless it gets record breaking attendance and all rounds "go to time" (so, barring a set of unlikely mishaps) you should be able to go to sleep sufficiently early - even if you go all the way to the finals!
Check it out. For block pauper, it's actually about as diverse as the standard pauper (the hybrid stuff in Reborn helped).
"Masters of Etherium" I believe is what you wanted. :) Sometimes casual control is good. Newfinity* definitely has its moments in casual. I have seen and built a lot of versions in the extended format where there is access to a lot more variety of artifacts. I wasn't sure it would do well in an aggro dominated standard but maybe that is shifting now. I tend to avoid standard but when I do play it is invariably with my own esper deck...though I don't have any of the newfinity pieces in it. Good luck on the comedy writing gig. I am an avid fan of British Humour being an ugly American so I look forward to whatever you guys feel like importing that my library can fetch for me. :) Plus I hear eating is good for kids.
(Master of Etherium + Etherium Sculpter + lots of artifact weenies.)
Firespout is a wasted cascade whenever it flips, and every cascade card in the deck can hit it. Instead of hitting removal 100% of the time off your 4-mana cascades, you're hitting it 66% of the time. The downside, especially in such a heavy cascade deck, made it suboptimal.
P1P2: I like this pick. If there weren't something Druid-level in the pack in Naya, or if there were something obvious in another color (e.g., the Gargoyle) I'd go on power level, but the first-pick bump that Druid gets from Naya Charm narrowly pushes it over the other reasonable choices here IMHO.
P1P4: Yeah, good grief. Definitely a Swiss sign, I'm pretty sure that isn't going to happen in an 8-4. The rare's gone so that accounts for some of it, and with one missing common I can imagine someone taking O-Ring and maaaaybe Branching Bolt over it, but I don't know what uncommon would've gone above it. Jund Charm/Infest? That seems wrong...
P1P5: Even with the lifegain repeated I just never find myself happy to have Sunseed in my deck. Your deck likely won't have too much to do on 2 mana so cycling is fine, and he's another one of those 'guys Gorger Wurm will randomly eat'.
P1P6: I think you really underestimate Welkin Guide, especially in the style of deck you've got shaping up here. Pump is fungible and you've got plenty of opportunities to pick up more, but in a big Naya deck, Guide is usually Lava Axe for more damage that leaves a flying dork around. He's not a top pick by any means, but I think he's almost certainly better than Roar here.
P1P10: I think I hate out the Mage here, since you're more upset to see it across the table from you than Capsule.
P2P2: Seems just right; mana-hungry or not, you're RG more than GW right now and he's leagues better than Matca Rioters.
P2P3: Molten Frame will table, almost certainly. I think you're right about Squire; so far you don't have any bears or even reasonable 3-drops, which means you're not going to be the aggro deck much.
P2P4: Honestly, I'm fine with Rioters here. Slavedriver was better in triple-Conflux, which was a much slower format, and without a single fixer that can get him yet I wouldn't stretch for it when there's a fine on-color option available. Take Rioters out of the pack, though, and I *think* I take Slavedriver over Outlander, although curve considerations may strongly suggest the latter.
P2P6: I can't regret taking Fracture, but I think you underestimate Slaughtermaster even without the black mana. He fills a hole in your curve and as you note he gets downright nutty with pump. I don't hate the pick, but I don't think it's the 'right' one.
P2P8: There's a pretty good argument for Spore Burst too, but I think you want the one big guy more than the horde of little ones.
P3P1: I probably undervalue pump, but I think I like either Gloryscale (though your point about not triggering it often enough), the Sniper (who would know you'd get two more?!) or actually Trace of Abundance here over Might. With the curve you've got right now, an accellerant feels like a good thing.
P3P4: I don't mind Pridemage here, but you could make a good case for Borderpost or even for Jund Sojourners...
P3P6: Swiss. Just... Swiss.
P3P8: I agree; I like it more than Borderpost here.
P3P11: with the relative dearth of multicolor guys in your pile and the relative dearth of removal, I think I take the Sojourners over Hushblade regardless.
P3P13: Wait, so a 1/3 exalted *artifact* for two goes 13th pick? Just... Swiss.
As nutty as the Esper deck looks like it would've been, there was actually a pretty crazy Grixis deck there too. Specter, Grixis Charm, Blightning (or quite possibly Cerodon and go 5c with a Grixis base), Elemental/Gargoyle (again, depending on your preference), Screecher, Parasitic Strix, Slavedriver, multiple Sedraxis Alchemists... UBrw had a lot of mighty good stuff that draft.
Nicely done, though, and another great report! You keep cranking out awesome stuff...
I really enjoyed this article. That's a pretty good deal; two comedy articles in one day. I like the idea of disguising what was really a strategy article as a comedy article. Playing with preserving your creatures in mind can be really tough to master, and this article seems like it could help out in that department.
Way cool article, I will admit I did a double take at the first pick, but hell you MUST have mountains for goblins! They just don't work any way other than that... unless you play with the black goblins, which would be more in line with a black metal draft, but since this is a metal draft I understand... oh wait the outlander is metal and black metal all at the same time! Double doom on you! \mm/
Man... When I saw that mountain over bloodbraid/maelstrom pulse I thought I was going crazy, then the next pick I suddenly understood what was going on and started laughing.
Fun article, and oh what I would give to be one of the people drafting next to you! XD
I think I will write that EMO one! Thanx for the suggestion!
I'm glad some got a laugh (some people will think it's funny others won't, thus is the nature of comedy)
Metal brings me back to the days of my youth (My high school year book has a picture of me with a Slayer t-shirt). It's like Jello, there is always room for Metal!
I've been playing commander for awhile and have many decks but I tended to play "Fair" decks. No mass LD, No instant win combos, No heavy lock elements. But then I often found myself losing to decks that did not play fair at all. Now I have a 5 color deck that abuses 2 separate combos. The Kikki-Jikki + Pestermite combo which is easier to get off then some might think and the Chord of Calling + Magister Sphinx combo. Skullclamp may need to go on a banned list. Even without token generators the extra 6-8 cards over the course of a game for such a cheap cost often decides who will win. I look forward to reading more of your articles.
Oooh, this was fun. Beeing a black metal fan myself I can really see pretentious people in that scene reasoning like this. Would be fun to see a EMO draft like someone said above :)
I wouldn't made those picks even for sport, but I can relate to the mind set of wanting mountains, and to smash face. Using his mind set of liking to smash face here might have been better picks, and some thought behind them.
Pick 1: Bloodbraid Elf - who doesn't like a haste 3/2 who hopefully brings a friend to the party.
Pick 2: Bituminous Blast - Alright were on our way w/ a smash face spell that hopefuly brings a little umph.
Pick 3: Bloodbraid Elf - whoa why are my drafts like this hell ya a 2nd 3/2 haster, and were still on theme.
Pick 4: swamp hey got to cast this stuff some how.
Pick 5: forest hey got to cast this stuff some how.
Pick 2:1: Exploding Borders - on theme to more face smashing, and it lets me get a extra land.
Pick 2:2: Banefire - this is the mother of all smash face spells, and it can't be counters... it make all blue, green, white planewalkers cry for there mommy.
Pick 2:3: exotic Orchard best card, and it any color land I have in play.
Pick 2:4: ...O.o its missing right? I think some one stepped in, and decide fun was fun but it was too good to pass up.
Pick 2:5: Molten Frame early cycler, but a hold card against artifact decks
Pick 3:1 Rip-Clan Crasher I like haste I like to smash face.
Pick 3:2 Executioner Capsule it's in my colors, and can help clear the board to smash more face.
But thanks for the contribution! You wrote it quite well.
I'm an aspiring British actor. Which means I can go for months at a time working in McDonalds.
Got any work? :P
While there is no Standard PDC event with Euro friendly starting time, there is the block constructed PDC event run by Alotrel on Saturdays, APDC. It starts early enough and unless it gets record breaking attendance and all rounds "go to time" (so, barring a set of unlikely mishaps) you should be able to go to sleep sufficiently early - even if you go all the way to the finals!
Check it out. For block pauper, it's actually about as diverse as the standard pauper (the hybrid stuff in Reborn helped).
Ivo.
awesome article.
even though im a serious mtgo playin kind of person, his articles rock.
keep it up.
I love the humor in this article. Very snappy and witty :D
trading my Maelstrom Pulse playset for your Suplex Goblin prz
WWMD is probably one of the most metal phrases
Weapon Wrath of Mass Destruction
What Would Meathook Do about that?
funny ftw!
"Masters of Etherium" I believe is what you wanted. :) Sometimes casual control is good. Newfinity* definitely has its moments in casual. I have seen and built a lot of versions in the extended format where there is access to a lot more variety of artifacts. I wasn't sure it would do well in an aggro dominated standard but maybe that is shifting now. I tend to avoid standard but when I do play it is invariably with my own esper deck...though I don't have any of the newfinity pieces in it. Good luck on the comedy writing gig. I am an avid fan of British Humour being an ugly American so I look forward to whatever you guys feel like importing that my library can fetch for me. :) Plus I hear eating is good for kids.
(Master of Etherium + Etherium Sculpter + lots of artifact weenies.)
"Ride The Lightning" by Metallica?
"Thunderstruck" by AC/DC?
"Rock You Like A Hurricane" by The Scorpions?
WWMD? (what would Meathook decide?)
Firespout is a wasted cascade whenever it flips, and every cascade card in the deck can hit it. Instead of hitting removal 100% of the time off your 4-mana cascades, you're hitting it 66% of the time. The downside, especially in such a heavy cascade deck, made it suboptimal.
P1P2: I like this pick. If there weren't something Druid-level in the pack in Naya, or if there were something obvious in another color (e.g., the Gargoyle) I'd go on power level, but the first-pick bump that Druid gets from Naya Charm narrowly pushes it over the other reasonable choices here IMHO.
P1P4: Yeah, good grief. Definitely a Swiss sign, I'm pretty sure that isn't going to happen in an 8-4. The rare's gone so that accounts for some of it, and with one missing common I can imagine someone taking O-Ring and maaaaybe Branching Bolt over it, but I don't know what uncommon would've gone above it. Jund Charm/Infest? That seems wrong...
P1P5: Even with the lifegain repeated I just never find myself happy to have Sunseed in my deck. Your deck likely won't have too much to do on 2 mana so cycling is fine, and he's another one of those 'guys Gorger Wurm will randomly eat'.
P1P6: I think you really underestimate Welkin Guide, especially in the style of deck you've got shaping up here. Pump is fungible and you've got plenty of opportunities to pick up more, but in a big Naya deck, Guide is usually Lava Axe for more damage that leaves a flying dork around. He's not a top pick by any means, but I think he's almost certainly better than Roar here.
P1P10: I think I hate out the Mage here, since you're more upset to see it across the table from you than Capsule.
P2P2: Seems just right; mana-hungry or not, you're RG more than GW right now and he's leagues better than Matca Rioters.
P2P3: Molten Frame will table, almost certainly. I think you're right about Squire; so far you don't have any bears or even reasonable 3-drops, which means you're not going to be the aggro deck much.
P2P4: Honestly, I'm fine with Rioters here. Slavedriver was better in triple-Conflux, which was a much slower format, and without a single fixer that can get him yet I wouldn't stretch for it when there's a fine on-color option available. Take Rioters out of the pack, though, and I *think* I take Slavedriver over Outlander, although curve considerations may strongly suggest the latter.
P2P6: I can't regret taking Fracture, but I think you underestimate Slaughtermaster even without the black mana. He fills a hole in your curve and as you note he gets downright nutty with pump. I don't hate the pick, but I don't think it's the 'right' one.
P2P8: There's a pretty good argument for Spore Burst too, but I think you want the one big guy more than the horde of little ones.
P3P1: I probably undervalue pump, but I think I like either Gloryscale (though your point about not triggering it often enough), the Sniper (who would know you'd get two more?!) or actually Trace of Abundance here over Might. With the curve you've got right now, an accellerant feels like a good thing.
P3P4: I don't mind Pridemage here, but you could make a good case for Borderpost or even for Jund Sojourners...
P3P6: Swiss. Just... Swiss.
P3P8: I agree; I like it more than Borderpost here.
P3P11: with the relative dearth of multicolor guys in your pile and the relative dearth of removal, I think I take the Sojourners over Hushblade regardless.
P3P13: Wait, so a 1/3 exalted *artifact* for two goes 13th pick? Just... Swiss.
As nutty as the Esper deck looks like it would've been, there was actually a pretty crazy Grixis deck there too. Specter, Grixis Charm, Blightning (or quite possibly Cerodon and go 5c with a Grixis base), Elemental/Gargoyle (again, depending on your preference), Screecher, Parasitic Strix, Slavedriver, multiple Sedraxis Alchemists... UBrw had a lot of mighty good stuff that draft.
Nicely done, though, and another great report! You keep cranking out awesome stuff...
I loved the article. it was interesting and kept me laughing.. great job.
I really enjoyed this article. That's a pretty good deal; two comedy articles in one day. I like the idea of disguising what was really a strategy article as a comedy article. Playing with preserving your creatures in mind can be really tough to master, and this article seems like it could help out in that department.
Way cool article, I will admit I did a double take at the first pick, but hell you MUST have mountains for goblins! They just don't work any way other than that... unless you play with the black goblins, which would be more in line with a black metal draft, but since this is a metal draft I understand... oh wait the outlander is metal and black metal all at the same time! Double doom on you! \mm/
I know when I was thinking of the "pack list," I wondered the odds, not just one crazy pack but every pack!
Wow the power curve of these k-scope deck just keep getting better, and scarier.
Man... When I saw that mountain over bloodbraid/maelstrom pulse I thought I was going crazy, then the next pick I suddenly understood what was going on and started laughing.
Fun article, and oh what I would give to be one of the people drafting next to you! XD
I'm an American comedy writer. So I definitely like humor in these articles. Keep it up!
I think I will write that EMO one! Thanx for the suggestion!
I'm glad some got a laugh (some people will think it's funny others won't, thus is the nature of comedy)
Metal brings me back to the days of my youth (My high school year book has a picture of me with a Slayer t-shirt). It's like Jello, there is always room for Metal!
This wasn't funny.
I've been playing commander for awhile and have many decks but I tended to play "Fair" decks. No mass LD, No instant win combos, No heavy lock elements. But then I often found myself losing to decks that did not play fair at all. Now I have a 5 color deck that abuses 2 separate combos. The Kikki-Jikki + Pestermite combo which is easier to get off then some might think and the Chord of Calling + Magister Sphinx combo. Skullclamp may need to go on a banned list. Even without token generators the extra 6-8 cards over the course of a game for such a cheap cost often decides who will win. I look forward to reading more of your articles.
Actually, I think that was part of the fun! Who gets absurd packs like that?
Oooh, this was fun. Beeing a black metal fan myself I can really see pretentious people in that scene reasoning like this. Would be fun to see a EMO draft like someone said above :)
I wouldn't made those picks even for sport, but I can relate to the mind set of wanting mountains, and to smash face. Using his mind set of liking to smash face here might have been better picks, and some thought behind them.
Pick 1: Bloodbraid Elf - who doesn't like a haste 3/2 who hopefully brings a friend to the party.
Pick 2: Bituminous Blast - Alright were on our way w/ a smash face spell that hopefuly brings a little umph.
Pick 3: Bloodbraid Elf - whoa why are my drafts like this hell ya a 2nd 3/2 haster, and were still on theme.
Pick 4: swamp hey got to cast this stuff some how.
Pick 5: forest hey got to cast this stuff some how.
Pick 2:1: Exploding Borders - on theme to more face smashing, and it lets me get a extra land.
Pick 2:2: Banefire - this is the mother of all smash face spells, and it can't be counters... it make all blue, green, white planewalkers cry for there mommy.
Pick 2:3: exotic Orchard best card, and it any color land I have in play.
Pick 2:4: ...O.o its missing right? I think some one stepped in, and decide fun was fun but it was too good to pass up.
Pick 2:5: Molten Frame early cycler, but a hold card against artifact decks
Pick 3:1 Rip-Clan Crasher I like haste I like to smash face.
Pick 3:2 Executioner Capsule it's in my colors, and can help clear the board to smash more face.