Tourny Report from Cameron Miller

This is a report written by Cameron Miller: There were 9 total players and there would be 3 rounds to a top 4. There were decks such as Stompy, Blue Control, Coastal Piracy Blue, Processor Black w/Chimeric Idol, MultaniGeddon, Boldo's Prosperity deck, a black white control deck w/Plaguelord and Sengir Autocrats, a TangleMiser Black Control deck and Bargain. On to the tournament:

Round One: Aaron (Thatcher?) vs. Cameron Miller

Aaron is playing a Stompy deck which can really hurt Bargain if he has a fast draw.

Game One: Aaron plays first and by turn two he has three creatures out via Gaea's Cradle, and Crop Rotation. He smashes me one turn, and on the next turn he gets me down to one life with a Yawgmoth's Bargain out. I lose.

Game Two: I think I mulliganed once and played first. I have a turn 4-5 kill as Aaron has a sub-par hand and doesn't play many threats.

Game Three: Aaron plays first, and I triple mulligan down to 5 cards. Aaron has a decent hand and has a massive army while I am at around 14 and have a Rector out. If he had attacked me I would be at 2 life, but he doesn't attack. I am really amazed, and on the following turn I renounce the rector and kill him. Even if he had attacked I still would have gained 12 life on my turn via renounce but at 14 life I may not have won as easily.

1-0

Round Two: Neal Calcote vs. Cameron Miller

Neal is playing a TangleMiser deck with cards like Port, Duress, Stupor, Skirge, and Vampiric Tutors which give me a hard time.

Game One: This is probably the hardest game I have played to this date. I think Neal plays and he plays a Duress followed by a turn 2 Skirge, and then a turn three Stupor, he played a Port sometime within all this. I manage to get out a Bargain, but Vampiric Tutors, City of Brass, and the Skirge hit me pretty badly. I eventually use a Yawgmoth's will to set up for a 12-14 life renounce, and I lose some good cards. He attacks me on his turn and says go. On my turn I am at about 8-12 life, and I use my last Will to set up for another large renounce, and I know I can not kill him this turn due to the Will, but I manage to Soul Feast him times and draw my entire deck out and hardcasting 4 Skirge Familiar's to hopefully kill him on my next turn. I make a play choice to go down to 2 life and I keep a Seal of Cleansing, Plains, and a Renounce in hand. I say go. At the end of my turn Neal Vampiric Tutor's for a Tangle Wire, plays it and says go. On my turn I tap all the Familiar's (the only other permanents I had were a Bargain, and a Grim Monolith). I then cast the plains and say go. Neal taps his tangle wire plus two other land, and then attacks with the Skirge. In response I discard the Seal and Renounce the Monolith which brings me up to four and down to one. He then concedes.

Game Two: Neal plays first and casts a turn one Foundry and a turn three Negator which taps him out. While this is happening I have a Rector out, and on the following turn I Renounce for 6 which I think brings me to 25 and I proceed to go off, but Neal concedes before I kill him.

The first game was what Magic was about. I do not think either of us made any errors and it was a great match. If anyone happened to see the match you will understand what I am talking about. One bystander classified my deck as a "play with yourself" deck. Bargain really is a two player deck in that you make decisions based on the game situation, and then decide what to do. If you ignore your opponent you will probably lose. I can understand how one could classify the deck as a one person deck, but Bargain is a deck that will challenge both players. I always leave the tournament with a headache, and I think the deck is nearly impossible to play perfectly (mulligans, decisions, etc.) but it really provides a sense of accomplishment to the one playing it if they win. If you play a scrub or a pro; you will find that you really try for the win, and just don't go through almost mindless motions.

2-0

Round Three: Boldo vs. Cameron Miller

As you may know, Boldo is playing a control type of combo deck which has counterspells, and different ways to win.

Game One: I do not mulligan for once and eventually hard cast 3 Rectors and a Bargain; all of which are counterspelled. I then manage to force through another Bargain, and I win on my next turn. The five card prosperity that Boldo cast aided in that win, but Boldo felt he needed to draw a counterspell, and I guess he didn't.

Game Two: The judge gets a seasoned workout in this game. I may think longer than most, and sometimes I just forget about time, but I feel I need to take some time when faced with hard decisions. Boldo calls the judge over a few times about slow play, and Mike Dewey tells me to play faster. I manage to cast a Defense Grid backed by a Negator which goes the distance. I guess Boldo never drew any Wave of Reckonings or Wrath's of God. Here are some amusing phrases that Boldo said to me after the match: "You played as slow as a stroke victim" "You played as slow as a glacial procession taking place" This was all said in jest at the end of the match, and really did lighten the mood a little.

3-0

Semifinals: Steve McCarthy vs. Cameron Miller

Steve is playing "Multani Geddon" which has spells like mana-producing creatures, Blastoderm, Armageddon, Patterns of Rebirth, and High Market.

Game One: I go off turn 4 or so, and he loses. He later says he made a mistake by not leaving a white mana source open for an erase.

Game Two: I am drawing a keep a hand of Rector, Perish, Vampirc Tutor, Tooth of Ramos, Plains, Phyrexian Tower, and two other cards. I do not draw any more mana for 6+ turns and eventually lose to a Blastoderm and an Armageddon.

Game Three: Pretty much the same thing except if I drew a land the game would have been different. I had a white depletion land plus a black source, with a Rector and a Renounce in hand. I mulliganed this game and was playing first but I do not draw any other land besides these two, and I lose. Steve managed to draw a green mana source on his turn 4-5, and a white creature which reads "pay one life: counter target black spell would have made the game slightly different.

3-1

Well I play very hard, and make some great plays but do not get any money. It was my idea not to split, and I would make the same choice again. In my opinion there should be someone who wins, and whoever that is is being cheated out of a win if they split. I would have liked to leave with compensation, but I would not have felt right with myself if I had split. Everybody has their own personal opinions or attitudes towards splitting, but if anyone reading this ever makes it to the Pro Tour they will want all the experience they can get. I know many people practice, but the pressure has to be there in order for them to really practice. This is my opinion, and there are probably many players opposing it. Here's a different example: Let's say you have an unfavorable pairing and decide that a split would rather suit your needs. How about if you are paired up against a player who is known to be very good and you feel you do not have a chance. A split is an escape route, and if you go into the "Bentley Bonus" syndrome; you will find yourself losing a lot until you realize that you can beat anyone there no matter how bad the matchup or pairing.

That's all for now.