Week 4 of the DMV league

After grinding mono-red Stompy for what felt like an eternity, I knew it was time for a change. I needed something that could give me more agency against certain decks. *cough* Oops *cough*

I’d been watching some league games featuring Sneak Attack with Stock Up, and I thought, why not? The idea of swapping it in was tempting, though I was still a little hesitant to sleeve it up. But I made some tweaks to the sideboard to suit my needs, and off I went to Level Up.

And I know, I know... I previously said Show and Tell was in time out.

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Match 1 vs Dredge

Okay, I really felt bad for the Dredge player. I don’t think I could have been any more brutal if I tried.

• Game 2: Turn 1 Cage, and they literally had nothing. I mean, nothing to answer it. It was like I was watching a car crash in slow motion—just painful.

Chris W told me after round 2 that he pre-gamed a Leyline for the second game, and that was pretty much it for my opponent. That's the thing with pet decks sometimes—love 'em, but if your sideboard doesn't have a way to deal with hate, you’re just asking for trouble. RIP Dredge.

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Match 2 vs Kevin King (Delver expert)

• Game 1: Kevin worked his Delver magic and barely squeezed out a win. This game was tighter than a drum. A timely Wasteland caught me off guard, and that was all it took.
• Game 2: Oh, now this felt good. Ran him out of cards—just drained him dry. Dropped a Sneak Attack, and bam, Atraxa hit the board. Found my Fury, pitched a second Sneak Attack to clear most of his board, replayed the first one, and that was that. House job.
• Game 3: Same story as Game 2. Ran him out of cards again, Atraxa came down, and he had to attack with DRC, which I gobbled up. Dropped an Emrakul, and, well, his life total was looking real low. No hope left.

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Match 3 vs Dan

• Game 1: Yeah, I made a rookie mistake. No Force of Will in my opener to deal with his Karn. Of course, he slaps down Ensnaring Bridge and Lattice, and well... game over. Chalice of the Void on 1 didn’t do much, but you know, it is what it is.
• Game 2: I did some dumb things, but it worked out. He mulligans, and my keep feels pretty solid. Didn’t even care about his Trinisphere. I Show and Tell’d, kept my Island and Sol Land up, and just attacked. Ready for anything he tried to throw at me.
• Game 3: Basically a repeat of Game 2. He had more threats, but eventually ran out of steam. Never saw Karn or Ring, which was huge. Kept my counters up, Fury’d his Goblin Shaman after I got Atraxa out, and he scooped when I dropped Show and Tell #2 for Omniscience. Felt like a boss.

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Deck Thoughts:

I’m telling you, the synergy between Atraxa and Stock Up is INSANE. This deck feels so much better than the old A+B with Griselbrand. Griselbrand had its moments, but drawing cards in a world full of Bowmasters? Hard pass. Atraxa and Stock Up? Not even draws—they're straight-up game-changers. It's stupid how good this feels. Honestly, I’m in love.

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MVP: No contest—Atraxa. She’s the star, hands down.

Sideboard MVP: Fury, of course. With Atraxa and Stock Up filtering through cards like nobody’s business, Fury has been absolutely clutch. When it’s good, it’s really good.

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And that’s a wrap. Another week in the books. What a ride.

Week 3 of DMV league, including a 1.2k

Oh, my dear, I am most certainly behind the curve—admittedly so! Life decided to take me on a whirlwind of family obligations, leaving me with just enough time to show up at the weekly and not much else. A bit of a social media hermit, I suppose! Oh well, what can you do?

On March 19th, I found myself back at it with my trusty mono-red stompy. A few tiny tweaks, a little more testing, all to prepare for the weekend’s 1k at Level Up. My buddy Andy came down with a concoction he’s been brewing for weeks, swearing it’s just a couple of tweaks away from perfection. We had 31 players at the weekly, people! THIRTY-ONE! I almost had to pinch myself.

I did manage to go 2-1 again, which is my standard for the week. A solid outcome in my book.

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Round 1 was... something, but I’m honestly drawing a blank. I think I lost to OOPS All Spells? I might’ve dropped 1-2, but who’s to say how to approach that with my deck? A bit of a messy affair, to be honest. Still, I got a game in, so there's that.

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Round 2 was a delight! I faced Evan, who was playing some b/u Ninja concoction of sorts.

Game 1, I have to say, he got completely color-hosed. Poor guy couldn't find a black mana source, even though he was digging through his deck like a man possessed. I honestly had no clue what he was on—he scooped before I could figure it out.

Game 2—or maybe Game 3, the details blur—a true rollercoaster of a match. By the end of it, he had FOUR Wastelands in his graveyard, while I had one land left. I won, thanks to a Goblin Shaman and a pile of treasures. It was a real close call; without those treasures, I would've been toast long before that!

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Round 3, I faced Robert and his hybrid Lands deck.

Game 1, I got an early Moon out, followed by a lock piece or two. Beat sticks ensued.

Game 2, I found myself helpless as he made a 20/20 creature, and I just couldn't answer it. Sometimes it just happens.

Game 3, however, was one of my best sequences ever. He had an Elvish Reclaimer on the battlefield, and I knew I had to deal with it. I cast Fury, and he responded with a Doorkeeper Thrull. I cast Dead//Gone, killing the Doorkeeper, and he activated the Reclaimer. With that, his board was wiped, and I had 2 cards in hand. The following turn, I dropped a One Ring and took control. Sweet, sweet victory!

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Now, onto the 1k and season qualifier, where the stakes were higher than ever!

I was fortunate enough to play for free, thanks to $40 in credit I had built up—perfect!

Andy and Rob joined me for some fun, and we had an excellent time.

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Round 1, I faced Bobby on StifleNaught. Bobby had just won a 1k in PA the week before, so he was feeling pretty confident!

I took the match in 3 rounds, but I couldn’t take too much satisfaction since Bobby was clearly not feeling well—poor guy was ready to pack it in and head home!

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Round 2 was a rematch against Ford (I think?), also on StifleNaught. Really? Again?

I lost 1-2 this time. I can’t remember much except that when I got my locks down, things went well... but when I didn’t, the match spiraled out of control. I couldn’t find a Trinisphere in the first two games, which would’ve been such a game-changer. In Game 3, I managed to bounce his Dreadnaught, but he found a way to bring it back thanks to another Stifle effect. If only I’d drawn a Chalice or Trinisphere... Oh well, c’est la vie!

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Round 3, I faced Farmer on Blue Painter.

I won in 3 games, but I have to admit, I think Blood Moon was my secret weapon, even if it wasn’t exactly part of my grand plan. Game 3 came down to me topdecking a Pyrogoyf, and with only two in my deck, I swung for lethal when he didn’t have enough blockers. Phew, that was close!

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Round 4 was against Jack on Red Painter.

What do I remember? He had the luck of the gods, topdecking EVERYTHING he needed and utterly crushing my hopes and dreams. Sigh.

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Round 5 was against... someone, on a u/b/w "good stuff" deck.

I won 2-0, but the most memorable part was when my opponent picked up my One Ring, read it, and went, “Man, that is one heck of a card.” I couldn't help but wonder how long they’ve been playing Magic if they didn’t already know about the One Ring...

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Round 6... and here's the dreaded "Oops" match.

I lost 1-2 again. I still can't figure out how mono-red can beat Oops All Spells without aggressively mulliganing and praying for a good hand. The deck can win, I’ve seen it happen, but I just loathe that matchup. It’s like trying to punch through a wall with a toothpick. Ugh.

Week 2 of league, and an MTGO realization

Back at the DMV Legacy League for week 2, still running my trusty Moon Stompy. Made a couple of tweaks to the deck, because why not shake things up a bit?

#1 Removed two Magus of the Moon and swapped them for Trinisphere main.
#2 Swapped out Laelia for a Cursed Mirror.

And yes, I run a 61-card deck. That’s the space we’re living in, folks. But honestly, I’m cool with it. Gives me a "flex spot," like I’m some kind of deck-building yogi.

Why the changes?
Well, after last week, I realized I was sideboarding in Trinisphere every match, and honestly, it just felt right to bring it to the main. It’s super useful, especially in those nasty combo matchups. Even with Chalice, it’s just a solid fit.
As for Laelia, turns out she has about as much synergy with my deck as a fish has with a bicycle. Sure, I could pitch a card to evoke Fury, but that’s not really what I’m going for here. Enter Cursed Mirror: it does some cool stuff, takes a different angle, and, at worst, it becomes a mana rock. Which, for a Moon Stompy deck, is actually pretty nifty. I’m totally fine with it being a one-of. Not every card needs to be a superstar, right?

 Here we go, the match results, served with a side of spice:

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Match 1 vs R/U Delver
So, we sit down and the opponent casually announces, "I’m fairly new to Legacy and expect to go to time." Okay, no pressure, right? I win the die roll, and by turn one, I drop a Chalice on 1. They try to cast Delver—countered. They pause and ask, "What does Chalice do?" Oh, sweet summer child, you have no idea. They then offer, "We can just go to game 2." To which I proceed to repeat the process on my turn. They scoop, defeat in their eyes, and say, "Nope, I’m done with this."
I felt a little bad, but hey, they signed up for Legacy, and it’s not my fault they’re more of an EDH player. In Game 2, they nearly draw their first turn. Yikes.

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2-1 vs an interesting R/U Affinity list
I'm pretty sure this guy was a Modern player dipping his toes into Legacy. At one point, he picks up my City of Traitors and asks, "What does this do?" I mean, at least he’s asking, right?
Game 1, I was on the play, but he countered my early pieces and just beat me down with recursion and value. Classic.
Game 2, he mulligans to 5 to avoid going to 4. I drop Blood Moon, Chalice on 0, and Trinisphere. He tries to hold on, but once I get my Ring down, I’m cruising.
Game 3, he does the exact same thing as Game 2, and once again, he gets locked out, followed by a parade of beaters. Classic rinse and repeat.

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0-2 vs R/W Initiative (Chris W)
Well, this one was a bit of a slog. My lock pieces were about as effective as a paper shield, and he just dealt with my threats like it was a casual Sunday stroll.
Chris is a great guy—love chatting with him, as we’re both the grizzled "old fogies" in the room. But his deck is one of those that mostly just ignores everything I’m trying to do. It’s kind of a rough matchup for me, but that’s the game sometimes. You win some, you lose some… but mostly, you lose to Chris W.

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Alright, here's my take on MTGO for the foreseeable future. So, I was all hyped up to dive in and really hone my skills—like a mad scientist of Magic. The plan was to just jam game after game, experimenting with different decks, and then tossing them aside like a bad relationship when I got bored. I even created an account, checked all the boxes, and got myself all set up to rent decks from the online services.

Then, reality hit me like a ton of bricks—or should I say, a ton of mana? I took one look at the prices, and I could already hear my wallet screaming for mercy. The "value" rental at $45? Yeah, no. If I wanted to play the decks I was eyeing, I’d need to bump up to the $50-$65 tier. And let’s be honest, that made me pause harder than a counterspell. Could I really afford that every month, especially when factoring in time for the return on my investment? Spoiler: probably not.

Then, add in a delightful tax bill (which, you know, is never a fun surprise), plus the small matter of braces for a child—suddenly my wallet is about as empty as my hopes for an easy Magic budget. So, I had to face facts: unless the Magic Gods are going to bless me with a magical tax refund or free braces, I’ll have to put my MTGO dreams on hold.

That being said, I would love to play games if it were cheaper, like a "oh, this is a fun hobby, not a second mortgage" kind of deal. But right now? I'm living my best "weekly bowling league" life of Magic. Maybe in a couple years when the kids are old enough to fend for themselves and I can reclaim some of my free time... who knows? Maybe the MTGO gods will smile down upon me again. Until then, I’ll stick to low-cost hobbies like... watching Magic content.

Welcome back to the DMV league

 Last year I missed a couple of the months to start the DMV league year. I was determined to make it this year to as many Wednesdays as I could. I just wanted to finish ahead of my buddy Andy, as we have a 6 pack of beer as a side bet. 

I ran Moonstompy as I got my final old boarder Chalice in the mail this week. (Anyone looking for a set of M25 Chalices?)

Here is my list from the first night. 

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Round 1 vs r/u/g Delver, Brady (season 1 champ)

Game 1- I missed a critical damage to be able to kill his big Murktide, by saying pass when I could have evoked a Fury to kill it. Sigh. 

Game 2- I mulliganed to 4 because I literally didn't see lands until then. Second hand had some sources, but they were too slow I thought. Well, I ripped off lock piece after lock piece to keep me around and then pressure a plenty. I felt good about that.

Game 3- Chalice into Moon into threats. Stomped good. 

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Round 2 vs r/u Delver, Dsitt

Game 1- Chalice into Moon into threats. Super quick to the point that I almost felt bad. 

Game 2- Nearly as quick, but when I see them playing Stock Up- I feel good. Also, when he countered my Chalice, I felt ok because I had 2 Red Blasts in my hand that would have been pointless. But he didn't know that.

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 Round 3 vs b/u good stuff, Paul 

Wasn't sure what he was on, but almost assured it was something blue/x. 

Game 1- Similar issue to first round game 1, he blocked with a big old Nethergoyf that I could have killed but messed up the damage with a Fury before hand while I was cleared out a Bowmaster and army. Also- double Thoughtsieze to start, and Bowmasters with Ring activation is a bitch. Sigh.

Game 2- Stompy things ensued quickly and scoop encountered. 

Game 3- More of game 1 with Bowmasters being the critcal problem. Also, I ran into a bunch of lands at the wrong time. Sigh... 3-0 was not meant to be.

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 I still think Unstoppable Plan will be a very good card in the long run. I have an open acceptance of copies on Card Sphere.

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 As mentioned a couple weeks ago, I got a nice King Suleiman from a trade to Card Kingdom. Literally no deck will it ever go in. More than pleased to apply it to a future trade or hold.