3/14/14 (flashback modern tournament post, 2-1-1)

I went to the Modern tournament at the LGS tonight.  They usually only do a specific constructed tournament once every 10-11 weeks or so.  The last Modern tournament was on 12/27/13, and the previous one was 10/25/13.  I played Jund at the last two Modern tournaments, but since the Deathrite Shaman ban, I had to switch to another deck.  I switched to Tarmogoyf Twin.  I had the Tarmogoyf from the Jund deck, and spent the money on theScalding Tarn/Misty Rainforest/two Cryptic Command/one Vendilion Clique.  If I had spent more money on Celestial Colonade and filling out my Arid Mesa and Cryptic Command I would have considered UWR control.   But anyways, I don't feel like spending 50 dollars apiece on Arid Mesa or 50 dollars apiece on more Cryptic Command or 20 dollars apiece on Celestial Colonnade.

DeckMagic OnlineOCTGN2ApprenticeBuy These Cards
4 Snapcaster Mage 4 Tarmogoyf 2 Scavenging Ooze 3 Pestermite 3 Deceiver Exarch 4 Splinter Twin 4 Serum Visions 2 Gitaxian Probe 4 Lightning Bolt 1 Flame Slash 1 Forked Bolt 4 Remand 1 Electrolyze 2 Cryptic Command 4 Scalding Tarn 4 Misty Rainforest 3 Steam Vents 1 Breeding Pool 1 Stomping Ground 2 Island 1 Forest 1 Mountain 2 Hinterland Harbor 2 Sulfur Falls

Sideboard

DeckMagic OnlineOCTGN2ApprenticeBuy These Cards
2 Ancient Grudge 2 Anger of the Gods 1 Engineered Explosives 2 Thrun, the Last Troll 1 Vendilion Clique 1 Vandalblast 1 Spellskite 1 Batterskull 1 Sword of Feast and Famine 1 Dispel 1 Negate 1 Counterflux

 Match 1:  UW tokens (2-0)

Game 1:

He got me down to 4 life, I killed him with the Pestermite into Splinter Twin combo.

Game 2:

Won with Tarmogoyf and Scavenging Ooze beatdown.

Match 2:  Naya Zoo (2-1)

Game 1:

I drew all the removals, and won off Splinter Twin combo.

Game 2:

Lost to multiple bloodrush Ghor-Clan Rampager on Kird Ape plus burn.

Game 3:

He played a turn 2 Torpor Orb.  Woops I didn't sideboard in Ancient Grudge. 

Resolved a Batterskull and my opponent had no way to deal with it.

Match 3:  UWR control (0-1)

Game 1:

I beat him down with a Tarmogoyf and Scavenging Ooze, forcing him to chump twice with Celestial Colonnade.  Unfortunately I can't finish him off before he draws into his Path to Exile and Snapcaster Mage into Path to Exile. 

Lost to a grindy match where my opponent killed all my threats, and resolved a Sphinx's Revelation for 4.  Then he proceeded to kill me with doubleRestoration Angel.

At one point I Remand his Electrolyze then he recasts it and I Remand it again.  I forgot to draw the card off the first Remand, but by the time I noticed it was already the next turn, so I didn't bother to say anything.   It wouldn't have really mattered, because if I'm at the point where I need to double Remand an Electrolyze I was super behind. 

Game 2: 

Game went to time, and since he won the first game, I lost the match.

Match 4:  UWR Geist (1-1)

Game 1:

Lost to Geist of Saint Traft and TRIPLE Delver of Secrets flipped. I could not draw a removal or a flying blocker to save my life.
Game 2:

Won off Thrun, the Last Troll.  He had no answers for this.

Game 3:

Game went to time. 

Results:  2-1-1 (5-3 in games)

3 booster packs

There were a lot of people playing UWR tonight.  The person who went 4-0 was UWR control as well.  I should have sideboarded in more anti UWR cards.

The one person who went 4-0 was running Shaun McLaren's UWR control list from the PT. 

4/12/14 (flashback modern tournament post, 1-0-2)

I went to the game store in Pacifica to play Modern.  I also wanted to cash out of my 32 dollars in store credit from when I went to a GPT in December.   I didn't know what to expect when I went there, or whether even the event would fire.

We barely got there by 1:55 p.m., 5 minutes before the start time, but it didn't matter, since the event didn't actually start until 2:30 p.m.  They had about 16 people in total?  I think.  

I played the Todd Anderson RUG Twin list.  I changed some of the cards in the sideboard to work better against the UWR control-heavy meta at the San Rafael store.

Match 1:  G/R Tron (1-1 draw)

Game 1:

I win by attacking with 2/1 flyers and keeping my opponent's Wurmcoil Engine tapped down.

Game 2:

I kept a hand with Splinter Twin and Pestermite.  Of course, I proceed to never draw a second red mana until my opponent plays Emrakul. the Aeons Torn.  So sad.  

Game 3:

Game went to time.

Match 2:  Mono-G Devotion (2-0)

Game 1:

I countered my opponent's Genesis Wave with Cryptic Command.  I draw a second Cryptic Command off the first one.  The next turn, I decide to playPestermite tapping down my opponent's Nykthos, Shrine to Nyx during her upkeep, instead of holding up the second Cryptic Command (probably a mistake).   It didn't matter, because next turn I play Splinter Twin and win.  It turned out my opponent did have a second Genesis Wave but wanted to play more elves instead.  

Game 2:

My opponent never draws her combo pieces, and I turn 5 Splinter Twin.  

Match 3:  Melira Pod (1-1 draw)

Game 1:

I punt by playing Splinter Twin when my opponent has four mana up and a Voice of Resurgence token and 4 mana.   He plays Chord of Calling, tapping the token, for Spellskite.   He redirects the Splinter Twin to his Spellskite.  Next turn I try to Cryptic Command bounce the Spellskite, but he makes a copy of Spellskite and redirects the bounce to the token.  

The worst part is I had Gitaxian Probed my opponent and seen the Chord of Calling.  I didn't realize Melira Pod decks play main deck Spellskite now.  

Of course, I die to Voice of Resurgence token/Kitchen Finks/Melira, Sylvok Outcast beats.  

Game 2:

I Lightning Bolt my opponent's Voice of Resurgence, then Lightning Bolt the token.  

I steal my opponent's Noble Hierarch with Threads of Disloyalty, and beatdown with double Pestermite.  My opponent had Birthing Pod in hand.   It doesn't matter, since I am so far ahead and Birthing Pod wouldn't save him.  

Game 3:

I keep a hand with double Cryptic Command, Counterflux and four lands.   I draw into a Thrun, the Last Troll but I don't want to play it unless I have Counterflux mana up (so I can counter Birthing Pod).   Instead I beatdown with a Pestermite, but it isn't enough to beat him before time runs out.  

Result:  1-0-2, 8 dollars store credit

They were offering a "grab bag" draft, but I was too hungry to play.  

6/14/14 That Lucky Old Sun (Modern tournament, 3-0)

I went over to Anime Imports to play in the Saturday modern tournament.  Apparently most people went to River City Comics in Sacramento to play at the Modern PTQ.   So not many people were there, but eventually they got 9 people to play.

This is the list I played, credit to Magix from MTGSalvation:

http://www.mtgsalvation.com/forums/the-game/modern/proven-modern/219751-ur-and-rug-twin?page=82#c2065

Lands 22
4 Scalding Tarn
4 Misty Rainforest
3 Steam Vents
1 Breeding Pool
1 Stomping Ground
2 Island
1 Mountain
1 Forest
1 Hinterland Harbor
2 Sulfur Falls
2 Tectonic Edge

Creatures 14
4 Tarmogoyf
4 Snapcaster Mage
4 Pestermite
1 Deceiver Exarch
1 Vendilion Clique

Other Spells 24
3 Splinter Twin
4 Serum Visions
2 Gitaxian Probe
4 Lightning Bolt
1 Flame Slash
3 Remand
2 Spell Snare
2 Cryptic Command
1 Electrolyze
1 Twisted Image
1 Shadow of Doubt

Sideboard 15
2 Ancient Grudge
1 Destructive Revelry
1 Combust
1 Relic of Progenitus
1 Batterskull
2 Thrun, the Last Troll
2 Anger of the Gods
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Threads of Disloyalty
2 Dispel
1 Negate
1 Spellskite

I wanted my 15th sideboard slot to be Sowing Salt, but I apparently couldn't find my copies of Sowing Salt. :(   So I used a second Ancient Grudge.

Match 1:  Mono-green Devotion (2-1)

Game 1:

This was a longer game where I killed a bunch of mana dorks.  Opponent tapped out for Garruk Wildspeaker into Primeval Titan.   I combo'd out next turn.

Game 2:

Kept a 1 lander on the draw with Serum Visions.  Proceeded to draw into the combo, but didn't get a 4th land until the turn after my opponent played Genesis Wave for 11, and find two Torpor Orb.  I should not have used my Ancient Grudge to kill Sword of Fire and Ice.  It didn't really matter, and having both sides of Ancient Grudge to kill the Torpor Orbs would have allowed me to win.

Game 3:

Combo'd out turn 4.

Match 2:  Kiki Pod (2-0)

Game 1:

This was the first time I played against this deck.  I actually thought he was Kibler Zoo at first, with Stomping Ground into Noble Hierarch.   But then he played a couple Birds of Paradise, and a Glen Elendra Archmage.  He sacced his Archmage and I played a Shadow of Doubt to stop him from searching, while the Persist trigger was on the stack.   Then I played an Electrolyze targeting his Archmage + Eternal Witness to make him sac the Archmage to counter the spell.

He got a Linvala, Keeper of Silence which shut down my combo.  But then he punted by playing Phantasmal Image copying my Pestermite, and sac'ing Linvala to get Kiki-Jiki.  Once I told him that didn't work, he looked sheepish.  I played Pestermite EOT.  Next turn I played a Gitaxian Probe, seeing he only had one land in hand and nothing else, then combo'd out.

Game 2:

He got out turn 2 Birthing Pod on the play.  Well done.

I played an Anger of the Gods to kill his Kitchen Finks.  Then he played Voice of Resurgence into Birthing Pod Sac to get another Kitchen Finks (I think he forgot to put a -1/-1 counter on the Finks).  He attacked me with Resto Angel to take me to 9 life.   It didn't matter since I topdecked another Anger of the Gods to swing in for 5 damage with Tarmogoyf.   #hadit

Match 3:  Mono-U tron (2-1)

Game 1:

I punted this game.  He was at 16 life.  I had two 4/5 Tarmogoyfs.  He had a Solemn Simulacrum in play.  I had a Flame Slash in hand.  I could have Flame Slashed his Solemn Simulacrum, buffing my Tarmogoyfs to 5/6, then attack for 10.  Then next turn I would have had him dead.  Instead, I save Flame Slash for a possible Platinum Angel.   I attack, he blocks one 4/5 Goyf, goes to 12.  Then he plays an Oblivion Stone, no mana left to sac it.  I attack with both Goyfs, and bounce his O-stone end of my turn with Cryptic Command.  He plays the last tron piece, plays O-stone, sacrifices it during my turn.  Then he goes Mindslaver into Academy Ruins and I scoop.

Game 2:

He's beating me down with Snapcaster Mage and Treasure Mage, I'm beating back with Vendilion Clique and Pestermite.   I play a Snapcaster Mage to flashback Serum Visions and draw a Lightning Bolt, doming him for 3 to end the game.  #hadit

Game 3:

This was a bit awkward.  I had turn 1 Gitaxian Probe.  Saw he had Mindslaver + Academy Ruins combo in hand.  I played turn 2 Tarmogoyf into Turn 3 Relic of Progenitus.   I had to play Tectonic Edge turn 2 because I was short on lands.

Eventually I blow up his Urza's Tower with my Tectonic Edge.    Then he plays Oblivion Stone.  Then Mindslaver the next turn.  I have to let him sacrifice Mindslaver then I pop my Relic (so he can't recur the Mindslaver).   He looks in my hand, sees I have double Pestermite/one Deceiver Exarch/Ancient Grudge/Electrolyze.  He just taps my lands and passes turn.  I am surprised he didn't try to Electrolye my Tarmogoyf since it was a 0/1 (because of Relic).

Eventually, I manage to burn him out with Lightning Bolt into Electrolyze.

I didn't board my Thrun the Last Troll vs. mono-U tron.  Not sure if I should have done that.

Result:  3-0, 20 dollars store credit.  I picked up another Badlands, to fill out my Legacy deck.

These are the cards now I am still missing:

2 Wasteland (75 lightly played on tcgplayer)
2 Bayou  (125 moderated played on tcgplayer)
3 Wooded Foothills (38 lightly played on tcgplayer)
1 Bloodstained Mire  (32 lightly played on tcgplayer)

So currently the total would be:  546 dollars to finish my Legacy Jund deck.   Eww.

6/13/14 You are my candy girl (FNM Standard 3-0-1)

I went to Gamescape North to play standard tonight.  The number of people was a bit low.  I suspect this had something to do with Vintage Masters being released.  None of the usual "grinders" were there.

I played the Collin Stiles Jund Monsters deck from SCG Open Providence on 6/7.

http://sales.starcitygames.com/deckdatabase/displaydeck.php?DeckID=68671

Creatures (25)

4 Elvish Mystic
3 Ghor-Clan Rampager
3 Scavenging Ooze
4 Stormbreath Dragon
4 Sylvan Caryatid
3 Courser of Kruphix
4 Polukranos, World Eater

Planeswalkers (7)

4 Domri Rade
3 Xenagos, the Reveler

Lands (23)

5 Forest
3 Blood Crypt
1 Mutavault
4 Overgrown Tomb
4 Stomping Ground
4 Temple of Abandon
2 Temple of Malice

Spells (5)

2 Abrupt Decay
2 Dreadbore
1 Mizzium Mortars

Sideboard

2 Mistcutter Hydra
3 Nylea's Disciple
1 Primeval Bounty
2 Golgari Charm
2 Putrefy
1 Ultimate Price
1 Vraska the Unseen
1 Mizzium Mortars
2 Rakdos's Return

Match 1:  RW aggro (2-1)

Game 1:  I clearly had an advantage machine with Domri Rade and Xenagos, the Reveler

Game 2:  Lost to Tajic, Blade of the Legion plus haste guys.

Game 3:  I wasted a bunch of time pussyfooting around Tajic, Blade of the Legion, and Gideon, Champion of Justice.  I won Game 3 in turns.  Apparently I missed an onboard kill on turn 2, but it didn't matter, still had it.

Match 2:   GW aggro (2-0)

Game 1:  Stormbreath Dragon is good against white beaters.dec.   I got down to 1 life, but managed to crawl back up into the life totals thanks to Scavenging Ooze and Courser of Kruphix.

Game 2:  My opponent had turn 1 Soldier of the Pantheon, but I had turn 2 Golgari Charm.
Game ended up going to turns, but my opponent scooped to Domri Rade Ultimate and Vraska up to 6 loyalty.   Basically I would have killed him on turn 2 or turn 4.

Match 3:  Mono-green aggro (2-0)

Game 1:  Opponent conceded with double Courser of Kruphix, Polukranos, World Eater, and Domri Rade.  Wait come back!  I wasn't done yet.

Game 2:  Opponent played Enlarge on a Witchstalker.  He seemed to not notice I had an 8/8 Polukranos and a 2/4 Courser of Kruphix to block with.   After making an 8/8 Scavenging Ooze, and dropping a second Polukranos, I killed his last creature with Domri Rade fight, and then he conceded.

Match 4:  Mono-blue aggro (1-1 draw)

Game 1:  Opponent missed onboard kill with Thassa and double Master of Waves for a few turns.  It didn't matter because I ended up dying.

It turns out Perplexing Chimera is a pain in the ass.  He trades his Perplexing Chimera for my Courser of Kruphix, then I punt by blocking the Perplexing Chimera /Stormbreath Dragon on a couple elemental tokens, not realizing the tokens are 3/2 now.  That sucked.  I ended up losing to his topdeck Domestication on my Stormbreath Dragon, and a swing for 21 damage.

Game 2:  I kept a sketchy hand, with only green mana and Mutavault.   I ended up getting there with a 4/4 Mistcutter Hydra and a 3/3 Mistcutter Hydra.  Again, my opponent was not aggressively using Thassa to kill me.

There was no time for a Game 3.

Result:  1st place out of 15.

6/8/14 Six random Journey to Nyx packs

I opened the Journey to Nyx packs I got from the 5/30 Modern tournament I went to.  

Pack 1:

Font of Ire (foil)

Dictate of Karametra

Strength from the Fallen

Nightmarish End

Phalanx Formation

Triton Shorestalker

Oreskos Swiftclaw

Cast into Darkness

Flamespeaker's Will

Cloaked Siren

Feast of Dreams

Golden Hind

Ajani's Presence

Sigiled Skink

Pack 2:

Godsend (foil)

Temple of Malady

Leonin Iconoclast

Crystalline Nautilus

Skyspear Cavalry

Font of Ire

Satyr Grovedancer

Rise of Eagles

Supply-Line Cranes

Aerial Formation

Grim Guardian

Nature's Panoply

Ajani's Presence

Kruphix's Insight

Pack 3:

Harness by Force

Leonin Iconoclast

Bassara Tower Archer

Whitewater Naiads

Triton Shorestalker

Stonewise Fortifier

Dreadbringer Lampads

Flurry of Horns

Satyr Grovedancer

Pharika's Chosen

Kruphix's Insight

Font of Vigor

Sigiled Skink

Godhunter Octopus

Pack 4:

Temple of Epiphany

Pull from the Deep

Knowledge and Power

Nightmarish End

Supply-Line Cranes

Cast into Darkness

Starfall

Desecration Plague

Sigiled Starfish

Nyx Infusion

Nature's Panoply

Akroan Mastiff

Pensive Minotaur

Hubris

Pack 5:

Dawnbringer Charioteers

Nyx Weaver

Quarry Colossus

Hour of Need

Triton Shorestalker

Oreskos Swiftclaw

Cast Into Darkness

Flamespeaker's Will

Desecration Plague

Font of Return

Oakheart Dryads

Lagonna-Band Trailblazer

Satyr Hoplite

Aerial Formation

Pack 6:

Hall of Triumph

Forgeborn Oreads

Spiteful Blow

Consign to Dust

Cast into Darkness

Starfall

Desecration Plague

Sigiled Starfish

Mortal Obstinacy

Returned Reveler

Harvestguard Alseids

Nyx Infusion

Humbler of Mortals

Armament of Nyx

6/6/14 The Jund Lifestyle Chose Me (FNM Standard 2-1)

They were doing Conspiracy draft at Gamescape North, and I didn't feel like playing multiplayer draft there. I know a few of the people, but not enough people for me to want to play Conspiracy draft.  Most places were mainly doing Conspiracy draft (it turned out Versus Games was doing a Theros Block draft) but I was a bit tired of Versus Games anyways, so I went to Anime Imports to play in the 4 pm standard tournament.

I had to take off work so that I could leave home at 3 pm.   Traffic wasn't too bad, mainly because I crossed the Golden Gate Bridge before they cut down the southbound lanes to two.   I ended up getting there around 3:45 p.m.  I wasn't sure how many people would actually be there, but it turned out there was a decent turnout (16 people).  The tournament started around 4:30 p.m. (they were waiting for people to show up, I guess).

I played the Chris Van Meter Jund list:

Creatures (25)

4 Elvish Mystic
3 Ghor-Clan Rampager
3 Scavenging Ooze
4 Stormbreath Dragon
4 Sylvan Caryatid
3 Courser of Kruphix
4 Polukranos, World Eater

Planeswalkers (7)

4 Domri Rade
3 Xenagos, the Reveler

Lands (23)

4 Forest
3 Blood Crypt
2 Mutavault
4 Overgrown Tomb
4 Stomping Ground
4 Temple of Abandon
2 Temple of Malice

Spells (5)

2 Abrupt Decay
2 Dreadbore
1 Mizzium Mortars

Sideboard

3 Mistcutter Hydra
3 Nylea's Disciple
1 Doom Blade
2 Golgari Charm
2 Putrefy
1 Vraska the Unseen
1 Mizzium Mortars
2 Rakdos's Return

Round 1:  Mono blue (0-2)

Game 1:

Got crushed by double Tidebinder Mage into Bident of Thassa and Thassa, God of the Sea.

Game 2:

This game was a little closer, but he got Bident of Thassa again, and double Domestication gave me nightmares.  I should have sided out Courser of Kruphix during sideboarding.  Also, Domestication on Stormbreath Dragon is a pita, since it has haste so he gets in a free swing.   Cyclonic Rift overload sealed the deal.

Round 2:   Naya walkers (0-2)

Game 1:

He seemed to keep a sketchy hand.  He only played a couple Mizzium Mortars, a Courser of Kruphix and an Ajani, Mentor of Heroes.   Polukranos and Stormbreath Dragon took the game home for me.

Game 2:

This was a grindy game.  He got out turn 3 Fiendslayer Paladin (which I can't target at all with any spells in my deck) and a turn 4 Xenagos the Reveler (which I Dreadbored) then turn 5 Ajani, Mentor of Heroes to make it a 5/5.  I killed the Ajani, Mentor of Heroes on the swing back, but then he got all the way up to 44 life.   I was down to 2 life.   He had played an Elspeth and +1'd it.   I used my other Dreadbore on the Elspeth.   At one point he swung in with his team, I blocked all but one soldier token, he cast Selesnya Charm on the unblocked token, and I responded with Abrupt Decay (ka-ching).

I managed to swing into him a couple times with a Ghor-Clan Rampager and Mutavault, then drew a Vraska, the Unseen, which destroyed a Chandra, Pyromaser, before dying to Stormbreath Dragon.    He had a Banishing Light for my Ghor-Clan Rampager, I had Golgari Charm to destroy the Banishing Light before my turn.   Then I drew my ONE Scavenging Ooze (I had sided the other two out) to gain 3 life on my turn.  He swung me down from 5 to 1 life with another Stormbreath Dragon, and then I killed it with a Mizzium Mortars.   Then next turn I ate five creatures with Scavenging Ooze bringing it up to a 10/10, at which point, my opponent conceded.

Match 3:  Monoblack splash blue (2-0)

Game 1:

I saw Dimir Guildgate, and thought he was playing some budget Esper control deck, but apparently he was running mono-black with blue splash.

He bounced my Stormbreath Dragon with Away at my EOT.  I considered replaying the Stormbreath Dragon, but I suspected he might be running Dissolve (?) so I played Xenagos, the Reveler instead.  I made a couple Satyr tokens with it, before Xenagos ate a Heroes' Downfall.

He was down to 8 life, and I had DOUBLE Stormbreath Dragon in play.  He played a Desecration Demon, I played an Elvish Mystic and sacc'ed it to the Demon, and swung for lethal.  

Game 2:

Opponent had turn 2 Pack Rat, into turn 3 Lifebane Zombie (which missed).  Next turn I drew a Polukranos I had scryed and left on top, then played Vraska, the Unseen to blow up his Pack Rat.   Lifebane Zombie killed Vraska the next turn.   He then played a Nighthowler on the Lifebane Zombie, making it a 5/3.  Now I was on a clock, but I got a Monstrous Stormbreath Dragon (dealing 1 damage to opponent) then swinging for 7 in the air.

Result:  2-1

I realized Monoblue is a terrible match up for Jund monsters (and I suspect Naya walkers as well).   I am thinking this deck has better matchups overall compared to Mono-black splashing green or mono-blue splashing white.  I also had the option to play Esper Control but I figured that was not fun at all.

By going to Anime Imports for tournaments instead of Versus Games, it's another 7.5 miles (one way) and roughly 10-20 minutes (one way).   It's fine for now, though.  I am tired of Theros Block draft.  I am okay with going to Gamescape North to play Theros Block draft, but I don't think I want to spend 40-50 minutes driving to San Francisco (Two Cats or Versus Games) during Friday afternoon traffic to play it.

5/30/14 Sleepingwalking the planes (FNM Modern, 2-0-2)

On Tuesday, May 27th, Watch Dogs came out.  I proceeded to get less than 5 hours of sleep each night.   I went over to Gamescape North to play some Modern.  They had 14 people there.   Of course, I couldn't play super well.

This is the deck I played, courtesy of Magix from MTGSalvation:

22 Lands

4 Misty Rainforest

4 Scalding Tarn

3 Island

1 Forest

1 Mountain

2 Sulfur Falls

3 Steam Vents

1 Stomping Ground

1 Breeding Pool

2 Tectonic Edges

14 Dudes

4 Tarmogoyf

4 Snapcaster Mage

4 Pestermite

1 Deceiver Exarch

1 Vendilion Clique

24 Other Spells

3 Splinter Twin

4 Lightning Bolts

4 Serum Visions

2 Gitaxian Probe

2 Spreading Seas

2 Cryptic Command

3 Remand

2 Spell Snare

1 Flame Slash

1 Electrolyze

15 Side

1 Batterskull

1 Keranos, God of Storms

1 Engineered Explosives

1 Spellskite

1 Combust

1 Ancient Grudge

1 Dispel

2 Counterflux

1 Nature's Claim

1 Threads of Disloyalty

2 Anger of the Gods

2 Blood Moon

Match 1:  RW burn (2-0)

Game 1:

Not really much to say here.  My opponent's best play was Sword of Fire and Ice on Chandra's Phoenix.

Game 2:

My opponent gets stuck on 2 mana, but burns me down with a bunch of Lightning Strike (not Lightning Bolt).  

It turns out my opponent's deck has 5 illegal cards in it.

Match 2:  UR Delver  (1-1 tie)

Game 1:

Mull to 4, proceed to lose to Young Pyromancer tokens + flipped Delver.

Game 2:

I punt when he has Snapcaster Mage and flipped Delver of Secrets in play.  I have a 4/5 Tarmogoyf and Pestermite in play.  I'm a 4 life.  I attack with just the Pestermite, then cast Anger of the Gods with Spell Snare backup.  He has 1 card in hand, which I knew was Negate from an earlier Gitaxian Probe.  If I had kept track of his cards I would have just swung with both the Tarmogoyf and the Pestermite.   I cast Anger of the Gods, clearing my Pestermite and his Snapcaster Mage/Delver of Secrets.  He brings me down to 1 with Snapcaster Mage into flashback Lightning Bolt, and I have to pop an Engineered Explosives to kill his second Snapcaster Mage.

I basically gave my opponent 5 more draws (because of Izzet Charm and Serum Visions) to kill me.  If I had attacked with my Tarmogoyf that earlier turn, he would have been dead.

Match 3:  Relentless Rats (2-0)

Game 1:

My opponent plays Murder on my Tarmogoyf, into turn 4 Master of the Feasts.  I have to waste 2 burn spells to kill it, which is annoying.   He tries to go off with Relentless Rats but I have enough burn/countermagic to keep them down.

Game 2:

Opponent gets stuck on 2 lands.   He eventually starts going off with Relentless Rats but it's too late now.

Match 4:   UWR Twin (1-1 draw)

Game 1:

This is a grindy match, but I manage to win on turn 30 or something.  I flash in a Pestermite end of turn, then he casts Path to Exile on it.  I counter it with one Cryptic Command.   He then asks if I have Splinter Twin, and says he'll concede if I do.  I show him my Splinter Twin and my other Cryptic Command in hand.  

Game 2:

My opponent asks for a draw before this game, which is really odd.  I told him generally people should ask for draws before the first game.  Apparently he thought a "draw in game 2" counted as a match draw, which it doesn't.   I agree to the draw, even though I technically shouldn't have.

It didn't matter, since I played this game terribly.  I basically played thinking I would draw Blood Moon to screw him over, and I never ended up drawing it, let alone casting it successfully.  

Result:

2 win, 2 draw

I ended up spending the entire weekend playing Watch Dogs, instead of going to Anime Imports to play Modern or Standard.

Thankfully, I finally finished Watch Dogs on Sunday night, so I can go to bed at a reasonable time again.