Date: 5/30/03 Deckname: Black Magic Name: Deathwing Location: Chicago, IL # of peeps: 15-20 I recently participated in a Friday Night Magic tourney. The tourney started at 5:45. I got there 4:30 cause my little brother had a baseball game and that was the latest my mom could drop me off. So I hung around at a food court til’ 5:15 then went to the WotC store where the tourney was being held. I played a few fun games against some of the guys that are always trying to beat me (I’m like famous here for some reason) and, like every day, I schooled em’ with my mono-black deck. Here is what it looks like. “Black Magic” 8 Creatures 4 Faceless Butcher 4 Nantuko Shade 28 Spells 4 Dark Banishing 4 Chainer’s Edict 4 Ghastly Demise 4 Smother 4 Stitch Together 4 Corrupt 4 Duress 24 Land 4 Cabal Coffers 4 Tainted Field 20 Swamp Sideboard 3 CoP Red 3 CoP Blue 3 CoP Green 3 CoP White 3 CoP Black Total: 64 cards. The matches were basically best out of 3 with the following prizes given to the top 3: 3rd: 1 Booster of choice 2nd: 1 Booster of Choice + $5 1st: 2 Boosters of Choice + $70 Match 1: A younger kid with U/G Madness. I forgot to get his name. It was his first tourney. Round 1: I dropped a second turn Shade and that was game right there. He did get out a Basking Rootwalla but I simply made my Shade a 5/4 after blockers were declared to kill it. After that he didn’t play much (only 3 land) which surprises me with a Madness deck. At the end he was at 2 life and he dropped a mongrel. I didn’t feel like playing it out any longer so I played corrupt for 8 damage. He countered with Counterspell. I used a Cabal Coffers and played a second Corrupt. He had only 1 untapped land, scooped, and showed me the Counterspell he needed 1 more land for. Sideboard: -2 Stitch Together, +1 CoP Green, +1 CoP Blue Round 2: This one didn’t go to smooth. He kept on playing creatures. I killed about 6-7 with removal but I couldn’t hold out to long. I was gonna scoop when I top decked a Faceless Butcher (to finally get rid of that stupid Mongrel that became black each time I Banished it). I played him, targeting the Mongrel, and did 6-8 damage before he could get a Rootwalla. I Chainer’s Edict that, attack, then he plays Wild Mongrel. I Flashback Edict, top deck Shade, and he scoops. After the match it seemed like he was amazed with my skills. I gave him a few tips on how to make a better U/G Madness deck (like a few more counters. He only had 4). Maybe next week he’ll be a challenge. 1-0 2-0 Match 2: One of the other stars here, Joe, running Red. Round 1: He burns me to 12 while I beat on him with my Shade (I could only do 3-4 a turn so I could still pump him if he tried burning him). He played a threshed Fledgling Dragon, but much to his dismay I simply Dark Banished it. That was pretty much game right there. I got another Shade and they finished him off before he could draw his last burn spell (I was at 2). Sideboard: -2 Stitch Together, +2 CoP Red Round 2: I laid a second turn Shade and him a third turn Dragon. We were racing when I got careless and attacked for 7 with my Shade....he blocked and burned it >.< After that the 3-4 creatures he laid were destroyed. I couldn’t get anymore creatures, however, because I was burned to death. Damn. A Corrupt would have been nice there. Round 3: Most of the people finished in 2 games so we had quite the crowd. I laid a second turn Shade, but he Volcanic Hammered it. After that I drew some removal, then a Butcher. I had enough removal to not need his ability, so I played him regardless of his effect. He used Flaring Pain, but not after 2 attacks. I drew a Duress and removed an Urza’s Rage (YES!!!), then next turn I played another Shade. He saw I had more than enough land for his burn. Next turn I attacked for 8, with still 4 mana left. I was confident he couldn’t do more than the 5 damage to him but...I was wrong. 1 Volcanic Hammer and one Rage killed my Shade. Crap. I was now at 7 and I new he had more burn in his hand otherwise he wouldn’t have done that. I knew there was only 1 card in my deck that could deliver the much needed 8 damage. Corrupt. I make it all dramatic and I draw....CORRUPT. YEEESSSS THANK YOU GOD. I smile as I play it and oh my God the look on his face, and the spectators. 2-0 4-1 I was behind 3 people by one loss, and I knew they had to lose and I had to beat em’ to get first. Match 3: First place guy, Eddy, running G/W Madness (My easiest to beat deck type) I knew I could win cause G/W Madness is my easiest to beat match up, and he got 2 easy people so he shouldn’t even be where he is. Round 1: He is laying creatures and I’m just killing every one. He is getting frustrated, and I don’t like this kid so I dropped a Shade to piss him off even more. He scoops. Round 2: He said “Just forget it...I’m not even gonna dent your life man. I concede.” I’m just like “Ok...works for me.” 3-0 6-1 If I won this one I’d be in 2nd to play for 1st Match 4: John playing Blue...uh-oh Round 1: I was skeptical about this as Blue is terrible for me. It was this guys first time, but if he made it this far he must be pretty good. During the whole first game he drew 1 Island. Lucky for me. 2 Shades and 1 Butcher killed him. Sideboard: -3 Stitch Together, +3 CoP Blue Round 2: This was it. I either win, or go home. (If I lost I’d be kicked back to fourth). He didn’t get mana screwed, so he countered sooo much. That stupid Compulsion got him most of them. I was able to get out my CoP Blue but that didn’t much help...until I got a Shade out muhuhuhu...which he Aether Burst 3 turns later, but not before I did a whopping 16 damage. When I tried replaying it, he countered (which I found out after the match it was his last one). Next turn I top played a Corrupt for the win....YES!!! 4-0 7-1 Finals: Sean, U/B Psycatog Sean knew I was sort of the Champ at this store, so he thought I’d slaughter him, so we decided to draw. (I, however, wasn’t sure if I could win because I’m worse against Psycatog decks then mono-Blue decks) So, I walk away with $35 and a booster of Onslaught, which held a Smother. I also did OK, but I usually do better than 7-1-1. Now, time for the ole’ Props n’ Slops Props to: Sean, for giving me $35 instead of probably $5 Joe, for actually beating me (doesn’t often happen here) Me, for getting $35, and a 6th Smother. Slops to: Joe, for actually beating me Me, for not playing Sean and winning $70 Me, for only getting $35 My mom, for dropping me off an hour early My brother for having his baseball game during my tourney -.- My email is 666Deathwing666@pbreview.com -Deathwing