A Maddening FNM 1

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Sweet-Nightmare

18 February 2013

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Hello everyone! I’m Sweet-Nightmare and this is my new weekly blog, A Maddening FNM. I hope you enjoy this as much as I liked writing it.

So, from work I head up to Madness Games and Comics with my boyfriend, intending to use my tried and true Trostani's Angels, he intending to use his Orzhov extort deck for the first time.

We get there and a group of folks I’ve come to befriend were already there test playing for that night. I sat down with my buddy Jesse, a hard core Izzet fan, and took my proxy tastic Bolas deck, The Power of a Dragon, for a spin, and won two of our three games. I think my favorite win of those two was when he dropped Thundermaw Hellkite when I was at eight life. Little did he know I had Bolas in my hand, and with him at six life, my Invisible Stalker and his stolen Hellkite were more than enough to finish the job. Good ol’ Bolas. However, he revealed his true FNM deck was a green white red that was really more green white than red, but scary anyways.

However, while I was just killing time with everyone, I had not one but two younger players come up to me and ask for help with their decks. When I looked confused, they told me that everyone had said I was ‘the best’ and ‘scary good’. I thought they must have the wrong girl; I’ve never gotten above a 2-2 score before.

“It’s what they said. Short girl with long blond hair and a metal box.” Well, no one else carries their decks in a metal hookah box they found at a garage sale, so I guessed it must have been some of the puppies I kicked before. I hate losing early because then I end up kicking newb puppies and I always feel bad about it. Anyways, we chatted a bit about their decks ((green white midrange and red deck wins)) and they went to find their friends.

Just for reference, Madness does four rounds of swiss, no cut to top eight, with a pack per round win. So it’s a little less competitive than some other FNMs around here and that makes the usual crowd very large; tonight alone was over a hundred players strong. I go in wielding Trostani's Angels; Andrew, my boyfriend, goes in with his Orzhov deck; Nate, our bluest friend, goes in with ‘Murca Control-Gro Featuring Niv-Mizzet, Dracogenius and Talrand, Sky Summoner; Anthony, wielding BR vampires; and Cody sporting a two tournament old Bant aggro.

As the tournament starts, it seems I’m off for some early puppy kicking. I happen to know the girl, Grace, hasn’t been playing terribly long and is largely a casual player, but she’s really nice and we have a lot of fun. She was playing a BW exalted deck using Tormented Soul as her big damage dealer. Unfortunately for her, she got completely screwed for mana every single hand. Both of us being relaxed players, neither of us minded the other mulliganing to seven, and while her deck performed poorly, she took it all like a champ and walked away smiling. During all of this the kid next to me said he’d heard of me too! I really want to know who’s going around talking me up because it was getting ridiculous, although my friend Michael thought it was a hoot. I gave her some tips ((Gift of Orzhova being a big suggestion from me as an exalted life linked Tormented Soul could be ridiculously dangerous and knowing she probably didn’t want to sink money into Sublime Archangel)) and we were on our way. I was feeling good despite knowing her deck was easily the least challenge I would face all night. It was a good start to an FNM and confidence always carries me further than all the caution in the world.

Andrew unfortunately got double Thragtusked in his third game, and there was just no way for him to come back from that. Nate and Anthony both got their matches; poor Cody got mana screwed.

Game two is a maybe late teens-early twenties year old guy named Chance. I’m exploding with confidence, so I do a quick shuffle and hand over my deck for cutting. We draw, we both keep. He’s a friendly guy; I like when the crowd is relaxed and not hyper-competitive. I keep a slow hand despite my better judgment since I don’t know what he’s playing, and I’m not going to say no to four mana and Garruk, Primal Hunter. As I’ve said, this turns out to be a terrible mistake; Fencing Ace comes out swinging and with the help of Rancor, Kessig Wolf Run, and other such enchantments, killed me before I ever hit that last mana. The second match, I board out Triumph of Ferocity and Dryad Militant for Fog and Nevermore. The game went much the same, and for a while, I was in dire straights. Elite Inquisitor with the Wolf Run and Mikaeus, the Lunarch pumping it, with Wolfir Silverheart and other smaller creatures on the field. Then, it happened. Fog with Oblivion Ring in my hand. I can come back from this! So, I fog on his turn, then oblivion ring the Inquisitor on mine. But you’ll never believe what I drew the turn of o-ring. Another Fog! It was beautiful. He swung with all for killing damage. I fogged, leaving his whole board tapped and useless as I stole the rest of his points. The last game he got screwed for creatures after I Selesnya Charmed a pumped Fencing Ace. But we both had fun and I enjoyed his deck a lot. Makes me want to play around the Mikaeus actually...

Game three, turns out I’m playing Jesse! With both of us 2-0, and both of us knowing each others decks and play styles, we couldn’t help but laugh at the sheer ridiculousness of being paired out of over a hundred people. Game one I swept. My creatures hit the board first and I swung for more. Nothing complicated. Second round I boarded in Nevermore and Fog again, knowing for big guys swinging for lots, six fog effects and Nevermore keep things under control. However, this time, nothing went my way, and he crushed me under Restoration Angels and Thragtusks. Game three, we both spent a good five minutes shuffling and re shuffling. I considered sending in Frontline Medic or Odric, Master Tactician, but decided it was redundant and for this kind of matchup, if I didn’t win in five turns(when big population that benefits from those boards really starts) I wasn’t going to win, because he was going to drop Thrag. This time, my deck had had it. It wanted to win. My opening hand was: 2x Strangleroot Geist, 2x Rancor, Temple Garden, Plains, and Forest. When I drew, it was a Sunpetal Grove. Turn two geist, turn three double rancor, geist dies to Loxodon Smiter, comes back and gets refitted with one rancor. Turn four, second Geist with second Rancor, swing again. The amount of aggro in those opening turns won me the match. Poor Jesse had never seen them coming, and even thought they were a sideboard card.

“Strangleroot...”

By this point, I’m feeling pretty good. But I know this 3-0, my first 3-0, is going to stick me with a really hard last match. And I know there is one thing that my deck has such a hard time with. My one weakness if you will. I hate this card with all of my being. Which card?

Vampire Nighthawk.

I should mention I’d had a sideboard card ready for the hawk. I was prepared. Nothing was going to stop me. Nothing except forgetting to put it in my box before leaving for FNM...

Fourth match, I face off against a gentleman named Sean. What was this gentleman running? Jund. Let me just say, be in Legacy, Modern, or Standard, I hate Jund. For the first few turns, it was under control. The minute I saw those colors, I knew I needed to win fast and decisively if I was going to win at all. I was hitting hard and fast with Strangleroots and Loxodons, and all seemed well.

Until THAT card. Vampire Nighthawk.

The details are a blur, but after Nighthawk hit the field, and ESPECIALLY after bonding it to Wolfir Silverheart, there was no hope left. I played to the last card, and was pounded in the face. Game two, I sided in Nevermore and Fog as usual, knowing nothing else in my board was going to help, but knowing there was a card at my house that could have helped.

Silklash Spider.

The fact that I’m still kicking myself should tell you the outcome of that match. Though I did cause excitement all up and down our table when I Rancor’d his Ravager of the Fells  ^Flip, then Selesnya Charmed it. Apparently no one else had ever thought of this. At least I taught everyone a new trick.

My pulls? Simic Manipulator, Merciless Eviction, and...Master Biomancer! Sweet. A friend of mine who’s building a simic deck offered to trade a Boros Reckoner for it this next Friday. Doubling my value? Whether or not I want to use Reckoner, it’s stupid not to accept. Sweetness.

All in all, a good Friday. My first 3-1, after all. It felt good to feel like all my work towards my deck was finally paying off. And I also learned a valuable lesson.

Kids, never forget your Silklash Spiders.