Podcasts about ptqs

Despite already having his invite, Gerry hit the road to observe a few Pioneer PTQs this week. Hear what underappreciated tool he built his deck around as the boys weigh in on all the best decks in Pioneer. And this time around, they're reading the front AND THE BACK of their cards! Timestamps: Bryan's RCQ - 3:20 Mono Green - 19:17 Rakdos Sacrifice - 28:46 Judges at PTQs - 42:58 Music: Mega Man 2 "Ending theme" Remix by zookun | Music composed by Manami Matsumae & Takashi Tateishi arenadecklists.gg patreon.com/arenadecklists twitch.tv/arenadecklists youtube.com/arenadecklists twitter.com/arenadecklists twitter.com/g3rryt twitter.com/bryango

With their first PTQs just around the corner, it's time for the guys to get to work and do some playtesting. Thankfully, one of them seems to understand that, and Gerry has a weekend's worth of observations about the best decks in Modern. And Bryan... well he definitely bought some new Magic cards! You can't say the team doesn't understand their strengths and weaknesses! Music: Mega Man 2 "Ending theme" Remix by zookun | Music composed by Manami Matsumae & Takashi Tateishi Timestamps: Marvel Snap - 9:27 Steam deck - 24:31 Modern metagame - 27:50 arenadecklists.gg patreon.com/arenadecklists twitch.tv/arenadecklists youtube.com/arenadecklists twitter.com/arenadecklists twitter.com/g3rryt twitter.com/bryango

PTQs are in full swing, including on Magic Online where huge fields competed in both Pioneer and Modern. Find out what the boys are sleeving up for their own events, and what they think of this week's developments. Music: Mega Man 2 "Ending theme" Remix by zookun | Music composed by Manami Matsumae & Takashi Tateishi arenadecklists.gg patreon.com/arenadecklists twitch.tv/arenadecklists youtube.com/arenadecklists twitter.com/arenadecklists twitter.com/g3rryt twitter.com/bryango

This week we go over Bant Spirits in Pioneer, and look into what a UW control list should look like in Standard. Will GPs and PTQs come back? Rumors among vendors got us excited. And MTGO is making token where you can have access to all cards, and it makes us wonder what the digital strategy of WTOC really is. Thank you for your honor.

The Babble Boys are ready to dive in! This week we have A TON of results to go over, between 2 PTQs and 2 Challenges. And not only that, but also a couple of sweet brand new archetypes (and some older ones as well) rose to the top this time around! We also discuss at length about what look to be the current most important cards in Modern: the Elemental Incarnations. You can find us on Twitch at: Fran: http://twitch.tv/fpawlusz Evan: http://twitch.tv/evaros Gabe: http://twitch.tv/spiderspace

Billy and Mapson go deep on the most popular Modern decks on MTGO, talk about Eternal Weekend online and discuss whether UR Murktide is better with Dragon's Rage Channeler or Urza's Saga. Get Ready for Eternal Weekend 2021 - https://magic.gg/news/get-ready-for-eternal-weekend-2021 Dark Depths Podcast - https://twitter.com/depths_podcast?s=09 Email the show! @darkdepthspod@gmail.com Check out the YouTube channel! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCd96b56Y9p3V-KsQNbhTD_Q Billy Mitchell- https://twitter.com/badluckbandit?s=20 Michael Mapson - https://twitter.com/ExpeditionMap?s=20

Patreon Patreon Contest - Most unique deck you’ve seen out in the wild - 2 Double Masters packs Ryan - @greenegeek Zack - @z4ck38 Together - @commandersocial   Twitter contest - Most unique deck you’ve seen out in the wild - 1 Double Masters pack You can find us on Twitter Mike Condon for audio engineering and serial cable to hook up printer Thanks https://store.mothershipatx.com SOCIALSHIP - free shipping on orders of $50 or more SOCIAL10 - 10% off in stock MTG singles spelltable.com https://discord.gg/MMXQJqf Thursday nights come play at mothership! Our LGS has setup an online store! @BentzMr - 2:26 @MothershipGames - 7:07, 52:02 Ep 60 Community Spotlight: Disclaimer: Commander is a SOCIAL game, winning isn’t everything, so watch with care how far you go down the competitive path. That being said, winning IS fun. And I’m sure there are lots of folks out there that would like to get better at Commander. It’s so much easier to make an episode about building better decks, it’s much harder to make an episode about how to help folks get better. Step 1: Admit that you are making mistakes. It’s going to be hard to fix mistakes if you aren’t making any. It’s also MUCH harder to identify some types of mistakes in Commander vs Limited or Standard/Modern. This is because the consequences of making a mistake in a 1v1 game happen quite quickly after you make them, and often lead to the game being over. Changing the way you think about variance may also help. Think about what information you had instead of complaining about why you didn’t win. My opponent had the exact spell they needed to win! (Did they tutor one or more times that game?) I just needed one more turn! (Did you fail to realize an opponent was just a card away from a combo?) I got mana screwed/flooded! (Are you playing enough lands in your deck? How about ramp? Should you have mulliganed?) Everyone ganged up on me! (Were you playing Atraxa? Did you get off to an early lead?) Your first instinct should be to avoid blaming a loss on variance. This is not to say that variance doesn’t happen, and often-times variance does lead to bad times for you, but it your first instinct is to blame variance (Blame Variance!), then you may take the easy way out, and not really take the time to think about how you played that game Think about the things you played, and how folks responded. Did you make a play that aligned the whole table against you? Could/should you have waited to play it till later? Did you misidentify the biggest threat at the table? Did you leave a problematic permanent on the table for too long, hoping someone else would take care of it? Did you fail to realize that two of your opponents were going to team up, and 1-2 punch away your pillow fort? Did you take out the wrong player, when you had your chance to kill any of your 3 opponents? Should you have mulliganed? Ask them if they noticed any misplays on your part. Ask them what cards they had in their hand at the end of the game.  It really helps if you can talk with your opponents after the game, especially if they are people you think play well! Think about your game, immediately after you play it. Reflect on how the game went. Sequencing! Can be something as basic as playing your lands in the wrong order. Or tapping your lands incorrectly. Sometimes this is obvious, sometimes it’s not. Like sometimes you might not notice that there was a better way to sequence things, but sometimes you might not even think about sequencing things Honestly, this is one of harder things in Commander, because board states get so cluttered, so quickly. And you may forget you need to take out that Blind Obedience before you cast your Hasty creature. I think this is sometimes tricky for newer players, especially when playing against new opponents, or decks in an unknown meta. This can also include playing a card that is going to scare the other players into attacking you, thinking that it’s less scary than what some other opponent already has going on. An example could be playing Aura Shards, and not knowing that one of your opponents has 3 very important enchantment/artifacts in hand. You may not know this is a likely scenario, unless you’ve played against that player’s deck more than 1 time before. Incorrectly assessing threats Forgetting that your opponent played a Sylvan Safekeeper on turn 2. Not doing the math on how much damage you were going to take from 2 of your opponents having a Zulaport Cutthroat in play before you cast a board wipe Failing to notice an onboard trick These are not the droids you are looking for (or not hitting your saving throw versus a savvy political opponent So many times people make a deal, and get nothing out of it. Like someone promising not to attack you for two turns, when it’s obvious they weren’t planning on attacking you anyway Making a bad deal Making too many deals, and painting yourself into a corner Picking the wrong person to go to the final 2 with. Political Types of mistakes This can be a tricky thing. We are all getting together to have some social fun, so sometimes it’s not the greatest to be very strict with the rules. I know oftentimes I encourage my opponents to take stuff back You want to make sure you have a conversation about this before the game starts. It might be great to play with some stricter rules enforcement if the folks you are playing with are up for it. (It also could EASILY be NOT fun to do so). Maybe hold yourself to a higher standard? Essentially owning your mistakes. You don’t have to always do this, but it’s hard to learn from a mistake if there are NO consequences from making it. (If you’ve ever played with me, you KNOW I don’t often hold myself to a higher standard!) I think this is something especially hard to do if you’ve only ever been a casual player. Playing a lot of limited, and grinding at PTQs etc, really helps here, because you are often playing at a higher REL, and take backs aren’t an option. Take-backs? How to learn from your mistakes Learning from your mistakes is CRITICAL to getting better at Commander. Two of your best tools for figuring out the mistakes you are making are “Thinking critically about games immediately after playing them” and “Talking with people who you respect, and getting their feedback” Audience land: Do you look for mistakes? Do you have any great lessons you’ve learned? We’d love to hear some of them! Summary Main Topic -Level Up: Learning From Mistakes Keep it Social! Komiku - Battle of Pogs https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/ Zack Gets it Together Theme Consider becoming a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/commandersocial You can check us out at commandersocial.com YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/CommanderSocial You can email us directly at cast@commandersocial.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/commandersocial On twitter @commandersocial twitch.tv/greenegeek Ryan individually @greenegeek Zack individually @z4ck38 Contact Info © Copyright 2020 Leaky Dinghy, LLC  

Between upcoming bans, various PTQs, and all the other events, there’s a lot to talk about! Gerry and Bryan give their cliff notes on each format, from what’s happening to which deck to play. Eighth Edition Article: https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/selecting-eighth-edition-wrapup-2002-11-25 Music: Mega Man 2 "Ending theme" Remix by zookun | Music composed by Manami Matsumae & Takashi Tateishi Timestamps: WOTC tweet addressing Companion - 0:47 Historic - 16:31 Pioneer - 22:02 Modern - 30:03 Pauper - 39:55 Legacy - 43: 26 Question of the week - 56:40 arenadecklists.gg patreon.com/arenadecklists youtube.com/arenadecklists twitter.com/arenadecklists twitter.com/g3rryt twitter.com/bryango

How has quarantine been?MagicFest OnlineWhitehouse’s Paperhttps://twitter.com/fireshoesMTGO Super Qualifiers- Also greathttps://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-super-qualifier-2020-03-24

This week is all about what's happening in Modern & Pioneer! HarryMTG is fresh off a top 4 finish in his Team Trios event & Pat and Gab share their testing in both formats over the past week. As always we cover the Modern & Pioneer challenge/PTQs from the past weekend. Enjoyed the episode? Don't forget to follow the Podcast and our Social Media: Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/MidweekMetagame Twitter: https://twitter.com/MidweekMetagame Gab: https://twitter.com/gabnassif https://twitch.tv/yellowhat Harry: https://twitter.com/harrymtg Pat: https://twitter.com/ghett_smart

¡Vuelven Daniel Toledo y Joy en una nueva edición de Mythic Podcast! Hoy hablarán de la actual temporada de PTQs para el PT Copenhague, del Standard actual y del próximo GP de este mismo formato: GP Lyon.

Gerry and Bryan are heading to Grand Prix Portland! They have their sights set on the main event but also plan on hitting up the PTQs if things don't go their way. They've narrowed down their options and are in agreement on what archetypes to play but maybe not about the details... Music: Mega Man 2 "Ending theme" Remix by zookun | Music composed by Manami Matsumae & Takashi Tateishi Timestamps: Pioneer bans - 4:06 Decks besides U/W Control - 9:24 Standard Jund Cat - 28:49 Other decks worth considering for GP Portland - 41:29 Question of the week - 45:50

This week's episode Alex has on Team SolitaryPro member Adam Cohen We dig into the NRG Team Tournament that happened over the weekend and the Pioneer PTQs that happened over the weekend.    Thanks to the podcast's sponsor team SolitaryPro! Follow SolitaryPro on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SolitaryPro  Follow Adam on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AdamECohen  NRG top 8:   http://nerdragegaming.wpengine.com/decklists-archive/team-constructed-nrg-ct-november-2019/PTQ Dec 1:https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-ptq-2019-12-01-0Other PTQ Dec 1: https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-ptq-2019-12-01NOV 30:https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-ptq-2019-11-30NOV 27:https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-ptq-2019-11-27Adam Cohen Deck Rally Deckhttps://www.cardknocklife.com/pioneer-deck-tech-pioneerios/?fbclid=IwAR02rfdd9vE_hcgeMYSLhgm4F_ony9QSCphQ3A6DCpgIkEikWh6BAS6CY94 If you really dig the content and would like to help support the content consider becoming a patron here: https://www.patreon.com/LessAlex If you enjoyed the episode tell your friends and fellow Modern pals and don't forget to Like,follow, subscribe and share!If you really enjoyed the episode and find value in the podcast go to Apple Podcast’s and give it a five star review! You can download and listen to the Podcast on Podbean, Apple Podcast, Stitcher and all you favorite Podcast Apps! Follow Alex on Twitch, Podbean and Twitter and let’s talk some modern!   Twitter: https://twitter.com/LessAlex Podbean: https://controlfreak.podbean.com/ YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/user/alexoath... Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/lessalex 

Esta semana nos centramos en las listas que lo hicieron bien en los PTQs de Pioneer que se están celebrando durante toda la semana, con especial énfasis en el mazo mononegro y los distintos mazos de Field of the Dead, que parecen el tier 1 del formato. Repasamos también los torneillos en los que jugamos el pasado fin de semana y el nuevo producto que WOTC sacará en Diciembre: Secret Lair Listas PTQs Pioneer 25 Noviembre https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-ptq-2019-11-26 26 Noviembre https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/mtgo-standings/pioneer-ptq-2019-11-27 Podcast en Youtube https://youtu.be/Sja0KdtlUeY Twitter https://twitter.com/SpodCaster Patreon https://www.patreon.com/spodcastermtg

This week we're going over the major archetypes that are emerging in Standard in the wake of the round of bannings. Pioneer is in a relatively stable place with no bans, but could Field of the Dead and Mono Black decks be a problem in the format? There are no bans this week but we expect that to change after this coming week of daily PTQs. Finally we dive into the controversy surrounding the Magic storyline in recent weeks, with the apparent erasure of queer characters and WotC's response.Head on over to Inked Gaming to get yourself a custom playmat, and take advantage of their Black Friday sale Nov29th-Dec2ndTweet us @SkullcraicCheck us out on FacebookEmail us at skullcraicpodcast@gmail.com"Skullcraic Theme" composed and performed by Barry Cannon.Barry's YouTubeBarry's Twitter

Conseguimos que Castro vuelva al podcast y, por supuesto, siembra el caos. A pesar de ello conseguimos hablar de los últimos acontecimientos del mundo de MTG, incluyendo las novedades de Commander, Mystery booster, los baneos de Pioneer y más. Sobre todo, Castro nos muestra sus creaciones para Pioneer. Y siembra el Caos. Con C mayúscula. A la mitad del podcast nos convertimos en alces 3/3. Estáis avisados. Mazos de Castro: Esper Control https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2403474#paper Guildgates https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2470544#paper Field of the Elkdrazis https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/2470711#paper Anuncio Commander 2020 https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/news/big-things-are-coming-commander-2020-2019-10-30 Calendario de PTQs https://t.co/ijvW9SNLn2?amp=1 Video en Youtube https://youtu.be/Z1fLMyPMGAI Twitter https://twitter.com/SpodCaster Patreon https://www.patreon.com/spodcastermtg

Michael J Flores and Brian David-Marshall are reunited and MichaelJ doesn’t feel so good. The classic line-up for Magic’s longest-running podcast is back together after a brief interruption. MichaelJ was away on vacation and after sleeping on a boat for close to two weeks he has been diagnosed with landsickness — which apparently is not what happens when you miss Lan D Ho but something much more serious. The guys decided to celebrate by playing a little FNM. Mike played his MonoGreen Standard deck that BDM refers to as “last year’s model” while Brian opts for a little Core set draft. First couple of minutes are pretty noisy as “Table for 8” is a lot louder than one for two. After the noisy intro the guys take it to the streets after their rounds to recount the evening and then talk about the future of WPNQs, PTQs and all things related to the recent OP announcements. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/top8magic/support

Everything old is new again. Just when you got used to saying “MCQs are just like old PTQs”, we have to start saying “PTQs are just like old MCQs”. In this episode Brogan and Bryan talk about the changes to … Continue reading →

This episode Brogan and Bryan discuss what makes Mythic Championship Qualifiers (MCQs) different from the PPTQs you’re used to, and how they’re similar to the PTQs you may remember. MCQ Staffing Level Recommendations: https://blogs.magicjudges.org/o/recommended-staffing-guidelines/

(2:30) Reminiscing about old style PTQs (3:25) Alex's first PTQ win (5:00) WAR Standard talk (7:50) Nexus (10:20) Izzet Phoenix (13:25) Mono Red winning the SCG (19:55) 17 lands in BO1 Mono Red (21:25) Mono Red choices, Frenzy vs. Chandra, Patrick Sullivan's thoughts (26:15) Alex hates Risk Factor (27:40) Lava Coil in the mirror (29:30) Putting pros on a pedestal (30:20) Alex getting on KYT for calling Edgar the hottest Canadian player (34:45) New Karn in Tron (37:05) MPL breakdown (38:50) Rating Emerald group (41:20) Rating Pearl group, Javier best active player? (45:50) Rating Ruby group, Huey nigh-unbeatable when he's on (49:05) Alex's top 5 all-time (52:45) Rating Sapphire group (01:01:10) Reacting to Yuuya being out of the Hall of Fame

Finally, the organized play announcement we've all been waiting for! Chris and Collins break down all the news about how to qualify for paper and digital Mythic Championships. Plus! An update on modern, including a sweet new deck that just might restore balance to a format dominated by faithless looting. Come hang out! Thanks as always to Wave Sunray for our music

Matt Brown has a few Grand Prix cashes, has appeared on the Pro Tour once before and now has his first Grand Prix top 8. Matt lives in England. Click to Tweet: I got a ton of value from Matt Brown when he shared his story on #MTGProTutor! Listen here: http://bit.ly/mtgprotutor-ep289 First Set Innistrad Favorite Set Return to Ravnica Favorite Card Cloudfin Raptor Early Challenge Getting crushed at his first several PTQs. Matt kept going because he was having fun. Worst Magic Moment At a Modern RPTQ, Matt felt really prepared. He took a plane to Scotland and then did terribly. Matt felt horrible and wanted to quit but realized that by removing the pressure, he was able to play and have fun.  Proudest Magic Moment Top 8 at GP Birmingham (Standard). What Have You Learned From Magic People skills. Biggest Mistake Players Make Newer players make a lot of small mistakes. Control your body language. Daily Habit Watching Magic Stream every day. Parting Guidance Enjoy yourself. The more you play, the better you'll get but you must have fun. Magic Resource Twitch, SCG, CFB Connect With Matt Brown Twitter:@MattBrown_MTG ‏ Check Out Magic Story Magic Story brings the lore of the Multiverse to life in an audio presentation never before heard in the Magic community. Listen to Episode 1 here or on www.magicthestory.com  

Galan Falakfarsa has been grinding competitive Magic for about 6 years. His first exciting finish was in 2012 with an SCG Open top 8. Since then he's made top 8 at several PTQs and PPTQs and played in a couple RPTQs. His GP Santa Clara finish was his biggest so far & he's very stoked to play in Pro Tour Magic 25 in Aug. Galan is from Davis, CA. Click to Tweet: I got a ton of value from Galan Falakfarsa when he shared his story on #MTGProTutor! Listen here: http://bit.ly/mtgprotutor-ep274 First Set Mirrodin Favorite Set Innistrad Favorite Card Kolaghan's Command Early Challenge Galan didn't feel like he was very good. He would miss obviously good lines of play. Galan learned from older players and slowed down his play. Worst Magic Moment At a Modern event, Galan played a Splinter Twin mirror match and made some huge misplays. He fell prey to making the common play instead of the less common one that would have helped him win. Proudest Magic Moment Top 4 at GP Santa Clara. What Have You Learned From Magic Decision-making. Magic is all about making the best decision on limited information. Advice To New Players Find players you know are better than you and play with them as much as possible. Biggest Mistake Players Make Players make not playing lands. A lot of the time people hold lands trying to bluff when they would be better off with the land on the board. Parting Guidance It's very helpful to play Magic with better players. Become their friends and seek their honest feedback. Magic Resource MTG Top 8 (compare deck function) Connect With Galan Falakfarsa Galan can be found in the MTG Pro Tutor Facebook group. Check Out Magic Story Magic Story brings the lore of the Multiverse to life in an audio presentation never before heard in the Magic community. Listen to Episode 1 here or on www.magicthestory.com   Sponsors

Bardini Alain has 1 Grand Prix top 8 and has played in 1 Pro Tour. He’s also the 2017 French National Champion after playing in 2 WMCQ last year. He made the semi-finale of the last mocs playoff and 5th position for the leaderboard point. Bardini lives in Toulouse, France. Click to Tweet: I got a ton of value from Bardini Alain when he shared his story on #MTGProTutor! Listen here: http://bit.ly/mtgprotutor-ep239 First Set 6th Edition Favorite Set Khans of Tarkir Favorite Card Siege Rhino Early Challenge Bardini started at FNM's and slowly got better and better until he moved from there to PTQs. He focused and ground and got better little by little. Bardini learned to play a lot. Worst Magic Moment Bardini went through a period where he lost all the time. Example: At GP Metz 2017, Bardini had a great start on day 1 but went 0-5 on day 2. He was crushed and felt like quitting Magic. He learned to not get ahead of himself mentally. Proudest Magic Moment Becoming the 2017 French National Champion. What Have You Learned From Magic Bardini has learned that to get results he needs to practice a lot. This is true for life. Magic Mentors Raphael Levy Biggest Mistake Players Make Players try to convince others that their cards and decks are good without listening to others (who may be better than them). How to Effectively Prepare for a Big Event Bardini plays a lot on MTGO and uses this tool to get reps in. He explores the best decks and gets a feel for what beats him. As he cycles through the best decks, he finds the one that is good and resonates with his style. Magic Resource Magic Online, Teams and other players Connect With Bardini Alain Twitter:@BardiniAlain ‏ Check Out Magic Story Magic Story brings the lore of the Multiverse to life in an audio presentation never before heard in the Magic community. Listen to Episode 1 here or on www.magicthestory.com   Sponsors

Ben Coursey is a Level 2 Judge who has 1 Grand Prix Top 8 and 3 Pro Tour Qualifier Top 8's. Ben lives in New Hampshire. Click to Tweet: I got a ton of value from Ben Coursey when he shared his story on #MTGProTutor! Listen here: http://bit.ly/mtgprotutor-ep227 First Set Revised Favorite Set Lorwyn Favorite Card Thoughtseize Early Challenge When Ben first discovered PTQs it was quite a jump from a casual player that he was a little put-off. Competitive Magic was really rough. Ben learned how to navigate it. Magic Milestones States 2007, Ben tested and came up with winning decks that got him to the top. Proudest Magic Moment Top 8 at Grand Prix Las Vegas 2017 (Modern).  What Have You Learned From Magic The ability to plan ahead. Best Format Modern Advice for Beginners Modern Players Learn the archetypes. Shortcomings Rules knowledge. Biggest Mistake Players Make Players don't pay attention. Call a judge and ask for the Oracle text on foreign cards. Parting Guidance Play as much as you can. Magic Resource SCG, CFB Connect With Ben Coursey Twitter:@Ben_Cenobi  ‏ Check Out Magic Story Magic Story brings the lore of the Multiverse to life in an audio presentation never before heard in the Magic community. Listen to Episode 1 here or on www.magicthestory.com   Sponsors

Wizards announced constructed online PTQs will be changed back to the old system.  Conor adds a suggestion to the ongoing Magic Online Wishlist.  Dave and Conor face off in the thrilling conclusion of the Lets Stump Vargas game.  This time there is a winner.  Other topics include Mirrodin Throwback Standard Gauntlet, MTGO Challenge decklists, and the Team Draft Super League.  The Cardhoarder Podcast is proudly sponsored by Cardhoarder.com Email us at cardhoarderpodcast@gmail.com Magic Online Wishlist - 5:24 Changes to online PTQs - 14:23 Mirrodin Throwback Standard Gauntlet - 26:41 MTGO Challenge decklists - 36:12 Team Draft Super League - 47:45 Lets Stump Vargas game - 53:26 Magic Online Challenges decklists: Modern | Legacy | Pauper Music provided by Terrible Spaceship Your Hosts: Conor O'Donnell, Nathaniel Buckley-Wright, and David Murphy Conor's Twitter: @conorpodonnell | Twitch: conor_od Nathaniel's Twitter: @Cardhoarder | Twitch: Cardhoarder Dave's Twitter: @DaveSea89 | Twitch: davesea  

February 18, 2017 - Team members face off in pro tour final, WotC brings back Nationals, PTQs return to GP side events.

Petr Sochurek has been playing Magic since he was 11, and started grinding PTQs and GPs at about 16. He qualified to Valencia, where he made top 16 at his first Pro Tour with Merfolk. He’s a Platinum Level Pro with 4 Grand Prix top 8, including a finals at Rimini and a win at Paris. Click to Tweet: I got a ton of value from Petr Sochurek when he shared his story on #MTGProTutor! Listen here: http://bit.ly/mtgprotutor-ep180 First Set Ravnica City of Guilds Favorite Set Lorwyn Favorite Card Venser, Shaper Savant What makes Magic: The Gathering fun for you? Petr loves to win. He enjoys the challenge and complications. Early Challenge Petr learned how to learn. After each game, Petr asks what he could have done better. Breakthrough Moment When Petr was 18-19 he qualified for his first Pro Tour. Worst Magic Moment Petr lost his first PPTQ final and didn't qualify for the Pro Tour. He learned how bad he wanted the Pro Tour and prepared even harder. Proudest Magic Moment Making Platinum in 2016. To get there he practiced every day online. What Have You Learned From Magic Petr has become more analytical. Magic Mentor Lukas Blohon, Martin Juza Tournament Day Tips Get some sleep and practice wake up at the time you would for the tournament. Bananas and fruits. Deepest Thing You've Learned About Yourself Petr learned if he really wants something he willing to sacrifice for it. Biggest Mistake Players Make People make the 80% right play. People don't think through their play and don't realize when they should make the 20% play. How to Effectively Prepare for a Big Event Petr is open to playing any deck. He talks with other players and knows that just because his good players mean he knows everything. Parting Guidance You can learn from every single game. Don't complain. Magic Resource MTGO, MTG Goldfish, CFB Connect With Petr Sochurek Twitter:@PetrKikac Check Out Magic Story Magic Story brings the lore of the Multiverse to life in an audio presentation never before heard in the Magic community. Listen to Episode 1 here or on www.magicthestory.com   Sponsors

In episode two, KYT and the guys look at Eldrazi Tron in Modern, the All-VIP GP in Chiba Japan, PTQs vs PPTQs, and the Frontier MtG format. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/firststrike/support

Joey Manner is the owner of The Only Game In Town and has been on and off the Pro tour. He recently took a hiatus from Magic to focus on the shop but with the help of some very talented players he managed to top 8 Pro Tour Kaladesh with a deck no one saw coming (Blue White flash). Joey lives in New Jersey. Click to Tweet: I got a ton of value from Joey Manner when he shared his story on #MTGProTutor! Listen here: http://bit.ly/mtgprotutor-ep148 First Set Shards of Alara / Zendikar Favorite Set Khans of Tarkir Favorite Card Gideon Jura What makes Magic: The Gathering fun for you? Joey loves gaming and Magic just clicked. Early Challenge Joey identified himself as a control player and really struggled with combat math. He forced himself to play creature-based decks. Level Up Moment Joey was playing Magic Mon-Fri and on Sat and Sunday he was going to PTQS and competing at top events. Worst Magic Moment Losing in top 4 of first PTQ. (In the day when only first place got the invite.) Proudest Magic Moment Top 8 at Pro Tour Kaladesh Best Format Standard Deepest Thing You've Learned About Yourself I've learned how to make friends. Biggest Mistake Players Make Not mulliganing aggressively enough. If you could have a conversation with yourself 5 years ago, what would you say Play more magic. Don't show up unprepared. Shortcomings Deck building skills - specifically mana bases. Underplayed Card Bruna and Gisela What's in Your Tournament Bag Deck box, Deck, Paper Mentors Christian Calcano Magic Resource Magic Online Beta Client The Only Game In Town MTG The Source MTGCoverage Guidance Get your reps in Play Magic to get better at Magic. Connect With Joey Manner Twitter: @togitnj Check Out Magic Story Magic Story brings the lore of the Multiverse to life in an audio presentation never before heard in the Magic community. Listen to Episode 1 here or on www.magicthestory.com Sponsors

  Robert Santana is an up and coming star who made top 16 at the Star City Games Open in Las Vegas in 2014 and is the Grand Prix Portland 2016 Champion. Click to Tweet: I got a ton of value from Robert Santana when he shared his story on #MTGProTutor! Listen here: http://bit.ly/mtgprotutor-ep129 First Set Lorwyn Favorite Set Worldwake Favorite Card Primeval Titan and Ishkanah Underplayed Card in Standard Call the Bloodline What makes Magic: The Gathering fun for you? The competitive scene drew him in. Early Challenge Creature combat. Robert played more control decks to get around not playing creatures. Worst Magic Moment SCG Las Vegas 2014. Robert dropped from the Invitational and joined the open. Playing win and in for top 8. Robert played against Steve Robin and got demolished. This led Robert to really doubt his ability to play. He forced himself and asked "is this something I really want to do ?". Once he committed he went all in. Proudest Magic Moment Champion of GP Portland 2016. Level Up Moment Started attending a competitive FNM. Associating with better players really helped. Deepest Thing You've Learned About Yourself Robert felt like he hit a wall. Tournament result were stagnant. Connecting with other players is key to his success. Biggest Mistake Players Make Players have deck ADD. Stick to a certain deck and get to know it really well. How to Effectively Prepare for a Big Event Find a group of like minded individuals. Build the gauntlet and attend PTQs and GPQs together. What's in Your Tournament Bag Clothes and Magic Cards Daily Rituals Hard work Improvement Suggestions Get on MTGO ; Reach out to players, connect and ask for advice. Mentor Brian Kibler Advice to New Players Go to LGS and get Intro decks, augment those and more up. Magic Resource MTGO Cockatrice SCG Premium CFB r/spikes Connect With Robert Santana Twitter: @itsRobbSon Check Out Magic Story Magic Story brings the lore of the Multiverse to life in an audio presentation never before heard in the Magic community. Listen to Episode 1 here or on www.magicthestory.com   Sponsors

  Gabe Carleton-Barnes has played in 13 Pro Tours, with 12 day twos. He has 9 PTQ wins and 1 RPTQ top 4. He just got his first Grand Prix Top 8 in Vancouver 2016. His claims to fame in our Magic: The Gathering Community include founding Draft-PDX, hosting Card Talk: The World’s Greatest MTG Podcast, and Storytelling. Gabe lives in Portland, Oregon. Click to Tweet: I got a ton of value from Gabe Carleton-Barnes when he shared his story on #MTGProTutor today! Click here: http://bit.ly/mtgprotutor-ep82 First Set  Revised Favorite Set  Odyssey Favorite Card Psychatog What makes Magic: The Gathering fun for you? Despite taking multiple breaks Gabe has stuck with Magic because he loves games and competition. He feels that playing Magic never gets old because it keeps changing and forces you to continue to learn. Gabe started going to tournaments early in his career and found that he was making friends with adults who treated him as a peer, not as a kid. He now befriends players of all ages and understands that there is always something to be learned from every player he meets. Pro Tour & Grand Prix Experience Gabe made it his goal to qualify for the Pro Tour, so he familiarized himself with the PTQ format. He stayed focused, refined his decks, and was able to regularly get the top spot in PTQs so he could attend the Pro Tour. However, when the Pro Tour came around he struggled to quickly innovate and craft a deck that would work well at the tournament. He didn’t have a lot of help at first, and the time crunch put a lot of pressure on him to familiarize himself with new cards for the format. In terms of GPs, Gabe would attend them intermittently and usually make Day 2, but never quite make it into the Top 8. Changing up his sleeping habits and altering his routine helped him follow through on a good start in order to finally make it to the Top 8 at Grand Prix Vancouver. Heaviest Magic Moment Gabe’s heaviest Magic moment came after he had played about 10 GPs and made Day 2 at all of them. He hit a Limited match at Grand Prix Boston and had a clever plan for how he was going to beat his opponent. With the game pretty much wrapped up, Gabe tried for a play to finish the match, but his opponent had the perfect counter and won on the next turn. After the match a friend of Gabe’s who was less experienced pointed out that Gabe had a card in his hand that would have won the game instantly. This led Gabe to realize that even though he thought he was a really good player, he still made mistakes in how he approached the game. He started to keep an open ear when listening to players of various skill levels so that he could learn from as many players as possible. Proudest Magic Moment While Top 8ing his first Grand Prix is wonderful, the win that stands out to Gabe is making Top 8 at a specific PTQ held by Card Kingdom in Seattle. He made it into the Top 8 without a rare in his deck, and played against Jiachen Tao, who he beat with a subtle side board card choice. He faced off against Brian Wong for the final, and after an epic first match Gabe went on to win the tournament (and a trophy). Draft PDX Gabe founded Draft PDX based on similar groups in New York which were organized by Jon Finkel and other great players. In Portland they’ve formed a group that wants to be competitive, make it to the Pro Tour, and have fun with the game while fostering a healthy community spirit. They travel to events together and look out for one another by buying snacks or coffee for a busy teammate, or even giving them rides home if they miss their flight. Best Format Limited How To Turn Limited From A Weakness To A Strength Diving headfirst into Limited and playing it as much as possible with good players is one of the keys to mastering Limited. When Draft PDX meets they start by drafting the best decks that they can, and then they split into two random teams before they build their decks. They discuss with each other what cards they might use and how to play them before coming together to play the other team. The team that wins the Draft is the team that wins the most matches—this way players get to really learn how their deck performed instead of getting benched after their first loss. With the team setting players are encouraged to play their hardest even after a loss, as their next match matters just as much for the team. Biggest Mistake Players Make One of the biggest mistakes Gabe sees players make is when they let their emotions determine the value of their play. He knows that not blaming losses on luck and variance is great advice, but what he finds more valuable is looking back at matches he won to find the mistakes he made. If you only set out to learn from losses then you are missing out on a lot of opportunities to learn, especially since most wins aren’t achieved in the most optimal fashion. To internalize mistakes you’ve made, realize that you most likely will make the same mistake again. What you can do to prevent that is to care about making the mistake, actively seek to recognize it, and find what mode of thinking led you to that mistake. What Is The Deepest Thing Magic Has Taught You? While Gabe sees himself as a competitive, achievement focused individual, Magic has taught him that he is more of a community focused player. His personal goals are important to him, but they aren’t as important as being good to people and his interactions with a healthy, thriving community of players. What's in Your Tournament Bag Dark Chocolate (for himself and distressed teammates) Deck Box Pens Paper Dice Non-Magic Activities That Make You Better At Magic Gabe plays basketball and finds that aerobic activity measurably affects his mental state and thought processes. Maintaining his physical health helps him from getting exhausted in long tournaments, and he finds that when he feels good he usually plays better. The brain is connected to the body and keeping both in shape is important to performing well in anything. Final Wisdom Gabe’s final advice is to make sure you’re always trying to learn. Magic has taught him that he doesn’t know everything, and it has helped him connect and learn from many different people and situations. Never think you have it all figured out. When you win a big tournament use it as an opportunity to say, “This is a big milestone for me and I have a lot more left to learn.” Magic Resource Card Talk: The World's Greatest Magic: The Gathering Podcast Gabe Carleton-Barnes at Back Fence PDX MTGGOLDFISH Decision Fatigue (New York Times) Decision Fatigue (James Clear) Connect With Gabe Carleton-Barnes Twitter: @uncle_gcb Like What You Hear? If you like the show, head on over to iTunes and leave an honest Rating & Review. Let me know what you like and what I can do better so I can make the show the best it can be and continue bringing you valuable content. I read every single one and look forward to your feedback. (Here's a 1.5 minute tutorial on how to leave a review if you don't already know. THANK YOU!) Sponsors

Oliver Tiu has 1 Grand Prix top 8 and 1 Pro Tour top 16 on his record. He’s also won a MOCs final, and cashed both of the PTs he’s played in. He loves Magic and plays as much as he can - mostly on Magic Online. Oliver is 18 years old and is always striving to become a better player and staying open to learning more. Click to Tweet: I got a ton of value from Oliver Tiu when he shared his story on #MTGProTutor today! Click here: http://bit.ly/mtgprotutor-ep78 First Set  Time Spiral Favorite Set  Innistrad Favorite Card Jace, the Mind Sculptor What makes Magic: The Gathering fun for you? Oliver finds it difficult to pinpoint a specific aspect of Magic that has him hooked. He loves how no two Magic matches are the same, and when he plays he is on full competitive burn aiming to win. Early Challenge While he feels he always had a good grasp on Constructed, Limited was challenging for him to dive into. Oliver improved mostly through playing Magic Online, since the wealth of great players helped him learn quickly from his mistakes. He also watches streamers, like NumotTheNummy, which helps him see other player’s choices and thought processes. Talking to other players about the format is good help, but he has realized that while talking about rares is fun, it is usually more fruitful to have conversations about commons. Level Up Moment Oliver found his Magic skills vastly improved when he qualified for his first Pro Tour after making Top 8 at Grand Prix Providence. He found a deck that was played in a Japanese Grand Prix that was an excellent match up for the Abzan deck, which was the most popular deck in the format at the time. He refined the deck by playtesting and analyzing which cards over performed or underperformed; his philosophy on playtesting is not to necessarily focus on winning, but finding out what cards in his deck are doing what they should, and which ones aren’t. Heaviest Magic Moment A few years ago Oliver felt as though he couldn’t win anything. He was losing multiple PTQs and tournaments, and decided to take a break. This helped him shake off some of his frustration with the game, and gave him the space and perspective to learn from his old mistakes. He learned that while he was playing a lot of Magic, he wasn’t actually learning from his matches. Proudest Magic Moment For Oliver, making top 16 at his last Pro Tour stands as his crowning achievement in competitive Magic at this point in his career. He played against Sam Pardee, and managed to beat him due to a weak hand in their third match. Oliver made Silver level pro, which has qualified him for the next 3 Pro Tours: Pro Tour Madrid, Pro Tour Sydney, and then Pro Tour Honolulu. Best Format Standard What Should A New Standard Player Focus On? Oliver's advice for a new Standard player is to adapt to the metagame. If you want to perform well at tournaments your deck needs to be able to adapt to the most popular decks being played. Keeping an eye on Magic Online is a good way to see what's being played leading up to any major tournament, and Oliver generally tweaks his decks as opposed to outright brewing them. Biggest Mistake Players Make Before Oliver took a break from Magic he was blaming all his losses on luck. This is one of the biggest pitfalls he finds players, including himself, trapped in. He was unable to see that he was making mistakes in his play or deck building. In terms of actionable advice, Oliver found that ignoring the luck aspect all together helped him focus on the things he could control such as his play style, sideboard and deck building. Sealed & Draft Tips Sealed : Oliver separates his cards by color and which cards are unplayable. It takes a while to know what’s unplayable, but it can come from experience playing previous formats and what types of cards worked well in them. Watching other players helps give you an idea of what is playable and what isn’t as well. It’s important to know what type of deck you are trying to build as well. In Control Decks it is generally less important to have two drops, but you will still want defensive creatures to play early on, however in Aggro decks you will want a lot of two drops. Draft : Focusing on learning what cards are good and what cards aren’t are what Oliver finds a new player should focus on. He sees many new Drafters put un-impactful cards in their decks. While there are other things you could focus on, like pinpointing when you should change colors and how to balance removal spells in your deck, for a brand new drafter the first step is card evaluation. How to Effectively Prepare for a Big Event In preparing for larger events, Oliver identifies which decks are popular and then meets up with a bunch of friends to assign decks and playtest. They will stop and identify what is working best, what sideboard cards are functioning well, and investing time to understand the metagame. He prepared with a team for the last Pro Tour, but he found that it wasn’t as helpful as it should have been. While they played a lot of games, he felt the team's effectiveness was hindered since they didn’t take time to reflect and discuss their matches. What's in Your Tournament Bag Dice Notepad Pen Deck Playmat (if you think the tables will be dirty) Final Wisdom While it may be tempting to go beat up on new players, Oliver understands the best way to improve is to learn from better players. Ask them if there were any obvious mistakes you made in the match after the fact, and don’t be afraid to ask them for advice and their thoughts about your game. Magic Resource MTGGoldfish MTGO WikiPrice Sam Pardee MTG Pro Tutor episode Kenji "Numot the Nummy" Egashira MTG Pro Tutor episode Connect With Oliver Tiu Twitter: @TiuChainz Like What You Hear? If you like the show, head on over to iTunes and leave an honest Rating & Review. Let me know what you like and what I can do better so I can make the show the best it can be and continue bringing you valuable content. I read every single one and look forward to your feedback. (Here's a 1.5 minute tutorial on how to leave a review if you don't already know. THANK YOU!) Sponsors

Leveling Up, PTQs & PETA

Leveling Up, PTQs & PETA

In this episode, Stephen and bhj are joined by Twitter contest winner Daniel Hall to discuss our Journey into Nyx Prerelease experiences and to share our advice from making the transition from FNM to PTQs and other competitive events. 

  All the latest events including #GPABQ #GPKyoto #SCGPROV and PTQs in Albany and Philadelphia.  So strap in scrubs, we’re back and we’re [still] not holding back.   See you at the next weeks in PTQ Virginia Beach!     … Continue reading →