Draft Report for 25 May 2012

Host + Reporter:
Jonlim, with help from Marvin and Yinkwan when Jonlim was playing

Players:
Front (L-R): Yinkwan, Marvin, Jonlim, Wei Xiang, Back (L-R): Muz, Jit Yao, Soon Yoong, Stanley

Format:
3x Avacyn Restored draft.
7 rounds of round robin (everybody plays each other 1 time in best of 3 games), points at the end determine finish

Win = awarded 3 points, Draw = awarded 1 points, Loss = awarded 0 points
If there is a tie in points, tiebreakers (“goal difference”) make the difference.

Round 1 results:

Jonlim 2 Soon Yoong 0

Yinkwan 2 Marvin 1

Jit Yao 2 Wei Xiang 0

Stanley 2 Muz 0 – Muz got Stanley down to 3 life in a game but still lost

Round 2 results:

Jonlim 0 Muz 2 – upset of the day: muz wins on the back of the cards shown below, and Bower Passage

Yinkwan 2 Soon Yoong 0

Jit Yao 2 Marvin 1

Stanley 2 Wei Xiang 0

Round 3 results:

Jonlim 2 Marvin 0 – Jonlim’s deck gains life, something marvin’s aggro can’t deal with

Yinkwan 0 Wei Xiang 2 – Wei Xiang’s blue/red tempo deck outpaced Yin Kwan’s aggro

Jit Yao 2 Muz 0

Stanley 0 Soon Yoong 2 – Wolfir Silverheart played a big part for Soon Yoong

Round 4 results:

Jonlim 2 Stanley 0

Yinkwan 1 Jit Yao 2 – Jit Yao is officially declared public enemy for being the only 4-0

Soon Yoong 2 Muz 1

Marvin 0 Wei Xiang 2

- LUNCH BREAK!!!!-




Round 5 results:

Jonlim 0 Wei Xiang 2 – Jonlim’s creatures get bounced/tapped and Wei Xiang wins. Look at Wei Xiang's excitement in the pictures!

Yinkwan 2 Muz 0

Jit Yao 2 Soon Yoong 1 – Jit Yao continues his streak to 5-0 against Soon Yoong

Stanley 2 Marvin 1

Round 6 results:

Jonlim 2 Yinkwan 0 – Spirit Away seals a grindy G2 to give Jonlim a shot at 2^nd place

Jit Yao 2 Stanley 0 – the Jit Yao express continues to roll on, will he finish this unbeaten?

Soon Yoong 2 Marvin 1

Wei Xiang 2 Muz 1 – Wei Xiang’s 4^th win in a row, he won’t let Jonlim get 2^nd place easily

Round 7 matchups:

Soon Yoong vs Wei Xiang

Marvin vs Muz

Yinkwan vs Stanley – feature match: coverage by Jonlim

Jit Yao vs Jonlim  – feature match: coverage by Marvin and Yinkwan

Round 7, being the final round, was very tense. While Jit Yao came into the round with a 6-0 record and can’t be caught for 1^st place, the 2^nd /3^rd/4^th places were still up for grabs (only top 4 get booster prizes).

Because of the nature of how results would affect each other, round 7 matches were played one after the other. While the result of Marvin vs Muz was insignificant, the first result of round 7 came in more quickly than expected. It was….

Soon Yoong 0 Wei Xiang 2

A combination of Heirs of Stromkirk equipped with Tormentor’s Trident, supported with Crippling Chill and Mist Raven to effectively Time Walk Soon Yoong whenever he casts his fatties, means he was always struggling to keep afloat right from the get go and G1 was decided very quickly. The story in game 2 was pretty much similar, Wei Xiang relying on his cheap threats and bounce spells to gain tempo. Desolate Lighthouse was also able to filter cards for him to search out more threats and keep up the pressure. A timely Geist Snatch on Soon Yoong’s Vorstclaw in G2 was the final nail in the coffin.

Soon Yoong suffered a quick 2-0 defeat at the hands on Wei Xiang’s innovative blue/red tempo deck which has won 5 matches in a row while only dropping 1 game! (Round 3: beat Yinkwan 2-0, Round 4: beat Marvin 2-0, Round 5: beat Jonlim 2-0, Round 6: beat Muz 2-1, Round 7, beat Soon Yoong 2-0)

 The implications:

-          Wei Xiang is now on 15 points and is definitely a lock for 3^rd place minimum, and 2^nd place will be his if Jonlim fails to defeat Jit Yao. What a turnaround!

-          Jonlim is now on 12 points. If he beats Jit Yao, he will end up with 15 points, the same as Wei Xiang, but will finish 2^nd by virtue of better tiebreakers.

-          Jit Yao is guaranteed 1^st place! However, he is one game away from being the first player in our drafts to ever finish an entire draft unbeaten if he beats Jonlim in the final round, and would definitely take up the chance for further bragging rights!

-          Soon Yoong’s hopes of getting 3^rd or 4^th place have vanished with the 2-0 loss to Wei Xiang. This is because he is stuck on 9 points, while Yinkwan and Stanley are both on 9 points and are about to play each other. Meaning one of these two players will definitely finish with more than 9 points and push Soon Yoong out of contention for 4^th spot.

-          The winner of Yinkwan vs Stanley will be guaranteed 4^th spot.

With that, let’s move on to the match coverage for Yinkwan vs Stanley.

Round 7 feature matches – part 1:

Yinkwan (9 points) vs Stanley (9 points)

Yinkwan is a veteran at MTG as far as our playgroup is concerned. He started way back when we were just learning the game as lower secondary kids in RI and has been consistently doing well in our drafts.

Yinkwan’s Record:
Round 1-Yinkwan 2 Marvin 1 (Win)
Round 2-Yinkwan 2 Soon Yoong 0 (Win)
Round 3-Yinkwan 0 Wei Xiang 2 (Loss)
Round 4-Yinkwan 1 Jit Yao 2 (Loss)
Round 5-Yinkwan 2 Muz 0 (Win)
Round 6-Yinkwan 0 Jonlim 2 (Loss)

Stanley on the other hand, was introduced to the group as Muz’s CCA mate in archery relatively later, when we were all in RJC.

Stanley’s Record:
Round 1- Stanley 2 Muz 0 (Win)
Round 2- Stanley 2 Wei Xiang 0 (Win)
Round 3- Stanley 0 Soon Yoong 2 (Loss)
Round 4- Stanley 0 Jonlim 2 (Loss)
Round 5- Stanley 2 Marvin 1 (Win)
Round 6- Stanley 0 Jit Yao 2 (Loss)

Two players of different backgrounds find themselves playing for a guaranteed 4^th spot which comes with a booster prize. The equation is simple: win and in.

Pre-game analysis:

Yinkwan is piloting a low-curve R/G aggro deck featuring cheap threats like Kruin Striker and Riot Ringleader, supported by pump spells like Joint Assault and removal spells including TWO(!!!) copies of Pillar Of Flame and a (Hallelujah) Thunderous Wrath. Employing a smash-and-grab tactic, he often surprises his opponents with the combination of Riot Ringleader and Thatcher Revolt, eating away at his opponents’ life total quickly. With a deck like this, turning guys sideways in the red zone was always on Yinkwan’s agenda.

Stanley is piloting a W/G midrange fatties deck that aims to survive late enough to power out lategame powerhouses such as Yew Spirit, Goldnight Redeemer, and his ultimate game-winner: Avacyn, Angel Of Hope. When the big angel hits the board, very few things can stop it, as Muz found out earlier in the day. To help Stanley achieve this, he will have to rely on cards such as Moonlight Geist to stem the tide in the early game.

Yinkwan will as usual aim to win as early as possible and Stanley will have his hands full staying alive until he can vomit his fatties onto the board. If Stanley can survive the early game, he will be well positioned to wrap the game up in short order, but doing that is easier said than done.

Game 1

Yinkwan wins the roll and hits the ground running from the word “GO”, powering out a turn 2 Falkenrath Exterminator, a turn 3 Riot Ringleader, and a turn 4 Thatcher Revolt, while Stanley kept a slow hand and could only muster a turn 4 Midvast Protector. The Falkenrath Exterminator shot it away, more guys were turned sideways on Yinkwan’s board and we were soon onto G2 in lightning quick time.

Yinkwan 20 Stanley 0

Yinkwan wins Game 1

All this happened so quickly I could not even do a turn-by-turn report for Game 1! I bet Stanley didn’t enjoy that one bit. He really paid the price for keeping such a slow hand, then again, few would expect to beat Yinkwan when he plays his threats on-curve like he did in that game. Stanley must now find a way back into this and hope Yinkwan’s deck does him a favour – by forcing Yinkwan to mulligan perhaps?

Game 2

Stanley (shockingly) chooses to draw, perhaps hoping that Yinkwan may have to mulligan? Unfortunately, Yinkwan keeps his opening 7, which could be a baneful omen. Stanley boldly (and on hindsight, wisely) chose to mulligan his opening  7 after seeing that it didn’t offer any plays in the early game.

“It’s an ok hand, but too slow against his deck” – Stanley

He was rewarded for his gamble with a hand that featured Nightshade Peddler and Moonlight Geist, decent T2 and T3 plays respectively. The Geist in particular can be good at stalling if it goes online. Happy with this hand, it was time for Yinkwan to begin proceedings.

Yinkwan lays a forest while Stanley lays a Plains. Yinkwan lays a Forest and passes the turn, while Stanley giggles with glee at his good fortune.

“Wah no turn 2 play?” – Stanley

Stanley lays a forest and taps to play Nightshade Peddler. Surprising as it was, Stanley actually cast the first spell of the game, while on the draw at that! Yinkwan is not amused and drops a forest before summoning a Riot Ringleader. This card was the catalyst for so many of his wins in the earlier rounds, pumping so many of his offensive creatures as they are mostly humans.

Stanley answers right back by dropping his own forest and tapping out for Moonlight Geist. This is a card perfect for neutralizing Yinkwan’s strategy with its prevent damage ability, and the onus is now up to Yinkwan to find a way past it. Stanley passes the turn.

Yinkwan seems annoyed by the Moonlight Geist. On his T4, he played a mountain and summoned Mad Prophet. This card serves the dual purpose of being a hasty attacker as well as a filter for unwanted cards. For now Yinkwan passes the turn. Stanley untaps, lays a Plains, cast Midvast Protector to give Moonlight Geist protection from red (which serves no purpose as Yinkwan was tapped out and had no creatures with reach). He felt comfortable enough to turn it sideways, to the amusement of everybody. Yinkwan activated Mad Prophet at EOT, discarding Joint Assault in the process.

Yinkwan 18 Stanley 20

Now Stanley has achieved 2 milestones: 1^st to play a creature and 1^st to deal damage. These statistics alone bode well for him considering Yinkwan’s deck is supposed to be the one bringing on the aggro. Yinkwan’s Mad Prophet, if left unmolested, would be likely to find an answer to the Moonlight Geist before long though; Stanley’s position might not be as secure as he thinks.

Untapping for his T5, Yinkwan plays a mountains and plays out a Kruin Striker and a Timberland Guide, adding a +1/+1 counter to the Riot Ringleader. A wise choice, considering Riot Ringleader has been running the show for him all day and its survival is likely to be a key deciding factor. Perhaps Yinkwan’s plan is to just overwhelm Stanley with sheer numbers? 


For now, he resists the urge to turn his men sideways, wary of the soulbonded Nightshade Peddler on the other side (with deathtouch). Stanley was happy to lay a Plains and pass with mana up, representing an intention to block with Moonlight Geist and use its ability should Yinkwan swing.


Yinkwan once again used Mad Prophet’s ability at EOT.

If this was a boxing match, T1-5 could be described as the players testing the waters. The game exploded into life afterwards.

T6 was the turn that Yinkwan made his move. First, he cast Eaten BySpiders on Moonlight Geist. This was the breakthrough he needed. His creatures needed no second invitation to turn sideways, and Riot Ringleader (with a +1/+1 counter), Kruin Striker, and Mad Prophet crashed into the red zone, with the latter 2 creatures pumped +1/+0 by the Riot Ringleader’s ability. Stanley appeared ruffled and pushed Midvast Protector in front of Mad Prophet offering a trade. Yinkwan cast a Snare The Skies on Mad Prophet to save it. Stanley lost his Midvast Protector and took 7 damage from unblocked creatures. Last turn, he was sitting pretty, but how quickly things change. In 1 swift turn, he lost 2 creatures and took 7 damage. He was on the back foot and he needed to regain his footing fast.

Yinkwan 18 Stanley 13

Stanley’s T6 was the perfect response. He played his 6^th land, a Plains, and cast Goldnight Redeemer, gaining 2 life in the process due to the presence of his lone Nightshade Peddler. He also promptly soulbonded his 2 creatures together, giving both of them deathtouch as a result.

Yinkwan 18 Stanley 15

Yinkwan dropped a Mountain on T7 and opted to use Pillar Of Flame on Stanley’s Nightshade Peddler. After thinking hard, he decided not to attack this turn and passed. Stanley merely dropped a Mountain and said go. Yinkwan used his Mad Prophet’s ability once again to cycle a card at EOT.


If Yinkwan wins this game, Mad Prophet would have been indirectly responsible. Working tirelessly behind the scenes to help Yinkwan draw gas as well as rumble in the red zone when required, it was easily the MVP so far.

Yinkwan untapped for T8, cycled with Mad Prophet on his own turn, and finally decided to attack with Kruin Striker with mana up, representing combat tricks. Stanley decided to block anyway with his Goldnight Redeemer, and Yinkwan finished it off with a Pillar of Flame that Mad Prophet helped him topdeck into.

Bereft of creatures except for a lonely Nightshade Peddler, Stanley’s T8 was unexciting as he only played a forest and passed the turn, giving Yinkwan a 2nd opening. Things were looking grim for him; The failure to deal with Mad Prophet was coming back to haunt him now.

Yinkwan happily accepted the invitation. He untapped for T9, cast a hasty Fervent Cathar targeting Nightshade Peddler, and sent everybody (Fervent Cathar, Mad Prophet, Riot Ringleader, and Timberland Guide) to the party. The theme for the night was “sideways boogie into the red zone”. Mad Prophet was happy to give up his support duties and charge at the front lines along with his fellow men. Unfortunately, he took one for the team and died a grisly death when Stanley pointed a Righteous Blow straight at him. He had done his part, R.I.P Mad Prophet. His brethren avenged him by smashing Stanley for 8 more damage, knocking him down to 7 life.

Yinkwan 18 Stanley 7

Stanley was now gasping for air and attempted to stabilize with a defensive 2/5 Geist Trappers without soulbond. He could really do with Avacyn,Angel of Hope now.

Untapping for T10, Yinkwan prepared for his next big swing by summoning fresh legs in the form of a 2nd Kruin Striker (the one he had earlier was already dead after locking horns with Goldnight Redeemer). He passed the turn without an attack. Stanley beefed up his defenses with a Yew Spirit, which he soulbonded to Geist Trappers. He passed the turn. Stanley looks to have stabilized at 7 life while Yinkwan seemed to be out of gas.

However, fortune favours the brave, and fate rewarded Yinkwan with a miracle Thunderous Wrath off the top of his deck, choosing to direct it at Geist Trappers. Doing the calculations, he realized he had enough power to bust through for lethal damage (as shown in the picture below), and went through the formalities. Stanley packed up his cards, and that was the end of an exciting see-saw game!

Yinkwan 18 Stanley 0

Yinkwan wins Game 2.

Yinkwan wins match 2-0 (20-0, 18-0).

Stanley paid dearly for his inability to deal with the Mad Prophet until it was too late. Had he negated it early on, Yinkwan might not have found the Eaten By Spiders for the Moonlight Geist until a couple turns later. Ditto the 2 copies of Pillar Of Flame and the miracled Thunderous Wrath on T11. However, credit must not be taken away from Yinkwan. He showed his mastery of the red zone, attacking when needed and holding back when necessary. In 11 turns, he only attacked 3 times, but boy were they significant! He deservedly took the match and 4^th spot in the overall standings, well done Yinkwan!

Round 7 feature matches – part 2:

Jit Yao (18 points) vs Jonlim (12 points)

Both Jonlim and Jit Yao are among the earliest players in the 09’ batch to pick up MTG.

Jonlim picked up MTG in secondary 1 and almost single-handedly kick started a MTG revolution in secondary 1P in RI in 2004, to the dismay of then-form teacher Mrs. Lim Er Min. Everyone was playing with MTG cards so much that she ordered a shakedown in the form of a bag + locker search and confiscated as many cards as she could in one fell swoop. Luckily, Jonlim was smart and offered his Decree of Pain as bait, while keeping his 3 copies of Arcbound Ravager safe and sound in his shoes.

Jonlim’s Record:
Round 1- Jonlim 2 Soon Yoong 0 (Win)
Round 2- Jonlim 0 Muz 2 (Loss)
Round 3- Jonlim 2 Marvin 0 (Win)
Round 4- Jonlim 2 Stanley 0 (Win)
Round 5- Jonlim 0 Wei Xiang 2 (Loss)
Round 6- Jonlim 2 Yinkwan 0 (Win)

Jit Yao’s history went back even further. Born to a family of 3 boys, he was influenced by his older brother Jit Wei and learnt how to play the game. Meeting friends in RI who played the same game only further fuelled his encounters with MTG and before he knew it he was well respected as one of the most consistent MTG players, as is still well known for being cool under pressure.

Jit Yao’s Record:
Round 1- Jit Yao 2 Wei Xiang 0 (Win)
Round 2- Jit Yao 2 Marvin 1 (Win)
Round 3- Jit Yao 2 Muz 0 (Win)
Round 4- Jit Yao 2 Yinkwan 1 (Win)
Round 5- Jit Yao 2 Soon Yoong 1 (Win)
Round 6- Jit Yao 2 Stanley 0 (Win)

Jit Yao is sitting pretty at the top of the standings. With a 6 wins 0 losses record coming into this game, there was no chance that anyone would catch him at 1^st place. In other words, he won the draft with 1 round to spare, which is a new record when our drafts are concerned! Now he can go one further and set a new record for being the first player to go through an entire draft unbeaten. He can achieve this by doing to Jonlim what he did to every other person all day long: defeat him. However, Jit Yao would also have to contend with negative crowd support, as he had painted himself as the elephant in the room by being undefeated so far. The others would all be rooting for Jonlim, but Jit Yao’s calm nature would probably allow him to block that out.

Jonlim endured a shock 0-2 loss to Muz in round 2, which was also the upset of the day. Bower Passage was especially brutal against Jonlim due to the fact that most of his creatures had flying. He also suffered a resounding and unexpected 0-2 loss to Wei Xiang in round 5. These results came as a surprise to everyone, including Muz and Wei Xiang themselves, because Jonlim is one of the more experienced players playing today. Having dropped steadily down the leaderboard, Jonlim steadied himself to see off a potentially problematic matchup against Yinkwan in round 6. He won G1 off the back of 2x Voice of the Provinces that were summoned in quick succession, who both went nuts when Jonlim cast Ghostly Flicker targeting both of them for some human token madness. G2 was a tight affair which was eventually settled when Jonlim cast Spirit Away on Yinkwan’s Vorstclaw, with Favorable Winds on the field. This makes for a 10/10 flying monster which Yinkwan had no answer for.

The equation for Jonlim is simple: win this game and finish 2^nd, or lose this game and finish 3^rd. For Jit Yao, he plays for the bragging rights of being able to say “I’m the only one who ever finished an entire draft unbeaten”.

Pre-game analysis:

Jit Yao’s so-far-invincible blue/green fatties deck is laden with bombs galore. He counts two of the biggest limited heavyweights in the entire set of Avacyn Restored in his deck: namely Craterhoof Behemoth and Moonsilver Spear. None of Jit Yao’s opponents today have survived the turn that Craterhoof Behemoth enters the battlefield. So powerful is this monster of a card that it can easily force through more than 20 damage in a turn, battering through any form of defensive play without much effort. Even destroying it the turn it comes into play may not be enough to stop the alpha strike from the other creatures due to Craterhoof Behemoth’s insane ability. Moonsilver Spear needs to be active for only 1 turn before opponents see the writing on the wall. It creates a formidable flying angel army all by itself, and will quickly take over any game should it be allowed to stay on the field. Jit Yao’s deck also boasts the difficult to use but potentially dangerous Alchemist’s Refuge. Packed full of bombs, Jit Yao’s supporting cast only has to delay the game long enough for the big boys to take over. Cards such as the regenerating Wolfir Avenger, and the gives-flying-when-soulbonded Wingcrafter ensure that Jit Yao will not be caught out in the early game.

Jonlim is piloting an old-school style blue/white control flyers deck that aims to drag the game long before angels take over and bring on the beats. He has his fair share of game changers in the form of Spirit Away and Divine Deflection. These cards, while not as flashy as Craterhoof Behemoth or Avacyn, Angel of Hope, create 2-for-1 opportunities, serving the dual purposes of defense and offense. Jonlim also possesses 2 of the best defensive miracle spells in the set, Terminus and Devastation Tide, which serve as “oh shit” buttons should Jonlim need one. The support cast of 2x Seraph Sanctuary, Seraphof Dawn, 2x Angelic Wall, 2x Nearheath Pilgrim, Haunted Guardian and utility spells like Vanishment and Crippling Chill mean that Jonlim’s deck probably has the best defensive potential out of all the decks in today’s draft. With so many flyers in Jonlim’s deck, the singleton Favorable Winds could also be more threatening than it initially looks.

This matchup is intriguing for its uncanny symmetry. Both decks are built to be defensive in the early game, relying on late game bombs to seal the deal. However, it seems that Jit Yao’s bombs possess a lot more firepower than Jonlim’s, and it will be interesting to see what kind of playing style both players adopt. It is likely that Jit Yao will sit back and contend with stalling the game out, knowing that his bombs are a lot stronger than Jonlim’s, while Jonlim probably needs to tweak his game plan or get beaten at his own game by a deck containing superior firepower.

Game 1

Jit Yao wins the roll but chokes on his opening 7, shipping it back for a fresh 6 card hand. Jonlim indicates he is good with his opening hand and we’re off!

Jit Yao charges out of the blocks on T1 with an Island and Wingcrafter, while Jonlim lays the Plains and passes the turn without a spell. Jit Yao then scores the free hit with the Wingcrafter for 1 damage on T2, lays a forest and passes the turn.

Jit Yao 20 Jonlim 19

Jonlim drops Seraph Sanctuary to gain back the 1 life, then summons the 0/4 Angelic Wall, which has flying and defender, on his own T2. He doesn’t look like he’s going on the offensive anytime soon.

Jit Yao 20 Jonlim 20

T3 sees Jit Yao drop a Forest and pass with no play. Jonlim is happy to drop Plains and cast a Thraben Valiant. On T4, Jit Yao drops a Forest and casts a Wolfir Avenger, soulbinding it with Wingcrafter. This synergy between Wolfir Avenger and Wingcrafter is a combination that would thwart most early-game aggressive strategies. The presence of a flying regenerator on defense is especially daunting for any would-be aggressor. Jonlim simply nods and plays Plains, passing the turn.

T5 sees Jit Yao drop an Island, before attacking with both Wingcrafter and Wolfir Avenger. Jonlim blocks Wolfir Avenger with his Angelic Wall and takes 1 damage.

Jit Yao 20 Jonlim 19

Jit Yao then plays a Rotcrown Ghoul after combat and passes the turn. Jonlim lays down his plains and casts Nearheath Pilgrim, opting not to soulbond. This creature may look puny, but the ability to confer lifelink to another creature is extremely useful in many situations.

It is T6. Jit Yao rumbles in again with Wingcrafter and Wolfir Avenger, and Jonlim once again blocks the Wolfir Avenger with Angelic Wall and takes 1 damage. From the way things are going, this is going to be a long game of attrition.

Jit Yao 20 Jonlim 18

Jit Yao casts a postcombat Nettle Swine and passes the turn. 




Jonlim drops a plains and summons Voice of the Provinces, netting a free 1/1 human token on the way and indicating that he would like to soulbond the Voice of the Provinces with Nearheath Pilgrim. Showing his tight technical play, he also remembers to trigger Seraph Sanctuary to gain himself 1 life, which lesser players might have missed.

Jit Yao 20 Jonlim 19

On T7, Jit Yao drops and Island and swings with Wolfir Avenger, Rotcrown Ghoul and Nettle Swine. A 1/1 human token and the 2/1 Thraben Valiant valiantly step in to block the 4/3 Nettle Swine, while the Angelic Wall once again ensures that Wolfir Avenger once again has no way through. 


Jonlim did not want to trade his Voice of the Provinces for Rotcrown Ghoul however, and opted to take 3 damage.

Jit Yao 20 Jonlim 16

Jonlim’s T7 was eventful as well. He attacked with Voice of the Provinces and Nearheath Pilgrim. Jit Yao doesn’t hesitate to trade his Wingcrafter for the pesky Nearheath Pilgrim. However, he still takes 3 damage from the angel and Jonlim gains 5 life before the Nearheath Pilgrim dies.

Jit Yao 17 Jonlim 21

Jonlim then ups the stakes with a 2^nd copy of Voice of the Provinces, netting another 1/1 human token and eliciting a sigh from Jit Yao. He points to the Seraph Sanctuary and gains himself 1 life from the angel CIP trigger.

Jit Yao 17 Jonlim 22

On T8, Jit Yao plays a forest and swings with both Wolfir Avenger and Rotcrown Ghoul. Once again the Angelic Wall blocks the wolf while the ghoul connects for 3 damage.

Jit Yao 17 Jonlim 19

Jonlim goes all in with the 1/1 human token and 2 Voice of the Provinces. Jit Yao gets a 7 damage blast. Jonlim follows up with Angelic Armaments. Jonlim seems like he is ready to go on the offensive in the next few turns.

Jit Yao 10 Jonlim 19

On T9, Jit Yao plays a forest and swings with both Wolfir Avenger and Rotcrown Ghoul. Once again the Angelic Wall blocks the wolf while the ghoul connects for 3 damage.

Jit Yao 10 Jonlim 16

Jonlim untaps for his own T9 and goes into the tank (meaning: goes into deep thought)


Yes he is ahead and clearly has the upper hand at this moment, but he remembers what his primary school friend and multiple MTG GP-Top8er Lin Ruizi told him recently over facebook.

“Whenever you’re winning, instead of relaxing, consider what your opponent may have to turn the game around. Even if it’s only 1 or 2 cards, and the odds of him drawing into them or having them in hand are low, do your best to play around them, so you never get caught out” – Lin Ruizi

He finally decided that Craterhoof Behemoth was the only card that could potentially ruin his day, and decided on his line of play:
1) Vessel of Endless Rest was cast.
2) Spectral Prison was cast, targeting Jit Yao’s tapped Wolfir Avenger
3) Attack with only the 2 Voice of the Provinces, leaving the 1/1 human soldier token back

Jit Yao tapped two lands...

...and sprang a surprise with Terrifying Presence on his Wolfir Avenger, essentially destroying Spectral Prison and negating combat damage for this turn.

Jonlim had made a play error and he realised what had just happened. He should have done 3) before 2), which would force Jit Yao to Terrifying Presence to negate damage. This would mean that Jit Yao would not be able to destroy the Spectral Prison. Would Jonlim be made to pay for his error?

T10 was the decisive turn. Jit Yao found a Forest, tapped ALL his lands and played the Craterhoof Behemoth!!! (It *JUST HAD TO HAPPEN*)...




And, deciding to go all in, turned all his creatures sideways, for a WHOPPING 20 POWER worth of incoming damage!!! 




Jonlim’s earlier calculations did not fail him however, and his decision to hold back the 1/1 human soldier allowed him to use it as a blocker along with the 0/4 Angelic Wall which had been doing a magnificent job defensively since T2. Jonlim took 15 damage (20 minus 5) fell to exactly 1 life, it was as if fate wanted Jonlim to pull this off.

Jit Yao 10 Jonlim 1

Jonlim topdecks Terminus, with the opportunity to miracle it out, to the excitement of all the spectators…but while lesser players might have slammed the “oh shit” button as it presented itself in such a timely manner, Jonlim thought long and hard while holding the Terminus in his hand for what seemed like eternity.

Shockingly he decided AGAINST miracling the Terminus…eliciting a stunned silence from the spectators. However, he knew what he had in mind, and the line of play he was going to make.

With 2 Voice of the Provinces and Angelic Armaments still in play, Jonlim equips Angelic Armaments onto one of the Voice of the Provinces, making it a 5/5 creature, while the other was a 3/3. He then cast Favorable Winds,  giving both angels +1/+1, and attacked with 2 Voice of the Provinces, which are now 6/6 and 4/4, for exactly 10 damage, winning the game by exactly 1 life.

Jit Yao 0 Jonlim 1

Jonlim wins Game 1.

Jonlim’s play error did not cost him the game after all. It was arguable that he deserved this win for thinking hard about his T9 despite having the upper hand. The decision to hold back the 1/1 human token when it was especially tempting to go to town with all his creatures proved to be a masterstroke. He conceded that it was a close shave though, and that had he not made the mistake mentioned above on T9, he would have won with more life to spare.

Jit Yao himself might not have played perfectly as well. Despite Jonlim’s play error, he might do well to hold back his Terrifying Presence instead. That particular attack with the 2 Voice of the Provinces would deal only 6 damage with would not win the game that turn. Holding back the Terrifying Presence might screw up Jonlim’s math with regards to combat damage, and give Jit Yao the game. The fact that Jonlim’s final attack did exactly the necessary 10 damage required to win the game just goes to show what-might-have-been.

However, the fact that we are nitpicking on such less-than-obvious mistakes just exemplifies the razor-thin margins in this game. It also makes it even more important to have good awareness of the game state to compensate for these minor mistakes (which could still prove costly). Jonlim exemplified that by remembering to trigger his Seraph Sanctuary every time an angel came into play. Had he forgotten to gain 1 life just ONCE earlier on in the game, he would not have won the game at 1 life. Judging by the way G1 went, G2 will be a tightly contested affair as well (before we move to G2, here is a random picture)

Game 2

Jit Yao indicated that he would like to play. When both players said “keep”, we were off.

Jit Yao opened T1 with Forest and Abundant Growth to go along with it. Jonlim offered “Plains, go”.

Jit Yao used his T2 to play Island and a Wandering Wolf. Jonlim answered right back with Plains and Nearheath Pilgrim.

Jit Yao dropped a forest on T3 and turned Wandering Wolf sideways. Jonlim opted not to block and took 2 damage.

Jit Yao 20 Jonlim 18

Jonlim played an island on his own T3, and attacked with Nearheath Pilgrim for 2 damage.

Jit Yao 18 Jonlim 18

Jonlim then played a postcombat Angelic Armaments. Angelic Armaments has been a key card for Jonlim today, allowing ground based creatures to take to the skies while being granted +2/+2. This is effective whether Jonlim wishes to play offensively or defensively (except in the freak 0-2 reverse against Muz when Bower Passage single handedly took control of the match). Jit Yao will do well to remember that it was Angelic Armaments that allowed Jonlim to attack for exactly 10 damage in Game 1.

T4 saw Jit Yao drop a Forest and attack with Wandering Wolf once again. Jonlim once again took the damage.

Jit Yao 18 Jonlim 16

Jonlim’s T4 was spent dropping  Plains, and equipping Angelic Armaments to Nearheath Pilgrim. The flying Nearheath Pilgrim took the skies and attacked for 4 damage.

Jit Yao 14 Jonlim 16

Jit Yao dropped Island on T5 and summoned a Nettle Swine he drew off the top. He once again continued the assault with Wandering Wolf and Jonlim took another 2 damage.

Jit Yao 14 Jonlim 14

Jonlim’s T5 saw him cast 2 spells, Vessel of Endless Rest, and (more significantly) Favorable Winds. His flying Nearheath Pilgrim was now a 5/4 monstrosity and bashed in from the skies for 5 damage. Surprisingly, both players were aggressive right from the beginning of this game, with the attacks coming fast and furious from both sides. For the moment, Jonlim seems to be ahead though, largely due to Angelic Armaments.

Jit Yao 9 Jonlim 14

Jit Yao’s T6 also saw 2 spells. After playing Island, he called upon the services of Wingcrafter and Rotcrown Ghoul, soulbonding the two together. He attacked with Nettle Swine and Wandering Wolf for 6 damage. From the current board state, it looked like he was edging ahead in the damage race. Jonlim’s lone creature was staring down 4 creatures now, and unless he does something to Even the Odds, he would be falling behind from this point on. As both Wingcrafter and Rotcrown Ghoul had flying, they could block the Nearheath Pilgrim if they wanted to, while Wandering Wolf and Nettle Swine served offensive duties.

Jit Yao 9 Jonlim 8

Jonlim continued in the same vein on his own T6, dropping a plains and attacking with his flying Nearheath Pilgrim. Rotcrown Ghoul stepped in the way of the pilgrim and died. It’s ability caused Jonlim to mill away 5 cards, one of which was his 7 mana bomb enchantment: Spirit Away. He didn’t seem too happy about that.

However, he tapped 6 lands and hardcasted Terminus to reset the whole board. Finally Jonlim pressed the “Oh, Shit” button everyone so craved to see!

With all creatures wiped off the battlefield, Jit Yao used his T7 to rebuild with a menacing Pathbreaker Wurm. This 6/4 fatty has the power to grant Trample with Soulbond, which could be very dangerous if Jonlim was not careful. Jonlim’s T7 was used to cast Gryff Vanguard, which, while not being able to match Pathbreaker Wurm for size, drew him an extra card.

Jit Yao threw down the gauntlet on T8, slamming down a Moonsilver Spear and a Diregraf Escort, but had no mana to equip it this turn. He then attacked with his 6/4 wurm. Jonlim took the 6 damage like a man and untapped for his turn.

Jit Yao 9 Jonlim 2

This was a crucial turn. Jonlim had to do something big…and fast. He was staring down Pathbreaker Wurm, Diregraf Escort, and a Moonsilver Spear which would become active next turn, while sitting on a precarious 2 life!!! This was INTENSE STUFF!!! 




What in the world is Jonlim going to do now?...




After some thinking, Jonlim untapped, cast Island, and simply attacked with Gryff Vanguard for 4 damage…before passing the turn. Nobody knows what he is doing except Jonlim himself!

Jit Yao 5 Jonlim 2

Sensing blood,  Jit Yao untapped and equipped Moonsilver Spear to Diregraf Escort and announced that he would be attacking with both Diregraf Escort and Pathbreaker Wurm. Before attacking, he cast Ghostform on both Diregraf Escort and Pathbreaker Wurm, rendering them unblockable. To make things worse, the Moonsilver Spear would inevitably created a free 4/4 Angel token for Jit Yao. Facing down 7 unblockable damage on 2 life, surely we were moving on to game 3?

Jonlim calmly tapped 7 lands…and…

…and cast DIVINE DEFLECTION on Pathbreaker Wurm for X=6, redirecting SIX damage to Jit Yao. Jonlim took seven ONE damage instead and fell to ONE LIFE, while Jit Yao took zero SIX damage and fell to ZERO LIFE!!! Where Jit Yao seemed to have wrapped it up until the final few seconds...
Jonlim had STOLEN THE GAME from under Jit Yao's toes, and the match too! 
WHAT A DRAMATIC TURN OF EVENTS!!!!

Jit Yao 0 Jonlim 1

Jonlim wins Game 2.

Jonlim wins match 2-0 (1-0, 1-0).

In almost unbelievable fashion, Jonlim had pulled victory from defeat in a dramatic finale befitting of a feature match! He became the 1^st player to have won 2 games in a row by 1 life each. Nail biting stuff but heroic nonetheless. Jit Yao couldn’t believe it but was gentlemanly enough to accept that he lost fair and square. He had no excuses since he managed to cast Craterhoof Behemoth in G1 and Moonsilver Spear in G2 but still lost anyway.

Final Standings:
1^st place – Jit Yao
2^nd place – Jonlim
3^rd place – Wei Xiang
4^th place – Yinkwan

Top 3 bombs of the day (in terms of influence):
1^st place – Craterhoof Behemoth (Jit Yao)
2^nd place – Moonsilver Spear (Jit Yao)
3^rd place – Spirit Away (Jonlim)

Upset of the day:
Muz 2 Jonlim 0 – Muz rode Bower Passage and Call to Serve all the way. Shocking.

Player of the day:
Wei Xiang – winning 5 matches in a row after losing the first 2 matches rewarded him with a very respectable 3^rd place, which could have even been 2^nd if not for Jonlim’s heroics.

Deck of the day:
Marvin's - while he didn't do so well for today's draft, credit goes to Marvin for attempting to draft what is widely regarded as the weakest colour in AVR draft. With nobody else picking black cards, he had the lion's share of the black cards and drafted mono black. However, he lost too many games by a 2-1 margin and therefore couldn't fight for a Top4 place. Next time, he may not be so unlucky!

Thank you all for drafting today! Hope to see you guys again sooner rather than later!


And here's what my house looked like after you guys left...wonder if there'll be a another chance for you guys to come over? We're all going to university soon, and some of you are going overseas...either way...thanks for the memories :)