Modern Masters 2017 is almost here!

Posted On 3:11 PM // Leave a Comment

Newsletter
Thursday, March 16th

This week, GerryT is all about stating for a fact that Modern isn't solved and that there are plenty of decks out there that scare him! Modern Masters 2017 is practically on store shelves as we speak, and Ryan Saxe is way ahead of the game when it comes to this Limited format! And don't forget to check out Team MGG Captain Jim Davis's excellent work on helping aspiring Magic players to go from nothing to the top of the tournament world!

— Danny West, Content Coordinator

Austin Bursavich
Modern Open

Josh Newell
Standard Classic

Jody Keith
Modern Classic

The Modern Decks I'm Afraid Of
By Gerry Thompson  

Maybe this one is overreacting. It does seem like the combination of Chalice of the Void, some removal for big creatures, making Inquisition of Kozilek relatively weak, and sideboard copies of Leyline of Sanctity and Rest in Peace might be really bad.

Their single weakness is that if you manage to stick a threat and clear the way with discard, they have very few ways of actually answering it. Lightning Helix and Anger of the Gods aren't going to do much, and if you play around Nahiri, the Harbinger, they might have a rough time.

Still, it's a tall order to try to beat an early Chalice of the Void or Blood Moon, and if they adapt with more copies of Journey to Nowhere or Blessed Alliance, it might become the nightmare matchup. All it takes are some small tweaks, like making sure the majority of your removal is live against Death's Shadow.

April 8-9
Legacy

April 29-30
Standard

May 5-7
AKH Limited

Draft Digest: Cruel Ultimatum
By Ryan Saxe  

Magic R&D has stated that the U/B archetype is instant-speed control. There are around 50 instants or cards with flash in the set, most of which are common or uncommon. Of these, there are really only a few that I would never include in my Mystical Teachings deck, such as Might of Old Krosa and Dynacharge.

I think the key to this archetype is prioritizing cards such that you can choose a good window for casting Mystical Teachings and flashing it back. Grisly Spectacle gives you the option of Murder if necessary, but if not, you get some value out of Mystical Teachings instead. Another card that does this is Rewind, a card most other players won't want. Since you get to counter their Turn 4 play and cast Mystical Teachings, there is no loss of tempo!

Even if this deck is good, I still want to pick up Mystical Teachings late (could be wrong about this one, but I'm quite confident). As I mentioned, only one person at the table is going to want this. I expect to be able to draft other styles of blue control decks in this format, so if I end up that route and get a tenth-pick Mystical Teachings in Pack 1, I know this lane is open, and I can draft "the deck." And believe you me, I want to draft it!

Goals
By Jim Davis  

Magic players seem to understand that the game is fickle, but this understanding rarely is put to use.

Magic players continue to view the game and its swings as an unstoppable force and succumb to its whims. When they are running well, it's all sunshine and roses; when they are running badly, it's "Why am I even wasting my time and money at this tournament? I don't even know why I came," over and over again.

The big reason for this is that players are taking a very small picture view of Magic. They take each event as it comes, with no real larger purpose for the game. They say they want to get better, or want to qualify for big events, or want to be a popular content creator, but never actually go about the process necessary to do these things. The ability to live in the moment is a valuable one, but not one that helps you to grow and progress as a player.

What helps you grow and progress as a player is having concrete goals and finding the steps necessary to see them through.