Welcome to another weekly Showdown Recap, where we take a look at what happened at Face to Face Games Toronto’s weekly Sunday Showdown, a series of 1k events feeding into the Ultimate Showdown 5k Invitational. This week players battled in Standard at our special RPTQ Showdown to see who could earn their spot at the next Pro Tour.

Dozens of players decended upon Face to Face Games Toronto this past Sunday for our Standard Regional Pro Tour Qualifier. But, only four walked away with Pro Tour invitations. Congratulations to Chris Ha, Jamie Archdekin, Stuart Pames and Andrew Burrows-Johnson.

Both Pames and Burrows-Johnson made the trek in from out of town to battle, but Archdekin and Ha are of course locals that have made a name for themselves at our Showdown events over the last few years.

For Archdekin, this feels like a routine occurrence, he’s made a living converting at these RPTQs as of late. Archdekin has become demonstrated an ability to play a wide variety of decks in just about every format and will be representing Southern Ontario at the Pro Tour once again.

As for Chris Ha, this might just the be the happiest I’ve ever been to see someone achieve their goals. To say that Chris is a fixture in the community is an understatement. He’s always been around to support his friends competitive goals. Whether it be by lending cards or driving us all over North America to play tournaments, and now Chris has achieved his goal. After watching him work so hard for so long, I’m so happy for Chris, and will be in his corner when he needs help testing for the Pro Tour and someone to cheer him on.

As for Standard, I can’t say the Top 8 from this event really surprised me at all. There was a bunch of red decks, some copies of Teferi, Hero of Dominaria and some Scarab Gods. At this point in the format, tournaments are more about mastery of your craft than breaking open the metagame, and that showed with some good players playing well tuned decks to success.

With their great finishes on Sunday, these four players have qualified themselves for the upcoming Pro Tour, congratulations guys! This upcoming Sunday at Face to Face Games Toronto we will be hosting a Modern Sunday Showdown. Make sure to preregister here. It’s time to find out if anyone can defeat the 5C Humans menace!

First Place, Andrew Burrows-Johnson – Wizard Red

[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Bomat Courier
4 Soul-Scar Mage
4 Ghita Lavarunner
4 Earthshaker Khenra
4 Viashino Pyromancer
4 Goblin Chainwhirler
2 Ahn-Crop Crasher
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
3 Flame of Keld
4 Shock
4 Lightning Strike
4 Wizard’s Lightning
[/Spells]
[Lands]
19 Mountains
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
1 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
3 Chandra’s Defeat
3 Cut//Ribbon
1 Mountain
3 Hazoret, the Fervent
2 Abrade
1 Insult//Injury
1 Kari Zev’s Expertise
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

Second Place, Stuart Pames – U/B Midrange

[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Glint-Sleeve Siphoner
4 Champion of Wits
1 Hostage Taker
3 The Scarab God
2 Torrential Gearhulk
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
1 Liliana, Death’s Majesty
4 Fatal Push
1 Cast Down
2 Essence Scatter
3 Doomfall
4 Vraska’s Contrempt
1 Commit//Memory
1 Glimmer of Genius
1 Search for Azcanta
2 Arguel’s Bloodfast
[/Spells]
[Lands]
4 Aether Hub
4 Drowned Catacomb
4 Fetid Pools
3 Field of Ruin
5 Island
6 Swamp
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
3 Duress
2 Essence Scatter
1 Infernal Reconing
2 Jace’s Defeat
2 Negate
1 Sorcerous Spyglass
1 Vizier of Many Faces
1 Moment of Craving
1 Walking Ballista
1 Cast Down
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

Third Place, Chris Ha – R/B Aggro

[Deck]
[Creatures]
1 Soul-Scar Mage
4 Bomat Courier
2 Kari-Zev Skyship Raider
4 Scrapheap Scrounger
1 Pia Nalaar
4 Goblin Chainwhirler
1 Hazoret the Fervent
3 Rekindling Phoenix
2 Glorybringer
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
2 Magma Spray
3 Abrade
2 Heart of Kiran
2 Unlicensed Disintegration
3 Chandra, torch of Defiance
1 Cut//Ribbons
[/Spells]
[Lands]
4 Canyon Slough
2 Aether Hub
4 Dragonskull Summit
14 Mountains
1 Swamp
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
3 Dress
3 Doomfall
1 Hour of Glory
1 Cut//Ribbons
3 Chandra’s Defeat
1 Karn, Scion of Urza
2 Sorcerous Spyglass
1 Banefire
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

Fourth Place, Jamie Archdekin – U/W Gift

[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Minister of Inquiries
2 Sunscourge Champion
4 Champion of Wits
4 Angel of Invention
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 God Pharaoh’s Gift
2 Baffling End
1 Fumigate
4 Refurbish
2 Cast Out
4 Strategic Planning
4 Chart a Course
2 Search for Azcanta
[/Spells]
[Lands]
3 Ipna Rivulet
4 Irrigated Farmland
4 Glacial Fortress
6 Plains
6 Island
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Negate
2 Lyra Dawnbringer
2 Sunscourge Champion
1 Fumigate
1 Fairgrounds Warden
2 Sorcerous Spyglass
1 Boral, Chief of Compliance
1 Baffling End
3 Jace’s Defeat
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

Fifth Place, Thom Willoughby – B/G Stompy

[Deck]
[Creatures]
2 Rhonas Indomitable
4 Servant of the Conduit
4 Llanowar Elves
3 Carnage Tyrant
3 Verdurous Gearhulk
4 Vinemare
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
2 Aethersphere Harvester
2 Cartouche of Ambition
4 Vraska’s Contempt
3 Trial of Ambition
4 Fatal Push
[/Spells]
[Lands]
3 Ifnir Deadlands
5 Swamp
4 Woodland Cemetery
2 Hoshtep Oasis
4 Blooming Marsh
7 Forest
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Lifecrafter’s Bestiary
2 Vivien Reid
3 Glint Sleeve Siphoner
3 Duress
3 Lost Legacy
2 Doomfall
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

Sixth Place, Christophe Vaugeois – U/W Control

[Deck]
[Creatures]
2 Torrential Gearhulk
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Teferi, Hero of Dominaria
2 Syncopate
3 Essence Scatter
1 Negate
4 Disallow
1 Forsake the Worldly
3 Glimmer of Genius
4 Settle the Wreckage
4 Seal Away
3 Cast Out
1 Search for Azcanta
2 Gideon’s Reproach
[/Spells]
[Lands]
2 Field of Ruin
4 Glacial Fortress
4 Irrigated Farmland
7 Island
8 Plains
1 Memorial to Genius
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
3 Baral, Chief of Compliance
3 Walking Ballista
2 Jace’s Defeat
1 Negate
2 Sorcerous Spyglass
3 Lyra Dawnbringer
1 Fumigate
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

Seventh Place, Alex Bianchi – B/R Aggro

[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Bomat Courier
2 Glorybringer
4 Goblin Chainwhirler
2 Hazoret the Fervent
2 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
2 Pia Nalaar
3 Rekindling Phoenix
4 Scrapheap Scrounger
1 Soul-Scar Mage
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
3 Abrade
2 Magma Spray
2 Unlicensed Disintegration
2 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
2 Heart of Kiran
[/Spells]
[Lands]
2 Aether Hub
4 Canyon Slough
4 Dragonskull Summit
14 Mountain
1 Swamp
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
1 Aethersphere Harvester
3 Chandra’s Defeat
1 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
1 Cut//Ribbons
2 Doomfall
3 Duress
1 Hour of Glory
1 Karn, Scion of Urza
2 Sorcerous Spyglass
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]

Eighth Place, Gerry Harris-Pink – B/R Aggro

[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Bomat Courier
4 Scrapheap Scrounger
2 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
4 Goblin Chainwhirler
3 Pia Nalaar
3 Rekindling Phoenix
2 Glorybringer
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
2 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
1 Karn, Scion of Urza
3 Abrade
2 Cut//Ribbons
2 Unlicensed Disintegration
3 Heart of Kiran
[/Spells]
[Lands]
14 Mountain
1 Swamp
2 Aether hub
4 canyon slough
4 Dragonskull Summit
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
1 The Eldest Reborn
1 Karn, Scion of Urza
2 Sorcerous Spyglass
1 Glorybringer
1 Hour of Glory
2 Chandra’s Defeat
2 Magma Spray
2 Doomfall
3 Duress
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]