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 Team Trios to see which squad could navigate all three constructed formats with expertise to come out on top!
I always look forward to these team tournaments in Toronto, whether I’m playing or writing. There’s just that much more intrigue when there’s team involved. A little more at stake, bragging rights, trash talk and the inherent variance reduction make for exciting tournaments.
This time, some of the city’s most decorated players prevailed, and Matthew Dilks won another damn Showdown.
Omar played trusty old B/R Aggro in the Standard seat, Tyler played the new hotness in B/R Vengevine in Modern and Dilks played Lands in Legacy as usual. Of note, Lands is a deck that many players were not wild on headed into the Pro Tour. But, with the results that [Card]Death’s Shadow[/Card], Delver decks and Death & Taxes put up, it looks to be well-positioned once again. Especially if Sneak & Show continues to be under-played due to its poor PT performance.
There’s not much to say about Omar’s deck other than the fact that three of the four Standard players in our Top 4 were playing [Card]Goblin Chainwhirler[/Card] decks and the other was U/W Teferi Control. Turbo Fog wasn’t present at all in our Top 4 and neither was the Mono-Blue Artifact deck that was popular at the PT. Maybe it’s back to U/W versus Red in Standard.
Tyler piloted the new flavour-of-the-week combo deck in Modern — B/R [Card]Venegevine[/Card]. This deck is extremely explosive to say the least, and more or less epitomizes the Modern format. It’s still yet to be determined whether or not this deck will become a true player in the metagame, but for now it seems to be putting up nice results even as graveyard hate rises in popularity.
The rest of our Top 4 was chalked full of Face to Face Games Toronto regulars. Everyone here is no stranger to the elimination rounds, and the team of Gordon, Swaluk and Tubello seem to just not be able to miss with these Trios events.
Swaluk in particular brought a pretty unique take on red aggro to the event. His Mono-Red [Card]The Flame of Keld[/Card] deck looks to get underneath its opponent in the red mirrors while also being able to go upstairs to finish off Turbo Fog without needing to rely on combat damage. All this in mind I think it was a great choice for Sunday.
With their win on Sunday, Beldon, Nightingale and Dilks cement their spots in the upcoming Ultimate Showdown and the rest of our Top 4 have begun their march up the leader board to qualify. This upcoming weekend’s Sunday Showdown will be in the Legacy format. Grab those Delver of Secrets and Force of Wills and come on down to battle!
First Place – Beldon, Nightingale and Dilks
Standard
Omar Beldon – B/R Aggro
[Deck]
[Creatures]
2 Glorybringer
3 Hazoret the Fervent
2 Pia Nalaar
4 Goblin Chainwhirler
4 Scrapheap Scrounger
2 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
2 Soul-Scar Mage
4 Bomat Courier
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
2 Cut // Ribbons
2 Abrade
1 Magma Spray
2 Heart of Kiran
3 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
2 Unlicensed Disintegration
[/Spells]
[Lands]
4 Canyon Slough
4 Dragonskull Summit
2 Aether Hub
1 Swamp
14 Mountain
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
3 Duress
3 Doomfall
1 Hour of Glory
2 Rekindling Phoenix
2 Glorybringer
2 Abrade
1 Magma Spray
1 Chandra’s Defeat
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Modern
Tyler Nightingale – B/R Vengevine
[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Goblin Bushwhacker
4 Viscera Seer
4 Stitcher’s Supplier
4 Insolent Neonate
4 Gravecrawler
4 Walking Ballista
4 Vengevine
2 Bloodghast
2 Greater Gargadon
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
2 Collective Brutality
4 Bridge from Below
4 Faithless Looting
[/Spells]
[Lands]
1 Swamp
1 Mountain
1 Stomping Ground
1 Overgrown Tomb
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Bloodstained Mire
2 Blood Crypt
1 Copperline Gorge
3 Blackcleave Cliffs
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Thoughtseize
4 Leyline of the Void
1 Darkblast
3 Dismember
2 Bitterblossom
2 Nature’s Claim
1 Destructive Revelry
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Legacy
Matthew Dilks – Lands
[Deck]
[Spells]
4 Life from the Loam
4 Mox Diamond
4 Expedition
4 Crop Rotation
4 Gamble
2 Manabond
3 Punishing Fire
[/Spells]
[Lands]
1 Glacial Chasm
1 Ghost Quarter
4 Wasteland
4 Thespian Stage
4 Dark Depths
4 Grove of the Burnwillows
3 Rishadan Port
3 Maze of Ith
1 Misty Rainforest
1 Windswept Heath
1 Wooded Foothills
2 Taiga
1 Forest
1 Sheltered Thicket
1 Tranquil Thicket
1 Barbarian Ring
1 Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
4 Sphere of Resistance
4 Krosan Grip
2 Choke
2 Tireless Tracker
1 Karakas
1 Chalice of the Void
1 Thorn of Amethyst
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Second Place – Pienaar, Cherkas and Lau
Standard
Ivan Pienaar – U/W Control
[Deck]
[Creatures]
1 Torrential Gearhulk
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Seal Away
3 Settle the Wreckage
1 Blink of an Eye
2 Search for Azcanta
2 Fumigate
3 Cast out
4 Disallow
2 Negate
2 Syncopate
1 Essence Scatter
2 Hieroglyphic Illumination
2 Glimmer of Genius
1 Commit // Memory
4 Teferi, Hero of Dominaria
[/Spells]
[Lands]
4 Irrigated Farmland
4 Glacial Fortress
2 Meandering River
1 Arch of Orazca
2 field of ruin
6 plains
7 Island
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
3 Lyra Dawnbringer
1 Aether Meltdown
1 Fumigate
1 Essence Scatter
1 Sorcerous Spyglass
1 Jace’s Defeat
1 Negate
1 Nezahal, Primal Tider
1 Kefnet the Mindful
2 Forsake the Worldly
2 Torrential Gearhulk
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Modern
Matt Cherkas – Titan Shift
[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Sakura Tribe Elder
4 Bloodbraid Elf
1 Pia and Kiran Nalaar
4 Primeval Titan
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
2 Summoner’s Pact
4 Lightning Bolt
2 Anger of the Gods
1 Prismatic Omen
4 Search for Tomorrow
3 Farseek
1 Explore
3 Scapeshift
[/Spells]
[Lands]
4 Valakut, the Molten Pinnacle
4 Cinder Glade
1 Verdant Catacombs
4 Wooded Foothills
2 Windswept Heath
3 Forest
6 Mountain
3 Stomping Grounds
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Grafdigger’s Cage
2 Ancient Grudge
2 Damping Sphere
1 Anger of the Gods
1 Reclamation Sage
2 Tireless Tracker
2 Obstinate Baloth
1 Fracturing Gust
2 Hour of Devastation
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Legacy
Benson Lau – The Epic Storm
[Deck]
[Spells]
4 Brainstorm
1 Chain of Vapour
4 Ponder
1 Ad Nauseam
4 Dark Ritual
3 Duress
4 Infernal Tutor
4 Thoughtseize
4 Burning Wish
1 Empty the Warrens
4 Rite of Flame
4 Chrome Mox
4 Lion’s Eye Diamond
[/Spells]
[Lands]
1 Badlands
1 Bayou
4 Bloodstained Mire
1 Island
4 Polluted Delta
1 Swamp
1 Underground Sea
1 Volcanic Island
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Abrupt Decay
1 Dark Petition
2 Echoing Truth
2 Empty the Warrens
1 Grapeshot
1 Massacre
1 Past in Flames
2 Surgical Extraction
1 Tendrils of Agony
2 Xantid Swarm
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Third Place – Hamasoor, Roberts and Shoffner
Standard
Delan Hamasoor- B/R Aggro
[Deck]
[Creatures]
1 Ahn-Crop Crasher
2 Glorybringer
4 Goblin Chainwhirler
3 Hazoret the Fervent
2 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
2 Pia Nalaar
2 Soul-Scar Mage
4 Bomat Courier
4 Scrapheap Scrounger
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
2 Heart of Kiran
2 Unlicensed Disintegration
3 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
2 Abrade
2 Cut // Ribbons
[/Spells]
[Lands]
2 Aether Hub
4 Canyon Slough
4 Dragonskull Summit
14 Mountain
1 Swamp
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
1 Abrade
1 By Force
2 Chandra’s Defeat
2 Doomfall
3 Duress
1 Glorybringer
1 Hour of Glory
2 Magma Spray
2 Rekindling Phoenix
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Modern
Nick Roberts – Humans
[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Noble Hierarch
4 Champion of the Parish
4 Thalia’s Lieutenant
4 Mantis Rider
4 Meddling Mage
4 Kitesail Freebooter
3 Thalia, Guardian of Thraben
3 Phantasmal Image
3 Reflector Mage
1 Restoration Angel
3 Militia Bugler
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Aether Vial
[/Spells]
[Lands]
4 Cavern of Souls
4 Ancient Ziggurat
4 Unclaimed Territory
4 Horizon Canopy
1 Plains
1 Island
1 Seachrome Coast
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Izzet Staticaster
2 Yixlid Jailer
1 Kataki, War’s Wage
2 Reclamation Sage
1 Gaddock Teeg
2 Sin Collector
1 Dismember
1 Reflector Mage
1 Kambal, Consul of Allocation
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Legacy
Sam Shoffner- Grixis Control
[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Baleful Strix
4 Snapcaster Mage
2 Gurmag Angler
1 True-Name Nemisis
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Brainstorm
4 Ponder
2 Fatal Push
2 Lightning Bolt
2 Thoughtseize
2 Diabolic Edict
3 Hymn to Tourach
3 Kolaghan’s Command
4 Force of Will
2 Jace, the Mind Sculpter
1 Liliana, the Last Hope
[/Spells]
[Lands]
4 Polluted Delta
3 Scalding Tarn
3 Bloodstained Mire
3 Underground Sea
2 Badlands
2 Volcanic Island
2 Island
1 Swamp
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
3 Surgical Extraction
2 Flusterstorm
2 Pithing Needle
2 Pyroblast
1 Bitterblossom
1 Engineered Explosives
1 Hydroblast
1 Liliana, the Last Hope
1 Red Elemental Blast
1 Toxic Deluge
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Fourth Place – Swaluk, Tubello and Gordon
Standard
Jeff Swaluk – Mono-Red Flame of Keld
[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Goblin Chainwhirler
4 Bomat Courier
4 Soul-Scar Mage
2 Hazoret the Fervent
3 Kari Zev, Skyship Raider
4 Viashino Pyromancer
3 Ghitu Lavarunner
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
3 The Flame of Keld
4 Shock
4 Wizard’s Lightning
4 Lightning Strike
[/Spells]
[Lands]
21 Mountain
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Chandra, Torch of Defiance
1 Hazoret the Fervent
2 Banefire
3 Chandra’s Defeat
3 Abrade
1 Insult // Injury
3 Kari Zev’s Expertise
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Modern
Simon Tubello – Jeskai Control
[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Snapcaster Mage
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Path to Exile
2 Lightning Bolt
4 Lightning Helix
3 Supreme Verdict
2 Cryptic Command
2 Mana Leak
2 Logic Knot
1 Negate
2 Electrolyze
1 Spell Snare
2 Opt
4 Jace, the Mind Sculpter
2 Engineered Explosives
[/Spells]
[Lands]
4 Celestial Colonnade
4 Flooded Strand
4 Scalding Tarn
2 Steam vents
2 Hallowed Fountain
1 Sacred Foundry
3 Island
1 Plains
2 Sulfur Falls
1 Mystic Gate
1 Field of Ruin
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
1 Dispel
1 Celestial Purge
3 Geist of Saint Traft
1 Izzet Staticaster
1 Ceremonious Rejection
2 Stony Silence
2 Relic of Progenitus
1 Negate
1 Wear // Tear
1 Elspeth, Sun’s Champion
1 Search for Azcanta
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]
Legacy
Andrew Gordon – Grixis Delver
[Deck]
[Creatures]
4 Delver of Secrets
3 Young Pyromancer
3 Gurmag Angler
3 True-Name Nemesis
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Ponder
4 Brainstorm
4 Daze
4 Force of Will
2 Spell Pierce
2 Thoughtseize
2 Preordain
1 Dismember
1 Forked Bolt
[/Spells]
[Lands]
4 Wasteland
3 Underground Sea
3 Volcanic Island
1 Island
3 Misty Rainforest
1 Scalding Tarn
4 Flooded Strand
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
2 Surgical Extraction
2 Pyroblast
2 Liliana, the Last Hope
2 Abrade
2 Diabolic Edict
1 Marsh Casualties
1 Pithing Needle
1 Umezawa’s Jitte
1 Bitterblossom
1 Dread of Night
[/Sideboard]
[/Deck]