I couldn’t help but feel deflated as I ended my turn, not because my creatures and mana were tapped, and it wasn’t because my opponent had a handful of cards with seven lands to play them. Having a creature come down that I couldn’t deal with wasn’t the issue here.
I was feeling that way because I was playing against a [card]Maze’s End[/card] deck, and with my opponent at seven lands, time was running out. I had enough power on the board to deal lethal almost three times over but it didn’t seem to matter. With five cards in his hand, I figured I would see Fog effect after Fog effect until he got to the end of the Maze.
I had been lucky in game one, dispatching my opponent easily thanks to a lack of any green sources on his side. However, game two had me swinging into an endless amount of Fog effects, and it looked as though I was about to suffer the same fate again.
After he drew for turn he looked down at his hand and instead of laying a gate he did the exact opposite of what I expected; he scooped.
Phew. Apparently his defensive spells had dried up and without cards in his hand that would allow him to search for more, the game, and the match were over. Even though my opponent was evading my attacks all match long I felt like I was the one who dodged a bullet.
In the Money
That win put me at 3-1 with one round left to play, meaning I was guaranteed to prize out for the first time with this deck. Win or lose, I was happy with how the deck had performed. The changes I made the week before had definitely paid off.
[card]Angel of Serenity[/card] was an all-star and [card]Thragtusk[/card] had won me a few games over the course of the tournament. I didn’t miss [card]Loxodon Smiter[/card] at all, as the 3/3 Cenatur Healer did the same job just as well with the added bonus of three life every time I cast it.
However, despite the changes, it wasn’t enough to win round five against GB. The match proved to be very exciting, ending on turn four of time in game three. After my [card]Angel of Serenity[/card] was cut down by [card]Doom Blade[/card], I couldn’t keep up with the barrage of [card]Desecration Demon[/card]s and missed out on the draw.
I ended up with $10 in store credit once all was said and done but couldn’t help but think of how close I was to prizing higher, or even busting all together. I could’ve easily have lost out on any prizes at all if my [card]Maze’s End[/card] opponent had drawn the cards he needed, or I would have ended at 3-1-1 if [card]Doom Blade[/card] hadn’t come off the top of my fifth round opponent’s library after time had been called.
Finishing narrowly between 2-3 and 3-1-1 shows just how unpredictable Magic the Gathering tournaments can be. If I want to continue to put up better results going forward and reach long term success with this deck, how do I realistically set expectations?
Something I have discovered during my time playing competitive Magic is that setting expectations through a win-loss record or tournament standings isn’t the way to go.
Project: End Game
“I finished 4-1 last week, so I expect I will go 4-1 or 5-0 this week.”
I’ve heard friends say that before, and I know I’ve definitely thought similar things. It’s only natural for someone to want to build on the success and results of a previous tournament, as they should. However, looking ahead to final standings isn’t the way to do it.
I can’t expect to finish 3-2 or better simply because that was my record last time. If I want to finish higher, I shouldn’t be looking so far ahead.
While it’s good to have the big picture in mind, focusing on results before an event has even started can lead to disaster. Finishing an FNM at or near the top of the standings is the culmination of making many smart plays and decisions throughout the tournament-it’s a blanket achievement.
Look at it this way: a blanket is made up of many tiny threads that form the overall material. Similarly, a five round Magic event is made up of 10 to 15 games that can be broken down into many individual plays. These are the threads that make up the overall success at a tournament. Separately, they don’t seem like much but they are all part of the end product. Each is as important as the one before, and the one after.
If the same undivided attention is given to each play, you’re going to end up with a better end result. If the focus is elsewhere, you’re going to find yourself out in the cold.
It’s extremely easy to be concerned about your record at an event and how the next match will affect it. Unfortunately, giving your energy to worrying about the overall tournament will take your attention away from the individual plays that make up the final product. The end result won’t be what you’re looking for.
Instead, forget about the tournament and focus on each and every play. Shut out distractions, and yes, standings are major distractions. Do this and you won’t have to worry about overall results because you will play better Magic.
Results Getting in the Way of Wins
I learned this lesson the hard way in a PTQ a couple of months ago. In the tournament’s early rounds I didn’t really think of match outcomes. My only focus was on the different in-game decisions that I needed to make, and because of that I found myself sitting at 4-0. That’s when the wheels started to come off.
Suddenly, I was on my way towards a top-eight spot, needing only a few more victories. Without realizing it, the energy I had been spending on individual plays had shifted to the overall product. I had just sealed my own fate.
In round five I quickly won the first game and had a good match up. I was poised to win the match and move to 5-0. It’s as if I expected and felt entitled to the win. In game two I had to mulligan to five and was never really in the game. Once it looked like game three was getting out of reach I became frustrated and lost.
A 4-1 record wasn’t a horrible place to be, but I needed to win the last three rounds to have a shot at the final tables, and I let the big picture get in the way.
In the next round I was in a bad match up that didn’t end in my favor. Once the PTQ had finished, and after the disappointment of letting the tournament slip away had passed, I reflected on the individual rounds and what went wrong.
I realized that I had a much better recollection of thee first four rounds compared to the final few I played. If I had played with the same focus in the later rounds as I had earlier in the day, who knows what could’ve happened?
How to Avoid Being Farsighted
Learning that lesson at a PTQ helped change my mindset for FNM, making it much more effective. Once I had pinpointed where I went wrong, I was able to learn how to focus on the individual plays and decisions involved in a Magic tournament.
Try this the next time you go to an FNM if you find that your focus is starting to drift: completely forget about standings and records. They don’t exist. If a friend asks what your record is tell them you don’t know. When they give you a sideways look, tell them not to worry about it.
The only thing you’re thinking about is the next play. It doesn’t matter if it’s game one or three of a match. It could be the opening round or the final round for top place; it’s all the same. Play each turn as if it’s the only turn of Magic you will play all night. Make it count.
Try comparing you working on your short term focus as a Magic player to a golfer trying to better their round. A lot of times, they won’t keep score. Their only concern is making the next shot a good one. Although it may be easier to forget about your score on a golf course in the middle of nowhere than in a gaming store filled with players obsessed with results, it’s a worthwhile approach.
If you look at it that way, you will realize that finding success at a tournament is actually a long term achievement. To find a long-term achievement, you need to stay short-sighted.
Speaking of short-sighted, I have money to burn on upgrading my deck!
Deck Tech
This week, I have $35 to play around with thanks to the store credit. In my last article I made a lot of trades and buys, meaning I don’t necessarily need to add a lot of cards to my deck. Now it’s about quality.
This deck plays a lot of creatures, making it a perfect fit for [card]Scavenging Ooze[/card]. At $20 each, I will only be able to afford one for the time being. Do I bank the remaining $15 so that I can buy two more Oozes next week, or is there something that could be useful in my deck right now?
It was a tough decision, but I eventually decided to spend another $10 on a third [card]Fiendslayer Paladin[/card]. Opponents have had trouble dealing with him, and I would like to see that card on a more regular basis. I just don’t get tired of pairing him with [card]Wolfir Silverheart[/card].
To make room I had to cut the [card]Nearheath Pilgrim[/card]s. They weren’t bad in the deck but I needed to get rid of something on the lower end of the curve, and adding two ways of gaining life made them expendable.
Here’s what I will be FNMing with this week:
[deck title=GW Midrange by Chris Molleson]
[Creatures]
2 Angel of Serenity
3 Arbor Elf
1 Armada Wurm
4 Avacyn’s Pilgrim
4 Centaur Healer
3 Fiendslayer Paladin
1 Scavenging Ooze
4 Thragtusk
3 Wolfir Silverheart
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Advent of the Wurm
3 Ajani, Caller of the Pride
4 Selesnya Charm
[/Spells]
[Lands]
9 Forest
2 Gavony Township
5 Plains
4 Sunpetal Grove
4 Temple Garden
[/Lands]
[Sideboard]
4 Knight of Glory
3 Oblivion Ring
3 Ranger’s Guile
3 Ray of Revelation
2 Rootborn Defenses
[/Sideboard]
[/deck]
Now that I’ve done the damage, what would you have done with $35? Are their cards you would spend it on or would you save it for future, more expensive standard staples? I’d love to hear your ideas!
Finally, I hope that my thoughts on breaking down tournaments and not looking too far ahead have brought some fresh perspective to players both new and old. What are some of the hard lessons you’ve had to learn while playing Magic and how did they make you a better player?
As always, thanks for reading!
Chris Molleson