EPTI've heard all sorts of bad things about it, and I'll admit there are lot of things about it left to be desired, but it's a decent outlet for me for now, that doesn't require any extra cash upfront (unless I choose to start collecting actively online, which I don't see myself doing OVER live cards).
So you start with 20 'New Player Points,' and can spend them to enter 'Phantom Drafts' which are the same as regular drafts except you don't get to keep the cards. I tried a regular draft yesterday (Khans of Tarkir x3 packs) and lost my first match because I didn't realize the 50min time limit was split up into 25min per person---I ran out of time even though I was winning.
In the end went 1-1 (2 best 2-of-3 matches) so I wasn't too upset.Today I decided to step it up a notch. I had drafted before but I've never done a 6-pack Sealed draft before, so what better medium to give it a shot, when I'm not wasting any money and am likely to lose?
The format was Swiss and around 36 people entered for 3 rounds---essentially it means you play 3 different people and that's it.
THE DECK
http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/first-sealed-draft-abzan-ktkx6/
Some things I immediately noticed were The overwhelming presence of strong Temur cards (R/G/U), but upon looking for other good morph cards in those colors to round out the deck, the packs seemed decidedly lacking. Ultimately I decided against Temur even with Temur Ascendancy, Temur Charm, and two Snowhorn Rider, which was a tough decision.
Another tough decision was not picking Sultai after seeing Kheru Lich Lord. The Delve mechanics and synergy were certainly there with cards like Dead Drop, Treasure Cruise and Sultai Scavenger and while I felt a Sultai deck could have been very strong, I didn't trust myself to play the deck properly with all of the graveyard mechanics involved.
In the end I chose an Abzan deck, when I saw cards like the Mer-Ek Nightblade and of course, Abzan Ascendancy.
THE MATCHES
Match 1: I learned from yesterdays timeout that I had to play faster so I made not overthinking things my goal. In the end, I lost to another Abzan player whose deck seemed slightly better than mine but he played WAY slower, and though he won the first game out of three, I had a good handle on the second game after sideboarding in an extra Throttle (especially after seeing how well they worked on me). In the end, he ran out of time and the match went to me. Obviously I was playing with other newbie players like me all learning the same lessons as me so I didn't feel too badly about it.
Match 2: Played against a guy with a pretty solid Mardu (R/W/B) deck. I was horribly mana-screwed unil something like TURN 17, up until which point i had ONLY 5 MANA, but I somehow managed to stay in the game. We spent much of the game taking turns Outlasting things (Disowned Ancestor turn 1 ftw!), chipping away at each other, and being generally way too pussy to attack until I decided at one point to go all out with all of my Morphed creatures and other things on the board. In the end, it wasn't a good idea as I fell behind and went down to 2 life after a few turns, being a creature or two behind. My opponent finally had lethal (just barely) but I had one final trick up my sleeve. I flipped one of my Abzan Guides which JUST BARELY saved my ass, and with Swarm of Bloodflies on the field and a really clutch Armament Corps and Abzan Ascendancy draw, I squeaked out the win, after he messed up a play where he thought giving his attacking creature protection from Green would allow it to bypass the block. It was SUPER close, and this game we both used almost all our time. In the end I won due to time again, but having actually won the first game it felt even better.
Match 3: Played against a guy with a similar 2-0 record to mine. He plays Scout the Borders and discards all sorts of cards of different colours, including Zurgo Helmsmasher. I think to myself...'WTF?' But I say ok, whatever he wants to do. He has 4 colours of mana on the board already and I'm beginning to wonder how he managed to go 2-0 so far, when he drops a bomb on me. Zurgo Helmsmasher #2. HOW DOES ANYBODY GET THAT LUCKY? He starts ramming it into my face immediately, but only has that and a 2/1 flier on the board. I let him hit me with it a couple times while cracking back with a couple Morphs and +1/+1 counter-buffed creatures, and then once again, Abzan Ascendancy to the rescue, with the 1/1 fliers as Zurgo kills things protecting my HP. Eventually I'm able to draw some self-buffs and go all out, killing him before he manages to kill me. Game two was a complete blowout tbh, and he conceded before I managed to even do a whole lot with some buffed and freshly deathtouch-ifying creatures.
I know I made quite a few mistakes along the way (some I can name and recognize, others I can't), but I'm pretty damn proud of myself because I didn't think my first foray into Sealed would go NEARLY that well.
I think I'll do one of these blogs every so often as an exercise for myself (and a way to remember my adventures), and perhaps those of you knowledgeable and/or interested enough to post in here can give me some feedback (or just say hi). I'm always interested in advice from those more experienced and better than me.
Rewards: MTG 2015 Deckbuilder's Essentials box, 5x KTK 5-card Booster
