This past weekend we witnessed a dear friend of mine, Matt Nass, hoist the trophy and become our new Pro Tour champion.
Matt has wanted this for quite some time, and I couldn't be happier for him. Matt's truly one of the nicest people you'll ever meet and one hell of a Magic player.
Matt's weapon of choice? Domain Overlords.
I've not played much Standard, but from watching the event, Domain looked to be the best deck. It seemed to have a decisive advantage against midrange decks. While it was slated as an underdog against red, beating decks like red aggro has always been easier than formulating a plan to beat midrange decks. You simply need to buy time, have some life gain, and give yourself the opportunity to live long enough to develop your game plan.
I played with various red decks in the past. They're very strong when they draw well, but red aggro decks have a serious issue with flooding out once they face pushback.
Prior to this event, I saw multiple people clamoring for a This Town Ain't Big Enough ban, which seemed ridiculous. There are plenty of strategic ways to go over the top or underneath a deck like Pixies, as we saw Domain do often.
I expect to see a lot of Domain at the tables in the near future, so if you're playing Standard, make sure you're prepared to play against it.
My favorite part of every Pro Tour is watching the Limited portion. This PT, we saw two of the best to ever do it: Javier Dominguez, our reigning world champ, and Ben Stark, one of the best to ever open a booster pack.
I learned a lot watching them draft, but not in the way you may think. I would have drafted differently in both of their seats, which is not uncommon for this set, but watching it made me realize this is not a format to hedge your bets.
Both players did poorly in their drafts. In retrospect, it's easy to say, "I would have done better," but the best thing you can do is learn from their perceived mistakes and figure out where they went wrong.
Javier found his open lane, but he pushed against the grain for too long. As early as pick two, I would have taken an Explosive Getaway that he neglected and embraced my position as a control or midrange deck. Many people have sworn off Getaway, but the card has been nothing but absurd both for and against me. Its win-rate data is low because of its color combination, and it is a card that requires setup.
One thing data won't show you in Limited is that proactive cards will have inflated win rates since they require almost no thought to use correctly. I play my over-statted four-drop creature, attack three times, and the game ends. Removal, and especially cards like Explosive Getaway, will have lower win-rate data because they require a game plan and can't win the game on their own. It requires you to use all your other cards correctly, whether that is holding off on either casting removal or making a trade, or by letting yourself fall behind early. The plays with a card like Getaway aren't scripted. There's nuance to how each game will play out, and it's up to you to solve that puzzle. Good players can leverage that a lot better.
Regardless, both players ended up in the correct lane. I just would have ended up embracing what was coming rather than pushing back. If I've learned anything in this format, it's that synergistic decks don't come together often, and you're mostly trying to piece together a midrange soup deck. Basically, you're drafting what looks like a sealed deck.
I probably shouldn't write about certain allegations having not seen them myself, but you can't go on Magic Twitter right now and not see people accusing various players with deep runs of making some beneficial mistakes. Whether these mistakes were intentional or not is up to the judge and their opponents to decide. I personally haven't seen anything too out of the ordinary. That said, it's up to the judges to enforce these things. I can say that judges are more standoffish than they have been in the past. In my last paper PT Top 8, I was pressured to play faster on multiple occasions. Every turn I was involved in was more complicated than what my friend Matt had in front of him on the final turn of the tournament.
We've said it for years, but there needs to be consistent guidelines in slow play. I am not calling out Matt since he was rightfully exhausted after a long day in the office, was playing the last game to become PT champion, and didn't want to mess up the math. I'm fine with and encourage that leniency. However, it needs to be consistently addressed.
Every time I watch my friends battle at the Pro Tour, it gives me a little bit of the fire. It makes me happy that we have so many online competitive outlets with stakes these days. While the Pro Tour itself is too much of a time commitment for me at the moment, we now have more ways than ever to play Magic at home. I'm happy for Matt. It couldn't have happened to a nicer guy or better counter.
This weekend we have the Arena Open. While I have a busy weekend planned, including celebrating my 42nd birthday, I will try to at least fire a bullet or two. I'll see you at the tables.
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