Gatecrash Prerelease Experiment

Gatecrash Prerelease Experiment

This weekend I decided to participate in my first MTGO tournament. The Gatecrash prerelease seemed like the perfect opportunity to break into the scene. It was also a perfect opportunity to experiment with acquiring inventory off of release events.

Deck Construction

With my Orzhov Guild Mark I received 5 Gatecrash boosters and 1 Guild booster pack. Because I had chosen the guild Orzhov I wanted to focus on White and Black Extort. However, when my boosters were opened it was obvious that all of my best cards lay in Boros. I decided to run Orzhov with a splash of Boros to be able to play Aurelia’s Fury, Boros Reckoner and Act of Treason. With a fair amount of mana fixers and low color demand for each card I had no trouble having the colors I needed to play each and every card when I wanted to play it.

Decklist:

• Basilica Guards
• Knight of Oblivion
• Dutiful Thrull
• Orzhov Charm
• Kingpin’s Pet
• Treasury Thrull
• Boros Reckoner
• Aurelia’s Fury
• Skynight Legion
• Syndicate Enforcer X2
• Grisly Spectacle
• Crypt Ghast
• Slate Street Ruffian
• Basillica Screecher
• Contaminated Ground
• Devour Flush
• Thrull Parasite
• Prophetic Prism
• Razortip Whip
• Orzhov Keyrune
• Orzhov Guildgate x2
• Plains x7
• Swamp x5
• Mountain x3

Round 1 – Versus Dimir 2-0

In the first round I battled a Dimir deck that nearly roasted me in the first of 3 matches. I managed to swing a win using acts of treason on my opponent’s strongest critters while staying alive and witling away at life using extort and Razortip Whip. In the second round my opponent failed to draw his strongest cards and I ultimately took victory. I won 2-0, although both matches were very close.

Round 2 – Versus Boros 0-2

In the second round I fought against a well-constructed Boros deck. The aggressive creatures and combat tricks overwhelmed my ability to stay alive with extort and the games ended very quickly. The first match was leaning heavily in my favor until out of nowhere my opponent slaps 10 damage on an unblocked critter using two scorchwalker, but the second match was total victory for my opponent within five minutes. I lost the round 0-2.

Round 3 – Versus Simic 1-2

In the third round I found myself in a very intense game against a Simic deck. I ended up winning the first match decisively. The second match came down to drawing a single card. I was able to drop my opponent to 1 life with an untapped Razortip Whip available. However, I did not draw the land I needed to pay the cost to tap it that turn and lost the round on my opponents next turn.  The third round was a back and forth struggle until ultimately the evolve mechanic overwhelmed my ability to extort for life. I lost the round 1-2 and while disappointed in my loss I enjoyed the back and forth nature of the games considerably.

Round 4 – Versus Orzhov/Dimir 2-0

I walked into the fourth round discouraged by two losses in a row, but my luck turned. I dominated an Orzhov/Dimir hybrid deck that split his focus between extort and mill and ultimately he lost because of the indecisive win condition of his deck. I won 2-0 riding to victory with the extort mechanic.

The Breakdown

In the end I spent $ 5 on an Orzhov Guild mark and grabbed 20 tickets off of my bot to pay for entry. I ended up winning 2 games and losing 2 games landing me a reward of 1 Gatecrash booster.

I sold the Boros Reckoner and Aurelia’s Fury for 26 tickets. This more than paid for the costs of the event. While the other 88 cards and the booster pack prize were put on the bot as inventory to be sold for profit.

I was fortunate to crack a chase rare and a mythic and was able to pay for my expenses this time with a little extra to put on my bot. Next time I might end up taking a bath opening nothing but junk rares and uncommons. Not too shabby for a first event, but the next time I’ll be aiming for bigger prizes in case I don’t open a coveted mythic to sell.

I’d love to hear about your experience with tournaments and botting so post your tips, tricks and stores in the comments!