Magic the Gathering - Commander Night Playback - Ravnica Guild Night

A good way to spice up a Commander playgroup is to run a theme night to force everyone out of their comfort zone in some way. When someone in my Tuesday night crew ran the idea by the rest of us, we were all enthusiastically on board. Voting on a list of options, we unanimously chose a Ravnican Guild Wars night.

Each of us rolled a die, and from highest to lowest roll we chose which guild we would represent. The rules were that our commander had to be in the color combination of the two-color guild. Additionally, it must also be a legendary creature from one of the Ravnica blocks. (Ravnica, Return of Ravnica, and Guilds of Ravnica)

• The high roller chose Orzhov, with Teysa Karlov leading his deck.
  
  
• I was the next to pick with Golgari, and while I was torn between Savra, Queen of the Golgari, and Jarad, Golgari Lich Lord, I ultimately chose Savra because I didn't see as many decks built around her as I did with Jarad, and I didn't want to build a combo deck.
  
  
• The third player in line went with Simic, and specifically Vorel of the Hull Clade.
  
  
• Izzet was selected afterward, represented by Melek, Izzet Paragon.
  
  
• Last, but certainly not least (that would be the Azorius), we have the Rakdos guild, with their eponymous guildmaster at the helm.

Mind Games - Prey (2017) - Finale

At last, the Mind Games have reached their conclusion, and it's time for Mathias and I to enter the endgame. The choices we make will determine the fate of both Talos 1 and it's crew, and we must consider the consequences of our actions.

Or do we? Maybe there's more to what's going on then we can see.

As always, thanks to Sam Callahan for working on the thumbnails for this one.

In League with the Legends - Quick Draw

It's been almost a month since we've been to the world of Runeterra, and last time we were in the Lab experimenting with ASM... ARAM. This time, we have another new mode to tinker with in the Lab, this time called Quick Draw.

Let us test our luck and skill at improvising with the fleeting hand and limited mana at our disposal. Can we rise above our opponents with quick thinking and finesse, or will they be the ones standing when the dust settles?

Magic the Gathering - Commander Night Playback - Killing Your Own Forces for Fun and Profit

Another week, another couple of rounds of Commander with my playgroups. Yes, you read that correctly.

One of my friends who used to be in the first playgroup but needed to drop out for his new job started up another one with a few others at a time better suited to his schedule. After awhile, I was invited to join the group, and I did so gladly.

Of course, that also gives me more material for this series. I won't go into every match I ever play. That said, as long as my stamina is up for it, I'll write with about those matches that just need to be saved for the record books.

With my new Tuesday group, I brought out a new version of my Syr Konrad list, removing the Mindcrank combo from last time and adding in a density of creatures to get more triggers of his ability. The other players were running Xantcha, Sleeper Agent, the Gitrog Monster, and Heliod, Sun-Crowned.

Mind Games - Prey (2017) - Part 4

Welcome to another chapter of the Mind Games, as my friend Mathias and I continue our adventures inside Talos 1.

Today, we use Danielle Sho's intense loathing of our brother to unlock the road to Deep Storage, arming ourselves before we blast off into the Cargo Bay before running down to the Life Support to turn the entire station off and turn it back on.

Along the way, we encounter many of the survivors left on the station, making tough choices(tm)(C)(R) that will impact both them and our remaining time on Talos 1.

And as always, thank to Sam Callahan for his work on the thumbnails for this series.

Making Magic in the Arena - Orzhov Yorion

It's been a while since we've engaged with the Standard meta-game here in MTG Arena. To be honest, I'd been growing bored and disinterested since it seemed like nothing even the release of Core Set 2021 did anything to shake up or otherwise change the kind of decks being played. It was still mostly Bant/Sultai Ramp, with Temur Reclamation and Mono-Red Aggro trailing right behind, just as it's been for months now.

That all changed thanks to the recent update, banning a number of key cards that forced most of those decks out to make way for new archetypes to take the stage, while we still have the cards from the Ravnica sets and Core Set 2020 to make use of.

You can find the decklist here. 

  

Mind Games - Prey (2017) - Part 3

Once more, we step into a mind game. And once more, my good friend Mathias is joining me for the adventure.

After a brief adventure in the G.U.T.S. of Talos 1, we explore the Arboretum, including "Jupiter's palace at the top of the heavens" and the greenhouse where the staff have more urgent things on their mind. Then, we explore the Crew Quarters to participate in a good tabletop role playing session while eating shockingly bad food from the station's kitchen staff.

We also manage to beat the game... -ish.

Thanks again to Sam Callahan for his work on the thumbnails for the series.

A Quick Run - Hand of Fate 2

Lately, I've been burned ever so slightly by both Legends of Runeterra and MTG Arena, but for different reasons. As I was looking for something to play instead, a friend of mine on Twitter started asking about games to play with Twitch integration. Some of the games that came to mind were ones I've already played on stream, like Slay the Spire and Dead Cells, but there was one that I remembered loving, but forgot had Twitch integration.

While I've talked about Hand of Fate a few times on the old Texture Pop podcast, I've never actually showed off either the original game or it's sequel. And since the sequel allows for viewer participation, it seemed like a good idea.

(Apologies for the abysmal audio balancing on this video. I have no excuse for this one, and I should have seen how loud it was while recording.)

Magic the Gathering - Commander Night Playback - Take One Down and Pass It Around

Everyone's had that experience where certain commanders just end up fundamentally warping the game around their abilities. Like that Lavinia, Azorius Renegade player who you just know is playing the Knowledge Pool combo or my own Marisi deck who forces the rest of the table into uncomfortable combat, these are commanders that immediately telegraph that you're not in for a "normal" game of Commander.

Out of the three players who were in the match played, two of us were using such commanders. I was one of them, using a new flying "tribal" deck I had built around Inniaz, the Gale Force. The other game-warping commander was Zedruu, the Greathearted. And our third player had Kess, Dissident Mage as their general.

Mind Games - Prey (2017) - Part 2

The Mind Games continue, only this time I'm not alone. My old friend Mathias, who is just as much a fan of this game as I am, if not more so, will be joining me for the duration of this series.

Together, we'll restore functionality to the Looking Glass, and set off on a quest to fulfill the wishes of our previous incarnation. And along the way, we'll attempt to piece together the puzzle of Morgan Yu.

Thumbnail courtesy of Sam Callahan.