Wakefield Counter - A die or other indicator used to keep track of errors during game play. The object is to identify the errors and eliminate them in future play.
Origin: Jamie"King of the Fatties" Wakefield

Bruce - A name assigned to the unconscious ability that some people have to pull defeat from the jaws of victory. In its essence, it describes how we sometimes succumb to defeatism and give up - subconsciously, before the game has even finished.
Origin: John Friggin' Rizzo

Not so long ago in my Magic contemplation, I vowed to not look at luck as a factor in my defeats. I promised myself I would not complain about mana screw, and I wouldn't blame luck when my opponent topdecked the exact card he needed to win the game. Now that doesn't mean I am trying to say that there is no luck in the game of Magic - but let's face it, folks, Kai Budde and others have proven that luck is not the difference between Magic success and failure.

So why do I still lose?

Is Wakefield right? Do I make too many mistakes in game play?

Is Rizzo right? Do I succumb to defeatism?

Is my 'friend' Billah right? Do I absolutely suck?

Despite popular belief, the answer is not the third one, but it is a combination of the first two. I do make too many mistakes. I have set myself in a losing frame of mind and given up on games before they were finished.

The question is, how much of a difference does it make?

Obviously, if I make less mistakes, I will improve my game - but am I only making the mistakes because the game is already lost and I have stopped trying? If so, isn't that defeatism? I suspect the answer is that it will make a huge difference, however the only way to be sure is to try to change and see what happens.

With that in mind I make a conscious effort to never surrender, never admit defeat, think before making each play and relax, tension can only cause bad plays and a sore neck. Firing up Magic Online, I jump into the ever-popular 7^th, 7^th, 7^th draft and see if I can improve my 1515 Limited rating.

First pack I have the choice of a Foil Wind Drake, a regular Wind Drake, a Gravedigger, and a Final Fortune. Normally, I would take the Wind Drake but with two Wind Drakes the person next to me is going to draft one and then I will be left fighting over blue, so I pass on the Drakes. Gravedigger is good, very good, but I really like Final Fortune in draft so I snag that with the intention of going red/green.

Pack 2: I am presented with Goblin Elite Infantry, Grizzly Bears, Wind Drake, Venerable Monk, and Relentless Assault. I want to take the Assault because I have visions of casting Final Fortune and then Relentless Assault to basically get three attack phases in a row but I am also worried that I may be trying to get too cute: Final Fortune and particularly Relentless Assault are not going to help if you have no creatures. I take the Assault anyway, hoping I can get the creatures from here on out. I am, however, a little nervous about passing my opponent a second Wind Drake; if I go red green, flying will be my biggest weakness. My fears of not getting creatures were unfounded as I ended up getting a lot of Goblins, two Hill Giants, a Sabertooth Tiger, and a Trained Orgg for fat. I was also able to pick up a Lightning Blast, a Volcanic Hammer, two Shocks, and a Phyrexian Hulk. My deck was straight Red, as I never really saw any good Green. With that in mind, I also grabbed two Granite Grips and two Circle of Protection Red.

I built the deck as follows: 16 creatures 9 tricks and 15 Mountains. Normally I would play 17 Land but when playing one color I can get away with one less, since I was also using a lot of weenies I could get away with a total of two less.

Round 1 Single Elimination

Game 1:

I start out fast; my opponent is playing Green/Red. I get out a Sabertooth Tiger and slap Granite Grip on it while my opponent has managed to cast a couple of Llanowar Elves and a Spined Wurm; he chump blocks my Tiger and I chump block his Wurm. Goblins, Elves, Bears, and even Hill Giants are all being thrown in front of the two heavy hitters like red shirted, lieutenants in a Star Trek episode. Then it happens; the inevitable land pocket.

We both hit it at the same time and while I will be taking five a turn from the Wurm, he will be taking seven a turn plus one for each land I draw. Two swings later I am at ten and he is at two, we both have empty hands when I swing with my Tiger; the Spined Wurm, last bastion of defiance, sacrifices himself to allow for one more draw. My opponent draws and immediately casts Volcanic Hammer, making my Sabertooth Tiger extinct.

I draw Final Fortune, he plays Canopy Spider. The next turns go as follows:

Me: Land, 9
Him: Land, 2
Me: Land, 8
Him: Land, 2
Me: Land, 7
Him: Land, 2
Me: Land, 6
Him: Land, 2
Me: Land, 5
Him: Land, 2
Me: Land, 4
Him: Land, 2
Me: Land, 3
Him: Land, 2
Me: Land, 2
Him: Land, 2
Me: Land, 1

At this point, the only reason my opponent is still alive is because of my poor draws. At least that's one way to look at it, but in reality he is probably thinking the same thing! We both drew and played eight lands in a row, if he had drawn even one threat, I would have died.

I hit concede and the far too familiar"Are you sure you want to concede?" window pops up. Remembering that I promised to not make mistakes, I hit no and think for a minute. He has a 1/1 Creature, I have no creatures in play and I am at 1. My hand contains a lowly Final Fortune. Mise. I cast Final Fortune, and take my extra turn. I draw... Shock. Game 1 goes to me.

But I almost lost it; if I had been playing as I normally do I would have conceded and not seen the mistake. I would not have cast Final Fortune. Defeatism and the frustration of not drawing what was needed over 8 turns led me to almost throw away the game.

Game 2:
Some times everything seems to fall in the right place. You get in the car and realize your wife has just filled up the tank. You go to the donut shop and they give you exactly what you ordered. On the ride home, you notice the guy who sped passed you while you were doing ten over the limit is on the side of the road, getting a ticket from John Q. Law. As you pull back into the driveway, the final notes of your favorite song finish playing on the radio so you don't have to sit in the car, in your driveway, feeling like an idiot, waiting for it to end.

On days like that, when you know the stars are aligned just right, then maybe you can get a draw like I did in game 2.

Turn 1 Raging Goblin is followed up by Turn 2 Goblin Elite Infantry. In true Sligh fashion, Turn 3 is a Sabertooth Tiger and the Goblins have dropped my opponent to fifteen. On his fourth turn of the game my opponent taps out to play Gorilla Chieftain. Fourth turn I draw Final Fortune. Here is the game state:

My side:
3 Untapped Mountains, 1 Raging Goblin, 1 Goblin Elite Infantry, 1 Sabertooth Tiger.

Life Total: 20
In Hand: Mountain, Final Fortune, Volcanic Hammer, Relentless Assault, Trained Orgg.

My Opponent's Side:
2 Tapped Mountains, 2 Tapped Forests, 1 Gorilla Chieftain (Untapped).

Life Total: 15
Hand: 5 Cards of which, I am told later, 3 are Giant Growth, Monstrous Growth and Spined Wurm.

I always liked to compare Final Fortune to a Queen sacrifice in chess; it is a great way to win, but if you have miscalculated, then the game is lost. I do the math (3 x 5 = 15), even though it is not Psychatog quality math (1.5x + 0.5y + 1), I do it again to be sure. Normal attack phase + Final Fortune normal attack phase + Relentless Assault attack phase = three attack phases. Raging Goblin (1) + Goblin Elite Infantry (2) + Sabertooth Tiger (2) = 5 damage per attack. Three attacks at five points per attack is fifteen points of damage.

My turn: Mountain, Hammer the Chieftain, swing for five, Final Fortune. Draw (Mountain), swing for five, Relentless Assault, swing for 5, turn 4 kill.

Round 2: Single Elimination (B/G)
Game 1: I come out quick with a trio of Goblins and get my opponent to ten before he throws enough Grizzly Bears in the way to destroy my Goblin army. He has also managed a few hits with 'da Bears and I am at fourteen. His sole remaining critter is a Drudge Skeleton and my sole remaining critter is a Sabertooth Tiger with Granite Grip. We exchange critters, and in the process I sneak through a Hill Giant to bring him to seven. We return to the staring contest - a 1/1 Skeleton fearless in the face of the 10/1 first-striking Sabertooth Tiger. I draw a Volcanic Hammer and now I only need to draw my Lightning Blast to can burn him out. The staring contest continues for two more turns with the only change being his Skeleton is now a 3/2 Unholy regenerator. He breaks the stare down with a Dark Banishing on my Tiger and swings for three. Next turn he plays Bog Wraith as the skeleton takes me down to eight. On my turn, I Volcanic Hammer the Bog Wraith and my opponent says,"Man am I glad you didn't draw that a couple turns earlier 'cause you would've killed me."

epiph·a·ny
a (1) : a usually sudden manifestation or perception of the essential nature or meaning of something (2) : an intuitive grasp of reality through something (as an event) usually simple and striking (3) : an illuminating discovery b : a revealing scene or moment

los·er
1 : one that loses especially consistently
2 : one who is incompetent or unable to succeed; also : something doomed to fail or disappoint

 I believe that a song can represent every situation in life. This moment has been brought to you by Beck"

"I'm a Loser, baby, so why don't you kill me?"

My opponent happily obliges when his Skeleton attack is followed by a Corrupt.

Okay so I made a mistake the important thing to figure out is why? Did I not know that the Hammer could target the Skeleton? Did I not realize that regenerating a creature leaves it in a tapped state? No, I knew both of those, but I became blinded by two things:

1. Drudge Skeleton can regenerate; therefore, direct damage would not get rid of it.
2. Volcanic Hammer + Lightning Blast = Victory

With those two points in mind, I became blinded to any other options and missed the obvious play.

Game 2: As per usual with a deck heavy in Goblins, I get out a fast start. At four mana, my elite Goblin force is joined by Lightning Elemental; his answer of Bog Imp is inadequate as a Volcanic Hammer finishes it off and the ensuing attack drops him to two. After drawing, my opponent quickly assesses the situation and decides to scoop.

Game 3: No Goblins! I take five points of double Llanowar Elf damage before a Hill Giant stops the beating. A ferocious clash between Goblins, Giants, Elves, Skeletons, and a Gorilla Chieftain leaves me at seven life and a Hill Giant. My opponent is at eight and he has two Skeletons and a Gorilla Chieftain. I top deck my Trained Orgg and we come to another creature staredown. The Shock I have been holding in my hand to try to break through his defenses is joined by another, but he is not attacking and has added a Giant Spider to the equation. My two Shocks are joined by a Lightning Blast - and after spending a few moments trying to contemplate how to breakthrough with the Orgg, I realize I am holding eight points of direct damage and he is at eight life. Game 3 goes to me.

Round 3: Finals (Against the guy I passed the Wind Drakes to)

Game 1: He allows me to go first and I get an awesome draw; Raging Goblin is followed by Goblin Raider, who is followed by Sabertooth Tiger. Before my opponent has played a spell, he is at fifteen. With his third land in play he just passes the turn and I continue the savage beats by casting Lightning Elemental and serving for nine. With my opponent at six and only having three land in play, I am extremely confident that I can't lose this game. My opponent drops a fourth land - and suddenly God becomes very angry, and my creature army vanishes like free beer at a frat party. Unshaken, I calmly play my two Goblin Elite Infantries and pass the turn.

Dave Price contends (and I agree) that there are no wrong threats, only wrong answers. Apparently my opponent has never read any of Dave's musings. He suddenly becomes Radio Shack; I got questions, he's got answers.

Wind Drake nullifies my creatures.
Shock meets Counterspell.
Granite Grip meets Disenchant.
Hill Giant meets Glacial Wall.

I run out of threats, so he starts asking the questions.

His question?

"Mahamoti Djinn?"

My answer: D'oh!

Since I have no fliers, Mahamoti becomes T: Target player takes five Damage. Four turns and a Remove Soul later, we are shuffling for Game 2.

Game 2: The game turns out to be rather anticlimactic, as he is in complete control from his first-turn Force Spike to his sixth-turn Mahamoti. Counterspells and flyers make pretty quick work of my defenses and any hope of offense.

Second place and four packs; not bad. More importantly, though, I have come to realize that mistakes are not just made from defeatism or lack of rules knowledge - they are made when the entire situation isn't carefully examined or when the mind is set on a certain victory path.

I have tried since that tournament to play better and my online rating, as of this writing, is above 1700. The point I am trying to make is to reexamine your game; look for and correct Wakefield counter moments. Look for Bruce to rear his ugly mug, then ignore him.

If you don't, then you may find that Billah has the most accurate observation.

'Til next week, be sure to tip well or your Elephant Guide may lead you into an Elephant Ambush,

Wayne Alward
Jagar on MOL
AlwardWayne@NOSPAM.JohnDeere.com (remove NOSPAM.) when sending.