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  Pack 1 pick 1:

  My Pick:

Kresh would be fine too, but I go for Infest as that leaves more options open.

  Pack 1 pick 2:

  My Pick:

To me, this is better than any common or uncommon. I just hope my right neighbor hasn’t picked Oblivion Ring.

  Pack 1 pick 3:

  My Pick:

Both cards are excellent, but what matters the most here, more than their individual value, is the signals. Esper is clearly open, but if I pass Sanctum Gargoyle, I might confuse the guy on my left. If I pick the Gargoyle, and if he picked Kresh, he will take the Capsule and we won’t have any conflict.

  Pack 1 pick 4:

  My Pick:


  Pack 1 pick 5:

  My Pick:

Esper Charm is good as well but I believe the 1/2 is a little better, in particular if I can get Astrolabe or Sludge Strider.

  Pack 1 pick 6:

  My Pick:

I love this card when I play control, but dislike it when playing aggro. Here, my deck doesn’t seem so fast so it should be good.

  Pack 1 pick 7:

  My Pick:

I already have one Obelisk, and I like this card a lot.

  Pack 1 pick 8:

  My Pick:

The more controlling you are, the better countermagic can be. At the moment my deck seems pretty slow, so Cancel should be good.

  Pack 1 pick 9:

  My Pick:


  Pack 1 pick 10:

  My Pick:


  Pack 1 pick 11:

  My Pick:


  Pack 1 pick 12:

  My Pick:


  Pack 1 pick 13:

  My Pick:


  Pack 1 pick 14:

  My Pick:


  Pack 1 pick 15:

  My Pick:


  Pack 2 pick 1:

  My Pick:

I'm switching to five-color instantly, if I have the possibility to do so.

  Pack 2 pick 2:

  My Pick:

I don’t care about the signals so much in pack 2, and now that I am five color and I already have a Gargoyle, the pick is not even close anymore.

  Pack 2 pick 3:

  My Pick:


  Pack 2 pick 4:

  My Pick:

It will be pretty difficult to play my Dragon if I can’t get a fixer fast.

  Pack 2 pick 5:

  My Pick:

Just what I needed, a land that searches for the two lands I need.

  Pack 2 pick 6:

  My Pick:

I love Esper Charm, and I didn’t really want to play a second Obelisk. However, if I want to have a chance to splash my Dragon, I need fixers at some point.

  Pack 2 pick 7:

  My Pick:

I’m not splashing for Soul’s Fire, as I only want to splash for cards that instantly do something when you draw them. It applies to most removal, but not to Soul’s Fire.

  Pack 2 pick 8:

  My Pick:

Good news, I should be able to play my Dragon now.

  Pack 2 pick 9:

  My Pick:

I am not playing 4 Obelisks, but this will leave me more options when building.

  Pack 2 pick 10:

  My Pick:


  Pack 2 pick 11:

  My Pick:


  Pack 2 pick 12:

  My Pick:


  Pack 2 pick 13:

  My Pick:


  Pack 2 pick 14:

  My Pick:


  Pack 2 pick 15:

  My Pick:


  Pack 3 pick 1:

  My Pick:

Hmm. I definitely think I am going for five color now. Also, not only is it a bomb, but it makes me consider running my 4 Obelisks.

  Pack 3 pick 2:

  My Pick:

Celestial Purge is okay main deck but fantastic in the board, and it could have been a fine pick. Gleam would help me fix my mana. But only Fiery Fall can both help me fix my mana and deal with guys. Of course, a fixer should not come from a color that is already a splash, and it is a little expensive as a removal spell, but on one hand my deck is slow and has lots of mana accelerators, which doesn't make the six mana spells a problem, and if searching for Forest gives me a bomb instantly, I’ll gladly take it.

  Pack 3 pick 3:

  My Pick:

Very nice here, as it will very often get me a bomb (Hydra, Dragon), a mass removal effect (Infest, Scourglass), or a color I am missing.

  Pack 3 pick 4:

  My Pick:


  Pack 3 pick 5:

  My Pick:

I don’t need the Knight, as I should already be able to kill an opponent when I have lots of lands. Brackwater, who can stop nearly any early guy and who survives to Infest, seems a more solid choice.

  Pack 3 pick 6:

  My Pick:

I love this one a lot better than the others, as it does something more significant when drawing the five colors, and as I am able to cast it with a regular Esper mana draw.

  Pack 3 pick 7:

  My Pick:

Combo with my two bombs, and even with Sanctum Gargoyle.

  Pack 3 pick 8:

  My Pick:


  Pack 3 pick 9:

  My Pick:

Countersquall could seem like an interesting sideboard card, as it can be cast more easily, but Filigree Fracture is simply amazing against Esper.

  Pack 3 pick 10:

  My Pick:


  Pack 3 pick 11:

  My Pick:

Interesting pick, it might make the cut.

  Pack 3 pick 12:

  My Pick:

Dammit, I'm drafting seriously to make this column look professional. I am passing a rare!

  Pack 3 pick 13:

  My Pick:


  Pack 3 pick 14:

  My Pick:


  Pack 3 pick 15:

  My Pick:


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3 Plains
5 Island
4 Swamp
2 Mountain
2 Forest
Naya Panorama
Puppet Conjurer
Metallurgeon
2 Brackwater Elemental
Paragon of the Amesha
Sanctum Gargoyle
Tower Gargoyle
Broodmate Dragon
Skyward Eye Prophets
Apocalypse Hydra
Executioner’s Capsule
Kaleidostone
Wordly Counsel
2 Obelisk of Esper
Obelisk of Bant
Obelisk of Jund
Resounding Wave
Infest
Cancel
Drag Down
Punish Ignorance
Scourglass
Fiery Fall

Because of the Broodmate Dragon I’ve opened, this deck doesn’t look much like an Esper deck anymore; I don’t have enough artifacts to run Windwright Mage, but that doesn’t apply to Metallurgeon and Puppet Conjurer, who can both drastically slow down the most aggro draws. As my only point is slowing down in order to get to the bombs, most of the cards that would be second class in most decks are pretty good here (the two 1/2s not running Esper, both Counters, a pair of Brackwater Elementals, and Resounding Wave). One last thing, concerning the 4 Obelisks: I don’t mind them as they are justified by Broodmate and Hydra who both like fixers and accelerators. I’ll probably draw a little more mana than my opponent, but it helps me play such great cards, it shouldn’t matter.

ROUND 1: BANT (Limited rating 1805)
My first time playing Apocalypse Hydra will be a good memory. A turn 7 14/14 is pretty good. When it pings and your opponent can’t deal with it, it simply wins.

The second game is a lot closer. He starts well but I manage to clear the board with Scourglass. I am about to play the Hydra for the win (in case he has no removal) when I draw Skyward Eye Prophets that should just make a perfect lightning conductor. The plan works just fine, as the 3/3 gets countered and my 12/12 Hydra will make the game.

ROUND 2: JUND (1625)
His deck was really bad and his plays didn’t seem much better. For instance, four times in the game, he has Toxic Iguanar, a green creature, and won’t attack when I’ve zero blockers, Tower Gargoyle, or Metallurgeon (when I'm tapped out) I wouldn’t like to trade. The match goes smoothly; I don’t need to draw my rares, and I advance pretty fast to the finals.

ROUND 3: Five-color aggro, Naya base (1777)
When I play Scourglass, while I’ve all lands on the board and he has three guys, I really hope It won’t be removed by a Oblivion Ring. When he attacks with only one of them, I think something must be wrong. Wrong, or actually right. The game seem to be under control when he has only one card in hand, and I’ve one guy in hand and one in play, except that I am at two life. That’s when he plays Rockcaster Platoon. My next draw is Paragon, just one little turn too late. When I come to think of the damage he spared me, and that I died after taking exact letheal damage, I can’t help but feel frustrated.

In game 2 he can’t help but play even better. He attacks with Matca Rioters and sacrifices his panorama land in his second main phase, saving me one life. On the next turn his guy attacks again, then he cycles a card and finds another color. Just another point saved, thanks. Even though his start is excellent, I’ve hope my Broodmate/Hydra/Scourglass hand can stop him. I play Broodmate on turn 7, but a first main phase Welkin Guide pushes one of them to chump block. After all this, he has no cards in hand, and even though he has many more guys than me, Scourglass will clean his board and leave me with two creatures one the board + Apocalypse Hydra in hand as a backup. I play my artifact and pass. He then draws and taps 5 manas to Play Scourge Devil. I was on 12, he can deal me 12. It’s pretty frustrating to lose two games to exact lethal damage, when the opponent forgot so many points of damage on his way to the win.

In the end that was a pretty good deck and going 2/1 seems ok with it. I just thought I’d lose to mana issues or to a broken deck, not to a misunderstanding.

Until Friday...

Oli