The 2009 Worlds Discussion Thread

[Forgotten One]

This thread is for the discussion of the 2009 Magic World Championships that started today and will go through this weekend.

To follow the WotC coverage, click here.

So far a lot has happened:

- Current US National Champion Charles Gindy has been DQ'd for a rules violation regarding Master of the Wild Hunt. He commented after the match on why his opponent didn't assign damage to his wolves when he activated it, technically committing Fraud (in the Magic sense). His DQ means that the US National team cannot defend its team title.

- Jund Aggro is 35% of the field, with Boros Bushwacker in 2nd with 15%. GWB 'Junk', Bant and Eldrazi Green are a close 3rd - 5th. Those 5 decks make up 75% of the Standard metagame.

- The Japanese are running Seige-gang Commander and Rampant Growth in their Jund builds....

- Chapin and Heezy are playing 4-color control with Cruel Ultimatum. As soon as a decklist becomes available, I'll start a thread. There are 10-11 players with the deck, and I'm unsue who they are to see how well they are doing. Chapin is 3-3; Heezy 2-4 so its not looking so hot. Is there a viable Control option out there?

[rabbit]

Originally Posted by Forgotten One

- Current US National Champion Charles Gindy has been DQ'd for a rules violation regarding Master of the Hunt. He commented after the match on why his opponent didn't assign damage to his wolves when he activated it, technically committing Fraud (in the Magic sense). His DQ means that the US National team cannot defend its team title.

I'm confused, how is this fraud? Was it supposed to be Master of the Wild Hunt? I can't see the article itself from work and I'll be here for another 4 hours.

[Forgotten One]

Originally Posted by rabbit

I'm confused, how is this fraud? I can't see the article itself from work and I'll be here for another 4 hours.

An excerpt from the article:

Originally Posted by Wizards.com Coverage

Gindy controlled a Master of the Wild Hunt, along with a pair of Wolf tokens, one a 2/2, and the other a 3/3 thanks to a counter from Oran-Rief the Vastwood.
Gindy activated his Master of the Wild Hunt, targeting one of his opponent’s creatures, in order to kill it. His Wolves were tapped, and his opponent’s creature was killed by the 5 damage from Master of the Wild Hunt’s ability, but the opponent did not assign damage back to either Wolf.
At the end of the match, Gindy asked why his opponent had not assigned damage to kill one of Gindy’s Wolf tokens when Master of the Wild Hunt’s ability resolved. This made it clear that Gindy knew that one of his Wolf tokens should have been assigned damage, but had chosen not to say anything at the appropriate time.
It is mandatory that the ability of Master of the Wild Hunt be completed in full, and by intentionally allowing the card to be misplayed, Gindy committed fraud as defined in the Infraction Procedure Guide. With Master of the Wild Hunt, a clear assignment of damage must be made for the ability to have fully resolved. It is not an option to see an opponent making a play outside the rules and allow it to happen.

By knowingly letting the opponent miss a portion of a mandatory ability, it is considered Fraud. It is especially bad if it clearly benefits you to do so, which in this case it totally benefitted Gindy.

[Zazirik]

Originally Posted by Forgotten One

- Jund Aggro is 35% of the field, with Boros Bushwacker in 2nd with 15%.

This does not at all surprise me seeing as these two are the best decks in the format.

Although the lack of RDW in the top five is surprising seeing as it beats Jund and Boros fairly easily.

[rabbit]

Originally Posted by Forgotten One

An excerpt from the article:

By knowingly letting the opponent miss a portion of a mandatory ability, it is considered Fraud. It is especially bad if it clearly benefits you to do so, which in this case it totally benefitted Gindy.

Ok you had Master of the Hunt as the card, which threw me off. I figured it out and edited my post before while you were replying back. Thanks though.

[Forgotten One]

Originally Posted by rabbit

Ok you had Mast of the Hunt as the card, which threw me off. I figured it out and edited my post before while you were replying back. Thanks though.

Sorry I forgot the Wild part....

Originally Posted by Zazirik

This does not at all surprise me seeing as these two are the best decks in the format.

Although the lack of RDW in the top five is surprising seeing as it beats Jund and Boros fairly easily.

Jund and Boros being the top 2 doesn't surprise me, but the fact that they are 50% of the field is definitely something to consider. The fact that only 79 people sleeved up anti-Jund BGW 'Junk ' (38), Bant(33) and GW(8) decks, and that these 78 people couldn't really agree on a solid GW-based option (based on the wide variety of these GW-based decks) is also something to consider.

Only 6 people sleeved up mono-red. I'm going to try and find who they are and track their standard win/loss record to see if there are any patterns. I'm not so sure about its beating Boros "fairly easily", but maybe the data will bear this out. It is definitely a matchup I'm going to test more.

[Zazirik]

Originally Posted by Forgotten One

but the fact that they are 50% of the field is definitely something to consider.

That honestly didn't/still doesn't surprise me. Being that they are really solid against most of the field.

Originally Posted by Forgotten One

I'm not so sure about its beating Boros "fairly easily", but maybe the data will bear this out. It is definitely a matchup I'm going to test more.

Please do. I've tested against it quite a lot and am having trouble against it pre board (which I would peg at 40/60 in their favor). Post board it gets better though(about 55-40, to 60-40 in our favor depending on your sideboard).

[XtReMeOnE2]

I'm surprised at how many people are playing Bant. It's always kind of been ignored in Standard by the pros and it looks like some pretty good ones are showing it some love.

[Forgotten One]

Originally Posted by Zazirik

That honestly didn't/still doesn't surprise me. Being that they are really solid against most of the field.

I don't disagree, but if you look at the last two years as a reference, the Worlds Standard metagame has never been this top heavy

2008
Faeries - 27%
BW Tokens - 14.6%
5-Color Control - 11.9%
WR Kithkin - 8.5%
Mono-White Aggro - 6.4%

Top 2 total - 42.8%
Top 5 total - 68.4%

2007
RG Ramp - 16.6%
Mannequin - 11.1%
Doran Rock - 10.1%
BG Elves - 7.5%
UG Faeries - 7.3%

Top 2 Total - 27.7%
Top 5 Total - 52.6%

Compare to a Top 2 total of 50% and a Top 5 total of 75%, that's surprising.

[Zazirik]

Originally Posted by Forgotten One

I don't disagree, but if you look at the last two years as a reference, the Worlds Standard metagame has never been this top heavy

2008
Faeries - 27%
BW Tokens - 14.6%
5-Color Control - 11.9%
WR Kithkin - 8.5%
Mono-White Aggro - 6.4%

Top 2 total - 42.8%
Top 5 total - 68.4%

2007
RG Ramp - 16.6%
Mannequin - 11.1%
Doran Rock - 10.1%
BG Elves - 7.5%
UG Faeries - 7.3%

Top 2 Total - 27.7%
Top 5 Total - 52.6%

Compare to a Top 2 total of 50% and a Top 5 total of 75%, that's surprising.

Right. But you cannot compare last years statistic's to this years(with 07' aside). For the sheer fact that the metagame was defined and Faeries was a monster(seeing as it has been in the metagame for almost a year, winning events and events, leading up to worlds) and people knew that, so most of them chose a different route.

Now with this year's Worlds, the format is mostly undefined and even though Jund is known, people still went with it because it was a "safe" choice, which is why I assume their is big numbers for Jund. Boros being 2nd isn't surprising either since it has a favorable matchup against Jund.

[AtriumXP]

Taken from:
http://www.blackborder.com/q/node/4449

They're saying this deck is currently 6-0 at World's

Jacerator by Joel Calafell (Worlds 2009)
Drawing Acceleration: 4x Font of Mythos 4x Howling Mine Mill: 2x Archive Trap 4x Jace Beleren Control and Life Management: 3x Day of Judgment 1x Path to Exile 4x Angelsong 4x Flashfreeze 4x Safe Passage 2x Sunspring Expedition 4x Time Warp	Sideboard 4x Baneslayer Angel 3x Negate 2x Pithing Needle 2x Relic of Progenitus 1x Sunspring Expedition 1x Tezzeret the Seeker 2x Wall of Denial Lands (24) 4x Kabira Crossroads 4x Glacial Fortress 10x Island 6x Plains

From the interview on the site, he says the main strategy is (paraphrasing) "to outplay every card your opponent plays" - to "beat Jund, aggro decks, and decks that are trying to beat Jund" [hence Flashfreeze].

Then he says he sideboards in the 4 Baneslayers since his opponents would see most of his deck game 1 and assume it was creatureless, so they sideboard out their removal, lol.