WNM - planechase multiplayer

By Jim Marlow

Hey everyone,

I hope wednesday served as a cold reminder that magic isn't just about making a half-awake train ride to the nearest PTQ before crapping out and getting at home at midnight with bad beats and punts on your mind, its just a game, one thats meant to be played for fun.

John did a magnificent job of organising an event, presummably the first of it's kind in this country, and creating a real buzz around with various hilarious events happening on separate tables that were being shared accross the room.

Before i became part of the Leeds magic group two years ago i spent around 6 months or so soley playing multiplayer games of all kinds with some housemates, mostly with precon decks, maybe with very slight alterations, and im very aware of the exciting tales that come from multiplayer action.

Paradoxically, the strength of the players in the Leeds group can also serve as it's weakness in acquiring new players to the game....it can be a daunting task coming up against some of the better players in the country in your first couple of weeks (that said, Leeds still has one of the largest fnm groups in the country). Even the FNM's played in Leeds are very competative, and given the level of the players, the decks are highly tuned, so players rarely get the chance to showcase their helix pinnacle monstrousity, or their mesa enchantress pile.

In all honesty, i got knocked out of both my games, and didnt have the best of times doing it, but these were not because it wasnt fun, i just didnt get a chance to get sigil of the empty throne working and bust out some sick turns.

For reference, here's the deck i played

4 x mesa enchantress
1 x reveillark
4 x martial coup
3 x idylic tutor
3 x sigil of the empty throne
4 x oblivion ring
4 x curse of chains
4 x pacifism
4 x runed halo
1 x armoured ascension
1 x rise of the hobgoblins
1 x endless horizons
1 x greater auramancy

23 x plains
2 x gargoyle castle



Overall, despite my poor performance in the event, it was a great idea, and certainly the majority of players in Leeds were going pretty mad for it, i cant remember a Leeds FNM being that rowdy with crowds of exciting magic players telling each other how they died, or killed the others.

Being my first time playing planechase, it certainly was a new experiance for me, and although i didnt have as much of a blast as most of the other players, i think it was a great idea, and certainly a tournament that i would like to see repeated in the future.

The planechase events will be fantastic events to bring new players too, because the effect of player skill on the outcome of the game is greatly reduced, yet the fundamentals of the game are the same. Also, it was great to see people that dont often win FNM's to be crushing games of planechase and winning themselves a load of boosters, because i remember having a huge chip on my shoulder until i won my first FNM.


Anyway, i certainly look forward to the next planechase event. Even though i dont enjoy them as much as other types of magic, they are still loads of fun, and i think they are great for acquiring new players and for less serious magic players.


See you all at the Weekend for the Release event...just to let everyone know im 21 on Monday, so a case or 2 of Zendikar would be much appreciated.



Untill then,


Jim


As always, feel free to comment on this article, or anything related or unrelated to magic whatsoever. If you would like to contribute to the TLM blog, please email any pictures, ideas or articles to ss07jm@leeds.ac.uk