Madison local, and seasoned Lord, Ben Wagnon, took down the 93/94 event with little trouble, ending with a perfect 5-0 record and no need to slug out a top four. As has become customary with our gatherings, along with the glory of victory, the winning sorcerer is obliged to recant his tales from the battlefield, with hopes of preserving that victory the the annals of Dominaria's history. This is Ben's story from that fateful day on frozen Lake Mendota.
//Danny
The Madison Offensive
While I got into Magic too late to be especially nostalgic about 93/94, Ravnica-era Zoo with Kird Ape and Char was one of the first decks I picked up, and I’ve been wanting to bring something similar to Old School for a while. While straight RG seemed like a lot of fun, I had a newly acquired CE Ancestral Recall and Beta Power Sinks on top of a UR Control deck I wasn’t able to bring to the December tournament, so RUG Zoo seemed like the obvious choice.
Having chosen a shell and some cards I wanted to play in the flex slots, I filled in the rest of the deck with the standard crew of Efreets, Djinns, and Bolts. I tried to make up for a lack of Moxen with three Birds of Paradise and 23 lands, which seemed pretty consistent in my goldfished games despite the full helping of colorless lands. Luckily enough, Shane had some extra CE Power to loan out the morning of, and I upgraded two Birds and a Sylvan Library for a Sapphire, Emerald, and Time Walk available just before the tournament began.
Round 1
Bob Agra on The Deck
2-1
This match was very back and forth, and I never felt completely safe or totally dominated in spite of the four active Libraries over our three games. Game one, I barely squeaked out a win with an early Kird Ape plus Time Walk followed by exactly enough burn. In game two, I was immediately facing down a Circle of Protection: Red on turn two, followed by a Moat and enough Red Blasts/counter magic to keep my Serendibs away. I tried to stay in as long as I could, but eventually got buried under Library. In Game three, Bob had a similar start, but a few timely Strip Mines followed by some Bolts kept me within striking distance. I ended up grinding out a few more turns and finished him off with a Psionic Blast or two.
This was a very fun match, and solidified Zoo as my favorite deck I've played so far in Old School—being able to play an aggressive beatdown deck while having possibilities for complex stacks and board states is fantastic.
Round 2
Nick Rohr on "Last Case Scenario" Pink
2-1
I don't remember a ton about this match, but this is one of the scarier decks for me to play against. Lots of burn to punish me for my Serendibs and Cities, and big spells with Blood Moons to overload my removal and counters. Luckily, I had well-timed Blue Blasts and fatties to make up for a couple fairly questionable plays on my part, and was able to escape with my mana base and life total intact.
Round 3
Bryan F. on RUG Zoo
2-1
A mirror match wasn't exactly what I was looking to face at this point, since I would almost certainly be outgunned in terms of Power, and Zoo can have trouble answering powerful early plays. Game one confirmed my fears, as I was rolled over by a turn one Wheel off a Lotus, followed up by Ancestral and beaters. In game two, I got some advantage from having a slightly heftier creature base, which meant that I had only a few Bolt-able creatures. I had a perfectly timed Fireball to remove his Argothian Pixies and clear the board for more beats. Game three was a fairly anticlimactic ending to this match, as Bryan was pressured to cast an early Wheel, which drew me into Ancestral and fatties and him into half his mana base.
Round 4
Mr. Punts on The Deck with Shivan Dragon
2-0
I remember next to nothing about this match, but "blitzed to a 2-0 W" is the description Matt gave. At this point in the day, a quick win and some time to rest was much appreciated.
Round 5
Dominic Dotterer on Fatties
2-0
I've never finished better than a match above even in Chicago before this tournament. The Lords don't mess around. But after taking the first four rounds, I started to seriously think about the possibility of running the tables, as long as I could steer clear of Serra Angel. Unfortunately, I got paired against Dom’s terrifying Bant deck in Round five, and resigned myself to a loss before we sat down. However, Zoo does a very good job of punishing mulligans and slow draws, and that's what this match boiled down to. In the first game, Dom put up a strong fight in spite of a mulligan to five, but eventually died to more pressure than he could answer being down two cards. In the second game, I Bolted an early Llanowar Elf, which combined with a mana-light draw slowed him down enough for me to start dealing damage. I eventually Ancestralled into enough Power Sinks to hold off any serious threats, and was able to ride the threats and burn I had to the win.
I felt pretty happy with my mainboard for this event. I never felt wholly unprepared for situations I ran into. The nine colorless lands worried me a little, but my mana flowed well all day, and the full sets of Strip Mines and Mishra's Factories justified themselves well. The sideboard however, is extremely undeveloped - just a pile of hate cards for various nonsense I expected I might run into. Disrupting Scepter never felt great, even in grindy matches against The Deck, and Energy Flux just seemed unnecessary.
This event was fantastic, and I really enjoy having such a vibrant Old School scene next door in Chicago, especially one so welcoming to those of us outside the city itself. Thanks to all involved for contributing to a great weekend!
Final Standings
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| Madison Offensive 93/94 Standings |
Decklists
1st place
RUG Zoo
by Ben Wagnon
| Business (34) Instants (12) 1 Ancestral Recall 4 Lightning Bolt 1 Mana Drain 3 Power Sink 3 Psionic Blast Sorceries (9) 4 Chain Lightning 1 Fireball 1 Recall 1 Regrowth 1 Time Walk 1 Wheel of Fortune Artifacts (1) 1 Chaos Orb Creatures (12) 1 Birds of Paradise 2 Erhnam Djinn 4 Kird Ape 1 Serendib Djinn 4 Serendib Efreet | Mana Sources (26) Artifacts (3) 1 Mox Emerald 1 Mox Sapphire 1 Sol Ring Lands (23) 4 City of Brass 1 Library of Alexandria 4 Mishra's Factory 4 Strip Mine 4 Taiga 3 Tropical Island 3 Volcanic Island Sideboard (15) Instants (6) 2 Blue Elemental Blast 3 Red Elemental Blast 2 Shatter Sorceries (1) 1 Earthquake Lands (1) 1 Maze of Ith Artifacts (1) 1 Disrupting Scepter Enchantments (5) 2 Control Magic 3 Energy Flux |
2nd place
RUG Zoo
by Bryan F.
| Business (34) Instants (8) 1 Ancestral Recall 4 Lightning Bolt 3 Psionic Blast Sorceries (9) 4 Chain Lightning 1 Recall 1 Regrowth 1 Timetwister 1 Time Walk 1 Wheel of Fortune Artifacts (1) 1 Chaos Orb Creatures (14) 3 Argothian Pixies 3 Erhnam Djinn 4 Kird Ape 4 Serendib Efreet Enchantments (2) 2 Sylvan Library | Mana Sources (26) Artifacts (5) 1 Black Lotus 1 Mox Emerald 1 Mox Ruby 1 Mox Sapphire 1 Sol Ring Lands (21) 3 City of Brass 1 Library of Alexandria 4 Mishra's Factory 1 Strip Mine 4 Taiga 4 Tropical Island 4 Volcanic Island Sideboard (15) Instants (7) 1 Blue Elemental Blast 3 Red Elemental Blast 3 Shatter Sorceries (4) 2 Earthquake 2 Tranquility Enchantments (4) 2 Control Magic 2 Energy Flux |
3rd place
UWB Sky Net
By Matt Moss
| Business (33) Instants (16) 1 Ancestral Recall 4 Counterspell 4 Disenchant 2 Power Sink 4 Swords to Plowshares Sorceries (6) 1 Braingeyser 1 Demonic Tutor 1 Mind Twist 1 Recall 1 Timetwister 1 Time Walk Artifacts (2) 1 Chaos Orb 1 Jalum Tome Creatures (7) 4 Serendib Efreet 3 Serra Angel Enchantments (2) 2 Moat | Mana Sources (28) Artifacts (5) 1 Black Lotus 1 Mox Jet 1 Mox Pearl 1 Mox Sapphire 1 Sol Ring Lands (23) 4 City of Brass 3 Island 1 Library of Alexandria 4 Mishra's Factory 3 Plains 1 Scrubland 3 Strip Mine 4 Tundra 1 Underground Sea Sideboard (15) Instants (6) 3 Blue Elemental Blast 2 Divine Offering 1 Mana Short Lands (1) 1 Maze of Ith Creatures (1) Enchantments (7) 1 Circle of Protection: Black 2 Circle of Protection: Red 2 Energy Flux 2 Karma |
4th place
RUG Zoo
by Brian Fisher
5th place
Fatties
RUG Zoo
by Brian Fisher
Business (34)
Instants (8)
Sorceries (8)
1 Regrowth
Artifacts (1)
Creatures (16)
4 Kird Ape
Enchantments (1)
|
Mana Sources (26)
Artifacts (5)
1 Sol Ring
Lands (21)
4 Taiga
Sideboard (15)
Instants (9)
3 Shatter
Sorceries (4)
Enchantments (4)
|
5th place
by Dominic Dotterer
6th place
The Deck featuring Shivan Dragon
by Mr. Punts
Business (36)
Instants (7)
Sorceries (7)
1 Regrowth
Artifacts (1)
Creatures (20)
4 Birds of Paradise
4 Erhnam Djinn 1 Force of Nature 4 Llanowar Elves 3 Mahamoti Djinn 4 Serra Angel
Enchantments (1)
|
Mana Sources (24)
Artifacts (7)
1 Sol Ring
Lands (17)
4 Savannah
3 Tundra
Sideboard (15)
Instants (5)
Sorceries (3)
Enchantments (7)
|
6th place
The Deck featuring Shivan Dragon
by Mr. Punts
Business (32)
Instants (16)
Sorceries (8)
Artifacts (5)
Creatures (1)
Enchantments (2)
|
Mana Sources (28)
Artifacts (10)
1 Sol Ring
Lands (18)
Sideboard (15)
Instants (7)
Sorceries (3)
Enchantments (3)
|
7th place
RWG Bazaar Zoo
by Jason Jaco
Business (39)
Instants (11)
Sorceries (5)
1 Balance
1 Regrowth
Artifacts (1)
Creatures (17)
4 Kird Ape
3 Preacher4 Savannah Lions
Enchantments (2)
Lands (2)2 Bazaar of Baghdad |
Mana Sources (21)
Artifacts (3)
1 Mox Ruby
Lands (18)
1 Forest
1 Plains
4 Plateau
3 Savannah
3 Taiga
Sideboard (15)
Instants (4)
Sorceries (4)
Artifacts (2)2 Black Vise
Enchantments (2)
1 Greater Realm of Preservation1 Karma |
Reanimator
by Shane Semmens
Business (37)
Instants (7)
Sorceries (12)
Artifacts (1)
Creatures (14)
Lands (4)
|
Mana Sources (24)
Artifacts (8)
1 Sol Ring
Lands (16)
Sideboard (15)
Instants (5)
Sorceries (3)
Enchantments (4)
|
9th place
Big RWG Land Destruction
Joe Alane
Business (35)
Instants (12)
Sorceries (11)
1 Balance
1 Channel
4 Fireball
1 Regrowth
Artifacts (1)
Creatures (7)
|
Mana Sources (25)
Artifacts (7)
1 Sol Ring
Lands (18)
1 Forest
2 Plateau
2 Savannah
4 Taiga
Sideboard (15)
Instants (10)
3 Fork
Creatures (4)
4 Kird Ape
Enchantments (1)
|
White Weenie
by Nathan Mullen
| Business (37) Instants (8) 4 Disenchant 4 Swords to Plowshares Creatures (25) 4 Icatian Javelineers 4 Order of Leitbur 1 Preacher 4 Savannah Lions 4 Thunder Spirit 4 Tundra Wolves 4 White Knight Enchantments (4) 4 Crusade | Mana Sources (23) Lands (23) 4 Mishra's Factory 15 Plains 4 Strip Mine Sideboard (15) Instants (2) 2 Divine Offering Sorceries (4) 2 Armageddon 2 Dust to Dust Artifacts (3) 3 City in a Bottle Creatures (2) 1 King Suleiman 1 Preacher Enchantments (4) 2 Circle of Protection: Black 2 Circle of Protection: Red |
Too Cool for a Picture, List, or Deck Name
by John Beste
12th place
RGB Zoo
by Grant Casleton
Business (37)
Instants (7)
Sorceries (9)
1 Regrowth
Artifacts (1)
Creatures (19)
Enchantments (1)
|
Mana Sources (23)
Artifacts (4)
1 Sol Ring
Lands (19)
4 Taiga
Sideboard (15)
Instants (8)
1 Berserk
2 Shatter
Enchantments (1)
|
Vortex Equilibrium
by Danny Friedman
Business (35)
Instants (7)
Sorceries (4)
1 Balance
Artifacts (11)
Enchantments (13)
|
Mana Sources (26)
Artifacts (8)
1 Sol Ring
Lands (18)
Sideboard (15)
Instants (6)
Sorceries (1)
|
14th place
Dark Angels
Business (33)
Instants (12) 4 Dark Ritual 4 Disenchant 4 Swords to Plowshares Sorceries (7) 1 Balance 1 Demonic Tutor 4 Hymn to Tourach 1 Mind Twist Artifacts (1) 1 Chaos Orb Creatures (13) 2 Hypnotic Specter 4 Juzam Djinn 1 Royal Assassin 2 Sengir Vampire 4 Serra Angel |
Mana Sources (27)
Artifacts (1) 1 Sol Ring Lands (26) 4 City of Brass 4 Mishra's Factory 4 Scrubland 13 Swamp 1 Urborg Sideboard (15) Lands (2) 2 Strip Mine Artifacts (2) 2 Golgothian Sylex Enchantments (11) 1 Conversion 4 Greater Realm of Preservation 4 Underworld Dreams 2 White Ward |
15th place
Juzam Link
by James Tork
Business (38)
Instants (12) 4 Dark Ritual 3 Disenchant 4 Swords to Plowshares 1 Terror Sorceries (5) 1 Demonic Tutor 3 Hymn to Tourach 1 Mind Twist Artifacts (1) 1 Chaos Orb Creatures (16) 4 Cuombajj Witches 4 Hypnotic Specter 4 Juzam Djinn 1 Royal Assassin 2 Sengir Vampire 1 The Wretched Enchantments (4) 4 Spirit Link |
Mana Sources (24)
Artifacts (4) 1 Black Lotus 1 Mox Jet 1 Mox Pearl 1 Sol Ring Lands (20) 4 City of Brass 1 Library of Alexandria 4 Mishra's Factory 4 Scrubland 7 Swamp Sideboard (15) Sorceries (5) 2 Armageddon 1 Balance 1 Drain Life 1 Sinkhole Instants (3) 2 Divine Offering 1 Terror Creatures (2) 2 Royal Assassin Lands (3) 3 Strip Mine Artifacts (1) 1 Nevinyrral's Disk Enchantments (1) 1 Land Tax |
16th place
by Michael Butzin
Business (36)
Instants (7) 4 Disenchant 3 Swords to Plowshares Sorceries (4) 2 Armageddon Artifacts (1) 1 Chaos Orb Creatures (20) 4 Icatian Javelineers 1 King Suleiman
2 Preacher
Enchantments (4)3 Crusade 1 Land Tax |
Mana Sources (24)
Artifacts (3) 1 Black Lotus 1 Mox Pearl 1 Mox Sapphire Lands (20) 1 City of Brass 1 Library of Alexandria 12 Plains 4 Strip Mine 4 Tundra Sideboard (11) Lands (2) 2 Island Instants (1) 1 Swords to Plowshares Artifacts (1) 1 City in a Bottle Enchantments (7) 1 Crusade 4 Energy Flux 2 Spirit Link Misc (4) 4 (Unidentified Card) |
17th place
UR Counter Burn
by Stephen Maldonado
| Business (35) Instants (14) 1 Ancestral Recall 4 Counterspell 1 Fork 4 Lightning Bolt 4 Psionic Blast Sorceries (10) 1 Braingeyser 4 Chain Lightning 1 Fireball 1 Recall 1 Timetwister 1 Time Walk 1 Wheel of Fortune Artifacts (2) 1 Black Vise 1 Chaos Orb Creatures (8) 4 Flying Men 4 Serendib Efreet | Mana Sources (26) Artifacts (4) 1 Black Lotus 1 Mox Ruby 1 Mox Sapphire 1 Sol Ring Lands (21) 3 City of Brass 5 Island 1 Library of Alexandria 4 Mishra's Factory 3 Mountain 1 Strip Mine 4 Volcanic Island Sideboard (15) Instants (9) 3 Blue Elemental Blast 3 Red Elemental Blast 3 Shatter Sorceries (1) 1 Amnesia Enchantments (5) 2 Blood Moon 1 Control Magic 2 Energy Flux |
18th place
Mono Black Prison
by Michael Finnegan
Mana Sources (21)
Lands (21)
12 Swamp
1 Urborg
Sideboard (15)
Creatures (1)
Artifacts (6)
1 Meekstone1 Mirror Universe 1 Nova Pentacle 2 Relic Barrier 1 Winter Orb
Enchantments (8)
1 Animate Dead2 Deathgrip 2 Gloom 1 Oubliette
1 Paralyze
1 Underworld Dreams |
19th place
Flying Boys Club
by Carter Petray
Business (35)
Instants (16) 1 Ancestral Recall 2 Boomerang 4 Counterspell 1 Flash Counter 4 Force Spike 4 Psionic Blast Sorceries (3) 1 Braingeyser 1 Recall 1 Time Walk Creatures (12) 4 Flying Men 1 Mahamoti Djinn 1 Old Man of the Sea 2 Serendib Djinn 4 Serendib Efreet Enchantments (4) 4 Unstable Mutation |
Mana Sources (25)
Artifacts (2) 1 Mox Sapphire 1 Sol Ring Lands (23) 13 Island 4 Mishra's Factory 2 Tolaria 4 Strip Mine Sideboard (15) Instants (4) 4 Blue Elemental Blast Creatures (4) 2 Dandân 1 Prodigal Sorcerer 1 Time Elemental Artifacts (2) 2 Black Vise Enchantments (5) 1 Control Magic 4 Energy Flux |
20th place
Mini Red Sligh
by Dan Rech
Business (37)
Instants (5) 4 Lightning Bolt 1 Shatter Sorceries (6) 4 Chain Lightning 1 Detonate 1 Fireball Artifacts (1) 1 Chaos Orb Creatures (24) 1 Ball Lightning 4 Brass Man 1 Brothers of Fire 2 Dragon Whelp 2 Dwarven Lieutenant 4 Dwarven Soldiers 4 Ironclaw Orcs 2 Mons's Goblin Raiders 2 Orcish Artillery 2 Orcish Spy Enchantments (1) 1 Immolation |
Mana Sources (25)
Artifacts (2) 1 Black Lotus 1 Mox Ruby Lands (23) 1 Hammerheim 4 Mishra's Factory 14 Mountain 4 Strip Mine Sideboard (15) Instants (2) 1 Fork 1 Shatter Sorceries (3) 1 Disintegrate 1 Flashfires 1 Shatterstorm Artifacts (4) 4 Meekstone Enchantments (6) 1 Earthbind 1 Immolation 3 Manabarbs 1 Raging River |
21st place
The Deck
by Bob Agra
Business (32)
Instants (16) 1 Ancestral Recall 4 Counterspell 4 Disenchant 3 Lightning Bolt 1 Mana Drain 3 Swords to Plowshares Sorceries (8) 1 Balance 1 Braingeyser 1 Demonic Tutor 1 Fireball 1 Mind Twist 1 Recall 1 Regrowth 1 Time Walk Artifacts (5) 1 Chaos Orb 1 Disrupting Scepter 3 Jayemdae Tome Creatures (1) 1 Shivan Dragon Enchantments (2) 1 Copy Artifact 1 Sylvan Library |
Mana Sources (28)
Artifacts (9) 1 Black Lotus 3 Fellwar Stone 1 Mox Emerald 1 Mox Jet 1 Mox Pearl 1 Mox Ruby 1 Mox Sapphire Lands (19) 4 City of Brass 1 Island 1 Library of Alexandria 3 Mishra's Factory 1 Plains 1 Strip Mine 3 Tundra 3 Underground Sea 2 Volcanic Island Sideboard (15) Instants (7) 1 Alabaster Potion 2 Blue Elemental Blast 4 Red Elemental Blast 1 Swords to Plowshares Sorceries (3) 1 Wrath of God Creatures (1) 1 Serra Angel Enchantments (5) 4 Circle of Protection: Red 1 Moat |
22nd place
Last Case Scenario Pink
by Nick Rohr
Business (31)
Instants (4) 4 Lightning Bolt Sorceries (9) 1 Balance 4 Chain Lightning 2 Earthquake 1 Fireball 1 Wheel of Fortune Artifacts (5) 1 Chaos Orb 4 Nevinyrral's Disk Creatures (13) 4 Ball Lightning 3 Rukh Egg 2 Triskelion 4 Ydwen Efreet |
Mana Sources (29)
Artifacts (6) 1 Mox Ruby 4 Mana Vault 1 Sol Ring Lands (23) 4 City of Brass 2 Dwarven Ruins 4 Mishra's Factory
5 Mountain
4 Plateau4 Strip Mine Sideboard (15) Instants (7) 3 Disenchant 4 Red Elemental Blast Lands (1) 1 Maze of Ith Enchantments (7) 3 Blood Moon 1 Greater Realm of Preservation 3 Spirit Link |
Essen Haus Open
After our tournament which took place at the University of Wisconsin Union, we headed over to Essen Haus for a '95 tournament and German beer (the boots required a deposit).
And the greatest of times were had...
By the end of the event, John Beste came out an undefeated 5-0 with Reanimator.
 |
| Essen Haus '95 Standings |
1st place
Reanimator
by John Beste
2nd place
Zoo
by Brian Fisher
3rd place
White Weenie
by Nathan Mullen
4th place
Mono Blue Flying Boys Club
by Carter Petray
5th place
Zoo
by Bryan F.
6th place
WRG Bazaar Zoo
by Jason Jaco
7th place
The Deck
by Bob Agra
8th place
GW Beats
by Grant Casleton
9th place
Dreams Combo featuring 4x Necropotence and 4x Demonic Consultation
by Danny Friedman
10th place
Stormbind Zoo
by Ben Wagnon
11th place
Spiders
by Dan Rech
12th place
UW Mill Control
by Matt Moss
13th place
Prison Ramp
by Nick Rohr
14th place
The Deck
by Mr. Punts
15th place
Weirding Control
by Shane Semmens
16th place
Global Force
by James Tork
17th place
Dom Doesn't Even Know
by Dominic Dotterrer
18th place
Bolt Forkery
by Brandon Sanders
Pictures from both events (in no particular order):
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Extra thanks to Shane Semmens for technical help with this blog post—it would have been posted even later if he had not put his time into getting this done.
