Casper dominates OKC Whoa! I finally made it. I went to OKC this weekend for my last chance to qualify for Chicago. Just like every week it wasnt until the day before until i had any idea of what to play. I have been to a qualifer every weekend, each time with a different deck, and each time i didnt make it. Last weekend, before the Dallas qualifier and the Grand Prix i was in #mtgpro (home of a bunch of badasses like David Bachmann) trying to come up with something to play. I asked fellow #mtgpro op, Brian Kibler, what he had in mind. He said he was working with mono-blue, i was sold on a deck that Andrew Nishioka had built at worlds for me. We played and neither deck consistantly beat the other, so i stuck with what i had. In dallas I lose first round and end up in the land of poise. I end up 1-2 and drop out. When I get back on #mtgpro monday I find out that Kibler had won the GP. I ask Kibler about his domination of Canada and decide that I am going to play his deck in OKC. Here is what i played: THE ILLUSIONIST DECK: mad credit goes to Brian Schneider and Brian Kibler 4 ophidian 4 man o war 4 serrated biskelion 4 vodalian illusionist 4 dissipate 4 impulse 4 waterspout 3 power sink 3 abduction 2 memory lapse 1 ray of command 4 quicksand 2 winding canyons 17 island SB: 2 Undo, 2 Ray of Command, 3 Disrupt, 2 Floodgate, 2 Shimmer, 2 Boomerang, 1 Power Sink, 1 Flooded Shoreline My team members ( the texas guildmages) and I drive out to OKC friday night. On the way we play our usual game of trivia to pass the time. My zany teammate Jeff Zandi creates the category of Anagrams. I HOUSE this category. In case your wondering what this has to do with anything, I am about to tell you. There is this one anagram: SKIN TIGHT ANUS. I get it in 3 seconds. It is AUSTINKNIGHTS. That is another Texas team that you have been reading alot about in these tourney reports. They have worked hard and got a lot of thier team qualifed. If you see any of them in Chicago, be sure and refer to them as Team Skin Tight Anus. Anyway, back to my bashing of OKC. I get there and find out that because there is only one spot that only 50 people show up, which means 6 rounds. Although it is only 6 people, there are alot of good players. Team Dallas members are there , along w/ some Austiknights. The small number only meant you would play good players earlier. Round 1 vs. Greg White playing Green White good stuff. Game 1: I dont really remember much about this. He was playing green white. Its all about abducting Maro and Scalebane. I think he expected lots of black. Once i abducted his scalebane with an illusionist out, it was game Game 2: See game one. M: 1-0 G: 2-0 Round 2 vs. Keith Williams playing Green Black Disruption. Game 1: The guy starts off mana screwed w/ one swamp. I see him discard a nekrataal. I get out turn 3 ophidian. On his turn three he doesnt draw a second land so he conceeds. He says there is no way to get outta ophidian lock. THAT IS RESPECT FOR THE OPHIDAN!!!!! Game 2: I think that he is playing monoblack, so i board in shimmers. His first land is a forest and i shit. He only discarded black cards, so i had no idea. He really fucks with me. His choking sands, fallow earth, agonizing memories, stupors, and good black and green creatures really hurt. But i got out an illusionist and a bisket and reached infinity. One spout and it was game for the big guy! M: 2-0 G: 4-0 Round 3 vs. Adrian Sayers playing the yellow black/MoW deck. Game 1: This deck beats black. It just does. Infinity is just too much for it. Along w/ powersink to stop his early weenie beatdown. he gets out lost of weenies but my illuisiont control him. Finally he cast tog and I abduct it. I have been holding that abduction for something juicy. I get out spout w/ illusionist to protect it and it is game over. Game 2: About the same as game 1. I abduct and phase out shit. But i draw my SB cards. Shimmer and Floodgate. Note: Adrian is an AustiKnight and is qualifed. He is also a friend so I think he didnt play his best on purpose to assist in my domination of OKC. I still think this deck beats the deck he was playing. M: 3-0 G: 6-0 Round 4 vs. Greg Waldeck playing Kibler w/ his personal changes. Game 1: I am nervous about playing against a copy of my deck and i knew what he was playing since i sat next to him round 2. I figure I can out play him and think that his opening hand is probably about the same as mine. It's like glasses of urza! At two lands I impulse at end of his turn. Then on my turn he impulses. We both just pulse at end of each others turn and say "done". I discard something when my hand is full cause I know he will crack and cast something first, which he does. On his turn he cast ophidian. I dissapate it and he dissapates it back. I say fine and on my turn I abduct it and have dissapate mana to protect it. He cant get it back and I get out the first illusionist. Somehow the game changes sides. I draw land while he draws good stuff. He gets me down to nothing and gets out two spouts w/ me at 17. On my turn I notice he has no cards in hand and i cast bisket and illusionist. On his turn he takes me to 9 and lays a land he drew. This guy has no suprise! I am soooo dead. On my turn I draw spout and realize that I have won. I lay my spout and he realizes that his spouts are now gonna be spout juniors and my spout will crush his. He returns islands for 2 turns while I shrink his spouts and he concedes. Game 2: I get out first illusionist and win. M: 4-0 G: 8-0 Round 5 vs Jeremy Virdin playing JUNK ( u/g/w falcon,maro,meerkat?) Before the game starts I ask this kid what his record is. He says 3-1. I ask tell him that I am 4-0 w/ no losses and that I will spare him and draw. He is a dick about drawing so I proceed to give him the beatdown! Game 1: I see a turn two falcon. He losses. Game 2: I abduct Maro. GAME OVER FALCON BOY! M: 5-0 G: 10-0 Round 6 vs. fellow teammate James Jenkins playing his unique red burn deck w/ main deck grass and stupors (I think) He is 4-0-1 and because he is my boy I draw with him and spare him the beatdown. M: 5-0-1 G: 10-0-2 So I end up top seed at 5-0-1 with 16 points. The top 8 is: 1. David Williams (me) playing Kibler/Schnieder Blue 8. David Custard playing White weenie w/ armor/abeyance/tithe 4. James Jenkins playing monored w/ splashes of g/b 5. 12 year old super kid. Ron Schubert. playing g/w 2. Cary Darwin playing Mono Black weenie whoopass 7. Jim Dowell (sp?) I didnt see what he played. Sorry. 3. Adrian Sayers playing the yellow deck. Black w/ manowar. 6. Greg Waldeck playing Kibler w/ personal changes. Round of 8 vs. David Custard playing WW. Game 1: It is a bad deck matchup for him. I abduct his ballista and it is game. Game 2: See game 1. M: 6-0-1 G: 12-0-2 (notice NO game losses!) James Jenkins losses to Ron Schubert. He cant deal w/ main deck passage. Cary Darwin wins and Adrian Sayers wins. Now at this point if this were a normal qualifier Cary and I would both have spots cause Ron and Adrian already have qualified. But there is only ONE FUCKING SPOT! Adrian is a friend of Cary and I so he withdraws from the tournament to put Cary in the finals. Now at this point I feel pretty good. Ron Schubert has been my friend since PTLA so I figured he would withdraw and let me and Cary battle for the spot. I WAS WRONG! HE IS GREEDY AND WANTS ALL OF THE MONY. Round of 4 vs. Ron Schubert playing G/W Game 1: I start w/ one canyon but I draw land on my next 2 draws and impulse for more. I get out infinity and he doesnt believe me that it works. He calls a judge and he tells him it does. His creatures get small and I abduct Scalebane w/ illusionist out. That is game. Game 2: I again begin w/ one canyone but dont draw into it until he has two scalebanes out and is bashing me. AHHH MY FIRST GAME LOSS! Game 3: (<--- havent seen that yet this report) THIS GAME IS THE BIGGEST FUCKING BEATDOWN EVER. Turn 3 ophidian. Turn 4 abduct his mistmoon (which is amazing, cause it regrows my shit and removes it self before he gets it back.) and give ophidian beatdown. Turn 5 I manowar his other mistmoon and smack him some more w/ a free card. Turn 6 I manowar it again and smack him some more. Turn 7 I abduct his mistmoon and give him some more MEATWHIP! Turn 8 I ray of command his creature and he throws his cards downs and quits. NOW THAT IS THE BIGGEST FUCKING BEATDOWN EVER! M: 7-0-1 G: 14-1-2 Finals vs. Cary Darwin (team dallas member who deserves a spot. Has mad top 8 many time for chicago and other PT's but has never pulled it out. He finally makes it to finals and there is only one spot) Game 1: I get out turn 3 illuonist and turn 4 ophidian. He has a sewer rat a swamp and a quicksand. The illusionist controls him while I draw mad cards. I get too much card advantage but dont draw any means of putting him out of his ophidian misery. Finally he cast stalker, I abduct it and serve /w it. Game 2: I board in shimmer and floodgate. I draw both. I control game early and again abduct stalker w/ illusionist to protect it. I serve w/ stalker once again and that is game. M: 8-0-1 G: 16-1-2 (ONE GAME LOSS) We agreed that the loser gets the cash since we both knew how bad it would suck to get second. I really feel bad for Cary because he has tried so hard and really deserves to be on the PT. He is truly amazing. SO I FINALLY DID IT. I think this is my 8th qualifier for chicago. I have come close in many but this is amazing. I get many congratulations and feel so good. I have wanted this for a long while. I will think about the stress I went to this summer trying to qulalify to keep me going at PTCHI and to make damn sure I make top 32 so I dont have to go through this anymore. Well, everyone else does this so why shouldnt I? Props and Slops. PROPS: BRIAN KIBLER!!, DAVID BACHMANN(MY BOY), JASON OPALKA(TOADY), Jeff Zandi, Minh Huynh, Courtney Cunningham, James Murphy, James Jenkins, Cary Darwin, Willa Zandi, Jon Finkel, Feming Chan, Jason Gordon, Nate Clarke, Andrew Nishioka, Rudy Edwards, Adrian Sayers (thanks, even though I woulda won), and Lan D. Ho(a chinky that should be on PT) SLOPS: TheWurm from #mtgpro on principle. The dickhead in round 5 who didnt want to draw and was a dick about it. Mike Long cause he is a fucking dick. See your cheating ass in chicago you bitch. Anyone else who doesnt respect me as a player. Dave Williams Casper on #MTGPRO Soon to be top 25 composite Just wait and see you bitches!