2001)

I have played a lot of cards this past week. Normally, this would not be anything out of the ordinary, but this last week, playing Magic has been absolutely amazing. After returning from Grand Prix: Detroit in April, I found out that family obligations would keep me from attending Regionals. Without a tournament forcing me to practice a Type 2 format that I found somewhat stale and boring at the time anyway, I took a little break, to the tune of about 38 days.

Now, we’ve all read articles by those internet writers that got frustrated with bad beats and unlucky breaks and proclaimed to the world that the game they had invested so much time in up until that point was pointless and random. They quit the game forever, only to come crawling back to their cardboard collections a few weeks later like alcoholics on the backslide. That is not what I did. I never stopped being a Magic player; I just stopped playing Magic. I had other things to do – a few obligations to take care of, some friends to see, a vacation to take. But now I’m back at the game, excited once again to be playing Magic.

After taking a little break from the game, it’s important to me to come back in with some style. That means no “I’ll discard my Nether Spirit because I’m afraid to tap mana on my turn” crap, and none of those sissy little white weenies who have to go around gathering up all their little rebel buddies before they’ll pick a fight with you either. No, I’m coming back packing some real beef: 6/6, flying, Legendary Dragon-style beef. Ladies and gentleman, hide your hands; Crosis, the Purger is in the house and he ain’t here to block!

The Big Mean Bat:

3:Thieving Magpie
2:Crosis, the Purger
2:Force Spike
4:Counterspell
4:Undermine
4:Duress
4:Terminate
1:Urza’s Rage
1:Tsabo’s Web
3:Void
3:Fact or Fiction
4:Accumulated Knowledge
10:Island
2:Mountain
2:Swamp
1:City of Brass
2:Crosis’s Catacombs
4:Underground River
4:Sulfurous Springs

Sideboard:
4:Engineered Plague
1:Tsabo’s Web
2:Crosis’s Charm
4:Hibernation
4:Rogue Kavu

A few thoughts on some of the cards:
Force Spike – When I took this deck to Friday Night Magic last week, some of the less-experienced players had an interesting reaction to this card. “Force Spike, is that good?” Well, if you aren’t a believer yet, you should be – Force Spike is amazing. I’ve stopped so many Saproling Bursts with Force Spikes it’s not even funny. It’s also a great edge in counter wars, stops 1st turn Ramosian Sargents, and can sometimes disrupt your opponent’s game if they chose to play around it, since nobody likes getting hit with a Force Spike.

Duress – Let’s all throw a party for our old friend who has came back to us courtesy of 7th Edition. I don’t think I need to tell anyone that this is a solid card, but I would like to offer a tip to help make it even better: just because you have a Duress in your hand, that doesn’t mean you need to use it right away. Often it is appropriate to Duress just for Duress’s sake, but many times it can be valuable to hold that Duress for a more opportune time, such as using it to clear the way before dropping Crosis or a Magpie. It can also be used to set up a devastating hand assault by Void, and make sure that some creature in play doesn’t cause you to make in incorrect choice while casting Void. Just like Force Spike, Duress is a good card that can become even better in the hands of a skilled player – keep your eyes out for opportunities to stretch Duress to it’s maximum potential.

Urza’s Rage – This card slid into my deck about 5 minutes before the start of Friday Night Magic a few nights ago, as a paranoid response to all the U/W decks in the room. Kor Haven can be a real pain for this deck if you don’t have enough cards left in your library to finish with a Magpie, so I tossed in 1 Rage as an insurance policy. As it turned out, the 1 Rage dug me out of a few tight spots, and it has earned a permanent spot in the deck.

Tsabo’s Web – In testing, Ports and Dust Bowls have not yet been a problem, but Kor Haven is a definite pain, and a Dust Bowl theoretically could be hard on all the non-basics in the deck. I think that warrants including a 2 casting-cost cantrip answer in the deck.

Void – This card never used to give me the devastating effect I was hoping for when it first came out. I’d occasionally pull out a few Voids, try them in a deck, and put them back away shortly after. However, in this deck, Void has finally started living up to it’s potential, probably because Terminates allow me to hold the Void for a more appropriate target, and Duress lets me take a peek so that I can make a more informed decision when casting Void. This card is definitely worth it’s slots in this deck.

Engineered Plague – This sideboard card hasn’t been tested yet, but I am looking forward to trying it over the Tsabo’s Decrees that were originally in this sideboard slot. I did have at least one game versus a Rebel deck that would have been a victory with Plague that was a loss with Tsabo’s Decree, and it also gives me something to potentially side in against a Nether Spirit.

Crosis’s Charm – Tinkering around with Static Orb has become pretty popular in this area lately, so a little extra artifact destruction can’t hurt. Mogg Salvage was tempting, but I don’t play many Mountains, and the boomerang ability of the Charm may come in handy to bounce a pesky Opposition or other enchantment that is giving me fits.

Rogue Kavu – This guy is a total beating out of the sideboard vs. heavy control decks. He’s a fast clock with the right casting cost for an early appearance or to pop out later with the help of a counter or two. Backed with a few counterspells, an active Rogue Kavu will put a U/W player into serious danger in a real hurry.

Thus far I have been very pleased with this deck. It has performed excellently in testing and was good enough for an undefeated night of Friday Night Magic. It also happens to be a fun deck to play, as there’s nothing better than slapping down a nice 6/6 flying fattie.

As always, if you have any questions or comments, feel free to contact me at crazy_monkey1@msn.com.

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