What a good series.
First game he gets a lot of permanents on the board, but no academy, and a Mind Twist leaves him with one card in hand when Karn hits the table and eats up his artifacts. He scoops.
Second game was brutal. He had 18 permanents on the board before I got my second turn. I couldn't kill him with 2 extra meditate turns, next turn he Capsizes my Ivory Mask and I concede.
Third game was quick and dirty -- an Enlightened Tutor for a Jester's Cap, aided by Sylvan drawing power, ended things by about turn 10.
Well played, lots of fun. My heart was racing after game 2 but I dodged the bullet.
Well, looks like I was wrong about this one. :P
DAMNIT! BUT....you knew if there was one way this deck was going to go down it'd be due to Sylvan.
>>>aided by Sylvan drawing power, ended things by about turn 10.
--Matt
Um, 2 early Mind Twists were how it was related to me.
Thats good to know that keeper can beat academy. The first and second turn kills that academy is capable of are just scary. They happen quite often too.
Whats good against academy, duress might help, ivory mask is a little slow and they can capsize it. I was thinking seal of cleansing, to pop their mind over matter when it comes out. They can capsize that too unfortunately. Cap is a bit slow at 6 mana. Eating their mana artifacts with mox eater might help or getting out your academy first.
I haven't played against academy but I think a big problem is not enough counters. The way it draws so many cards u have to counter their card drawing but there is so much of it. Also the ability for it to just win anytime is scary, almost as bad as trix was.
Mako Satou
I don't think he really needs the MoM anyway. Doesn't he have the combo with Capsize and the Candelabra anyway?
He won game 2 with that combo. And yes, I did get off a pair of Mind Twists, which in retrospect probably were what swung it in my favor. But I posted as soon as it was over and was about a minute removed from being happy about the Cap. Game 2 I had no chance, he got off about five draw sevens before my second turn. But I think that barring a god draw by combo, the best way to go is indeed a Mind Twist, holding counters for draw sevens and then Cap and Tormod's Crypt.
I forgot to mention -- the Cap was only a 5-cc drop thanks to the opposing Helm of Awakening.
Ivory Mask really makes absolutely no difference, because the only time it becomes a problem is when I'm trying to kill.... i.e. I already have near infinite mana and the ability to draw my entire deck. Capsizing it then is not a problem... unless you aren't running capsize like Matt ;)
Matt runs Seal of Cleansing in the sideboard and occaisionally switches to Negators and loads of Pyros/Mis-Ds to be confusing. People generally don't run Mask maindeck. And I, for the record, probably wouldn't side my Mask in and just go with Pyros/Duresses.
--Matt