Team Moonshot is in Atlanta this weekend trying to earn one of eight invites to the Magic Pro Tour.
We’ll be doing updates throughout the next two days.
Check back for regular updates.
It’s the first ever Magic Spotlight Series and Wizard’s of the Coast’s revamp of scheduled large tournaments, like old Grand Prix’s.
This might also be the largest Standard tournament since the pandemic – and there’s a lot of excitement around the format.
Six out of 7 Team Moonshot members (and even Jayson!) are playing in the event today.
Atlanta Standard Decks
The format is focused around red aggressive decks and black midrange decks. Beating both is difficult.
Day 1 is closed deck lists. I won’t post the exact lists, but here are the archetype’s the team decided to take.
Abe, Charles, Jayson, and Moskal all took a Green/White Collector’s Cage strategy that the team’s internal testing showed has a good matchup against black midrange and an even matchup against red.
Rob and Nick decided on Esper Pixie – a deck that uses a lot of self-bounce cards to generate advantage off of enchantments with enters the battlefield triggers. This deck only popped up as a contender within the last week and this tournament is it’s proving ground.
Hobbs took Gruul Aggro, widely considered the best aggressive deck in Standard.
The team arrived at the Georgia World Congress Center early after a quick stop at Tim Horton’s on the way. Yesterday the team parked about six miles away and wanted to find something closer today. Turns out there aren’t a lot of options for a 10-foot tall Sprinter Van…so there’s a greater than 0% chance the van gets towed.
1453 registered players. Decklists were required at 6pm yesterday. This was both a blessing and a curse for Rob. He LOVES to make last-minute changes.
Round 1 (3-4)
Hobbs, Hayes and Abe won.
Round 2 (6-1)
Hobbs and Abe are 2-0
Jayson, Hayes, Roller, Charles, and Moskal are 1-1.
Everyone has one in the win column now.
Round 3 (2-5)
Jayson (2-1):
Beat Omniscience
I got Time Stopped and Aetherized in game 1, just had too much pressure both games.
Also, first time I saw Wear Down.
Parting Gust is really good against Kona.
Charles (2-1):
Beat Jeskai convoke 2-0
Game 1 I just have the nuts and put a turn 3 overlord into turn 4 overlord no real chance for my opponent. Game 2 my opponent plays an Arabella and puts a SBG on it and is gaining 8 life a combat and grinding me down. I had a Beza under the sheltered by ghosts and a Beza under a collectors cage, and in my opponents attack step with their Arabella trigger on the stack I get to Pawpatch Formation the Shelter By Ghosts, gain 4 life, make two tokens, then cage something gain 4 make two tokens, block to survive the combat, crack back forcing them to lose most of their board and I end up winning after a few minutes of attacking them down and making sure I’m not dead to immodane’s recruiter attacking down from from 45 life.
Rob (2-1):
Beat dimir in 3.
G1: I had all pain lands and won the game by chaining 4 enchantments with 2 scavengers and a tracker to kill my opponent from 14 while living at 1.
G2: I mulled to 5 and kept the first hand that had any lands in it. It was a 1 land hand with knight of grace and sbg. Never saw 2nd land and died.
G3: I played 2 knight of grace and they solo’d the game
Nick (1-2):
Lost to dimir eerie.
Died to my own pain lands game 1. Dealt myself almost the full 20. Game 2 ran him over. Game 3 my first 5 draws were lands
Abe (2-1)
Lost to Convoke.
In game 1 my opponent put a Sheltered By Ghosts on a Warden of the Inner Sky and I had Parting Gust in response. Games 2 and 3 I lost to Bunnicorns, never saw a removal spell in a timely fashion.
Moskal (2-1)
Beat Temur Otters
G1 curved into overlords and ran them over, llanowar elf on the play.
G2 they had turn 4 both guys in play, misplayed, chose not to kill their guy to attempt to cage while they had creature mana up
G3 they missed land 3, played thunder trainer found Bushwhack, then I Aven Interrupted it next turn while getting ahead on mana, ended up running them over.
Round 4 (4-3)
These rounds are turning over quickly – major props to Star City Games for knowing how to run large events like this!
Abe (3-1)
Beat Golgari midrange 2-0.
Both games were the same story, he never had a sweeper of a Llanowar Elf on turn 1, so he was way too slow to keep up with all my tokens. I also hit an Overlord off my first Cage in both games
Nick (2-2)
Destroyed boros aggro. Bounced a Nowhere to Run multiple times.
Charles (2-2)
0-2 to Brian Coval (boshnroll) dimir midrange. I just got completely crushed. Game 1 he went turn 2 mastermind, turn 3 cut down + mastermind, turn 4 cutdown + mastermind, my turn 4 impending an overlord to block and he faebind tricks to two one, untaps and drowners the other and kills me in the air. Game 2 he unironically killed or countered every spell I played except a collectors cage and I never had 3 creatures to activate with
Rob (3-1)
Beat boros burn 2-1.
G1: I mulled to 5 and just couldn’t claw back from his fast start.
G2: was really grindy. Black room let me keep growing my guys by looping fear and putting 2 counters a turn and adding 6 power to the board. He had a sunspire lynx but it didn’t matter.
G3: I had double authority and was able to just attack for 3/turn and bounce his guys until I finally drew sbg for nemesis and he couldn’t remove it.
Moskal (2-2)
lost to domain
game 1 I was on the draw they had beans into overlord into sunfall, then also had wrath + get lost for my reload + hold up Parting Gust
G2 I had Elf into bat guy into salvager and smashed them
G3 I had a slightly clunkier draw and they had overlord on 3 into binding + spells into zur.
Jayson (3-1)
Beat Oculus
Round 5 (4-3)
Nick (2-3)
Lost to gruul.
They had hero into manifold mouse into double monstrous rage game 1. Game 2 he just had a monsterous rage to save his double striking emberheart challenger the game was over.
Charles (3-2)
beat domain in three.
I had him dead to an attack + parting gust game 1 but he three steps ahead my gust then played an unbeatable Zur. Games 2 and 3 were just aggro starts + a timely Aven interrupter just like we drew it up
Abe (4-1)
beat mono white 2-0.
Game 1 I was on the play and had fast draw with a fast Cage>Overlord, game 2 my opponent stymied my early start but had no card advantage engines, they eventually flooded pretty badly and my double Avens locked it up
Hobbs (2-3)
Lost a close match to RW Mice.
Rob (4-1)
beat gw cage in 3.
G1: I was on the draw, but had an aggressive hand and just did the never. Never cast nightmare intentionally and he had the leige. Felt good.
G2: I cut 2 nightmare and it didn’t matter. He ran me over with 2 kicked pawpatch and a squire.
G3: I sided out the last 2 nightmare and brought back in the 3/2. I was the aggressor and just had a tempo hand with scavenger and bouncing talents. He had 2 liege in hand at the end of the game.
Jayson (3-2)
Lost to Domain in 3.
I lost game three to a strong Domain player that had no cards in hand and needed to draw an instant speed creature removal spell to blow out my dude to prevent me from flipping the cage for an Aven Inspector on his Atraxa, which was already plotted. Great match.
Moskal (3-2)
beat golgari
game 1 my opponent has 2 llanowar elves and lands, not much else game 2, they cast a Harvester of misery and didn’t have a good enough followup game 3, I was stuck on 3 lands for a lot of turns, my opponent didn’t have any pressure, I kept casting 3 mana 2 body guys the kept answering, eventually drew land 4 and cast overlords on the next three turns.
Round 6 (4-2)
Roller dropped.
Hobbs (3-3) won and dropped after being outside of contention for Top 8.
Charles (4-2)
4-2 beat uw artifact stuff 2-1. My opponents deck was sick with synthesizers and some 5 mana sweeper artifact and it was a brutal game 1 where I put him to one life and just couldn’t finish the game out. Go into my post board thinking about how to kill synthesizer and realize nothing in the 75 destroys artifacts, so I board in the 4 interrupters and go for the tempo plan, game 2 double interrupter with some early pressure wins the game. And game 3 I had a face up interrupter in my hand (known from a map token) and 10 flying power in play and was able to pull through without getting board wiped
Hayes (4-2)
Lost in 2 to dimir. G1: I kept a hand that was 3/2 guys, pixie, nightmare, 2 lands. Drew only blanks and died to 3 2 power fliers. G2: Was much closer. I was stuck on 2 lands the whole game and had 2 knights. He hit his land drops and did his thing, but I was just not able to interact enough. Got him to 5 before he found sheoldred and I lost 7 turns later.
Moskal (3-3)
lost golgari, punted game 3, made a block I thought was a trade and was a chump for no reason. game 1 they had Elf on the play, game 2 I had Elf on the play, game 3 I punted.
Manship (4-2)
4-2. Beat Dimir in 3. Never hit a 4th land game two but this GW deck is solid against Dimir.
Abe (5-1)
5-1, beat Dimir. Game 1 he had an early offense in the air but no payoffs and my Overlords were too much. Game 2 he had Siren > Drowner my Elf > Kaito on the play. I was able to make it a game but the early start was too good. Game 3 I had a bunch of 2-for-1 creatures and he did not have a sweeper.
Round 7 (4-1)
Manship (5-2)
Beat Dimir in two. GW Cage just creates too much pressure. And Cage is VERY good.
Moskal (4-3)
4-3, beat dimir Game 1 smooshed them as usual Game 2 got Gix’s Command Game 3 mulled to 5 then flooded, then topdecked an Overlord right on time
Charles (4-3)
4-3 lost to esper. It was a tough match game 1 I put my opponent to one life they have one card in hand I’m at 3 life they draw and go nightmare pixie nightmare to kill me, rough but happens. Game 2 I just gave an awesome start and kill them quick no real comments on it. Game 3 I keep a hand of 3 lands, llanowar elves, Pawpatch, and evangelist. They play a land and pass, I play a land and an elf, they play a land and pass, I cast Pawpatch kicked they get out to counter it, play a land and pass, I play a land and play my evangelist and they cast get out to counter it, and I eventually die to a pixie without drawing another creature the whole game
Rob (5-2)
5-2. Beat gruul in 2 G1: I had 3 scavengers into his 3 hired blade. No contest. G2: he flooded and I had an sbg + nowhere to run bounce draw.
Abe (6-1)
6-1. Beat Convoke. 3 pretty long complicated grindy games, I lost the game on the draw and won my two games on the play
Round 8 (3-2)
Charles (4-4)
Lost to gruul. dead for day 2.
Game 1 was winning the race but a top deck manifold to give two guys double strike killed me, game 2 I was ahead and put a beza in play, but in response my opponent torched their own screaming nemesis to stop the life gain, and bc I had no fliers I was too low to attack while they beat me down
Abe (7-1)
Beat Gruul. Game 1 he offered a turn 1 trade of Swiftspear for Pawpatch Recruit, I took it and his turn 2 Talent was a lot worse. He had some good cards to follow up but I was far enough on the front foot to win. Game 2 he mulled to 6 and was stuck on 2 no green lands for a few turns and my double Salvager was able to kill him barely fast enough
Moskal (5-3)
Beat golgari 2-0.
G1 he spent 4 removal spells on 2 of my cards, then ran out of gas. G2 He cast 2 gix’s Command, but I just kept refueling, eventually my stuff was just enough to race his glissa.
Rob (5-3)
Lost to dimir.
G1: went long and I beat him with loops. G2: I died to 2 curiosity. G3: I was very far ahead and I died to gix command.
Jayson (6-2)
Beat Oculus.
Literally decked my opponent in game 2. He had triple Oculus and I just kept blowing out his tokens and trading for Eyes with double Cage on board. Got him down to two, but couldn’t get to lethal…so I just rode it out and whew…it was exhausting.
Round 9
Rob (5-4)
Lost to Dimir Bounce.
Anticlimactic end. G1: I kept 3 lands and drew a land every turn. G2: I mulled to 3 before I saw my first land and conceded on the spot.
Abe (7-2)
Lost to Oculus.
Game 1 I was on the draw and he had a turn 3 Oculus and I did not have removal. Game 2 I had a super fast start and got him to 2 life, but he had lockdown + Oculus and I also had no removal spells that game.
Jayson lost round 9 (6-3)
Congrats to Abe and Jayson for making Day 2!
Both players did it with GW Collector’s Cage, the deck four team members took to Atlanta to a combined 63% win rate!
Here’s Abe’s main deck:
An update about Day 2 of Spotlight Series Atlanta
Due to a large winter storm coming through the Midwest (and especially central Indiana), most of Team Moonshot decided to start the drive back to Indianapolis this morning to avoid the worst of the storm. Safe travels, everyone!
Abe and Charles decided to keep battling though, and figure out flights later.
1:00pm – Abe is 9-3! Although he can no longer make top 8, he did just beat a former Pro Tour Champion.
Beat longest-reigning PT Champion Andrew Elenbogen on Esper. He didn’t have a great draw either game, both games I had some Pawpatch recruits going while we played a relatively fair game of removal spells and fliers vs creatures. He had 1 Temporary Lockdown and 3 Pest Control in game 2, I was fortunate that (unbeknownst to him) Tender Wildguide’s Offspring token costs 2, so his Pest Control was a little underwhelming. Restless Prairie dealt lethal both games.
The Day 2 Metagame of SCG CON Atlanta
Round 13
Abe is now 10-3 after a win against UW Bunnicorn. Also, Abe famously thinks Sheltered By Ghosts (SBG) shouldn’t see as much play as it does.
His opponent played 3 SBG in game 2, and Abe won despite having a Blast Zone with two counters he never needed to crack.
I don’t think his opinion of the card will change in a while.
Round 14
Abe wins again! Now 11-3 after beating Mono White Tokens.
Game 1 I mulled to 5, and I was able to slow play around the first 3 Sunfalls but extended into the 4th and died. My opponent probably would have played differently and won even if they only drew 3 though. Games 2 and 3 I was able to pressure + Gust/Aven around my opponent’s interaction.
Round 15
Abe lost the final round to Gruul, finishing in 49th place. A great run in a hard tournament! His next event is Pro Tour Chicago in February.
Also, Qualkenbush was here. Just noting this for posterity.
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