Modern Mastery: Fighting a DCI Suspension

I am proud to be a member of Team Casual Net Gaming, and I am very excited to share that my appeal to the suspension in May was granted. My suspension as officially rescinded; I can return to competitive, sanctioned tournaments. I missed some PTQ's and GP's, but I was able to fight my disqualification, and won.

It's no secret that I've been suspended since May for my disqualification during the Modern season. There's a lot you learn from getting disqualified and the ensuing events. I would like to pass on this information to those who feel they may have been disqualified unjustly. First, I would like to state that getting disqualified for your first time is gut wrenching. I wasn't only representing myself, but my team as well. I felt like I let them down. Our chance to shine was dulled by my error in the spotlight.

The Errors:

For those of you who are not familiar with the whole situation, I will briefly explain the errors. I was piloting Eggs in a Modern PTQ, a combo deck oriented around drawing your library very slowly with artifacts. The artifacts either draw cards when they enter the battlefield or when they are sacrificed and hit the graveyard. You return them to the battlefield using Second Sunrise and Faith's Reward in order to 'go infinite' and draw your entire library. This creates an infinite loop that you kill your opponents in any number of ways using infinite mana.

I was attempting to go infinite when I accidentally left one of my cards after using a Second Sunrise. When I tried to use it, my opponent halted me asking how I did that. I had explained to him that the way this sort of error gets fixed is that it will just return to play anyway. He didn't think so, but I had already started to use the effects of my Conjurer's Bauble. I used the artifact's first effect to put Second Sunrise back into my library and did not yet use the second effect of drawing a card; this would eventually be a point of tension between myself and the judges. The Head Judge was called over and asked me what happened. I explained to the Head Judge that I had forgotten to bring all my cards back from the graveyard, and that this was a simple fix. I told him that I attempted to use my Conjurer's Bauble from the graveyard, but I did not. I was explaining the Head Judge in fewest words that I did not draw any extra cards. I figured this was the only penalty that could be handed down to me: a Drawing Extra Cards (DEC) penalty. So I was defending myself against that possible game loss. You can't be penalized for DEC if the DEC is directly correlated from a Game Rules Violation (GRV). I had obviously broken the rules and would have received a GRV for leaving my bauble in the graveyard. I did not know the DEC was inapplicable in this instance and I dug myself a hole with the judges.

The investigation was more of the same and I explained to them the same story I had said at the table. I didn't believe I had lied to the judges, but during the investigation, the Head Judge seemed to think so. I was told that lying to them was grounds for disqualification and I told them that I understood and reiterated the the first clause on Conjurer's Bauble and that I had not drawn any extra cards from the second clause.

The Analysis:

The investigation took 15+ minutes to complete, and I believe this weighed heavily on the judge's decision to disqualify me. If there is significant 'disruption to the tournament,' you may be disqualified. However, the time they used for my defense in the investigation was around 2-3 minutes between the table and the two times I had been called back in the investigation. If the judges allowed me to continue playing from there with only a warning, it would have looked bad. I am using a bit of conjecture here, but my suspension has been lifted, so I have a bit of freedom to speculate.

The Conclusions:

There are may things I learned through this process and I'd like to be clear with everyone reading this. Judges are not present to make sure justice is served, nor referee your match. They are present to make sure the rules are followed when they are called upon. While my disqualification was somewhat liberal within the rules, in the end, their decision is theirs. You must defend yourself with knowledge and honesty. I didn't know enough about the rules, nor how judges go about investigating the rules. I was as honest as I could have been with the judges and learning more about the process has shown me that I dug my own grave.

Things Everyone Should Know:

• When there is an error of any kind, call a judge over to fix it. Don't fix it yourself.
• Judges are vague on purpose. They don't want to disqualify you, but will allow you to hang yourself. This is how investigations are handled. They will ask cryptic and vague questions to see if you're honest.
• Be honest with the judges; leaving out information they know exists (no matter how insignificant) may get you disqualified and/or suspended.
• The suspension process is straightforward. If you were guilty, you'll get suspended. However, if you believe you have been disqualified in error, or suspended in error, be as thorough as possible in your submissions to the committee. More information helps you in your defense.
• Don't contradict yourself.
• It never hurts to get to know the judges in your community. Learning from them will help you stay out of trouble.
• The subsections of the Infraction Procedure Guide (IPG) that get you disqualified cannot be downgraded to game/match losses. It is one or the other. If you are nice and a cheater, it doesn't matter how nice you are, they have no choice.
• Disruption of the Tournament is incredibly vague, and can disqualify you.
• Always be kind to those who have power over you. I have been nothing but kind to those in this process, and it (finally) reaped rewards of justice. 

I'd like to openly thank everyone for their support and kind words during the time since my disqualification. I am excited to be back in the fray. I can't wait to see you guys at the next PTQ in N. Miami; my home town hosted by my LGS. Until then, thank you for reading.

Check out the MTG Casual Net Archive and connect with us on Facebook!

-Stephen Poindexter

PTQ Theros: Jund Midrange

Jund Midrange - PTQ Theros: Tampa, Fl

Creatures (15): 

3x Scavenging Ooze

3x Olivia Voldaren

4x Huntmaster of the Fells

4x Thragtusk

1x Vampire Nighthawk

Spells (20):
2x Garruk, Primal Hunter
1x Liliana of the Veil
4x Bonfire of the Damned
2x Putrefy
4x Farseek
1x Doom Blade
1x Abrupt Decay
2x Tragic Slip
2x Rakdos's Return
1x Rakdos Keyrune

Lands (25):
4x Overgrown Tomb
4x Blood Crypt
4x Stomping Ground
3x Dragonskull Summit
2x Rootbound Crag
4x Woodland Cemetery
2x Kessig Wolf Run
1x Cavern of Souls
1x Forest

Sideboard (15):
2x Curse of Death's Hold
2x Barter in Blood
2x Tragic Slip
2x Ruric Thar, the Unbowed
2x Duress
2x Liliana of the Veil
1x Underworld Connections
1x Golgari Charm
1x Rakdos's Return

Jund Midrange is an attrition deck that exploits a large variety of removal spells that kill opponents' early-game creatures and stabilize with large creatures that end up swinging the momentum in the Jund player's favor. The deck is called 'Midrange' because it focuses on the casting its threats in the Midgame (roughly turns 3-5), while using cards like Farseek and removal spells to accumulate resources and buy time against aggressive opponents. This is the list I plan on taking to the final PTQ in the Theros season in Tampa, Fl. Right now, Jund Midrange is one of the most dominant decks as it received one of the best pieces of utility against most of its bad matchups... Scavenging Ooze.

Ooze fills in a lot of the gaps the deck had before in the past. Sometimes, you'd have an awkward draw of some amount of lands, a reasonable threat and a Ground Seal from the mainboard. Against Junk Reanimator or even Control decks, this would be a solid keep. However, against Aggro decks, we're almost straight dead. Luckily, Our Ooze buddy not only has a ton of game against both those decks, he also gains life and presents a reasonably sized body against Aggro decks as well. Furthermore, Scavenging Ooze pulls the same weight as Ground Seal with the additional utility of fighting off Undying creatures. This allows us some more wiggle room with our removal suite as we aren't confined to using Pillar of Flame to kill off Undying creatures with ease since Scavenging Ooze can 'scoop' up the creatures with the Undying trigger on the stack. Although the omission of Pillar of Flame complicates ridding our worries of both Blood Artist and Voice of Resurgence, the benefits of a smoother removal suite and an additional threat to our threat-hungry strategy more than pays dividends as the game progresses.

Another evolution of the deck can be seen from Reid Duke's version of Jund from his win at Grand Prix: Miami, Fl includes the inclusion of 4x Bonfire of the Damned that is able to swing games heavily in the Jund player's favor against aggro and midrange opponents alike.

Jund Midrange decks overall look very similar, but their sideboard is the most variegated portion between each different player. I'll quickly jot down my sideboarding tips for this list.

Hyperaggressive decks (generally with Burning Tree Emissary or Hellrider):
+2x Tragic Slip
+2x Barter in Blood
+2x Curse of Death's Hold
+1x Golgari Charm

-2x Garruk, Primal Hunter
-1x Liliana of the Veil
-2x Rakdos's Return
-1x Rakdos Keyrune
-1x Scavenging Ooze

In this matchup, stabilizing against their aggressive start is very important and boarding in more removal spells will help suppress your threats while you bide time to cast your creatures that will clog the ground and prevent them from attacking you like Thragtusk and Huntmaster of the Fells. Casting Barter in Blood off of a Farseek is extremely devastating when they attempt to over-commit their threats. The pair of Curse of Death's Hold may be misplaced, but I think they're usefulness is strong enough, since they handle a good number of X/1s in the decks thanks to the increased popularity of Young Pyromancer in aggressive strategies. The 1x of Golgari Charm is a nod at aggressive decks heavily boarding in Burning Earth against us which is a huge problem for our 24/25 nonbasic land mana base. It allows us not to be strictly dead to the enchantment and has some utility by regenerating one of our creatures when they attempt to crash through with a Ghor-Clan Rampager. If I predicted aggressive decks were over-represented in Tampa, then I would definitely consider adding a 2nd copy of Golgari Charm to the board. 

Fast Midrange decks (Naya Midrange)

+2x Tragic Slip
+2x Barter in Blood
+2x Liliana of the Veil

-1x Abrupt Decay
-1x Bonfire of the Damned
-2x Rakdos's Return
-2x Scavenging Ooze

In my opinion, this is one of Jund's most difficult matchups because your opponent has a plethora of very resilient threats that are difficult to kill along with a strong sideboard plan against us including Ruric Thar, the Unbowed. In the matchup, I've found that boarding in efficient removal is the best way in suppressing their threats and attempting to 'go online' and have some reasonable pressure against the deck. Their decks are slow enough that Liliana of the Veil really shines against them. Unfortunately, some versions run Loxodon Smiter, so playing around that card is very important; especially if you elect to keep the Rakdos's Return in G2 and G3. Boarding out a copy of Bonfire of the Damned is a reaction to most lists running Boros Reckoner and hard casting Bonfire of the Damned for value against an army of 4/4s and 5/5s is often difficult. If your Naya Midrange opponent brings in Assemble the Legion, then it's reasonable to bring in 1x copy of Curse of Death's Hold.

Variants of Aristocrats (Junk and Act II)

+2x Tragic Slip
+2x Curse of Death's Hold
+1x Golgari Charm

-1x Liliana of the Veil
-2x Rakdos's Return
-1x Doom Blade
-1x Rakdos Keyrune

The Aristocrats matchup is rather favorable for the most part. The game plan against this deck is to dismantle their engines with removal spells and play a very standard Midrange style. Golgari Charm's -1/-1 mode is very useful in the matchup as well as the ability to destroy an Intangible Virtue if they attempt to fight off your copies of Curse of Death's Hold.

Jund Midrange

The mirror match is definitely a strange match, since both sides have a supply of high-quality threats. The subgame most often will be who's Olivia Voldaren will steal the other's because of the new Legendary creature rule change. Personally, I expect Jund to have the highest showing in Tampa because of its recent surge in popularity and high finishes from the SCG Open Richmond, VA last weekend, so I hope I figure out exactly how to board against them over the next couple days.

+1x Golgari Charm
+2x Ruric Thar, the Unbowed
+2x Duress
+1x Underworld Connections
+1x Rakdos's Return
+?x Tragic Slip/Liliana of the Veil (depending if boarding out Huntmaster of the Fells)

-1x Vampire Nighthawk
-3x Scavenging Ooze
-?x Huntmaster of the Fells (if on the Draw because of active/nonactive player triggering upon Flip)
-1x Doom Blade
-1x Abrupt Decay
-1x Liliana of the Veil

The sideboarding plan for the Jund Midrange mirror is somewhat complicated. There's a lot of 'mind games' involved revolving around Liliana of the Veil and Huntmaster of the Fells and whether you're on the draw/play that gives you the edge. I've also been considering another Underworld Connections or another Golgari Charm for aforementioned reasons as well as to fight off opponents' Underworld Connections, Primeval Bounty, or Deadbridge Chant. Golgari Charm also gives you an out against opponents' Bonfire of the Damned that are generally used to break stalemates on the ground.

Esper Control/Other Control Decks

+2x Duress
+1x Golgari Charm
+1x Underworld Connections
+1x Rakdos's Return
+2x Liliana of the Veil
+2x Ruric Thar, the Unbowed

-1x Vampre Nighthawk
-2x Putrefy
-2x Tragic Slip
-1x Doom Blade
-3x Bonfire of the Damned

The cards we bring in against control are pretty straightforward. I decided to leave in Abrupt Decay as it handles their Detention Spheres well and also can knock out Pithing Needles when they attempt to stop our Liliana of the Veil since the matchup is very Liliana of the Veil dependent. If the game goes on too long, Sphinx's Revelation will kill us because we no longer play Slaughter Games in the board. I'm not 100% sure if this move is correct, but I do like Duress against the meta as a whole over Slaughter Games.

and lastly.. Bant Hexproof

+2x Liliana of the Veil
+2x Barter in Blood
+1x Golgari Charm
+2x Duress
+1x Ruric Thar, the Unbowed

-1x Doom Blade
-3x Scavenging Ooze
-2x Garruk, Primal Hunter
-2x Putrefy

After spending a lot of time testing against my teammate, Evan Forster's Bant Hexproof list, I found this to be the best sideboarding option against the deck. The matchup is difficult, but I feel it favors Jund in G2 and G3, while G1 is very even. The 1x of Ruric Thar, the Unbowed is an amazing finisher against a deck that needs to cast many noncreature spells just to create a creature large enough to attack. Furthermore, Ruric Thar, the Unbowed has Reach which is extremely important for thwarting 4/4 Angel tokens or a Spectrally Flying duder. The rest of the board is pretty self-explanatory.

I didn't really comment on Junk Reanimator because I don't feel the deck will have a strong presence at the PTQ and if it does, the 3x of Scavenging Ooze in the main and our complete efficiency against the deck going into the board should be enough to be extremely favorable against them. Thanks for reading my 4am banter; just kinda felt in the mood to write xD

8-19-13 EDIT: This was my final list for PTQ Theros: Tampa, Fl

Check out the MTG Casual Net Archive and connect with us on Facebook!

-David J.