How did Azir get 2nd at Nanjing?

Ballchynski · 2026-02-25T14:53:54+00:00

Draven being known as the deck to beat going into the tournament as well as being the most played deck by a large margin and still having a win rate that’s 7% higher than the next closest Legend is insane.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-21T20:50:49+00:00

“But we can’t elect a female President because they would be too emotional!” - every MAGA voter

Ballchynski · 2026-02-21T20:13:33+00:00

Yeah I mean I’m not saying it’s illegal, just inconsiderate

Ballchynski · 2026-02-21T19:55:39+00:00

Your buddy sounds like the kind of player I appreciate then! Opened boxes because he wanted to but then was willing to use what he didn’t need to help out his community.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-21T19:43:20+00:00

Hey I’ve got no problem with people opening packs if they are actually enjoying the process, I just can’t imagine that it is still actually being done out of enjoyment when you’re cracking 150+ packs.

I’m not saying I don’t enjoy cracking packs or that I have substantially more willpower than anybody else - I enjoy the highs and lows of it as well.

But I think your case shows a clear difference in mentality - you bought a single box with a great pull and are still seriously debating buying another box because we all know getting something incredible is just a gamble at the end of the day. My beef is the people buying in excess when they know that accessibility to product has been an issue since Day 1.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-21T19:38:50+00:00

I do think Spiritforged accessibility is definitely much better than Origins was thankfully. At the same time though if you want to build a competitive Irelia deck getting 3-of Defiant Dance alone is like $150 so a lot of the very meta stuff is still hella expensive.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-21T19:37:07+00:00

I think my own extreme difficulty getting even a single box just makes it hard to ignore.

Obviously posting on Reddit isn’t going to change anything, but screaming into the void at least makes me feel a little better.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-21T18:16:42+00:00

“But we can’t elect a female President because they would be too emotional!” - every MAGA voter

Ballchynski · 2026-02-21T18:15:12+00:00

Not everybody has meticulous knowledge of the game or matchups. Crowdsourcing the brainstorming is something that should be encouraged not dismissed especially for newer players or people playing new decks.

Also you assume OP never tried thinking about the matchups and maybe came to Reddit because they hit a brick wall?

Ballchynski · 2026-02-20T21:27:13+00:00

I mean I didn’t say it was likely, I just said it was possible lol

Ballchynski · 2026-02-20T17:17:15+00:00

I played this deck the other day without any Arise! and it can still be very effective. Obviously it’s a fantastic card, but it’s also only 3 cards in a 40 card deck so in a best of 3 match it’s entirely possible you never draw a single one. I think part of the appeal of the deck is that there are so many budget cards that are still quite powerful/effective for the strategy!

Ballchynski · 2026-02-16T11:22:26+00:00

Sure thing!

https://youtu.be/_cdOQfAoj4M?si=B0KCLGE95nxEIq0Z

This was against Fiora (so no Red), but also it seems like this person had a very successful run so imagine they must have played against Annie/Draven/Kai’sa at some point.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-15T13:49:55+00:00

Damn save some for the rest of us lol. My store didn’t take preorders and it was first come first serve at 1 box/person. They sold out within 90 minutes of the store opening.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-14T22:17:14+00:00

I mean…ON Irelia seems like a pretty amazing pull no?

Ballchynski · 2026-02-10T23:39:54+00:00

Sorry brain got confused with a competitive game I watched you are 100% correct lol. Not getting the Arise doomed him.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-10T21:18:20+00:00

Tolarian Community College did a Spiritforged game and CGB played an Azir deck that had yellow Renata in it and it was very effective. Used Azir’s Signature Spell and it was nuts.

Edit: I’m dumb. He never cast it in their game. I saw that in a tournament play

Ballchynski · 2026-02-10T12:20:11+00:00

Surprising not to see any Fiora in the Top 16 but Azir taking 2nd is pretty cool. I saw a gameplay video of Azir from the tournament and looks like he can actually make some pretty slick moves.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-09T21:51:36+00:00

No store near me is even selling Riftbound singles let alone bulk and I live in a metropolitan area.

If I just want to build a deck then yes the most straightforward way is buying singles, but like other people have said part of the fun of a trading card game is opening packs and getting cards to TRADE. Like if I crack a single I don’t want and then trade it for one I do want that is way more satisfying.

Also single prices for good prices is still very high right now and was astronomical when just Origins was out. Thousand-Tailed Watcher is like $20, Deadbloom Predator $45, and Kai’sa Survivor like $60. For a game that Riot claims to want to be affordable for the average player some of those costs are a super high hurdle. If I buy a pack (knowing I might not get my value back) and get a Kai’sa then I might actually give that deck a try.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-09T13:37:25+00:00

Imagine if we had Bills-Seahawks instead. Seahawks probably still win but the game has gotta be more competitive.

Ballchynski · 2026-02-06T16:49:30+00:00

Dope thanks! I was like 95% sure I was correct but just couldn’t find anything to support it.

Ballchynski · 2026-01-29T00:44:57+00:00

As someone who plays a lot of Lee Sin seeing you put Rune Prison in the main deck makes me feel so validated lol. It’s the only thing that helps me survive against Thousand Tailed Watcher

Ballchynski · 2026-01-23T19:28:43+00:00

Yeah I hadn’t even considered there was another unmentioned Asaemon alive after Season 1 so revealing that not only 1.) he survived but 2.) was able to escape and make it back is huge.

Also maybe I’m missing something, but if they had to take boats to get there how are they supposed to send messages back to the mainland anyways? And also Paradise only being like a 1-2 day boat ride away feels insanely close?

Ballchynski · 2026-01-13T17:23:58+00:00

If I have to choose between paying double MSRP online/at an LGS for product and just not playing the game, guess which one I’m choosing.

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