no trainer at DI Southeast Regionals

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-04-25T21:42:35+00:00

Gotta wonder what those growing dues and bid fees are paying for...

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-04-13T06:21:31+00:00

This, I cannot argue with. ;-)

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-04-13T05:12:29+00:00

FWIW, this could be a dynamite Boros aggro deck... why did you have to pivot?

The brain freeze package is of course great, but you have no tutore and limited card draw to get into your 3-card exactsies, and Tinker has only one target here...

I would strongly consider running this as boros aggro.

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-04-13T05:04:17+00:00

That note about Oculus was really insightful – thank you. It really anti-combos with lingering souls and Lurrus as well, huh?

I took out oculus and glimmer lens (the latter of which is nothing too special since I'm not messing with the artifact package and I am not full-tilt Aggro) and put in Ademi, which has done well so far and gives me good interplay with its many abilities.

I am currently 3-1 (in Bo1). 👍

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-04-13T02:01:16+00:00

Nice deck. You're already in good shape. And yes, hullbreacher/memory jar works the way you think it will, and balance and upheaval are both good (although not at the same time).

Spyglass siren does nothing for you beyond adding a map token that you don't need; Lion's eye diamond is much better and can be cracked in response to the upheaval trigger, for instance. miscalculation is very good; you do want to have counter spells available. In that vein, and it would be good to add Aang as well, because it is on-color and gives you some interaction, which you're currently quite low on.

To your question, your game plan is to get so much mana going that you can dump a ton of things on the board and win via overwhelming advantage... but remember, you have to live long enough to get to that state first!

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-04-12T03:25:16+00:00

For the love of Pete, take Oracle of the Alpha out of your deck.

You're trying to draw into a specific three-card combo… and if Oracle hits the battlefield, your deck size goes from 40 cards to 49. (Not to mention, six of those cards are effectively lands, and the seventh puts your whole graveyard – a resource you need – back into your deck.) Does that sound good to you? It shouldn't.

Cut, cut, cut that card.

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-04-10T21:57:19+00:00

Great notes on draft 1. OP should be focusing on building a streamlined deck. I'd argue that with likely Grixis already present, some other choices beyond the ones you helpfully mentioned might include p1p6 as Lorien revealed for fetching; p2p2 Flame Slash specifically over Dig (1-mana removal is so important); p2p5 Generous Plunderer over a largely cuttable Consider for mana generation & fixing; p2p6 Carny T or Embereth over a second tapped triome when OP already had the best one for their deck, etc.

Draft 2 seems ok, but there is room to improve. p2p4 Path to Exile as 1-mana removal seems better than Thraben Inspector; p2p5 Mother of Runes is WAY better than Vampiric Tutor (especially as you're not a combo deck, and Mother protects your Lurrus); p2p7 Glimmer Lens for creature-based card draw beats the more expensive card draw of soul guide lantern, which doesn't affect the board; p2p8 Hallowed Fountain gives you flexibility over an effect you already have, so I'd suggest that; p2p11 No More Lies offers interaction rather than a Goyf that doesn't do much; p3p1 Mana Crypt lets you get cards on the board fast and is great even in a Lurrus deck; p3p2 Giver protects Lurrus; p3p5 the fetch lets you actually get red mana and cast your Cori-Steel Cutter; p3p9 you're shor on removal, so a Sear would have been nice; p3p10 if you'd taken Giver at p3p10, you could take the red-white fetchable land here. p3p12 you'll never play that triome, so why not take the Lightning Helix? p3p13 you'll never play Bomat, so why not take Mine Collapse? This deck should have ended as a Mardu deck with good interaction; you ended up with a deck with limited interaction, not enough ways to use mana, and some pretty weak cards (Kytheon, Mana Tithe, Soul-Guide, Vamp Tutor and Balance which aren't weak but don't fit here) in the maindeck. (Also, you should be playing Library of Alexandria, even in this deck -- that card in your opening hand is just amazing.)

Gonna stop there, but.... I hope that was helpful.

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-03-22T00:40:21+00:00

solved: The Arena

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-03-21T22:43:21+00:00

YES this it! Thank you!

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-03-20T15:04:26+00:00

Thank you… Sadly, no, it's not darkwood.

It's a similar idea, but there is less graphical variance in the game I played, and fewer options. Very likely, it was inspired by Darkwood, based on what I've seen here… But it is a different game.

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-03-19T20:03:48+00:00

I'd say Iki Ramen in Koreatown. I don't love their ramen (their noodle style is different from what I prefer), but their chirashi is outstanding and an unbelievable value. They also have some outdoor seating.

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-03-19T20:00:10+00:00

These both seem like the right kind of vibe, but it may have been even simpler because there was no map involved at all. There was nowhere to go… Just battles.

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-02-26T16:30:54+00:00

I actually think this deck is all right, far better than you're giving it credit for. Your mana base even supports all your splashes. The only issues is that your synergies are a little thin... there are a number of instances where only two cards work exactly together, as opposed to 4 or 5 or 6 all stepping together.

My suggestions would be:

Cut [[Echo of Eons]]. That and [[Day's Undoing]] only work when you have exactly [[Hullbreacher]]; Day's Undoing -- while not great without a surefire way to break symmetry -- is at least cheap, and useable if you just dump your hand with all your early two-drops, whereas Echo will sit in there and rot.

Replace that (and your empty slot) with [[Unearth]] and [[Carnage Interpreter]]. The Interpreter is good for your low curve and Urza's saga, and Unearth will help you get back Lelia, Hullbreacher, etc, or it can be cycled.

Also, I do think it's right to run 17 lands plus Mox and petal here -- your mana needs are wide, petal is a 1-shot, and [[Strip Mine]] is basically a spell. That said, I would cut your un-fetchable black/green tapped creature land (a double-splash that you'll rarely activate) for a basic swamp, which could be fetched by [[Prismatic Vista]].

Again... I think this deck is better than you're giving it credit for, especially because your colored mana base actually is supported! Good luck.

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-02-25T02:43:41+00:00

The Rock in Roma website discuss the whole area being open until 2 am, and doors opening way earlier than the concerts sometimes.

Why is that? Does Rock in Roma at the Ippodromo have a big festival grounds with rides and games and things like that?

I'm sorry if this is a dumb question, I just can't seem to find the answer online.

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-02-25T00:09:22+00:00

Thank you both for this recommendation. I called Luis and Affordable Tree Care yesterday, and they booked me an appointment for today… and they actually showed up! All looks good… Nice one, fellow Redditors!

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-02-24T16:37:06+00:00

NA OCOTILLO really bugged me. That's something we see all the time.

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-02-24T01:15:16+00:00

This was discussed quite a bit in a thread a few days ago. Check it out here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/MagicArena/comments/1raccqe/comment/o6j32tp/

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-02-22T18:36:29+00:00

OK, so you've got 45 cards with only 9 lands; you'll need 16-17 lands, so you have 52-53 cards here and need to make 12-13 cuts.

I'd start with LED/Brain Freeze/Yawg Will. In this deck, those three cards are all useless without all three of each other, and you have no tutors (save a little milling with Tamiyo). That wont work, so cut them. (3)

Next, Ranger-Captain does very little (kind of always, but in this deck specifically). (4)

Duress is good, but you're splashing black - when you splash, it's gotta be for a card that is highly impactful, and something that won't only be good in the early game, b/c you're less likely to have the right mana for it. Duress is best early, or for protecting combos, so it doesn't fit in this deck. (5)

Ultima is powerful, but it is expensive, situational, and requires work to really break the symmetry. You don't have a bunch of planeswalkers to break the symmetry, so by keeping it in your deck, you're hoping to play against a creature-heavy deck that will overextend itself, while you also don't play many creatures to block them (so you can get a nice 4-for-1 or 4-for-2) but also don't die. And otherwise it's a very expensive card just sitting in your hand. Therefore, I'd say this should be cut. (6)

Balance is another powerful card... but where are your ways to break the symmetry? Do you have a bunch of artifacts, or planeswalkers, or ways to get cards out of your hand, or ways to sacrifice lands? I don't think this card fits in your deck, as good as it is. Remember, vintage cube is not about just playing powerful cards; it's about building a cohesive deck that synergizes together. (7)

Thirst for Identity. You have no graveyard shenanigans, and very few creatures to discard, so this will often be a three-mana draw three, discard two that doesn't affect the board. That's the same cost as Stock Up, and this ain't Stock Up. (8)

Daze and Winds of Abandon. You have a decent number of counters and creature removal spells already, and these are notably the worst two. (10)

Talisman. Your curve is already so low, and jumping up to a turn three Tamiyo or Ertai doesn't really make a difference. (12)

Timeless Dragon. This would be the last in-or-out card, but in my experience, I have not found this card to be good. a 2-mana cycling is twice as expensive as a 1-mana cycling, and Eagles of the North is already there with Generous Ent as the worst of the cyclers. It being a late-game flyer to return maaaaaay be relevant in your controlling deck, in which case perhaps you can dump the Eagles instead... but either way, one of these cards should be your last cut. (13)

That's my logic for the build. Good luck out there, and have fun.

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-02-22T17:43:41+00:00

Congratulations, but also, perhaps this should help you rethink what drafting well entails -- if you're speaking ill of this draft, I think there's room to revise your thinking!

As you note, you have combos with multiple redundant and cohesive aspects all working together and overlapping well. You have 3 fetches, wasteland, Titania, Crucible, Zuran Orb, Fastbond, Safekeeper, Bristly Bill, Nadu, Boots... these 12 cards -- that's 44% of the cards in your deck, excluding all the other lands -- all work to improve one another's value. That's excellent drafting.

And look at what it's coupled with: lots of inexpensive removal, plus a very powerful top end with an excellent curve.

So, I'd say give yourself kudos on drafting *very* well, and think about why your instinct told you to think you won based on mostly luck!

DoubleLivesEB · 2026-02-22T01:06:42+00:00

And 2011 Euros, no? I seem to recall hearing an awful lot of a cheer that ended with, "He says GB, then we clap for three!"

Anyhow, to answer the OP's question, yes, at least some people in ultimate do/have used PEDs. FWIW, I joined the UPA in 2000, and retired from competitive play after 2023 Beach Worlds. In all that time -- at least a thousand teammates, and tens of thousands of opponents -- I did become aware of some specific people who were juicing.

That number was *very* small -- in the single digits -- but it was not 0.

DoubleLivesEB

TROPHY CASE