This draft was a fascinating exercise in Butterfly Effect. P1p1 started out with Mire’s Grasp vs. Heliod’s Intervention. Efficient removal versus temperamental but potentially quite powerful removal. I take Mire’s Grasp. This is wrong: there was pretty universal agreement that Heliod’s Judgement is better than any common or uncommon. But when I took that, then the Eat to Extinction fell to me and I sort of married black waaay too hard given how cut it was in pack 3. And white was painfully open in pack 3 (Archon of Falling Stars, late Revoke Existence, &c). Blech.
Summary
Honestly, this deck was pretty bad. Somehow I won round one, only to lose to a very bad RW aggro deck in round 2. I had no desire to play round 3.
On the potty-training front all is quiet except for nights. We’re still trying to figure out exactly how long do we press her, how much do we just change sheets, and how much do we try and teach (?) Lil Chandra to g potty by herself (?!) at night. Restful!
Started off so promising with an Easy Kraken over Lyre. Ended up with a thoroughly mediocre UW-stuff deck. I posted it on LoL and someone though to go UB with the wheeling Devourer of Memory. I am skeptical since black was just so obliterated (as it tends to be in this format)
Summary
Sooo. Kraken is just a gonzo card. The constantly spewing out chump blockers is pretty hard to stop in almost any board state. Drew the Kraken four games in a row and won all four! Gosh this deck must be good (it’s not good). Incredibly enough I even won the finals with the Sweet Oblivion decking my opponent while I was staring one turn away from lethal. Goes to show: even the worst decks can go 3-0 with the right breaks.
There were visions of a triple-cook night and a draft, which is just folly. Those dishes don’t clean themselves and Lil Chandra is really far from contributing anything other than morale.
Ended up in G(u). Looking back there wasn’t a clear signal to go green in pack 1 until the pick 15 (!) Setessan Training, so I like how I navigated the draft. Getting hooked up with Nylea and a Hornbeetle in pack 3 certainly helped the overall power level of my deck.
Summary
Round 1 ran into a very good GB black (escape creatures, 2x Mire’s Grasp, 2x Funeral Rites, etc.) that I deserved to lose to. Almost pulled it out in game 3, but oppo had the single green “put target god on the bottom of the library” which was pretty much their only out from my alpha attack. The beat a bad UG deck that ran far too many Triton Wave-Crashers (the 2/1 that fuels escape). Then I beat a deck that had far too many 2/1 harpies for big dumb green creatures.
For the first time ever I started off a set with a 3-0 draft! I think the memo about how powerful black was hadn’t yet gotten around, so I had double Gorgon, Gary, and just a plate full of removal. It was fun. It.. it hasn’t been as smooth since.
Felt like a tricky draft to navigate. I seized on the Mire Triton in P1p4 as a soft signal to veer towards black, then teased by white (Daxos, P1p10 hero of the Pride) only for that to dry up. I was able to wheel the BR gold Slaughter-Priest in pack 2, so I think my lane was correct. Just didn’t end up with high card quality.
Interesting Moments
What to cut?
Some tough cuts. Initially I was going to cut the Agonizing Remorse but was talked out of it. Eventually dropped Aspect of Lamprey, a Nyxborn Marauder, Libation, and a Storm’s Wrath (for mana considerations).
The Brothers’ Grimm made a magic set! There is so much I loved about Throne of Eldraine. Hilarious cards (Belle of the Brawl was a personal favorite), great flavor, great art, and most important: really solid limited gameplay.
trophies
most drafted card
It’s a tie between Rimrock knight and Silverflame Squire at 15! Let’s look at the other finalists: Youthful Knight at 12, Redcap Raiders at 12, Henge Walker at 13, Outflank at 11.
I wonder if I have a type? For frame of reference, I drafted two Merfolk Secretkeepers all format.
personal lessons
NEVER underestimate 1-drops. Cards that looked mediocre were either narrowly powerful or just outright good. One mana is just so powerful because it can fit well with a double-spell, drop early, &c.
Also I think this was the set where I realized that I have trouble drafting non-aggro decks. This will be something for me to focus on in Theros. Is it a card evaluation problem gap or something else?
land review
In a word, Eldraine basic lands were simply spectacular.
I love the coiling vines of roses in particular, though they are all pretty great. There was also a neat cycle of basics that had the banners of each of the orders of knights tucked away in the background.
As such, Eldraine richly earned a spot in the Land Box. The Swamps, as per usual, are most in dire need of upgrading so I think the will-o-the-wisp willow tree will be making an well-deserved spot.
Overall record: 41-29 (59%)
summary
I really loved Throne. I think it combined the best of really interesting drafting (rewarding flexibility, lots of nooks and color-pair-subtypes) and really solid gameplay. Adventure is an all-time limited mechanic in my book. I would put it on the top tier with Khans of Tarkir. Morph versus Adventure, tri-color wedges versus mono-ish, drafting lands versus #DelayTheDecision…Don’t make me choose between them.
Very strange draft, with a very late So Tiny heaving me towards mono-blue, for blue to then dry up in pack 3. Could be someone else made the same move. For blue being that open, a definite lack of Secretkeepers. I want to mill! Or at least have the necessary backstop to play UB control (two Drown in the Loch cards will just moulder instead I guess)
This deck would have been a lot better with more consistent early drops but it played pretty well. If I didn’t fall behind real early (or face a turn 3 Folio of Fancy with all 4-drops in my hand lol), it could grind out a victory in a very straightforward fashion.
Interesting Moments
Crazy game against a mono-white deck. I started building up my air force, but oppo had the Resolute Rider repeatedly crashing into me for 5 life (5th point courtesy of Linden, who did a surprising amount of work during races). Oppo got up to 40 life, but I start to turn the tables with the Scions providing some firepower. I actually was in danger of decking. But eventually got there!
Allow me to briefly shill for some truly delicious tea: Harney & Sons. Classy little sachets but some just divine flavors. I really like green tea in general, and their “matcha with toasted rice kernels” and “green tea with citrus-something-or-other”. Highly recommend!
Very tricky draft to navigate. I veered pretty hard into red with the late Scorching Dragonfire and Ferocity of the Wilds. Felt a little bad when white and blue suddenly opened up in pack 3, but I think I made the right choices overall.
Definitely had some fun navigating this bad boy. I know everyone else knows this already, but using Barge In to break a board stall feels fantastic. Lost in the finals to a very streamlined BW knights deck.
Interesting Moments
attack or stall?
Is it time for an all-out attack? Too much mana for my Searing Barrage to ever snag the Resolute Rider, but I have a trick, a Barge In, and an extra three damage from Searing Barrage. I add it up and go for it! I then totally forgot about the 5 life they would gain from lifelink on the Rider, but it still turned out to be enough.
Well the holidays are over and with the sunset shows and gushing over Eldraine, time to fit in one last draft maybe before we hit up the Return to Theros. I’ve enjoyed this format a lot, enough to actually put together my own post-format thoughts. Hopefully enough that doesn’t just crib from other, smarter magic players.
Felt like the deck underperformed, though there was some bad luck involved. Lotta mulls; I stand by the deck decisions I regret nothing! (begins planning “Aggro 4 Life” tattoo)
Interesting Moments
Making some cuts
In a shocking twist (that was sarcasm), I drafted an aggressive, low-to-the-ground attack deck. With triple trebuchet to finish them off! After discussing with the NIRD crew, we agreed to cut the Silverflame Ritual. So often I’ve wanted just one, but I have the trebuchets to close out the game.
Are you still the aggressor?
Well a Tall Syr Faren suddenly broke a board stall. I have a 5-damage Outflank in my hand. What’s the play? I fear Run Away Together a lot, as I should. But if they have it, they will still have it on the counterattack and that obviously much worse. I attack in the air, but oppo does have the Run Away Together to bounce the Archon and the Merfolk. I stabilized by Outflanking the human token on the crackback in response to the Syr Faren trigger, but then commit a heinous own-goal a couple of turns later when I attack into an untapped Syr Faren… who has reach. Pretty sure I was down for the count, but no excuse for a sloppy play.
Keep or mull?
An interesting but clear keep or mull decision. Mulling two lands feels bad (and I did mull into a nearly worse hand) but this hand is simply too slow for my deck. While it only needs a single land to at least stabilize, both 5-drops (and definitely Syr Alin with double-white) are basically dead cards in this hand. I mull. Still lose, but made the right call.
Twas the night before the night before Christmas and with the Benalish Momma & MIL off to a choral show, clearly someone had to stay home to make sure the house didn’t burn down with our child inside. Obviously the next step is to invite over Chris and Dan and co-pilot a draft. It’s just common sense.
15 land hyper aggro deck without a single 4-drop (I never cast Circle for more than 3). Had some awkward draws but also some unstoppable ones too. Unfortunately I ended up going 1-2, losing to a glorious 14 point stall-breaking Fling (they had that stupid giant) and some other good ones. At one point I was using Circle of Loyalty to pump out 4/4 Vigilance knights, that was pretty fun.
Interesting Moments
Here’s a fun “keep or mull”. On the draw, I already mulled once, and opponent is a known aggressive red/black deck. I ended up keeping this and here’s my reasoning. Resources in the aggro vs. aggro matchup are going to be key. This was a risky keep, but I couldn’t see myself going down two cards and winning, so I leaned on the rummage from Haggle and… got there! Close victory, but a good one.
Hasn’t been a lot of Magic lately, simply because we tackled the next major boss fight: potty training. My basic parenting paradigm boils down to “pick as few conflicts as possible, but commit to victory in the ones you do fight.” Sure I’d prefer it if Lil’ Chandra wouldn’t whack the table with her wooden spoon, but I’m not going to die on that hill. The corollary to that is that the parents need to know when there is a fight looming and prepare accordingly. The last one was sleep training, over two years ago. I describe it as “a fight” because you’ve reached a stable equilibrium with nighttime feedings and you have to deliberately disrupt it to get them to stop feeding every 2-3 hours and start sleeping through the night.
Well it turns out potty training is a lot like that except this time they are armed with poop. The Benalish Phalanx adopted the Oh Crap methodology by Jamie Glowacki. It’s a pretty interesting read and a pretty hardcore take. Her stance is pretty simple: potty training consists of teaching your offspring to recognize the feeling of having to pee or poop and take action (tell someone, remove the pants, &c &c) accordingly. If you think about it from their point of view, diapers are a pretty sweet deal. They don’t have to do anything and someone else does all the work! So you have to commit to break it. Pick a fight.
I swear this isn’t a staged photo
So back to the book. She spends the first 25% scaring the crap out of you: tales of kindergartners with atrophied bladder control so they constant wet themselves in school, etc. She then lays out a simple groundwork to do a clean break from diapers in “blocks”: no pants then commando then short outings then you’re done! It reads very easy, though in the author’s defense she spends a lot of time running through the various contingencies.
Here’s the rundown. The first day (or more) is spent in the house with no pants while you watch your child like a hawk. Your goal is to learn the tells that they have to potty (hopping, dancing, slight crouch etc.) then you whisk them to the potty, get them to pee in the target, and celebrate. Once that is complete, you add pants (or a dress) so they practice their own agency: pushing the pants down first &c. Once that is complete, you start working in brief outings. So how did we do?
Captain’s Log
12/13/19
We took Friday off work to start “Block One”, no pants and taking turns watching Chandra like a hawk. You stuff them full of apple juice so they get more reps (might be peeing as often as every 20 minutes). No asking, just firmly stating, “time to sit on the potty” and hope luck strikes. It’s worth noting that you really do have to stare at them unflinchingly. I got distracted once while on duty and there was an immediate accident. Still, by the afternoon we felt in rhythm with no accidents and the Benalish Momma and I actually congratulated ourselves on how well it went and how it could only get worse.
Double sweaters were her sartorial choice to offset the lack of pants
12/14/19
We were correct: it got worse. We put pants back on, which reduced the cuteness by 20% but also reduced paper towel consumption by 80%. The day began in disaster: two immediate accidents while there was a parental “discussion” occurring. Once was coincidence but two caused us to shelve the “conversation” and just seethe quietly until nap-time. We switched from pants to a dress, got some wins, then a truly pissed bed-wetting during the nap. Friends came over bringing delicious take-out, which was welcome. But the distraction of just having people around caused a serious backslide before bed. Here are the notes from the day:
8:20: failure, at the chest, no hopping just peed. Cried, embarrassed. 8:40: failure. Parents arguing, I missed a cue, cried, embarrassed 9:50: failure. Was looking at the lights right by the potty, spinning, and then peed. No crying, a little embarrassed 10:10: success! Wearing a dress, went over and peed, no prompt or warning. 10:20: poop success! Some farting, she sat a few times, then pooped while looking at us
NOTHING
3:30: wetted bed during nap. Pretty angry for a while 4:05: pouch offered and snack. “Apples on fire” (see right.) 425: tried, read DT, said poop but nothing 450: walked over to the potty and peed. 525: tried, read DT, nothing 630: failure, jumping with friend while dad was shouting downstairs for help, ironically 730: finally asleep.
12/15/19
Entering the final day before returning to day care, morale was very low. It felt like almost no progress was made yesterday, worried about daycare, just no fun. then Chandra shined like a glorious, peeing-on-command star! There was one “accident” when I refused her a juice pouch and then had a hot streak.
12/16/19
We dropped Lil Chandra off at daycare with a stack of spare pants and whispered prayers. Upon afternoon we were informed that she pitched a perfect game! The celebration and smugness was tangible.
You get the idea.
Nighttime training
We chose to do the “Full Cortes”: burn the boats, no retreat, the only way out is through. There were to be no diapers in the house: not for naps, not for bedtime, nothing. This is just rolling the dice for naps, but for bedtime wake them every x hours to try and pee them. How often is x?
Good fucking question!
There is no answer to this and the first few days are just guess-and-check. Here’s the log from Night 2:
Bedtime @ 8:10: after two bluffs of claiming wanting to potty then nothing, she peed the third time with me. Wtf. 1:15 am: wet the bed 4:00 am: dry, sat on the potty nothing. Went to bed, then she said “I need potty”, put her back on the potty and she peed while I walked around. Bluffed another, went to bed. 7:15 am: woke up dry. Morning poop downstairs.
This was exhausting and a very unwelcome throwback to infant feeding (waking 2-3 times a night to start). However, I think it was really helpful. There’s no mixed messages of “sometimes diapers, sometimes not”, it hardened my resolve to get it right since there is no going back, and it gave Lil Chandra some extra chances to feel the sensation of having to go to the bathroom. Cons: it was very, very exhausting. However, we are down to a single waking right now, steadily increasing how long she holds it, and there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
tldr
Potty training is hard, there’s no way around it. The author recommends doing it earlier rather than later (20-30 months) as they are less willful and–to repeat–they are the ones armed with feces. I would recommend Oh Crap, but that’s the danger of the sample size of one: all I really know is that it worked for us. Here are some supplementary pieces of advice
Make a long weekend of it and tag-team it. Staring unblinking at your child is exhausting and trading off 1-hour shifts really helps
Schedule *nothing* for that weekend. Seriously, NOTHING. No house projects, no visitors, no outings. If friends want to help, have them drop off food and leave. One parent is completely committed to staring at the child and the other is doing the basics keeping the household intact (food prep, cleaning etc.)
Make sure that all parental figures are on the same page for the plan and the strength of will.
I do recommend doing the simultaneous nighttime training, but it sucks.
It is hard to find a “good weekend” to potty train. We’re busy, there’s always something that needs doing, or upcoming travel. I get it. But calendars abhor a vacuum so it’s on you to proactively carve out the space to do it.
Benalish Dad 