You may recall that Aetherdrift did not impress the boys and I. It was another of those sets where some familiar characters were forced into a tropy setting, one that really did not resonate with us. Fortunately, the following set held more promise. And it has finally arrived: Tarkir: Dragonstorm pre-release season is upon us (if only for a week).

Why the excitement? It is the return to a somewhat familiar plane. When the boys and I first got into Magic during Battle for Zendikar, both boys also purchased packs from some previous sets. And two sets in particular were quite popular. And where were these set? Surprise, surprise, they were the Tarkir sets. When Wizards announced the return to Tarkir, there was much rejoicing in this house. As for me, I like that this is a solid set that, like Foundations or Bloomburrow, plays like a traditional Magic set.

Unfortunately, Noah once again had to miss out on Pre-Release, this time because of his participation in the school musical (Footloose this year!). So, Christian and I headed off Saturday morning, chatting about which clan we would choose. Christian was set on Mardu while I settled on Abzan.

My six packs, including the seeded one, pretty much locked me into Abzan. My promo, Revival of the Ancestors, was also an Abzan card (Christian ended up with a Jeskai promo). My blue was weak except for Taigam, Master Opportunist. My Red pulls left me equally uninspired and I stuck to my original plan.

Deck building felt good. I cut blue and red with no hesitation and set to building my Abzan deck. Along with my promo, I threw in Felothar, Dawn of the Abzan (could I play Abzan without its lord?) and Skirmish Rhino as a tribute to the old Siege Rhino. A few dragons and some good removal and I was ready.

My first match was a fairly evenly matched affair. Good fun!

In the first game, my opponent’s deck started a bit faster but I was able to catch up and we traded damage fairly evenly through the first turns, quickly ending up in single digits. Omens proved quite useful for me, helping with mana ramp and card draw. Removal played an important part in both our decks, keeping the creature count low. A string of three lands in a row late in the game changed the tone of the game, leaving me on the backfoot, unable to either remove his creatures or cast new ones of my own to replace those I was losing to his removal. In the end, that run of lands left me with an empty board and no answers to the damage coming in.

Game 2 started more strongly for me, especially after my opponent milled two of his removals, looking through his library for a threat. Again, the omens helped early in the game. While he started on the backfoot, he was able to catch up. Renew helped turn the tides for him, particularly his Qarsi Revenant, along with a few other Deathtouch creatures. We once again found ourselves in low single digits but it was his game in the end.

For my second match, I found myself relegated to the last table of our LGS where I met my next opponent.

I handily won the first game against a 4-colour deck. My opponent claimed to be playing five colours but I never saw a red land. If her strategy was indeed five colours, this first game would have been very frustrating. We talked as we shuffled up for the next game and it sounds like she just ended up with a pretty janky pool that really did not come together. I hate those kinds of days.

Game 2 was another decisive win but not for me. I went deep into the game without any White mana and a full hand of cards calling for White. With little else to cast, I had to discard cards for several turns, frustrated that I otherwise had a solid hand. On her side, my opponent pinged me for at least 1 from her second turn (and later 2 from each creature as counters entered the game). It was enough to whittle me down to the point that even when White showed up, it was too late. She was definitely pleased to pull a win out with her jank.

Fickle luck decided to smile on me again in the third game and everything lined up nicely for a quick win.

Mardu was a popular choice at our LGS and but it was only in my third match that I faced off against it.

The first game went long and was a very close affair. Removal and lifegain helped me weather the token storm. This was a fun game where my opponent kept attacking as “that is the Mardu way.” Qarsi Revenant (again!) certainly made it an interesting game. Using Renew to give another creature a flying counter, a deathtouch counter, and a lifelink counter when it dies is a pretty nasty little trick. Fortunately, between my own flyers and my removal, I was able to win the first game.

Game 2 started with my opponent taking a mulligan. From there, things did not improve for her. Two removal spells ended up in her graveyard shortly after while my own kept her in check. I was able to establish a solid board presence and was able to hit for damage consistently.

One card that really helped contain her threats was Arashin Sunshield, which can tap enemy creatures. I simply used it on her turn to control her biggest threat until I finally was able to permanently remove it. She never really recovered and I won the match 2-0.

It was nice to end 2-1 after the pretty horrid stretch I’ve had in recent pre-releases.

In general, I was pleasantly surprised by the Omen mechanic. I used them early in the games and was lucky enough to have them pop back into my hand a couple of times afterwards allowing me to then use the more expensive creature side. Definitely more flexible than I thought although they may not be as useful in larger decks where there is a smaller chance that they will reappear.

And one last thought. I wish the MTG Companion app would let you see your match history. It was something you could do back in the DCI number days. I would have liked to be able to see my standing before the event closed out.

Anyways, a good set and a fun pre-release…