By Niels Viaene
For the fourth time in a row, we have a different region taking the top slot in the leaderboard, with Jelle Lauwers taking the lead after this 4th episode, having from the Merksem region. Do not disregard the other regions, though, as the top 4 currently has 4 different names. Notably missing is St Niklaas, but they have retake potential with Quinten’s finish and Mats being known to perform really well in Gentry. 29 people played in this edition as well, keeping the number of players remarkable stable as we continue.
4-0 Jelle Lauwers
Azorius Control
Even though most people seem to agree that Black is best paired with Blue for optimal control, a few standouts are sticking to White’s flexibility in dealing with artifacts and enchantments for their choice. It makes for a deck that is a lot less forgiving when you make mistakes, and it is definitely less strong against very aggressive decks, but in the hands of a good player, it is a force to be reckoned with.
4-0 Ward Beutels
Izzet Drakes
The name of this deck has fluctuated between ‘Spells’, ‘Drakes’, and ‘2nd Draw’, but Ward crushes the doubt here, going pretty much all in on both Crackling Drake and Sprite Dragon. He focuses heavily on getting one threat on the board and wrapping up the game through that. Since his Sprite Dragon can sneak under Essence Scatter, this deck is a nightmare for control to deal with while having Flame Sweep available to deal with aggressive rushes. A well-rounded deck that has what it takes to face any opponent. On top of that, it is very modular and can easily sideboard and shift victory conditions to adapt to different opponents and different metagames.
3-1 Ben Belmans
Simic Ramp
One deck that deserves highlighting is Ben’s Simic Ramp taking three wins. He shows a flexible base that can be quite troublesome for a lot of decks but might miss some interaction to fight back against control. He chose not to go with Umori, the Collector to allow him to play more interaction. Whether it will be enough remains to be seen, but it is a good indication that just because you technically CAN play a companion, it is not always the correct decision to do so.
3-1 Sander De Quick
Dimir Control
Dimir Control was a deck I touted as a great contender for the metagame when it was dominated by Boros Cycling. They are currently on the rise but are doing so without their nemesis as most people are no longer playing Cycling believing it has already been nerfed. That also means that control is currently all over the place with Dimir, Azorius, and Esper versions popping up left and right. They are often supported with many Planeswalkers, as we see here, but it seems there is a lot of variation that is still available.
On another note, it is great to see Sander return to Gentry after a short break and to see him on an archetype he enjoys playing.
Conclusion
We are about to arrive at the 5th Episode of this event. That is when the points start to really show how good players are. If you want to catch up, it is in your best interests to help the event grow, as your points are directly dependant on it. Since we are only counting your top 5 performances point wise, it is always interesting to bring in more people and to keep playing, you will never lose points by doing that.
See you at the next event,
Niels
