The Land Grant Tournament Report
When the Shoe City Showdown comes around, there is only one place it could be: Webway Games in Marlborough, Massachusetts - the Shoe City. The stronghold of the Zoo Crew, where the menagerie of beasts lie in wait for their next chance to take a chomp out of an unprepared Duress Crew member. On April 4th, many chomps were taken.
I usually have a heavy hand in coming up with the events and the ideas behind them, but this time it was the brainchild of Alex Morreale, or as we call him, Clone. "We should do a tournament, call it The Land Grant and shower the winners in lands," and there may never have been an idea so quickly accepted by everyone in the Zoo - we loved it. We decided on a full set of Ice Age and Apocalypse pain lands as the major prize, got Raf and Cam from Webway to sign on and run the event, and we were off.
The only real decision I had was what I was going to play, but if you know me and what I've been up to for over a year, the deck decision was easy: Rack Control, as I call it. Mono-Black Rack, or Pitless Rack... or Pitless-Ritless Rack, as Commissioner Hodge likes to call it. It was from an idea I had that Dark Ritual huffs farts in fair decks, and that is essentially what you are playing - a square, fair deck, though opponents would argue otherwise. In the beginning I passed the idea to Francisco Pawluszek to cut Dark Ritual and add Chain of Smog, and he came up with the first draft. We were both impressed by the result. I went on to take Granite State Grinder and regional end-boss Jake Murphy's removal suite, along with some seasonings from this funny little deck called Moneyball Black as it continued to be revised, and you got what I played at The Land Grant.
Let's run through the matchups, because the deck performed very well.
My Decklist:
https://moxfield.com/decks/Q9yd6iZJ2EqU_qqoVZGxzg
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Round 1: Adri Jackson, Granite State Grinders - WR Rifter
I sat down to this match and laid out my Alabama Legacy League, Plateau Playmat which I have used to play every game of premodern I have played since it was gifted to me by some fine southern gentleman at Eternal Weekend 2025. I can't wait til I get to see those friends again.
This matchup is very tough to navigate and Adri is an excellent player, but I had a very disruptive hand in game 1 and I was on the draw. As soon as I identified the deck, the plan was to stop Lightning Rift. I added pressure with a Hypnotic Specter after picking their hand clean of removal. A cycle on my end step and a draw off the top led to a Swords to Plowshares on my Specter - I felt the walls closing in. The dreaded Rift came down shortly after and I packed it up. Game 2 I Wasteland-tempoed the game into a spot where I had a commanding lead; the first three turns I removed their lands, and when they started to get momentum I had a Skeletal Scrying for 6 - ouch. The game was over after that. In the final game I had hand and land disruption and put them to work, same plan: don't let them get good permanents and get pressure on board. Knight of Stromgald was great in these situations because I could put it in play to apply pressure knowing they had Swords to Plowshares in hand. Again, as soon as Adri mounted a comeback, I cast Skeletal Scrying for 7 - a personal record. The game was over after that.
1-0
Round 2: John Darling, Duress Crew - Esper Tog
John Darling is a good friend, but he plays a wide variety of decks and I didn't have a clue what he was on. It took a while in game 1 before the Psychatog came down to confirm my suspicions; even after all the hand-picking I was doing there was no sign of black. I was steadily positioning to get to the midgame where I could resolve a threat and take over - the only problem was, so was he. John used Portents to keep the cards he needed out of his hand and protected from Cabal Therapy, Ravenous Rats, and Chain of Smog. He then resolved Tog and followed up with Armageddon. I was chump-blocking with Specters to stay alive while I played more lands to rebuild, but I was in too deep a crater and conceded. Game 2 I was ready - I added removal and graveyard hate and expected a long game. It wasn't long. We traded resources turn by turn and I felt fine; his graveyard was in check from a Phyrexian Furnace and things felt great. I was in command, or so I thought. In one turn he cast Gush floating two blue, then Armageddon, replayed an Island, and cast Portent targeting me. I was vaporized. The game ended with me holding seven cards and a Phyrexian Furnace in play that I forgot to crack to draw a card, because I was in such shock that he pulled it off through all my disruption. John Darling rules and I am not fit to stand in his shadow.
1-1
Round 3: Mike Packer - Replenish
There are end-bosses, and then there are people like Mike Packer. Nice as can be, personable, polite, and he will smile as he thoroughly shreds you. Game 1 was a wash - I took a land-heavy hand for stability and once I realized he was on Replenish I knew I would need help. I drew nine lands in 11 turns, he took his time, and I was never in it. Game 2 I really didn't deserve to win. I misplayed early and didn't take his Seal of Cleansing on turn 2, thinking he would use it on The Rack or Phyrexian Furnace, but he knew what I knew: the whole game is about Dystopia. I had one in my opening hand and just couldn't play it. He played an Exalted Angel and beat me down to 2. I had to play a Specter off the top of the deck to block just to get another turn, and on the final turn before death I drew a second Dystopia. I played both and he said, "You held that Dystopia a long time," and I said, "And you just wouldn't crack your seal." He smiled. I climbed back in to win by the skin of my teeth. In game 3 I had a Dystopia and great hand disruption, and Mike put up much less of a fight. Mike is an excellent player and a better person.
2-1
Round 4: Max Bell, Zoo Crew - Stasis
Max sat across from me with his sunglasses on as he slowly assembled his Stasis lock like a quicksand that swallowed me whole. Game 1 he pitched a no-hitter - I was far from dead but I don't think there was a line or a route out of the lock. Kudos to you, Max. Games 2 and 3 were not so easy for him. I know all the trouble cards I have to worry about and make sure to name them with Cabal Therapy, and pick his hand of movement spells like Impulse. I was slow-playing my Wastelands to break up his Forsaken City locks with Stasis - I would straight-up skip land drops for multiple turns to make him think the coast was clear, then pop. Enjoy the Stasis, Timewalks, Maxamillion.
3-1
Round 5: Bradley Stone, Duress Crew - 4-Color Terrageddon
Brad mulliganed to five in game 1 on the draw. I knew his hand and what he had potential to do, but more importantly exactly what he was going to try to do - and it did not matter. During sideboarding before game 2 I told him how giddy I was to try out some of the new toys I had. He had a nice roll-out but then one of those new toys showed up. He played a morphed Exalted Angel and passed to me; I played a Plaguebearer and blew up his morph for one black mana. He shook his head, regrouped, and on his turn cast Call of the Herd. I paid one black mana to kill that too. He knew he was cooked. After the match we played a game of AAA where he soundly beat me with his Trolls and Larry Niven's Locket. Brad is a good guy and a great Magic player.
4-1
Round 6: William (Billy) Mills-Curran, Duress Crew - Corned Beef Hash
If there is one person I consider my rival, it would be Billy. We are probably 50/50 all time - opposing Magic crews in the same area - and Billy is an excellent player. I was 5-1 at this point and could draw into the top 8 with certainty; Billy could not, but I don't think it would have mattered. If we were both undefeated we would have likely played it out anyway - blood must be shed. As he said to me when I top-8'd my first Premodern tournament and finalists wanted to split the prize and go home: "No splits. Kill 'em all." That rings true.
We bantered about deck style and card choice as we dueled in game 1. Eventually it came down to me trying to cold-call the card in his hand with Cabal Therapy to kill him with The Rack. I thought for a minute, then named Call of the Herd. He scoffed at me in disgust only to reveal a Nantuko Vigilante - as if to let me know I never had a shot. He was right; it wasn't on my radar, Game 1 to Billy. Game 2 I was ready with Dystopia, Phyrexian Furnace, and extra removal like Smother. I managed to get a Furnace out after he had grabbed and pitched Squee to Survival of the Fittest. In his upkeep he went to return Squee to his hand and waited for a response. I said, "Do I even take Squee right now?" He responded: yes, you do - I'll bury you if you don't. Not sure why I was questioning that, but it was the right move. I took it and shut the Survival of the Fittest engine down. Game 3 he had to rely on a Gaea's Cradle early, which forced him to play out the creatures in his hand to make more mana but get no value off things like Monk Realist. I stuck a Knight of Stromgald, to which he retorted, "Wow, that is a really good creature." It stopped him from attacking, gave me time to find a Duress to pick the Swords to Plowshares from his hand, and I played a Hypnotic Specter to take over the game. All three games were excellent and much of the outcome was decided on small early decisions - as simple as which lands to play out in which order when both our decks run a set of Wastelands. As always, thanks for the games, Billy.
Top 8, locked.
5-1
Round 7 (Quarterfinals): Will Holland, Corrib MTG - Hermit FEB
On the Tuesday before the tournament I saw Will at ELD's Timevault in Bellingham, and he told me how excited he was for The Land Grant on Saturday. It got me so pumped up that I thought about it all week - I even told him so as we sat shuffling. I really like being a part of putting on thoughtful, fun events, and it made me proud of everything the Zoo Crew did to make it happen, especially Clone and Raf and Cam of Webway for running it so smoothly.
I had the higher seed so I went first. I took a look at his opening hand and realized he was relying on a Llanowar Wastes to get his Reflecting Pool online. I used a Wasteland on the Llanowar Wastes, then another on the Reflecting Pool, and I don't think Will cast a spell. Game 2 was also rocky for Will - I had answers for everything he tried to pull off and essentially left him with no option but to beat me down with creatures, which his deck can't do well. Always a pleasure to play with Will. Fantastic guy.
6-1
Round 8 (Semifinals): Christopher Semisch - Moneyball Black
Moneyball is not an easy matchup, but I have some nice mirror-breaking cards like The Rack and Bane of the Living. Game 1, Chris went first and opened on a Rishadan Port - I used Wasteland. Then he played Mishra's Factory and I used Wasteland again. Then another Factory; I took a look at his hand and picked out a removal spell. He went to his turn, played a Swamp, and activated Mishra's Factory to attack. I was awestruck - a card I had drawn that I thought was dead came in clutch: Snuff Out. At that point I was convinced I was going to win. It was the highest-upside situation for the roll-out, and I did win. Game 2 was much closer, but I managed to pressure his life total enough that when he played a Graveborn Muse with a Withered Wretch in play at 4 life, I said hell yes and used the life loss from Graveborn Muse as my win condition. Chris was relatively new to the format but a genuinely nice guy and fantastic player on a monumental run for one of his first tournaments.
7-1
Round 9 (Finals): Devon O'Donnell, d00Mwake - Moneyball Black
I had been keeping an eye on Devon for the last few months and he had some strong finishes. I believe he lost to Rich Shay in his last two events - once in the semifinals and once in the finals - but today he beat Rich and got that monkey off his back. I have played Rich Shay six times and never beaten him. Dr. Rich Shay is the monster beneath your bed. He's the end of your unbeaten streak. He's the reigning LobsterCon Champion. He's the doctor you hope isn't making a house call to your local tournament, because he will pack your bags for you. Devon just beat him - he means business. But so do I.
Game 1, I peek at his hand and he has a grip chock-full of creatures - not great. I have to slowly pick them from his hand and remove them from play when I can, while I try to come up with a step two. Bane of the Living arrives, I clean up a creature, stall the board, start attacking, and then play the best card in the matchup: The Rack. Only takes a turn or two before he taps out.
Game 2, more removal out of the sideboard, Powder Keg and Skeletal Scrying. Devon starts: Swamp, Dark Ritual, Phyrexian Arena. My heart sinks. I'm going to get buried, and I do. I put up a valiant fight but it just doesn't matter - too much card draw to overcome.
Game 3, I'm looking for a hand with a Duress to pick Phyrexian Arena but none of The Rack - I want to draw The Rack later because I'm convinced that if he has Cabal Therapy or Duress he will take it. On his first turn he casts Cabal Therapy, naming The Rack. Dodged a bullet. It's always what the match comes down to, well played. I manage to stick a Hypnotic Specter without it being removed. I draw into The Rack and play it out. He decides to go on the offensive because he can't block, playing out his hand of two Withered Wretches. I follow with another The Rack and a second Hypnotic Specter. Devon shook his head and said, "Great game." And it was. We were each trying to play a step ahead of the other and it made for some intense Magic.
Image Credit to Brian Phelon
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Super fun day with some awesome games of Magic. I want to thank everyone who came to the event, everyone who said a kind word about it, and everyone who sent me a message of congratulations.
Magic is cool.
Premodern is awesome.
But the community is really what makes it special.