It's not very often Australia gets a big Magic event. In fact, we only had a single Grand Prix here last year, which was in Sydney. This year is a touch different: we have three major events - including hosting Pro Tour Eldritch Moon in August - so Australia is pretty excited.

It's been two years since Melbourne hosted a Grand Prix, a Standard format event. This previous weekend, Magic came back to the Sporting Capital of Australia (and, some would say, the world), bringing Modern with it. A touch over 1100 people showed up to do battle - would the Eldrazi Menace take over Melbourne, or would someone be able to find a way to stop them?

I managed to have a chat to some of the people who participated in the event, and got their thoughts.

"I really enjoyed it," said Riley Jones, who was playing at his first Grand Prix event. Riley made a six hour round trip to play his favourite format, not being a fan of Standard, which is what is mostly played in his local store. "I'd definitely go again if there was another Modern one."

Tristan Bouwhuis, a friend of Riley's, agreed. "I had a great weekend," he stated. "The main event was good except for the way they posted pairings, and trying to get in and out of the doors." This was also Tristan's first Grand Prix, though, having played since 1998, he has played in the old States and Nationals events.

This was a sentiment a lot of players expressed: this event had about two-hundred more people than the previous Grand Prix in Melbourne, and it seemed there were some logistical problems, with no online pairings system in place. Still, it seemed this was only a minor problem for most players.

Riley's weapon of choice for the weekend was Blue/Green Infect. "I had been slowly building it," he said to me. "Between that and my other deck - Black/White Tokens - I felt Infect had a better match up in the current meta." It certainly looked like his choice had paid off early in the event, with it carrying him to a 4-1 record after Round 5. Unfortunately, things went a little downhill from there. In Round 6, he had to face Paul Jackson - winner of Grand Prix Sydney in 2014 and top 4 finisher at Pro Tour Magic Origins. He lost that match, and the one following, before rallying in round 8 to put him at a 5-3 record and into a bubble match. It wasn't to be, however, and his Grand Prix experience finished with a 5-4 record.

He wasn't too disappointed, however. "Getting to play nine rounds of Modern was a blast. I think if I could have played in some side events on the second day it would have been even better, but I couldn't make it."

Tristan decided to play a brew of his own concoction, a deck he liked to call "Climb the Walls". "It's a Doran the Siege Tower deck that is a lot of fun to play", he explained. It certainly did well, too, carrying him into day two.

"I went 6-3 on day one," he said, "but only went 0-3 at the start of day two, so I dropped to play in some of the side events." One of those side events was Australian Highlander, which Tristan played in before the main event on Friday. If you are not familiar with this format, shame on you! The format has been around since the 1990s, and is quite similar to the more well-known Canadian Highlander, except it is played with 60 card decks. (If you want to find out more about this format, click here:)

Cassie, from country Victoria, had made the trip down to Melbourne to play in her second Grand Prix, the first having been in 2014. "I played Grishoalbrand," she began, "I chose it because I like a puzzle and wanted to play Legacy in Modern." Fair enough, too! It worked for her, carrying her to day two and a 9-6 record overall. "I didn't expect to make day two, so that was an achievement!". It was a lot of fun!

Cassie's partner, Martin Keevers, also attended the event with her. Martin has been playing since the beginning of the game, though by self-admission, he isn't as competitive as he once was. "I played my Mono White Tax Collector (Pillowfort) deck. It's the deck I have been playing for a while, though it's more of a fun deck for me than a powerhouse in the format." That ended up showing in Martin's record, dropping after going 4-4 on day one. "I borrowed Cassie's Legacy deck for a side event after that,' he continued. "I ended up playing Legacy Burn and finished 3-1-1, with 81 players in the event."

Someone who wasn't there as a player was Adam Lehmann, a father of three and veteran of the game, having been playing since Magic hit Aussie shores. "I was the Warehouse Manager for the event," he told me. "I made sure all the events had the correct amount of stock at the right time." A big job, to be sure, but there was more. "I was also responsible for making sure no one helped themselves to the stock, especially the VIP playmats and GP promos." Big job, indeed!

This was the first time Adam had worked at a Grand Prix, though he had worked as a volunteer for Wizards of the Coast at many Australian conventions. I asked him how it was. "Mind blowing," was his reply. "So many people all in one place, playing the same game. The atmosphere was electric, and the chatter between players and friends alike was deafening."

The weekend was also the beginning of the Shadows over Innistrad previews, and Wizards of the Coast had set up something special for the three Grand Prix held over the weekend. In Melbourne, this was the Stitcher's Lab.

"It was done up like a Frankenstein lab," Adam said, describing it to me. "There were body parts everywhere, and the only way out was to follow the clues. You got to be hands on with the body parts, which included brains, ears and feet."

Cassie added: "The cosplayers were fantastic and the detail Wizards of the Coast went into when they created the room made it feel very authentic."

Ultimately, this led to a bunch of preview cards being spoiled to those at the Grand Prix.

The big question of the weekend, however, was whether the Eldrazi would once again dominate a major tournament, or whether someone would figure out a way to stop them.

"I played against Eldrazi twice; one colourless, one blue/red," said Tristan. "I didn't start seeing it until round five, and then it was everywhere."

Riley had a similar experience. "I didn't face it until round nine," he told me. "I did see a lot of them, though."

Martin also only faced one Eldrazi deck in the rounds he played though, like Riley, he saw a lot of them being played. "I actually never faced the same deck twice," he commented, which shows there is at least some diversity left in the format at least!

"Out of the fifteen rounds I played, six of them were against Eldrazi variants," said Cassie. Considering she went 9-6, that's an impressive feat.

Ultimately, it turned out the Eldrazi were alive and well in Melbourne, with 43 of the top 100 decks being Eldrazi of some kind, and the final of the event coming down to a white/blue Eldrazi mirror match between Aussie veterans Maitland Cameron and David Mines, a match which Mines won 2-1 to become Grand Prix Melbourne Champion.

I asked my interviewees for their final thoughts.

Tristan: "Overall it was a good event. The venue was a little small and there was the issue with pairings. Pairings need to be posted online these days. There seemed to be 30-40 minutes between rounds, which made for a long day. I will go to the next Grand Prix in Melbourne, even if it's just for the side events.

Riley: "I'm now very in favour of banning either Eye of Ugin or Eldrazi Temple. It just feels like such an uphill battle to play against, and I can't imagine too many decks have a strong match up against it. I really want to get more experience in high level events; the feel is incredible! Playing against people at their peak is insightful and really shows how even small mistakes can matter."

Cassie: "Overall I think the Grand Prix was fantastic. It was an amazing experience and one that any person who is an enthusiast of Magic should attend at least once. The artists, the vendors, and the main event and side events all go together to make this an amazing experience for anyone, whatever their skill in Magic is."

Martin: "I'm not as competitive as I used to be but it was great. I've been in the game so long I enjoy doing other things, like bringing in new players. Grand Prix are a great place to catch up; I saw a lot of people I know there. All players should be encouraged to attended and soak in the vibe. With the artists, vendors, side events and main event there is a lot for players to get into. It's a great experience."

Adam: "Starting at 7am and finishing around midnight each day was crazy. I'm glad I don't do it every weekend. I got to see and touch more premium Magic stock than most people get to in a lifetime, including an uncut sheet of Modern Masters 2015 mythic rare foils!"

Photo credits: Adam Lehmann and Riley Jones