TOP 8 COVERAGE

Once again, Modern Constructed spurred a monster Grand Prix turnout. Worcester's DCU Convention Center was filled almost to bursting with 2,394 mages from all across the globe. There was even a strong Pro presence as the Grand Prix made an ideal stopover for those en route to Portland for Pro Tour Magic 2015. Europe's best outnumbered their American counterparts, who were enjoying the luxury of another week in the lab. With Pro Points to be won and so many of the World Magic Cup captaincies being undecided there was ample incentive to take a weekend off. Modern is known as a format where anything goes - a wide open metagame means that you'll get your best edge on the opposition by knowing your deck inside and out, and having a versatile sideboard that can tangle with a diverse field.

That diversity showed itself in Day 2, with dozens of different archetypes being played in the field of 278, fully seven of which boasted over twenty pilots. The tentpoles of the format were out in force: Splinter Twin, Affinity, Birthing Pod, and the Black-Green-based decks. Where once Jund had reigned supreme, it was being edged out by a new flavor, dropping the red for the power of Lingering Souls. There were also big numbers of Blue-White-Red, last seen in the hands of World Champion Shahar Shenhar, as well as Scapeshift Combo and Burn.

However, where Pod had been the biggest player in Day 2, it had proven a victim of its own popularity. Players had come prepared to beat it, and not a single Pod deck made the Top 8. Instead we saw two of these new White Rock decks, two Affinity, one Jund, and then a Blue Moon and a pair of Infect Decks. That's two out of only four competing on Day 2! Pro Tour Theros Finalist Pierre Dagen Was the Top 8's biggest star, but Slovenia's Robin Dolar had quietly notched his third GP Top 8 in three attempts, and he had a lot of big names rooting for him from the sidelines.

The quarters saw the full three mirror-matches, with fan-favorite Phil Napoli winning for Infect and Dolar winning for White Rock. They met in the semifinals, where Dolar crushed him in straight games. Alex Bertoncini advanced from the Affinity mirror, where he met Andrew Boswell. Boswell triumphed. So it was a Black-Green finals, with the old fighting the new. It went the full three games, and in a nailbiting finish Robin Dolar emerged victorious.

Congratulations to Robin Dolar, Grand Prix Boston-Worcester 2014 Champion!