Grand Prix Washington DC 2013

N o. 22 Owen Turtenwald has been to a dozen Grand Prix Top 8s and left without a trophy every time—until now. Winning in the same city as his previous best GP finish, Turtenwald took down Jared Boettcher in a tense finals matchup that saw the pro pilot UWR Delver of Secrets past Sneak and Show and a bevy of highly ranked players in the Top 8.

The former player of the year has been so close so many times that it seemed inevitable he would hold the trophy aloft one day. One day turned out to be this day as Turtenwald used a bevy of counterspells, removal, and a certain True-Name Nemesis to fight through a field of nearly 1,700.

Turtenwald's big breakthrough wasn't the only story at the largest North American Legacy Grand Prix ever. No. 10 Sam Black continued his incredible run with yet another Top 8, likely predicating a climb up the rankings and into the Player of the Year discussion. No. 20 Craig Wescoe continued to prove himself the master of attacking with White creatures, and Boettcher proved he wasn't "just some random," but a talented player who's now on his way to the Pro Tour.

And D.C. also represents the big, successful Pro-level debut of True-Name Nemesis, which had people asking "what's my name" all weekend long.

But the name everyone will remember from this event is Owen Turtenwald, platinum pro, 22nd ranked player in the world, and now, for the first time, Grand Prix Champion!

top 8 bracket

Quaterfinals (1) Craig Wescoe (8) Sam Black (4) Andrew Cuneo (5) Owen Turtenwald (2) Jared Boettcher (7) Deshaun Baylock (3) Drew Tunison (6) Ted McCluskie Semi-finals (10) Sam Black, 2-1 (22) Owen Turtenwald, 2-1 Jared Boettcher, 2-0 Drew Tunison, 2-1 Finals (22) Owen Turtenwald, 2-1 Jared Boettcher, 2-1 Champion (22) Owen Turtenwald, 2-0

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INFORMATION

1. (22) Owen Turtenwald $3,500 2. Jared Boettcher $2,300 3. Drew Tunison $1,500 4. (10) Sam Black $1,500 5. (20) Craig Wescoe $1,000 6. Andrew Cuneo $1,000 7. Ted McCluskie $1,000 8. Deshaun Baylock $1,000

pairings, results, standings

Final Pairings 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Results 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Standings 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Top 16 Decklists by Adam Styborski

Top 8 Decklists by Blake Rasmussen

Top 8 Player profiles

Drew Tunison Age: 28

Hometown: Brown Mills, NJ

Occupation: Manager

28Brown Mills, NJManager Previous Magic Accomplishments:

Top 8 StarCityGames Legacy Open What deck did you play and why? Would you make any changes to your deck?

Dredge, because. Was there anything you saw this weekend that you didn't expect?

No. What was the most interesting/craziest/most noteworthy play that you saw or accomplished this weekend?

Opponent resolved Show and Tell, and I put Griselbrand into play.

Andre Cuneo Age: 38

Hometown: Philadelphia, PA

Occupation: Computer Programmer

38Philadelphia, PAComputer Programmer Previous Magic Accomplishments:

2nd Pro Tour New York City 2000 What deck did you play and why? Would you make any changes to your deck?

Elves because Reid Duke lent it to me. Was there anything you saw this weekend that you didn't expect?

MUD What was the most interesting/craziest/most noteworthy play that you saw or accomplished this weekend?

Lost on turn three to an infinite combo with Staff of Domination

Deshaun Baylock Age: 23

Hometown: Kalamazoo, MI

Occupation: PNC Sales; Team Perfect Storms Member

23Kalamazoo, MIPNC Sales; Team Perfect Storms Member Previous Magic Accomplishments:

Top 64 StarCityGames Columbus What deck did you play and why? Would you make any changes to your deck?

Esper Stoneblade: Supreme Verdict and True-Name Nemesis. Leyline of Sanctity: No matter what, you're not beating a good Storm player. Was there anything you saw this weekend that you didn't expect?

Ad Nauseam Tendrils. End of turn, untap beat Double Meddling Mage, Vendilion Clique, and double Flusterstorm. What was the most interesting/craziest/most noteworthy play that you saw or accomplished this weekend?

Jared Buettcher Age: 21

Hometown: Rensselaer, NY

Occupation: Student, grinder, works at Pastime Legends

21Rensselaer, NYStudent, grinder, works at Pastime Previous Magic Accomplishments:

Top 16 Grand Prix Chicago and Grand Prix Columbus What deck did you play and why? Would you make any changes to your deck?

Sneak and Show because Show and Tell is the best mana accelerant still legal.

I would have to think; maybe add more Pyroclasms. Was there anything you saw this weekend that you didn't expect?

Not that I played against.I was on the play after my Charbelcher opponent mulliganed to five. I cast a turn one Show and Tell for Griselbrand and my opponent says "Good game." and scoops. What was the most interesting/craziest/most noteworthy play that you saw or accomplished this weekend?

Ted McCluskie Age: 24

Hometown: Ottawa, Ontario

Occupation: Student, card store employee

24Ottawa, OntarioStudent, card store employee Previous Magic Accomplishments:

Several PTQ Top 8s; FNM Champion at least twice What deck did you play and why? Would you make any changes to your deck?

Shardless BUG.

For the most part I'm happy with the cards. Golgari Charm was bananas. Was there anything you saw this weekend that you didn't expect?

No. Everything was pretty stock. What was the most interesting/craziest/most noteworthy play that you saw or accomplished this weekend?

In practicing with friends I learned that Baleful Strix can kill Emrakul, the Aeons Torn, the Aeon's Torn. Cool beans!

Owen Turtenwald Age: 24

Hometown: Milwaukie, WI

Occupation: Magician

24Milwaukie, WIian Previous Magic Accomplishments:

Player of the Year, Pro Tour Top 8, 13 Grand Prix Top 8s What deck did you play and why? Would you make any changes to your deck?

I played Delver of Secrets because I prepared with it the most and it fits my playstyle. I also think it gives me a fair shot at win any match I play. Was there anything you saw this weekend that you didn't expect?

Turn 1 kill with my Delver of Secrets deck. Cast Grafdigger's Cage versus Manaless Dredge and he instantly conceded. What was the most interesting/craziest/most noteworthy play that you saw or accomplished this weekend?

Beat a resolved Blood Moon when the only card in my deck that could deal damage was Batterskull.

Sam Black Age: 31

Hometown: Madison, WI

Occupation: Gamer, Writer

31Madison, WIGamer, Writer Previous Magic Accomplishments:

2 Pro Tour Top 8s, 6 Grand Prix Top 8s What deck did you play and why? Would you make any changes to your deck?

Bant. Reid Duke said he was very confident in the deck.

No, it was perfect. Ried's the best. Was there anything you saw this weekend that you didn't expect?

Affinity What was the most interesting/craziest/most noteworthy play that you saw or accomplished this weekend?

I Swan Song'd my own Brainstorm. Gaudenis Vidiguris won without taking a turn after a mulligan to 5.

Craig Wescoe Age: 30

Hometown: Worldwake

Occupation: Kor Artificer

30Kor Artificer Previous Magic Accomplishments:

Flashed Batterskull into play and held a Trusty Machete, a long time ago. What deck did you play and why? Would you make any changes to your deck?

Thomas Enevoldsen's Death and Taxes deck because he is a master and taught me everything I know.

No changes. Was there anything you saw this weekend that you didn't expect?

3 Vegetarians in the Top 8 (Sam Black, Andrew Cuneo, and myself) What was the most interesting/craziest/most noteworthy play that you saw or accomplished this weekend?

Successfully raced a first turn Inkwell Leviathan

Quarterfinals - Drew Tunison vs. Ted McCluskie by Blake Rasmussen

The brackets for the Quarterfinals broke in a strange way for this Top 8, with all of the ranked and practiced pros finding themselves paired against one another in the top side of the bracket while the newcomers and grinders found themselves paired on the lower end.

Two such grinders, New Jersey native Drew Tunison and Canadian Ted McCluskie, faced an interesting match in the quarterfinals. Tunison was playing Dredge, a format boogeyman that many players simply weren't adequately prepared for. McCluskie, meanwhile, was playing Shardless BUG and banking on some of the graveyard hate he was packing—including main deck Deathrite Shaman—to get him through an otherwise tough match.

Game 1

Force of Will stops Tunison's attempt at a Faithless Looting hoping to turn off his discard outlets immediately...and succeeding. Tunison was forced to pass his second turn while McCluskie suspended an Ancestral Vision and started getting his attacks on with Tarmogoyf.

The move gave Mccluskie plenty of move to maneuver over the next few turns and Tunison struggled to get anything going. It took just a few attacks from a pair of Tarmogoyf to settle the first game without much of a fuss.

McCluskie 1 – Tunison 0





Game 2

Opening with a bold, blind Cabal Therapy, Tunison nailed a Nihil Spellbomb that McCluskie was clearly banking on resolving. He had a Deathrite Shaman to disrupt any graveyard shenanigans, but it wasn't nearly as powerful as the artifact he watched fall to the graveyard.

That gave Tunison the opportunity to resolve a pair of Faithless Lootings without much fear, milling 11 cards but failing to hit any Narcomoebas that would have let him do anything terribly broken.

All McCluskie could do was take away an Ichorid from Tunison's graveyard and pass the turn.

Once again Tunison missed on Narcomoebas during the dredge, but cast one the hard way regardless. That, coupled with Cabal Therapy and Dread Return, let Tunison plop a very large, slightly disheartening Griselbrand into play for the Dredge mage.

A few draws, a few more dredges and a Flame-Kin Zealot later and Tunison had evened up the match at a game apiece.

McCluskie 1 – Tunison 1





Game 3

A pair of Wastelands kept Tunison from accomplishing much in his opening turns as a relatively weak hand from McCluskie left him relying almost solely on a single Force of Will to stem the tide. But he somewhat oddly declined to use the Counterspell when Tunison offered up a Lion's Eye Diamond.

"That was unexpected," the Dredge player said as he used the artifact to help power up a Cephalid Coliseum sitting in play. Suddenly he was off and running.

Unexpected, and possibly deadly, as Narcomoeba leapt into play and immediately back into the graveyard for a Cabal Therapy and two Zombie tokens (courtesy of Bridge from Below). McCluskie slumped in his chair a bit as the best he could muster was an Abrupt Decay on a Zombie token.

A few more dredges, a few more Zombies and Ichorids, and Tunison claimed the Quarterfinals.

"Should have Forced the Lion's Eye Diamond," McCluskie said, shaking his head.

"I thought you were going to, but if you did, then I probably got to resolve Breakthrough."

However, McCluskie figured that Breakthrough would be far more deadly and wanted to conserve his Force for that should McCluskie have it (he did). McCluskie had to make a choice where neither option was likely to lead to a good situation, and got stuck holding the bag when the Dredge carousel finally ended with a plethora of Zombies.

Tunison 2 – McCluskie 1

Quarterfinals - Jared Boettcher vs. Deshaun Baylock by Blake Rasmussen

Unfortunately, a deck registration error was discovered in Deshaun Baylock's list before the Top 8, meaning he was starting the match a game down before even shuffling. Given Jared Boettcher's potentially explosive Sneak and Show deck, that didn't bode well for the Michigan native.





The silver lining was that Baylock had already locked up his first Pro Tour invite by way of his Top 8. He had recently come close—several PTQ Top 8 appearances—but fallen just short. Now he was guaranteed a trip to the big show regardless of his game loss, or his result from this point forward.

Baylock is relatively green on the GP scene, but Boettcher has had some success before, finishing in the Top 16 of two Modern GPs, Grand Prix Chicago and Grand Prix Columbus. This is his first Top 8 at a Grand Prix and his first Pro Tour invite as well.

Game 2, sort of

After the sting of a game loss at the worst possible time, Baylock was under the gun immediately as a mulligan set him back.

"This is nothing new, this is what I do for a living," Baylock said.

"Grind?"

"Game losses."

But Baylock started strong, despite his reluctance with his hand and initial game loss, opening on Stoneforge Mystic into a sword of Fire and Ice.

However, it didn't matter too much as Boettcher checked Baylock's hand with Gitaxian Probe, made sure the way was clear, and Show and Telled an Emrakul, the Aeons Torn into play on turn two off Ancient Tomb. When Baylock had no way to interact with the Eldrazi Legend and no way to keep his board intact through an attack, Baylock made a quick exit from the Top 8, but not before picking up his first Pro Tour invite.





Boettcher liked his matchup this round, even if he did get a little help from outside forces. He said Esper Stoneblade was a strong pre-board match and a close post-board match. He was, however, worried about both Dredge and Death and Taxes. Fortunately for him, Death and Taxes was in the other bracket.

Boettcher 2 – Baylock 0

Quarterfinals - (22) Owen Turtenwald vs. Andrew Cuneo by Adam Styborski

For the premier level success Owen Turtenwald, ranked 22nd in the world, has seen there's one win he hasn't been able to earn: Grand Prix champion. The former Player of the Year was playing Blue-White-Red Delver of Secrets, something he said he felt confident and comfortable with.

Andrew Cuneo is on the same resurgent path that many "old school" players have taken in recent years. Jon Finkel and Brian Kibler still play the game at the highest levels, and newly minted Pro Tour Hall of Famer William "Huey" Jensen picked up a fresh Grand Prix win this year in Oakland. For Cuneo, taking the deck of No. 3-ranked Reid Duke - Elves - has paid off with a chance to claim modern Magic glory.

Cuneo opened into a handful of removal from Turtenwald: Lightning Bolt and two copies of Swords to Plowshares sent Fyndhorn Elves, Dryad Arbor and Quirion Ranger packing. With Elvish Visionary in play Cuneo took a long time to think after Turtenwald played Stoneforge Mystic.

Nettle Sentinel, Glimpse of Nature, Heritage Druid and Wirewood Symbiote all followed. As he drew then another Symbiote, Deathrite Shaman, and Natural Order for Craterhoof Behemoth. Turtenwald lost his Stoneforge Mystic and fell to one life in blocking. A final draw step didn't provide what he needed to survive.





Turtenwald led off the second game with Grim Lavamancer, a utility creature tha could threaten to eat nearly every creature in Cuneo's deck. Turtenwald did just that to Cuneo's Fyndhorn Elves after using Ponder on his second turn. Cuneo had plenty more, adding both Wirewood Symbiote and Quirion Ranger on his second turn - though Turtenwald had Swords to Plowshares and a fetch land to keep the battlefield clear.

After Turtenwald played Stoneforge Mystic for Umezawa's Jitte, the game began to slow. Deathrite Shaman and Quirion Ranger allowed Cuneo to use multiple Gaea's Cradles to power out a Natural Order, but Turtenwald had Force of Will waiting. With two Wastelands Turtenwald stripped away Cuneo's mana, and an uncontested Umezawa's Jitte sealed away any other Elf creatures Cuneo might try.





"I don't know why you played the Force that game but not the first," Cuneo said.

With a shrug and a grin, Turtenwald offered a simple response: "I forgot."

Cuneo's opening of Forest, Fyndhorn Elves was familiar, and so was Turtenwald's Volcanic Island into Lightning Bolt. Quirion Ranger and Gaea's Cradle followed, but a lonely Grafdigger's Cage was all Turtenwald mustered.

Glimpse the Unthinkable was Cuneo's first play in the third turn, but when Cuneo played Deathrite Shaman Turtenwald used his second Lightning Bolt on Quirion Ranger. Cuneo had another Ranger to replace it, but it also stopped Cuneo from following through on further action.

Turtenwald's Meddling Mage locking out Glimpse of Nature cut off another angle, and Stoneforge Mystic for Umezawa's Jitte seemed to make things impossible for Cuneo. But with multiple creatures in play and an extra Gaea's Cradle in hand, Cuneo attempted a hard-cast Craterhoof Behemoth.

Force of Will was there again for Turtenwald. Stuck with an uncastable Progenitus and Glimpse of Nature in hand, Cuneo was forced to block away his Quirion Ranger. With counters on his Umezawa's Jitte, Turtenwald equipped Meddling Mage and methodically marched across everything else Cuneo played. Owen Turtenwald advanced to his semifinal match against Sam Black.

William Jensen, who was hung over my shoulder the entire match, started discussing the result with Cuneo and Turtenwald.

"He beat me game 2 with Grim Lavamancer because my draws were bad," Cuneo explained to Jensen. "I'm not sure if I should have mulliganed Game 2 [instead of keeping]. I had Gaea's Cradle, Gaea's Cradle and guys."

"My hand game three was great, "Turtenwald offered. "I had Grafdigger's Cage, Lightning Bolt, Lightning Bolt, Meddling, Brainstorm, a fetch, and Tunda. It was great."

The right tools always make the difference against combo decks.

Quarterfinals - (20) Craig Wescoe vs. (10) Sam Black by Event Coverage Staff

Semifinals - Jared Boettcher vs. Drew Tunison by Blake Rasmussen

Before this round, Jared Boettcher worried about playing against exactly two decks: Death and Taxes and Dredge. Death and Taxes was stuck on the other side of the bracket and wouldn't matter until a potential finals match.

So I'll give you one guess what Boettcher's semifinals opponent Drew Tunison was playing.

Tunison had dredged his way through a tournament that, apparently, had skimped on the hate enough to let the graveyard-based deck make it through to the Top 8. It was the kind of deck that was easily hated out—but only if players tried hard enough.

Boettcher, however, was playing a pretty dangerous deck himself. He won his Quarterfinals match with a turn two Emrakul, the Aeons Torn, a start even Dredge might not be able to keep up with. However, hilariously enough, Tunison had Griselbrands in his deck that could make Show and Tell potentially awkward for the Red Blue player.

All told, there was a lot of play and a number of ways this match could go. Only one way to find out which way it would be...

Game 1

Tunison was quick to throw back his first few hands, but, with Dredge, sometimes it didn't matter much.

"I've mulled to two and won this weekend," Tunison said.

"What turn did you win? Tell me it was like turn one. Even lie to me," Boettcher said.

Tunison thought a bit, looked at another hand he mulliganed and said "I think it was turn two."





He would need a little bit of that magic again as Tunison went all the way down to two cards again. Gitaxian Probe revealed that those two cards were Cephalid Coliseum and Dread Return—no one's definition of winning any time soon.

And when Boettcher used Show and Tell to put a second-turn Griselbrand into play—facing down a big, bad Golgari Thug—we were quickly on to the second game.

Boettcher 1 – Tunison 0

Game 2

"I will keep," Tunison proclaimed happily.

Boettcher, aware that wasn't good news for him, mouthed something I can't print. Suffice to say, he was less than thrilled.

And the reason why was apparent right away, as Tunison gave him a difficult decision, playing Cephalid Coliseum and Lion's Eye Diamond.

"Oh, one of these conundrums? I heard what happened last time," Boettcher said, opting to use Force of Will on the powerful artifact.

That successfully set Tunison back a turn, forcing him to instead rely on Faithless Looting and Breakthrough to get going. Faithless Looting resolved. Breakthrough did not.

As if on cue, Boettcher drew Lotus Petal, enabling him to play Sneak Attack. After Forcing twice in the early turns, that left him with exactly one card—fortunately for Boettcher, that card was Griselbrand. He was all set to go off with Sneak Attack the following turn.

Unfortunately for Boettcher, Tunison had a pair of Cabal Therapies to remove Griselbrand as a threat and give his deck the breathing room it needed to gear up.

More Dredging, more Zombie tokens and a Cephalid Coliseum activation later and Tunison had his own Griselbrand in play and nearly his entire library in the graveyard. Given that that's the point of the deck, Tunison was able to find a way to attack for the win with Flame-Kin Zealot.

Tunison 1 – Boettcher 1

Game 3

"I like being the rando," Tunison said, referring to being the two unranked players left in this tournament.

"I like being the rando, too," Boettcher said. "I just hope I'm the rando holding the trophy at the end of the day."

Tunison and Boettcher may not have the pedigree that No. 10 Sam Black and No. 22 Owen Turtenwald have on the other side of the bracket, but one of them would definitely be playing for that trophy at the conclusion of this match. And if they take the trophy, they'll certainly be less random than they see themselves now.

Boettcher staked an early lead on achieving that, resolving a Grafdigger's Cage that would force Tunison to find an answer before he could do anything too broken.





Instead, Boettcher attempted to do something broken of his own, resolving Sneak Attack on his third turn and placing Griselbrand in play on his fourth, immediately drawing seven cards. His first seven missed on an Emrakul, the Aeons Torn, the Aeon's Torn and he declined to go fishing with seven more. With a hand full of Force of Will, Misdirection, Divert and Brainstorm, he had pretty much everything anyway. There was little Tunison could do.

The second Griselbrand the next turn found Emrakul, the Aeons Torn and sent Boettcher onto the finals with Sneak and Show where he'll represent the "randos" against the "pros."

Boettcher 2 – Tunison 1

Semifinals - (10) Sam Black vs. (22) Owen Turtenwald by Event Coverage Staff

Finals - Jared Boettcher vs. (22) Owen Turtenwald by Adam Styborski

Three years.

What's the blink of an eye in life itself is an eternity for Magic. It was three years ago in 2010 that Owen Turtenwald lost in the finals of Grand Prix Washington D.C.to Brad Nelson. Over those three years, Turtenwald won a Player of the Year title, earned two Pro Tour Top 8s and several more Grand Prix Top 8s, and is now ranked 22nd in the world but had yet to lift the victory trophy at a Grand Prix.

It may not be the flashiest feather to add to Turtenwald's very-well-feathered cap, but it's one he's desperately wanted. "How long until we can start?" he asked as he waited for the video coverage to kick in. He was eager to make his move.

Jared Boettcher was in his first Grand Prix Top 8, and was close to closing out the dream of everyone who entered the event: ultimate victory. Having secured his invitiation to Pro Tour Born of the Gods by making the Top 8 of the largest North American Legacy Grand Prix. Earning quick victories in his quarterfinal and semifinal matches reiterated the potency of Sneak and Show: It was the boogeyman that everyone knew about coming into the weekend.

Boettcher, seeded higher, had the luxury to lead off with a Gitaxian Probe and peek at what Turtenwald was holding: Spell Pierce and Force of Will were the highlights Boettcher needed to know. A turn later a second Gitaxian probe added Daze to Boettcher's potential delays. Turtenwald's early Delver of Secrets transformed, but before going to combat Boettcher tried for Intuition. Daze and Brainstorm from Turtenwald put a stop to that. Turtenwald used his Spell Pierce on Boettcher's Ponder, and had drawn a second copy of the counterspell to go alongside an additional Force of Will.

An uncontested Delver of Secrets eats life at an alarming rate. Normally a fast game of Legacy means the combo deck found success. Here, Boettcher's life ran out long before Turtenwald's countermagic.





"You had a really good hand," Boettcher admitted as they moved on.

The second game started slower, each player playing and passing as they accumulated land. Turtenwald broke the silence with Stoneforge Mystic, pulling out Batterskull.

"You have six cards?" Boettcher asked when Turtenwald ended his turn.

"Seven with Batterskull," Turtenwald corrected.

"Ah. You missed a land drop." Boettcher was counting.

Boettcher opened all his fetchlands for a variety of basics and a Volcanic Island. Gitaxian Probe revealed double Spell Pierce, double Force of Will, Pyroblast, Batterskull, and Sword of Feast and Famine. Boettcher didn't waste time before going for Show and Tell.

"Pryoblast." was all Turtenwald needed, and Boettcher ended his turn.

On his next, Boettcher attempted the same with a second Show and Tell. Turtenwald cast Force of Will with an exiled a Spell Pierce, and again Boettcher just ended his turn. Slipping, then untapping and equipping Sword of Feast and Famine led to a discarded Griselbrand from Boettcher's hand, and left Turtenwald with all his mana ready to meet yet another Show and Tell from Boettcher.





Turtenwald's second Force of Will, again exiling Spell Peirce, cut Boettcher's move short. Batterskull came down soon after, and Boettcher discarded Emrakul, the Aeons Torn to Turtenwald's next attack, which had the added benefit of circulating the Show and Tells back for Boettcher to draw again.

When Boettcher tried something different, Sneak Attack, Owen tapped his five lands and hard cast the last card in his hand: A third copy of Force of Will he could play from the land he drew the previous turn. Boettcher paused for a moment before revealing Emrakul, the Aeons Torn as he extended his hand.

"Insane hands," Boettcher said as he shook his head, grinning.

"Yeah," agreed Turtenwald. It was an uncharacteristically quiet response from the newest Grand Prix champion.

The feather Turtenwald wanted was finally fitted in his cap.

Top 5 Cards by Blake Rasmussen

5. Golgari Charm When the various Return to Ravnica Charms were first released, there was fairly widespread consensus that Golgari Charm was among the worst of the bunch. Boros, Azorius, Selesnya and even Rakdos Charm all were hyped for some reason or another. But when you move into Legacy, Golgari Charm reigns supreme. Not only does it have some anti-enchantment utility, it's one of the best answers to True-Name Nemesis in the format. It also happens to be strong against Elves, Goblins and other random one-toughness creatures. The card was instrumental in letting Ted McCluskie fight through a True-Name-heavy field with BUG, and no Black-Green Legacy player should leave home without it.

3. Griselbrand Griselbrand was once hyped as a format-ending monster that would demand immediate banning once its true power was known. While that never came to be, he has proven to be the defacto-monster, alongside Emrakul, the Aeons Torn, the Aeon's Torn, to Reanimate, Sneak, Show or otherwise cheat into play. Often leading to a game-ending flurry of cards, Griselbrand enables all kinds of strategies. Drew Tunison's Dredge deck, for instance, won a number of games by casting Dread return on the Legendary Demon and immediately dredging nearly his entire deck. Other brave players paired the 7/7 with Children of Korlis for a super combo of sorts.

2. Stoneforge Mystic It's interesting to think what Legacy would look like without Stoneforge Mystic. Without it, Death and Taxes may lack the power to go with its taxing ability. Without it, Esper Stoneblade probably wouldn't exist. Without it, the Bant deck No. 10 Sam Black used to continue his incredible run might not exist. Without it, (22) Owen Turtenwald might not have won his first Grand Prix. Time and again Stoneforge Mystic enables so very much for just two mana, including uncounterable Batterskulls and ways to win Jitte wars. It's so dangerous Sam Black was willing to set himself back with Daze on the draw just to keep Turtenwald from resolving a copy—twice—in the semifinals. And it was Stoneforge Mystic holding Sword of Feast and Famine as Turtenwald attacked for his first Grand Prix win ever. Stoneforge Mystic might just be the best card in Legacy. But it's not quite the card of the weekend.