Twitter: @edo_annunziata

Hometown: Udine, Italy

Playstyle: Focused and disciplined. Although I can't say my technical play is at level with the greatest out there, I believe I am pretty good at understanding what I'm trying to accomplish in a matchup and playing toward that goal.

Non-Magic Interests: I am studying for a master's degree in computer science. I like and regularly play board games in general as well.

Non-Magic Fun Facts: 1) In high school I was part of a competitive math team. Team math competitions are a surreal experience if you've never seen one; they are played in sports arenas with the crowd cheering on the stands, and competitors solve hard problems against the clock trying to be faster than the opponents, with a point system deciding the winner. We placed 2nd in the 2014 Italian national tournament. That is, to this day, one of my proudest accomplishments. 2) I wear long-ish hair because of a school theatrical play I was in in middle school. I used to have short hair, and I was asked to grow them longer. I liked that hair style and decided to keep it after the recital.

Do you play Magic with anyone on a regular basis? I keep in touch with strong local players. We regularly share decklists, strategies, and insights, and review each other's games post-mortem to spot potential mistakes.

When did you start playing Magic? I have been playing on and off, mostly casually, and occasionally on Magic Online, since Kamigawa. I have started playing more seriously and improving as a player when MTG Arena came out.

How did you first get into Magic? Playing casually as a child

When did you start playing MTG Arena? As soon as the game went into Open Beta

What was your first competitive Magic tournament? I haven't played much competitive Magic at all, just a couple of PPTQs at a nearby store.

What event or finish has meant the most to you over your career? It has to be this one, without the shadow of a doubt. As I'm writing these words, I'm receiving messages from all over the world congratulating me and asking me, me of all people, for advice and guidance. I wouldn't be honest if I didn't admit that I had luck on my side, at least in the final hours of ladder, and that the difference between myself and the 9th or 10th (or 20th for that matter) ranked player is statistically insignificant, but I like to think that my preparation and dedication to this beautiful game that I re-discovered thanks to MTG Arena pushed me over the line. I can't wait to play against the best of the best in this unique event.

What is the most important thing that Magic has brought you? Avoiding result-oriented mentality like the plague. It's not uncommon to win games of Magic having played badly, or to lose having played well. The only way to get better (at Magic or at anything else) is to continuously scrutinize one's own actions and accept and correct mistakes. To assume that if something worked once it will work again in the future regardless of context means thinking like a lab rat.

Magic is entering a new era—there's a million dollars on the line, the MPL is getting started, events like this Invitational are bringing top players together. What does that mean to you as a Magic player? In spite of having never been at any point a game for children (even though children can certainly play it), Magic still has a bit of unjustified stigma in the eyes of the general public, to some people it's still "that children's card game." I hope that by becoming bigger and better, we as a community will finally be able to break free of that perception and finally present Magic as what it has always been: a great game anyone is welcome to play.

There are professionals, amateurs, and influencers playing in the Mythic Invitational. What does it mean to play with this diverse range of competitors? Everything will be a little more unpredictable, and hopefully more fun. I think mixing those different categories of players in a single event is a great way to acknowledge everyone's different contributions to the game.

Do you have any rivals at this tournament? When chess Grandmaster Akiba Rubenstein was asked who his opponent would be in the following round, he answered "the black pieces." I'll be facing this tournament with the same mentality; it's just another few matches of Magic, and I'll just try to play at the best of my possibilities.

What is your favorite card in Standard? Settle the Wreckage. It's a card that changes the way you play by the sole virtue of existing, even if it's not in your opponent's hand. Or deck. I find it very interesting when things like that happen.

Are you going to PAX East with anyone? I'm going by myself.