Magic:TG Tidbits
Aug. 28th, 2011 12:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jack1. http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/feature/157a
Every new set of cards, there's a minor game to see which cards modify rules you never thought would ever change. Some rules just seem like they're inevitably going to be broken. As soon as someone pointout that a card could be both a creature and an enchantment, it was bound to happen eventually. The biggest problem is not getting overexicted and designing cards that break as many rules as possible all at once (oh, we've never had a creature bigger than 15/15 before? Well, here's a 1000000/1000000!). But here they broke a rule that makes a lot of sense, but I never expected them to break yet -- that all the cards have the same back. Now some of them are double-sided!
2. A puzzle, http://www.gatheringmagic.com/puzzling-magic-10-%E2%80%93-one-thousand-and-one-fights/.
Using Shahrazad, can you play subgames nested 1001 levels deep? My answer is in the comments, but is unfortunately non-deterministic, I wonder if anyone can improve it or give a more elegant solution.
Every new set of cards, there's a minor game to see which cards modify rules you never thought would ever change. Some rules just seem like they're inevitably going to be broken. As soon as someone pointout that a card could be both a creature and an enchantment, it was bound to happen eventually. The biggest problem is not getting overexicted and designing cards that break as many rules as possible all at once (oh, we've never had a creature bigger than 15/15 before? Well, here's a 1000000/1000000!). But here they broke a rule that makes a lot of sense, but I never expected them to break yet -- that all the cards have the same back. Now some of them are double-sided!
2. A puzzle, http://www.gatheringmagic.com/puzzling-magic-10-%E2%80%93-one-thousand-and-one-fights/.
Using Shahrazad, can you play subgames nested 1001 levels deep? My answer is in the comments, but is unfortunately non-deterministic, I wonder if anyone can improve it or give a more elegant solution.
no subject
Date: 2011-08-28 11:55 am (UTC)I suggest starting with the cards (in main game, in hand, and in
subgames 7 in hand and 1 in library):
Black Lotus
Black Lotus
Timetwister
Pact of Negation
Fork
Shahrazad
Spark Spray
Elixir of Immortality
1. Set up.
I assumed, although not strictly specified in the question:
* Your opponent doesn't play spells *or abilities*, and it doesn't
matter if they deck themselves, that just doesn't count as a win for
you.
* You can start the outer game with an empty library. (If not, start
by having all the relevant cards in hand, plus five lands on table,
plus leveler in hand and play it).
* You may play multiple copies of restricted cards.
2. Play:
Black Lotus (Mana: RRR)
Spark Spray (If you have it. If don't have all the cards needed
below, cycle it. Else if your opponent is on >2 life, cast it. Mana
RRR or RR)
Black Lotus (Mana: UUURRR or UURR)
Timetwister (Mana: RRR)
Fork (In response to Timetwister. Mana: R or {0})
Pact of Negation (In response to timetwister, after Fork resolves
but before the copy of timetwister resolves. Mana: R or {0})
Now, all five/six cards you played should be in your graveyard, two in
your hand, and one or none in your library. The copy of timetwister
resolves shuffling all eight cards from your hand, graveyard or
library into your library and letting you draw another seven.
2. Repeat until your opponent is on 2 life and you have at least four
spare mana.
3. To start a subgame with the same set of cards as you started with
(skip this step on the 1001st game), wait until you draw all the cards
_except_ Timetwister. Play, using mana from step 2:
Black lotus, Black lotus (Mana pool: UUUWWWRRRR including mana from step 2)
Spark Spray (just to get it into your graveyard for the Elixir and
Shahrazad. Opponent should be on 1 life.)
Elixir of Immortality
Shahrazad
Fork (in response to Shahrazad)
Pact of Negation (Targeting Shahrazad, after fork resolves)
Sacrifice the elixir
You should shuffle all the cards you played into your library, which
should now contain all eight cards you started with, and the copy of
Shahrazad resolves, allowing you to repeat the whole set-up in the
subgame. If this is the 1001st subgame, just skip this step and keep
Spark Spraying your opponent. When you win the subgame, Shahrazad will
make your opponent lose half their 1 life rounded up, causing them to
lose all the subgames and the main game simultaneously.
4. Comments:
This was hard. I tried lots of different things, although I always
started with a library of 7-8 cards. I think you need the Elixir so
you can recur your cards for shahrazad without one of them being left
behind on the stack and going to the graveyard, need the Timetwister
simply to be able to recycle sufficiently many cards, need a cycling
card to simplify the draw step, need black lotus as the best
mana-provider, and need fork and a counterspell in order to get
Shahrazad back into your library before the copy of it resolves.
I'm sure a slightly better approach would avoid the chance-based
recursion, but I decided I'd spent long enough looking.