Path to Premodern — Sacred Torch Showdown III Report | 46th Place w/Bant Oath

Before the Sacred Torch Showdown III, I knew I'd write a tournament report regardless of outcome, and speak a bit about my Magic: The Gathering (MTG) background and journey to Premodern. While I have read many a tournament report on Star City Games (SCG) or ChannelFireball (CFB), I am an old head.

I grew up on The Dojo, The Mana Drain (Vintage), and The Source (Legacy). My approach to this tournament report is through a storytelling lens because that's what I like to read, and my corporate tech job rarely supports creative writing exercises free of some modicum of "AI" usage.

Background

I was first introduced to MTG ~30+ years ago by a babysitter who gave me a deck of Mountains, Lightning Bolts, Stone Rains, ogres, and Hill Giant type cards. Sitting on the couch in my mom's apartment, he proceeded to Lotus-Channel-Fireball me. I was hooked.

Follow up to friends with mono decks playing Dark Ritual, Hypnotic Specter, Demonic Tutor, and Unholy Strength; a parent comments about the "murmurs" they've heard of parent groups worried about the "evil nature" of this card game.

Luckily, my parents had critical-thinking skills and chose to support my passion for the hobby by making occasional booster pack purchases. Cue a few years playing schoolyard MTG with cards like Juxtapose, Unsummon, Grinning Totem, Xanthic Statue, and more.

Juxtapose by Justin Hampton

A couple of years later, a young teenage me is playing in the weekly vintage events at the Hadley LGS, where I play Sligh because it was cheap and somewhat competitive. Over time, I set goals for cards to pick up to build my collection so that I could play other things:

Turning a weekly's 3-0 performance into a blue dual land or 2x non-blue duals (!!!), slowly building a 40 dual collection
Saving up chore money for months to scrounge eBay for beaten-up Mana Drains or Power 9 at steep discounts, etc.

Jackal Pup by Susan Van Camp

I was old enough to travel/carpool with the LGS Vintage players (after a parental conversation, of course) that made up "Team Hadley."

We battled weekly, playtested, and/or they drove me to non-Hadley-based Vintage Mox events from '99-'04. Some of my strongest and peak memories of these formative years were the annual to bi-annual Mana Drain Opens run by Ray Robillard. Meeting and matching up against more of the Vintage community beyond our corner of Western Massachusetts, like Team MeanDeck, Team ShortBus, and of course Rich Shay, felt like being part of something even larger.

Compared to the giants of the community, I was a solid but not great player; a couple of Top 8s, a sixth-place finish at a Mana Drain Open, winning now and then against better players. Usually, a 50% win rate outcome, or a "win-and-in to Top 8 loss” at tournaments of more than 30 people, was where I found myself.

I never let this get me down. I've always been competitive and try to set goals for myself—hit a certain rank so I can be considered in the top X% of Y games. I saw Magic as a creative outlet. I don't play an instrument and can't draw or paint.

Musician by Drew Tucker

Playing surprise tech cards and "getting someone" while being a bit more lackadaisical and social vs. being a super tight player? That's what brought me joy in Magic — win or lose, enjoying the experience and camaraderie. Or maybe that's just what I tell myself now as a well-adjusted and self-aware nearing 40-year-old rather than admit I wasn't as good as I thought I should have been, even though I loved the game and spent so much time and money on it. Who's to say?

What followed next in the 2010s was my Magic Dark Ages. I moved to NYC after college and worked a finance job followed by a tech startup job followed by a big tech job. This left little time and energy for Magic and associated travel. My cards were packed and stored under my bed, and I lived vicariously through the peak years of SCG event streams.

Fatigue by Jeff Miracola

Fast forward to 2026. I have been slowly selling off parts of my collection since 2019 when MTG Arena was released. I never got into Magic Online (MTGO) due to the UI. I put in hours over the years on Arena with a way to visualize the gaming goals I desired (e.g., rank). I found a solution that could partially scratch that missing itch.

Prices boomed in the post-COVID world. I sought ways to unload some of my cards, as I could neither find any Legacy events in NYC that I could attend, and the format looked nothing like I remembered. I believe a LinkedIn post had me reach out to Roland Chang. We caught up on life, and he helped me sell some dual lands. He was surprised he had not seen me at any Premodern events over the past few years. I didn't know what Premodern was. He explained it. I googled it.

There were weekly events in NYC at Hex & Co. within 30 minutes of my apartment with strong attendance, and there was a social community aspect in the NYC scene.

Rebirth by Mark Tedin

A flood of nostalgic excitement at the thought of rediscovering a long-lost loved one rushed through me. Reading decklists of cards I remember playing, a diverse meta-game, experimentation, and a community run on positive vibes. It's rare (if ever) that you get to return to a more fond time in your life while retaining gained knowledge and wisdom of the present. I assume this hits home for many who play Premodern, or those who re-discover Magic through it in the future.

Abbey Matron by Mike Kimble

In classic form, I didn't decide what to play at Sacred Torch Showdown III until the night before. I historically play prison-style decks or combo decks — what I gravitated toward during my Vintage and Legacy years.

I stayed away from control decks most of my Magic career because I am a bad Brainstorm player. I never felt I knew when the right time was to cast it. Rich Shay once told me, "The best time to brainstorm is never. You just always want one in your hand," during his period of terrorizing Vintage tournaments with Control Slaver. I packed up my blue cards and stuck to Workshops with the occasional combo deck mixed in.

In my first few months of Premodern, I played a good amount of TinkerWelder because of my former experience with Goblin Welder, Tangle Wire, and Smokestack. I did ok with it: 2-1 in some weeklies at Hex & Co., 3-3 in a couple Premodern Webcam Leagues. A difficult-to-accept negative, however, was that the deck dies to Wasteland and ponza cards too often. It felt terrible to lose to land destruction after years of playing Crucible of Worlds.

I tested out Survival Opposition a couple times: 3-0'd a weekly at Hex & Co. three weeks before. Sacred Torch Showdown III. "Maybe that's what I'll play!" Cue a 1-2 against Burn three matches in a row at Hex & Co a week later and realizing "Yeah, people are preparing their Burn skills, and this deck feels awful in that matchup."

Still wanting to play a prison-style deck, I tested Oath Ponza and liked it. It posted consistent Top 8 appearances. Showing up at Hex & Co. more frequently, I struck up conversations at the LGS, prodding people's thoughts about Oath Ponza;

“That deck has never won an honest game of Magic.”
—Michael Flores

I spent years playing non-honest Magic with Workshop Decks in Vintage. I can do that!

I was 99% decided on a Smokestack or a Smokestack build and decided to run it this week at Hex. Another 1-2 result, and each round my opponent played game one Tsabo's Web.

"Ok so we're expecting piles of Burn and Tsabo's Web in 48 hours. Playing 16 lands that get hit by it feels awful." Was I falling into a trap of recency bias with a small sample size? Absolutely. Am I human? Also yes.

My brain at 11 p.m. Friday the night before:

"How about a deck with lifegain game one?
And a rock-solid manabase?
With some silver bullets?
And a main deck card that will certainly catch someone off-guard?
That I've never played before and will have to think about a lot of decisions over a potential 7+ hours?
And probably will go to time consistently?

Eh, I can't do that. It's a genre of deck that I enjoy but am not good with historically. But wait, there is no Brainstorm in Premodern. I don't have to regret playing a card that I'm terrible with.

A metal screeching noise on the street wakes me up around 5:30 a.m. I don't fall back asleep. This should have been the sign to stick with Oath Ponza, as I would be exhausted and am much more familiar with its play patterns. I am stubborn, though.

I only have about 55 of the 75 cards before I leave for the event. Some new Premodern friends from the Meddling Mages crew (Chris and Mike) help me pick the last 20 cards from a stack of 100 as I race to type them into the online deck submission due at 11 a.m.

Bant Oath

Creatures (3)

1 Akroma, Angel of Wrath
1 Shard Phoenix
1Ancestor's Chosen

Instants (19)

4 Swords to Plowshares
4 Counterspell
3 Fact or Fiction
2 Mana Leak
2 Prohibit
2 Funeral Pyre
1 Impulse
1 Enlightened Tutor

Sorceries (4)

2 Wrath of God
2 Gaea's Blessing

Artifacts (4)

2 Scroll Rack
1 Phyrexian Furnace
1 Tsabo's Web

Enchantments (7)

4 Oath of Druids
2 Sylvan Library
1 Seal of Cleansing

Lands (23)

6 Island
2 Snow-Covered Island
2 Forest
2 Plains
3 Flooded Strand
3 Windswept Heath
2 Wasteland
1 Gemstone Mine
1 City of Brass
1 Kor Haven

Sideboard (15)

3 Meddling Mage
2 Annul
1 Aura of Silence
1 Back to Basics
1 Cursed Totem
1 Powder Keg
1 Ray of Revelation
1 Reverent Silence
1 Seal of Cleansing
1 Sphere of Law
1 Gilded Drake
1 Iridescent Angel

Opens TCGPlayer Mass Entry with the full decklist pre-loaded — select Magic: The Gathering as the Product Line, then click Add to Cart

I decided not to go with the Accumulated Knowledge, Gush, Armageddon package. Gilded Drake was for Phyrexian Dreadnought, and Iridescent Angel was a surprise for control mirrors and Replenish. I was excited to Path up something against a Funeral Pyre 1/1.

There were two Snow-covered Islands because I didn't have six other Islands with matching art I like more. I had no clue how to sideboard. Yes, the main deck is 61 cards. Why? Because I'm awful at cutting. Don't judge me!

Dark Supplicant by Mark Zug

Round One: Dan on Mono Clerics

We're at Table 2, and I joke that there is nowhere to go but down from here.

Game one, he opened on the cleric that can sacrifice other clerics to go get a grinning demon. I play land go. He cast turn two Withered Wretch. I cast Oath of Druids. He frowned.

Turn three, he cast Rotlung Reanimator and swung with Withered Wretch. I Oath up Akroma. He sacrificed all three clerics for a demon and three 2/2s at the end of my turn. Akroma swung four times for the win.

Sideboard In: Cursed Totem, Powder Keg, Seal of Cleansing
Sideboard Out: Tsabo's Web, Funeral Pyre

Game two, he opened on Cabal Therapy; I forgot what he hit. I had Flooded Strand and Windswept Heath. I fetched a Plains on turn two with the Windswept Heath instead of a Forest, and drew an Oath of Druids I couldn't cast. Oops. He cast Duress and took my interaction. I lost on turn five.

Game three, he opened on Duress. I drew and cast Oath of Druids. We draw-go for a few turns. I cast a second Oath. He double Dark Ritualed out three threats: Phyrexian Negator and two Rotlung Reanimators.

Oath found Akroma. Next turn, Oath found Ancestor's Chosen. I swung with Akroma four times for the win. I realized after the game that I could have triggered both Oaths each of those turns. Oops.

Dan said his plan was to dodge Oath. He ran Perish and Dystopia in his sideboard.

Tournament Record: 1-0

Meddling Mage by Christopher Moeller

Round Two: Bryan on UW Replenish

Bryan and I played once before at Hex & Co. on the first night I went. He was on Replenish, and I was on Survival Opposition. I had a poor mana base (didn't make proxies, silly). I lost in two.

Two days before the event, I asked to borrow Decree of Silences in the Discord. Bryan commented on running two copies versus three. I later asked for Scroll Racks in a different post. I noted as we sat down that I thought I had a bad matchup. He mentioned, "Well, you were asking for Silences, but someone said you were on Oath, so I have no clue what you're playing!"

I expected to lose this match since he is a better player on a better deck that he has much more experience with — he scored second place at Lobstercon 2026.

Game one was draw-go until he resolved an Attunement. I countered some things. Then, a couple more Attunements. He Intuitioned for Silence, Silence, and Wave or Opalescence. I asked if he wants the foil shiny in the yard or hand and gave him a Silence. He played a sixth mana source.

I Fact or Fiction end of turn, and he cycle-countered it. This felt peak awful as a white enchantment to his hand was clearly the correct choice at that moment even if he could cast it. He cast two Abeyance into Replenish.

Sideboard In: Meddling Mages, Aura of Silence, Seal of Cleansing, Iridescent Angel, Ray of Revelation, Back to Basics
Sideboard Out: Swords to Plowshares, Shard Phoenix, Ancestor's Chosen, Tsabo's Web, an Oath, Kor Haven

Game two, I cast a turn-two Meddling Mage naming Attunement. I didn't name Swords to Plowshares because that doesn't slow down his win con, and I didn't have a second Meddling Mage. I think Attunement is the better name than Intuition.

Bryan cast Meddling Mage naming Counterspell while I held one. I had no Swords to Plowshares in my deck. Oops. I cast an Aura of Silence and then swung, offering a trade of Meddling Mages. He took the hits a few times despite his multiple Ancient Tombs dealing him eight damage. He eventually traded, and I cast another Meddling Mage, naming Attunement again.

Sideboard In: two Swords to Plowshares
Sideboard Out: Akroma, Angel of Wrath and something else

Game three, I cast turn two Meddling Mage naming Attunement. Bryan cast Meddling Mage naming Aura of Silence. I didn't swing with my Meddling Mage, which, compared to the previous game, felt like a mistake. I can't figure out why I attacked in game two but not game three. I guess I lacked Counterspells.

Attunement by Randy Gallegos

At one point, Bryan Intuitioned for three enchantments on my end step. He cast Abeyance, but I Funeral Pyre'd the white enchantment in his yard in response while he had available. He passed the turn after Abeyance resolved.

I cast Seal of Cleansing. He cast a pair of Opalescence. I sealed one when he attacked. Why do I have Oath of Druids and Meddling Mage in my deck at the same time?

I felt solidly in control as I resolved Scroll Rack and cracked six (!) fetch lands over the ensuing turns to shuffle my library for 3-4 fresh cards each time. I Gaea's Blessinged back Impulse, Fact or Fiction, and a fetch, but bricked on draw spells, an Oath, or another wincon. I did, however, find Swords to Plowshares.

Bryan cast a morphed Exalted Angel that I sent farming. A turn or two later, he plays an angel face up. I have racked into a Prohibit but not a Mana Leak or Counterspell. I fetched and racked again next turn to find my second Plow.

We're caught off guard when time was called, thinking the games had progressed quickly. After the first two additional turns, we realized neither of us could win via combat, and the board state was fairly even. He flashed three Attunement in hand. I apologized for playing slow with all the racking; he said he didn't find it that way. Probably just being a good guy.

Tournament Record: 1-0-1

Round Three: Brad (Team Duress) on Smokestack Ponza

We sat down. Bryan was at the seat next to us, and we were chuckling about the game we just had. He said, "Yeah, I didn't think we were close to time even with all the scroll racking." I gestured wildly across the seat to Brad, "Woah Woah Woah!" A fellow New Yorker giving info to the intruding enemy from New England! Bryan looked stricken.

Brad said, "Mad Dogs?" Bryan apologized profusely; I chuckled. Hopefully he knew I was messing with him.

Game one, Brad played a basic on turn one, Rishadan Port on turn two, and land destruction on turn three.

Apathy by Phil Foglio

I fought back with land, Oath of Druids, and Scroll Rack. He attacked with Treetop Village and sometimes Mishra's Factory, depending on if he activated Rishadan Port. was sub-10 life, digging for Funeral Pyre with Akroma in my hand.

I cast Funeral Pyre targeting a land in his graveyard at the end of his turn and gave him a die to represent the 1/1 token. I untapped and tanked. Do I Scroll Rack on my turn to put Akroma to the top of my deck and flip her to Oath, or let it ride for an Ancestor's Chosen for life boost?

I have a 50% chance of hitting Ancestor's Chosen. If I hit Shard Phoenix, I would survive the following turn as I could chump or sacrifice it to retrigger Oath of Druids. If I hit Shard Phoenix and Gaea's Blessing, my position would remain a coin flip to hit Ancestor's Chosen.

The Akroma route would give Brad four turns to find Swords to Plowshares or lose. Without any countermagic, I racked four cards to the top of my deck to mill past to the Akroma for fresh looks.

After he chumps with the token, he'd Oath a Terravore, and it's 6/6 or smaller; I'd win. There were three lands in graveyards.

Browse by Phil Foglio

I decided to Oath Akroma. I attacked and he...just took six. I nodded as though that was expected. As Brad untapped, he said, "Oh. Actually, can I just chump block? I didn't realize I had the guy." We had a short back-and-forth for 10-15 seconds. Brad said it should really be a token card; he didn't notice it. I thought:

He had to know he had a creature; otherwise, how did I trigger Oath?
I placed the die in front of him on his side of the table with the number one face up, not a token card
He had mentioned before the match that he hadn't played in months.
Would I be an ass if I said no?
Would I violate the spirit of the event and Premodern as a whole if I said no?

I absolutely should have called a judge and let them make the decision. I allowed the backup and chump block. Did I know I would allow it the whole time but wanted to make him sweat? Yes. Should I have made that decision and/or given Brad the sweat? Debatable. I like good karma, though.

Brad flipped a 9/9 Terravore. Womp. I had two Swords to Plowshares, two other cards, and a Scroll Rack without a shuffle effect on top. I should have math-ed out chumping, Oathing Ancestor's Chosen, multiple Swords to Plowshares on larger follow-up Terravores, and Tsabo's Web, Enlightened Tutor, or Wastelands to stop the creature-land beats. I plowed and prayed, but failed to find any of the needed follow-ups.

Sideboard In: Back to Basics, Seal of Cleansing, Ray of Revelation, Powder Keg
Sideboard Out: Kor Haven, other cards I don’t recall

In game two, I cast a turn two Meddling Mage and named Seal of Cleansing — a card I was playing, instead of Naturalize, which I wasn't playing, and he definitely was. The sleep deprivation had hit.

I Enlighten Tutor for Back to Basics to hit his ¾ non-basic board when he has two lands untapped. I was probably just supposed to hold this until he tapped out. He Naturalized it end of turn, of course.

Sicken by Heather Hudson

He cast a Sylvan Library, and paid 12-16 life over the next few turns. He cast Ray of Revelation on my Sylvan Library and Oath of Druids. I was buried by his card advantage. Rishadan Ports stalled until Smokestack left me without a board.

Brad tossed me the bounty lands even though I lost, which he said he was doing for all his matches. Good guy move.

Tournament Record: 1-1-1

Round Four: Roland on Mono Dreadnought

Ack! A bad scenario. Not just because Phyrexian Dreadnought is a bad matchup for me in game one, but Roland lent me cards, and the loser would be out of contention.

Game one, Roland won the die roll and played the combo turn two.

Sideboard In: Meddling Mages, Annuls, Aura of Silence, Seal of Cleansing, Powder Keg, Gilded Drake
Sideboard Out: Shard Phoenix, Ancestor's Chosen, some Oaths (but not all?), and other things?

I sided in like nine cards that are all great. I couldn't lose to Brain Freeze barring some really bad luck. If Roland didn't combo in the first three turns, I was favored.

Game two, I land a Meddling Mage naming Phyrexian Dreadnought. He cast Powder Keg. I remove it with Seal of Cleansing and follow up with Aura of Silence. I slowly beat him to death with Meddling Mage.

We fought over Phyrexian Dreadnought a couple times. I aggressively use Sylvan Library to rebuild. He Vision Charmed me at one point, milling Gaea's Blessing and realized he couldn't Brain Freeze me out.

Game three was a nail-biter. We fought over Phyrexian Dreadnought that I plow around turn 4-5 after taking 12. I Scroll Rack and land {Meddling Mage naming Phyrexian Dreadnought. My City of Brass reminds me I'm low on life.

I fetch, but Roland Stifled it. "Really?" He smiled. I fetched and he Stifled again. "ROLAAAAANDDDD!" I proclaim, and he giggled. My life was six, and I kept tapping City of Brass. I had two Swords to Plowshares, Gilded Drake, and countermagic in hand.

I wasn't upset about losing the shuffle but rather Roland blowing his Stifles on my fetches and not his Phyrexian Dreadnought. He needed to Stifle rather than Vision Charm his Phyrexian Dreadnought so my Gilded Drake could convert and win within a reasonable amount of time!

Reality Ripple by Alan Rabinowitz

He resolved Powder Keg. Eventually, he Reality Rippled my Meddling Mage, cast Phyrexian Dreadnought, and countered my Swords to Plowshares. I resolved Gilded Drake with Kor Haven in play and the second Swords to Plowshares in hand.

He popped his Powder Keg to take out his turncoat Phyrexian Dreadnought. I Kor Havened my turncoat Gilded Drake. I cast Meddling Mage naming Powder Keg and eventually resolve Ancestor's Chosen to gain 20 life. Time was called. I'm roughly five damage short of killing him even if I Swords to Plowshares Gilded Drake.

At one point, Roland could Flash of Insight for his entire deck. He scooped, knowing a draw would have knocked us both out. I offered (or think in my brain to offer?) that I should scoop instead since Roland is the stronger player on the better deck. He felt I was in a commanding position and asked I pay it forward in a similar situation in the future.

Tournament Record: 2-1-1

Round Five: Ian on Psychatog

I knew Ian was on Tog cause he sat next to me in the previous round. I assumed he knew I was on Oath.

Game one, he turn two Accumulated Knowledges one. Holding Funeral Pyre, I lurked in the shadows, so excited. On turn four, he cast Accumulated Knowledge for two, but I Funeral Pyre the first copy. He was shocked. I cackled inside.

That 1/1 beat me to 12. He attempted another Accumulated Knowledge for two, but I Funeral Pyred the second copy. He shrugged this time, and I died over the next six turns from the 1/1 tokens. I cast Wrath of God while at six life, but he countered that and my follow-up Oath of Druids.

He won without needing to cast a win condition. I mistakenly made him only need to counter one spell each turn.

Sideboard In: Cursed Totem, Meddling Mages, Iridescent Angel, maybe Powder Keg?
Sideboard Out: I forget

Game two, I cast turn two Meddling Mage on Accumulated Knowledge. I should have named Foil, since it was the only counterspell I saw from him that I wasn't playing. I beat him down to sub-10 life with Meddling Mage, alongside the damage from his Underground Rivers.

Underground River by NéNé Thomas

I cast Iridescent Angel, but he countered it. I wanted to fetch a third Plains to hardcast Akroma next turn, but I only had two Plains in my deck! The other sources were City of Brass and Gemstone Mine, the latter of which was already in the graveyard. His Sickening Dreams killed Meddling Mage and put me to one life for Psychatog to finish me off.

Tournament Record: 2-2-1

Round Six: Stuart on Sligh

The vibe when out of contention was chill on both sides; jokes, tapping deck, etc.

In game one, Stuart cast turn one Cursed Scroll off Mountain and repeated with second copies of both on turn two. He Lightning Bolted me at end of turn. I cast Oath of Druids and Funeral Pyred his Lightning Bolt.

He Incinerated the 1/1 token and played most of his Wastelands and four more Mountains. That's it. He didn't cast another spell that I recall. I hardcast Ancestor's Chosen for six or seven life, but he removed it with his two scrolls and eventually scrolled me to death.

Cursed Scroll by D. Alexander Gregory

Sideboard In: Sphere of Law, Meddling Mages?
Sideboard Out: Tsabo’s web, couple of Oaths

Game two, Stuart said he’d boarded out all of his creatures except Mogg Fanatic. He cast Phyrexian Furnace on turn one or two. I Seal of Cleansinged it, then Enlighten Tutored for Sphere of Law before tapping out to play it on turn four. He cast Anarchy. D’oh!

Waiting until I had six mana to have countermagic back up was too risky at 12 life. He resolved Tormod's Crypt through my Mana Leaks before I reached seven mana to hardcast Ancestor's Chosen with a juicy graveyard. I cast it anyway but die a fiery death following a second Anarchy.

Tournament Record: 2-3-1

Round 7: No Show/Free Win

Sad times. The only other no-show was against my Slight opponent from the previous round.

3-3-1 for 46th.

The perfect 50% record for an odd number of rounds. As foretold.

Reviewing the Decklist

I looked up other Oath control lists that performed well the previous two months to get ideas. I made a mish-mash of lists, but wish I'd played the third Plains since not being able to hardcast Akroma cost me several games.

I consistently felt the draw package wasn't sufficient. Next time, I'd try the Accumulated Knowledge, Gush, Armageddon approach instead of Fact or Fiction and Impulse. This might be Scroll Rack heresy or hindsight bias from the game three against Bryan, but there were times where I saw so many cards that didn't do anything.

Scroll Rack by Heather Hudson

I went 0-6 on die rolls, and this deck is much better on the play than the draw with eight counterspells that cost two mana. Perhaps the change should be more removal instead of countermagic to mitigate the pressure on the die roll.

The deck should have some creature lands despite the nombo with Tsabo’s Web. I had too many turns when I couldn't advance the game.

Without maindeck Ivory Tower, the Sligh matchup is too challenging. Players know who to play against Oath of Druids — I only triggered the Oath four times. Rough.

Reviewing the Event

It was a blast! Everyone was in high spirits, enjoying themselves regardless of their records, and incredibly friendly. I cannot recommend attending a future Order of the Sacred Torch event highly enough.

I bumped into Zac Clark, and he recalled that about 10+ years ago we played Legacy at Twenty Sided Store.

“You borrowed a couple random cards and gave me a Bazaar of Baghdad to hold as collateral, which still stands out in my memory since we didn’t know each other!”

The Premodern community is open and welcoming. If you aren’t already a part of it, come on in. The water is warm.

Props

Everyone who put the event: you did an awesome job.
Everyone who lent me cards: I greatly appreciate it and look forward to returning the favor or paying it forward in the future.
Everyone who attended: This supports what we all love, and showing up is the majority of the battle to keep community-driven events running.
Duress Crew for working toward running a huge event. Fingers crossed!
Me on recalling the above matchup notes. I took no notes because I didn't want to slow down my matches even further, and was on 4 hours of sleep.