How giant robots saved my Magic career
Hi, I’m Juno. I’m a newgen Magic grinder, and I work for a small indie company as a card designer. If you’re reading this you probably know of me already, and if you don’t, well, I’m told I’m surprisingly well-connected!
My Spotlight Hartford finish: 11–3–1 for 14th on UW Synth. It was a bittersweet result; I lost two win-and-ins for the PT, but I’d never gotten this far, either.
Honestly, I don’t have much to say about my actual process for constructed this event. I allowed myself to pivot with less than a week left, because Synth had a good matchup into nearly everything (but mostly Landfall and Lifegain). It also happened to be criminally flying under the radar. The testing processes I’d built up this year were invaluable for sure, but this time, I learned the most about my mental game.
Prelude
Before Hartford, I’d never day 2'd a tournament ever.
Needless to say this was a huge source of frustration and embarrassment. Over the last 2 years I’d seen friends and strangers reach new heights while I couldn’t even clear the first hurdle.
It got to a point.
I was chatting with my good friend Jess, a member of team Worldly Counsel, about how I couldn’t muster the courage to apply to that team. With no results I was proud of, what would I even put on my resume? Jess was incredulous. “What about sealed???”
At the time I’d made LTQ top cut twice (now thrice), but I hardly considered it proof of my skill and effort.
The first time, I punted the semifinals by forgetting that you can pay 2 mana for Spell Pierce (I was casting a Render Speechless to make way for Moment of Reckoning, and the 2 +1/+1 counters ended up mattering). The misplay stayed with me for weeks, randomly giving me anxiety no matter the time or place. Magic was hurting me, and something was wrong.
Reading Break
In the leadup to Hartford, I did a lot of this!
Two top 8 reports from the goat Jacob and Daniel (who I’m sure is also a goat but I have yet to meet) echoed the same things. They were calm, they were having fun. Winning didn’t matter:
Whenever I hear Reid Duke talk about tournaments he is always so insufferably happy, saying stuff like “I’m just really excited we get to play Magic today!” And I always think, “You’re too good and have won too much at Magic to think anything other than that.” But this weekend I really did feel that way.
I felt just about called out. Had I ever played a constructed tournament with this much freedom? Even scarier: was it even possible for me?
The day before my flight, I also finished the official MTG manga.
It’s a cute rom-com full of late ’90s Magic history, I definitely didn’t cry a little, and I recommend it if you like manga at all!
Anyway, the latter half of the story opens with the protagonist taking a string of tough losses. His rivals all seem to access the calm and analytical “magic hour” — basically a fancy term for a flow state.
So I should be able to do it too!
I don’t remember if I read this panel first or the tournament reports first, only that I paused for a moment when I made the connection. Admittedly, it wasn’t that deep. But I was playing tournament after tournament and suffering, my frustration sanding me down. I felt as though the universe was giving me an out, just a nudge in the right direction. What was it that took Jacob and Daniel into the magic hour? What if it was…nothing special?
The Main Event
I set out with the Pro Tour as my goal, as we all do. My secondary goal was arguably more important, though.
Could I stay cool and walk away from the tournament happier than I started?
I didn’t really have a plan in mind for how I’d do this, to be honest, but that was kind of the whole hypothesis. If Dan and Jacob could do it on a whim — focus on the real reason why we’re all here, how fun Magic is — I had nothing to lose from attempting the same.
I opened day 1 4–0 with a string of die rolls won. In round 5 I found myself in game 3 against Airbending. I’m quite familiar with this rogue deck thanks to my good friend Jude, who reached the PT with it and ran it back for the weekend.
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On an empty board and 6 mana, my opponent casts Interdimensional Webwatch flipping Appa and Doc, the best possible hits. The two furry friends recycle Webwatch and flip over an Aang…and I’ve suddenly taken my first loss.
I brace myself for some emotional destabilization and…nothing. I lost a match, I’m fine, can’t wait for the next one. Is this working??? Am I in the magic hour???
Round 9 comes along against Jeskai Momo, and I’m reminded things are never that easy.
My friend Ray lost to this in round 1, and I recognize my opponent’s name. Despite knowing exactly what the red splash was in Frostcliff Siege, though, it doesn’t come up as I win game 1 and forget about it.
Game 2 starts terrifying, with the only Doorkeeper Thrull of my weekend hitting on curve. I get turbo bailed by Seam Rip off the top but I’m behind, digging into my Halloween Candy (Trail) early to survive at 1 life. I then totally punt, crafting my Braided Net in a moment of greed, dying to Siege from hand + Starfield Shepherd from Warp.
Game 3 is a damn slog, and time gets called. I realize we didn’t get an extension from an earlier judge call despite asking for it. We clear up the situation with the head judge and are granted a one-minute, one-time boon.
By this point, though, the situation has left me shaking and breathing hard and the inspiring calm is nowhere to be found.
I end up crafting a depleted Net to draw 9 and seal the game. A judge pulls me aside for a postemptive slow play warning, but kindly lets me know that I can ask for a second to breathe during a match (so now you know too).
Even though I finished day 1 at 8–1, I had mixed feelings. With my grasp of the magic hour slipping away after just 9 of 15 rounds, had I really made any tangible progress?
It only got more dubious at the start of day 2, a pseudo-mirror. Talonflame whiffs on his first Battlefront, only hitting a Snare, and he mutters “GG I guess”. My Battlefront is OK, but he immediately topdecks another Battlefront to bring him back into the game. My second Battlefront is solid, and I should be ahead, but he topdecks…a 3rd Battlefront.
We end up in a UID; I tell my friends that both players played too slowly. This was within earshot of my opponent but no BM intended, and looking back it’s totally possible/likely I was the slower player.
I shake it off and chain 3 more wins, 2 of those my first time in the feature match area. I’m feeling calm and feeling good, but my first win-and-in Round 14 is the real test.
Spoilers: I don’t get there. In fact, I almost threw it all away after keeping a Verge+Hamlet hand, confusing it for one with a real blue source (I topdecked Hallowed Fountain and won that game).
Normally I’d be beating myself up over the bad keep and stressing over the next match. Yet I managed to be a little nervous without holding the loss against myself. I was ready for the next one, and I told myself the result wouldn’t hold me prisoner anymore.
My final hand of the tournament was highly reactive: Snare, Net, DOJ, the accursed Fire Crystal, and 3 lands (1 surveil).
John starts on Forest pass. I topdeck 2nd DOJ, surveil Mind Stone to the top, and in my head I am cocky. John has no idea what’s coming, and I’m just itching to write this article.
John draws an Elf for turn, playing it and 2nd Forest. For turn 3 he goes Hydra+Escape Tunnel and I am ready. I play Hamlet, forcing the crack, name Ba Sing Se, and jam DOJ.
Turn 4: John plays a second Hydra and Passage. I Snare it and pass.
Turn 5: John shows some weakness. I fall for it like the starving fish I am. He plays Cultivator and Chocobo, no land, pass. I untap, consider Net, but opt to save it for when they only have 1 threat and DOJ again.
Turn 6: John had a pretty good poker face here. With 3 cards left in hand he does nothing and passes.
I know one of them must be fetchland. One new unknown, and one old. I should’ve considered the range for longer, but honestly I don’t know if I could’ve figured it out. Exercise for the reader.
I settle on the last cards being Mightform rotting in hand + Defend the Rider newly drawn. I’ve failed to draw any gas. My 6 draw steps have been DOJ, Mind Stone, 3 land, Mind Stone. If I cast Net, Craft it, and cast 2nd Mind Stone I can draw 3 next turn.
After much fumbling over the sequencing, I do just that.
John’s final 3 cards: Origin of Metalbending to get Hydra from Snare. Fetchland, Earthbender’s Ascension. With the stockpiled fetch it’s 32 damage.
I’m there, but I’m not there. It’s real, but it’s not real. In an instant, as it always does, everything comes crashing down.
I really appreciate Valerie, my roommate for the event, sitting down with me and helping me process. Maybe I’m supposed to Hamlet Passage instead of Ba Sing Se? I’m pretty sure I’m priced into crafting there? Whatever.
Aftermath
Despite everything, an hour later I was certain of one small victory: I’d entered the magic hour and stayed in it. I’d lost two win-and-ins, and it was OK. I’d learned so much, grown so much, and gotten to see so many friends. My disappointment was immeasurable and my day was…pretty good!
It helped a lot that this was my best result yet; I can’t fully eliminate the possibility that winning a lot helped my mental state, sort of a positive feedback loop. Even so, the important thing was the catalyst — everything I was feeling and reading forced me to confront how unhealthy my engagement with Magic was getting. On top of that, the processes I’d built over time also helped me make that mental leap…but that’s another article. I hope that if you’re in a similar spot, the inspiration passes on to you.
Thanks to everyone who cheered me on and the awesome players I tested with. One more event this year and it’ll be a nice break until 2027. Thanks for reading!
