Magic Deck Vortex: MDV Idol 3: The Judging.

Last weekend we rounded up the contestants and grouped them up. Then all last week you guys cast your votes and eliminated the weaker cards of each group.

Wrong! It’s time for some fun, as the Judges sit down and review the finalists.

I love that intro music. It makes me want to smile a little bit and dance a lot bit.

When we started the contest two weeks ago, we had no idea how many people would get involved. The first contest had over 40 contestants, while the second one had a little over 20. Would Idol 3 be destined to continue the downward spiral, or could it rebound and gain some momentum?

Well, you guys stepped it up and brought a few friends, as we reached 30 contestants. It is really nice when there is a nice round number, especially when there is a multiple of five and we have five groups. It makes for a very balanced distribution of entries. However, some of the submissions didn’t take to the whole ‘balance’ thing very well. They decided to start out of the box and steam roll over, around, and through the other guys and win in a runaway.

Are these cards really that good or were they supported by poor competition? Would they have won so handily if they were paired together?

The good news is that we get a chance to find that out during this week of voting.

Keeping with the spirit of the Mysterious Twist, there was one more piece of the puzzle that was kept hidden from you, hopefully inspiring you to new heights with your designs. That piece was your opponent’s hand. What could possibly be in it? What were those three cards that could affect the outcome of this combat? Would they sway the tide of battle towards you or away from you? How about if I tell you those cards now, and we can include that information in both the Judges panel, and in your vote for the Finalists.

What do those cards mean? It means that when you declare your block with a 2/2 face down creature, the Fault Rider will be activated, with a sacrifice of a newly tapped land – making him a 4/2 First Strike. That would be followed up with a Fatal Frenzy, making the Rider a 8/2 First Strike, Trample creature. If you didn’t flip your creature, you would take six trample damage and would die. If you flipped your creature and it had an ability targeting the Rider, then Stonewood Invocation would make the Rider a 13/7 First Strike, Trample, with Shroud – making your targeting ability fizzle.

Now, there were a few ‘easy way out’ scenarios that were thought about. Effort went into the contest design to make certain these would not survive the attack. For example, just making a creature with five toughness would not do it. Making a creature that would flip and destroy the Fault Rider with a targeting ability would not do it. Giving your creature Protection from Red would not do it either. You really needed to put some thought into your design and use a strategy. You knew that your opponent had access to Red, Green, and Black mana. There were plenty of things you could have thought about in an effort of surviving the attack. Here were a few:

I could go on with more, but the point to be made is this, MDV Idol has never been an easy contest, and making just any card is not going to win you the contest.

...COMMERCIAL BREAK...

“That dinosaur is going to eat me!”

“Sh.. sh… Quiet before it finds us.”

“But Sal…”

“I’m gonna Sal you! Shut up!”

*The two goblins cowered in the bush. A casual observer would note that the bush was shaking vigorously and that there was no a leaf to be found on the bush.*

“Sal, it is coming right at us.” *He got up to run, but Sal pounces on him.*

“Get ahold of yourself. If you get out of this bush, it will get you for sure. I just saved your life Mel. Thank me later.” *He pushed Mel’s head into the ground and hoisted himself to return to the bush. Upon turning around, he found himself staring face to face with the raptor. Sizing himself versus the raptor, even the foolish goblin knew he was about to bite the big one, but decided to test old goblin lore first. Turning, he ran as fast as he could towards Mel and jumped on his back.*

“I don’t have to out run the dinosaur Mel, I just have to out run you!” *He began running as fast as his little goblin legs could take him. A look over his shoulder revealed that there may have been some truth to the old lore, as the raptor busied himself with the business at hand, that being Mel. Smiling to himself, he turned back to his business at hand, running for his life, when suddenly…

*BAMMM!*

*From out of no where came the Burger King. Lowering his shoulder, the King drove the small goblin to the ground with a thud. Sal never knew what hit him. All he knew is that he needed to get those birds out of way so he could breath. The King kneeled over his fallen foe and reached behind himself. From behind his cape, he produced a Whopper and offered it to Sal.*

*Camera fades to black, you hear a raptor shriek, a goblin scream, and the King smile.*

Oh, *ehem* I almost forgot… there is one more Twist to this contest. You will be voting blind. That’s right; there will not be a public vote for you to watch. Instead, you are to go into the forums, read the Finalist cards, and send in your vote to the PM link provided. Your vote will be sent to Tynion, who will collect the votes and hold them secret until the end of the voting period.

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