Back after two rounds away from the top tables and the landscape has dramatically changed. With only one more round left in Swiss the top table has agreed to draw, confident that they will soon be heading for the top 8.

The second table has Justin Chambers and Carlos Medina, both Florida locals. As we're getting set to start the judges come over to run a deck check. So we're left to chit chat for the first 10 minutes of the round. The judges come back with nothing to report, so both players start shuffling up eager to randomize their sorted decks.

Justin and Carlos are good friends, Carlos provided the ride for Justin and so they agonized over the matchup as Justin was paired down against his friend Carlos. They decided to play it out rather than risk a scoop and missing the top 8.

Justin wins the roll and decides to go first. They both keep their opening hands and proceed with the mana drops. Carlos drops a land and returns it for a Borderpost. Justin uses two Vivids, the Crag and the Creek and then drops a Sunken Ruins passing to Carlos. Carlos plays a Time Sieve and a Elsewhere Flask, passing the turn after drawing his card.

Justin Esper Charms, lays a Cascade Bluffs, and passes the turn. Carlos lays an Island and passes the turn. Justin considers an end of turn action and decides not to, instead flowing into his turn to draw and lay a Vivid Creek. Justin shuffles the cards in his hand and passes turn. Carlos tossing out a Crypic Command bouncing a land and drawing a card. Justin thinks it over and taps out to play his own Cryptic, countering and bouncing one of Carlos' Borderposts.

Carlos lays an Island on his turn and plays another Elsewhere Flask, drawing a card. He looks over his cards and taps two to lay a Howling Mine before passing the turn.

Justin puts down an Island and views his Grip, seeing Cruel Ultimatum, Kitchen Finks, Baneslayer Angel, Esper Charm, Hallowed Burial, Broken Ambitions and a second Hallowed Burial. He passes the turn.

Carlos draws two, laying the previously bounced Borderpost returning the Island, and views his cards. He passes the turn. Both players are still at 20, with no threats on the board.

Justin drops a Vivid Marsh and chooses to discard a Hallowed Burial to end his turn. He passes to Carlos who draws two, lays a third Borderpost to return an Island, replaying it as the land for his turn, playing Time Warp. Justin ponders this and then lets it resolve.

Carlos checks his hand size, drawing two cards on his second turn in a row, he lays an island, his third land along with the three Borderposts. He plays a second Time Warp, cycling to draw before going into the third turn.

He drops another Island, after drawing two cards. He pays two to lay a third Elsewhere Flask and drawing a card. He looks over his grip and flips the cards, tapping out to lay Tezzeret, the Seeker.

Justin confirms he is tapped out before paying two to lay Broken Ambitions countering Tezzeret. They Clash revealing a Plains for Carlos and Baneslayer Angel for Justin. Carlos mills and thinks things over.

He passes to Justin who untaps and draws two cards. He checks Carlos' hand size, which is seven cards, and then taps to drop Baneslayer Angel. He passes the turn.

Carlos draws and taps two to lay a second Time Sieve, then when it lands safely he plays his fourth Elsewhere Flask. He plays out a second Howling Mine and cycles. Then he sacs all Elsewhere flasks and one of the Time Sieves to take another turn.

He untaps, draws three cards and lays a Plains. He drops his third Howling Mine but when he tries to Open the Vaults, Justin quickly Negates it. Carlos then follows up by sacrificing his Borderposts and a Howling mine along with a Time Sieve to take another turn.

This time his Open the Vaults succeeds, and when he runs it one more time revealing another Open the Vaults in his hand, Justin scoops.

Carlos wins 1-0.

In our pre game discussions they noted that they had playtested together and it was an extremely bad matchup for Justin, having one just a single match the day before.

They both begin sideboarding, pulling out a number of cards to swap between deck and board.

The Time Sieve Combo deck is a deck which can end up in infinite turns through the recursion of artifacts, and in doing so can generate such card advantage the opponent just can't keep up and they eventually fall under it's mechanical onslaught. It is akin to the Tolarian Academy decks which could generate immense card advantage.

Both players are shuffling up and about ready for game two. Justin will play first again in this game.

Game 2

They view their opening hands and chew on the math, deciding to both mulligan down to six. They shuffle their hands back in and share a few laughs with each other.

The game got underway while I wasn't looking, so when I look back there was already a Howling Mine in play under Carlos' control, and he was reminding Justin to draw his second card.

Justin evoked a Mulldrifter and passed the turn. Carlos drew his two and then laid a Borderpost and passed the turn. Justin drew two, laid the Mystic Gate, and then had to discard a Vivid Meadow and pass.

Carlos draws two, then taps three and plays a Jace. Justin counters with a Cryptic, also bouncing the Howling Mine to Carlos' hand.

Carlos passes to Justin with six cards in hand. Justin draws one then lays an Island and passes. Carlos draws a single lonely card, lays an island and replays the Howling, meeting Justin's Negate. Carlos just plays a second Howling which lands, and then drops a Elsewhere Flask which hits, putting another card in Carlos' hand.

He passes the turn and Justin draws his two cards, rather unhappily it seems. He drops a Vivid Marsh and surveys his hand, to pass the turn. Carlos draws two and plays Tezzeret. Justin can't really afford to let Tezzeret resolve, it's too threatening and it's too integral to this deck, but can he counter it? He has the man untapped, but after much consideration he lets Tezzeret land.

Carlos marks the mana, untaps two using Tezeret, and then drops a second Howling Mine. Followed by a Time Sieve which Justin quickly Cryptics, also bouncing Tezzeret to Carlos' hand. Carlos passes the turn.

Justin draws three and then casts the Cruel Ultimatum, returning Mulldrifter from his graveyard and causing Carlos to discard.

Carlos takes the turn and rips three off the top, one of which is Time Sieve. He plays a Plains and holds one card in hand. He uses the Time Sieve, playing one Howling Mine, two Borderposts and a Flask then passes the turn.

He Silences on Justin's Upkeep. Justin responds by casting Cryptic bouncing the Howling Mine and drawing a card. Carlos taps as if he's going to respond but then reconsiders. He passes on responding to the Cryptic but before Silence finishes resolving, Justin Esper Charms Carlos causing him to discard the Howling Mine and a second Silence.

He draws a card and sits on it, passing the turn. We're sub 10 minutes left in the round, but far from finishing. They also have an additional 10 minutes due to the deck checks so plenty of time to finish this game - in theory.

Justin draws and plays Pithing Needle, on its resolution names Time Sieve. Then follows it with Kitchen Finks, putting life totals to 27 for Justin and 15 for Carlos. He then plays a second Finks, going 29 to 15.

The Finks attacked dealing 6 to Carlos. Followed by a Cruel Ultimatum, to put another possible five damage aimed at Carlos. It resolved. And after a few more pointless motions and draws, Carlos concedes. Match is tied and Justin has the momentum but Carlos doesn't seem shaken, they really have play tested this match.

Game 3

During shuffles I make sure the players aware of remaining time in the round, Carlos decides to go first in the final game of the match. Carlos draws 7, as does Justin, and they decide whether to keep or not. Carlos nearly starts playing before Justin decides to keep or Mulligan. Justin keeps and the game is on.

Lands are dropped, Carlos has a turn two Howling Mine again and passes the turn. Justin draws two, drops a Vivid Marsh, discards a Vivid Creek and passes the turn. Carlos draws two and plays two Borderposts avoiding having to discard.

Justin plays a Reflecting Pool, casting a Great Sable Stag and passing the turn. Carlos draws two, drops a Swamp, tapping out to cast Time Warp. He draws two, lays an Island and flips the card. They're both obviously aware of the time crunch and playing faster than before.

Carlos plays an Elsewhere Flask and a Kaleidostone then passes the turn. Justin untaps draws two and swings with the Stag. They had remarked earlier that Justin dealing damage had a high correlation in him winning the match, so this bodes well for him as he deals 3 to Carlos.

He lays a second Pool and considers a play in his second main. He ends up discarding a Baneslayer Angel then passing the turn.

Carlos lays an Island and shuffles through his seven card grip, before passing the turn. Justin draws two and swings with the Stag, dealing 3 more damage taking Carlos to 14. He views his hand, lays a Vivid Creek announces his intent to discard. Carlos Resounding Waves both Justin's Vivid Creeks into his hand, which Justin responds by Negating but Carlos counters and bounces with Cryptic Command returning the Vivid marsh to Justin's hand, forcing him to discard two cards: Finks and the Marsh.

Carlos draws two, lays a Plains, and plays Tezzeret, seemingly expecting the Negate Justin has. Carlos lays a Borderpost and passes the turn.

Justin draws two cards, then swings with the Stag, taking Carlos to 11. He passes the turn to Carlos.

Carlos untaps and draws two, dropping a Swamp and then tapping it and an Island for a Time Sieve. Justin considers and lets it resolve. Carlos counts mana and artifacts, tapping five saccing to activate the Time Sieve. Justin checks the mana is correct, which it is.

Carlos runs Open the Vaults which Justin Negates. Carlos draws two and then he casts Silence before Opening the Vaults. He casts a Time Sieve, and a handful of artifacts, enough to use with the borderposts toa ctivate it for another turn.

He drops an Elsewhere Flask and then a Howling Mine, tapping four mana for both. He passes to Carlos who draws three cards. He checks cards in hand and swings with the Stag, putting Carlos to 8.

Justin announces intent to discard which Carlos responds to with a Cryptic bouncing the Vivid and drawing. Justin discards two vivids passing to Carlos.

Carlos draws three cards and time expires so he is the final turn of the clock, and now we go into the counted turns. He attempts to play Tezzeret which Justin considers and allows. Carlos considers and removes two counters to search his deck for Time Sieve, surprise surprise.

Carlos Resounding Waves Justin's Reflecting Pool and then plays a third Mine. He then runs out the Posts, the Flask and runs the Time Sieve, progressing to turn 1 of overtime.

Carlos Silence's Justin and then runs From the Vaults to pull the artifacts back from the graveyard into play. He looks over his grip and again activates the Time Sieve, readying to proceed to turn two.

Carlos checks his graveyard and then proceeds to turn two. He counts out the draws dropping a Plains tapping three, untapping two with Tezzeret to Resounding Wave the Pool into Justin's hand. Justin flips cards considering but he can't do anything.

Carlos taps five, drops the Glassdust Hulk and then Time Warps proceeding to turn three. Confirming his hand size he untaps and draws four cards. He activates Time Sieve with the Borderposts, then sacrificing the Kaleidostone and more mana for the Open the Vaults.

Justin has yet to take a turn in overtime. Carlos is close to decking himself, the Hulk is a 14/14. He ups Tezzeret to untap two lands, laying another Time Sieve, and Howling Mine and Elsewhere Flask and Borderpost and Borderpost making it an 19/19.

He attacks to deal 19, and then Time Sieve's to swing again winning on the last turn of overtime.

With the win Carlos proceeds to the top table of Swiss, allowing him to draw into the top 8.