First of all, I’d like to thank those of you who have been supporting me with my Draft videos. I’ve enjoyed making them, and I become better at it each time. I want to return to actual writing, but I’ll still upload videos when I can. I’ve posted a couple of bonus Drafts that weren’t in any of the previous GatheringMagic articles, so please check out my YouTube channel if you’re interested.

2011 was a pretty good year for me, in terms of Magic and in many other ways. It’s funny how things can come together when you least expect it. This time last year, I was pretty sure I was done with competitive Magic. I had scrubbed out of PT: Amsterdam after winning what I thought was my one-time PTQ, and I thought, “Well, that’s it then; I blew my one shot.” I didn’t think I had it in me to win another PTQ, attributing the previous win to a fluke. Besides, I was starting school in a few months, and wouldn’t have time for this funny game of Wizards and Goblins any more.

And then I won another PTQ. Like Amsterdam, I saw it merely as a free flight to a faraway land. However, Nagoya had a few things going for it:

• Jetlag would actually work in my favor. It’s much easier for me to stay up later than to wake up earlier.
• Block Constructed was going to be a much easier format to test for than Extended was.
• I wasn’t going to be . . . erm . . . partaking of the Moldgraf Monstrosities—if you catch my drift.

I won’t rehash the details of what happened in Japan, though if you’re interested, I’d recommend checking out my Nagoya report. While placing thirty-first is nothing to sneeze at, what I was most proud of was going 6–0 in the Limited portion. I certainly had my fair share of luck along the way, but I proved to myself that winning those PTQs wasn’t just a fluke. I still have a lot of room for improvement, but I feel that I have a decent shot of winning any Draft pod I find myself in, whether it’s an 8–4 on Magic Online or the Top 8 of a Pro Tour.

With an invitation to PT: Philadelphia in my back pocket, I was spared from having to grind out a particularly horrendous PTQ season. Caw Blade was among the most dominant Standard decks of all time, and it resulted in the first Standard bannings since Affinity. I must admit: I played Caw Blade the entire time it was legal, and though I have great fondness for the deck, playing nothing but mirrors would not have been much fun.

The next major tournament I had to look forward to was Canadian Nationals. Sure enough, I played post-banning Caw Blade, though it could hardly be called such since I didn’t play any Swords. It was only my third time playing at Nationals, but I strongly felt that I had a strong chance to Top 8, if not take down the tournament. I started out 5–1, winning another Draft pod even, but that’s when the proverbial wheels started coming off. My second Draft deck was a bit of a glass cannon, and I was paired against mono-stone-throwers, if you’ll forgive the mixed metaphor. To make matters worse, I received a game loss from a deck registration error in the following round, and I was not able to come back to win the match. I ended up losing my last Constructed round to miss Top 16.

Though I only finished slightly worse than the previous year, it felt a lot worse. I still had a Pro Tour to play, but Philly was a tournament I just couldn’t become excited about. Let’s look at the previous Pro Tours I’ve played in:

• Honolulu (waaay back in 2006): Tropical island paradise at a time of year when it’s snowing back home. Among the best trips of my life.
• Amsterdam: Party capital of Europe. You’d have to be completely anhedonic to not have a great time there. Also among the best trips of my life.
• Nagoya: Japan! While I hate to draw the bearded otaku comparison, going to Japan has been a dream of mine since I was a little kid. Also among the best trips of my life (last time, I promise).

Philly . . . yeeeeaaah. The Reading Terminal Market was literally the only thing I was looking forward to. I had already been to Philadelphia twice before, and a Pro Tour that I can drive to just doesn’t feel the same. The fact that the tournament wasn’t much fun certainly didn’t help things (turn one Island, go; am I dead? Yes.). Notice that I only did well in one of those above three Pro Tours. I went 0–5 in Honolulu. 0–5! And yet, I still count it as one of my favorite tournaments ever. The location of a tournament has a huge impact my enjoyment of it. Losing isn’t fun, but when it happens, it lessens the blow if you’re in an awesome place with fun things to do.

The year, of course, closed out with some radical changes to the Organized Play program. The first round of changes was so controversial that there was a huge public outcry over the loss of Worlds, among other things. Wizards proved that they do listen to the players by making adjustments. The new World Magic Cup looks awesome, and I’m going to do my best to qualify for it. I’ve been fortunate insofar that the location for Canadian Nationals has been within driving distance for the past several years. As much as I love Nationals, I don’t think it’s worth it to fly to Calgary or Vancouver or wherever else. For that reason, I think I’ll like the new system even more, since I can count on at least one World Magic Cup Qualifier to be close to me every year.

I’m also a big fan of how Wizards has fixed Pro Tour invitations. One of the drawbacks of the Planeswalker Points system as it was first rolled out was that you were never sure if you were qualified or not. The only ways to guarantee an invite were to win a PTQ or be high enough in the Pro Players Club. Realistically, my way of making it on the Pro Tour isn’t any different—I still have to win a PTQ. But the new changes make it so that I actually have a reason to play in a Grand Prix. More importantly, if I do play another Pro Tour and do well, that is to say Top 25, I don’t have to go right back to playing in PTQs.

Rich Hoaen has a saying that I think is appropriate here. “If you’re good enough to do well at the Pro Tour, then you shouldn’t have much difficulty qualifying.” I feel that statement is true now more than ever. It took me several years to win my first PTQ, and then all of a sudden I qualified for three Pro Tours in the span of a year. I don’t know if it was luck or if it was skill, but I know that qualifying again is no longer a question of if, but of when.

2012 is looking to be an exciting year, and I hope to make it as successful as 2011. Thanks for reading, and until next time, keep chasing your dreams.

Nassim Ketita