{"id":263,"date":"2020-09-06T01:40:00","date_gmt":"2020-09-06T01:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?p=263"},"modified":"2020-09-06T01:40:00","modified_gmt":"2020-09-06T01:40:00","slug":"dominaria-elite-eight-final-four-and-championship-match","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/2020\/09\/06\/dominaria-elite-eight-final-four-and-championship-match\/","title":{"rendered":"Dominaria: Elite Eight, Final Four, and Championship"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>Series Preview<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em><a href=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/ground-rules\/\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/ground-rules\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Ground rules for this tournament.<\/span><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?p=575\" data-type=\"URL\" data-id=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?p=575\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><span class=\"has-inline-color has-vivid-cyan-blue-color\">Round of 32 and Sweet Sixteen<\/span><\/a> results here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As we head into our first Elite Eight, it&#8217;s worth it to step back and examine the field of worthy creatures that&#8217;s made it past four grueling rounds to get to this point. We&#8217;ve got:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Four explosive creatures that pump themselves: two legendary (Marwyn and Shanna), and two decidedly not legendary (Rat Colony and Sporecrown Thallid) but probably the more explosive of the four.<\/li><li>Two of <em>Dominaria<\/em>&#8216;s pushed triple-pip creatures: the Chainwhirler and the Steel Leaf Champion. Of note, these were the only two on this list who saw any kind of meaningful Constructed play.<\/li><li>A cheap 1-drop (Stronghold Confessor) underdog whose pseudo-evasion has gotten it those few extra points of damage that have turned out critical here.<\/li><li>A small but versatile 2\/2 for three (Danika Capashen), whose unique combination of size, cost, and three keyword abilities has allowed to have a play against both early-game and late-game opponents.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Coming in, my money would be on one of the four self-pumpers taking it all. But as they say, we&#8217;ve still got to play the games. So, without further ado&#8230;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>Elite Eight<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:18px\">(8) Rat Colony <em>defeated by<\/em> (17) Goblin Chainwhirler<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-2 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-101-rat-colony.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"264\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=264\" class=\"wp-image-264\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-129-goblin-chainwhirler.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"265\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-129-goblin-chainwhirler.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=265\" class=\"wp-image-265\"\/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Given how much the Rat Colony has steamrolled all of its opponents up until now, this one would have to be considered a bit of an upset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">It would have been an interesting battle&#8230;if not for the Goblin&#8217;s little chain-whirling ability; which just so happens to wipe the board of X\/1 rats every time it comes into play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Literally the perfect matchup for Chainwhirler, as it eliminates the rats in blowout fashion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:18px\">(10) Steel-Leaf Champion <em>defeated by<\/em> (34) Sporecrown Thallid<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-2 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-2 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-182-steel-leaf-champion.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"267\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=267\" class=\"wp-image-267\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-181-sporecrown-thallid.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"268\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-181-sporecrown-thallid.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=268\" class=\"wp-image-268\"\/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">This one wasn&#8217;t as close as the final life totals might suggest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">While building up the size of its Fungi, Sporecrown can let Steel Leaf Champion get its three shots in during Turns 4 and 5 &#8211; bringing it down to 5 life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">This, of course, is followed by a counter-attack of four 7\/7 Sporecrown&#8217;s, which kills Champion on the spot (leaving behind chump blockers only delays the inevitable).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:18px\">(6) Marwyn, the Nurturer <em>defeated by<\/em> (46) Shanna, Sisay&#8217;s Legacy<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-2 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-3 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-172-marwyn-the-nurturer.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"269\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=269\" class=\"wp-image-269\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-204-shanna-sisay-s-legacy.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"270\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-204-shanna-sisay-s-legacy.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=270\" class=\"wp-image-270\"\/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">As fast as Marwyn can get bigger with those +1\/+1 counters and those mana abilities, Shianna gets bigger just a little bit faster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">On Turn 4, there are two attacking 4\/4 Shanna. while Marwyn only has two smaller blockers (they only just got their second and third Elf into play the turn before). So there&#8217;s 8 damage, in addition to the 2 from Turn 3.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Turn 5, Shianna will be swinging with four 6\/6s. All of the four Marwyn blockers are smaller than that, so they need to basically chump with their whole team to stay alive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">And that&#8217;s game.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:18px\">(20) Danitha Capashen, Paragon <em>defeats<\/em> (92) Stronghold Confessor<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-2 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-4 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-12-danitha-capashen-paragon.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"593\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=593\" class=\"wp-image-593\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-105-stronghold-confessor-1-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"594\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-105-stronghold-confessor-1-1.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=594\" class=\"wp-image-594\"\/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">So it&#8217;s the two underdog wildcard creatures are facing each other here, guaranteeing that one of them makes the Final Four. Which one will it be?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">As it turns out, the Confessor has finally met its match in terms of speed. It only gets Danitha down to 16 before her first-striking, lifelinking double blockers put an end to any more offense. (If six Confessors attack and one is double-blocked, the end result is one dead Confessor and a net <em>one<\/em> damage dealt).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Even as the Confessor starts dropping 3\/3s, Danitha has enough to hold them down. For every pair of 3\/3 attackers, Danitha can double-block one and let the other through, killing a large Confessor (while Danitha survives) while gaining a net one life. And since Danitha is cheaper than the large Confessor, she&#8217;ll end up outnumbering them as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">And that is how Danitha grinds her way to a semifinal appearance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>Final Four<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:18px\">(17) Goblin Chainwhirler <em>defeats<\/em> (20) Danitha Capashen, Paragon<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-2 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-5 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-129-goblin-chainwhirler-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"279\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=279\" class=\"wp-image-279\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-12-danitha-capashen-paragon-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"599\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-12-danitha-capashen-paragon-1.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=599\" class=\"wp-image-599\"\/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Finally, the end of the road for the plucky 2\/2 Danitha.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Chainwhirler, with its larger size, is able to hold off Danitha attacks, rendering her kitchen sink of keyword abilities essentially useless as it tries to force damage through.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Eventually, two Chainwhirlers will come down on one turn, clearing the board of all Danitha&#8217;s and giving the 3\/3 Goblin a wide opening for an alpha strike and a finals berth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:18px\">(34) Sporecrown Thallid <em>defeats<\/em> (46) Shanna, Sisay&#8217;s Legacy<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-2 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-6 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-181-sporecrown-thallid-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"284\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=284\" class=\"wp-image-284\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-204-shanna-sisay-s-legacy-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"285\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-204-shanna-sisay-s-legacy-1.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=285\" class=\"wp-image-285\"\/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">These two creatures are essentially the same &#8211; except Sporecrown has one more point of power and toughness. And since it&#8217;s on the play here, that leads to our inevitable result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Turn 3 sees a 3\/3s Sporecrown attacking into a 1\/1 Shanna. Turn 4 has a pair of 5\/5s versus a pair of 2\/2 Shannas. And Turn 5 has a set of four of those 7\/7 fungi totally annihilating the defense of four 4\/4 Shannas. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">And it&#8217;s onto the championship match for the brutally efficient Sporecrown Thallid!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em>Championship<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:18px\">(17) Goblin Chainwhirler <em>defeated by<\/em> (34) Sporecrown Thallid<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-2 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-7 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-129-goblin-chainwhirler-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"286\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=286\" class=\"wp-image-286\"\/><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-181-sporecrown-thallid-2.jpg\" alt=\"\" data-id=\"287\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-181-sporecrown-thallid-2.jpg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/?attachment_id=287\" class=\"wp-image-287\"\/><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">And here we are. The finals: an efficient 3\/3 first striking Goblin with a deceptively powerful sweeper ability vs. an cheap Fungus that gets exponentially large very, very quickly. Who will take the prize for Dominaria?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Turn 2 (Sporecrown): Cast a Thallid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Turn 3 (Chainwhirler): Cast a Goblin. Do 1 damage. (20 to 19)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Turn 3 (Sporecrown): Cast a Thallid. They&#8217;re both 3\/3s now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Turn 4 (Chainwhirler). Cast a Chainwhirler. Do 1 damage (20 to 18). Attack with Chainwhirler*. (20 to 15)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Turn 4 (Sporecrown): Cast two Thallids. Attack with the first two for 10 damage. (10 to 15).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Turn 5 (Chainwhirler): Cast Chainwhirler. Do 1 damage (20 to 14). Attacking into a pair of 5\/5s isn&#8217;t profitable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\">Turn 5 (Sporecrown): Cast two more Thallids. Attack with four 7\/7s. With only three blockers&#8230;Chainwhirler is done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"font-size:14px\"><em>*If Chainwhirler holds back to double block the Sporecrown on Turn 4, Sporecrown will just skip that attack and wait until it&#8217;s barrelling in with the four 7\/7s on Turn 5. If Chainwhirler tries to triple-block then (the only way they can kill a Thallid), they&#8217;ll take 21 damage and die.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-heading\" style=\"font-size:28px\">The best creature in <img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-626\" style=\"width: 150px;\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/DOM_logo-4.png\" alt=\"\"> is Sporecrown Thallid!<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mtgshowdown.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/dom-181-sporecrown-thallid-6.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-630\"\/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>(6) Marwyn, the Nuturer<br \/>\n(8) Rat Colony<br \/>\n(10) Steel Leaf Champion<br \/>\n(17) Goblin Chainwhirler<br \/>\n(20) Danitha Capashen, Paragon<br \/>\n(34) Sporecrown Thallid<br \/>\n(46) Shanna, Sisay&#8217;s Legacy<br \/>\n(92) Stronghold Confessor<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":598,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=263"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/263\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=263"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=263"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/100epicmovies.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=263"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}