In the interim, he had found a Dragonlord Silumgar, transformed his Jace, Vryn's Prodigy into a planeswalker, and found another baby Jace to replace it. He still found ways to get the most out of his cards and his board position.īut while Mengucci was scrapping to keep it together, Yasooka was in the lap of luxury. Even then, Mengucci had a Lumbering Falls and a Nissa, Sage Animist. It was that third Languish that had exhausted the creature spewing. Mengucci's meticulousness extended to which art his Clue token had, off the Tireless Tracker replay. Mengucci bounced his Tracker and reloaded the board, but again Languish wiped it all away. He took Yasooka to 11 life before the Japanese player took it with Dragonlord Silumgar. It netted him multiple Clues and was swinging for 4 damage from the first swing. Mengucci's first break in the game was when his second Tireless Tracker survived long enough to actually attack. He tried to keep the board clear with cheap black spells, while maximizing mana usage each turn with cards like Painful Truths. The second game saw the same early-turns strategy from Yasooka. He was, again, just looking for a nervousness outlet. Slightly embarrassed, Mengucci tried not to let it show, but he apologized profusely, if stone-faced. Yasooka maintained his calm, stoic nature under the lights of Sunday. He was about 20 seconds into changing up his cards before Yasooka reminded him that he couldn't alter his deck yet. And with each Advocate a 4/5, it wasn't hard for Mengucci to win from there.īetween games, because Mengucci was so preoccupied with playing optimally, he immediately reached for his sideboard.
Two Advocates meant the Lumbering Falls was a 7/7. Yasooka cast Dragonlord Silumgar, taking Jace, upticked his loyalty, and shipped the turn. With more than six lands in play, Mengucci would be swinging for approximately 800,000 damage next turn. Mengucci had two Sylvan Advocate, a Tireless Tracker, and a Lumbering Falls awaiting animation. The Italian flashed back a Collected Company via Jace, Telepath Unbound, and along with a spell for his turn, he passed back with a whole litany of creatures. Yasooka would have to do more than that to get this game. The Languish cleared the board, but Mengucci had been precise about keeping a number of cards in his hand. Mengucci's nervous energy was clear in the match, but it did not diminish his concentration. And from his body language, he was projecting Languish, unconcerned when Mengucci both added more creatures to the board and bounced Yasooka's Dragon with Reflector Mage. Yasooka had shifted the tempo of the matchup, putting a clock on Mengucci. And though Mengucci had an end-of-turn Collected Company, it didn't stop the first Dragonlord hit. It was into an empty board where Yasooka cast his Dragonlord Ojutai. Mengucci was assertive in his deliberateness. His pace remained consistent throughout the early game, as Yasooka used one-for-one removal spells on his early plays, trying to exhaust Mengucci's cards.
Mengucci was taking extra care with each play, and was determined to make the correct move at each step.
The first game started at a slower clip than any of Yasooka's before. The difference in poise was clear, as Andrea Mengucci sat down against Hall of Famer Shota Yasooka for their semifinals. But if Esper can establish a strong board presence without being disrupted, the planeswalkers and Dragons will brute-force a victory, backed up by countermagic and removal. If Bant Company can get the better end of the early removal of Esper Dragons and stay efficient to not overextend into Languish, it can take the game out from underneath. This matchup, Bant Company and Esper Dragons, is a battle of attrition. A naturally quiet person, he has a home under the hallowed Sunday lights, and it's clear he enjoys it.
Not only was this his third Pro Tour Top 8, but he was a former Player of the Year, Players Championship finalist, and Pro Tour Charleston Champion. On the opposite side of the table, there was nothing but controlled, quiet confidence exuded from Yasooka. The semifinals were the furthest he'd made it. The Pro Tour Journey into Nyx Top 8 finisher had made it into Pro Tour Sunday again, but unlike his Hall of Fame opponent, Shota Yasooka, the Italy native didn't yet feel at ease here. He looked at the pile of tokens next to him and began riffling through them. As he lightly bounced up and down in his chair, he needed something to do with his hands. Andrea Mengucci sat in the feature match area.