Welcome back! This week I got a hold of Wizards new Duel Deck: Tezzeret vs Elspeth, after taking it back, I cracked it open and took a look at the list:



So quickly before I go into the game play, I’d like to just take a second to make some collector comments on the decks. I was originally skeptical of these decks as actually being worth picking up, thinking that the Elspeth deck was going to be just be a bunch of White Weenie cards of not much value, while Tezzeret was going to be just a list of random artifacts that while good in their day, aren’t really worth anything now. I didn’t have very high hopes going into this; I must say I was pleasantly surprised.

Right off of the bat, let’s let us look at the two Planeswalkers themselves. Currently, Tezzeret is worth approximately $7, while Elspeth comes in at a whopping $22 dollars. Also, Elspeth’s deck also rocks a pair of Swords to Plowshares, which is very exciting for some Legacy and Vintage players – considering that the current (white bordered) version already being worth $2.50 each. Not to be forgotten is Tezzeret’s Mishra’s Factor being worth $3. While these seem very menial costs, you have to realize that they do add up, and I expect that these cards, especially Swords and Factory, will be worth considerably more than their current counterparts, as most players don’t own black bordered copies (Alpha, Beta, Ice Age or Antiquities) as they are considerably out of our price range, and these Duel Deck versions will quickly be replacing the copies in Legacy decks. Pick them up now while you can, as they are only going to go up from here! Additionally, there are several very fun “casual cards” including Tezzeret’s Razormane Masticore and Triskelion or Elspeth’s Angel of Salvation. All fire cards to add to your collection.

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But enough of the collector’s talk! Let’s take a look at how the games play out as the machines of the Artificer do battle with the Knight and her army. I shuffled up the cards and played out five quick games with one of my good friend, Ian, and here are some of my play-notes from the match.

Game One:
Elspeth won the roll and led off with a fast start, curving out with first turn Elite Vanguard, second turn Raise the Alarm, and third turn Crusade along with a Goldmeadow Harrier to back the army up. Tezzeret looked down at a hand of five and six drops and just sat there was he was run over.
(Elspeth : 1 – Tezzeret: 0)

Game Two:
Tezzeret did much better this time, setting an Everflowing Chalice on turn two, which allowed a turn three Trinket Mage along with a Steel Wall that held off the early game, and a Pentavus a couple of turns later just kept up the defense as the little 1/1 Pentavites managed to get in there.
(Elspeth: 1 – Tezzeret: 1)

Game Three:
With the score tied, both player’s decks seemed unwilling to give up the advantage, going back and forth on the battlefield. An early rush by Eslpeth was met by Arcbound Worker and then a turn two Frogmite, which after the Worker traded, became a 3/3 that could hold off a lot of the Knight’s army. A series of fliers were then gunned down by a powerful defense of Triskelion + Esperzoa assembled when Tezzeret, the Seeker himself hit the field. Shortly afterward this was cut off by a timely Swords on the Esperzoa, which was soon followed by Elspeth herself, who generated too much advantage for the Artificer to handle.
(Elspeth: 2 – Tezzeret: 1)

Game Four:
Now that both players had really seemed to figure out how their decks functioned, and what to play with, they quickly began to try to set up for the game. Tezzeret began digging through his deck, firing off a quick Thirst for Knowledge, followed up by Faerie Mechanist and a Thoughtcast, all while dropping a Trip Noose and Steel Wall to keep the White army at bay. All this digging finally found Tezzeret, who set up a Esperzoa + Serrated Biskelion loop that quickly shrunk the army while Esperzoa pulled in the finishing blows.
(Elspeth: 2 – Tezzeret: 2)

Game Five:
In the rubber game between the two, Elspeth put on early pressure with a nice curve of fliers, but these were met with an early Razormane Masticore, which was able to gun them down. A Moonglove Extract shut down an attempt to be tricky with a Celestial Crusader, and when Elspeth was unable to dig up any more gas, the Artificer was able to push through for the win.
(Elspeth : 2 – Tezzeret: 3)

So after those five games, my conclusion is that while the games can certainly go either way, the Tezzeret’s deck is possibly slightly stronger. Elspeth has plenty of fliers to fill up the field and will certainly kill you if not dealt with, but Tezzeret has a lot more card advantage than the Knight’s. He has so many cards that, given time, will control the field and leave him with a sizable body to mop up after with. Both decks are hard to play, and the skill of the players will certainly affect the match, so if you have found some tricks and tips for playing the two decks, please stop by the forums and let me know!

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That’s it for this week! I really enjoyed giving the two decks a spin over the weekend, and I encourage everyone who has interest them to go pick them up at their local gaming store! Next week, I will be back with a look at Pro Tour Amsterdam, the return of the German Juggernaut, and some of the aftermath of this weekend! Until then!

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Publisher Note: I was never a fan of the pre-constructed decks that Wizards put out in the past. There is just something about making my own deck that liberates my spirit. There is however, something to be said about getting a package that includes two Mythic Rares in it for a standard price.

I can surrender a little of my spirit for a Tezzeret and a Elspeth. I know... high value on my liberties right? -- Chris

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September 2010 Design Challenge
Time is running out on our newest feature on EoV/TGE, the MTG Card Design contest. Contest deadline is September 12th, so make sure you take your time, but don't be late!

You can find the contest rules and submission forum here.

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