Most people of the magic community certainly have heard a lot of Christian Calcano lately.His finishes have made him a known player and he keeps scoring better and better results as time passes by!I managed to get in touch with Christian and asked him a few questions that let the casual player get a grasp of the thoughts of a pro!
How you started playing magic?
I was 14 when I started. I played a different game (yugioh) and a friend who played both taught me how to play magic, i was instantly hooked.
Achievements so far?
PT Amsterdam 33rd
Worlds 2010 15th
GP Portland 12th
GP Denver 10th
SCG Open Richmond 1st
How difficult it is after all, 'getting pro' ?
It's definitely hard, you have to really want it. Be willing to travel for ptqs and such. It took me over 80 PTQs and 20 GPs to finally q for my 1st PT.
You scg richmond standard open showed you could pilot a valaramp with great results,do you believe this deck can reappear in the top places of tourneys before it rotates out of standard?
It definitely can. The deck is really powerful and it place 3 copies in the t8 of SCG Open Indy (the week before paris). The metagame did drastically change since then, but the deck is powerful and I'm sure will see make a big finish at either an SCG Open, or one of the standard grand prix.
We are seeing you in alot of tourneys around the world,how do you keep up with all this travelling,is it worth it?
It's definitely been worth it for me. The friends and memories you make are the biggest part of traveling to these tournaments for me. I've gotten to meet some amazing people and see some places that people dream of all from this card game.
Your tourney results are getting better and better this last months,is it skill or practice that helps you do so?What would you advice a player who would like to go competitive in order to improve their results?
It's probably fair to say it's more practice then anything. My biggest finishes were all in limited and i draft and play a lot of sealed to prepare for limited. If i had to give advice it'd be to practice a lot for the tournament you're planning on going to. Also a big thing for me towards the end of this past year was not going on tilt. If you make a mistake or get unlucky just forget about it and move on. If you dwell on it or think about it too much it'll affect the way you play and cause you to lose.
Sealed deck,it defines the day one of many grand prix nowadays,How much is luck a factor as far as pool is concerned?
It definitely matters to a certain extent, but not as much as people think. I'll be honest, there have been times where i've gotten a pool that was amazing and didnt make day 2. So I think it mostly depends on building your deck correctly to give you the best chance to win. When I build my sealed pool, i go find other players who I know are better than me and ask them how they would build it. This helps me know what i couldve/shouldve done differently and how to sideboard for the day.
Mirrodin besieged is now the active draft format ,How do you believe things have changed?
The first pack dictates the entire draft now. I feel that infect got better and metalcraft got worse. because in the first pack there arent many good artifacts that you want to play. After pack 1 you should have a good idea of what colors you're going to be.
At pro tour paris you brought your own build,was it worth it?Is building your own list and testing it worth the time when most tourneys are ful of pretty much specific power houses of type 2?
It was definitely worth it. We played and tested the deck specifically to beat the t2 decks that were the power houses at that time like valakut, UB control, uw control (without mystic). A good example would be Gerry T winning the SCG Open DC this past weekend. His deck was by far the best choice for the tournament. CawBlade splashing red for lightning bolt and cunning sparkmage. He knew going into that tournament that CawBlade and Boros would be the two most played decks and his innovation of adding red to the best deck to beat both of those decks was a good example.
Magic online,how much time you spend online?Can magic online help the new player get better?
I spend about 10-20 hours a week on Magic Online. It can definitely help the new player get better. On mtgo there are tournaments at all times so you can play whenever you have freetime. It's where i play most of my limited games and the main reason why I had all those finishes in the past few months.
At grand prix denver you lost the last match and didnt make top8, what's it like doing so well in a tourney all day and losing the game that would get you to top 8?
It's the second time i've been in that position and it's definitely not fun. I felt mostly unstoppable the whole weekend having only lost twice up to that point (to the eventual champion). But afterward my friends were there to console me and remind me that a top 16 is still an amazing finish which it is.
Have you ever played versus a greek magic player?What's your opinion about greek magic players?
I played against one greek player at a side event at paris. He was a good guy and played well. One of the things i like to do is follow event coverage and one of the things I noticed is that greek players do very well on the european GP circuit. I've seen many t8 GPs and not too long ago one t8d PT Austin.
Anything you would like to add?
If you're a PTQ grinder like I was who still hasnt qd yet, dont give up. Just keep trying, whether it'd be at a real ptq or on magic online, play your best and eventually you'll get there.
Thanks a lot Christian!That info has been very helpful and i hope you get the best results at your future tourneys!
How you started playing magic?
I was 14 when I started. I played a different game (yugioh) and a friend who played both taught me how to play magic, i was instantly hooked.
Achievements so far?
PT Amsterdam 33rd
Worlds 2010 15th
GP Portland 12th
GP Denver 10th
SCG Open Richmond 1st
How difficult it is after all, 'getting pro' ?
It's definitely hard, you have to really want it. Be willing to travel for ptqs and such. It took me over 80 PTQs and 20 GPs to finally q for my 1st PT.
You scg richmond standard open showed you could pilot a valaramp with great results,do you believe this deck can reappear in the top places of tourneys before it rotates out of standard?
It definitely can. The deck is really powerful and it place 3 copies in the t8 of SCG Open Indy (the week before paris). The metagame did drastically change since then, but the deck is powerful and I'm sure will see make a big finish at either an SCG Open, or one of the standard grand prix.
We are seeing you in alot of tourneys around the world,how do you keep up with all this travelling,is it worth it?
It's definitely been worth it for me. The friends and memories you make are the biggest part of traveling to these tournaments for me. I've gotten to meet some amazing people and see some places that people dream of all from this card game.
Your tourney results are getting better and better this last months,is it skill or practice that helps you do so?What would you advice a player who would like to go competitive in order to improve their results?
It's probably fair to say it's more practice then anything. My biggest finishes were all in limited and i draft and play a lot of sealed to prepare for limited. If i had to give advice it'd be to practice a lot for the tournament you're planning on going to. Also a big thing for me towards the end of this past year was not going on tilt. If you make a mistake or get unlucky just forget about it and move on. If you dwell on it or think about it too much it'll affect the way you play and cause you to lose.
Sealed deck,it defines the day one of many grand prix nowadays,How much is luck a factor as far as pool is concerned?
It definitely matters to a certain extent, but not as much as people think. I'll be honest, there have been times where i've gotten a pool that was amazing and didnt make day 2. So I think it mostly depends on building your deck correctly to give you the best chance to win. When I build my sealed pool, i go find other players who I know are better than me and ask them how they would build it. This helps me know what i couldve/shouldve done differently and how to sideboard for the day.
Mirrodin besieged is now the active draft format ,How do you believe things have changed?
The first pack dictates the entire draft now. I feel that infect got better and metalcraft got worse. because in the first pack there arent many good artifacts that you want to play. After pack 1 you should have a good idea of what colors you're going to be.
At pro tour paris you brought your own build,was it worth it?Is building your own list and testing it worth the time when most tourneys are ful of pretty much specific power houses of type 2?
It was definitely worth it. We played and tested the deck specifically to beat the t2 decks that were the power houses at that time like valakut, UB control, uw control (without mystic). A good example would be Gerry T winning the SCG Open DC this past weekend. His deck was by far the best choice for the tournament. CawBlade splashing red for lightning bolt and cunning sparkmage. He knew going into that tournament that CawBlade and Boros would be the two most played decks and his innovation of adding red to the best deck to beat both of those decks was a good example.
Magic online,how much time you spend online?Can magic online help the new player get better?
I spend about 10-20 hours a week on Magic Online. It can definitely help the new player get better. On mtgo there are tournaments at all times so you can play whenever you have freetime. It's where i play most of my limited games and the main reason why I had all those finishes in the past few months.
At grand prix denver you lost the last match and didnt make top8, what's it like doing so well in a tourney all day and losing the game that would get you to top 8?
It's the second time i've been in that position and it's definitely not fun. I felt mostly unstoppable the whole weekend having only lost twice up to that point (to the eventual champion). But afterward my friends were there to console me and remind me that a top 16 is still an amazing finish which it is.
Have you ever played versus a greek magic player?What's your opinion about greek magic players?
I played against one greek player at a side event at paris. He was a good guy and played well. One of the things i like to do is follow event coverage and one of the things I noticed is that greek players do very well on the european GP circuit. I've seen many t8 GPs and not too long ago one t8d PT Austin.
Anything you would like to add?
If you're a PTQ grinder like I was who still hasnt qd yet, dont give up. Just keep trying, whether it'd be at a real ptq or on magic online, play your best and eventually you'll get there.
Thanks a lot Christian!That info has been very helpful and i hope you get the best results at your future tourneys!
Δεν υπάρχουν σχόλια:
Δημοσίευση σχολίου