Brian Coval has been a mainstay on the Eternal Magic scene for a few years now, and further showed his prowess in Magic’s oldest formats by becoming the 2018 North American Vintage Champion, adding on to his Top 8 performance in 2017 Legacy Champs, and his previous four SCG Legacy Classic top 8’s (including two wins). Armed with a streamlined Paradoxical Mentor deck, and with the help of Alex Bastecki and Dr. Rich Shay, Brian plowed his way through ten rounds of Swiss to a dominating performance in the Top 8, to keep the original Time Walk painting in Pittsburgh and be crowned the North American Vintage Champion as the hometown hero. Today we will be going over Brian’s introduction to Magic: the Gathering, his tournament history, how he became an Eternal format specialist, and his performance leading up to his Top 8 and eventual win. I am proud to present the 2018 North American Vintage Champion, Brian Coval!


00:00:0: Introduction
00:01:01: Brian’s Biography
00:08:11: Tournament History
00:14:20: Winning the SCG Invitational
00:21:26: Brian’s Eternal Weekend 2018
Total runtime: 01:39:52

Show Notes

– North America Vintage Champs 2018 Coverage, Decklists, and Results
– Brian Coval on Twitter
– Brian Coval on Twitch.tv
– Death, Taxes, And Trophies: Winning The SCG Invitational, by Brian Coval
– Climbing The Food Chain: A Grand Prix Providence Top 64 Report, by Brian Coval

Andrew Markiton, better known by his MTGO handle “Montolio,” has been making huge splashes in paper Vintage ever since his win at NYSE IV last year, which was followed by a Top 8 at the 2016 Vintage World Champs, which was followed by him winning the tournament this year and taking home a Black Lotus painting back to his cozy home in Toronto, Canada. In this interview we go over Andy’s Magic history, his preparation for Eternal Weekend, his role in the Vintage Superteam “The Academy,” and his day leading to his historic Top 8. It is my great pleasure to present this year’s Vintage World champion (and an overall great guy) Andy Markiton!


Total runtime: 51:22

Danny Batterman, the founder of Team Degen and a great innovator creating decks like Steel City Vault, and the newly crowned Living Wish-based Blue Goblin Charbelcher deck dubbed “The People’s Cannon,” has been part of the Vintage community for a long time. With his team that apply Pro Tour-level preparation and secrecy towards Vintage events, they are starting to make waves in the Vintage community with an extremely solid player base that is growing steadily. In this interview we touch base upon Danny’s personal history with Magic, and an in-depth look into the members of Team Degen and the evolution of “The People’s Cannon,” along with his tournament report from Vintage Champs. Clocking in at almost two and a half hours, Danny’s assessment of the metagame, card choices, and the people he chooses to associate and develop cutting edge decks with shows us the blossoming and amazing Vintage community we all associate with.


0:01:00: Danny’s Personal History with Magic: The Gathering
0:26:17: The Members of Team Degen
1:20:42: Deck tech and development of “The People’s Cannon”
1:38:11: Experience and report from Eternal weekend
Total runtime: 2:21:23

Show Notes

– Kevin Long’s Mono White Stax SCG Deck Tech
– Ben Perry in SCG Cincinatti T8, Ben Perry in SCG Cincinatti T4
– Brian Durkin’s 20th Place Dredge deck from 2015 Vintage Champs
– 2015 Vintage Champs Round 4, Danny Batterman vs. James Bower
– Danny Batterman’s Blog

Brian Kelly has been an ambassador for sportsmanship and friendliness in Vintage Magic for the past few years following his return to Magic: the Gathering. He is a great role model and excellent player who shows great respect and humility towards his peers. On August 24th, 2015 he made Magic history by becoming the Vintage World Champion, a title held by such prestigious players as Roland Chang, Stephen Menendian, and Owen Turtenwald. He was gracious enough to take the time to go over how a deck of his own design, dubbed by the community as “Brian Kelly Oath,” or as he as aptly named it “Dragonlord Salvagers Oath.” Brian was able to post an impressive 9-1 record in the Swiss rounds and then won in the Top 8 to become champion. We go on a trip through his history as a Magic player, and everyone who helped him along the way to this momentous achievement. or the next hundred or so minutes we take a glimpse into what has crafted the nicest and most sportsmanlike players I have ever met into a force to be reckoned with. A person who I have the great pleasure to be friends with, and I know has had a positive influence on everyone he has met. So, for the first installment of “Reflections from Eternal Weekend,” I have the great pleasure to present the Vintage World Champion, Brian Kelly.


Total runtime: 1:42:10