PlanetMTG

Feature Match Semi Finals: Mido Kagawa vs. Masami Kaneko
von Sebastian Abresch
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Things are off for the semi finals, Mido Kagawa from Italy with his blue-black control machine vs. Masami Kaneko from Japan, playing a green-blue creation featuring many control beating spells like Mystic Snake and Delay. We will see which one will be ahead.

Both players shuffle excessively, Kaneko wins the die roll and chooses to play, naturally. Both keep their opening seven.

Kaneko starts fast with Looter il-Kor on his second turn, aiming to get some card quality advantage over Kagawa. A 3/3 Riftsweeper joins the little force, meanwhile Kagawa just keeps developing his mana with Prismatic Lens. Sweeper and Looter beat him to 15, suspended Riftwing Cloudskate announces some bouncing action.

Of course, Kagawa has the Damnation for Kaneko's two guys, who draws a card off Horizon Canopy and has to ship his turn without playing any beater. Kagawa draws cards off Careful Consideration, expanding his advantage. Another Canopy for Kaneko still doesn't find anything… but maybe he's just waiting for his Cloudskate to tick down. Kagawa casts his second Consideration and wants to counter Cloudskate with Delay, which is itself countered by a Mystic Snake. Grafted Riftwing beats for 3.

After drawing endless cards, Kagawa of course has a second Damnation for the guys, a hardcast Riftwing Cloudskates from Kaneko meets Cancel. The control player then tries to win the game with Triskelavus, which gets destroyed by Pongify, but not without releasing one Triskelavite. Kaneko draws his next card, again finding no pressure, and goes for game two.

Kagawa 1 – 0 Kaneko

Kaneko keeps, Kagawa also. Again, there's the Looter il-Kor on turn two going for damage and card advantage, soon joined by a morph. Kagawa just plays Coalition Relic and passes. His Consideration goes uncountered. Mystery morphed creature and Looter beat Kagawa to 13, who wants to play a morph himself in the next turn. It meets Mystic Snake and shows itself as – surprise – Vesuvan Shapeshifter. A tapped out Kaneko can't counter Slaughter Pact, destroying his freshly cast Snake.

Pact is paid and turn is shipped without no play, an end of turn Venser, Shaper Savant from Kaneko meets himself and dies after bouncing Relic. Nevertheless, beats from morph continue and Kaneko casts a second one, leaving only Island open. Void clears the board off of zero casting cost critters, Kaneko recharges with double Looter il-Kor, which eat a Damnation. No play for Kaneko after that, bad sign…

Really? Kaneko casts Teferi end of turn, but it gets countered by Spell Burst – with buyback! Things are looking cruel for the Japanese. He tries a morphed Brine Elemental, which picks Spell Burst from Kagawa's hand, this time without buyback. The black-blue control mage casts Triskelavus, Kaneko kills it with Psionic Blast, leaving one lonely Triskelavite on the table. It beats Kaneko down to 15 with Kagawa stabilizing at 8 life now… but Masami is also able to force a morph with Delay countering Spell Burst No. 2. Void kills morph (Shapeshifter) and reveals Mystic Snake and Psionic Blast, which is quite OK for Kaneko. He draws and finds a beater with grafted Looter il-Kor, which takes Kagawa to 6 life… still having Psionic Blast for the last couple of damage. Kagawa's Damnation get's countered by Mystic Snake and that's where he scoops up his cards.

Kagawa 1 – 1 Kaneko

Again, both players keep their starting hands, Kaneko has the first real action by suspending Riftwing Cloudskate on turn two, adding Looter a turn later. Strangling Soot takes care of this, Kaneko tries it with a Tarmogoyf, being 3/4 and then 4/5 off graft. Void meets Delay, Cloudskate bounces Kagawa's storage land. He takes six to the dome.

Kaneko goes for more mana denial by bouncing a second land with Vesuvan Shapeshifter copying the comes into play-trigger of Cloudskate. This leaves Kagawa without the possibility to cast Damnation (no BB), if he doesn't draw Urborg. Indeed he does not and takes heavy beats to 3 life. On his last possible turn, his Damnation meets Mystic Snake – and that's enough for Masami Kaneko to advance to the finals of Grand Prix Firenze 2007!

Kagawa 1 – 2 Kaneko