Both these puzzles occurred in Hawaii. The first one is from our play test session, and the second is from a match I played at the Pro Tour. Both happened in real games, with no knowledge if there WERE even solutions. Still, being able to solve something you know is a puzzle will train your mind so that when you encounter another difficult situation ‘in the field’ as it were, you might just be able to solve it, like I did. Special thanks to Mani Davoudi, for help solving the 1st puzzle, and to Dan Lanthier, for the graphics.
Puzzle 1
Q: How do you not die on your opponent’s next attack?
Opponent: 13 life
[card]Gavony Township[/card] tapped
[card]Plains[/card] untapped
2 [card]Razorverge Thicket[/card] tapped
2 [card]Sunpetal Grove[/card] tapped
[card]Plains[/card] tapped
[card]Hero of Bladehold[/card] x 2 (with 3 +1/+1 counters) tapped
[card]Doomed Traveler[/card] (with 4 +1/+1 counters) tapped
[card]Fiend Hunter[/card] ( with 3 +1/+1 counters) tapped (removing strangleroot geist)
[card]Gideon’s Lawkeeper[/card] (with +1/+1 counter) untapped, summoning sick
[card]Honor of the Pure[/card]
No cards in hand
You: 9 life
[card]Rootbound Crag[/card]
2 [card]Woodland Cemetery[/card]
2 [card]Forest[/card]
[card]Copperline Gorge[/card]
[card]Birthing Pod[/card]
2 [card]Huntmaster of the Fells[/card] (NOT FLIPPED)
[card]Birds of Paradise[/card]
[card]Strangleroot Geist[/card]
[card]Llanowar Elves[/card]
Graveyard relevant cards: [card]Ratchet Bomb[/card]
Hand/draw for turn: [card]Phyrexian Metamorph[/card]
[deck title=Pod]
[Creatures]
2 Glissa, the Traitor
2 Phyrexian Metamorph
1 Geralf’s Messenger
4 Strangleroot Geist
3 Huntmaster of the Fells
2 Acidic Slime
1 Vorapede
1 Grave Titan
1 Wurmcoil Engine
1 Massacre Wurm
1 Sylvok Replica
3 Llanowar Elves
4 Birds of Paradise
3 Viridian Emissary
[/Creatures]
[Spells]
4 Birthing Pod
3 Ratchet Bomb
[/Spells]
[Land]
4 Copperline Gorge
4 Woodland Cemetery
3 Evolving Wilds
4 Swamp
2 Rootbound Crag
1 Mountain
6 Forest
[/Land]
[/deck]
Puzzle 2
Opponent: 6 life
4 Forest, [card]Copperline Gorge[/card], [card]Kessig Wolf Run[/card] all tapped.
[card]Thrun, the Last Troll[/card], [card]Dungrove Elder[/card]
4 cards in hand ([card]Incinerate[/card], [card]Strangleroot Geist[/card], [card]Phyrexian Metamorph[/card], [card]Huntmaster of the Fells[/card]) known from [card]Gitaxian Probe[/card].
You: 3 Life
2 [card]Phantasmal Image[/card], both copies of [card]Strangleroot Geist[/card]
1 [card]Glacial Fortress[/card], 1 [card]Seachrome Coast[/card], 2 Island untapped
Hand: [card]Sword of War and Peace[/card], [card]Gut Shot[/card], [card]Vapor Snag[/card]
Top card of library (from [card]Ponder[/card]): [card]Island[/card]
Your opponent has just shipped the turn after playing a [card]Green Sun’s Zenith[/card] for Thrun and a Copperline Gorge. Little does he know that he is actually just dead. It is your opponent’s end step. How do you win?
Alexander Hayne is the 2012 Pro Tour Barcelona champion. He also finished 2nd at GP Montreal in 2011.