pptq | Quiet Speculation https://www.quietspeculation.com Play More, Win More, Pay Less Tue, 04 Dec 2018 17:00:10 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://www.quietspeculation.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/favicon.png pptq | Quiet Speculation https://www.quietspeculation.com 32 32 Final Grind: LCQ and Metagame Shifts https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/12/final-grind-lcq-metagame-shifts/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/12/final-grind-lcq-metagame-shifts/#comments Tue, 04 Dec 2018 17:00:10 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=19213

The competitive drive always burns, no matter how many setbacks I suffer. After all, what's the point in doing anything unless you strive to improve and grow? So, it's once more into the breach for the last PPTQ. I failed to win a PPTQ this year, but that didn't mean giving up on making the […]

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Another week of Guilds of Ravnica, another set of recommendations. Eddie provides the latest moves in his portfolio, including some Modern breakouts and a few odd foils.

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/10/hold-em-fold-em-15/feed/ 2 Return to the PPTQ Grind: Final https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/return-to-the-pptq-grind-final/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/return-to-the-pptq-grind-final/#comments Tue, 18 Sep 2018 16:00:36 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=18720

And so, the season comes to a close. While I didn't get there, I can't say that this season was a complete bust. As a consummate grinder, the near misses just fuel the competitive fire and are a stark reminder to keep pushing myself. In the meantime, Guilds of Ravnica spoilers roll on. While there are […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/return-to-the-pptq-grind-final/feed/ 4 Return to the PPTQ Grind: Week 6 https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/return-pptq-grind-week-6/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/return-pptq-grind-week-6/#comments Tue, 11 Sep 2018 16:00:46 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=18680 I definitely peaked too soon. There's no possible way to follow up to last week's Jurassic Park intro and not look pale in comparison. I can't even go for the ironic method of pointing out this out, I've done that before. My remaining option is to just awkwardly forge ahead and feel relief that the qualification system […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/return-pptq-grind-week-6/feed/ 2 Hold ‘Em & Fold ‘Em #9 https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/hold-em-fold-em-9/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/hold-em-fold-em-9/#comments Fri, 07 Sep 2018 14:51:33 +0000 https://www.quietspeculation.com/?p=89418

This week has a nice focus on lands, but we're not referring to the Legacy deck. Eddie also starts touching on Guilds of Ravnica spoilers.

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/hold-em-fold-em-9/feed/ 5 Return to the PPTQ Grind: Week 5 https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/return-pptq-grind-week-5/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/09/return-pptq-grind-week-5/#comments Tue, 04 Sep 2018 16:00:59 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=18628 The article must always have an introduction, and it has to be fresh: the essence of column writing. The short version is you have to draw in the reader's attention with something new, but that's a big ask. You have this article series which has a repeating topic area but each article's content never repeats […]

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This week Eddie circles back around to rotation to highlight Standard and Modern. He also provides a new way to keep tabs on cards he mentions in his articles with a public spreadsheet.

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/08/hold-em-fold-em-8/feed/ 2 Return to the PPTQ Grind: Week 4 https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/08/return-to-the-pptq-grind-week-4/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/08/return-to-the-pptq-grind-week-4/#respond Tue, 28 Aug 2018 16:00:19 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=18594 Another week, another failures to qualify. Yes, plural. Spoiler alert: I didn't win either PPTQ last weekend. Fortunately, there are still plenty of chances ahead. And more opportunities to find novel introductions for this series. In lighter news, Spirits had a very good weekend. The fact that SCG Baltimore was won by UW Spirits while […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/08/return-to-the-pptq-grind-week-4/feed/ 0 Return to the PPTQ Grind: Week 3 https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/08/return-pptq-grind-week-3/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/08/return-pptq-grind-week-3/#comments Tue, 21 Aug 2018 16:00:41 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=18557 And now, back to the grind. I skipped last week due to the travel distance involved, but I wasn't about to miss this week. That said, I want to call out that both PPTQ's last week were at stores that I didn't know existed, and one was in a town that as far as I […]

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Edward covers the latest shifts in the wake of Pro Tour 25th Anniversary, including a new section that highlights major targets he missed in earlier articles.

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/08/hold-em-fold-em-5/feed/ 4 Return to the PPTQ Grind: Week 2 https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/08/return-pptq-grind-week-2/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/08/return-pptq-grind-week-2/#comments Tue, 07 Aug 2018 16:00:28 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=18488 After a week off, it's time to get back on the grind. While there were PPTQ's last week, they were well outside my willingness to travel. I instead used that time to refine my decks and  get a feel for where the metagame was going. I intended to hit both Modern PPTQ's this weekend, but […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/08/return-pptq-grind-week-2/feed/ 4 Return to the PPTQ Grind: Week 1 https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/07/return-pptq-grind-week-1/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/07/return-pptq-grind-week-1/#comments Tue, 24 Jul 2018 16:00:15 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=18394 Another PPTQ season, another few months trying to claw my way back to the Pro Tour. Or another opportunity to really analyze my game and try to find new areas to improve upon. I've been grinding a long time, and have come to adjust my expectations while maintaining ambition. Usually, PPTQ seasons begin in central […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/07/return-pptq-grind-week-1/feed/ 6 Return to the PPTQ Grind: Week 0 https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/07/return-to-the-pptq-grind-week-0/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/07/return-to-the-pptq-grind-week-0/#comments Tue, 17 Jul 2018 16:00:45 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=18356 The Modern PPTQ season starts this weekend for me. Just like last year, I will be documenting my grind for the RPTQ invite, with all the lessons learned and deck tweaks that entails. Hopefully this edition doesn't go the whole season, but that's Magic. In this kick-off article, I will be examining the metagame with an […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2018/07/return-to-the-pptq-grind-week-0/feed/ 9 Back on the PPTQ Grind: Week Seven and Wrap-Up https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/09/back-pptq-grind-week-seven-wrap-up/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/09/back-pptq-grind-week-seven-wrap-up/#comments Tue, 19 Sep 2017 16:30:20 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=15417 Yes, you read that title correctly. For better or worse, this series is coming to its end for the year. The only remaining PPTQ for PT Rivals of Ixalan is Sealed Deck, so this is the end. Until the Modern grind resumes next year, anyway. I really wasn't sure what to expect this week. The PPTQs […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/09/back-pptq-grind-week-seven-wrap-up/feed/ 4 Back on the PPTQ Grind: Week Six https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/09/back-pptq-grind-week-six/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/09/back-pptq-grind-week-six/#comments Tue, 12 Sep 2017 16:00:25 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=15343 An unexpected problem with managing a long running series is the intro. This is the sixth time I've had to report that I didn't get there and I'm worried that I'm just retreading old ground at this point. My only hope is that by pointing this fact out and turning it into my intro, I […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/09/back-pptq-grind-week-six/feed/ 3 Back on the PPTQ Grind: Week Five https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/09/back-pptq-grind-week-five/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/09/back-pptq-grind-week-five/#comments Tue, 05 Sep 2017 19:05:25 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=15283 Argh. Falling short of your goals is disheartening enough. Knowing it was because you didn't perform at you best is far worse. Doing so on your home turf is humiliating. This week's PPTQ did not go well; that's the tagline here. Just in case it wasn't immediately apparent. This week's PPTQ was held at my […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/09/back-pptq-grind-week-five/feed/ 4 Back on the PPTQ Grind: Week Four https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/08/back-pptq-grind-week-four/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/08/back-pptq-grind-week-four/#comments Tue, 15 Aug 2017 17:00:30 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=15115 This is a very frustrating week for me. You see, I have a very good result to report on and an embarrassingly bad one as well. It's not the ideal result, but much better than previous weeks. I almost got there, but that just isn't good enough for me. I'm massively competitive and will never be […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/08/back-pptq-grind-week-four/feed/ 3 Back on the PPTQ Grind: Week Three https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/08/back-on-the-pptq-grind-week-three/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/08/back-on-the-pptq-grind-week-three/#comments Tue, 08 Aug 2017 19:00:00 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=15049 Another week, another PPTQ, and another failure to qualify. On the one hand, this is nice: I don't have to actually think about my article week to week. On the other, I'm still not qualified for the RPTQ. With the good comes the bad, I suppose. Anyway, before I get into my tournament, lets talk […]

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Another week, another PPTQ, another time I didn't get there. Which is good news for this article series, bad news for my desire to get back on the Pro Tour. Especially considering the announcement about the PT this season is feeding. Modern is back on the Pro Tour, and I'm elated. Not only will I get […]

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]]> https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/08/back-pptq-grind-week-two/feed/ 5 Back on the PPTQ Grind: Week One https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/07/back-pptq-grind-week-one/ https://www.quietspeculation.com/2017/07/back-pptq-grind-week-one/#comments Tue, 25 Jul 2017 17:00:16 +0000 http://quietspeculation.com/?p=14946

It's Modern season, time to grind for the Pro Tour! I've spent most of my career on the grind and this year is no different. Therefore I will be documenting my attempt to climb back to the Pro Tour for the rest of the summer. If my past experiences are an indication, this will be […]

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