The Gam Podcast

In the 110th episode, The GAM Podcast tackles the last few Ravnica Allegiance previews, the craziness of 2018 and what's coming in 2019. They also spend quite a bit of time on their question of the week, making this one of the longest episodes ever! Music: Intro music Mario Kart 64 "Dreaming Racing" (OC Remix #396) • ReMixer: prozax | Composer: Kenta Nagata Outro music Sonic CD "The Jazzy Cosmos" (OC Remix #3702) • ReMixer: GCJ | Composer: Masafumi Ogata, Naofumi Hataya Timestamps: Absorb - 5:35 Emergency Powers - 17:05 Sphinx's Insight - 20:00 Gruul Spellbreaker - 29:04 Frenzied Arynx - 33:29 Incubation Incongruity - 34:52 MTG 2018 review - 39:32 Question of the Week - 1:27:21 Contact and Support: https://twitter.com/g3rryt https://twitter.com/bryango https://twitter.com/TheGAMPodcast thegampodcast@gmail.com Patreon.com/theGAMpodcast

Ravnica Allegiance previews are upon us. Does the man who calls the SCG Tour have what it takes to evaluate cards from the new set? Gerry and Bryan put him to the test! Intro music Mario Kart 64 "Dreaming Racing" (OC Remix #396) • ReMixer: prozax | Composer: Kenta Nagata Outro music Mega Man 9 "Morricone Man" (OC Remix #2525) • ReMixer: Mazedude | Composer: Hiroki Isogai Timestamps: Zegana, Utopian Speaker - 6:04 Simic Ascendancy - 19:02 Aeromunculus - 20:11 Growth Spiral - 22:34 Rix Maadi Reveler - 34:22 Rakdos Firewheeler - 40:18 Light up the Stage - 43:41 Rafter Demon - 49:55 The Haunt of Hightower - 51:29 Lavinia, Azorius Renegade - 52:40 Tithe Taker - 1:01:28 Mortify - 1:06:48 Imperious Oligarch - 1:11:30 Gate Colossus 1:12:54 Question of the Week - 1:16:49 Contact and Support: https://twitter.com/g3rryt https://twitter.com/bryango https://twitter.com/TheGAMPodcast thegampodcast@gmail.com Patreon.com/theGAMpodcast

Last week, Gerry and Bryan asked the GAM Discord for their biggest struggles in Magic, and they provided enough great examples to fill two episodes. This episode features things that are more on the mental spectrum of things, so they brought on Jonathan Carter, co-host of the HeadGAMs Podcast to provide his expertise.

Bryan and Jonathan are back for the sixteenth episode of Head GAMs! In celebration of this week’s topic, Jonathan takes over hosting duties as the cast focuses on strategies for learning and doing new things. Whether you’re on the cusp of a career change, picking up a new form of competition, or just want to be prepared when the time comes, Head GAMs has the advice that will set you up for success in your new endeavors! If you’d like to learn more about how you can support the Head GAMs podcast, check us out over at www.patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast Contact and Support: patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast twitter.com/bryango twitter.com/JonathanACarter twitter.com/HeadGAMsPodcast headgamspodcast@gmail.com

Gerry and Bryan asked the GAM Discord what their biggest struggles with Magic were and the responses were enough for two whole episodes! A summary of the episode won’t do it justice, but if you’re looking to level up your game, you can’t miss this episode. Music: Intro music Mario Kart 64 "Dreaming Racing" (OC Remix #396) • ReMixer: prozax | Composer: Kenta Nagata Outro music Jeanne d'Arc "Sword of God" (OC Remix #3714) • ReMixer: Juan Medrano | Composer: Takeshi Inoue https://twitter.com/g3rryt https://twitter.com/bryango https://twitter.com/TheGAMPodcast thegampodcast@gmail.com Patreon.com/theGAMpodcast

Whether you're playing an RPTQ, #SCGINVI, or GP Portland, it's going to be a Modern weekend. Fair decks were out in force last weekend at #SCGBALT, but Arclight Phoenix took the top two spots. Did the Modern metagame suddenly shift? Is Jeskai Control good again? Gerry shares his experience with EdB's Mono-Red Hollow Phoenix, while Bryan goes over his prep with Amulet, and why they're likely going to register those decks this weekend. Gerry and Bryan's question of the week is a can't miss either. Music: Intro music Mario Kart 64 "Dreaming Racing" (OC Remix #396) • ReMixer: prozax | Composer: Kenta Nagata Outro music Super Smash Bros. Melee "Choose Your Destiny" (OC Remix #3734) • ReMixer: DaMonz | Composer: Hirokazu Ando Timestamps: SCG Baltimore - 6:51 Bryan's deck for GP Portland - 24:30 Arclight Phoenix decks - 36:59 KCI - 57:08 Question of the Week - 1:09:28 Contact and Support: https://twitter.com/g3rryt https://twitter.com/bryango https://twitter.com/TheGAMPodcast thegampodcast@gmail.com Patreo

Bryan and Jonathan are back for the fifteenth episode of Head GAMs! The hosts have an incredible amount to be thankful for this holiday season, and an ever-growing cadre of Head GAMs listeners ranks near the top! The cast takes some time to express gratitude in the form of a new Patreon framework and an episode dedicated to answering listener questions on every conceivable topic. Tilt, intrusive thoughts, being old and uncool, and dealing with the change in seasons—this is the most free-flowing episode of Head GAMs ever recorded! If you’d like to learn more about how you can support the Head GAMs podcast, check us out over at www.patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast Contact and Support: patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast twitter.com/bryango twitter.com/JonathanACarter twitter.com/HeadGAMsPodcast headgamspodcast@gmail.com

With GRN Standard (almost) in the books, Gerry and Bryan talk about the last couple evolutions of the format. From Adrian Sullivan's win at GPMKE to the last round of Magic Online decklists, Standard's evolution hasn't slowed down. For those who have been asking about Arena, Gerry and Bryan also give their takes on Magic's newest platform. Music: Intro music Mario Kart 64 "Dreaming Racing" (OC Remix #396) • ReMixer: prozax | Composer: Kenta Nagata Outro music Brave Fencer Musashi "Me and My Game Boy" (OC Remix) • ReMixer: DDRKirby(ISQ) | Composer: Tsuyoshi Sekito Timestamps: U/R Drakes - 5:08 Big Red - 12:35 Esper Control - 16:30 Mono-Green Aggro - 19:02 Boros - 20:49 Quasiduplicate - 23:06 U/B Control - 24:30 Selesnya - 27:36 Jeskai Control - 31:37 Grixis Control - 34:37 G/R Monsters - 41:12 Golgari - 45:49 Mono-Blue - 48:51 Boros - 49:57 Golgari - 53:59 Mono-Red - 56:20 Arena - 57:26 Question of the Week - 1:13:39 Contact and Support: https://twitter.com/g3rryt https://twitter.com/bryango https:/

Gerry and Bryan didn’t plan on talking about Modern for almost two hours, but here we are. Not only is there the data from GP Atlanta (courtesy of @averybigbear), but there’s been a constant metagame shift, a couple new archetypes, and a Modern decklist dump to cover. If you wanted help selecting your deck for GP Portland, SCGCON, or any other Modern tournament, look no further! Music: Intro music Mario Kart 64 "Dreaming Racing" (OC Remix #396) • ReMixer: prozax | Composer: Kenta Nagata Outro music Double Dragon "Bimmy Whatchu Got" (OC Remix #3285) • ReMixer: Shnabubula | Composer: Kazunaka Tamane Timestamps: Modern overview - 6:14 Infect - 20:24 Goblins - 22:37 Mono-Green Tron - 29:51 Bant Knightfall - 31:23 Mono-White Matyr - 32:24 Bring to Light Scapeshift - 33:26 Mono-Red Arclight - 34:40 Humans - 38:41 Elves - 42:06 Hardened Scales - 44:02 U/R Breach - 47:43 Amulet - 50:25 Control decks - 54:16 Bridgevine - 59:03 Ad Nauseam - 1:00:44 Bant Spirits - 1:03:46 D&T - 1:06:04 Jund - 1:09:32 Jeskai Asc

Bryan and Jonathan are back for the fourteenth episode of Head GAMs! How do you prepare for one of the biggest competitions of your year? We brought in one of the best Magic: The Gathering players in the world, Gerry Thompson, to talk about his approach prior to, during, and after his toughest tournaments. If you’re not a Magic player, fear not! The techniques discussed here are applicable across all forms of competition! If you’d like to learn more about how you can support the Head GAMs podcast, check us out over at www.patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast Contact and Support: patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast twitter.com/bryango twitter.com/JonathanACarter twitter.com/HeadGAMsPodcast headgamspodcast@gmail.com

Six Boros decks in the Top 8 of PT GRN might seem scary, but the data tells a different story. Gerry and Bryan go through the data collected by @jaredlunsford and see who the real winners from the PT were. Here’s a hint: It ain’t Boros. Music: Intro music Mario Kart 64 "Dreaming Racing" (OC Remix #396) • ReMixer: prozax | Composer: Kenta Nagata Outro music Final Fantasy Tactics (OC Remix #3757) • ReMixers: sschafi1, Tiago Rodrigues, PirateCrab, Marc Papeghin, Jordan Chin | Composers: Hitoshi Sakimoto, Masaharu Iwata, Yukiko Mitsui, Yuko Miura Timestamps: Gerry's PT report - 1:38 Boros - 21:48 Golgari - 33:59 Control decks - 42:24 Selesnya tokens - 53:14 Question of the Week - 57:51 Contact and Support twitter.com/g3rryt twitter.com/bryango twitter.com/TheGAMPodcast thegampodcast@gmail.com Patreon.com/thegampodcast https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1h1bqHau4Z-bV0IKoC9_ku1-epYhJyW7fQuXJ-o_5m8Y/edit?usp=sharing

Bryan and Jonathan are back for the thirteenth episode of Head GAMs! This episode is all about our listeners, and the hosts are taking the time to review listener responses to questions relating to our last two months of episodes. For fresh information regarding sleep, nutrition, strengths, weaknesses, and burnout, check out this cast! You can find out how to participate in similar episodes in the future and support the Head GAMs podcast over at www.patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast Contact and Support: patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast twitter.com/bryango twitter.com/JonathanACarter twitter.com/HeadGAMsPodcast headgamspodcast@gmail.com

In this special pre-Pro Tour episode, Bryan takes over the hosting duties! Gerry takes Bryan through his PT testing process and discusses the pros and cons of each archetype, including the deck Gerry broke the format with for all of two days. Since then, Boros Tokens showed up and ruined everything. At the end, Bryan takes a stab at what Gerry submitted for the tournament. Will he guess correctly? Intro music Mario Kart 64 "Dreaming Racing" (OC Remix #396) • ReMixer: prozax | Composer: Kenta Nagata Outro music Super Mario Kart "A Road That You Go" (OC Remix #3600) • ReMixers: DrThrex, DiscoCactus | Composer: Kenta Nagata Timestamps: Gerry's PT preparation - 1:52 Standard Metagame - 7:15 Fringe/sleeper decks - 39:24 Question of the Week - 52:09 Contact and Support twitter.com/g3rryt twitter.com/bryango twitter.com/TheGAMPodcast thegampodcast@gmail.com Patreon.com/thegampodcast

Bryan and Jonathan are back for the twelfth episode of Head GAMs! In a long-awaited episode, Jonathan is leading Bryan (and our listeners) through some of his favorite studies and tidbits relating to performance psychology. From the health-related benefits of optimism, to the physiological study of visualization, you won’t believe what some of Jonathan’s favorite studies have revealed! As always, Jonathan is quick to suggest potential uses for these facts in training and preparation regimens. See what science has to say and step up your own approach to competition and life! Don’t forget you can support the Head GAMs podcast and check out the great perks we’re offering our patrons over at www.patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast Contact and Support: patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast twitter.com/bryango twitter.com/JonathanACarter twitter.com/HeadGAMsPodcast headgamspodcast@gmail.com

A pair of Standard Grand Prix means over 60 decklists to peruse and two wildly different winner’s metagames to compare. Gerry and Bryan waste no time in dissecting the results, why it went down the way it did, and what it means going forward. Bryan also discusses his GP New Jersey experience with Izzet Arclight. What worked, what didn’t, and how to tune the deck are all things you need to know. While Bryan was busy in NJ, Gerry was playing Magic Online with the same deck and weighs in with his own conclusions. GP Lille - 7:23 Mono-Blue - 10:37 Izzet decks - 13:05 Golgari - 22:00 GP New Jersey - 30:38 Boros decks - 31:57 Jeskai - 46:36 Selnesnya Tokens - 51:39 Modern - 1:01:10 Question of the week - 1:04:54 Contact and Support twitter.com/g3rryt twitter.com/bryango twitter.com/TheGAMPodcast thegampodcast@gmail.com Patreon.com/thegampodcast

In this benchmark, incredible episode, Gerry and Bryan welcome reigning World Champion Javier Dominguez to the podcast, fresh off his Top 4 finish at GP Lille. They discuss Javier’s incredible run the last few years, his gaming history, and how to got to be where he is now. If you want to know how a World Champion approaches competitive gaming, you can’t miss this episode. Music: Witcher 3 - Kaer Morhen Contact and Support: https://twitter.com/g3rryt https://twitter.com/bryango https://twitter.com/TheGAMPodcast thegampodcast@gmail.com Patreon.com/thegampodcast

Picking a Standard deck is tough these days. Is Golgari by far the best? Is it Selesnya’s time to reclaim glory? Has Mono-Red Aggro been a sleeper this whole time? Gerry and Bryan have Josh Cho join the show to discuss Standard, what they like, where the format is headed, and what to play this weekend. By the end of the episode, all three are on the same page! Music: Jamestown - Chyptune Timestamps: Decks we're leaning towards - 3:46 Golgari - 12:42 Jeskai Control - 27:51 U/R Arclight Phoenix - 35:58 Selesnya Tokens - 53:12 Metagame predictions - 59:18 Question of the week - 1:04:24 Contact and Support: https://twitter.com/g3rryt https://twitter.com/bryango https://twitter.com/TheGAMPodcast thegampodcast@gmail.com Patreon.com/thegampodcast

Bryan and Jonathan are back for the eleventh episode of Head GAMs! As promised, the hosts are continuing the discussion from last week’s episode, but this time they are focused on their greatest psychological strengths. What one aspect of Bryan’s psychological makeup has been most instrumental in shaping his approach to life? Why is Jonathan able to find success dealing with adverse times? How have these strengths improved not only the hosts’ lives, but also their approach to competitive performance? All this and so much more on this week’s Head GAMs! Don’t forget you can support the Head GAMs podcast and check out the great perks we’re offering our patrons over at www.patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast Contact and Support: patreon.com/HeadGAMsPodcast twitter.com/bryango twitter.com/JonathanACarter twitter.com/HeadGAMsPodcast headgamspodcast@gmail.com

Golgari is the deck to beat in Standard! Gerry and Bryan dissect the winning lists, talk about what they like and dislike, and where they would take Golgari moving forward. They also discuss what the other top decks can do to have a better chance against Golgari. What decks should you stay away from and which look poised for a breakout? Timestamps: Music: Super Puzzle Fighter 2 Turbo - Character Select Golgari's Dominance - 5:00 Control Decks - 28:01 GW - 49:46 Question of the Week - 1:03:53 Contact and Support: https://twitter.com/g3rryt https://twitter.com/bryango https://twitter.com/TheGAMPodcast thegampodcast@gmail.com patreon.com/thegampodcast

Bryan and Jonathan are back for the tenth episode of Head GAMs! The hosts kick off the show by discussing a surprising aspect of last week’s cast that generated a groundswell of support and interest amongst Head GAMs listeners. Then it’s on to the main topic, as both Bryan and Jonathan reveal and discuss what they consider to be their biggest psychological weaknesses. They hold nothing back, sharing some of their own regrettable moments as they try to inspire listeners to work on their own faults. How was Jonathan damaging some of his most important relationships? How did Bryan’s inability to check his ego hurt his legal career? Don’t worry, it’s not all doom and gloom! Both hosts are optimistic that they can, and often do, control their worst faults, and they want to share with you how they’ve managed to do so. Plus, the hosts will be back next week to discuss their greatest psychological strengths! Don’t forget you can support the Head GAMs podcast and check out the great perks we’re offering our patrons