The Pro Tour Journey into Nyx Top 8 finisher had made it into Pro Tour Sunday again, but unlike his Hall of Fame opponent, Shota Yasooka, the Italy native didn't yet feel at ease here. He looked at the pile of tokens next to him and began riffling through them.
As he lightly bounced up and down in his chair, he needed something to do with his hands. 7-0 and going strong as we speak, his result is nothing less than what we expect from the legendary Shota Yasooka.Andrea Mengucci sat in the feature match area. Reaching the elimination rounds this weekend will also mark Yasooka's 20th lifetime Grand Prix, which is another milestone that is worthy of remembrance. I've also never played in a World Magic Cup and everything will boil down to Grand Prix Taipei, Grand Prix Sydney as well as Pro Tour Eldritch Moon." This season, I'm blessed to have a slightly better results, and it is the perfect opportunity to fulfill one of my unmade dreams. We're the same type of person, and will stop at nothing to achieve our goals. Even though I have wanted to defeat him on numerous occasions, there is no shame in losing because he's just super, super good. "I always strive to be the very best, in the same way that Watanabe-san does. The bittersweet finals of the 2012 World Championship Cruelly, Watanabe also denied Yasooka his second Player of the Year title back during the 2012 Player Championship. Not to downplay Yasooka's endless list of achievements because it would be impossible to do so, a little piece of interestingly bizarre trivia is that Yasooka has never had the chance to be called the Japan National Champion, a title which (13) Yuuya Watanabe has been "hogging" in the past four seasons. Secondly, the player with the most Pro Points of each country will also secure the title of National Champion and a captaincy spot at the World Magic Cup.Ĭoincidentally, the table below encompasses the situation for both races. First of all, the top three players in the Asia Pacific Geo-region will secure a spot at the upcoming World Championships in September. Since Yasooka is more than locked up for Platinum, there are only a handful of things that could be on his mind. I have some cool choices in my deck but I'm not goofing around. Every card that I include is there for a reason. "I might look very serious when I'm playing a match, but trust me when I tell you that I am having a lot of fun when I'm in firm grasp of the game state. Specifics will have to wait until Round 15, but what I can tell you now that he's absolutely crushing Day 1. Putting some targeted removal, board sweepers, discard spells and countermagic in Yasooka grip is a surefire way to make him feel at home.Īside from Dragonlord Ojutai and Dragonlord Silumgar, Yasooka has found some room for a bunch of singletons that will surprise many opponents, both with unexpectedness and with awe. It's just me, I guess."Īside from these deep-seated preferences, another reason why he has decided to bring Esper Control to the tables is because he's extremely masterful as a control player. Like an itch at the back of my head that I cannot scratch. I would shift in my seat and feel awkward all day. But there are no Black cards, and I would have to play it very aggressively to great effect. I could play Bant Coco, because I can play with counterspells. I briefly enjoyed Yuuki Ichikawa's Sultai Seasons Past deck, but even now he has switched over to Collected Company. Green-White Tokens is a very strong deck but it's not for me. "Just because a deck is good doesn't mean that I will like it. Did he ever consider playing anything else, especially with the mature Standard format being as diverse as ever? After all, everyone has their own play style, their own unique niche, and their singular place in this wondrous galaxy.
In his mind, it has to be pretty uncomfortable to run along with format-dominating archetypes such as Green-White Tokens. "I think it is not a secret that I like to play with Blue and Black cards," Yasooka confessed. However, that stellar performance wasn't for nothing, since it solidified him as one of the very best to have ever played the game, catapulting him right into the Hall of Fame. The last high-level success Yasooka experienced was during Pro Tour Dragons of Tarkir, where he was one match from being crowned a Pro Tour Champion for a second time.
Shota Yasooka invariably ends up playing with a control deck of his own, regardless of the climate of the environment. There are very few names in the world of Magic which are synonymous with Dimir and, by extension, Esper.