By Jeremy Dezani

Welcome to “Player Focus”!

“Player Focus” is a short interview with one of the greatest MTG players in the world. The goal is to present the player and his MTG profile to Japanese and international communities. “Player Focus” will feature a different player each time.

This Time we have Andrea Mengucci(@Mengu09).

Andrea Mengucci is a Pro Player from Italy. He won the 2015 World Magic Cup and has already reached 3 Pro Tour Top 8. He is also a Legacy and Cube fan who never misses any occasion to promote these formats.

Interview

Profile

• First Name: Andrea
• Last Name: Mengucci
• Age: 26
• Nationality: Italy
• Sponsor: Channel Fireball
• lifetime ProPoints: 213
• Pro Level 2017/2018: Platinum

Occupation / Hobbies outside MTG:

A graduate student in law.

When did you start MTG? Which set? How did you discover the game?

Image Copyright : Wizards of the Coast

I started during Kamigawa, I discovered the game at beach with my friends, and were playing it just during the summer.

What famous player influenced you the most to become a professional player?

Left: Christian Calcano
Image Copyright : Wizards of the Coast

Christian Calcano, he was the first Magic Pro who I became friends with.

Previous Achievements

PT TOP 8: 3

GP TOP 8: 0

Others: 3 World Magic Cup Top 4, with one win in 2015.

If you have one, who is your favorite Japanese Player and why:

Yuta Takahashi
Image Copyright : Wizards of the Coast

Yuta Takahashi.

He is a Legacy master, and his mana base is only Beta Dual lands.

Favorite MTG Format and why:

Legacy, most skill intensive and rewarding format.

Do you prefer to play aggressive, control, midrange or combo deck? Why?

Midrange. I’ve always done well playing Midrange decks. I’m too impatient to play Control or Aggro. I love to get card advantage and slowly grind the game.

Favorite MTG Decks:

Standard: Black/White Vehicles

Modern: Humans

Legacy: Sultai Control

What is your favorite deck to play at the moment?

Sultai Control in Legacy. I love how it plays out. You always feel behind but you have the tools to crawl back into the game at any point.

What is your First Pick, First Pack in this booster and why?

My pick is 《Knight of Grace》.

A cheap and very good creature is the perfect way to start a draft. It’s bad that the second-best card is also white, but I’m happy to accept it.

With 1 title and 2 other Top 8 in WMC with team Italy you are the most successful player in this tournament. What does it mean to you to play for your country and being the Italian Captain?

Image Copyright : Wizards of the Coast

I love playing in the World Magic Cup, and now it feels like home there. It’s a great honor to have done so well in this competition for my country, and I’ll be proud to represent it every time I’ll have the chance to.

You already got 3 Pro Tour Top 8 but no Grand Prix Top 8. How do you analyze this?

I probably don’t put that much effort into GPs as I do in PTs. I often let my opponents take back their plays at GPs but never at PTs. Also, let’s say it… I get luckier at PTs than GPs.

People are talking about the ban of 《Deathrite Shaman》 in Legacy. What do you think about?

I hate banning cards. 《Deathrite Shaman》 is a great card that goes in many different decks and keeps the format fair. Without 《Deathrite》 you could see a lot more Lands, ANT and Reanimator, and a format where those decks are Tier1 isn’t fun, because the games are worse and there’s a risk that the format might become non-interactive like Modern, that I despise.

Also, another ban would discourage people to enter a format that already has a high entrance barrier due to its monetary cost because they will get their deck banned if there’s a fear of banning cards every 18 months.

Many people are confused with the new system of Pro Point. What are your thoughts about it?

I couldn’t think of any better question. I am totally opposite against this system and I’m doing my best to make Wizards come back on their steps just like they did “Pay the Pros”. This isn’t really that much different from that.

This new system creates uncertainty, you can’t have your Pro Magic earning with enough time in advance, and you are forced to join every GPs because you “might” need the points at some point.It helps people to get into Silver, but it’s very bad for people who try to stay in the gravy train or try to make a living out of Magic.

Image Copyright : Wizards of the Coast

Magic once again, proved how its miles and miles behind in the Pro Gaming scene, while E-sports pay tons more to their Pros, Magic keeps on cutting it.

You have fame being a big fan of Legacy, Vintage and Cube. What makes these formats fun for you?

The endless card advantage that happens in those. I love to draw extra cards, I love to do 2 and 3 for 1. I love to have strong synergies that just can’t exist in the newest formats.