Only eight Magic: The Gathering players remain from a field of over 200 at the Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty Championship, playing a wide variety of decks during the Historic and Alchemy rounds of the tournament.
The first two days of competition at the Neon Dynasty Championship showcased 15 rounds of gameplay via the MTG Arena formats, Alchemy and Historic. Jean-Emmanuel Depraz and Jim Davis went undefeated during the first day of the competition. Davis continued his amazing run into day two, advancing to the top eight Neon Dynasty Championship playoffs with a 12-0 record. Players with a minimum of 12 match wins automatically advanced to the top eight playoffs.
The MTG Alchemy deck to beat heading into the Neon Dynasty Championship was Naya Runes, prompting 23 percent of the field to bring Mono-White to the tournament. But both decks were outplayed by the emergence of three new builds: Grixis Midrange, Orzhov Venture, and Izzet Mill. Jim Davis, Eli Kassis, Shota Yasooka, and Ma Noah each went 7-0 during the Alchemy rounds playing one of these three MTG decks.
Jean-Emmanuel Depraz was the second MTG player to make the top eight before the end of day two, showcasing his skills during the Historic format rounds with an Azorius Affinity deck. The remaining six MTG players were decided following Historic matchups during round 15.
Here are the top eight MTG players competing in the Neon Dynasty Championship playoffs and the decks they played to get there.
- Jim Davis: Grixis Midrange (Alchemy) and Azorius Auras (Historic)
- Jean-Emmanuel Depraz: Jeskai Hinata (Alchemy) and Azorius Affinity (Historic)
- Brent Vos: Orzhov Venture (Alchemy) and Izzet Phoneix (Historic)
- Yudai Miyano: Esper Clerics (Alchemy) and Rakdos Sacrifice (Historic)
- Jonny Guttman: Mono-White (Alchemy) and Gogari Food (Historic)
- Zach Dunn: Mardu Midrange (Alchemy) and Rakdos Arcanist (Historic)
- Zhi Yimin: Mardu Midrange (Alchemy) and Rakdos Arcanist (Historic)
- Eli Kassis: Orzhov Venture (Alchemy) and Izzet Phoenix (Historic)
The MTG Alchemy format will take center stage at the Neon Dynasty Championship during the playoffs via a double-elimination bracket. Players will compete for a slice of the $450,000 total prize pool. And the top six will earn an invite to the Magic World Championship later this year.
