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I sat down with Tillman Bragg to cover his draft. Tillman was fortunate to squeeze in as the 8th seed on tiebreakers, and he was looking to make the most out of his second lease on life. Many people think that Tillman is “the best Vs. player you don’t know about,” which is one of those expressions that people throw around that means literally nothing.

Tillman showed a preference for the Hellfire Club straight out of the gate, selecting Tarot over Joanna Cargill and Angel of Mercy. His next set of picks were all on course, with The Hellfire Club, Empath, and Mastermind. Tillman picked up Join the Club! and two copies of Army of One later on in the pack. A very late Mutopia, which he chose over Shadowcat, Katya, rounded out his relevant pack 1 picks. Tillman kicked off his second pack with Joanna Cargill, possibly in search of a second team. He then took the biggest blowout 7 in the set, Sebastian Shaw, over Anne-Marie Cortez and other solid cards. Even if the games don’t go to 7 much anymore, Sebastian almost always ensures victory if you get there, initiative or not. Madelyne Pryor then got the nod over Friedrich Von Roehm, and then Harry Delgado was selected over a second Sebastian Shaw. Cardinal Law and Mastermind were taken next, then Tillman quickly slammed down Sage, Tessa, a cornerstone of a good Mental deck. A late Psionic Storm and one of each Hellfire Army character finished off the pack.

Pack 3 featured Viper first out of a mediocre sampling, then Tillman took his second Join the Club! over Shinobi Shaw. Next was another Army of One, then Tillman looked to solidify his Mental trait with Destiny, Freedom Force. Massachusetts Academy was taken next, then Trevor Fitzroy was selected over Firestar, a pick Tillman struggled with for a little while. Polaris, Acolyte, Donald Pierce, Chrome, and Rem-Ram rounded out his playables.

Tillman’s deck was very focused, with only two teams featured and a ton of emphasis on the Mental trait with lots of support. Tillman only ended up with two 4-drops, but between Sage and his two search effects, he should be able to find a 4 more often than not. While not quite insane, Tillman’s deck is very focused, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him walk away with the $10K title.