Bryant Cook is the innovator and creator of The Epic Storm deck, which is approaching its ten-year anniversary. He joins me to discuss the origins of the 1.5 format, the strong Syracuse, NY scene, and his earliest tournament successes. We also talk about fun stuff like reading opponents, table banter, and beating a turn 1 Griselbrand. This is one conversation you won't want to miss.

Time stamps:

[01:02] Introduction

[03:28] Family background and origins

[04:52] Earliest gaming experiences

[06:18] Playing sports

[06:52] Playing Magic for the first time

[08:31] His first tournament

[10:34] On never splitting prizes in a tournament

[12:15] Improving as a player and first major tournament success

[15:00] The Syracuse crew

[16:29] The 1.5 scene in New York and origins of The Source

[17:22] Playing combo for the first time

[18:47] The beginnings of The Epic Storm

[22:17] The beginnings of The Epic Syndicate

[23:54] How Magic friends have helped him in life

[25:15] Applying Magic learnings to life

[25:49] First major success with The Epic Storm

[27:22] Playing in Jupiter Games events and SCG Opens

[30:10] Getting nervous at high-level events

[32:48] Reading opponents

[36:25] The origins of The Epic Storm website

[38:30] Why he writes content

[39:23] Dealing with online trolls and haters

[40:59] Why Magic?

[42:36] Why he is competitive

[43:31] Tournament mindset and habits

[46:35] Table banter with opponents

[48:02] Codes of conduct and ethical gaming

[49:13] Most challenging Magic-related situation

[51:05] Best Magic moments

[55:19] Future evolution of The Epic Storm

[56:38] Magic-related goals

[59:43] Life-related goals

[01:01:19] What would Bryant tell himself if he could go back 5 years?