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Magic: The Gathering |OT|
- Thread starter The Technomancer
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Is SCG Premium worth it? I've never had it so I'm not sure how the quality is. Usually I read up on stuff on CFB or something.
I enjoy streaming the videos while I'm riding my exercise bike, and the articles are pretty informative. I don't think it's worth the higher price though, so I'd say if you're gonna take the plunge lock in now. Mine expires tomorrow -- I'm going to pay tonight.
There is more then enough quality free content available to make paying for SCG pretty silly.
Part of the reason for the price hike HAS to be those "Free premium" cards they've been giving out at Opens like candy. I've paid for like, 2 months total so far this year.
Not of the same quality, particularly with Sam Black and Chapin. I didn't see the pre RTR stuff that Brad and Gerry were doing anywhere else either.
I probably will stop subscribing with the price hike though.
When SGG Premium launched, it seemed like an obvious choice- Brainburst had been doing premium for years, I -think- Londes had started doing it as well (whatever happened to londes?). Now, they are the Xbox Live of services- there is really no reason for it to keep existing for money when it has competitors that are free and comparable (CF=PSN?), and Twitch has opened a new avenue of delivering strategy for free, making the idea of paying for articles even more absurd.
If your curious about SCG Premium, go to the homepage and click on any of the premium authors- all articles go free after 30 days. I'd say its not worth it, but they do have some cool stuff- like video of people ACTUALLY playing cards instead of on MTGO.
If your curious about SCG Premium, go to the homepage and click on any of the premium authors- all articles go free after 30 days. I'd say its not worth it, but they do have some cool stuff- like video of people ACTUALLY playing cards instead of on MTGO.
keeblerdrow
Member
Alright. I'm going to my first Legacy casual event in the next couple weeks. I don't have the kind of cashflow to wow them, or even compete with them for that matter. So I'm going to squirrel them. I'm going to squirrel them so very very hard.
I've got the base:
4x Chatter of the Squirrel
4x Squirrel Nest
4x Squirrel Mob
4x Deranged Hermit
4x Nut Collector
4x Druid's Call
4x Acorn Harvest
2x Squirrel Wrangler
4x Doubling Season
4x Epic Struggle
That'll vary, I guess. But it's just making the earth become a writhing landscape of squirrels.
So what can I modify in this? More importantly, what can I add that's green or colorless that'll get more land in my hands and more squirrels at my command? Eldrazi Monument for FLYING INDESTRUCTIBLE SQUIRRELS? Isochron Scepter that Chatter? I'm looking to make this as fun/ridiculous as any squirrel deck should be.
I've got the base:
4x Chatter of the Squirrel
4x Squirrel Nest
4x Squirrel Mob
4x Deranged Hermit
4x Nut Collector
4x Druid's Call
4x Acorn Harvest
2x Squirrel Wrangler
4x Doubling Season
4x Epic Struggle
That'll vary, I guess. But it's just making the earth become a writhing landscape of squirrels.
So what can I modify in this? More importantly, what can I add that's green or colorless that'll get more land in my hands and more squirrels at my command? Eldrazi Monument for FLYING INDESTRUCTIBLE SQUIRRELS? Isochron Scepter that Chatter? I'm looking to make this as fun/ridiculous as any squirrel deck should be.
SCG used to have some pretty awesome writers back in the day. I have no idea how it is now as I have been out of the tournament scene for while and haven't read in years.
If you have never read Jeff Cunningham's write up on the 2006 Magic Invitational, please do so ASAP. One of the best tournament reports I have ever read.
http://www.starcitygames.com/magic/...rying_The_2006_Magic_Invitational_Part_1.html
Warning: Lots of old pro names in here, but still incredibly entertaining. Jeff Cunningham could write...
If you have never read Jeff Cunningham's write up on the 2006 Magic Invitational, please do so ASAP. One of the best tournament reports I have ever read.
http://www.starcitygames.com/magic/...rying_The_2006_Magic_Invitational_Part_1.html
Warning: Lots of old pro names in here, but still incredibly entertaining. Jeff Cunningham could write...
Alcibiades
Member
I'd play Gatekeeper Vine over Caravan Vigil. Basically you'll be basic landcycling so might as well get a creature and prevent 2 damage out of it.
Yea pretty much.
We had one in our Type 4 stack. Playing a new 8 person game in the middle of an already multi hour 8 person game was either amazing or misery depending on who you asked.
divisionbyzorro
Member
Something that only happens in the Just for Fun rooms of MTGO: a guy with an active Jace conceded to my active Tibalt on what was basically an empty board...
divisionbyzorro
Member
True.
He's an interesting cog in my Human Reanimator machine. He dumps my library into my yard (slowly of course), and forces my opponent to deal with him while I keep setting up. If they ignore Tibalt and I get a massive reanimation, I can ultimate him for an alpha strike out of nowhere.
http://www.twitch.tv/magicprotour
Kibler playing some White-Green-Black deck with Loxodon Smiter, Qasali Pridemage and Wilt-Leaf Liege, what deck is that? I don't know that much about modern.
Kibler playing some White-Green-Black deck with Loxodon Smiter, Qasali Pridemage and Wilt-Leaf Liege, what deck is that? I don't know that much about modern.
Probably a Junk deck (slap a bunch of good cards together), like Jund, but using White over Red.
I assume Wilt-Leaf Liege and Loxodon Smiter are both to deal with decks that use discard (every Jund deck) and Liliana (every Jund deck and then some).
I assume Wilt-Leaf Liege and Loxodon Smiter are both to deal with decks that use discard (every Jund deck) and Liliana (every Jund deck and then some).
The improvements to video coverage this week are great. The new on screen graphics, which take up a lot less space than the old ones are great, and the ability to quickly cut to other games while sideboarding is occurring means you see more magic. Only problem is JVL, who is probably the worst announcer in any sport/game 
EDIT: 1 min after posting, he is so busy telling a dumb joke that he misses LSV topdecking a BBE into Maelstrom Pulse to kill 2 Wurm Tokens, keeping him in the game. Christ.
EDIT: 1 min after posting, he is so busy telling a dumb joke that he misses LSV topdecking a BBE into Maelstrom Pulse to kill 2 Wurm Tokens, keeping him in the game. Christ.
divisionbyzorro
Member
Destroy the Evidence is the single worst card in Return to Ravnica. It often gets picked last in drafts, behind basic lands even.
I've never seen a player punt as much as the Gobbos player is.
No clue how he got this far.
I didn't get a chance to watch it live yesterday and im currently at work but just reading results and interviews, the Goblins player seem to be trying really hard to pretend he isn't as confused as everyone else as to why he made it anywhere near top 8. And that Joe Bass kid seems like a massive douche twerp. One of those people who make you want to hit them in the face with a brick the minute you meet them.
Very glad the high tide decks are out. My idea of nightmare top 8 would be nothing but high tides, belchers, and combo elves.
GP Chicago was fun to watch. I hope Shane McDermmit's T8 deck continues to get played- its nice having a real control deck doing so well, without the need to unban Jace. 7 different deck types in the Top 8, crazy innovation- Lingering Souls in Jund?!?!?!, Epic Experiment Storm, ect.
Can't wait for Gatecrash to come out and mix the format up even more- Modern is probably my favorite format right now.
Can't wait for Gatecrash to come out and mix the format up even more- Modern is probably my favorite format right now.
divisionbyzorro
Member
So I'm looking to get into Modern, and I'm looking for a good "intro deck." That is, something that is pretty competitive, isn't super expensive (so no Goyfs), and would help me get a good feel for the metagame. Kinda like how everyone says that if you want to get into Legacy you start by playing Burn; is there a good place like that to start with Modern?
WanderingWind
Mecklemore Is My Favorite Wrapper
Still would be goblins. You can build that deck on peanuts.
Cheapest Top Tier deck is Storm- its 6-8 Blue Fetches, a few Steam Vents, and then a bunch of commons. If you already have fetches, you can build this deck for under 100 dollars. Only problem is it isn't a real good "Intro" deck- its pretty hard to play. Eggs would fall into this same basket (heh), but unless you want to dedicate real life time to the deck (cause it isn't playable on MTGO), then skip it.
Affinity isn't that expensive either- 8 Nexus, 4 Ravager, and 4 Mox could run 250-300 dollars, but otherwise nothing else in the deck is expensive.
Really, you should look at your collection, look at some top decks, and see if you are close to any deck. if you were playing Valakut or Pod in standard a few months ago, for example, you already have a head start on some decks.
If your not sure what you want to play, just target fetchlands in trades or your buying- you play lots more of them than shocklands, and they are also good in Vintage/Legacy if you ever want to go down that path. Having a Playset of the 5 Zendikar Fetchlands makes building decks a lot easier.
I dunno. The idea of milling an entire deck that doesn't have lands is appealing to me. And I don't play in blocks in general so for casual play it seems decent enough to me.
There really isn't any way to get all of the lands out of someones deck though. Unless they are some strange deck that run 0 or 1 lands (Belcher), Most decks are going to have at least 17 lands in them- so by the time you can cast the card (turn 5), if they kept an opening 7 of 7 lands and then procede to draw 5 lands in a row (so about 5 lands left in 48 cards), your paying 5 mana to mill about 10 cards. 5 mana as a cost is enough to get half of their deck (http://sales.starcitygames.com/carddisplay.php?product=176051).
divisionbyzorro
Member
I thought about Infect or NivMagus. But I wasn't sure if playing a deck that wants to win on turn 2-3 really gives you a feel for the metagame as a whole...
I guess your closest thing to Jund that's not actually some form of Junk is Robots, never looked into how much it costs though. Fish is also a possibility, since you avoid the second biggest sink: fetchlands and shocklands.
It is a *really* awful card. Like incredibly and utterly awful. If you want to mill someone there are far better ways of going about it.
Isn't there a card like Jace the Mind-sculptor that allows you to rearrange the whole deck or at least a significant bit of it? I could swear there's some "look at the library and rearrange it" cards. Maybe not to major damage but enough to where pulling a mill after rearranging the deck to do some damage for that 5 mana cost would be worth it.
Sure, but none of those effects let you see more than a few cards. The keyword for that ability is "Fateseal", which was introduced in Future Sight. Jace the Mind Sculpturs +2 was the ability to Fateseal 1 your opponent or Scry 1 yourself. If you are dead set on milling someone based on lands in the deck, just use Mind Funeral
divisionbyzorro
Member
Oh Undead Alchemist. I want to love you so much. So very, very much. And yet you're just awful.
Sinker is no more, now it will be... http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/arcana/1101
Interesting.... So I guess Bolas is showing up in Ravnica?
Interesting.... So I guess Bolas is showing up in Ravnica?
The Technomancer
card-carrying scientician
Well well well: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Magazine/Article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/arcana/1101
That sounds like it has some interesting story implications
EDIT: I wasn't thinking Bolas, I'm wondering if Niv-Mizzet is doing something dangerous and the other guilds team up to take him down
That sounds like it has some interesting story implications
EDIT: I wasn't thinking Bolas, I'm wondering if Niv-Mizzet is doing something dangerous and the other guilds team up to take him down
narcosis219
Member
Interesting... Dragon's Maze kind of sounds like some spin off computer game subtitle though lol.
Keru_Shiri
Member
I absolutely dig the name Dragon's Maze.
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