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Magic: The Gathering |OT|

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Ronabo said:
So with the way combat damage is dealt now the phasing ability of a Rainbow Efreet is useless?

Not useless, just downpowered from where it used to be. Now it can still block and then phase out, so you take no damage (unless the attacker has trample), but you cant stack the damage anymore to kill off some attackers.
 
I remember waking up in the middle of night thinking "oh my god, I can build a deck around phasing and come into play abilities! Everytime something phases back in it will trigger!" And then feeling stupid when I found out creatures phasing don't trigger those abilities. Sad, I thought I was a genius lol.
 
siddx said:
I remember waking up in the middle of night thinking "oh my god, I can build a deck around phasing and come into play abilities! Everytime something phases back in it will trigger!" And then feeling stupid when I found out creatures phasing don't trigger those abilities. Sad, I thought I was a genius lol.
it still does leave play effects, which can be equally be badass.
 
WoW, Panda back in Magic? Tired of SCII? (Not like I am not in the same boat, still play SCII but Magic is a much more relaxed experience :D)
 
siddx said:
lol against decks that need a specific card to combo off, it's fucking epic. I expect, between mental misstep and surgical extraction, to see decks with only one win condition to die off for at least a little while.

Ya, my gimmick decks are no fun to play against that. :(
 
I became quite interested in this Mirrodin story by the way, is there any good Magic books worth ordering?
My favorites fantasy-wise are Salvatore and Robert Jordan, so... not sure if that low or high bar, but I can definitely digest almost anything when it comes to books. :)
 
V_Arnold said:
I became quite interested in this Mirrodin story by the way, is there any good Magic books worth ordering?
My favorites fantasy-wise are Salvatore and Robert Jordan, so... not sure if that low or high bar, but I can definitely digest almost anything when it comes to books. :)
http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Novels/Default.aspx

They're not great, but if your bar is Salvatore and Jordan you should be just fine :P
The actual lore behind Magic is really really cool.
 
There's definitely a bit of elitism about MTGSalv, but they also have a lot of great resources. While I love this thread, I do think that the Salv competitive sections have a bit more to offer in terms of serious discussion about the current metagames and their best decks. Not trying to offend anyone here; I just think the discussion has been decidedly more casual in orientation, which is perfectly fine- Commander is one of my favorite formats and it's definitely a casual format. (Although my playgroup's introduction of pay fees and incredibly cutthroat nature has driven me to play Azami which isn't exactly the most casual, fun-oriented deck.)

To comment on another discussion from the past page, I haven't really been feeling the blocks of late either. Last block I really enjoyed was Lorwyn and it was basically over before I even started back. The past few metagames have been so heavily defined by planeswalkers which I don't find as interesting as the more spell and creature oriented metas of days past. I also found nearly all of Mirrodin's mechanics to be uninteresting. Poison is a very linear strat, metalcraft is a very linear strat, and neither has really had an impact on standard. Tezzeret, like other planeswalkers, brought a new archetype into existence and the equipment made Stoneforge Mystic a staple, but the block has had very little impact outside of that.

kudos. said:
Red needs a long time bump. Lightning bolt is fantastic, no doubt, but compared to Goyf, FoW, Swords to Plow and Dark Ritual, red needs some love. Goblin Guide was a great start but red still needs more.

Red has, arguably, the best deck in Block, which means it'll be primed for a strong showing this fall. (Admittedly, I've yet to see how NPH shakes things up and Innistrad will have a big impact obviously)
 
traveler said:
There's definitely a bit of elitism about MTGSalv, but they also have a lot of great resources. While I love this thread, I do think that the Salv competitive sections have a bit more to offer in terms of serious discussion about the current metagames and their best decks. Not trying to offend anyone here; I just think the discussion has been decidedly more casual in orientation, which is perfectly fine- Commander is one of my favorite formats and it's definitely a casual format. (Although my playgroup's introduction of pay fees and incredibly cutthroat nature has driven me to play Azami which isn't exactly the most casual, fun-oriented deck.)
Agreed about MTGS. I definitely fall into the casual category, but that place is great for card analysis, speculation, and news. I especially like the card analysis from competitive players, because it allows me to see a card's value (or lack thereof) that I wouldn't have otherwise realized. I rarely peruse anything other than The Rumor Mill and New Card Discussion, and I'll probably never be a seriously competitive player, but I'll always welcome critique from serious players.

In other news, I'm digging M12 so far. Archon of Justice reprint, yes please! I can understand the fuss over "dies", but ultimately it makes the game more approachable for people, which in turn should help the game grow further. I just hope the pre-release mythic *isn't* Bloodfury Hellkite; it's just so damned boring.
 
V_Arnold said:
I became quite interested in this Mirrodin story by the way, is there any good Magic books worth ordering?
Arena was pretty good an probably the closest to the game itself in terms of how magic works and the player as planeswalker angle.

shattered chains is okay but only as a follow up to arena because it switches it up and works the story from the perspective of the creatures who were summoned.

invasion/planeshift/Apocalypse was probably the strongest block of books, its kin of awkward going in if you arent already familiar with the weathlight crew, but you warm up to them fast and the books really take the war seriously. the phyrexians get full evil ba guy licensing an go all out, good stuff.

odyssy/torment/judgment are kinda the books that got away, i think the set was alittle too inconsistent with the motivations of the various factions, but chainer an Laquatus were both excellent characters. the Kamahl here is alittle shallow, but its still good reading as prep work for latter books.

assasin/emperor/champion was by far the best writing out of all the books though, woul be the best block if it wasn't for emperor being kina iffy. Scott McGough tens to knock all the magic books out of the park on general principle, so he' be the guy whose name id suggest looking for. Bolas is boss as the big bad and the rivalry between the main characters is believable and touches slightly on the arena theme of characters also being players.

onslaught/legion/scourge.... eh, i'll just say this. korona sucks as a character. phage sucks as a character. everything cool and likable gets killed off an they also rape the order just out of spite despite the ending of jugdment putting eesha in charge an settling feuds with the cabal. legion is probably the best of the set, but onslaught is goo as a setup to ixidors character. i guess Kamahl is decent here too. sorta.

mirrodin/darksteel/fifth dawn: glissa is unlikable. i rooted for Memnarch.

outlaw/champion/heretic: kamigawa is a troubled set, thats inarguable, but what it does do well, it really does well. an theme an setting is something kamigawa does really well. no shocker its another work by scott. we get a consistent focus on a likable character, it gets over the swamp is evil bullshit just like tempest did but still has the blue evil masterminds problem. all the characters are likable, the non-humans are sufficiently alien and the battle of the hyozan vs keiga the tide star was bloody epic.

Ravnica only read the first book before dropping out of magic. it was pretty good. dont remmeber much, but i remember liking it.
 
Decent I suppose, box I bought today I got a Vorinclex, Sheoldred, 2 Karns, and an Etched Monstrosity. Was hoping for another sword. :(

Got my like 12th Cancellor of Dross but still no more puresteel paladins. :(
 
Panda, thanks for the infos :D

I bought a Rise of Eldrazi and 2 Scars boosters today.
Eldrazi got me a Kozilek, while I was specifically focusing on opening a booster with Koth. And bam, I did :) So now I have a Koth too :D (And a worthless Carnifex Demon, but anyways :D)
 
Now that I have playsets of most of the rares and at least one of every mythic I have stopped buying nph packs...but I can feel the itch to try and get some more mythics...I may have to get a fat pack after work.
Traded an urbarask (had three) for a foil spellskite, I looked up the price and was surprised to see the foil spellskite was worth 20 bucks. I felt so bad I gave my buddy an extra 10 bucks for it.
Foil gitaxian probe was a nice surprise too, as well as the foil torpor orb. It's always neat to come across foils that are worth way more than their non foil versions.
 
siddx said:
Foil gitaxian probe was a nice surprise too, as well as the foil torpor orb. It's always neat to come across foils that are worth way more than their non foil versions.

I have both of these! Thanks for the heads up. I'm selling these ASAP.
 
siddx said:
Now that I have playsets of most of the rares and at least one of every mythic I have stopped buying nph packs...but I can feel the itch to try and get some more mythics...I may have to get a fat pack after work.
Traded an urbarask (had three) for a foil spellskite, I looked up the price and was surprised to see the foil spellskite was worth 20 bucks. I felt so bad I gave my buddy an extra 10 bucks for it.
Foil gitaxian probe was a nice surprise too, as well as the foil torpor orb. It's always neat to come across foils that are worth way more than their non foil versions.

The Fuck? Probe is going for $8 on trollandtoad or like $.25 for the non foil. :lol Still like my foil obliterator that pretty much doubled in price.
 
MEH, I say.

The only foil I'll keep is my foil Nissa, and that's because I have to. I can't pull her anymore, and nobody wants to trade for a regular one.

Stupid sexy Nissa.

nli10 said:
http://community.wizards.com/go/thr...els_2012_Update_52511?sdb=1&pg=last#496949865

WOTC just confirmed core deck editing in the Planeswalkers 2012 product that's out in a month.

It's on...

*foams at mouth*

Now, all they need is an option to be able to build decks out of the cards unlocked and we're totally good. I am more excited for this than anything else in the MTG world right now.
 
WanderingWind said:
MEH, I say.

The only foil I'll keep is my foil Nissa, and that's because I have to. I can't pull her anymore, and nobody wants to trade for a regular one.

Stupid sexy Nissa.



*foams at mouth*

Now, all they need is an option to be able to build decks out of the cards unlocked and we're totally good. I am more excited for this than anything else in the MTG world right now.

Do you mean from scratch from the unlocked cardpool? Guess that's possible, but unlikely in this version.


Zaraki_Kenpachi said:
Hope 2012 runs on my macbook pro so I can play it while I'm in Europe to get my fix. :(




There is no confirmed Mac version so unless (like me) you run W7 on your mac and buy the Steam copy then you can't.
 
nli10 said:
Do you mean from scratch from the unlocked cardpool? Guess that's possible, but unlikely in this version.

Yeah. I don't see why they wouldn't allow it. It's not going to unbalance the game if the cards are from a pool everybody can choose from.
 
nli10 said:
Do you mean from scratch from the unlocked cardpool? Guess that's possible, but unlikely in this version.







There is no confirmed Mac version so unless (like me) you run W7 on your mac and buy the Steam copy then you can't.

Ya, I use bootcamp. I meant I hope my 9400M is enough. But now that I think about it I decided to bring my tablet instead of my macbook and that ran the first one fine since I played it during class. :P It has a 5450M or something I think?
 
That's good news about D12. Should make for a good time with that and all the new cards.

WanderingWind said:
I will never understand foils as long as I live. Self bending and shiny useless pieces of crap, IMO.

Same. I can appreciate them visually, but I wont play with them unless I need to. I much prefer full-art or foreign cards if I want to make my cards pretty without worrying about judge calls.
 
I only get buy foils if they're essentially the same price as the normal. Like engulfing slagwurm was $.79 instead $.59 ea if you went with the foil. Foil lands is where the sexyness is at though.
 
I don't get the foil or foreign fascination. Full-art cards, sure; those can be really cool, but (Brag-age: Got a full art cryptic command today for my Azami) the only time I go for foils are when they're fnm/ftv/judge promos with better art than the original (The latest example I particularly like is the FNM Spellstutter Sprite) or new borders when the original had old borders. Yeah, I realize it's not a popular opinion, but I prefer the new borders to the old and I like my decks to have the same border, if possible, so even if I liked the old I would probably still go for all new border.
 
nli10 said:
http://community.wizards.com/go/thr...els_2012_Update_52511?sdb=1&pg=last#496949865

WOTC just confirmed core deck editing in the Planeswalkers 2012 product that's out in a month.

It's on...
To me, this all but confirms that they're planning to update Magic Online to this engine. There's basically no reason not to do it.

Blast all you who pulled Karns, Swords, Batterskulls and Obliterators! :<

Interesting to see that Karn appears to have dropped to $20 while Obliterator is holding strong above $20. Didn't think I'd see this, but I shouldn't be surprised, either.

I just pre-ordered two of the white Event Decks. Figured it was the cheapest way to get a playset of Mystics and additional necessary rares to form a decent equipment deck.
 
Takuan said:
To me, this all but confirms that they're planning to update Magic Online to this engine. There's basically no reason not to do it.

Blast all you who pulled Karns, Swords, Batterskulls and Obliterators! :<

Interesting to see that Karn appears to have dropped to $20 while Obliterator is holding strong above $20. Didn't think I'd see this, but I shouldn't be surprised, either.

I just pre-ordered two of the white Event Decks. Figured it was the cheapest way to get a playset of Mystics and additional necessary rares to form a decent equipment deck.

What site do you use for pricing out of curiosity? I liked magic traders but they still haven't added new phrexia it seems? A lot of people by me use findmagiccards.com. I think I'm finally trading away my 5th Obliterator since I already have a playset. Wish I had more puresteel paladins and batterskulls.

Did you preorder the white event decks online?

Also: WTF at the colossal jump in splinter twin prices? I got my foils for $1.99/ea a month or so ago for my myr deck and now they're $18? Is there some amazing combo I don't know about? The fuck? Should have stocked up.
 
Zaraki_Kenpachi said:
What site do you use for pricing out of curiosity? I liked magic traders but they still haven't added new phrexia it seems? A lot of people by me use findmagiccards.com. I think I'm finally trading away my 5th Obliterator since I already have a playset. Wish I had more puresteel paladins and batterskulls.

Did you preorder the white event decks online?

Also: WTF at the colossal jump in splinter twin prices? I got my foils for $1.99/ea a month or so ago for my myr deck and now they're $18? Is there some amazing combo I don't know about? The fuck? Should have stocked up.

Deceiver Exarch + Splinter Twin = Infinite dudes
 
Gatekeeper said:
Deceiver Exarch + Splinter Twin = Infinite dudes

Pretty similar to the Myr combo although much easier to pull off... Still surprised at it going from $2 to $18. That's ridiculous. What's sexy though is you could just run 4 of those in addition to myr in the deck since it's blue... Hmm....
 
Certain foils actually look really neat. Some are just shiny versions of the normal card, but sometimes the art really benefits from the foil treatment. Plus having a playset of foils of certain cards is like nerd bragging rights. I don't care as much as some of my friends do (I have one friend who has damn near every foil card ever made, including a playset of foil tarmogoyfs that are going for like 200 bucks a piece). But it's still neat to have foil versions of certain cards.
 
siddx said:
Certain foils actually look really neat. Some are just shiny versions of the normal card, but sometimes the art really benefits from the foil treatment. Plus having a playset of foils of certain cards is like nerd bragging rights. I don't care as much as some of my friends do (I have one friend who has damn near every foil card ever made, including a playset of foil tarmogoyfs that are going for like 200 bucks a piece). But it's still neat to have foil versions of certain cards.

Grindclock I think looks really cool as a foil. The only part that's shiny is the sparks and just seems to accent the card very nicely.
 
some of my favorite foils are
Turn Aside (the bubble thing the creature is creating looks really neat)
Revoke Existence (the yellowish green color of the picture does really well with the foil look)
Flight Spellbomb (the blue background looks great)
Prodigal Pyromancer (the fire coming out of his eyes and on his fingers)
Awaken Druid (the paint on his face and chest looks like it's glowing)
Dreamstone Hedron (the hedron in the center of the picture really stands out)
All is dust and the eldrazi (for obvious reasons)

My number one favorite though is Banishing Knack. The runes all over the ground and building look amazing with the foil affect.
 
I just found a picture of banishing runes foil online and the popping of the runes looks awesome. I can only imagine how much better it looks in person. It's a shame not all of the foils are so well done but it's really cool to see one that is well put together.
 
siddx said:
Certain foils actually look really neat. Some are just shiny versions of the normal card, but sometimes the art really benefits from the foil treatment. Plus having a playset of foils of certain cards is like nerd bragging rights. I don't care as much as some of my friends do (I have one friend who has damn near every foil card ever made, including a playset of foil tarmogoyfs that are going for like 200 bucks a piece). But it's still neat to have foil versions of certain cards.
I really really like the kind of "right-ness" that comes with having a foil Shimmer Myr
 
Zaraki_Kenpachi said:
What site do you use for pricing out of curiosity? I liked magic traders but they still haven't added new phrexia it seems? A lot of people by me use findmagiccards.com. I think I'm finally trading away my 5th Obliterator since I already have a playset. Wish I had more puresteel paladins and batterskulls.

Did you preorder the white event decks online?

Also: WTF at the colossal jump in splinter twin prices? I got my foils for $1.99/ea a month or so ago for my myr deck and now they're $18? Is there some amazing combo I don't know about? The fuck? Should have stocked up.
I just check eBay's completed auctions to get an idea of averages. I feel it's a better indication of what people are willing to pay. I also like using Apathyhouse and MOTL once prices reach equilibrium, but Apathyhouse has Karn valued at $35 when he's going for $20 on the 'Bay - less than that if you're looking for a playset. You should trade the Obliterator for Batterskull + Puresteel. I'm sure some Timmy out there wants an Obliterator badly enough.

I acquired a Karn Liberated a few hours ago. Essentially "bought" it for $10 - met up with someone who wanted to buy one of my Worldwake fat packs for $60, and he proposed $50 + Karn instead because his friend, for whatever reason, really wanted to get rid of it. Pretty interesting guy, he commuted an hour and a half just to make the transaction, but he said he wanted to use it to draft the Zendikar block with his playgroup. Still, that's incredible determination.

Oh, I pre-ordered the event decks at my LGS. They don't gouge, and most of the players there aren't hoarders.

!!EDIT!!

3 enemy colored commanders have been spoiled on MTGS, found here:

http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=326603

DAT SKULLBRIAR ART. Guess I'm goin' with the Counterpunch deck.
 
Takuan said:
I just check eBay's completed auctions to get an idea of averages. I feel it's a better indication of what people are willing to pay. I also like using Apathyhouse and MOTL once prices reach equilibrium, but Apathyhouse has Karn valued at $35 when he's going for $20 on the 'Bay - less than that if you're looking for a playset. You should trade the Obliterator for Batterskull + Puresteel. I'm sure some Timmy out there wants an Obliterator badly enough.

I acquired a Karn Liberated a few hours ago. Essentially "bought" it for $10 - met up with someone who wanted to buy one of my Worldwake fat packs for $60, and he proposed $50 + Karn instead because his friend, for whatever reason, really wanted to get rid of it. Pretty interesting guy, he commuted an hour and a half just to make the transaction, but he said he wanted to use it to draft the Zendikar block with his playgroup. Still, that's incredible determination.

Oh, I pre-ordered the event decks at my LGS. They don't gouge, and most of the players there aren't hoarders.

!!EDIT!!

3 enemy colored commanders have been spoiled on MTGS, found here:

http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=326603

DAT SKULLBRIAR ART. Guess I'm goin' with the Counterpunch deck.

It's hard though since everyone by me wants batterskull/puresteel :(
 
any tips for a good shuffle?

9/10 games i have mana problems, whether i dont have enough or i have too much. i spend a minute or so shuffling. is it possible to overdo it? i threw together a quick and cheap mono red burn deck with about 10 mountains, and i had most of them by turn 4. seriously? do i just have horrible luck?

also, how often do you guys mulligan? do you guys always look for a specific combo of cards in your opening hand and mulligan until you get it? i always shy away from doing it unless i have absolutely no mana or something.
 
I am so fed up with the elitist Magic attitude that I cant tell. I bought NP fat pack a week ago, went to the store/club for some potential trade, and talked a bit with a few "hardcore" dudes. I kept bringing up several deck building ideas of mine, but then all I got in return is "meh, that is slow", "meh, too weak", "meh, that is not strong enough" - meh... I almost wanted to throw up and then throw away all the cards.

Then I realised, fuck it. I do not care if my deck will be one turn slower than THE deck to build in standard right now. I am going to make a Metalcraft deck work. Heck, I asked them if they have Jor Kadeen, and they grinned "yeah" - then I bought one from $1.40... lol. Is it too pricey? Heck, it is a nice legendary creature for a nice finisher on turn 5... damn me if that is crap. It is basically 3 battle cry in one. And I traded a Puresteel Paladin, an Etched Champion, some "Metalcraft exile" uc and I will sooooooo build that metalcraft deck and will have fun with it, even if the best decks can destroy that with a proper hand.
 
V_Arnold said:
I am so fed up with the elitist Magic attitude that I cant tell. I bought NP fat pack a week ago, went to the store/club for some potential trade, and talked a bit with a few "hardcore" dudes. I kept bringing up several deck building ideas of mine, but then all I got in return is "meh, that is slow", "meh, too weak", "meh, that is not strong enough" - meh... I almost wanted to throw up and then throw away all the cards.

Then I realised, fuck it. I do not care if my deck will be one turn slower than THE deck to build in standard right now. I am going to make a Metalcraft deck work. Heck, I asked them if they have Jor Kadeen, and they grinned "yeah" - then I bought one from $1.40... lol. Is it too pricey? Heck, it is a nice legendary creature for a nice finisher on turn 5... damn me if that is crap. It is basically 3 battle cry in one. And I traded a Puresteel Paladin, an Etched Champion, some "Metalcraft exile" uc and I will sooooooo build that metalcraft deck and will have fun with it, even if the best decks can destroy that with a proper hand.
Those kinds of players are a different breed; they don't see the fun in building casual decks, or have any appreciation for flavorful cards that aren't bombs because they just want to win. It's pointless to discuss anything that isn't competitive in Standard with those folks.

I'm with you on Jor Kadeen. Everyone tells me he's bad, but I want to build a deck around him anyway. Turn 6 concussive bolt, swing with him and a few Signal Pests/Memnites, win the game. Slow, sure, but I don't give a fuck.
 
Ugh. I'm stuck in an MTG rut, guys.

My high school had a ton of good players, one dude who brought semi-competitive T2 decks to the table, and one dude whose binder was probably worth more than his car. One of his decks ran 2-3 Shaharazad. It was freakin' awesome.

SO I built some neat old decks, a U/G/B madness, a scepter deck, a dragonstorm deck, mono-G stompy, infect, slivers, etc. All fun-to-play (but powerful) themes to deal with the power creep that was making the playgroup fun. Wins came to everybody. People quit occasionally, but their collections would immediately be bought by or given to old players, who would in turn give their cards to newer players.... it was a pretty nifty cycle.

I recently started college. Nobody here knows how to play. The MTG group seems to be the stoner group, and when I bring out my dragonstorm deck I win on turn 3-4 unstopped pretty much every time; nobody runs control, nobody runs removal. It's really boring to play this game with no interaction, and nobody's willing to learn (or borrow decks). They've all been playing for a very long time, they all have okay collections, they just... I duno, they don't seem to want to make interactions work for the sake of keeping the playing field low. It's strange. I enjoy my power creeps in casual groups, damn it!

There's a couple competitive players here, but they sneered at me when I said "causal" to them, and literally didn't even want to play when I showed them some of my more easily stopped decks. It was incredible how arrogant they were.

I came up with a somewhat temporary solution for the summer, and hopefully for next year at college.

My boyfriend and I threw all of our good rares/mythics/uncommons/removal into gold sleeves and separated them into 15-card packs that we shuffle together after every game, and we just do draft after draft of our collection.

The last game went like this:

Boyfriend: Island, go
Singer: Mountain, go
Me: Island, go.
Boyfriend: Forest, go.
Singer: Island, go
Me: Swamp, go.
Boyfriend: Island, show and tell, emrakul, gg.


I like it so far. :3

(It was soon stopped by a flying stuffy doll.)

...but what should I do about the college MTG situation? The "competitive" players (who I draft with at the LGS and beat consistently) don't want a thing to do with a developing casual metagame, and the casual players think virtually every card printed after 2005 is insanely overpowered. I duno what to do D:
 
Takuan said:
Those kinds of players are a different breed; they don't see the fun in building casual decks, or have any appreciation for flavorful cards that aren't bombs because they just want to win. It's pointless to discuss anything that isn't competitive in Standard with those folks.

I'm with you on Jor Kadeen. Everyone tells me he's bad, but I want to build a deck around him anyway. Turn 6 concussive bolt, swing with him and a few Signal Pests/Memnites, win the game. Slow, sure, but I don't give a fuck.

Glad to hear I am not alone. You do not even need to swing with him, you just need to bring him down and hit with your other creatures. Throw in a sword and you are golden, imho.
 
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