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Magic: the Gathering |OT4| Izzet Me; Izzet You? A Love Story
- Thread starter The Technomancer
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I hope you do well! It felt so good at the end of our box. My personal best box in probably 2 years -- I've had a rough go of pulls in recent times. So it was nice to win one.
Kind of sad about cutting Lightning Helix, but I think my Cube is the only one in existence without Ajani Vengeant, and Figure of Destiny and Boros Charm are basically uncuttable.
We'll see about that!
Ajani Vengeant is the strongest Boros card by a mile.
"God's Beard!"
Member
What's weird about these box-opener people is how they frame things in this odd sense of personal accomplishment. "We can do better than this" or whatever as they're cracking packs. "My personal best box". "Did I do good?"
I don't get the sense of elation people gain from cracking packs. It feels like if you really wanted to make money, there's any number of better ways to do it than a lottery. The only time I got super excited was when I got double elspeth in a pack, but that's because it was my sealed pool. When you're just looking at cards as pieces of currency I feel a certain disassociation from the game itself. It's still gross to me that these things are worth anything at all. I wouldn't mind crashing the value of people's collections if it meant more people would play Legacy and Vintage.
But the beauty of Magic is that it's a modular game, and Wizards has handled the economy of it well enough to turn opening product into its own game. I don't begrudge anybody their enjoyment of scratchers, but I don't get it either.
I am curious to know how many people drop $225 on a box, say "I made my money back" and actually go out and sell/trade the cards they opened for more than the value of the box.
I don't get the sense of elation people gain from cracking packs. It feels like if you really wanted to make money, there's any number of better ways to do it than a lottery. The only time I got super excited was when I got double elspeth in a pack, but that's because it was my sealed pool. When you're just looking at cards as pieces of currency I feel a certain disassociation from the game itself. It's still gross to me that these things are worth anything at all. I wouldn't mind crashing the value of people's collections if it meant more people would play Legacy and Vintage.
But the beauty of Magic is that it's a modular game, and Wizards has handled the economy of it well enough to turn opening product into its own game. I don't begrudge anybody their enjoyment of scratchers, but I don't get it either.
I am curious to know how many people drop $225 on a box, say "I made my money back" and actually go out and sell/trade the cards they opened for more than the value of the box.
SigmasonicX
Member
[QUOTE="God's Beard!";164919984]I don't get the sense of elation people gain from cracking packs. It feels like if you really wanted to make money, there's any number of better ways to do it than a lottery.[/QUOTE]
You already wrote the explanation.
You already wrote the explanation.
Gonna teach the gf how to play Magic today. Being pretty new myself, im a little nervous. I dont want to scare her away with hardcore mechanics, but at the same time I feel like its unavoidable. Im thinking about maybe printing out a cheat sheet for certain terms like Lifelink or Bestow so that its easier to remember/explain.
Does anyone know where I can find something like this? The list I found has 24 pages of terms.. lol.
Does anyone know where I can find something like this? The list I found has 24 pages of terms.. lol.
You guys should use precons or ready made decks then you can just make a cheat sheet for those.
"God's Beard!"
Member
I've found the trick to be not explaining everything too quickly, and not correcting the other person on how everything works. The main thing is to let them enjoy the game and slowly bring them up to speed on the rules.
Yeah I bought 2 pre-cons a few days ago but after getting the deck builders toolkit, I really want to somehow incorporate those.. but Im not sure we are ready to start building decks yet. The Dragons of Tarkir (sp?) decks I bought have more difficult mechanics than the ones I got in the toolkit IMO.
Fuck it, maybe ill just swap some cards in and out a bit here and there.
[QUOTE="God's Beard!";164919984]box opening[/QUOTE]
Originally when I got back into it there was a thrill of opening a ton of packs.
Then it was about the hope of getting good cards. It's the lottery effect for sure.
Now I would rather not buy them at all and just by singles. But my gf enjoys it still so I just crack packs with her each new set once and hope for the best.
Originally when I got back into it there was a thrill of opening a ton of packs.
Then it was about the hope of getting good cards. It's the lottery effect for sure.
Now I would rather not buy them at all and just by singles. But my gf enjoys it still so I just crack packs with her each new set once and hope for the best.
Did one draft and got a Dark Confidant which essentially paid for the draft but man, everything else was pretty meh. I would be really scared of opening packs at MSRP. It really seems like you need to hit a mythic to cover the cost of the pack along with a handful of select rares.
Echoing some statements, any of those 12.99 preconstructed decks with two boosters are probably a good start since you don't have to put any thought into deck creation.
I would also highly recommend any Duel Decks you might be able to buy in your area near MSRP since those tend to be a bit more powerful and exciting to play in general. Elspeth vs Kiora is the most recent one and pretty good.
If she has little to experience with gaming in general you may want to get the mono-colored promo decks that shops are given to hand out for free. They're only 40 cards I think and everything is really vanilla but it will allow you to teach the basics without getting into complicated keywords or board states.
Good luck and godspeed.
Echoing some statements, any of those 12.99 preconstructed decks with two boosters are probably a good start since you don't have to put any thought into deck creation.
I would also highly recommend any Duel Decks you might be able to buy in your area near MSRP since those tend to be a bit more powerful and exciting to play in general. Elspeth vs Kiora is the most recent one and pretty good.
If she has little to experience with gaming in general you may want to get the mono-colored promo decks that shops are given to hand out for free. They're only 40 cards I think and everything is really vanilla but it will allow you to teach the basics without getting into complicated keywords or board states.
Good luck and godspeed.
Actually I had a bit of decent fun, as poor as my pulls were. Last game was the luckiest stuff I've ever pulled.
Pillory of the Sleepless was dinging my opponent all game. Eventually he was down to 2 life in topdeck wars when he built enough of a board presence to strike with everything and I lose all my blockers and drop to 1 life. I'm dead if he gets another turn.
My turn, I reveal my hand which is 3 lands and tell him that it comes down to my topdeck. I reveal Gut Shot and we both have a bit of a laugh at how unlikely that was. Sometimes your luck gives you two-land openers with no more land, sometimes it gives you the perfect card at the last moment.
Pillory of the Sleepless was dinging my opponent all game. Eventually he was down to 2 life in topdeck wars when he built enough of a board presence to strike with everything and I lose all my blockers and drop to 1 life. I'm dead if he gets another turn.
My turn, I reveal my hand which is 3 lands and tell him that it comes down to my topdeck. I reveal Gut Shot and we both have a bit of a laugh at how unlikely that was. Sometimes your luck gives you two-land openers with no more land, sometimes it gives you the perfect card at the last moment.
Joe Molotov
Member
Pulled a Vendilion Clique in my draft, so I'm happy. Not as happy as the guy at the other table that pulled a Goyf and a foil Bob, but whatev.
My deck was pretty crappy, but I had one miracle win that made it worth it. I was playing artifacts and a had an Etched Champion in play with Sunforger equiped to make it 6/2, and my opponent had two 3/3's and a 5/5. He was at 12 life, I was at four. I played Thoughtcast and drew a Cranial Plating. I counted my artifacts and had exactly 6 in play (counting the Plating). Equipped it to the Etched Champion, swung for 12. Get wrekt.
My deck was pretty crappy, but I had one miracle win that made it worth it. I was playing artifacts and a had an Etched Champion in play with Sunforger equiped to make it 6/2, and my opponent had two 3/3's and a 5/5. He was at 12 life, I was at four. I played Thoughtcast and drew a Cranial Plating. I counted my artifacts and had exactly 6 in play (counting the Plating). Equipped it to the Etched Champion, swung for 12. Get wrekt.
Ive been hearing about these free pre-cons that stores give out, but I feel weird asking for that. I goto 2 gaming shops every weekend and we play games there, so im definately a regular at this point, so I guess I shouldnt feel bad asking since I spend alot of money there.
What do I ask for in particular?
Angry Grimace
Two cannibals are eating a clown. One turns to the other and says "does something taste funny to you?"
Regular old Standard decks are usually the best because they're so redundant, in my experience.
[QUOTE="God's Beard!";164919984]What's weird about these box-opener people is how they frame things in this odd sense of personal accomplishment. "We can do better than this" or whatever as they're cracking packs. "My personal best box". "Did I do good?"
I don't get the sense of elation people gain from cracking packs. It feels like if you really wanted to make money, there's any number of better ways to do it than a lottery. The only time I got super excited was when I got double elspeth in a pack, but that's because it was my sealed pool. When you're just looking at cards as pieces of currency I feel a certain disassociation from the game itself. It's still gross to me that these things are worth anything at all. I wouldn't mind crashing the value of people's collections if it meant more people would play Legacy and Vintage.
But the beauty of Magic is that it's a modular game, and Wizards has handled the economy of it well enough to turn opening product into its own game. I don't begrudge anybody their enjoyment of scratchers, but I don't get it either.
I am curious to know how many people drop $225 on a box, say "I made my money back" and actually go out and sell/trade the cards they opened for more than the value of the box.[/QUOTE]
They're actually 30 cards and they're referred to as Sample Decks by Wizards themselves.
http://archive.wizards.com/Magic/magazine/article.aspx?x=mtg/daily/arcana/1515
Don't feel bad about asking, there is really nothing of 'value' to the decks, pretty sure Wizards sends them to stores specifically to give out to people to learn to play, which is the angle I would take. Just say you're interesting in teaching your girlfriend Magic and you want to start off small with a sample deck. If they have them I don't see why they wouldn't give you a couple to try out, they want more people to play Magic since it is a big revenue driver.
Yeah the terms in the regular 2015 seem more easy to understand than the ones I got in the pre-con, but then again I feel like all of it will be overwhelming at first. We play alot of games so she knows terms like tapping. We also play dicemasters alot and the combat is copied directly from Magic so I dont even have to teach her that. I would definately like to try and get that 40 card thing from the shop if they have it.. especially if its free lol.
2 days into this habit and its already cost me 60 bucks lol.
Angry Grimace
Two cannibals are eating a clown. One turns to the other and says "does something taste funny to you?"
32 isn't middle aged and if you want to have bad-ass box openings like me, there's always law school!
(Don't go to law school for god's sake)
"God's Beard!"
Member
That dinner cost one-eighth the price of a MM2 box and tasted easily eight times better while providing nutrients to sustain my life. Clearly better value there, grimace, not counting the half decade of entertainment value versus half a day to draft a box.
[QUOTE="God's Beard!";164919984]I wouldn't mind crashing the value of people's collections if it meant more people would play Legacy and Vintage.[/QUOTE]You're thinking too short-term. Part of the reason magic has lasted as long as it has is because people know they can cash out if they need to when they stop playing (whether temporarily or for good) and get some or all of their money back. If that weren't the case, fewer people would be interested in investing in the game.
As for opening packs, like virtually every part of the game, there's a huge social/communal aspect to it. Opening a card that's worth a good deal of money, especially in public, creates a moment of excitement not only for the person opening, but also for the people around them. Opening a card that's worth a bunch, even if you're not interested in also fosters social interaction since most people are going to trade that card away for a bunch of cards that they do want. In a lot of ways it's similar to drinking; the social aspect and the stories that come from it are a big part of the appeal.
As for opening packs, like virtually every part of the game, there's a huge social/communal aspect to it. Opening a card that's worth a good deal of money, especially in public, creates a moment of excitement not only for the person opening, but also for the people around them. Opening a card that's worth a bunch, even if you're not interested in also fosters social interaction since most people are going to trade that card away for a bunch of cards that they do want. In a lot of ways it's similar to drinking; the social aspect and the stories that come from it are a big part of the appeal.
"God's Beard!"
Member
Oh I definitely get that it helps the game to have value for the cards, but there's a difference between 10 dollar shocks and 250 dollar duals. Legacy is largely unplayable because the playerbase is being hated out due to cost. Even a relatively spikey guy like me looks at Underground Seas and then just disassembles his 90% complete Reanimator deck. I probably wouldn't mind playing BUG in modern, but a playset of goyfs is just a joke for pieces of cardboard to me. I'd trade for a single of a card with art I really like like a foil Clique or Vindicate, but even that isn't something I'm super fond of.
I don't drink, either.
acheron_xl
Member
Cracking boxes is the best way for people with no LGS or friends who draft to get new card smell.
"God's Beard!"
Member
The french fry fumes of the tabletop industry.
The Technomancer
card-carrying scientician
Wait what did you mock these up in? Did Magic Set Editor finally get updated?On a completely unrelated topic, Xenoblade locations make fantastic land art.
EDIT: And because card design is fun:
Joe Molotov
Member
I think my LGS got 16, but people bought all of them for DAT VALUE. Gotta put this in the closet and put my kids through college, brehs.
There's a M15-style template pack for MSE - I used that.
acheron_xl
Member
Looks like MSE to me, but no it didn't get updated. People have been working on new templates, bless their heart.
If only they'd put out an M15-style split card template...
The Technomancer
card-carrying scientician
Hm, have people made them four Double Faced cards and such also? Where would I find these? (their website has always been awful)
The Technomancer
card-carrying scientician
Oh my god. I've been checking their site every six months or so for like two years now, I never even knew people were updating it on their own
acheron_xl
Member
It's a godsend. I probably wouldn't have considered the idea of putting DFCs in the set I'm designing if they didn't have an M15 DFC template.
For example:
That seems... really powerful (unless enchantment removal is really common in your set). Easily first-pick material IMO.
The prices falling on TCG made me happy. If they have fallen this far this soon they can go even further. Prices are being cut in half on all but a few mythics, and even those are dropping 20% or so in just a day.
When I picked up Remand last night I thought "At least I got a nice $10 uncommon." Card is $5 and dropping today, lol.
When I picked up Remand last night I thought "At least I got a nice $10 uncommon." Card is $5 and dropping today, lol.
acheron_xl
Member
I haven't playtested any of the stuff from that set (set 2 in a block of 3), so it's all undeveloped theorycraft at the moment. It's a Spirit Mirror analog in my mind, but it may play really differently.
acheron_xl
Member
I hope SV keeps going up. I found a foil one I was using as a spacer in a box of basic lands.
It's a Spirit Mirror that costs one mana less, gives you a 2/2 body immediately instead of having to wait a turn, and is at uncommon and therefore more likely to show up in limited.
Maybe I just have bad memories of losing to manifest spam off Mastery of the Unseen in Fate Reforged limited, but having something similar at uncommon sounds horrible.
acheron_xl
Member
Well, the set is designed as an add-on to a set that's meant to be playable out-of-the-box, board game style, so frequency isn't a problem, at least. You're right in that it's probably undercosted.
Ophiomancer is another card you could use as a reference. If it's for a cube-like format with a higher-than-normal power level, it's probably fine at 3 mana.
"God's Beard!"
Member
Looks like I might be able to buy a Bitterblossom for 20 bucks by the end of the week.
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