Magic: The Gathering

[Tobias]

Lately, Ming and I (With the addition of Rev in most cases) have begun to start playing Magic: the Gathering much more competetively. After coming back from State Championships, I managed to do some real good gaming, and found that I've acquired a newfound love for competetive Magic.

Anyone else on PO a competeitve magic player?

[unastrike]

Waaaay back in the day (I started playing around Beta) I attended a number of Tourneys. Never really did all that well. (I was always determined to use theme decks ) I got out of the game shortly after Ice Age hit...

I got into the game early because a friend of mine lived in Lake Geneva, WI (former headquarters of TSR). Needless to say, it was a big gaming town. Cards were a dime a dozen back then. Not uncommon to have a bunch of Black Lotus' etc.

No, I don't have any of my cards anymore... just in case anyone was curious.

Memories. Good ones. I miss it sometimes. When I do, I bust out my M:TG PC game. No, not the online ver... the actual PC game from about 10 years ago.

(sorry for the wistful ramblings... proceed, whippersnappers)

[Tobias]

I remember seeing that game on the shelves. How was that beast?

*explodes*

[Daijaga]

My story is similar to Una's. I got into Mtg right after 3rd edition was complied - so I had access to sets like arabian nights. In my time I saw the compliation of 4th and 5th editions, as well as sets like Homelands and Ice Age. I played with friends and when they started popping up in my area, card and comic shops. I enjoyed those kinds of games, mock tournies and sealed booster tournies especially, but as time wore on Wizards started to add more and more abilities to the point where it seemed like your deck had to defend against too many factors.

Although Im a big fan of theme decks (I <3 zombies, and sometimes goblins) and they can be designed to function well; the real power is in simple design. Direct damage and counterspell(controll) decks to this day are my staple designs and I feel are two of the best deck designs in the game. They are simple as they are elegant, prevent you from using your cards. Either smoke your creatures with pelts of damage from lightening bolts and fireballs, or in blue tims, prods and boomerangs. To another extent a good black or black/red land contruction deck works in the same way. I giggle uncontrolably when I see people using all these fancy dual color mana producers.

News flash - more than two colors in a deck is retarded.

As time wore on there were just too many things to stop. To this day I have a blue/white deck that reems all get out because it relays on cheap, fast shadow creatures that get out early and hit so fast theres little to no stopping them. Graillick and Faye were creating decks in the ends for the sole purpose of stopping the onslought - and it broke down to the point where it was just who got out the first tim or countered the other's tim. (before shadows I used dwarven miners and wildgrothes to about the same effect, a little more elaborate, but it works)

The intricate deck designs are all odd to me. Necropolis decks, decks that rely too heavily on batteries, large amounts of mana, super creatures or engines - all too complicated. Anything can be counter spelled and the biggest dragon in the game cant stop 3 10mana fireballs in a row.

Magic is about speed, controll, power, and luck.

I really enjoy playing CCGs and wish I had the time to play more. I used to think you jsut had to have a lot of money, but Ive found some of the best cards in the game are 10c commons.

[Tobias]

hehe...i put together a peasant Ninja deck that is probably worth 5 bucks. Thats bout it. (Peasant magic: A 60 card deck compiled completely of commons and only 5 uncommons. Some uncommons are banned, as well as all rares are banned)

I must say then, Dai, you'd hate most of the decks that run around now, sportin Green/Black/Blue to be really annoying. If you get a chance and feel like keepin up with some of the new stuff, check out a deck called "Gifts Ungiven" You (like Ming and Myself) will probably hate it.

You'd also probably end up hating my deck that i played at states...a Green/White creature control deck. Siding in an Ivory Mask tends to shut down burn decks, and throwing out more creatures than necessary and topping it with a Glare of Subdual (Tap an untapped creature you control: tap target artifact or creature) It pretty much shuts down decks cold. But i got my ass handed to me when i played against a raw counter-control Blue/White deck. It was complete and utter ownage.

Glad to see some more magic players are surfacing!

[unastrike]

[Ming]

[Shino]

Never thought I would be bumping this thread...

Changed the name and moved it to Geek Haven.

So yeah, Ultrawolf has gotten me addicted. And where I think some of the rules of when you can play cards is retarded (example, I dropped an instant "destroy artifact" card and Therin used the ability of the artifact I WAS DESTROYING to sacrifice it and draw a card, rendering my spell useless... very VERY retarded), it's still fun.

I just started 2 weeks or so again. I currently have 1 1/2 decks made. One of them is a Blue/white that was a group effort. I picked out cards, Therin made a deck out of what I picked while I was at work, and Ultra and I did some modifications to the deck.

It has proven to be one hell of a deck. Technically, out of 5 rounds (one 4 man brawl, one 2 on 2 game, and three 1 on 1) it hasn't lost yet.

I say 1/2 b/c I have a black/red deck too. Therin and I played a few games yesterday and the blue/white deck beat the black/red deck everytime. However, the black/red held up pretty well. So Therin started playing with it and I'm not sure where it stands right now. Looks like he ditched the black/red idea and tried to go with red/white. Therin if that is the case, I want to stick with the black/red b/c I want to get a green/white going. I have some crazy good green cards and no mana to play them with. Not only that, but it's possible that after I clean out Swap this weekend, I'll have some cards to throw into the black/red to make it faster.

We'll see how that fairs.

There are a number of us who are playing now and are thinking of doing some sealed tournements and things like that. Should be interesting.

[Reverend]

YES!!!! Thank you Little Wolf, for getting them into this!! Heh, I guess I'll need to bring down a big sampling of cards then, including ones I can give to help bring up the power level for your decks. And I know that I've got commons and uncommons around that can be taken!

Maybe some day, we'll be reading Pro Tour reports of Team Pocket Otaku taking grand prix's and one of us on the Tour.

Pipe dream it might be, it would still be cool.

[Shino]