Magic: The Gathering

Valdus

So, after watching a couple episodes in a new Youtube series (Will include link to first ep below) I have started to take an interest in this TCG (Trading Card Game). I've never really been into these types of things, but the enthusiasm the players have for it along with the depth and scope of the system has made me very intrigued. As such, I've just ordered my first Fat Pack, a Theros one, and while I wait for it to arrive in the mail I was curious to see if there are any other MTG players in our community!

If so, I'd love to hear what you guys have to say about it, along with what advice you would give to complete newbies on where to start and so forth. I don't think I'm going to just start buying tons of Booster Boxes, but the thought of opening up a packet with a Rare Foil inside ($800 Jace the Mind Sculptor!) is very exciting.

So, feel free to use this thread however you want. Advice, discussion, whatever. I'd basically just like to hear more about the game.

Daklore

I've always been intrigued to a degree by MTG... but a lack of anyone in reasonable distance being playable(I lack real-world friends >P), has never really driven me enough to actually try and learn, play, or even purchase cards.

All I know about the game is that you don't get to say, "You've activated my trap card!"

... or do you?

Valdus

Whoops! I forgot to link the episode! This is the first, but in the second the guy actually does say that!

Sultani

My friends and I played Magic all the time in the mid-90's until Ice Age came out. I really enjoyed both the collection and gaming aspect of it. I wish I still had the cards..I remember throwing down quite a bit for a couple of Legends packs which I bet would be quite rare now. Never did get that Black Lotus..

Kresslack

I've considered starting but haven't looked into it as of yet. I have a few friends that play and hadn't realize it's been out for so long. Wonder why it seems to be getting more popular all of the sudden.

Daklore

Kids graduating from Duel Monsters?(Yu-gi-oh) I 'unno. It's the internet's fault.

Riley

I taught my son how to play MTG, and now he gets decks and boosters as rewards for grades and behavior. After we started playing, I realized it can be taken as an education tool for a 6-7 year old. He has a Black/Green deck that he loves.

The resurgence has a lot to do with Wizards pushing a lot of their stuff now that D&D is picking up again, and there is a new MTG video game every years now that goes along with the current deck sets and tournament rules.

Jonners

I used to play MTG up until the Urza's Saga. I had the best group game deck ever. It was an Ovinimancer Deck. 

With this card at the centre of my seven card combo (ten including land) I would sit there and be the most nonthreatening deck ever and then that seventh card would come out and I would have infinite mana, infinite 1/1 flying pegasi, could turn all of your lands, artefacts, and enchantments into 0/1 sheep tokens, could deck you instantaneously, could cycle my deck repeatedly, and as a result could cast an infinite number of counter spells,

So basically I would get the combo off, tell everyone I win, explain to everyone how I won, then packed up my deck and let them keep playing. It's the sort of deck you only get off once per group, but when you do they're all just like, 'WTF?!'

I had a nasty elf deck too, useful in duels or group games, that I could have over 200 elves out by turn four, with 90% of my initial hand draws.

P.S.- Did I forget to mention it's only a sixty card deck?

Kazu

I used to play up until the end of the Kamigawa sets. I loved the game, but I just really don't have anyone to play now. I ran a green trample deck, but I also enjoyed my white deck.

@Valdus My advice is to experiment with all the colors for the first little bit and then pick one or two you like. Focus all your building around those and trade the rares for the other colors you get. I despise black cards and traded them to get rares for my other colors.

Jonners

I would always build a deck around a concept. Sometimes that leads to a strict one-colour deck, usually I would have two or three. Elf deck was green but had a little bit of red too.

Silas

Get out of my text game forums, fkn nerds.

Rom

My friend actually got me into this stuff a couple of months ago, I always wrote it off as being too luck-based before. Anyway, I'm a huge fan now and my perception of it has changed a lot. I don't have any physical cards right now since I've been waiting on the most recent rotation to build my first standard format deck, but I've been playing a lot on Cockatrice and I'm kind of in love! It's really fun, and it's a nice way to make some new friends.

My only real problem with the game is that it's a huge (HUGE) money-sink unless you are very good, and since I already have Achaea to fill my money-sink needs I've been sticking to free-play stuff.

Ourania

I used to play a lot. A LOT, but I also gave it up around Urza Saga and Legacy. I still have all my ultra rare shiny cards in frames around my house. Good times. I used to play as White and Green.

Kazu

Gods, the game is a terrible money sink. I quite right after high school, but I didn't have a debit card to order online. You'd be better off ordering single cards from online stores rather than spending a fortune on buying random booster packs.

Here's the one I remember looking at around the time. I always though their prices were pretty fair.

http://www.cardkingdom.com/

Alcinae

I've always been interested in starting up sometime, but it just seemed like too much of an investment unless it was online, which I know it is. I go on a forum that talks about it quite a lot, and I know they recently released a new set, actually, titled Theros which revolves around gods and mythology, so you may want to check that out.

Here's a link I found: http://www.examiner.com/article/theros-now-available-new-cards-decks-and-strategies-for-magic-players

Also check out reddit's MTG subreddit: http://www.reddit.com/r/magictcg/ with over 70k members.

Sometimes /tg/ also holds discussions on MTG sometimes as well so they can be a good source for advice. They're relatively friendly too.

Katzchen

There's MTG on steam, cheaper, and better for those of us who don't have lots of people around to play.

I have thousands of cards stashed away somewhere from where I used to collect them, but have only played online recently.

Kazu

There used to be several free ways to play online that had fairly updated cardlists. I looked recently though, and I believe wizard sued them all to stop operation.

Sidonia

I used to play in early high school, gave up because I couldn't afford it. I think I only bought half a dozen booster packs ever, the rest I used to buy cheap from a game shop near my school. My pride and joy was my blue/red counter/burn deck, but I've been told the metagame has evolved past creatureless control decks these days.

Rom

Kazu said:

There used to be several free ways to play online that had fairly updated cardlists. I looked recently though, and I believe wizard sued them all to stop operation.

Cockatrice got taken down by Wizards, but it's up under some different people here.

Kyrra

Used to play a lot in high school with a friend. Had a love for blue/green decks back then.

Said friend moved interstate and now we play together over steam instead.

Alcinae

There's also OCTGN you can use, granted if you download the image packs for the cards I believe.

Edit for spelling

Jonners

Wizards? You mean Hasbro?

Arditi

I prefer drafting. Cuts the collection aspect out and turns it more into skill. Assuming that you're not sitting next to the guy who pulls a Baneslayer from every pack.

Blue/black or white/black here. Really, any color as long as it's black. >_>

Katzchen

White/green, blue/white, white/black, blue/black, blue, white, black, 5 colour decks... hmm, I have gone through stages of preferring any of these. The one thing in common is, never red!

Shirszae

I've always wanted to play, same as I've always wanted to play paper&pen roleplaying games, but sadly such things are not very popular in my country. Would quite like it if anyone teaches me to play online.

Katzchen

Just bought magic the gathering 2014 on steam to try it out, I quite like it. Playing on a borrowed laptop that isn't that great, and it runs fine, no lag which is pretty awesome. The interface of the game is pretty smooth too, I prefer it to the 2013, 2012 was nice but had some flaws.

@Shirszae if you buy the steam version it will have tutorials. Not sure about other online ones.It's only $10US.

Kyrra

Katzchen said:

Just bought magic the gathering 2014 on steam to try it out, I quite like it. Playing on a borrowed laptop that isn't that great, and it runs fine, no lag which is pretty awesome. The interface of the game is pretty smooth too, I prefer it to the 2013, 2012 was nice but had some flaws.

@Shirszae if you buy the steam version it will have tutorials. Not sure about other online ones.

I primarily play 2013 but I picked up 2014 recently.

Katzchen

I played 2012 a fair bit, but didn't like 2013 for some reason. And of course all the players moved to there, so online kinda sucked.

Valdus

I'll look into the digital aspects of the game on Steam for sure, but I very much like the idea of collecting the cards physically.

Valdus

You're talking about the Magic 2014: Duels of the Planeswalkers  right @Katzchen ?

Katzchen

Valdus said:

You're talking about the Magic 2014: Duels of the Planeswalkers  right @Katzchen ?

Yes.