After a few moments of deliberation the judge explained that this was not my opponent’s first offense on this particular infraction and issued a game loss to my opponent. Game three, I did not just cut my opponents deck, I riffle shuffled 8 times. My opponent got stuck on 2 mana and I won handily.
Did the judge think that your opponent was drawing extra cards by mistake or something? If he was cheating, that's not a game loss, it's a DQ and a report to the DCI. Doesn't matter if it's FNM or the Pro Tour.
Why do you suspect mana weaving? Curving out happens, that doesn't necessarily mean mana weaving.
My sense is that the judge is trying to give this player the benefit of the doubt. This player MAY be a serial cheater, but he might also be prone to making mistakes. I happen to know the person who trained this judge that that person was extremely careful about not wielding “judge power” with too heavy a hand. I assume that this judge is trying to follow his trainer’s example. I assume that, if this player continues to have these types of infractions, his penalties will increase.
I suspect mana weaving by drawing on my recollection of past games against this player. My recollection (although I do realize it is potentially flawed/biased) is this player’s mana is extremely consistent. I also can’t remember this player ever riffle shuffling. Additionally, this player plays a deck that is prone to mana issues, and the only instance that I can recall where he experienced mana issues is when I riffle shuffled his deck. Lastly, I recall conversations with other LGS players who have played against this player who recall much the same experience – no mana issues, always the right card at the right time, etc.
Also, I’ve been reading about “cheater profiles” and this player does happen to fit much of what is out there. He is a good magic player. He is charismatic and friendly. He is conversational. If you told most players that this player was caught cheating, their first reaction would be “that guy? No way!”
Mostly this is just a hunch that I intend to investigate. I’ve decided to play an extremely fast deck next FNM and make every attempt to sit near this player. I intend to observe his play and glean whatever information I can. I don’t want an innocent player DQ’s for dumb errors, but I also don’t want the rest of my LGS to lose out to a cheater.
My apologies if this is the wrong sub-forum. Please feel free to move if it is.
This past FNM (8-1-2014) I was in game 2 of my first match (having lost game 1). My back was against the wall. My opponent had curved out perfectly and jammed threat after threat after threat. My opponent passed and I asked; “Cards in hand?”
My opponent answered; “Three.”
I counted every battlefield, hand and graveyard card of my opponents and came to 13. I then counted every battlefield, hand and graveyard card of my own and came to 11. There had been no mulligans. I had one fewer draw than he had (having gone first). I counted again, checked for any card draw spells (and found none), and then counted again. After a few moments of trying to explain the card disparity I called the judge over.
After a few moments of deliberation the judge explained that this was not my opponent’s first offense on this particular infraction and issued a game loss to my opponent. Game three, I did not just cut my opponents deck, I riffle shuffled 8 times. My opponent got stuck on 2 mana and I won handily.
After the match, I started to contemplate all the other matches that particular opponent and I had played in the past, and come to some broad generalizations. He always seems to have the cards he needs when he needs them. He always seems to curve out perfectly, and never misses a land drop.
I’m starting to suspect that this particular player is not only drawing extra cards, but also mana weaving. I doubt that, if this player is a serial cheater, he will every draw extra cards against me in the future, but mana weaving is more difficult to catch. My understanding is that many judges are taught how to identify mana weaving during a deck check. My question is, are there any tell-tale signs that I can look for that might tip me off that I am being presented with a woven deck? I already know how to identify double nickel pile shuffling and their variations, but is there anything else I should be looking for before calling a judge over?
I don’t want to be “that guy” who sees cheaters everywhere because he had one opponent cheat against him one time, nor do I want to be “that guy” who gets owned and tells himself he lost because his opponent somehow cheated. I’d just like a little broader understanding to help protect myself and my LGS from players who might intentionally, or unintentionally be cheating.
Also, if I do see a sign of a woven deck that is presented in a match that I am not involved in, is it appropriate to call a judge?
Cracked a misprinted Hoarding Dragon at a pre-release today. I don't know much about misprints. Does this make the card worthless or are their collectors looking for misprints? Any input would be appreciated.
Round about 2007 I went on vacation to Los Vegas with my girlfriend at the time. She wanted to take a few days to visit friends in Utah, but because of her friend’s strict Mormon beliefs, she felt extremely uncomfortable about bringing me with her to visit her friends. So, I had a few days by myself in Los Vegas.
It was awesome. I can honestly say that exploring Los Vegas by myself was one of the best vacations I ever had. If you like to gamble, you can sit down at a table and not worry about anyone else’s schedule. You can pay for a single ticket to any show you want. It’s a lot of fun.
With the end of the format basically at hand, outside the eventual mega-standard RTR Block + M14 + Theros Block + M15, we're looking at mana curve that is, on average, smaller. There are simply more cards that are better at low casting cost.
iincarna: Even the friends I have who expect me to serve premium beers, drink to get really drunk. But I'm not gonna spend 10-15 bucks more than I could be spending, simply because 2 or 3 of my 9-10 friends are picky. Especially when I'm paying to have food to grill for everyone too.
Again, to anyone here who has disagreed with me: If I gave you a playset of Serra Angels for free, no questions asked... would you say "thank you", or would you say "but these aren't Baneslayers"? It is the same thing, except substitute Serra Angel with "PBR" and Baneslayer with "premium beer". And if you were ever to answer the latter, I would question how you were raised tbh.
Here is the root of the issue… You are holding others to your standard of value (beer, getting drunk, partying) while simultaneously refusing to recognize other individuals standard of value as relevant.
You are free to run your parties as you see fit. You don’t really have the right to get perturbed at individuals who don’t like your choice of beer, however. To me, PBR and similar cheap beers are absolutely disgusting. It seem as if you are trying to say that I am obligated to enjoy your choice of party beer because it’s free. There are plenty of free things that are awful.
Your Serra Angel analogy is actually much better than you think. If you came up to me and handed me a play set of Serra Angels, I would appreciate the GESTURE, but my attitude wouldn’t be: “OMG! I need to jam these into my deck wherever they fit!” My attitude would be to accept the Serra Angels and politely file them away under “Cards I could not care less about.” YOU think the Serra Angels have value to ME, but they don’t and there is nothing you can do to change that… nor should you. Bad cards are bad cards. Bad beer is bad beer.
You party however you want to party. Why is it that you have a problem with people who drink whatever they like to drink? You’re holding others to a standard that you yourself do not adhere to.
A - "Time to grow up"? Are you really that smug, arrogant, and ignorant to think that your form of partying is somehow more "mature" or valid than mine?
You may not realize it, but you just answered your original question right here. You may party to get drunk, but not all people do. If you accept that not all people do, than you must also accept that many people’s own definition of a good time revolves around drinking quality beer with quality friends. Drinking cheap, low-quality beer is not my definition of a good time. That doesn’t mean I’m a beer snob. That just means my definition of a good time is different than yours and you appear to hold the philosophy that, so long as no one is getting hurt, people are free to indulge in their own definition of a good time as they see fit.
My social group does not party to get drunk. We socialize and enjoy quality beer and getting drunk does happen occasionally, but that is usually a sign that we need to stop drinking. The experience of taste and quality is the central theme around our beer drinking events. Getting drunk is merely an unintended consequence. To me, drinking something like PBR is literally like drinking stale rainwater drained from a puddle in which animal poop has been festering for several days. If someone handed you a red solo cup filled with that, would you smile and drink it because it’s “free”?
If I want to have a party in which getting drunk is the objective, beer is the absolute last beverage I would consider serving. I would have my freezer stocked with vodka, rum, whiskey, and maybe even have some wine in the refrigerator.
I will be receiving a lawsuit settlement to the tune of $3400. I have to remain a little hush-hush on the details, but a certain for-profit online school based in Arizona can go to hell.
The sensible thing to do would be to save the money, or invest it, but to be honest, I don’t really want to be sensible. I’m sensible in every aspect of my life. I have a good job, I have my bills under control, and I have a strong savings and 401k. I want to do something with this money that is NOT sensible.
Now, I’m not about to head to the casino, drop it all on black, and let come what may, but I did have the idea of taking my girlfriend, her two sisters, and their significant others, on a short cruise. My girlfriend said that that idea made her feel a little uncomfortable (we handle our finances very equitably and she doesn’t like feeling indebted). So, I’m here looking for ideas.
What not-overly-sensible but non-overly-ridiculous ideas does $3400 buy?
Checklands (M10+Innistrad Block) would be acceptable. They were only made overpowered by the simultaneous existence of the shocklands within the same Standard enviroment. Since all the scrylands are "lands" an not "Plains and Islands" the Standard environment manabase should not be overpowered.
However, if for some reason it was beneficial to me, I could also choose to double the 3 damage from Lightning Strike to 6, and then add 2 to that damage for a total of 8 via Pyromancer’s Gauntlet.
Inflation of the USD, they keep printing off more money so everything gets more expensive,
This literally has almost no influence over the price of Magic Cards… particularly eternal format staples.
Since Magic was released in 1993 the cumulative rate of inflation is 63.5% (http://www.usinflationcalculator.com/). A $2.45 booster in 1993 is worth $4.01 now. Good luck trying to find someone willing to sell an Alpha, Beta, or Revised booster for $4.01. Those boosters are obscenely priced because they are extremely difficult to come by and contain the potential for extremely rare cards.
Another analysis is the price of the card Desecration Demon. In early 2013 its median price was between $1.53 and $2.79. Then, something weird happened in August 2013 when its price began to spike as high as $11.69 in October 2013. Its price then steadily declined until it settled at about $4.51 today.
The 1.4% 2013 inflation rate should put that $1.53 price at about $1.55. But it isn’t. What factor could possibly inflate that price?
The card was not good in any format until the release of Theros made this card a Tier 1 deck staple. People wanted it, demand went up sharply. After people got it, demand declined and so price kept pace.
Lets look at another card; Thragtusk. In early 2013 its median price was about $13.18. Its price declined steadily until about October 2013 when it tanked to about $3.50. It’s price continues to decline today.
What factor could possibly account for a cards price diminishing despite the inflation rate?
Thragtusk was a Standard staple. People recognized that it was good, but not good enough for eternal formats and its demand diminished steadily until Standard rotation, at which point it completely tanked.
Inflation and Fed policy has about as much impact on the cost of Magic cards as the price of tea in China.
And this makes more sense than reprints why? Just because Wizards made Modern based on the new card frame doesn't mean that if they change the card frame there will automatically be a new format for it.
I believe there will eventually be a new format based on the new card design for numerous reasons that are not necessarily on topic. Card price in relation to eternal formats is only one aspect upon which I base my prediction. I believe that many exceptionally powerful cards and card combinations within eternal formats are viewed as “mistakes” by Wizards. I believe that there is little interest in Wizards to “retrofit” eternal formats whenever a new “mistake” crops up. Legacy/Vintage was Magic 1.0. Modern was Magic 2.0. The new card border is Wizards understanding that there will be a need for a Magic 3.0 and way to communicate to new players what cards can be played within Magic 3.0.
I suspect Modern Masters was a “band aid” solution to the issue of card availability within Modern. I also believe that the result of Modern Masters was proof that, despite “band aids” prices will continue to rise and the long-term financial sustainability of current eternal formats is untenable. Wizards focus will be on supporting Magic 3.0 in the future. It’s a software business model that is quite popular. Wizards just figured out a way to do it with physical objects.
I don’t really see why this prediction is so outlandish.
I think the Modern and Legacy spikes are pretty understandable. Is Standard spiking too?
No. Standard deck prices have been about the same for a long time now, with this Standard season probably cheaper than average thanks to all the monocolored decks. This makes sense, since Standard sets are always printed to demand, so there are always enough Standard staples for a given player base. It's only when you look at older sets, which were printed with far smaller player bases in mind, that supply issues come up.
I agree with this. Pre-rotation tier-1 standard decks could cost around $400-$600 with Naya Midrange topping the curve at about $1000. Now, a tier-1 standard deck costs between $200-$400.
Here’s the issue in my mind:
1. Currents sets are only getting more and more popular. Wizards has gone to great lengths to grow their player base in the last 5 years and new magic players overwhelmingly enter into Standard. A certain percentage of new players will move into the modern, legacy, and EDH communities. These communities compete with one another for cards that are mostly no longer in print.
2. The card pool is only shrinking across aggregate eternal formats. People leave the game and hold on to their collection and (sadly) cards do get destroyed or stolen. With a growing player base trickling down from Standard card prices will only continue to rise.
4. There is a “generational” disparity in financial resources of the Magic community. Players, like myself, who got into the game in the 90’s as a teenager, acquired cards through minimum-wage jobs and whatever we could scrounge together from loose change. Twenty years later, we are now largely in the midst of well-paying careers. If we want cards, we can buy them almost regardless of price. This, in turn, drives the price up. The kids who got into the game as teenagers ten years ago, are finishing up college and getting their first “real” jobs. Card price is still an issue, but they too have the disposable income that drives card prices up.
Inevitably, the burden of the financial investment to get into any eternal format will paradoxically extinguish that format’s growth. In my opinion, Wizards choice to create the new card design with M15 is the first step in a long-term plan to address this issue. I believe they will create a new “eternal” format off this card design and what we know as Modern, Legacy, and EDH will be relegated to a nigh-unsupported collection of formats. Players who have a collection of current Modern and Legacy staples will be free to play amongst their ever-shrinking player groups, with the occasional tournament. Meanwhile, the Standard environment will give rise to a new and broadly supported Modern and EDH environment based solely on the new card design.
First, some background on me. I am currently employed as a software engineer and I have a background in creative fields that range from web development, app creation, video game design, to 3D development. I have been a working professional for roughly 13 years. Although I like to think I have a good deal of knowledge in this area, I am also NOT a lawyer, so please do not take my advice as legal counsel.
These intellectual property rights contracts are a common thing in this industry. They are also not new and often go hand-in-hand with non-compete agreements (employment contracts which stipulate that you will not work for a competitor within X [usually 4 or 5] years of leaving your employer).
In every state I have ever heard of, it is illegal for these contracts to exist in perpetuity. They can certainly exist for the period of employment, but even then, they are difficult to enforce. The non-compete agreements are also illegal in many states and for those that aren’t; businesses usually have a legal way of circumventing them (contract employment, job titles that obfuscate the nature of employment, etc.). If these contracts were eternally legally binding than no one would ever be able to change technology jobs and entire industries would die of brain-drain.
If your son is using company time or, even if he’s off the clock, using company resources (computers, software, email, professional resources, research) your son’s employer can lay claim to what your son produces. However, if your son uses his own time and resources, it would be extremely difficult for your son’s employer to lay claim to his intellectual property. That’s not to say an argument cannot be made, but your son can also refuse to hand over whatever it is he created. This may jeopardize his employment, and your son’s employer may pursue legal action against him.
Legal action is extremely uncommon unless your son’s employer determines that the potential revenue generated by obtaining the intellectual property rights to your son’s creation is worth more than the cost to pursue legal action. In which case, your son should have the financial resources to defend himself in court.
While your son is employed his biggest concern will be creating something on his own time that his company will want. They may threaten to fire him if he does not hand over whatever he makes. Your son should be prepared to walk away from his job to protect his ideas or hand over his ideas to protect his job. Regardless of which route he chooses, he should not talk about outside creative projects he is involved in while at work or via social networking. That is good advice for anyone whether they are working under an intellectual property contract or not.
Technology professionals should be extremely wary of companies with intellectual property contracts that seem exceptionally egregious. This is usually indicative of a company that treats its employees poorly, pays them poorly, or both. It is usually a way to scare inexperienced technology professionals away from leaving the company. I myself was once threatened by a CEO who asked me to sign a 5-year intellectual property rights contract before he had even hired me. He wanted to intimidate me into taking the job and not being able to leave. Needless to say, entering into a full-blown screaming match with the person giving you an interview is usually a strong indication that the position is not for you.
I don’t know your son’s work environment but often “dream jobs” can turn out to be nightmares. Often, young technology professionals have a bad habit of deceiving themselves into believing they have a good job (particularly in the video game and app creation industries) when, if they take a step back and objectively look at their environment and pay, they actually do not. I generally suggest to any technology professional, whether they’ve been working for 1 year or 30 years… if their company is pushing egregious intellectual property rights contracts upon its employees, that is usually a very strong sign that it is time to look for new employment.
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I suspect mana weaving by drawing on my recollection of past games against this player. My recollection (although I do realize it is potentially flawed/biased) is this player’s mana is extremely consistent. I also can’t remember this player ever riffle shuffling. Additionally, this player plays a deck that is prone to mana issues, and the only instance that I can recall where he experienced mana issues is when I riffle shuffled his deck. Lastly, I recall conversations with other LGS players who have played against this player who recall much the same experience – no mana issues, always the right card at the right time, etc.
Also, I’ve been reading about “cheater profiles” and this player does happen to fit much of what is out there. He is a good magic player. He is charismatic and friendly. He is conversational. If you told most players that this player was caught cheating, their first reaction would be “that guy? No way!”
Mostly this is just a hunch that I intend to investigate. I’ve decided to play an extremely fast deck next FNM and make every attempt to sit near this player. I intend to observe his play and glean whatever information I can. I don’t want an innocent player DQ’s for dumb errors, but I also don’t want the rest of my LGS to lose out to a cheater.
This past FNM (8-1-2014) I was in game 2 of my first match (having lost game 1). My back was against the wall. My opponent had curved out perfectly and jammed threat after threat after threat. My opponent passed and I asked; “Cards in hand?”
My opponent answered; “Three.”
I counted every battlefield, hand and graveyard card of my opponents and came to 13. I then counted every battlefield, hand and graveyard card of my own and came to 11. There had been no mulligans. I had one fewer draw than he had (having gone first). I counted again, checked for any card draw spells (and found none), and then counted again. After a few moments of trying to explain the card disparity I called the judge over.
After a few moments of deliberation the judge explained that this was not my opponent’s first offense on this particular infraction and issued a game loss to my opponent. Game three, I did not just cut my opponents deck, I riffle shuffled 8 times. My opponent got stuck on 2 mana and I won handily.
After the match, I started to contemplate all the other matches that particular opponent and I had played in the past, and come to some broad generalizations. He always seems to have the cards he needs when he needs them. He always seems to curve out perfectly, and never misses a land drop.
I’m starting to suspect that this particular player is not only drawing extra cards, but also mana weaving. I doubt that, if this player is a serial cheater, he will every draw extra cards against me in the future, but mana weaving is more difficult to catch. My understanding is that many judges are taught how to identify mana weaving during a deck check. My question is, are there any tell-tale signs that I can look for that might tip me off that I am being presented with a woven deck? I already know how to identify double nickel pile shuffling and their variations, but is there anything else I should be looking for before calling a judge over?
I don’t want to be “that guy” who sees cheaters everywhere because he had one opponent cheat against him one time, nor do I want to be “that guy” who gets owned and tells himself he lost because his opponent somehow cheated. I’d just like a little broader understanding to help protect myself and my LGS from players who might intentionally, or unintentionally be cheating.
Also, if I do see a sign of a woven deck that is presented in a match that I am not involved in, is it appropriate to call a judge?
It was awesome. I can honestly say that exploring Los Vegas by myself was one of the best vacations I ever had. If you like to gamble, you can sit down at a table and not worry about anyone else’s schedule. You can pay for a single ticket to any show you want. It’s a lot of fun.
With this this in mind, I've been mulling over replacing Desecration Demon with Master of the Feast.
I find myself losing races that I would have won pre-Journey. I just wanted the community's thoughts on this.
Here is the root of the issue… You are holding others to your standard of value (beer, getting drunk, partying) while simultaneously refusing to recognize other individuals standard of value as relevant.
You are free to run your parties as you see fit. You don’t really have the right to get perturbed at individuals who don’t like your choice of beer, however. To me, PBR and similar cheap beers are absolutely disgusting. It seem as if you are trying to say that I am obligated to enjoy your choice of party beer because it’s free. There are plenty of free things that are awful.
Your Serra Angel analogy is actually much better than you think. If you came up to me and handed me a play set of Serra Angels, I would appreciate the GESTURE, but my attitude wouldn’t be: “OMG! I need to jam these into my deck wherever they fit!” My attitude would be to accept the Serra Angels and politely file them away under “Cards I could not care less about.” YOU think the Serra Angels have value to ME, but they don’t and there is nothing you can do to change that… nor should you. Bad cards are bad cards. Bad beer is bad beer.
You party however you want to party. Why is it that you have a problem with people who drink whatever they like to drink? You’re holding others to a standard that you yourself do not adhere to.
You may not realize it, but you just answered your original question right here. You may party to get drunk, but not all people do. If you accept that not all people do, than you must also accept that many people’s own definition of a good time revolves around drinking quality beer with quality friends. Drinking cheap, low-quality beer is not my definition of a good time. That doesn’t mean I’m a beer snob. That just means my definition of a good time is different than yours and you appear to hold the philosophy that, so long as no one is getting hurt, people are free to indulge in their own definition of a good time as they see fit.
My social group does not party to get drunk. We socialize and enjoy quality beer and getting drunk does happen occasionally, but that is usually a sign that we need to stop drinking. The experience of taste and quality is the central theme around our beer drinking events. Getting drunk is merely an unintended consequence. To me, drinking something like PBR is literally like drinking stale rainwater drained from a puddle in which animal poop has been festering for several days. If someone handed you a red solo cup filled with that, would you smile and drink it because it’s “free”?
If I want to have a party in which getting drunk is the objective, beer is the absolute last beverage I would consider serving. I would have my freezer stocked with vodka, rum, whiskey, and maybe even have some wine in the refrigerator.
The sensible thing to do would be to save the money, or invest it, but to be honest, I don’t really want to be sensible. I’m sensible in every aspect of my life. I have a good job, I have my bills under control, and I have a strong savings and 401k. I want to do something with this money that is NOT sensible.
Now, I’m not about to head to the casino, drop it all on black, and let come what may, but I did have the idea of taking my girlfriend, her two sisters, and their significant others, on a short cruise. My girlfriend said that that idea made her feel a little uncomfortable (we handle our finances very equitably and she doesn’t like feeling indebted). So, I’m here looking for ideas.
What not-overly-sensible but non-overly-ridiculous ideas does $3400 buy?
This means, in most cases, if I cast Lightning Strike, I can add the 2 damage to 3 via Pyromancer’s Gauntlet and then double that damage to a total of 10 via Dictate of the Twin Gods.
However, if for some reason it was beneficial to me, I could also choose to double the 3 damage from Lightning Strike to 6, and then add 2 to that damage for a total of 8 via Pyromancer’s Gauntlet.
This literally has almost no influence over the price of Magic Cards… particularly eternal format staples.
Since Magic was released in 1993 the cumulative rate of inflation is 63.5% (http://www.usinflationcalculator.com/). A $2.45 booster in 1993 is worth $4.01 now. Good luck trying to find someone willing to sell an Alpha, Beta, or Revised booster for $4.01. Those boosters are obscenely priced because they are extremely difficult to come by and contain the potential for extremely rare cards.
Another analysis is the price of the card Desecration Demon. In early 2013 its median price was between $1.53 and $2.79. Then, something weird happened in August 2013 when its price began to spike as high as $11.69 in October 2013. Its price then steadily declined until it settled at about $4.51 today.
The 1.4% 2013 inflation rate should put that $1.53 price at about $1.55. But it isn’t. What factor could possibly inflate that price?
Lets look at another card; Thragtusk. In early 2013 its median price was about $13.18. Its price declined steadily until about October 2013 when it tanked to about $3.50. It’s price continues to decline today.
What factor could possibly account for a cards price diminishing despite the inflation rate?
Inflation and Fed policy has about as much impact on the cost of Magic cards as the price of tea in China.
I believe there will eventually be a new format based on the new card design for numerous reasons that are not necessarily on topic. Card price in relation to eternal formats is only one aspect upon which I base my prediction. I believe that many exceptionally powerful cards and card combinations within eternal formats are viewed as “mistakes” by Wizards. I believe that there is little interest in Wizards to “retrofit” eternal formats whenever a new “mistake” crops up. Legacy/Vintage was Magic 1.0. Modern was Magic 2.0. The new card border is Wizards understanding that there will be a need for a Magic 3.0 and way to communicate to new players what cards can be played within Magic 3.0.
I suspect Modern Masters was a “band aid” solution to the issue of card availability within Modern. I also believe that the result of Modern Masters was proof that, despite “band aids” prices will continue to rise and the long-term financial sustainability of current eternal formats is untenable. Wizards focus will be on supporting Magic 3.0 in the future. It’s a software business model that is quite popular. Wizards just figured out a way to do it with physical objects.
I don’t really see why this prediction is so outlandish.
I agree with this. Pre-rotation tier-1 standard decks could cost around $400-$600 with Naya Midrange topping the curve at about $1000. Now, a tier-1 standard deck costs between $200-$400.
Here’s the issue in my mind:
1. Currents sets are only getting more and more popular. Wizards has gone to great lengths to grow their player base in the last 5 years and new magic players overwhelmingly enter into Standard. A certain percentage of new players will move into the modern, legacy, and EDH communities. These communities compete with one another for cards that are mostly no longer in print.
2. The card pool is only shrinking across aggregate eternal formats. People leave the game and hold on to their collection and (sadly) cards do get destroyed or stolen. With a growing player base trickling down from Standard card prices will only continue to rise.
4. There is a “generational” disparity in financial resources of the Magic community. Players, like myself, who got into the game in the 90’s as a teenager, acquired cards through minimum-wage jobs and whatever we could scrounge together from loose change. Twenty years later, we are now largely in the midst of well-paying careers. If we want cards, we can buy them almost regardless of price. This, in turn, drives the price up. The kids who got into the game as teenagers ten years ago, are finishing up college and getting their first “real” jobs. Card price is still an issue, but they too have the disposable income that drives card prices up.
Inevitably, the burden of the financial investment to get into any eternal format will paradoxically extinguish that format’s growth. In my opinion, Wizards choice to create the new card design with M15 is the first step in a long-term plan to address this issue. I believe they will create a new “eternal” format off this card design and what we know as Modern, Legacy, and EDH will be relegated to a nigh-unsupported collection of formats. Players who have a collection of current Modern and Legacy staples will be free to play amongst their ever-shrinking player groups, with the occasional tournament. Meanwhile, the Standard environment will give rise to a new and broadly supported Modern and EDH environment based solely on the new card design.
These intellectual property rights contracts are a common thing in this industry. They are also not new and often go hand-in-hand with non-compete agreements (employment contracts which stipulate that you will not work for a competitor within X [usually 4 or 5] years of leaving your employer).
In every state I have ever heard of, it is illegal for these contracts to exist in perpetuity. They can certainly exist for the period of employment, but even then, they are difficult to enforce. The non-compete agreements are also illegal in many states and for those that aren’t; businesses usually have a legal way of circumventing them (contract employment, job titles that obfuscate the nature of employment, etc.). If these contracts were eternally legally binding than no one would ever be able to change technology jobs and entire industries would die of brain-drain.
If your son is using company time or, even if he’s off the clock, using company resources (computers, software, email, professional resources, research) your son’s employer can lay claim to what your son produces. However, if your son uses his own time and resources, it would be extremely difficult for your son’s employer to lay claim to his intellectual property. That’s not to say an argument cannot be made, but your son can also refuse to hand over whatever it is he created. This may jeopardize his employment, and your son’s employer may pursue legal action against him.
Legal action is extremely uncommon unless your son’s employer determines that the potential revenue generated by obtaining the intellectual property rights to your son’s creation is worth more than the cost to pursue legal action. In which case, your son should have the financial resources to defend himself in court.
While your son is employed his biggest concern will be creating something on his own time that his company will want. They may threaten to fire him if he does not hand over whatever he makes. Your son should be prepared to walk away from his job to protect his ideas or hand over his ideas to protect his job. Regardless of which route he chooses, he should not talk about outside creative projects he is involved in while at work or via social networking. That is good advice for anyone whether they are working under an intellectual property contract or not.
Technology professionals should be extremely wary of companies with intellectual property contracts that seem exceptionally egregious. This is usually indicative of a company that treats its employees poorly, pays them poorly, or both. It is usually a way to scare inexperienced technology professionals away from leaving the company. I myself was once threatened by a CEO who asked me to sign a 5-year intellectual property rights contract before he had even hired me. He wanted to intimidate me into taking the job and not being able to leave. Needless to say, entering into a full-blown screaming match with the person giving you an interview is usually a strong indication that the position is not for you.
I don’t know your son’s work environment but often “dream jobs” can turn out to be nightmares. Often, young technology professionals have a bad habit of deceiving themselves into believing they have a good job (particularly in the video game and app creation industries) when, if they take a step back and objectively look at their environment and pay, they actually do not. I generally suggest to any technology professional, whether they’ve been working for 1 year or 30 years… if their company is pushing egregious intellectual property rights contracts upon its employees, that is usually a very strong sign that it is time to look for new employment.