I like to build powerful decks. I may have a look at a net deck, build it with changes of my own. Now a lot of these decks are tournament level decks, but I don't use them for tournaments. I just play them against my friends. Now I don't buy the expensive cards, I trade for them. I just buy the cheap parts of a deck. So most of the time, I may spend $50 on a deck. I keep trying to improve each deck over time. I just like to build a deck to the best it can be.
Some of my friends think I am going a bit overboard with deck building since most of the time they use a lot of budget decks and cards. I'm just wondering if I not casual player anymore.
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Modern: U Merfolk | GR Tron | WUR Jeskai Control | WBG Abzan Company
A casual player is defined by how he or she approaches the game. If the game is a casual way to have fun with friends, the player is casual. If the game is a way to compete and prove skill, the player is competitive.
It is the height of foolishness to try to use price tags as a defining factor of whether or not a player is casual. Glimpse the Unthinkable is not a high-profile tournament card, but it has a $25 price tag from casual appeal. Similarly, there is nothing "more casual" about trading for a card, rather than simply buying it. (Indeed, value trading one's way up to an expensive card can be argued to require a less casual approach than simply shelling out the cash for it.)
By the same token, revising and refining deck lists does not somehow make one a competitive player. If the player's approach to the game is still one that prioritizes fun with friends, rather than victory over opponents, it doesn't matter how much time he or she devotes to deckbuilding. However, there is a small consideration in the process that can distinguish casual players from competitive players. Precisely because the casual player values fun games, he or she is less likely to make decisions that increase efficiency or efficacy at the cost of fun--either his or her own, or that of the other players. A player can spend hours upon hours on a single deck and still be considered casual, so long as the intent is not simply to win at any cost.
You're wondering if you're not a casual player any more. To figure that out, you need to ask yourself why you play. Is it to have fun with your friends, or to beat them?
I am a casual player, I develop a deck theme and make the deck as powerful as I can, such as tribal or focusing on one specific card/combo. There are cards I refuse to use in my decks due to their power level but I always carry a competitive deck with minimal limits just in case I face a serious opponent.
I think the definition of casual is defined by how willing you are to make a deck that focuses on flavor first and winning second. You can, of course, make a flavorful deck that wins consistently, but you will not make your victory so un-fun for your opponent.
Really, no matter how you define casual vs competitive, there will be scenarios and arguments that will pick that explanation apart, not to mention the fact that it's pretty subjective. For example, (I feel that) a player that prioritizes victory (even at the cost of running unfun archetypes like Stax or prison) and that takes note of why they lost specific games in order to not make those mistakes again in an atempt to become as good a player as possible, can still easily be considered casual if they've never registered for a tournament or played for any sort of prize, and have no intention to.
In your case, with you doing research on powerful deck ideas, and it sounds like outspending your friends, or at least going further out or your way to get the cards you need to build better decks, if you never go to any events or tournaments, then personally I'd still consider you a casual player. However, by doing your homework on decks and increasing your MTG knowledge base, you are becoming a better player. If your friends are stagnant in their playing abilities while you are progressing, then it's definitely going to create an imbalance in your playgroup. This would be exacerbated if you are simultaneously picking up more powerful cards than they are (picking up Legacy Staples while they're playing budget decks or example). Keeping a playgroup balanced is pretty much impossible, and if you are the outlier, then unfortunately it's probably going to be on you to self regulate to keep from dominating, unless you can convince your playgroup to get more involved with Magic as well. But again, if all your games are at the kitchen table with nothing on the line but bragging rights, I would find it hard to say you've crossed some threshhold and become a "competitive " player.
What happens if you move to a new town, and find a new casual playgroup, but this one is full of people who've been playing Magic for 15+ years, read up on strategies and keep up with deck archetypes, and are just flat out better players than you. Would you suddenly become reclassified as casual again? What if one of your friends moved, and found a very weak playgroup where he was the dominant player, what would he consider himself? You really cannot define labels like casual and competitive by skill level in comparison to your peers, as that will always be a fluctuating relationship.
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Some of my friends think I am going a bit overboard with deck building since most of the time they use a lot of budget decks and cards. I'm just wondering if I not casual player anymore.
U Merfolk | GR Tron | WUR Jeskai Control | WBG Abzan Company
EDH:
G Ezuri, Renegade Leader, Fighting for Rivendell
WU Brago, King Eternal, Long Live the King
WUBRG Scion of the Ur-Dragon, Worship the Dragon
Try running pauper decks. They are well known for being budgety decks that don't cost much while still being very effective.
Legacy Deck: Burn
Hero Path: The Warrior, the Warmonger, Forged in War
It is the height of foolishness to try to use price tags as a defining factor of whether or not a player is casual. Glimpse the Unthinkable is not a high-profile tournament card, but it has a $25 price tag from casual appeal. Similarly, there is nothing "more casual" about trading for a card, rather than simply buying it. (Indeed, value trading one's way up to an expensive card can be argued to require a less casual approach than simply shelling out the cash for it.)
By the same token, revising and refining deck lists does not somehow make one a competitive player. If the player's approach to the game is still one that prioritizes fun with friends, rather than victory over opponents, it doesn't matter how much time he or she devotes to deckbuilding. However, there is a small consideration in the process that can distinguish casual players from competitive players. Precisely because the casual player values fun games, he or she is less likely to make decisions that increase efficiency or efficacy at the cost of fun--either his or her own, or that of the other players. A player can spend hours upon hours on a single deck and still be considered casual, so long as the intent is not simply to win at any cost.
You're wondering if you're not a casual player any more. To figure that out, you need to ask yourself why you play. Is it to have fun with your friends, or to beat them?
If your format of choice is kitchen table magic, then your´re casual even if you play a full power Vintage deck that costs 20 thousand dollars.
I think the definition of casual is defined by how willing you are to make a deck that focuses on flavor first and winning second. You can, of course, make a flavorful deck that wins consistently, but you will not make your victory so un-fun for your opponent.
Fun, creativity, and mutual entertainment.
Shu Yun, the Silent Tempest WUR Voltron Control
Temmet, Vizier of Naktamun WU Unblockable Mirror Trickery
Ra's al Ghul (Sidar Kondo) and Face-Down Ninjas
Brudiclad, Token Engineer
Vaevictis (VV2) the Dire Lantern
Rona, Disciple of Gix
Tiana the Auror
Hallar
Ulrich the Politician
Zur the Rebel
Scorpion, Locust, Scarab, Egyptian Gods
O-Kagachi, Mathas, Mairsil
"Non-Tribal" Tribal Generals, Eggs
In your case, with you doing research on powerful deck ideas, and it sounds like outspending your friends, or at least going further out or your way to get the cards you need to build better decks, if you never go to any events or tournaments, then personally I'd still consider you a casual player. However, by doing your homework on decks and increasing your MTG knowledge base, you are becoming a better player. If your friends are stagnant in their playing abilities while you are progressing, then it's definitely going to create an imbalance in your playgroup. This would be exacerbated if you are simultaneously picking up more powerful cards than they are (picking up Legacy Staples while they're playing budget decks or example). Keeping a playgroup balanced is pretty much impossible, and if you are the outlier, then unfortunately it's probably going to be on you to self regulate to keep from dominating, unless you can convince your playgroup to get more involved with Magic as well. But again, if all your games are at the kitchen table with nothing on the line but bragging rights, I would find it hard to say you've crossed some threshhold and become a "competitive " player.
What happens if you move to a new town, and find a new casual playgroup, but this one is full of people who've been playing Magic for 15+ years, read up on strategies and keep up with deck archetypes, and are just flat out better players than you. Would you suddenly become reclassified as casual again? What if one of your friends moved, and found a very weak playgroup where he was the dominant player, what would he consider himself? You really cannot define labels like casual and competitive by skill level in comparison to your peers, as that will always be a fluctuating relationship.