My friends and I want to get into some casual MTG after we played a couple matches amongst ourselves and immediately got hooked. so I bought an event deck (khans of tarkir), a duel deck pack (elspeth and kiora), and 4 booster packs for myself yesterday. I have absolutely no clue which cards are good and how to make a proper deck so I was wondering if someone can maybe help me make a combined deck with the khans event and the elspeth deck. Would it be a good idea to try to just get all the best cards from both decks into one deck for casual play or should I leave the decks alone since they have some synergy?
I'm going to be playing tonight so is there one singular deck I can make with the best cards from both decks? I dont really know what is strong or not yet since I havent familiarized myself with all the cards. I just want to get the strongest result out of what I bought so I can practice for a couple months and then maybe get into standard. I seem to have bought mostly white/black cards so I figure I will go with that for now.
I also got some cards from the boosters i bought. I can make a list if anybody is going to help me
Hi Spinny and welcome to the game. It's hard to give a direct answer to a broad question like that, but the best way to learn how to judge which cards are good or not is to keep playing the game! The intro and duel decks you purchased are a great way to start learning and I would advise you keep them as they are right now and just play them against your friends. This will allow you to see how each deck plays out. The duel deck you bought is especially awesome for playing against a friend because the two decks are balanced to play against one another.
Try your decks against your friends and see how it plays out as is. Then ask yourself what you liked and disliked about the deck? Were there any cool synergies you found that worked really well? If so, maybe you could look into adding more cards into your deck that expand on that synergy! Or maybe you came across some cards that felt underwhelming or didn't do too much for you when played them. You could look into replacing these cards with something else. Maybe try out some of the cards from your booster packs!
Magic is a very large and complex game. There are some great guides out there that can help you learn the basics of understanding power level, how the different colors compare against one another, and how to build a deck from scratch (google can help with that). These resources can help you hit the ground running. The best thing to do as a new player though, in my opinion, is to just keep playing, and experimenting. See a card that looks cool? Throw it in your deck, see how it plays out.
Hope that helps some. If you have any specific questions about the game or deckbuilding suggestions feel free to PM me.
As stated the best way to learn is to play. Try to get a feel of playing different strategies. When I was new and even to this day ill pick a mechanic such as Mill, Trample, Flying, Protection, etc and build my deck around that ideal. OR try going with something in the tribal area such as soldiers knights etc. Also looking at other builds here on the forums will give you ideas. Feel free to browse my linked decks in my sig.
Deck building in magic takes thought and trial and error. Don't get discouraged if your ideas don't work out when you first go to building decks, it happens to all of us.
Also, there's lots of good articles out there -- especially on the Wizards of the Coast website, with columns like Level One. Just Google it, and try articles until you get one meant for a newer player (some get technical and some are just intended at a higher level than starting out).
Some general thoughts:
- Have a good "curve" of spells: a few cheap creatures, most of your spells costing between 3 and 5, and very few expensive "finishers". Exceptions can be made if your deck is built to get lots of mana fast or doesn't need expensive things, but generally this'll help prevent getting too many or too few lands relative to the cost of your spells. In the same vein, 24 lands is good in most decks.
-No more than 3 colors to start. No more than 60 cards. Basic stuff.
-Synergy is a good thing to train yourself to see. Take a look at the deck lists: are there any cards that are better together? Any themes? I'm not certain, but I think the Elspeth deck has a minor theme of "Soldiers matter", where soldiers tend to be more valuable because of the creatures that, say, give them +1/+0 or whatever. (I'd have to double check that, don't take me at my word. Check yourself: is there anything here that gets better if I play more soldiers?)
Not sure if any of this helps -- not sure what level you're at. Good luck!
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--Buck v Bell, 1927. This case, regarding the compulsory sterilization of inmates at mental institutions, has -- somehow -- never been overturned. Just a wee PSA for ya.
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My friends and I want to get into some casual MTG after we played a couple matches amongst ourselves and immediately got hooked. so I bought an event deck (khans of tarkir), a duel deck pack (elspeth and kiora), and 4 booster packs for myself yesterday. I have absolutely no clue which cards are good and how to make a proper deck so I was wondering if someone can maybe help me make a combined deck with the khans event and the elspeth deck. Would it be a good idea to try to just get all the best cards from both decks into one deck for casual play or should I leave the decks alone since they have some synergy?
The decklists are HERE and HERE
I'm going to be playing tonight so is there one singular deck I can make with the best cards from both decks? I dont really know what is strong or not yet since I havent familiarized myself with all the cards. I just want to get the strongest result out of what I bought so I can practice for a couple months and then maybe get into standard. I seem to have bought mostly white/black cards so I figure I will go with that for now.
I also got some cards from the boosters i bought. I can make a list if anybody is going to help me
Caves of Koilos
War Oracle
Helm of the Gods
Blessed Spirits
Celestial Flare
Touch of Moonglove
Kytheon's Tactics x2
Cruel Revival
Sigil of Valor
Infernal Scarring
Gold-Forged Sentinel
Catacomb Slug
Patron of the Valiant
Thornbow Archer
Aven Battle Priest
Malakir Cullblade
Guardian Automaton
Undead Servant
Stalwart Aven
Deadbridge Shaman
Auramancer
Blightcaster
Mighty Leap
Read the Bones
Alchemist's Vial
Evolving Wilds
Brawler's Plate
Thanks, I appreciate any and all help!
Modern: WUBValue Titan UMerfolk WGDeath and Taxes
sorry, didn't notice the casual section.
Looks like a mod moved the thread already
Try your decks against your friends and see how it plays out as is. Then ask yourself what you liked and disliked about the deck? Were there any cool synergies you found that worked really well? If so, maybe you could look into adding more cards into your deck that expand on that synergy! Or maybe you came across some cards that felt underwhelming or didn't do too much for you when played them. You could look into replacing these cards with something else. Maybe try out some of the cards from your booster packs!
Magic is a very large and complex game. There are some great guides out there that can help you learn the basics of understanding power level, how the different colors compare against one another, and how to build a deck from scratch (google can help with that). These resources can help you hit the ground running. The best thing to do as a new player though, in my opinion, is to just keep playing, and experimenting. See a card that looks cool? Throw it in your deck, see how it plays out.
Hope that helps some. If you have any specific questions about the game or deckbuilding suggestions feel free to PM me.
-Dan
Deck building in magic takes thought and trial and error. Don't get discouraged if your ideas don't work out when you first go to building decks, it happens to all of us.
Need any help let us know
Some general thoughts:
- Have a good "curve" of spells: a few cheap creatures, most of your spells costing between 3 and 5, and very few expensive "finishers". Exceptions can be made if your deck is built to get lots of mana fast or doesn't need expensive things, but generally this'll help prevent getting too many or too few lands relative to the cost of your spells. In the same vein, 24 lands is good in most decks.
-No more than 3 colors to start. No more than 60 cards. Basic stuff.
-Synergy is a good thing to train yourself to see. Take a look at the deck lists: are there any cards that are better together? Any themes? I'm not certain, but I think the Elspeth deck has a minor theme of "Soldiers matter", where soldiers tend to be more valuable because of the creatures that, say, give them +1/+0 or whatever. (I'd have to double check that, don't take me at my word. Check yourself: is there anything here that gets better if I play more soldiers?)
Not sure if any of this helps -- not sure what level you're at. Good luck!
--Buck v Bell, 1927. This case, regarding the compulsory sterilization of inmates at mental institutions, has -- somehow -- never been overturned. Just a wee PSA for ya.