I remember being frustrated with not knowing what deck to build for standard. This was about the time M11 was released. I had gotten into magic a few months prior so I didnt have much a collection. Before summer ended a friend from school had given me a bunch of old kamigawa and a little bit of scourge and time spiral. So when I couldnt think of a deck to build for standard I tried out this wonderful format called EDH!!
So, what about you guys (and girls?)
What got you into this well loved format?!
A friend and I had just started playing—about a year and a half ago—and he mentions to me one day about a new format some guys at our LGS had showed him. He explained it to me and I remember thinking, "That sounds stupid." Luckily, he didn't agree and built a couple decks (which were pretty awful looking back now) and he wrangled me into a couple games. And, in which I'm sure will become a cliché in this thread, that was all it took to get me hooked.
Now, I play almost exclusively EDH, and still love this format.
Some people got into it in my meta. It sounded like a broken format to me, so I tried to make a deck to break it and ruin everyone's fun - unsuccessfully, of course. I kept trying to make unstoppable decks by exploiting the general zone, but instead discovered that, although it wasn't broken, it was a hell of a lot of fun. Maybe that's why my decks are still very general-centric? To me, that's the most fun part of the format, getting to build around a cool legend.
About two years ago, the only guy in my old playgroup who was bothered about the Magic-related internet at that time (beyond the mothership and the spoilers here) told the rest of us about this fun-sounding new format he'd read about in an article somewhere. We all thought it was worth a try, went home and built horrible decks, and the rest is history.
One of the guys in my dorm this year plays Magic, and I found this out during the second week or so of the first semester. We started playing together, and he started talking about EDH. He had two decks with him: Heartless Hidetsugu and Momir Vig, Simic Visionary. I played a couple games with him, and decided to start getting into the format.
For me it was simple. Standard is too expensive. I've already got most of the EDH staples both online and in paper and so I figured why bother trying to get a set of Jaces or Titans when I can use the one that I have in EDH?
as a person who loved tinkering with decks, awesome interactions and legacy/vintage formats, the power level and customization drew me in. the deck building stipulations turned out to be much more fun than i originally thought they would be. when a buddy of mine told me about the format about 4 years ago, i never looked back at standard and only play limited to acquire new edh/legacy/vintage goodness. everyone who i have introduced the format to since then has become instantly hooked.
I always thought it looked like an interesting format, but my barrier to entry was that I didn't particularly want to take apart my existing decks, many of which I would have to cannibalize to create the EDH decks I wanted. But after playing them very little last year, I decided that there really isn't a market for legacy-legal casual-yet-cutthroat, I figured it was probably worth doing.
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My Moderator Helpdesk
Currently Playing:
Legacy: Something U/W Controlish EDH Cube
Hypercube! A New EDH Deck Every Week(ish)!
I Started playing with a college friend back in 2007 I think. We found out each other played Magic and so it was an instant Friendship. His PGS was all about the multiplayer and mine was all about the Standard so we brought different stuff to the table. My first deck was Niv-Mizzet while his was Karn (shattering pulse lulz?) When I got back to my LGS I started telling everyone about the format and how fun it was and slowly it got started in my area.
I had seen some players play it at a local shop but they were playing the more expensive cards.
I was tired of looking at some of my singles in my folder and wanted to use them but realized that I couldn't play Vintage/Legacy because of the costs. Read about EDH and built 3 decks and got my friends into it.
I wanted a deck that I could upgrade over time with a virtually infinite shelf-life. I can't stand 60-card casual decks and couldn't justify Vintage, and you don't get to play many awesome dragons in Legacy - EDH was the natural choice.
For me it was simple. Standard is too expensive. I've already got most of the EDH staples both online and in paper and so I figured why bother trying to get a set of Jaces or Titans when I can use the one that I have in EDH?
Pretty much this. I got tired of having to shell out money every rotation for a format that was "play faries or lose, play jund or lose, ect..."
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Modern (I collect the format):
WURDelver
[/MANA]MANA]R[/MANA]GTron WDeath and Taxes WSoul Sisters RWG Pod Combo URSplinter Twin URStorm RBurn
A meetup I went to got me into it. I had played Magic a few years back and was making a return, luckily I had only invested in a few cards and a box of Scars at the time.
I wasn't a big fan of standard and extended because it always felt like people were playing the same 5-6 decks. Also when I played magic back in the day me and my friends always just built from whatever we owned, so this was convenient.
Also liked the fact that it was a singleton format, most of my decks was just 4 of X that I wanted to abuse lol
The variety, and odds of people drawing what they want all ended up being a big plus, however the expense of building a deck has been a big negative.
All the sudden everyone in my playgroup was playing and I would end up sitting on the sidelines watching them play. I figured I would make a deck just so I wouldn't have to sit around anymore. Haven't looked back since.
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I have officially moved to MTGNexus. I just wanted to let people know as my response time to salvation decks being bumped is very hit or miss.
we use to play a lot of multiplayer. like it wasn't uncommon to sit down there and play 4-8 player games for like 6 hours a day between classes. after awhile though it got a little predictable when you're working with casual 60 cards decks. you end up knowing who to gun for first, when to hold onto your counters, etc. edh was a nicer alternative because of the larger deck size and that you can only ahve 1 copy of any spell. much more unpredictable, much more dynamic.
It started out when I saw a sign for EDH Rules at the LGS. I asked some guys next to me what EDH was, they replied "The best constructed format ever."
They explained the rules, and I loved it. I decided on my general and built the deck.
It was a tough time getting my friends to build decks (They all played standard at the time) so we stayed over at a guys house and we all built decks with commons and uncommons and a 5 rare limit. We each got generals from our binders mine was Vhati Il-Dal, my friends was Sygg, River Cutthroat and the other friends was Gwafa Hazid, Profiteer. We had so much fun that night by the next day they already started building their decks.
Now those two friends never play standard, and almost exclusively play EDH.
I left playing magic for about 1 year, when i came back EDH was being played. I started playing it, and it felt like i was a child again ^^,. Absolutely lovely format! And so addictive xP.
1.) I love singleton formats
2.) I love the eternal format card pool
3.) The color-identity rule ensured that my cutthroat friends wouldn't eventually land on the same pile of 100 cards
4.) There's an avid community
5.) I figured it'd be an easy way to get people into MTG since it's ultimately rather budget friendly if you want, and singleton format are very resistant to becomming stale.
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"I think EDH would be more fun for the majority of participants if players just showed eachother their decks rather than actually playing games out."
I still remember my friend Josh introduced me to it. He had an Uril, the Miststalker (he's always been a super-spike) and convinced me to build a deck next time I came over. So I built Dromar, the Banisher and actually made HIM rage-quit EDH for a while(mass-bouncing his board naming green every turn can piss people off, it seems).
In hindsight that deck seems horrible, playing jank like lichlord of unx because it made dudes and had a built-in win-con in it, and it was pretty horrible mana-fixing to boot. He did later come back to it with Gaddock Teeg(true definition of a spike deck lol) and I was playing Rith, the Awakener at the time. We just had a blast.
Nowadays I can't help but build decks, and follow the EDH meta so hard, looking for new tech through other lists, and always getting advice on what is good cards and the like. Essentially, this is my standard. I treat it like the rest of my friends treat standard. I suppose the most appealing thing for me, is that I only need one-ofs to stay competitive with it, and the power cards are $1-$3. Any format dominated by a a ten mana sorcery seems pretty amazing to me. Also, the randomness a singleton format can lend. I don't play nearly as many tutors as I should, because I do actually enjoy the thrill of the top deck.
IIRC I stumbled across this section of the forums a while bag. I continue to be a tournament player but my start into MTG was very kitchen table casual. Incidentally, my kitchen table casual decks featured things like Berserk, Tolarian Academy, Simic Sky Swallower, Rimefeather Owl, and Tears of Rage. I had most of the notable cards from Onslaught onward just on account of playing through those formats, I'd played a little legacy highlander before, I love deckbuilding, and I never got rid of anything from when I was a casual player. So, I show a friend of mine how it works, he builds Dromar, I build Rith, we each build a spare deck to let others in on the fun, and it snowballs from there.
I had a bunch of old random cards from back in the day that had been collecting dust (i started around revised, quit around urza's legacy...started again with shards of alara).
I really enjoyed playing with my old stuff, but no one was really interested in that for a bunch of reasons, the first and foremost being that people say they don't have the money to build anything to compete in legacy (and certainly not vintage). So I was sorta bummed out (People freak out about ABU duals, but, really, I thought paying $5 each for them way back in the day was excessive....yeah....).
Then a buddy of mine mentioned EDH, I checked it out, built 4-5 decks so I could loan them to people to play and before you know it there are other people having a lot of fun playing random old stuff that is really unexpected.
It's so much fun to surprise people with random cards out of nowhere. People don't even know withering boon, aether snap, or imp's mischief exist...but aren't they ever fun. I've also had so much fun with Aku Djinn and Spike Cannibal.....and that's just in a random janky mono-black deck. Other players have really taken this to new levels with funny things like a "lands" edh deck that does all sorts of crazy things (praetor's counsel, use land's edge to finish people off), or an X-spell deck with Rosheen that's done funny things like pump out an 84/84 apocalypse hydra (that ate a doom blade, but everyone freaking out was fun for everyone), or running around with a 25/25 Krakilin, forcing me to desperately dig for a body double to copy someone's vampire hexmage). The interaction, table politics, and crazy plays are much of what makes the format really entertaining for players of all levels of skill, income, or what have you.
I really hope the popularity of EDH doesn't result in its downfall (cost of many essentials/staples, legacy having dramatic impact on costs as well, desire for sanctioned events and prize-out based on whatever format (prize and multiplayer has always been a problem - people will really stretch to game the system over trying to make sure everyone has a good time).
So, what about you guys (and girls?)
What got you into this well loved format?!
RBUThraximundarUBRRUNiv-Mizzet, the FiremindUR
BWGhost Council of OrzhovaWBWUBRGChild of AlaraGRBUW
WBRKaalia of the VastRBWGBSapling of ColfenorGB
Now, I play almost exclusively EDH, and still love this format.
Standard
GWB Junk Rites GWB
Brewing
GWBU 4-Color Rites/Aggro GWBU
Rules Advisor
WUB Merieke Ri Berit BUW
GWU Phelddagrif 1 2 3 4 UWG
BR Kaervek the Merciless RB
B Chainer, Dementia Master B
WUB Sen Triplets BUW
BG Sisters of Stone Death GB
WUBRG Scion of the Ur-Dragon GRBUW
GWU Angus Mackenzie UWG
R Kumano, Master Yamabushi R
WB Teysa BW
U Higure U
B Geth B
WUBRG Child of Alara 1 2GRBUW
R Zirilan R
U Arcum U
UR Nin RU
BRG Sek'Kuar GRB
U Teferi U
G Melira G
GU Edric UG
BG Glissa GB
Casual
GUB Knacksaw Clique BUG
RWU Sunforger UWR
I'm no longer sitting on my original deck (Rafiq of the Many), but I have two decks that I love to death: Teysa, Orzhov Scion and Intet, the Dreamer.
Legacy: UB(R/G) Storm UB(R/G)
Vintage: UBG Gush Storm UBG
Currently Playing:
Legacy: Something U/W Controlish
EDH Cube
Hypercube! A New EDH Deck Every Week(ish)!
540 Peasant cube- Gold EditionSomething SpicyI was tired of looking at some of my singles in my folder and wanted to use them but realized that I couldn't play Vintage/Legacy because of the costs. Read about EDH and built 3 decks and got my friends into it.
Erebos B | Ghost Council WB | Grimgrin UB | Jhoira UR
Jor Kadeen RW | Melek UR | Mimeoplasm GUB | Rasputin WU
Savra BG | Sisay GW | Teneb BGW | Thada Adel U | Wort BR
I draft and play EDH. If a Standard player can't understand who a card is for, it's probably for me.
I also write things about good films.
WURDelver
[/MANA]MANA]R[/MANA]GTron
WDeath and Taxes
WSoul Sisters
RWG Pod Combo
URSplinter Twin
URStorm
RBurn
I wasn't a big fan of standard and extended because it always felt like people were playing the same 5-6 decks. Also when I played magic back in the day me and my friends always just built from whatever we owned, so this was convenient.
Also liked the fact that it was a singleton format, most of my decks was just 4 of X that I wanted to abuse lol
The variety, and odds of people drawing what they want all ended up being a big plus, however the expense of building a deck has been a big negative.
EDH Decks:
B Toshiro Umezawa B
W Mikaeus, the Lunarch W
G Azusa, Lost but Seeking G
UB Grimgrin, Corpse-Born BU
BGU The Mimeoplasm UGB
GUW Rubinia Soulsinger WUG
GRB Sek'Kuar, Deathkeeper BRG
Signature by Inkfox Aesthetics by Xen
[Modern] Allies
They explained the rules, and I loved it. I decided on my general and built the deck.
It was a tough time getting my friends to build decks (They all played standard at the time) so we stayed over at a guys house and we all built decks with commons and uncommons and a 5 rare limit. We each got generals from our binders mine was Vhati Il-Dal, my friends was Sygg, River Cutthroat and the other friends was Gwafa Hazid, Profiteer. We had so much fun that night by the next day they already started building their decks.
Now those two friends never play standard, and almost exclusively play EDH.
My Mafia Stats - My Helpdesk
G Omnath, Locus of Mana U Arcum Dagsson BUG The Mimeoplasm GW Gaddock Teeg X Karn, Silver Golem
From the mind of Raymond Swanland: Valla, a plane made entirely out of brownish spikes.
2.) I love the eternal format card pool
3.) The color-identity rule ensured that my cutthroat friends wouldn't eventually land on the same pile of 100 cards
4.) There's an avid community
5.) I figured it'd be an easy way to get people into MTG since it's ultimately rather budget friendly if you want, and singleton format are very resistant to becomming stale.
In hindsight that deck seems horrible, playing jank like lichlord of unx because it made dudes and had a built-in win-con in it, and it was pretty horrible mana-fixing to boot. He did later come back to it with Gaddock Teeg(true definition of a spike deck lol) and I was playing Rith, the Awakener at the time. We just had a blast.
Nowadays I can't help but build decks, and follow the EDH meta so hard, looking for new tech through other lists, and always getting advice on what is good cards and the like. Essentially, this is my standard. I treat it like the rest of my friends treat standard. I suppose the most appealing thing for me, is that I only need one-ofs to stay competitive with it, and the power cards are $1-$3. Any format dominated by a a ten mana sorcery seems pretty amazing to me. Also, the randomness a singleton format can lend. I don't play nearly as many tutors as I should, because I do actually enjoy the thrill of the top deck.
Steel Sabotage'ng Orbs of Mellowness since 2011.
BRGotta Get or Get GotRB
(Avatar courtesy of Heylookitsamoose)
I really enjoyed playing with my old stuff, but no one was really interested in that for a bunch of reasons, the first and foremost being that people say they don't have the money to build anything to compete in legacy (and certainly not vintage). So I was sorta bummed out (People freak out about ABU duals, but, really, I thought paying $5 each for them way back in the day was excessive....yeah....).
Then a buddy of mine mentioned EDH, I checked it out, built 4-5 decks so I could loan them to people to play and before you know it there are other people having a lot of fun playing random old stuff that is really unexpected.
It's so much fun to surprise people with random cards out of nowhere. People don't even know withering boon, aether snap, or imp's mischief exist...but aren't they ever fun. I've also had so much fun with Aku Djinn and Spike Cannibal.....and that's just in a random janky mono-black deck. Other players have really taken this to new levels with funny things like a "lands" edh deck that does all sorts of crazy things (praetor's counsel, use land's edge to finish people off), or an X-spell deck with Rosheen that's done funny things like pump out an 84/84 apocalypse hydra (that ate a doom blade, but everyone freaking out was fun for everyone), or running around with a 25/25 Krakilin, forcing me to desperately dig for a body double to copy someone's vampire hexmage). The interaction, table politics, and crazy plays are much of what makes the format really entertaining for players of all levels of skill, income, or what have you.
I really hope the popularity of EDH doesn't result in its downfall (cost of many essentials/staples, legacy having dramatic impact on costs as well, desire for sanctioned events and prize-out based on whatever format (prize and multiplayer has always been a problem - people will really stretch to game the system over trying to make sure everyone has a good time).
Trade/Sell me your Demonic Attorney!