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- halahel
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Member for 9 years and 1 month
Last active Sat, May, 13 2017 19:26:02
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Dec 18, 2015halahel posted a message on The Magic Market Index for December 16, 2015Agreed. This series is one of the best things about MTG Salvation.Posted in: Articles
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Sep 10, 2015halahel posted a message on The Magic Street Journal: Glitter, Gimmicks, and Glamours - Wizards' Reprint ShenanigansYour first sentence contains a double negative and no fewer than five instances of the passive voice. Impressive.Posted in: Articles
I'm not sure you know what the term "respectfully" ACTUALLY means.
Irony ~ a state of affairs or an event that seems deliberately contrary to what one expects and is often amusing as a result. **A definition to help you out.**
One typically stands on a soapbox. To sit on a soapbox would render its purpose moot. Though I guess if you were tired and didn't want to sit on the ground, you could use a soapbox.
What's an a-la Yu-Gi-Oh? Is that a name-o like Bingo?
The final sentence(?) -- not sure what to call that mass of words - in the first paragraph contains seven(!) instances of the passive voice and a quadruple(!) negative. You have outdone yourself, sir.
A load of tosh on its face? Sounds sexy.
Why? Why? Why? Your "questions" are solipsistic rationales; in other words, tosh on the face.
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Sep 3, 2015halahel posted a message on The Magic Street Journal: Glitter, Gimmicks, and Glamours - Wizards' Reprint ShenanigansEquity theory applies to effort and reward distribution, and was developed by behavioral psychologists to analyze workplace relationships. It has zero applicability to the topic at hand. <I think it's awesome that you took Psych 101, but let's stay focused here.>Posted in: Articles
Magic is so large and varied that it's possible to play, have fun and be relatively competitive on a budget. I don't know anyone who has quit Magic purely because of budgetary concerns; there are simply too many ways to play the game, and people who quit do so for a combination of reasons that may or may not include money.
A major reason that people are willing to invest in Magic and pay for expensive cards is because they have a reasonable expectation that the cards will hold value and, perhaps, become more valuable over time. The increase in value is what makes the game "collectible," and collectibility is a major part of Magic's appeal. I know plenty of folks who rarely, if ever, show up for FNM, but who are rabid collectors. The designers of the game wanted to combine the fun and strategy of chess or D&D with the collectibility of baseball cards.
Why does Magic inspire a passion and devotion unmatched by pretty much any other game? It's partly due to the value associated with the cards, and the sense of connection and esteem that a player feels toward a deck or collection they've assembled over time. I'll go out on a limb here and say that no player group loves Magic and is more devoted to the game that Vintage players. If you spend any time around that community, you would agree.
Lastly, chase cards do not make Standard more expensive. In fact, they have quite the opposite effect. Per an article that appeared today on MTGGoldfish:
"What does this mean? It means Expeditions is great for everyone. People who want to spend $1000 on a playset to pimp out their Legacy or EDH decks have a great new option. Cards like this should exist. In the same way that every set contains cards and themes for various demographics, Wizards can and should pay attention to pimpers and collectors as well. Standard players, on the other hand, benefit not only from having a chance to open a $200 card in their fat pack or booster box, but also because the rest of the set will be priced much lower. The combination of fetches in KTK and Expeditions in BFZ will likely mean that the next six months will be the cheapest Standard in the modern era."
The final bolded part is explained elsewhere in the article. Basically, the chase cards (fetches and Expeditions) lead to a ton of product getting opened, which in turn drives down the price of everything else. The writer illustrates this point through the example of Siege Rhino: arguably the best card in Standard and one of the most-played creatures in Modern, yet it sells for $3.
Magic is a large, varied game that appeals to people for a number of different reasons. There have always been price disparities; regardless, as of today, Magic is healthier and more popular than it's ever been. <To argue that everything should be cheap and easily available is reductive, shortsighted and selfish.> People who think this way do not care about the long term health of the game or the many, many reasons that people love Magic; they simply want the cards, all the cards, right now and for cheap, and to hell with everyone else. -
Sep 2, 2015halahel posted a message on The Magic Street Journal: Glitter, Gimmicks, and Glamours - Wizards' Reprint ShenanigansI don't see how either instance in your first point relates to whether or not Magic was intended to be budget-friendly. Wizards displayed a clear respect for the importance of finance and the collectibility of the cards very early in the game's history with the creation of the Reserved List and Type 1. People like to forget that Chronicles nearly sank Magic for good.Posted in: Articles
As to your second point: "San Diego Comic Con promos are another example of how those unable to acquire something rightly feel cheated out of special product." This precisely sums up the ridiculous sense of entitlement I was talking about. -
Sep 2, 2015halahel posted a message on The Magic Street Journal: Glitter, Gimmicks, and Glamours - Wizards' Reprint ShenanigansThis article reeks of an entrenched sense of entitlement that, to me, is the most obnoxious component of Magic player culture. The idea that, if I play the game, I should have access to all the cards I want at a fair (i.e. cheap) price. Wizards recognized a long time ago that the long-term viability of Magic hinges on its nature as a collectible. Collectors (among whom I lump Legacy and Vintage players, since they have a vested interest in the game's survival) are who have kept Magic going for 20+ years, not the fair-weather players who stick around for a season or two and complain about the availability of fetches, or Tarmogoyfs, or whatever else. Zendikar Expeditions is an incredible promotion for the collectors in the Magic community. I've played Magic since 1995, and this is the first time I've ever pre-ordered a case of an expansion. Exciting for me, good business for Wizards; it's a win-win.Posted in: Articles
As for players who feel "cheated" because they can't obtain all the promos they want: get over it. You don't need these cards to play and enjoy the game. If you want to play competitive Magic at the highest levels, yes, you absolutely need your fetches; but you also need incredibly expensive clubs, a trainer and a caddy to play golf at a high level. Magic is not, and was never intended to be, a game for the budget-minded. Luckily, thanks to its excellent design, you can still play on a shoestring; but the complaint that all players "need" to have access to SDCC or Zendikar Expeditions promos -- when the normal, equally playable versions are available at a fraction of the cost -- is ridiculous. Wizards intentionally makes these products scarce to appeal to their most valuable customers: the people who order cases and have been sinking money into this game for 20 years. - To post a comment, please login or register a new account.
4 Polluted Delta
1 Swamp
1 Watery Grave
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Forest
2 Blooming Marsh
4 Verdant Catacombs
1 Breeding Pool
2 Darkslick Shores
1 Misty Rainforest
4 Tarmogoyf
2 Grim Flayer
2 Snapcaster Mage
1 Vendilion Clique
2 Hooting Mandrills
4 Serum Visions
4 Blossoming Defense
2 Vapor Snag
3 Gitaxian Probe
3 Thought Scour
1 Vendetta
2 Disfigure
2 Spell Snare
3 Abrupt Decay
2 Mana Leak
Explanation of choices: 19 lands. I don't feel comfortable playing fewer with Snapcaster, and I like the flexibility of a 1x Clique. I played a version of this deck at a small tournament on Monday, and though it performed relatively well, I got repeatedly mana-screwed on 18 lands.
4x Blossoming Defense. In my opinion, the main reason that BUG Delver can be viable. I'm curious about cutting one for a singleton Become Immense, but so far I've been happy with 4.
2x Vapor Snag. Shores up holes in our removal. Value with Snapcaster. Last-ditch protection for a threat.
1x Vendetta. A seemingly odd choice that has performed well in testing. Offers the flexibility to kill a larger creature, and also an early, small threat without taking 4 damage a la Dismember.
2x Flayers. An excellent card, and another reason that I feel this deck now has legs. I've settled on two to lessen the conflict with:
2x Hooting Mandrills. I wanted a bigger threat that I didn't need to enable; Delirium can be surprisingly difficult to achieve in a deck that doesn't want to run planeswalkers, artifacts, or enchantments. Why monkeys over zombie-fish or Tasigur? They trample, and I'm playing four pump-spells. I could see an argument for Tasigur, though.
1. Snapcaster. I decided Snap wasn't worth it. I also run 18 lands, so he's a bit expensive to use properly. And, honestly, I haven't found that the things you can flashback in this deck are that impactful. We don't get Lightning Bolt or Path to Exile, and we would rarely, if ever, have enough mana to flashback a bomb like Cryptic. I went with Dark Confidant instead. He's another "must answer" turn 2 creature; our avg. CMC is absurdly low; and he provides actual card advantage, whereas Snap is virtual. From what I understand, the only reason Grixis Delver DOESN'T run Bob is because of the high CMC of the delve creatures. We're not pushed into that corner. Have you had success with Snap in this build?
2. What's your rationale behind running Gitaxian Probe? Again, we don't need the "free" spell for delve. Why not an impactful card like Inquisition or Thoughtseize? Looking at BUG Delver in Legacy, you often see Bob, you always see discard, and you almost never see Gitaxian Probe.
I'd really, really like to get this deck semi-competitive, as I love this color combo and think that Blossoming Defense and Grim Flayer have given Delver the chance to be viable. Any insights you can offer would be very appreciated.
Per Aaron Forsythe, there's no new format happening, now or anytime soon.
Non-RL Legacy? Really?
1. There is a LEGACY GP scheduled the weekend of EMA's release. It makes ZERO sense that they would destroy the format and alienate the player-base.
2. Since Eternal Masters got announced, lots and lots of people have gotten really excited about Legacy. Lots of people have shelled out hard-earned cash to buy a few dual-lands, or Mox Diamonds or whatever. WotC isn't stupid, and they're not going to give all these people a giant "f*ck you."
3. The original Eternal Masters leaker (I'm personally unclear whether this is the same person) claimed that enemy fetches were in the set. They are clearly not, based on the number crunch. So even IF this person has a source, it's not entirely dependable.
4. Wizards just announced a huge push for Legacy Leagues on MODO, one that involves dual lands for prizes. Seems like an odd thing to do if they were planning to kill the format.
5. Aaron Forsythe specifically tweeted that Eternal (non-RL Legacy) was not a format, real or imaginary.
6. The whole idea of a non-RL Legacy has ZERO basis in fact. It's a pure example of the internet hive mind at work, and blew up as wishful thinking that over-extrapolated meaning from the announcement of "Eternal Masters." That's it. It has zero basis in reality.
It's all relative. People spend their money on what they enjoy; for some people that's expensive dinners or an expensive vehicle, or clothes or whatever. My non-Magic hobbies (I do have some) are essentially free, so it all works out.
As far as I know, the exact dates beyond that have not been announced.
Standard -- Dark Jeskai
Modern -- Infect
Legacy -- Shardless BUG
Vintage -- Grixis Thieves
Old School (93/94) -- Mono-Black
I've built various Commander decks, but haven't enjoyed any of them enough to keep them together. In the future, I'd like to put together and keep a library of "classic" decks, like Finkel's Counterpost, Erhnageddon, Weissman's "The Deck," etc.