I feel his points are dead on and what I have thought since before this set (2XM / Double Masters) was even released. But...
I feel one point he makes is wrong and I believe he actually knows it and hints heavily at it. He believes WotC/Hasbro deliberately sabotaged 2XM for several different reasons and the one he is wrong on is that it was unintentional. (Yes I know these are at odds but these are his words/criticisms, not mine.)
I think this is his way of extending the proverbial olive branch to WotC/Hasbro to give them an out to correct issues further down the line. Very diplomatic but very incorrect. WotC/Hasbro knows EXACTLY what they are doing and this was all by design. They are not ignorant in the way he suggests. Some sort of unintended consequence as he shares during his video. Again I think he knows this but is too diplomatic to hold WotC/Hasbro's feet to the fire in fear of losing support for his channel.
I on the other hand am not afraid to state what should have been said. Professor was wrong on this last critical point. It is INDEED INTENTIONAL. It is by design and it has done exactly what they set out to do on multiple fronts. Draw your own conclusions but the truth is obvious on this one. Or don't but please try to educate yourself and be a wise consumer. Thanks for reading my analysis.
Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
As you did with his, I agree with your analysis on all points except one. Wizards hasn't supported or endorsed his channel for a long time now, ever since they went all in on bad, greedy choices and he was unable to make an honest video without calling them on it. He's not pulling those punches because he's afraid of losing support, he's doing it because he knows a lot of it is from the Hasbro level and he's telling the truth about having respect and good will to the actual Wizards employees. I'm pretty sure he and Gavin are or at least were on friendly terms. There's nothing they can take from him, he already runs the biggest Magic channel and doesn't get preview cards, he's just a nice guy who doesn't want to kick them again when it's something we all know and the majority of WotC probably hates it as well.
tldr, he's not protecting himself, just being merciful
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Project Booster Fun makes it less fun to open a booster.
he's just a nice guy who doesn't want to kick them again when it's something we all know and the majority of WotC probably hates it as well.
He is definitely nice but that can be problematic. Nice works if the other side plays nicely as well. They don't so no need to extend that courtesy as it will get him nowhere. His content is great, he is 99% dead on in this video but he needs to take off the kid gloves then. There are a lot of great comments in the comment section of that video as well. You are correct, a lot of us see right through the smoke and mirrors WotC/Hasbro puts out there. So call them out on it and hold them accountable, don't give them ANY outs, they will take your "nice" and continue to tromp around like nothing is the matter.
I give the Professor a 99% A on the video, but reserve that 100% A+ for his holding back and making an excuse for WotC/Hasbro. And as you say I do expect that he has friends and/or contacts that are WotC employees and higher ups that he is pulling his punches for fear of alienating them.
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Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
I watched the video out of boredom and curiosity because I never watch these videos, and even watched the one of him opening collector booster boxes (which obviously led to diminishing returns as I anticipated) to better understand what his experience was like which led to his perspective and criticisms.
He makes some good points, but I found a few things mildly distracting which makes it difficult for me to take him seriously. For starters, that vintage velvet purple suit doesn't help. The Homelands box being showcased on the shelf also confuses me (is that supposed to impress the viewer simply due to its age when that was arguably the worst set of all time?). Lastly, is it just me, or does he look like he could be a clone of Sami Zayn from WWE? (Google image that name and you'll see the resemblance in some photos is uncanny). That aside, I appreciate that someone with such a following, obvious intelligence, and so much knowledge about the game is willing to use their platform to openly criticize the developers, distributors, and retailers of the game we all love, despite the many frustrations which come along with the product, and more specifically the inflation related to this particular set. However, it would be more accurate to say that the catalyst of these issues is spoiler season, artificial scarcity (both distributors and LGSs are fault here) and the removal of MSRP by WoTC. If there were no spoilers, and Wizards brought back the MSRP to reasonably affordable levels, we wouldn't see as much profiteering and price increases to the point where packs are prohibitively expensive for most players (especially newer ones) based upon on the hype of what's included in the set. It's a strange paradox because I love spoilers and use them to my advantage when targeting the singles I want during presales, but at the same time I miss and reminisce about the days where sets came out without advanced spoilers (because nobody had internet back in the mid 90s), and there was that mystery element of buying packs and discovering the sets card-by-card, after which prices were eventually expressed in magazines like Scrye and Duelist a month later after the first tournament which allowed the new cards to perform and prove themselves. Alas, there's no going back to those days. Pandora's box was opened with internet spoilers and we can't close it, so ultimately, the blame now lies with us, the consumers, for our willingness to continue purchasing at inflated prices, which in turn fuels Wizards' and retailers' justification for marking up these pieces of cardboard (as singles or in packs) for whatever the secondary market decides is the "right price" to be purchased at. Blame your LGS or WoTC all you want, but each and every one of us needs to take a moment to look in the mirror and accept at least some, if not most or all of the blame.
Seriously. Everyone reading this should take a moment to look in the mirror and say: "I am a Magic addict. However, I'm also a mature individual who can control my urges and know when enough is enough". Don't just say it. Say it and mean it, then follow through by resisting that tempting urge the next time you feel the fomo. It will be very rewarding in and of itself. The alternative? Keep gambling on packs or boxes, then whine, complain, and yell at the sky for your mistake when the opened value doesn't meet your unrealistic expectations and you still don't have the cards you "need" want. The choice is yours.
One thing I want to mention which he omitted to remind everyone is that the price of the finished Magic products we buy aren't just for cardboard, ink, packaging, and shipping. WoTC has many employees to pay, some of whom deserve more than a minimal "living wage", and many of whom are probably getting yearly salary increases (some perhaps more deservedly than others) to ensure they stay with the company, because as many people know, it's not only hard to find talented, hard-working employees, it's even more difficult to retain them when job opportunities are aplenty. Similarly, many artists are involved, and those contracts are probably also getting a bump because artists have bills to pay too and aren't going to work or make their best contributions for minimum wage. That's who we're paying the mark-ups for...artists, not just the Hasbro executives. I for one am happy to support artists, because let's face it: Without art, Magic cards would look pretty dull and the game would be much less appealing.
What upset me most after watching the video was reading the comments below. Many were just sad, while others make me roll my eyes. The worst however are those who seemingly use the high price of this set as justification to use or promote the use of proxies. I don't care what your salary is or how bad you feel you need to keep up with the arms race in your own local meta playgroup. The sense of entitlement among have-nots needs to stop. There is NEVER justification for using proxies. Just because you can't afford overpriced Nike sneakers, that doesn't give you the right to counterfeit them or violate intellectual property, and this is no different in my opinion. Sometimes, you just have to keep wearing your old pair for another season/year or find another less expensive shoe that fits, and by shoe I mean game. Sometimes I don't buy new shoes for years, and sometimes I don't play Standard for years at a time either. Players and collectors all need to show more restraint and better manage their budgets instead of constantly whining about missing out on pushed new game pieces which let's be honest, none of us need to begin with! We may want them, but you can play other formats with your older cards. Being an adult is about making tough decisions, and often that requires being more selective with your purchases, or looking for ways to save money elsewhere so you can afford the luxury recreational products and activities you want and enjoy. However, don't dare say for a minute that you deserve reprints of 'cards XYZ' on a semi-regular basis at rock bottom prices because you can't keep up with the competition. Wizards owes us nothing, and we should be grateful every time they throw us a bone. These perpetual complainers who are seemingly never satisfied, and especially proxiers annoy the hell out of me, because this is a collectable card game (not Uno), and it undermines the sacrifices I and others like me make so we can afford to buy the singles we want, even though ironically, I rarely even get to play nowadays and haven't been to an in-store event since before the pandemic began (primarily for safety but also for financial reasons). Let other people do the gambling and buy the singles you feel take priority based on their cost to effect ratio, but please don't buy packs, complain, then encourage proxying because you didn't even open $100 worth of value from your $400 Collector's/VIP box. That attitude is toxic, and the game doesn't need you. If you "can't play" with the cards you already own, just find another game to play.
NO. Incorrect. Unless you are referring to counterfeits. Counterfeits are fake cards presented as the real thing to fool an opponent or buyer. A proxy is a marked and declared copy presented as a "proxy" to an actual card. Its intent is to fool no one and is only used to function as a game piece. BIG DIFFERENCE.
I am with you on counterfeits. They are wrong. Proxies on the other hand are just fine and are enjoyable for casual gameplay if presented as such and not involved in prize winnings or rankings unless agreed upon beforehand by all involved.
You attitude is elistist, snobbish and mean spirited. You should do some real soul searching and listen to exactly how you sound. Its ugly, exclusionary and truly entitled thought. I had blocked you for a long time and you are going back on the ignore list. I remember why now. Reply all you want but I will not see it. Exclusionism goes both ways.
Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
People that use proxy cards, there are different types as well.
Its more of a mindset, how people value to pay for things or if they feel entitled to.
Some people dont want to spend any money on the game, fine opinion to have, but in the end, any LGS wants to make money, the game needs to make money to exist and so if you honestly enjoy the game, paying to own cards is certainly reasonable.
If you want to own expensive cards, you can work for it. Some kids got into some jobs to make money to buy into expensive cards, and in the end you enjoy having them much more, as you know you worked for it.
Thats all a good thing.
The bad part are people that dont want to spend money on the cards, but still want them, and not over time, but right now, and all of them.
Its a complete disregard of the work that goes into getting these cards, Magic is for quite a part of a collectors game, its a process to get the cards, its a social process to trade them in person, much less so online in digital.
If you just play draft each week and you basically know where you got each card from, it has a history, the cards carry nostalgic value on top.
People that make proxies of cards because they have no desire to put any effort into owning them or not intention to ever get them, are a the "bad" apples of the players and they can be quite harmful to the communities they are in.
----
For severely expensive cards having proxies is basically a given.
If you play with expensive cards and you want to properly shuffle them and not get a heart attack if you give them to the opponent (like Gilded Drake), its much better to have a proxy.
If it comes to counterfeits and people trying to sell them as real, thats criminal, its no joke, thats something you should call the police on, as the money involved in that is nothing to sneeze at.
---- TLDR:
So there is a balance thats reasonable , and if someone is butt hurt that people have proxy cards, whats the point in that?
If someone has all proxy cards and never the intention to get real cards ... whats the point in that?
TLDR:
So there is a balance thats reasonable , and if someone is butt hurt that people have proxy cards, whats the point in that?
If someone has all proxy cards and never the intention to get real cards ... whats the point in that?
Yes balance. Life lies in the gray, not the black and white.
If I had a $100,000 Vintage deck and there was NO ONE to play against I would love it if someone proxied up another Vintage deck so I could play against them as long as they admitted to the proxying. On top of that I am going to risk my $100K deck being damaged? Hell no. I am going to proxy the expensive cards. This description fits all the way down to Standard. To someone not making much money a $200 deck may be a stretch and they would want to protect it as well. Proxy stuff for protection.
If you don't want to play against proxies in casual then don't. I wouldn't care if I played against an entire deck of proxies as long as I could read the cards and they were sleeved. I want to play a GAME. I want to compete. I don't want my socioeconomic state to be a decider of who and who I don't play. That is me. Others not so.
Lets get off this topic anyway. It has NOTHING to do with why I brought this thread up. Its about reaction to the Professor, not about YouTube comments that are notoriously infantile and ignorant.
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Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
The Professor says that protecting single prices with methods including a limited print run and increased pack prices is intentional. He thinks that's "sabotage" because of the negative consequences—dowsing enthusiasm—and sabotage is not intentional. The sabotage idea is his own invention and not proven. Pricing people out is a necessary part of raising prices, just like extended-foil-etched-alt cards are a necessary part of getting people to pay those prices. Neither of those things are mistakes. Failure, if it happens, is unintentional, but the idea that the set was sabotaged is an imaginary distraction from the taboo reality that enthusiasm is treated as a manageable resource, and people are squeezed or excluded as readily as they are treated or included.
Sabotage is INDEED intentional. It is in the flipping definition.
sabotage: deliberately destroy, damage, or obstruct (something)
He brought up that thought but he did not "invent" it. Addressing an issue isn't inventing an issue, let us get that straight.
One bit of truth rings clear and it is your last half of your last sentence.....
the taboo reality that enthusiasm is treated as a manageable resource, and people are squeezed or excluded as readily as they are treated or included
WotC manipulates the customer all the time. So why wouldn't they manipulate themselves as well? I think you have your answer if you apply logic.
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Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
I'm under the impression they want to keep reprints expensive to help sell $16 packs, and they're willing to pay the costs associated with that decision. Do they not want the set to sell? If it sells out quickly, did the sabotage fail?
We might agree, I just don't see sabotage for a similar reason manufacturer-distressed furniture isn't sabotaged: Yes, they take a fine product and beat it with a chain, but they think people will eat it up.
Sabotage does not have to be physical and he is not hinting at that. WotC has been very deliberate in their last two sets. (Baldur's Gate and Double Masters) He believes they have underdesigned and underproduced 2XM for a distinct reason. I think they have as well. I think its to prop up secondary market prices of singles. I think its to cater more and more to the whales. And I think it is all for short term gain with long term health of the game-be-damned. I may be off from what he states but that is what I take away from his video.
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Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
They've been propping up singles since Alpha. In promotional material for Alpha, Peter Adkison used limited print runs and fancy art as selling points for collectors. "Whales" have been integral to the game since its conception.
These arguments have been going on forever. Shortly before Gen Con in 1993, the president of Atlas Games talked up how "a few big-spending teenagers will subsidize the cost of the card game for everyone else." This was in response to preemptive criticism of Magic, in part from existing Wizards customers.
They've been propping up singles since Alpha. In promotional material for Alpha, Peter Adkison used limited print runs and fancy art as selling points for collectors. "Whales" have been integral to the game since its conception.
These arguments have been going on forever. Shortly before Gen Con in 1993, the president of Atlas Games talked up how "a few big-spending teenagers will subsidize the cost of the card game for everyone else." This was in response to preemptive criticism of Magic, in part from existing Wizards customers.
And they are ratcheting up this tactic seemingly exponentially as well. It won't last forever. The crash is inevitable if they continue. Just because they do it doesn't mean its healthy.
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Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
"The crash is inevitable" should be the official prayer of the have-nots before every prerelease event.
People have literally been saying or hoping for this ever since Chronicles, and bad decisions on the part of WoTC notwithstanding, look at where the market is at today!
I would also be willing to bet I spend more on paper magic than 95% of members on this site as well and I couldn't care less if my entire collection took a 75 to 90 percent hit in value. In fact if it went to zero I wouldn't lose a minute of sleep. It is first and foremost a GAME not the stock market. It should be treated as such.
Playing since 1994: Currently MAGS (HomeBrew),Standard & Pauper (Pioneer and Modern are degenerate trash formats)
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WT7k4yNDHTc
I feel his points are dead on and what I have thought since before this set (2XM / Double Masters) was even released. But...
I feel one point he makes is wrong and I believe he actually knows it and hints heavily at it. He believes WotC/Hasbro deliberately sabotaged 2XM for several different reasons and the one he is wrong on is that it was unintentional. (Yes I know these are at odds but these are his words/criticisms, not mine.)
I think this is his way of extending the proverbial olive branch to WotC/Hasbro to give them an out to correct issues further down the line. Very diplomatic but very incorrect. WotC/Hasbro knows EXACTLY what they are doing and this was all by design. They are not ignorant in the way he suggests. Some sort of unintended consequence as he shares during his video. Again I think he knows this but is too diplomatic to hold WotC/Hasbro's feet to the fire in fear of losing support for his channel.
I on the other hand am not afraid to state what should have been said. Professor was wrong on this last critical point. It is INDEED INTENTIONAL. It is by design and it has done exactly what they set out to do on multiple fronts. Draw your own conclusions but the truth is obvious on this one. Or don't but please try to educate yourself and be a wise consumer. Thanks for reading my analysis.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
tldr, he's not protecting himself, just being merciful
I did want to bring this up...
He is definitely nice but that can be problematic. Nice works if the other side plays nicely as well. They don't so no need to extend that courtesy as it will get him nowhere. His content is great, he is 99% dead on in this video but he needs to take off the kid gloves then. There are a lot of great comments in the comment section of that video as well. You are correct, a lot of us see right through the smoke and mirrors WotC/Hasbro puts out there. So call them out on it and hold them accountable, don't give them ANY outs, they will take your "nice" and continue to tromp around like nothing is the matter.
I give the Professor a 99% A on the video, but reserve that 100% A+ for his holding back and making an excuse for WotC/Hasbro. And as you say I do expect that he has friends and/or contacts that are WotC employees and higher ups that he is pulling his punches for fear of alienating them.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
He makes some good points, but I found a few things mildly distracting which makes it difficult for me to take him seriously. For starters, that vintage velvet purple suit doesn't help. The Homelands box being showcased on the shelf also confuses me (is that supposed to impress the viewer simply due to its age when that was arguably the worst set of all time?). Lastly, is it just me, or does he look like he could be a clone of Sami Zayn from WWE? (Google image that name and you'll see the resemblance in some photos is uncanny). That aside, I appreciate that someone with such a following, obvious intelligence, and so much knowledge about the game is willing to use their platform to openly criticize the developers, distributors, and retailers of the game we all love, despite the many frustrations which come along with the product, and more specifically the inflation related to this particular set. However, it would be more accurate to say that the catalyst of these issues is spoiler season, artificial scarcity (both distributors and LGSs are fault here) and the removal of MSRP by WoTC. If there were no spoilers, and Wizards brought back the MSRP to reasonably affordable levels, we wouldn't see as much profiteering and price increases to the point where packs are prohibitively expensive for most players (especially newer ones) based upon on the hype of what's included in the set. It's a strange paradox because I love spoilers and use them to my advantage when targeting the singles I want during presales, but at the same time I miss and reminisce about the days where sets came out without advanced spoilers (because nobody had internet back in the mid 90s), and there was that mystery element of buying packs and discovering the sets card-by-card, after which prices were eventually expressed in magazines like Scrye and Duelist a month later after the first tournament which allowed the new cards to perform and prove themselves. Alas, there's no going back to those days. Pandora's box was opened with internet spoilers and we can't close it, so ultimately, the blame now lies with us, the consumers, for our willingness to continue purchasing at inflated prices, which in turn fuels Wizards' and retailers' justification for marking up these pieces of cardboard (as singles or in packs) for whatever the secondary market decides is the "right price" to be purchased at. Blame your LGS or WoTC all you want, but each and every one of us needs to take a moment to look in the mirror and accept at least some, if not most or all of the blame.
Seriously. Everyone reading this should take a moment to look in the mirror and say: "I am a Magic addict. However, I'm also a mature individual who can control my urges and know when enough is enough". Don't just say it. Say it and mean it, then follow through by resisting that tempting urge the next time you feel the fomo. It will be very rewarding in and of itself. The alternative? Keep gambling on packs or boxes, then whine, complain, and yell at the sky for your mistake when the opened value doesn't meet your unrealistic expectations and you still don't have the cards you
"need"want. The choice is yours.One thing I want to mention which he omitted to remind everyone is that the price of the finished Magic products we buy aren't just for cardboard, ink, packaging, and shipping. WoTC has many employees to pay, some of whom deserve more than a minimal "living wage", and many of whom are probably getting yearly salary increases (some perhaps more deservedly than others) to ensure they stay with the company, because as many people know, it's not only hard to find talented, hard-working employees, it's even more difficult to retain them when job opportunities are aplenty. Similarly, many artists are involved, and those contracts are probably also getting a bump because artists have bills to pay too and aren't going to work or make their best contributions for minimum wage. That's who we're paying the mark-ups for...artists, not just the Hasbro executives. I for one am happy to support artists, because let's face it: Without art, Magic cards would look pretty dull and the game would be much less appealing.
What upset me most after watching the video was reading the comments below. Many were just sad, while others make me roll my eyes. The worst however are those who seemingly use the high price of this set as justification to use or promote the use of proxies. I don't care what your salary is or how bad you feel you need to keep up with the arms race in your own local meta playgroup. The sense of entitlement among have-nots needs to stop. There is NEVER justification for using proxies. Just because you can't afford overpriced Nike sneakers, that doesn't give you the right to counterfeit them or violate intellectual property, and this is no different in my opinion. Sometimes, you just have to keep wearing your old pair for another season/year or find another less expensive shoe that fits, and by shoe I mean game. Sometimes I don't buy new shoes for years, and sometimes I don't play Standard for years at a time either. Players and collectors all need to show more restraint and better manage their budgets instead of constantly whining about missing out on pushed new game pieces which let's be honest, none of us need to begin with! We may want them, but you can play other formats with your older cards. Being an adult is about making tough decisions, and often that requires being more selective with your purchases, or looking for ways to save money elsewhere so you can afford the luxury recreational products and activities you want and enjoy. However, don't dare say for a minute that you deserve reprints of 'cards XYZ' on a semi-regular basis at rock bottom prices because you can't keep up with the competition. Wizards owes us nothing, and we should be grateful every time they throw us a bone. These perpetual complainers who are seemingly never satisfied, and especially proxiers annoy the hell out of me, because this is a collectable card game (not Uno), and it undermines the sacrifices I and others like me make so we can afford to buy the singles we want, even though ironically, I rarely even get to play nowadays and haven't been to an in-store event since before the pandemic began (primarily for safety but also for financial reasons). Let other people do the gambling and buy the singles you feel take priority based on their cost to effect ratio, but please don't buy packs, complain, then encourage proxying because you didn't even open $100 worth of value from your $400 Collector's/VIP box. That attitude is toxic, and the game doesn't need you. If you "can't play" with the cards you already own, just find another game to play.
I used to be a demigod, but now I'm an omnimage
NO. Incorrect. Unless you are referring to counterfeits. Counterfeits are fake cards presented as the real thing to fool an opponent or buyer. A proxy is a marked and declared copy presented as a "proxy" to an actual card. Its intent is to fool no one and is only used to function as a game piece. BIG DIFFERENCE.
I am with you on counterfeits. They are wrong. Proxies on the other hand are just fine and are enjoyable for casual gameplay if presented as such and not involved in prize winnings or rankings unless agreed upon beforehand by all involved.
You attitude is elistist, snobbish and mean spirited. You should do some real soul searching and listen to exactly how you sound. Its ugly, exclusionary and truly entitled thought. I had blocked you for a long time and you are going back on the ignore list. I remember why now. Reply all you want but I will not see it. Exclusionism goes both ways.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
Its more of a mindset, how people value to pay for things or if they feel entitled to.
Some people dont want to spend any money on the game, fine opinion to have, but in the end, any LGS wants to make money, the game needs to make money to exist and so if you honestly enjoy the game, paying to own cards is certainly reasonable.
If you want to own expensive cards, you can work for it. Some kids got into some jobs to make money to buy into expensive cards, and in the end you enjoy having them much more, as you know you worked for it.
Thats all a good thing.
The bad part are people that dont want to spend money on the cards, but still want them, and not over time, but right now, and all of them.
Its a complete disregard of the work that goes into getting these cards, Magic is for quite a part of a collectors game, its a process to get the cards, its a social process to trade them in person, much less so online in digital.
If you just play draft each week and you basically know where you got each card from, it has a history, the cards carry nostalgic value on top.
People that make proxies of cards because they have no desire to put any effort into owning them or not intention to ever get them, are a the "bad" apples of the players and they can be quite harmful to the communities they are in.
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For severely expensive cards having proxies is basically a given.
If you play with expensive cards and you want to properly shuffle them and not get a heart attack if you give them to the opponent (like Gilded Drake), its much better to have a proxy.
If it comes to counterfeits and people trying to sell them as real, thats criminal, its no joke, thats something you should call the police on, as the money involved in that is nothing to sneeze at.
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TLDR:
So there is a balance thats reasonable , and if someone is butt hurt that people have proxy cards, whats the point in that?
If someone has all proxy cards and never the intention to get real cards ... whats the point in that?
WUBRG#BlackLotusMatterWUBRG
👮👮👮 #BlueLivesMatter 👮👮👮
Yes balance. Life lies in the gray, not the black and white.
If I had a $100,000 Vintage deck and there was NO ONE to play against I would love it if someone proxied up another Vintage deck so I could play against them as long as they admitted to the proxying. On top of that I am going to risk my $100K deck being damaged? Hell no. I am going to proxy the expensive cards. This description fits all the way down to Standard. To someone not making much money a $200 deck may be a stretch and they would want to protect it as well. Proxy stuff for protection.
If you don't want to play against proxies in casual then don't. I wouldn't care if I played against an entire deck of proxies as long as I could read the cards and they were sleeved. I want to play a GAME. I want to compete. I don't want my socioeconomic state to be a decider of who and who I don't play. That is me. Others not so.
Lets get off this topic anyway. It has NOTHING to do with why I brought this thread up. Its about reaction to the Professor, not about YouTube comments that are notoriously infantile and ignorant.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
Sabotage is INDEED intentional. It is in the flipping definition.
sabotage: deliberately destroy, damage, or obstruct (something)
He brought up that thought but he did not "invent" it. Addressing an issue isn't inventing an issue, let us get that straight.
One bit of truth rings clear and it is your last half of your last sentence.....
WotC manipulates the customer all the time. So why wouldn't they manipulate themselves as well? I think you have your answer if you apply logic.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
We might agree, I just don't see sabotage for a similar reason manufacturer-distressed furniture isn't sabotaged: Yes, they take a fine product and beat it with a chain, but they think people will eat it up.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
These arguments have been going on forever. Shortly before Gen Con in 1993, the president of Atlas Games talked up how "a few big-spending teenagers will subsidize the cost of the card game for everyone else." This was in response to preemptive criticism of Magic, in part from existing Wizards customers.
And they are ratcheting up this tactic seemingly exponentially as well. It won't last forever. The crash is inevitable if they continue. Just because they do it doesn't mean its healthy.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."
People have literally been saying or hoping for this ever since Chronicles, and bad decisions on the part of WoTC notwithstanding, look at where the market is at today!
I used to be a demigod, but now I'm an omnimage
Yep, caters to whales. Is where its at.
I would also be willing to bet I spend more on paper magic than 95% of members on this site as well and I couldn't care less if my entire collection took a 75 to 90 percent hit in value. In fact if it went to zero I wouldn't lose a minute of sleep. It is first and foremost a GAME not the stock market. It should be treated as such.
STOP using "dude/bro" as a pejorative or insult. Grow up.
Margaret Thatcher: “The problem with socialism is that you eventually run out of other people's money.”
Benjamin Franklin: "Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety."
Martin Luther King Jr.: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."