I am a new player who only owns a welcome pack (Basically I have some forests and mountains and some commons). My mom is worried about me getting into the game because of the costs. Can someone recommend cheap ways to craft a good deck for standard at Friday Night Magic?
Keep in mind most decks at FNM will easily beat an "intro" pack from Walmart but probably won't be as strong as competitive standard decks. At least, based on my research. I also don't really care how much time it takes to build up a decent deck.
My strategy is to go to prerelease and build a deck there, but that's just a starting point.
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I'm new to Magic and have a lot of stupid questions. Thanks to everyone in advance who help answer these stupid questions.
Also keep in mind rotation is going to happen at the end of the month, so it's the best and worst time to get new cards. Best in a sense that a lot of cards already in Standard are relatively cheap, but worst in a sense that it's hard to buy when a whole new block is coming and and changing the meta, making it hard to really know the right deck to buy into.
For a little over $100 the cheapest good deck would be GR Pummeler, which is pretty good for a beginner as long as they know the Pummeler interaction:
I checked the link, and it seems very scary for FNM. A tightly-knit deck like this isn't something you'd usually find played at your local game store, is it? Also I'd like to spend $100 dollars or less initially.
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I'm new to Magic and have a lot of stupid questions. Thanks to everyone in advance who help answer these stupid questions.
The link will show all the most played decks with the deck list and cost. Towards the bottom are some budget brews under $100. Again, I wouldn't buy into a deck that has too many cards about to rotate out in less than a month.
As for the deck I posted, it's not close to being the best deck in the meta and a lot of people will be running top tier ones, but don't let that scare you. I'm kinda bouncing back and forth with the other thread so read what I wrote there in terms of FNM experiences.
I know this post is a few days old, but I just wanted to chime in. Mono red is probably the best place to start right now if you want to stay sub-$100. You can build the core of the Ramunap Red list for about $75 (examples - $76, $55), omitting the Hazoret and the Chandra. There are some cards rotating out of it (Falkenrath Gorger, Incendiary Flow), but they should be easily replaced with IXL cards.
One other piece of advice that I'll give you - I watch a lot of the new players at my store gladly take their prize packs and crack them immediately, then the next week they are complaining about how they have no money to buy the more expensive cards. However, my store also offers prizes in terms of store credit as well. If yours does the same thing, I highly suggest taking the credit over the packs. You'll add up the credit and be able to buy the more expensive cards sooner than you think. If it doesn't, then ask them if it's possible for them to start. Even suggest taking the prizes at a "loss" - for example, $3 instead of a $4 pack.
This is really hard. The game is based on disposables created by a for-profit company. A lot depends on your local environment and what you consider fun.
Where i live, I can play in free standard tournaments 3 nights a week and earn store credit. But I have been playing for years and sometimes play top-tier decks. I "cash" reasonably often, but not as often as the people who start playing top tier decks as soon as they are established and play them consistently (and also play better). If a novice player shows up with a creative budget deck, I might be over 80% likely to win. Even if a novice player started with an evenly matched deck, they might only win 33% of the time. Do you want to make an inferior deck and take a knife to a gun fight? About half the time, I deliberately bring inferior, but not budget, decks to tournaments, but then it's more like bringing a sword to a gun fight.
To save money, you can pick up a budget version of a standard deck and make minimal changes. I love the game, but losing a lot to the same people with the same deck when the opponents aren't resource constrained isn't for everybody. It would be fine for me if I did it with friends, but we are all different.
To justify playing, it takes rationalizing the costs as entertainment value to make it work, I think.
So is it hopeless? No! Here are some suggestions:
Ixalan open house is this weekend. Some stores may give out free decks and an actual useful promo card (Walk the Plank). Go to as many as you can. You can go to locator.wizards.com and find all the local tournaments. The point is to network and, if you can make it to more than one, get a sense of the store scene. Are people friendly? Enjoyable to play with? Patient? Be curious about how people play and ask the same question you asked here. Many people like to help.
People can help. I usually bring more than one deck to a tournament. A few weeks ago, someone came into a tournament and asked the store owner if they could borrow a deck. The store owner asked for them and multiple people offered decks. They played with a borrowed deck (mine) and beat me. People who draft or buy booster boxes may have spare useful uncommons like, say Ramunap Ruins. I wouldn't ask, but they may volunteer them if they know you are building a deck.
Consider drafting. It's expensive, but ever-changing and you start out only differentiated by skill. It costs as much as a movie, but some stores have $10 drafts once a month. Often people leave useful uncommons around. Just yesterday, I found an abandoned (make sure they are really abandoned!) pile of draft chaff with Ramunap Ruins, Hashep Oasis and Crook of Condemnation, all playable cards. If you can play on a Friday this month, you may get a promo Fatal Push, which is currently worth a draft.
Consider playing in an Ixalan league. You start on a level playing field and pay for a few packs to start. You may pull some decent cards and can get some game in for at most the cost of a new pack every week. Learning the game is a bonus.
Learn quickly. There is an excellent series of articles on the Wizards.com site entitled "Level One" by Reid Duke. I recommend it highly, but others will have other suggestions. Knowing the game better will improve your results and enjoyment. As you improve, you will be better able to judge where to spend your budget and earn more prizes to build your decks.
hoser, thanks for the great advice! I've heard a lot of this stuff before, but thanks for the summary. Also, is a League a one time entry fee? Or do I have to keep paying each week?
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I'm new to Magic and have a lot of stupid questions. Thanks to everyone in advance who help answer these stupid questions.
Basically yes. Packs are typically sold by the stores for around $4, so taking $3 in credit seems like you're willing to settle for less. However, typically the chances of your pack actually being worth $3-4, or of cards that you want, is slim. Therefore it's actually better to take a minor loss (from your stand point) and come out with them ability to get cards you'll actually use.
My store offers both the credit and the packs as prize options, so the majority of the more experienced players aim for 2-2 records or better (we play four rounds max), take $6 (or $9, or $12) credit for a $5 entry, and so the next week is "free", plus slowly accumulating credit. I've been going to the shop since a few weeks after Aether Revolt. I've bought probably $100 of cards with my credit, and still have $40 or so in the bank. It's surprising how quick you can make it add up.
And yes, if you miss the cracking of packs, then go draft once in a while!
Another way you can add to credit is by asking around your stores and seeing who gives the best rate to trade in bulk commons and uncommons. Once you've got a load (from packs, drafts, prizes, or whatever) you can get credit for them. My local pays 1c per card, or 25c for a bulk rare, but again, it adds up.
hoser, thanks for the great advice! I've heard a lot of this stuff before, but thanks for the summary. Also, is a League a one time entry fee? Or do I have to keep paying each week?
Here is a page on the leagues. I think the only cost is the boosters: 3 to start, then optionally 1-3 more. If boosters cost $4, then $12-24 plus tax. IIRC, no entry fee.
I also recommend the prerelease that you were planning to attend as an experience, but not as a cost-effective way to build a standard deck. If you can make amiable contact with some people at the open house, it could improve the prerelease experience.
One warning: know the value of the cards including the version before trading. Foils can randomly be worth much more and there are unscrupulous traders (hardly any, but still some). Ask a more experienced person if you are not sure.
I have a budget Ramunap Red similar to this I have been modifying slowly. It does OK. I dont like spending a whole bunch of money on cards. It at least makes me sort of competitive. I also run Blur of Blades. It is nice to be able to cast that card and Hungering flames, you deal damage to creatures and players at the same time. I actually built the original form of the deck before even seeing what Ramunap Red was.
My deck does decent. Not great, not horrible. I am mostly playing against Netdecks at my FNM...I have fun, though.
I checked the link, and it seems very scary for FNM. A tightly-knit deck like this isn't something you'd usually find played at your local game store, is it? Also I'd like to spend $100 dollars or less initially.
Build a pummeller deck. I've got one and it's basically 100 bucks to build (I think it got a bit over 100 because of Rhonas the Indomitable getting put in the general list, but he isn't necessary). It's basically the aggro version of energy decks from Kaladesh and is composed of dirt cheap threats that pump out energy that ultimately lets you build a super big electrostatic Pummeler.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
I am playing a Enigma drake/cryptic serpent deck.
The money cards are spirebluff canal annnd everything else in my deck is a common or uncommon. Spirebluff sees modern play so it will still be worth money after standard rotation.
Now I am personally adding a lot of $$ and power out of my sideboard but there is no particular reason you have to. The money out of sideboard involves the ever present glorybringer and that is cheaper than the spirebluffs.
i built it as a bit of end of standard season fun but I have been supprisingly successful with it. 2 mana 6/5s and 3 mana 12/4s are quite powerful.
Well the comment about your mom makes me think she is funding your hobby (nothing wrong with that). If that is the case, tell her you want to talk to her about a budget. Explain that in order to be competitive at the highest level, you'll need a lot of practice and a competitive deck.
If she is comfortable spending $150 on a deck then that's what you get. Play around on www.tcgplayer.com for pricing and get decklists from places like mtgtop8.
If you come to this forum with a list you want to play, but point out the cards you cannot afford, then we can help you replace them with budget options that may not work quite as well, but still have synergy.
I would wait until this weekend to see what decks come after rotation before buying anything.
I'd 100% agree about Pummeler. The big thing about this deck is that even though it will lose, it almost always gives you a chance. Even against top decks, it carries one of the highest "Nut Draws" where you almost always win.
If you want to take it from $115 to a more manageable level:
Pull the Rhonas $26
Pull the Glorybringers from Sideboard $23
Pull the Sweltering Suns from Sideboard $11
Pull Tireless Trackers from Sideboard (Not legal) $4.50
Pull 1 Bristling Hydra and replace with Greenbelt Rampager (Keep 3, since its top of your curve.) Save $2.50
Pull 1 Aethersphere Harvester (I like the card but you can remove for budget) save $3
Swap 1 Harnessed Lightning for Magma Spray (Keep 2) Save $1.50
Keeping the same basic deck, you change the price from $115 to ~$50. Then you can replace back the cards as a budget allows.
This is how I started off building decks on a budget. Find a deck you like, that is reasonably priced and remove the expensive sideboard and non-core cards. (Rhonas was not in original versions of deck for example.) Then add in cards as you grow your collection.
When you look at Ramunap Red, and Pull Hazoret and Chandra, and a ~$235 deck goes to about $65 over 7 cards. Yes you give up power, but you get the playability. And that even includes $11 for a pair of Glorybringers in the side. https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/standard-ramunap-red#paper
Buying a box may sound great, but very rarely is it going to be worth value to you. Almost no sets contain a full standard deck alone so you'll miss pieces from other releases. Also, you'll get 1-2 of a card you want at best versus focusing on trading/buying those cards that will help you.
Man, the way you wrote that post for how to budgetize the deck reminds me of the edits done to make one piece child friendly back in the day.
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1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
I'd 100% agree about Pummeler. The big thing about this deck is that even though it will lose, it almost always gives you a chance. Even against top decks, it carries one of the highest "Nut Draws" where you almost always win.
If you want to take it from $115 to a more manageable level:
Pull the Rhonas $26
Pull the Glorybringers from Sideboard $23
Pull the Sweltering Suns from Sideboard $11
Pull Tireless Trackers from Sideboard (Not legal) $4.50
Pull 1 Bristling Hydra and replace with Greenbelt Rampager (Keep 3, since its top of your curve.) Save $2.50
Pull 1 Aethersphere Harvester (I like the card but you can remove for budget) save $3
Swap 1 Harnessed Lightning for Magma Spray (Keep 2) Save $1.50
Keeping the same basic deck, you change the price from $115 to ~$50. Then you can replace back the cards as a budget allows.
This is how I started off building decks on a budget. Find a deck you like, that is reasonably priced and remove the expensive sideboard and non-core cards. (Rhonas was not in original versions of deck for example.) Then add in cards as you grow your collection.
When you look at Ramunap Red, and Pull Hazoret and Chandra, and a ~$235 deck goes to about $65 over 7 cards. Yes you give up power, but you get the playability. And that even includes $11 for a pair of Glorybringers in the side. https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/standard-ramunap-red#paper
Buying a box may sound great, but very rarely is it going to be worth value to you. Almost no sets contain a full standard deck alone so you'll miss pieces from other releases. Also, you'll get 1-2 of a card you want at best versus focusing on trading/buying those cards that will help you.
I only run one Hazoret and zero Chandras in my Ramunap Red and it does pretty well.
If you are more a brewer than a Spike, there are lots of options to try that are budget right now. Merfolk are heavily underrated, Black red aggro is a thing right now as it has a reliable instant speed kill spell at 3 Cmc, card draw options, and answers to control as well as mid-range Dino monsters.
It's a good time to play constructed and draft.
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1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
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Keep in mind most decks at FNM will easily beat an "intro" pack from Walmart but probably won't be as strong as competitive standard decks. At least, based on my research. I also don't really care how much time it takes to build up a decent deck.
My strategy is to go to prerelease and build a deck there, but that's just a starting point.
Also keep in mind rotation is going to happen at the end of the month, so it's the best and worst time to get new cards. Best in a sense that a lot of cards already in Standard are relatively cheap, but worst in a sense that it's hard to buy when a whole new block is coming and and changing the meta, making it hard to really know the right deck to buy into.
For a little over $100 the cheapest good deck would be GR Pummeler, which is pretty good for a beginner as long as they know the Pummeler interaction:
https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/standard-red-green-pummeler-39195#paper
The only thing rotation out in this list is Tireless Tracker and Game Trail, both easily replaced.
Standard: BG Golgari Midrange
Modern: U Merfolk GWUBR 5 Color Humans UBW Esper Gifts GW Bogles
https://www.mtggoldfish.com/metagame/standard#paper
The link will show all the most played decks with the deck list and cost. Towards the bottom are some budget brews under $100. Again, I wouldn't buy into a deck that has too many cards about to rotate out in less than a month.
As for the deck I posted, it's not close to being the best deck in the meta and a lot of people will be running top tier ones, but don't let that scare you. I'm kinda bouncing back and forth with the other thread so read what I wrote there in terms of FNM experiences.
Standard: BG Golgari Midrange
Modern: U Merfolk GWUBR 5 Color Humans UBW Esper Gifts GW Bogles
Youtube Channel
One other piece of advice that I'll give you - I watch a lot of the new players at my store gladly take their prize packs and crack them immediately, then the next week they are complaining about how they have no money to buy the more expensive cards. However, my store also offers prizes in terms of store credit as well. If yours does the same thing, I highly suggest taking the credit over the packs. You'll add up the credit and be able to buy the more expensive cards sooner than you think. If it doesn't, then ask them if it's possible for them to start. Even suggest taking the prizes at a "loss" - for example, $3 instead of a $4 pack.
Where i live, I can play in free standard tournaments 3 nights a week and earn store credit. But I have been playing for years and sometimes play top-tier decks. I "cash" reasonably often, but not as often as the people who start playing top tier decks as soon as they are established and play them consistently (and also play better). If a novice player shows up with a creative budget deck, I might be over 80% likely to win. Even if a novice player started with an evenly matched deck, they might only win 33% of the time. Do you want to make an inferior deck and take a knife to a gun fight? About half the time, I deliberately bring inferior, but not budget, decks to tournaments, but then it's more like bringing a sword to a gun fight.
To save money, you can pick up a budget version of a standard deck and make minimal changes. I love the game, but losing a lot to the same people with the same deck when the opponents aren't resource constrained isn't for everybody. It would be fine for me if I did it with friends, but we are all different.
To justify playing, it takes rationalizing the costs as entertainment value to make it work, I think.
So is it hopeless? No! Here are some suggestions:
RNA Standard: Grixis Midrange, Jund Deathwhirler, Sultai Vannifar
GRN Standard: Red Midrange, Mono-Blue Tempo, Wr Aggro, Gruul Experimental Dinosaurs, Sultai Midrange, Jeskai Midrange
Modern: Bant Spirits
Forcing a single archetype in all formats: too many colors, bad mana.
My store offers both the credit and the packs as prize options, so the majority of the more experienced players aim for 2-2 records or better (we play four rounds max), take $6 (or $9, or $12) credit for a $5 entry, and so the next week is "free", plus slowly accumulating credit. I've been going to the shop since a few weeks after Aether Revolt. I've bought probably $100 of cards with my credit, and still have $40 or so in the bank. It's surprising how quick you can make it add up.
And yes, if you miss the cracking of packs, then go draft once in a while!
Another way you can add to credit is by asking around your stores and seeing who gives the best rate to trade in bulk commons and uncommons. Once you've got a load (from packs, drafts, prizes, or whatever) you can get credit for them. My local pays 1c per card, or 25c for a bulk rare, but again, it adds up.
Here is a page on the Open House.
I also recommend the prerelease that you were planning to attend as an experience, but not as a cost-effective way to build a standard deck. If you can make amiable contact with some people at the open house, it could improve the prerelease experience.
One warning: know the value of the cards including the version before trading. Foils can randomly be worth much more and there are unscrupulous traders (hardly any, but still some). Ask a more experienced person if you are not sure.
RNA Standard: Grixis Midrange, Jund Deathwhirler, Sultai Vannifar
GRN Standard: Red Midrange, Mono-Blue Tempo, Wr Aggro, Gruul Experimental Dinosaurs, Sultai Midrange, Jeskai Midrange
Modern: Bant Spirits
Forcing a single archetype in all formats: too many colors, bad mana.
4x Falkenrath Gorger
4x Hazoret the Fervent
2x Chandra, Torch of Defiance
3x Abrade
and add:
4x Glorybringer
3x Hungering Flames
4x Heart piercer manticore
2x Something else
I have a budget Ramunap Red similar to this I have been modifying slowly. It does OK. I dont like spending a whole bunch of money on cards. It at least makes me sort of competitive. I also run Blur of Blades. It is nice to be able to cast that card and Hungering flames, you deal damage to creatures and players at the same time. I actually built the original form of the deck before even seeing what Ramunap Red was.
My deck does decent. Not great, not horrible. I am mostly playing against Netdecks at my FNM...I have fun, though.
Build a pummeller deck. I've got one and it's basically 100 bucks to build (I think it got a bit over 100 because of Rhonas the Indomitable getting put in the general list, but he isn't necessary). It's basically the aggro version of energy decks from Kaladesh and is composed of dirt cheap threats that pump out energy that ultimately lets you build a super big electrostatic Pummeler.
Old pre-rotation list: https://www.mtggoldfish.com/deck/visual/746241
You literally just have to change over the Game Trail for Rootbound Crag and you are set.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
The money cards are spirebluff canal annnd everything else in my deck is a common or uncommon. Spirebluff sees modern play so it will still be worth money after standard rotation.
Now I am personally adding a lot of $$ and power out of my sideboard but there is no particular reason you have to. The money out of sideboard involves the ever present glorybringer and that is cheaper than the spirebluffs.
i built it as a bit of end of standard season fun but I have been supprisingly successful with it. 2 mana 6/5s and 3 mana 12/4s are quite powerful.
Pioneer:UR Pheonix
Modern:U Mono U Tron
EDH
GB Glissa, the traitor: Army of Cans
UW Dragonlord Ojutai: Dragonlord NOjutai
UWGDerevi, Empyrial Tactician "you cannot fight the storm"
R Zirilan of the claw. The solution to every problem is dragons
UB Etrata, the Silencer Cloning assassination
Peasant cube: Cards I own
If she is comfortable spending $150 on a deck then that's what you get. Play around on www.tcgplayer.com for pricing and get decklists from places like mtgtop8.
If you come to this forum with a list you want to play, but point out the cards you cannot afford, then we can help you replace them with budget options that may not work quite as well, but still have synergy.
I would wait until this weekend to see what decks come after rotation before buying anything.
If you want to take it from $115 to a more manageable level:
Pull the Rhonas $26
Pull the Glorybringers from Sideboard $23
Pull the Sweltering Suns from Sideboard $11
Pull Tireless Trackers from Sideboard (Not legal) $4.50
Pull 1 Bristling Hydra and replace with Greenbelt Rampager (Keep 3, since its top of your curve.) Save $2.50
Pull 1 Aethersphere Harvester (I like the card but you can remove for budget) save $3
Swap 1 Harnessed Lightning for Magma Spray (Keep 2) Save $1.50
Keeping the same basic deck, you change the price from $115 to ~$50. Then you can replace back the cards as a budget allows.
This is how I started off building decks on a budget. Find a deck you like, that is reasonably priced and remove the expensive sideboard and non-core cards. (Rhonas was not in original versions of deck for example.) Then add in cards as you grow your collection.
When you look at Ramunap Red, and Pull Hazoret and Chandra, and a ~$235 deck goes to about $65 over 7 cards. Yes you give up power, but you get the playability. And that even includes $11 for a pair of Glorybringers in the side.
https://www.mtggoldfish.com/archetype/standard-ramunap-red#paper
Buying a box may sound great, but very rarely is it going to be worth value to you. Almost no sets contain a full standard deck alone so you'll miss pieces from other releases. Also, you'll get 1-2 of a card you want at best versus focusing on trading/buying those cards that will help you.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!
I only run one Hazoret and zero Chandras in my Ramunap Red and it does pretty well.
It's a good time to play constructed and draft.
1. (Ravnica Allegiance): You can't keep a good esper control deck down... Or Wilderness Reclamation... or Gates...
2. (War of the Spark): Guys, I know what we need! We need a cycle of really idiotic flavor text victory cards! Jace's Triumph...
3. (War of the Spark): Lets make the format with control have even more control!