MTG Salvation

I used to only play in drafts. However, my LGS would only do drafts once every other week, and alternate constructed events on the other weeks, so if I didn't want to play constructed events, it meant driving 40 minutes away to a different store to draft. So I looked up some standard decks online that I thought sounded interesting, and bought the cards from online (my LGS doesn't sell Magic singles).

It also helps that I am located within a 40 minute drive of a few different stores that hold Standard tournaments in the evenings. So technically I could be playing Standard four evenings per week, with a couple options for Standard on Sunday, as well.

I have only drafted M13, M14 & M15. In two drafts of M15, I have enjoyed it more than M14. M14 seemed to too gimmicky for me. Losing to Naya slivers or the Angelic Accord deck was not fun for me.

At the moment, I still prefer M13 over M15, but I will have to wait until I can draft M15 with people I know, to see which set is ultimately more fun for me.

I have only drafted M13, M14 & M15. In two drafts of M15, I have enjoyed it more than M14. M14 seemed to too gimmicky for me. Losing to Naya slivers or the Angelic Accord deck was not fun for me.

At the moment, I still prefer M13 over M15, but I will have to wait until I can draft M15 with people I know, to see which set is ultimately more fun for me.

Weekday tournaments are usually Swiss, 3-4 rounds in length. That means you can play all 3/4 rounds (or however long the tournaments last). Keep in mind, that some people might drop out of the tournament if they've lost the two rounds of a tournament, because they're out of contention for prizes. But other people will stick around to keep playing for fun/practice.

I personally wouldn't interrupt two people in middle of a game. If you want to play casual games, you can go to the store before FNM. People usually hang out before FNM to practice. If you see someone sitting at a table alone with a playmat in front of them, you can ask "Want to play a game?". Usually, people will say yes. The worst they could say, is no.

I originally started playing Magic with my high school friends during Revised, but took a break after Weatherlight. I came back to the game during the M13 prerelease (15 years later). I thought it would be weird because I was much older now, but most people were pretty laid back and approachable. My experience is that during FNM or prereleases or casual weekday tournaments (where the prizes are low), most people are there to just have fun.

When I sit down at the table with my opponent, I like to say "My name is <x>, nice to meet you". Usually, my opponent responds "I'm <y>, nice to meet you too". After that, I will ask a casual question like "When did you start playing Magic?" or "When did you start going to this store?". This is the basic way to establish rapport with your opponent.

After the match is over, you can say "good game" or "thanks for the games". If the match ended quickly, you can offer to play another game with your opponent, or if you have a trade binder with you, ask if your opponent has trades. Mutually beneficial trading is another way to establish rapport.

After playing at a store a few times, people will recognize you, and ask you if you want to play a game/do trades.

Also, back then, booster packs didn't have basic lands in them. You were supposed to buy starter decks if you wanted basic land.

This link shows the expected contents of booster packs, though it doesn't list Ice Age for some reason:
http://wiki.mtgsalvation.com/article/Booster_pack

I haven't played much Theros sealed, as I've been focusing on drafts, but here are my thoughts:

The first time I went to FNM at my LGS, the regulars (college age kids) didn't respect me at all. They would act salty after losing games to me, saying I got "lucky topdecks" or "I had more rares in my deck than they did". After I went 3-0 at a few drafts, then the regulars started asking me for advice on card evaluations and deck building. I think competitive people just don't respect you until you've proven yourself to them. There were a couple of people I thought were insufferable (constantly trying to rules lawyer me, or psyche me out with mind games) when I started playing, but they seemed to have stopped playing at the store.

The main reason I go to live events is to interact with other people. If I didn't want to interact at all, I would just play Magic Online.

If I haven't met the person before, I introduce myself. Then I ask how my opponent's night is going. If they just say "fine" then I don't say anything else. If it's someone at the store who I don't like (because he was rude or whiny in the past) then I don't say anything at all.

If someone asks me a friendly question, I will answer it. Sometimes opponents do try to distract me by repeatedly asking "my turn?" (hoping I'll forget to play lands or spells). In this case, I would politely ask my opponent to stop doing that.

I collect Unhinged basic lands.

I tend to think the colors are never 100% balanced and I think the primary issue is color depth. If the color is shallow, then it may appear to be a weak color because if too many people draft the color, it can't support them. I also think that the blue suffers from mill cards which are usually completely worthless in other decks and hard to draft around. Black still has color identity problems because WotC can't decide what they want it to be. Is it evasive, is it direct damage (that doesn't hit creatures), is it recursion, what? Black and blue are also struggling with the fact that WotC is continuing to increase the cost of counterspells and removal, the primary removal for those colors. Red has had problems in prior sets with the toughness being high and this set has a fairly low toughness in comparison, which makes red feel elevated. I think red is probably the deepest color, but I don't think it's all the more powerful with reasonable decks, but some of the other colors can only handle 2 drafters instead of 3.

Quote from MercurioBlue

Thanks for the feedback! After I left the tournament, I regretted not playing the white for the Celestial Archon. White would have also given me more heroes for my targeted effects, a couple removal spells, a protection effect from bounce/removal, and a sideboard enchantment destruction effect.

I didn't run both of Voyaging Satyr because I felt like my deck didn't have enough beastly things to ramp into (like Nessian Asp monstrosity cost), but bestow costs are certainly good to ramp into.

Perhaps I also overvalue Nemesis of Mortals. It was often a 4 mana 5/5 for me, but a vanilla 5/5.

Now I have some good information to work with before Grand Prix Sacramento.

Always play all of the Voyaging Satyrs you have if you end up in Green. If you have 4, play 4. If you have 6, play 6. They're one of the two best 2 drop creatures in the set, and they totally negate one of the top reasons that everyone else at the tournament will lose 1-4 games guaranteed: mana problems. Double costed spells become a non-issue with a Satyr down, and accelerating to 4, 5, or 6 mana on turns 3, 4 or 5 is a very aggressive strategy.

The best thing a Voyaging Satyr does for you in my opinion is it makes your mulligan decisions a ton easier. Basically any two land hand with a Satyr in it is a snap keep.

Not having to mulligan as often, not tripping on mana as often, and being able to cast powerful spells 1-2 turns earlier is why that card is a must play.

Quote from Mr_Zero

Focus on making yourself more fun to play with. if you work to be more personable, having a good conversation with your opponent throughout the match, your deck choice and even winning or losing will have little impact on the both of you having fun.

This is coming from a competitive player. I'm serious about the game, serious about winning, but also want to have a good time doing so - and make sure my opponent is having a good time even when I'm beating him.

This is great advice, unlike most of the posts here.

These people are playing multiplayer causal Magic for a reason, and that reason is to have enjoyable experience with their friends. It is not strictly "to win at Magic the Gathering." (besides, all things being equal, you win multiplayer less often than a duel)

MTG, and all games, are underpinned by a social contract: a base expectation that each player believes they are mutually entering into. This social contract is normally NOT EXPLICIT. Most people don't know how to even describe it. Reanimating Iona turn 2 is a breach of that social contract in a multiplayer casual game. It ends the fun experience they sat down to do before it even starts. Soft locks and things like Stax or Stasis prevent them from participating and also break the contract. Over-repeated wrath effects may also do it. How much is too much? The group will decide.

But that's just talking about how gameplay affects the social contract. An arguably bigger part is just the social interaction itself. How you talk and treat the other players and carry yourself can break the contract.

If you've got earbuds in, flick your cards to annoy them, and try to get them to misplay, that's a dealbreaker. If you chide them on card choices, meanly criticize their misplays, and offer so much advice you're taking their turn for them that's a dealbreaker. If you can't read their social cues correctly and make them feel uncomfortable that is a dealbreaker.

So you need to take a step back and not only look at what cards you put in your deck and how you play but also how you interact with these people and what these people BELIEVE about this. People are very good at reading each other for social cues and will subconsciously pick up on things just in the way you look and talk. If this playgroup BELIEVES that you've got a chip on your shoulder and are looking down on them by the way you act they'll articulate their distaste by rejecting your playstyle.

My advice is to take one of them aside and tell them that you really want to play with them and you know your style is clashing with them, so you want to know what you can do so everyone will have a good time.

But before that this actually needs to be true. You need to WANT to have a good time with these people, not just play MTG with them. If you have no desire to participate, enjoy their company, and have them enjoy yours, then no amount of deckbuilding or play changes will help. People will pick up on it and you'll still have problems. That's ok, you should find new people or play on MTGO if social interaction isn't what you're looking for.


And finally, if these people are actually poor excuses for human beings who delight in being mean and cruel then you're better off not playing with them in the first place.