Monday, November 23rd – For many folks, EDH is a safe haven from the Spike-filled tournament environment. The world of EDH is run by Timmies and Johnnies. Some people call this place Magical Christmas Land, where any ridiculous five-card combo that takes ten turns and one hundred mana to assemble is viable. I’m thrilled that such a place exists for the people who need that outlet. But I am not one of those people.
Monday, November 23rd – After a summer of activity, we’ve hit a lull where Vintage is concerned, with a few mid-size events left in 2009 but nothing large-scale in the immediate future. I’ve turned my focus from Vintage recently to prepare for some local Legacy tournaments, but thankfully Stephen Menendian is around to show that there are subtle but interesting shifts occurring in the Vintage metagame.
Monday, November 23rd – This week, Doug looks at one of the most curious cards on the Legacy Banned List: Land Tax. Is the card a remnant from the old days of Extended, or should it rightfully still sit on the Banned List? Looking through the history of Land Tax decks, an analysis of what the card practically does in a game, and the requirements for getting the most out of the enchantment, find out what Doug concludes about the possible impact of an unbanned Land Tax in Legacy, and why this December is the right time to try it out.
Friday, November 20th – Today, Kyle brings us an in-depth exploration of the duel decks headed by Jace, Chandra, Garruk, and Liliana. He looks at the lists, the matchups, and the strategy behind these excellent decks, and urges the strong-minded mages among us to pick up some copies!
Friday, November 20th – Even though my days of college have long since passed, my desire to live the college lifestyle has not. I’ve made sure that such mainstays as not doing anything particularly useful with my time, living in complete squalor, and not having working gas are an integral part of my daily routine. That, and road trips.
Friday, November 20th – I realize, in the grand scheme of things, that there are a lot worse things that can happen to you than a run of extraordinary bad luck playing Magic. Ultimately, this is just a game. That said, this is a column about Magic, and bad-beat stories are a time-honored tradition.
Friday, November 20th – Hello everybody, and welcome to another edition of the Magic Show. This week I’ve got a short rundown of my first day here in Italy, along with some incredibly fun and awesome Standard technology I’d like to share. You ready for some goodness? Let’s go!
Thursday, November 19th – Most things Judges handle are rather routine. At every event I attend, there is always a common pattern of rules questions and penalties that occur. But, every once in awhile, we’ll get something that is worth of discussion at post-event dinners, on message boards, and even in articles…
Thursday, November 19th – Grand Prix: Minneapolis was last weekend. It was the third largest North American GP ever, and it ran very smoothly. I’m not going to talk a lot about the play itself – the coverage can do that. I’ll talk about everything else.
Thursday, November 19th – I’ve been cruising the Mediterranean on my way to Worlds in Rome. Somewhere around Athens, I realized that it would only be fitting that I talked about philosophy while in the Greek isles, the birthplace of much of modern thought. With apologies to Rousseau, John Locke, and Thomas Hobbes (not to mention Socrates and Plato), here’s my shot at the Social Contract as it applies to EDH.
Thursday, November 19th – Zendikar is an extremely fast draft format. While initially popular, a lot of players have began to bemoan its speed, saying games are over too quick and, as a result, there is a smaller chance for skill to impact each game. While that statement is partially true, a quicker format puts the skill emphasis not on play, but on drafting.
Wednesday, November 18th – On this week’s edition of MTGCast, the guys discuss Grand Prix: Minneapolis, EDH, Richard Garfield, and more!
Wednesday, November 18th – In a review of Portal cards in article #168, I spend some time talking about the Three Kingdoms set, and some of the stories behind the cards. Later, in article #190, I spend the entire time describing stories behind the cards of Three Kingdoms. It’s been a while, but I feel another entry in this vein would be timely…
Wednesday, November 18th – This past weekend, I played in my second Pro Tour Qualifier for San Diego. I played more Limited this time than I did for the last PTQ, but still failed to walk away with the Blue Envelope. While I’m pretty sure my rating went up overall, more importantly were a few of the lessons learned over the course of the weekend, which I’m going to share with you.
Wednesday, November 18th – Think back, if you will, to Standard a year ago. Shards of Alara had just come out, and the format was still largely dominated by Lorwyn Block. Faeries was the undisputed champion if the format, and even more so before Time Spiral ripped Ancestral Visions from its despicable hands. Now I want you to think about what happened whenever someone pitched an idea for a new deck.
