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You CAN Play Type I #119: Back to Basics, Part IX – The Ten-Second Card Advantage Solution Part 1

Card Advantage is simpler and more visible than tempo, so the spectacular plays you associate with Type I are usually those that build incredible CA, from Stroke of Genius to Mind Twist. The most powerful card ever printed, Necropotence, is also the most powerful CA engine ever printed.

It’s really very simple. If Restriction 1 says you only draw one card a turn, or your regular draw, then one way to win is by drawing more cards. However, spectacular plays aren’t common. Normally, you have to choose between two average plays. Thus, you want a simple method to count CA, to help you decide… and that’s what I’m going to provide.

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$10,000 Reward… Still Up For Grabs!

On Saturday, December 20th, someone broke into our Roanoke, Virginia warehouse and stole some cards from us.

That”someone” now has a $10,000 bounty on their head, which will remain in place until we find them.

Do you have information about this crime? Let us know, and you could end up $10,000 richer.

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Sullivan Library: Rebutting the Hullabaloo

What a mess. What a mess. First of all, as I’ve read the forum thread to Geordie Tait’s article, I’ve grown sadder and sadder.
GT has decided to write a card advantage article for new players. Fine. We start debating the finer points of it. Fine. People get heated. Even this is fine.

There are two not-fines. One from Oscar Tan. One from GT.

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What Are You Implying? U/R In Mirrodin Draft

Wizards has apparently taken a liking to the Blue/Red color combination in the last two blocks, as it has been completely dominant in the format before either of the small expansions are released. Last year it was Sparksmith, Lavamancer’s Skill, and Mistform Wall. This year it’s Electrostatic Bolt, Spikeshot Goblin, and Neurok Spy. Go figure.

While I wouldn’t go as far to say the U/R is absolutely unbeatable in triple Mirrodin Limited, I’ll say that there have been very few times when I’ve had a solid version of the archetype that I’ve actually lost.

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From Right Field: Whipping Out the White Weenie

It’s probably no surprise that I felt that Bonesplitter needed to be in here. Nothing says”aggressive” like a spell that gives +2/+0 and keeps on giving even after the creature dies. I also wanted something cheap to stop other creatures. Pacifism had been my spell of choice ever since those impotent, slack-jawed cretins in R&D decided to drop Reprisal from 8th Edition. Why did you do that? Why? Why, dear, God, oh, why? What Rhodes Scholar decided that a White spell that costs 1W and only blows up creatures that are really big was too good?

I’m sorry, what were we talking about?

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You CAN Play Type I #118 – Back to Basics, Part VIII: Revisiting Card Advantage

To begin, I’d like to go back to something I glossed over in”Counting Card Advantage.” A lot of the forum discussion touched on”virtual” card advantage, but I doubt all readers know exactly what this is. It was a term coined by Eric”Danger” Taylor in”Virtual Card Advantage in Urza’s Block, a Sub-Category of Card Advantage Theory” (The Dojo, August 4, 1999). EDT’s classic article actually discussed two specific sets of scenarios, and the first concluded:

You can’t ignore tokens when counting card advantage.

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Oscar Takes On All Comers!

When you read this, I’d like you to e-mail me the most confusing, perplexing, tooth-gnashing, ball-breaking card advantage conundrum you can think of. And I’ll do my best to explain it to you in one stroke, using a very short checklist. In other words, I’d like you to help me write the next column.

If I can’t – again, take note of the grain of common sense needed – then I admit defeat and will shut up.

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The Comprehensive 8th Edition Draft Review: Artifacts

The colorless cards in 8th Edition are a mixed bunch. There are some very good, first-pick quality cards. There are also a large number of awful cards. Here are some points to note about artifacts in the format. Note that I have also included the non-basic lands in this section, for the sake of completeness. Not that there are enough of them to interfere with the flow of the article much.


  • Some artifacts should be picked higher than the equivalent colored card, because they don’t commit you to a color. Phyrexian Hulk for example is a perfectly acceptable first pick, because it is going to make your deck and be a reasonable card regardless of what colors you end up playing.

  • On the other hand, when using artifact creatures, remember that Naturalize and Shatter can rain on your parade just as well as any creature destruction spell. Bear this in mind when setting up gang blocks or alpha strikes.

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Mixed kNuts: Season’s Beatings For One and All

Wow, I can’t tell you the last time I wrote an actual”Mixed kNuts” column. You know, the kind with the Kitchen Sink, and the Cheesecake, and the randomness generally associated with, uh, me? Since it’s Christmas, I’m gifting myself (and verbing too) the time to write something fun, and since it’s not particularly fair to post some other writer on Christmas (nobody reads Christmas Day, silly), I’ll proudly fill the void.

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Power, Consistency, and Resiliency – Dabbling With Desires In Extended, Part Two

Metagame/hate decks are something I never recommend for the reason that they aren’t very powerful – and even if they are, they usually don’t even approach the power level of the targeted decks. Despite effective hosers, the lack of inherent power is most visible in match-ups outside the scope of its hate. Another risk is that you may not even play the deck you are supposed to be hosing. The second reason is that in degenerate formats, more powerful decks have the best chance of just being more broken and faster than another incredibly powerful deck.

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