The DCI generally is heaped with scorn, not praise, but when you think about it, they do a darn fine job under less than optimal circumstances. If there’s one thing I’ve learned so far in the bulk of my MBC testing so far, it’s that there is no one deck that stands above the rest….
As I’ve mentioned in many articles before, I like to build my own decks. One of the things that frustrates me most is when I build a deck that should do well and it doesn’t. What I’d like to explore in this article is the difference between a good deck and an amazing deck. The…
By GOD, Magic should be fun! Good Magic should make you leap out of bed in the morning and think, "Laws-a-mercy! I have a deck I need to build today!" Good Magic gives you something to think about when you’re bored at work. It creates friendships. It livens up an otherwise dull and dreary existence….
When Richard Garfield created Magic, he did a very wise thing: He made sure all of the colors had weaknesses. This was a very wise choice, because it ensured that everyone would have to buy five tons of cards in order to get a deck that worked. You think that the color limitations actually affected…
I entered Star City Comics & Games for the first time. I walked into the smallish room that’s now used as storage or accounting or something. There were a handful of people there ready to compete in the weekly Type II tournament. I was packing my only deck: a Blue/White control deck featuring TONS of…
First, I know you’re all dying to know how I did at the prerelease. Well, the news is mixed, but largely good. I roared out of the gate to a 4-1 start — a much more pleasant mirror reflection of my Nemesis record. Since I was a mere match win away from prizes, I kept…
If I’m not lynched for this one, it’ll be a miracle. And not the nice, Frank Capra kind of miracle, either. No, if I do manage to escape untorn, it will only serve to secure a more terrifying fate later. I hope you can all live with yourselves knowing that you’ve driven me to this….
I know what your thinking,“Not another analysis of the deck from MBC! We’ve had enough of those already!” And you may be right. I may be crazy. But it just might be a lunatic you’re looking for. But it was either this or another random thoughts column, and two in one month would make me…
I had high hopes for US Nationals. I’d been playing in a great deal of Standard tournaments at the local stores in Denver, CO. It took me a few tries to find a deck that I liked, but once I found it, I kept playing and tuning it. And I kept winning. Things were looking…
There’s basically three-and-a-half approaches to designing effective multiplayer decks: 1) Create a totally unstoppable deck that’s a constant threat — if anyone takes their eye off of you for a split-second, you win. EXAMPLE: A recursion deck that uses Elves to generate quick mana, Coats Of Arms for beef, and for a final attack with…
Congrats to our esteemed former editor-in-chief for moving up to, as Keith Olbermann would put it, “The Big Show.” Pack an umbrella and several cans of -O-Leum, Omeed, you’re gonna need it. Props must also be given to a local player I know, Chris Benafel, for finishing second at Nationals and advancing to Worlds (great,…
AUTHOR’S NOTE: Regular programming for Casual Fridays has been postponed one week so that we can deal with this timely topic. (Sure, one week old by the time you read this, but it’s not like Omeed put a freshness date on his resignation.) Like many of you, I was dismayed to find out Monday (this…
This is all going to be very dangerous. Today I’m releasing the method for an amazing multiplayer variant, and along with that the steps necessary to create the environment within which it can flourish. This isn’t for the faint of heart. Yesterday I was at the bus station minding the closest thing to my own…
Following up from the thinly-disguised space-filler from a couple of articles ago, I thought I’d throw in a few more ‘persons as Magic cards’ – you know the concept, I mean the title fair gives the game away, no? Anyway – I know this is asking for trouble, but can anyone out there produce some…
SATURDAY It is a beautiful morning – blue skies and shining, summer sun. Alan and myself leave my part-time Reading residence at the crack of dawn (a lark in attendance) and drive to Guildford – shining Southern metropolis and home to this year’s English Nationals. I should emphasise that they are the ENGLISH Nationals (…
