11 Things I've Learned

I've learned a lot this semester, here are just 11 of them:

1) Even though I sell phones for a living, I never knew what GSM meant. Sadly. For reference, it means Global System for Mobile

2) I learned about how sites are indexed via search engines.

3) I learned about how bots will "crawl" on sites to index them.

4) I learned that Javascript and Java applets and scripts are not "crawlable", making it difficult to index them properly.

5) I learned about Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising, and how companies pay for advertising this way.

6) I learned about Crowdsourcing and how it has impacted the professional world. Many sites allow for amateurs to get paid to do professional editing of documents and many other jobs.

7) I learned about Web PR, and how ORM works in relation.

8) I learned the specifics of online copywriting

9) I learned about Basic/Feature/Smart phones, although the definitions in the books are a little out of date.

10) I learned about the different types of Operational Management used in creating a marketing plan

11) I learned about the innovation that Augmented Reality will bring to many types of technology over the years.

It's been a great class!

Legacy WastePox

It seems that I'm on a roll with decklists this week, and one for every format no less! We have already discussed the card that I'm trying to implement into Legacy - Waste Not. As I mentioned in the article last week, this was the community-created card that the MTG community created last year. Without further ado, here's a decklist featuring Waste Not:

Mono Black Waste Not/Pox

Creatures - 3

3 Bloodghast

Spells - 30

3 Waste Not

4 Dark Ritual

4 Hymn to Tourach

3 Inquisition of Kozilek

3 Thoughtseize

4 Smallpox

3 Cabal Therapy

4 Sinkhole

2 Innocent Blood

Planeswalkers - 4

4 Liliana of the Veil

Lands - 23

4 Wasteland

4 Verdant Catacombs

4 Marsh Flats

11 Swamp

This list heavily relies on Waste Not, so I'm not sure how well overall it will function. However, if you can get a nut hand of Dark Ritual into Waste Not + a discard spell, you could potentially empty your hand on turn 1 and leave your opponent with nothing relevant in their hand. For example, let's say you draw the following 7-card hand:

Swamp

Wasteland

Dark Ritual

Waste Not

Thoughtseize

Hymn to Tourach

Innocent Blood

If your opponent does not counter the initial Dark Ritual or the Waste Not, it's going to be very hard to come back from the beating your hand will take. That line of play would go something like:

Swamp > Dark Ritual > Waste Not > Thoughtseize > Draw a Card. 

Next turn, you Hymn to Tourach and just go off.

Now like most Pox lists it will suffer heavily from lack of countermagic, especially in the recent Delver-heavy meta. Like the other lists I posted this week though, it is just a cool idea that came to mind after Waste Not was spoiled.

Let me know what you think about this list in the comments below!

Modern Necromancer's Stockpile

M15 has been one of the coolest core sets in recent history. Seriously, they have printed so many just COOL cards that are going to be played across many formats. However, today I want to talk about one card in particular:

Necromancer's Stockpile

Some people have been discussing what implications this card will have in Modern in tandem with cards like Gravecrawler, Vengevine, or Bloodghast. That said, let's look at a sample decklist I came up with:

Creatures - 22
4 Gravecrawler
4 Bloodghast
4 Vengevine
4 Birds of Paradise
4 Demigod of Revenge
2 Squee, Goblin Nabob

Spells - 18
4 Necromancer's Stockpile
3 Darkblast
4 Lightning Bolt
4 Faithless Looting
3 Grisly Salvage

Lands - 20
4 Verdant Catacombs
4 Marsh Flats
1 Overgrown Tomb
1 Stomping Ground
1 Blood Crypt
1 Urborg, Tomb of Yawgmoth
4 Blackcleave Cliffs
2 Copperline Gorge
2 Swamp


Now the main point of this deck is to take advantage of cards like Necromancer's Stockpile and Faithless Looting to put Vengevine and Demigod of Revenge into the graveyard, and then bring them back with land drops (Bloodghast), by having another zombie (Gravecrawler), or simply by casting another copy (Demigod). I think this list could potentially be a little too "cute" as the format is a little too fast for this kind of deck, but it's still a cool idea that could be developed and further explored. Necromancer's Stockpile is just too cool of a card to let go to waste.


Let me know your thoughts on this list below!

M15 Standard G/B Midrange

We've looked at a lot of the new cards from M15, and now that the entire set has been spoiled it's time to look at a sample decklist that I came up with. The list is a RB Midrange deck that curves out into Garruk, Apex Predator.


Creatures - 15
4 Sylvan Caryatid
4 Courser of Kruphix
4 Desecration Demon
3 Nightveil Specter

Spells - 19
4 Hero's Downfall
4 Sign in Blood
2 Ultimate Price
4 Thoughtseize
2 Whip of Erebos
3 Abrupt Decay

Planeswalkers - 3
2 Garruk, Apex Predator
1 Vraska the Unseen

Lands - 23
4 Temple of Malady
4 Overgrown Tomb
1 Golgari Guildgate
3 Mutavault
11 Swamp


Now obviously this is a very basic first draft, but I think the idea deserves some consideration. The deck already has a lot of great tools in cards like Courser of Kruphix and Nightveil Specter, and with the reprinting of Sign in Blood and the addition of cards like Garruk, Apex Predator, I think a GB Midrange deck could find a place in the new standard format.

It has the versatility of the current GB lists with cards like Abrupt Decay, Hero's Downfall, etc, and while it does not pack Underworld Connections, Sign in Blood definitely makes up for it. Some people would argue that Connections is better because it draws you more cards over the course of the game, but the advent of the other GB decks has made them fodder for opposing Abrupt Decays to a point where it's almost not worth playing it unless you are playing Gray Merchant of Asphodel as well.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments below!

Scoops Phase Apparel is Here!

Hey everyone! By popular demand, we have finally created 3 different designs for t-shirts, mugs, and other products on our CafePress site! You can find the full site here. Without further ado, here are the designs that are now available!

Design 1 - Drafts and Drafts

That's right! The popular Drafts and Drafts series finally has it's own shirt! For those unaware, the D&D series involves myself and Anthony Harrison doing a draft on MTGO (Magic the Gathering Online) where we do a Vintage Masters draft or the current set, and on Cube Tutor, where we do drafts of our cubes! We have only released a few episodes so far, but we have more coming soon!

Design 2 - Wrong Magic

Very often when I tell people that I "play Magic", they think I'm talking about some type of LARPing environment or doing magic tricks (or Illusions, as some would call them). This is obviously a common misconception as many people I speak with have never even heard of it before talking to me about it.

Design 3 - Untap, Upkeep...Scoops?

Now the Scoops phase is part of your turn! Untap, upkeep, Scoops! "Scooping" is a common magic slang meaning to concede the game by "scooping" up your cards, and since people call me Scoops, I figured the connection was a pretty easy one to draw. 

I hope you like the new apparel! If you want to purchase it, just click the link at the top of this post to visit our CafePress site! 

Video Game Testing Opportunities!

Click Here!

or

Click Here!

These links will bring you to a site that will allow you to get paid to play video games! Big companies are using sites like these to get gamers who can play, test, and review upcoming games and they need people now more than ever!

You might be asking yourself, "Why are you promoting this on your Magic site? This seems crazy." Well, although the main point of this blog is Magic-related, I do also love playing video games and will do everything I can to help people who want to play games for a living!

When I was a kid, I wanted to get paid to play video games for a living (like most people my age at the time). Sadly enough, I never really pursued that dream and decided to go with a more traditional business major in school. I still play games when I have time, but I would definitely not have time to write in-depth reviews for a website with this site already in my mind and working 40 hours a week! That's where you guys come in! Hopefully if you have time you can pick up my extra slack!

Will you necessarily get a high-paying job doing this? Probably not. But it's kind of cool to get paid a little extra money to do something you enjoy doing anyway, especially if it involves playing new games before anyone else!

Each link will bring you to a separate opportunity to get paid to play. Let me know how they turn out!

M15 Spoilers (Non-Planeswalkers)

Hey all! If you haven't already seen them, you can click the following links to see my posts about the new planeswalkers that are being printed in M15:

M15 Planeswalkers - Part 1

M15 Planeswalkers - Part 2

There are a couple non-walker cards I'd like to talk about though, since planeswalkers aren't the only cool cards!

Waste Not

Waste Not was the "You Make the Card 4" winner that the community voted to create on the Wizards home site last year. The card is really quite good, and while I'm not sure it will have much impact in standard, it could be cool in Modern or Legacy. Combined with Thoughtseize, Hymn to Tourach, or Liliana of the Veil, Waste Not will gain you lots of advantage pretty quickly. Even in Legacy though, it might be too slow since it doesn't make an immediate impact on the game. I could see decks like Pox playing it just to create more incremental advantage with each spell they play, but that has yet to be seen.

Genesis Hydra

Genesis Hydra is pretty sweet. It's cheaper than Genesis Wave, but you get a body. The only downside is that instead of getting ALL non-land permanents with CMC X or less, you only get one card. The card is still really cool for EDH, and might even be good in Standard with all the Nykthos and mono-green lists already running around. Imagine getting a 5/5 for 7 mana but also getting a free Nissa, Worldwaker or Polukranos. Seems good.

Those are the cards I think are really sweet from M15, and while there are others that are cool too, many other people online have already talked about them. 

Let me know what you think about the new cards in the comments below!

M15 Planewalkers - Part 2

Oh hey! Welcome back. Yesterday we talked about Ajani Steadfast and Jace, the Living Guildpact. Today, we will be talking about a few other new planeswalkers and my thoughts on them!

Nissa, Worldwaker

Now THIS Nissa I like. If you're familiar at all with the original Nissa, you can clearly see that this variant is on a whole new level of power. While not bad, the original Nissa was very tribe-driven, and this new one allows really any green deck to benefit from running her. This is particularly evident for Mono-green lists, since her other second +1 ability allows you to have paid effectively 1 mana for a 4 loyalty walker. 

It is also important to note that her first +1 ability does not say "until end of turn", meaning that you can make an army of 4/4s without investing any spells into it. Similar to most other Green walkers, her ultimate is pretty insane in the right deck, particularly the mono-green strategy.

Garruk, Apex Predator

This might be the only planeswalker with 4 abilities that isn't totally broken. The 7 CMC kind of makes that happen, but even at 7 mana this card is insanely powerful. It's Bolas-like +1 that will wreck other walker decks seems crazy, and if your opponent doesn't have a planeswalker of their own, you can just make a 3/3 deathtouch beast. SEEMS. GOOD.

Like all good black cards, it also has built-in removal. At -3, it's nice that you also gain life when you kill an opponent's creature. As mentioned with Nissa, like most walkers, the ultimate just wins you the game, or lets you gang up on one opponent in multiplayer game types like Commander.

Those are my thoughts and views on the new walkers! Let me know what you think in the comments below!

M15 Planeswalkers - Part 1

Let's talk M15 Spoilers. Particularly, new planeswalkers. There are plenty of sweet new cards and reprints to talk about, but I want to talk about planeswalkers specifically. Let's dive right in:

Ajani Steadfast

HO-LY CRAAAAAP. I really love this card. Seriously. It's great. Splashable in many types of decks, great that it helps other walkers you control, and it's +1 ability is devastating against most decks. Unlike previous variants of Ajani that put a +1/+1 counter on a creature you control or on each, this version does both, but just better. It's ultimate ability is also a good-game button. I don't know how well it will help against aggro strategies, but with the abundance of midrange decks in the current meta it will help against the big dumb animals they generally run.

Jace, the Living Guildpact

People be hating on new Jace like crazy, and honestly, I don't know why. The card is actually quite good. Here are 3 important things to note:

1.  4 CMC walkers will always get some level of play because their cost is aggressive enough to warrant it.
2. He effectively ETB with 6 loyalty counters, and a freebie pseudo Sleight of Hand. 
3. If you ultimate him, I don't know how you lose. Not only do you remove all utility your opponent may have in their graveyard, but you also get to play the game with 7 more card than them. Seriously, how do you lose at that point?

Join me again tomorrow for some more new planeswalker talk! 

Until then, let me know what you think about the new Ajani and Jace!

The Legacy Archive

After writing my full-length article titled Breaking Into Legacy: A How-To, it dawned on me that it would be nice for my readers to see all the Legacy content that I have posted since this blog started. There have been Top 5 posts, deck construction posts, and much more, and as always there is more to come.

Today, I just wanted to give you links and brief descriptions of each of the most relevant Legacy-related posts I have put up since the inception of this blog.

To Ban or Not To Ban? Brainstorm

This post relates to the recent SCG Top-8 in Columbus where 6 of the top 8 decks featured Delver, and 7 out of the 8 decks featured 4 copies of Brainstorm. The internet was in a kind of uproar that week, and thoughts about banning Brainstorm in Legacy ran rampant. This article goes over my opinions on whether or not it should happen, and why.

Top 5 Cards in Legacy

Not sure which cards to be playing in Legacy right now? This post goes over what I believe to be the 5 most powerful spells in the format right now, and rationale behind each of them. Brainstorm was not included in this list however, for obvious reasons.

Shardless Order vs other BUG Variants

Gerry Thompson, the innovator of the Shardless BUG archetype, goes into detail in his article for StarCityGames about a new BUG-colored deck he wants to try in Legacy. This post goes over my thoughts on the deck, and whether or not it would be a good call in the meta right now.


So there you have it, as time goes on I will add more posts to the Legacy archive, but hopefully this list will keep your cravings for content at bay for now!


[Class Purpose: Sneeze post]

Shield of the Dragon

Yes, I'm talking about sleeves today.

Like any collectible card game (CCG), Magic cards can be expensive and worth protecting. I don't know of many players that don't use sleeves (unless they are either a brand-new player), but those who choose not to are making a horrible mistake.

That being said, there are many kinds of sleeves you can use. Ultra Pros, Legions, Dragon Shields, you know it. Personally, I am an advocate for Dragon Shield (Silver, to be specific)

There are a few reasons I use them, particularly because they just feel so slick and sleek when you are shuffling. I've noticed over the years that Ultra Pros and Legions tend to break very easily, particularly along the outside edges. For a long while I actually used KMC Hyper Mat sleeves, but I ran into the same issues. I've actually been using Dragon Shields pretty religiously for about 3 years now, so much so that I bought a case of them to sleeve the Cube I recently built. 

Some people argue that Dragon Shields get too dirty too quickly, and in some situations they would b right. The Black, Blue, and Green sleeves made by Dragon Shield get incredibly dirty and look like crap in only a few weeks of play. The only colors I've had particularly good luck with are Silver and, surprisingly, Pink. 

Yup, you heard me right. Pink. 

The ONLY reason I don't use the Pink ones is because the Silvers hold up just as well, and let's be honest, Pink would probably bring a lot of unwanted criticism. Regardless, I still endorse them as being a quality product.

So there you have it, I love Dragon Shield sleeves and they're the only ones I use when I play magic. I am also an advocate for using Ultra Pro Perfect Fit sleeves in tandem with Dragon Shields when sleeving an expensive deck, just to keep them super safe.

Here are links to each of my favorite sleeves, in case you're interested in buying some! It's important to note that each of these products comes with 100 sleeves, great for sleeving any 75-card constructed deck or even a 100-card EDH/Commander deck!

Silver Dragon Shields

Pink Dragon Shields

Ultra Pro Perfect Fits

What are your favorite kind of sleeves? Let me know in the comments below!

[Channel Review] Gathering Magic on YouTube

Ever wondered exactly how specific abilities work? Curious about learning the rules of the game? Thankfully, I plan to write quite a few posts about both of these topics and much more, but in the mean time I've found a great resource that is incredibly helpful for all players.


Cool Stuff Inc. is a LGS (local game store) located in Florida that has a wide variety of board games, cards games, and other great products. They have also started a YouTube Channel called "Gathering Magic", which hosts videos every week.

My personal favorite segment is titled "Judge's Corner", where David Greene (a level 2 judge) talks about the ins and outs of the various rules the game presents. While this may seem like a silly thing if you are unfamiliar with the game, it is actually a phenomenal resource as the intricacies and specifics to the rules leave even veteran players stumped on occasion.

In addition to Judge's Corner, the channel hosts many budget deck construction videos, how-to videos, and draft videos. They even have full playlists dedicated to specific decks across all the formats, which allow newer players to understand the different lines of play each deck has to offer.

It is also very cool to note that they often have guests on the show, typically pro players that they sit down with to discuss the game or a deck they might be working on. It is always interesting to hear professional players talk about their mindset when playing the game because it helps other players develop their own skills.

Here is an example video about The Stack, one of the most elementary concepts used while playing Magic:

If you want more content like this, I highly suggest you visit Gathering Magic's channel on YouTube. 

Click here to visit their channel!

What do you think about their channel? Do you like the content provided? Let me know in the comments!

The Scoops Phase - Check out our full-length articles!

If you haven't already checked out our section on full-length articles, you can find it above!

All of the articles linked there are hosted on our parent site, scoopsmagic.webs.com, home of The Scoops Phase. As of right now you can access our newest full-length article on GP Chicago, and in the next week or so you should be able to access our first selection of Vintage Masters draft videos with myself and Anthony Harrison. The segment is called "Drafts and Drafts", where we do a draft of a set MTGO (Magic the Gathering Online) or via CubeTutor.com while drinking a few beers and commentating over it.

In the near future, we also hope to have weekly content for each format. This would include weekly articles for Standard, Modern, and Legacy, with video content like drafts or deck-techs on occasion as well. These articles will be written primarily by myself, but Anthony Harrison and a few other individuals have agreed to write content as well. It seemed that the best way to deliver quality content was to diversify the opinions of those writing the articles, and while I think I have a pretty good grasp on Legacy, there are other people who are much better suited to write about Standard or Modern.

Anthony Harrison and myself have even discussed building Legacy and Vintage decks on MTGO so we can stream the “daily” events that are hosted each day, and optimally we would pick one day a week to stream.

There is a lot coming in the next few weeks, and we hope that you enjoy it all. For now, I recommend  you visit our site and check out the article about GP Chicago.

You can find it by clicking the following link: GP Chicago: A Mishap

If there are any specific kinds of content you are looking to see, please let me know!



(Class Purpose: Promote your own website)

[Legacy] Shardless Order vs other BUG Variants

As a BUG Delver player myself, I have often looked at other BUG variants to see what the optimal choice would be if I were to bring my Underground Seas and Brainstorms to an SCG Open.

Here is my current BUG Delver list, for reference: http://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/bug-delver-04-03-14-1/

Gerry Thompson, who is often known for innovating the "Shardless BUG" archetype, has recently introduced a new decklist that takes the existing shells of both Shardless BUG and Combo Elves and combines them into one crazy deck.

The deck functions by using mana accelerants like Deathrite Shaman and Noble Hierarch to cast an early Shardless Agent, allowing for a more impressive board presence early on. It then ops to cast Natural Order and retrieve Craterhoof Behemoth as soon as it has enough dudes to make a lethal attack against your opponent. In addition to this interaction, the deck packs a hand destruction suite of Thoughtseize, Hymn to Tourach, and Inquisition of Kozilek to ensure your opponent can't deal with your threats after getting that Craterhoof online.

Here is a link to Gerry Thompson's full article on SCG's website: http://www.starcitygames.com/article/28649_Daily-Digest-Shardless-Naturally.html


The deck seems solid. I really like to see cards like Scavenging Ooze and Edric, Spymaster of Trest getting Legacy play, as they are both incredibly powerful cards. Edric allows for so much card advantage that if you get 2-3 attacks in your opponents will just fold to the card advantage alone.

Would this deck do well at a large event? I think right now it would probably not be the greatest meta call, particularly because combo elves has been doing some Top-8 work over the past few weeks and most people probably have some hate planned for these types of decks (think Grafdigger's Cage).

Let me know what you think about Gerry's list in the comments below!


(Class purposes: Link Article)

[Analyzing] StarCityGames.com

Today I want to take a look at another blog-type site that is undeniably one of the best sites for quality content on Magic the Gathering. Most people who play Magic are aware of Star City Games (SCG), as they are one of, if not the largest Magic shops in the country. Their popularity stems from their ability to have well-known pro players write articles for them on a frequent basis, as well as players who do well at larger events also hosted by SCG.

There are two distinct areas on their blog that jump out at you: Premium, and Select. Select articles are free for anyone who visits their site, while Premium articles require a membership to read. Thankfully, whenever you sign up and attend a large-scale SCG event (Opens, IQ, etc), they give you 1 free month of SCG Premium just for playing. Not only does this incentivize players who want to read the Premium articles, but it also allows players who are unfamiliar with their site to try it out before paying for it.

I have been a Premium subscriber for almost 2 years, and while I don't read their articles as much as I'd like to these days, I'm still very pleased with the in-depth content they provide on a near-daily basis. They provide content about all the relevant formats (Standard, Modern, Legacy) and are definitely all about providing quality content.

Here is a link to SCG's website, and subsequent links to their Premium and Select areas:

Website:  http://www.starcitygames.com/

Premium Articles: http://www.starcitygames.com/tags/Premium

Select Articles (remember, these are always free!): http://www.starcitygames.com/tags/Select

Let me know in the comments what you think about SCG!


(Class purposes: Analyze top blog in your niche)

[MTGBlogger.com] The Kiss of Death

While I do enjoy writing these articles myself, it is also important to look at other blogs to ensure that my content matches up or exceeds quality-wise.

MTGBlogger.com has always been a site that I visit myself to read about the current goings-on of Magic the Gathering, and while the content may seem a little lack-luster at times, overall the site is very well put together.

Here is a link to the article in question that I suggest you read if you are playing Standard right now, especially if you've been playing GB Dredge before Journey to Nyx was released:

The Kiss of Death - GB Dredge in Standard

While I'm certainly no expert on the Standard format, this deck does seem to pose a lot of versatile threats that make most decks in the format struggle for answers. U/W Control needs to find their Nth copy of Supreme Verdict to deal with most of our creatures (aside from Lotleth Troll), and the burn decks get stopped dead by cards like Sylvan Caryatid.

Shadowborn Demon stops all the big creatures in the format like Arbor Colossus, Stormbreath Dragon, and many more. I am a little surprised to see that this deck no longer runs any copies of Nemesis of Mortals, since it is such a big body for such a low investment.

However, above all else my favorite card in this deck is:

This deck already runs cards like Satyr Wayfinder and Grisly Salvage to fill your graveyard with dudes, so why not take advantage of that fact and bring them back to life every turn? On top of that your creatures all have Lifelink while it is on the battlefield, helping to stabilize your life total against decks like R/W Burn and Boss Sligh. In addition, it helps keep your deck wrath-proof against Supreme Verdict-style decks, and keeps you out of range of dying to cards like Aetherling.

Do you agree? This deck might just be bad, but if nothing else it sure looks fun!



(Class purposes: Promote another blog post)

Top 5 Cards to be Playing in Legacy (other than Brainstorm!)

TOP 5 CARDS TO BE PLAYING IN LEGACY

Hello all! Today we will be talking about the Top 5 cards to be playing in Legacy right now. This will be a relatively short post, but will go over the cards that have been making the largest impact on the format over the past few months! Unlike most lists, there is no particular order to these cards, and (obviously) this is a subjective opinion. Also, we will leave Brainstorm off of this list for obvious reasons. That being said, here are my picks for the top 5!

Delver of Secrets

Ok, ok. I'm a little biased for a few reasons. 1) I play Delver in Legacy and LOOOOOOVE it. 2) This card has single-handedly dominated the Legacy Opens for the past few months. As we discussed in last week's article about the potential banning of Brainstorm and discussing it's heavy impact on flipping Delver very frequently, it's no wonder the card is amazing. (Side note: to read that article, click here!) 

Show and Tell

Show and Tell is a crazy card. There, I said it. Might even be too good for the format. It enables the Sneak & Show archetype ( Sneak and Show - 10th Place SCG Columbus), and even helps decks like Reanimator off the board. 

Umezawa's Jitte

Jitte is another great example of a crazy card. Partnered with spells like True-Name Nemesis, it's damn-near impossible to stop. Even without the help of the 3/1 powerhouse, decks like BUG Delver, Stoneblade, and many more benefit from the removal, life gain, and pump that this card offers.

Stoneforge Mystic

Stoneforge Mystic has become a format staple since it was printed back in 2010, and has been allowing turn 2-3 Batterskulls ever since. While most prominent in the Stoneblade archetype ( Esper Stoneblade - 10th Place SCG Open Las Vegas), it has also been seen in the U/W Miracles sideboard as of late against the aggressive matchups, or just to act as a pseudo transformational sideboard. Either way, the card is a power house.

Deathrite Shaman

Sometimes called the "1-Mana Planeswalker", Deathrite Shaman has really made a name for itself across Legacy (and Modern too, pre-banning). Mana acceleration, life gain, and damage all wrapped in to a low-CMC package makes this card undeniably amazing.

What do you think? Are these cards as powerful as I make them out to be? Let me know in the comments below!

(Class purposes: List post)

To Ban or not to Ban? - Brainstorm

There seems to be an uproar over the past few days since the Top-8 finish for the SCG Open in Columbus this past weekend featured 6 Delver decks. You can see the decklists for this event here.

Since this event, I've heard many people in the MTG community talking about banning Brainstorm from the Legacy format. My immediate reaction was "HELL NO! They will never ban Brainstorm in Legacy!"After thinking about it and discussing it with my friend Anthony Harrison, there are a few truths about Brainstorm that people cannot argue with:

1. Playing a non-Brainstorm deck in Legacy puts you inherently at a disadvantage.
2. Blue decks are effectively 56 card decks with 4 required Brainstorm slots already taken.
3. Brainstorm was deemed "too powerful" for Vintage, the format that allows for the Power 9 to be played (albeit restricted, but even so). 
4. Brainstorm is one of the most complicated spells to play properly. 

Personally, I do not want Brainstorm to be banned. As a veteran BUG Delver player, I cringe at the thought of not being able to guarantee my Delver of Secrets flipping on Turn 2 off a Brainstorm with Delver's trigger on the stack.

But the question arises: Is Brainstorm too powerful for Legacy? Vintage players thought that Brainstorm was safe from banning back in 2008, and thankfully it was only restricted. When looking at the Vintage format today, many of us cringe to think what it would be like with un-restricted Brainstorms. It. Would. Be. Chaos. 

Cards like Jace, the Mind Sculptor can be cast on Turn 1 thanks to the Moxen and Black Lotus, but a 4 mana investment to Brainstorm is much more fair than 1 mana. 

My argument for not banning Brainstorm actually stems from the fact that it is restricted in Vintage: If it is still partially legal in Vintage with cards like Yawgmoth's Will and Time Vault in the format, it only seems far that since we are casting spells no where near as powerful it should stay unbanned.

As for right now, my opinion still stands that it should not be banned, but given the above evidence, I would not be surprised if Wizards eventually decided to un-sleeve Brainstorm in Legacy for a while. 

Magic Fundamentals - Part 1: Mana Sources

Like all sports, hobbies, and pieces of art, Magic has a diverse fanbase with many differing opinions. "Which card is better?", "Which deck is better?", and "What's the best combination of cards to play?" are often asked amongst new and old players alike.

However, all Magic players know (or should know) the basics of the game before attempting to "make it big" and win the next big event. Today I will be discussing the first of many Magic fundamentals

Part 1: Mana Sources

There are many ways to cast spells in the game of Magic, and mana is used in (almost) all of them. Depending on the deck you are playing you may run 0 land (Manaless Dredge), less land if you're a tempo deck (BUG Delver), or if you're a control deck, more land than most.

Regardless of which kind of deck you are playing, it is important to make sure you can cast the spells in your deck! It would be quite silly to run a deck full of cards like Blightsteel Colossus if you don't run enough land to cast it reliably.

In deck construction, you want to ensure that you can cast your 1-mana spells on turn 1 and your 4-mana spells on or before turn 4. For example, when running an aggressive strategy like Mono-Red, running 21 lands is more than enough because your highest costing spell is generally only 3 or 4 mana. (Mono Red Aggro - SCG Columbus)

Contrarily, if you're playing a control-oriented strategy that relies on killing your opponent in the late game with spells like Elspeth, Sun's Champion, you can run more land because your curve of spells is much higher. (U/W/R Control - SCG Columbus)

Mana abilities are abilities from permanents that add mana to your mana pool. There are a few key points to mention about them:

• Mana abilities are written as "T: Add ~ to your mana pool." If an ability is written with the "tap" symbol and a color immediately after and it's ability adds mana to your mana pool, it is considered a mana ability. This means that the first ability on Deathrite Shaman is NOT a mana ability because it involves a target to resolve and add mana to your pool.
• Mana abilities do not use the stack. You can add mana to your mana pool using mana sources at any time, and they cannot be responded to. Because Deathrite Shaman's ability has a target (and therefore goes on the stack), it is not a mana ability (just to clarify). 

Another great resource to understand mana abilities is a video from Gathering Magic's series Judge's Corner. Here is a link to the video about Mana Abilities.

That wraps up Part 1 of our Magic Fundamentals series. We will be posting more of these "basics" articles frequently!

About Me - First Post

Hello! Thanks for coming to my site today.

Since this will be a running series of blog entries, I thought it best to first give a brief "About Me" entry to better familiarize myself with my readers.

My name is Anthony Prochaska (but everyone calls me Scoops) and I am a business student at Illinois State University. I grew up in the northern suburbs of Chicago and moved to Bloomington/Normal Illinois 2 years ago to attend school here. In addition to going to school full-time, I also work as an Assistant Manager at Best Buy Mobile inside the Eastland Mall off of Empire St, so if anyone ever needs a phone or tablet, come see me!

On a more personal note, I have a girlfriend named Genevieve and we have been dating for almost 3 years now.

Gen graduated from Illinois State University this past May, and she moved back to our hometown to save some money while looking for a job. In the meantime I will be staying in BloNo until I finish my degree next May. 

The point of this blog is simple, as it is required by a class I am currently taking this summer. However, this also gives me the opportunity to attempt to monetize something that I really do love - Magic the Gathering. Yes, the card game. While I am a very responsible person in my personal life (work, school, etc), I do still have some time for hobbies, and my hobby of choice is playing a card game. The thought processes and skill required are nothing to scoff at, and while many may see games like Magic as "kiddie" or "stupid", some of the smartest people I know play Magic and also have rich personal lives. 

Tomorrow we will talk about Magic Fundamentals, and Thursday will be an article about the recent top-8 of SCG Columbus. 

Until then,

Scoops