After my brief introduction the other day, I thought it would be a good idea to start off with some general strategy so that you’re not beginning your Magic playing haphazardly. If you’re not a totally new player, this will probably be pretty basic stuff and you can probably skip it. Even so, it may give you some things to think about that you hadn’t considered before, especially if you’re not happy with the current format you’re playing.
Having said that, let’s begin.
There are a lot of choices in Magic. When I first started, I used to think it was just about buying packs, opening them, taking out the cards, putting together a deck from them, and then playing with my friends. And while that is certainly a viable and potentially cheap and rewarding option in its own right, it’s not the only one.
Magic can be played either casually or competitively. If competitive play isn’t your thing, you can probably skip most of this article. It really is as simple as buying packs, making decks and playing anything goes with your friends. I did this for years and it was the most fun I’ve ever had.
But gradually I found that I wanted a little more out of Magic and started playing competitively. When that day came, I quickly found out that I couldn’t just open a pack of cards, slap a deck together and expect to be competitive. So if the idea of playing competitively appeals to you, there are a few things you’re going to want to do first.
At the top of the list is deciding what kind of competitive format you want to play. This is where things get a little dicey because there are so many options and each one essentially requires a different kind of investment.
I’m not going to go through every competitive format because that would take way too long. But I am going to cover a few here and hopefully, from that, you can get a pretty good idea of what you want to play.
The most commonly played formats are standard constructed and draft. I’ll start with draft because it’s actually a lot simpler.
With draft, you go to your LGS, or wherever you play, and buy your way in. Around me, drafts are $15. $12 is for the 3 packs of cards you get and $3 goes into the prize pool for 1st through 4th place.
During a draft, you open your packs, one at a time, taking one card from the pack and then passing it. You do this with all 3 packs until all the cards are drawn. From the cards you chose, you make a deck. You will be given land to round out the rest of your deck.
At the end of the day, you get to keep the cards you chose from the packs you opened.
A lot of people like this format because they don’t have to run out looking for the best cards in standard constructed at the money, which could run into a lot of money. Plus, in opening packs, you can pull cards that are worth quite a bit. Some people actually do what is called “rare drafting” where they don’t so much play to win but play to pull the best cards they can, figuring this is the best way to get their money’s worth. Different strokes for different folks.
Standard constructed is a lot different. Here, you come to the LGS with your deck already made. That means you have to purchase quite a few cards before you actually get to your LGS.
What players don’t like about this format is that it can become very expensive if a lot of the cards that are mostly played are high priced. The upside is that playing Standard constructed only costs about $6 each time you play. At least it does where I play. Some places are even less. My LGS charges $4 to play (you also get a pack of cards for this) and $2 extra to put into the prize pool.
Personally, I like Standard constructed because I have complete control over the deck I make, whereas with draft, I am at the mercy of the cards that are passed to me. The upside of draft is that, for the most part, you are on an equal footing with the other players as far as the cards that you get to play with since nobody can choose their cards in advance.
So as you can see, there are advantages and disadvantages to both.
Ultimately, what it comes down to for a lot of people is cost. Standard constructed CAN be cheaper IF you build a cheap deck. But most cheap decks (yes, there are exceptions) aren’t every competitive. So if you’re looking to win, you’re probably going to be shelling out a lot of money. With limited draft, you’re basically just paying for the cards you’re playing with that day plus a couple of bucks for the prize pool. Still, $15 a week for some people is a lot of money.
Anyway, those are your two main formats. I’m going to tackle Modern, Legacy and Vintage in the next article.
Until then, happy Magic
To YOUR Magic the Gathering Enjoyment,
Steven “Land Boy Steve” Wagenheim
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