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bap51's Magic: The Gathering (Other)
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| [February 5, 2013 12:44:36 AM]
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Magic: The Gathering: Jan. 18, 2013 - February 2, 2013
Session 1: Jan. 18, 2013
Sessions 2-3: Jan. 25, 2013
Sessions 4-5: Jan. 26, 2013
Session 6: Jan. 27, 2013
Session 7: Feb. 1, 2013
Magic: The Gathering(MtG) is a trading card game set in a fantasy world full of monsters and magic. Players build decks to summon monsters and cast spells to fight against eachother. The world of MtG has five colors/elements: white/plains, blue/islands, black/swamps, red/mountains, green/forests. The different colors each have their own style of play that is best suited for them. These styles and colors can be combined to create interesting decks and combinations that can be very fun to play. This analysis will contain a very brief overview of the game due to the fact that the game can be very complicated to explain fully.
===Formats===
MtG has different formats that determine how the game is structured, but the way the game is played typically stays the same. The format of the game determines the card pool from which players get to build their decks and the number of cards their decks require. In the constructed formats players are required to have a minimum of 60 cards in their decks, while in the limited formats only 40 cards are required. Another difference between these two formats are what cards can be in a player's deck. In constructed a player builds his or her deck ahead of time and brings it to the event to play. In a limited event a player has a very limited set of cards to build a deck from. For example, in a draft each player opens a booster pack containing 15 cards, picks a card they want, and then passes the pack to the person on their left. This continues until all of the first packs are empty. It then happens again with a second pack that gets passed to the right and a third pack which gets passed to the left again. Players then get to build a 40 card deck from the cards they chose.
In addition to these limitation, players are also limited to what cards they are allowed to use. There are time-based formats that determine what cards are allowed. Some of these formats are standard, modern, and vintage. Standard includes the most recent two blocks and the most recent core set. Modern includes all sets all the way back to 8th edition. Vintage goes even further and includes all sets ever created.
In constructed formats players are typically limited to a 4 copies of a card(except basic land cards) in a deck. There are some cards that have been restricted or completely banned. Restricted cards have a lower limit than 4 and banned cards are unusable.
===Game Field===
During a game of MtG, there are certain areas/zones of the game field. These are not always very well defined. The main zones during a game are the library, graveyard, battlefield, hand, and exile zones. A player's facedown deck during the game is called their library. A player is not allowed to look through their library unless they cast a spell that allows them to do that. The graveyard is where creatures, spells, and any other cards that are removed from the battlefield go. Most spells go to the graveyard after they are cast and do not remain on the battlefield. The battlefield is where creatures are summoned and where a player keeps their land cards they use to summon creatures and cast spells. A player's hand is the cards they draw throughout the game that they have not played yet. A player may not know what is in their opponents hand unless a card allows them to. The exile zone is where cards that are removed from the game go. Through gameplay some cards will get removed from the game and not be allowed back in until the game is over.
===Gameplay===
To start a game of MtG each player needs a deck that follows the format of the event. The decision of who plays first is made by whoever wins a dice roll typically. Once it is decided who plays first, each player shuffles his or her deck and offers it to their opponent to shuffle. Each player sets their life total to 20 and then draws 7 cards as their opening hands. If a player is unhappy with their opening hand, he or she is allowed to mulligan but is required to draw one less card each time he or she mulligans. A player can mulligan until their hand is completely empty. Once both players have decided to keep their hands, player 1's turn starts. He or she skips their draw step, plays what they can, and then ends their turn. Players take turns summoning creatures, casting spells, and attacking eachother until someone wins the game. In order to cast spells and summon creatures, a player must have a resource called mana. Mana is produced by land cards which a player is only allowed to play once per turn, unless otherwise stated on a card being played. In order to produce mana, a player must turn a land card sideways(called tapping). Each land card can only produce certain colors of mana, and most spells require a certain type of mana be used to cast them. Win conditions can vary depending on the cards being played. Typically one player wins when the other player's life total reaches 0, but there are alternate win conditions. For example, if a player must draw a card when their library has no cards in it, they lose the game.
When playing MtG in an officially sanctioned event, two people play for a best 2 out of 3 games. Each 3 game set is called a match.
===Sessions===
Each of these sessions consisted of a 4 round swiss style event. Each round was a match against one opponent. Winners and losers of each round typically only get paired with people who have one the same number of matches as themselves.
--Session 1--
Session 1 was a standard constructed event held at a store called Heroes and Dreams in Flowood, MS. I played a black red zombie deck that a friend of mine had built. I chose to use this deck because I was unfamiliar with the deck, and I thought it might allow me to better analyze the game as a whole. 3 of the 4 people I played against that night were running similar if not the same decks. This is a result of how the game has changed in recent times and will be discussed later in the conclusion. I ended up winning 2 out of 4 matches that night.
--Session 2--
Session 2 was a modern constructed event held at the same store as session 1. I had never played in a modern event before this, and didn't really know what to expect. I once again played a deck that a friend built, but this time it was because I don't have enough older cards to build a decent modern deck. The deck I played was a very fast mono-red goblin deck. Since modern allows for older cards there are some combos that can be rather crazy. Matches 1 and 2 were straight forward and did not contain any crazy combos that would confuse me. My third match however is a different story. My opponent admitted before we even started that he had found the decklist online and had decided to build it. I should have known that wasn't a good sign. Game 1 ended by turn 4 when he dealt me a total of 20 damage in one turn by casting spells that increased how much mana he had and then casting a spell that had an ability called storm. Storm allows a player to copy a spell for every time another spell had been cast before it. So he managed to cast 19 spells before casting the one with storm and was able to copy it 19 times. Game 2 ended when he used the storm ability to get 14 1/1 goblins on the field by turn 3. There was only one card in my deck that could let me survive that, and I didn't draw it. Match 4 was similar in that my opponent once again found a deck online to build and bring to the event, although I don't remember what deck he played. After winning my first two matches, I went on to lose the next two for a record of 2-2.
--Sessions 3, 4, 5, & 6--
Sessions 3 through 6 were all prerelease events for the new set that was coming out called Gatecrash. 3, 4, and 5 were at Heroes and Dreams, while 6 was at a shop called Van's Comics and Cards in Ridgeland, MS. Prerelease events are a limited format called sealed. Each player receives 6 booster packs and builds the best deck they can that has a minimum of 40 cards. In limited events like this the game is based more in luck and a player's deck building skills. In these 4 sessions luck was not on my side, and my deck building skills are not the best. While I didn't win any of these events, I did manage to accomplish some things I've never been able to do before. I drew a match against the highest ranking MtG judge in Mississippi; and I finally beat the guy who taught me how to play in a game, although I still lost the match.
--Session 7--
Session 7 was a Gatecrash draft event at Van's Comics and Cards. This event was by far the best for me. I enjoy drafting more than any other type of format. I ended up building a great deck and only lost one match to the guy who taught me to play. One of my matches really stands out because I was playing a kid in junior high who was still somewhat learning the game. Some of the things that would happen during that match made the entire table laugh.
===Conclusion===
While I enjoy playing MtG, there exists a problem with the game that has started happening relatively recently. I alluded to this problem in my discussion of sessions 1 and 2. The problem occurs because people can go online and find decklists for the top decks at recent large events and build those decks to use. This wouldn't be such a huge problem if those decks wouldn't cost upwards of $500. It essentially boils down to people who can afford the best decks always win. There is very little creativity in the deck building process anymore. This is why I enjoy limited events over constructed events. With limited events, it's not about who can afford the most expensive cards. It becomes about who can build the better deck given limited resources.
Another problem that I've found with the game is how complicated it has become. It can be very hard for new players to get into the game. There are so many rules and complex interactions that I've met judges who couldn't answer questions with 100% certainty. When teaching a new player the basics of the game, I've found it's easier to jump right in and play a game except with revealed hands to help them grasp the basic concepts of the game.
Despite these problems, if you can find a group of friends to play with and get a handle on the basic game concepts, Magic: the Gathering is a fun way to spend a night with friends.
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bap51's Magic: The Gathering (Other)
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Current Status: Playing
GameLog started on: Friday 18 January, 2013
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