The alternative is to just not play the format. I mean, I guess if you're in the champs you might.... but if it was me I would take the opt out package and cash that in for tix. Format blows, end of story.
So, the zombie event rose from the grave and paid out based on round 11. Matt decided to pay out based on the highest place anyone got between the two times the event "ended".
Matt killed the event, and did indeed put up a special playoff event, which is running right now. He is working on prizes right now, they are indeed being granted according to the round 9 standings.
No one mentions Giant Ambush Beetle? It's also worth mentioning the Glassworn husk has awesome synergy with soul manipulation, and deadshot is really good as well.
As i have said in posts before, this format is close to the most frustrating i've ever played in.
Cascade is wickedly powerful, but so very very random. If you add that in with the land being very screwy in most decks, it makes for some high nerves and lots of bad games/bad names thrown around. One game i was blasted, into bloodbraid, into sprouting. Another game i bloodbraided past all 6 of my sb cards. Crazy crazy things.
Out of now 11 rounds (only 9 will be counting, so i finish 62nd, with 3 packs), i have seen jund in 9 of them. So it looks like it's moved from play naya or beat naya, to play jund or beat jund.
The format is still very very young, so we will learn alot about it on thursday when the top 8 comes back.
Remember when your building a few things:
#1 what are you going to do when your blightnged?
#2 what does your mana look like?
#3 how do you beat jund?
I think the best route right now is playing a deck that punishes others for stumbling on mana. Think of it as when we just had shards, and WW was beating the crap out of everything because it's mana was just better.
Goodnight all and I hope you got something out of my ramblings!
Yeah I played a lot of block when I was starting back up on MTGO 2-3 weeks ago. I decided it was the worst format ever and refuse to play it again. Zendikar can't come any sooner.
I disagree entirely with Exodus' comments above. A 20-30 minute podcast is not at all unreasonable; most Magic podcasts tend to be around 45-60 minutes, with some being (unbearably) nearly 2 hours.
I don't see any reason you should limit the show length if you have content (or stretch the show if you don't). If it's 40 minutes of content, great, if it's 15 minutes, so be it. This isn't commercial radio, there's no need to fill a certain designated amount of space.
Great show guys. I don't even play MTGO (never have...I'm a Mac user) but nevertheless I enjoy the casts.
~Joe
Baltimore, MD
Jaelan on MTGSalvation, MOTL, SCG, WotC, and most other Magic forums.
twitter.com/fotolorea
You mean the one where one doesnt have actual values and has to estimate everything ? If you want to see a mountain just turn your head sideways (or the picture). :>
Why do people insist on referring to casual as a play style, when it is simply a category to differentiate from a rated tournament? If it were a format unto itself, we would have governing rules, but it isn't which is why we don't. Anyone is free to write up a B&R list for their kitchen table or even a MTGO table, and if they don't they have no reason to cry about those cards being played.
Also, if you're going to list the same card three times in your pricing charts, can you at least link each to the version you're referring to?
I was also thinking that this would be an expensive format. And while it does have its mana bases that are spread out over a variety of prices, it sure beats having to buy 4x of an expensive card. I would think across competitive decks and formats this has to be one of the more reasonable in terms of price.
The trick here is to cast Angel's Grace first, THEN pay all 20 life to the wall. Going to 0 doesn't matter, and you'll be back up to 10 anyway shortly before winning the game.
Arguably, the fact it has no win attempt is casual. Griefer decks that can't win are explicitly and undeniably casual simply because they can't win. Short of a social contract of agreed-upon societal mores which everyone in the casual room is made aware of, the broadest definition is the only one that encompasses everyone's viewpoints.
Every deck is a casual deck, because it is legal to play in casual. Casual is about having fun, nothing else. Arguements like "Well, X isn't fun" don't work, because someone finds that deck fun, even if it's a small group of people. And, since there is no B/R list, there would be no other reason not to play the deck.
lol...I also don't play cryptic. Out of budget reach, unfortunately. I have some nice Evacuates instead, which are probably better in My AGgro dominated FNM metagame, but doesn't seem overwhelming overall. I was thinking about switching Negate to Cancel , since alot of my losses have been to them dropping a problematic creature that my cryptic-less deck couldn't stop A la Swans. Buying cryptics really isn't a legitimate possiblity at this point. I also play two halos mainboard (As well as Oona, but that's another story entirely...). It works amazingly well at FNM, since the aggro players are more or less a bye and Hoofprints of the stag from the board absolutely ruins any kind of control palyer (I've never seen somoene Esper Charm it...).
There isn't currently a swans deck in my FNM meta, but I'm interested in starting my competative career, and this is the deck I want to do it with, so any help would be greatly appreciated.
I am certainly of the opinion that each person is entitled to their own opinion as to what is casual. If someone is playing a deck that doesn't fall into my definition of opinion (which is that anything is fine, unless the deck is regularly top 8ing tournaments, and even then I wouldn't begrudge someone playing most of B/W tokens given that most of the fun cards are uncommon and only a few cards/ all of the manabase are expensive) I tell them that, urge them to try the tournament room as they might find it more challenging, block them, and move on.
To quote Lazarus Long (Robert Heinlein): "Moving parts in rubbing contact require lubrication to avoid excessive wear. Honorifics and formal politeness provide lubrication where people rub together. Often the very young, the untraveled, the naive, the unsophisticated deplore these formalities as "empty," "meaningless," or "dishonest," and scorn to use them. No matter how "pure" their motives, they thereby throw san into machinery that does not work too well at best."
I'm short on time, so I'll distill 50k+ words that I could write.
People live together. To keep the peace in that community, we have various levels of acceptable behavior. They range from pleasing through polite to acceptable to rude to outrageous to unlawful to intolerable. It is a spectrum, and the futher out on that spectrum you go, the more harm you do to the society as a whole and to the people who live in it.
The basis of ethical / moral / enlightened life is to live in a way that does the least harm to others.
Note: yes, reducing all of philosophy to a couple sentences oversimplifies a lot. Consider all those things implied - and if you want a deep philosophical discussion, catch me when I am not quite so busy.
Even if everything is casual (I'm not 100% sure I agree), there is a more well defined question. Is every deck a "casual deck"? And the logical answer to that is "No". Even if exactly what decks are *not* casual may be up to debate, I don't think any reasonable person can defend that ALL decks are "casual decks".
The alternative is to just not play the format. I mean, I guess if you're in the champs you might.... but if it was me I would take the opt out package and cash that in for tix. Format blows, end of story.
So, the zombie event rose from the grave and paid out based on round 11. Matt decided to pay out based on the highest place anyone got between the two times the event "ended".
Matt killed the event, and did indeed put up a special playoff event, which is running right now. He is working on prizes right now, they are indeed being granted according to the round 9 standings.
No one mentions Giant Ambush Beetle? It's also worth mentioning the Glassworn husk has awesome synergy with soul manipulation, and deadshot is really good as well.
As i have said in posts before, this format is close to the most frustrating i've ever played in.
Cascade is wickedly powerful, but so very very random. If you add that in with the land being very screwy in most decks, it makes for some high nerves and lots of bad games/bad names thrown around. One game i was blasted, into bloodbraid, into sprouting. Another game i bloodbraided past all 6 of my sb cards. Crazy crazy things.
Out of now 11 rounds (only 9 will be counting, so i finish 62nd, with 3 packs), i have seen jund in 9 of them. So it looks like it's moved from play naya or beat naya, to play jund or beat jund.
The format is still very very young, so we will learn alot about it on thursday when the top 8 comes back.
Remember when your building a few things:
#1 what are you going to do when your blightnged?
#2 what does your mana look like?
#3 how do you beat jund?
I think the best route right now is playing a deck that punishes others for stumbling on mana. Think of it as when we just had shards, and WW was beating the crap out of everything because it's mana was just better.
Goodnight all and I hope you got something out of my ramblings!
Yeah I played a lot of block when I was starting back up on MTGO 2-3 weeks ago. I decided it was the worst format ever and refuse to play it again. Zendikar can't come any sooner.
"My second choice was the w/g Thornling deck, because no one seems to play Path to Exile"
Really? Because I see it almost every match.
Not difficult to add values into vertical bars...
I disagree entirely with Exodus' comments above. A 20-30 minute podcast is not at all unreasonable; most Magic podcasts tend to be around 45-60 minutes, with some being (unbearably) nearly 2 hours.
I don't see any reason you should limit the show length if you have content (or stretch the show if you don't). If it's 40 minutes of content, great, if it's 15 minutes, so be it. This isn't commercial radio, there's no need to fill a certain designated amount of space.
Great show guys. I don't even play MTGO (never have...I'm a Mac user) but nevertheless I enjoy the casts.
~Joe
Baltimore, MD
Jaelan on MTGSalvation, MOTL, SCG, WotC, and most other Magic forums.
twitter.com/fotolorea
Most excellent!
You mean the one where one doesnt have actual values and has to estimate everything ? If you want to see a mountain just turn your head sideways (or the picture). :>
Boo on the horizontal chart only. Bring back the vertical!
Why do people insist on referring to casual as a play style, when it is simply a category to differentiate from a rated tournament? If it were a format unto itself, we would have governing rules, but it isn't which is why we don't. Anyone is free to write up a B&R list for their kitchen table or even a MTGO table, and if they don't they have no reason to cry about those cards being played.
Also, if you're going to list the same card three times in your pricing charts, can you at least link each to the version you're referring to?
I was also thinking that this would be an expensive format. And while it does have its mana bases that are spread out over a variety of prices, it sure beats having to buy 4x of an expensive card. I would think across competitive decks and formats this has to be one of the more reasonable in terms of price.
The trick here is to cast Angel's Grace first, THEN pay all 20 life to the wall. Going to 0 doesn't matter, and you'll be back up to 10 anyway shortly before winning the game.
Arguably, the fact it has no win attempt is casual. Griefer decks that can't win are explicitly and undeniably casual simply because they can't win. Short of a social contract of agreed-upon societal mores which everyone in the casual room is made aware of, the broadest definition is the only one that encompasses everyone's viewpoints.
Mindslaver lock with no win attempt is not casual.
I'm still waiting on Lifeforce to be reprinted online. It's good fun with Painter's Servant.
Every deck is a casual deck, because it is legal to play in casual. Casual is about having fun, nothing else. Arguements like "Well, X isn't fun" don't work, because someone finds that deck fun, even if it's a small group of people. And, since there is no B/R list, there would be no other reason not to play the deck.
Please label your axes.
rofl...Mono-green control decks... xD?
lol...I also don't play cryptic. Out of budget reach, unfortunately. I have some nice Evacuates instead, which are probably better in My AGgro dominated FNM metagame, but doesn't seem overwhelming overall. I was thinking about switching Negate to Cancel , since alot of my losses have been to them dropping a problematic creature that my cryptic-less deck couldn't stop A la Swans. Buying cryptics really isn't a legitimate possiblity at this point. I also play two halos mainboard (As well as Oona, but that's another story entirely...). It works amazingly well at FNM, since the aggro players are more or less a bye and Hoofprints of the stag from the board absolutely ruins any kind of control palyer (I've never seen somoene Esper Charm it...).
There isn't currently a swans deck in my FNM meta, but I'm interested in starting my competative career, and this is the deck I want to do it with, so any help would be greatly appreciated.
I am certainly of the opinion that each person is entitled to their own opinion as to what is casual. If someone is playing a deck that doesn't fall into my definition of opinion (which is that anything is fine, unless the deck is regularly top 8ing tournaments, and even then I wouldn't begrudge someone playing most of B/W tokens given that most of the fun cards are uncommon and only a few cards/ all of the manabase are expensive) I tell them that, urge them to try the tournament room as they might find it more challenging, block them, and move on.
To quote Lazarus Long (Robert Heinlein): "Moving parts in rubbing contact require lubrication to avoid excessive wear. Honorifics and formal politeness provide lubrication where people rub together. Often the very young, the untraveled, the naive, the unsophisticated deplore these formalities as "empty," "meaningless," or "dishonest," and scorn to use them. No matter how "pure" their motives, they thereby throw san into machinery that does not work too well at best."
I'm short on time, so I'll distill 50k+ words that I could write.
People live together. To keep the peace in that community, we have various levels of acceptable behavior. They range from pleasing through polite to acceptable to rude to outrageous to unlawful to intolerable. It is a spectrum, and the futher out on that spectrum you go, the more harm you do to the society as a whole and to the people who live in it.
The basis of ethical / moral / enlightened life is to live in a way that does the least harm to others.
Note: yes, reducing all of philosophy to a couple sentences oversimplifies a lot. Consider all those things implied - and if you want a deep philosophical discussion, catch me when I am not quite so busy.
Even if everything is casual (I'm not 100% sure I agree), there is a more well defined question. Is every deck a "casual deck"? And the logical answer to that is "No". Even if exactly what decks are *not* casual may be up to debate, I don't think any reasonable person can defend that ALL decks are "casual decks".