Just saying Whiffy you can do GW cheaper then what you put and still money under 100 i did hit money in a DE with my Hate Bears. anyway great article as usual.
as i admitted dated. you could add a force over a birchlore ranger. maybe even cut the second one for a viridian something or other to blow up more things.
Yeah, I was wondering about your time commitment as well. Gotta say that even though it's a lot of time it shows on the finished product. I can also understand the burn out. I needed a break around Thanksgiving, but was planning on coming back when I dumped a glass of water on my laptop. No playing or writing for a little bit, and I'm enjoying the break. It's tough to keep up, that's for sure. But we definitely appreciate the work you put in!
I am definately going to have to say Commander as the big release. This extends to many formats outside of it, of course, but primarily as the first product aimed directly for the EDH community.
I'd have to say the Commander release. It got my old play group back together and we've all taken our initial decks (mine being Political Puppets) in our own unique directions.
But then again, ISD got me drafting again!
I'd simply say that it's been a good year for Magic. (lucky us!)
My favorite was Zendikar. I really enjoyed drafting the format online, but more importantly I really enjoyed trading paper Fetches at the local FNM shops over and over again. I was getting like 7-9 in trade value and then turning around and trading them away at 12-15 usually. Plus, Hexmage and Nighthawk made me smile on the inside when I ripped them in draft.
Edit: I could of sworn Zendikar was this year lol, stupid me. Oh well, since my brain is now function properly, I would have to vote for Commander. I love Scavenging Ooze and Edric, they both fit well in my Bant Legacy deck and NO RUG enjoyed Ooze as well.
Dude, I envy you your ability to sacrifice for your writing. I too have a wifey that's very supportive of my writing addiction, but lately work has just been such a drain that I never have the energy to do much writing.
If you quit, I and many others will miss your articles tremendously. That being said, I also understand the desire to do more.
Either way, I wish you well. I check every day on Pure when I need a break, and it always brightens my day reading your articles.
The truth is this: I spent 3 to 4 hours during weekdays testing the decks. That's all the time I have after I get back to home from work. I try to finish all the testing during weekdays, so I do nothing but test them and test them and test them for at least 5 days.
Then to be honest I'm sacrificing all my Saturday and sometimes even my Sunday writing the articles. What you read within 15 mins the most takes my whole weekend. When people are out enjoying life, I stay at home, sit in front of my computer and write these articles.
Some time ago I decided to stop writing because all my spare time activity became writing Rogue Play. I said to my wife that I cannot write anymore because that process started consuming my whole spare time. But then she surprisingly said that I should continue because people seem to like what I write. So thanks to her and her support, I still continue sacrificing all my spare time for these articles.
And of course when I see people enjoying all my gibberish, I see that all the sacrifice I make has a meaning. But having said that, I really don't know how long I can keep up doing this. That we all will see.
Glad to see Legacy still has some life... coming back its always interesting playing catch up on the new cards you've missed and I have to say I lol'd at the printing of Mental Misstep
The blue/red decks (#3 and #6) look like a lot of fun and I'll definitely try them out. I have to say, I never thought I would get so much use out of Spine of Ish Sah. I went from thinking it was over costed removal to one of my favorite cards.
By the way, do you have a time machine or some other way to expand the number of hours in the day? These articles are so well done with so much content that it seems like they would take hours upon hours of work. I don't know how you do it, but I look forward to your articles every week. Thanks!
I'll go with Commander in a close race with Innistrad. Innistrad Block/Standard has been a lot of fun, but the Commander decks are just too good. They helped spark my interest in the format and the cards are great for other formats too *cough* 100 Card Singleton *cough*. All for a reasonable price. I hope we get regular releases like this.
But then, considering that's the only format I play, I'm kinda biased. Then again, the fact that I bought all five decks - in both paper and electronic format - I think I'm allowed to be biased :-D
So let's see, what did we get this year and how good they were:
1- Mirrodin Besieged: It was good without doubt. Nice cards, good set. 4 out of 5.
2- New Phyrexia: I liked it. It had very good cards for all formats and all player types. 4 out of 5.
3- Commander: I like commander, I like wedge color pairings, I like Scavenging Ooze, I like Edric, The Mimeoplasm is my all times favorite general now, and the precon decks were very good as well... basically 6 out of 5.
4- From the Vault - Legends: Nah, I was expecting better legends. Doran with his old artwork was bad. Kresh is bad all over. And Xiahou Dun definitely should have been in there to cool down its paper price. So 3 out of 5.
5- M12: After M10 and M11 which were both awesome, this core set was something between "meh" and "ok". 3 out of 5.
6- Innistrad: So basically whatever Richard Garfield touches turns into gold. 5 out of 5.
Love the deck lists and the write up for the cheap modo player. My only comment is that the Elf list probably needs a Regal Force in there and probably wants Krosan Grip instead of Nature's Claim, since most of the deck is soft to Chalice of the Void at one as it is.
I know, that's what I meant too. The Chapel Geist would become a 7/5, and he had 8 life. He would block the Geistcatcher's Rig with his horror and still have 1 life left.
ISD is a winner to me, the draft format is the funnest ever, then again i started drafting with SOM. but still im waiting for a draft to fire now, ive been doing good enough to collect almost the whole set all i need is the 3 most expensive cards...
Just saying Whiffy you can do GW cheaper then what you put and still money under 100 i did hit money in a DE with my Hate Bears. anyway great article as usual.
Between Commander, Graveborn and Ajani versus Nicol Bolas I was pretty pleased in the non set offerings.
From the Vault: Legends was not too great :(
as i admitted dated. you could add a force over a birchlore ranger. maybe even cut the second one for a viridian something or other to blow up more things.
I have to go with Innistrad. It is my favorite limited format of all time and the set is just dripping with flavor.
Yeah, I was wondering about your time commitment as well. Gotta say that even though it's a lot of time it shows on the finished product. I can also understand the burn out. I needed a break around Thanksgiving, but was planning on coming back when I dumped a glass of water on my laptop. No playing or writing for a little bit, and I'm enjoying the break. It's tough to keep up, that's for sure. But we definitely appreciate the work you put in!
I am definately going to have to say Commander as the big release. This extends to many formats outside of it, of course, but primarily as the first product aimed directly for the EDH community.
I succame and watched all four rounds.
I'd have to say the Commander release. It got my old play group back together and we've all taken our initial decks (mine being Political Puppets) in our own unique directions.
But then again, ISD got me drafting again!
I'd simply say that it's been a good year for Magic. (lucky us!)
My favorite was Zendikar. I really enjoyed drafting the format online, but more importantly I really enjoyed trading paper Fetches at the local FNM shops over and over again. I was getting like 7-9 in trade value and then turning around and trading them away at 12-15 usually. Plus, Hexmage and Nighthawk made me smile on the inside when I ripped them in draft.
Edit: I could of sworn Zendikar was this year lol, stupid me. Oh well, since my brain is now function properly, I would have to vote for Commander. I love Scavenging Ooze and Edric, they both fit well in my Bant Legacy deck and NO RUG enjoyed Ooze as well.
I have to say my favorite release this year was Innistrad. First set in a long time that made me want to play block with only the first set being out.
Nearly a tie for me as a casual player between:
New Phyrexia - Casual and competitive player's set for various formats.
&
MED4 - Gave us fun goodies to enjoy in various formats.
Dude, I envy you your ability to sacrifice for your writing. I too have a wifey that's very supportive of my writing addiction, but lately work has just been such a drain that I never have the energy to do much writing.
If you quit, I and many others will miss your articles tremendously. That being said, I also understand the desire to do more.
Either way, I wish you well. I check every day on Pure when I need a break, and it always brightens my day reading your articles.
I liked New Phyrexia the most because it represents color bleed almost at an equilibrium with creature power creep. ISD put the nail in the coffin.
Phyrexian mana, while kind of broken, is also interesting from a design perspective. I like it when the boundaries are pushed.
The truth is this: I spent 3 to 4 hours during weekdays testing the decks. That's all the time I have after I get back to home from work. I try to finish all the testing during weekdays, so I do nothing but test them and test them and test them for at least 5 days.
Then to be honest I'm sacrificing all my Saturday and sometimes even my Sunday writing the articles. What you read within 15 mins the most takes my whole weekend. When people are out enjoying life, I stay at home, sit in front of my computer and write these articles.
Some time ago I decided to stop writing because all my spare time activity became writing Rogue Play. I said to my wife that I cannot write anymore because that process started consuming my whole spare time. But then she surprisingly said that I should continue because people seem to like what I write. So thanks to her and her support, I still continue sacrificing all my spare time for these articles.
And of course when I see people enjoying all my gibberish, I see that all the sacrifice I make has a meaning. But having said that, I really don't know how long I can keep up doing this. That we all will see.
Thanks for the comment and enjoy the decks!
LE
I see your point.
Glad to see Legacy still has some life... coming back its always interesting playing catch up on the new cards you've missed and I have to say I lol'd at the printing of Mental Misstep
The blue/red decks (#3 and #6) look like a lot of fun and I'll definitely try them out. I have to say, I never thought I would get so much use out of Spine of Ish Sah. I went from thinking it was over costed removal to one of my favorite cards.
By the way, do you have a time machine or some other way to expand the number of hours in the day? These articles are so well done with so much content that it seems like they would take hours upon hours of work. I don't know how you do it, but I look forward to your articles every week. Thanks!
Loved MED 4. It brought us so many eternal staples in Time Vault and Fastbond.
I'll go with Commander in a close race with Innistrad. Innistrad Block/Standard has been a lot of fun, but the Commander decks are just too good. They helped spark my interest in the format and the cards are great for other formats too *cough* 100 Card Singleton *cough*. All for a reasonable price. I hope we get regular releases like this.
But then, considering that's the only format I play, I'm kinda biased. Then again, the fact that I bought all five decks - in both paper and electronic format - I think I'm allowed to be biased :-D
So let's see, what did we get this year and how good they were:
1- Mirrodin Besieged: It was good without doubt. Nice cards, good set. 4 out of 5.
2- New Phyrexia: I liked it. It had very good cards for all formats and all player types. 4 out of 5.
3- Commander: I like commander, I like wedge color pairings, I like Scavenging Ooze, I like Edric, The Mimeoplasm is my all times favorite general now, and the precon decks were very good as well... basically 6 out of 5.
4- From the Vault - Legends: Nah, I was expecting better legends. Doran with his old artwork was bad. Kresh is bad all over. And Xiahou Dun definitely should have been in there to cool down its paper price. So 3 out of 5.
5- M12: After M10 and M11 which were both awesome, this core set was something between "meh" and "ok". 3 out of 5.
6- Innistrad: So basically whatever Richard Garfield touches turns into gold. 5 out of 5.
And the winner is Commander apparently!
LE
Hey guys and thanks for the comments. I'm glad you liked the article.
LE
Love the deck lists and the write up for the cheap modo player. My only comment is that the Elf list probably needs a Regal Force in there and probably wants Krosan Grip instead of Nature's Claim, since most of the deck is soft to Chalice of the Void at one as it is.
I know, that's what I meant too. The Chapel Geist would become a 7/5, and he had 8 life. He would block the Geistcatcher's Rig with his horror and still have 1 life left.
ISD is a winner to me, the draft format is the funnest ever, then again i started drafting with SOM. but still im waiting for a draft to fire now, ive been doing good enough to collect almost the whole set all i need is the 3 most expensive cards...