I believe that the Masks block pack idea was the best call. I quit playing Urza's Block long before the end of its run because of the disparity in pack prices. Port will be expensive and that will drive a lot of drafters to the set. Also there will be commons that will be above the $1 mark which will also attract drafters.
Since WotC doesn't want to even out prize pack distribution, this is the best alternative that will make sure there are reasonably quantities of Masks block cards online.
"Nice and Mean", it could be the title of a series of articles. (I have another in mind for my own, which I'm writing right now).
I'm actually seeking a way to relocate the Bolas deck to another tribe, because I really don't want to give elves other Hall of Fame points. I need a fast mana-producing tribe, though. Maybe Shamans or Humans. The good thing about those elves was that I can chump block with all of them (except the Urborg one) without any worries. That would often slow down the fast aggro deck enough, and Wrath of God would do nothing against me.
I've already made my decision to take off for the ptq season. That's how much I just do not want to play modern. I think the format is a gimmick, it's being forced down our throats, and that there is still a ton of work to the banned and restricted list.
If I wanted to play an expensive non rotating format, I'd make the jump into Legacy. I have no desire to play modern because I feel like it's legacy light. You have (had) the robust combos and no way to stop them. Maybe if people play the format after the bannings are in place, but for now no.
WOTC proves they know how to ring the most dollars out of our pockets. While I am happy to finally get MM block, block boosters???? Come on. I know that no one would have bought any Prophecy packs and very little Nemesis packs, but jeez. Couldn't they just run some block drafts/sealed, etc and raise the prize pool to entice players? This way is going to make Rishadan Port RIDICULOUSLY expensive and any other "decent" rares and uncommons are going to be pretty pricey as well, comparatively. I guess maybe the randomness will entice players to draft, but I doubt it..I don't see this as a good thing at all.
we have started time stamping, or at least attempting to. I did the last 2 or 3 episodes, but i dont always have the time to do it inbetween the time the cast is edited and submitted to pure. I will do it whenevers i have the day off as i stated in a previous cast.
at Mogg,
i dont think your comment about staleness is really fair. We had two events and not much else as far as content. couldnt find a guest and on top of this we talked about innistrad hitting the digital shelves.
every week cant have a million things in it, especially when there is no releveant topics to discuss.
EDH games are generally far, far, far too long to record in one sitting with no breaks. I don't know how many people would watch it. Even though I love these articles, I know I wouldn't watch an EDH video.
I used Beasts as my Tribe for my Dreamhalls Conflux deck. Oversized it because 60 cards just didn't fit the pieces needed. I also 4 Cruel but added 1 violent and 1 brilliant ultimatum which performed interestingly. Boomerang is definitely tech and Bolas + Doubling Season is just evil. Your deck is much nicer than mine was (but meaner too). :D
And glad you found that deck original, chiznad. Btw, the original version had Lim-Dul's Vaults over the Sylvan Scryings/Tabernacle suite. Also, at some point there was a Boomerang somewhere, so the first Conflux would fetch Conflux, Conflux, Cruel Ultimatum, Cruel Ultimatum, Mystic Snake (which acts as a Force of Will, or it's just pitched and returned to hand by an Ultimatum). The second Conflux would fetch Cruel Ultimatum, Cruel Ultimatum, Doubling Season, Bolas, Boomerang. This way you can drop Bolas, activate his ultimate, bounce him in hand, re-drop him, re-activate his ultimate. But that was really overkill, it was hard somebody had 14 permanents and 14 cards in hands at that point after all those Ultimatums, especially because that might easily be Turn 4. :)
Moromete was playing his Dark Star deck last Monday, so we get a slightly more Control-shifted metagame. Anyway the actual list is still missing so we'll have to make do with an incomplete Top10 Cards standings:
The usual suspects are still there but it's interesting to note the nice bump in Bojuka Bog's usage.
Been spending time on the faux-drafters, and one deck I put together was the W/G/U tokens (blue for homunculus critters). Lots to pump up and double the tokens with... really looking forward to building decks around the concept. Black is another obvious colour for the theme.
I'm also loving the look of Humans, they appear the most versatile tribe to me and they exist in every single colour. Can't wait :)
I would really like you to come up with a nice deck challenge article. Present the challenge and build a few decks for it. Only creatures? Only rares? No rares? No creatures? I don't know, but whatever that challenge is going to be, it has to be really a very good and very interesting one.
Then pick three more players the next week (people who commented on your article and who accepted the challenge) and play a game with them and then write about it. As a matter of fact, record it and comment while playing. Or maybe you shouldn't play yourself but just record and comment. That would be a nice change from the usual articles.
LE
PS: Maybe you should create a card pool and no decks can be build using cards outside of that pool. But then the card pool must be full with playable AND interesting AND affordable cards. I don't know, just a suggestion.
Timestamps give you:
1) a great reference point as you listen
2) a menu to choose from when you want to re-listen to certain sections
3) a valuable organization for archived casts so you can go back and see what they covered and find what you need
4) a great way for people to comment on a section and reference the relevant timestamp for others to reference
5) something for us visually cling to (like playlists and wedding programs) as we progress through it
I have done this week's Timestamp as an example:
Yawgmoth Soap Opera: Classic Related Podcast
by Andy, George, Zach
We had the opposite at our paper pre release draft with at least Garruk's around (with me pulling a foil out of the first pack!!) but no Liliana. There were forty people there and no one came into contact with a Liliana during the swiss rounds unless one of those 2/3 quiet kids pulled one but didn't play it.
I believe that the Masks block pack idea was the best call. I quit playing Urza's Block long before the end of its run because of the disparity in pack prices. Port will be expensive and that will drive a lot of drafters to the set. Also there will be commons that will be above the $1 mark which will also attract drafters.
Since WotC doesn't want to even out prize pack distribution, this is the best alternative that will make sure there are reasonably quantities of Masks block cards online.
+999999999999999999999999999999999
Modern seems mega awful. No real duals = LEGACY LIGHT
Slivers would work nicely because you have Gemhide Sliver Crystalline Sliver, and 5-color slivers that can be used as Dream Hall fuel.
Of course I'm partial to walls for pure acceleration but they don't really help with getting two blue mana for Dream Halls.
Allies have Harabaz Druid, Jwari Shapeshifter, Bala Ged Thief, and Sea Gate Loremaster which can be quite helpful with combos
Overall, it's quite an interesting deck.
Great Article!
Fair. I'll expand next time. i see your point :D
Legacy's sky was falling in the initial stages too. Time heals all wounds, except the wounds that leave huge scar tissue.
I agree the ban list needs more work, but the format seems Zoo...I mean fine.
"Nice and Mean", it could be the title of a series of articles. (I have another in mind for my own, which I'm writing right now).
I'm actually seeking a way to relocate the Bolas deck to another tribe, because I really don't want to give elves other Hall of Fame points. I need a fast mana-producing tribe, though. Maybe Shamans or Humans. The good thing about those elves was that I can chump block with all of them (except the Urborg one) without any worries. That would often slow down the fast aggro deck enough, and Wrath of God would do nothing against me.
Okay, that's fine. Say that, instead of "it's Legacy Light; it should just be Legacy."
I've already made my decision to take off for the ptq season. That's how much I just do not want to play modern. I think the format is a gimmick, it's being forced down our throats, and that there is still a ton of work to the banned and restricted list.
"Maybe if people play the format after the bannings are in place, but for now no."
Like, maybe if there were an upcoming PTQ season for the format?
I spent my month's entertainment budget on a prerelease on mtgo. It does not take much to entertain me :D
If I wanted to play an expensive non rotating format, I'd make the jump into Legacy. I have no desire to play modern because I feel like it's legacy light. You have (had) the robust combos and no way to stop them. Maybe if people play the format after the bannings are in place, but for now no.
That Legacy deck is amazing. I haven't seen the Standard Wolf-Run deck in action yet, but it looks great as well.
Calling Modern "Legacy Light" is just completely ignorant. Try the format. They're not similar at all.
WOTC proves they know how to ring the most dollars out of our pockets. While I am happy to finally get MM block, block boosters???? Come on. I know that no one would have bought any Prophecy packs and very little Nemesis packs, but jeez. Couldn't they just run some block drafts/sealed, etc and raise the prize pool to entice players? This way is going to make Rishadan Port RIDICULOUSLY expensive and any other "decent" rares and uncommons are going to be pretty pricey as well, comparatively. I guess maybe the randomness will entice players to draft, but I doubt it..I don't see this as a good thing at all.
Would have love to see the deck you made.
Must be so rich you can afford 30 tix for entries... :P
Thanks for this
we have started time stamping, or at least attempting to. I did the last 2 or 3 episodes, but i dont always have the time to do it inbetween the time the cast is edited and submitted to pure. I will do it whenevers i have the day off as i stated in a previous cast.
at Mogg,
i dont think your comment about staleness is really fair. We had two events and not much else as far as content. couldnt find a guest and on top of this we talked about innistrad hitting the digital shelves.
every week cant have a million things in it, especially when there is no releveant topics to discuss.
sorry you didnt enjoy this weeks.
george
EDH games are generally far, far, far too long to record in one sitting with no breaks. I don't know how many people would watch it. Even though I love these articles, I know I wouldn't watch an EDH video.
I used Beasts as my Tribe for my Dreamhalls Conflux deck. Oversized it because 60 cards just didn't fit the pieces needed. I also 4 Cruel but added 1 violent and 1 brilliant ultimatum which performed interestingly. Boomerang is definitely tech and Bolas + Doubling Season is just evil. Your deck is much nicer than mine was (but meaner too). :D
Thanks for the support, Paul!
And glad you found that deck original, chiznad. Btw, the original version had Lim-Dul's Vaults over the Sylvan Scryings/Tabernacle suite. Also, at some point there was a Boomerang somewhere, so the first Conflux would fetch Conflux, Conflux, Cruel Ultimatum, Cruel Ultimatum, Mystic Snake (which acts as a Force of Will, or it's just pitched and returned to hand by an Ultimatum). The second Conflux would fetch Cruel Ultimatum, Cruel Ultimatum, Doubling Season, Bolas, Boomerang. This way you can drop Bolas, activate his ultimate, bounce him in hand, re-drop him, re-activate his ultimate. But that was really overkill, it was hard somebody had 14 permanents and 14 cards in hands at that point after all those Ultimatums, especially because that might easily be Turn 4. :)
LIKE! :D 5 fireball idea this.
Update:
Moromete was playing his Dark Star deck last Monday, so we get a slightly more Control-shifted metagame. Anyway the actual list is still missing so we'll have to make do with an incomplete Top10 Cards standings:
The usual suspects are still there but it's interesting to note the nice bump in Bojuka Bog's usage.
Great read...
Been spending time on the faux-drafters, and one deck I put together was the W/G/U tokens (blue for homunculus critters). Lots to pump up and double the tokens with... really looking forward to building decks around the concept. Black is another obvious colour for the theme.
I'm also loving the look of Humans, they appear the most versatile tribe to me and they exist in every single colour. Can't wait :)
I would really like you to come up with a nice deck challenge article. Present the challenge and build a few decks for it. Only creatures? Only rares? No rares? No creatures? I don't know, but whatever that challenge is going to be, it has to be really a very good and very interesting one.
Then pick three more players the next week (people who commented on your article and who accepted the challenge) and play a game with them and then write about it. As a matter of fact, record it and comment while playing. Or maybe you shouldn't play yourself but just record and comment. That would be a nice change from the usual articles.
LE
PS: Maybe you should create a card pool and no decks can be build using cards outside of that pool. But then the card pool must be full with playable AND interesting AND affordable cards. I don't know, just a suggestion.
"Feedback - What do you like about YSO, what would you like added or changed?"
I would love to see timestamps added.
Here is an example from another podcast:
http://shoryuken.com/2011/09/28/wakeup-shoryuken-e074-tis-the-season-to-...
Timestamps give you:
1) a great reference point as you listen
2) a menu to choose from when you want to re-listen to certain sections
3) a valuable organization for archived casts so you can go back and see what they covered and find what you need
4) a great way for people to comment on a section and reference the relevant timestamp for others to reference
5) something for us visually cling to (like playlists and wedding programs) as we progress through it
I have done this week's Timestamp as an example:
Yawgmoth Soap Opera: Classic Related Podcast
by Andy, George, Zach
Timestamps by March:
00:00 - intro by Andy: podcast will cover 2 Classic Daily Events that fired week of 10-1-11 (Sat 10-1 & Sun 10-1)
00:43 - Discussion of KartinKen's 10-1-11 4-0 GG Oath (decklist: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
02:31 - Discussion of Hammer_Eternal's 10-1-11 3-1 Cat Weasel Oath (decklist: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
05:19 - Discussion of Cronin's 10-1-11 3-1 Mono-U Tezzerator (decklist: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
06:56 - Discussion of SarBashar's 10-1-11 3-1 Merfolk (decklist: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
08:05 - Discussion of Naoto's 10-1-11 3-1 4cc Tezzerator (decklist: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
11:49 - 10-1-11 Classic tournament overview Wrap-Up
13:20 - Discussion of the_crisp_one's 10-2-11 4-0 Slash Shop (decklist: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
15:00 - Tanglewire/Rishadan Port/Masques Block Discussion
17:22 - Discussion of Cat Weasel's 10-2-11 3-1 Gush Oath (decklist: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
20:51 - Discussion of patlam's 10-2-11 3-1 Metalworker Shop (decklist: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
22:38 - Discussion of LordSapphire's 10-2-11 3-1 Tezzerator (decklist: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
25:31 - 10-2-11 Classic tournament overview Wrap-Up
26:31 - Discussion of Hammer_Eternal's Snake City Vaults from 10-2-11 Daily Event
27:20 - Discussion of Whiffy Penguin's Bob Tendrils Storm from 10-2-11 Daily Event (more here: http://puremtgo.com/articles/penguin-tv-twofer-2-2)
30:53 - Discussion of Shimmer Myr for Shop
31:31 - Discussion of Innistrad (Limited and Classic)
44:19 - Thanks and closing out
If that's too much labor, then you can simplify it. It could be just:
Yawgmoth Soap Opera: Classic Related Podcast
by Andy, George, Zach
Timestamps by March:
00:00 - intro by Andy: podcast will cover 2 Classic Daily Events that fired week of 10-1-11 (Sat 10-1 & Sun 10-1)
00:43 - 10-1-11 Classic tournament top decks discussion (decklists: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
11:49 - 10-1-11 Classic tournament overview Wrap-Up
13:12 - 10-2-11 Classic tournament top decks discussion (decklists: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
25:31 - 10-2-11 Classic tournament overview Wrap-Up
26:31 - Discussion of Hammer_Eternal's Snake City Vaults and Whiffy Penguin's Bob Tendrils Storm from 10-2-11 Daily Event
31:31 - Discussion of Innistrad (Limited and Classic)
44:19 - Thanks and closing out
Or the even simpler version:
Yawgmoth Soap Opera: Classic Related Podcast
by Andy, George, Zach
Timestamps by March:
00:43 - 10-1-11 Classic tournament top decks discussion (decklists: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
13:12 - 10-2-11 Classic tournament top decks discussion (decklists: http://www.wizards.com/Magic/Digital/MagicOnlineTourn.aspx?x=mtg/digital...)
31:31 - Discussion of Innistrad (Limited and Classic)
We had the opposite at our paper pre release draft with at least Garruk's around (with me pulling a foil out of the first pack!!) but no Liliana. There were forty people there and no one came into contact with a Liliana during the swiss rounds unless one of those 2/3 quiet kids pulled one but didn't play it.