http://www.mtgfanatic.com/articlesArticles relating to the Casual Player. May include topics such as strategy for group games, low-budget deck building, etc... Copyright 2001 - 2013 MtgFanatic.com. All rights reserved.Hey again and welcome back. I know that I have been a little scarce on the site lately and have slowed down with my contributions article wise; but real life has it’s ways of keeping one busy and honestly as a father of five children I sometimes can’t even remember what day of the week it is let alone find time to sit down in a quite area to write about this great hobby. I did find a few spare moments though and I was thinking about how I had done some coverage on a lot of the guilds but had not really written about Simic much. One thing that I noticed right away was that Simic doesn’t always translate its deck style into the different formats of constructed play. The decks devoted to blue/green are really very diverse even within a format. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=207786Fri, 26 Apr 2013 14:56:17 GMTWelcome back to Iron Chef: MtGFanatic Edition ladies and gentlemen. This edition of Iron Chef is a special one. It depicts the first two, in hopefully, a series of brews utilizing a card suggested to me by a member of our great community here at MtGFanatic. Our own Jeff Zandi (Zanman) has kindly offered my first challenge. I had asked Jeff if there was a rare card from Gatecrash that he found particularly bad. His answer was provided without hesitation, and it was Illusionist’s Bracers. He and one of his associates had been attempting to build around this card to no avail. I’ll try my best to not disappoint.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=207658Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:36:25 GMTMost duel decks are built based on a pair of tribes, or, more recently, a pair of warring planeswalkers. I got the idea recently to try and build a pair of duel decks based on something simple, a single word. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=206313Sat, 30 Mar 2013 21:16:39 GMTSo there I was, sitting back thinking of the good old days of Heavy Metal with bands like Judas Priest, Ozzy Ozborne, Kiss, AC/DC, Pink Floyd, etc. Man I just love throwing one of those albums onto my record player and zoning out while I listen to some classic Heavy Metal from my younger days. I know, you guys all have CD’s and digital downloads, but vinyl holds me with a certain passion and I love it. It reminds me of my youth, of those carefree days when I first left home to go into the world and explore for myself, and it gets my blood flowing to help me think about weird and fun stuff like Magic the Gathering.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=204756Wed, 06 Mar 2013 23:59:54 GMTReturn to Ravnica arrived in September and rocked the Magic world. Return to Ravnica was particularly well-received by players that were underwhelmed or even disappointed with Avacyn Restored and/or Magic 2013. Gatecrash has been well-received in general, but I hear lots of players who say they are disappointed with Gatecrash in comparison to Return to Ravnica. But which one is BETTER?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=204206Wed, 27 Feb 2013 01:03:05 GMTI suppose I’m a little late to the party as far as a review is concerned, at least compared to others like our resident fundamentals master George Colby (Mr. Safety) and our Modern Mage Tomas Quinones, who have already kindly offered up their reviews and top picks for Gatecrash. But hey, I’m a very casual player, so better late than never. Thankfully they were nice enough to only cover competitive Magic so that meant there was still some meat left on the bone for my own review of the new set. One thing I have noticed is that there are an awful lot of cards that could be useful in quite a few of my decks, even amongst the commons. I will therefore be condensing my considerations to the top picks. I do get to cheat though, as many of them are cycles of five.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=204106Mon, 25 Feb 2013 20:44:28 GMTThink for a moment about the first time someone ‘cheated’ a creature onto the battlefield against you. How did you feel about it? Did you lose the game? Were you angry about how it seemed so unfair? Getting big creatures on the cheap has been one of the most explosive and unfair strategies in the history of competitive Magic in various formats.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=203249Thu, 14 Feb 2013 19:59:19 GMTI can hardly recall a time when there wasn’t at least one member of my playgroup playing a discard deck of some form or another. Sometimes discarding an early land or a useful removal spell could result in a very detrimental loss of tempo. An old combo and still one of my favorite plays is a Dark Ritual into a Hypnotic Specter on the first turn, which can be very brutal. The discarding mechanic has obviously been given many tools over the years to try and keep those blue mages at bay. Not that this tactic worked for the competitive scene or anything, but it has produced some great casual goodies for the kitchen table that I simply love to exploit. One of these said goodies is a little devilish enchantment known as Megrim.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=202961Mon, 11 Feb 2013 20:37:08 GMTWelcome back to Iron Chef: MtGFanatic Edition ladies and gentlemen, it’s time to once again dust off those seldom used cards and put a hurting on the opponents with them. The theme for this week would make Charlie Sheen very proud, because winning is the name of the game for this installmenthttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=202531Tue, 05 Feb 2013 22:26:59 GMTWe once again look to a new, exciting set in which to invest a little more expendable income. Well, at least it’s new. I’m not saying some folks aren’t really excited, but for the most part Gatecrash isn’t nearly as hot as Return to Ravnica. It will have some good cards, no doubt, but it seems a rather bit more mundane. I suppose the novelty of getting back to Ravnica has worn off and my expectations were a little too high. Some of the cards really caught my attention, and typically over the history of Magic it has always been the uncommons that grab my attention first and foremost. I suppose that’s because I’m still a budget builder at heart, even though I’ve “graduated” into the Legacy format.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=202221Sat, 02 Feb 2013 00:03:54 GMTWhat are your goals when you attend Friday Night Magic? You want to hang out with friends, do some trading, hopefully win some booster packs or an FNM foil. Basically, you want to have fun.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=202130Thu, 31 Jan 2013 20:23:32 GMTHey again and welcome back to Wednesday Warfare. The phrase “Unleash the Hounds!” was once a popular call during fox hunts, but it actually gets me thinking about the Guild known as Selesnya. I have always thought this guild as being the group that simply lets more and more creatures go at its prey until the job is done. Now that might not sound like it takes any finesse, but as most of you know by now, not just any old bear of a creature will work if you want to win consistently.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=200880Wed, 16 Jan 2013 00:06:32 GMTDo you have the same problem as I do? Do you find yourself building most of your decks with a single focus? I am at my core a pure Timmy, always wanting to play with big nasty creatures. More often than not, the result is another deck that one would classify as beatdown. The easiest way to accomplish an aggressive FFA beatdown deck is to go tribal. A question still plagues me though: Is it possible to build a decent tribal multiplayer deck using a tribe without lords?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=200829Tue, 15 Jan 2013 01:44:03 GMTWelcome back to Wednesday Warfare. I know that I have not had an article printed in a while, but recent family items have had me a little more busy than usual. Without further ado, let’s jump right into this installation of Wednesday Warfare. I will be going through four Golgari decks (Legacy, Pauper, Set Restricted, and Home-Brew) so hopefully this will help some of you guys out with your deck building ideas and/or concepts.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=199908Thu, 03 Jan 2013 03:04:59 GMTWelcome back to Iron Chef: MtGFanatic Edition, ladies and gentlemen. As always, I will be your guide to putting those otherwise useless rares to use in casual multiplayer environments like Free For All (FFA), a metagame where late-game decisions make more difference than early game heroics.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=199467Thu, 27 Dec 2012 21:45:16 GMTWell, it’s that most wonderful time of year again (for those who believe in that sort of thing of course) and Christmas is upon us. Children worldwide are making out their lists, which of course Santa will check twice to determine who is naughty and who is nice. All the while, his crews of Elves are making toys day after day until Christmas Eve when he will get in his sleigh and deliver them to all the good girls and boys.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=199095Fri, 21 Dec 2012 22:24:28 GMTNow some of you might be scratching your head at the title, and many of you may have faced this dreaded monster and understand its ferocity. I am referring, of course, to the ever popular combo of Restoration Angel and Thragtusk. These two cards have been teaming up a lot in Standard competitive decks around the world recently, and I believe will continue to do so until Wizards put a stop to it, either by printing a hoser card or by having to ban one of them similar to the way they banned Stoneforge Mystic. I hope it’s the former, but you never know what Gatecrash will bring to the table for Restoration Angel to manipulate.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=199040Thu, 20 Dec 2012 22:51:03 GMTIn the last article I was discussing the method I use when designing my decks which, as a reminder, are all built for a casual multiplayer Free-for-All (FFA) environment. When building a new deck, I like to follow a simple set of rules of thumb I have dubbed Dre’s four [b]R[/b]s of multiplayer Deckbuilding.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=198596Sat, 15 Dec 2012 22:11:21 GMTPlaying Magic at the highest possible level is generally a goal all of us strive for, regardless of the format we play. Not all of us are trying to win a tournament, but I think all of us want to have the best deck possible. It can become easy to get ensnared into competitive deck building, even if you aren’t actually competing. There is a special thrill that is gained by doing something just a little bit better than anyone else, even at the kitchen table.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=198476Thu, 13 Dec 2012 21:02:42 GMTI still remember that very long thirteen years ago when I first looked at a Magic: the Gathering card. It confused me so much that I insisted on learning how to play. My brother, his roommate and I learned as we went with little to go on except old rules inserts. We relied heavily on one of the main members of our playgroup who insisted he knew the rules, but also thought that the “empties your mana pool” stipulation on Power Sink meant destroy all lands that were tapped. Who were we to argue, we were oblivious to the actual rules?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=198326Tue, 11 Dec 2012 22:31:09 GMTWelcome to Iron Chef: MtGFanatic Edition, your guide to mediocre card exploitation. I am your host, BigDaddyDre. I’m here to show you fellow Fanatics different recipes that utilize historically bad ingredients that could end up surprising your taste buds. Even the worst card can make for an interesting or even good deck for casual play at your kitchen table or neighborhood card shop, as long as you add the proper dashes of flavor and/or utility cards to spice things up.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=197783Tue, 04 Dec 2012 21:46:25 GMTIt’s been a while since I have taken a look at anything magic related, but Pauper keeps me thinking, even if I am not actively playing I still try to stay up on all of the new cards for my favorite format. As an added bonus, I don’t have to worry about most of the cards from a new set. I don’t care about chase rares or ten dollar lands. I care about the cards that will be undervalued and underappreciated.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=197614Mon, 03 Dec 2012 13:12:08 GMTThis week George gives us a peek in his personal Magic diary.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=197168Tue, 27 Nov 2012 22:02:47 GMTWhich is better, Return to Ravnica or the original Ravnica set from seven years ago? Maybe you think you know, but I really do know. I took my hands and built a deck containing EVERY card from Ravnica: City of Guilds and another deck containing EVERY card from Return to Ravnica. Then I smashed the decks against each other over and over again until they gave up their secrets. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=195119Sun, 04 Nov 2012 16:33:10 GMTLast time we looked at the mono colored cards within Magic’s newest set, [i]Return to Ravnica[/i]. Today we’re back with an analysis of the multicolored cards, lands, and artifacts contained within this latest set. Instead of examining all multicolored cards at once, I am going to break them down guild by guild. Let’s get started!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=193625Sat, 20 Oct 2012 17:54:09 GMTThis past week marked the release of Return to Ravnica, and with it Wizards has given us another 200 or so cards (plus reprints!) to play around with. While we have to wait a week to start using these cards in our other constructed formats, cards are legal for Commander as of the set’s prerelease, and I’ve already thrown a handful into my decks. This set isn’t quite as Commander-centric as some of the more recent sets (here’s looking at you, Magic 2013), but that doesn’t mean we don’t have a whole host of powerful new toys to play with. Today I’ll be looking at all the mono-colored cards in Return to Ravnica, and in part two we’ll explore the wonders of the gold, artifact, and land cards in the set. Let’s get started!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=192524Wed, 10 Oct 2012 21:40:26 GMTA couple of weeks ago I shared the first half of one of my strange projects. I built Full Set Highlander decks for each of the eight sets in Standard. The goal is to play these eight sets against each other in order to learn which set is truly the most powerful. I invented Full Set Highlander for exactly this kind of fool’s errand. A Full Set Highlander deck, simply put, consists of one-each of every non-basic land card in a set to which enough basic land has been added so that the deck consists of forty percent basic land. The beauty of the thing is that you get decks that literally represent everything that a given set has to offer, warts and all.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=192285Mon, 08 Oct 2012 15:50:08 GMTThis is Part Two of John-Marc Ormechea's Return to Ravnica set review.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=191720Wed, 03 Oct 2012 19:29:21 GMTMy favorite converted mana cost of all time happens to be one. Imagine how many more spells you could cast on your second and third turns if everything only cost one mana! Today we are going to take a look at my favorite creatures in the one spot. Some of them may surprise you and yet others will not. Maybe some of you will send me more creatures that should be on this list. I will try to keep this as organized as possible so how about we go by color...http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=191437Mon, 01 Oct 2012 17:01:15 GMTReturn to Ravnica is upon us, and like you, I am very excited to try out all of the new toys that R&D has given us to play with. Because of the beauty of this set I have decided to cover it a little more in depth and do a two part mini-series on it. Enjoy!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=191084Thu, 27 Sep 2012 18:07:31 GMTWelcome back to Wednesday Warfare. This week I will once again stick to friendly colors and discuss a little bit about using Rakdos, and the cards from the first Ravnica block, to give your opponents a migraine. I was inspired by a recent article from none other than MTGFanatic’s own George Colby (AKA – Mr. Safety). Now George made quite a good deck inside of that article, but I don’t think that the deck would translate that well into multi-player, so I will look at his deck and use some of the key cards as I create a multi-player version of a Migraine Megrim deck. I hope that your opponents’ need some Tylenol when you’re done with them!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=191033Wed, 26 Sep 2012 17:59:27 GMTHere’s how I roll… I like to know things. When we’re watching T.V. and my wife says “when did that movie come out?” I click the info button on the remote control. Bam, instant knowledge. I’m the annoying guy that instantly goes to Google on his iPhone when some matter of trivia comes up in conversation. I’m THAT guy. So when some cats are musing around the Magic table about which of the eight sets currently in Standard is the best, I jump right in there looking for the answer.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=190801Sun, 23 Sep 2012 12:27:11 GMTHey again and welcome back! By now some of you out there might have figured out that I am a huge fan of Fish, and when it comes to MTG I am loving me some Fishheads, AKA [b]Merfolk[/b]. Today I will discuss a particular School of Fish of the Azorius nature. But, just as in nature, schools of fish in Magic actually come in a variety of shapes and colors. Please don’t feel limited by what I write today, as I have seen many great Merfolk decks and with the recently released Master of the Pearl Trident, I suspect that Fish might once again be a tribal to be reckoned with.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=190148Fri, 14 Sep 2012 18:01:57 GMTWelcome back again to exclusive coverage of the 2012 Magic Olympics. Yes, NBC may have turned off their cameras in London, but in Dominaria, the games go on for a little bit longer. The first four events are complete. A mono green deck featuring Dungrove Elder won gold in Standard. Black won the Magic 2013 Single Color Full Set Highlander gold medal with Nefarox and a superior suite of creature removal options. Goblins won gold in Pauper constructed and the black deck was dominant in a sealed deck competition using packs from the past twelve Magic sets. Only one competition remains, the Cadillac of constructed formats, Legacy.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=189586Fri, 07 Sep 2012 17:00:35 GMTIt was the best of decks, it was the worst of decks. It played an exceptionally fun game, its games often felt disjointed. It wanted to attack opponents with lots of creatures, it wanted few creatures in the deck. It wanted to draw cards, it had nothing to do once it drew them. Such is the story of my Sun Quan, Lord of Wu Commander deck.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=188872Fri, 31 Aug 2012 10:20:41 GMTast week I presented a few mono colored decks and I hope that they helped some of you. I know that many people love to play more than one color at a time tough, so with that in mind I figured that I would delve into the world of two color decks. Izzet is my favourite two color combinations so I will start with that. Don’t let this steer you from your choice of colors though, as all the colors of Magic have their various strengths and weaknesses. I will also address the two color style of decks from many angles and formats this week, as I once again try to span the realm from Pauper to Legacy, and maybe some things in between. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=188644Wed, 29 Aug 2012 19:55:08 GMTOver the past month or so [i]Commanding Magic[/i] has covered the design, in-depth, of two different Commander decks. The first was a nearly all-creature Animar deck, and the second a Pauper Uril deck. A week ago I attended the StarCityGames Open in Kansas City. I was scheduled to judge for Saturday only, but I drove down with some other judges who were working both events. Since my car didn’t leave until Sunday evening, I decided to put the lists I’ve presented to you to the test in Commander side events at the Open.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=188046Thu, 23 Aug 2012 19:18:42 GMTI am a little sidetracked today by bringing one of my own personal deck projects to you rather than the in-depth theory crafting I normally subject you to. I certainly appreciate the chance to tackle a lighter subject and bring a fun decklist to boot. I recently became fascinated with playing a big black demon in Legacy. He’s ornery, he creates a minor setback by not allowing you to win the game, and he doesn’t even like cookies (which is a crying shame.) On the other hand he gives opponents a false sense of security and can reduce a life total to zero in about three turns. Details, details, they’ll mess you up every time.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=188042Thu, 23 Aug 2012 18:55:53 GMTWelcome back once again to Fanatic’s exclusive coverage of the 2012 Magic Olympics. Our Olympics may not have gotten the top television coverage of the OTHER Olympics, but if you get ESPN 8, you can catch the remaining competition in the middle of the night… on the Ocho!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=187906Wed, 22 Aug 2012 19:34:38 GMTSo let’s pretend for a moment that you’re restricted to only using one of the five colors of Magic at a time. Would you choose the Technology of blue, the Order of white, the Interdependence of green, the Impulse of red, or the Parasitism of black? I personally am most comfortable in the blue zone of the game, but I certainly enjoy all five colors and I see some very viable deck styles attributed to each. Thus for today’s article I will show you five Legacy decks that are mono colored and tuned to work for that style of play.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=187902Wed, 22 Aug 2012 18:33:27 GMTI am not normally a Commander (the artist formerly known as EDH) type of person. Most of the time I would rather play sealed or some sixty-card format. You see, it's not that I think Commaner is a bad format by any means. It is actually quite fun to play, and for some, the most fun to play. When you are an aggro player Commander is a puzzle that takes more brain work than it should. Commander weenie decks don’t really exist, or do they?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=187649Mon, 20 Aug 2012 12:18:31 GMTCommander, as a format, exists in a special space within Magic: the Gathering. Unlike every other recognized variant of Magic, Commander was created entirely by players before being taken in and supported by Wizards of the Coast. While they have renamed the format (it was originally called Elder Dragon Highlander, or EDH) so that they can market products for it, they have left the rules of Commander up to the players. This has created an interesting dynamic: you can easily sit down at a table and play Commander against someone you’ve never met, but the type of game and level of competition you’re about to face is completely unknown.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=187432Sat, 18 Aug 2012 11:19:12 GMTWelcome back again to exclusive coverage of the 2012 Magic Olympics. Yes, NBC may have turned off their cameras in London, but in Dominaria, the games go on for a little bit longer.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=187227Thu, 16 Aug 2012 17:08:52 GMTThis week, Commanding Magic is back with a look at building an Uril, the Miststalker deck. Uril may not a particularly exciting general, and I’m sure a lot of you have seen some variant of this aura-wielding commander staring across from you. With his pair of powerful and synergistic abilities, rarely will Uril decks not go straight for the “suit up Uril and win” strategy. Normally I wouldn’t bother discussing a commander this straightforward in style, but today’s deck is enough of an oddball where I’m going to make an exception. Today we’re going to look at a Commander deck that is also Pauper-legal, apart from the aforementioned general, of course.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=186305Fri, 10 Aug 2012 02:48:31 GMTWelcome back to coverage of the 2012 Magic Olympics. One medal has already been awarded, the bronze medal went to Green in Magic 2013 Single Color Full Set Highlander. Other competition is underway, and three preliminary matches in the Standard Constructed event are already complete. Today we will be looking at the rest of the Standard round-robin competition. We will show you the complete play-by-play of the gold medal final for the Standard Constructed event as well as for the Single Color Full Set Highlander.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=186004Tue, 07 Aug 2012 18:24:58 GMTWelcome to the 2012 Magic Olympics. MTG Fanatic is your home for all the action this year, no need to click around the cable dial looking for Men’s Table Tennis or Women’s Beach Volleyball. Okay, maybe we’ll check out a little bit of Women’s Beach Volleyball. It would be rude not to. Your 2012 Magic Olympics is held this year in beautiful Dominaria. The athletes have entered the building. There’s Liliana carrying the flag for the black team. There’s the new, smaller Ajani, Caller of the Pride bringing up the rear with the flag for the white team. Karn is working the crowd, trying not to injure the paying spectators with his gigantic mechanical high-fives. Daniel Craig and Queen Elizabeth are here, I’m not sure why.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=185888Mon, 06 Aug 2012 15:02:42 GMTFormats are defined by every action you take, and the first turn of the game is no exception. In some ways, the actions taken on the first turn can be the most crucial factors in the outcome of a game. In a game where the beginning turns often wind up “Draw, Go”, how important is it to focus on cards to play on that first turn?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=185483Wed, 01 Aug 2012 02:59:49 GMTThere has been plenty of talk about Magic 2013. The new core set has been dissected from every possible angle. One card at a time. Now it’s time to think big. Big ideas, big plays, big decks. I’m talking about Full Set Highlander, a fun format that allows you to quite literally pit one set against another. In this article, I’m confronting this year’s core set with last year’s. In battle.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=185410Tue, 31 Jul 2012 14:12:00 GMTToday I am taking a break from Pauper and talking about one of the tribes that have been swept under the rug.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=185282Mon, 30 Jul 2012 12:46:08 GMTMagic 2013 is the fourth in the series of “revamped” core sets starting with Magic 2010 from the summer of 2009. Core sets allow cards from all of Magic’s history to gather together and play nice with each other, which makes them exceptionally great at reprinting cards that might not otherwise find a home in modern Magic sets. This is especially evident in Magic 2013, where a number of Commander-specific reprints were added to the set to facilitate Wizards’ new initiative in pushing Commander as much as possible. Fortunately, this gives us a lot of food for thought when designing new Commander decks or modifying old ones. I won’t go over all of the cards in the set, just the ones that should be best suited for our favorite 100-card format, with an emphasis on new cards over reprints.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=184815Thu, 26 Jul 2012 03:03:36 GMTThis is it, the time we have all been waiting for. M13 is now available for us to play with. Whenever a new set comes out a lot of decks gain new pieces for their respective format. While everyone is excited about the new rares and mythic rares, I am more excited about the guys who don’t cost nearly as much. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=184535Mon, 23 Jul 2012 16:36:21 GMTLast summer, Wizards did something. Something crazy. For the first time in over 15 years, [i]new[/i] cards were printed with their summer release of Commander decks. Amongst these were powerful cards for multiplayer, a slew of new generals to be used as Commanders, and a certain Scavenging Ooze which has been making quite a buzz in Legacy. But the Ooze isn’t what we’re talking about today. Instead, we’re going to look at one of those fantastic generals provided to us through the Commander decks, Animar, Soul of Elements, and what he can do when he’s at the helm.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=184090Thu, 19 Jul 2012 13:45:35 GMTI was watching some old spaghetti westerns with my son and it got me thinking about how some people like to go into games of Magic with “both guns blazing.” They are the type that likes to turn ‘em sideways or simply fire direct damage straight into their opponent’s face. I am not really that kind of player, and I got to thinking of what are some of the ways to best beat these “gun fighter” style players. Combo came straight to mind. Not just any combo though, I wanted something different.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=184005Wed, 18 Jul 2012 16:51:21 GMTI am sure that many of you, if not all of you, are aware of a pesky one-drop that transforms into a 3/2 flyer. I am, of course, talking about Delver of Secrets. This card seems to be all the rage no matter what sixty-card format people are playing. Pauper is not an exception to this, and a formidable deck has been built around this little fella. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=183564Sat, 14 Jul 2012 21:09:03 GMTSlivers is an aggro deck that happens to fade in and out of fashion all of the time. A lot of that has to do with the fact that it happens to be two colors. Two colors is something of a weakness in Pauper where you could end up with all of one color of mana and the opposite colored cards or end up having to spend some time fixing your mana base with the likes of slow fetch lands. Both of these make color-fixing inconsistent, to say the least. Slivers is a deck where you are willing to risk that, however, because it turns out once you get these synergistic creatures going, they are very hard to stop. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=181360Fri, 22 Jun 2012 23:27:20 GMTTamiyo, the Moon Sage is one of Avacyn’s two new planeswalkers, and arguably the better. At five mana tall, she’s a steep investment for a non-creature permanent. Will she have as illustrious a career as the last high-impact five mana planeswalker, Gideon Jura? So much remains yet to be seen. What we do know for now is that Tamiyo, the Moon Sage has an ultimate ability that just begs to combo with dozens of other cards within Magic: the Gathering. Today’s article will be devoted to developing ideas and strategies to exploit the abilities of our new favorite Moonfolk. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=179330Fri, 01 Jun 2012 13:27:02 GMTRemember when you were a young kid and some of the kids at school picked on you? Or how about when two or three or even more of those kids would gang up together to be really mean to you or even give you a thrashing? Well, I am here to tell you that those gangs don’t necessarily go away when you grow up, and that they certainly exist in the Magic world as well. Welcome, my friend to the world of free-for-all multiplayer Magic.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=179115Wed, 30 May 2012 17:12:45 GMTGoblins has been one of the top performers in the current Pauper meta for quite some time. I think that a lot of it has to do with the speed of the deck. We have a host of 2/2s for only one mana, an average of about twelve finishers and a ton of burn. Utility and evasion are missing from the deck, but the speed and strength of its creatures more than makes up for this. We are going to do something a little different this time around. I am going to give you my base sixty and then discuss side board options.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=178848Mon, 28 May 2012 14:36:19 GMTWelcome back! Today is my final installment in the saga of analysis articles I do for every set launch. For those of you just tuning in the first two articles are a card-to-card analysis called First Glance and the third article is a fun little project I do known as Combo Corner. This week is the results of all my close inspection of Avacyn Restored brought to fruition for the casual multiplayer format. Today it’s decks built around Avacyn Restored’s themes using exclusively cards from Innistrad Block. So that casual multiplayer aficionados such as myself get the most out of this, I’ll be doing all of these decks on a budget of thirty dollars, give or take. Let’s get started!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=178592Fri, 25 May 2012 19:41:27 GMTDo you guys ever play MTG on a day other than Friday? Sure you do. So what do you call your Magic gatherings? I’m not really too sure what I call my own ones, but I can tell you that I learn more cool stuff and see more great plays when I sit down to play some Pauper with my buddies on a Wednesday afternoon than you might expect. Of course, the fun is not always from the actual games we play, sometimes our random chitchat provides more value than anything else we do. Sometimes, the after-lunch-sneak-away games of Legacy are even more educational. Anyway, I am going to call this Wednesday Warfare. Now let’s put some ideas into perspective.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=178415Wed, 23 May 2012 23:01:56 GMTThe madness has returned. I’m hot on the trail of an answer to the unanswerable question. Which is better, Innistrad or Avacyn Restored? Wait, don’t answer. It’s not that I don’t care about your opinion, I do, it’s just that I’m looking for a certain kind of answer. The correct one. We could enlist a team of scientists to examine each card in one set and compare them with its opposite number in the other set, but that could take years and cause who-knows-what kind of collateral damage.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=178149Mon, 21 May 2012 21:03:57 GMTAvacyn Restored has been on the street for two weeks and you know what time it is… it’s time for Combo Corner! For those of you just tuning in, I’ll be brief. Combo Corner is where I grind my way through the new set. During this not-so-gentle romp through the entirety of a set, I will jot down every single synergy and two or three card combo I can think of, all for your benefit. The end goal of this column is that you get the equivalent of my caffeine intake back in deck ideas. Coffee’s on, let’s brew. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=177562Wed, 16 May 2012 03:31:58 GMTTaking a look back at Innistrad Block we will find that Pauper players have been given quite a bit. Today I want to look at my three favorite commons of each color of each expansion. I think you will find some something for everyone as a lot of decks have been given a boost in the Pauper Legacy circuit! None of these choices are ranked in any particular order. I just wanted you to take a look at what this beautifully directed block has brought us.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=177292Sun, 13 May 2012 19:53:50 GMTWelcome back to my first glance of Avacyn Restored. This set definitely contains some of the most flavorful cards we’ve seen in quite some time. Avacyn Restored hearkens back to one of the first Duel Deck releases, Divine versus Demonic. The rares of Avacyn Restored bring the Angels and Demons back into the game with thundering nostalgia. Angels are appearing in all the different colors these days. Demons are still just black. Choosing the top rare and mythic of each set is often very difficult because I am essentially throwing my weight behind what the best two cards of the set are. I hope you agree with my suggestions. Remember that this is from the perspective of an application in constructed multiplayer. Off we go!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=176244Thu, 03 May 2012 20:13:50 GMTThe first episode of ‘Battle for the Working Class’ has finished, and I am here to summarize and wrap up the event. I’d like to thank John-Marc for inviting me to participate and Jeff Zandi for playing the match. Congratulations to John-Marc for edging me out three games to two. His deck was really well built and did a fine job of putting up those three wins. It’s okay, losing a close match is fine with me, especially to a player as capable as John-Marc. It reinforces my roots with comradely fun and competition, turning a challenge into a community-oriented event. Great stuff!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=176238Thu, 03 May 2012 19:29:40 GMTI’ve just gotten around to seeing all the cards in Avacyn Restored, and that means it’s time for an aggressive review of my favorite cards in each color of the new set. I will also be taking a look at some of my favorite artifacts and lands. So without further ado, let’s take a look at what has me and other aggressive players excited!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=176194Thu, 03 May 2012 10:32:19 GMTIt’s been a while since I have written about Standard, so I think it is high time we look at some of the most aggressive options and future improvements. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=175935Tue, 01 May 2012 03:05:15 GMTJohn-Marc Ormechea has been focusing on Pauper lately, and he recently put George “Mr. Safety” Colby to the test in a Duel Decks challenge. Each player independently designed a Pauper deck and each wrote an article explaining their designs. They did the work and now I have the pleasure of doing the fun part: playing the two decks against each other.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=175650Sat, 28 Apr 2012 02:04:44 GMTAvacyn Restored is going to go down as the set that defined the Innistrad block. There is more to see and experiment with here than in both Innistrad and Dark Ascension combined. Innistrad set the stage and Dark Ascension made things a little weirder, but Avacyn Restored is pushing Magic boldly in some good directions. Most notable among them is the two-mana planeswalker, which I will be discussing later next week. In addition we have some carefully controlled color bleed and a few commons that have surprised me with their bravado and political nature. Let’s get started digging through this set, shall we? I hope you’re as excited as I am. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=175574Thu, 26 Apr 2012 23:09:33 GMTNot everyone can afford to play our hobby. Some people leave the competitive scene and come back years later only to leave again due to the financial commitment. I ought to know, I’m one of these people.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=175339Tue, 24 Apr 2012 19:19:23 GMTThe purpose of today’s article is to help you get excited about the future of aggression and the future of the game. I have a lot of speculation and excitement for Boros and a little bit of everything else for everyone else.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=175271Mon, 23 Apr 2012 22:54:01 GMTWe’re at T-minus two weeks to the release of Avacyn Restored (May 4th is the set launch date). To me, it seems like Avacyn Restored is showing up right as we were all about to get bored with Dark Ascension (kudos, Wizards). As I did with Dark Ascension I’ll be delivering, two weeks in advance, some views on the mechanical aspects of the set to give us all some perspective on what we’re supposed to be looking at before we go mulching through the set. Avacyn Restored doesn’t break any new ground as far as set structure goes. It has two new mechanics, a returning mechanic, and two subthemes. Let’s get started!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=174991Fri, 20 Apr 2012 22:53:34 GMTAt the heart of Magic: the Gathering is a test of resource allocation. Every time you build a deck, no matter what the format, the central issues of design are based on what functionality can you put into the deck given some constraints or limitations. One of the very first problems for the deck builder involves the requirement for mana, the basic resource required for all your other plans. How many land are you going to play? But what would you do if you couldn’t play ANY lands in your deck? What if your deck could ONLY contain land? Either way, you would be forced to make some very different kinds of decisions. This is the challenge that Thomas Wrigley and myself have taken up in Fanatic’s latest edition of Duel Decks. All land versus no land.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=174628Tue, 17 Apr 2012 01:22:03 GMTMuch to my pleasant surprise, John-Marc Ormechea invited me to go head-to-head in a Duel Decks Challenge, Pauper-style. This will be a chance to see if I truly understand the Pauper format. John made one simple request of me: build a control deck, as he was building a rogue aggro deck.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=174406Sat, 14 Apr 2012 16:14:28 GMTLadies and Gentlemen, we just started Avacyn Restored previews over at the Mothership. If you’re not caught up, you should go there right now (and then come back)! The first cards were revealed at PAX East. Now we know that the star of the set has finally gotten her act together and is prepared to pull off some major clutch victories across the plane. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=174405Sat, 14 Apr 2012 15:55:04 GMTNot too long ago I messaged our very own Mr. Safety and threw down the gauntlet, albeit a dull leather one, as we Pauper players don’t have the gold for mythic metal gauntlets, you know. So he and I are playing two classic strategies, even if they are little different than the norm. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=174177Wed, 11 Apr 2012 22:54:21 GMTI’m No Land’s Man, and now it’s time for an epic showdown between yours truly and Jeff Zandi, who has decided to challenge me to a duel deck. For those of you just tuning in, the record stands at two wins for Dallas Meidinger, one win for myself, and a big goose egg for Jeff. Will he register a win and put himself on the board with his first ever Duel Deck? Well, he’ll have to go through me. It shouldn’t be that hard, I’m a pretty skinny, squishy guy.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=172966Fri, 30 Mar 2012 21:01:10 GMTToday I am going to talk about my favorite deck type throughout the history of magic. If you have read any article before this, you will more than likely know that today we are talking about White Weenie. White Weenie quite possibly had the best track record in Magic the Gathering tournament history. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=172669Tue, 27 Mar 2012 18:56:28 GMTDark Ascension is working hard to bring some light to the Curse subtype. For those of you just tuning in, Curses are a special subtype of Enchantments. They are Aura cards that enchant a player and have negative implications. That is unless you have some nefarious plans for enchanting yourself with Curse of the Bloody Tome. Curses are not only full of flavor, but Dark Ascension is working hard to make them functional and possibly even relevant for Standard constructed. As we’ve seen before, it’s a challenge to use an enchantment-oriented deck in any environment. Thankfully for us the environment they tend to thrive in is casual.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=172462Sun, 25 Mar 2012 19:29:30 GMTIt has been a while since Every Card Counts has graced the front page of MtgFanatic's article section. Aside from this article, that won't be changing any time soon. Things change, and unfortunately, this column is coming to an end. So, here's Every Card Counts, one last time.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=171605Fri, 16 Mar 2012 21:43:24 GMTDear readers, it is at this time I must inform you of a temporary departure of your regularly scheduled author. I will be your stand in, Lord Zathkrazxt, Archdemon of the Pit of Calamity! Muahaha! You see, the squishy little human entertainer-writer, Thomas, thought it would be best that you hear about today’s topic from a real evil entity. At first, the idea was relegated to flights of fancy. My viziers thought it uncouth to, shall I say, expose the masses to my particular brand of brutishness. Bah! Philistines! I will gorge upon their hopes and dreams! Where was I now? Ah yes, today’s topic will be the consumption of humans for benefit using the delightful Vampires and Demons and other uncivilized folk presented in Dark Ascension. Look away before it’s too late!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=170238Fri, 02 Mar 2012 21:55:54 GMT”Fusing intelligence with the power of undeath requires inspiration of the darkest kind.” Or so says the flavor text of the card at the heart of today’s article, Havengul Lich.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=169754Mon, 27 Feb 2012 02:33:51 GMTEveryone by now realizes that I love to play a lot of creatures in a short period of time, oftentimes flooding the battlefield before my opponent can set up whatever plan they might have. I have a little secret, though. One of my favorite decks is a combo deck, albeit a white weenie combo deck.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=169381Wed, 22 Feb 2012 20:40:06 GMTSo far in my pauper series I have been sticking to more traditional aggro ideas. A lot of fast creatures combined with a lot of efficient removal and burn. These strategies are very good in every format. Another deck that seems good in eternal formats right now is infect. As someone suggested to me, I have also decided to explain how I build my decks. I don’t mind coming out with a list for you guys every week, as a matter a fact I love it. I think it will be helpful, though, to show you what I do that makes me effective in any format I play in.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=169272Tue, 21 Feb 2012 23:01:36 GMTWelcome back to the Dark Ascension extravaganza here at Casual Carnage! Today is the last of my four scheduled analysis articles. Today is the culmination of the three weeks of work preceding this column when I finally give you decks! What’s more, I’ll be building them to the tune of approximately thirty dollars. No budget like a tight budget, as my father would say. Furthermore, to better suit the situations of players who just began their journey with Magic with the release of Dark Ascension, I’ll be building these decks exclusively with material from the Innistrad block. Let’s get started!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=168815Fri, 17 Feb 2012 22:31:45 GMTToday we are going to look at a new Pauper build I have been working on, and then an update of our Zoo deck.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=168536Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:13:20 GMTWelcome back to Combo Corner! Combo Corner is a very whimsical and non-serious branch of Casual Carnage during which I put on a big pot of coffee to get my brain firing on all cylinders (and then some) and go through the Gatherer page for a set during which I rattle off as many of a set’s two and three card combos I can find. The purpose? Mostly to help you get ideas for your deck brewing. Personally I just love doing it, and with each passing article my knowledge of cards in existence expands like a hot air balloon (slowly and awkwardly). http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=168094Fri, 10 Feb 2012 17:48:29 GMTToday I would like to take a look at some mono white cards that have been given the title “Hate Bears”. They are creatures that cost two mana and have power and toughness of either 2/2 or 2/1. That’s not the cool part, though. The abilities attached to them are what make them such amazing creatures. They have all the utility you could ever need. These have applications in all types of play, from Legacy and Modern to Standard, Casual and EDH. This is what made me excited about white on my return to Magic. So many cards are so versatile and attractive not only to the aggressively minded individual, but also the budget-minded player.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=167824Wed, 08 Feb 2012 01:08:53 GMTOccupy Wall Street. Occupy Oakland. There has been a lot of tension and energy spent on occupying things lately. It’s enough to make you want to occupy a therapist’s couch. It’s hard to know who the good guys are and who the bad guys are these days. The real world is a scary, complicated place. When I was a kid, it was easy to tell the good guys and bad guys apart. The bad guys were the soldiers of the galactic empire, stormtroopers in shiny white armor. The good guys were the brave fighters of the rebellion, heroes like Luke Skywalker, Princess Leia and, depending on which way the wind was blowing, the roguish Han Solo. It is exactly this kind of spirit of good versus evil that brings us the latest in Fanatic’s Duel Deck series, Soldiers Versus Rebels.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=167393Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:28:44 GMTHello everybody and welcome back to the First Glance series. Today we’ll be examining the rares and mythics from Dark Ascension best suited to exploring the multiplayer environment.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=167282Thu, 02 Feb 2012 18:09:48 GMTThis week I would like to talk about a format which a few people in my local area are hoping takes a more prominent presence. That format is Pauper. For those of you who are not aware, Pauper is a constructed format in which decks are built from commons only. This may not be everyone’s thing, but it is certainly a lot of fun. What’s even more interesting is that most of the popular decks in a lot of different formats can be made into Pauper variations. That’s what this article is all about.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=166972Mon, 30 Jan 2012 21:36:45 GMTIt's no secret that I love aggressive red builds. Seeing as affinity was the first “good” deck I ever built, I have a soft spot for aggressive artifact decks as well. So, when Kuldotha Rebirth was spoiled way back in Scars of Mirrodin, I was pretty happy. The deck has dropped off the radar as of late, but I think that Innistrad has actually given us a few new tools to help revitalize this fallen warrior.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=166688Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:18:10 GMTWelcome to the beginnings of Dark Ascension month here at Casual Carnage! Just a quick reminder of the format, this week and next week will consist of the First Glance series where we’ll be going over the cards from the set best suited for multiplayer action and classified by rarity. Following that will be the Combo Corner installment and finally budget decks featuring cards specifically from the two sets currently available in the Innistrad block. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=166685Sat, 28 Jan 2012 03:01:50 GMTI've brewed up a few budget Commander lists in the past, but none quite this affordable. This week's deck is packed with big creatures, which makes it a perfect fit for everyone's favorite three-color elf: Mayael the Anima.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=166240Mon, 23 Jan 2012 00:31:57 GMTAlright men, listen up! Out there beyond these walls there lies a great threat to the established order and we who uphold it. These ruffians seek to disrupt and destroy the order upon which our people rely! We will not allow this to happen. You are the Imperial Army’s finest and you will deny these mongrels their victory at all costs. Am I clear!? Good. Now let’s go deal with these rebel scum. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=165964Thu, 19 Jan 2012 20:14:22 GMTSlap on your Anarchy patches, grab your pitchforks, and hop in your X-Wings. You heard me. No matter what you're into, it's time to rise up and tear down the establishment. It's Duel Decks: Rebels versus Soldiers, and Every Card Counts is leading the revolution.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=165435Fri, 13 Jan 2012 20:36:18 GMTHello 2012! The air up in my head is quite clear after a wonderful holiday. Even more wonderful was to return from that holiday with fresh material to write about. Dark Ascension Spoiler Week One has kicked off on Wizards of the Coast’s website. As usual, the initial feature article for each set is a rundown of the new and returning mechanics. This week will be my reviews, impressions, and some tips on how to abuse these fun new features. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=165299Wed, 11 Jan 2012 23:41:47 GMTWhat's scarier than a full graveyard? A graveyard that spits out spiders, of course. Spider Spawning has caught my eye, as has another powerful spider from Magic 2012. How can we build with such in cards in Standard? Read on and find out.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=164891Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:40:57 GMTModern season is upon us in Magic land. This can be bad news for budget deckbuilders, but it's not always bad news. There's a way to hang tough in Modern without breaking the bank, and it involves a pretty established strategy (with a few tweaks).http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=164430Sat, 31 Dec 2011 18:58:27 GMTThe first installment of Casual Carnage was penned on March 21st, 2009. I completed it some time around noon, according to my computer. If I recall correctly the document was finalized on a road trip while somewhere around the Alberta/Saskatchewan border. My column went live on September 6th, 2009. In just a few short months I’ll have reached the three year mark. Three years is a long time for me to be doing anything. Other things I’ve been doing for three years or more include breathing, worrying about girls, and teaching piano (because turning just one hobby into a paying career wasn’t good enough for me).http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=164276Thu, 29 Dec 2011 19:15:54 GMTThe hardest part of casual multiplayer Magic is an issue that lies far beyond the mechanical. It’s an issue that must be addressed before shuffles and cuts are even made, before decks are selected. The big question of every multiplayer game is ”Of all the available options, which format should we play?”http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=163591Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:59:33 GMTTezzeret, Agent of Bolas is in danger. What from, you ask? Tezzeret is in danger of being typecast as a card that combos with Inkmoth Nexus. It’s unusual that a card as diverse as a planeswalker could have such narrow scope. Even with the original Tezzeret the Seeker we had several options. His untapping first ability said “use me for aggro and ramp.” His second ability said “use me in combo or control.” As for his third ability, it just won the game simply and cleanly. So far we’ve seen plenty of action from Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas as an aggro fixture as well as an implement of control decks. But that third option, combo, is still lurking in the breeding pool of deck brews. Today we’ll shed some light on a WUB possibility.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=162987Thu, 15 Dec 2011 16:48:15 GMTWell, the cat is out of the bag: Delver of Secrets is good. Really good. However, there are a few ways you can use this card. Recent tournament results have confirmed my suspicion that a blue-red Delver deck is probably the right way to go in Standard, but the question remains: Can this deck still be good on a budget?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=162299Wed, 07 Dec 2011 19:57:20 GMTNow that I’ve gone over how exactly to kill an opponent without ever dropping a critter, I’ll be taking to the exact opposite side this week. This time, we’re looking at a tribal deck. First introduced with general tribe support in Kamigawa Block, Spirits are a well known but underutilized tribe.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=161732Fri, 02 Dec 2011 01:38:42 GMTAh, the creature. The critter card is the number one most-used card in Magic: the Gathering. No other non-land card type can even come close to claiming that bragging right. If I had to pick another I’d go with the instant, but although seen potentially equally in decks it is never in a similar quantity as the creature. The package of elements required to win a game of Magic (board presence, a source of damage, expendable resources) is best delivered by the creature and no other. Now that all of that praise is written down, let’s turn my words on their head...http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=161258Sat, 26 Nov 2011 21:54:14 GMTNow that I've had some time to fully take in Innistrad, it's time to run down the best budget cards in the set in each color. Innistrad has proven to be a great set for players of all budgets. Want proof? Keep reading.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=160593Sat, 19 Nov 2011 02:55:50 GMTIt’s important to keep your body healthy. In other words, everyone should live a nutritious lifestyle. In similar fashion to all other writers I, of course, maintain a steady diet of scotch, steak, and women. It seems to be working out quite well. However, I’m young and my system can handle the net loss of valuable vitamins and the total lack of a sleep schedule that could be defined as either comprehensive or, God forbid, natural. When we get a little older and it starts becoming apparent that fast food, willpower, and intake of massive amounts of caffeine are not cutting it (surprise!), we must turn to that which can turn even the most flexible of people into a stodgy mule - a change of routine. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=160512Fri, 18 Nov 2011 01:35:03 GMTContinuing in my apparent quest to make all the terrible blue cards in Innistrad do something awesome, today we’ll be messing around with Rooftop Storm. It’s a costly, restricted, wobbly enchantment with virtually no practical application whatsoever. Seems like the kind of business right up my alley, doesn’t it? Rooftop Storm provides an unusual set of unique construction challenges when it comes to building a deck focused around it, all of which we will try to solve today.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=160415Wed, 16 Nov 2011 22:50:31 GMTThe mayor stood in the middle of the town square and with a concerned face, began to address his citizens. “PEOPLE OF AVABRUCK! LEND ME YOUR EARS BUT FOR A SHORT WHILE!" In case you all were wondering, Humans are my new favorite tribe. They have amazing synergy and abilities that are just amazing for a deck like we are going to look at today. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=160268Mon, 14 Nov 2011 22:28:30 GMTI've always been a fan of experimenting with Magic's many “build around me” enchantments and artifacts, and Wizards has been giving red decks a steady stream of them as of late. However, there's one that caught my eye, but I never got a chance to do anything with it until now. That card is Rage Extractor.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=159982Fri, 11 Nov 2011 15:22:34 GMTHalloween has come and gone, but the spirit of the season remains. In so keeping, let’s take a closer look at Innistrad’s feral brutes: Werewolves. Oh, there’s a bonus Zombie deck in here too.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=159349Fri, 04 Nov 2011 18:23:01 GMTSo there’s a card in Innistrad that has been keeping me perpetually perplexed. It’s a mythic rare and I’m wondering if anybody knows...uh...why?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=159144Thu, 03 Nov 2011 00:35:52 GMTI have decided as of late to start play-testing Legacy online. I hear there are a whole host of decks that do well and that the format is continually changing. I didn’t really know where to start. I knew that eventually I would like to start playing the deck I was testing online which meant that I had to have a reasonable budget deck. This means no original dual lands or shock lands. I would rather spend that kind of money on the creatures and other spells that will help me to win the game. This also means no Jace, the Mind Sculptor. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=159034Wed, 02 Nov 2011 01:08:05 GMTA big apology to anemone/Mercadian Masques crossover enthusiasts, but this article is not about Glowing Anemone. That’s too much of a niche audience to preach to. This week’s discharge of hot air is all about enemies. To be more precise, the enemy colors of Magic’s delicious color pie.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=158836Sun, 30 Oct 2011 21:20:23 GMTHeartless Summoning is one of the most intriguing cards in Innistrad. While it isn’t typical budget material, making a reasonably priced deck with it is completely doable. Why? Because it makes many fringe constructed cards infinitely better.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=158647Sat, 29 Oct 2011 00:07:02 GMTThere are plenty of stellar token generators in Standard right now in addition to some killer Glorious Anthem-style enchantments, and most of them are in white. However, white token strategies are linked closely to artifacts right now. Let’s see if ghosts and robots can play nice together.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=157901Fri, 21 Oct 2011 18:17:41 GMTInnistrad is beginning to settle into the competitive and casual environments, and for now one thing is for sure. Liliana of the Veil is staged to become a very prolific deck component, able to get an opponent under her fingernails with ease. However, Innistrad’s leading lady isn’t the only feminine presence on the Mythic Rare team. There’s another who is creating just as many ripples in discussions as Miss Vess... Olivia Voldaren. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=157804Thu, 20 Oct 2011 21:49:23 GMTThe barracks were filled with chatter as everyone was getting ready for the upcoming battle against the Elves. The Elves had killed too many things they considered ugly. One too many Eyeblights were ended. The time for action was now, so humans and Kithkin alike decided to band together for the greater good of the world.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=157541Tue, 18 Oct 2011 17:25:04 GMTUnburial Rites is one of those cards that makes your bombs better, and makes your opponent’s removal quite a bit worse. It has already seen play in the new version of the control-reanimator Solar Flare deck, so surely we can put this card to work on a budget as well.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=157127Sat, 15 Oct 2011 00:35:19 GMTSo let’s say you’ve just gotten into Magic: the Gathering, and Innistrad is the first set you’ve ever played with. Sometimes this is the case and you, the young gun, have only the latest set at your disposal to build with. Among players down with the lingo, this is called ‘block’ format. For now, block format for Innistrad consists only of the eponymous set itself. By spring, the block will be complete with all three of its sets. The decks you’ll see here today can be built using exclusively cards for Innistrad and for somewhere in the neighborhood of thirty dollars. Let’s get started!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=156971Thu, 13 Oct 2011 17:24:03 GMTWhile I am waiting for my Elf-loving friend to finish up his deck, I am taking the time to cater to one of my readers. I am always eager to know what you would like me to explore and what you would like to read about. Today, I am going to look into an idea I have had for quite some time. A rogue idea. This means I am going to put together a deck that most people wouldn’t. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=156735Tue, 11 Oct 2011 19:05:46 GMTInnistrad season is in full swing, and I can’t wait to dive in. I may be fashionably late to the party, but I’ve brought the goods, so hopefully nobody will mind. This week: a werewolf control deck? Strange things happen when the full moon rises…http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=156262Fri, 07 Oct 2011 16:56:01 GMTWelcome back one more times to one of the most popular series of MTG Fanatic Articles, Combo Corner! For those of you unfamiliar with the series, this is a sub-column of my regular ramblings at Casual Carnage. Every time a new edition of Magic: the Gathering is released I put on a big pot of tea, go through its Gatherer pages card by card, and set you up with every two, three, and occasionally four card combo I can think of using material from the new set. Now that you know the format, let’s get started!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=156261Fri, 07 Oct 2011 16:52:55 GMTWelcome back to the First Glance series! This week we’ll be taking our second look at the cards in Innistrad that are pinging on the casual multiplayer radar. If you missed part one, please go ahead and read it first. The article in the link took a peek at the two bottom rarities, common and uncommon. Today we’ll be featuring the rares and mythic rares of Innistrad. Buckle up!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=155787Mon, 03 Oct 2011 22:05:33 GMTThis time I am not looking at any given deck list. I am actually looking towards the future and in the future we will see lots of Demons, Vampires, Werewolves, Zombies and Humans. Yes, you heard me correctly, humans. This article isn’t about humans, though, it’s about people thinking that other decks are always better than the lesser played guys. Today I was play testing for Modern. I won most of my games, and I was not playing a fancy combo deck, or any tier one deck for that matter. I wasn’t playing Twin or Zoo or Jund. I was playing White Weenie. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=155780Mon, 03 Oct 2011 21:33:07 GMTThe Budget Cube Project may be feelin’ blue this week, but that’s no reason to be sad! Blue is as fun and as powerful as ever, even on a budget.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=155375Fri, 30 Sep 2011 21:31:56 GMTAll of the other tribes try not to talk about them. They sneak around at night and take advantage of other humanoids at social gatherings. Some are accomplished musicians, while others are amazing fighters. Others still are good at just getting people to do what they want them to do! This deck is all about that.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=155261Thu, 29 Sep 2011 19:55:41 GMTIt’s time, everybody! The Innistrad prereleases are here and the set has been fully spoiled. This means it’s time to let the analysis begin! For those of you just tuning in, Innistrad is the newest expansion to Magic and it goes on sale in one week. It is a very dark set in terms of its themes with vampires, werewolves, and zombies aplenty. Up against them are the humans (puny Earthlings!) and caught in the middle are the white/blue supported spirit tribe. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=154506Fri, 23 Sep 2011 19:41:55 GMTWelcome back to the farewell to Zendikar. For those of you who missed last week (you’re totally missing out, by the way), the Goodbye articles’ goal is to simply shed light on the great cards from a block that were lost to the hustle and bustle of competitive formats. These are going to be cards that you may want to consider for your casual decks that you might not have formerly been aware of. To help clarify my points on these cards, since rares tend to be much more subjective, I’m including a “playability index,” which will be a simple scale of one to ten with ten being the best. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=153674Thu, 15 Sep 2011 22:51:39 GMTIt’s that time of year again, folks. Time for a block to take its leave from Standard and fall out of the public eye. Zendikar has taken on the air of an ailing action movie star at the end of his career. While the set is still strong and well-designed, the encroachment of a beer belly over its six-pack abs is inevitable. Standard has made excellent use of Zendikar and individually labeled each card within the entire block as either competitively viable or… simply not. What I’m interested in today is the “simply not” category, which houses the many underrated cards in the set that were cast aside not because they are bad cards but because they were simply overtaken by the nature of the competitive environment. These cards have become buried treasures of Magic and the goal of this article is to shed light on them. Let’s start with the commons.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=152911Thu, 08 Sep 2011 22:12:59 GMTI regret to inform you, dear readers, that Casual Carnage has officially resolved the stack. Its effects have been meted out across the board and we now find ourselves topside of the graveyard with meager prospects for seeing action. That is unless we happened to have Flashback...http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=151969Thu, 01 Sep 2011 20:48:50 GMTWelcome to ‘Roots’, the starting point for your journey in this new world of Magic: the Gathering! Roots sprouted up (or down…) from the idea that many articles you may be reading don’t cover the fundamentals of Magic. Most are focused on building decks and working with strategies based on an already established foundation of knowledge. So, you ask, what about a person that just bought a pre-constructed deck at your local Wal-Mart©? How does this game even WORK? Where do I begin? What makes a creature good? How do enchantments work? How does a turn play out? What in the WORLD is ‘the stack’? I’m assuming that you have at least a little bit of knowledge of Magic; otherwise you wouldn’t be here at mtgfanatic.com doing research or buying more cards.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=151877Wed, 31 Aug 2011 23:24:33 GMTEver since seeing it in previews, I have had a question itching, burning, bothering me day and night about a card. It’s a very peculiar card with a very simple question. What are you supposed to do with this piece of crap?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=150950Wed, 24 Aug 2011 21:58:17 GMTIt’s a tale as old as time itself. The clever rat sneaks into your home and heads right for the kitchen. Rats raid kitchens for the same reason that criminals rob banks… that’s where the cheese is. The rat climbs up onto the counter and spots it, a giant pie-shaped wedge of Swiss cheese five times bigger than the rodent. He grabs the cheese, jumps down to the floor and starts running towards the familiar gothic arch of the typical mouse hole in the wall ahead. Suddenly, a cat darts out of nowhere and smashes the rat in the face with a frying pan. Or at least, that’s what always happened in Tom and Jerry cartoons…http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=150455Sun, 21 Aug 2011 20:33:58 GMTMagic 2012 has brought us some great cards for Standard and beyond. Time to count down the best of the bunch for wallet-friendly deckbuilding. Like last summer with M11, I'll stay away from reprints and bring you the best of the new stuff.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=150246Sat, 20 Aug 2011 00:01:38 GMTNow that Primeval Titan has suffered the reprint and its market value has been diluted by increased availability, something I like to call the “Baneslayer Angel” effect has happened. Thus, since more and more of you will be owners of the card before long, I feel it’s time to run down some Primeval Titan shenanigans. What we’ll be discussing today is the “land matters” side of play. Mostly lumped in as a dimension of tempo, a land matters style of play can lead to a lot of angry friends because it focuses on mana base interference. The game can become stale when you’re the only one casting spells. On the other hand, this can be a very versatile way to rack up a win. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=150098Thu, 18 Aug 2011 15:27:14 GMTFor the next few weeks I am going to explore the land of tribal decks. It’s no secret that tribal decks are some of the most aggressive out there in casual as well as constructed. This happens because there is a lot of synergy between a lot of the cards in a certain tribe. I am starting with Goblins.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=149796Mon, 15 Aug 2011 23:42:04 GMTDuel Decks returns, and this time, it's personal. After crushing The Artificer's demons with my awe-inspiring wizard deck a few months ago, we return to the battlefield. This time, it's cats vs. mice (well, rats), but the result will be no different. After all, I have the predators, and he's stuck with the prey. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=149576Sun, 14 Aug 2011 13:53:18 GMTWelcome to another installment of the friendly rivalry between myself and Dallas Meidinger. This time we are pitting a pair of factions old as nature herself against each other: Cats and Mice. The deck of cats will be described later on this week by Dallas. Today I’ll be going over the ground rules we established for the building of the decks as well as introducing you to the mice, represented here by the rat creature type. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=149127Wed, 10 Aug 2011 20:20:26 GMTI noticed it was bloodthirst week over on the official Magic site. Not to be outdone, I began compiling a badass red-black bloodthirst-based deck of my own. As I began dreaming up ideas, I noticed a recurring trend in my card choices: none of them were rares.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=148517Fri, 05 Aug 2011 23:47:15 GMTPicture your Saturday afternoon. It’s relaxed, work is done for the week, and you just woke up at the groan-inducing early hour of 1:00pm. Later on, there’s a large gathering to play some cards as well as other nerdy girl-repelling activities. Then, suddenly, your eyes widen and your pulse hastens as you remember that which you had planned to do for days now, and subsequently forgotten. You were going to make a new deck. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=148260Wed, 03 Aug 2011 20:23:40 GMTI was browsing the MtgFanatic forums the other day, and I came across a user posing a very common question: “I'm going to Friday Night Magic, what's the best deck I can make for the least amount of money possible?” Eschewing my usual cynicism, I decided to do some research. I soon found that Pyromancer Ascension decks are ridiculously cheap and as powerful as they've ever been.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=147672Fri, 29 Jul 2011 21:09:52 GMTWelcome back to the four-part examination of Magic 2012 presented by me, The Artificer! This week we’re going to be substantially less serious about things and discuss the parts of 2012 that simply amuse and inspire. What you’ll be seeing here are all the crazy, fun, or ridiculous combos I can find within Magic 2012. I’ll try to keep it to two or three cards per combo. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=147370Wed, 27 Jul 2011 21:53:43 GMTJust call me Wal-Mart, 'cause I'm really rolling back the prices this time. Our weekly special is a Standard-legal blue/white control deck built with everyone's favorite Sword of Mass Destruction, Worldslayer. The price? Less than 30 bucks. Sound like fun? Read on.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=146783Fri, 22 Jul 2011 23:58:16 GMT Welcome back, everybody, to the First Glance articles, Magic 2012 Edition! If you missed my reviews of the set’s commons and uncommons in part one you can head back and see that right here. Otherwise, we’ll continue on with the rares and mythic rares. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=146515Wed, 20 Jul 2011 23:36:45 GMTI've written about Elves before, but hey, they are a perfect tribe for budget deckbuilding. Every now and then, a card comes along that makes Elf decks worth talking about again. Magic 2012 has given us one of those cards in Doubling Chant.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=145738Fri, 15 Jul 2011 23:26:04 GMTSo now that Magic 2012 has been fully spoiled in Gatherer, I’m free to discuss it! I love set launches, they give me great new content to talk about for weeks. Magic 2012 definitely delivers. This set is keeping me interested enough to talk for the full month it takes before all of my analysis hits the website. This week is the first of four articles to be written. For those of you just tuning in, the First Glance series is my interpretation of the set’s commons, uncommons, rares, and mythics. Each rarity will be broken down and the best five cards from each will receive a ranking here. Placing is determined by each card’s ease of application and effectiveness in a multiplayer game. Enjoy!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=145428Wed, 13 Jul 2011 22:58:56 GMTI've been talking Commander for the last few weeks, so this column is dedicated to a more traditional, sixty card deck. However, one of the cards in this deck is none other than Commander stand-out Soul Snare. This card has really caught my eye, which gives me a reason to tweak a classic archetype: The Enchantress deck.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=144710Fri, 08 Jul 2011 13:45:31 GMTBack here in the Land of the Far North we’re kicking off our lake season with a heat wave. If it were ever possible for inanimate objects to stick it to the man, my thermometer is trying its damnedest. It’s been pushing the 30ºC mark for a few days in a row now (somewhere around 90ºF for American readers) and as a creature of winter, I’ve constantly been beseeching the gods of snow for a whopping dose of the icy fluffy stuff. In an effort to at least lower the temperature in my head a few points below fever dreams, we’re going to do a theme article about winter! http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=144524Wed, 06 Jul 2011 21:50:17 GMTToolbox decks use specific tutor cards to find a variety of useful utility creatures and spells. Toolboxes let you play less copies of a potentially niche card because you have a reliable way to find single copies. In short, they give your deck flexibility. Lo and behold, New Phyrexia has given us one of the most versatile toolbox enablers in recent memory: Birthing Pod.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=144273Sun, 03 Jul 2011 19:49:26 GMTWelcome one and all to the 100th official numbered installment of Casual Carnage with me, your host, The Artificer! I have to say the process of authoring this column has been quite the adventure both personally and publicly. Today I’m going to take a break from it all and just discuss the journey that Casual Carnage has become and the places it has taken me within Magic: the Gathering. My hope is that you take something from my experience and make it your own. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=143996Thu, 30 Jun 2011 14:05:59 GMTCommander can be a daunting (and expensive) format to break into. When you have nearly the entire history of Magic as your potential card choices in a 100-card singleton format, the potential for success is overshadowed by the lingering specter of failure. That's not to say your first Commander deck will be bad, but there are plenty of ways to mess up. That's why I'm glad Wizards produced some solid preconstructed Commander decks. For some of us, though, these decks are just a starting point. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=143305Fri, 24 Jun 2011 16:38:02 GMTSo this week we had some groundbreaking news and I’m afraid we’ll be continuing the deviation into Standard territory. Jace, the Mind Sculptor and Stoneforge Mystic have been...well...you know what happened. What we’re in for now is a metagame shift. First of all is going to come a seemingly endless tide of B/R Vampire victories followed up by a big kick in the crotch by the next big game in town. That’s where I come in. That’s where the pros do their thing. More importantly it’s where you come in. Together we all get to begin the great work again.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=143028Wed, 22 Jun 2011 16:44:45 GMTGenerals determine how you build your Commander deck. They determine colors and hopefully some kind of strategy as well. Commander is a tricky format to play on a budget, so starting with a cheap general never hurts. This week, I'll count down the best budget generals and some, ahem, general strategies that you can build around. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=142262Wed, 15 Jun 2011 16:42:17 GMT“When in doubt, play red” is generally my pre-tournament plan. If I don't know what to play, a burn deck is usually a solid backup choice. That's not to say playing a burn deck well is easy, but you can count on having a chance in nearly every matchup. As they say, speed kills.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=141710Fri, 10 Jun 2011 20:49:58 GMTOkay, I know I said last week I was thinking of discussing Karn Liberated today. I’m sorry to admit that just isn’t happening because I’ve found a project that looks like way more fun to talk to you about - Birthing Pod. Yeah I know the card’s name sounds gross. Bear with me for the next thousand words and we’ll see if we can choke that back long enough to make a deck. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=141499Wed, 08 Jun 2011 22:38:58 GMTSo, this “new” Phyrexia has spread into every color. Lovely. Call me a purist, but to me, Phyrexia will always be about artifacts, black mana, and victory at any cost. This week's deck is a throwback to the Phyrexia of old, as it embraces these attributes wholeheartedly. To top it off, this deck uses Standard's current card pool instead of Phyrexian classics. Oh, and it's one of this column's most budget friendly decks to date. Interested? Read on.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=140956Fri, 03 Jun 2011 20:12:27 GMTAnother block has come and gone, folks. It seems like just yesterday we were collectively getting wicked stoked for the passing of Shards of Alara block and the death of Jund. Now we’re going to be getting ready to say farewell to Zendikar in four short months. During the lifetime of the newest block, Scars of Mirrodin, we’ve been graced with the presence of five additional planeswalkers. This article intends to be a humorous guide to the person who asks “If I’m making a deck, should I be shelling out for [insert planeswalker here]?”http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=140742Wed, 01 Jun 2011 23:14:54 GMTThis may be a quick turnaround from the Mirrodin Besieged Top 30, but what can I say, I've had the pleasure of playing with New Phyrexia quite a bit lately. Here's the deal: I'm going to run down the five best cards in each color (plus artifacts) under $1 on MTGFanatic, reprints included. Once again, the cards must be good for Constructed play, not just Limited. New Phyrexia has graced us with a ton of good uncommons and commons, which is refreshing. The last few sets have been pretty top-heavy in their value (mythic rares being the only money cards makes buying a box a tougher decision), so it's nice to see a set with some valuable, and more importantly playable, commons and uncommons. Without further ado, let's jump in.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=140316Sun, 29 May 2011 13:09:45 GMTSo just as usual whenever a new set comes out I get to spend my Sunday/Monday throwing some budget decks your way. I love the challenge of building on that sparse $30 and giving you a product that’s realistically usable. New Phyrexia brings plenty to the table for the Phyrexians. However, the Mirrans, having recently lost out pretty hard and bringing tears to the eyes of their faction (string section swells), have virtually nothing to work with. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=140146Fri, 27 May 2011 22:39:26 GMTNew Phyrexia is now officially upon us, and the word on the street in the budget part of town is that golems are all the rage. This week, I'll explore why the Splicers have some serious potential, but also some potentially serious pitfalls.... and what to do about them.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=139265Sat, 21 May 2011 00:51:16 GMTWelcome everybody to the least serious of my various sub-columns, Combo Corner! It’s during this article where I’ll cater to the Johnnies among us (and occasionally Spike and Timmy) with all of the card combos I can think of within the latest set. The purpose? Get those deckbuilding juices flowing. Get ready to get hungry (for a new deck). http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=139090Thu, 19 May 2011 18:20:58 GMTLast week, Dallas Meidinger threw down a Vintage Budget challenge for Fanatic’s other King of Casual, Sir Thomas Wrigley. Meidinger created a Wizard-themed deck for just under fifty bucks. Mister Wrigley responded, in his own article last week, with a Demon deck with sixty-one cards for just barely over the fifty dollar mark.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=138574Mon, 16 May 2011 16:11:10 GMTNew Phyrexia is upon us, and I can’t think of a better way to celebrate than by building with new cards. This week, we dive into the awesomeness that is Myr Superion, as well as the scariness that is Etched Monstrosity. Oh, in the same deck, too. Yeah, I'm that crazy.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=138349Sun, 15 May 2011 01:45:53 GMTWelcome back, fanatics, to the Duel Deck collaboration brought to you by me, Dallas Meidinger, and copious amounts of heavy metal music: Demons vs. Wizards!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=137946Wed, 11 May 2011 22:46:18 GMTWelcome to the first long-awaited (hopefully) collaboration between myself and fellow MtgFanatic author The Artificer. We're taking the duel decks concept to new heights with some custom designs of our own. This week, we take inspiration from one of our favorite heavy metal bands and bring you... Demons vs. Wizards!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=137252Fri, 06 May 2011 20:59:54 GMTSo I hope everybody enjoyed reading part one as much as I enjoyed writing it (which shouldn’t be too difficult, commons and uncommons are fairly by-the-numbers). Today, the content becomes much more subjective because we’re proceeding to the hot topic of the month: New Phyrexia’s rares and mythic rares. Let’s rock ‘n roll.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=137015Wed, 04 May 2011 20:25:16 GMTThought I forgot about the Top 30, did you? Well, I didn’t, I just hadn’t played with Mirrodin Besieged as much as I would have liked. Now that I've got a better command of the set, here's your Top 30 budget cards. I've done this before, so you likely know the drill: the five best cards in each color (plus artifacts) under $1 on MTGfanatic, reprints included. Once again, the cards must also be good for Constructed play, not just in Limited. Ready?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=136380Fri, 29 Apr 2011 14:52:42 GMT Well, folks, it’s happened. The war is over and the Phyrexians have dealt a blow into the hearts of Mirrans worldwide. As for the cards themselves, there have been some interesting developments. Due to some very unfortunate circumstances involving the apparent leak of the New Phyrexia R&D manual, the entirety of the new set has been spoiled two weeks ahead of time. In interest of keeping with the times and not subjecting you to two weeks of anticipatory filler, here’s part one of New Phyrexia’s First Glance articles. Today we’ll be examining the finest commons and uncommons of the set when it comes to performing in a casual multiplayer environment.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=136199Wed, 27 Apr 2011 22:03:49 GMTI've been avoiding Standard mill decks for quite a while. While the card quality for a mill deck is quite good, there are a few annoying cards available that make milling a very difficult thing to accomplish. But, despite these boogey men still haunting the halls of Standard, I've finally decided to man up and give a mill deck a shot. So, for those not afraid of intergalactic monsters, strange potions, and vengeful foliage, read on.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=135604Fri, 22 Apr 2011 23:01:21 GMTLast week’s article dealt exclusively in the theory of magic, particularly discussing protocol for error management. This week I’m carrying on the discussion regarding the theory of Magic. I’ll be going over how I break down the concept of tempo. What is tempo, you say? Allow me to elaborate. The Tempo is an 80’s economy car developed by the Ford Motor Company. Its defining characteristics are its sneaky profile and the frequency with which it is found abandoned on the roadside. In Magic, your tempo can be simply described as the rate at which your deck progresses in the game environment. Its defining characteristics are card advantage generation, mana curve, and mana acceleration. Whilst defining your deck’s tempo, you should be taking into account these three factors and how they relate to the type of deck you want to build.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=135372Wed, 20 Apr 2011 23:53:02 GMTMono green decks generally come in three varieties: Elves, ramp, and stompy. While elves and ramp are well-represented in Standard right now, there aren’t too many decks taking the good ol’ beatdown route. Let’s change that.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=134792Fri, 15 Apr 2011 22:08:29 GMTThere’s something I just realized I have yet to talk about for any extended period of time. I’ve spent most of my word count to date on discussion of how to make the good play and fight the good fight. What I haven’t done is discussed what to do when you crank the ‘fail’ dial up to eleven. Everybody makes mistakes. For some of us it happens more often than we care to admit. For others, it happens hardly at all. The point is that if you play Magic, at some point, you will have a brain fart, memory burp, or other combination of gastric and cognitive malfunction. So what in the world do you do when this happens in public? Oh dear...http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=134564Wed, 13 Apr 2011 22:59:51 GMTIf there's one Magic format that I can't get enough of, it's Commander (formerly Elder Dragon Highlander or EDH). No matter what kind of Magic I'm playing with friends, be it Cube draft, testing for a tournament, or even just Standard, I eventually find myself asking, “bring any Commander decks?”http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=133818Fri, 08 Apr 2011 19:54:40 GMTToday I’d like to talk to all of the Magic cards in the world about the virtue of working together. There’re so many of you and you could do great things with one another. All I need is to figure out how to get you all to co-operate. Magic is currently experiencing (some of you might say enduring) an age of change. No, it’s not that age of change, Magic is already eighteen years old. Magic is currently undergoing a lot of revolutions in card roles. Years ago a broken card mostly consisted of something that performed a single task extremely admirably such as the generation of massive card advantage via Necropotence or the prodigious amounts of mana called forth by Tolarian Academy. Today, the best of the best young cards are those that serve multiple roles, performing each of them to average or greater than average effectiveness.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=133557Wed, 06 Apr 2011 22:19:39 GMT“Captain, we’re detecting an incoming transmission. They have included notifications in their hailing message that The Artificer has acquired results from several of the Magic: the Gathering decks we have ordered him to test.”http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=132830Wed, 30 Mar 2011 22:34:17 GMTI've always been a big fan of equipment. Anything that puts a permanent pump effect on the board is fine with me. Although equipment has been toned down a bit since the days of the original Mirrodin block (Bonesplitter at common and Loxodon Warhammer at uncommon being prime examples), Scars block has still brought some solid toys for us to play with. Alongside equipment, there are a handful of creatures that get better from using it. One of those creatures is Training Drone.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=132053Fri, 25 Mar 2011 17:30:02 GMTI’m going to try to kill two stones with one bird in this article. The first stone to be bludgeoned to death by this bad joke is the stigma attached to blue/black decks as only being good at counterspell control and milling. The second lowly mineral to be slain is my problem with Black Sun’s Zenith. Damn, this card is mighty fine, but I just spent a couple hours puzzling over a deck to squeeze it into that doesn’t involve Necroskitter and came up dry. Thus, I’m going to try to write (and edit) myself to a conclusion and give you a working product at the same time. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=131780Wed, 23 Mar 2011 17:01:22 GMT"It's not a matter of deserving. It's a matter of strength. The power to hold versus the power to take." That's the flavor text of Sygg, River Cutthroat, one of my all-time favorite cards. He has a permanent place in one of my favorite decks, a tribal rogue deck. This is a very quick deck that mixes things up with some vicious disruption as well, making it a fun, powerful, and reasonably priced choice. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=131132Fri, 18 Mar 2011 21:39:02 GMTVenser, the Sojourner created a lot of imaginative ripples during the time period between being spoiled and falling out of favor with the current metagame. During that whole time, I mostly focused on building to take advantage of his primary ability. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=130897Wed, 16 Mar 2011 21:36:39 GMTWarning: Today's deck is not fun. You might enjoy playing it, but nobody else will want to play against you more than once. Playing it in multiplayer games is also a death sentence, as you'll have people ganging up on you in a hurry. You guessed it. Today, we're building a land destruction deck. Oh, and we're doing it in Standard. Want a rogue deck to take to your next Friday Night Magic? Put this one on your list, because this deck makes bad things happen.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=130248Fri, 11 Mar 2011 20:47:25 GMTThere’s a color of dragon that usually falls by the wayside. This is most likely because there are only three of them that are playable, one of which is marginally so. The color of dragon being explored today is white.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=129932Wed, 09 Mar 2011 20:31:55 GMTBesides the long gap between the October and February sets, the year is jam-packed with new Magic releases. Sometimes these sets come and go so quickly that we don't always get time to fully explore them. For me, I find that this was the case with Rise of the Eldrazi. It was a large, stand-alone set with a short time in the spotlight. It also contains one of my favorite cards: Aura Gnarlid. I wrote a bit about Aura Gnarlid a while ago, but I'm starting to notice that the card is a bit more versatile than I once thought. I like the deck, but I want to revisit it. Why? Well, for one, I'm loving the variance in Extended right now, and I see a chance to do something a bit unorthodox. Secondly, there's a card in Mirrodin Beseiged that presents some interesting possibilities with this deck.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=129283Fri, 04 Mar 2011 19:35:08 GMTSo recently I’ve been dipping my toes into some Elder Dragon Highlander (Commander) adventures. My first deck was a strange build using Crosis, the Purger as my general. It focused less on inflicting damage and more on disrupting the board and [i]generally[/i] doing everything it could to not be the nice guy. The deck worked well because it took advantage of cards like Mindmoil, Treasure Hunt, Preordain, Insidious Dreams and Compulsion to access a massive portion of its available spells. I’ve found that this is the key to a successful EDH deck - being able to access as many of its cards as possible in a short amount of time. Crosis’ deck did a good job when it came to that principle. However, I think I might have found one better. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=129035Wed, 02 Mar 2011 23:51:15 GMTDespite being a potentially cheap tribe in both price and mana cost, Elf decks haven't appeared in this column too often (just once, and it certainly wasn't a traditional Elf build). Is the market saturated with Elf builds? I used to think so, but the current state of elves in Standard interests me. There are definitely options available to fans of the little green men, but what about if budget is a concern? Many Elf decks feature planeswalkers like Nissa Revane and Garruk Wildspeaker, which aren't always viable for budget-minded players. Maybe, if we want to hit a decent budget, we'll need to go back to basics and do what elves do best: make lots of mana. For finishers, I've got a long-forgotten card that is a cheaper than more popular options, but potentially just as deadly.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=128379Fri, 25 Feb 2011 20:57:24 GMTWelcome back to the Mirrodin Besieged quadrilogy for the fourth and final week (probably). Today the discussion turns to the topic I try to put the most effort into because it’s the topic that you, the reader, are probably going to use yourself at the kitchen table. Every once in a while you find that you need a deck and you need it really fast or you have an entry level player who isn’t sure enough of themselves to shell out for the heavy hitters. That’s where budget decks come in. Since Mirrodin Besieged is all about picking sides, here are two decks to pit against each other.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=128073Wed, 23 Feb 2011 17:55:31 GMTThis column hasn't dived into control in a while. I think we need to give it a shot this week. Personally, I'm more of an aggro player. I like ending games quickly, and control decks usually do the exact opposite. That's not to say I don't enjoy playing a control deck now and then, though. So, why the coverage slant towards aggro, midrange and combo? I think there's a bit of a stigma surrounding control decks, which is that the only good ones are the top tournament decks. I don't think this is true, but I'm sure the thought creeps into my subconscious at times. The truth is, there are plenty of changes we can make to top level decks to drop price while still having a strong, consistent sixty.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=127284Fri, 18 Feb 2011 16:50:23 GMTEvery time a new set comes out I write a quadruplet of articles over the span of four weeks that allows me to dig as far as I possibly can into the set as quickly as possible. The first two of the set is the First Glance series. The third article is Combo Corner, which is by no means to be taken seriously but indeed still has a purpose. Combo Corner is a brainstorming tool to get your creative juices and put forth some ideas for some very neat Johnny decks. Most of the combos will involve no more than two or three cards, one or more of which will be from the new expansion. Let’s get started. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=127077Wed, 16 Feb 2011 21:50:44 GMTEvery Card Counts: The only Magic column that starts with Hair Metal references. Anyway, if you couldn't tell by the title, we're talking poison today. Mirrodin Besieged is pushing poison past its typical roots, and now the archetype has the potential to take several directions. In my first poison column, I discussed the value of Scars of Mirrodin's poison cards without actually giving a decklist. Poison decks were all the rage at the time, and decklists were more common than, well, commons. Since some of the hype has died down and poison appears to be more than a one-trick pony, I think it's time we gave an actual list some consideration. The twist? We're going mono green.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=126401Fri, 11 Feb 2011 18:19:15 GMTHere’s part two of my First Glance miniseries, in which I’ll be taking a look at the highest ranking rares and mythic rares for casual Magic in the brand new expansion, Mirrodin Besieged.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=126134Wed, 09 Feb 2011 21:56:01 GMTMyr are great little guys to have around in Limited, and now that Mirrodin Besieged is out, I think I will love having some in constructed as well. Why do I like them so much? Well, first off, I can relate Myr to something in the real world: ants. They're hard-working, versatile little guys, and they can't do much damage on their own. But put them together (say, in a Battlesphere), and they can cause a world of hurt. Secondly, being an artifact tribe means there are tons of possible decks we can make featuring a Myr theme. Scars of Mirrodin brought us some awesome Myr, but Besieged has the potential to put Myr on the map. Let's explore one potential route for a Myr deck to take.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=125394Fri, 04 Feb 2011 14:38:34 GMTGood gravy, it’s launch time again. The new set launch regime is definitely starting to become much more apparent to me now that we’ve been on the new cycle for just a touch over a year. I can’t believe Scars of Mirrodin was already three months and countless curse words ago. So how ‘bout we bring ‘er around for part two of three of John Dies to Infect? Fellow Mirrans, let’s just get through this.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=125252Wed, 02 Feb 2011 23:02:49 GMTSo here I was one pleasant summer afternoon... I mean, so here I am one frigid Canadian winter night putting my binder back in order after building an EDH deck (more on that later) and I came across Genesis Wave. This is one of those really neat cards that jumped out at me initially but because its mana cost made it so ungainly it somewhat fell by the wayside, waiting for me to think of something to do with it. Let’s get started on motivating me.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=124267Wed, 26 Jan 2011 20:02:41 GMTAh, Goblins. Arguably Magic’s most successful tribe, despite their initially flimsy appearance. My comment comes on the heels of another first place finish for goblins in Legacy at Star City Games’ most recent event. However, goblins can win in Standard as well, thanks to a little card called Kuldotha Rebirth. Hell, this week’s deck is Friday Night Magic worthy… and will cost you less than thirty bucks. Interested? Read on.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=123675Fri, 21 Jan 2011 22:35:20 GMTThere are too many cards out there to ever use them all as central points of a deck. Some cards are simply destined to be one-of or two-of in a deck. It doesn’t make them less usable, the game has simply cordoned them into a special selection of awesomely named cards we like to call “silver bullets”, “tools”, or in some cases “what’s this jank you’re trying to sell me?” Determining whether you want your deck to have just a few of these for special occasions or to go all-out utility belt is up to you. I’ll discuss how to make both work.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=123431Thu, 20 Jan 2011 01:15:23 GMTI see Necrotic Ooze decks popping up in every Magic format. I can see why, the card has nearly endless possibilities. Budget decks shouldn't be left in the cold when Necrotic Ooze still falls well within our price range, so let's build it. Narrowing down card choices becomes quite involved in a Necrotic Ooze deck, but it’s definitely a good exercise in improving your deckbuilding skills. Necrotic Ooze gives you many choices as to what you play and how you make it work. We may not have the funds for the typical support, but there's some atypical support out there that's pretty good as well.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=122736Fri, 14 Jan 2011 14:21:08 GMTPart of my job, as the writer of this column, is to shed light on cards that are good at carrying their weight but are also for the most part unrecognized in the Magic community. Saviors of Kamigawa is pretty much a whole set of these orphaned cards. This set gave us Erayo, Soratami Ascendant, Pithing Needle, and Twincast. Those are seriously the only cards from the set that have any endurance in memory whatsoever. What frequently gets forgotten is that this set is a gold mine of Johnny fodder. There are two cards I’d like to point your attention to, once again in my favorite color combination: Adamaro, First to Desire and Kiyomaro, First to Stand. Each of these cards slide handily into a mana curve with costs three and five and they leave a lot of options open for a deck.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=122552Thu, 13 Jan 2011 00:11:00 GMTSometimes I make offhand comments in articles that go for a while without me noticing that, subconsciously, I said something inspiring. This happened to me this week, and it couldn't have happened at a better time. Truth is, I was having a hell of a time coming up with a topic this week. The October-to-February gap between sets is always the hardest as a writer. No new cards to play with translates into no new cards to write about as well. I thought I had mined Scars of Mirrodin for all it was worth, but then I noticed something when re-reading my own column from last week: Sunblast Angel. I hadn't written about Sunblast Angel yet! My little offhand comment about it being a budget alternative for my last deck had suddenly inspired a whole new creation. I did a quick price check to make sure it was still in budget territory, and bam, I had my inspiration for a new control deck.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=121819Fri, 07 Jan 2011 16:32:02 GMTSometimes you’re having one of those days when the world just isn’t spinning your direction. God help us all if you can literally change that. Sometimes it’s one of those days you just have to ride out the hours until bed. Sometimes all you have to look forward to in the next twenty-four hours is Magic... and goddamn it you are going to make that battlefield regret everything.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=121526Wed, 05 Jan 2011 02:19:47 GMTSo, I have this deck. I really like it. I've been playing different versions of it for a few months now, and it is running exactly how I want it to run. It's awesome, and the best part is, I can talk about it in this column... almost. Thing is, there's this one card. You may have heard of it. It's called Baneslayer Angel. I have four in this deck. However, when I cut Baneslayer, this deck falls right into budget territory. So, can we make it work without it? I think so. Why? Well, the deck has undergone several evolutions in the past, and one more won't kill it. This one definitely has some history behind it, so pull up a chair and get ready for the story of Big White. Popcorn is optional, but recommended.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=120872Fri, 31 Dec 2010 15:00:16 GMTSometimes building a functioning deck on a tight budget can be a real challenge, and now that I look back and check things out, I haven’t done that for you guys since Zendikar. This week’s article will have some decks in it for you that are all about being light on the wallet and have a lower learning curve. Just good old-fashioned fun with Magic. I’ll try to keep a few of them block legal like I did with Zendikar for you folks who are just starting out in Magic.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=120659Thu, 30 Dec 2010 03:52:48 GMTAs I'm sure many of you have as well, I've spent some time browsing the deck lists from this year's World Championships. The Extended format has really caught my eye, as it is wide open for innovation. Some strategies will fade, some will thrive, but for the moment, there are plenty of fresh ideas competing at high levels. I sometimes get inspiration from competition-level decks for my column, despite tier one tournament decks not being anywhere near budget. The most important question I ask myself in these situations is, “Can this deck still be good if I make it cheaper, or will lower card quality wreck the strategy?” Often, the answer is simple; most competitive decks require cards that can't be replaced. However, sometimes I find strategies or combinations that work perfectly well in a budget setting. This week, we have one of those combinations.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=119869Wed, 22 Dec 2010 16:37:37 GMTThe metalcraft mechanic has been around for somewhere in the neighborhood of two months now and as far as deck building goes I haven’t put much thought into it until now. What I’ve found to be the best metalcraft cards coincidentally also fall within my favorite colors to build with - red and white. Let’s see what crazy synergy we can get going. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=119868Wed, 22 Dec 2010 16:27:29 GMTSorry for the long title on this one, but hopefully if you took the time to read it then maybe I can manage to hook you for the next thousand words or so. Besides, how could you not read this article when your friends might be plotting to kill you this very moment? There’re three ways they’re planning to do it, each more terrible and time consuming than the last.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=119354Sat, 18 Dec 2010 01:27:53 GMTWaaaaay back when Magic 2011 came out, doesn't July seem so long ago, I wrote about a series of planeswalker-themed decks. These decks featured M11's new cards that were aligned with each of the planeswalkers, and ways to use them. I covered Ajani, Garruk, Liliana, Chandra and... Yeah, I never got around to making a deck for Jace. But, I promised I would. Jace Beleren is one of, if not my favorite, planeswalker cards anyway. That being said, I think that now would be a good time to make good on that promise.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=118390Fri, 10 Dec 2010 21:28:50 GMTIn a past life I may or may not have been a magpie. If so, it explains many things. If not, well, perhaps I just have an affinity for small shiny objects. So does today’s topic card, Trinket Mage. First printed in Fifth Dawn, Trinket Mage has been enjoying a very healthy reputation as a cheap and efficient combo enabler both in game and on your wallet. The scope of all the small things that Trinket Mage can tutor make building a toolbox around him very easy to do. The question is what will you do with your tools? I opt to cast Eldrazi, but we’ll get to that later. For now, what’s lying around on the garage floor?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=118117Wed, 08 Dec 2010 17:41:50 GMTA few weeks ago, we looked at some Extended decks that expanded upon themes in Scars of Mirrodin. This week, we'll take things into Standard, with a heavy focus on this latest set. I think we are working with a strong deck this week. Hell, this deck can probably hold it's own at Friday Night Magic. At the core of this artifact-heavy build is a non-artifact card; Tempered Steel. However, Tempered Steel is one of the best Glorious Anthem-style enchantments around, especially if we have a deck that can take full advantage of it. This deck is a mash-up of Affinity and White Weenie styles, and can have some pretty explosive starts.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=117423Fri, 03 Dec 2010 18:55:54 GMTThis week, Top Thirty is back for the third time, which officially makes it a feature of this illustrious column. By now, I'm sure you know the preamble; every set has great budget cards, not all awesome cards are mythic... Yeah we've done this before. But hey, new cards equal new material. Plus, Scars of Mirrodin makes picking just thirty a bit tougher, thanks to the presence of so many good artifacts. They almost act as a sixth color, albeit one that can be played anywhere. But, of course, you already knew that. Hell, let's just dive into the list.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=117421Fri, 03 Dec 2010 18:44:44 GMTSo a little while ago I discussed casual combos for Scars of Mirrodin. One of those combos stood out to me quite a bit more than the rest. That combo is the synergy between Carnifex Demon and Blowfly Infestation. There’s no question regarding just how devastating the effects of this particular plague propagation can be so we can skip the formalities and head straight to the chief problem.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=117249Wed, 01 Dec 2010 23:59:51 GMTMost of you who know me personally know me as that idiot prairie dog from The-Middle-of-Frigid-Nowhere with a taste for combo. Those of you on the forum know me as the wolf’s-head penguin with a taste for rock. Neither of these things would indicate that I’m a huge fan of mono red. No, I’m not referring to the classic burn nor the modern RDW strategies of the Standard Environment. Pass the Torch is what I’ve found to be a fairly unique blend of combo and aggro. It has the aggression to put your lights out in no time at all but also the stability to handle itself respectably in multiplayer encounters.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=116449Wed, 24 Nov 2010 19:26:27 GMTWe've spent most of the last few weeks checking out cards and deck ideas from Scars of Mirrodin in Standard. However, we have a whole ton of other cards that could benefit from a taste of Scars. Let's take one step backwards and see what we can do with an Extended card pool. While this isn't Extended season, it's still fun to play around with some casual ideas and see how they develop in the future. Not to mention, there's some cross-block synergy lurking somewhere...http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=115806Fri, 19 Nov 2010 15:47:32 GMTThe combat step is hands down the most pointlessly confusing portion of your turn in a game of Magic. More choice four letter words have been launched across a play mat during this phase than any other, except possibly that darn dirty Upkeep step when you forget to discard a card to your Masticore. Seriously, somebody could make a lot of money by hiring out their time to sit in front of games of Magic and walk people through the combat phase. They could even have flags to hold up for indicating who has priority. I should talk this over with the DCI...http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=115633Wed, 17 Nov 2010 20:22:04 GMTWith each new set, Wizards releases some build-around enchantments designed to get the minds of creative deckbuilders working. Many of these cards are super-fun, and become common sights around casual tables. However, some of these cards have managed to land themselves in high profile decks (Sanguine Bond appearing in Open the Vaults decks next to Filigree Angel comes to mind). Has Scars of Mirrodin brought us anything worthwhile? Well, Furnace Celebration looks interesting. The question is, does it have what it takes to gain a foothold in competitive circles, or is it more of a casual card after all?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=114900Fri, 12 Nov 2010 12:58:39 GMTThere is a card I’ve been thinking about as simply a great combo piece for quite some time now. Ever since Scars of Mirrodin previews unveiled it, actually. The card is Kuldotha Forgemaster. Up until now, there have been plenty of ways to cheat artifacts into play but only one that does an efficient job of grabbing it straight out of your deck; Tinker. Kuldotha Forgemaster is a sort of a Tinker-on-demand although instead of paying mana to activate it you have to make slightly more extreme sacrificial payments. This presents both unique challenges and opportunities for us to build a deck around. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=114670Wed, 10 Nov 2010 19:09:54 GMT A question I often get is, “What qualifies a deck as a budget deck, anyway?” While price is the most obvious answer, a good budget deck will also leave itself open to upgrades as players acquire more expensive cards. Decks usually evolve over time, so writing about strategies that can't be expanded on seems counterproductive. This brings me to one of the most open-ended formats in Magic: Elder Dragon Highlander (EDH).http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=114149Sat, 06 Nov 2010 15:58:38 GMTEach new Magic set brings new keyword abilities and mechanics to the game. Some of these are incredibly fun and powerful, while others... fall flat. Scars of Mirrodin has given us three: Infect, Metalcraft, and the returning Imprint. While Imprint is relatively flexible and doesn't revolve around a particular archetype, Infect and Metalcraft are a bit more linear. Metalcraft is certainly more flexible than Infect, but that being said, it has more things to worry about too. The question remains: are Metalcraft cards worth playing, or are they destined to end up in dusty storage boxes across the globe?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=113062Sat, 30 Oct 2010 01:09:53 GMTHalloween is the best annual occasion of all time. It’s the only time of the year when people of all ages have free purchase to stay out late, consume gratuitous amounts of sugar and take candy from strangers. It’s an entire host of activities that our parents assured us would lead to an untimely grave just there for the plundering. The only thing that could make Halloween any better is a heaping dose of bacon. As for myself, I’ll be spending my Halloween the adult way - playing Magic and handing out candy to people young enough to wear a children's’ costume and not get arrested. This leads me to this week’s big topic - cards scarier than your worst sugar high hallucinations.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=112756Wed, 27 Oct 2010 19:37:59 GMTWhen the first set in a new block comes out, you can do one of three things with your cards. You can look for deck ideas within the new set. You can look forward and collect cards to build decks that might have some future potential. You can also look back, and see how these new cards fit with previous sets. The first set in a block is likely where you'll see the most cross-block synergy. A lot of Scars of Mirrodin looks like it is building towards something bigger. Until we get there, you'd be wise to explore the set's synergy with Zendikar block and Magic 2011. There are some pretty exciting things going on.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=112253Fri, 22 Oct 2010 15:02:11 GMTI do love it when October comes around. Not only does it mark the impending onset of winter up here in the Frigid North, a season I eagerly anticipate each year, it also means that it’s time for Standard format rotation. Oh boy! As usual, the rotation did its job and toppled the king of Standard, Jund. Despite this, the rotation did an unusually bad job of killing one of Jund’s top competitors, the Fauna Shaman/Vengevine toolbox. Moving on, the new set that bumps the rotation, Scars of Mirrodin, has added bucket loads of new chum to the shark-infested waters of Standard and I’m eager to sink my teeth in.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=112061Wed, 20 Oct 2010 21:29:58 GMTVacations are nice, but what can I say, it feels good to be back. I trust everyone is pretty deep into Scars of Mirrodin by now, and I have some catching up to do. However, there are a few things that have caught my eye right away. First and foremost, Scars of Mirrodin contains an infinite mana combo that uses uncommons. You don't often find that contained within a set. Budget players, myself included, should be frothing at the mouth over the possibilities that this combo entails.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=111903Tue, 19 Oct 2010 18:08:59 GMTOh my god, you guys, it’s time for Combo Corner again! For those of you who don’t know what Combo Corner is, it’s mostly just a quick break from what I hope is its information intensive and strategically in-depth sister column, Casual Carnage. Today I’m going to put down all the intuitive, powerful or just plain whacky combos I can find in Scars of Mirrodin. There may be two cards in the combo, there may be five. The purpose here is to seed some ideas in your cognitive soil. Let’s get going!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=111388Wed, 13 Oct 2010 21:29:09 GMTHey there, fellow cardboard addicts and welcome back to Causal Carnage’s take on Scars of Mirrodin. If you missed part one, you may want to give it a quick speed-read before moving on with part two. Last week we discussed our best common and uncommon multiplayer options from Scars of Mirrodin. Today we’ll be taking a look at the rares and mythic rares.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=110726Wed, 06 Oct 2010 20:06:21 GMTWe all know that blue has gotten a pretty significant facelift over the past few sets. Wizards has given us deck manipulation tools and some of the best counters in years. I'm of course talking about cards like Ponder, Jace, the Mind Sculptor, Crystal Ball, Jace's Ingenuity, Deprive, Mana Leak... you know the ones. Perhaps it’s time mono blue control made a comeback. Let's look at where the archetype came from, and what it could be today.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=106396Fri, 06 Aug 2010 17:32:29 GMTHello, once again, to my faithful followers. Welcome to the site, first time readers. As for you kids, get off my lawn! Come one come all to the one-year anniversary edition of Casual Carnage. That’s right, I’ve tricked you all into reading my inane ramblings for fifty-two weeks now! Here’s more!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=106255Wed, 04 Aug 2010 15:49:22 GMTEvery few sets, you get cards that are real head-scratchers. Why are they here? What potential uses do they have? The next set can often hold the answers. Such is the case with Magic 2011. While some of the cards seem destined to have a future when Scars of Mirrodin come around, others become missing pieces to puzzles left by Rise of the Eldrazi.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=105959Fri, 30 Jul 2010 13:13:02 GMTThe last edition of Planeswalkers - Money & Multiplayer was done way back when Zendikar was in its infancy. Sorin Markov had just been fully spoiled following Wizard’s agonizing process of revealing one of his features at a time and Jace, the Mind Sculptor was still buried in an R&D folder somewhere. I feel it’s time for an update with the six new planeswalkers who have not heard the Casual Carnage gavel pound out their sentence. Brace yourselves, we proceed in an organized, alphabetical fashion. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=105860Wed, 28 Jul 2010 18:06:36 GMTM11 has surprised me; I definitely enjoyed sealed deck more than I thought I would. After doing some digging, I've become a fan of a lot of the new cards. The planeswalker-specific cards are some of my favorite, and there's plenty of good stuff around to support them. This week, I'll take a look at two more of the colors: green and red.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=105478Fri, 23 Jul 2010 00:53:28 GMTHello once again everybody. How did your launch parties go? I personally didn’t do as well as I would have liked, but it all worked out in the end. During this article, I’ll be taking a look at the rares and mythic rares of Magic 2011. Let’s get started.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=105356Wed, 21 Jul 2010 00:48:36 GMTMagic 2011 is upon us! While I didn't get a chance to hit a prerelease, I'm sure many of you did. If so, you might have had a chance to play with some of the planeswalker-themed cards. Every 'walker now has two “companion cards” that tend to work pretty well together. This looks like an opportunity for some themed deckbuilding.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=105078Fri, 16 Jul 2010 16:52:07 GMTHey folks! How was your Magic 2011 Prerelease? Congratulations for those of you who met with success. For those of you who struggled with it, don’t worry, there’s still a launch party to show everybody who’s boss! I’ve played this set on one occasion and I’m already sick of Fling, but moving on… Now that we have the entire set spoiled, we can start looking into what’s good for us here in the casual department.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=104924Wed, 14 Jul 2010 00:37:09 GMTI have a love-hate relationship with one-shot combo decks. For one, they're a lot of fun to build. Finding that perfect mix of cards to make your combo run smoothly involves a lot of planning, and when it works it feels pretty damn good. Once you pull it off, be it infinite or non-infinite, the initial sense of satisfaction is often replaced by a feeling of “what now?”http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=104691Fri, 09 Jul 2010 11:15:33 GMTIt’s game night. The snacks have been purchased. The group has been called to action. The stadium lights lower on the playing field and the audience prepares to watch you and your friends slog out twenty games of Magic spanning seven hours of play. Then, suddenly, as you’re standing in the middle of an empty room basking in anticipation, the camera zooms in on you for a close-up accompanied with a dramatic whooshing sound. You have seven hours of Magic to look forward to and you have nothing new and fun to bring to the table. The group is due to arrive in ten to fifteen minutes. What do you do!?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=104624Wed, 07 Jul 2010 16:56:51 GMTWith every set, there's always the standout, must-have rares. There are occasionally commons and uncommons that end up costing more than most rares. This column isn't about these cards. This column is about the cards in Rise of the Eldrazi that are worth more than their monetary value may suggest. Now that I've had some time with the set, I think I've found the strongest budget cards in each color.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=104304Fri, 02 Jul 2010 02:10:33 GMTArchenemy launches this week and, in light of this, I’m naming this week’s article somewhat like a scheme card. Today is going to be about something I’ve been rolling around in my cranial cavity for quite a few days now. It seems like it would go good with a deck of scheme cards to back it up.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=103797Wed, 23 Jun 2010 19:18:03 GMTLike most of you, I was initially pretty sour on the Level Up ability. Thankfully, through a few Rise of the Eldrazi limited games, I've begun to see the potential of these unique creatures. In a competitive constructed environment, I still believe they should be used sparingly (you only have so much extra mana to pump into creatures that may or may not reap the benefits of said mana). In a casual environment, however, levelers can be a ton of fun, and we can build a solid deck on a modest budget.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=103487Fri, 18 Jun 2010 16:35:10 GMTHey guys, welcome to part two of my Forgotten Tribes venture. Typically, articles are two-parters at most, but I figure if the demand calls for it I’ll continue the series. This will be the last one for a while, but if your comments show enough interest, Casual Carnage will return to obscure tribes in a few weeks. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=103404Thu, 17 Jun 2010 16:13:10 GMTSome of Magic’s recent expansions have been showcasing cards that make Tribal decks of any dimension perfectly usable. The old fallback of Coat of Arms has been overshadowed by power plays like Eldrazi Monument that provide both the p/t boost we’re looking for but something extra as well. It makes one wonder what could be done in casual play when it comes to tribal. We could resurrect any of the old classics, but I’d prefer to do something a little more unconventional.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=102998Thu, 10 Jun 2010 01:10:27 GMTRogue decks always have the potential to surprise a tournament field and take home a win. However, once people latch on to your game plan, you need to adapt. Often, this can be accomplished through a decent sideboard. However, if your once-rogue deck becomes popular, you're going to have to run some adaptive strategies in your main sixty.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=102727Fri, 04 Jun 2010 16:36:49 GMTSo my hard work has paid off and I’ve been able to acquire a set of Vengevine. It cost me some serious cards, a lot of time, and I did a few things on the West side of town I’m not particularly proud of. Just kidding on that last part.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=102616Wed, 02 Jun 2010 16:56:39 GMTIt’s a long way to the top if you wanna rock ‘n roll. I’m sitting here in my pajama pants and heavy metal band t-shirt, like numerous other Monday nights, pondering these words sung so many times by AC/DC. The lyrics bounce in and out of my head, truncating themselves with each pass. As I sip an adult beverage and cast a cursory glance towards a Mythbusters rerun, I notice a singular word seems to be sticking in my mind. Rock ‘n roll. Rock. Roll.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=102485Mon, 31 May 2010 17:02:26 GMTIn every set, there are inevitably a few cards that generate tons of buzz, but then nothing ]really happens with them. These cards often start out quite high in price, but come down over time. By revisiting a set a few months after it comes out, we can usually find some of these hyped cards at a fraction of their initial cost. This is a prime opportunity to build decks that may have seemed out of reach on the set's launch day.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=102264Thu, 27 May 2010 23:40:01 GMTThe allure of Lorwyn and Morningtide has always held some sort of sway over me no matter the state of the game or its formats despite my intense hatred of Faerie builds. I’ve successfully worked with almost every other tribe this block has to offer. Merfolk, Kithkin, Goblins, and Elementals great and small have brought me hours of entertainment and hopefully you as well. The only tribe I have yet to have the privilege of working with is Treefolk.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=101737Wed, 19 May 2010 19:31:11 GMTRise of the Eldrazi has given us a ton of new cards to work with and plenty of good ones at that. While I've looked at mono colored decks over the past few weeks, I'd like to go a bit deeper into the set's mechanics and see what else comes up. The first thing that struck me was the Eldrazi Spawn generators. They seem to have plenty of applications, so the question remains: How do we use them effectively?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=101361Fri, 14 May 2010 15:48:35 GMTAs with every new set release, there are two articles I always do. The first is the two part First Glance series and the second is the new installment of Combo Corner. Today I’ll be taking a break from Casual Carnage to cater to the Johnnies in the crowd.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=101189Wed, 12 May 2010 18:24:53 GMTMy ability to name articles is obviously going downhill a bit but hopefully my deckbuilding skills are remaining good enough to deliver some useable information to you today. As you might have guessed, the topic today is green. However, I’m not here to preach about global warming. I don’t even have the fancy suit and a powerpoint presentation full of compelling facts. I have my PJ’s and a monogreen Eldrazi Ramp deck. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=100705Wed, 05 May 2010 17:59:05 GMTWhite and green monocolored decks usually follow relatively linear strategies: White plays weenies, green plays fatties. At first, I was going to turn these ideas on their head and do something REALLY crazy, but the green fatties in Rise of the Eldrazi are too good to pass up. Originality be damned. I want to build a deck with these suckers. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=100324Fri, 30 Apr 2010 22:54:44 GMTThanks very much to all the people who read Part One of my adventures with Rise of the Eldrazi. Today I’ll be diving into part two of this endeavor and taking a look at what the rares and mythic rares of Rise of the Eldrazi have to offer the casual field. I’ve been through all the ado and circumstance already in the first article so I’ll spare you my rambling and dive right in.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=100216Wed, 28 Apr 2010 22:37:09 GMTPlaying one color creates definite limitations, but also a unique set of strengths. My mind has been slowly digesting the new cards that Rise of the Eldrazi has given us, and my first instinct with new cards is to try them out in a mono-colored build. How well do they work with their similarly-colored friends? Do we have to splash something to make the deck effective? Building a mono-colored deck is simply a good place to start when looking for new ideas. Who knows, maybe you won't have to add another color after all.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=99835Fri, 23 Apr 2010 07:13:11 GMTI am impressed with Rise of the Eldrazi. Very much impressed, indeed. The set came out with just the right balance I was hoping for. There are the usual chase rares and the odd mold-defying cards like Vengevine, but otherwise the set is very well rounded and should be a blast to play.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=99754Wed, 21 Apr 2010 21:53:08 GMTThe first rule of building decks on a budget is simple: Use what's available. Many of us have binders of rares. Quite often, we may only have one or two copies of a particular rare. These cards are ones we can put to use. Frankly, there's no better format for this than Elder Dragon Highlander (EDH). EDH looks expensive at first glance, as the decks play 100 cards each. In reality, you're likely using cards you already have instead of shelling out for new ones. That, my friends, is what being reasonable about your card budget is all about. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=99491Fri, 16 Apr 2010 17:21:48 GMTSince it came out, Dallas and I have been having somewhat of a mini affair with Electropotence. We’re actually not entirely sure if it’s even worth thinking about yet but Dallas has been fairly stoic in this card’s potential. If you read his “Cards to Watch” article (which I’m assuming you did unless our followers are completely mutually exclusive groups) then you’ll know about his predictions regarding it. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=99466Thu, 15 Apr 2010 22:40:51 GMTEver have an idea so great that you're compelled to write about it as soon as you have it? As a writer, I encounter this feeling quite a bit. That was the case with this article. We all know that something isn't original if someone else has thought of it, but what if that someone was you? After I began writing this, I realized that I had come up with this idea a few months ago and had forgotten about it! Maybe one's idea really IS good if you've come to the same conclusion on two separate occasions. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=99213Sun, 11 Apr 2010 00:17:22 GMTHalf of playing Magic on a decent budget is one's ability to assess cards. Most cards, especially rares, fluctuate in price as they see more or less tournament play, or more or less hype after a set is released. This week, I want to deviate a bit from budget deck construction, and focus on identifying cards that could significantly change in value as time goes on.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=99156Sat, 10 Apr 2010 00:24:51 GMTA handful of times per week I have people from my group, or on this site, contacting me with messages that usually read something like “Hey Tom, what’s so great about [cardname]? I just don’t get it.” or “Why do people like this so much? It hurts you.” and other such gems including “Your rent is two months overdue, we’re evicting you.” Excusing that final example, the card in question is typically something that requires life as a payment or involves you losing a bit as part of the resolution. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=99103Thu, 08 Apr 2010 22:57:10 GMTRemoval. You love it, I hate it, but that’s assuming you’re casting it against my creatures. Of course, if I’m the one using it I’ll be enjoying it myself. Removal is a conundrum that new and old players ponder alike. What do you use? How do you use it? When do you use it? On whom?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=98590Wed, 31 Mar 2010 23:06:09 GMTAngels are one of the most iconic creature types in Magic. They have been around since the very beginning and have appeared in nearly every expansion that has been printed. The only one I can currently think of that lacks any angel is the Lorwyn/Morningtide mini-block. oday’s article honors some of the angels that make casual play just so darn much fun.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=98306Sun, 28 Mar 2010 17:15:28 GMTLast week, I was just throwing some ideas around in my head, trying to come up with a fun deck to build. Lately, I've been running into decks that pack in tons of powerful creatures that happen to cost a lot of money. How can budget players level the playing field? Well, how about we copy or steal everything they play?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=98186Fri, 26 Mar 2010 22:40:10 GMTMagic players have short memories. Once a set rotates out of Standard, many players pack up their cards and never touch them again. I've been guilty of this, to a degree. While I don't stop playing with my cards entirely, I certainly am less inclined to build and play with older sets. This is often a shortsighted move, as most of us play in casual circles more often than in a tournament setting.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=97513Thu, 18 Mar 2010 23:10:35 GMTJust as has been stated many times before, Casual Magic is a format of numerous outlets. One of its finer points that I do not discuss too terribly in depth is one-versus-one in casual and where its emphases lie. If your talents of deduction are a tad out of tune, then please allow me to introduce to you today’s article.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=97311Tue, 16 Mar 2010 22:23:06 GMT]Worldwake has gotten a bit of a bad rap when compared to Zendikar. I've heard people saying it is the worst set since Kamigawa block. I wouldn't quite go that far (I think Dissension takes that honor). Worldwake has given us a few tournament staples, as well as plenty of material for casual decks as well. There's fun to be had in any set, and Worldwake is no exception.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=97130Sat, 13 Mar 2010 23:47:06 GMTIf I had to pick one thing out of the troubles that playing Magic has, I would have to say that the prime culprit is the lack of a fun and relaxed environment. This is pretty much the entire reason my friends and I walk out of FNM with numb minds and short tempers. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=97027Fri, 12 Mar 2010 23:11:21 GMT]If you’re anything like me, odds are you have about thirty ideas for decks scoot through your head on any given day. If you’re not like me, you probably have a lot more room in your head for other things. I have a few ideas I’d like to commit to the Fanatic hive mind. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=96432Thu, 04 Mar 2010 20:33:57 GMTSo who here is old enough to remember when Fulminator Mage was a must-own card and the rave of black and red sideboard tech? Odds are a fair few of you are. I chased my set of Fulminator Mages for almost a year and ended up finishing my set just a few short months before they rotated out of standard and, little did I know, headed for the bargain bin.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=96084Sun, 28 Feb 2010 23:27:45 GMTAs I sit here late at night contemplating new deck ideas, I often turn to others for inspiration. Thomas Wrigley (The Artificer) and I started talking about Magic, which is often where our conversations take us. I mentioned a 10-cent card bin at the shop next to my workplace, and how I was able to find a few rares in there. One of those rares was Mesa Enchantress. “Go ahead, take it. It's not like it's a great card anyway,” said the owner. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=95876Thu, 25 Feb 2010 22:53:36 GMTSo, you love the new two-color man lands. So do I! However, for budget players, building with them may seem like a pipe dream. Fear not, my friends, I think I've found a way to incorporate one of these lands into a pretty potent deck.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=95313Fri, 19 Feb 2010 06:59:29 GMTOf all the cards released in Worldwake there are a select few that have my distinct attention. You’ve already heard my ranting about Chain Reaction (if you haven’t that’s okay too) and those of you that are privy to my upcoming deck designs are also aware of my high anticipation for Kalastria Highborn. As fun and interesting as these cards are destined to be, today is all about somebody different. Today’s topic is Worldwake’s Little Red Mythic Rare, Dragonmaster Outcast.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=95273Thu, 18 Feb 2010 17:47:47 GMTHello ladies and gentlewurms! Welcome to the Worldwake edition of Combo Corner (a sub-column of my regular Casual Carnage). I’m releasing this article this week to complement the completion of my early analysis of Worldwake for casual play which you can read at your leisure in the articles section of this website.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=94871Sat, 13 Feb 2010 11:47:59 GMTIf you were like me and checked out the Worldwake release party, you know just how fun it is to draft this new set. You may also have noticed how Worldwake has some very subtle cards that are actually quite powerful. And finally, you've probably noticed how much better allies are with Worldwake in the mix. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=94840Fri, 12 Feb 2010 22:06:48 GMTI hope everybody enjoyed part one of this venture into Worldwake. I am examining what it is giving us to work with at the casual table. Today I’ll be finishing this pair of articles by looking into the remainder of the set and giving you some details on which rares and mythic rares are going to have the maximum impact in your casual game. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=94581Tue, 09 Feb 2010 19:52:30 GMTHey everybody, I hope everyone's prerelease went well. Mine sure did. I managed to finish 3-1, good enough for fifth place. Unfortunately, that's one slot out of the finals. So, moving on! We had looked at three colors last week, so let's wrap up the other two and a few other things.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=94188Sat, 06 Feb 2010 00:49:17 GMTWelcome to what is undoubtedly going to be Worldwake extravaganza week here at MtgFanatic. With a new set comes new ideas to write about and Dallas and I have determined, after burning through thousands in government research grant money, that we’re excited. Whenever a new set is brought in to augment the resources available at the kitchen countertop battlefield everyone wants to get the best of the set into their deck before their friends do. Everyone wants some inside information. Today I’ll be bringing you part one of what are looking to be the most promising Worldwake cards in casual Magic.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=94187Sat, 06 Feb 2010 00:34:04 GMTHi everyone. Getting excited for Worldwake yet? I know I am. The second and third sets in a block make the Standard environment a bit more varied, and Worldwake shouldn't be an exception to this rule. Currently, the standard metagame is in a state of near-constant flux, with Jund being the only archetype that hasn't seen much change over the past few months. Worldwake should add to this chaos. In this article, I want to take a look at each color and evaluate its current role in standard. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=93542Thu, 28 Jan 2010 19:32:14 GMTSometimes, everything comes together. Sometimes, despite bad draws and strong opponents, you pull through. Sometimes you're just on top of your game. And sometimes, your friend lends you a playset of Goblin Guides and a few fetch lands to round out your deck.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=93144Sat, 23 Jan 2010 01:00:18 GMTLet’s take a poll, shall we? Who likes it when your lands do more for you than just provide and/or fix mana? Who likes it when they turn into creatures and do battle? I sure do. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=93130Fri, 22 Jan 2010 18:32:56 GMTThis week, Artificer delves into using Blue control decks at the multiplayer table.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=92454Thu, 14 Jan 2010 21:17:37 GMTThis week, Dallas looks at building decks around Scornful Egotist!http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=92451Thu, 14 Jan 2010 20:49:07 GMTI think that many of us Magic players often lose sight of what attracted us to the game in the first place. I, for one, am often in that boat. I get too caught up with playing competitively and building competitive-level decks at times. Sometimes we need to step back and see Magic for what it is: a very customizable card game. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=91883Fri, 08 Jan 2010 16:21:41 GMTMagic is a great game. I'm assuming you think so as well, as you probably wouldn't be reading this if you hated it. Thing is, Magic requires an opponent.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=91758Wed, 06 Jan 2010 20:17:36 GMTZendikar has many things to offer players, but does it have what it takes to make powerful decks for budget multiplayer?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=91757Wed, 06 Jan 2010 19:57:27 GMTLandfall is the latest keyword that’s been dished out to us to meddle with. It’s mana flood’s worst enemy and Johnny fodder to boot. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=90955Thu, 24 Dec 2009 22:14:41 GMTThere're always the cards that people are instantly attracted to, and some that only really succeed at the draft table. Then there're the ones that are just plain bad. But in between all that, there's usually a crop of cards that are just waiting to be used at the casual table, and used well. So, what should we, as casual players, be taking advantage of?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=90366Thu, 17 Dec 2009 21:25:33 GMTI’d like to introduce you to someone I like to call ‘Gus’. You may have heard or read about the psycho-graphic profiles that Wizards has come up with in an effort to define how to market Magic (Spike, Johnny, Timmy, etc.). I think they are quite creative in this regard, and do an admirable job of appealing to these different types of players. There’s only one problem: I don’t fit into any of them very well. So in my own ‘special’ way, I’ve defined a new one:http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=90148Tue, 15 Dec 2009 22:19:17 GMTAfter weeks of looking at attempting to play constructed on a budget, I'd like to get back to casual decks for a second. http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=89627Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:59:26 GMTMagic: the Gathering has an enormous card base to work with. In the flurry of new releases and special edition sets, it’s not uncommon for us to overlook the value in sets that are no longer current.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=89091Tue, 08 Dec 2009 21:50:34 GMTEvery once in a while, we all come across those cards that we absolutely must build a deck (or five) around. For quite some time, one of my cards has been Panoptic Mirror. Mirror, mirror on the wall. Who’s the best combo card of them all?http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=88339Tue, 01 Dec 2009 22:44:51 GMTCasual play has many facets of creativity. Some of them are simple in nature, some are complicated, and some are downright aggravating. I elected to do some discussion regarding the complicated aspects or, in other words, combos.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=88013Sat, 28 Nov 2009 22:26:43 GMTThis is a new article dedicated to everyone’s favorite weekly tournament, Friday Night Magic. Here you’ll find limited and constructed decks, playtesting results, tournament reports, and much, much more. What you read here isn’t going to win you a Pro Tour, but should get you well on your way to earning some extra prize packs and a nifty FNM promo card.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=87946Fri, 27 Nov 2009 19:48:17 GMTCasual Carnage Vol XIIhttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=87945Fri, 27 Nov 2009 18:56:16 GMTCasual Carnage Vol XIhttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=87944Fri, 27 Nov 2009 18:55:09 GMTCasual Carnage Vol Xhttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=87943Fri, 27 Nov 2009 18:52:57 GMTPauper Updatehttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=87942Fri, 27 Nov 2009 18:48:43 GMTEvery Card Countshttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=86195Wed, 28 Oct 2009 22:04:02 GMTBuilding a competative extended deck on a budget.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=86193Wed, 28 Oct 2009 21:54:52 GMTAn article dedicated to hose who are involved in trading. A general "Rule sheet" for fair trade to make sure all parties involved are happy with the outcome of the trade.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=86192Wed, 28 Oct 2009 21:41:34 GMTCasual Carnage Vol VIIIhttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=85718Wed, 21 Oct 2009 23:25:35 GMTSaying Goodbye - Shadowmoor and Eventidehttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=85245Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:40:21 GMTBeyond the Deck: Budget Lessonshttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=85244Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:36:15 GMTNosferatu - Adventures with a Vampire Deckhttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=85243Wed, 14 Oct 2009 22:31:38 GMTEvery Card Countshttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=84679Tue, 06 Oct 2009 09:52:31 GMTSaying Goodbye to Lorwyn and Morningtidehttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=84353Thu, 01 Oct 2009 12:54:58 GMTDallas' Weekly column Vol IV http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=84054Thu, 24 Sep 2009 21:07:34 GMTA study of Master Transmuterhttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=84038Thu, 24 Sep 2009 00:22:13 GMTPlaneswalkers: Money and Multiplayerhttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=83936Mon, 21 Sep 2009 12:25:36 GMTEvery Card Countshttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=83935Mon, 21 Sep 2009 12:11:51 GMTCasual Carnagehttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=83513Fri, 11 Sep 2009 00:07:03 GMTEvery Card Counts.http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=83506Thu, 10 Sep 2009 21:24:37 GMTWe all have them. Piles and piles of cards lying around, potentially unsorted. The one thing they have in common: A black set symbol...http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=83312Sun, 06 Sep 2009 16:57:25 GMTCasual Carnagehttp://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=83296Sun, 06 Sep 2009 13:03:57 GMTMaking the Most of M10: Part 1http://www.mtgfanatic.com/Articles/ViewArticle.aspx?ID=83293Sun, 06 Sep 2009 12:26:35 GMT