Discussion Forum

Anyone? Maybe?

Buy a few booster boxes, it's the best way. That or buy a collection from someone who stopped playing but the problem with that is that most collections you find are crap, every good card has been sold seperatly and you end up with worthless junk. You already need to know the game and the fluctuations in value very well to start buying collection. You also need to be willing to spend between 1000 and 2000 euro on a good collection.

So if you are new there is only one way really, buy a few booster boxes. Here in Belgium it's 90Euro for a box but I take it it's a lot cheaper depending on where you live (in the States for instance).
If you are not willing to throw that kind of money at it, it might be wise to stop now and find a cheaper hobby.
Most new players I know buy a booster box every set that is realeased. This gives them enough trade cards to start trading the cards they want and experiment. It also gives you a rich pool of cards to work with.

Yet another option is to start playing Commander. Buy the 5 Commander starter boxes and find a group that plays Commander. A good deck will still cost you about 400$ give or take (if you keep it cheap but still competitive) but you can buy value cards as you learn and adjust the deck as you go. Needing every card only once makes it easier on the wallet. Commander is one of those formats where it's fun to play the same deck over and over and just tweak that deck over the span of months even years.

ugh, buying booster boxes is by far the LEAST cost effective way of getting cards or of getting into the game.

I recommend using all the online resources to get to know the card pool: look at decks online, browse through one of the card DBs(like http://magiccards.info/), use sites like MTG Vault to build decks virtually, use applications like Magic Workstation to test out those virtual decks.

you can do so much research online without ever spending a single dollar, then once you DO have an idea of the types of cards that interest you: order singles online, this is the most cost effective way of building up your collection and avoids accumulating hundreds of shitty commons you will never use.

For a new player having a box of cards to experiment with is far more valuable then getting lost on the internet in thousands of cards. It takes years before a player can tell a good card from a bad one, not to mention learning how to build a deck. Also it's fun to have a planeswalker or a snapcaster mage that is worth a 3th of the box you just bought, cards you would otherwise avoid.

Best way to learn is get together with a few new players each with their box and build, experiment, try to out do one another. Spending hours reading about magic does not teach you how to become a good player/builder, you first need to learn to play and build and then you can spend hours reading how to become a better player.

well I guess it could come down to personal preference as to what's best overall, but he mentioned cost effectiveness in his post so that's what I focused on.

as opposed to writing off the hobby altogether if you aren't willing to throw several hundred dollars at it.

Thanks guys! To start I honestly just bought a Starter deck, the "Grab for Power" deck. It kind of bored me to death, so I bought a Box thing from one of the newer sets. Threw some decks together and went to town. My problem is that all my decks feel very.....meh. I did try ordering some cards online, but the shipping is kind of killer. I just find myself looking through the vault and marveling at how fun some of these decks look and then going..... not worth $200 lol. Thanks though. I think I'll just do my research and selectively buy by the card. Those damn boxes come with so many duplicate trash!

You could look on ebay or such sites and look for a collection for sale. Usually pretty random lots of card for 30 or 40$ maybe old maybe new. It will broaden your play experience. I bought 5000 cards for about $150 it might not get you a bunch of really awesome cards but it will broaden your base. Plus I built my Samurai beck and a few friends used it now we pool cards together & have about 15000 cards we all raid & build decks from. We used the original 5000 to build about 10 decks. Just a idea think outside the box.

[QUOTE=Seth]For a new player having a box of cards to experiment with is far more valuable then getting lost on the internet in thousands of cards. It takes years before a player can tell a good card from a bad one, [/QUOTE]

Having a box of cards is cool and all, but it's not the best way to go for a new player. Doing research online, figuring out all the terms/rulings in magic, and looking at other peoples decks and reverse engineering them and understanding what that player did in his deck to make it good is much better; at least it is for people like me.

Once you have a good grasp on the terminology and the game try building a deck and ask the community for advice and/or help. Or ask friends that play the game what they think (especially if they do tournaments frequently).

Once you've refined the deck you want go out and buy it. A solid deck will probably cost you around $50-$70 (unless you want overly expensive broken cards like "sword of X and Y").


No sense in having a box of cards (most of which you wont understand and wont use ever again) when you can get everything online.. FOR FREE. Until you understand enough about the game to get the deck you want.

(It also doesn't take years to tell a good card from a bad one, unless you have a serious learning disorder, in which case that isn't your fault)


*Theres my 2 cents

[QUOTE=Tallyaeon](It also doesn't take years to tell a good card from a bad one, unless you have a serious learning disorder, in which case that isn't your fault)[/QUOTE]

Judging the value of cards is really hard because of the complexity of this game. For instance:

Reveillark: I bought mine at 1.5$ when it was printed, then it became one of the most played staples in standard

Avenger of Zendikar: bought mine at 0.75$ and it went up to what 10$ months later when people finally started playing it.

Stoneforge Mystic: bought it at 1.5$ a card, it took a year before people saw it for the powerhouse it was and price skyrocketed.

Tarmogoyf: I know a lot of people that either bought or sold theirs at 3$ a card. Now it's what 80$-100$

Vendilion Clique: Years it was priced at 7$ a card and few people played it. Now it skyrocketed to 40$ and every blue legacy deck plays them.

I think you misjudge the complexity involved in judging the powerlevel of cards. How many beginners think Coat of Arms is awesome and how much experience does it take to realize that Coat of Arms is just a bad Overrun? That's just one of so many examples.

[QUOTE=Tallyaeon]Having a box of cards is cool and all, but it's not the best way to go for a new player. Doing research online, figuring out all the terms/rulings in magic, and looking at other peoples decks and reverse engineering them and understanding what that player did in his deck to make it good is much better; at least it is for people like me.

Once you have a good grasp on the terminology and the game try building a deck and ask the community for advice and/or help. Or ask friends that play the game what they think (especially if they do tournaments frequently).

Once you've refined the deck you want go out and buy it. A solid deck will probably cost you around $50-$70 (unless you want overly expensive broken cards like "sword of X and Y").


No sense in having a box of cards (most of which you wont understand and wont use ever again) when you can get everything online.. FOR FREE. Until you understand enough about the game to get the deck you want.

(It also doesn't take years to tell a good card from a bad one, unless you have a serious learning disorder, in which case that isn't your fault)


*Theres my 2 cents[/QUOTE]

I've spent far too much time looking through cards and looking at people's decks already, so in that regard I think I'm well on my way to learning alot. My only problem is, and this touches on both the 'sword of x and y' and the idea of playing and building online, is that the best part of this for me right now is building new decks and seeing how they stack up to my buddies'. Overpowered cards or tournament quality decks would kind of sap the fun out of it right now ya know? Thanks a ton for the advice though. Which resource could I use if I wanted to playtest a virtual deck though?

I feel like buying 5000 cards from someone random would be kind of pointless to be honest. I bet most people who've acquired a collection of significant size have a good idea of the relative value of their cards, and would have cleared all the true gems out individually, leaving 5000 random 'meh' cards.

I'm surprised nobody metioned drafting, unless I missed it somewhere. I understand not everyone has $15 to go draft every week, I know I don't. But maybe all you need is to go once or twice to get your brain moving in the right direction. You can do this casually too. I split a booster box with 3 of my friends one night. We were able to do 2 drafts, and then still had a few packs left that we gave away as prizes to the winners.

You want to build your collection with little trash and clutter? You want to experiment with different cards/decks/strategies? You want to see where you stand with others in the community? I say, "Draft".

[QUOTE=efinmiller]I'm surprised nobody metioned drafting, unless I missed it somewhere. I understand not everyone has $15 to go draft every week, I know I don't. But maybe all you need is to go once or twice to get your brain moving in the right direction. You can do this casually too. I split a booster box with 3 of my friends one night. We were able to do 2 drafts, and then still had a few packs left that we gave away as prizes to the winners.

You want to build your collection with little trash and clutter? You want to experiment with different cards/decks/strategies? You want to see where you stand with others in the community? I say, "Draft".[/QUOTE]

I never heard of drafting before. Is it something I would set up with my buddies or something that would already exist I could participate in?

Drafting is one of the 'Limited' formats. Basically, instead of building a deck beforehand, you and your friends start with booster packs, and through drafting cards (kind of like they do with players in pro sports) you build a deck on the spot. Here's a nifty link with explanations of both limited formats:

http://www.wizards.com/Magic/TCG/Resources.aspx?x=mtg/tcg/resources/formats-sanctioned#limited

It's easy enough to set this stuff up with your friends at the kitchen table, but many sanctioned MTG shops who hold FNM and all the (pre)release events may also hold a booster draft or sealed deck event. There's plenty of information out there about the limited formats too, so you can do your research if your not comfortable just jumping in :)

Very cool. I'd love to try. Sounds like it'd force you to be quick on your feet or die lol. Too bad my local card shop is run by a douche who doesn't host anything official at all.

Get your friends to throw-in on a booster box one night, and do a draft at home, and make sure you guys have enough spare land. All you need to know to draft is on the link I posted (though instead of duels, my friends and I just did a free-for-all match), though to draft well... ;)

[QUOTE=Seth]Judging the value of cards is really hard because of the complexity of this game. For instance:

Reveillark: I bought mine at 1.5$ when it was printed, then it became one of the most played staples in standard

Avenger of Zendikar: bought mine at 0.75$ and it went up to what 10$ months later when people finally started playing it.

Stoneforge Mystic: bought it at 1.5$ a card, it took a year before people saw it for the powerhouse it was and price skyrocketed.

Tarmogoyf: I know a lot of people that either bought or sold theirs at 3$ a card. Now it's what 80$-100$

Vendilion Clique: Years it was priced at 7$ a card and few people played it. Now it skyrocketed to 40$ and every blue legacy deck plays them.

I think you misjudge the complexity involved in judging the powerlevel of cards. How many beginners think Coat of Arms is awesome and how much experience does it take to realize that Coat of Arms is just a bad Overrun? That's just one of so many examples.[/QUOTE]

You have a point there on determining the value of cards such as those you mentioned and others, but after a few months and a few test plays of cards you have a pretty good sense of what cards are good and what cards are meh.

I have been playing since October 2010 now, and I find the best way is to buy collections online. Booster boxes will get you a lot of cards, but you will almost never make your money back. Another good way is online trading. I trade on MTGSalvation and MTGFanatic, and the poeple there are great and you get amazing deals!

In fact, I have a link to MTGFanatic in my signature if you wish to check it out, cus they have really nice prices on singles too.