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Blue/White Deck . . . suggestions for a newbie, please?

New to Magic, and I've recently started going to the Friday Night Magic games.

I'm still trying to figure out a deck's "purpose" and how to construct a deck that works as a whole instead of just individual cards. Recently played this deck in a Modern game at Friday Night Magic and got my ass handed to me. Would like to figure out a way that it can hold its own with the more experienced decks and players.

I admit, I can be a girl at times and I lean towards the interesting, beautiful cards with fun flavor texts. I also don't have a lot of money to drop on a fancy deck, but I have a little to beef up this deck if it's worth it.

Many thanks in advance!

Link to deck: http://www.mtgvault.com/strawberrycylon/decks/bluewhite/
Posted 04 August 2016 at 17:28

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Alright here's a few tips. Keep decks at a low 60 cards and whenever you think of a purpose it's like "how is this deck going to win?"
Think of most decks in 3 types: There is aggro which wants to win quick and consistant/ Control which shuts down all of your opponent's game plans by using cards like Cancel/ Combo which uses one strategy to just kill your opponent in one turn (new players usually always lose to these deck, and they are usually expensive for a good one).

First question is what kind of deck appeals to you most
Do you wanna Win fast, Shut down your opponent, or Combo off in their face?
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Posted 04 August 2016 at 17:50

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Many thanks - great questions to keep in mind. I appreciate the advice.

And first question answer . . . um . . . good question? I'm not really sure. It's not much fun for me to play fast games - POW POW POW done. Not fun for me. I do like countering spells and playing defensively - I guess that leans towards shutting down my opponent. And I'm still not good enough to figure out creating combos.
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Posted 19 August 2016 at 18:16

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To add to what tracking device said, there is also Midrange. Midrange wins turns 4,5 at extreme fastest, to turns 9,10 at the slowest. They need to be to drop something like 3 converted mana cost(cmc), Woolly Thoctar (a 5/4 cheap common), on turns 2,3 to slow down fast decks. And they need to find a way to pump up their 3,4,5,6 cmc mana cost, 3/3 to 7/7's, up to 10/10 to 13/1's to deal with big Stompy decks, control decks. And they need a way to deal with control decks.

Also in deciding which of the 3 deck types to build, whether fast, midrange, semi combo, control/late game combo, whichever type you choose, you want to be able to deal with any 2 of those 3 types of decks (making decks that deal with all 3 types of decks, is hard). And the deck type that has the easiest time dealing with any 2 of the 3 types of decks, is Midrange, but it also can be the the hardest to build.

If you want easy, build a speed deck that wins by turns 3,4,5. If you want mid difficulty, building a deck, build late game control, if you want the harder challenge, build midrange
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Posted 07 August 2016 at 20:23

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Next after you decide what type of deck to build whether fast, midrange, late game control. Decide how you want to either have the deck fast, mid range, control. The way to do that, is related to something you do to figure it out, and afterwards, and that is card evaluation.

In evaluating cards:

1. Does the card fit deck type, whether fast, midrange, control?

2. Does the card fit the way that want to either get deck fast, control?

3. Does the card fit a needed card category purpose, like MANA RAMP,CREATURE PUMP UP, REMOVAL, LIFE GAIN, SPEED CREATURE, DRAW CARD, SEARCH LIBRARY FOR CARD, ETC?

4. If the answer is yes to above questions, does the card combo, have synergy with other cards chosen.

5. If answer is yes, then it time to Evaluate card game mechanically. In card evaluation take a 3/3 creature card for 3 mana as example. Every 1 mana should equal 1, +1/+1, of a creatures power/toughness, and if it does, that's a standard common creature, not good, not bad, but ok, and only ok, assuming no special game mechanic text.

Now each good game mechanic text, item, function, etc, and each bad game text, item, function, depending on how bad or good the game text mechanic, item, etc, is, add about +1/+1 to +4/+4 in FIGURATIVE value to the power/tough (doesn't actually make a 1/1 into a 3/3).

So take for example Restoration Angel. It's a 3/4 flying creature that bounces 1 of your creatures. Without its flying, bounce ability, it would be a common card, because it's 4 mana for 3/4, close to the +1/+1 for each mana of cost thing. But when you look at flying, that's about a +1/+2 ability, making Restoration Angel a figurative equivalent of a 4/6 or 5/5 for 4 mana. Now add in bounce your creatures, that's another +1/+2 so Restoration Angel goes up to about 5/8, or 6/7 from 4/6, 5/5, for 4 mana. And since Restoration Angel is part of some broken combos, add about another +1/+2, making Restoration Angel a 8/9 for 4 mana value wise ( it isn't really a 8/9, still a 3/4, but it's the equivalent of a 8/9 for 4 mana in value.

Now each about +1/+2 above the +1/+1 for each 1 mana of a creature cost, adds about 1 rarity level in value. So a 3/3 for 3 mana, that's a 4/5 in equivalent value is about a uncommon. If it's equivalent value was about 5/7, 6/6, it would be rare, if it was a 7/8 in value, it would be about a mythic rare, and if it was about a 8/10, 9/9, in value, it would be a legendary mythic rare.

So using Restoration Angel's 3/4, equivalent value of about a 8/9 for 4 mana, in value, that makes Restoration Angel a Mythic Rare, in equivalent Value, that's why Restoration Angel is worth about $27 to $37 in figurative equivalent value, and real value.

And can follow that evaluation process for noncreatures.

For noncreatures give the non creature card a +1/+1 power/toughness rating for each 2 mana spent. So take for example Full Moon's Rise, a 2 Cmc enchantment. So it's about a 1/1 base figurative, equivalent value. Now Full Moon's Rise gives +1/+0 to all werewolves, that's a +1/+1 ability, so Full Moon's Rise goes to 2/2, for 2 mana making it common, so far. But Full Moon's Rise also gives werewolves trample, another +1,+2, to make Full Moon's Rise a 3/4 for 2 mana, making Full Moon's Rise a uncommon. But Full Moon's Rise also regenerates Werewolves, another +1/+2 to Full Moon's Rise, making it a 4/6,5/5 for 2 mana, making it a rare, mythic rare, But Full Moon's Rise only gives it's benefits to werewolves, giving it a negative -2,-1, making it a 3/4 for 2, making it a uncommon to rare, for about 85 cents to $1.65 in figurative equivalent, and also in real value.

Now after evaluate cards that way, it's important to use cards with good figurative, equivalent value, such as a 3/3 creature for 3 mana that has a figurative, equivalent value of being a figurative 4/4, 4/5, 5/5, 5/6, etc for 3 mana. You don't want to use a real 4/4 for 4 mana with no abilities, no game mechanic text, like flying, etc, no figurative value, just a plain 4/4 for 4,5 mana, because there are so many cards better than that.

Also fit, synergy, is equal to figurative, equivalent value, in evaluating cards, so if there is a low equivalent value card, but has good synergy, good fit, then it can be a good card as long as figurative value of card not too low.

Take for example Brutalizer Exarch. It's in my land destruction deck. He is a 3/3 base for 6 mana, not good. Then he either destroys noncreatures permanents like artifacts, planewalkers, enchantments, lands, which is a great +2/+2 ability, which makes him about a 5/5 figuratively. Or he can instead search library for a creature, reveal it, put it into hand, which is about a +1/+2 ability, making him about a 6/7 creature for 6 mana, in figurative, equivalent value, which is common, to uncommon, and about a 37 cent to 73 cent card in figurative equivalent value.

But in my land destruction deck, I can ramp him into play sooner, and can use him to destroy lands, anything not a creature, or I can copy him cheaply to search for either a Simian Spirit Guide to ramp,or a Acidic slime, or a Charmbreaker. He is awesome in my deck, so that's why I run him, even though there are, may or may not be better cards, because of the fit, combo, synergy valuehe add to my deck

Card evaluation is important because it helps you figure out what direction you want to go with cards, decks, and so it gives you the better possibilities for your deck.

After card evaluation comes Pare down phase of deck building
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Posted 07 August 2016 at 21:48

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Wow - what a wealth of information. May thanks! This makes a lot of sense . . .
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Posted 19 August 2016 at 18:17

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Posted 07 August 2016 at 21:48

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Posted 07 August 2016 at 21:49

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Sorry for the multi post, posting same thing. When I clicked submit post button, it wasn't showing up as submitted. Nothing there, so because of that kept clicking submit button, each time nothing showing up, each time trying to get it to submit, not knowing that it had submitted each time I did click the submit button, trying to get it to submit, because nothing seemed to show up on screen after clicked submit button, sorry about that.
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Posted 07 August 2016 at 21:59

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hehehe - Technology can be a bitch sometimes, can't it? :-)
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Posted 19 August 2016 at 18:18

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