Imagine, if you will, a battlefield; you're on the plane of Innistrad and your opponent, an enemy Planeswalker with command over earth and flame. Your battle has been long and hard and your life fades quickly, your foe has called upon a pair of Ashmouth Hounds and a Bloodcrazed Neonate to make swift work of you and all that stands between you and what is sure to be a gruesome death is... a Brain Weevil and a Selfless Cathar.
Yeah, I'm sure we've all been their at some point, staring at another heavy loss at the hands of a clearly better deck. I mean, it's to be expected, "I suck", "I don't have a very good collection", "He just has way better things" and so on as we put ourselves down once again, and not just in Magic, but in games like Cardfight: Vangard, and Pokemon as well. Well, what if I told you it didn't have to be this? That you too can rack up a noticeable number of wins.
So, let's dive in with some tips on how YOU can step up your game in Magic: The Gathering.
Step One: Know your Element.
When trying to improve your deck, first ask yourself "What does my collection look like, and what can it do?" This is important because, well, can't exactly go aggro with a collection that says combo. Sort your cards by Color (Using WUBRG order) and card type. To keep things simple, arrange each pile as such: Creature, Artifact, Instant, Sorcery, Enchantment, Planeswalker and Artifact Creature. After you do this, you should have a better idea of where your power lies- for the sake of this example we shall say Green is your best option- and what your next step shall be.
Step Two: Have an actual plan.
I know this doesn't seem like something that needs to be said, but for some it does, so I'll say it: compiling a deck of cards you think are cool doesn't typically mean usable, but more on that at a later date. With our Green cards, we'll look at what we can hope to accomplish within the three most well known strategies, Aggro, Control, Combo. To put it simple, will this deck smash face, Set the pace or build your victory? Once you have a color chosen as well as a plan of attack, you can proceed to the next important step.
Step Three: Work with what you have.
Now, for this example, we'll be working with an assortment of green cards from the original Innistrad block; To capture the random nature of lower power collections I used a Draft Simulator (for fairness).
Creatures 19
Ambush Viper x2
Boneyard Wurm x1
Grave Bramble x4
Villagers of Estwald x2
Orchard Spirit x1
Splinterfright x1
Festerhide Boar x2
Lumberknot x2
Woodland Sleuth x1
Kindercatch x1
Mayor of Avabruck x1
Grizzled Outcast x1
Instant and Sorcery 18
Gnaw to the bone x2
Naturalize x2
Bramblecrush x2
Full Moon's Rise x3
Prey Upon x2
Caravan Vigil x3
Spidery Grasp x2
Moon Mist x2
Artifacts 2
Cellar Door x1
Inquisitor's Flail x1
Lands
Forest x21
Now, as you can see, while this deck is an assortment of randomly received cards, it has a clear plan and means of accomplishing its plan. The deck is balanced enough to allow for playable hands and draws without risking the late game with a little something for every card you could use. Now, I recommend looking up each of these cards and really getting a feel for what to look for: Practical, Cast Worthy, and synergistic. That's not to say you shouldn't build decks you find fun, by all means PLEASE build silly decks, weird decks, themed decks, stupid decks and so on. Just, remember to work with what you HAVE not what you want to have- at least until you actually have the resources to do it- and above all else, have fun.
Next time, we'll discuss how to jump into Cardfight: Vanguard, without destroying our wallets.
Yeah, I'm sure we've all been their at some point, staring at another heavy loss at the hands of a clearly better deck. I mean, it's to be expected, "I suck", "I don't have a very good collection", "He just has way better things" and so on as we put ourselves down once again, and not just in Magic, but in games like Cardfight: Vangard, and Pokemon as well. Well, what if I told you it didn't have to be this? That you too can rack up a noticeable number of wins.
So, let's dive in with some tips on how YOU can step up your game in Magic: The Gathering.
Step One: Know your Element.
When trying to improve your deck, first ask yourself "What does my collection look like, and what can it do?" This is important because, well, can't exactly go aggro with a collection that says combo. Sort your cards by Color (Using WUBRG order) and card type. To keep things simple, arrange each pile as such: Creature, Artifact, Instant, Sorcery, Enchantment, Planeswalker and Artifact Creature. After you do this, you should have a better idea of where your power lies- for the sake of this example we shall say Green is your best option- and what your next step shall be.
Step Two: Have an actual plan.
I know this doesn't seem like something that needs to be said, but for some it does, so I'll say it: compiling a deck of cards you think are cool doesn't typically mean usable, but more on that at a later date. With our Green cards, we'll look at what we can hope to accomplish within the three most well known strategies, Aggro, Control, Combo. To put it simple, will this deck smash face, Set the pace or build your victory? Once you have a color chosen as well as a plan of attack, you can proceed to the next important step.
Step Three: Work with what you have.
Now, for this example, we'll be working with an assortment of green cards from the original Innistrad block; To capture the random nature of lower power collections I used a Draft Simulator (for fairness).
Creatures 19
Ambush Viper x2
Boneyard Wurm x1
Grave Bramble x4
Villagers of Estwald x2
Orchard Spirit x1
Splinterfright x1
Festerhide Boar x2
Lumberknot x2
Woodland Sleuth x1
Kindercatch x1
Mayor of Avabruck x1
Grizzled Outcast x1
Instant and Sorcery 18
Gnaw to the bone x2
Naturalize x2
Bramblecrush x2
Full Moon's Rise x3
Prey Upon x2
Caravan Vigil x3
Spidery Grasp x2
Moon Mist x2
Artifacts 2
Cellar Door x1
Inquisitor's Flail x1
Lands
Forest x21
Now, as you can see, while this deck is an assortment of randomly received cards, it has a clear plan and means of accomplishing its plan. The deck is balanced enough to allow for playable hands and draws without risking the late game with a little something for every card you could use. Now, I recommend looking up each of these cards and really getting a feel for what to look for: Practical, Cast Worthy, and synergistic. That's not to say you shouldn't build decks you find fun, by all means PLEASE build silly decks, weird decks, themed decks, stupid decks and so on. Just, remember to work with what you HAVE not what you want to have- at least until you actually have the resources to do it- and above all else, have fun.
Next time, we'll discuss how to jump into Cardfight: Vanguard, without destroying our wallets.
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