Tag:

Magic The Gathering

Wizards of the Coast Announces Zendikar Rising

by Stephen Duetzmann September 9, 2020

Wizards of the Coast has announced the next expansion for its venerated collectible card game franchise: Zendikar Rising. This is a set based on the plane of Zendikar. It is a wild, and largely unexplored place dominated by a magical phenomenon called “The Roil.” The Roil causes geologic changes that are sudden, frequent, and drastic. The result is a harsh world full of adventurers searching for secrets to help quell the Roil’s effect and massive beasts that feed off of the chaos.

Returning gameplay mechanics

As per usual there are two returning mechanics in the Zendikar Rising set:

Kicker

Kicker is a keyword ability that allows the player to pay an optional cost when casting a spell to achieve an additional effect. For example. you might be able to spend extra mana to deal more damage with a burn spell or put +1/+1 counters on a creature.

Landfall

Landfall is an ability word that signals triggered abilities that respond to a Land entering the Battlefield under the control of the player with the Landfall card.

New Gameplay Mechanics

There are two new mechanics in the set as well. They are:

Party

Party is a batching mechanic. As you play creatures you build a “Party” that consists of up to one each of four classes: Cleric, Rogue, Warrior, and Wizard. You control a full party if you control four creatures with all of these types among them. Cards with this keyword have effects on them that depend on the number of creatures in your party when the cards is played.

Modal Double-Faced Cards

Modal double-faced cards (MDFCs) have two card faces, one on each side of the card. When you play a modal double-faced card, you choose which face you’re playing. This is a great idea because there are lands that are also spells. Which means you can plan more spells without risking drawing too few lands.

The Zendikar Rising set will be released on MTG Arena September 17 and September 25 for paper magic.

What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts!

Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!

The EFG Essentials

Video Games for kids on Xbox One
Video Games for kids on PS4
Video Games for kids on Nintendo Switch
Board Games for kids

Like us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our Newsletter!

Subscribe to our Podcast!

September 9, 2020 0 comment

Board Games

Magic: The Gathering’s Newest Set Has Godzilla In It!

by Stephen Duetzmann April 29, 2020

written by Stephen Duetzmann

The Details

Paper Magic Release Date: Friday May 15th, 2020

Magic: The Gathering Arena Release Date: April 16th, 2020

Available Paper Magic Products:

Booster Box – a box of 36 15-card booster packs.
Collector Booster – Contents: 6 foil commons/uncommons, 1 foil basic land, 1 Commander-focused card, 1 non-foil extended art rare/mythic rare, 1 foil rare/mythic rare, 2 non-foil showcase commons/uncommons, 1 non-foil showcase rare/mythic rare or borderless planeswalker, 1 non-foil alt-art Godzilla Series Monster card, 1 foil showcase or borderless planeswalker, 1 premium token.
Theme Booster – These larger booster packs are full of cards all based on a single theme, like a color or color pair.
Bundle – 10 15-card booster packs, 20 foil lands, 1 alternate art card

The Mechanics

Every expansion comes with interesting new mechanics. Some of them will be brand new, but Wizards always brings something back from the past. The mechanics from Ikoria are listed below.

Cycling

Cycling is a returning mechanic. The cycling mechanic allows players to pay a cost (often a mana cost) to allow them to discard the card with the cycling ability and draw another card.

Wizards uses this ability on cards to add additional flexibility. You have the option to pay the cycling cost and simply pitch the card for a replacement if the card isn’t useful. Some of the cards will even had additional effects tied to cycling the card.

Keyword Counters

Longtime MtG players will be very familiar with +1/+1 and loyalty counters. These appear in almost every set in one form or another. Ikoria introduces Keyword Counters. Certain cards and abilities will allow you to place counters that include abilities like Flying and Trample to creatures in play. This is interesting because, unlike enchantments are artifacts that grant these keyword abilities, the counters stay active until the creature dies.

Mutate

Mutate is an ability that has an alternate casting cost for a creature. When you use it you may choose to place it either ON or Under an existing creature. The result is a creature with the name, converted mana cost, power, and toughness of the creature on top, with the abilities of the creatures underneath it.

Companion

The companion mechanic is more about rewarding careful deck construction than anything else. These are creatures that begin play in exile as long as your deck was build under certain restraints. You can then play from from exile. This is an interesting and very powerful mechanic. I can’t wait to see if anything comes of it.

The “Biggest” Crossover in Magic: The Gathering History

Ikoria is a plane filled with colossal monsters so it only makes sense that Wizards would find a way to incorporate the most famous giant monster of them all: Godzilla.

There are alternate art cards for several cards in the set that feature Godzilla and other monsters in that universe. These are bound to be big ticket collector’s items so definitely handle them with care if you or your kids open one!

The Cinematic Trailer

What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts!

Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!

Like us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our Newsletter!

Subscribe to our Podcast!

April 29, 2020 0 comment

Board Games

War of the Spark – A Magic: The Gathering Set Overview

by Stephen Duetzmann May 22, 2019

written by Stephen Duetzmann

Wizards of the Coast released the newest expansion set for Magic: The Gathering into the wild on May 3rd.

War of the Spark Set Info

Release Date: May 2, 2019

Card Count: 264

Available For Purchase:

Planeswalkers Matter

War of The Spark will feature thirty six planeswalkers, with one planeswalker as the buy-a-box promo. With the previous promise of a planeswalker in ever pack, we now know they are going to fulfill that promise with planeswalkers at various rarities (The infinite cohost called it). There are going to be twenty uncommon, twelve Rare, and three mythic planeswalkers in the set. These characters are drawn from throughout the multiverse of Magic and throughout its history.

In addition to uncommon and rare planeswalkers, War of The Spark features new abilities and mana costs never seen before on cards before. Hybrid mana symbols are being printed on planeswalkers for the first time ever, allowing for flexible casting costs and fitting them in as many decks as possible. Wizards also confirmed in their War of The Spark Panel at Pax that all thirty seven planeswalkers will feature a static or triggered ability as part of their rules text.

Having abilities on planeswalkers where their vary presence influence the battlefield leads to many more opportunities for cool cards and cool play.

Japanese Alternate Art Planeswalkers

Wizards is making things VERY interesting for collectors this time around. They commissioned several Japanese artists to create alternate art for each of the planeswalkers in the set. These alternate art cards will be available in Japanese packs of War of the Spark and will replace the planeswalker in the pack 50% of the time.

Positive Proliferation

Proliferate shows up as a returning mechanic for War of The Spark. Last featured in the Scars of Mirrodin block, this mechanic lets you add any kind of counter to any number of permanents that you own. Which not only supports planeswalkers but creatures with +1 counters.

Amass an Army!

Amass is a key word focusing around the Dreadhorde, Nicol Bolas’s personal army of zombie warriors. Each card with Amass lets you create a zombie army token with +1/+1 counters or add more counters to your existing creature. The intent behind the ability is to create a single giant creature to destroy your opponent in only a few crushing attacks. Where it lacks in its ability to create multiple army tokens, the ability to go big leads to a massive creature dominating the battle field. Hope you don’t find a way to give it trample!

Some of Our Favorite Cards!

Dreadhhorde Invasion – Mike Guarino

My favorite War of the Spark card right now has to be Dreadhorde Invasion: 1) The card is crazy good in Limited and was an absolute powerhouse at Prerelease. The life loss is negligible and even recoverable if this goes unanswered long enough, and you can even speed that up with proliferate! 2) We knew that this would be good, because it’s a callback to the all-star enchantment Bitterblossom (from Morningtide). I really like how this set is cognizant of Magic’s history not only in the lore but also in card mechanics! 3) Speaking of lore, the relentless, sinister nature of the Dreadhore Invasion is realized here. Destroy the zombie invaders, and it’s only a matter of time before more take their place!

Sarkhan The Masterless – Susie Guarino

As an aggro-loving limited junkie, I was tempted to pick a more common, reliable, dangerous-but-not-total-bomb card like Trusted Pegasus as my favorite. (Plus the Vorthos in me cries every time I see that art!) But then I remembered that above all else I’m a huge smashy Timmy, so I have to say Sarkhan the Masterless is the most exciting card in this set for me. A 5-drop is plenty fast enough for a top-end bomb of a limited aggro deck, and honestly with the dragon shenanigans he can pull off I’m surprised he doesn’t cost more. The ping effect gets out of hand quickly and really deters the opponent from attacking. In the meantime, nothing is stopping you from your aggressive dragon army onslaught!! It’s true, when I played him this weekend he was instantly the target of removal, but not before he popped out that one dragon! If he and his immediate dragon pal force my opponent to focus fire two removal spells at me, that’s still plenty of value for a 5-drop! And if they can’t respond?! Oh. Boy. Gonna fill the skies with good good dragons. Who doesn’t love that?!

Crushing Dissent – Michael Duetzmann

Last set I fell in love with Frilled Mystic. It was a card that was both a creature and a counterspell. The casting cost was prohibitive though as it required a total of four mana, two of which being green and two being blue. Crushing Dissent is similar because it also counters a spell and creates a creature (because of the Amass keyword). It isn’t as effective of a counterspell because opponents can just spend two extra mana, but it is MUCH easier to cast as it only costs 2 colorless mana and one blue. This card has already worked wonders for me in limited formats and on MTG Arena.

Mowu, Loyal Companion – Evan Duetzmann

I love Mowu for two reasons. First, he’s a cute dog. Second, I think he would make a fun Commander because there are lots of green cards that give +1/+1 counters to creatures you control and he would make those cards better.

What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts!

Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!

Like us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our Newsletter!

Subscribe to our Podcast!

May 22, 2019 0 comment

Board Games

There are Five Different Types of Magic Players – What Kind is Your Child?

by Stephen Duetzmann May 8, 2019

written by Stephen Duetzmann

Everyone plays games for different reasons. These varied motivations help explain why people like different games and play them in different ways.

Mountains of research have been done regarding the different types of gamers. In fact, (friend of the site) Dr. Regina McMenomy has done some of that research. Wizards of the Coast, however, has gone so far as to take these so-called psycho-graphic profiles, given them names, and taken the time to explain them within the context of Magic: The Gathering.

We thought that we would take the time to highlight and explain those different profiles, because knowing why you and your children play the game is helpful for figuring out what cards to buy, what decks to build, and what kinds of formats you’ll want to play in.

Take a look at the list below ands then leave a comment telling us what kind of Magic: The Gathering Player you are!

Timmy/Tammy

Timmy/Tammy is the name of the gamer profile that is characterized by their love of big splashy effects and giant creatures. They are motivated by the thrill of playing these massive spells and seeing how they impact the board.

Timmy/Tammy can be competitive (who doesn’t like to win?), but the real fun comes from playing these really big spells.

Timmy wants to experience something. Timmy plays Magic because he enjoys the feeling he gets when he plays. What that feeling is will vary from Timmy to Timmy, but what all Timmies have in common is that they enjoy the visceral experience of playing.
Mark Rosewater

There is some variance within this profile, too! Everyone isn’t a carbon copy of one another. Below are some sub groups:

Power Gamers – They focus on big spells and big critters. Power = fun.

Social Gamers – They just want to play with others. They also know that sometimes playing decks around big effects will win just often enough for everyone to have a turn.

Adrenaline Junkies – They thrive on playing spells with unpredictable effects. Some cards in Magic use coin flips and adrenaline junkies love them!

Johnny/Jenny

Johnny/Jenny is the name of the gamer profile that is all about discovery! They love to find interesting interactions between cards and executing those combos within Magic. They love the thrill of “breaking cards” and making cool decks that do super interesting things (even if they lose more often than not).

Johnny is the creative gamer to whom Magic is a form of self-expression. Johnny likes to win, but he wants to win with style. It’s very important to Johnny that he win on his own terms. As such, it’s important to Johnny that he’s using his own deck. Playing Magic is an opportunity for Johnny to show off his creativity.
Mark Rosewater

Johnny’s and Jenny’s aren’t all the same either. Below are some sub groups:

Combo Players – They pore over spoiler lists looking for unique interactions and cool combos. It’s all about the thrill of the hunt.

Designers – Some people just want to build decks that work. They are driven by ideas and challenges

Artists – Deck building, for some people, is all about expressing themselves. Creating interesting themes in decks is an art form for them!

Challenge Seekers – Some people go out of their way to make bad cards into good ones. They accept challenges that are present in the design of a given set and push those limits!

Spike

Simply put: Spike wants to win. They aren’t concerned with making their own decks. Instead, they may comb the internet looking for decks that are successful in recent tournaments.

Spike is the competitive player. Spike plays to win. Spike enjoys winning. To accomplish this, Spike will play whatever the best deck is. Spike will copy decks off the Internet. Spike will borrow other players’ decks. To Spike, the thrill of Magic is the adrenaline rush of competition. Spike enjoys the stimulation of outplaying the opponent and the glory of victory.
Mark Rosewater

Innovators – Some players take pride in their ability to look at new cards (or cards they have discovered from the history of Magic) and evaluate them. Are they good? Can they be played in successful decks? These are the questions a Spike will ask themselves the first time they see any Magic card that they discover.

Analysts – Tournaments can have hundreds (if not thousands) of players. They all bring different decks and play styles. Some players love to find decks that will give them the best chance to compete in that environment.

Deck Tuners – Not everyone likes to build their decks from scratch. Tuners love to find popular decks made by other players and tweek them to be better.

Mental Athletes – Some players are less concerned with the deck they are playing and the cards they are using. They spend their efforts being the best player they can. It’s all about being able to do the math, and play each individual situation as best they can.

Melvin/Melanie

Mel is an interesting psychographic profile. These are players who are focused on appreciating the design of Magic. They examine cards as they are released and focus on the “why” in every part of the card. They may focus on why a card was in a given color, or why it has a certain creature type.

Vorthos

Vorthos is the name used for the psychographic profile of a player who is all about the story and “flavor” of the game. They appreciate cards that are designed with consistency from their name and color. This profile was coined by Matt Cavotta in his article “Snacktime with Vorthos.” It was further expanded on by Ant Tessitore when he divided Vorthos into five different categories based on how the game makes them feel

The Gamer appreciates top down resonance and in-game flavor.
The Artist appreciates all visual aspects of Magic.
The Writer appreciates all written copy for Magic.
The Oracle appreciates real world to fantasy world blending via things like cosplay.
The Dreamer appreciates anything contributing to the lore of Magic

What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know what kind of Magic player you are?

Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!

Like us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our Newsletter!

Subscribe to our Podcast!

May 8, 2019 1 comment

Board Games

Ravnica Allegiance – an MtG Set Overview

by Stephen Duetzmann April 10, 2019

written by Stephen Duetzmann

Ravnica Allegiance is the most recent expansion released for Magic: The Gathering. It features the continuation of the long running narrative featuring the planeswalkers in the “Gatewatch” and the would-be dragon god Nicol Bolas. Bolas is up to something, and is trying to pit the various planeswalkers against each other. What is he up to? We shall soon find out!

Ravnica Allegiance Set Info

Release Date: January 25, 2019
Card Count: 259
Available for purchase as:
- Ravnica Allegiance Bundle
- Ravnica Allegiance Booster Box
- Ravnica Allegiance Guild themed booster packs – 30 cards including 1-2 rares or mythic rares
- Ravnica Allegiance Collector’s Booster Packs – 15 cards included 3 rare or mythic rare
- Ravnica Allegiance Planeswalker Decks – 60 cards, 2 booster packs, code for the deck in MtG Arena
- Ravnica Allegiance Deckbuilder’s Toolkit – 125 cards, 100 basic lands

Ravnica Allegiance Guilds

One of the key features of Ravnica is its assortment of Guilds. These organizations represent different color pairings. Wizards designers used those color pairings to help create personalities for the guilds and use those personalities to determine their abilities.

The Grull Çlan – Red/Green

The Grull clan is a band of violent warriors the break, bash, and crash through the expanding edges of civilized space. Order and subtlety have no place in their tactics or their home on the Rubblebelt. The Grull represent the aggressive force and overwhelming strength of red and green.

Riot Cards ask you questions related to the board state. Do you need to crash in quickly or build big?

The Orzhov Syndicate – Black/White

The Orzhov Syndicate is institution both religious and financial. Money and power are brokered by clerics both living and dead, and those who default to their debts end up paying in blood and spirit. The Orzhov represent black and white’s mastery of the forces of life and death.

Afterlife cards reinforce the value of card advantage, specifically that afterlife creatures will often take more than one card to deal with.

The Simic Combine – Blue/Green

The Simic Combine is devoted to growth through physical evolution. What is strong can always be made stronger. Their wizards barrow from all manner of natural and magical creature to augment themselves. The Simic represent blue and green control over the forces of nature.

Adapt reinforces the idea of a consistent mana curve by giving early game cards that also have powerful late game effects.

The Rakdos Carnival – Black/Red

The Rakdos Carnival is a never ending show of grim comedy and violence . The performers fuel their works through blood, pain and flames and when they eventually themselves die in the act… an audience member will do just as well. The Rakdos represent the relentless violence of Black and Red.

Spectacle cares a lot about order of operations and sequencing events. Spectacle cards work best when you cast them in the right situation (most often after combat) or in the right sequence.

The Azorious Senate – Blue/White

The Azorious Senate sits in a position of absolute control. Their goal in the sprawling Ravnica is to enforce an endless number of rules and regulations, and to bind and imprison those who defy the law… or their authority as lawgivers. The Azorious represent the absolute order of blue and white.

Addendum cards teach about timing in magic. They are instants (or cards that can be played at instant speed) so they could be cast any times, but they are more powerful when they are played during your turn (during the main phase). Beginner players often have trouble with instances/responses/the stack. These cards might not be what players want to play with, but they are cool to play against.

Hybrid Mana and Split Cards

Hybrid mana is a type of mana that first appeared in the original Ravnica block. It represents a cost that can be paid with either type of mana represented in the cost. Visually this is represented by using a design that incorporates both colors and small versions of the mana symbols within the a circle.

It allows for increased flexibility in deck-building because cards with hybrid mana in their cost can be used by either color even if the deck was being designed to be only one color. For example, you can use a black/white hybrid creature in a mono-colored white deck. The added flexibility is valuable in decks that are both colors, but it isn’t required.

Split Cards first appears during a block called “Invasion.” These are cards that are printed sideways on the standard magic card. They are, essentially, two separate spells printed on one card. If you have that split-card in your hand, then you may choose to pay the mana cost for either spell on that card and cast that spell.

Resources from Around the Web

Magic: The Gathering is a very popular game so there are many, many great resources across the web. Below are just a few of the resources that are specifically related to Ravnica: Allegiance that we thought you might want to look at.

Rules Explanation Video

Loading Ready Run has created a wonderful rules overview to help explain the different mechanics and rules at play when using Ravnica Allegiance cards.

Visual Spoiler

Wizards of the Coast has a Visual Spoiler that includes images of all of the cards in the set.

What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts!

Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!

Like us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our Newsletter!

Subscribe to our Podcast!

April 10, 2019 0 comment

Board Games

Wizards of the Coast Unveils the next Magic: The Gathering Expansion”War of the Spark”

by Michael Duetzmann April 2, 2019

written by Michael Duetzmann

This past weekend was not only PAX East, but it also featured the first Mythic Championship AND a panel featuring the full unveiling of the next expansion for Magic: The Gathering.

War of the Spark is the next set. It will be released on May 3rd, 2019 and will feature the dramatic conclusion to a story that has been building up for years. (Yes. You read that right. Magic has had a continuous story that has been building up to this moment.) Nicol Bolas (a crazy elder dragon who is seeking ultimate power) has been visiting various planes to gather armies (Ahmonket) and artifacts of great power (Ixalan) to help him attack the city of Ravnica. His goal has been to dominate the city and draw planeswalkers from across the multiverse to attack him and stop him. Why, you might ask? Because he is laying a trap for them. It’s all very intense and will play out through the themes represented in the cards and their art.

War of The Spark preview season is going to include card previews for every card in the set, instead of single card reveals. These previews happen ing in the next couple of weeks will now feature sets of five cards, and are going to be from every level of rarity, and for all types of players. These cards will be used to tell a complete scene in the ongoing story in War of The Spark

Planeswalkers Matter

Having abilities on planeswalkers where their vary presence influence the battlefield leads to many more opportunities for cool cards and cool play

Positive Proliferation

Amass an Army

That Trailer Though

The War of the Spark trailer is the most viewed trailer in the history of Magic for a reason. Give it a look!

I didn’t know I wanted a CGI Magic Movie until right now.

What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts!

Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!

Like us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our Newsletter!

Subscribe to our Podcast!

April 2, 2019 0 comment

Podcasts!

Episode 169: Initial Thoughts on Competitive Play

by Stephen Duetzmann March 19, 2019

written by Stephen Duetzmann

This week Stephen and Amanda share their thoughts on competitive play in games like Magic The Gathering, Warhammer 40K, and others.

What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know your thoughts!

Make sure to keep your eyes on Engaged Family Gaming for all of the latest news and reviews you need to Get Your Family Game On!

Like us on Twitter!

Subscribe to our Newsletter!

Subscribe to our Podcast!

March 19, 2019 0 comment

Board Games News Updates

Exploring “Ixalan:” the Newest Expansion for Magic: The Gathering!

by Michael Duetzmann November 14, 2017

written by Michael Duetzmann

Ixalan is a set of cards that was released on September 29, 2017 for Magic: The Gathering. Ixalan tells a story about the immediate aftermath of Hour of Devastation. The defeated planeswalker Jace Beleren finds himself marooned on a plane of existence that he cannot leave. It is a plane filled with adventure and mystery as four factions race to a mysterious golden city in the heart of a dangerous jungle. Ixalan features cards that represent the dangers of the jungle and the glory of exploration.

Why is it Awesome?

Pirates, Vampires, Merfolk, Dinosaurs, Treasure, Exploration: These things light up the imagination of gamers young and old. I have not seen a set of magic released with more appeal to younger gamers. To further reinforce the appeal to younger gamers, Ixalan features four separate creature-based strategies to build decks around. With cards of all power levels and rarities, there are a lot of strategies that can be played at any level of investment.

You can see the full visual spoiler here.

Dinosaurs are all the rage!

Drover of the Mighty

Sun Crowned Hunters

Kinjali’s Caller

Gishath, Sun’s Avatar

In this set, Dinosaurs are big scary creatures that come charging in early in the game thanks to their human allies. Dinosaurs span the red, white, and green colors of Magic as they represent three different ways to shake the ground and crush your opponent. Dinosaurs all share the enrage mechanic, which triggers whenever they take damage from a creature or a spell. Do not hurt them, you will only make them mad!

Vampires of a different color!

Queen’s Commission

Skymarch Bloodletter

Vona, Butcher of Magan

Vampires from a far away land sail to the island of Ixalan for honor and glory. White vampires make an addition along with their classic black brethren to the game of Magic, as the entire set focuses on creating lots of vampires, and gaining and draining life from their opponents. This excess of life then gets used to fuel powerful effects, where the only payment is blood.

Pirates be after the booty!

Pirate’s Prize

Deadeye Tormentor

Rigging Runner

Admiral Becket Brass

Pirates patrol the waters of Ixalan and are on the hunt for buried treasure. Pirates care about two things: attacking and finding treasure. Raid is an ability shared amongst the red, blue and black colors of Magic that gives additional value if you attacked this turn. Raid rewards players for casting their creatures and spells after combat, when their pirate crews have swung in for damage. Pirates also love treasure! Many spells and creatures create artifact tokens called Treasures that can be traded in for mana at a later time. It is uncommon for these colors to have access to mana creation, be sure to take advantage of it.

Merfolk weave growth and trickery!

Jade Guardian

Watertrap Weaver

Tishana, Voice of Thunder

Merfolk mix the colors of green and blue in Magic to create a theme of growth and trickery. The new addition of green merfolk place +1/+1 counters on other merfolk to make them permanently bigger, while blue merfolk continue to lock down your opponent’s creatures and fly or swim past those with a chance to block.

Should you buy this stuff?

If you are a family gamer who already plays Magic: The Gathering, heading to your local game store or internet card provider is a no-brainer. If you have been interested in coming into this game on the ground floor, there has never been a better time, as this set features four creature based deck building strategies. Combined with cards from the recent Ahmonket and Kaladesh expansion, you can take your deck to the kitchen table or local Friday Night Magic event near you.

Here are some great options for Ixalan products you can buy!

Planeswalker Decks: Jace, Ingenious Mind Mage & Huatli, Dinosaur Knight

The ease of accessibility for this set starts with the two ready to play constructed decks that Wizards of the Coast releases with every new set. This time around the deck features Jace with a force of blue and green merfolk and Huatli, a new planeswalker, who leads and empowers an army of red and white dinosaurs. These decks have always been very solid introductory products, and this recent addition does not stray from that standard.

The Ixalan Bundle Pack

Bundle packs are a great way to buy into a set of Magic: The Gathering cards. They include 10 packs of cards, a spin-down life counter, a pack of land cards, and a nice box to store your cards in.

November 14, 2017 0 comment

Board Games Parent Resources

Our Son’s First Friday Night Magic: A Tournament Report

by Stephen Duetzmann August 10, 2016

written by Stephen Duetzmann

A few weeks back, Flagship Comics and Games in Southington, CT closed after being in operation for a number of years. I spent a lot of time playing in Friday Night Magic tournaments there and I wanted to help celebrate with them as they ended their run.

As the weeks ran down to the event Evan chimed in and told me that he would like to play. I, honestly, hadn’t thought that he would have any interest in card tournaments yet, but who was I to question him? We set out immediately to build him a deck worthy of a true champion and started practicing every night in order to get ready.

The day finally came and I decided to forgo playing in the tournament myself in order to get a chance to watch him play and record it for posterity. I figured… I have a website, so why not take advantage.

He decided that he wanted to play with humans, so we build him a green/white deck that followed the template of decks online (more or less). He practiced with it a bunch, and was feeling very comfortable with it by the time FNM came around.

I’m going to try my hand at writing this up like a tournament report that the Magic Pros write. If for nothing else it should be entertaining to write. Here’s hoping it is also interesting to read.

Decklist:

Evan’s Dudes

Creatures:

Thraben Inspector – 4
Dragon Hunter – 4
Town Gossipmonger – 4
Expedition Envoy – 1
Consul’s Lieutenant – 1
Hanweird Militia Captain – 4
Duskwatch Recruiter – 4
Sylvan Advocate – 1
Heron’s Grace Champion – 1

Spells:

Gryff’s Boon – 4
Always Watching – 3
Stasis Snare – 4
Declaration in Stone – 2

Land:

Plains – 11
Forest – 5
Fortified Village 4

If we’re being honest with ourselves, this isn’t the best deck out there., but it was built based on what we had and Evan loved it.

He almost got a bye for the first round, but the tournament organizer reset everything to make sure he played. Evan was actually a little bummed because he knew a bye would help him, but he soldiered on.

Round One

Blue/Black Allies

This was neat because Evan’s first opponent was a younger kid who was very excited to be playing. Evan lost, but he wasn’t intimidated or frustrated.

Evan opened very strong with a pair of Dragon hunters in game one. But, his opponent responded very quickly with several allies that drained his life quickly and eliminated his life lead. It was all over after that. Evan learned pretty quickly that swinging into a crowded board is dangerous. He DID have a very good play where he Stasis Snared a seemingly random critter on his opponents turn in order to be able to use declaration in Stone the next turn and exile two of his opponents creatures on the next turn.

Game two Evan elected to draw which was an odd play for sure. An early Drana, Liberator of Malakir was game over really fast.

Round Two

Mirror

His opponent here was a younger guy in his twenties. I’m honestly so sure about his age to be honest, but he was vaping so he definitely wasn’t a kid. This player was nice enough, but he didn’t really interact with Evan at all. I got the feeling initially that Evan was a little intimidated, but he just played the game as I expected him to.

A few combat misplays hurt Evan during game one after he got out to a blistering lead. Bottom line? Trample is a very strong effect when played against creatures with very little toughness.

The same thing happened during the second round.

Evan and I had a little coaching session afterwards where I talked about how he needed to be more aware of both his cards and his opponent’s cards.

Round Three

Black/Red Madness

HIs opponent was a very nice older guy who was there with his son. He was exactly the kind of player I was hoping my son would go up against because he was patient, and took the time to explain the effects of whatever he was doing to my son. This was a tough match for Evan, but I think he learned the most out of all of his games here because his opponent was playing a lot of creatures that were of similar size.

Evan won his first game here on the back of a very fast creature rush. His opponent couldn’t keep up and conceded early.

His second game didn’t go nearly as well because of a lack of white mana. His opponent, on the other hand, had no such problem.

They went to game three which ended up being a slugfest that lasted a very long time. Evan had to make a lot of really hard decisions in combat like who to block and what to attack. He made most of his decisions correctly, but eventually he swing his only two humans into an impenetrable wall and gave his opponent the win.

Round 4

Bye

He was, unfortunately, the only person with an 0-3 record so the computer sat him with the bye. He was ok with it though, because it gave him a chance to sit back and watch how the other games were played and look at some cards.

He didn’t do well enough to earn any prizes at the end, but he was thrilled to have participated. The whole ride home he was talking about building decks and when he could go to another Friday Night Magic.

We both learned a lot from the experience.

He learned about the value of friendly competition. He learned how to keep a cool head, even when he was losing, and just enjoy playing the game. I was very proud of the fact that he didn’t look beaten down even after being so badly beaten on.

The lesson I learned that night was pretty simple. Tournaments, especially Friday Night Magic, is a great place to help build excitement for a game like Magic. Everyone wants to be there and is excited to get a chance to play. This excitement can be felt throughout the room as rounds start and people get to their seats. It can’t help but infect anxious players and get them amped up to play again.

If you want to bring your family to an event like this go here to help locate a card shop near you that holds them!

Tired at the end of it all!

testosterona comprar

bulletproof koffie

August 10, 2016 1 comment