Okay, so I went to a FNM draft event a bit back, and I wanted to ask everyone's thoughts on two of the things this one guy said.
First, and bigger: I'm... honestly not a very good shuffler, I don't think. I can think I'm doing a real thorough shuffle, then end up drawing like the exact same hand after a mulligan fairly often. So as a result, I've gotten into the habit of having my normal shuffle be doing that thing where you divy out your cards into piles and then shuffle them together. ...
Nevermind people getting their lands together at the end of the game and then doing some weakass shuffling. What's the most likely you think ?I mean, if your cards are properly randomized, you will sometimes draw six land hands. You will sometimes draw the exact same hand you just put back. (For a Standard deck with 4-ofs it's not even that unusual.)
That's how randomization works. If you're always getting good distributions or always getting something different, what you're doing isn't actually random at all.
I mean, pile shuffling can't help with mana screw/flood. The point of shuffling is to randomize your deck. If it leads to less mana screw/flood than expected from actual randomization, then it's legitimately cheating.Always pile shuffle 2-3 times. I've had people complain about my show shuffle and then they draw 6 lands in a row and whine. Bitch please.
Always extend the hand after a match.
I usually let the person who lost lead the way with the post match. If someone wants to stew after a loss I'm not gonna butt in there. If nothing gets said silk sometime say "thanks for the games" as I stand up. If I lose I'll shake and say good game basically always. The only exception is if the other player was a real jerk bag. (I'm mostly thinking of one player at my LGS who is just ugh.)
It'd be nice if everyone playing this game could be nice and respectful enough for a handshake and a bit of pleasantries towards someone else after playing a game you both like, but sadly that is not the case.
Okay, so I went to a FNM draft event a bit back, and I wanted to ask everyone's thoughts on two of the things this one guy said.
First, and bigger: I'm... honestly not a very good shuffler, I don't think. I can think I'm doing a real thorough shuffle, then end up drawing like the exact same hand after a mulligan fairly often. So as a result, I've gotten into the habit of having my normal shuffle be doing that thing where you divy out your cards into piles and then shuffle them together. Not in the middle of games, mind you, but between games and stuff I do it pretty often. So I admittedly took the questionable-ish approach of starting to do it before drawing a mulligan from an all-land hand, because I knew I'd surely end up drawing the same damn stack of lands otherwise. Now, the guy said "you're only supposed to do that once at the start, to technically count out your cards. Otherwise it's cheating, because you're purposefully influencing the distribution." Now, I can see that for when you take a mulligan... but would it still be thought of as such say, between games in a match? Just worried about it because (as mentioned), I suck at shuffling, but also don't want to come off as scummy. Oh, and I usually ask my opponents between games too, because I know it takes a bit longer.
Secondly: I've been trying to get into the habit of being polite and shaking someone's hand and saying "good game" after a match. This guy retorted with a "I only say good game when it actually IS a good game, but we just kind of took turns being mana screwed/flooded." I still feel like I'll keep on saying it regardless... but do you guys "good game" people even when it is not, in fact, a good game?
I personally find glossy Dragon Shields stick together, matte sleeves for life! I actually really like the SCG ones when I play in tournaments. I have less problems with sticking and the shuffle is buttery smooth.
I liked the colors too, and they're great for Commander decks. But once I got two warnings at a tournament because my cards were sticking together and coming off two at a time. I called the judge myself. Sleeves were brand new, was just super unfortunate. I just went in between rounds and replaced them. Never had another problem that day or since.I had always gone for glossy Dragon Shields because I liked the colors and the way they felt, but after hearing all the praise for matte, went ahead and bought some. Matte lovers are right. Dragon Shield matte sleeves are amazing.
I liked the colors too, and they're great for Commander decks. But once I got two warnings at a tournament because my cards were sticking together and coming off two at a time. I called the judge myself. Sleeves were brand new, was just super unfortunate. I just went in between rounds and replaced them. Never had another problem that day or since.
It's not congratulating people, it's just showing basic adult politeness and illustrating that no matter what happened in the game, one is willing to touch the other person, acknowledge them as a human worthy of basic respect, and move on.I usually don't shake hands when it's prerelease or FNM. It just feels weird to congratulate someone when the stakes are so casual lol
It's not congratulating people, it's just showing basic adult politeness and illustrating that no matter what happened in the game, one is willing to touch the other person, acknowledge them as a human worthy of basic respect, and move on.
They sound intriguing enough for me to at least try once. It's nice to have options, and people who don't want funky modes can ignore them so it should be a win-win.
Maybe, but on the flip side if I got stuck with that random mythic, I could be happy getting use it out of it since I'm behind on the lucrative money earning competitive card front.My only concern with weird formats (and this was always true for Hearthstone too) is that it encourages the use of Wildcards on cards that aren't constructed viable, which is a tough sell. It's different from paper, I'm totally willing to buy a dollar mythic for some dumb deck to play a few times, but in this that dumb Mythic that's only good on "everything has Convoke day" is the exact same cost as an Assassin's Trophy.
Getting into the card tie in manga/anime game too late. Though the fact that this takes place in the 90's means this can't be used for advertising new sets. Weird. Then again, I suppose Stranger Things didn't involve current DnD.
I hope they randomly reference using the batch to resolve spells, or the main girl quitting when Urza's Saga comes out and everything is bustedGetting into the card tie in manga/anime game too late. Though the fact that this takes place in the 90's means this can't be used for advertising new sets. Weird. Then again, I suppose Stranger Things didn't involve current DnD.
And of course, from the art, this seems more like a romance series that includes Magic playing rather than a series about playing Magic.
Last time I went to FNM was years ago, but I think I rarely shake hands at FNM because I rarely lose lol. If my opponent doesn't want to take the initiative to shake hands after conceding then whatever.Yup. It's a sign of mutual respect, not a congratulation. Though I also don't see why you wouldn't congratulate someone on winning. Everyone at FNM wants to win, even if their #1 goal is having fun above all else.
And this is why it's a good habit to have -- in this situation, it becomes a show of domination where the loser may feel they're forced to humiliate themselves if they want to shake hands, so they just slink away instead.Last time I went to FNM was years ago, but I think I rarely shake hands at FNM because I rarely lose lol. If my opponent doesn't want to take the initiative to shake hands after conceding then whatever.
Getting into the card tie in manga/anime game too late. Though the fact that this takes place in the 90's means this can't be used for advertising new sets. Weird. Then again, I suppose Stranger Things didn't involve current DnD.
And of course, from the art, this seems more like a romance series that includes Magic playing rather than a series about playing Magic.
I've read both of those but I find it totally sounds bizarre to promote something based on being from the writer of "Molester Man" and "Masturbation Master Kurosawa" because it sounds like some kind of really weird porn.This is the same artist behind the Manga's Molester Man and Onani Master Kurwosawa, so naturally i'm really freaking excited about this.
He's also done art for Hareyuya in the past for their store and website, and he follows some of the Japanese pro players, so he's pretty familiar with the game as well
I know my younger brother would love Molester Man, but he refuses to read it because of the name alone!I've read both of those but I find it totally sounds bizarre to promote something based on being from the writer of "Molester Man" and "Masturbation Master Kurosawa" because it sounds like some kind of really weird porn.
It's set in the 90s- i'm hoping it focuses on 5th edition rules!If it changes anything, I do offer advice to novices on what cards not to play, mana bases and sometimes their plays if I know what was in their hands.
Yeah... it's a huge turnoffI know my younger brother would love Molester Man, but he refuses to read it because of the name alone!
I get tired of typing "Molester Man (which is NOT what you think it is)"
As much as they care about player drafting
So for 2 cents more than 3 boosters, you get 1 extra uncommon, 30 less commons, and something like 1.5 more foils on averageThis year's holiday card
They're also testing out a new product with Ravnica Allegiance
"Collector Booster"
MSRP $12.99
15 cards - 2 foil of any rarity, 3 rares or mythic rares, 10 uncommons
Triple the price of a normal booster seems like a bit much for no commons, but I don't know, maybe the math works out.
It sounds like it's targeted for an uncle/aunt that wants to get a gift and remembers their niece/nephew is a Magic collector, so they see this at Walmart and think it sounds perfect.So for 2 cents more than 3 boosters, you get 1 extra uncommon, 30 less commons, and something like 1.5 more foils on average
This sounds like something that will rot on LGS shelfs for years, but might not be the worst idea for Target/Walmart