MTG Strategist

     In a discussion a while back with a fellow content creator, we stepped into the topic of Wizards of the Coast and their changes to their distribution methodology, specifically their announcement to directly sell products through major digital outlets.  There was some discussion about how this affects local game stores.  In an effort to build a picture of where WOTC is headed, I submit the following opinion.  Keep in mind, these are my own thoughts based on what I have read.  They in no way reflect an actual published business strategy or plan from WOTC or Hasbro. Let's draw a line through a few events that have transpired over the last year. December 4, 2017: Arena closed beta begins . September 19, 2018 : Announcement of the Arena Creator's Hub . September 21, 2018: Announcement of direct sales of products through digital outlets . September 27, 2018: Arena open beta begins . October 4, 2018: Announcement of MagicFest and the consolidation of the Pro Tour and

There is a card out there that falls into the category of "you should probably not play this in Standard."  Of course I fell in love with it at first sight.  I'm talking about none other than Omniscience. The greatest obstacle with this is it's monster casting cost.  So we'll need some help to get there.  You might be thinking that dipping into green is a good idea.  That may be so, but after playtesting repeatedly a green/blue ramp deck, I realized it was moving way to slow.  That's when it hit me.  There is another form of ramp that exists.  Since we're already in blue, why not stay there.  That is why I have chosen to ramp using artifacts.  The key to this strategy is Inspiring Statuary. In order to get 10 mana on the field using Islands and artifacts, we'll need an artifact engine.  And there is a prime artifact-producing creature in Core Set 2019.  I'm talking about Sai, Master Thoperist. For every artifact you throw out, you

A few months back I held a contest.  The point of the contest was to promote new and upcoming Magic the Gathering content creators.  The rules were simple.  All you had to do was find a MTG content creator on YouTube, watch one of their videos, leave the comment "You are MTG", and share the video on Twitter with #WeAreMTG attached.  The content creator had to have less than 1500 subscribers. The prize was a modern devil deck.  The deck was ok...nothing special. The response I received was remarkable. A sector of the MTG community saw this as an opportunity to show everyone that there was more kinship and respect here than hate. It was quite overwhelming. Seeing the opportunity, I asked many of the participants to join a group that I dubbed "The MTG Community of Content Creators".  Again, the response was remarkable. They took up the mantle of #WeAreMTG and began to spend time talking about how to make their content better. Bloggers, podcasters, writers

Hungry for a some quick insight into CORE 2019? Hungry like the wolf? Duran Duran..?...no? The Wolf MTG (@The_Wolf_MTG) is a frequent writer for puremtgo.com and an all around great MTG player.  He did something with this breakdown that I really like...and it's something that I rarely do.  He provides a simple ranking system for every card in the Core 2019 set.  It's an easy reference to keep handy. Click HERE to check it out. Be sure to look for him on Facebook, Twitter and puremtgo.com. https://www.facebook.com/TheWolfMTG/ https://twitter.com/The_Wolf_MTG

If double strike be good, then the El Cuatro be double good.  Today, for your deckbuilding entertainment, I present a deck that takes whatever little creature you have on the board, and turns it into a near death experience for your opponent.  Also, we're running out of time to brew with Samut, the Tested. With your approval, I present El Cuatro (pronounced Quah-Troh for you non-Spanish speakers).  A deck that strives to turn a single punch into the only punch that you need. The idea behind this deck is to attempt to double damage that has already been doubled.  First let's go over our doubling cards.  These are creatures and other spells that can be used to double up any damage that is heading toward your opponent.  Samut's +1 ability gives any creature double strike.  Insult/Injury doubles up any damage that makes it through to your opponent.  Charging Tuskodon, in addition to having trample, deals double damage. And Angrath's Marauders doubles up a

We're unstoppable.  This deck is happening.  If you missed Part 1, which introduces our horses, you can find it HERE .  But in order for this deck to have all 5 different horses in it, we have to get our mana base straight.  So starting with the lands from Part 1, I choose to have the following. I'm also making green a central color in the deck with at least two of each basic land.  Any dual lands we use will have green in them. This will allow us to play protection spells like Blossoming Defense and Heroic Intervention.  Since we're a creature strategy, I think we need to do what we can to keep our horses safe.  This is just an initial thought.  This may change as we build. In order for Spire of Industry to work, and to allow us some early game play options, I think we need to look at colorless spells first.  Since we have 1 colorless horse, I think it's safe to say that at least 3 Diamond Mare is a good idea (unless we figure out later that it's a bad ide

It has been a dream of mine to create a deck so overreaching...so incomprehensibly irresponsibly built...that it mocks sensibility and offends even the least practical MTG player.  And it is a dream of mine that the deck feature horses...and not just any horses...but horses of every color available. Without regret and in full possession of my faculties, I encourage you to walk this path with me... JOURNEY WITH ME TO THE LAIR OF THE 5 COLORED HORSES (6 if you count colorless). Today we begin consideration of how we will tackle the problem of making 5 color horses a reality. First let's introduce our horses. Of course we start with our Hour of Devastation lord of all horses, Crested Sunmare. I know what you're thinking...why not just make a green/white horse deck?  I agree, that would be sensible.  But I didn't sign up to tiptoe through easily trod paths.  NO! I'm here to play it dangerous.  And in the MTG world, it doesn't get any more d