Subject: article (2 of 3) Date: Mon, 13 Jul 1998 09:00:19 -0600 From: "Bob Bailey" To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com [NEWS/MISCELANEOUS] Player Profile and Cheating in M:tG Well, Long did it again. Yep, he cheated. And he cheated badly. His penalty? Anyone? There's the problem. Mike Long Balance-Tutors and nothing happens to him. What if he were a high stakes poker player or even worse, a poker dealer? DQ, loss of job. Hell, there might even be legal repercussions. But in the *game* of Magic, cheating has become just as popular as a Tickle Me Elmo doll. Why? There is nothing to go wrong. No repercussions, no DQ, no fine, no loss of license (DCI #/Membership), so why not? In fact, Brian Hacker said clearly and plainly that he is going to cheat just because he can. Brian could be playing Sligh, drop his hand and decide he wants a Cursed Scroll in play, search his deck and drop it down. No judge would penalize him because he is a big name player. (Although I'm not sure if Brian's promise is more of a threat to WotC and the DCI.) If Magic is supposed to be an intellectual *sport* and if people want it to be treated like one, they should learn that winning and losing are just part of the sport. True Magic players treat a win just like a loss, handshake, congratulations, and good luck. Unless, of course, your opponent is a general dick about everything. Now granted all sports/games are competitive and people will try their hardest to win, they shouldn't cross the line between playing the game and being a dick. One of my opponents in a recent local tournament (names withheld to protect the guilty) insisted that I had untapped an Undiscovered Paradise when I had just straightened it and played another land. He got real mad and forced me to tap it or he would call the judge. Not wanting to make an ass of myself or glorify my pathetic opponent, I used the mana to Shock him. The look on his face was classic: it was the "even cheating can't win me this game" look. Now that I was a little pissy, I proceeded to serve him some serious beatings in that game and the next one. I did not act in my usual friendly manner and afterwards I thought about how much more fun it would have been if my opponent had accepted the truth and been sportsmanlike. Great friends would be made if it weren't for people who cheat, act like a dick, or hold a grudge when they lose. In the same local tournament, one of my teammates went 3-0 to make Top 4. His last round opponent threw a fit because, in his opinion, "He was the better player, the only reason he lost was because my friend drew three Man-'o-Wars, and his deck should beat my friend's." Big deal, you lost a round in a local tournament with a whopping prize of eight packs. So what, you spent two bucks and didn't make top four; neither did I, but I still enjoyed myself and learned a great deal about my deck and made a few friends. Maybe I'll get lucky next week, maybe not... but that's not what matters. This is the big reason for my dislike of playing with people in tournaments. The casual fun is gone, the game becomes much too stressful, and the atmosphere sours. (Which is why almost all of my play-testing and information sharing is among my team.) So if Magic is going to be the great game that it can, people are going to have to have fun at it. Random people off the street can be given every Magic card and be given a simple, straightforward deck and win over and over with it, just like Mike Long does. Why? Because Magic can be extremely simple at its roots and beginners can win tournaments. (Example: One of my Team Goats members, Mike Byhoff, placed second in his first tournament, the Texas Semi-Pro Qualifiers, losing only to Mike Cavey [3rd ranked Type II player in the world]. He had only been playing for a few months, but he knew what he was doing and he won consistently, only giving in to Cavey because he couldn't attend the Semi-Pro anyway. That's one helluva story.) So if Mike Long, who has one of the most decorated records of any pro-tour player, can't accept the fact that he might lose a round (esp. when he is 11-0) and is forced to cheat, he should have his ass disqualified, his DCI points taken away, and be banned from the sport of Magic. He disgraces the game as poorly as it can be disgraced. If the lure of money and fame is all that attracts players to the high-level competition of the pro-tour, then maybe it shouldn't exist because all it attracts is cheating. If the DCI or WotC would step up its anti-cheating policy and punt players like Mike Long to set an example, then maybe we could all enjoy ourselves a little more. The competition is the fun part, not the prizes and recognition. The only reason that I attend tournaments is to see how good I really am and how strong my decks really are. Of course I would enjoy winning lots of tournaments, (the reward for good play and a great deck) I see no point in cheating just for the prize because in my eye, and the eye of any and every respectable Magic player, winning is its own reward. The knowledge that your deck was triumphant over all others is a greater high than that of winning a few packs or a seat at Worlds. If Magic is to become as popular of a sport as lacrosse (which isn't all that popular, albeit), players will have to abide by the rules and enjoy themselves. Sure if you make a bad play or don't draw the right card, get upset. It sucks. What not to do is cast a Natural Balance and put your Cadaverous Bloom in your lap. Long's excuse isn't much better... "Well, you see, um, I was shuffling, yeah, shuffling, and, um... it just fell into my lap here right next to my chocolate chip cookie and I didn't notice. Yeah, that's it." Do you know how hard it is to shuffle your deck and flip a card, face up, facing you onto your lap and not notice? About as hard as it is to stuff 50 jumbo sized marsh-mellows into your mouth. And the saddest thing, Long was a shoe-in for Top 8 and probably top seed anyway. Have faith in your deck and you will succeed. Mike Long needs to make an official apology for his behavior. He should accept whatever penalty (removal from national team, loss of DCI points, banning from pro tour) in stride because he, along with other cheaters deserves it. Professional baseball players (Roberto Alomar for example) spit in an umpire's face, and MLB suspended him. If Dennis Rodman kicks a camera man, he can say whatever he wants, but he gets suspended, so why don't M:tG players? If you can't take the heat, get out of the fire. Thanks for listening, Robert Bailey Team Goats DCI 759311 Advocate for punting cheaters.