Subject: Magic is an easy game to play Date: Sun, 28 Jun 1998 03:04:06 -0500 From: Patrick Smith To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com First, as this is my first Dojo posting, I would like to say thank you Mr. Kusumoto for your contribution to Magic. I, and countless others no doubt, are better players and get more from the game because of your efforts. Now, on to a "senior" Magic player's thoughts on Magic and the state of the game in general. I remember my first tournament. I had been playing 2 weeks or so, having been turned on to the game by a fellow law student at the University of South Dakota. Legends had just hit the shelves (my friend still has the unopened box of Legends he bought at this event). The tournament was in Sioux City Iowa, and the buzz was someone named Dolan, whose name I did not then recognize, was going to be in attendance (I do not know if he was even there, as our paths never crossed). I got my first taste of "fun" vs. "tournament" level magic. I was playing a 5 color 80+ card deck full of Sengir Vampires, Serras, et., and actually winning, when I suddenly got smoked by a typical type 1 (although there was not "type 1" then) deck, full of power cards, and totally not "fun" (well for me anyway). Now, a few years later (5 or so) I am a successfully attorney and father of 4, my fellow law student who started me down the Magic path is now my partner, and we pass the time in our office (much to our staff's chagrine) playing Magic. But enough background (mostly I was just establishing that I am old (32), been playing a long time, and am not stupid, although I cannot say for sure I have established the latter :)) It has been a fun ride from those early days to the development of the game we play today. I believe Magic has improved greatly, and new sets are clearly more thought out (we will never again see a card like the Black Lotus), well balanced, and require more skill to master. That said, I am nonetheless compelled to comment that . . . MAGIC IS AN EASY GAME TO PLAY I believe that anyone who has a disciplined mind, takes the time to know the rules, and familiarizes himself with the metagame, will do well over the long haul. My own actual sanctioned tournament experience is too small to be a good example, I have thus far done average in PTQs (but have only played in 2), but I have been playing a long time, am well-respected in my circle of players, and I did win the last sanctioned event I played in. Also, I have played with, discussed with, and read about (all thanks to the internet) some of the best players in the world, all aiding me in reaching this conclusion. So why say this? Why risk insulting all of those players who feel ________ (fill in with whatever fits, superior, smarter, special, cuter, et.) because they are good at Magic? (which is not my intent). Because, after reading the Dojo nearly "cover to cover" for nearly a year now, I think a little reminder like this is in order. MAGIC IS AN EASY GAME TO PLAY Magic is not chess. You will NEVER hear about a Master at chess (or whatever they call themselves) complaining that he showed up at a professional event and was beaten by a "chumley" who did the most ridiculous thing with his rook (or whatever). Do ridiculous things in chess and you get beat. Every time. "Scrubs" do not occasionally win professional-level chess tournaments. MAGIC IS AN EASY GAME TO PLAY You will never hear about a person in a professional Bridge tournament talking trash to gain an advantage, and cheating is unthinkable. MAGIC IS AN EASY GAME TO PLAY I can go out and practice my golf swing (or chess game for that matter) 8 hours a day for the next 2 years and I still will never achieve the level of a Tiger Woods (or a Deep Blue), and could never hope to tee up with him on the Pro Tour. If anyone dedicates that kind of time to Magic, and they possess an average level of discipline and intelligence, they will get to play in a Pro Tour event, if for no other reason than they keep playing in PTQs until they win an invitation. *NOTE* This is not an "I have a life" excuse, and I am not debating the validity of that statement, I am simply pointing out that excellence in Magic is more easily attained with time, and by a greater percentage of participants, in my opinion, than with most other areas to which Magic is sometimes compared. MAGIC IS AN EASY GAME TO PLAY Professionals in other areas do not establish superiority by beating up on "newbies" in their fields to obtain "rankings" or other forms of recognition. They compete EXCLUSIVELY with the best in their areas. Mark Maguire gets nothing, except some well-deserved "oohs" and "aahs", for hitting homers in batting practice. Those recognized as great Magic players readily have the opportunity to beat less experienced players for prizes and increased rankings. MAGIC IS AN EASY GAME TO PLAY But not easy to get recognized in, which promotes the false idea that the Pro Tour players are so much better than the rest of us. Lack of opportunity to play in sanctioned events, and the entire manner in which the Pro Tour is stocked, makes it difficult for many very good players, players good enough to be there, to play the Pro Tour. Alex Schwartzman (whom I have befriended via the internet and IMHO is the best deck builder and player in Magic who did not play in Los Angeles) comes to mind, and to a lesser degree players like me. And he at least had quite a few PTQ opportunities. I had two I could get to. Most midwest players are similarly situated. Now if everyone had to qualify via PTQs for example and there were alot more of them (just an example and NOT necessarily a good idea) I would venture a guess that we would see almost all new faces on the Pro Tour every event, as when you examine the list of the players who did qualify via the PTQs the variety of faces is evident. Lots of new guys everytime. You don't see that many rookies in baseball. Or golf. Or (I am guessing) chess. In other professional level arenas the best almosted assuredly are recognized as such. The best athletes in the world play professional sports. Anyone good enough to play with them gets that opportunity (for the most part, obviously not applicable to EVERY situation). The rest of us watch. Not so in Magic. In Magic there is a core of Pro Tour players, and then there are those on the Pro Tour who are very good solid players who either got luckly when presented with their rare opportunity to qualify or had the time and funds and just kept trying until they caught up with the odds and finally won, as most good players will eventually win a tournament, if they play in enough, because the talent level among the MANY VERY GOOD players out there is pretty even. So like I said . . . MAGIC IS AN EASY GAME TO PLAY If Magic were so hard, we would see the same 300 hundred or so, give or take 20, players in the Pro Tour events every time. We don't. Beyond the core of invited players a whole lot of different players each year get to play in a Pro Tour event. That is because there are alot more really good and evenly talented players out there then there are invitations to a Pro Tour event, so they keep replacing each other, and that is because . . . MAGIC IS AN EASY GAME TO PLAY CAVEAT: Most all of what I said applies to playing. Deck building is a very different skill. Those of us not blessed with THAT skill, or the time to truly develop it by learning what works through study and testing with quality opponents, have to Dojo. I know that I would not have won the last sanctioned tournament I played in were it not for the Dojo. Thanks again.