Subject: Extended where is the support?
Date: Tue, 22 Sep 1998 18:30:59 -0400
From: Stephen Williams 
To: webmaster@classicdojo.org

Dear Dojo Readers:

Extended is a great format that often goes unnoticed or unsupported. It was a format that DCI came up with sometime ago; to span the gap for the older players who started around revised, and have been playing since. It is a shame that WOTC has shown little support for this format since its inception. There was one round of PTQs that were based on the extended format, and for the most part they were great. Banning Land Tax made a world of difference, and has really made extended quite a versatile format to play in since. There were the North American Extended Championships in New Jersey, but the turnout was very small. IMHO.
I often wonder why players generally turn their noses up at the Extended environment. I hear a lot of them complaining about not having the dual lands, and how they are too expensive, yet I see these same players plunk down dollar after dollar on the hottest new card in the Standard environment. I have found dual lands at many shops for eight dollars or less, which is very reasonable. Dual lands are not always the issue, because I have seen and built many Extended decks without them, which function just as well. The greatest asset that extended has, is that it has the broadest card base aside from Type 1(classic). I hear a lot of complaints about Rock/Paper/Scissors these days, and people complain about the same old deck types.
It only takes a little imagination, and a tiny amount of guts to play a deck that is original. For the month or so I was playing an extended deck with among other crazy cards Varchild’s War Riders. Every person I played laughed when War Riders hit the table. A common response was “Whaaaat!… are you serious?” A turn or so later, when unstable mutation went on them, the laughter grew. It was really amazing how fast the laughter subsided when the beatings began. Well the deck went undefeated on 3 different occasions. This really matters not, what is important is it was done with cards that are not among the “in crowd,” of cards, if there is such a thing. Everyone one knows the cards I’m talking about. Cursed scroll, tradewind riders, and mox diamonds are just a few those cards. Maybe it’s a statement on the general lack of creativity I see in magic these days.
This article has some bearing, or should, on many players, who in a month from now are going to be asked to give up all their Visions, Mirage, and Weatherlight cards. Oh no! But not in extended where many of these cards will continue to flourish. It is up to the players, and if they want it, it will be supported. Honestly, I just shelled out cash on Weatherlight, at the beginning of this year, and I’m really not ready to give them up just yet, not that there were a lot of cards worth screaming over, but some of them are very strong. Players should take another look at Extended and really think about it, especially with all the cards they are getting ready to loose in the Standard environment. Flames and comments welcome.
Sincerely
Stephen Williams
SouluoS