Questions for Q&A episode
Added 2018-08-01 23:49:54 +0000 UTCHey All,
Luis is back this week and we are kicking things off with a Q&A episode! We love the questions you come up with and also the vibe of these shows, so let us have em! We want these to be Magic-related only for this one.
Thanks!
Marshall
Comments
Just listened to an old Jon Loucks ep called "Drafting Differently" where you and he went over a bunch of unsponsored limited formats. At the end he mentioned wanting to do a Gatherer Random Draft someday--I'm super curious to know if you or he ever did and how it went. Also it would be awesome to have a new ep on any wacky limited formats that have cropped up since episode 136, especially if Jon was available to swing by as a guest :)
james anderson
2018-08-07 20:52:58 +0000 UTCBroad question, what are some good heuristics around when to block or not?
Zack Schreiner
2018-08-03 02:15:09 +0000 UTCHey Marshall and Luis, thanks for continuing to produce top notch content. I've been listening for a couple of years now, even though I don't draft much. Part of the reason is that I can rarely get 8 MTG friends together for a draft. We've done a few 4-person drafts but the decks didn't feel right with only 4 players worth of packs. What are your favourite ways to get a better draft experience with only 4 players? Thanks again for all your hard work! <3
Fithäkk
2018-08-03 01:45:47 +0000 UTCPreboarding is illegal in any serious tournament (deck checks are a thing) and very poor sportsmanship at FNM, imo.
Alex Middeleer
2018-08-02 22:41:35 +0000 UTCHi Marshall and Luis, let's say I am at parity with my opponent and I play a colosal dreadmaw. My opponent has a bunch of vanilla 2/2s and a couple of other more valuable creatures that I cannot destroy right now. Let's further say that I know that my opponent has creature removal spells in their deck. Does it make sense to attack with the dreadmaw to get a 3 for 1? Or should I continue to build up my board and risk that they draw a removal spell?
Jörn Bethune
2018-08-02 21:25:28 +0000 UTCHi Marshall and Luis At GP Sacremento last weekend, I played in my first-ever Chaos draft. After a pick one Ant Queen, I then drafted every two- and three-drop in W/G, practically ignored the text boxes, and solely relied on the Vanilla Test. I ended up with a consistent curve-out deck built to turn creatures sideways and not much else. After going 2-0, 2-0, with a very strong deck and feeling good about my level of play, I approached my final round opponent who immediately asked "draw?", Meaning, did I want to split the prize pool. I answered "yes" without hesitation. But why? I wanted to play more Magic with this deck. I was headed for 3-0. Why did I agree to draw? What do you guys think about this Limited ritual and what is the etiquette when refusing to go along with it? It happens all the time and I think I'm afraid to look like a greedy jerk when all I really want to do is play another round of cards. Thanks for the show. You guys took a horrible drafter and turned him into someone who could win a Chaos draft at a GP. No small feat. Chad San Francisco, CA
Chad Shonk
2018-08-02 20:37:12 +0000 UTCHello Marshall and Luis! I often find myself building limited decks with either top-heavy curves, or aggro decks with a ton of 2 drops. I've struggled to find a good middle ground with enough 2 drops to get me into the midgame and then a balanced top-end to close out the game (its usually one or the other). After some introspection, I think my biggest confusion might be around visualizing the tempo of deck before I submit. When I'm constructing my sealed deck or drafting, its hard for me to visualize how this deck is going to operate when it comes to tempo. In the seats where I find myself taking all the 2 drops, I often don't feel like my deck is adequate at pushing through those final points of damage once an opponent's slower deck starts playing more powerful creatures. But in the higher curve decks I often find myself tempo-ed right out the game, which is what I was trying to do with the 2-drop deck! My question is: how do you think about and develop the tempo of your deck while you're in the constructing or drafting phase, and how does that translate to success in game? Thanks friends!
Daniel Gilford
2018-08-02 19:53:23 +0000 UTCHi Marshall and Luis! Love the show, it's been fantastic for improving my limited play! I have a couple of removal related questions. I find myself often drafting very removal heavy decks that don't always have the best creatures, how should I balance taking removal (especially more mediocre removal eg: Take Vengeance) with good or ok creatures? I'd love to see a deep dive episode on removal, especially how having removal of different speeds and costs effects the overall flow of the format. Thanks so much for everything you do!
Lilly
2018-08-02 17:56:16 +0000 UTCHi Marshall and Luis, thank you for continuing to have these Q&A sessions! I have a question in relation to one of life's most limited resources, time. I'm taking on a new path professionally, and I am reallocating the amount of time that goes into other areas of my life. This means the amount of time I spend on Magic will probably be limited to drafting at FNM. How can I maximize my time at FNM to hone in on my skills, and learn the new sets. I realize I am not going to get to a pro tour level of skills, but I want to keep learning and keep improving with the time I can devote to Magic. Thanks!
Erica Whiting
2018-08-02 17:22:55 +0000 UTCMagic has two primary resources: cards and life. Given that "lifegain only" cards like Chaplain's Blessing (W for a sorcery to gain 5 life) are rarely playable, I have wondered how much life giving up a card is, in the abstract, worth. If a card was printed as a sorcery that cost 0 and just said "Gain X Life" what would X have to be to make it something you would rate as a C/C+ card for play in normal, non-lifegain matters decks? Is X = 10? 15? More??
Dan Newland
2018-08-02 16:54:49 +0000 UTCHi Luis, good to have you back! Did you ever get a chance to the special edition of LR that included Ben and Huey? If so, do you feel there is anything else you can add to their comments about what distinguishes players who can’t stay on the PT from the truly great ones? Both Ben and Huey referenced you quite a bit as someone who belongs in that highest tier of player, so I was wondering if you had any thoughts to piggyback on what they had to say. Marshall, loved the episode and I can’t count the times I’ve listened to it. Thank you both.
Mark Arucan
2018-08-02 16:29:16 +0000 UTCHey guys, I’ve been playing draft for about a year now and love the format. I was wondering what the ediquette is for watching other matches when you finish your match early. I feel like there is an advantage finishing your match early so you can “spy” on your other opponents and understand how to preboard against their decks.
Peter Tran
2018-08-02 16:17:57 +0000 UTCHi guys! Thanks for all you do. I have the same question. LSV has been gone for a month + from the podcast. Channel Fireball hasn't been mentioned in the credits. What's the "state of the union" for LR?
Joel Prellwitz
2018-08-02 15:41:25 +0000 UTCHey Guys! LSV welcome back. Where were you?
Dana Billings
2018-08-02 15:05:41 +0000 UTCI know this is a small thing, but in paper draft how do you process through the pack? and why? On Crack-a-Pack, Marshal looks at all the cards in pack order [commons, uncommons, rare/mythic ...]. Is this the most efficient way to evaluate a pack or is there another? How do you have you cards sorted in Magic Online?
Alex Gaudet
2018-08-02 14:43:20 +0000 UTCI remember an old Tiny Edges video by PV where he made a pretty convincing argument that it’s safer to play first than trying to figure out the times when you should be drawing first. So, I’ve been playing with the heuristic, “play first unless there’s an overwhelmingly obvious reason to draw first.” However, the last couple sets have been really friendly to drawing first. So, how should I adjust my heuristic here?
Jake M Ott
2018-08-02 14:03:29 +0000 UTCHi Marshall and Luis, I've got a bit of a dated question. I was playing in a single elimination Rivals of Ixalan draft when pack one pick one my first opponent reveals a Profane Procession and takes it! Well that sucks. At this point should I change how I draft to beat this bomb, like main decking enchantment removal or hate drafting cards like legion lieutenant? In the same vein, how would a Nicol Bolas being revealed at the table affect your drafting decisions? By the way, my opponent ended up with the nuts vampire deck and swept the floor with me. It was a real pain in the neck
Glen
2018-08-02 14:02:35 +0000 UTCI have a question about mulligans. I often find myself in a situation where my opponent is on the play, we will draw our hands, I look at my hand and quickly decide it's on the fence and make the decision to keep it if they keep theirs and vice versa. My thought process being the value of being up an extra card negates the risk of the hand quality (if the risk is small enough). Am I rating the value of a single card too highly, or should I be trying to evaluate my hand in more of a bubble?
Mediocre Magic Man
2018-08-02 13:54:30 +0000 UTCHey guys, and welcome back Luis (I missed your next-level Marshall trolling). In a draft, I find I have a tendency to bias myself towards a deck I have had perform well in the past -- even if I am really having to force a much worse version of it. What sort of tactics can I use to help train myself to be more open to different deck selection based on what I see in the first pack? Is the answer just "play more" or are there more specific tools I could be honing here? Thanks to the both of you for continuing to be a part of my morning commute.
LeemHerndon
2018-08-02 13:20:51 +0000 UTCMy favorite color pair in M19 is UB; especially when I get Psychic Corrosion and Patient Rebuilding. I usually see lots of success in game 1 and a lot of fall-off post board. Do you have any advice for maintaining success after they know I'm on the mill plan?
Dan Marsh
2018-08-02 11:36:35 +0000 UTCHi guys and welcome back Luis. Do you have any techniques or tricks for remembering triggers. For example the archer that pings when something dies or a thorn leuitenant making an elf.
Tim Boura
2018-08-02 06:37:34 +0000 UTCNow that we are 3 weeks or so into the format, what are your overall impressions of M19? Are you enjoying it and finding interesting things to do, or do you find it a little dull being a core set? I've been enjoying it (partly because I've been winning a lot) but I've heard others say they don't like it much (though to be fair, Dominaria is a tough act to follow). Thanks!
mugenkokoro
2018-08-02 05:26:30 +0000 UTCIt's probably safe to say you guys are both looking for value when you draft a new format - how do you avoid a myopic focus on 2 for 1s and ensure you see the jankful aggro decks like the R/W M19 deck where falcon and motivator are both amazing?
Drew Miller
2018-08-02 04:37:45 +0000 UTCHi Luis and Marshall, long time listener and first time patron! First of all, thank you! I've spent a ton of time this season grinding GPs, and made my first day two in Sacramento largely due to the tips and tricks I picked up on LR. My wife has become more interested in traveling to these events with me, but she doesn't play a lot of Magic herself. Do you have any GP advice for the partners of MTG players that want to support their hobby, but don't play the game themselves?
Christopher Dunne
2018-08-02 03:47:18 +0000 UTCHi Louis and Marshall, I’ve really enjoyed your show over the years and appreciate the hard work and professionalism you bring to the community. Anyhow, I’ve got a genius or grifter for you: tapping and untapping an attacker, but then ultimately attacking in modo when you know your opponent can double block to trade 1-for-1, but you’ve got the combat trick to blow them out.
Colin Tribble
2018-08-02 03:11:03 +0000 UTCThis is one for Luis: from your Twitter and Twitch content it seems like you are becoming more of a collector (particularly of ABU stuff) that you used to be. Is this accurate? Are you enjoying this side of MtG? And what are you currently looking to acquire, if anything? BTW, welcome back!
Tobias Sterling
2018-08-02 02:57:23 +0000 UTCWhat causes a color to be weak in a given limited format?
Jonah Lipton
2018-08-02 02:54:57 +0000 UTCwhat the fuck, Luis? Best/D
derek gallen
2018-08-02 02:37:35 +0000 UTCHey guys, and welcome back Luis! Do you have any advice for someone who is getting wrecked in M19? I found DOM to be far easier. I can’t get a read on this format, and have even lost confidence in reading draft signals, something that I normally don’t have an issue with. Thanks - Alex
Alex Middeleer
2018-08-02 02:34:51 +0000 UTCWhat’s the best way to quickly brush up on older formats or cubes? For example, if you want to play a flash back draft or one of the side events at a GP. It seems that limited basics only get you so far and you need to know the general archetypes and what to prioritize before jumping in, but you don’t want to spend a ton of time since you may only draft it once.
Q Dig
2018-08-02 02:10:51 +0000 UTCBasic keyword ability power rankings, in a vacuum Top 10?: flying, first strike, trample, deathtouch, hexproof, lifelink, haste, vigilance, flash, & indestructible?
Joseph Mayo
2018-08-02 01:58:09 +0000 UTCHey Marshall & Luis! Great to have you both back! I love limited and my goal is during every game to figure out what is the optimal play thus increasing my win percentage as a byproduct. I feel pretty good about this strategy when it comes to one on one limited matches, but when it comes to multiplayer or casual games, it seems that a sub optimal play will serve me better in the long run (by not alienating my playgroup for instance). Should I just take any casual games with my playgroup super casual and just enjoy the game or is there any spike strategies to casual/multi player games?
Paul Vidal
2018-08-02 01:55:37 +0000 UTCWhat factors should you consider when choosing between playing a creature or using removal to slow down an opponent who is beating you down? I like establishing a board presence, but if they have removal you might end up taking even more damage.
Chris Farrell
2018-08-02 01:51:17 +0000 UTCHey Marshall and Luis! I've been playing/drafting for about 1.5 years now and I continue to improve largely thanks to the great content, so thanks so much!!! I try my best to be a drafter that stays open and moves in on open strategies. When a set starts to iron out which color combinations are a bit stronger than others how do you best evaluate when you have to go into a strategy that stronger players wouldn't normally want to go in to, but recognize that might be wide open and get more EV out of going down that route for a particular draft?
Chris Belisle
2018-08-02 01:40:36 +0000 UTCTaco power rankings
Paul Hodgson
2018-08-02 01:40:23 +0000 UTCAny tips for drafting on Magic Arena? I like the speed and convenience, but I have a hard time figuring out what is open. it feels like the bot is just picking off a pick order list without regard to building a good deck - like I never get anything “late” so to speak. Am I imagining things? Thanks for any advice.
Jonathan Montgomery
2018-08-02 01:28:40 +0000 UTCHere's a bit of a hypothetical one: What do you think players back in the olden days before drafting was really an established format would've done with modern draft formats like Dominaria or the new M19? As in, what do you think drafting the set would have looked like and how evaluations would have differed if Dominaria had followed say Fallen Empires or Invasion?
Juha Tuisku
2018-08-02 01:22:17 +0000 UTCFirst of all, welcome back Luis! I'm a relatively new listener to the podcast, i started listening with the dominaria set review. The show has helped me go from a total limited rookie, to just taking down my first pre release with m19, thanks! It seems to me that m19 is a much harder to draft set than dominaria was for me, I think partially due to the power lever of each set. Dominaria you could open a bomb at uncommon in pack 2 or later and run with. I dont think that's the case m19, but maybe that's just me. Do you think that power level between sets changes the difficulty of drafting? Dominaria also had better mana fixing.Is the fixing in any given set a factor in making a draft environment more or less difficult?
Tom Korop
2018-08-02 01:19:20 +0000 UTCMy question is about build-around cards. In an average game a player sees 14-17 cards in their deck. A bit more in slow formats and control decks. But that means I'm building my deck around a card I will only see in approximately every 2-3 games. Cards like Drake Haven in Ahmonkhet just made cycling better and so a cycling deck without still works, but others like Lich's Mastery from Dominaria require decks that really seem to need the card. But you won't always get it. How do you balance build-around cards with the fact that you will play many games without seeing the card?
John Johanson
2018-08-02 01:00:44 +0000 UTCCould you comment on the role played by the common dual lands in m19? How highly do you pick them? How, it at all, do they affect your game plan in draft?
Alden G. Harris
2018-08-02 00:59:25 +0000 UTCWhat, in your opinions, are some of the best packs for a chaos draft?
Andy Shadow Patron of the Arts and Lover of all things depressing Bentley
2018-08-02 00:26:12 +0000 UTCQuestion for both on poor strategic thinking in Magic: can you analogize your decision not to acknowledge any changes on your podcast to poor strategic thinking in the game?
Douglas MacLean
2018-08-02 00:19:55 +0000 UTCWhat are the key cards in the M19 Red-White deck? What cards are good but will wheel?
William McDuff
2018-08-02 00:16:02 +0000 UTCMy local shop's been doing some esoteric drafts lately(ex:m19-dom-ima). Any thoughts on what order to draft packs from different formats? Not looking for pick order, but are there strategies for choosing what pack to open first?
Mike Hundley
2018-08-02 00:12:23 +0000 UTCMarshall, you’ve often described yourself as a “nuts-and-bolts” Spike, which has led me to wonder what are the other kinds of Spike?
Andy Skinner
2018-08-02 00:10:17 +0000 UTCWhy is RW the "best" archetype, and how do you combat it (archetype and sideboarding wise)?
Raiderray
2018-08-01 23:59:11 +0000 UTCOur question is this: Can you help explain some of the basic mathematics that we need to know in order to be successful limited players? For example, in poker there is the rule of 2 and 4 that makes certain calculations pretty straightforward and provides rough estimates of outs in a given situation. Are there comparable shorthand numbers that we need to know for playing limited? What are the numbers you keep in mind when playing? Or is it simply a matter of counting up the number of cards left in your library and calculating percentages based on that? Is this a simple question, or could it be a whole show? Thanks again for the content and education, we really appreciate it.
Gar Culbert
2018-08-01 23:59:03 +0000 UTCHey guys! How do you envision your professional Magic life’s in 15-20 years? If you judge the question too personal : Do you think Magic has what it takes to go another 25 years ? Love the show! Very happy to have LSV back and I just hope it’s not the sign off we’re he jumps ship!
Guillaume P.
2018-08-01 23:58:27 +0000 UTCBack with Amonkhet there was some discussion of if Limited would be "better" if cycling was always in the format or even if all cards had cycling on them. Outside of cycling, is there a permanent change you'd want to make to all future Magic sets, be it as minor as a specific card in every set or something as major as always having a specific ability being a theme?
Logan Ferree
2018-08-01 23:57:21 +0000 UTCWant to open by thanking the LR crew for all the help. I'm relatively new to the game and have my 11 year old daughter to thank for exposing me to it. She got introduced to the game by a teacher at school, taught me the game, and starting with Ixalan (which was oddly a great set to start on I think) we have been hooked on playing limited. We both do relatively well, and can take down the occasional FNM draft. We attribute our relative success to LR.
Gar Culbert
2018-08-01 23:54:59 +0000 UTCHooray! Welcome back Luis. I know you've been helping Gaby with her version of the Vintage Cube -- what changes to it have you suggested to her and why? If many, fine with just the 2-3 main ones.
Kyle S
2018-08-01 23:54:43 +0000 UTCWhat are some of each of your favorite movies?
William Gross
2018-08-01 23:54:31 +0000 UTCRank the three cohosts who took over for LSV on his hiatus?
Hans Gougar
2018-08-01 23:54:04 +0000 UTCSooooo....what's new? Anything going on lately that you want to talk about?
Pete Hines
2018-08-01 23:53:18 +0000 UTCAre some sets better for bluffing combat tricks than others? Does the power of a set’s tricks dictate how often you should chump attack, or is it usually situational? Is M19 geared one way or the other?
Alexander Reichard
2018-08-01 23:53:14 +0000 UTC
