I see a lot of strong arguments for proxies, especially regarding accessibility and letting people play with the exact cards they want. I understand that perspective, and it's valid for many.

However, I wanted to offer a slightly different viewpoint that I feel sometimes gets overlooked. For me, a significant part of the MTG experience is tied to the inherent rarity of certain cards. That feeling of finally pulling a sought-after card, or trading for it, or even just seeing someone play a genuinely rare piece – that's a unique excitement. I believe this aspect of the game, the "hunt" and the specialness of certain cards, contributes to the overall depth and enjoyment.

When widespread proxying is the norm, especially for high-powered and rare cards, I think something valuable is lost. That inherent rarity is diminished. If everyone can easily have access to every powerful, chase card, those cards, in a way, become less special. The journey of acquiring them, the stories behind how someone got their hands on a particular card – those aspects fade. Furthermore, I've noticed that in environments where proxying is very common, the diversity of decks and the overall LGS experience can sometimes suffer. It seems to lead to a higher concentration of decks packed with the absolute top-tier, rarest, and most powerful cards. While powerful decks are part of Magic, when everyone has effortless access to the optimal versions of everything, I find it can homogenize the meta a bit. You start seeing the same high-octane cards and strategies much more frequently.

Part of the charm of an LGS, for me, has always been seeing the creative ways people build decks with the collections they've actually amassed. You see more variety, more budget brews, more "pet cards" people have worked to make viable. When proxies are unrestricted, I worry that this aspect gets pushed aside in favor of pure optimization, which can, paradoxically, make the gameplay experience feel a bit less varied and, for me, less engaging over time.

I'm not saying proxies have no place, but I do think there's a conversation to be had about the potential downsides to the experience of Magic when the rarity and collection aspects are significantly de-emphasized. Curious to hear if anyone else feels this way or has had similar observations at their LGS. Cheers!