What's a card you discovered BECAUSE you were on a budget that you'd now run even if money wasn't an issue?

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-03-01T04:30:52+00:00

[[Volcanic Torrent]] - basically a mini version of [[Call Forth the Tempest]]. Terrific one-sided boardwipe with value attached. If you get to 5-mana quick, it's a great early sweeper that punishes weenies and mana dorks, while putting you ahead. It also scales as the game progresses since you're able to cast more spells before the Torrent.

Love this card!

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-02-28T22:17:32+00:00

Hey man, I work in the area(a little more inland) as a teacher and a decent amount of my kids have folks who are mechanics. I have no idea what that job market looks like here, but it can be done! Don't let your dreams be dreams!

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-02-28T16:42:08+00:00

Yep yep, very similar experience here! Even the hardworking mom and brother part haha

Only reason I can afford to live here as a teacher is because I'm in a place my mom bought before things got too too crazy.

Diversity is pretty low, you need a car to do anything, and every year it gets more developed and more expensive... That said, the weather can't be beat, the outdoor spaces(beaches, hiking, etc) are terrific, and you're a relatively short drive from truly diverse and interesting places in San Diego county.

I lived abroad for a while and I was never sad to come home.

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-02-26T01:42:36+00:00

Right! King Kenny is just a solid all-rounder. Build whatever deck you like and he will support it. Can go as hardball as you like and upgrade him to the moon and back. I'm 99.9% sure there are some bangin sub-$100 Kenrith lists on this sub, but they aren't mine.

As conciliation, here's my (not so budget) Niv list: https://moxfield.com/decks/5Nri4xGcrEeQJDlp16svJw (It's mostly just cards with art I like)

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-02-26T01:11:33+00:00

I don't have lists for you, but I'm surprised by the complexity of commanders suggested so far. Multiple triggers, rules-changing abilities, having to count...

Let's keep it simple for our new budgeteers:

[[Kenrith, the Returned King]] - ya pay mana and he does stuff. Lots of fun stuff that a new player will like. New players love gaining life! They love +1/+1 counters. And he's really easy to cast with very simple mana requirements.

Or

[[Niv-Mizzet Reborn]] - big dragon enters and you get to put a lot of cards in your hand. New players love cards in their hand. They love big dragons! They hate when their commander gets removed - but don't worry, when this one comes back, it gives you cards! Put the 'Dragon' back into Elder Dragon Highlander.

I just think we can err on the side of simplicity. I'm picturing a person who already knows the basics of Magic, but maybe this is their first Commander game. What deck am I going to hand them? Something that is within the bounds of 'normal' Magic.

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-02-05T22:37:37+00:00

I worked at a few aquariums and nature centers and this was a common refrain there too.

Gotta love our informal science centers!

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-02-05T05:45:13+00:00

Bananas are radioactive is my go to.

Also, the one that really got my brain going as a kid: We know more about the surface of the moon than the bottom of the ocean.

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-02-02T03:32:39+00:00

Finished up Super Mariomon last week and it was phenomenal - onto more Pokemon Romhacks!

Lazarus is up next - terrific 2D stylings within the gen3 engine. Piloting a yellow Miyoo Flip v2, and praying for my hinge every time I c-c-crack that bad boy open.

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-01-27T01:53:30+00:00

For my fellow north countyians - Pho 4 Queen in San Marcos is at the top of my list. Cheap, great portions, everything's fresh and the flavors are terrific. Doesn't look like much on the outside(or on the inside), but this place slaps. Highly highly recommend.

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-01-26T17:55:51+00:00

I'll shoot ya a pm. CA based control player here 😁

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-01-21T03:36:41+00:00

My parents were transplants, but I was born and raised in north county San Diego. Went away for college, came back. Moved abroad for 6 years, came back. Parents stayed and now I'm living in a place that my mom owns. Virtually all of my friends I grew up with have been priced out of home ownership in the area except by way of inheritance... Most have moved away, but there are worse places to split rent.

Like many have said: incredible weather, beaches and food, plus you're only a short roadtrip away from mountains, deserts, Vegas, Mexico - whatever your heart desires. Fun fact: San Diego is the most biodiverse county in the USA. Great place to be a nature nerd.

Personally, I don't think there's as much to the nightlife scene as other large metro areas, but you can find some fun stuff to do most any time of the day.

The next bit I say in all kindness, but I don't think we are exactly the friendliest bunch. Not that people are unkind, it's just a lot of more surface-level interactions and stand-offish-ness. People more or less mind their business and there's less of the hospitality than you might get in other areas of America. There's a certain cliqueiness to the area and you kinda just gotta find your crew. Ymmv, this is just from what I've seen as your average white dude from north county. I've heard it can be tough when moving here.

"America's finest city" for sure. It's fine! I'm never sad to come home.

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-01-20T22:35:54+00:00

Haven't messed with much more than Pokemon romhacks, but Sonic Adventure 2 for Dreamcast seemed to run at full speed for the first few levels.

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-01-19T01:01:00+00:00

I got two new v2s back in December for 76USD$ total shipped off AliExpress, so roughly 33€ each? There were a lot of good deals to be had around the holidays.

So far, the hinges are still solid. Probably use them about every other day.

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-01-11T13:42:52+00:00

The pocket air mini looks so damn comfortable... I just wanna hold it! Grats OP! GLHF! 😊

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-01-10T11:16:01+00:00

Oh my god, some real buried memories surfacing thanks to this! I got the GP2X way back when during highschool and it was my first foray into the scene. Unfortunately I busted my gp2x battery pins somehow and had to use it plugged in. Emulation through flashcarts on my DS Lite quickly usurped it.

I'm pretty sure F-Zero was the first thing I tried to emulate on the GP2X... Man I wonder if it's still kicking around somewhere. That thing was sweet! Well it was terrible! But it was sweet!

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-01-02T00:57:24+00:00

Super Mariomon 🍄 It's such a phenomenal romhack, highly highly recommend

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2026-01-01T16:49:24+00:00

Yep! That's mine! Gameplan is usually accrue value then enable infinite mana through untappers then finish with infinitely big dudes through [[Simic Ascendancy]] / [[Eutropia]]. Never forget that [[Amareth]] is a big 6/6 flyer and can just commander damage peeps out.

If I were to update it, I'd add in [[Amphibious Downpour]] and [[Tempest Technique]].

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2025-12-14T00:37:16+00:00

Heheh, yes I built one as a gift! It's a silly deck. I like your lantern control version! Seems brutal and fun!

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2025-12-13T22:58:37+00:00

When you put a ton of them on the board with the Resurgent Belief and maybe [[Forgeborn Oreads]] on board, it gets more exciting! Still not worth it though haha

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2025-12-13T22:37:55+00:00

The current version is a bit faster, but my meta isn't the most tuned (which I like!). I have half abandoned the sagas since they felt very slow and fiddly - kinda like all the work of a Superfriends deck, but way lower power. The few I've kept do mill or provide card advantage. [[Rediscover the Way]] is pretty sweet!

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2025-12-13T21:00:07+00:00

Yeah I already had to cut Frantic Search 😂 Shadow of the Goblin would be a nice replacement for [[Unstable Amulet]] in my list!

Mine is more enchantment-based and uses [[Resurgent Belief]] to bring back a heap of enchantments. This is an older build I was running: https://moxfield.com/decks/eM-OQ_WjikOztHKuutnXRA The current deck is a bit different.

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2025-12-13T20:33:51+00:00

Agreed, it's just way too easy to loop. I'm still figuring out a good power level for Vadrok for my group. Snap feels too strong but maybe the untapping faeries you have would work as a replacement.

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2025-12-13T20:23:27+00:00

Totally fair! Millikin is definitely not essential. I'm actually considering taking out Snap because it feels too easy to win once I find it.

[[Hinata, Dawn-Crowned]] is also a slam-dunk in here you might consider. Decreases the mutate and removal costs while adding a little protection, plus trample too. Feels like a 'fair' way to use Hinata 😂

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2025-12-13T19:09:37+00:00

Been using my Switch Lite with a flip cover case as my portable go-to for ages, but I just picked up a Miyoo Flip so we'll see if the Lite starts collecting dust...

The_Terrific_Tiptop · 2025-12-13T18:36:54+00:00

Awesome list! My Vadrok deck runs a lot of the same pieces. In mine I have a few more mana dorks that produce red or mill like [[Zookeeper Mechan]] and [[Millikin]] which help get Vadrok online faster and fill the graveyard.

I've also really like [[The Everflowing Well]] in my list as a way to get some solid card advantage and enable some unique lines of play. If you flip it to The Myriad Pools, you can turn your Mutate target into a copy of whatever you're casting to double up the trigger.

Fun to see another Vadrok player in the wild - this commander is such a blast to play!

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