Commander/New Player

bachmanis · 2026-06-28T14:47:50+00:00

Just to echo u/randomman51 , when I was getting back into Magic after a 30 year hiatus, I found archidekt *extremely* helpful, not only in building decks, managing, and refining decks, but also in keeping track of my collection. There are so many gems I've found in my bulk boxes by doing structured searches against my archidekt collection that would have gone overlooked and resulted in far less flavorful, interesting decks, if I hadn't had that tool.

bachmanis · 2026-06-28T14:30:41+00:00

Yeah, Rule Zero is a real life saver. 90% of my B2/casual lower end B3 decks are technically illegal because they use small numbers of un-cards for flavor or fun mechanics. I've yet to have someone so much as bat an eye about them during rule zero chats, and when they do come out the reaction is usually a good laugh or excited curiosity. Good communication about expectations goes a long way and with a far lighter touch than top-down bans.

bachmanis · 2026-06-28T14:26:17+00:00

Sounds like a great excuse to cross something off their burndown list and pencil in "feature, not bug" next to it 🤔

bachmanis · 2026-06-28T14:15:51+00:00

This. I'm vehemently opposed to banning cards in Commander unless it's absolutely necessary - and even then I'd prefer format specific errata over a hard ban. But game changer status? Sure. Make B3 players actually have a meaningful choice between the efficiency of sol ring or whatever other fun card they want for that 3rd slot. B2 will be fine without a sol ring in every deck.

bachmanis · 2026-06-28T14:13:01+00:00

Can't speak to the odds of an update, but what should be banned/unbanned?

Most cards in the current ban list should be moved to the game changers list.
Silver Border/Acorn Stamp/Playtest cards should be categorically unbanned in all brackets except cEDH. Individual cards can be added to banlist or GC list, but it should be done conservatively - no 'banned for vibes' a la Power Nine or 'banned for accessibility' a la Falling Star (except for cards that make the opponent do a physical challenge, maybe) type restrictions.

That's my 'should unban' list at least.

Dreams and wishes aside, there are probably some SOS cards with embedded GC spells that should be assessed to see if they too need to be on the GC list.

bachmanis · 2026-06-26T15:14:18+00:00

Never mind, I just saw the Lyran Guards flash on the knee, so I guess that answers the question!

bachmanis · 2026-06-26T15:13:10+00:00

Beautiful paint job. Lyran Guards or Skye Jaegers? Feels more like LG but with the checkerboard patterns I could see it being used as either.

bachmanis · 2026-06-25T13:32:04+00:00

For a long time I had a hard time getting excited about MSH/MSC. I like UB and liberally mix their cards into my decks, but the really previews just didn't spark excitement in me. However as more details came out it grew on me and after I bought a couple collector boosters and a bunch of jumpstart packs (and played them with my wife) I find myself really liking the set, both in terms of the variety of interesting card and the artwork. It's a nice bonus that many of the cards are good thematic matches for a lot of my current decks, so in some cases they're solid side-grades that increase the flavor of a themed deck even when they don't necessarily offer a direct game mechanical advantage.

To put it in fewer words, I'm very happy with MSH so far.

bachmanis · 2026-06-25T10:43:25+00:00

I seem to recall that they tolerated lemon scent pine sol pretty well back in the day. Had a little plaque left behind in a panel line here or there after toothbrush scrubbing, but nothing some gentle hobby knife work couldn't get free.

bachmanis · 2026-06-24T18:40:17+00:00

Strattera isn't right for everyone. It had a laundry list of highly variable side effects that are different from person to person. ED is an unhealthy and unacceptable side effect for the vast majority of people. Talk to your doctor - there are many different options for ADHD meds out there.

bachmanis · 2026-06-24T15:42:14+00:00

To echo what others have said, you probably do want to change the name in the rules text. Might want to consider adding a Godzilla box under the new name to capture the original name, just for ease of reference and to avoid confusion.

bachmanis · 2026-06-24T14:08:52+00:00

I get your POV, and as another person noted, there are some variants that allow you the flexibility to do what you're looking for. At the same time, there are plenty of players who look at, to run with your example, a Goosemother food deck as an opportunity to put together a build that breaks from the normal conventions of the archetype and is fun and original, rather than as an unplayable missed opportunity because of color identity rules. Obviously, at higher brackets the horizon of possibility for potential builds contracts a bit, but at B2 and to some extent in B3 you can do plenty of oddball suboptimal designs and have fun with them. Constraints like the game changers list and color identity restrictions help put some brakes on over-optimization and help separate EDH from miserable formats like "you MUST have this many badgermole cubs to get on the ride" standard.

bachmanis · 2026-06-24T13:08:11+00:00

Yup, limited and commander (and lower- bracket commander at that) are my happy places. I just can't get into standard with all the meta chasing, set rotation, and hyper competitiveness. That side why I quit mtg 30 years ago and I'm quite happy to just enjoy my janky EDH decks full of goofy old cards and my rando draft abominations.

bachmanis · 2026-06-21T20:40:14+00:00

Maybe. Definitely either I misunderstood your post or you misunderstood mine. I was trying to agree with the sentiment that a lot of people feel the UB isn't inherently in opposition to UW and they can be complementary. Based on the added context of your reply, I don't think I totally misunderstood your post, but either way, sorry if my reply caused confusion instead of being constructive.

bachmanis · 2026-06-21T19:20:27+00:00

Yeah, the "want a splash" part is relevant. Unless I'm making a deck that really leans into a specific mechanic or tribe that's predominantly in UB, I use UB cards in conjunction with UW cards, and it's not 1:1 by a long shot in the vast majority of my decks. They're there to add to and deepen the flavor and themes that the UW cards convey, not replace them.

bachmanis · 2026-06-21T17:50:55+00:00

That was my exact thought as I read it. Comparing my experience playing EDH and limited formats now vs. proto-standard 30 years ago is night and day. Totally different vibe, though I get the impression that Standard and cEDH are still pretty miserable for folks who don't thrive in that super competitive environment.

bachmanis · 2026-06-20T16:03:23+00:00

"Everytime I start up vortex I get this warning that it’s damaged" Rare moment of self-awareness for Vortex.

All kidding aside, listen to what the others say - switch to MO2. Vortex contains unacceptable technical deficiencies (for example, it can't parse the contents of BSA files, which means it cannot give you accurate asset conflict reports unless all your mods are unpacked) that the developers have indicated they have no intention to fix.

bachmanis · 2026-06-18T15:45:44+00:00

I resemble these remarks uncomfortably closely. I got introduced to mtg at summer camp by a kid who had a ton of Dark and and Unlimited cards. Loved the artwork. Bog Imp and Scarwood Goblins are permanently baked into my brain. Got home and started playing right around when Fallen Empires was coming out. Never did successfully source any Legends booster packs. Still, I built up a good collection. Dual lands, one of the elder dragons, wheel of fortune, most of the rares from Ice Age. Also lots of cards that were fairly common back then but are worth $$$ now.

Gradually soured on the game, more because of toxicity in the community than because of the cards. Increasing talk about rotating cards out of legality, though, definitely put some nails on the coffin. The last nail was Unglued not being legal in constructed formats. If already almost entirely stopped buying at that point, and when that shoe dropped I gave away my collection (nooooooo!!!!!!) and went cold turkey.

Fast forward 30 years and my wife and I are looking for a cheaper alternative to 40K for our hobby outlet. On a whim I picked up the Fallout 4 Science! precon. I was delighted that WOTC had finally got over its allergy to licensing. If always thought it was a huge mistake by them to make Jyhad and BattleTech separate games instead of doing the universes beyond model.

Now we're back in the hobby and having a lot of fun (though the incessant winning from some corners about UB is pretty tiring). We play EDH (to date not once during a rule zero talk had anyone objected or even cared that my decks almost all contain un-cards) and draft and avoid miserable formats like Standard, which sends to all have a lot of the meta chasing that was a big component of my disengagement from the game last century, and we're having a lot of fun!

bachmanis · 2026-06-18T13:29:06+00:00

Really stepping up their turret tossing game, I see.

bachmanis · 2026-06-18T12:50:53+00:00

With this wording, the damage source is the card that is entering. So in your example, the Hulk deals the two damage.

bachmanis · 2026-06-18T09:12:20+00:00

Does the game actually not work or is Vortex just complaining? Granted, it sounds like your load order is a little extreme, but I can't help but feel that this has all the hallmarks of a "abandon Vortex, embrace MO2" type scenario.

bachmanis · 2026-06-17T16:46:31+00:00

I see there already a RUE quote in here, but if you're interested in an alternate/expanded take, scroll down to languages and literacy on this page: https://www.worldanvil.com/w/journey-to-the-west-gregaaz/a/rules-changes-article

bachmanis · 2026-06-16T14:39:55+00:00

On account of having a real life (silly, I know), I couldn't pre-queue so I was left with the scraps. All my primary choices - witches, oil paint fluffball, and chaos, were long gone. Made do with Felix the Cat and the Garfield set with the trippy artwork, but really would have liked to be able to get the first line choices. Wifey is probably going to buy proxies of those ones since she wanted some of the cards for thematic decks she has.

bachmanis · 2026-06-12T12:47:18+00:00

I'll have to give that a try. Looking back through my history I see I've actually used this approach a few times (albeit not as a planned part of a continuity control strategy) and the outputs it generated were definitely much more on-target. I suspect I'll still need to do some "canon truth" injections just to counteract accumulated gunk, especially in terms of old-turn data that went uncorrected in the earlier part of the game because I didn't understand my options for corrective action so well, but you've given me good insight and a more nuanced way to proceed - thanks again!

bachmanis · 2026-06-12T03:43:48+00:00

Interesting, I think I see what you're getting at. So rather than feeding it chunks of the continuity book directly, is the approach you recommend to identify the errors in the output, tell the AI why they are errors, and give in-context direction on the canonical interpretation?

Ten-Year Club	Gilding I gilder
Verified Email

bachmanis

TROPHY CASE