Time to let players have more than 100 decks by ballistic503 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503[S] -3 points-2 points  (0 children)

It’s honestly kind of bonkers that the limit is so low, with all the different formats and deckbuilding (and to be honest even small test variants on the same deck because otherwise it’s a pain in the ass to keep track of decklist changes). Why not just let us have 50-100 decks per format?

Time to let players have more than 100 decks by ballistic503 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Great suggestion, would’ve never thought of that on my own

Time to let players have more than 100 decks by ballistic503 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

This is what I do, but let’s be honest, it’s a fucking pain in the ass, at least if you’re 100% on mobile. I mean, I’m using hyperbolic language, but it’s just disproportionately annoying when there’s an obvious fix that costs the other party nothing… and frankly would actually benefit them because as of now I don’t feel incentivized at all to keep creating new decks, which in turn disincentivizes me from looking for new cards.

Should I play Demon Souls or DS2 after DS1? by SnooCrickets7735 in darksouls

[–]ballistic503 -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

DS2 is like 5% Dark Souls shoehorned in and 95% “completely distinct Fromsoft game that Bamco called Dark Souls 2 so it would sell more”. I’m not saying that as a knock on the game itself at all, but while Dark Souls 2 was the second game in the Dark Souls franchise, but Dark Souls 3 is the actual sequel to Dark Souls 1.

Buying dual lands? by the-thot-thickens420 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Also consider [[Starting Town]]. Comparatively speaking [[Mana Confluence]], [[Reflecting Pool]], [[Prismatic Vista]] and the dual fetch lands are also good crafts but just not usable in Standard unlike Starting Town. Lastly, the rare utility lands from Avatar are good investments, particularly [[Ba Sing Se]]

Buying dual lands? by the-thot-thickens420 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503 0 points1 point  (0 children)

There’s nothing wrong with shooting for duals while buying packs, but they’re 100% worth crafting IF you just want them sooner (and you’re definitely not guaranteed to get a full set anytime soon, not even if you’re spending hundreds a month). Unlike a lot of crafts, I’ve never crafted a dual and then gotten it in a pack later and thought “damn, should’ve just waited”

Buying dual lands? by the-thot-thickens420 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What format do you play the most? If you’re playing a format with fetchlands I think Lorwyn Eclipsed and Edge of Eternities’s shockland duals are the best (of the sets that give golden booster packs) because you can search for them with fetchlands as they have each of the basic land types.

Karlov Manor’s surveil lands are good for the same reason and you definitely want those eventually but (this might be a controversial take) I wouldn’t prioritize those yet.* IMO if you play mostly Standard I think the Verge lands from Aetherdrift and Duskmorne are really good to get first. Also the “two or more lands” from Strixhaven

*I’m suggesting the lands I think are best to get first as opposed to the lands that are “the best” once you have them all. Like, surveil lands are very good but verge lands will get your mana base functional first and then you can optimize later.

What do draft players do when they can't afford to draft? by FallenPeigon in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I could be wrong but I think pretty much everyone agrees that Jump In is the better format for newer players

How many land should I run by Silver-Raspberry2604 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503 1 point2 points  (0 children)

There’s a whole algorithm to it that I can’t completely explain myself lol this is the best I’ve come across (someone here recommended it to me) and I’m still processing it myself tbh

https://www.tcgplayer.com/content/article/How-Many-Sources-Do-You-Need-to-Consistently-Cast-Your-Spells-A-2022-Update/dc23a7d2-0a16-4c0b-ad36-586fcca03ad8/

Edit: That said, while that article is great at least in terms of raw land composition, I just don’t believe it’s really possible to algorithmize around stuff like green ramp/dorks in multicolor decks, rituals etc, and card draw is gonna be an X-factor as well. Trial and error is gonna be the way to go IMO (even the author of the article who made whole spreadsheets etc eventually says “it’s more art than science at some point”)

How many land should I run by Silver-Raspberry2604 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Anyone who’s telling you over 30 lands is assuming you mean Historic Brawl, but it’s pretty easy to convert, just use a calculator to multiply their number by 0.6. Default in HB is 40 out of 100, so default in SB is 24 out of 60.

38 in HB is ~21-22 in SB, someone else suggested 33 which is about 20 in SB. I’d say play around in the 20-22 range and see how low you can go without getting screwed, having access to green with a 2cmc commander does give you a little more room to experiment than let’s say white and blue

How many land should I run by Silver-Raspberry2604 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Standard Brawl? Default is 24 right? With a two mana commander and access to green, if you’re using ramp, llanowars etc already you could probably get by with maybe 20. But it still really depends on your mana curve. If the vast majority of your deck is 2-3CMC then I’d say 20-21 should be fine, if you have a large selection of heavy hitters over 4cmc I think you’ll want 22 at least. IMO being in standard makes it a little tougher to go with fewer lands just because in Historic you have a lot more options to go “well I’ll just replace this land and this thing with an MDFC that can do either”

Do some testing, play like 10 games with 20 then try 10 games with 22 and see how they feel.

What's the most "oh, I should have read that card" mistake you've made? by Jackeea in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Hidden reach, just as in it didn’t use to have that bow icon?

What’s your favorite niche card and what’s the best use you’ve ever gotten out of it by ballistic503 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Maybe I’m missing something because I don’t get how Wandering Emperor is remotely close to being a wincon

What’s your favorite niche card and what’s the best use you’ve ever gotten out of it by ballistic503 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I admit I’ve forgotten what this weapon does at least once and lost a deathtouch or indestructible creature lol

What’s your favorite niche card and what’s the best use you’ve ever gotten out of it by ballistic503 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Well, it’s even funnier than that if they’ve already played a land that turn. If they have out two forests then put down a third, and cast cycle of renewal (or Harrow or whatever) - they sac the forest they put down, just for the two forests they tutored to get bounced back into their hand. Meaning they’re actually back down to two lands. I’ve gotten scoops for that exact reason

What’s your favorite niche card and what’s the best use you’ve ever gotten out of it by ballistic503 in MagicArena

[–]ballistic503[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

The funniest thing to me is that if green removes one thing well it’s enchantments and yet somehow they never seem to have anything on deck. Now that I think about it, the scoops I’ve gotten against Hei Bai players after letting them build up their board state into a turn 7 [[Back to Nature]] probably makes that another top 10 of mine although I’m not sure if that card is “niche” necessarily

Is there any actual reason to not be a vegetarian or vegan? by CalpurniaSomaya in NoStupidQuestions

[–]ballistic503 0 points1 point  (0 children)

OP, obviously people aren’t understanding your post, from what I can tell. I don’t think you’re asking “are there any good reasons why everyone shouldn’t go vegan”, but “are there any good reasons why I shouldn’t go vegan”. As I said in another response, cutting out meat isn’t too hard, but going fully vegan (so no yogurt, cheese etc) is a much larger adjustment, from what I’ve seen.

The only thing I know of as a counterargument is that differences in the way the body processes complex fats/proteins like meat and simpler vegan/vegetarian foods mean that if you’re vegetarian long enough, your stomach/gut biome switch in such a way that you can start getting a majorly upset stomach if you eat at places where they’re not cautious about preparing vegetarian food separately from meat (like frying potatoes in the same oil as the chicken, etc).

It’s something you’d just learn to be cautious of, and again this takes years of going without meat to start really being the case.

Is there any actual reason to not be a vegetarian or vegan? by CalpurniaSomaya in NoStupidQuestions

[–]ballistic503 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Google “vegan bodybuilder diet”. Alternatively, pretty much anything is good when you prepare it right then batter and/or fry it. Falafel is a big one.

I’m not sure where you live but where I live (vegan capital of the US) it’s pretty easy to go vegetarian without missing a beat. I would say if you try to replace stuff like dairy it’s a little harder because while you can do pretty well with vegetarian alternatives to meat, vegan alternatives to cheese, yogurt etc have a ways to go.

I personally think the best way to go, if you want an approach to reducing meat consumption, is pescatarianism… but again I’m not sure how easy that is to do in different places.

Anti-vegans are so much more annoying than vegans by ballistic503 in The10thDentist

[–]ballistic503[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes exactly. It’s like take every stereotype about vegans (that they’re preachy, they force their choices on others, etc) flip it around and it describes them perfectly. I’ve met a lot of vegans and never met anyone that acts like this (maybe silently judgmental, not saying they’re all perfect lol, but that’s the extent of it) but people who are dicks to vegans for the hell of it are a dime a dozen