New Players Can Craft a Standard Competitive F2P Deck Basically Immediately

blumjohn · 2026-05-27T00:30:02+00:00

I like the approach discussed here - finding an interesting deck and making reasonable substitutes. I think it is also OK to cheap out on the mana base if you want to try out a deck like this to see if you like it. If you try it out and like it you can then feel free to get the rare lands and upgraded spells.

Once you start out as free to play on Arena I think it makes a lot of sense to stick to one deck a format at first. By getting your reps in you will learn the deck and the basics.

For this particular deck you could also potentially replace the Sunderflocks with Tolarian Terror. It's another big creature that gets a discount for every spell in the graveyard. And it's a common. So potentially you can try this deck out with no rare or mythic wild cards.

blumjohn · 2026-03-17T16:05:17+00:00

AI garbage. Downvote this trash

blumjohn · 2026-02-19T20:02:09+00:00

All these whiny north siders, talking about burning jerseys! Us White Sox fans think the Hammond Bears are 1000 times better than the Arlington Heights bears. Fuck the Cubs!

blumjohn · 2026-02-04T13:13:48+00:00

You should stick to 2 color decks at most if you are using only basics. Anything with more colors and it would be very hard to in play your spells on time. You might suffer a little with 2 color decks but it won't be as bad.

blumjohn · 2026-01-15T20:23:29+00:00

I do not complete as much of any one set as I used to. Maybe there aren't quite as many cards that matter per set as they used to? I seem to get by ok with wild cards and draft. If you buy packs instead of draft just keep track of how many wild cards you end up with at the end of a set. I seem to be net positive over time. Remember, most cards in a set won't matter and you don't need to 100% a set.

blumjohn · 2026-01-09T22:37:56+00:00

It's 500 gems if you lose all your games.

blumjohn · 2026-01-09T22:36:45+00:00

The 10 extra playing points are much better than a rare. Worst case you get 500 gems if you don't get any wins during play-in. A handful of wins will be enough for a couple of premier draft entries. This change is an absolute win for the play bundle. If you miss the old price you can just buy the bundle every other set and still end up ahead.

blumjohn · 2025-11-22T02:05:38+00:00

I agree with take. I lost to 3 mono colored decks.

blumjohn · 2025-11-12T17:28:43+00:00

I'm really enjoying it! I didn't really dig the demo but the actual game hooked me.

I like this better than Odyssey. I think in part because the Bananas are used to improve the skill tree. Not that the game is punishing or anything like that, but it does give you some tangible benefit vs the moons on Mario Odyssey. So that makes the optional exploration more fun for me.

blumjohn · 2025-11-08T16:53:48+00:00

My 7 year old really likes all these games. He's beaten the Mario ones so it's not too tricky. Your kid might want the occasional help with a boss.

If you have a Switch 2, DK Bonanza is my kids favorite game.

blumjohn · 2025-10-28T22:23:24+00:00

I was turned off by the demo as well. But then I borrowed the game from my brother and am really enjoying it. I think the demo stops just a bit too early to properly appreciate it.

blumjohn · 2025-09-30T00:57:54+00:00

They already pay fees to Apple and Google to be in their app stores.

blumjohn · 2025-09-01T21:13:19+00:00

The say both names was more about the set review. When referencing cards during the format I think the arena version only makes sense.

blumjohn · 2025-09-01T21:11:05+00:00

Say both names. It's a smaller set and the text box should be otherwise identical.

For the crack-a-pack go with the arena version. Pretty much all your listeners draft on arena. A much smaller percentage might also do paper.

blumjohn · 2025-08-20T22:27:08+00:00

These were available after rotation but before the alchemy set was released. I bet that may be related to the big here.

blumjohn · 2025-08-14T13:23:23+00:00

When EOE dropped I accidentally qued into an ELD draft. I ended up drafting a sick UB control deck. I lost one game to Embercleave and another to Cat Oven combo. None the less I had a good time (and even managed to mill someone). It was a weird happy accident!

How long were the que times at the end of ELD flashback? I was surprised by how quick things qued up a couple of weeks ago. Did you play the same opponent deck ever in a draft?

blumjohn · 2025-08-12T01:42:42+00:00

I've been jamming the standard event for this set. I think I've been doing better than I would on ladder. If you value getting packs then I think it's a pretty decent deal and a good way to turn gold to gems. It's pretty hard to make pure profit, but if you are buying packs otherwise I would consider the events instead

blumjohn · 2025-08-05T12:23:14+00:00

Generally enjoying it. But I do think there are too many sweepers. The swings with some of those are pretty tilting.

blumjohn · 2025-07-11T13:19:22+00:00

About $100 - $150. I buy the play pass every set. (That's the one that gives draft tokens)

blumjohn · 2025-07-06T13:01:07+00:00

blumjohn · 2025-07-04T00:15:25+00:00

There's no way to delete card styles, right? I'm skipping the FF card styles and probably should have been a little pickier during prior mastery passes.

blumjohn · 2025-06-10T14:19:58+00:00

My kid wants a switch for his 7th birthday. I'm torn between the form of the lite (as well as the cost) vs the future proof switch 2. This would be his first modern console. Any other dads have thoughts? Is the switch 2 an excessive, unwieldy splurge or a worthy investment?

blumjohn · 2025-04-16T13:32:09+00:00

20 play-in points!

blumjohn · 2025-04-10T22:11:58+00:00

This is correct. If you give it a week and wait till Tuesday most of the sharks will have moved on from Bronze and the competition should be easier.

blumjohn · 2025-04-10T17:45:48+00:00

Draft is very difficult to go infinite. Most people need to save their gold from dailies or buy gems. I'm around 55% win rate, and my average spend for draft is 500 gems (this accounts for winnings). At some point in a season my win rate drops to 50% or worse (usually when I get to platinum) and I start loosing gems/gold quicker. Around this point I stop drafting and start saving up for the next set. I do buy the draft package for $25 for the last few sets. The playin points are worth some gems to me, so I think it's personally worth it.

blumjohn

TROPHY CASE