... That Being Said,

This is about budget players again. The last one was a rant, and this one is more constructive and in article form.


Alright, so I'm home sick from school, and just woke up. I don't know how the idea came to me, but I was contemplating eating Samoans Caramel Delights for breakfast when it did. I felt like writing a casual article. But, man, it's all been done before in some combination, and I don't exactly cater to a large crowd (i.e., "Competitive Casual" Multiplayer - sometimes). But I knew there were things I could say. And then, post-cookie-temptation, I knew what I'd write about. Building on a budget! And yet, that'd been done before. Folks on many websites show you awesome decks you can build without breaking the bank. What could I do that would be different? Inspiration struck again. I wouldn't showcase decks under some certain dollar mark. I wouldn't go on and list out awesome budget alternatives to great tournament worthy cards. No, I'd teach you how to actually build on a budget. I build things on budget constraints all the time, so I should know how, right? "No," my nonexistent readers cry, "that's a lie! Your decks are full of things like Wrath of Gods and Thoughseizes and icky Dark Confidants or Chrome Moxen!"

Well, yeah they are. But it's not like I went out and bought them over night. I do build on a budget, you can see. Look at my mana bases. All basics, with maybe some charge lands and Thawing Glaciers (Yes, I know, I have Battlefield Forges, too...). Look at my creatures. Ravenous Rats in legacy Fish? Ephemeron in UW Control. Scourge of Kher Ridges in R/G Big Mana. My entire merfolk deck. But I ramble, and I'm not here to collect pity points or prove anything.

What I am here to do is to speak to the unknowing players. The ones who work off of an allowance (like me) or have little left over from a pay check for Magic. There's something I need to say first: Get over yourself. If that didn't apply to you, ignore it. If it did, thanks for reading, let's get on to what's important. There are 3 very easy ways to circumvent budget problems that I'm going to highlight.

The first is probably the one that'll meet the most friction. It'll hurt some of you to read. Seriously. I'm warning you! ...

Stop buying booster packs and opening them on a whim. "But," my nonexistent readers cry again, "they're so cheap! If I pay 4 dollars for that 10th Edition booster and crack a Wrath of God, it's like I just payed 1/4 of the price!" Yeah, well, you could've also just opened The Hive or Rootwater Matriarch. And I'm sure you don't need another Anaba Bodyguard.

And I know the temptation is going to kill you, it's impossible to resist the urge! That's cool. You don't have to stop completely. I always buy a healthy amount of packs when new sets come out. Heck, do it with some friends and you'll all have the commons and uncommons you want, and can fight and fiercely trade over that new 20 dollar rare land. Just, don't make a habit of it. You'll end up with more jank rares than money rares soon enough, and you'll end up in the same position that you hate: discontent and broke.

Secondly, play limited. Lots and lots of limited. This has multiple advantages to it. First and foremost, it improves your game. This will make you a more successful player, even when faced with budget constraints. Next, you still get the joy of cracking boosters, which is always fun. I'm sure it's going to take a long time for that novelty to wear off (It'll take a much longer time to wear off if you're still saying "Score!" to just about anything). And lastly, you can win good rares. Whether you rare draft, or play a solid game and win packs in the end, you can frequently end up with good rares. Especially if you have one vital skill: the ability to make good trades and negotiate. Lets say you just got off a LLM draft, and won a Murmuring Bosk in your packs/first picked one. Now, you have no plans for a treefolk deck. However, you do have a spicy UB deck in the making. So trade that Bosk off for Underground Rivers!

Finally, and I know I've made this point before, but invest. Get tournament staples over time. It's definitely worth saving up for them in the end. Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet, and you'll feel the pain in the wallet first, but it's worth it in the end. If I had to make a list of play sets that everyone should aim to own, it'd be something like this...

10. Pain Lands
9. Loxodon Warhammer
8. Pyroclasm
7. Brainstorm
6. Lightning Bolt
5. Sakura Tribe Elder
4. Duress
3. Wrath of God
2. Counterspell
1. Swords to Plowshares

Now, obviously that list is a little slanted towards control because I myself am a control player,
but I also believe a streamlined control deck is easier to build than blistering aggro decks. Aggro decks are unforgiving if you miss a color. A classic example was Rav/TSP standard Boros Deck Wins. You had to go from R to WW to 1WW to 2RR every game in order to hit your curve and beat the Wrath. With control decks, you can keep a 3 Island, 1 Plains, Akroma hand, because you have the time to draw those other white sources.

Okay, so I started writing this at 10:30 and it's 1:30... I'm fairly sure I lost where I was originally going and have many nonsequitors that I'm not going to go back and check. Damn you, Scrubs and Whitest Kids U' Know. And Cold Medicine.

Yeah, yeah, wrap up:

1. Singles, not packs.
2. Draft, draft, and draft some more. Then some sealed.
3. Invest in staples!