how can i git gud at mtg deck building? i've played for

>>51941696
Spend more money than the other guy.

Literally all you need to do to win.

>>51941801
we've set a max price at roughly 50 bucks so everyone can get a fair shot

>>51941822
Then it'll be fair until one guy decides to spend 60. Then he'll win until someone jumps it to 70. Etc. etc.

The more you spend on good cards, the better your deck will be. It does plateau at some number where more cash doesn't equal better deck, but that number is in the thousands of dollars.

tl;dr if you want to win, ignore their budget rule.

>>51941848
doubt that'll happen in my playgroup but thanks for your input

>>51941848

Except if they're playing casually, some of the best cards in the game can be gotten really cheaply because they're basically banned in every format.

File: magic graph.jpg (131KB, 1333x1000px) Image search: [Google]

131KB, 1333x1000px

>>51941696
>how do you get started on deck building?

Rule of Nine.

-Pick nine non-land cards you like, ideally in only 1 or two colors.
-Get 4 copies of each of those nine cards.
-add 24 lands for the colors you have.

That's it. Your deck is now mostly optimized for entry level play.

>>51941696

One way I always enjoy getting ideas for 60 card casual decks is to just hit random card until I see a card that speaks out to me, then decide to build around it.

>>51941986
Forgot link:

http://magiccards.info/random.html

>>51941696
Unfortunately, as
>>51941801
>>51941848
Laid out, it can easily go into an ugly arms race if you lot aren't careful. Someone will eventually chance upon this thread and suggest Commander at some point, but that uses different principles from your 60 card format.

Let's say you guys are indeed sticking to your kitchen table magic rules. The monetary restriction would certainly help if everyone sticks to it, but I know I'd either head straight for Affinity town with Skullclamp and Cranial Plating.

The point I'm trying to make I'm afraid is that most of us here have too many cards in mind and even if you limit our budget we'll still find a loophole somewhere to destroy all the fun at the kitchen table. Go forth and just build a deck that seems to synergize. Make it tribal or synergize around a mechanic like Goblins, Elves or Aura+Hexproof or even that new Crew mechanic, or if you want to, fill it with counterspells, boardwipes and like 8 big creatures with flying to close out the games. Just don't come to us, we're all jaded beyond the point of remotely considering playing Magic just to have fun.

>>51941952
that's an interesting way of looking at it. I'll definitely try and see how that works out for me. thanks for the suggestion
>>51941986
I tried this om magidex but a lot of the same cards were popping up and art didn't always load. what site do you use?

>>51942017

This site is the best magic database:

>>51942001

>>51941696
Go to mtgtop8 and copy the best combo, aggro and control decks on whatever format.
Go to tappedout.com and write down the deck so you can goldfish with it.
Analyze what the deck is trying to do in order to win, and design a strategy made to stop it.
Then design a strategy made to stop it and win in the least ammount of time possible.
Then design a strategy made to stop it and win in the most reliable way possible.
Then try to balance the previous strategies into one deck.
Then do the same for the other two decks you took from mtgtop8
Then design a deck that can beat two of the three reliably.

You go from not knowing what to do to being a deckbuilder, when you realize Magic is not about winning, but about making your opponent lose.

>>51941696
You look at decks. A lot. Then you start building some. Take a premade deck, play with it, think about what works in it and what doesn't and change it up. Then start making decks from scratch based on some idea you have. Then you do a fuckton of this. And always look up new decklists published on the internet. Think about what those decks do and why they are playing exactly those cards. Why does the manabase look like that.
tl;dr learn to understand how decks work, build lots of decks

>>51941952
This graph is actually pretty accurate.

>>51941951
You can build a fucking savage casual goblin deck with $50. It'll be fast enough to outrace most decks and ringleaders, matrons and recruiters make sure you outgas control decks. Burn and fast combos with this budget are easily handled by a couple sideboard cards.

>>51944502
Add Krenko too

and be sure to buy a box of MM17 to be sure to find a Goblin Guide ;^)