Subject: A Letter About Magic and Money
Date: Tue, 30 Jun 1998 01:19:19 EDT
From: Solanthoss@aol.com
To: fkusumot@ix.netcom.com

     Hi, I'm Cliff Fisher. I'd like to take the time to write this email about
something that is beginning to annoy and bug me.  The issue is the fact that
WotC has and will release a total of three (or more, I'm not quite sure)
expansions for Magic this year, and that only includes tourney-legal things,
and doesn't include things like Arena, Sanctioned tourneys, Unglued, Portal,
and the Duelist (among others.)

     WotC, and I'm sure some players have a part in this, has put great
emphasis on Type 2 as the Standard for tournament play.  However, in October
or November, a set of three expansions will rotate out of Type 2 play.  THREE
EXPANSIONS.  Think of how much money you spent on the last major expansion you
bought.  Then think about how much money you spent on Magic (total) over the
past year.  Then think of that money basically going straight down the drain,
unless your area has many Type 1 or Type 1.5 tournaments.  Because, after all,
that's basically what's happening.

     I mean, think about it.  Wizards expects us, as players of Magic, to dish
out lots of money if we want to be competitive in the Type 2 invironment.  As
a teenager with a small budget (as most teenagers do) and a girlfriend, I
simply cannot see this as a viable option.  In order to fully keep up with
Magic's Type 2 environment, I would have to almost forsake my girlfriend,
getting a car, and having a life.  Even when I am able to get a job part-time,
which will probably be during summer and then after summer, I would still have
to put a good deal of money towards keeping my sets of cards "fresh."  Oh
yeah, and I forgot about saving for college... "Oops, guess I can't go to
college now, spent too much on Magic, mom."  No.  I know that there are some
people that are about my age who can buy their way to getting all the cards
they need.  However, most teenagers can't afford to be spending money on
Magic, and then get a car, have a love life, and successfully save for
college.  So what do we as players (and some of us, as teenage players) do?

     I love Magic.  I've played for 3 or 4 years now (since Revised had first
dropped into stores), and it's one of the best games out there.  I definately
don't want to drop Magic as a pastime, and going to tournaments is one of the
best things about Magic for me, especially since there aren't many people that
play that also live nearby.  (And no, I don't live in some hick town, I live
right outside Jacksonville, FL.)  But I also don't want to give up my life
outside Magic.  I have contemplated getting out of Magic, but that isn't an
option either.  I'm seriously thinking about not playing Type 2 (for the most
part) and simply playing in Booster Drafts and Sealed Deck tournaments, and
the older Classic formats.  To me, this seems like the most viable option.
Also, the Planeswalker League's $20 per year to be able to play in 12 tourneys
for serious card and/or cash prizes is pretty enticing, especially since I
believe while playing Magic online may attract people who will just copy
sucessful decks, it also lets people put decks together before buying and
trading for cards, and also puts the proper emphasis on an equal combination
of deck building and Magic playing skills.

     Okay, you may think that my little rant has no point, but there really is
one.  I want to see what other people think of WotC's way of selling product
by emphasizing buying cards as a necessity for playing in the Pro Tour.  I
know that some people around here, upon hearing about Exodus coming out in the
middle of June, complained that a new expansion had just come out in February
(Stronghold) and that Urza'a Saga was still coming out later in the year, not
to mention that Sixth Edition is coming next year.  I want to know if I'm just
whining, or if there are many more players like me that are getting tired of
dishing out big money only to have the cards they bought be useless in a few
years. (Or at least useless in Type 2.)  If you have any thoughts or comments,
please post them on The Dojo or email them to me (solanthoss@aol.com) (or
both).  Thank you for hanging in and reading what I have to say, and I look
forward to any replies I may receive.

Cliff Fisher
solanthoss@aol.com
Solanthos on EFNet IRC
PWL Judge
http://members.aol.com/solanthoss/   (the pages need serious updating... my
computer's been messed up.)