Yo! MTG Taps! Episode 100 – You Know the Rules & So Do I
Yo! MTG Taps! Episode 100 – You Know the Rules & So Do I is now available!
If the above link is not working, go to http://iwantmymtg.wordpress.com and try again.
UPDATE: Since it’s almost the end of April, and also since the above link seems to be erratic (i.e. it doesn’t always work), I thought it best to confirm: THIS EPISODE WAS AN APRIL FOOLS’ DAY GAG. That link up there just goes to this video:
Joey and BHJ decide to cut their break short to discuss the Michael J. Flores / Zack Hall “Show me” incident that occurred at the StarCityGames.com Invitation in Baltimore last weekend. Was Zack cheating? Or is Mike to blame? Listen in to hear the guys’ take on misunderstandings in Magic!
Zack’s Facebook note about the incident
Drew Levin’s SCG article discussing the incident (Premium)
Matt Sperling’s article response to the incident
Featuring music by Tha Gatherin’
http://twitter.com/thagatherin
Contact us at yomtgtaps [at] gmail [dot] com
Follow us on Twitter!
@yomtgtaps (BHJ and Joey)
@affinityforblue (Joey)
@OMGWTFBHJFTW (Bigheadjoe)
Become a fan of Yo! MTG Taps! on Facebook!
Thanks for listening!
[Finance] Dual to Deck: Part 12
Welcome back to Dual to Deck. This week was supposed to be a retrospective article where I went over the progress of the first 4 months and looked at the future of the project. However, the more I worked on it, the more and more it started sounding like a dirge. Doing a value trading project like this today is very tedious and not so popular. Everyone is aware of the monetary value of cards now, and even if they don’t know their prices they check a smartphone or ask someone else to check for them if they don’t have a phone. You can still make money in trades in a smartphone world through speculation and acting during the window between when a card rises in popularity and when websites update prices. However, due to Twitter and weekly large events, this window is much, much smaller than it used to be. Value gain projects like Dual to Deck and Pack to Power rely on making uneven trades in your favor to build up value towards the end goal. In a world where everyone knows or can easily find out the price (not necessarily the actual value) of their cards and it’s rare that you find someone who isn’t fixated on making an exact even deal, these projects become something of a chore. I don’t really need to do a project like this, I have the cards for several Legacy decks already and can build almost any deck in Standard or Modern that I want so there really isn’t a point for me to continue. If I really had a passion for getting one of the 3 Legacy decks I listed in a previous article and if the only resources I had to spend on that deck was a single Tundra, then no matter how tedious I would keep grinding. As it stands now, this project is taking time and resources away from my personal trading and playing with very little return, so I will be stopping the project here. I will still be trading what I have gotten so far into a complete Legacy deck, just a cheaper one. Next week will be part 1 of the conclusion where I trade into the deck, but for today I have the last normal trades I made before going for a deck.
Trade #47
My
1x Witchbane Orb (foil)-$3.00
Total-$3.00
His
4x Vapor Snag-$4.00
1x Darksteel Ingot-$1.00
Total-$5.00
+$2.00
(no picture for this trade, I didn’t get a pic and don’t have Witchbane Orbs laying around)
The one place where people don’t stick to hard and fast pricing is on commons. I’ve said it a million times already, but it’s still true: commons and uncommons are a gold mine in value trading.
Trade #48
My
1x Day of Judgment-$3.00
Total-$3.00
His
1x Cemetery Reaper-$4.00
Total-$4.00
+$100
I’m happy to trade away the Day which did not see the interest I hoped for a 2 of in a popular deck and a card with more casual appeal.
Trade #49
My
1x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben (foil)-$15.00
Total-$15.00
His
1x Reanimate (tempest)-$5.00
1x Geralf’s Messenger-$10.00
Total-$15.00
+$0.00
Everyone loves pretty foils, but rarely do they want to pay the price on them. I got a lot of interest in foil Thalia, but only 1 person was willing to give me full value on it. I was able to trade it into a Legacy staple and a popular Standard card. It’s important to be able to move your trade stock so that you always have new stuff and a better variety of stuff, so sometimes it’s right to trade a card that isn’t moving at retail for slightly less. I think Thalia has a bright future in Legacy so holding out on the price for her was something I was willing to be stubborn about.
Trade #50
My
2x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben-$8.00
Total-$8.00
His
1x Swords to Plowshares-$4.00
1x Cephalid Coliseum-$5.00
Total-$9.00
+S1.00
This project is Eternal-minded so I will trade Standard into Legacy any chance I get. While Thalia is starting to see play in Legacy, it is a lot easier to pick up copies of her than it is of either Swords or Coliseum. Plus, it’s original art Swords; it doesn’t get better than that.
Trade #51
My
1x Geralf’s Messenger-$10.00
Total-$10.00
His
2x Animate Dead (Graveborn)-$6.00
2x Exhume (Graveborn)-$3.00
1x Lingering Souls-$2.00
1x Lightning Greaves-$2.00
Total-$13.00
+$3.00
Again, Trading Standard into Legacy and casual. Also another example of people not valuing commons and uncommons very highly.
Trade #52
My
1x Elite Inquisitor-$2.00
1x Chancellor of the Annex-$0.50
Total-$2.50
His
1x Curse of Death’s Hold-$2.50
1x Geist-Honored Monk-$1.00
Total-$3.50
+$1.00
This was a speculative trade. Around the 3rd set is when I really start making an effort to stock up on cards that are going to be players once the format rotates. Curse is good now, but once Ratchet Bomb, Elesh Norn, and Black Sun leave the format you’ll need something to combat Lingering Souls and Intangible Virtue. If you’re looking for some cards to pick up now and stash away until rotation I would go with: Monk, Mentor of the Meek, Mikaeus (white), Mindshrieker, Bloodgift Demon, pretty much all the rare werewolves, Kessig Cage Breakers, Parallel Lives, Splinterfright, Evil Twin, and all the Innistrad dual lands. I would also wanna be stocked on white and green humans, Avacyn Restored will probably give humans the same push that zombies got in Dark Ascension.
Trade #53
My
2x Lingering Souls-$4.00
1x Mana Leak-$1.00
Total-$5.00
His
1x Cemetery Reaper-$4.00
1x $1.00 bill-infinite?
Total-$5.00
+$0.00
Even on paper but we made some actual cash on this one. Cash is king and getting a $1 bill for a common was very unexpected. I guess he really needed that Leak. It’s very important to make sure your store owner is ok with you making any cash deals in their store before you do this type of transaction. Even the smallest store has a lot of expenses and does a lot of work to stay in business, so it’s not cool to undercut the owner by offering better cash deals on cards. Even if your store doesn’t deal in singles it’s still a good idea to make sure cash trades are ok.
Trade #54
My
1x Grafdigger’s Cage-$4.00
1x Sever the Bloodline-$0.75
Total-$4.75
His
1x Drogskol Reaver-$5.00
1x Curse of Death’s Hold-$2.50
1x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben-$4.00
Total-$11.50
+$6.75
This person said they were willing to give me a buck or 2 on the trade since it was for the Dual to Deck project, and after they looked up all the prices they still agreed to this deal. I couldn’t tell if it was generosity, that they didn’t care, or that they really needed a Grafdigger’s Cage that led to them agreeing. Even though they knew all the prices, I would still never make this deal outside of the project. When doing value trades, even if the person is being generous, you should try to keep your profits around 50% or lower. If you constantly go for the 100%+ trades you will get a reputation as a shark and people will not want to trade with you. Even if the person is ok with a very lopsided trade when they make it, they may regret it later and have a sour taste in their mouth the next time you want to trade with them. It’s also not good for spectators watching your trade to see you completely destroy your trade partner, it’ll lead to rumors that both damage your reputation and make the person you traded with feel bad.
Trade #55
My
1x Nephalia Drownyard-$1.50
1x Gavony Township-$2.00
1x Solemn Simulacrum-$9.00
1x Drogskol Reaver-$5.00
1x Havengul Lich-$10.00
1x Inferno Titan-$5.00
1x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben-$5.00
1x Karmic Guide-$8.00
Total-$45.50
His
1x Mutavault-$35.00
1x Geralf’s Messenger-$10.00
1x Reckless Waif (foil)-$2.00
1x Bloodgift Demon-$1.50
1x Elite Inquisitor-$2.00
1x Howling Mine-$1.50
Total-$52.00
+$6.50
In this trade my partner was happy to agree to putting Mutavault at $30 as long as he got all the mythics and the Solemn that he initially pulled. This trade came out ahead for me on paper but if I wasn’t getting a $30+ item out of it I would not have done it. Everything I traded besides the lands are very good and would move just fine on their own. At this point I knew the project would be nearing its end and I needed some big ticket items to make the final push to finishing the project.
Trade #56
My
2x Curse of Death’s Hold-$5.00
1x Stromkirk Noble-$5.00
2x Cemetery Reaper-$8.00
1x Frost Titan-$3.00
1x Moorland Haunt-$2.50
1x Nephalia Drownyard-$1.50
Total-$25.00
His
1x Snapcaster Mage-$25.00
Total-$25.00
+$0.00
This was another trade were I was concerned with turning smaller and midrange items into cards that hold a bit more value. It’s interesting that Snaps has finally come down to $25.00, I still believe this card will be a $50 Legacy staple in 4 or 5 years and advocate picking them up as a super long term spec. One reason the price is down now is that aggro decks are more prominent that control, if Avacyn Restored changes the meta so that control is the preferred archetype again, expect them to go back up to $30. I would pick up as many of these as I can at $20 or below right now.
That’s it for this week. Next week will be part 1 of the conclusion to the project. I’ll go over the deck I’m getting as well as everything I have in the Dual to Deck binder. Thanks for reading and see you next time.
“Rebar” at Collectors Corner
@Brass_Gnat on Twitter
Yo! MTG Taps! Episode 99 – Where’s My Counterspell?
Yo! MTG Taps! Episode 99 – Where’s My Counterspell? is now available!
Download it here or stream it below!
(To download file, right-click the link above and choose “Save As”)
Joey and BHJ are joined by Patrick Chapin to talk everything from Standard, Legacy, and Modern to Avacyn Restored, Urza, and Mishra. Is it safe to unban Jace in Modern? Tune in to hear what Patrick would be playing at the SCG Invitational this weekend! Also, an announcement about the future of the show.
Avacyn Restored trailer and Helvault Prerelease info
Explanation of March 20, 2012 Banned & Restricted List Changes
“Information Cascades in Magic” by Patrick Chapin
Featuring music by Tha Gatherin’
http://twitter.com/thagatherin
Contact us at yomtgtaps [at] gmail [dot] com
Follow us on Twitter!
@yomtgtaps (BHJ and Joey)
@affinityforblue (Joey)
@OMGWTFBHJFTW (Bigheadjoe)
Become a fan of Yo! MTG Taps! on Facebook!
Thanks for listening!
The Magic Show #177 – Jace the Mind Sculptor is Overrated
Tap: Max’s Game trailer
Brewport Avenue Episode 15 – Jackie Lee Visits Brewport
**Warning: Some of the language displayed on this podcast may be found offensive.**
The guys are joined by a very special guest and recent GP success story, Jackie Lee. Jackie talks about how she got started in Magic, and all of the playing that she has been doing since the PTQ that she won to qualify for PT Dark Ascension. She also shares insight on the deck that she played for both the GP and the PT and drops some knowledge on drafting. Noyan sneaks on to the cast and gives some tips on legacy as well, and Travis of course makes a case for Maverick… again.
Download it here or stream it below!
(To download file, right-click the link above and choose “Save As”)
Links to show topics:
Jackie Lee Alter’s (not doing these so much right now)
Music
*Opening Intro/exit Music Provided by Remi Gallego*
link to music
You can find our guests on Twitter at:
Jackie Lee
You can find us on Twitter at:
Brewport Avenue
Jason Clark
Tom Mohr
Travis Hunt
Noyan Tokgozoglu
You can also find us on:
I Want My MTG
mtgcast.com
Your Host(s): Travis Hunt, Jason Clark, Tom Mohr, and Special Host Noyan Tokgozoglu
Show’s Email: brewportave@gmail.com
[Finance] Dual to Deck: Part 11
Welcome to this week’s slightly delayed, but still up Dual to Deck. We’ve started getting more new people at the shop on a regular basis, which improves the trade environment drastically. I’m not sure if it’s due to the change in Planeswalker points or because of the decline in tempo dominance (Vapor Snag, Snapcaster, flashback Vapor Snag got old fast when the whole room was doing it), but whatever the reason, I’m happy to have new players coming to the shop. Still a little upset about missing trades at the Grand Prix though, so I was determined to start making up for lost ground at FNM.
Trade #39
My
1x Inquisition of Kozilek-$3.00
Total-$3.00
His
1x Wild Nacatl (foil)-$2.50
Total-$2.50
-$0.50
It looks like we’re down a bit here but Modern season is almost over and when it is the price on inquisition will fall back to $1.50 or so. Foily Nacatls on the other hand will always have a home in Legacy and cube. It’s banned in Modern, had a special all-foil booster printing, and is still close to $3.00. It can only go up over time making this a good trade for an Eternal targeted project like this.
Trade #40
My
1x Grimgrin, Corpse-Born-$5.00
1x Drowned Catacomb-$6.00
Total-$11.00
His
2x Coralhelm Commander-$6.00
Total-$6.00
-$5.00
Ugh. This was a train wreck. When did Grimgrin go up to $5.00 and why? I guess Commander likes him more since Dark Ascension really powered up zombies, but most Commander players like foil generals so I’m at a bit of a loss here. My trade partner put the Coralhelms at $4.00 each and would only give $5.00 on the Catacomb which would have made the trade work if ole Grimgrin was still at $3.00. I was ok giving a little more on the Coralhelms since they’re Modern and Legacy playable and Catacomb has been printed into the ground. I guess I was too happy to be getting rid of Grimgrin, who has sat in my binder unwanted for almost 4 months, to really think too much about it. I didn’t know all my prices and got burned by another value trader. The MtG finance game is an information war; I got lazy and paid the price for it. I can’t be too mad about this and just have to make the most of the Coralhelms I got.
Trade #41
My
2x Bramblecrush-$0.50
2x Full moon’s Rise-$1.00
2x Villagers of Estwald-$0.30
3x Moonmist-$0.75
2x Prey Upon-$0.30
2x Gnaw to the Bone-$0.30
Total-$3.15
His
1x Thalia, Guardian of Thraben-$4.00
1x Drogskol Captain-$2.50
1x Lingering Souls-$2.00
Total-$8.50
+$5.15
This person was working on a Mono-Green Werewolf deck. I asked him why he didn’t want red since a lot of the better werewolves are red or red/green. He said he just liked green but no one seemed to have the cards he needed. He cracked a few Innistrad packs and got some things from other people but was still missing commons and uncommons. I traded him some rares for the deck out of my personal stock then told him to go through the common/uncommon section of the Dual to Deck binder to see if there was anything he wanted. He was originally upset since he found so many things he wanted but didn’t have much to trade besides what was left from opening Innistrad and Dark Ascension packs. He seemed kinda new to trading and was amazed that you could get more than 1 card for 1 of his cards. This is a shark’s ideal prey and if he hadn’t been already, I’m sure he was gonna get taken for a ride. The Thalia was pack fresh but the Souls and Captain had seen heavy play. I knew a few people looking for Souls and Captains that probably wouldn’t care about the condition and I’m still speculating on Thalia being a player in Legacy. I told him to pull all the cards he wanted from the Dual to Deck binder. What seems like a rip off if you look at the numbers was a good trade for both people. I gained value and he got cards he wanted that no one else had. After the trade he ran over to his friends, excited and told them how many cards he just got for 3 of his. He was really happy to get what most of us consider junk, so carrying some bulk with you is never a bad idea.
Trade #42
My
4x Vault Skirge-$2.00
4x Tragic Slip-$3.00
Total-$5.00
His
1x Lotus Petal-$3.50
Total-$3.50
-$1.50
This trade looks like a loss too but is actually a win. I would gladly trade stacks of Standard commons for Legacy/cube cards at a $ loss any day. A few years from now the 8 cards I traded will probably only be worth $2-$3 if they’re lucky while the Petal will be $5 or more and trade much better. This is a case where the numbers (the $) are not important but the value of the card is. I will again say how much I love commons/uncommons at my shop.
Trade #43
My
1x Baneslayer Angel-$7.00
Total-$7.00
His
3x pyroblast-$4.50
1x Ensnaring Bridge-$5.00
Total-$9.50
+$2.50
My casual and Modern 2-of for some good Legacy sideboard cards. He was happy to get rid of cards no one else wanted from his binder and I was glad to trade away the angel before Modern season ended and she dropped to $5 again.
Trade #44
My
1x Cosi’s Trickster-$0.50
1x Sol Ring-$5.00
Total-$5.50
His
1x Inferno Titan-$5.00
1x Gavony Township-$2.00
Total-$7.00
+$1.50
Super happy to get rid of these 2 cards. The Sol Ring has been sitting in my binder since like the 3rd trade of this project and Trickster didn’t pan out as a Modern Merfolk card like I hoped. Inferno Titan is back on an upswing with all the tokens running around and Township will be a casual favorite for as long as casual Magic exists.
Trade #45
My
2x Coralhelm Commander-$6.00
Total-$6.00
His
1x Sower of Temptation-$8.00
Total-$8.00
+$2.00
I didn’t make as much on these guys as I wanted to make up for my poor trade earlier but I still like this trade. Sower goes in more decks than Coralhelm, it’s a great cube/EDH card, and it’s always better to trade up smaller cards into bigger items.
Trade #46
My
4x Diregraf Ghoul-$4.00
1x Grim Backwoods-$1.00
Total-$5.00
His
1x Stromkirk Noble-$7.00
Total-$7.00
+$2.00
RDW has had off and on success this season but the current Pro opinion is that Red isn’t a deck. It still shows up occasionally to win Star City Opens and Mono Red will always be a deck in every format. It’s not a popular deck right now which means it’s more expensive staples such as Nobles and Chandra’s Phoenix are cheaper than they should be, or at least people don’t value them as highly. Noble is still a good pick up at $5. My trade partner was looking into B/G zombies so he could use Prey Upon with Phyrexian Obliterator. Sacrificing Geralf’s Messenger to Backwoods to draw a card and do 2 more points doesn’t seem terrible either.
That’s all I have this week. Next week will mark the 4 month point in the project, so it seems like a good time to do a retrospective on the project thus far. I’ll also go over my plans for the future of the project and put up a decklist and sideboard as the end goal of the project. I can also do a Q & A segment if anyone has questions or concerns about the project or trading in general. You can leave any questions in the comments below or send them to me on Twitter. As always, thanks for reading and see you next week.
“Rebar” at Collectors Corner
@Brass_Gnat on Twitter
Theft in the Magic Community – A Message from Justin Parnell
As many of you are already aware, Justin Parnell had his cube stolen from him at GP Baltimore a few weeks ago.
For those of you that haven’t yet read it, I urge you to head over to Eric Klug’s site to read a statement from Justin himself (posted yesterday).
It’s difficult to comprehend everything that Justin lost, and hopefully this incident will motivate the community to band together against theft. We need to look out for each other.
Please share this link freely.
Brewport Avenue Episode 14 – GP Brewport
**Warning: Some of the language displayed on this podcast may be found offensive.**
The guys just got done with a great weekend at GP Baltimore. After Tom finally gets to meet the rest of the crew, they sit down and talk about their experiences of going to and playing in a Grand Prix. Of course, there is a lot of discussion about the current standard meta game, and the big new deck in town. Travis shares a story about FNM that shows his kinder side and Tom and Jason reflect on their deck choices.
Download it here or stream it below!
(To download file, right-click the link above and choose “Save As”)
Links to show topics:
GP Baltimore
FTV Realms
SCG Memphis
SCG Memphis Legacy Results
Music
*Opening Intro/exit Music Provided by Remi Gallego*
link to music
You can find us on Twitter at:
Brewport Avenue
Jason Clark
Tom Mohr
Travis Hunt
Noyan Tokgozoglu
You can also find us on:
I Want My MTG
mtgcast.com
Your Host(s): Travis Hunt, Jason Clark, Tom Mohr, and Special Host Noyan Tokgozoglu
Show’s Email: brewportave@gmail.com
iwantmymtg
Joey Pasco
bigheadjoe
fotolorea
