Parallel to our world of academics there exists a world of magic, not with tricks, but with cards. It is a universe thick with wizards and beasts, spells and energy, and it is a world of strategy. Magic: The Gathering is not simply a choice, but a way of life. It travels through time, following its fans as they get older and wiser.
Since its creation in 1993, it has been extremely popular. In the years of its primordial inception, Magic was so highly coveted that the company responsible for its distribution was reluctant to advertise for fear of being unable to keep up with the ever-increasing demand. Today it is estimated that six million people play Magic in seventy different countries.
So what is it about Magic that allows it to retain old fans while attracting new ones? For one thing, the game itself is much more complex than Pokemon and is so widely played that tournaments are held in its honor. The ranked results of such tournaments can be found on the distributor’s website.
If one were to visit it, they would find that Conn’s very own Jesse Newbold ’13 is ranked number one in the entire state of Connecticut in constructed Magic. He won enough tournaments to be able to participate in the 2010 Nationals, which took place in Minnesota.
Now you may be wondering how he came to be so skilled at such a complicated game. Like everyone else, Newbold was pulled into the addictive world of Pokemon as a child, but in 2001 he journeyed to summer camp where he found his negligence of Magic to be most unnerving. After spending so much time surrounded by people who spent their free-time battling in the intense world of Magic, Newbold returned home determined to learn the rules. He spent the next year studying tricks and honing his skills, anxiously awaiting his fateful return to camp where he would display his knowledge. Ironically, when he finally did return, he discovered that the camp had banned card games. Despite this unfair turn of events, Newbold continued to improve his skills. In 2004 he entered his first tournament, and he never looked back.
Today Newbold not only competes in various tournaments but he also hosts them. On September 19, I was lucky enough to be able to watch a booster draft tournament that Newbold hosted. The epic battles took place in Cro, where Newbold was accompanied by seven of his Magic-playing friends.
I sat down at the table of eight guys as Jesse introduced me as the one doing a story on Magic for the Voice. With a quick nod in my direction, one of them said to the others, “All right, let’s watch some porn!”
Now, I am sure you can imagine my surprise at such a statement. However, it was quickly followed by another player explaining to me, “Porn is what we call Magic. So if you hear one of us saying, ‘I watched some great porn yesterday,’ or, ‘Wanna get some porn?’ we are talking about Magic.” I laughed at their clever deception.
They began shortly after that, as each opened one of the three “booster packs” (a pack of fifteen cards; one rare) that lay in front of them, carefully choosing the card they wanted most and passing the rest on. When all cards from the first packs were gone, they moved on to the second and then the third; this is called drafting, as they strategically chose their cards based on color combinations and “cost.” I could tell this process took immense skill, as they had very little time to make their decisions and they had to think long-term as to which cards would work best together.
I also discovered that they struggled with the concept of passing the rest of the deck to the right or the left (as they alternated with each pack); sorry guys, but it’s true. After all eight of them completed their decks, which contained forty-five cards, they randomly selected pairs to play in. Each pair played three matches (or at least best out of three) and then moved on to play someone of equal rank.
I got a chance to watch the individual matches and found them all to be extremely interesting. However, I must admit that the rules escaped me for the greater portion of the night.
Before attending the tournament, Newbold had attempted to explain as much of the rules to me as he could. Each player starts with twenty points (the object being to reduce your opponent’s score to zero), seven cards in hand and a “library” of cards to pick up throughout the match. There are two types of cards: spells, which you use to attack your opponent, and lands, which give you “mana,” or points that allow you to use your spells. Spells have colors that signify what it “costs” or what kind of land is needed for their use.
There are five colors: white, blue, black, red and green; but there are also multicolored cards (hard to play, powerful when used) and colorless cards (easy to play, less powerful when used). When a player wishes to attack with a spell, they “tap” (turn sideways) the spell card and the land card to indicate its action.
Okay, so it’s getting complicated and if you are beginning to despair, stop for a moment and think of the immortal words spoken by the Blowpen commercial-guy, “But wait! There’s more!” In fact, there is a lot more because some cards have their own rules which take precedence over the general gaming rules, adding to the unpredictable outcome of a match.
Also, every year 800 new cards are introduced to the world of Magic, and if you want to participate in tournaments, you generally can’t use any cards that are older than two years. With so many new cards introduced, how does one know how to alter their deck, or even how to use them? According to Newbold, there are many online sites where players contribute their own explanations of the best way to use a new card. On such sites, players can view recommended/example decks so that they can improve their own strategies and game play; Newbold is one such contributor.
The epic tournament of Sunday night finally came to a close four hours after it began and, surprisingly to me, I stayed the whole time. Watching each match and seeing the guys have such a great time was so entertaining for me, it was clear that they were all there to have fun. Attitudes like that make all the difference in having a good time.
Also, the friendship between them all was intriguing to watch; whenever one of them had a question about a card’s use or the rules, they would venture over to Newbold who would always have the answer. I watched all of Newbold’s matches with the understanding that the other seven guys acknowledged him as the best; one of his opponents said to me, “If I beat Jesse can I be in your article?” Although he didn’t manage to beat the champ, he did come fairly close, so I at least put his quote in here.
Regardless, Newbold did manage to come in first in the tournament, allowing him to choose the best rares to take home and add to his own personal deck.
Newbold is definitely Connecticut’s go-to-guy when it comes to Magic. So what wisdom does he have for beginners? He recommends starting simple. In other words, learn the basic rules first and then worry about the others.
Also, try going to “Friday Night Magic” at Sarge’s Comics, where they alternate between booster and constructed tournaments. Sarge’s is small and can only accommodate about twenty-five people at a time; however, the games are not too competitive, making play less challenging and thus more fun for beginners. For those who consider themselves to be Magic-savvy, you should join Newbold in attending the tournaments hosted by Arkham Asylum in Norwich.
Magic is definitely a game worth trying or at least watching. After attending the booster draft on Sunday, I found that I knew much more about Magic and the awesome people who play it than I did before. Thus, I leave you with this: although it can be complicated at times, you should give Magic a try, after all, you only live once – unless, of course, you are a Magma Phoenix, but then again, that one’s rare.
