I'm looking to amass my collection
Economics forum
Posted on June 19, 2015, 11:48 p.m. by L0ckd0wn
I'm looking for a nice big collection of monsters, and a nice big collection of every kind of land - I'd like to have about 100 of each land. I wouldn't mind having more than 100 of each land just because I want it and as a new, inexperienced player, I don't want to risk running out of lands for decks.
"Nice big collection of monsters" - Just, a ton of them. Enough to be able to customize my deck and have a nice collection. Not "thousands", but, I wouldn't mind having a couple hundred to be honest. Also looking at cards that, as a new player, will give me a chance at winning.
Thanks everyone :)
Lets add spells, enchantments and artifacts too - ones that are worth playing in casual or semi competitive. I don't need a ton, just some to enhance my deck.
Any thoughts on how I can achieve my goal of just getting a huge collection? I thought maybe a booster box and a land station.
Cards.
I'm looking for all basic lands, monsters, and spells/enchantments/artifacts. Just wondering what the best stuff to buy is.
June 19, 2015 11:58 p.m.
NoPantsParade says... #4
If you're just looking for a bunch of random stuff, go on eBay and buy a collection of a bunch of stuff. You won't get much, but you get what you pay for. You're better off buying the cards you need for a specific deck. It's more worthwhile.
For the lands, just buy some on eBay or some website.
June 20, 2015 12:01 a.m.
VampireArmy says... #5
Ah well then this is a question would be better off in economics then since you're looking for where to buy.
June 20, 2015 12:02 a.m.
VampireArmy says... #7
He's a newer player.
That aside, anyone have advice for him?
June 20, 2015 12:07 a.m.
VampireArmy Hrm, I'll have to search for that. Must've made a wrong turn or something. (that's supposed to be a joke, sorry if it's not funny. I'm actually pretty tired) Thnx for the info though :)
NoPantsParade Maybe I'll use the deckbuilder and get feedback on what to actually buy. I'm thinking most cards, since I'm looking for casual play with friends and maybe some FNM fun are pretty inexpensive. Found a bunch of dragons for less than a dollar each. Then again, some, like Force of Will, which I discussed with another member fetch a high price.
I tried ebay actually, and I was more ambitious to get the land station I found on amazon because it seemed better priced than anything on Ebay. I'll search more though, thanks :)
June 20, 2015 12:08 a.m.
kmcree I can respect that, but YGO is what I played for.. a very long time. I suppose old habits die hard, but I'm trying to convert to magic and understand it - it's exponentially more complex.
June 20, 2015 12:10 a.m.
Wasn't trying to be rude or anything. Just letting you know.
June 20, 2015 12:19 a.m.
As far as the land station goes, doesn't seem like a great value to me. Frankly, once you begin playing a little more seriously, you won't use that many basics. And just buying a couple fat packs will give you more than enough lands, and give you other cards too.
June 20, 2015 12:21 a.m.
NoPantsParade says... #12
This is true. When I first started playing, I almost went out and bought some basics, but I ended up opening a box or two and got them that way. Also drafting and sealed are good ways to get basics if your store lets you keep them. And you get cards in the process.
June 20, 2015 12:25 a.m.
notamardybum says... #13
first question off the bat, what format would you like to play?
This will tell you what to buy.
Then people can tell you where to buy it.
June 20, 2015 12:30 a.m.
randomguy123 says... #14
If you just want to have a pool of cards to build different decks out of, then sure, buy a box. Buy a deckbuilders toolkit if you want them to be about the same power. If you want basic lands, you should only need 30 of each. That's enough to build a deck of each 2 color combonation.
(Here I am about to sound like every other magic player talking to newer players).
The thing is, you really shouldn't be looking to just buy a collection in some way. You'll end up with cards scattered all over the power level, a surprising amount of which will be complete trash and you will never use. And you really won't be getting your money's worth either. 36 packs may seem like a lot, but when you look and see that the vast majority of the cards you open are useless, you'll be wondering why you spent 100$ on it.
Like every other magic player answering the "how do I get a collection/get decks/know what deck to play" question, the answer is to go to a local store and begin drafting. You can look up what drafting is online (you probably already have if you've asked someone else this question), and I recommend you do so before continuing.
The benefits to this method are enormous. You get to try out all sorts of new strategies and figure out what types of decks you like to play. You get a lot better at magic. You amass a collection of relevant cards that you have played with before and know "should this card really go in my deck?" or "is this card actually good?" The most important part: You have fun while doing it. You don't just buy the box, open it, and then you're done. You get together and play with people every week, playing with a new and unique deck every time. The only real downside is that your collection will not be immediate, but that might be a good thing. As I mentioned before, having experience with a card is more valuable than any good player saying "this card is good".
A word of advice if you begin drafting, find someone to do it with (and make sure they know what they're doing). I heard this analogy somewhere; playing a deck you copied off the internet is the first dimension of magic. Building your own is the second. Drafting is the third. If you don't have anyone to go with, drafting is very complicated and, without someone to help you, it will be a lot more difficult to get good.
I hope this answers your question and I highly encourage you to draft, even if after reading this you don't want to.
June 20, 2015 12:32 a.m.
APPLE01DOJ says... #15
lol there will come a day when you have binders & boxes & drawers full of cards and look back at this...
June 20, 2015 12:38 a.m.
kmcree all good dude, I'm sorry if I came off as rude or being super defensive, as I meant no disrespect/hostility either :)
As for fat packs, on a few other websites many people seem to think they're really not worth it. Personally, I just want one because I never bought one before and since you guys can vouch for them, I'll see about picking up one or two. I already received a sealed land pack from a friend, so, maybe two or three more fat packs and I'm good to go with land. Any you can recommend? I see ebay has Born of the Gods, Journey Into Nyx, the 2015 core Fat pack, etc..
NoPantsParade good to know. I don't have the confidence or skills to do draft or sealed games atm though. Not with the entry fees I've seen from some stores.
June 20, 2015 12:45 a.m.
NoPantsParade says... #17
Apple's right about that one. Your collection will grow faster than you think.
June 20, 2015 12:47 a.m.
APPLE01DOJ HAHA! Dude I had that same thought! Quite honestly, I've been new at so many things, I can actively see myself oozing "newbie". But, I'm also looking at how much I've learned so far.
June 20, 2015 12:50 a.m.
NoPantsParade especially given that each booster has 15 cards, and I've already purchased a few. I have a couple of those plastic binder pages filled up, with two cards per pouch. Took all the blacks out to start building a mono black deck, added in a few colorless and before I knew it I had the start of a deck. The one I have as a prototype uses cards I have, and don't have. Have to change it to "casual" though. YGO I played pretty strictly to the banned list. So I'll eventually get that way with this. I'm pretty sure at this point it's just looking at cards, and figuring out what abilities or themes (i.e. deathtouch or slivers?) I want to build around.
June 20, 2015 1:02 a.m.
Conqueror_of_Thrones says... #20
You're probably better off looking for particular stuff first rather than a generalization. Like I'm building up my collection of cards with Terese Nielsen art on them, but since she has a ton of them, I'm going color by color til I get a playset of each card.
Not sure if it's been said yet, but check out Craigslist for cards. I managed to get a longbox (maybe 900 or so) of lands for $10 from a guy 5 min away from where I work. Good luck
June 20, 2015 1:03 a.m.
APPLE01DOJ says... #21
you shouldn't buy anything just yet. Find a deck or start with picking a format and work on that instead of just building a collection.
You'll get cards a long the way even just for playing FNM's.
Seriously though, if you want to play modern & want to play black 4x Liliana of the Veil is a good starting goal. You can pick up some Tasigur, the Golden Fang for fairly cheap right now... He's kinda like black's version of Tarmogoyf
June 20, 2015 1:06 a.m.
I saw that you said you wanted 100 of each land and that you wanted a huge collection and the first thing that came to my mind was wondering if it's even possible to get 100 Library of Alexandria, Mishra's Workshop, or Bazaar of Baghdad for most people. I'd like to have that.
June 20, 2015 1:16 a.m.
Named_Tawyny says... #23
I'll agree with what most people said - if you're trying to build a competitive deck, you're better off buying singles (and drafting!).
But if you just want an instant collection to play with around the kitchen table with friends (or build a cube) that's easy to do on ebay.
June 20, 2015 1:42 a.m.
erm, bigguy99 I'm hoping anyone who sees the thread, and sees I'm a new guy, will realize I mean basic lands - the mana cards. I completely forgot there are land cards with effects tbh.
Also I'd like to thank everyone for their advice, thoughts and input. I appreciate it! I'd give all of you a +1 if there was a way to do it.
If anyone has anything they'd like to add, I welcome the ideas/thoughts/etc!
For now, I bid you all good night :)
June 20, 2015 1:46 a.m.
I understand that you're new, but the first sentence is ambiguous. Regardless, what everyone's already said is as close to correct as you're going to get.
June 20, 2015 2:41 a.m.
If you care about having money then do not under any circumstances buy boosters or packs. Everything you can get in sealed packs of magic you can buy for cheaper off eBay or anywhere else.
Don't buy a fat pack just for basic lands and a collection. I'd be surprised if someone didn't just give you basics for free. That's a common occurrence at my lgs. We're always happy to offload basic lands and truckloads of commons for no cost at all.
Go speak to people before you spend money.
June 20, 2015 3:28 a.m.
Get basic lands for free from a friend.
Don't buy random junk.
Do a little research and see what cards are good (played in a format) and cheap, then buy them.
For good and cheap cards for casual playing, look at older standard decks and buy up the uncommons and commons (Delver of Secrets Flip, Stormblood Berserker, Lingering Souls, etc.).
Focus on relatively inexpensive staples like Lightning Bolt, Doom Blade, Elvish Mystic, etc. that you usually want x4 in a deck. These cards form the back-bone of decks (bolt for your red deck, for example). But that's for casual playing. If you want to break into standard or modern, do research before you spend a lot of money.
VampireArmy says... #2
What do you mean amass a collection?
Are you talking about cards or things that hold cards?
June 19, 2015 11:54 p.m.