Type-1, type-2, type... Modern?
General forum
Posted on July 2, 2017, 2:30 p.m. by Metroid_Hybrid
So as far as I'm aware, the official "typed" formats are:
- Type-1: Vintage..
- Type-1.5: Legacy..
- Type-2: Standard..
So where would the other "constructed" formats fall under? (Extended/Modern, Pauper, Frontier)
(I've also read about a strange, casual format called "Type-4", but let's stay on the topic of "contructed" tournament-viable formats)
Obviously Extended was killed in favor of Modern, and I'm okay with that..
Frontier is incredibly new, and may or may not survive. However, considering the flavor & power-level of the new sets, I think it will eventually catch on..
Finally there's Pauper, which I admit that I know the least about, other than there being some controversy over the actual card pool due to MTGO-specific reprints..
So.. How would you "number" these? Does it even matter? The only reason it really came up for me is because, I have been building OGW Eldrazi decks for every non-rotating format (barring Pauper). Along the way I started thinking of it in terms of: type-1 Eldrazi, Type-1.5 Eldrazi, but would be a short-hand "type" for the other formats? They wouldn't be a Type-1.x as these are the "Eternal" formats that uses literally any set printed. Whereas Type-2, being Standard, seems to imply a "rotating" format. Which I guess by this logic, Extended could have been known as "Type-2.5".. But what about the non-rotating, non-Eternal formats? Type-3.x?
Oloro_Magic says... #3
So the numbering is incredibly out of date if you were to re-number them. Modern is a newer format created due to the price of legacy (type 1.5) and the types were used to designate the difference in playable cards, vintage (type 1) being virtually anything, legacy (1.5) being most stuff, standard (2) being a rotation, with the creation of modern this numbering system didn't make any sense as standard was no longer the evolution of vintage rather modern was. With that said the formats can no longer be held to their numbering and if you did it today it would look something more like this:
Vintage - Type 1
Legacy - Type 1.5
Modern - Type 2
Frontier - Type 2.5
Standard - Type 3
Pauper is a MTGO designated format and as such cannot be assigned based on paper tournament numbering from 15 years ago, however paper pauper tournaments definitely exist, in fact pauper is a more limited version of peasant and as such they cannot be numbered. If you really wanted to I would number them 3.1 and up seeing how they are limited but not designated within the evolution of tournament play formats. Magic is a game of many complex formats and as such to number them nowadays is much more difficult than 20 years ago when the card pool and diversity was much smaller.
July 2, 2017 3:09 p.m.
Metroid_Hybrid says... #4
@Oloro_Magic: You've pretty much echoed how I figured it to be.. I just thought I'd throw it out there for the sake of community discussion, as I don't even think the matter has been brought up in literally years..
@Lame_Duck: Actually both Vintage & Legacy are the "Eternal" formats because literally every set ever printed is legal (outside of the Un-sets of course), whereas Modern & Frontier are considered "non-rotating" formats because their respective card pools only pull from "Standard-legal" sets from a certain point forward.. Hence why you'll find cards from EDH sets like Containment Priest & True-Name Nemesis in Legacy, but not Modern..
July 2, 2017 8:48 p.m.
Ohthenoises says... #5
Couple of things.
Modern wasn't invented due to the cost of legacy. It was invented because it was a newer format that people had easy access to. Like Frontier (if it ever had gotten off it's feet)
"Eternal format" only means non-rotating. There isn't a difference.
July 2, 2017 9:25 p.m.
@Metroid_Hybrid, I wasn't trying to say that Legacy isn't an eternal format (it is) but that the statement "Type-1.x [...] are the "Eternal" formats that uses literally any set printed" is assigning a pattern to the names that doesn't really exist. Type 1.5 was originally not really a separate format, it was Vintage with the restricted cards banned instead; eventually WotC realised that wasn't a very good system so the banned list was decoupled from the Vintage restricted list and it was given the name "Legacy". It'd be more accurate to say that Type 1.x represents Vintage and its off-shoot formats.
July 3, 2017 7:10 a.m.
Metroid_Hybrid says... #7
My logic is still sound.. Legacy & Vintage are officially recognized as "Eternal" formats, and both have been officially labeled Type-1.x, therefore it is logical is assert that Type-1.x denotes an "Eternal" format..
Aristotelian Logic 101: If A is true, and B is true, then AB is also true..
July 3, 2017 8:17 a.m. Edited.
My LGS ran a paper Pauper event last year and it was quite popular.
I wouldn't write Frontier off, yet.
New formats are always difficult to kick off, and it has the benefit of having new cards added to it all the time, and being the most affordable 60 card eternal format.
July 3, 2017 8:27 a.m.
Ohthenoises says... #9
I feel like Frontier will get more "official" status if they finally get a banlist. Also, the format needs something to keep 4c landbases in check.
Once those two things happen I feel like Frontier will be looked at more seriously.
July 3, 2017 9:58 a.m.
Oloro_Magic says... #10
I think Frontier will only get popular as time goes on, like maybe 5 years from now when modern's pool has grown further I think I would be more inclined to suggest Frontier to a new player to keep things simple for a new player looking to move to eternal
Lame_Duck says... #2
The "Type" names come from a time when there were only two different formats: Type 1 and Type 2. They're out-dated names and there isn't a logical way to extend the naming to other formats because there wasn't a logical pattern to the way they were originally numbered, it was just a way to differentiate the two ways of playing Magic. Type 1.5 was named such because it was originally a variant of Type 1 where the restricted cards were instead banned, not because it was an eternal format.
July 2, 2017 3:02 p.m.