How to know when you're ready for Modern?
Modern Deck Help forum
Posted on June 21, 2015, 2:56 p.m. by pleasiodmakerblooloo
This is me asking as opposed to answering a question that I've been thinking of recently. For a long time (around six months) I've been searching and searching for a deck that will help me make the format jump from standard to modern. This has started becoming quite disheartening as any decks I've wanted to make so far came with steep price tags attached. This led me to scour the Internet for weird rouge decks or budget options to play with for my first modern deck. Recently I started wondering whether it is even worth it to make a budget deck that won't specifically allow me to do well in tournaments, just to have a modern deck. I was wondering if I should stay in standard until my budget allows me to play a deck I want, or if it is actually worth just getting any modern deck to introduce me to modern. Along with this, I would like to know if there are any articles people know of or just plain pieces of advice that help you know whether you are ready for modern i.e you have the right budget, you're not just bored of your standard deck etc. I feel like this could benefit other players as well and would love to get as many responses as possible.
lemmingllama says... #3
If you are getting bored of Standard, just start purchasing pieces of your deck. It might be expensive, and it might take a while, but eventually you will have an entire deck that is awesome. If you stop playing Standard at the same time and trade your Standard stuff for Modern stuff, the transition might be much easier than you think.
I also recommend trying to brew up your own deck. Choose a card you really enjoy, then try to build a deck based around it. It might not be tier 1, but if you can still win about half your games, then it is still a good deck. I play exclusively budget janky combo decks, and I beat tiered decks with them. I'll never top 8 a Grand Prix or anything, but I can still have fun and enjoy the format.
June 21, 2015 3:09 p.m.
Servo_Token says... #4
I made a small guide on how to get into modern that is linked on my profile. Basically my best piece of advice for getting in is obtain lands. Get all the fetches and shocks that you would ever need, and just start building decks, slowly obtaining pieces. As long as your mana is secure, your deck will function to some capacity regardless of how many pricey pieces you're missing, like tarmogoyfs.
June 21, 2015 3:31 p.m.
What Sagarys said above is important. It's key to know what type of player you are and why you want to play. If you are truly interested in winning tournaments, don't bother building anything but a tier 1 deck because you will just be disappointed.
If you are interested in playing the format and just having fun, don't play burn. Just kidding. :p Sort of..
But seriously, if you are mainly looking to have fun in the format, make sure to build the deck you are most interested in and don't think about much else. I started playing Modern by building Hatebears because i absolutely love taxing control and Aether Vial shenanigans. I now own 80% of the decks that you see listed on MTGTOP8 and i -still- prefer to play Hatebears over any other deck.
If i'm looking to have a night of fun, i will play Hatebears. If i'm going to a GP, i will play Junk, Twin, Bloom Titan, etc.
I guess i would definitely recommend that you build a deck that you enjoy first, honestly. I will play junk at a big tournament and i enjoy it, but i rarely play the deck just for it's fun value.
June 21, 2015 3:48 p.m.
pleasiodmakerblooloo says... #6
Thanks guys, I really appreciate all the answers and will definitely take your advice into careful consideration.
June 21, 2015 3:52 p.m.
Saucealicious says... #7
Standard, while individual decks might be cheaper, is going to cost you more in the long run because of the nature of rotations. If you want to jump format, just stop investing in standard and slowly start investing in a specific modern deck instead. Yes, it'll take some time if you don't have all the money right away and during that time you'll maybe not be able to play as much as before. But soon enough you'll have your whole deck and it will never disappear!
June 21, 2015 4:16 p.m.
mattskones says... #8
If you just want to get a feel for modern I would highly suggest the Modern event deck, you should be able to find it for 50 bucks. It includes some good cards that are going up in value due to them not being reprinted in MM2 (Inquisition of Kozilek, Path to Exile). Not to mention if you haven been playing standard for a bit you might have some other cards that would be great additions the deck like Thoughtseize and Sorin, Solemn Visitor. Granted its not especially well positioned at the moment but, Its a good place to start for a decent price and if you trade or buy into the cards to make it better like Thoughtseize, Godless Shrine or Marsh Flats, those will retain there value since they can be used in a number of modern builds.
June 21, 2015 4:48 p.m.
JexInfinite says... #9
mattskones Yup. The event deck is actually not that good, but it contains many pieces of the BW Tokens deck, and it only takes an extra $100-$200 to make it competitive. That's the fastest way to immediately get into modern.
Sagarys says... #2
Ask yourself this: am I making the jump to Modern so I have more opportunities to have fun at events with friends, or am I doing this to compete because all I care about is getting that W?
If your only concern is winning consistently at a high level, stay out of Modern until you can afford a top tier deck or else you'll get obliterated and disheartened.
If you're doing this because you like to play Magic at events with friends and peers, then Modern opens up your build options, and you can still have a good time with friends on a budget if you're OK not winning every game.
Personally I fall into the latter group and I greatly prefer the Modern format despite not having a single expensive deck.
June 21, 2015 3:08 p.m.