Magic: The Gathering Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012- Out Now 800 Pts

adriley313

Banned
magic-the-gathering-duels-of-the-planeswalkers-2012.jpg



SO this game just came out on Tuesday and it is awesome.
Its like the first was a beta and this is the polished version.

Here's a Q&A with the brand manager Paul Levy from G4:
Wizards of the Coast have revealed the first details about Magic: The Gathering - Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 for Xbox live, PC, and PlayStation Network. The sequel to 2009's Duels of the Planeswalkers, the new title will introduce new game modes, Planeswalker opponents, decks, puzzles, and more. To find out more about what players can expect from the sequel, we spoke with Magic: The Gathering brand manager Paul Levy, and here's what he had to say:
Who will we see as the Archenemy in Planeswalkers?
Paul Levy: You will get to face off against many different Planeswalkers in the Archenemy campaign, but the final Archenemy is yet to be named. At PAX East, the Archenemy will be played by Tezzeret.
Do you choose decks based on play style, balance, modern vs popular, etc?
PL: With Duels of the Planeswalkers, we always have to keep in mind that there’s no single typical player. Our Duels audience is very large, and, in such a large pool, we have players who have never played Magic before, as well as players who have been playing Magic for almost 20 years. We need to make sure that there are decks that appeal across that spectrum. So some Duels 2012 decks really focused on the essential fun of Magic, that are perfect for a new player to pick up and enjoy. And there are some Duels 2012 decks that have a more distinct identity that is still accessible to the newer player, but will be especially enjoyed by the more veteran Duels player who wants a different awesome flavor in their deck.
Will you allow humans to play as the Archenemy against three other human players?
PL: Mere humans are not powerful enough to be a proper Archenemy!
Are you allowing players to customize their own decks?
PL: We just announced the Magic 2012 product line-up, which includes the Magic: The Gathering 2012 Core Set and Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012. At PAX East, we’re excited to show players the Archenemy feature, and look forward to talking about the other features of Duels 2012 closer to launch.
What kind of rankings, leaderboards or tournament integration will there be, if any?
PL: As I said before, we’ll be talking more about the additional features of Duels 2012 closer to the release date.



You dabbled with microtransactions with deck unlocks for MtG: DOTP. What are the chances we'll see individual card sales on consoles?
PL: As the manufacturer of a collectible trading card game, Wizards of the Coast does not sell individual cards. This same philosophy is carried over to our digital games as well.
Will the original Duels continue to be supported and have content developed for it? Or will players move on to 2012?
PL: The original Duels of the Planeswalkers is going to be releasing the “Gold” edition in the coming months, which is a compilation of the base game plus all expansions and DLC. After the release of the Gold edition, all development support will be on Duels 2012.
The last update seemed to hinder the game. Lots of game sync checks and all. Will there be an effort to update/change this in the new title?
PL: We are always listening to the feedback of our customers and pass it along to our development team for review. We have improved the game engine for Duels of the Planeswalkers 2012 and will continue to do so in future updates.
Will Challenges make a return? What can you tell us about them? Purely selfish wishlist idea, any chance you'll let people create their own Challenges to share with others, because that'd be rad.
PL: That would be rad. We get a lot of positive feedback from the community on the challenges, and they’ll definitely be making a return in Duels 2012. We’ll be talking more about the content of the challenges closer to release.
How will the previous game sync up with the new one, if at all? Does my investment go out the window? Will the DLC carry over?
PL: Duels 2012 is not backwards compatible with the original game. We are looking at ways to reward the original Duels of the Planeswalkers players in the Duels 2012 game, and will have more information to share at a later date.
Any chance at cross-platform play or is that impossible?
PL: As I said before, we’ll be talking more about the additional features of Duels 2012 closer to the release date.
The game was one of the top-selling XBLA titles in 2010, which was surprising. What will you be doing to promote the new title?
PL: Duels of the Planeswalkers is one of the top 10 games of all time on XBLA. We have a lot of exciting promotions coming up; one thing that players and fans will recognize is the exclusive Magic: The Gathering promo card with purchase. We haven’t announced what the promo card will be yet, but it’s going to be awesome. There are also exclusive spoilers from the upcoming Magic: The Gathering 2012 Core Set in Duels 2012.
Some more screenshots.
magic-the-gathering-duels-of-the-planeswalkers-2012.jpg


magic-the-gathering-duels-of-the-planeswalkers-2012.jpg

Looks pretty awesome and i love it.
The opening scene is sweet.



 
Improvements: Deck Editing is slightly better, while you can't completely build a deck from scratch at least now the theme planeswalker decks that you unlock can be edited somewhat.

Basically, cards you unlock you can add or remove so long as you don't go under 60 cards. It's nice for some decks when you get a nice 2/2 creature to sub out for a vanilla 2/2 creature.

This version also supports and encourages more multiplayer games. If you like MtG it's a nice revamp of the previous one...think of it as Super Magic the Gathering IV.
 
Got this. Played about 5-6 hours so far. It's very good. Better than the original Duel of the Planewalkers.

The archenemy campaign... I don't like it. It's extra content, essentially its 3v1 then the lone player has a side deck of events. Imo some of the event cards are broken and just make the game a bloodbath. I've only played it a little, but it really just seems if they get good event cards at the right time, it's over.

The deck types seem wildly different in this version also. The original game had much tamer decks. I don't know enough about magic to comment on the balance or anything like that.

The ability to take out cards it great. It allows minor deck tuning without allowing experienced players to create super powerful decks.

This game is going to be another xbla juggernaut. The adventures of shuggy released alongside of it.... never had a chance.
 
Archenemy blows. Schemes can go fuck themselves. I miss my old black deck, my old blue deck, my old black-red-blue deck, and hell, I miss the red-white-green deck... but this blue-green one is a lot of fun to play.

White's equip redesign (or DLC copy... ) is a good move, black and vampires I am not pleased to see. Blue and illusion is unapealling, as is the nerfed green and the red creature feature. Dragons has been improved, and red burn shows potential. The artifact deck seems to have taken a slight turn for the worse, but elves remains strong (stronger perhaps?) as ever.

That is, at least, my perspective. I don't see it as completely replacing the other game, and I hope the other game retains some of its community, but all-in-all I like this one better.

Improved deck customization FTW!
 
Sort of a longshot but would anybody be interested in giving away the promotional code that comes with the game to a total stranger? I was hoping on landing a couple more Grave Titan cards for a full deck (I just need two more) and would appreciate the generosity. PM me if you don't plan on using said code, and thank you.

Anyway, I really like the changes that they've made from the last game. I would've liked to get three more Stoneforge Mystics in the white deck, or get the option to add more of a card into each decks. At least I'm able to take cards out of my deck this time... plus the boards are easier to navigate now.
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']I'd buy this in a heartbeat if custom deck building were possible. Any reason in particular it still isn't? ;\[/QUOTE]

all the cards =maybe 3 decks in the end everything else is trash. other option of course is sony style and charge ya 5$ for random cards so it takes about 100$ to get started hehe.

current system actually i think makes it feel like it would if ya played casually at a card shop following a theme rather than just following a build some tournament winner made. more balance and lets ya see more types of builds. i just sort of wish they'd add maybe some old school decks. id love to get my classic goblin, creature/lighting/fireball or dijn/ Armageddon in there :)
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']I'd buy this in a heartbeat if custom deck building were possible. Any reason in particular it still isn't? ;\[/QUOTE]
If you mean a reason why building a deck from scratch isn't available, I'm certain it's because of Magic Online.
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']I'd buy this in a heartbeat if custom deck building were possible. Any reason in particular it still isn't? ;\[/QUOTE]

This is more for casuals. Either new players or people who have played magic before and want magic lite.
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']I'd buy this in a heartbeat if custom deck building were possible. Any reason in particular it still isn't? ;\[/QUOTE]

Because it's just a one time fee to play the game with it's limitations. It's also quite possible that MS won't allow a library of cards/content to be added as DLC to any single game. Several DLC packs and extras is fine, adding hundreds if not thousands of additional cards would probably be overwhelming. (iirc MS puts a limit to the number of DLC a game can put out, what that number is...idk)

...and yeah, there's MtG on the PC.
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']I'd buy this in a heartbeat if custom deck building were possible. Any reason in particular it still isn't? ;\[/QUOTE]

Others have already said it. I just wanted to add this. I used to play magic and I gave it up when I realized how much money I was wasting in acquiring new cards all the time. These games came out and they were pitch perfect for me, I can play magic in a balanced environment without worrying about sinking any more money into cards all the damn time. This new one allows minor tweaks which is perfect for me to keep the balance right but still give me some customization.
 
[quote name='Ink.So.Well.']I'd buy this in a heartbeat if custom deck building were possible. Any reason in particular it still isn't? ;\[/QUOTE]

I'm extremely glad there isn't. Or, if there were, it should be a totally separate online lobby. I'm not interested in spending hours trying to come up with overpowered card combinations to beat someone elses overpowered card combination. With people posting "reciepes" online that everyone copies and turns every match into a 3 minute game. That's not fun to me.

The game feels balanced, and I'm having a hell of time with it. Online is fun, other than everyone always playing the blue green deck, or the blue deck. It does not seem any deck is seriously better than any other.

BTW- If you enter a lobby for two headed giant against two people both playing blue (realm of illusions) - leave immediately. They can, and will, have well over 100 life very quickly. Last night I played a game where three people had the blue deck and it went on forever with both teams having over 100 life.
 
This game's such an improvement over its predecessor. Though I feel like the Red decks are a bit underpowered (especially Koth's), the balance between all of the decks is pretty impressive - I can tell that a lot of time and effort was put into that aspect of the game. The decks are also way better than the ones from Duels of the Planeswalkers, and the fact that you can keep them at 60 cards means that there is actually some consistency across the board for once.

Though it's obviously not better than Magic Online or the actual card game (which I already put a ton of time/money into), I'm glad that this game gives me the option to play with and against people over Xbox LIVE in a handful of different gametypes. Here's to hoping that they put as much or more effort into the DLC as they did with the initial game!
 
Elves and Vampires seem to be the two strongest decks again, although they aren't as powerful as before as they don't have some of the cards that made them uber last time (Coat of Arms for example with the Elves.)

Also I fucking hate Eldrazi. I think that's the one of the most broken cards/concepts in the history of TCG's, right up there with everything Score did with Yu Yu Hakusho after its third set. They're not as bad in constructed, but I'd rather draft the original Spiderman and Superman sets from 2004 in VS (the two worst sets in the 5-year history of that game) than draft Rise of the Eldrazi, where the Eldrazi monsters debuted.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
[quote name='MSUHitman']Elves and Vampires seem to be the two strongest decks again, although they aren't as powerful as before as they don't have some of the cards that made them uber last time (Coat of Arms for example with the Elves.)

Also I fucking hate Eldrazi. I think that's the one of the most broken cards/concepts in the history of TCG's, right up there with everything Score did with Yu Yu Hakusho after its third set. They're not as bad in constructed, but I'd rather draft the original Spiderman and Superman sets from 2004 in VS (the two worst sets in the 5-year history of that game) than draft Rise of the Eldrazi.[/QUOTE]

Completely agree with regards to the elves and vampires. Likewise, while I think Eldrazi are in fact lame, I'd go one step further to proclaim Planeswalker cards the most broken, lamest concepts in Magic history. Thankfully, they are not in this game, but I always groan when I seem people play them at the table. Truely, Planeswalker cards are uninspired filth fit only for those too inept at deckbuilding to find true combos and synergy.
 
[quote name='Kreutz']Completely agree with regards to the elves and vampires. Likewise, while I think Eldrazi are in fact lame, I'd go one step further to proclaim Planeswalker cards the most broken, lamest concepts in Magic history. Thankfully, they are not in this game, but I always groan when I seem people play them at the table. Truely, Planeswalker cards are uninspired filth fit only for those too inept at deckbuilding to find true combos and synergy.[/QUOTE]

FYI Planeswalker Jace (the good, super expensive one) and the stone mystic chic from the equipment decks in this game just got banned in RL Magic today, effective with the Magic 2012 core set. First cards they've banned in a few years from what they said in the press release.
 
Not sure I agree. The vampires and elves are both nerfed compared to the first game. The vampire deck has less vampires and buffing. The elves have no coat of arms or elvish champion (til the dlc). They're both still good, but I think they fall short of the previous game (probably a good thing) and fall short of other decks in the game.

In my opinion, the blue/green, mono blue, and artifact decks are the best.

Also, the first dlc was found in the game files for those interested.

http://forums.mtgsalvation.com/showthread.php?t=331976
 
[quote name='MSUHitman']FYI Planeswalker Jace (the good, super expensive one) and the stone mystic chic from the equipment decks in this game just got banned in RL Magic today, effective with the Magic 2012 core set. First cards they've banned in a few years from what they said in the press release.[/QUOTE]
You can still use 2x Stoneforge Mystic so long as you use the War of Attrition deck without any modifications.
 
[quote name='MSUHitman']Also I fucking hate Eldrazi. I think that's the one of the most broken cards/concepts in the history of TCG's, right up there with everything Score did with Yu Yu Hakusho after its third set.[/QUOTE]They are definitely the "boogeymen" of the more recent years, but I don't mind them (whether it's Constructed or casual stuff like this). They seem to have provided enough answers to them, as far as both types of formats are concerned, which is what I'm more concerned with. The balance in this game is fantastic, even with those big, lumbering game-enders roaming around.

[quote name='Kreutz']I'd go one step further to proclaim Planeswalker cards the most broken, lamest concepts in Magic history. Thankfully, they are not in this game, but I always groan when I seem people play them at the table. Truely, Planeswalker cards are uninspired filth fit only for those too inept at deckbuilding to find true combos and synergy.[/QUOTE]:shock:

Seems a little exaggerated, but everyone is entitled to their opinions.

I was personally hoping that the Planeswalker type cards would be making an appearance in this game (both from a promotional point of view, and a gameplay one). It doesn't seem like it would be hard at all to integrate those cards into the game, and it would be a cool new thing for beginners and casual players to learn about Magic before heading out to these Friday Night Magic events that the game tried to rope people into.

I've seen a dozen people or so come into my local card shop (after learning how to play Magic on Xbox LIVE) and have absolutely no idea what the Planeswalker cards to. In today's environment, it's really important to know how those cards work in the game.

Also, each Planeswalker would fit perfectly into their respective deck in the game - so I really don't see a reason to keep them out, to be honest.

----------

I'll post some deck builds that I am using (and maybe a few explanations) tonight or tomorrow, to potentially help some people out or at least show what I am doing with the decks.
 
Yeah I'm the process of reviewing the game for newbreview.com and that is the only thing keeping me from giving the game a perfect score. I thought that was the one of the major reasons they had to do a new game was to work the planeswalkers in.

Also X did the XBox players not know you don't get a "free" mulligan in RL Magic? I read the rules before I went so I knew that but a friend of mine that played in a tournament at PAX didn't.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner']
:shock:

Seems a little exaggerated, but everyone is entitled to their opinions.
[/QUOTE]

Indeed, it is exaggerated. Fairly put, I don't like Planeswalker cards, and I do view them as unnecessary. And while I am glad they are not in this game, it would be good marketing to include them.
 
I am enjoying this game like I did 2011, but the problem still is every time in the campaign the fucking bullshit AI 95% of the time always draws a card to trump any strategy I get out. It took me 6 times to beat the first boss because every time I get a winning strategy the guy brings out some BS card and kills me. I mean seriously I had a game where he brought out 4 5/4 monsters with haste in 10-12 turns.
 
[quote name='MSUHitman']Also X did the Xbox players not know you don't get a "free" mulligan in RL Magic? I read the rules before I went so I knew that but a friend of mine that played in a tournament at PAX didn't.[/QUOTE]Yeah, the mulligan rule is definitely one that console players don't know before coming in.

There's a handful of other things, too, that you can instantly tell someone doesn't understand after you sit down next to them in they have a :cold: look on their face. The use of the mana pool and interactions between phases is another biggie that the console game fails to cover, but that makes sense on the developers' part.

I'm usually nice enough to tell people to spend a couple of weeks playing the actual card game and learning how it really works before jumping into any type of tournament, even though the game makes you feel like you're ready to start playing at your local card shop the second you beat the single player campaign.
 
Here's how I rank the decks in the game, after spending a lot of time with each one:

Platinum Tier
Gideon Jura's Wielding Steel
whiten.gif

Jace Beleren's Realm of Illusion
blueb.gif


Gold Tier
Tezzeret's Machinations
whiten.gif
blueb.gif
blackig.gif

Sorin Markov's Blood Hunger
blackig.gif

Kiora Atua's Ancient Depths
greenq.gif
blueb.gif


Silver Tier
Garruk Wildspeaker's Apex Predators
greenq.gif

Nissa Revane's Guardians of the Wood
greenq.gif

Sarkhan Vol's Dragon's Roar
redq.gif


Bronze Tier
Chandra Nalaar's Unquenchable Fire
redq.gif

Koth of the Hammer's Strength of Stone
redq.gif



Of course the ratings are pretty subjective, seeing as how my 60-card configuration will be different from others' (hooray customization!), but that is a representation of what I have noticed after numerous hours with the game. I factored things such as consistency, power, and efficiency when I decided to group each deck. Also, I do not go over 60 cards for any of the decks.

---------------

My Deck Builds
(subject to change)

Gideon Jura's Wielding Steel
whiten.gif
Creatures (22)
1x Baneslayer Angel
1x Captain of the Watch
3x Elite Vanguard
1x Gideon's Avenger
2x Gideon's Lawkeeper
2x Kitesail Apprentice
2x Kor Duelist
3x Kor Hookmaster
3x Kor Outfitter
1x Puresteel Paladin
1x Stoneforge Mystic
2x Sunspear Shikari

Equipment (7)
1x Argentum Armor
1x Infiltration Lens
1x Kitesail
1x Strider Harness
1x Sword of War and Peace
2x Trusty Machete

Other Spells (7)
3x Arrest
1x Brave the Elements
1x Conqueror's Pledge
2x Revoke Existence

Lands (24)
24x Plains

Jace Beleren's Realm of Illusion
blueb.gif
Creatures (24)
2x AEther Adept
1x AEther Figment
3x Blind Phantasm
4x Krovikan Mist
2x Lord of the Unreal
1x Mahamoti Djinn
3x Phantom Beast
2x Phantom Warrior
4x Phantasmal Bear
1x Phantasmal Dragon
1x Sower of Temptation

Other Spells (12)
2x Cancel
1x Concentrate
2x Counterspell
2x Divination
1x Fleeting Distraction
2x Repulse
1x Summoner's Bane
1x Time Warp

Lands (24)
24x Islands

Tezzeret's Machinations
whiten.gif
blueb.gif
blackig.gif
Creatures (25)
1x Etched Champion
4x Etherium Sculptor
2x Gust-Skimmer
1x Master of Etherium
2x Pilgrim's Eye
2x Razorfield Rhino
1x Sanctum Gargoyle
2x Signal Pest
4x Snapsail Glider
2x Steel Overseer
1x Stone Golem
2x Tidehollow Strix
1x Wurmcoil Engine

Artifacts (1)
1x Mirrorworks

Equipment (1)
1x Darksteel Plate

Other Spells (9)
1x Dead Reckoning
2x Dispense Justice
2x Go for the Throat
3x Stoic Rebuttal
1x Undermine

Lands (24)
11x Island
5x Plains
5x Swamp
3x Terramorphic Expanse

Sorin Markov's Blood Hunger
blackig.gif
Creatures (24)
2x Barony Vampire
1x Bloodghast
1x Bloodrage Vampire
1x Captivating Vampire
1x Drana, Kalastria Bloodchief
2x Child of Night
2x Gatekeeper of Malakir
1x Mirri the Cursed
2x Quag Vampires
2x Ruthless Cullblade
1x Sangromancer
1x Sengir Vampire
1x Skeletal Vampire
2x Vampire Aristocrat
2x Vampire Nighthawk
1x Vampire Nocturnus
1x Vampire Outcasts

Equipment (1)
1x Blade of the Bloodchief

Other Spells (11)
2x Corrupt
2x Feast of Blood
1x Spread the Sickness
2x Urge to Feed
2x Vampire's Bite
2x Vicious Hunger

Lands (24)
24x Swamp

Kiora Atua's Ancient Depths
greenq.gif
blueb.gif
Creatures (14)
4x Coiling Oracle
1x Elvish Piper
1x Inkwell Leviathan
1x Isleback spawn
1x Kozilek, Butcher of Truth
1x Lorthos, the Tidemaker
1x Primeval Titan
2x Simic Sky Swallower
1x Tidal Kraken
1x Ulamog, the Infinite Gyre

Enchantments (3)
1x Levitation
1x Mind Control
1x Yavimaya's Embrace

Other Spells (18)
3x AEther Mutation
1x Compulsive Research
3x Cultivate
2x Explosive Vegetation
4x Explore
1x Polymorph
1x Rite of Replication
2x Tidings
1x Treasure Hunt

Lands (25)
10x Forest
15x Island

Garruk Wildspeaker's Apex Predators
greenq.gif
Creatures (27)
3x Borderland Ranger
2x Cudgel Troll
1x Craw Wurm
1x Dungrove Elder
1x Engulfing Slagwurm
1x Gaea's Revenge
2x Garruk's Companion
2x Garruk's Packleader
2x Giant Spider
3x Grazing Gladeheart
1x Leatherback Baloth
2x Runeclaw Bear
1x Stomper Cub
1x Terra Stomper
1x Thrun, the Last Troll
2x Wall of Vines
1x Wolfbriar Elemental

Other Spells (9)
3x Giant Growth
2x Lead the Stampede
2x Nature's Lore
2x Overrun

Lands (24)
24x Forest

Nissa Revane's Guardians of the Wood
greenq.gif
Creatures (31)
1x Elven Riders
3x Elvish Eulogist
1x Elvish Lyrist
2x Elvish Visionary
1x Ezuri, Renegade Leader
1x Ezuri's Archers
4x Heedless One
1x Imperious Perfect
1x Jagged-Scar Archers
1x Joraga Warcaller
1x Lys Alana Huntmaster
4x Nissa's Chosen
2x Norwood Ranger
2x Sylvan Ranger
2x Titania's Chosen
2x Viridian Emissary
1x Viridian Shaman
1x Wildheart Invoker

Other Spells (5)
2x Elvish Promenade
3x Might of the Masses

Lands (24)
24x Forest

Sarkhan Vol's Dragon's Roar
redq.gif
Creatures (23)
1x Dragonmaster Outcast
2x Dragonspeaker Shaman
1x Flameblast Dragon
3x Furnace Whelp
1x Furyborn Hellkite
2x Goblin Piker
1x Goblin Wardriver
1x Hellkite Charger
1x Manic Vandal
3x Raging Goblin
1x Rorix Bladewing
4x Volcanic Dragon
2x Voracious Dragon

Artifacts (2)
2x Ruby Medallion

Enchantments (1)
1x Crucible of Fire

Other Spells (9)
2x Burst Lightning
3x Dragon Fodder
1x Goblin Offensive
1x Pyroclasm
2x Rally the Forces

Lands (25)
25x Mountain

Chandra Nalaar's Unquenchable Fire
redq.gif
Creatures (14)
1x Chandra's Phoenix
3x Fiery Hellhound
1x Fire Servant
1x Flameblast Dragon
1x Flametongue Kavu
2x Goblin Arsonist
1x Inferno Titan
3x Kiln Fiend
1x Prodigal Pyromancer

Other Spells (22)
1x Banefire
1x Blaze
3x Chandra's Outrage
2x Flame Slash
1x Flame Wave
2x Incinerate
3x Lava Axe
2x Punishing Fire
1x Pyroclasm
1x Relentless Assault
4x Volcanic Hammer
1x Wheel of Fortune

Lands (24)
24x Mountain

Koth of the Hammer's Strength of Stone
redq.gif
Creatures (23)
1x Bloodfire Colossus
1x Conquering Manticore
2x Earth Elemental
1x Earth Servant
1x Flowstone Overseer
3x Goblin Mountaineer
1x Grim Lavamancer
1x Hero of Oxid Ridge
2x Koth's Courier
1x Lavaborn Muse
1x Magma Phoenix
2x Molten Ravager
2x Rockslide Elemental
1x Spikeshot Elder
2x Tephraderm
1x Vulshok Berserker

Other Spells (12)
2x Act of Treason
1x Assault Strobe
1x Cerebral Eruption
2x Claws of Valakut
1x Fault Line
2x Spire Barrage
3x Spitting Earth

Lands (25)
25x Mountain

You may have noticed that I listed Nissa's Elf deck and Sarkhan's Dragon deck as Mono-Green and Mono-Red, respectively. I did this in an effort to make the decks more efficient and because I noticed a handful of games where I struggled with mana for both decks. While giving up some of the Black spells wasn't the easiest thing in the world, I believe it made a big difference in the end for both decks. Time will tell (after more XBL matches) whether or not those decks will actually need the removal spells, but for now I'm simply worried about consistency with them both. If anyone has any questions about my builds, feel free to ask them and I'll explain why I picked what I picked. I'm not trying to say this is the only way to build your decks all other ways suck with this post, but these lists accurately represent the way I like to play and have proven to be what's best for me.

It may be worth mentioning that I compete in Magic tournaments once or twice per week (either local, regional, or Pro Tour Qualifiers) and that I have years of experience under my belt with the card game - so that either helps validate some of my opinions (maybe), or makes me come off as a douchebag :lol: Either way...I hope this helps some people out there!
 
garbage...I love the game, found it strange they failed to include a complete glossary of card abilities. I've played this game for years even worked for WotC at one point and I was clueless to some of the newer abilities. ...then I figured out that you can press a bunch of buttons and tab around blindly and the game tells you what the card's power does.

This game still feels like a better beta version of the 1st one. I really wish there was something resembled a "campaign." c'mon...more cutscenes, some story, something when you beat each planeswalker with specific decks.

that said...Ancient Depths is probably the only deck that you could get away with playing with all additional 16 unlocked cards w/out hurting for mana.
 
[quote name='100xp']

This game still feels like a better beta version of the 1st one. I really wish there was something resembled a "campaign." c'mon...more cutscenes, some story, something when you beat each planeswalker with specific decks.

that said...Ancient Depths is probably the only deck that you could get away with playing with all additional 16 unlocked cards w/out hurting for mana.[/QUOTE]
No one playing this gives a shit about cutscenes (except for maybe you).

I love the game and I just want the DLC to come out in a quicker fashion this time around.
 
[quote name='Tha Xecutioner'] :lol: Either way...I hope this helps some people out there![/QUOTE]

That info helps a lot. I never really played magic, but played a lot of other CCGs.

It is interesting because you rated the artifact deck highly when I've seen a lot of other people say the deck is garbage. I wonder it just needs the extra 18 cards and a lot of tuning.

It is also interesting that both green decks appear to be mid tier and the red decks appear to all be low tier.

Ancient depths seems to be a really good deck (which would appear to be the best), but it's slow with large creatures, so both wielding steel and realm of illusion can punish it. I definitely can agree with your rankings.
 
[quote name='zewone']No one playing this gives a shit about cutscenes (except for maybe you).

I love the game and I just want the DLC to come out in a quicker fashion this time around.[/QUOTE]

I completely agree. I enjoy playing through the campaign as it is, I do not need cutscenes are some terribly implemented story to entice me more. I do want more content and support though.
 
[quote name='wakawakawa']That info helps a lot. I never really played magic, but played a lot of other CCGs.

It is interesting because you rated the artifact deck highly when I've seen a lot of other people say the deck is garbage. I wonder it just needs the extra 18 cards and a lot of tuning.

It is also interesting that both green decks appear to be mid tier and the red decks appear to all be low tier.

Ancient depths seems to be a really good deck (which would appear to be the best), but it's slow with large creatures, so both wielding steel and realm of illusion can punish it. I definitely can agree with your rankings.[/QUOTE]I think the Artifact deck is pretty solid, and I actually like it more than the first game's U/B Artifact deck. I know it doesn't generate 1,000 tokens like the first game's did, but it all flows nicely and, before you know it, you have a team of 5-6 Artifact creatures all being pumped up by the Steel Overseer into 5/5's or better and you're stomping down your opponent. It's nearly unplayable in Archenemy (because the Scheme cards will constantly disrupt your Metalcraft and take out all of your good creatures), but, as far as 1v1 and Two-Headed Giant go, the deck can get sick in a real hurry and can easily put other players in bad positions.

My main problem with the Red decks (and, the reason that I think Green outranks them) is consistency. I get so many mediocre or bad games with both Red decks, where as the Green deck feels like you're getting the same thing almost every game: T1 - 0/3 Wall, T2 - 3/2 w/Trample , T3 - 2/2 Gladeheart (life-gaining antelope), T4 - 2/4 Spider w/Reach, T5 - 4/4 Packleader, etc. I know it's an exaggeration, but every game feels like that for me - which is good, because I can count on those creatures showing up game in and game out. With Red it's like "Will I get 8 Mountains this game? Or 8 creatures and no Mountains? Or all burn and no creatures?". It's always a toss-up as to what you're actually going to get.

You pretty much nailed it with the G/U Ancient Depths deck. As far as late game power, none of the other decks can really come close. It's the early game that kills this deck in 1v1 matchups. In Two-Headed Giant and Archenemy, though, this deck is gross. Anytime this deck can either be protected by a teammate (through use of kill spells, burn spells, prevent damage spells, or blocking) or be distracted by a teammate (AI focuses on taking something else out), this deck just goes into cruise control and flat out wins. If you don't capitalize on the handful of turns that this deck gives you when playing against it, you're probably not going to win. The reason why I put it in in the spot that I did, is because those other decks can already start wreaking havoc on your life total before the average time that Ancient Depths needs to set up - especially Wielding Steel and Realm of Illusion.
 
Here's how I'd rank them, in order.

Platinum Tier
Kiora Atua's Ancient Depths
greenq.gif
blueb.gif







Gold Tier

Jace Beleren's Realm of Illusion
blueb.gif

Tezzeret's Machinations
whiten.gif
blueb.gif
blackig.gif

Sorin Markov's Blood Hunger
blackig.gif



Silver Tier
Nissa Revane's Guardians of the Wood
greenq.gif

Gideon Jura's Wielding Steel
whiten.gif

Koth of the Hammer's Strength of Stone
redq.gif

Chandra Nalaar's Unquenchable Fire
redq.gif


Bronze Tier
Garruk Wildspeaker's Apex Predators
greenq.gif

Sarkhan Vol's Dragon's Roar
redq.gif
 
Never played Magic in real life or game until I played this one. I must say pretty easy to pick up but challenging to master. The matches though are a little on the longside though
 
lol
if anyone wants to play Co-op two headed giant
let me know as im always down to play and hone my magic skills

im currently loving the elf deck and i like garruks deck.
Next up is the dragon deck which i feel isnt as good as the dragon deck in the last game but ill play it more some.
 
[quote name='zewone']No one playing this gives a shit about cutscenes (except for maybe you).

I love the game and I just want the DLC to come out in a quicker fashion this time around.[/QUOTE]

wow...
 
Anyone wanna play some Magic let me know
Bout to try the Machinists deck.

Elf deck is still my favorite and i just beat the vampire deck with it
 
I think I'm done playing ranked. I got up to rank 6th and won countless matches and stayed at 6. Lost one which sent me back to 8th. Won countless matches and barely got back to 7th. My dreams of being the top ranked player is being crushed. =[
 
[quote name='zewone']I think I'm done playing ranked. I got up to rank 6th and won countless matches and stayed at 6. Lost one which sent me back to 8th. Won countless matches and barely got back to 7th. My dreams of being the top ranked player is being crushed. =[[/QUOTE]

You are 6th on the leaderboards? Wow thats good, not sure how many people have played rank but the game sold like 100,000 copies.
 
[quote name='wakawakawa']You are 6th on the leaderboards? Wow thats good, not sure how many people have played rank but the game sold like 100,000 copies.[/QUOTE]

About 13,000 last I checked.
 
Anyone from XBL have a Promo Code for the Grave Titan? I know a lot of people have no use for the actual card. I bought the PS3 and steam game, but I don't have an XBOX.. :whistle2:/ It would be SUPER appreciated! Just getting back into playing a lil after a 10 year hiatus.. lol.
 
[quote name='zewone']I think I'm done playing ranked. I got up to rank 6th and won countless matches and stayed at 6. Lost one which sent me back to 8th. Won countless matches and barely got back to 7th. My dreams of being the top ranked player is being crushed. =[[/QUOTE]

No one playing this gives a crap if you're done playing ranked (except maybe you). ;)

...but it's possible that in order to see progress in your ranking, you'd have to play and beat other ranked players near and higher than your current rank to see progress...that and it's possible other ranked players are playing and winning as often as you to maintain their current status.

congrats on being 7th though.
 
bread's done
Back
Top