Beginner to Magic The Gathering

So I'm thinking about starting up playing Magic mostly for the social aspect and for fun at the game shop nive been playing on the PS3 and iPad, but I'm overwhelmed by how to start putting a deck together with intro packs, core packs, deckbuilder's kits, expansions etc. Any tips for getting going economically and what do I need? Is there anything else needed when playing irl other than the deck?

Print out your deck. If you are going o play MAgic casually get a group of friends and just print out proxies. Collecting cards can get really expensive quick.

PM me and I can link you to some sites that can get you started.

I would recommend first that you decide how you want to play the deck you build( this will allow you to determine the color or colors that will be in it).

Since you have played the console game you may already now what colors you want to play.

I would recommend picking up one of the starter decks with the color you want in and if you need more lands you can normally get them pretty cheap on eBay or at local card shops. You could also buy a Deckbuolder set but I find that you normally get cheaply cards from them unless it is an uncommon or common that you need or land.

I do recommend that you use proxies of the more expensive(my cut off is if it is more than $30) cards since you may think it will work well in the deck you have but sometimes it just does not work like you want.

You also need to decide if you want to make your deck type 2 legal( standard tournament deck), because that limits what sets and cards you can use in the deck.

Dude I've played casual MTG forever, and deck building is still really intimidating  to me. It's fun with friends, but if you want to go to a local card shop and play the regulars, it's a whole other level. 

Booster drafts are where it's at. Open a pack, pick a card, pass the rest around. Everyone goes through 3 packs, then you can take the land you need and make a quick, 40 card deck with what you pulled. ~$15 for entry gets you a fun night of competition on a fairly equal playing field, and teaches you a lot about the game. Plus, even if you don't win the tournament (you won't), you're walking home with the cards you picked anyway, and most shops hand out free swag as well. Great for all levels of players.

yeah, magic the gathering can get expensive, that is one of the reasons i quit. i mainly play with friends, when i used to play. i had a black mono control deck from extended, and a psychtog from type 2. lol

Well I settled on the 2014 event deck, I figure I'll play that while I'm still learning and build it out as time goes by.

I think it is most fun to build your deck with a set goal in mind and then add your cards to further that goal. As you gain experience, you will learn of more cards that can accomplish your goal more efficiently.

For example...

I like playing pure blue decks with lots of control to make the game go as I need it to to win. I intend to win by using flying and unblockable creatures to deal my damage for me. What kind of stuff could prevent that from happening? Well, as blue you'll always have a selection of counterspells at your disposal that can ruin almost any spell but you only have so many... How about creatures with reach or other flyers? Well bounce cards are good for that to get them off the field. What about vs burn decks that will just torch all your guys? Well Redirect is a nice cheap spell that can turn those burns against the enemy. What about XXX? etc.

So, think about how you are going to win, reduce enemy life to 0 or "deck" them (i think these are the only 2 "normal" ways to win apart from a few cards like phage or coalition victory), throw in some cards that can accomplish that, and then add cards to support that goal. Edit deck accordingly as experience is gained to streamline your path to victory.

wow  old magic cards  died in value  big time.. Jesters cap and mask are now almost worthless