DG's Bringing your A Game! 6 Proverbs?

Hello everyone. This article will be shorter and a little more basic than others due to college papers and finals taking up most of my time. Without further ado let’s talk about today’s topic, proverbs. For those of you who do not know what a proverb is, it is essentially a rule of thumb or some good general advice. That being said, that does not mean you should always follow the proverb in question blindly. They are meant to be guidelines to help you grow and make good decisions. Proverbs span many topics. You can find a proverb for just about anything you can think of. The same holds true for Magic as well. These are some common theories and proverbs that both aspiring and seasoned players would do well to remember and considers.

“A good player can deal over 20 damage to their opponent. A great player can deal exactly 20 damage to their opponent”

This proverb is pretty straightforward. It teaches us not to overextend and take unnecessary risks. Magic has always been about dropping the opponents life to 0. You do not get any extra prizes or bonuses for massively overkilling your opponent. By following this essential proverb we are able to make the most out of our cards by using all of our resources in a very efficient way. If you are efficient in the way you handle your resources you will win more games. This has been proven time and time again. There are no exceptions to this proverb. The only one that really is an “exception” is when the Timmy player is getting sweet revenge on another player in EDH or casual. In competitive magic this proverb is probably the most essential and will make up the bread and butter of all of your plays.

“It is often better to attack first and play spells later”

This proverb is also pretty simple and does not require much explanation. After you play your land for your turn, you should probably be attacking. If you have all of your mana open and one more card in you hand, it can create uncertainty in your opponent’s blocking decisions and responses. By having all your resources available during the attack step, you give yourself the most options. There are a few exceptions to this rule of course. The first would be a land drop (although it is not required). It is very common to drop a land first unless you have more than enough lands already. Non basics with an additional effect that might affect the game state would probably be played first for example. Another exception is if you have a creature with haste. You obviously would not miss out on that opportunity for damage. The final exception to this rule is if you have a card that can affect combat (like remove a blocker or making the opponent discard cards). If it eliminates the opponent’s choices, it is probably safe to play before attackers are declared. A card like Blightning would be a great example. Making the opponent lose two cards would limit their options during your combat step. Most of the time, you will be attacking after your land drop. It is good to remember to always pick the route that gives you the most options and your opponent the least.

“Know your deck’s workings to every minute detail. You should be able to write down every card and the amount without looking”

This proverb can save many players who are having an off night. I cannot tell you how many games I have won because I knew my deck 100% through. If you are aware of every detail and scenario playing becomes that much easier. Magic is a game that takes a huge amount of mental strength at high level events. Knowing what your deck can and cannot do, will reduce the amount of energy the brain needs to play the game. Playing a deck, no matter what kind, is very much like muscle memory. If you are used to aggro, you know not to run into a wrath. All of your plays are meant to create the most amount of damage quickly. If you are control, all of your plays are centered on maintaining an advantage everywhere you can. You counter the spells you know you cannot deal with and use cards to get ahead of the opponent. If you are combo, then you know that speed is the most important thing. You look to assemble some cards and win instantly without caring about getting more advantage or dealing more damage. You know these basics when you begin playing your chosen deck. But knowing every little card and its interactions and possibilities will open up your options immensely. Combo decks like Time Sieve and Eggs are great examples of this kind of proverb. The entire deck is the combo and knowing every detail and situation is imperative to winning. After you have such a deep understanding, plays will come naturally from the deep understanding you have. The subconscious is a very powerful part of the human mind. It lets us take on tasks without using up our main energy and focus. The only way to develop this skill is to playtest whenever you can and play complicated decks. Solitaire Eggs a few times to see what I mean. If you understand your deck to this point, you will be able to subconsciously make many correct plays without even needing sleep and or proper playtesting against a matchup (although they certainly do help).

“Every card would be better if it had ‘Draw a card’ written somewhere on it”

This proverb is not meant to be taken at face value. In fact, I am sure whoever said it had used a sarcastic tone when saying it. The point of this proverb is not to tell us that drawing cards is important. We already know that. What this proverb is suggesting is that like all resources, they are expendable. If every card let us draw another card, we would never have to worry about managing our resources. We would always have the same amount of options, regardless of the scenario. What makes this interesting is not the idea that all cards should be that way. That would make the game bland and boring. What we learn from this is just how limited our resources are. Let’s face it, outside of Battle of Wits or and EDH game, if you want to win you are playing 60 cards with a 15 card sideboard. To win, we must use the most efficient and complete 75 cards. Every card must play a key role and no slots should be wasted. Every single card is a resource and should either be letting us win or create even more resources. A card that replaces itself is invaluable to the construction of a great deck. Why is both Ponder and Preordain banned in modern? Outside of the fact that they set up draws, it is because they replace themselves. These cards would be terrible if they did not have that single valuable clause. If a card is replacing itself, that means you are never getting behind in card advantage. If that card creates more resources that is just a bonus. Many things can be learned from this phrase. From the value of resources, to the basic fundamental theories of card advantage, to the applications of tempo and cantrips. This phrase can teach us the value of a single card and how important it is to the rest of the overall picture.

“One of the greatest weapons in your arsenal is not a card. It is the knowledge of how the stack works”

This proverb speaks truth on many levels. Yes big huge expensive cards and splashy mythics are cool. Yes money is a huge factor in competitive play in this game. These are valuable weapons. However, if you are not rich, and have crappy luck at pulling cards in packs (like me) than there is one free alternative. Understand how the stack works and use it to your advantage. Stanislav Cifka, winner of Pro Tour Return to Ravnica, displayed just this at the huge event. I am sure he did not have a financial issue. But he chose a deck many people had written off as bad and weak. The deck (Eggs) had no mythics and the most expensive rare was a $15 dollar fetchland (at the time). What allowed him to take home $40,000 was not only his masterful management of resources and tight technical play, but also his mastery of the stack. The Eggs deck requires a deep knowledge of the stack and its intricacies. If you know how the stack works and can abuse it, you can create amazing results without having the need to own big awesome cards.  Francis Bacon once said "Knowledge is power". Arming yourself with vast amounts of knowledge about the stack is a great way to improve your game and take it to the next level.

“You never stop learning things. In magic, every player has something they can teach you”

All of the other proverbs I have previously used are things I have heard over many years of play. I do not know where they came from or who said them. All I know is I have heard/read them somewhere along the years. This proverb on the other hand is something close to what Jon Finkel once said (I cannot remember the exact wording for any of these, just there practical applications). As with anything in life, a new and fresh perspective yields much knowledge. I believe I have stated this point in a previous article, but everyone has something they can give you. Even newer and younger players offer a sort of knowledge that can be valuable. It is important that we look for these teachings and use them to better ourselves. No matter how good you get or how advanced you play, there is always one more thing to learn. Despite playing ten years and having a vast knowledge of competitive play, strategies, and advanced knowledge with applications, I still learn new things. It is a good quality to have when you seek to better yourself in any area, whether it be a card game or a real life situation.

I have looked at 6 valuable proverbs and have dissected their meaning and have tried to explain my findings to you. There are actually many more proverbs and teachings to be read out there. These are just some of the more common and basic ones I decided to share with you. I wish I could have gone into more detail and spent more time explaining some more advanced and intricate pieces. But my college studies have to come first. I know this is a bit on the basic side compared to what I normally due, but it never hurts to go back and reinforce our knowledge on the basics. Why do you think teachers make you review what you learned in 4th grade in high school and college? It is to help reinforce the ideas and maybe even add something new. Thank you all for reading and I hoped you enjoyed. I will conclude this article as always,

Until next time, keep it real and have fun!

Justin

Great article! I've been a casual magic player for a long time, but I'm trying to up my game and get into tournament play. Thanks for all the knowledge and insight you are passing along to your fellow players.

As always, FANTASTIC!

Another good read.

A++++ one of your best.

A++++ one of your best.

This. For sure.

Quote from: Dudecore on November 25, 2012, 10:20:26 PM

A++++ one of your best.

This. For sure.

I'm going to change it to A+++++ before passing it on.

Wow. That's it. Wiw

Wow. That's it. Wiw

Thank you everyone for your continued support.

@Fishsticks123 Eh, what does Wiw mean?

Your articles always make me think about how I could play better and what important parts of play I'm not catching.

Another awesome article DG!  Good job 

Your articles always make me think about how I could play better and what important parts of play I'm not catching.

Another awesome article DG!  Good job 

Thank you for reading. I am glad my writing stimulates these thoughts. Your continued support is much appreciated.

Quote from: Fishsticks123 on November 25, 2012, 11:46:30 PM

Wow. That's it. Wiw

Thank you everyone for your continued support.

@Fishsticks123 Eh, what does Wiw mean?

Probably a mistype of "Wow"

Quote from: Death Gaara on November 26, 2012, 12:31:36 AM

Quote from: Fishsticks123 on November 25, 2012, 11:46:30 PM

Wow. That's it. Wiw

Thank you everyone for your continued support.

@Fishsticks123 Eh, what does Wiw mean?

Probably a mistype of "Wow"

Possibly, I know it means "What it's worth", but that makes no sense in context. The only question now is does he mean "wow" in a good way or a sarcastic way? The internet really needs a sarcastic font so people can distinguish what others are saying lol.

This is the best article I have ever read. Well, so far it's the only one I have read so far. This was extremely helpfull in all ways possible for a beginner like me. Thanks for spending your time writing this article for the edification of the masses😃

Yet another good read. Speaks volumes that every single time you post an article, I am always able to not only take something away from it, but am always glad to have read it.

Ever consider writing professionally? You certainly have the ability to articulate and connect with readers. Well done, yet again.