Most people think that the card game, Magic the Gathering, is played by drop out college students who try to assert dominance in their Mom’s basement. Who knows, maybe it’s dark and damp and filled with half-eaten pizza slices. Of course, that is not the case and is stereotypical. Magic the Gathering is played by all ages, especially by the younger group of people. Magic The Gathering or MTG is played around the world and has even reached some small popularity here at Morro Bay High School.
But what is MTG? MTG is a strategy card game that has the player control land cards to cast creatures and spells. The game has 5 different colors to play with such as white, blue, black, red, and green. Each color has their own playstyle and has different strategies to win. To win the game the player needs to reduce the opponent’s life total from 20 to 0. Usually creatures are doing the most damage but spells can help accelerate this.
MTG also has different formats such as standard. Standard is a competitive format that consists of the cards from the latest released sets from the past two years. Vintage is a format that has cards from old sets and the decks are usually too expensive, but my personal favorite is commander. A commander deck is built around one legendary creature card that brings the deck together to work. There can only be one copy of a card and must be the same colors as the commander. “We start off new players with another format called modern,” says club creator Kyle Burton, “which is the most basic format and can be fun for everyone.”
At the beginning of the year many new clubs were introduced to the school including the MTG club. It mainly consists of five people and every once in a meets periodically in the library to play a couple games during the lunch break. “We organize times for everyone to gather and play the game,” says Burton, “occasionally putting together tournaments for those who are feeling competitive.” The tournaments we hold are called drafts that involve the whole playgroup. Everyone pitches in about $15 so the group can buy a booster box to draft a deck. We all play in a tournament and winners get any left over packs. This method is intended to help newcomers learn the basics of the game and have a good time with friends.
With our club comes the goal of meeting new people to share ideas, strategies, and of course, become friends. Burton says, “The goal of the club is to help like-minded people meet each other and become friends through a great game.”
We welcome any new people who are interested in a strategic card game that can be a fun and thrilling experience. “Anyone can join,” says Burton. “Especially those who enjoy strategy games. Magic can be compared to chess and poker, but it has a fantasy theme like D&D. It may seem complicated at first, but truly anyone can learn if they want to. With so many ways to enjoy the game, Magic can be for anyone.”
Now it may seem very daunting to get into MTG, but when I began to play, it only took a couple weeks to learn the full game. In those weeks I met lifelong friends and a whole new group of people. We attend events and share ideas on what to have in our decks, but it’s not all about the cards, it’s about the people you play with. We talk about other personal things and those new friends can give support in any real life problems. We can’t wait to see new players and friends out on the battlefield of Magic the Gathering.
