|
You are: Home -> Articles -> Feature Article |
|
19-09-2000
 The Theory Behind Magic 1: Do all players have a color that they are "born with"?
This has been a long debated argument between my friends and I after playing the draft Thursday
night in Games Paradise, Sydney. Whenever I draft, I notice that some people tend to pick certain colors to
play most of the time and do really well with those. Take my friend Evan for example, 9 out of 10 times he
chooses to use a red/green deck and gets into the top 4 brackets. The one time that he doesn't pick
red/green, he will get beaten like a Squee with everyone having a chance to abuse him. Evan is a great player
and has qualified for nationals this year, so why doesn't he do well with other colors. Well here is my
theory:
1) The use of strategy
When I first started playing magic, I was immediately attracted to the color white for it's ability to "Turn
the game around" and strong board control. I like winning through absolutely dominating the situation and
safe defenses behind my creatures and spells. As times go by, this became a habit. So whenever I use an
opposing color like red which rely on speed and life advantages, I falter because I would sometimes prefer to
leave my creatures to defend rather then sacrificing them for extra damages.
2) The familiarity with the cards
If you have been playing certain colors for a long time. You would know what is the maximum effect to get out
of the cards and how some of them can do more then one thing with their abilities (like "Swords to
Plowshares" can be used as a lifesaver as well as a removal). You would know what spells are worth
countering, when to clear the board and what to Invigorate to achieve maximum effect. It may sound simple,
but when playing against better players, not achieving the maximum card advantage can cost you the game.
3) The exact card text
This may sound stupid, but knowing what exactly the card said is VERY important. You might think, sure I
know what the card does, but can you really remember what EVERY SINGLE card does in magic? Most of the time
you are only familiar with the cards in the color you play with. So in situations like draft, you would
assume that a card does something it does not by skim reading. For example, I once used a flame shot to try
to deal direct damage to another guy, he actually took it too until a third person pointed out that it was
illegal. Yeah, you should of shut up Chris (kidding).
4) Deck Construction
Unless you copied a deck from the Internet or some other places, there is no way that you can build a deck
with cards that you are not familiar with. This is especially crucial in drafts since there isn't a source
for you to copy from. Sure you can tell which cards are good and which aren't, but it would not be likely for
you to have some of the special techs that you would put in playing your dominant color. Remember, deck
building is more then just putting a bunch of good cards together.
5) Fun
Finally, it all comes down to the fun factor. The color you start with is likely to be the color you stick
with. Something about that color has attracted your personality to it. Deep thinkers like to play blue
because they can control what comes into play. Aggressive people favors red because of the instant damage and
the power to destroy. It is always fun to play a color that goes with your character.
There are not doubt exceptional strong players who are able to break the boundaries of colors.
Like Marsil the Pretender said in Gathering Dark by Jeff Grubb -
"The colors of magic are like tools in a tool shed. A true master should know how to utilize them all
to achieve their goals, instead of trying to use a single color to achieve what could have been easily
accomplished by another color."
Minga Wong |
