Deckstats Forum
English-language Forums => General Magic => Topic started by: skeri on April 23, 2016, 11:10:45 pm
-
Hey everyone!
I'm a college student in my mid twenties in my last year of my Bachelor's degree in Art History. I work full time as the supervisor for an anatomy laboratory and pay for life, school, and my hobbies. I'm fairly new to this particular hobby, and I really want to get into it, but I'm also a serious financial planner. I play standard at my Friday night Magic group and I can tell that people sink lots of money into their decks. Also there are things like sleeves, mats, and accessories as well as tournament fees and new cards that will constantly need to be bought as they rotate in and out.
Does anyone have any budget tips or ways that they get MTG to "pay for itself" or ways to save/budget for Magic? How do you guys work Magic into your financial lives?
Thanks!
-
As weird as it sounds, I treat Magic as a bill each month. I have so much budgeted for it. A few things I did (and still do for the most part) before I was financially better however....
1- Despite the thrill of opening packs, it is usual cheaper to just buy the cards you specifically want than it is to buy packs hoping to get the card you want.
2- Trading, most likely there's going to be people that want the cards you have extra of that have cards you want...unless you're all building the exact same deck, which would be a little awkward. The bulk of your deck should be commons & uncommons. Those rares you do have from packs you opened that aren't in your plans for building decks with are your key towards trading for the stuff you're looking for.
3- NEVER preorder individual cards, mainly meaning rares and mythic rares. Some may argue with this but they can't argue that the majority of the time the price of individual cards drop once the set is released. To give you an example, the planeswalkers from SOI. Before the release (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Release) Jace was preordering for around 35-40, Nahiri was around 30, Sorin was around 35, and Arlinn I saw as high as 45. Now, none are more expensive than 30.
4- If you are going to purchase cards online, be mindful of where you shop. Some sites charge more than others just like with anything else you buy.
That's all I can think of off the top of my head.
-
Thank you!
I have only ever purchased a few packs, but I realized pretty quickly that I was just going to end up with a bunch of cards I didn't want or need. Treating Magic as a bill is a good idea too, that's what I did this month and it worked out pretty well. I went with $60 a month which is about $15 a week for cards, tournament entries, and whatever else. Since I bought a $14 card yesterday I didn't pay to play in the actual tournament but rather just played for free with other people at the shop which was just as fun. I can always save up for a period of time for bigger purchases.
-
Theory crafting and net deck; build a decklist, and buy only those cards. Play that deck, paying tournament costs, aiming for the win.
-
This is what I usually do:
1) Usually what I do is I research (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Research) the entire block or card set. This way I know what I actually want.
2) I take every color combo there is, look at all the cards from the block and see what I would want to build from the available cards.
3) Build my decks strictly from Commons/Uncommons and use my rares/mythics sparingly.
The ONLY time I get booster packs is if I'm going to a draft event or I'm buying a booster box. I started playing Yugioh when I was younger and learned the hard way that investing in booster packs is not good for deck building. IF I want a rare I'll do trading. Also try and start of any deck you build under $20 first, this way the deck will always be easy to recreate in case anything of an unfortunate nature takes place.
As far as monthly budgeting goes spend only 10% of your monthly income for recreational luxuries and hobbies. IF you find yourself getting close to that number then stop buying, reassess what you've already collected and decide if you really NEED anymore cards or just want them. It saves money and will help you in the long run.
-
My strategy isn't very helpful to you, but I let my friend open the packs I buy. He is the luckiest pack opener ever. Last weekend, he opened $120 in packs and opened 2 Jaces, an Avacyn, a Gitrog Monster, and a Linvala among other things. I bought 1 BFZ pack just for fun and I let him open it and I got an Oblivion Sower (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Oblivion+Sower). My other strategy is trading. I wanted a Karn Liberated (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Karn+Liberated), but I couldn't afford one so I traded a Wurmcoil Engine (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Wurmcoil+Engine), an Ajani Goldmane (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Ajani+Goldmane) (also from trading), and a Liliana Vess (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Liliana+Vess) (also from trading) for him.
-
Thanks for the sound advice! During summer I take fewer classes and I usually pick up a part time job so I'll be able to put a little more toward deck building soon. I think I'll use that time to build a couple decent decks that I like so that when school and work kick back into overdrive I can back off of the spending and still be able to play.
-
It strictly depends on what you want out of playing Magic. If you just want a deck and are okay with a "good enough" deck for FNM at your FLGS then you can play fairly cheaply. If you want a lot of options and want to WIN then it is more interesting. The easiest way is as mentioned - pick a budget. Figure out what you care to spend on a monthly basis. After that you can decide what the best use of that money is based on what you want out of playing.
-
trade for: how do yall get the trade bait in first place IF you dont buy some random or predetermined cards? its still in investment of some sort.
i actually make a set budget like most have in responses. STICK to it. omg sometimes its hard.
this is where i venture into another avenue of cash flow for cards....i simply turn in my bottles every other month and im surprised at how much i have lol. i then try to buy cards on a deck list for me or just go buy booster packs for the randomness trade bait.
another note: if you smoke (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Smoke)...try to quit. WOW the cash i have to invest in fun now ! i just use some of what i used to spend on smokes.
-
trade for: how do yall get the trade bait in first place IF you dont buy some random or predetermined cards? its still in investment of some sort.
i actually make a set budget like most have in responses. STICK to it. omg sometimes its hard.
this is where i venture into another avenue of cash flow for cards....i simply turn in my bottles every other month and im surprised at how much i have lol. i then try to buy cards on a deck list for me or just go buy booster packs for the randomness trade bait.
another note: if you smoke (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Smoke)...try to quit. WOW the cash i have to invest in fun now ! i just use some of what i used to spend on smokes.
Trade bait tends to come from staying in a specific format (namely, Standard) and trading the cards that fall off to other format players that are looking for them. For example (somewhat), I traded two Ajani, Mentor of Heroes (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Ajani%2C+Mentor+of+Heroes) when the Theros block fell off standard for some other cards I wanted for a different Modern deck (like I said, not a perfect example, but you get the idea.)
Other ways you can get trade bait are a little more painful, but if you're on a tight budget, they work. Mostly, focus on one or two decks that you want to play and trade anything else to get them. If you want to make a different deck, pick one of the two and trade it away to finance the new deck. I don' t really recommend this, particularly for Standard, since prices fluctuate so wildly in type 2, but you can make it work if you need to.
Personally, I do little things that can bring in some cash in my spare time (I'm married with a two year old, so there isn't a lot of it.) I collect pop cans for the deposit (my wife likes to throw them out, so I get to keep the proceeds); it's slow, but you can get a decent return once or twice a month depending on how much pop you drink. I also do odds (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Odds) and ends (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Ends) IT work for my neighbors who aren't computer literate. They usually give me some cash for the time I spend, so that helps.
-
My trade bait comes from the box (or two) I buy with each set release (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Release), however others may not be able to do that for them I would suggest perhaps a fatpack. That should give them at least a few cards as trade bait.
Also if you buy individual cards, likely you're going to change up that deck which would give you the cards you remove as trade bait.
-
So trading is something I haven't really done either. How do I know the value of my trade? I know I can look up the actual value of cards but how do you guys assess when you're getting a good trade?
-
If I can actually use the card that I'm trading for and both people are satisfied then its a good trade. If the cards that I'm getting can be used for MULTIPLE decks or complete my collection (for example; All the guild masters from Ravnica) then it'll be worth trading cards that I don't need or even use. I'm a Golgari kinda guy so one man's bulk rare is another man's treasure.
-
So trading is something I haven't really done either. How do I know the value of my trade? I know I can look up the actual value of cards but how do you guys assess when you're getting a good trade?
Well, your decklists here will show you the values of cards in various currencies. Most places go off of tcgplayer dot com "mid" prices (which I think is what this site uses) which is a reasonable place to start. Broadly stuff everyone is playing is worth more than stuff no one is playing.
If I get what I want and won't miss what I let go then it was a good trade.
-
MTGStocks.com is another good site for value of cards.
-
There are many ways I "afford" playing MtG since I'm an "old school" player.
1. I sell/trade cards I don't need or use. I have a large collection so I sell some of the "EDH Value Cards and that keeps me comfortable for a bit with FNM fees and the occasional booster box I want to buy. I tend to buy my boxes online because they're cheaper.
2. Research (http://cards.deckstats.net/magiccard.php?lng=en&card=Research) - find out what people are wanting and try to get those cards via trades. it may take a number of rares and/or mythic rares, but you can build it up that way. also, ask fellow players about their decks.
3. Get to know your local FLGS - Your local FLGS can give you hints to what has value and sometimes you can get a local deal.
4. Budget and limit your spending - people have mentioned treating it like a bill and that has merit. I treat it as "gambling money." I set aside a portion of my budget to buy what i want. I limit myself to $200-300 a set usually, excluding sleeves. if i can't afford it, I don't do it until i can. remember that dates/movies/food are expensive.
5. Stick to a casual format - casual format allows you use any card you have (with deck building requirements). if you want more structure, go with limited. this way you limit how much you want to spend.
-
My budget is basically just drafting. 13 dollars a week and our store gives out credit and points. Get either to 100 and get 10 dollars in
store credit. Credit is givin to those using debit/credit cards, while points are for how much was spent in any value of cash/credit/debit.
I then use credit and/or points for purchases of prerelease and/or booster box/packs. It's nice when you only spend 6 dollars on a prerelease instead of 26 dollars
-
The "buying singles and not packs" is really the best way to save in this game. Buying packs is gambling. This site is an awesome resource for trying to lay out decks and seeing how potentially effective the deck can be with starting hands and whatnot. Think of something you'd enjoy, ask on the forums for idea or even just google deck builds. A good example of this working was I posted a black and white deck on this site, asked for help. Got feedback, refined the deck, then went out and spent ~100 dollars making it. My roommate has purchased 4 booster boxes now (i told him not to >.>) and he doesn't even compete with my deck. I don't know anyone who makes the game pay for itself though, you'd probably have to win tournaments. Any sealed tournament would boost your chance at winning though, if you're just starting out. Again, looking at effective builds will give you an idea of combinations people use so that you can effectively draft a working deck. Good luck with your new hobby though :D Drugs would have been cheaper.
-
@ofmidnightskies, we all know card games are more fun than drugs anyway :p
-
First off, sleeving your card IS a MUST. However you CAN do it on a budget! Check out sof penny sleeves by ultra pro, they are not as durable as some, but they get job done and man are they sleek.
There are cheaper deck boxes you can buy, however if you've ever made anything out of duct tape, you'll want to go for that. I had a duct tape deck box for about a year before I got a nice ultra pro suet tower, a cheap, but quality, deckbox.
Mats are going to be expensive, straight up, don't know what to tell you.
And finally, you are playing standard and that's fine, in order to compete and save money, I would suggest going on youtube to the channels [The Mana Source], [Tolarian Community College], and [Mtg Degree] for free tips on playing at the top of your game. As well as this, many of these channels provide budget deck lists for any format.
PS look on deckstats for lists with the "budget" tag.
PSS PLAY PAUPER- https://www.reddit.com/r/Pauper/
-
What I find myself spending the most money on is creating a deck, buying cards just to find other cards that fit better, than buying those cards again...
To avoid this you can playtest your deck on sites like untap.in (http://untap.in) for example. This helped me to find weaknesses in the deck and eliminate them BEFORE I even buy a single card.
-
Or you could just look at the card archive online, buy all the cards at the store that you like or think are cool (commons, uncommons, and proxy the rares). Then build from those. If you like the deck build or are unsure of it then don't buy it. The cool thing about my LGS is that I can build from the cards that I want to buy BEFORE buying them (the commons and uncommons at least) and actually even some of the bulk rare. It saves time and money when you can put your hands on the cards you need first.
-
It's really cool to see how you guys all stay nerdy and stay within budget. ;) I'm saving all of these tips so I can adult and college and game.
I tried playing pauper with friends and I really enjoy it, plus it gives me something to do with all the hand-me-down cards that people have been giving me at FNM and that's really fun for kitchen table playing. I played a sealed event when I first started playing (so Shadows over Innistrad pre-release) and it was AWESOME. I won more matches than I usually do and walked out with some pretty sweet cards all for under $15.
Since then I have also branched out and started playing at a different shop that has a much smaller turnout which has upped my chances of winning. I now realize how much more competitive my previous shop was; people spent a lot more time and money at the first shop I was going to. I raided the ten cent standard card bin at the new shop to add some stuff to my deck and that cost me less than $5 for a lot of cards that I can use.
-
I'm glad to hear that Skeri. Remember, fun id the name of the game.
-
1.Only buy play sets you will be using...and the cards in your deck/s
2.Limit how much you spend on anything else or avoid it all together if you could (boosters, etc.).
3. Sell what you will never use
4. Trade if you have friends
8)