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4 Things You Must Do To Become A Better MTG Player

Andreas 'ecobaronen' Petersen
27/09/2022 · 9 min read
theory

I've been playing Magic for over 20 years, but if you want to be a more complete player, there are a ton of interesting subjects to focus on. I find everything from statistics, game theory, practice routine, social media behavior, finding strengths and weaknesses, tournament logistics, psychological aspects and everything in between to be extremely interesting, so I wanted to put some of my findings into words to share with you guys.

There will be an assortment of topics in what I hope will be a small article series from me. No matter if you're a new player or established grinder, there should be something for you in here. Enjoy!

Get The Right Deck Choice

In a modern world where technology allows for data to be collected easily, we know a lot about things like matchup win percentages, metagame shares, and other factors that should play a part in your deck choice decision. However, there are other factors that you need to take into account as well.

Which deck should I play?
Which deck should I play?

There are examples from the past where certain decks like Standard Affinity, Modern Eldrazi, or Legacy Lurrus decks were much better than any alternative. In those metagames, I advise playing the best deck and look for a small edge in deckbuilding against the mirror match with first priority.

The interesting deck choice decisions for me are when there is a slightly better deck available, but you have more practice with another deck. Maybe you have only played aggressive decks or combo decks for all of your career and suddenly picking up a control deck - just because it's the slightly better deck if you play perfectly - isn't the way to go. I'm a firm believer that being an expert on a certain deck eclipses the few percentage points of win rate. It's very hard to measure, but enjoyment also plays a part in a social and emotional game like Magic. If you don't feel like playing, chances are you're not going to do well.

My Experience At The Pro Tour 25th Anniversary.

I've had a lot of problems with this  in the past where I've picked up the deck to beat, but simply didn't have fun playing it. My fondest memory is Pro Tour 25th Anniversary where I tested all the best decks, but all I could think about was I wanted to play my favorite deck - Red/Green TitanShift.

TitanShift and Slaughter Games gave me an edge
TitanShift and Slaughter Games gave me an edge

In the end, I played TitanShift, but spent my resources figuring out how to beat Krark-Clan Ironworks, which was the reason that TitanShift got labeled "unplayable" in the first place. I solved it with a copy of Blood Crypt and a playset of Slaughter Games and ended up beating it three times in the tournament, helping my team to a strong finish.

TLDR; Play what you know best and love > pick the most played deck that you hate.

Evaluating Is The Key

I firmly believe that evaluating is an important part of becoming and then maintaining being a high level player. In professional sports, the coaching staff prepares video of your previous games and highlights examples of areas to improve or situations that work as intended to give the players a better understanding that allows them to make even better decisions under stress in future games.

In Esports, It Is Even Easier.

In esports, we have demo reviews with different angles and overviews that have a similar effect on the athletes to advance their game. For paper Magic, it can be tricky, but you can make notes directly after a match with an interesting situation that you share with your friends at dinner or in the next few days.

The biggest flaw with this is that it's very hard to learn new things about the games played because (sorry for getting philosophical) you don't know what you don't know.

For Magic Online games it gets easier with the replay feature that I'm sure most players don't utilize enough. I have developed a habit of noting for example "M3 G3" when I play an interesting match during a tournament and then watch it back a few days later with one of my peers (M=Match, G = Game).

quick notes during a Challenge Match
quick notes during a Challenge Match

Since Magic is a very emotional game, I suggest avoiding extra notes like "sick top deck" or "bad mulligan decision" since it will certainly color not only your own view on the game, but also whoever you're watching it back with. I've noticed so many interesting decision points in my games by watching it back with a clear mind and without a prefixed focus.

Where Can I Find The Replays in MTGO?

Just follow the three steps in the following screen capture:

How to replay a game in MTGO
How to replay a game in MTGO

Don't Get Sick About Your Losses

Another trend I notice is that players talk a lot about the games they lose and not too often about the games they win. Not only is this behavior extremely arrogant towards the players you beat, but it's hurting yourself a lot if you are interested in getting better. Tweeting "I went 12-3 at the Grand Prix. Only lost to Storm and the mirror" is selling your tournament experience very short to both yourself and your followers.

An example of the not so adequate way of selling your tournament results
An example of the not so adequate way of selling your tournament results

Highlighting a match with tons of tough decisions that you won is just as interesting as if you lost. The end result doesn't matter when you evaluate. Stay in that process and the results will come organically.

TLDR; Your goal with playing Magic is putting yourself in the best position you can with the information you have at the time, and then we must accept the actual end result.

Manage and Maximize your Resources.

There're a few things you can do to maximize your resources when playing a Magic tournament. If you have a slow internet connection, you probably don't wanna play the slowest control deck in the format and risk losing on time. In paper, avoiding unintentional draws is your motivation to think twice about registering a slow deck if you're not the fastest player. Correctly evaluating your own skills and lack thereof will come in handy in all other areas of your life as well.

Yes, you can also draw in MTG Arena.
Yes, you can also draw in MTG Arena.


However, if you're aware of these issues, you can prepare by creating and bringing a sideboard plan for all anticipated matchups beforehand to save precious time and brain cells between games. In the actual game you can also think plays ahead. It requires specific knowledge about the deck you're facing, but if you know what to expect on "all" turns of the game, you can also save time.

An example is passing the turn with Scalding Tarn in play and Lightning Bolt in hand - if you already know that you want to cast Lightning Bolt on your opponent's Goblin Guide or Monastery Swiftspear, you should not be thinking too long about whether to fetch a basic Mountain or take two additional damage with Steam Vents on your opponent's attack step.

Develop good habits thinking a bit ahead, so you have time to "tank" on super hard game-defining decisions. The equivalent online is that you practice your deck so thoroughly that you can make all "normal" plays quickly, so that you actually have five minutes to think through the corner case razer thin situation that you feel will make or break the outcome of the game. I want to shout out Magic Online master @GuI_Dukat who I look up to in this regard. I've seen him play blazingly fast at a high level and then tank 10 minutes on an exceptionally hard play.

TLDR; Develop habits that allow you to spend enough time on game-breaking decisions.

Judges Can Save Your Day

As a player who started playing at my local game store being a rookie to playing on the Pro Tour, I feel like this topic is still somewhat tabu to this day. I've seen players get into arguments time and time again about things that can't be measured exactly or resolved with words between the two combatants. You will VERY rarely see two competing athletes in any sport try to come up with solutions that both are happy with which is why we need a neutral third party. Think of it as a football match without a referee, American Idol without judges, or a class room without a teacher.

"I think my opponent is taking too much time"


We've all been there. Taking to Twitter and complaining that the unintentional draw was your opponent's fault and that the system is broken. My solution to this is to identify it early - not with three minutes left on the round timer. Yes, I've called a judge a couple of minutes into a round because of this issue. I would say something like this when the judge comes over "In my opinion, the playing speed of this match is not optimal. Can you stay here for five minutes to check if you agree?". I've heard multiple - mostly recreational, but also competitive - players expressing fear of being hostile and creating a bad atmosphere. If you value that higher than finishing the game on time, this paragraph is not for you. I think the way I phrase my concern is very friendly and will oftentimes have a positive effect on the playing speed of my opponent.

The judge can help you with lots of things like card names, errata texts, allowed prize splits, rules interactions etc. Remember you can also ask your question away from the table and, most importantly, you're eligible for extra time after judge calls. The vast majority of the time, the judge will grant you extra minutes, but please help them remembering and interfere if you feel like the added time is less than the time spent on the judge call.

This topic of "slow playing" is especially relevant in the post-pandemic era of Magic where players simply didn't practice shuffling, playing etc. on paper for a long time. The round time is still 50 minutes, so it's your job to adapt to this new environment. I'm not making any new friends with this statement, but:

TLDR; Getting an unintentional draw is 50% your fault.

All in All: Quick Recap

All in all, focusing on other things than actually playing the games can make you a more well-rounded player which is the point of this article series. Feel free to add your tips in the comments and tell me if any of mine resonated with you.

Thanks a lot for reading. Next time I will talk a bit about utilizing your network, setting goals, social media pros and cons, and playing with a purpose!

If you liked this article maybe you will also find interesting on of the following ones Playing Around: 5 Actionable Tips to Win the Information Game, The Art of Sideboarding by Remi Fortier, Reading and Bluffing Opponents on MTGO, Exploring the meaning of 'Meta' and 'Metagame' in Magic the Gathering

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Andreas 'ecobaronen' Petersen
MTGO Classic Formats Expert
Andreas Petersen is well known MTGO grinder and deck brewer. If you're playing in one, watch out for the username "ecobaronen"!

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Published: 2022-09-27 00:00:00

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