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The Grimore Vol 02 Issue 02
ÛßßÜßßÛ ßÛ ßÛ ÜßÛßßßß Vol. #2 Iss. #2
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|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Your On-Line guide to Magic the Gathering.
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
** The Grimore, and its staff are not in anyway officially affiliated with
Wizards of the Coast, All items, or products within are the official
property of their respective companies, and copyrighted in that way.
** Please do not reproduce or re-post this information without leaving the
Grimore staff's names on it! Don't take credit for something you didn't
write!
** Please feel free to distribute this 'zine as much, or as
far as you want! All we ask is that you leave our header on
it. And distribute it free of charge, also if people you give
it to without a modem like it, please e-mail us with their
feedback. We always want to hear suggestions!
** Copyright Notice
This publication includes card names and/or text derived from Magic: The
Gathering, a product of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. Magic: The Gathering,
Arabian Nights, Antiquities, Legends, The Dark, Fallen Empires, Ice Age,
Chronicals, and Homelands are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
Wizards of the Coast, Inc. does not endorse this product or its use.
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Table of Contents
-----------------
"Editor's Note"
"The Mailbag"
"The Grimore Top Ten"
"Strategemos"
"The Most Under-rated and Over-rated cards in the Game"
(Fallen Empires-Homelands)
"The Drawing Board"
"Trading: How to Avoid Getting Screwed"
"Your Complete Guide to Tournament Play!"
(Part II, Cheez on the Battlefield)
"The M.A.T. (Magic Aptitude Test) I"
"Grim-Con: The Proposal"
"Rating the Competition"
"Reader's Ballot"
"Mox Drawing Update"
appendix I: "Deck Submission Form"
appendix II: "M.A.T. Awnsers"
appendix III: "The Complete MTG Fanzine 'Net Address Book Submission Form"
"Subscription, and Distribution Site Information"
"Looking ahead..."
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Editor's Note
-------------
Whew! Welcome to issue #2 (or #5, if you've read the
three issues that comprise The Grimore Volume One), the
reaction to the 'zine has been great, a lot of people have
been submitting decks, and article ideas which is what I hoped
for, and the feedback has not all been positive (which is good
as I wanted to put one or two negative letters in the Mailbag section
so it didn't look like I only replied to kiss-up mail so, if you
have a complaint about the mag. or something you think we should
add be sure to let us know, the best way to make the 'zine more
readable is to play to our readers, hey we're here to serve)
so I know what needs improvement. Our subscriber list (that is,
the people who get every issue mailed to them) jumped from 7 to 500
in the space of a month!!!!! (shows what giving away a Mox can do :)),
making The Grimore the most widely read MTG data fanzine around (at
least the most widely read I know of), but that's just the
beginning, because here at the Grimore we have GOALS! (we think
we've been watching to many of those motivation InfoMercials,
but they're just so darn addicting...) And since you took the
time to download/read this article we thought we would share
them with you, so here goes:
The Grimore General Staff'ers Goals (v .001)
* To have over 1,000 subscribers by the end of our first 6
months (or 6 issues, which even comes first).
* To sponsor a Con this summer (tentatively called
Grim-Con) for MTG lovers, here in Utah (Salt Lake City) for
players nation-wide (for more info on this see "Grim-Con: The
Proposal," later in the issue).
* To serve our readers to the best of our abilities.
* To come out with a paper-version of The Grimore (#7 or
#8) complete with art and everything to be given out at
Grim-Con (probably with an admission, since we have to pay for
printing fees :( ).
* To finally complete our (ok my) Beta Mox set!
* To prove that you don't have to fork over $5.00 for a
good (or more often lame) MTG 'zine!
O.k., I know those are some pretty lofty goals, after
all we're just a small data 'zine from UTAH of all places (but
hey, we have a lot of wives to help out! :) ), but if we can
just reach the first couple we'll be satisfied. So if you
know how we can meet them (besides the obvious ways, like buy
the last @#$#@$@#ing Mox you need) or know someone who plays
and hasn't signed up for his/her (FREE!!!!!) subscription drop them
(or us) a line and let them in on our little mag, the last thing
we want to be is a secret!!!!
Thanks for reading, and as always your comments are
welcome.
--Zzzayxx
**ERRATA**
Obviously we that write the Grimore are human (else
we would have these nifty opposable thumbs that allow us to
type!), and so like most humans make mistakes (sometimes lots
of them...see last issue) here are a few that we caught:
- There are a LOT more than 10 new MTG fanzines on AOL now,
more like 30!
- The Chaos Orb, mentioned in the Cornicopia deck should
be swapped out for a Zuran Orb.
- You cannot deflect Counterspells with a Reflecting
Mirror.
- In the poll question about tournament types, Type I
should be changed to Type II.
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
The Mailbag
-----------
** Thanks for all your replys to issue number one!!
For the most part they were very kind, because of space
limitations we could only print a few here, but keep them
coming!!!! Let us know what you like about our little 'zine,
and what you think needs improvement (or addition)!
Thanks again! **
----------
Subj: The God Is Back
From: JonPKibble
To: Zzzayxx
I never thought you would be back!!!!! great mag!!!!!!! You are king of
the mags!!!!! (Now I am only #2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) .
p.s. read Library of Leng!!!!!
your avid fan,
JonPKibble (Jon Prywes)
p.p.s. I believe in older player supremacy!!!!!!
*
Thanks for the kind words Jon, your over-use of the
exclamation point lets us know your really sincere :). As for
being king of the mags, I don't know if I'd go that far, after
all Scrye and Inquest have a lot more readers than us here at
the Grimore, but then again they've been around longer, so
maybe in a year we'll be able to rival their readership (which
is one of the above mentioned goals). As for older player
supremacy, I don't know if I am with you on this belief, I
got into Magic right after "The Dark", and now about a year
and a half later I can routinely crush guys that have been
playing since Beta. I think it's more how you play, and the
strategy you use than how long you've been playing, or how
much $$ you've put into the game (though, at times all the Moxes,
Timethings, and a Lotus make up for a lack of a good
strategy...unfortunately).
Also for those of you wondering, The Library of Leng
is an AOL based MTG fanzine (which is reviewed later in the
mag).
----------
Subj: SUBSCRIPTION plus mail read this
From: EthanAJ
To: Zzzayxx
I loved your mag. IT is the truely best of the magazines I've ever read.
(and I've read every one of them) The articles were more insightful than in
InQuest and the likes. Real professional. The overrated, under rated cards
were very true and well put, though in my area the colossus is much more on
the underrated side.
*
Thanks for the comparison to (my personal 2nd favorite
paper-mag) InQuest, and the "professional" remark, I'd like to
think those of us that write The Grimore do it as well (or
better) than a lot of paper-zines out there, but that might
just be my ego :). After all just 'cause you get this 'zine
free, it has no pictures (or wimpy combos) doesn't mean it
can't be a quality product! At least we hope it is...
I thought the UR&OR (Under-Rated and Over-Rated) were
close to the mark also, though with many of the cards being
re-printed they have lost their under-rated status (ie Erhnam
Djinn, Abu Jafar), but most of the over-rated cards are still
just that (in our eyes at least).
----------
Subj: Grimore Zine
From: Drool9
To: Zzzayxx
Hey Zzzayxx,
I am a great fan of your grimore magazine. I have read every single issue
since it was released last year. You mentioned you lived in Utah. I was in
Utah last winter and I brought my cards along and I am wondering if I met you.
I played almost every day at the store, "Comics Utah." There were several
good players there and I was looking to pick up my second set of Mox. If that
is where you play, then I met you.
I am writing because I am part of a group that has created an online
consolidated magic magazine. We have 10 writers right now and I believe if
you contributed to the magazine it would really be better than the "printed"
magazines. The editor of the magazine each month rotates to another person.
This means that we are all on equal terms. The magazine is called AOL Magic
and many of the smaller magazines dissolved and created this consolidated
zine. It was the idea of StupidJock.
The first issue of the AOL Magic was good for the first one. I believe it to
be lacking in many areas but as mail comes in and we get feedback I believe
that it will succeed to be one of the best data zines out there.
Tuom
*
In response to your question, yes the Grimore is
located in Utah (Ogden, Utah actually), unfortunately I didn't
get a chance to meet you, since I play at a local store called
Heros & Hobbs, some of the other staff members may have seen
you there though since they get out a lot more than I do :).
As for your consolidated 'zine idea, I support what
you are trying to do. AOL (sorry, Internet subscribers, this
probably won't make sense to you unless you have been on AOL
recently, has been plagues by 200 line 'zines
printing and re-printing the same combos one has seen in
paper-mags months (or years!) before. Obviously no one
wants to waste time (time they are PAYING for) downloading a
fanzine claiming to have Super-Ultra NEW Combos, and seeing
Lich-Mirror Universe in it! So I do think that something
should be done to limit the number of 'zine uploaded,
something like a quality control committee that would read the
'zine then vote whether to allow it or not could be
established, but the same committee would have to keep an open
mind, and unbiased opinion (something none of us humans
have). A more viable solution is instead of writing you own
'zine pair up with a friend, room-mate etc... Or just pop
into the MTG conference and ask for people who would like to
contribute to a CCG fanzine, not only will the size of your
'zine increase, but so will the quality!!
Now for the facets of you (or Stupidjock's) idea I do
not support. I have downloaded the last 10 posted 'zines in
the Gaming Information Exchange file section, and was pleased
to find that the quality of the 'zines is improving
dramatically, it looks like those people with little to say,
said it over the last few months, and have stopped
publishing...however, I also downloaded the recent issue of
MegaZine, the first (though re-named) issue of AOL Magic you
mention above, and found it less entertaining and a lot less
informative than most of the 'zines individuals have
published! Admittedly this was the first issue, and I hope it
will improve. I also think the idea of multiple-editors is
kinda lacking, yes it does make you all equal. But also it
gives the mag. a kind of jumbled look, this is just my opinion
of course, but it may be shared by others (and it may not...).
In summation, I think MegaZine will be a quality
download once it has been tuned (of course, all the
publication magazines need to be tuned, paper or data, the one
your reading now included!) a little more, I like the
idea, but some of the parts are (in my eyes) lacking. Also,
if your even in Utah again stop by Heros & Hobbs in Ogden
(40th and Washington) I'll meet you then :).
----------
Subj: Re: The Grimore Vol. 2 Iss. 1
From: DaknBlkbld
To: Zzzayxx
Thanx for putting me on the list. I already got ish 1 w/ the mail you sent
last week but I guess it would be a lot of trouble since I was already on your
mailing list. I read it as soon as I got it. I was glad to see that it kept a
lot of the feel of the origonal Grimore but without being an exact copy.
With the new decks section which, while a little lengthy, is the best format
I've seen, and the twenty page full price guide thankfully gone, the new
Grimore has the potential to become one of the best. With all the new
competition it may not get the 700+ downloads it got a year ago, but it
will be leading the pack.
DaknBlkbld
*
Sorry about the double-mailing, you weren't the only
one to get it (and if your getting a double dose of this issue
drop me a line and let me know!) unfortunately, I don't
have time 'till after Christmas to go through and erase the 10 or so
double e-mail addresses I have on the list. I agree with you
on the deck submission section, it is the best I've seen
(data-wise, no print 'zine offers you the chance to submit
decks) but it is long, if I didn't have to work in ASCII and
could layout the 'zine on PageMaker, or Word I could shrink
the text, use italics, organize into columns and all sorts of neat stuff,
unfortunately many of our readers can't view that type of text
so for now I guess I'm stuck with the long-hand version :(. I
agree the deletion of the price guide did save space, though
another Grimore Sponsored Price Guide will see print later
this month, not as a part of the 'zine itself, but as an
add-on put up for download on GIX, the Etext site
(/zines/Grimore), and sent out to all subscribers, because
(and this might be just me) all the current price guides seem
to be out of touch with what a card really costs!
As for not getting the 700+ downloads, I'm not to
worried about it, if only 200 AOL'ers pick up my magazine
that's fine, I'm more interested now in expanding the 'zines
readership to Internet, where no MTG fanzine (at least none I have
seen) has gone before.
----------
Subject: Re: \*\* Win a Mox of your choice!! (No strings) \*\*
From: joh6@lehigh.edu (Jon Ho)
To: zzzayxx@aol.com (Zzzayxx)
Hi-
I'm interested in a free subscription of Grimore. What exactly is Grimore,
are they published?
Well here's my address:
** Address Withheld **
*
The Grimore is a data based fanzine, so all of you
subscribers that sent me your snail mail address I really
didn't need them, but didn't make it clear in my posting I
guess. Also, the subscription is FREE!! Let me repeat that
FREE!!!!!!!!! I have had almost 50 e-mails asking me to tell
them if it really was free or not and it IS!!!!!! (I still
have one guy e-mailing me to tell him if it's free when I've
told him 3 times!) I guess nothing is given away on the
Internet, but we're willing to do it to increase our
reader-base, and do not plan to charge for subscriptions as
long as the 'zine stays in data format (which it will for the
foreseable future). Of course contributions are welcome :)
----------
Subj: Re: The Grimore Mailing List Test!
From: phil@miracle.com (Phil Hill)
To: Zzzayxx@aol.com ('Zzzayxx@aol.com')
1) If you are going to send this in MIME format, don't name the file *.DOC.
It is a plaintext file so should have the extention .TXT. .DOC implies
Microsoft Word or Word Perfect or some other word processor format.
You document looks awful in MS word.
2) Lose the ASCII graphics. You can't count on people reading the file with
under DOS. If people don't have the correct font, it looks like garbage.
The same goes for most of your indentations and tables, they look awful
in a proportional font.
3) Unlimited/Alpha/Beta
-------------------
#1 Black Lotus
#2 Mox Ruby
#3 Mox Jet
#4 Mox Emerald
#5 Mox Sapphire
#6 Mox Pearl
Why break the Moxes down, later on you say things like 'sacrifice lands'
and lump them into a single slot.
Besides, we all know the order is Pearl, Sapphire, Ruby, Jet, Emerald.
The only other fast mana white has is Trade Caravan, and that's a joke.
Blue only has Apprentice Wizard and High Tide. Red has Mana Flare, GoM,
and the Sisters. Black has Dark Ritual, and Sacrifice. And Green has so
much fast mana (Elves, Birds, Druids, Wild Growth) that often a Mox is
too slow! (With a Orcish Lumberjack, a Forest becomes 4 mana for 0
casting cost, better than a Lotus!)
4) Legends
-------
#1 Mirror Universe
#2 Mana Drain
#3 Thunder Spirit
#4 Moat
#5 Nova Pentacle
#6 All Hallow's Eve
#7 Underworld Dreams
#8 Firestorm Phoenix
#9 Acid Rain
#10 Disharmony
Mirror Universe?? One of the most over-rated cards. You've got to be
kidding. I've never seen All Hallow's Eve do anything useful. Most of
the time it ends up helping your opponent as much as you, the rest of
the time it gets Disenchanted before it counts down.
And Firestorm Phoenix??? For the same casting cost, I could get a
Shivan!
5) Homelands
---------
#1 Marjhan
#2 Faerie Noble
#3 Baron Sengir
#4 Abbey Gargoyles
#5 Autumn Willow
#6 Ihsan's Shade
#7 Mystic Decree
#8 Willow Priestess
#9 Joven's Ferrets
#10 AEther Storm
I'm still rolling on the floor laughing! You are completely off here.
Marjhan is just another big-ugly blue creature with a too-high casting
cost and a gross untap cost. It's better then Leviatian, but not as good
as Deep Spawn It doesn't even belong on the list.
What about Primal Order? It's the best card in Homelands, and you didn't
even put it in the top ten.
And Death Speaker, a 1 casting cost creature that can safely block that
Juzam *forever* (while you opponent is still taking the 1 damage per turn
from his own Juzam)
And Sea Sprites, a 2 casting cost flying creature that will totally
neutralize that Shivan coming down your throat.
And Spectral Bears!!!! 2 casting cost 3/3. Even if you don't attack
with them, they are a wonderful blocker. And with a single Deathlace,
they become totally lost their minor drawback.
6) Underrated & Over rated.
Natural Selection is a waste of time. There are plenty of other effects
that allow you to look *and* rearrange the top three cards, and they
are all pretty much useless!
Dark Sphere -
I'm incredibly surprised more people don't play with these
wonders! Not only is the casting cost just right (0), its
ability is one of the better ones in the game. How many times
haven't you wanted to half that 10 point fireball? Or with
multiple spheres reduce it to 0?!?! ...
You can't reduce damage to zero with multiple Dark Spheres. The first
one would reduce 10 to 5, the second from 5 to 3, the third from 3 to 2,
the fourth from 2 to 1, and the fifth+ would have no effect. (Remember
round UP, and the effects happen sequentially.)
Reflecting Mirror -
Possibly the MOST under-rated card in the game, the only thing
that makes the mirror even close to clumsy is its casting
cost (4), but its still a easy 2nd round card. More useful
now than even now that Wizards has seen fit to give red a
potential of 12 (!!!!!!) lightning boltish things in a single
legal deck! Not to mention the chance of reflecting something
big like a 15 point fireball with the use of Basalts, Mana
Vaults, and a High Tide or Two! Even Counterspells can be
reflected, mind twists, hymns to tourach and many more! While
not good against a creature deck the Reflecting Mirror should
find a comfortable place in many decks.
If you can reflect back a 15 point fireball (total cost 32 mana) why don't
you just take all that mana and blast your opponent back to the stone age
with your own fireball??
You can *not* reflect Counterspells. Counterspell targets a spell you
are casting, not you.
*
WOW!!!!!!! Now that's what I call a long e-mail :),
thanks for putting the time in on it even if it does point out
my many mistakes (even if I already noticed some of them, see
the Errata). Because of the size of your mail, and the number
of questions I will take them sequentially:
1) .DOC and .TXT files are used interchangeably here in
Utah (maybe we're just a back-water state), so I didn't even
think of changing it from .DOC (Document) to .TXT (Text), both
are ASCII and if one implies the other and I didn't know about
it I am sorry, but perhaps .DOC doesn't imply the same thing for
all people (is there some guy in Hong Kong trying to view this
'zine on his Atari, because there .DOC stands for "Only viewable on
machines made before 1980," its a possibility). But just for
you, I'll send the rest .TXT, I don't think anyone will mind.
2) I like the ASCII graphics, they make me feel all warm
and fuzzy inside, but since it appears the ASCII
divider was a pain to view I've compromised by switching it to
DOS text (not weird characters), but left the "The Grimore"
header at the beginning.
3) The Moxes are separated because locally (and I can,
for now, only go off local trends) Duel Lands, and Sacrificial
Lands are valued about the same no matter what type they are,
while Moxes are valued more by color (it takes a Pearl +
Duel lands to get a Ruby out here). As for your own ratings,
I could probably poll 50 players and get at least 25 different
variations, we all have our own priorities. Your's lie in mana
production, (by they way you only get three mana per
Forest with Orcish Lumberjack) where as mine lie more in the
favorite colors, more people (sorry to break it to you)
play Red than Blue, Black than White and so the more played
Moxes are in higher demand.
4) I don't think Mirror Universe is over-rated at all (ok
maybe a little) it does exactly what it says, lets you switch
life with your opponent, now THAT is an ability. Sure it has
to stay out for a round, and COULD be Disenchanted but even if
it is 2 out of 3 times that 3rd time is going to make all the
difference in the world. All Hallows Eve is a very specific
card, but with Jokluhapps (that is spelled wrong I am sure),
and Nether Voids paired in decks it might be the only way you
ever get something out!!! Also, with the growing popularity
of creatureless decks All Hallow's is still useful, as for it
being disenchanted, just like Mirror Universe above, that 3rd
time makes all the difference. I agree with you on Firestorm
Phoenix, I don't know what I was thinking putting it on there
it is a hard-to-find collectors card but useless in playing.
And remember just because you haven't seen something used
well, or at all, doesn't mean it can't be or isn't.
5) Well I had hoped you would discount at lest 4 of our
choices for Homelands Top 10, when you told me I was totally
off...but one it ok I guess... I personally like Marjhan,
that is only requires 2 blue make it easy to bring out early
in the game (with Basalt Monoliths, Moxes, Loti, etc...), its
upkeep is the easiest to pay of all the big blues
(think...Breeding Pit, or Homarid Spawning Bed to get the
token creatures), it has a great special ability and is
8/8!!!! It's not for every deck but deffinatly suited for
more than you're giving it credit for. Primal Order is a nice
sideboard card, but if you play in an area devoid of anything
but all green decks, or if you yourself play more than 2
colors it looses a lot of its playability. Death Speaker is a
good creature, especially for white weenie, but in comparing
it to a Juzam Djinn your assuming your opponent who took the
time to get 4 Djinns is playing all black, with no pyroclasms,
swords to plowshares and/or lightening bolts and didn't plan
on playing against someone using protection from black
creatures? somehow I think not... Sea Sprites will save you
from that Shivan, for one round, then he just comes back
bigger! Hope you have a lot of Sprites. I also like Spectral
Bears, but if your slotting in Deathlaces just to make them
useful you make them worthless in a tuned deck, by requiring 2
colors of mana to use them effectively.
6) Actually only Portent does what Natural Selection
does, Visions lets you re-shuffle but that's far from
rearranging, what other cards were you thinking of?
Useless?!? I beg to differ, anything I can do to keep you
from drawing that lightening bolt when I'm at 2 is worth it to
me! The text on Dark Sphere reads "T: Sacrifice Dark Sphere
to prevent half of the damage rounded down done to you by a
single source" one of us was reading the card wrong, and it
wasn't me (this time), or maybe my Dark Spheres are just
special? You might not be playing red, so you wouldn't have
a Fireball (there are 4 other colors out there you know), and
no it cannot reflect Counterspells, I noticed that error the
day after I sent it out (see the Errata) good to see I wasn't
the only one who picked up on it.
----------
Subject: Re: The Grimore Mailing List Test!
From: barth@wam.umd.edu (Doctor Demento)
To: Zzzayxx@aol.com
Comments on THE GRIMORE 2:1
----------------------------
First of all, thanks for letting me know about "The Grimore". I read it
over and generally was positively impressed by it. Since you complained
about not receiving any feedback to the 1st edition, I would like to take
the time to offer you my thoughts about the fanzine.
SPECIFIC COLUMN COMMENTS
------------------------
Top 10 Lists
------------
This has been done to death in every magazine from Scrye to
InQuest. While you make an original departure by doing your list
on a set-by-set basis, I have to wonder whether this list is
going to change enough on a monthly basis to make it valuable as
a continuing column.
In addition, you should make it more clear why the cards you choose
are on the list. For most of the magazines, the reason is clear
- be it reader opinion, the reports of national vendors, or
whatever. Since you and your staff are doing this alone, some
indication of what you are doing will be more useful than just a
list of cards.
***
Strategemos
-----------
Not bad. Essentially this is information that will be of use to
beginners more than experienced players, I feel, but that's not a
bad thing in and of itself. You succeed in not talking down to your
audience, and the information you provide is quite good. You
might consider demonstrating your points using one or two
specific decks of the type being featured, so players can get the
"big picture."
***
Overrated/Underrated
--------------------
Nice concept, but once again I have to question whether this is
going to change sufficiently to make it a regular feature. I
like the way you explain WHY you list each card, and some of the
explanations are quite novel. You might consider offering full
text and/or summaries of the less common cards, so those without
extensive knowledge of Legends, say, will understand what you are
talking about.
***
Drawing Board
-------------
Please, please, PLEASE reformat this. It was impossible to read
without going back several times. Place the general ratings,
colors, and price together at the beginning or end of the article so
someone who wants to skim through can do a quick and dirty comparison
of the decks that are listed that month. Limit your comments to
the end - they are rather distracting to keep breaking into the main
text.
***
Tourney Guide
-------------
Nothing I haven't seen before, but you said as much. Looking forward
to next month's column.
***
Rating the Competition
----------------------
Much too short - you missed all of the zines I read on a regular
basis. Where do I get information about subscribing to these zines?
All in all, efforts made to rate competitors tends to make you look
petty - this may not be a great idea for someone trying to
publish a zine, although it would be very welcome as something
standing alone on the net.
***
Reader's Ballot
---------------
Pretty Generic. Most zines are doing something similar, but it
makes for an outlet for reader feedback. Maybe some more
controversial questions would be interesting.
GENERAL IMPROVEMENTS
--------------------
Formatting changes would be nice to increase legibility. The
lengthy strings of ASCII characters which you used to separate the
sections did nothing to add to the document's legibility, and in fact
cluttered it up. You might try adding regular formatted headers to the
sections to make it easier to search for section headers.
An HTML version of this would be really nice, also - it seems
that this fanzine would be admirably suited for distribution on the WWW.
You should also look at doing more of interest to the collector.
Not all collectors are players, so the occasional article aimed at the
collector (such as the upcoming "trading" article) would be welcome. I
would even be interested in writing such a column if you are interested
in having it. Let me know and I can work up a proposal.
Kevin "Demento" Barth
*
Geez! Another long letter (not that I'm complaining,
I like to get them!!!), thanks for the mail Kevin allow me to
awnser/respond to some of your questions:
Top Ten Lists - I agree that this has been done to death, and
while I like my set-by-set breakdown better than an overall
list it probably won't change to often (until 5th Ed. or
Chronicles II) but, also I have to remember that we will get
new readers with every issue (at least I hope we do!) so I
want to give them an idea of what we think is hot, that's why I
keep the list in...Starting next issue (#3) we will begin
explaining why we choose the Top 10 we do (I would have gone
back an done it this issue but your mail arrived about an hour
before this is scheduled to go out, and I'm lazy), mostly its
just our opinion and that of local shop owners, I'd love to
get feedback from players/retailers from all over though so
e-mail your suggestions!!!
Stratagemos - I hope I don't talk down to my readers, a good
author doesn't (though that's about all they do in InQuest),
but there is another reason I try not to, that is that I don't
know everything!!! It's hard to be conceited when you realize
that you may know 1,001 uses for Nether Void, but couldn't
build a good land destruction deck to save your life...As
for including decks I will try to put one or two of each type
talked about in Stratagemos in the "Drawing Board" section
from now on.
Over Rated/Under Rated - This isn't an ongoing feature, it
concludes this issue, and will be replaced by the
one-issue-spanning feature "The Just Plain Stupid!" in #3,
while I don't feel that I've covered all (or even a fraction)
of the useful, and useless cards out there, OR/UR will
probably appear again around issue 5 or 6 with some new ideas
(and hopefully a new expansion to discuss). As for people
not knowing what certain cards do, since some of them are
obscure this could be a problem, I guess I'm just spoiled with
my Spoilers list, similar lists that detail what the cards do
and their casting cost can be found all over the 'Net, I'd
include one in the 'zine itself, but the sheer length would
kinda eclipse the articles, and besides some subscribers may
not need it. If you need a list like this (not you Kevin,
anyone reading this) just check any of the MTG newsgroups for
FTP or WWW addresses, should be no problem to find one.
Drawing Board - I agree on the formatting, issue #1 was out
first "test-run" of the new format and it got more than a
little messy, it has been cleaned-up and re-done hope its
easier to read!
Tourney Guide - Like I said, and you re-stated nothing I say
about tournament play is going to be new to everyone (perhaps
anyone), or original but hopefully it'll help a few readers
out, and provide a few insights or laughs for competent
tournament players.
Rating the Competition - Because this is an on going column I
limit myself to reviewing only 2 magazines per issue. As for being
petty I guess it is, the concept was to rate other home-brew 'zines on
AOL (which is choked with 100-200 line commentaries, repeating things over
and over) with one print mag thrown in to make it something Internet
readers could stomach, I tried to point out both pro and cons and
explain my complaints. I wanted to review other 'zines the way I would
want The Grimore reviewed with enough commentary to give the
Editors an idea of how to make their 'zines more reader
friendly, though I doubt the guys over at Wizards of the Coast
or Wizard Press are going to take much notice. Also beginning
next issue I'm going to try and compile the "Complete MTG
'zine Address Book" listing all the fanzines print run,
subscriber #, where you can e-mail for an subscription and a
little 3-5 line write-up by the editors.
Reader's Ballot - Yeah, it is REALLY generic, the favorite
color question among others was pretty lame. I thought the
question about the creation of a MTG association to rival the
Duelist's Convocation was semi-controversial but that's about
it. Check this month's ballot for more in depth questions.
GENERAL IMPROVEMENTS - The ASCII divider has been replaced as
per your (and other reader's) request. I would love to set up
a Grimore Web Page, but running off AOL I don't think I
can!!! I'll look into it though... An (as yet unnamed) 'zine
will be published beginning in January for those people
interested in collecting/trading (the trading article in this
issue will be the last to appear in the pages of The Grimore,
all the rest will appear in our sister 'zine), I understand
that some collectors aren't players, and some players aren't
collectors and want to cater to both sides of the fence, so
look for that publication in the near future (now if I could
only think of a good name....)...
==========
That's it for "The Mailbag" this month, hoped you enjoyed
reading it, and I hope my responses weren't too vague, keep
those letters coming it's the best way we get feedback to
serve you better!
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
The Grimore Top Ten
-------------------
** Remember, the ranking expressed below are based on the
views of the Grimore staff (usually based more on play use,
than hype, picture, or $$$ value...though the first and last
seem to go together), and players in our area, if things are
different where you play and would like to make a suggestion
on a new card to add or slot change for a card that has
already made the list feel free to e-mail us with your
suggestion! **
Unlimited/Alpha/Beta
-------------------
#1. Black Lotus
#2. Mox Ruby
#3. Mox Jet
#4. Mox Emerald
#5. Mox Pearl
#6. Mox Sapphire
#7. Time Walk
#8. Time Twister
#9. Ancestral Recall
#10. Forcefield
Arabian Nights
-]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
#1. Juzam Djinn
#2. Ali from Cairo
#3. Jihad
#4. Diamond Valley
#5. Ring of Ma'Ruf
#6. Iff-Biff Efreet
#7. Singing Tree
#8. Serendib Djinn
#9. Old Man of the Sea
#10. Elephant Graveyard
Antiquities
-----------
#1. Candelabra of Tawnos
#2. Mishra's Workshop
#3. Argivan Archeologist
#4. Gaea's Avenger
#5. Power Leech
#6. Citanul Druid
#7. Urza's Miter
#8. Might Stone
#9. Martyrs of Korilis
#10. Mishra's Factory (Snow/Fall)
Legends
-------
#1. Mirror Universe
#2. Mana Drain
#3. Thunder Spirit
#4. Moat
#5. All Hallow's Eve
#6. Underworld Dreams
#7. Acid Rain
#8. Tabernacle at Pendrall Vale
#9. Nether Void
#10. Greater Realm of Preservation
The Dark
--------
#1. Preacher
#2. Tracker
#3. Maze of Ith
#4. Exorcist
#5. Psychic Allergy
#6. Knights of the Thorn
#7. Reflecting Mirror
#8. Frankenstein's Monster
#9. Hidden Path
#10. Dark Sphere
Fallen Empires
-]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
#1. Hand of Justice
#2. Ebon Praetor
#3. Icatian Town
#4. Icatian Skirmishers
#5. Fungal Bloom
#6. Breeding Pit
#7. Orgg
#8. Deralor
#9. Elvish Farmer
#10. Thrull Retainer
Revised (3rd & 4th)
-------------------
#1. Multi-Lands
#2. Vesuvan Doppleganger
#3. Fork
#4. Shivan Dragon
#5. Nightmare
#6. Royal Assassin
#7. Ball Lightening
#8. Mahamoti Djinn
#9. Serra Angel
#10. Sengir Vampire
Ice Age
-------
#1. Deflection
#2. Jester's Cap
#3. Jester's Mask
#4. Marton Stromgald
#5. Icy Manipulator
#6. Enduring Renewal
#7. Zuran Orb
#8. Ice Cauldron
#9. Energy Storm
#10. Ghostly Flame
Homelands
---------
#1. Baron Sengir
#2. Autumn Willow
#3. Primal Order
#4. Marjhan
#5. Faerie Noble
#6. Apocalypse Chime
#7. Koskun Falls
#8. Abbey Gargoyles
#9. Eron the Relentless
#10. An-Zerrin Ruins
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Strategemos
-----------
Even more popular than Direct Damage decks
(discussed last issue), are decks that rely on big creatures
coming out fast supported by Direct Damage, and Permission
spells. A typical deck of this type will be played with a lot
of fast mana (Dark Rituals, Orcish Lumberjacks, Lotus, Moxes),
and big creatures, usually with only 1 (or less) colored mana required
to cast (Deralor, Ernham, Juggernaut). Once the player has a
creature on the board (usually round 2 or 3 at the latest) he
will attempt to keep it alive while stopping his opponents
creatures with Counterspells, Lightening Bolts, Pyroclasms,
Mind Twist, or Hymns to Tourach. Land Destruction and Hand
Destruction spells really help this type of deck, as do Nether
Voids, Blood Moons, AEther Storms, Feroz's Ban, or Invoke
Prejudiced anything that slows your opponent down (and you,
but only after you have a creature or two on the board)
will work here, single cards are the best, double card combos
may be slow in coming (ie Relic Barrier/Winter Orb) but since
a lot of them don't hurt you they might not be a bad idea.
Stay away from any combos over three cards (not just here, but
in an competitive deck!!!).
This deck type, while being quick has damage from varied
sources (both creature, direct, and artifact) almost assuring
you some damage during the game. The fact that it can
encompass almost any combination of colors makes it hard to
sideboard against. Add to this the fact that this deck type
can be either Type I or Type II makes it one of the most
versatile around. A Type I deck of this genre could include;
4-5 Moxes, Lotus, Juzam Djinns, Chain Lightenings, Nether
Voids, Relic Barriers, Seredib Djinns, Ali From Cairo, and the
Blue spoilers. While a Type II version can be just as deadly
by combining; Orcish Lumberjacks, Incinerates, AEther Storms,
Winter Orbs, Goblin War Drums, Smokes, Winters Chills and Dark
Spheres. Of course these Types can be combined into a number
of crushing combinations. All that coupled with the fact that
this deck type doesn't rely on 3 or 4 certain cards to make it
work (making it Jester's Cap proof), and the varied colors
make sideboard really effective allowing the player to deal
with virtually every situation!
The major fear one needs to have when playing a deck
like this is land oriented. The fact that Mana/Card ratio
tends to be low makes tuned Land Destruction a threat. Primal
Order and Blood Moon can hurt, but Disenchants and
Tranquilites can take care of them no problem. Another big
fear is playing another deck of this type, when this happens
the game is more a matter of luck and play skill than cards.
Forgetting to attack for even 1 point one round may cost you
the game.
This deck type is incredibly effective, hard to
play, and even harder to beat. Effective side-boarding is a
must! The White, Red, and Green utilities (Swords to
Plowshares, Disenchant, Smoke, Goblin War Drums, Ali from
Cairo, Tranquility, Primal Order etc...) are a must. While
playing this deck in Type I is VERY expensive Type II variants
should be easier to make, and be just as effective (if a round
ot two slower). Overall possible the best deck type out there!
** In "The Drawing Board" the first to decks profiled
"Steel" and "Null and Void" are good examples of Type I takes
on this theme, check them out!**
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
The Most Underrated
And,
Overrated Cards
In MTG!
-------------------
(FE-Homelands)
Fallen Empires
-]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]
----------
Over-Rated
----------
Fungal Bloom -
While its hard to find anything really over-rated about Fallen
Empires (it's the most under-rated expansion out there!)
Fungal Bloom does qualify in the "it-looks-good-at-first"
category. Sure Fungal Bloom is great for putting that last
minute spore counter on your Spore Flower, or maybe giving you
a couple extra life via your Elvish Farmer (eating it, not
making it, he is not a fungus after all!), but in a tournament
level game, while Thallids aren't a bad idea, Fungal Bloom
usually is. It has the right casting cost (GG) allowing it to
come out early, but its activation cost (also GG) and the fact
that it can only effect a target fungus make it almost useless
unless you have 6 mana to spend every round fogging your
opponent. The only time I have seen Fungal Bloom used
effectively is in an all Green tourament (where most of the
damage comes from creatures) in an all Thallid deck, the game
was probably in its 40th round, and they guy had about 500
Thallids in play (of course his opponent had Spore Flowers,
Fogs, and Spore Clouds in reserve so it was more like a boring
stand-off) and couldn't do ANYTHING with them (he refused to
sacrifice them for life of course), see preceding
parentheses. Not the most fortunate of situations, so while
the Bloom can be useful (rarely) it is usually just a slot in
your deck where a Craw Giant, or Ernahm Djinn could have gone.
Hand of Justice -
Like the Fungal Bloom, Hand of Justice falls into the
"it-looks-good-at-first" category, I mean who wouldn't want to
destroy any creature in play just for tapping 3 white
creatures and the Hand? But, playing with a HoJ (Hand of
Justice) in your deck you might never get to kill anything
with him! First theres the problem of getting the 3 creatures
out needed to use his ability, no problem with White Weenie
right? Wrong, with Lightening Blots, Fireballs, Pyroclasms,
Jovial evils, and Winter's Chills all avalible for you
opponents deck or sideboard the chances of him/her letting
you have three creatures on the board (especially with a few
Crusades and/or Jihads in play) are slim to say the least.
Then theres the fact that HoJ very slooooooooow to get out,
his casting cost (one White, 5 colorless) keeps him in your
had for a least the first 3-4 turns, so hope you opponent
isn't playing a quick deck! Then, what if your opponent
isn't even playing creatures? HoJ looses a lot of its
playability right there. But ok, lets say your opponent is at
1, has an Ali from Cairo (with Anti-Magic Aura) out against your
Red/White weenie hoard and you have a Lightening Blot in your
had, it doesn't help against Ali but wait! You just drew a
HoJ, you cast him out with a grin and declare you turn over,
next turn you can use the HoJ and finish your opponent off.
But if you think your opponent is going let that HoJ live until
your next turn (or just kill off all but 2 of your creatures)
you've been playing for too many straight hours my friend! If
its in the other players power the HoJ is dead, he's even a
bigger target in Multi-Player (Melee) games!!!!!! But hey,
2/6 isn't a bad (if expensive) blocker...
-----------
Under-Rated
-----------
High Tide -
While it's true this card isn't incredibly useful in the first
2 turns of the game, nor after about round 6. For the
in-between rounds High Tide adds something Blue doesn't have a
lot of, speed mana. Sure there is Black Lotus, Mox Sapphire,
and Apprentice Wizard, but the first two are kicked out
because of scarcity and the fact that most players haven't
been in the game since Unlimited, and don't have the money to
buy them at current prices and Apprentice Wizard isn't the
mana producing stud some people hype him to be, he only
produces colorless, and his casting cost requires two blue
making him hard to bring out on turns one and two. High Tide
however is easy to get (its a common!) but just like the
Wizard useless in the first two rounds, but then round three
rolls around, how just a Juggernaut sound? Round four, a
Mahamoti? Round 5 a Marjahn? And so on, the fact that High
Tide is an instant make is useful for countering that 14 point
Fireball with a Power Sink, or Spell Blast. In a color like
Blue with little fast mana, High Tide is a must especially
with creature decks, and when playing against Winter Orb-Relic
Barrier combos, or Nether Voids. Who says Fallen Empires was
a Useless expansion?
Spore Flower -
A great sideboard card for almost any type of deck (assuming
it has Green in it of course!). Who wouldn't want a fog every
three rounds? The fact that more than one of them in play
(assuming you put them in play in the right order, that is one
on turn two, one on turn three, and one on turn four) can give
you a fog every round! While Spore Flower is easy to kill
with Lightening Bolts, Fireballs etc.. it is not so easy to
get rid of with say, Royal Assassins. Still having one on the
board makes it a target (sometimes a Disenchant target if your
playing someone inexperienced) for all kinds of things, so
Spectral Clock wouldn't be such a bad idea! This card is
especially effective in all creature tournaments because of
its ability and the fact that it is hard to kill with the
creature-killing staple Royal Assassin (whoops, repeating
myself there). Not for everyone (but what card is?) but still
a nice card that not a lot of people use.
Ice Age
-------
----------
Over-Rated
----------
Jester's Cap -
Now I'm not saying this card isn't useful, it is! Really
useful in some cases, but not every case and infact not more
than a few. For example, if your playing someone with a
discard deck and the only damage in the deck is Racks, then a
Cap is great for getting rid of three of them, and taking
little or no damage the entire game, same thing goes for
Vices. But in most cases deck strategies are varied enough to
allow someone to remove three cards from your deck without
ruining it. The point is that all the hype that has been
going on about this card is not deserved, play a tournament
level, competitive deck and the Cap won't do much to hurt you
(unless your opponents Archeologist brings it back again, and
again, and again etc...). Wizards knows this (that's why the
Cap hasn't been restricted yet), and by making the Cap they
have tried to make deck strategies more varied and not let
them rely on just one or two cards. Also, adding to the
ineffectiveness of the Cap is that most people that use them
don't know how to use them (redundant isn't it?). The Cap
usually comes out late in the game (it really isn't a card
that needs to come out and be used in the first 5 rounds) so
can be used the turn it is brought into play, if you opponent
is smart he will go for the sideboarded cards, and/or utility
cards (Ghostly Flame, Disenchant, Pyroclams, Swords to
Plowshares) that can hurt his deck or one-of-a-kinders
(Underworld Dreams, Timewalk, Ancestral). But most players
will go for creatures (removing 3 creatures from an all
creature deck won't hurt it!), direct damage (he can get rid
of 3 of your 12 lightening bolts!), or $$$ (its round 30 and
he decides to toss out 3 Moxes...whew!). So while at first
glance Jester's Cap might look like a God card, upon closer
inspection one finds it deffinatly is not...
Elder Druid -
Now this is a card I need explained to me, I can see hundreds
of uses for it, but with its high casting cost, and high
activation cost in a quick game who has the mana? In an all
Green deck it is possible to get the Elder Druid out by round
2 or 3 since his casting cost includes a lot of colorless (3
colorless 1 Green), but most Green decks rely on speed, and
supporting this guy for 3G a round doesn't exactly speed up a
deck! The fact that he is 2/2 only makes him more susceptible
to Lightening Bolts and other creature killer things if you
even do make him useful. It seems simple Ley Druids, Icys,
Relic Barriers etc... would be a lot more useful, and mana
economic than the Elder Druid. While it's true most people
don't play with them, some people do (for some unknown
reason). I can see it being in demand because it's an Ice Age
rare and needed to complete sets, but can't see another
reason anyone would put one in a deck...
-----------
Under-Rated
-----------
Jester's Mask -
While still in demand (more for its trade power, than
playability) the Jester's Mask seems to spend a lot of its
time in its twin's (the Jester's Cap) shadow. Why? The main
reason is that the Mask is even harder to use than the Cap.
What if you give you opponent exactly what they want? Or
what if they draw the card to make their new hand work? What
if there isn't anything you can give them they don't already
have in their hand?!?!?! There are a lot of variables when
using the Mask, and so most people don't bother with it. But
in many cases the Mask can slow your opponent down a lot more
than the Cap. The Mask's 5 colorless casting cost make it
easy to bring out by turn 3, it comes into play tapped so
unless you have a twiddles or (god forbid) an Elder Druid in
play it'll probably be a big Disenchant/Shatter target until
your next turn. But should it survive, the Mask is a great
one for making your opponent sweat. Just leave it untapped
until you do a Wheel of Fortune, Armegeddon, Jokkulhaups
etc... use the Mask as a fast effect and replace his hand with
whatever you want (all mana, no mana, etc...). But still one
runs into a problem with a lot of tournament decks, they are
the same all the way through! So while you may have gotten
rid of your opponents Fireball for now, it will probably be
back in short order. When this is the case it is best to wait
and use Jester's Mask after your opponent draws and gets that
evil gleam in his/her eye, when you see it (or hear him
chuckling under his breath) use the Mask (hope he doesn't
have an instant!) and replace it. That should give you at
least one round of safety if not more. Other strategies
include filling your opponents hand with a all his/her good
cards and Mind Twisting them away. But instead of going after
the 3 Shivans and 4 Juzam's go for his land (especially if he
plays a lot of multi-lands), then choose one color, ie Red,
fill his hands will all Red producing lands then Mind Twist or
Wheel of Fortune them away, you won't have to worry about
Lightening bolts, Shivan Dragons, or Disentigrates anymore...
Urza's Bauble -
One of the best (and least played) cards from Ice Age,
especially for tournament play! Slotting in four Urza's
Baubles can turn your 60 cards deck into a 56 card deck no
problem. While that might not be useful for big creature
decks, or denial decks. For direct damage, and land
destruction there is nothing better for getting you to the
card you need fast (except perhaps Jalum Tome). The Bauble's
casting cost is perfect (0), it ability to let you look at one
card in opponent's hand sucks, but that's not why your using
it! Urza's Bauble is the first deck-overdrive card printed
(Brainstorm and Portent could be also, but they are to color
specific and have a casting cost), and while it remains to be
seen if Wizards will print more cantrips, if they do
tournament decks will deffinatly be speeding up! Not only
that but Urza's Baubles are nice to sideboard out when needed
since they take little (except speed, which isn't important if
your being crushed!) out and open a slot in your deck.
Homelands
---------
----------
Over-Rated
----------
Feast of the Unicorn -
Sure the +3/+0 isn't bad, but it isn't great either. First of
all the casting cost is high (3 colorless 1 black), sure with
Black's Dark Rituals its not hard to get 4 mana by round 2,
but you have to decide what you want to do, have a first round
Juzam or a second round 3/1 Will-o-Wisp? If that weren't bad
enough Feast doesn't increase a creatures toughness, making
that 5/2 Black Knight an easy Lightening Bolt target. Lets
face it Unholy Strength a better addition to your deck, not
only is it cheaper, it provides all the bonuses Feast does
(minus +1 to power and plus +1 to power) for 3 mana less!!!!
Feast may have a place in some decks, but just hope you play
against them, not with them!
Primal Order -
This card is a great addition to any sideboard, with the
abundance of all multi-land decks, Mazes of Ith, Librarys of
Alexandira, Arenas, and Legendary Lands. Primal Order could
do some serious damage to your opponent. But it's not all
its cracked up to be, since in most competitive tournaments
both you and your opponent will probably by playing at least a
few non-basic lands, also since White is the most popular
"support" color for tournament play the Order will probably
just end up being Disenchanted before it can do any read
damage. Primal Order becomes even more useless in Type II
tournaments, when the only none basic lands include the Fallen
Empires lands, Ice Age pseudo-multi's and the Homelands triple
lands (*gag*), needless to say these are the most played with
card out there. So while Primal Order (like almost any other
card) is great in specific situations slotting it into your
deck may just lead to you holding a useless (or harmful) card
in your hand for the entire game...
-----------
Under-Rated
-----------
Marjhan -
O.k., lets face it no new expansion would be complete without
an all new big Blue creature, and for Homelands Marjhan is
it. But unlike Leviathan and Polar Krakan, Marjhan's upkeep
isn't lethal. With Merfolk, Breeding Pits, Hives, Homarid
Spawning Beds etc... you can keep token creatures coming to
feed him forever! No only are his 8/8 stats impressive but he
even has a cool ability, and doesn't even enter play
tapped!!!! Deffinatly one of the best cards in Homelands, and
potentially one of the best Blue creatures avalible, pair him
with a High Tide and give your opponent a round 4 surprise.
Back to the upkeep, no only is it (relatively) cheap but if
don't (unlike Leviathan and Polar Kraken) pay it Marjhan stays
in play and does no damage to you!! While he may not pack the
punch of his bigger forebearers Marjhan makes up for this
heavily in raw playability!!
Faerie Noble -
You've probably got boxes of extra Scryb Sprites, Shelkin
Brownies, Aisling Leprechauns, Argothian Pixies, and Fire
Sprites sitting around somewhere, and with the addition of
Willow Faeries and Sea Sprites to your army you've got the
makings for a competitive deck! Not only all are the creatures
low casting cost (from 1 to 4 mana), all but 1 of them is
Green which (as everyone knows) means fast mana, fast mana
means fast creatures, and fast creatures means a fast kill.
Toss in 4 Faerie Nobles (which is the card we're here to talk
about) some Willow Priestesses, a f
ew Cockatrices (for that
annoying Shivan), and some Counterspells (just incase) and
you've got everything you need. With the avalibility of
Faeries (28 total), the Faerie Noble is effective
no matter when he's brought out, the permanent toughness bonus
he gives (and the fact that they are cumulative) helps to foil the ever
threatening Pyroclasm, the power bonus can make Vampires run
from your innocent little Brownie, and the fact that a good
number of these Faeries fly makes them great for getting
through unblocked (having trouble, just throw in some Goblin
War Drums). A few Giant Growths, Fanatical Frenzies, a
Berserk, and of course 4 Stampedes and your unstoppable Faerie
hoard will make your opponent wish he hadn't made that "Oooooh
a Scryb Sprite I'm sooooooooo afraid" crack after the first
turn!
The Revised (3rd-4th)
---------------------
----------
Over-Rated
----------
Nightmare -
O.k. O.k., I know Nightmare is HUGE when you get him out on
like round 30, with an Aggression and Fear on him, but lets
face it how many tournament level games do you play that even
go to round 30!?!? (how many do you play that go to round 15?)
Nightmare is a classic "wow" card, when a new player sees on
he goes (appropriately) "wow!" and tries to trade his 5 mint
Giant Growths for it, when really he should be keeping the
Giant Growths because they will be a lot more useful to him
than this over-glorified pony. Nightmares high casting cost
make him hard to get out (even with Black's Dark Ritual)
before the 3rd round, and even then he's just Lightening Bolt
fodder until round 4 or 5. Hypnotic Specteres, or Sengir
Vampires would be better for a deck, not only are they cheaper
but they have a useful ability to boot. Nightmare is just a
waste of card stock (unless you can trade him off for a Shivan
Dragon), and remember anything that can be killed with a
Magical Hack is probably lame...
Royal Assassin -
More a sideboard card than an deck card (unless your playing
in an all creature tournament), this little guy is in high
demand now since everyone want to get four of him. But is he
really worth it? In most cases, no, lets face it if your
opponent has a way to get rid of the Assassin he will whether
it be Lightening Bolt, Pyroclasm, Paralyze, Drain Life,
Control Magic, Counter Spell, Brainwash etc... if the
Assassin poses some threat. Unfortunately with the advent of
creatureless or low creature decks the Assassin might just end
up being another 1/1 creature for 3 mana. Sure he is great
with an Icy Manipulator to back him up, but lets face it that
doesn't happen often in duels (though it seems to pop-up more
and more in Multi-Player, and Melee games). You almost need
an Anti-Magic Aura on the Assassin to protect him at all and
even that doesn't work for a lot of "mass effect" spells.
While the Assassin is great in some situations (all-creature,
multi-player) he's downright useless in most others...
-----------
Under-Rated
-----------
Zombie Master -
There's this big craze over all Faerie decks, but so far I
haven't seen an all Zombie deck. This was understandable when
the only Zombies out there were Scathe (ick) Zombies, but with
Ice Age we got Gangrenous Zombies and Lim-Dul's Cohorts (not
to mention the Dark's addition of the Drowned) while this only gives
us 15 Zombies max, along with 4 Zombie Masters (giving all our
undead Regeneration and Swampwalk), a few Evil Presences, some
Paralyzes, Drain Lifes, Dark Rituals, Unholy Strengths, Thrull
Retainers, and Feasts of the Unicorn (ugh!) you've got yourself
one kick-ass All Zombie deck with enough Swampwalkers to inflict
damage and some defense thrown in to boot. The fact that Zombie
masters aren't exactly in high demand (people give them away locally!)
makes them easy to get, and considering all the Zombies printed
so far are common they should be no problem to acquire also.
While the deck might not be tournament level it should at
least provide a few fun duels to teach beginners, or at least
a good multi-player game or two. Who says Zombie Masters are
useless??
Mijae Djinn -
Someone explain this to me, the Mijae Djinn is a 6/2 for three
Red. Why don't more people play with them?!?! They can come
out on the second round with no problem (third max.), and
while they do have their drawback (he's prime Lightening Bolt
material), and he only hits your opponent roughly half the
time. But still his low casting cost and high power make him
a great tournament card (even if you just use him as a
blocker). Toss on an Aggression and/or a few Blood Lusts and
he becomes a rolling death-machine, much easier to outfit
than that Shivan. While I'll admit he might not be useful for
everyone in every deck, he sure is a lot more useful than
people give him credit for...don't be scared away by flipping
a coin...
That's it for Over Rated/Under Rated, obviously we
didn't cover all the cards we could have (in both categories),
but we think we covered a good number of them. Next issue
this space will be filled by one-issue-spanning column "The
Just Plain Stupid", so be watching for that. Also OR/UR will
return sometime around issue #6, so if you have a suggestion
about a card we should include (Under or Over Rated) drop us a
line and let us know!
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
The Drawing Board
-----------------
** Note: The format has been changed a little to make this
feature more reader-friendly, hope you enjoy. And if you have
a killer tournament deck submit it (see appendix I), we'd love
to see it! **
This month we present 3 decks for your perusal, feel
free to build and play them yourself, tell us how they do!!
Ratings:
--------
* - You based this deck on a combo you saw in Conjure
didn't you?
** - A 3 year old, who has been playing for 2 weeks
could come up with this much depth in a deck!
*** - You actually had to use a brain cell for this one!
**** - Hmmmmm, this just might work.
***** - We bow to you oh great Magic god!!!!
Deck Name; "Steel"
Overall Rating; ***
Primary Colors; Black, Green
Support Colors; White, Blue
Win-Loss Ratio; 5 to 1
Average # of Rounds to kill; 5
Fastest # of Rounds to kill; 3
Artifacts; Mox Sapphire
Mox Emerald
Mox Jet
Mox Pearl
Black Lotus
Mana Vault x4
Enchantments; Sylvan Library
Instants/Interrupts; Counterspell x4
Disenchant x2
Swords to Plowshares x4
Dark Ritual x4
Sorceries; Demonic Tutor
Regrowth
Creatures; Derelor x4
Erhnam Djinn x4
Juzam Djinn x2
Sengir Vampire x4
Lands; Mishra's Factory x2
Bayou x4
Tropical Island x3
Underground Sea x3
Tundra x3
Scrubland x3
Savannah x2
Total Cards; 60
Sideboard; None Provided
Total Sideboard Cards; ?
-= Comments =-
Pro; This deck is a perfect example of what is becoming more
and more popular in tournaments (it is also a good example of
deck types discussed in Stratagemos this month), its main
weapon is speed, and lots of it. The Lotus, Moxes, Rituals,
and Mana Vaults make a creature first round almost guaranteed,
and the fact that the aforementioned creature will be at least
4/4 takes it out of Lightening Bolt range, at least for the
first round. The Swords to Plowshares, Disenchants, and
Counterspells beef up the defense and provide a few early
rounds of dominance. This deck is very well tuned, a lot of
the extra cards that could have been added haven't, and some
staples of quick creature decks (ie Juggernauts) have been cut
to make room for more versatile attackers (ie Vampires). The
use of the Mishra's Factories is good also because they are
cheap blockers, and if push comes to shove can inflict a few
points of damage.
Con; This deck's primary weapon is speed, and if it looses
momentum it really gets bogged down. A few well placed
Terrors, Swords to Plowshares, or Abu Jafars and the attackers
that are supposed to be inflicting mucho damage are in the
graveyard with nothing but one Regrowth the bring them back.
Also, all the damage is creature based, what about Island
Sancturarys or Moats? (remember only a 1 in 30 chance of
drawing that Disenchant) Relying only on one specific type of
damage to kill you opponent always leads to trouble. If this
deck gets going early on, and is unopposed for the first
couple of rounds it works incredibly well, but once slowed
down it stays slowed down.
Suggestions; Move 2 of the Swords to Plowshares into the
Sideboard, and replace them with the final 2 Disenchants.
Instead of Counter Spells use Power Sinks, you've got more
than enough mana! Replace the 4 Mana Vaults with 4 Eurekas
(if possible) this will really make the first round
interesting. Toss in some direct damage, Psionic Blasts, or a
Hurricane or two, nothings worse than pummeling your opponent
down to 3 life and then loosing the game because none of your
creatures could get through! Try replacing 2 of
the Vampires with Serra Angels while you can't Dark Ritual
them out as fast they offer both defense and offense. Also
replacing 2 of those Deralors with two more Juzam Djinns
wouldn't hurt either :).
----------
Deck Name; "Null and Void"
Overall Rating; ****
Primary Colors; Black, Red
Support Colors; White, Green
Win-Loss Ratio; 5 to 1
Average # of Rounds to kill; 6
Fastest # of Rounds to kill; 4
Artifacts; Black Lotus
Sol Ring
Jalum Tome
Zuran Orb
Feldon's Cane
Enchantments; Nether Void x3
]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]Underworld Dreams
Instants/Interrupts; Lightening Bolt x4
Incinterate x4
Dark Ritual x4
Disenchant x2
Sorceries; Chain Lightening x4
Demonic Tutor
Wheel of Fortune
Regrowth
Mind Twist
Eureka x2
Fireball x2
Creatures; Juggernaut x3
Serra Angel
Sengir Vampire
Ernham Djinn x2
Deralor x2
Lands; Bayou x4
Plateau x4
Badlands x4
Taiga x4
Total Cards; 60
Sideboard; Arboria x3
Disenchant x2
Terror x2
Swords to Plowshares x2
Pyroclasm x3
Forethought Amulet x2
Tabornacell at Penderall Vale
Total Sideboard Cards; 15
-= Comments =-
Pro; While this deck lacks the speed of "Steel" above, but it
still has its fair share. Also, the fact that this decks
damage comes from more than just creatures (or just direct
damage) make it harder to deal with, couple that with the
Nether Voids (guaranteed to slow your opponent down) make this
deck pretty well rounded. Another perk is that this deck can
make for a really fast game when it gets rolling, and if
needed it can slow down to "Permission Deck" speed if needed.
Also the sideboard covers all the normal bases, which is
always a plus. On the whole a really well-rounded,
competitive deck.
Con; Timing is important with this deck, if you bring out the
Nether Void to early it will probably hurt you more than it
hurts your opponent. Also, if you enemy is playing a weenie
deck the Nether Void probably won't effect him/her at all.
Blood Moons are a big problem also, since the only think that
can save you from it is the Lotus (after it is cast of
course). CoP: Red may be annoying also, in the direct damage
area but shouldn't be too big a problem if you can get big
creatures out early.
Suggestions; If you can, get the Moxes to go with the 4 colors
your playing, a few Juzams wouldn't hurt either. Think about
putting in one Ernahm and taking out a Juggernaut both can
come out on the first or second round but the Jug. is a lot
easier to kill. Replace the Forethought Amultes with
Simulacrums and/or Reverse Damages, they are more of a
surprise and don't take a 3 mana upkeep. Think about swapping
the Jalum Tome out for a Sylvan Library, no discard.
Something cool to add to this deck would be Chains of
Mephistopheles and Howling Mines (this would be better for
multi-player games however). One more Eureka wouldn't hurt
either.
----------
Deck Name; Mind Games
Overall Rating; ***
Primary Colors; Blue, White
Support Colors; Black, Green
Win-Loss Ratio; ?
Average # of Rounds to kill; 30
Fastest # of Rounds to kill; 30
Artifacts; Black Lotus
Sol Ring
Mox Sapphire
Mox Emerald
Mox Ruby
Mox Jet
Mox Pearl
Jayemdae Tome x2
Disrupting Scepter x2
Chaos Orb (Replace with Zuran Orb, or N's Disk)
Enchantments;
Instants/Interrupts; Counterspell x4
Mana Drain x4
Psionic Blast x4
Swords to Plowshares x4
Disenchant x2
Ancestral Recall
Sorceries; Mind Twist
Demonic Tutor
Recall
Regrowth
Balance
Timetwister
Time Walk
Creatures; Serra Angel x2
Lands; Library of Alexandria
Maze of Ith
Tundra x4
Scrubland x3
Underground Sea x3
Savannah x3
Tropical Island x3
City of Brass x2
Total Cards; 60
Sideboard; Moat x3
Blue Elemental Blast x4
Control Magic x2
Disenchant x2
Tranquility
Lifeforce x3
Total Sideboard Cards; 15
-= Comments =-
Pro; Talk about a slow down deck, this apparatus looks like it
has a lot of possibilites. The slotted cards, along with the
balanced sideboard make it very versatile. Damage is little,
but varied enough to make it hard to deal with. All the Moxes
and a multitude of dual lands make it hard for you to get mana
screwed in any game. The sideboard is really well done, and
should be useful when facing any type of deck.
Con; This deck seems to rely WAY to much on Blue, while its
true Blue is one of the harder colors to hurt, it's still a
bad idea to stake so much on one color. The fact that you
only have 8 Counterspells, 2 Serras, and 16 points of direct
damage (in the form of Psionic Blasts) limit what you can and
can't do quite a bit. Land destruction decks (especially if
they get going on round one) can be a real pain, as can over
run decks (Moats in the sideboard help, though Disenchants and
Tranquilites can take care of them quite easily). You side
board is really color specific to Red and Black, but what
about Green and White? Those are the chief weenie colors and
you should have some defense against them (Holy Days? Fogs?).
Suggestions; Replace the Jayemdae Tomes with Jalum Tome, while
they require discarding they are cheaper to cast and to use.
Why the Disrupting Scepters, while its nice to make your
opponent discard, Amnesias will do this better, or you could
just throw in 2 more Angels. Swap the Mana Drains for some other
type of Counterspell (Power Sink for example, or even better
Deflection) excepting the Serras, and Tomes you have no place to
put the mana. Move 2 Swords to Plowshares to your sideboard
(loose the Lifeforces there, Black shouldn't be a huge threat
with Moats out), and replace them with 2 Mahamoti Djinns (or
some other big creature) with your quick mana these guys will
come out quick and are a lot more effective than Serras. Vices
or Racks might be a good idea also. If you want to slow down
the game nothing works better than Nether Voids, or (since you
Mana/Card ratio isn't very high) the old Winter Orb/Relic
Barrier combo, with Disrupting Scepters this is devastating.
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Trading: How to Avoid Getting Screwed
-------------------------------------
** This article really shouldn't be here, but we
promised it last issue and so we delivered. We want to cater
to collectors as well as players, and to do this a sister
'zine to the Grimore dealing just with trading, selling, and
market trends will be coming out in January about the same
time Grimore #3 hits you mail box (this 'zine will also
include a price guide for those people e-mailing me to include
one in The Grimore) this way if you don't want one or the
other 'zine you don't have to get it. **
An interagal part to the game of Magic is trading,
because A) You probably don't have the $$ to buy all the cards
you need, and B) The specific cards you need change often,
sometimes weekly! And so in writing this article we will
assume you have traded some, for those of us reading this
there are to major places we trade in person (at a store, Con,
wedding, wherever...) and on the Internet (in newsgroups, or
IRC). In both venues you need to do things a little
differently to avoid getting ripped off, or sending 8 dual
lands for a Timewalk and never getting them back!!! (not that
I'm bitter...), and to get the best trade possible. They
include:
In Person - Trading in person is the easiest most reliable way
to get cards without getting ripped off, because you see the
cards first and get them without waiting for them. The only
real danger is that the cards are either counterfieted, in
which case you should do what WotC tells you look for
inflexible card backs, thicker cards, and creases. Or stolen,
you can never really tell if a card is stolen or not (by
looking at it) so you just have to play this one by ear and
hope the guy/gal your trading will isn't a jerk. Other than
those ways, trading in person is pretty safe. Sure you might
end up giving more than you wanted to for that fourth Eureka,
but if you want it bad enough, and the deck works well enough
you'll get over it.
Via Computer - In moving from Person-to-Person, to
Person-to-Modem-Network-Modem-Person you loose a lot of
security. Because there are people out there looking to rip
unsuspecting people off, and they do do it often. There are
several ways to aviod getting screwed via the 'net though;
References - While these can be faked (or even the same
person's other alias!) they still are pretty
reliable. Mail one or two of them at random,
tell them you have a trade in the works with
so-and-so and should you do it.
They'll probably respond yes (why else would he
have named them as references?) but it's still a
good idea to make sure they exist!
Verify - Make sure to get the person's address
AND telephone number (with area code), call and make
sure they exist not only does this give you some
reassurance, it also makes it hard for the person to
avoid you (since you'll be calling him all the time)
if he does stiff you.
Contact - Make it, and keep it. It would be
ideal if the person your trading with lived 10 miles
away and you could meet to make the trade but
unfortunatly this is usually not the case. Make
initial contact through the phone (see Verify above),
and keep it via e-mail even if your talking about
first round kills, or side-boarding. Not only will
this give you a chance to remind the person of the
trade (something like "P.S. Still eagerly awaiting
that Beta Shivan!") it will also allow you to make
sure Mr. X doesn't all of the sudden cancel his
account!
Sending - Ideally the person your trading with
will send his cards first, then once you've received
them you can send yours. But, since everyone that
has traded extensively on the 'net has probably been
shafted at least once this probably will not happen.
Suggest alternate sending methods like sending
one-half the cards then when you get what
your trading for send the other half. Send at the
same time, this isn't guaranteed though since some
people will wait until what you sent "at the same
time" arrives before they send. Send your cards
certified mail, this way you can make sure Mr. X got
them (and it counts as evidence if he scams you).
Finally if you are paying for your cards instead of
trading for them you can wire the money via Western
Union, and set a password on the account. The person
will get a letter telling him WU has his cash but he
needs the password to get it out, all he has to do
is send you the cards to get the password.
This should only be used in extreme cases (like when
you shell out $2,000+ for 4 Mox Sets), and it costs
money ($25-$35).
Suspicion - O.k., not everyone who wants to trade with you
over the modem is going to be out to get you
(probably). But if you suspect everyone, you
will take enough precautions to ensure that you
don't get scammed. Be especially wary of people
posting or sending messages saying things like
"Trade with me I have EVERYTHING!!!", "Looking to
trade Moxes for Fallen Empires" and "My Lotus for
your 5 Dual Lands". Also watch out for people
who are willing to make incredible deals fast,
while you should be looking for a good deal you
probably won't get an outlandish one just because
you go into a chat forum. People making trade
offers on multiples of the same card (especially
if that card is restricted or banned) should also
be watched either he's going to turn someone down,
or he really needs that 5th Chaos Orb.
Threats - As a last resort, if you haven't gotten your cards
after 2 weeks, or if you got them and they were
counterfeit, make threats (this only works if you
have his real name, home address, and verified phone
number). Not coming through on trades is Mail Fraud,
and because he scammed you via the modem over state
lines he has just committed a Federal offense that
at the very least carries a stiff fine.
If he still doesn't respond notify his local Police
(only if your looking at near or over $100 in losses,
anything less and you'll just be wasting their time)
they won't send in the S.W.A.T team, but a uniformed
officer giving him a visit (especially if he's a
teenager) will probably be enough to get him
straightened out. If the cards you received were
counterfeited notifying the Police probably won't
help, instead notify Wizards of the Coast themselves
via phone call or e-mail. They have been working to
stop card counterfeiting for awhile now and will
help you if they can (again only do this if you have
his real name, address, and verified phone number).
Hope these tips help, scamming over the Internet is an
everyday occurance and is killing trading! The more we can
do to prevent it the less people will try it and the greater
your chance will be of getting the desired card. The Internet
is the best place to trade because of the variety and
avalibility of cards, don't let a few jerks ruin it!
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Your Complete Guide to Tournament Play II
"Cheez on the Battlefield"
-----------------------------------------
The ultimate "Cheez" combo has been eliminated!!!!
*waits for applause to die down* Yup, Channel/Fireball is
gone, does that mean all "Cheez" will follow??? Doubtful...
The banning of the cheez'd out cards Chaos Orb and
Channel are just making cheezheads think more creatively, not
getting rid of them all together. But is Cheez all that bad?
The awnser to that has two parts, if you are playing a "fun"
game with friends or a kid that's been playing for a week
bringing out your all Lightening deck isn't the best idea, it
shows a lack of creativity and will probably get you ganged up
on. In a tournament situation however Cheez can be a matter
of life and death. If everyone else is playing their first
round kill deck there is no reason you shouldn't, when you
want to win and win quick nothing works better than a healthy
serving of Cheez.
The best idea is to keep two decks handy, your "fun"
deck and your "competitive" deck (or if ante is heavily played
in your area your "4 Dark Pact, 4 Demonic Attourny, 4 Demonic
Consultation, 48 Swamp Deck" might be a good idea also), this
will enable you to play both types of game without
dismantling and re-building a new deck for each game. Most
of all don't let yourself be talked out of playing Cheez, what
is considered Cheez at your local comic shop's daily ante
tournament is probably considered fair game at major Cons. And
more than likely the guy trying to talk you out of playing
will be playing something just as Cheezy or worse, if it works
play it, if it helps you win play it, if it makes another
person loose and feel worthless well...buy their cards when
they decide to quit. I know it sounds harsh, but you don't
think you local champ got to the top by playing his semi-fast
all Dwarf deck do you?
While Cheez is scorned all over (and different brands
of Cheez are scorned in different areas) it does have its place.
To Be Continued in "The Art of the Game"...wherein the author
will discuss playing tips, bluffing, and how to get your
opponent mad/irritated enough to make mistakes (which is also
Cheezy, but hey, it works!)...
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
The M.A.T. (.001)
-----------------
** This is a new ongoing feature, you think you know
everything about the game? Test your skills against the
Grimore staff, see if your a REAL Magic-Fanatic!! **
------------------------------------------------------
Rate yourself! Each question is worth one point:
15 You either work for Wizards of the Coast, or
took this test with reference material in hand.
10-14 Not bad, you know your stuff!
5-10 Average, your not a complete idiot.
0-5 You took this quiz without reference material,
and apparently without a frontal lobe...
------------------------------------------------------
1. How many creatures have Protection from Red?
A. 5
B. 3
C. 4
D. 6
2. What creature is the hardest to kill, without inflicting
any damage?
A. Shivan Dragon
B. Black Knight
C. White Knight
D. Granite Gargoyles
3. Which of the following cards stops Mountainwalk?
A. Gauntlet of Might
B. Smoke
C. Crevasse
D. Caverns of Despair
4. Which Legend has Legendary Landwalk?
A. Livonya Silone
B. Pavel Maliki
C. Ramses Overdark
D. Lord Magnus
5. Rampage originated with what expansion set?
A. The Dark
B. Antiquities
C. Arabian Nights
D. Legends
6. Lord Of Atlantis gives all Merfolk +1/+1 and which special
ability?
A. Regeneration
B. Islandwalk
C. First Strike
D. Trample
7. According the Duelist Convocation rules you may use Ring of
Ma'ruf to get cards from where during a tournament?
A. Anywhere!
B. Inside your deck.
C. Your Sideboard.
D. Both B & C.
8. Righteousness give attacking creatures what bonuses?
A. +7/+7
B. +3/+3
C. +4/-4
D. None of the above
9. How many Enchant World cards can be in play at any one time?
A. None, they are banned
B. 1
C. 2
D. There is no set limit
10. How many cards have the word "Mana" in their name?
A. 5
B. 7
C. 12
D. 9
11. If you have 2 Kobold Drill Seargents in play along with 3
Taskmasters, 1 Overlord, and one normal Kobold what is that
Kobold's power, toughness and special abilities?
A. 3/4, First Strike, Trample
B. 3/4, First Strike, Trample, Mountainwalk
C. 3/3, First Strike, Trample
D. 3/2, First Strike, Trample
12. Red is to Blue as White is to...
A. Blue
B. Red
C. Black
D. Green
13. Can you Disenchant a Chaos Orb once is has been activated,
but before it is flipped?
A. Yes
B. No
14. What abilities does Moorish Cavalry have? What is its
power and toughness?
A. 4/4, First Strike, Trample
B. 3/2, First Strike
C. 3/3, Trample
D. 4/4, First Strike
15. How many creatures are Avatars?
A. 0
B. 1
C. 2
D. 3
** Awnsers are given in Appendix III **
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Grim-Con: The Proposal
----------------------
Recently I went to a local Con, to play in their Type
I tournament (lost to a Zuran Orb! Damn that card!). I have
been to Cons in the past (mostly for Role Playing) and while
since I live in Utah I haven't been in any of the really
big/prestigious ones (ie Gen-Con, Origins), I have gotten
around a little bit. One think I notice about these events,
while on the whole they are pretty well run (with a few
hitches) but they try to cater to a really wide variety of
people and so alienated some of us. So back to the recent
Con, after it I got to thinking that while this Con wasn't
geared toward Magic enthusiasts we were in the majority, and
while comic and collectable dealers abounded the ones that got
the biggest crowds sold MTG or MTG related items! So, I
thought why not organize an all MTG Con!!! If they can do it
so can we (this is also the line of thinking that brought me
to write The Grimore after seeing Scyre and Conjure, so maybe
it's not such a good idea...), and so we are.
Grim-Con will be held in Salt Lake City, in one of two
convention centers either the Delta Center, or the Expomart.
It will be a 2-3 day event (in these early stages everything
can change though, plans will be firmed up 3 months prior to
the event), centering mostly on the Master's Tournament (see
below) with enough contests, dealers, and other stuff to keep
people who are waiting for their matches or already eliminated
busy. Entry will be about $10-$15, that'll get you entry into
all 3 parts of the tournament (it will be reduced if you don't
want to play), Get you a free copy of the Grimore (paper!!),
and get you in (of course).
The Master's Tourament will be a point based system
consisting of three parts, probably held one a day the parts
are:
Type I Tournament
Type II Tournament
*Variable*
In the variable slot can go anything from a
one-of-a-kind tournament, to sealed deck, to single color
(it's pretty much up to you readers). Points will be awarded
for how far you advance, with the winner of each tournament
being awarded the highest amount of points. Prizes include
(so far) a complete set of dual lands, and an UL Black Lotus
(this is the "prize pool" prize packages will be awarded for
the top 3 point getters). We are planning to ask retailers
from across the country to "sponsor" this event, by donating
prizes, the bigger the prize the bigger the plug they get
during the Con, and in The Grimore. Dealers interested in
coming will be able to rent tables for $25.00 each.
What do you think? This is the first time I've tried
this and am hoping I can pull it off!!! Not only would it be
great to meet some of my readers, but I'd love to see how
different regions compete against one another. Also you will
not need to be a Duelist Convocation member to play (since
some MTG players aren't), give me your opinions what can we do
to get this idea off the ground?
Those people who want to come can RSVP me starting in
April, and I'll get complete map packets, air fare info, and
hotel info to you ASAP.
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Rating the Competition
---------------------
** This column is meant to rate other Magic the Gathering
'zines out there digital and paper. Remember, this is all in
OUR opinion if you don't agree and just love X 'zine drop us a
line and tell us why, you might even convince us, **
Rating System
-------------
* = A waste of paper/hard drive space.
** = Might help mentally retarded beginners.
*** = One or two redeeming qualities.
**** = Worth the $$ (or download time).
***** = A must read!!!
InQuest -
Pro; The people that brought you Wizard strike again! Their
foray into Gaming (Collectable Card Gaming to be specific) is
not only an enjoyable read but also informative (something you
can't say for a lot of 'zines out there!). The Wizard staff
carries its humor and irreverence over to this mag well, and
while it doesn't have near the readership Wizard does, chances
are it will sooner or later. Their price guide is the most
reliable (though that isn't saying a whole lot) of those put
out in paper 'zines. Overall a quality publication.
Con; Unfortunately the "irreverence" while entertaining can
sometimes venture into the pompous side, add to this the fact
that almost all InQuests "Combos" are either copied from old
issues of Duelist or things everyone has heard off months
before. Also for a mag. that claims to be a guide to
"collectable card games" it sure has a lot of computer, and
misc. fantasy articles (like the recent Werewolf one). Now
these things are good reads, but not what I bought the
magazine for! Also, why the artist reviews? We get enough of
those in Duelist, if they need something to fill pages slap in
another contest (god knows they have the $$ backing to do
it!). Still one of the best mags out there but Wizard Press
needs to decide if InQuest is going to be a CCG Mag. and
Computer Mag, or a Fantasy RPG Mag. Not all three!!
Overall Rating; ****
Library of Leng -
Pro; This 'zine is very well presented and deffinatly one of
the top data 'zines out there (for info on how to subscribe
see next issue's "The Complete MTG Faznine 'Net Address
Book"), this mag not only has some work put into it (the last
issue was about 25 pages long), but, more importantly, it
actually has some original thought! Worth taking a look at!
Con; Now it might just be me, but it seems the Editor of LoL
has a chip on his shoulder (or he did in the issue I'm basing
this review on), it's understandable considering something of
his was plaugerized (though it is just a copyright thing
nothing big) and he got bashed in another 'zine. But still
it's not very professional to rage on for 200 words yelling at
someone and bragging about subscriber lists, # of downloads
etc.. I know the guy, and I am sure it won't happen again
he's a nice fellow. The 'zine has some PC graphics that I
can't read, and if he wants to expand to a broader audience he
might want to think about putting the 'zine in straight
ASCII. The articles are nice, but short and could use a
little fleshing out. The fiction is entertaining, but kinda
simplistic. A little more tuning and this 'zine will be
better than a lot of paper ones your shelling out $3.50 for!
Overall Rating; ***
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Reader's Ballot
---------------
** Got an opinion? Wanna voice it? Just fill out the ballot
below, cut and paste it into mail and send it off to us
(zzzayxx@aol.com) with "VOTE" in the title line, results of
each ballot will be posted in the mag the issue after it is
presented. Also please use extra space in your
e-mail to awnser the "Why" portion of the question if
necessary we want to hear your views. **
? #1
----
If you had the choice between being on a date with a hot
male/female, or playing Magic for 4 hours which would you do?
Why?
? #2
----
Should Wizards make the change complete and only sponsor Type II
tournaments?
( ) Yes Why?:
( ) No
? #3
----
Should the "Duelist's Convocation" be the only international
association of MTG players?
( ) No Why?:
( ) Yes
? #4
----
What is your favorite Magic Munchie?
? #5
----
What is the longest stretch of time you've ever played Magic
continuously?
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Mox Drawing Update
------------------
The drawing for the Mox of your choice will be held Jan. 1,
1996. Current chance to win is 1 in 451. Good luck!
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Appendix I: Deck Submission Form (for the "Drawing Board" column)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Deck Submission Form
--------------------
Deck Name;
Primary Colors;
Support Colors;
Win-Loss Ratio;
Average # of Rounds to kill;
Fastest # of Rounds to kill;
Artifacts;
Enchantments;
Instants/Interrupts;
Sorceries;
Creatures;
Lands;
Total Cards;
Sideboard;
Total Sideboard Cards;
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Appendix II: Magic Aptitude Test Awnsers
----------------------------------------
#1. A #8. D #15. D
#2. B #9. B
#3. C #10. D
#4. A #11. A
#5. D #12. C
#6. B #13. A
#7. D #14. C
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Appendix III: The Complete MTG Fanzine 'Net Address Book Submission Form
------------------------------------------------------------------------
** Do you write for or or Edit an on-line MTG
fanzine? Do you want to broaden your subscriber base? Just
fill out the form below and send it it Zzzayxx@aol.com, and
you'll be included in next issue's 'Net Address Book!! **
'Zine Name:
Editor:
Subscription Service Mail Address:
Current Issue:
Average Length (in pages):
Format:
Frequency:
Brief Description:
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]Subscription, and Distribution Site Information
]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]]-----------------------------------------------
Subscribers:
We have started a mailing list, recipients get the 'zine over
e-mail the day it's released, they will also get updates about
Grimore sponsored tournaments, contests, and will be entered in
our year-end drawing for a Mox (winner's choice of color). If
your interested in subscribing simply drop us a line at
Zzzayxx@aol.com with SUBSCRIPTION in the title line, you'll be
notified ASAP of your addition to the list!
Submissions:
We here are Grimore would be very happy to get all the
submissions we could. However there have to be a few
guidelines (as always). Therefore we suggest you submit you
idea for an article, or perhaps a short excerpt from it, we'll
let you know if were interested and ask you to send us the
whole thing or complete it. We are always looking for
consistent contributing authors, and as long as you've put
some thought into your article, and it doesn't have to much
profanity ( :) ) it'll probably see print. Please no articles
about card selling, or magic variations. However articles on
card trading, magic related fiction, tournament play, current
card/deck building trends etc.. are accepted whole heartedly.
Just send your proposal with SUBMISSION in the title line and
we'll get back to you within 48 hours.
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
Looking Ahead...
----------------
Whew!!! Done with issue #2, and just in time for
Christmas! Be on the lookout for next issue, in which we plan
to; include "The Complete MTG Fanzine 'Net Address Book",
comment on the dumbest cards ever made for Magic. We ask
ourselves why? WHY? WHY!?! Zuran Orb? Explore ante games, and
how to make a profit at Magic (possible?). Also (of course)
Your Complete Guide to Tournament Play, Stratagemos, The
M.A.T. and all out other on-going columns return better (we
hope) than ever, until then see you in 30...
|=-------------------------------------------------------------------------=|
