GASP: July Game Day

[train]

The deck building aspect is merely an obstacle to the game. RL

Previously, this was true... but in recent times, you can buy the pre-cons, or buy built decks from individuals... either way - oyu can still enjoy the game, and not have to build the deck...

KJ - Net-decking would be taking an exact list of the "favored" or winning deck and then building it... It's not just about how fast a deck-list spreads, it's all the play, and strategy behind it...

You can modify net-decks to be a different strategy, using some of the same cards - but in that sense, owuldn't be net-decking...

It's kind of like the patent office - there's a version there... but one with minor differences, can be made and gets a patent for being "different" or "improved"...

 

[Oversoul]

And if you're using an exact decklist from the internet, then it would have to be either because you really did "netdeck" it without playtesting it or anything, or because it's such a perfect, finely tuned deck that any changes you could make would only be detrimental. I say this because all players I know of have their own individual tastes, styles, abilities, etc. They will like a card so much that they have to add it, or hate a card so much they want to get rid of it, or cut some stuff they don't find as great in order to throw in some engine they think is a bomb, or they'll whittle away at the mana base because they have some sort of mulliganing fetish...

 

[Spiderman]

They also might change it because their metagame is different...

 

[Killer Joe]

The Elf Ball deck WAS tuned and tested specifically for the environment I was going to play it in.

 

[Oversoul]

And worked rather well there...

 

[train]

So - KJ was not net-decking...

The Elf-Ball was modified for the local meta, and that made it unique...

 

[Spiderman]

Well, I agree with KJ's statement about the idea of netdecking is

if you used just the essence of a deck from the internet that it would be considered a net deck

Modifying it to beat your local metagame is just substituting some cards so you increase the chances of winning. But also like I said, I don't think this is bad - it's just the reflection of the faster spread of info due to the Net and some people are afraid of it or dislike it because they want to stay on top or whatever.

 

[Killer Joe]

I seem to remember a conversation at my 'old shop' where some of the shop's best players were down playing the importance of Brainburst and Star City Games as a source of good information for good decks.

They were talking to 'newbs'.

I wonder, now, if they weren't trying to HIDE or withhold basic internet information from these kids but not in the name of integrity but selfishness <sp?>.



Spiderman: I STILL think that! If I built a deck starting out with the following:
4x Psychatog
2x Upheaval
4x Force Spike
but everything else is different from the original list, I'm still net-decking and I am on my way for building a UB Psychatog deck.

Same with:
4x Astral Slide
4x Lightning Rift
and cycle lands.
I'm building a RW Astral Slide deck.

Remember THIS one?
4x Yavimaya Fires
4x Blastoderm
4x Flametongue Kavu

This is classic:
4x Wrath of God
4x Counterspell
4x Serra Angel

 

[train]

It's possible they were trying to hide info...

But overall - some cards go well together - no matter what the build is - Capsize and counterspell go together - so having them in the same deck wouldn't be net-decking buehler's previous worlds... it's just playing good cards... with good synergy...

same with:
tog/upheaval - though this was originally upheaval/zombie infestation...

astral slide/rift...

fires/flametongue...

and serra/wrath (I'm not fond of the counterspell one here...)

If you're playing for synergy, and they happen to be in other decks - I just don't feel it's net-decking...

 

[Spiderman]

Well, again, net-decking is really just popular decks floating around (and usually the most well-honed), so yeah, good cards with synergy will show up there. I usually consider rare cards as part of the "net decking" because of their commonality, whereas something like Capsize and Counterspell are more "staples" or supporting cards (ike Tradewind Rider would be part of a net-deck). But that doesn't mean a person couldn't "come up" with the synergy on their own and happen to mirror a "net-deck", it just goes to show that the synergy is either obvious or the person has good deck building skills to recognize it (or both).

 

[Oversoul]

I think usually synergy is obvious, sometimes it's not. In either case, there's no patent system for Megic decks (thankfully).

For example, if I want to use a deck based around a certain card, and find that others have already done so by using it with another card (that has great synergy with it) I think it would be silly to use some inferior card just to be original. Now, if I really do want to try a different concept, or if I just happen to discover something better during testing, more power to me, but there's no obligation to use an inferior deck in order to avoid net-decking.