M:TG by Microprose question

S

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
For those that have played this more than once, would you recommend striving for the "uberdeck" once you get going, no matter what color you start out as (let's say you're trying to get the elements for The Deck), or would you try to build the best deck with whatever color you started out as your primary color (say, Sligh or burn with red, discard for black) with some splash?

I started as White and am trying to decide whether to go for the White Weenie type deck or build my "uber deck".
 
T

theorgg

Guest
I usually start with one color, and build the best deck I can with that color...

Then I pick a "trashy-fun" deck and build it on the side.

I had a good white-weenie, and I evolved Plague Rats Eat Loti with thirty/thirty Rats and Lotuses...

all playing only five minutes at a time.
 
E

EricBess

Guest
I think it pays to have multiple decks. In general, to wander around the world, you can do it with a lot of different deck types, but you can also scale it to the type of area you are going through. Kind of like pre-sideboarding. If you are in black territory, run around with your White/Red White Knight burn deck.

As far as tackling the dungeons, the biggest challenge is the fact that you don't get a second chance. Find out as much as you can. The two big questions are 1) Does it start with something in play, and 2) Does life "loss" carry over.

If it starts with something in play, sometimes you can use this to your advantage. For example, a deck that starts with Living Lands or Kormus Bell in play plays dead to a W/R deck running Lightning Bolts and Swords to Plowshares. Since your opponent's lands all enter play with summoning sickness, you can often win before you even start.

If life "loss" carries over, you can use this to your advantage as well. See, you go in with your starting life, but each battle keeps the previous life total. Pull out your deck loaded with Spirit Link, Ivory Statues (is that what it's called? It's been too long...gain life equal number of card in hand in excess of 4 each upkeep) and don't be afraid to Swords to Plowshares your own unnecessary creature before attacking for the kill.
 
TomB

TomB

Administrator
Staff member
Originally posted by EricBess
Pull out your deck loaded with Spirit Link, Ivory Statues (is that what it's called? It's been too long...
Click to expand...
I think that's what you were thinking of...;)

A friend swears by Green/White, but, personally, I did a lot better with White/Red. A few weenies, a couple of Angels, and a whole lotta creature control worked for me. :D

Earthquake and Wrath of God are also some good vs. the Kormus Bell/Living Lands guys...:eek:
 
R

rkoelsch

Guest
I always ended up building 3 decks using all the colors. I tried starting out as each color but only finished as white and red.
 
H

Hetemti

Guest
I played R/W (my forté) with plenty of BallLs and Shivans, and Wrath and Swords to keep the field clean.

You can play SuperBrokenBlue if you ace the dungeons, but without the Power, blue is kinda stinky in Shandalar.
 
T

theorgg

Guest
How I'll finally put that no-good badguy at the end to rest:

First turn: as many mox sapphires as possible, Time Walk, Twister.
Second: same as above, putting out Tim if possible.
Third- 500th: Timb 'em, timewalk, twister.

It's starting to work like that, after getting kicked across Shandalar in the dungeon where Iwas to get Twist and Walk...

Having tim out against the Kormus/LL guys is also wrong...

so is taking their stuff with control magic.

If your starting deck is weak by the way, restart the game and don't save. I kept plugging blue until I got at least two good flyers and some form of counterspell... I also got four creature bonds, but a control magic made up for that... :{ )
 
A

Apollo

Guest
Actually, he's thinking of Ivory Tower, not Ivory Statue.:)

I personally took whatever color I had at the beginning and tried to make the best deck I could with that and a splash. I liked the challenge of taking whatever you got thrown to you in the beginning and working with it, so I didn't make another deck. I've played through it many times that way. But if you're really trying to beat the game quick, I'd recommend making two decks. Start out with whatever they give you and make a deck with that; that's what you'll be using for the early portions of the games. And then while you're working with that, beat some crummy creatures and build up that uber-deck. Once it's solid, switch to that for the duration (unless the other deck is better because of dungeon rules or some such).
 
S

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
Well, I'm torn... I'd like to try to beat it with my starting color as the "primary", just to practice deck-building and have some fun...

And it's hard to pre-sideboard when you have to activate your White Amulet to transport you to the place where some wizard's trying to capture a village... :)

My last time I started and won (and the only time I really played), I started as red so it wasn't too hard to build my "uberdeck" (my beloved Manabarbs deck). If I remember correctly, it took everything the dungeons threw at it, with maybe a few sideboard tweaks (like adding Whirling Dervish and Lifegrip against the all black one or something).

I've got my White Weenie one up pretty good, just need some more Black Vices :) I guess I'll stick with it for a while...

And theorgg, you have to look at your starting deck as a challenge :) See if you can turn it into a winner (I had all five colors but had to strip the blue and green from it to make it remotely playable initially).
 
Z

Zadok001

Guest
My tactic has always been to start in Black, and run into Blue or Green, depending on what kind of cards you find. The AI has a tendancy to forget all about black removal, letting you draw them into traps fairly easily. I _do_ tend to have trouble with other black decks (the Black Wizard is ALWAYS my last opponent), but I usually build a secondary White/Red deck for them if I have the time and the cards (and, of course, the inclination - Never know when laziness will strike home!).

The Dungeons are the key to the whole game, though. Find 'em, loot 'em, and kill everything. I "Pre-Sideboard" for dungeon battles - Toying with my mana ratio, buying hosers, etc... I always try to have a few Spirit Links for "Life Carries Over" dungeons, and sometimes I'll turn to Healing Salves. I finished one Dungeon with 50+ life. :)

(/me reinstalls that game...)
 
S

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
Well, I'm getting bored trying to finish Baldur's Gate and Warcraft II: Battlenet so while this occupies my time, I think my goal will be trying to defeat the computer using each color as a primary and just trying to pre-sideboard for the dungeons (not use a totally different deck) and then perhaps start over with each color but build towards the same uberdeck (which means it could get boring, I don't know). We'll see how it goes... :)
 
R

rkoelsch

Guest
I think the hardest color to start in is Blue. it really sucks to start.
 
T

theorgg

Guest
Blue is a real bugger to start with! I'd be tapping my elbow on the desk in front of me saying "TOPDECK THAT #^@#*^# TURTLE!" hoping to get the Giant Turtle to block that Holy Stregnth'd White Knight.

Get a Timewalk ASAP! and always take a dupe of it(and FIGHT those guys that give you duplicates!!) until you've got four. Flood is great after you've slimmed to a mono-blue deck, just watch out for stuff with activated abilities, as if the computer cancils the ability, it freaks out and everything the computer has attacks you(including the walls.)

I havn't had the time to instal the patches, so mabe it'd be better afterwards.
 
A

Apollo

Guest
Well, since my brother hasn't left the 10-foot radius around the PS2 since Christmas, I decided to go at Shandalar today. In between the 4 times it froze on me, I've got a decent B/W deck going... Gotta find some Hyppies, though.

Anyway, who is it that gives you duplicates? I can't remember. It seems like the Sorcerer does, but I'm not sure, and I can't remember anyone else.
 
S

Spiderman

Administrator
Staff member
I'm too busy fighting everyone because I don't have enough money to bribe them off yet, so I can't pick and choose. :)
 
B

BigBlue

Guest
I'm pretty sure I beat it with each color, but it's been a while. some of the time you need to use a different deck, it is impossible to play Black in those places where Karma starts in play, you may win 1 game, but not make it through the whole thing. I found it useful to have life gain stuff given that you keep the life totals at the end of games, I don't know how many times I strung them along with an ivory tower in play just to get to 100 or so before finishing them off.
 
T

theorgg

Guest
1. Sorcerer
2. Guy with No face except a yellow blob that is in islands
3. Thought Steeler(black/blue knight)

The Black/White knight will give you one non-rare card of your choice somtimes, as well.


Update: I finally got the blue deck completed-- I delt the final bad guy several hundred damage in one turn with eight black vises(four norm, four copy-art.), four Ancestrail Recalls(a timewak in between here) and a Braingyser with two mana flares out. BOOM!

Also, if you have stuff like black vise, holding down "enter" will speed you through the upkeep.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top