Welcome to the Arena!

So you’ve downloaded Arena and discovered Magic: the Gathering. My condolences on your new addict– Oh, I mean, Welcome to the Greatest Game ever Made!

Magic is a great game, and there’s a lot to love about it. I’ve been playing for around 20 years. I’m not exactly sure when I started, but it was around Tempest or Urza’s Saga. I do remember Capsize being out, because my friend who taught me the game just wrecked me with it, LOL. For most of that time I was a kitchen table player, but about 10 years ago, I started playing more competitively and I’ve played in several GPs and larger SCG events. I’ve also been certified as an L1 Judge.

If you’re coming to Magic for the first time through Arena, then this blog is being written with you in mind. I’m sure many of you are coming from Hearthstone or other online CCGs. While there are similarities between Magic and these other games, you’ll find some notable differences as well, as I’m sure you’ve discovered.

I want to dedicate this blog to helping folks learn those differences, understanding how the rules work (they are very complex), discovering the depth of play, getting a handle on some basic strategy and concepts, and most of all seeing the wider world that Magic has to offer. Seriously, if you’re enjoying Arena, I can’t encourage you enough to check out Magic IRL. A great place to start is by watching coverage of major events, especially StarCity Games events. There’s also a fantastic community around this game, so take a trip out to your Local Game Store and look around.

Thanks for taking the time to pop by my humble little blog. I often hang out in the Magic Arena MTG group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/148868719089138/) if you want to chat, or if you think I got something wrong in this blog. I’m always up for some friendly dialogue.