Howdy there.

This week, I’m going to take a look at something that some of you may cringe at.

Magic: The Gathering.

I know. I know. The mere mention of the name sends chills up your spine. Memories you’ve been mentally suppressing for years have just come bursting violently forth, driving you to relive the horrific encounters of times long past. Empty Mountain Dew cans strewn about, the crunch-crunch of chips being devoured by the handful — these are the things you wished never to relive.

It’s alright.

With time, these terrible images will fade back into obscurity, back to the very recesses of your mind from whence they came. (But not until you’ve finished reading this, and probably not this month.)

So yes, I’m painfully aware of what an MtG addiction can do to an otherwise healthy, normal, socially competent person. The good news is, I’m not going to suggest you get back into Magic “per-se”. No, I’m going to suggest something a bit different, something that doesn’t require you to submit your wallet to WotC (Wizards of the Coast, the company that makes MtG) for a cavity search every hour on the hour. On the contrary, I think this is the best idea I’ve ever come across for playing magic on a budget. (I’ve actually only come across this one idea, so it’s the best by default, but still!)

If you aren’t familiar with Magic, I’m going to suggest you take a gander here, and maybe here, and hey, while you’re at it, you might as well hit this place up too. That should get you the gist of what Magic is, and how it’s played. If it isn’t obvious from reading about it, Magic is a complete money sink. Seriously, it’s like wetting your money down, then putting it down the drain, then turning on the garbage disposal. Not one of the crappy ones either. I’m talking about the ones that are so intense, so powerful, that they have their own god-damned cooling system.

Anyway, yeah, it costs a lot. At least, to stay competitive with your friends it costs a lot. Oh, and if you want to actually play with different cards, or make different decks, it costs a lot. If you want to play in tournaments, well, I hope you have some good savings, because you’re going to need them.

Now all of this sounds terrible, and it is. That’s why I haven’t touched the game in just under a decade. After my long stint and eventual condemning of the game, if I even saw someone playing Magic, I would take out my lighter fluid and matches (which I carried with me at all times, just in case), spray the table and cards they were playing on, and light it up. While I did have some people occasionally get upset, it never bothered me, since I knew I was doing them a favor.

Ok, that never happened, but the point has been made. Magic was evil, and still is evil, when it comes to taking your money. It’s like crack for people who don’t do crack. (I’m sure there are some people who both like crack and play Magic, but those people are just crazy.)

So why am I bringing magic up, when I have so thoroughly denounced its existence? Well, let’s be clear here. Magic is fun. It’s very fun, and it also lets you stretch your intellectual muscles, without giving you an embolism. The problem comes in when people are so addicted, so hopelessly obsessed, that they end up having to turn tricks on the street just to have enough money for that one “last” rare. (You will always want more.)

So imagine my surprise at finding the perfect thing for those of use that want to play Magic, but don’t want to take out a second mortgage.

What I’ve been playing for the last few weeks has allowed me to not only play Magic, build diverse decks, and have fun, but do it all with a total budget of $40.00. That’s right. I bought over 2500 cards, and I’m only in the hole a measly $40. How did I do it, you ask? Simple. It’s called Pauper Magic, and it’s steadily gaining popularity in the Magic world, both with paper players and online. (Yes, you can play MtG Online. More on that later.)

It’s becoming so popular that WotC is considering recognizing it as an official format. What is Pauper Magic? I’ll let you read the official FAQ, but in a nutshell, it’s Magic played only using Commons. Now, you may have heard of Peasant Magic, which is Magic played only using Uncommon/Common, but even those sets can get expensive. With commons, you can get a complete (4 of each common) common set for under $10 dollars, and even less at some places.

I can justify spending $5 dollars every few months on Magic, which is more than enough to keep up with the new sets when buying only commons. Now that is Magic on a budget. You can check out more info about Pauper Magic here.

You may be curious about this newfangled “Online Magic”. My best advice is to be prepared not to be blown away. While the program technically works, the same could also be said of the Hindenburg. Yeah, it worked, right before it exploded into a fiery airship of death. Lets just say MTGO (Magic the Gathering Online) is a bit…rough around the edges.

It plays the game fine for the most part, but the UI, chat interface, and general organization need some major work. The nice thing about it is that there is no monthly fee. You just have to buy the cards. Sadly, the paper and virtual products are kept completely separate from each other, meaning you have to buy virtual cards to play with online, and you can’t “redeem” paper cards you’ve bought for their online counterparts. It makes sense from WoTC’s standpoint, but kind of stinks for the consumer.

So, to sum it up, buy common sets and play Magic for cheap. As I always say, there’s nothing better than good, cheap, legal fun. (I’ve never actually said that)

Next week we’re going to take a look at some party games and “Gateway Games”.

Or maybe something else.

Till then,

Johnny