Deck Building Help

Looking at all your cards you don't have a complete deck of anything.  You have a one of's and two of's which aren't going to make a coherent competitive deck for FNM.  The best thing you can do is try to trade for some cards.

you have the start of a RG aggro deck (see link below).  Stomping ground, hellriders, you need to trade that cavern of souls and a few other cards to get some more R/G lands and some more cards.  The decklist below is competitive and not terribly expensive now.  You could drop a few of the more expensive cards for some cheaper substitutes.  Make sure you trade card value for card value.  Cavern is a 20+ dollar card, I wouldn't trade it for anything less than a couple stomping grounds.

http://sales.starcitygames.com//deckdat … ckID=54990

Honestly... If money is tight try to find a shop that does  budget drafts, a lot of stores will do 10 dollar drafts on off nights.  Try to find one of those and do that.  right now you can draft from packs of all 3 RTR sets and you have a chance to play magic while expanding your collection.  Competitive FNM can set you back a couple hundred bucks if you just jump in head first.

Last edited by elpablo (2013-05-08 17:06:44)

Obviously casual play is a lot easier to get moving as your deck can be far less consistent and that's okay.  But, if you're going for casual play, there really aren't that many suggestions that can be offered as everything will vary tremendously based on how competitive your casual play group is, how good their decks are, the sorts of things they're doing, etc.

The best suggestion I could give with regard to getting more familiar with the game is to try some sealed events first.  Sure, they draw on a different skillset than constructed play, but they have three added benefits.  First, what is in your collection is irrelevant - everyone has a level playing field depending on what they pull.  Second, there is a MAJOR premium on deckbuilding.  It might seem simple, but getting the correct 23-24 cards to 17-18 lands to make that ideal 40-41 card deck is quite the challenge.  Sealed would not only help you familiarize yourself with the deckbuilding process, but it also puts you in a room with several other players who can help if/when you're struggling.  Third, sealed events help you learn about playing strategies (based on what your deck looks like) while also adding to your collection in the process, in turn helping you for constructed events in the future.

To that end, I would suggest trying to find drafts or sealed events at stores nearby and attending those.  If you're not comfortable with a draft just yet, just sit in and watch each player and what they're taking.  Then observe the deckbuilding process and how the games play out.  Ask people if you have questions, but keep in mind that they don't want to disclose their colors/cards during the draft process and then their hands during play (but questions about a particular play they made or something like that after a game is over are often helpful).  You can also do draft simulations on sites like Tappedout.net to familiarize yourself with what a draft might look like and how it might play out.  Then, once you're comfortable, these will likely be the more rewarding, amusing events - as opposed to trying competitive constructed play, where, I'm sorry to say, you're likely going to lose most, if not all of your games (which isn't much fun).