The Concept of MTG?
General forum
Posted on Jan. 22, 2015, 11:23 a.m. by brcap
Hey,
So rules aside, I was wondering where I might find a comprehensive description of the concept behind the game.
I have a general idea ( I think).. I'm a planswalker, my deck is my memory, creatures i summon are the reflection of my memories of things seen on various planes.. (i think?) etc.
But I imagine there's a more elaborate explanation out there. Just as there is the entire lore behind the game that i'm largely unfamiliar with.
Can anyone point me in the right direction?
Google fails me.
lemmingllama says... #3
Try looking at this article, its pretty good for explaining the whole deal with planeswalkers and why they do what they do.
Another great thing is just reading the books that they originally released, it has tons of lore and explains a lot of stuff about the game.
Finally, here is a timeline that Magic enthusiasts have put together about the events throughout the storyline. It's pretty helpful if you want to just explore different aspects of the story or just want to figure out cool things about why planeswalkers used giant mechs to almost destroy a plane.
January 22, 2015 11:45 a.m.
Well, there is a pretty comprehensive storyline that follows the release of new sets. You can find brief summaries of it here
Other than that, I don't really know what to say. There's a different story for every single set and you could probably spend days reading through all the pieces of it.
January 22, 2015 11:45 a.m.
VampireArmy says... #5
your deck is often referred to as the Library and for good reason. I would think it's exactly that. Like a magic spell book that contains all the knowledge of the walker or something.
Along the same lines. When explaining MTG the game to people who know literally nothing of the game I tell them this :
MTG is like a game of chess where your deck is your pieces and the object of the game is to checkmate your opponent by making sure they have 0 life or 0 cards left in their deck.
January 22, 2015 11:46 a.m.
Hjaltrohir says... #6
You are a planeswalker fighting another planeswalker and you use your magic and summon creatures to try and beat your opposing planeswalker. Simples!!!
January 22, 2015 12:30 p.m.
Gidgetimer says... #7
MTGSalvation is a good place to go for story and lore behind MTG. I think the whole "you are a Planeswalker" thing is more a convenience so that we can visit Planes without having to go into why.
January 22, 2015 1:17 p.m.
lemmingllama and Necrotize, thanks for the links to the articles, definitely worth reading and adds richness to the game.
Still, not exactly what i'm looking for. I'm interested in how the games mechanics are explained in the narrative. Why the legendary rule works within the context? It is it because i'm actually summoning that person, and not some memory of them, which is why there can only be one on the field (that explanation would make sense prior to the rule change anyway)?
I understand your deck as your memory, as it makes sense to loose by mill from loosing your mind (it also fits the flavor of most mill cards, ie Traumatize). How is drawing manna from your deck/memory explained inside the narative, etc..
When I explain it first timers, I generally go with "You're a wizard who has a grudge with another wizard, but you're both too lazy to walk over and punch each other, so you summon goblins and dragons to do it for you.. occasionally throwing fire at their face"... which is fine conceptually. But I'm still curious a richer context exists.
January 22, 2015 1:24 p.m.
As a Planeswalker, you are essentially a traveler with the ability to move between space and time. When you confront another Planeswalker (a match), you are choosing to battle with him or her. You both pull from your resources to establish dominance (win the game). Since a match is designed to see which is better prepared, once the battle is complete, each competitor (with manners) shakes hands (or other appendages) and steps away.
The library is your cache of resources available to you in the immediate instance (game), kind of like a pouch from which you retrieve your spells. Some resources (lands and artifacts) give you access to the power to cast the spell. The rules of engagement require each Planeswalker to have control of the battlefield for offensive (your turn) and defensive (opponent's turn) purposes. The primary offensive purpose is to allow placement of resources (artifacts, creatures, enchantments, etc.) for availability during each turn. As you tap into the power each one holds, it provides some form of benefit (mana access, control an opponents resources, remove resources from their cache, prevent their spells from resolving, etc.) to you. Some Planeswalkers are powerful enough to summon other Planeswalkers to the battlefield in order to assist in a limited form (activations).
Some Planeswalkers have a desire to minimize the complexity of their library by limiting themselves to a single form of resources (mono-color decks), while others prefer to have a more diverse selection of spells (multi-color decks).
Maybe this will help you conceptualize for yourself, or even help explain to others. I hope so.
January 22, 2015 1:43 p.m.
So that's more in line with what i'm getting at, but Warmonger, where are you getting that from? The gentlemen's duel idea is certainly whimsical, though it not very consistent with the WOFC article lemmingllama linked to.
January 22, 2015 2:01 p.m.
lemmingllama says... #11
They explain this perfectly in Arena, a book that Wizards released a while ago. Warmonger hit a lot of it on the head, although he is a little off. It used to be that players would play for ante, and the loser would have to give a card to the winner. This made it so the winner would punish the loser and gain new powers.
Additionally, the reason why we have turns is that mana takes time to be gathered. It is retrieved from the land around the planeswalkers and the lands that the planeswalkers have previously visited. Once the connection is made to a land, then mana can be drawn from it. That is why we tap lands for mana, then they untap after time has passed (the next turn). This is also why Stone Rain type spells were so flavourful, you are literally destroying the planeswalkers connection to his realms.
Another reason why planeswalkers use creatures and spells is that they are vulnerable. If they just got into a game of spellslinging fisticuffs, then the one with the bigger spell would win and kill the other. Its better to stay in hiding and use creatures to seek out your foes, and if you are defeated then just planeswalk away and give up your territory to the opponent (see the ante thing above).
January 22, 2015 2:23 p.m.
Your library is a book. Yea. The card back is supposed to represent a spellbook. If you get Traumatize'd, you will have no knowledge left in your spellbook. Your hand is your mind. When discarding cards Thoughtseize, you will get thoughts ripped from your mind.
Creatures are spells that you summon. Everything are spells.
January 22, 2015 2:23 p.m.
Thanks lemmingllama, that fills in a little more. That's how I understood lands as well, which is also more consistent with the idea of of your library as your mind, rather than a spell book. Having a connection to the land in your mind that builds power over time, rather than lands being pages of a spell book.
I generally view my hand as simply what spells i'm thinking about at present. IE. i cant think of everything i'm capable of doing at once. It also suits the flavour of cards like Thoughtseize (plucking out a thought) or Enter the Infinite (all thoughts becoming realizable).
Still, no one knows of any "The idea behind magic" resource? I would imagine it was a lot easier for WofC to come up with something like that at the games conception, but with each rule change, it became harder and harder to maintain consistency. Still.. this the internet, I'd be surprised if there wasn't something out there.
smackjack says... #2
I'm a human who plays ridiculously overpriced pieces of cardboard with rules text on them. I follow those rules, and if i manage to get my opponents life down to 0, or they draw a card when there is no cards left in their library i win..
January 22, 2015 11:42 a.m.