Trying to get into modern.
Modern forum
Posted on March 25, 2019, 1:05 p.m. by frosthammer_eden
Hello. So I recently discovered TappedOut and have really started liking deckbuilding. I have played a lot of MTG Arena so I have a good grasp on standard. But it is fairly limited in card and archetype choice so I want to expand onto Modern. The problem is that my knowledge of the cards and archetypes of Modern is limited at best. Learning all of it seems overwhelming and just staring at card lists doesn't seem effective. What would be the best way to learn Modern?
Find a deck you like/know/want to grow and play modern. That is legit the best way.
Yes, you will lose just due to lack of knowledge and sideboard. But if you know a deck in standard you may have an easier time.
RNA Standard Decks with related Modern Archetypes:
- Izzet Phoenix: and it's so much better in modern
- Dredge: complete with Creeping Chill and Narcomoeba
- Control: With Teferi, Hero of Dominaria
- Burn: Skewer the Critics and Light Up the Stage show up with Experimental Frenzy and Risk Factor
Growth Spiral and Wilderness Reclamation are also seeing frequent experimentation around the fringes
(there's probably more but those were the one's off the top of my heap
March 25, 2019 1:22 p.m.
Oloro_Magic says... #4
Echoing what Flooremoji said, MTGGoldfish is a great place to start, have a look at some of the decklists there to get an idea of what people are playing as there are a lot of "modern" cards that dont see play in modern. Don't pay too much attention to what they are doing but rather just look at names and the list, the ones that interest you look at and see if you can't figure out what they are doing without looking it up. This is a good place to start and based on your ability to identify the plans of decks you can start to understand how ready you are for the jump to modern.
After this I would head over to Star City Games' youtube channel and scroll through the recent modern tournament matches they have uploaded, again choosing decks by names, or by searching "DECK NAME starcitygames" on youtube and watch a bit of gameplay, listen to the commentators and challenge yourself to understand what is happening and why it is happening, when you are comfortable with this then you are ready.
Alternatively, if you are looking to get into modern on a budget I would watch some of SaffronOlive's budget magic series, you get to see a combination of real decks and fun casual to semi-competitive decks that way. If you are the type that learns through playing, decks like 8-whack goblins:
List --> 8-Whack
or mono-red burn, list here:
List --> Mono-red Burn (Note this list is very out of date however)
Are great ways to be semi-competitive in modern whilst not knowing the format well enough to metagame as they provide a quick clock and don't really care too much for interaction. The best part about them is that both, burn more so, can be upgraded as you play more to be competitive decks.
March 25, 2019 1:32 p.m.
Find a deck that you like and just start to play the format. You'll learn a lot pretty quickly that way.
If you know what style of deck you like and how MU h money you are willing to spend we should be able to find you a deck to start.
March 25, 2019 5:40 p.m.
If you would like to watch videos that are generally more entertaining than starcitygames, you can watch the stuff that they post on the MTGgoldfish youtube channel. It might take a while to get used to Seth's voice but watching those videos can be a great way to learn about different decks/cards and archetypes and such without having to take the time to sit down and play (and potentially running into the same decks over and over again). PleasantKenobi and Magic Aids usually do things for the more competitive side of Modern, so they're a good source for learning what's good and what's not and whatnot.
TCGplayer has some good modern videos as well, namely the Mining Modern (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLxg8UAfS2YJZBd6HV_RE6gZmM3D4-vpgV) series that Corbin Hosler does. Very useful stuff for learning about archetypes and such.
March 25, 2019 8:38 p.m.
PlatinumOne says... #7
https://www.mtggoldfish.com/metagame/modern#paper
i'd recommend starting by looking at the above link and familiarizing yourself with the top tiered decks. if you're not sure why a certain card is included, just google "modern (insert deck name) primer" and it should be really easy to find a guide for the deck that explains all the card choices.
unless i'm mistaken, some of the guys who posted above me seem to think you should just jump into the format blind, and learn it the "hard way". i disagree. doing it that way would take quite a while indeed to learn the full workings of any given deck.
definitely start goin to modern FNM's, but also do the proper research beforehand. that way when you see someone playing Urza's Mine and using it to cast Expedition Map on turn one, you won't be totally blindsided when they cast Karn Liberated on turn 3. once you're at FNM, take time to talk to players between rounds and ask questions like "what are some good removal spells in my colors?" or "what should i use in my sideboard to combat decks X, Y, and Z?"
and finally, the Gatherer:
http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Advanced.aspx
this will help you discover cards that meet any criteria you may need. very useful for when you know you want cards that can do certain things or work a certain way, but don't know what all of your options are.
March 25, 2019 10:44 p.m.
WizardOfTheNorthernCoast says... #8
The way I entered the format was by watching tons and tons of YouTube videos (paired with tons and tons of w**d and white nights :D) back when I was a student.
I couldn't recommend you enough to do the same. You arrive at a point where the format is pretty mature too, so you have a lot to learn. I'd even advise you to go back to when Birthing Pod and Splinter Twin were dominating the format, because they will help you understand how the format evolved to be what it is today. Don't waste too much time on those, but watch a few.
Anything is good to take : SCG coverage, Pro Tours, GPs, small content creators with very few subscribers, streamers on MTGO, etc. Watch all of them, but don't waste your time on mirror matches once you know the lists, and avoid watching Tron because it's an awfully boring deck to watch or play (no hate, just facts). :)
March 26, 2019 6:14 a.m.
Watching a bunch of content is honestly a huge waste of time when you don't know what your meta looks like.
It's a good idea if you want to see if a deck you chose fits your playstyle but there are to many decks to watch gameplay in the first place.
March 26, 2019 6:35 a.m.
WizardOfTheNorthernCoast says... #10
Knowing your local meta is a thing, knowing the format as a whole is more useful imo. For someone who doesn't know much about modern at all, I still claim it's the best place to start (and I never said you should sit hours long and just binge watch MTG content).
If your LGS meta is mostly Tron, Burn and UW for example, you'll never know what to do the first time you meet an Affinity player, Dredge player, or an Elves player. In that regard, only playing at your LGS is a crappy advice too, because you'll miss on so much of the format. Also, your SB will most likely look like sh*t.
The best would be to mix both, but in any case it'll take you lots of time and effort to get to know the format as a whole ;)
March 26, 2019 9:25 a.m.
Its not, you dont need to know the format because yu will start to play in your local meta. You dont need to watch hours of content to waste your time either. And i didnt advice to only play at your LGS.
But i agree its gonna take time and efford to get to know the format.
March 26, 2019 10:08 a.m.
Jimmy_Chinchila says... #12
I like going to tournaments at LGS and just watching games. Most people don’t mind folks standing behind them and looking at hand. If slow or you know the peeps you can even ask questions or just wait till after game. Good way to see kind of decks being played and some gameplay/decision trees. Modern is really expensive to break into, may wanna decide on deck and playtest it here on T/O first, then buy or trade for cards you need. Difference between Standard and Modern is like college basketball versus NBA, so keep expectations low. The format is all about knowing what people are playing and thus planning on doing, but there are some builds of “1-sided Magic” where you try and do your thing and basically ignore opponent. Lots of “unfair” builds as well, that don’t really interact at all and just try and combo off. Also really fast, many builds are winning turn 2-4, so can be frustrating. I’d say best bet is to watch people live, see a build that looks fun to you, and start chipping away at getting the cards for it.
Flooremoji says... #2
There really is no 'right' answer, and it is especially hard if you don't have much time to do it. My best answer is to try and look at content providers like Channelfireball.com and watch videos of top decks being played. Hope this helps!
March 25, 2019 1:10 p.m.