[Community Discussion]: TappedOut and you
TappedOut forum
Posted on Nov. 9, 2014, 7:01 p.m. by Epochalyptik
This Community Discussion was proposed by ducttapedeckbox!
Some of you are established users who have been lurking or posting for years now. Some of you are new to the site and just getting settled in. I personally joined this community when it was about 19,000 strong, and we're now about to reach 429,000 users total. Those of us who have been here for a while have seen the site evolve over time. We've seen some visual updates, changes to the deckbuilder, overhauls on the draft and playtest simulators, and more.
But the main mission of this site is to give Magic players of all ages and experience levels a place to design and test decks, practice drafting, and discuss ideas. We even facilitate trading between reasonably established users.
So the topic for this CD is the site itself. How do you use this site to meet your MTG needs? How often do you log in? Has your use of the site evolved over time? Are there things you don't use the site for? Let us know all about your experience here and how it has affected your Magic career!
vampirelazarus says... #3
I don't really play much anymore, in fact I rarely discuss magic here.
But I came to this site just looking for a way to keep track of my decks, and because mtgdeckbuilder stopped working for some reason.
I continue to come, because in those early days, I made friends while answering rules questions.
I log in every day, to enjoy the hilarity and freedom of this site. I stay because here I can be myself, without discrimination, and without fear. I've seen people come and go, I've grown as a player, I've helped people grow as players. This community is truly unique, and I will continue to come because of that uniqueness.
November 9, 2014 7:10 p.m.
GlistenerAgent says... #4
I found this site as a useful resource for archiving decks that I would come back to eventually, and then I started posting. And posting. And posting.
If I'm not on here for at least an hour, it's a very busy/weird day. I really love this community and the deckbuilding tools available.
November 9, 2014 7:16 p.m.
Blizzicane says... #5
I'm log in all the time 24/7 until Tapped Out kicks me off (:C) but I am usually on every single day from late afternoon to late night until I go to bed. I use this site for practically all my mtg needs, mtg news, deck storage, weird brews, and feedback. The only thing I don't use this site for is the draft sim because I dislike drafting (I tried but I never get anything good from packs EVER). :P
It all started with me coming just to storage deck ideas and to playtest decks I made then a little while later I decide to actually look at the others decks on the site, then it progressed to posting in the forums, then posting decks, and in the end I became a active member to the point were I made it to the top 100. :3
Now concerning how it has affected my Magic career, this site has open my eyes from MTG as a whole from different formats, to the competitive scene, lore, rules, the stack, and has made me a better MTG player overall. But at the same time has made me lose interest in making a casual deck ever again outside of EDH. XP
Bottom line <3333 Tapped Out :3
November 9, 2014 7:27 p.m.
Blind_Guardian says... #6
Nowdays I am addicted to tappedout. I am constantly logged-in 24/7. I think the only thing I still hasn't done is draft on ta. It feels like it is an site for people in my own state compared to the swedish site I use which has a much older or/and experienced amount of players. Of course there are many big differents as svm represents the whole magic community in Sweden but it's so easier to be a casual player on tappedout then there. My understanding and knowledge of the game and about it's treats has rapidly increased since I started to use this site though my skill mainly depends on how much and against who I play in real life. One of the biggest benefits of using ta is that you always can find creativity every day. Also the nice spirit of the site is one of the reasons I still play the game. I hope that this site will continue to grow and attract more players without loosing the cosy feeling of spoiler discussions and old rivals squabbling.
November 9, 2014 7:40 p.m.
As Magic has become more and more a part of my life, so has TappedOut. I design most of my decks here, and keep an archive stretching back across my Magic career of many of my various brews.
At this point I'm logged into TappedOut almost constantly, and hardly a day goes by that I don't visit the site.
November 9, 2014 7:56 p.m.
I started here to ask people for suggestions on
Storm and Eggs Playtest
Modern
SCORE: 65 | 4 COMMENTS | 9110 VIEWS. I put that up and I found beakedbard] making a comment on Mana Ramp: Elves & Wurms, which I corrected him on and critiqued the deck. I commented on that deck only until my first valuable post was in Is there a time when you want to slap your opponent?. Ah, memory lane...
This site represents everything I do with Magic. The nearest LGS is half an hour away and I have other commitments keeping me away, so this site replaces my playgroup (which is kind of what we do. We talk about ideas and brainstorm decks, which is kind of what a playgroup does) and Cockatrice replaces playing with people.
November 9, 2014 8:04 p.m.
literally every day. It's a great free way to "play" mtg and learn. Without tappedout, I can say I would NOT have hit top 4 at KTK game day! This site is so awesome and I log on whenever I get the chance!
November 9, 2014 8:13 p.m.
VampireArmy says... #10
My friend at job corp showed me this site. Transitioned from scrub to maggot.since then. I enjoy the live debates on here about which cards are tier 1 material. I'll help from time to time with what little knowledge i do have but for the most part, i come because it makes me closer to a community of mtg players as I've moved away from any semblance of one. Also props to the people who tolerate my annoyances day after day <3. The only feature i think i don't use here is the draft function because of lack of way to play after. I understand that there can't be a way but that's my reason.
November 9, 2014 8:22 p.m.
quesobueno123 says... #11
I log in around twice a day. I primarily use the site for deckbuilding, as well as trading. I have been a member for around a year now I believe, and have almost cracked top 100!
November 9, 2014 8:28 p.m.
InfiniteParadoX says... #12
I originally came to this place about, just over a year ago, just looking for feedback on my decks. Even though I rarely get that, and I am very un-involved in the community, but I still visit more than 4 times a day looking an other people's decks and reading through the forums and through some threads, having more fun here than I do with anybody who I know in real life, even though I am so un-involved here. I have become a much better player, and person in general. This site is great
November 9, 2014 8:29 p.m.
miracleHat says... #13
I am in here to learn what people are doing with mtg. I trade, look at other decks, and work on my decks! I first joined tappedout, it was for a "modern" tourney in an elective class. I first used it to find the deck that i wanted to use (ended up being a crappy tron deck) and playtesting it. After that, I started commenting on stuff. Like all kids on here, I started off with a temper and suggesting really crappy cards (Bogardan Hellkite for a red goblin deck...), but slowly got better by looking at other comments and exchanging ideas on here. I started trading 2/10/13, and have over 35+ trades! I occasionally draft, but normally it is cubing / vintage masters. The main thing that I use it for is perfecting my edh decks (currently testing one right now as i am typing).
About the visual updates, does anybody (yeaGO?) have a screenshot of the original main page?
November 9, 2014 8:38 p.m.
ducttapedeckbox says... #14
Thanks for the shoutout Epoch!
A few years ago I came across this site and started working on a casual Mindslaver Tron deck. Shortly after, I found myself in long discussions with buffy about how to improve the deck, and from those discussions spawned many "janky" builds. It was honestly his kindness and devotion to helping me out that kept me coming back.
Fast forward two years and here I am on this site pretty much daily, brewing decks, posting about who knows what, and doing a little trading. Being in college where only one of my friends plays Magic and not having a close LGS, I use this site almost exclusively for all of my Magic needs. My knowledge of the game has grown from not understanding the stack to being able to (rarely) correctly answer Q&A posts. The community here is definitely a rare one - while debates can get heated, they're always mature discussions. It's hard to find an online community that tries to focus on their love of the game and leave everything else out as much as this one. And when the subject changes, it's usually pretty lighthearted.
The rest of my Magic experience consists of the MTG Familiar App, which is only really useful for prices and getting trade proposals together. Oh, and the occasional rule check on the go. Other than that, all of the time I put into Magic goes into this site.
Thanks to YeaGo, Epoch, and everyone else for keeping this a great place to enjoy a great game.
November 9, 2014 8:39 p.m.
im on here 24/7. i mainly use it as a deck builder but also use it to further my understanding of magic in all aspects. other sites ain't got shit on tappedout
November 9, 2014 8:41 p.m.
Dalektable says... #16
This site is a way to categorize and keep a record of my deck ideas I might build/am building and get feedback on the primarily. Now however, it quickly evolved into my constant lurking on the forums. If I'm not commenting, I have probably at least seen the thread.
November 9, 2014 8:41 p.m.
TelleoStar says... #17
I joined a few months ago, and my deck building has gotten exponentially better. The ability to crowd source my decks gave me access to a huge Knowledge Pool of cards, which I then started to learn about and add of my own volition. Being active in the forums has been fun and informative, and the trading has been great.
November 9, 2014 8:45 p.m.
I came to this site 2 years ago as a super scrub who just played what he could find and rubberband together. After posting and creating decks very actively for a few years, as well as participating in many forum discussions and so forth, I consider myself a fairly seasoned MtG player, and I've accumulated the encyclopedic knowledge of an EDH player.
I also trade on here (not very frequently anymore, I got tired of binder upkeep) which allowed/allows me much greater access to cards I wouldn't be able to acquire as a jobless highschool kid. Really a useful tool in becoming a better player.
I don't build decks as much as I used to, but I still participate in the forums quite a bit and help people build decks as much as I can.
Really, this site has totally shaped how I am as a Magic player. I guess I owe it a lot for that.
November 9, 2014 9:20 p.m.
I log it daily. My web browser opens to this bad boy automatically. I've ranted about this before, but this is an extremely well thought out, well managed piece of work. I came here originally as a casual, on and off player who barely understood the rules of magic, now I'm an old vet teaching others. Thanks Tapped Out team. Your work has made an already good game even better for a very large group of people. Heres to continued success. <3
November 9, 2014 10:25 p.m.
I log onto the site usually about once a day. For the most part, I look up the top decks that are happening to see if i might want to build something either similar or exactly like it. I don't play at FNM, don't do tournaments, just play with my kids or friends from work, so a lot of the decks that get put up here spark ideas on things I can make to surprise people with. Every now and again, i will look at the Q&A section to see if there is anything that is still hanging out there to be answered, and very infrequently i'll post a question (and get told to just gather the answer :) ). Love the site overall, that's why I paid to be a premium user and get the cool colored name. Oh, trading, I use the site for trading pretty frequently as well.
November 9, 2014 10:57 p.m.
I originally joined mtg vault for my online magic needs, but I didn't like the limitations of the site, and once I discovered this place, I was hooked. I really like the way the site is presented, and it's very visually pleasing. I actually use the site primarily to trade people; I've done about 20-30 trades on here, and every single one has been positive. The "100 club" is enjoyable to watch; they are also very informative and respectful. I think the biggest reason I've stayed is because of the community atmosphere; it's very laid back, with a really positive attitude. I think the most valuable thing this site has is encouragement: everyone who posts on here tries to be positive and evolve ideas as opposed to striking them down completely.
Serious props to everyone on here; keep it up!
November 9, 2014 11:57 p.m.
Femme_Fatale says... #22
No idea how I found this site.
Like many people here, I use T/O to organize and get feedback on my decks. I regularly check T/O on a daily basis, as there is always something happening. T/O is the entire reason why I'm considering the professional field, it has evolved me from being a wee girl gamer to a knowledgeable and formidable female player.
November 10, 2014 12:31 a.m.
I came when a more experienced player and friend of mine told me about the site. At the time, I was literally a kitchen table player, and my "decks" that I stored here were more like a list of all the cards I owned. I stayed because, as I eventually got better at the game, I still liked brewing ideas for decks.
These days, I do very little deckbuilding, and even less playing. But the community here is plenty enough, and I'm constantly logged in, even if I don't post as much as I could.
November 10, 2014 1:21 a.m.
When I came back to magic on KTK release day I started watching Tolarian Community College on youtube. He links decklists to here, so I decided to try it out. It has greatly simplified designing, building, and organizing decks for me - much better than scratch paper or spreadsheets. It is also quite nice to get feedback and ideas from other members of the community, and I try to give the same here and there. I could do much more in that area though.
I tried the draft sim once and it felt particularly useless. You can draft the cards, but without a way to play afterwards you can't really know if you did well. I know that is one feature that can't be implemented here for good reasons, but it really drains the usefulness of the draft feature. It doesn't matter to me anymore though, as I've decided I don't like drafting and have stopped doing it.
I think the only other thing I can't see using is the Cube thing because I have no idea what a cube is (aside from geometry). If somebody could explain what a cube is and why I might want one I might change my mind.
November 10, 2014 1:55 a.m.
I joined the site 3 years ago, when I got back into mtg after a very long break (somewhere between 10 and 15 years). I came looking for rules clarification due to a butt ton of changes. My new playgroup of semi pro players were great at always bending the rules in their favor. Thanks to this site that quickly came to and end.
I lurked here a while before finally posting some decks. Then I learned EDH and everything changed. This site and its community has opened my eyes to the games greatest format. It has also helped me build a couple very fun decks to pilot.
Once my wife finishes college and gets a job I will be able to cut back on my hours at work, allowing my youngest son and I to hit the tournament scene. When that finally happens I'll be here hitting you all up for critiques and advice. Until then I will continue to lurked here 24/7.
November 10, 2014 2:47 a.m.
quesobueno123 says... #26
Obake A cube is your own set of existing magic cards.
November 10, 2014 6:28 a.m.
sergiodelrio says... #27
I used to use another site for deckbuilding, but I wasn't satisfied and then I found tappedout. It's fun to look at other people's brews, get inspired or help out. A lot of discussions here are very interesting to read.
I utilize tappedout to throw together some cards, see how they interact and be able to change a deck quickly. To be honest though, I always need an external database to look for cards.
I would use the trading system, but I live overseas (Germany) and I believe most of the users are located in the US so I don't bother.
Maybe you could implement some language options to get more international attention?
November 10, 2014 9:01 a.m.
fluffybunnypants says... #28
I'm also not sure how I got here.
I stick around for the community.
Yeah.
November 10, 2014 9:11 a.m.
Blind_Guardian says... #29
sergiodelrio Actually quite many users are from Europe. More than you think. The problem is that you can't see which country a user is from which makes trading tricky anyway.
November 10, 2014 10:18 a.m.
Hmm I'm also not sure how I found the site, probably a friend. When I first got here, I was terrible at magic still, and my deckbuilding skills were subpar to say the least. At that time, I thought "hey this card seems sweet, let's add it to my already way too large deck". Glad that's over with. This site has helped me grow as a player and a builder. My knowledge has grown considerably thanks to this community. That's why I stick around, the community, the humor, the knowledge, THE MAGIC. This is why I'm here pretty much all the time, I check in at work, at school, and whilst already at magic events.
This is tappedout.net, and we all love it
November 10, 2014 10:55 a.m.
ThisIsBullshit says... #31
I came here because I needed a way to keep track of my decks and cards. Eventually I found the forums and I comment on things occasionally and offer help when asked.
This site gave me a chance to see what MTG is like outside of my playgroup, which was awesome, seeing as my playgroup is a little one-dimensional. It opened me up to new ideas, archetypes, and formats.
Oh and the people are pretty great too. It's nice to know that I'm not the only girl playing Magic. Special thanks to Epochalyptik and yeaGO for keeping this site running. You guys are amazing!
November 10, 2014 12:28 p.m.
orionwinterfire says... #32
I'm new, just a month or two here. But I love the site and am checking it almost hourly. It's helped me make the jump from kitchen table commander to standard. The community is IMO the perfect size, and most of the people who bother to interact do so in respectful, thoughtful, helpful ways.I'm developing a personal goal to be good enough to give back as much as I have gotten from this awesome community.
November 10, 2014 5:21 p.m.
Femme_Fatale says... #33
benjamin_is_nuts, sergiodelrio, check my profile for the flag counter of country web trafficking. Make sure you aren't running ad block or otherwise you won't be able to see it.
November 10, 2014 6:23 p.m.
sonicizslow says... #34
I use this wonderful site daily, and by daily I mean every free moment I have. I use this to keep deck lists for decks that I don't have built, or to get suggestions for decks I am currently using. I also use the forum for any non-rule questions I have. This site has given me plenty of help on different ideas for my MTG at my school too. I also enjoy all the side conversations we start. I use the drafting to prep for the rare times I draft, or to kill time at school. Without this site I would not be the player of magic that I am now.
November 10, 2014 6:55 p.m.
sergiodelrio says... #35
Turns out there are more people from Germany here than I expected... I might give the binder thing a shot.
November 10, 2014 7 p.m.
PaladinRyan says... #36
I use tappedout for deckbuilding, referencing, discussion... really everything magic. It's the only site I really actively use for mtg stuff. I log in pretty much daily. There have been periods of time where I have been less active but as of late I am quite active. I started using it exclusively for building my own decks, then browsing and contributing to the decks of others as well, then asking and answering in the Q&A section, and finally upgrading my account and becoming a more active participant in the forums (one of my first orders of business was remedying the lack of a Death and Taxes hub with a post as the deck type has become a favorite of mine). The one thing I don't really use the site for is trading, primarily because every time I attempt to I fail horribly at keeping my binder updated to the point where it is not useful. All in all though this site had been a valuable source of information, input, and discussion for me and helped a fair bit in my growth as a Magic player.
So thanks to everybody who helps keep this site running. :D
November 11, 2014 11:29 a.m.
avrgeboy123 says... #37
I use the site to explore new deck ideas, store decks that I would like to make in the future, and test out decks to get a feel for them before I purchase them. I am always on the site browsing and testing and brewing new decks. This is an excellent site with a great community and web design. I would trade, but I am a bit wary of online trades.
November 11, 2014 11:33 a.m.
mercurial_golem says... #38
This site definitely has a lot of "Johny" players. "Spike"s are well and good, and you see those deck with the 2000+ hits. But, I have a lot of fun exploring other people's decks that are built on budgets, or themed, or just crazy ideas. I definately agreed with the people who've posted "laid back atmosphere". I walk into card shops looking for input on a budget deck from the people who work there and the first thing out of their mouth is "this deck is shit". Where as, on here, people will say "this card might work better".
November 11, 2014 11:58 a.m.
Rhadamanthus says... #39
An internet friend (SpaceNinja, one of the site's top 10 users back in olden times) suggested the site as a really good way to store, share, analyze, and goldfish decklists. He was right!
I don't do a lot of commenting back and forth on decks, but the website has been very helpful as a tool to organize my ideas and get a good first impression of how a deck feels before I start buying or trading to build it. It's also very convenient to just be able to send out a URL if I want someone to see one of my lists.
Of course, most of my activity happens in and around the MTG Q&A area. It's been a great way to keep practicing and further improve my rules knowledge over the past few years. There are a ton of knowledgeable users using the site nowadays, so I end up just reading Q&A threads a lot more often than I actually post answers, but it's still interesting.
November 11, 2014 4:33 p.m.
NobodyPicksBulbasaur says... #40
I first found this site because it had a draft simulator, but I stuck around for the deck builder and the community. Having one central place to store my decklists and brew up shenanigans has been fantastic.
These days I log in at least once every time I'm on the internet just as a force of habit. I'll always check my notifications and see if there's anything eye-catching in the recent posts.
One thing I would like to see changed is the interface of the draft simulator. I've never been a fan of the average draft pick of a card being openly displayed. It always feels like I gravitate towards cards just because of their low average draft rating, and I would rather be drawn to cards based on their own merit. I think I'd like it better if that information was given via a hover-over or some other semi-hidden means.
November 11, 2014 5:45 p.m.
CanadianShinobi says... #41
I found this site when doing my first bit of research into how to play Magic and how to deck build. Over the past year and a half (maybe more) I've grown to really enjoy using the site for deck feed back and as a creative outlet. Unfortunately the past few months have been rather unkind to me in terms of free time, so I've been unable to post more articles and now I just creep around every couple of days, rarely posting. Hopefully I'll be more active after christmas.
November 11, 2014 5:55 p.m.
Hallowed_Titan says... #42
Found this site trying to get feedback on a deck, then...I became addicted to this site after joining. This place is(mostly) awesome! Been here for a tad over a year and am loving it, keeps track of all my decks and a great place to trade. Keep it up T/O higher ups ; )
November 11, 2014 9:41 p.m.
JakeHarlow says... #43
About 18 months ago, my friend Hrothfar got me addicted to Magic: The Gathering. I was enthusiastic but terrible at the game for about 4 months, and then he told me about this site and its useful deck building tools. So I joined up and began building my ridiculous 70-card home brews from my early days, and theory crafted many a strange deck as an exercise to build card knowledge. I really didn't take notice of the community aspect. I didn't cycle my decks nor did I visit the forums. To be honest, I'm not sure that I was aware that the site had such a rich community and an elaborate setup beyond the deck builder.
Hrothfar and I began competing at FNMs, and I decided I wanted to improve. I started reading the forums here and reaching out for help with my builds. I quickly discarded all my previous notions about the game and acquainted myself with the proven fundamentals. The more friends and connections I made on T/O, the better I seemed to get at Magic. I started to win casual tournaments, drafts, and Standard FNMs. Part of learning the game (a big part) was my habit of viewing other folks' decks and commenting on them with either praise or suggestions. I started to use Gatherer to help me find good cards to suggest to other users. I shared my strategies with other people, who pointed out what was good and where I could improve.
Basically, since about a year ago, I've been on here most every day. This began partly due to my abject boredom at my day job (I was living in New York City at the time) working in web design. There was a lot of down time, and I spent a lot of it here. I gained knowledge about everything MTG: lore, cards, rulings, formats, metagame history -- you name it. And I also made a lot of Internet buddies (you all know who you are). I even posted a deck that made it to #1, which really cemented my excitement about being part of this community.
I still use this site often for the above reasons, but now I often go on here to derp around the awesome community, just to see what all you lovable crazies are up to from day to day. I get a kick out of the discussions that pop up around here, and I have a lot of fun chatting. I guess this, and my level of activity on other folks' deck pages, caused me to crack the top 100 some time ago (not that this matters). I like going here because for the most part, everyone on here is great. There isn't the prejudice or mean-spirited jackassery that you see on other sites these days. It's a breath of fresh air. I love T/O and I'm here to stay.
As others have done, I want to tip my hat and extend gratitude to yeaGO and Epochalyptik, and all other users who make T/O possible, for providing me and everyone here with great tools and great fellowship. Cheers.
November 12, 2014 1:21 a.m.
Teysaforever says... #44
I ended up joining because of a commander video from the now defunct Draft Magic (R.I.P) I started with putting up my Teysa, Orzhov Scion Deck. Now I check in daily. It is how a long distance friend of mine and I play magic. It is a good tool to check prices. (I miss when they had low, middle and high for decks) I thank the creator of this site. May your lands ever untap.
November 12, 2014 12:45 p.m.
How about more noobs?
Its amazing to me how many people use this site because they "aren't close to an LGS". Kinda sad. =(
November 12, 2014 9:56 p.m.
vampirelazarus- thats exactly me haha
except i still post once in awhile so my rank doesn't plummet... -.-
November 12, 2014 11:29 p.m.
vampirelazarus says... #47
Oh, I post all the time, I just don't give advice.
Gotta stay in the top 30 somehow.
November 13, 2014 12:10 a.m.
NoobusMagnus says... #48
I came here to store all the deck ideas that flow into my head. For people like me, it's a great site to use, considering that if I haven't started building some crazy new theme deck at least twice a week, then things aren't normal. I love the ability to easily goldfish decks, but also use it in a virtual sense to playtest against friends in the same room. My group of friends typically get our laptops, playtest decks on this site against each other, and buy the decks that we want to invest in. It has saved me the pain of investing in a deck that turned out to be trash many a time.
I'm a fairly recent new user, so I haven't gotten much into the community. But it's awesome, and the service you provide is invaluable to those of us who use it.
November 13, 2014 12:54 a.m.
NickyTwoShoes says... #49
I log on to playtest decks, but for me the most important thing that this website does for me is help me with my mana base. I plug in my deck, my lands that I think i should run, and the mana cost ratio pie chart on the right tells me how right or wrong I was.
November 13, 2014 3:50 p.m.
TheAnnihilator says... #50
I don't even remember how I made it to tappedout, but I certainly know how I use it today. So, here's the explanation:
I use tappedout 1) as an archive for my competitive decks, since I'm constantly changing cards and trying new things in decks to see what's good in competition, and 2) I spend a vast majority of my time as an avid trader, poking around here and there and even doing card alters for people. 3) I also, to a lesser extent, occasionally jump into threads to discuss spoilers and cards/techniques in various formats. I do pretty much all of this to gain access to the competitive cards I couldn't otherwise get (I spend as little money on magic as possible while remaining competitive, hence why I trade so much) and also to have a record of my decks before I changed them so I can go back to older lists if necessary.
tl;dr: I view tappedout as a great resource for deck-archiving needs, spoilers/speculation, and trading.
Nigeltastic says... #2
I found this place when looking for a good place to store a deck list I had been thinking about, and now if I'm not checking it 4 times a day it's a low usage day. I don't use the trading post because I don't trade that much, and also just don't trust strangers on the internet enough (though many seem to have no issues).
November 9, 2014 7:04 p.m.