Best Way to Shuffle Double-Sleeved EDH Decks?
General forum
Posted on Jan. 10, 2015, 10:11 p.m. by Necrotize
Googled around and couldn't find any specific answers regarding it, but how do you guys personally shuffle double sleeved EDH decks? I double sleeve with perfect fits and sweet, sweet, Turquoise Dragon Shields, and find it difficult to shuffle it all at once so I usually just shuffle half at a time then mash them together. Just curious if anyone has any interesting ways to shuffle such monstrosities easily.
ThisIsBullshit says... #3
I have literally the exact same setup down to the same color dragonshields lol and I do the same thing or sometimes I'll pile shuffle and then mash a few times
January 10, 2015 10:14 p.m.
Turquoise is just such a boss color for sleeves lol. Even have a perfect color matching satin tower deck box with clear turquoise dice to go with it. Can never have too much.
But yeah, sometimes if I know there are huge land pockets from previous games I'll also pile shuffle then shuffle the piles together but that takes a long time :(
And how do you guys shuffle midgame after tutors and such? I just take a chunk of the deck and pray to god that card I'm looking for is in it so I don't have to shuffle the whole thing over again.
January 10, 2015 10:36 p.m.
ThisIsBullshit says... #5
I shuffle the halves separately, mash them once maybe twice, take random stacks and put them in different order and then ask somebody to cut.
January 10, 2015 10:53 p.m.
Seems good to me.
Thanks for the helpful info. Shuffling is literally the only thing I don't love about EDH. Plus I'm always afraid I'll split a bunch of sleeves if I just mash shuffle all the time. Thankfully Dragon Shields always ship with like 5 extras for whatever reason.
January 10, 2015 11:05 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #7
I just mash shuffle the entire thing at once. Maybe my hands are just bigger, but I've never found it to be a problem.
It definitely helps to compress the deck, though. Squeeze as much air out of the sleeves as possible, and store the deck in a tight-fitting deck box. Over time, you can get an entire EDH deck down to about 2.625" (which is perfectly manageable).
Pile shuffling is a waste of time, in my opinion. It takes much, much longer per iteration than any other shuffle, and it doesn't sufficiently randomize the deck in some cases (see: mana weaving). You're much better off mash shuffling.
January 10, 2015 11:06 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #8
And as long as you mash shuffle starting from the bottom corners of the sleeves, you'll never split Dragon Shields. Because Dragon Shields have such a substantial weld to them, splitting normally only occurs when people are bringing the bottom corners of half the deck into the top (open) corners of the other half of the deck and forcing the sleeves inside of one another. Or when they're aggressively riffling with the top corners. Still, the things are damn near tear-proof.
Lesser sleeves (UltraPro, Fantasy Flight) are much more prone to splitting on riffle and mash shuffles because they have poorer welds.
January 10, 2015 11:09 p.m.
ThisIsBullshit says... #9
How on earth do you get the deck that small? Every time I take mine out it just re-expands.
January 10, 2015 11:09 p.m.
Makes sense. Plus I'm much too lazy to pile shuffle all the time and I usually mash the piles together when I finish anyway, especially after all the different types of shuffle cheating going around. I'm actually considering making some sort of spacer to put in my deck box to keep things nice and compressed. Obviously with 100 double sleeved cards plus a few tokens, there isn't a lot of room anyway, but they always fill back up with air whenever I leave them alone for a while.
January 10, 2015 11:13 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #11
@ThisIsBullshit: I compress it. Unless I'm playing it, testing it, or changing it, the deck is in a custom cedar box with <2.75" internal dimensions. You have to press all of the air out of the sleeves, too. Any air pockets will artificially increase the deck's height and make it harder to shuffle.
@Necrotize: Try storing the deck in its compressed state. If you have a sturdy deck box, compress the deck and sandwich it with some junk commons and uncommons, then leave it in the box for a while. The more often you store it this way, the less it will reinflate when left alone.
January 10, 2015 11:28 p.m.
Epochalyptik says... #12
And I can verify that keeping the deck that small is not a function of how many times you shuffle it. I'm talking about my BUG deck, which I routinely shuffle 1-2 times per turn cycle, every game.
January 10, 2015 11:29 p.m.
ThisIsBullshit says... #13
Did you buy the box somewhere or was it custom made for you?
January 10, 2015 11:30 p.m.
JakeHarlow says... #15
Did you use some online service for that, or was this a business local to you? I've been thinking about having a custom deck box made.
January 11, 2015 12:34 a.m.
Epochalyptik says... #16
I commissioned it from a woodworker who happened to have an account here. I don't remember who, though, or if he's still active.
January 11, 2015 12:37 a.m.
Epochalyptik says... #17
On the topic, though, I've seen some amazing mini-chests that can hold a couple decks, dice, and other stuff. I'm particularly fond of woodburned designs, as well.
I recommend going for one of the larger styles. Though I do much like the single-deck box I use, I think most people would find a multi-deck one more practical.
January 11, 2015 12:39 a.m.
asasinater13 says... #18
anyone know somewhere online to get deck boxes similar to what epoch is talking about, at least similarly sized?
January 11, 2015 12:41 a.m.
Epochalyptik says... #19
I'm sure Etsy has some. Other than that, there are probably woodworking members of the MTG community who would take commissions, or just woodworkers who would.
You might ask around MTGS. They have a larger and more diverse community.
January 11, 2015 1:09 a.m.
asasinater13 says... #20
do you have the dimensions you used to make it you would share?
January 11, 2015 11:47 a.m.
Epochalyptik says... #21
It's a two-piece box that holds the deck vertically. Internal dimensions are, in inches,
2.6875 x 2.6875 x 3.625
The wood itself is 0.125" thick.
There are grip holes on opposite sides of half the open edges with radius 0.5."
January 11, 2015 2:46 p.m.
miracleHat says... #22
Late to the party but I am with Epochalyptik here. I mesh shuffle the entire deck at once. I have dragonshield copper (same make as turquoise, just a better color ;) and I have no problems with shuffling it double sleeved (edh).
To get wooden deckboxes, check out: this video (specifcally aaron cain) or wyrmwood deckboxes
January 11, 2015 2:58 p.m.
JakeHarlow says... #23
My hands are unfortunately kinda small, so I run into a bit of trouble holding the whole deck. After sleeve compression, though, it can easily be done.
January 11, 2015 3:01 p.m.
That is a beautiful deck box Epochalyptik. I'll have to invest in a custom deckbox one of these days...
GlistenerAgent says... #2
I cut the thing in half, shuffle each 50 card half the way I would a 60 card deck (mash, riffle, whatever). I then cut both the halves and switch them around, and repeat until I'm satisfied.
January 10, 2015 10:13 p.m.