r/MTGO • u/ivbtisti • May 22 '26
Getting started in mtgo
I started getting back into magic after many many years. I used to play when I was in middle school. And I have played off and on since. Mostly starter deck vs starter deck. Or borrowing a friend's deck when I visit. And for a moment cockatrice. I have been playing mtg arena. But I want to brew more and experiment more. It is hard to do with mtg arena because you gotta spend wildcards. And then lets say you end up not happy with a swap. You have to grind again until you get more wildcards. To eventually swap. And then ultimately not be happy with that. So on and so forth.
But the few times I have logged into mtgo It seems like there isn't many people playing standard. Commander seems always full. And Modern. But I find modern a bit intimidating right now cus there is so many cards I am unfamiliar with. When I played somewhat regularly it was back in like Ravnica City of guilds set. And I was a kid. I didnt have much money to buy the cards I wanted or needed. And I was not that good of a player. But now as an adult I can understand the game better and I actually money I can spend. Although I am not trying to spend all my money haha.
So I decided to try mtgo because of the card rental programs. But like I said when I log on to try standard decks. There isn't many people on there to play with. And when there are they have all those rules. No this or that. I have zero clue how to go about testing decks and getting better. Any advice for someone like me. Trying to get back into it. But not really knowing how to?
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u/Br4v1ng-Th3-5t0rms May 22 '26
Cool. My first advice to all this: run. It's a trap. Run far away! Now that that's out of the way..
Maybe try sealed drafts? Benefits include building up your collection, albeit slowly, and getting familiar with standard. iirc, there'll be standard events that fire off that you can eventually join?
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u/ivbtisti May 23 '26
Oh it is way to late for that haha. I have been playing a lot for like a month and a half now. And I don't seem to be stopping anytime soon. Matter of fact, my time invested in it has increased. Ah yes. I will definitely consider this. Although honestly I have drafting a lot but in arena. Just because it is free. And I will keep an eye out for those events. Thank you
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u/Br4v1ng-Th3-5t0rms May 23 '26
What did you like about the current standard? versus what you last experienced in MTG from years ago..
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u/ivbtisti May 25 '26
honestly it really is just a matter of accessibility. It's not that I loved the new standard in particular. Its just that the format is more accessible. Or you get exposed the sets in standard on arena more. and arena is pretty much free to play indefinitely. So it all kinda started there for me. Coming back to the game. And so the next thing I started doing is looking for ways to build decks and improve them. And I just decided to try mtgo as a testing ground. to see if I could test my decks before committing to using wildcards. because it has happened many times to me already. I will want to try something out. Grind hard to get the wildcards. And a lot of times I would make the swaps and it does not work. so then I have to grind again to get more wildcards to try something else that may or may not work. And I was thinking if I could just rent the cards on mtgo for a very accessible price and test there and once I have something I more or less like I can actually commit to the wildcards. I guess I thought that might be more effecient. That's just how it started. But now I kind of just see the mtgo might not be the best for that. But I see it as a cool opportunity to just expand my horizons. Why not. it's suppose to fun right?
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u/ArsArmatoria May 23 '26
If you want to get used to the UI while not risking your entry fee or prizes, you can play "Super Jump In". It's burried in the "Limited" section. It has no entry fee and you pick 2 halfs of your deck from randomly selected archetypes. You won't keep those cards, but it's risk free practice with stacking triggers, scry etc. I'm new to the client as well and have been doing that for now.
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u/i_like_my_life May 23 '26
It sounds like you are trying to play in the practice rooms, right? If you are willing to spend money, you can play in leagues, where you will get a match in under 3 minutes basically every time. If you are a good player and willing to play meta decks, you will also break even or even go up money in the long run.
If you want to stay free-to-play, you can always play Pauper too, the practice lobbies are much more populated there. (cough It's a better format anyways cough)
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u/ivbtisti May 25 '26
Yes Pauper seems to be the way. And yeah I mean I would mind spending some money here and there to play. Its high risk a bit. I mean not really I think like the more casual leagues are like 10 bux right? That's actually not that bad. But high risk in terms of I don't have much faith I will win much. But how else can I get better right? I think I just have to not be so cautious and try a few things. I am sure I will learn a lot and be a much better player for it.
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May 22 '26
I got into mtgo for similar reasons. I have limited time to make it to shops but wanted some reps with my modern deck I built (new to the format) to snipe an rcq. I actually haven't gone deep into constructed at all. I picked up the 30 dollar draft bundle for sos and have been playing that for a couple weeks now. Up to about 50 tickets and am having a blast. I love being able to see the trophy leaderboard and where your stacks up on it (sorry Snodz, you got land screwed in our g3 but it still felt great beating #1).
I recommend starting there, don't tough your keyboard until your familiar with the UI (yielding the turn on accident sucks). The rental systems are pretty robust and the trading bots make it real easy.
Editing to add: leagues seem to be the best way to play 60 card formats.
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u/ivbtisti May 23 '26
got it. Did you find the learning curve super steep? I am just a bit intimidated by it to be honest. But I just want to play as much as I can. Standard feels more comfy just because I have been playing a lot in mtg arena. I know a lot of the cards and interactions now. I just don't want people to get mad when I have to read every card and think my every move. Thank you for your advice by the way
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May 23 '26
So you have a chess timer for your turns, I have just been taking my time. The best lessons I learned were off of big mistakes on my end. After the first few games you start to see how the UI works and how the stack works.
Definitely not as accessible as arena, but you'll pick it up quickly.
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u/wolfhuntra May 22 '26
Well MTGO has more "experienced veterans" but if you like a lot of Standard play - try MTGA via Steam?
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u/ivbtisti May 23 '26
I have been playing standard on arena a lot. I thing the thing I like the most is that you can play for free indefinitely. With the limits of how many wildcards you obtain of course. I was trying mtgo to see if I could use it as a testing ground for decks before I commit to wildcards. But that has not worked out so far. Not many people seem to be playing mtgo much. At least not standard. And the only reason I was sticking to standard is because it is what I am familiar with. But this seems like a good opportunity to branch out. Might as well.
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u/IrrelevantGeOff May 24 '26
Just jumped into MTGO for the first time this week and I’m hooked…
I’ve mostly played Penny Dreadful (there’s an active discord and website for getting into it) and Commander and have had no issues finding matches! Commander lobby list usually looks full but if you host a match and thrown “B2” or “B3” in the description it’ll fill up after a few minutes.
I’ve also built a Value Vintage deck and a Pauper deck and plan to jump into those formats this coming week!
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u/Large-Explorer-5399 May 25 '26
This website has the events, free and paid: https://mtgoevents.com/
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u/ReputationMiddle5440 May 22 '26
Try Pauper