Last weekend whilst everyone else was glued to the Pro Tour stream, I was being the family man and taking my children to visit their Cousins for a mini family break. The last time I had seen my Nephews I had introduced them to the wonderful world of Magic the Gathering with the help of an old intro deck I had laying around. Suffice to say my eldest Nephew was hooked, and was hoping to have another go the next time I saw him. Not being one to disappoint, I package a copy of the Theros inspired Heroes vs Monsters Duel Deck in order for me to give him a more comprehensive game of Magic. After about six games over the course of the weekend I had accomplished two things. Firstly, I had been smashed five games to one and secondly, I had got my Nephew hooked on Magic. Even when he wasn’t playing the game with me he would be playing with his Legos, saying things like “I’ll attack you with my 3/3 minotaur” and “then he goes to the graveyard”. His love for the hobby was so big that my wife asked if I would get him some cards for Christmas.
Though it would be easy for me to head to the local LGS and buy a Planeswalker Deck for him, I decided against this course of action. This was because there were no local stores or hobby centres, so even if I picked up one of these decks for him there would be no-one/nowhere for him to play. So instead I decided to build him a Modern deck. The reason for this is twofold. Firstly, as an avid Modern player I would be able to play games with him any time I visit. Secondly, since Modern is a none rotation format, the deck will retain its value in the years to come. With this in mind, I began to work on a deck list for him. Soon I had created a deck that would be easy enough for him to pilot, but would still be competitive enough to allow him to win some games. Also, I had had a blast creating a deck that I knew someone else would get a ton of fun out of, and that would set them on a path of being a lifelong Magic player. This is what I came up with.
Creatures
4 Kessig Prowler
4 Dryad Militant
4 Garruk’s Companion
4 Kalonian Tusker
4 Strangleroot Geist
4 Leatherback Baloth
2 Surrak, the Hunt Caller
Spells
4 Aspect of Hydra
4 Giant Growth
4 Cartouche of Strength
Lands
20 Forest
2 Treetop Village
The deck is very close to the Mono Green Stompy tier 2 archetype that occasionally turns up in Modern, and came in just under $10 on TCGPlayer. I had deliberated left out the sideboard, as I wanted to allow my nephew to customise the deck himself over time and a sideboard is a good place to start. It had been lots of fun tweaking the deck, and I think my nephew will get a lot of enjoyment playing it. This got me thinking though, If I have had this much fun bringing a new player into the game, then coundn’t others do the same? That question inspired me to write this article, an article designed to challenge others out there to do what I had done. Recruit someone to our shared hobby. So today I challenge everyone in the Magic Community to be a MTG Recruiter.
The challenge is as follows:
1. Build a Competitive Magic deck for under $10.
It can be any format that you play in your local area. Standard, Modern, Pauper, even Commander. But it can’t cost you more than $10. You don’t have to buy everything, you may have most of the cards you need in your binders, but the value of the deck must remain under $10. It must also be competitive, no cheap and cheerful thrash, build something you would be happy to play yourself. It may be hard to come up with a brew for this budget, but that is half the fun, to challenge your deck building skills.
2. Introduce someone to Magic, and give them the deck.
It can be anyone. A family member whom has shown an interest in your hobby. Your partner or spouse who wants to spend some more time with you. Or even someone at your local LGS who has always wanted to give the game a go. Play some games and show them how much fun Magic can be. Then, give them the deck as a gift. Call it an early Christmas present, or just a bit of good will. Whatever you call it, it will be an investment in a new player that you will be setting on the journey to becoming a lifelong Magic gamer.
3. Issue the challenge to someone else.
Throw down the gauntlet to someone else. Your friends, your play group or even your favourite content creators. Challenge them to bring someone else into the Magic fold. See what they can create and who they can recruit. The plan is to bring as many people into the Magic family as we can, so challenge everyone. Share the decks you have made and the people you have recruited on social media under the #MTGRecruiterChallenge, and see what an impact we can make.
It might only be a pipe dream of mine, but the hope is that we as a community can come together and grow larger than we ever have before. And even if you can only grow your own local meta by one new player, that to me is worth the effort. Well that will do for today. If you have enjoyed today’s article and want to read more, why not like and subscribe to keep up to date on the latest articles from us here at Master of Magics. But until next time remember, Good Look and Have Fun.
