That TCG Blogger

Since the beginning of time, there have been two classes of gamers: the glory seeker and the thrill seeker. The glory seeker is the person who travels great distances just to be able to compete with the greatest players in the community. They know every card by heart, know how their deck will run against any other, and be prepared for anything. The game to them is just something to conquer. On the other hand, the thrill seeker plays the games in order to have fun. They don’t care what combo they pull off or how fast the game is played. Games to them are just that, games.

Everyone who has ever played a game on their kitchen table fits into either one (usually both) of these classes. Both groups play the game to experience something, what they choose to get from it is the only thing that differs. That small difference however, is what drives the community into such disputes during the battles they simulate. I have come into contact with this clash oh too many times before. Back in my early days of playing Magic: the Gathering, I went to my local shops FNM tourney and came across the famous glory seeker player. The game didn’t last too long; I had won by scorching him with burn spells. It seemed my victory was short lived though, the player had exclaimed to me that I made a rules mistake at that time (after he took a long look into my discard pile). Being a young lad at the time, I was shocked by being attacked in such a way as to cheat my way to a victory; however to my luck the tournament director was standing by and had pointed out that his complaint was useless at the end of the game. This isn’t an unusual occurrence, we always hear about that one person who kills the fun out of Apples to Apples or lives his life worshiping Monopoly. In the end though, there has to be away for all of us to live together under one twenty-sided die.

How can the glory seekers work to enjoy the game more when playing with their friends? Do they even want to? If you are indeed a glory gamer, think to yourself: do you want to be able to have fun with both the casual players and the tournament opponents? If so, then you’ve already conquered the first step of realizing the problem and wanting to fix it. To start off, you must first understand that you shouldn’t lose your tournament senses; you still want to be successful in a Pro Tour after all. What you would want to focus on is to put it plain and simple, just being friendly towards the game. You need to focus your mind in order to be willingly to give up on watching the field, especially during a casual FNM tournament. If you see that you are facing a new player, let them win a game (not too obviously of course ) or two to boost their confidence and inspire them to work harder in their deck building. Start a conversation with your opponent mid-game, possibly having nothing to do with the game itself, this will automatically take your mind off of the possibilities that flow through your head during any other game. Just taking these few steps will allow you (and the people around) to enjoy your casual games more.

What some may not realize though, is that this lecture goes both ways. The thrill seeker is always known for their lack of knowledge in the game, they seem to be just there to socialize and nothing else. The thrill player could definitely work on studying up a bit more on the game they play, just so they feel more comfortable facing their opponent and possibly even win a few rounds (note: this doesn’t effect every “thrill seeker” player). This kind of player also wants to be able to tell when the opponent doesn’t feel like talking, even when the player tries to be social mid-game at some point they will need time to strategize, during which they wouldn’t want to be disturbed. Aside from those two key things, as long as both players here follow the basic manners of a TCG, everyone can enjoy the game.

Next time you’re rolling your dice or shuffling your deck, think about what kind of players you spend time with. By knowing who they are and what they look for in the game, it is that much easier to get along with them during your games. But just remember to make sure that you and your opponent are battling to your fullest.

-That TCG Blogger-

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