I have a question to all of the readers out there. We know many of the pros as personalities, at least online. Zvi as a mad scientist-type; Bob Maher Jr., the nice guy of the tour; Brian Kibler as the fun-boy; Mike Long, the bad-boy of Magic; Darwin, the hardest worker on the tour; and Finkel, the Legend, the Machine, the Charlemagne of Magic, with perhaps Adrian Sullivan as Merlin. My question: Why don't we have a legends of casual play? Anthony Alongi, the Aggressor, the Diabolic Ferrett (doesn't that just have a classy right to it?) weaseling his way around everyone else, and dozens of others (so many, in fact, that I did not want to start naming names and leaving everyone else out). I want you look at the amount of material that just these two men have put forth in the name of multiplayer games over the past couple of years - it's astronomical. While this is just a side note, I'd personally love to see a Wizards-sponsored tourney oriented around a "multiplayer greats" chaos game. Can you imagine the reports that would come out of that? It would make the Invitational Reports seem, well, boring. Anyway, just a thought. (Have you read Anthony's "Challenge In The City" column? It's happening, and I haven't had time to design a deck yet -- The Ferrett)

This does lead into the first major point of multiplayer magic, though; what is your style of play? I recently lost my group, and the reasons for it are varied, but one of the most important is that we all had different goals to get from the game. We looked at the game differently, and as a result the games would be fun for some people - but often times not for everyone. While I'm not wholly to blame for the demise of my group, I certainly was a major contributor.

You see, for me the game is about competition, winning, trying your best, and intensity. This is how I have fun with the game, it provides a stimulating challenge, a small thrill when I win (or even make a neat play), and I like playing fast games, and getting as many in as I can. I'm always looking forward to the next match, or in the case of my group, the next deck I was going to play. Much like Zvi, I can be a mad deckbuilder. I always have at least ten to twelve decks ready to play, and usually another fifteen or so in my head or on paper that I've not had the time to get around to. While they may not be on the same level as Zvi's stuff, they are not all that bad. Unfortunately, most everybody else in my group falls under the classification of casual players. They each have a favorite color or two, and a one or two decks that they always bring with them. They never change it or tweak it, and it sits on a shelf collecting dust until the next time we play. When I would talk about articles online, or Finkel winning a tourney, or a new combo deck that is ripping up the scene, I might get a disinterested nod, often times less. Much like the unfortunate fact that I smoke, Magic is an addiction for me. I fill up my free time coming up with new decks, fiddling with existing ones, reading (or writing) about Magic, etc. Some of you out there will understand what I'm talking about; many will sympathize with my other group members, because I think I put them through hell.

The Ferrett called me "perhaps the finest multiplayer deckbuilder" that he knows. I'm sure he's called me some other names that are a lot less flattering, particularly after having to edit these monstrosities I call articles. I'm not about to let that go to my head, I mean I'm sure it's not true, but... It should give you an impression as to why I drove my group nuts. I really love deck building. I mean I LOVE it. I spend more time tinkering with decks and concepts than I do playing them. I've played serious tourney magic for almost seven years, and when I switched over to multiplayer, I scoured the net for everything that has ever been written on it. I have a pretty deep card pool, and a lot of patience, so I went to work on dominating in multiplayer. I built decks to beat the mythical, casual Pro Tour-quality opponents in my head, rather than realizing that I would be playing against friends.

I came up with combo decks that could kill everyone on the table on turn 3. I tried to vary them, so that they could not be beaten the same way. One deck features the Saproling Burst/Pandemonium/Replenish combo, but it threw in Furnace of Rath to allow the deck to off everybody. Another deck I created included Iron Maidens, Tinker, and Prosperity to create ludicrous damage across the board. Then I whipped up a Buried Alive/Tombstone Stairwell/Goblin Bombardment combo deck that could defend easily for a few turns, and then wipe everyone out. I looked for decks and cards that got stronger the more players there were. I exploited Limited Resources, Survival of the Fittest, Oath of Druids/Multani, Ivory Mask, Congregate, Plague Winds, and anything else I could think of. Guess what? I won with them, too. Not every game mind you, but enough. When I won, I won at the expense of everyone else.

"Creature combat? That's for wussies. Take 20 to the head for suggesting such a thing!"

Eventually I came around a bit. I started creating decks based on creatures. My B/G Elves of Deep Shadow, Deranged Hermit, and Plague Lord deck arrived too late to stem the tide. I'd unleashed a monster on the group. Most players had switched to either counter-heavy decks, like Undermine-Go, the All-Flyer All-Stars, and "Mister Spend-One-More"... Or to completely creatureless burn decks, oriented around either black for Drain Life or red and Mana Flares: Ugly, ugly, ugly, and absolutely no fun. Tempers grew short, and small petty rivalries from previous games - or even previous weeks - kept flaring up, time and again. Oh yeah, and each game took three to four HOURS to finish, since everyone had no permanents on the board except land. Eventually, we called it quits and went our separate ways.

Now a few of the players are thinking about trying it again; three others and myself. We are the ones with thicker skin and a bit faster play, so this time I'm going to try hard not to screw it up. This is something I want to share with all of the truly competitive people in this game. (Which is probably most everybody who avidly reads articles online.) If your friends are truly casual players, meaning they rarely, if ever, change around their decks, you'll need to dampen your competitive spirit... Or at least redirect it. I would suggest going about this by either building flaws into your deck and playing around them, or simply playing decks that are more goofy than good. Let me give you an example.

Everett is one of the players in our group. He is probably the single most intelligent person among us. (Beyond the fact that he's an engineer.) He understands combat tricks better than anyone. Timing, the stack, etc., I can never trick him into helping me, but I can always trust him to take down the most dangerous player first. He shows no mercy in this. However, he also never changes his decks. He simply does not have time, between his son, work, and new fianc?e, to tinker with new decks. His decks are very cute, but also pretty raw. A sliver deck that uses Harrows because his dual are in another deck, a strange dragon deck that when it works is devastating, but more often than not fizzles, etc.

Geoff is another player who is borderline pro caliber, except that he just does not care. He periodically gets bored with the game and moves on, so keeping him interested is difficult.

Chris is more of an old-school player who is just now getting back into the game after many years away from it. This requires a fair amount of time to bring him up to speed on the newer sets (of which there are a lot).

Now look at me, your magical author, who probably spends three hours or more a day online surfing the net, nicotine (I mean Magic) coursing through my bloodstream... I needed to seriously tone down my competitiveness. If you happen to have the same passion for the game, you may be having that same effect on the busier members of your group. So in that spirit, let me give you some ways to curb our collective killer instincts.

• The first trick is to not play four copies of anything. This will drastically reduce your chances of drawing consistently, and create a random element into your decks; it will also allow you to play far more cards than you normally would.
  
  
• You can limit yourself to all commons or uncommons/commons. This creates a real element of challenge when designing your decks, and should keep the power levels a bit more reasonable
  
  
• You can try to build an alternate win condition into your deck (Such as Celestial Convergence), and force yourself to beat everyone with that or making a blue deck and deciding that you must kill your opponents with their own creatures. (Using Briberies and Treacheries)
  
  
• Or decide on a theme and try to build a deck entirely around it. (Favorite artist, Legends, Dragons, Musicals?)
  
  

Dumbing down your deck may be somewhat insulting to the other players within your group. If your group is talented, it can also cost you a lot of games. That is not really my goal at all, what I want is a fair matchup where everyone has an equal chance of winning. Now if you're lucky enough to have a whole group of people where everyone is really dedicated to the game (as it sounds like the Ferrett's group is; I have no idea on Anthony's) then go for the throat, no questions, no quarter. Eventually, if your players get interested enough, every group should get to that level - but particularly when you're just getting started, your goal is to keep everyone happy and entertained. Let me give you an example of a fun deck I've put together. It does not precisely follow any of the above rules, but it does follow the spirit of them. It should be competitive, but at the same time not overwhelming.

4x Elves of Deep Shadow
4x Land Grant
4x Wall of Roots
3x Stampeding Wildebeests
3x Natural Order
3x Eradicate
2x Deranged Hermit
2x Crop Rotation
2x Gaea's Blessing
2x Phyrexian Plaguelord
2x Verdant Force
2x Splinter
2x Tranquility
2x Vampiric Tutor
1x Demonic Tutor
1x Lord of the Pit
1x Avatar of Woe
1x Plague Winds
8x Forests
4x Swamps
4x Bayou
1x Gaea's Cradle

Now, now, don't start yelling at me. I never said the decks had to be cheap. In quite the opposite fashion, this is oriented around a player with a deep card pool and a desire to play lots of fun cards. The Elves replace the far more efficient Birds of Paradise, as I really like the artwork. Natural Order can get some fatties, but not all of the deck is oriented around it. I have a bunch of alternate paths to victory. Bouncing Hermits/Wildebeests, Decking your opponents by bouncing the Feeders and recycling with Blessings, using the "Rock" to clear out the opposing board, summoning up a fat one and letting him toke away on my enemies, I can even drop a Lord of the Pit, whose is an old favorite of mine, and let him lay the smack down on all their candy asses! I played Blessings instead of Recurring Nightmare, as it's less efficient and allows me to have an alternate win condition. The Eradicate and Splinter deal with problems, and Tranquility can make everyone my friend. (Of course I can also make everyone my enemy with a Plague Wind, but that's another story.)

While I like the versatility of this deck, I made sure it also has some weaknesses. I can easily be beaten into the ground by large flying black creatures, it's got little instant speed defense against Replenish and the like, and is really designed to just have fun, pounding away on the ground. I really enjoy this deck and spent some time gathering up all of the pieces. The thing I do like about it is that it's solid in nearly any type of format we pick.

• Blood in the Water (everyone attacks the player with the lowest life total, every turn) - I can gain some life with the Feeders, and if needs be, poke away with the Elves early to get everyone going after a control player.
  
  
• Pack Hunt (Randomly must kill one or two other players on the board, but no one else) - Well, I have very little mass removal, and a Natural Ordered turn 3 Verdant Force can go to work pretty fast. Eradicate and Splinter can also cripple single-minded strategies.
  
  
• Area Effect (Mentioned Anthony Alongi recently, basically a stack of cards that get flipped during a certain players turn, the card flipped effects everyone until the next change over) - Since almost anything can happen in this type of game, I can kind of play around it, my deck is not single-minded enough that any one effect will truly cripple it.
  
  
• Full Chaos (umm... Chaos!) - This may prove to be a problem, as Verdant Force tends to draw a whole lot of negative attention from every other player on the board. However, the Wildebeests can be huge here, as I can keep bouncing Feeders or Hermits and hopefully not draw quite the same level of attention.
  

Still the fun of this deck is in the playing of it. It's not over powered, but it does have some nice mini-combos (Such as Wildebeests/Hermit, or Hermit/Plaguelord or Natural Order/Verdant Force) without pulling out stupidly overpowered creatures such as Multani. Now maybe it's just my group, I know Anthony rated Verdant Force as the #1 Green spell, with Multani as #2 - but I think with the advent of Plague Spitter, you've got to reverse that. No single creature gives me as many headaches as that little piss-ant.

A side note on that topic: Here's my top ten list of creatures that will draw the most unwanted attention to you in a chaos game.

• #10 - Beast of Burden (6, Artifact Creature he has Power/Toughness equal to the number of creatures in play) This little guy is very dependent on what's on the board. If someone at your table is playing Deranged Hermits or Rith, he gets exponentially better. On the other hand, there are times that he only comes out as a 1/1.
  
  
• #9 - Rith, the Awakener (RGW3, Dragon Legend, 6/6 Flyer, when he bashes a player, spend G2 to put a # tokens into play = to the # of permanents of any chosen color) Yes he smashed face in PT: Chicago, but his special ability is truly crazy in multiplayer. For the first hit, he'll give you a number of 1/1s equal to the total number of permanents of any given board leader.
  
  
• #8 - Peacekeeper (W2, 1/1 So long as Peacekeeper is in play, creatures cannot attack. Upkeep of W1) This little bugger is almost certainly going to die - but then again, others will try to keep her alive. A fun card that will garner a huge amount of attention.
  
  
• #7 - Verdant Force (GGG5, 7/7 During EACH player's upkeep, put a 1/1 token into play, under your control) Ahh, the legendary, "Best Fattie Ever PrintedTM." Because the Verdant One simply poops out tokens every turn, he piles up an army pretty quickly. He will draw out a lot of hatred, but see #2 for why he's not quite as good as he once was.
  
  
• #6 - Priest of Titania (G1, 1/1 Tap for a G for every elf you control) maybe this is just within my group, but Priests just always seem to need to die, or Overruns always seem to follow. (They live juuuuuust fine in mine -- The Ferrett)
  
  
• #5 - Masticore (4, 4/4 Artifact Creature, during your upkeep discard a card to the core, 2 - Deals 1 damage to any creature, 2- Regenerate) The beating stick is back. Our group always bellows out this guy when he hits the table. He's very frightening. Watch out for incoming hatred when you play him
  
  
• #4 - Avatar of Woe (BB6, 6/5, Avatar can cost -6 to cast if 10 creatures are in all graveyards, tap to destroy target creature, Fear) Yeesh, this thing is just a ridiculous board control element. Decidedly unfair, it makes even the Masticore curl up and die. An extreme finisher, expect a lot of bolts flying your way, as no one's creatures are safe until this thing is dead.
  
  
• #3 - Lhurgoyf (GG2, Has Power/Toughness equal to the total # of creatures in all graveyards) This guy is old school, and technically is nowhere near the threat that the 'Core or Avatar are, but... "Hans! It's the Lhurgoyf!" There is an irrational bias about allowing this big guy to live.
  
  
• #2 - Plague Spitter (B2, 2/2 During upkeep it deals 1 damage to all creatures and players, if it goes to the graveyard, it deals another one point.) This may be the single most annoying creature in the game, it deals with all of the above mentioned cards, and is frighteningly difficult to get rid of while keeping all of your little dorks alive. In my opinion, the Spitter is the primary candidate to be sent out to the fields with plowshare in hand.
  
  
• #1 - Multani, Maro-Sorcerer (GG4, Power and toughness equal to the total # of cards in ALL players hands, untargetable) - This guy technically may be weaker than Force or Rith overall, but the sense of mortality it brings to all of the players on the board when a 56/56 untargetable hits the table is usually enough for everyone to decide to just flat-out try to kill you before you kill them. His drawback, of course, is that he gets decidedly smaller with each player you kill. Seriously though, even if he's only a 5/5 untargetable for the final three to four turns, let me ask you something; how bad is Blastoderm? Players fear this guy like duelists fear Morphling. (Who is also a Very Bad creature to bring out in chaos games, but most people have the sense not to run him without tremendous backup -- The Ferrett) If you're running him, you'd better have some defense on the home front to give him time to do his job, because you're likely to have everyone on the table gunning for you as soon as he hits.
  
  
• Honorable Mention has to go to Squee. He almost never actually sees combat action, but nevertheless, everyone seems to really enjoy trying to kill him.
  
  

End side note on big creatures; let's try something different.

How can you judge how other players will react in a game? How can you keep your group interested? Knowing how the people at your table play the game can not only help you to win, but might allow you to suggest cards or formats to them that will allow them to expand their reach and grow within the game. If you are an avid net junkie, you should consider it your responsibility to bring new ideas to the table. To this end, you should also try to understand that there are many different types of players out there.

For example, Anthony has talked about his strategy as being an aggressor in multiplayer, and of course the Ferrett has written several books on the subject of weaseling... But there are many other methods of play. Lets take a look at the different personality types likely to show up around a table.

• * The Aggressor - This is a personality type that wants to keep the game moving along and is less interested in winning than in killing, the best defense is a good offense, etc. They will probably pick a target early and, like a pit bull, sink in their teeth and shake that player off the table. Then go looking for the next tasty morsel. If you have an aggressor or two at your table, you'll need to do more than bluff a good defense; you'll have to have one.
  
  Aggressors are good players to have around the table. They keep games moving, and they tend to take defeats happily, chuckling and swearing vengeance on the fool that ousted them, up to a point. They win, they lose, and they have fun.
  
  Favorite Card - Furnace of Rath
  
  
• The Weasel - Ahh, this is typically a player who has confused Magic with Poker. Their hand is kept close to the vest, and they lean back, not making eye contact with the active player if at all possible. (At the same time, possibly observing the cards of their neighbors since they just happen to be leaning back already, it makes sense to save time and energy, after all.) Weasels tend to be very good at giving arguments for why a spell or creature should be directed at someone else. On the other hand, they have to walk a fine line, as the person they are directing things to may retaliate on the Weasel. In general, Weasels add a new dimension to the game, and tend to be the funniest people at the table. They also really annoy the Lawyers.
  
  Favorite Card - Propaganda, (I'd say Misdirection, but that would cause them to create a direct enemy in the person they direct it too. Props allow them to argue anyone out of attacking them.)
  
  
• The Nut Case - My personal favorite personality to see at the table. Their goal is not to win, or lose, but to screw everyone else up. They will make random attacks against the most fortified players, run spells that are totally out of flavor for the deck, and seem to really enjoy massive suicide by Earthquake. While usually not quite the deckbuilders that the Mad Scientist may be, they will usually have some sort of offbeat combo contained within a much larger deck. Weasels beware, Nut Cases tend to have an instinctive nose for weaseling tactics and will proceed to smash face through adversity. (Not in MY experience, but then again I'm not quite your stereotypical Weasel, either -- The Ferrett)
  
  Favorite Card - Either Aluren or Pandemonium. (Usually both at the same time)
  
  
• The Thinker - Ah, the great debater, master of counterspells and permission. This is the typical personality type of most tournament-level players. They pay attention to everything going on around them and take the time to really calculate the impact of all of their spells and effects, as well as everyone else's. They do this or lose at a tourney; as a result, this bleeds into casual play as well. While not necessarily mis-intentioned, Thinkers can cause massive slowdowns in chaos games. If you have a Thinker at your table, you can do one of three things: First, put up with it, but this can cause everyone else to lose their game time and generally make the game less fun for the other players. Second, you can ask them to speed up, or just relax, or to play decks without any instants. Third, you can simply boot them from your group. Mind you, I'm not advocating forgoing thought, but try to plan ahead so that your attack can go forward quickly when your turn comes.
  
  Favorite Card - Mana Drain or Absorb
  
  
• The Chameleon - The player of many colors. Chameleons are another pro type. They can, and typically will, play anything and everything under the sun. From mono-colored beatdown strategies to complex combos, the Chameleon will try them all on for size. Chameleons will probably bring more decks to a chaos night than they will have games to play them in. Their play style will vary as well, based upon the type of deck they are using. If you are trying to predict how a Chameleon will react, figure how their deck works. Chameleons will add a lot of variety to your playgroup and keep everyone on their toes.
  
  Favorite Card - Probably Mox Diamond or Cursed Scroll, as they can work into most decks
  
  
• The Mad Scientist - Many groups will have their Mad Scientist. He or she is a combo genius, or perhaps an idiot savant. They are fundamentally incapable of playing any strategy that does not "do-something". Here is where you'll find Aluren/Man-o-War/Intruder Alarm/Priest of Titania decks or Enduring Renewal/Triple Helm of Awakening/Bottle Gnome infinite life decks. It's unlikely that the Mad Scientist's combo will actually kill anyone, but it will allow him or her to play cards for quite a while, and generally keep everyone else at the table entertained. Mad Scientists are the epitome of the "Rogue Deck Builders". Their motto should be, "Never Build a Combo with Three Parts When It Can be Cooler With Ten!"
  
  Favorite Card - Who knows? Perhaps Ashnod's Altar or Helm of Awakening
  
  
• The Assassin - The most feared player on the table is usually the cold-blooded assassin. They serve a very necessary role, which is to keep the game moving along, and they will do it by ruthlessly eliminating the weakest player. Assassins are usually very patient, building their forces (or direct damage) to a point when they can safely eliminate someone. Assassins tend to excel in pack-hunt and chaos games, but due to their patient and seemingly non-aggressive style of play, often times they are mistaken for Weasels. Many Aggressors and Weasels, if they lose enough games by letting someone else stay alive, will morph into Assassins. Their deck types seem to be a solid mix of early defense (since they fear other assassins themselves, and will often times assume everyone else is after them) and a blisteringly fast offense. They tend to play lots of hasted creatures or high burn counts to drop an unsuspecting player. Paranoia is the watchword of the Assassin. He will be expecting you to do him in at the first opportunity, since he's certainly going to do it to you.
  
  Favorite Card - Volcanic Geyser
  
  
• The Helper - The exact opposite of the Assassin, the Helper wants a nice, friendly game that will go on and on for hours. Helpers tend to play lots of spells oriented around damage prevention, life gain or countering. They will probably also pack lots of spot removal. Helpers are terrific to have around if you're losing... But if you are an Assassin type, you'll need to knock this one down first. They will disrupt opposing combos if they can, but will often times allow for massive buildups of forces, just so long as that player(s) does not attack. Helpers will almost never manage to win games, but they usually are the second or third placer.
  
  Favorite Card - Congregate or Honorable Passage
  
  
• The Lost - Most tables also have a lost player or two. Lost players are just that, they may be new to the game, or not very good at it, or simply disinterested, but they will always seem a little confused. They forget to put counters on during upkeeps, they forget to record life loss, they have to be told when it's their turn, and so on. This is typically a transitional phase, and if so, you'll need to spend some time helping this new/awkward player to grow into something a bit stronger. These players can really frustrate a group of experienced gamers, but should always be treated with a fair amount of respect. Unless, of course, they are simply disinterested. If that is the case, try shaking up the formats to get their interest back in the game. If they keep spacing out, watching TV or just drifting, wake them up. If all of this fails, boot them; there is no sense in being a damn fool about it.
  
  Favorite Card - Weatherseed Treefolk - "It's log, it's log - it's big, it's wonderful, it's wood, it's log, it's log - it's better than bad, it's good, everyone loves Log." (For all you Ren and Stimpy fans) A virtually unkillable beating stick is a good card for a distracted player.
  
  
• The Lawyer - The last and most annoying player type on the list is the Lawyer. Lawyers study, and bring with them, the complete D'Angelo listing. They will use stack rules with people who have not played since Ice Age, they will almost certainly use the latest "net deck," and will insist on shuffling everyone's deck. Lawyers tend not to get booted from groups, as they usually will leave of their own druthers after being walloped by four to five other players simultaneously. Nobody likes Lawyers all that much to start with in a tourney, but in a casual setting it has absolutely no place. That said, if you have a Lawyer in your group, he or she is probably be very competent. Keep up your defenses and wait, eventually the Lawyer will shoot themselves in the foot and that's your opportunity to get everyone to gang up on them.
  
  Favorite Card - Fact or Fiction
  

Now all of these different personalities can come into conflict with one-another on occasion, and so you'll need to play the mediator. If you're forced into this role, either because you're hosting the game, or have more experience than anyone else, or are simply a take-charge sort, then you'll need to proceed fairly. Remember that Magic is a game, first and foremost; heated tempers are fine once in a while, just so long as the anger is directly related to the game play itself and not because of hidden agendas between the players. Try not to single out any one player too much, even if he or she is a member of the Lost. If you've been forced into the role of mediator, it should not be too large a switch to become a mentor as well. If you're dealing with a player who is displaying Lawyer-ish or Thinker-ish tendencies, and you feel that is disrupting the game for everyone else, gently take them aside and explain that multiplayer Magic is a game completely unlike tourney magic. So different, in fact, that it should be considered a completely separate game.

In the nature of that, think about how nonsensical some of the restrictions are in Type 1, compared to the balance of power in multiplayer. Necropotence and Demonic Consultation, heck even Mind Twist, are really not over powered in Chaos. On the other hand, Congregate, Multani, and Furnace of Rath are just nuts, while barely ever seeing action in duels. House rules should be enacted in any serious group. Develop your own banned and restricted lists, based upon your own experiences with the other players. Do NOT ban cards simply because one player has been kicking your teeth in for a couple of weeks. The only reason for restricting cards is if everyone in your group starts running four copies of the spell.

My group, and I suspect most groups, are probably running with most players having a card pool that goes back to 3rd-4th edition, but no later. Maybe someone in your group has the "Power Nine (Ten)", but for the most part, I would guess that the restricted cards are more like Balance and Zuran Orb, than Ancestral Recall and Black Lotuses. This, along with the fact that multiplayer is such a different animal from duels, should bring about a few changes to the normal restricted lists. The following is a list of cards that probably do not need to be restricted in your casual playgroup.

• Black Vice
  
• Crop Rotation
  
• Demonic Consultation
  
• Dream Halls
  
• Enlightened Tutor
  
• Fork
  
• Frantic Search
  
• Grim Monolith
  
• Hurkyll's Recall
  
• Lotus Petal
  
• Mana Vault
  
• Mana Crypt
  
• Mind Twist
  
• Mystical Tutor
  
• Necropotence
  
• Strip Mine (?)
  
• Tinker
  
• Vampiric Tutor
  
• Voltaic Key
  
• Windfall (?)
• Yawgmoth's Bargain
  
• Yawgmoth's Will
  
  

Strip Mine and Windfall (and the even more borderline Time Spiral and Wheel of Fortune) should be debated in your group. Any effect that is powerful but that only targets a single player, such as the Vice or Mind Twist, is debatable... But it's probably not necessary to ban them. (It isn't -- The Ferrett) Most of the basic searcher restrictions were oriented around keeping Type 1 Combo and Jar in check. While Jar is still a problem in multiplayer, Combo itself is a lot less so. Again though, this is up to your group.

Possibilities for restrictions that are not on the DCI list are:

• Furnace of Rath
  
• Replenish
  
• Multani, Maro-Sorcerer
  
• Plague Spitter
  
• Thrashing Wumpus
  
• Earthquake
  
• Color Hosers, such as Chill, Perish, and Dread of Night
  
• Congregate
  
• Moat (No fun at all)
  
• The Abyss
  
• Wrath of God
  
• Armageddon
  
• Limited Resources
  
• Avatar of Woe
  
• Wash Out
  
• Nevinyrral's Disk
  
• Powder Keg
  
• And probably many others
  
  

Again, this comes down to your group and how you wish to play the game. Some people may laugh at this list and think that it's lacking some really killer cards, while others may say that I'm crazy for suggesting such things, but these cards are really far more powerful than any of the previous spells listed. I'd much rather have Iron Maiden restricted in my group than Black Vice, for example.

Anyway, that is a loose primer for establishing some trends and rules for those of you out there looking to set up and/or manage a group for multiplayer games. There are no hard-and-fast rules for casual magic play. Each house will have its own official rules and unofficial taboos. If your about to start with a group that has existed for sometime, be sure to ask the players who are inviting you in to give you a run down on what cards are and are not allowed, as well as which are merely frowned upon. For example, from what I have heard, Anthony's group seems to view life gaining as taboo, but not so powerful that it's outright banned. Sheldon Menery, of the Ferrett's group (And of his own fine column -- The Ferrett), came up with a banned/restricted list where Balance was completely kicked from the format, and since the slippery one is known for playing a deck based around Celestial Convergence, I get the feeling that life gain is not such bad juju in Alaska. It will vary depending on your group. My old group seemed to frown mostly on countermagic and had an irrational fear of tokens. However, we have not banned anything outright as yet.

I'm no necessarily advocating that everyone adopt this new banned/restricted policy. I doubt that even within my group I would suggest it. However, if things are getting out of hand, the above cards may be your culprits. The other reason why I like un-restricting things like Mind Twist is that if you have a certain player who has been combo-killing your group with alarming regularity, the Twist could be a quick way to put him or her back into their place. The same is true of the single target Black Vice or Strip Mine. Cards such as Necropotence or Yawgmoth's Bargain are unlikely to be much help, either, as they make you an auto-target for each other player on the table. Even if you draw seven cards a turn, that barely puts you on an even keel with everyone else at the table, and you'll still have to deal with their creatures putting additional pressure on your life total. Drawing that much attention to yourself is almost always a detriment to your health.

So that wraps up my primer on casual play, but I still have not answered my question about the legends of casual play. Where are they? Well, if we had an Invitational to determine a card, perhaps these would be the results...

Anthony Alongi - BR5
Summon Legendary Aggressor
Haste
When AA comes into play, bury target player with the lowest life total
Flavor Text - "Next time, build your defenses better!"
6/6

The Ferrett - GG2
Summon Legendary Weaselly One
The Ferrett cannot be the target of spells or effects
If a spell or effect targets the controller of the Ferrett, you may redirect it to another player of your choosing
Flavor Text - "Are you sure? Sheldon has that big creature over there..."
1/3

Friggin' Rizzo - RRRR
Summon a Friggin Legend
Tap Friggin' Rizzo to dope-slap any player; use this ability only if that player is whining
You may untap Friggin Rizzo at any point if you can come up with a cool quote
Flavor Text - <-------- "Take it like a man and quit your yapping"
5/4

Daniel Crane - WUBRG
Summon Master Lore Weaver
No abilities, but the flavor text is in two-point font and reads like War and Peace
7/7
(Sorry about your stories getting yanked, Daniel. I liked them a lot)

Jon Chabot - UUW2
Summon Legendary Combo Wizard
When Jon Chabot comes into play draw 7 cards then choose and discard seven cards, untap up to 5 lands
If you cannot win the game by the end of turn, you lose the game.
Flavor Text - "This better work or I'm a dead man."
0/1

And just so that the pros don't feel left out, if I were to see them competing in a chaos game, they might play something like this...

John Finkel - UU2
Summon World Champion
John Finkel cannot be the target of spells or effects (well, he can, but they just don't work for some reason)
You may always draw just the right card when you need it
Flying
2/2

Mike Long - BU3
Summon Legendary Bad-Ass
When Mike Long comes into play, you may draw a card; if no one is looking, draw another.
Tap Mike Long to look at opponent's hand and draw a card
You may untap Mike Long as long as no one is watching
3/1
(Since I've never met Mike, I'll apologize now for this gross stereotyping - but every cause needs a rebel, and in Magic's case, Mike's it.)

Bob Maher Jr. - UG1
Summon - Pro Tour Player of the Year
When Bob hits the table, everybody shakes hands, what the heck, everyone can go through their libraries and place a creature card directly into play
Flavor Text - "Let's have a good game"
1/4

Adrian Sullivan - WBG1
Summon Rogue Deck Wizard
You may play Adrian Sullivan as an instant
Tap Adrian Sullivan to go get a random crap rare out of your binder and bring it into play directly. This card now functions as if it had thirteen different errata on it, making it playable.
Flavor Text - "Trust me, Simian Grunts are where it's at!"
3/4

That's it for this week. Next week, well... Next week is in the future, you'll just have to wait till then to find out, but it will be pretty good, promise.

Take care,
Jon Chabot