Enter the Store




Welcome to the Magic the Gathering Classroom at TCGplayer.com. This comprehensive guide is your path to becoming a better player, and ensuring that you have the skills to succeed! We here at TCGplayer.com have put together the best articles from the best players and authors, and have ordered them into a step by step lesson plan that will teach you every facet of Magic playskill. The authors of these articles have over 50 Pro Tour top 8 finishes, so you know that you are learning from the most experienced players to ever shuffle cards.

These articles are ordered in such a way that each one builds upon the last, so we suggest that you take your time and digest each step before moving on. Also, much like in sports where the most important thing is solid fundaments, we suggest that you come back and read these articles from time to time to keep your skills sharp and focused.

So step in, sharpen your pencil, and get ready for your first lesson. Class is in session!


Lesson 1 - Basic Theory
  • The Learning Curve: Magic Foundations
         by Zvi Mowshowitz

  • Magical Myths That Are Bad for You
         by Manuel Bevand

  • Getting Better – The Art of Mulliganing
         by Victor van den Broek

  • To Mulligan or Not to Mulligan?
         by Kai Budde

  • What Are You Not Doing?
         by Chad Ellis

  • Practice your Magic
         by Manuel Bevand

  • The Decision Matrix
         by Manuel Bevand

  • Enter the Matrix!
         by Manuel Bevand

  • Playing the Stack
         by Chad Ellis

  • What to Learn From Other People's Mistakes
         by Zvi Mowshowitz

  • Turning a Loss into a Win
         by Manuel Bevand

  • 10 Ways to Win Bad Matchups
         by Manuel Bevand

  • Stepping Up: There is No Luck
         by Eric Franz

  • Stepping Up: It's All In Your Head
         by Eric Franz

  • Managing Tournaments
         by Chad Ellis

  • Managing Tournaments II: Math and Draws
         by Chad Ellis

  • Reading Your Opponent
         by Scott Johns

  • The Fundamentals of an Effective Team
         by Justin Gary

  • How to Win With Your Deck
         by Nate Heiss

  • Skill-Intensive Magic
         by Manuel Bevand

  • Ten Reasons Not to Concede
         by Manuel Bevand



  • Lesson 2 - Deckbuilding
  • Deck Construction and Evaluating Testing
  • From Net Deck to Best Deck
  • The Opening Hand of Deck Construction
  • Developing the Plan
  • Taking it to Extremes
  • The Sixtieth Card
  • Sideboarding as Art
  • Deckbuilding - In Defined Formats


  • Lesson 3 - Playtesting
  • Playtesting for Results - Introduction
  • Playtesting for Results: The Alpha Stage
  • Playtesting for Results: Test Decks
  • Playtesting for Results: Play Decks and Refining
  • Playtesting for Results: Sideboards
  • Forming a Playtesting Team
  • Taking Aim at the Metagame
  • The Traps of Testing
  • Methods of Playtesting
  • Playtesting on a Pro Level


  • Lesson 4 - Metagaming
  • The Myth of Rocks, Paper, Scissors
  • Getting Better III: The Metagame
  • Playing the Percentages
  • Deck Selection and Multi-Day Events


  • Lesson 5 - Sealed Strategies
  • Getting Better VI - Limited Skills, Sealed Deck
  • Getting Better VII - Sealed Deck, The Solution
  • Creating Combo Decks
  • Winning at a Prerelease
  • Lesson 6 - Draft Strategies
  • Getting Better VIII - Limited Skills: Drafting
  • Drafting for a Specific Record
  • Drafting for a Specific Record - Conclusion
  • Maximizing your Draft
  • Making a Killing
  • Angry Little Men
  • Fat Guys and Dead Guys
  • Drafting Competitively


  • Lesson 7 - Improving Your Play
  • Weak Among the Strong: A New Beginning
  • Change Your Mindset
  • Magic of the Mind
  • The Information War
  • The Information War: Behavioral Clues
  • Imperfect Information and The Perfect Play
  • Retrograde Analysis and Virtual Information
  • Lies, Damned Lies and Magic Players' Excuses
  • Play Skills and Attitude
  • Getting better - The First Step
  • I Came to Play (Second)
  • Information Puzzles
  • Ruthless Honesty
  • Recognizing Bluff Situations
  • Preparing for the Tour
  • A Competitor's Mind
  • Bluff Masta!
  • Getting Over the Hill
  • Like a Pro!
  • Pro Tour Tournament Tips
  • The Sport of Magic


  • Lesson 8 - Card Advantage
  • Advantage: The Grand Unified Theory
  • Advantage - VCA and Tempo
  • The Rule of Reflection Applied
  • Advantage Theory - Land Effect Analysis
  • Advantage Theory - Putting it all Together


  • Lesson 9 - Tempo
  • Revisiting Tempo
  • Tempo Revisited *Conclusion*


  • Lesson 10 - Advanced Game Theory
  • Classic and Romantic Game Theory
  • Game Theory - The Marketplace
  • THE END of Virtual Card Advantage
  • Who’s The Beatdown II: Multitasking
  • Magic Theory: The Uno Principle
  • The Scarce Resource
  • The Principles of Magic: Opportunity and Evaluation
  • Identifying Your Game Plan







  • Tarmogoyf - as low as $96.00
    Dark Confidant - as low as $53.01
    Vendilion Clique - as low as $37.00
    Sword of Fire and Ice - as low as $24.94
    Sword of Light and Sh. - as low as $21.74
    Elspeth, Knight Errant - as low as $20.00
    Cryptic Command - as low as $18.90
    Kiki-Jiki, Mirror Breaker - as low as $17.69
    Doubling Season - as low as $14.00
    Arcbound Ravager - as low as $13.27

    [View All Return to Ravnica]
    [View All Return to Ravnica Sealed]

    LATEST COMMUNITY DECKS


     Home

     Cards
     Return to Ravnica
     Magic 2013
     Avacyn Restored
     Dark Ascension
     Innistrad
     New Phyrexia
     Mirrodin Besieged
     Scars of Mirrodin
     Card Search
     Standard Hot 100
     Decks
     Standard
     Extended
     Legacy
     Vintage
     Deck Search

     Articles
     Standard
     Extended
     Legacy
     Limited
     News Archive
     Article Search
     Forums
     Deck Discussion
     Fantasy Card Creation
     Casual Decks
     Rules Q&A
     News and Issues
     Forum Log in
     Forum Log Out

     Draft
     Team Members
     Store
    RSS Feed
    Facebook
    Twitter

    All original content herein is Copyright 2000-2013 Ascension Gaming Network, Inc.
    TCGplayer and MaxPoint are trademarks of Ascension Gaming Network, Inc.
    No portion of this web site may be used in any way without expressed written consent. All rights reserved.
    Magic the Gathering and it's respective properties are copyright Wizards of the Coast.
    Privacy Policy