Strategy desk Hot Magic

The strategy desk / by decision

Find the question the game is asking.

Do not start with a card. Start with the decision: what does this hand owe you, who benefits from time, and which resource are you willing to spend?

Practice before the match

The Hot Seat deals you a game state.

Choose a line, get the reasoning, then follow the related essay when you want the longer version.

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Fundamentals

Name the resource before you spend it.

2 essays

Mulligans, play/draw, sequencing, and the first question to ask before the game gets away from you.

  1. 01 Play / draw On the play is a resource, not a personality The first turn and the extra card change what your hand owes you.
  2. 02 Mulligan Keep seven unless the hand cannot do its job The London mulligan is cheap. That does not mean you should shop for a perfect draw.

Limited

Make the curve reach the powerful cards.

1 essay

Mana efficiency and deck structure for games where the cards in your pool are not all asking the same thing.

  1. 01 Curve Take the two-drop that spends the mana Bombs win games you reach. Curve is how you reach them.

Constructed

Know the role before the matchup decides it.

2 essays

Roles, clocks, and sideboard plans for matchups where the same card changes jobs.

  1. 01 Roles Name the beatdown before turn three Mike Flores wrote it in 1999. Most losses still come from playing the wrong role.
  2. 02 Sideboarding A sideboard is a matchup plan Fifteen cards is not a junk drawer. Write what you cut before you write what you add.

Commander

Read the winning line, not the loudest player.

1 essay

Threat assessment and resource management when the table gives every decision an audience.

  1. 01 Threat assessment Threat assessment is the Commander skill The player who is winning should take the removal. The player who is talking should not.