20 Proxies in that case.

I believe that is Solemn Simulacrum http://sales.starcitygames.com/carddisplay.php?product=26118

Cliff notes: I vote for 15 proxies.

I just wanted to post a hypothetical situation for someone, say a 17 year old player that typically played Casual and T2 and was interested in getting into Type 1 (I'm not the example, I'm 20  :shock:). Bill doesn't have a job but his mom let's him borrow the car to go to Friday Night Magic and whatever and she gives him a small allowance too.

Bill wants to play Gifted GAT for whatever reason.

3 Tropical Island
4 Underground Sea
3 Island
3 Flooded Strand
1 Polluted Delta
1 Black Lotus
1 Mana Crypt
1 Sol Ring
1 Mox Jet
1 Mox Sapphire
1 Mox Emerald

3 Psychatog
4 Quirion Dryad

4 Force of Will
4 Mana Drain
4 Brainstorm
3 Duress
3 Sleight of Hand
2 Cunning Wish
2 Gifts Ungiven
1 Ancestral Recall
1 Time Walk
1 Yawgmoth's Will
1 Fact or Fiction
1 Vampiric Tutor
1 Demonic Tutor
1 Mystical Tutor
1 Merchant Scroll
1 Gush
1 Regrowth
1 Fastbond

Sideboard:

2 Energy Flux
2 Arcane Lab
2 Ground Seal
2 Waterfront Bouncer
1 Skeletal Scrying
1 Hurkyl's Recall
1 Rushing River
1 Snuff Out
1 Naturalize
1 Blue Elemental Blast
1 Berserk

And let's say he'll be playing that a T1 Tournament with a 10 Proxy limit...

So, he'll proxy the Black Lotus, Mox Jet, Mox Sapphire, Mox Emerald, Ancestrall Recall, Time Walk, and the 4 Mana Drains. That's 10 proxies. (Note: The total cost of these cards was $3670 using www.findmagiccards.com and the prices were typically for Good, Fine, or VF rated card conditions.)

Being a T2 player in the past, Bill has the 3 Flooded Strands, 1 Polluted Delta, 3 Psychatogs, 4 Quirion Dryads, 2 Cunning Wish, 2 Gifts Ungiven, Yawgmoth's Will, and Fact or Fiction.

That leaves him with $195 in Dual Lands alone. He's put back another $36 for the Mana Crypt and another $63 for the lone Berserk in the sideboard. I don't see the rationale in saying "You have to spend $thousands for a competitive deck" or even "You have to spend over $500 for a competitive deck" Bill would end up having to pay roughly $300 for the Dual Lands, Mana Crypt and Berserk.

That's a hell of a lot of money for someone that young to be spending.

I'm 20 years old and I have a steady job and I wouldn't spend that much at one time for the cards. 15 Proxies instead of 10 seems like the best number because not everyone has dual lands, or a Berserk, or a Mana Crypt, or whatever.

I'm not sure there was much of a point to this post up until this point, but I say 15 proxies.

The following quote is great, I think.



I agree that bad proxies are annoying.

But I do not agree with
I don't see how not being able to afford an expensive card as part of a hobby makes one pitiful. I think it would be pitiful if someone were not able to pay their rent because they spent all their paycheck on a Black Lotus.


Why? Why does Vintage have to be about money? WotC is not (directly) making money on the T1 singles being sold. Shouldn't it be about fun and competition and whatever else?