R/G Faerie.Beatz....is it viable????

[jekyll]

First off, I've been reading these forums for a while, and I realize that topics like this have popped up. Just bear with me, though. Please?

Buying power. There. I said it. 
 
Everyone knows the drill...college, relative newcomer with few cards that mean anything, limited financially, etc. My local shop recently closed (RIP), and now the nearest place I've found to play is about 1.5 hours away, which isn't that much, I realize, but gas money seems to make the wallet a little lighter these days. My current meta consists mainly Darksteel Reactor combo, 5C aggro (Lay of the Land is tech), and BerserkMurlodont.dec, which has left my Wild Mongrel more or less unable to procreate (...)

I've been goldfishing decks like MeanDeath and Draw7 for a while now, and I love how they work, but I just don't think I'll ever be able to get out of the proverbial basement, as Magic is not exactly an essential ingredient in my life right now.

My question to you is a)for those of you that have shared my situation and gone through with buying/acquiring power, what made you choose that route? What made you make the decision to purchase? Did you just grit your teeth and go for it? Did you tool it out over X years? and b) for those of you in my situation that chose NOT to acquire power by some other means than winning it, what made you decide to stay away? What was the logic you used? What arguments went on in your respective heads? Or were you so staunch in your belief that you didn't have this crisis of conscience?

Note that I'm not looking to be convinced one way or the other, nor am I looking for a simple "buy it, it's worth it" answer. To be honest, your answers won't sway me much, just the same as they shouldn't have had that much say in anyone else who asked this kind of question, but that's not to say that it isn't important. Because you've been where I'm at now, I value your opinion and welcome any advice.

Why did you choose the path you did?

[EnialisLiadon]

To quote myself, "I want power, but aside from tournament entry fees, I don't want to pay for it."  I play decks on a budget, but when a tournament comes around, I make the best deck I possibly can with the cards avaliable and the proxies allowed.  Most of the formats staples aren't even that expensive, but will be a GREAT boon to the decks you play.  Things such as Demonic Tutor, Mystical Tutor, Tinker, Yawgmoth's Will, etc.

[Revvik]

Back in the good ol' days of the five proxy, I bought my Drains first.  I have yet to spend more than $90 on an English signed Mana Drain.  It also kept me from buying power, but it was easier to keep my Proxy count down.
Eventually (1.5 years?), I bought a Time Walk from the shop I frequent.  $300 over time (not all shops do this, but both of the ones near me do have payment plans on items such as these).  Then I purchased an Ancestral off a friend who had upgraded his to Beta.

It hurts to cough up the money, but you can always hold out for better deals / spread out payments.  In my case, I have purchased a Walk, Ancestral, 4 Bazaar of Baghdads ($500 - rock!), a Mox Ruby, and a Mox Pearl all via payments spread out over a little time.  It's difficult to find deals like this, but you shouldn't be in a huge hurry.  Rushing things will cause you to spend more money than you want to, which leads to regret - which ultimately leads to losing interest. 

EDIT: And no, I honestly don't think R/G Faerie Beatz is a viable option 

[TimeWizzle]

I just waited until i got my first real job after college and was able to buy a piece of power about every three months or so, without breaking the bank. 
An important bit of advice though - never buy a brand new car.  mistake    .  buy used, the extra disposible income is WAY more important than the new car smell.  and like I said, an extra $100 a month can go a long way to buying the big cards. 
Another route to take is establish rules regarding proxies among your playgroup.  If everyone you play with casually agrees to playing 5,10,X proxies then you should be fine for a while playing whatever the hell you want.   

And yes, in a darksteel reactor/murlodont field, R/G beatz should do just fine. 

[Godder]

New cars may cost more than used cars, but they cost less to run and less to maintain, so it's not all one-way traffic. Also, new cars are generally better for the environment (as long as you factor that into your selection criteria).

[jcb193]

New cars may cost more than used cars, but they cost less to run and less to maintain, so it's not all one-way traffic. Also, new cars are generally better for the environment (as long as you factor that into your selection criteria).

Get the best of both worlds and buy a demo car, or a slightly new car.  It will not have the "brand new" premium price attached to it, but with less than 10,000 miles it will run just the same.