Story time - The quest for the Black Lotus

[RisingWater]

So recently I purchased a collection from someone I had never met, over the Internet. He was a member of a gun forum I frequent. When I recieved it, there was more in it than I originally expected. I got ahold of ELD here on TMD because he had mentioned a while back that he had power for trade/sale.

After a few emails back and forth, I boxed up all the extra things I had that I was not using in a deck and shipped them off Monday. I'll be getting my first Black Lotus, among some other things.

Words cannot express how excited I am. I started playing in 1998. Naturally new players learn of the mythical Black Lotus shortly after they start into Magic. 15 years later, I'm finally getting one.I never thought I would actually own any power.

November of 2011, my wife bought me an unlimited Ruby, Jet, and Sapphire for my birthday. I think that's where it all began. Having power is a disease that spreads. Once you get some, it always wants to turn into more. I'm not going to lie, I thought about how I was going to aquire more almost every day for a long time after I got those first pieces.

If all goes according to plan, my things should show up at ELD's tomorrow, and I should be getting my first Lotus some time next week. I'm probably going to be grinning like a little kid all week once I get it. My wife has been laughing at me since I've been talking about it entirely too much.


What about you guys? How long did it take you to aquire your first Lotus from when you started playing? What were you like once you got it? Lol

[John Cox]

I've had several loti, although I find myself looking for one now. Back in 1999 (around then) I bought an unlimited that had writing on it saying; "for mike!" from The Hairy Tarantula in Toronto. Moments later I went across the street to 401 convenience to look at Juzzam Djinns and John (the owner of 401) told me he had had that particular lotus in his shop 3 times.
It makes you wonder about the lives of these cards.
Congratulations!

[Nefarias]

I've had several loti, although I find myself looking for one now. Back in 1999 (around then) I bought an unlimited that had writing on it saying; "for mike!" from The Hairy Tarantula in Toronto. Moments later I went across the street to 401 convenience to look at Juzzam Djinns and John (the owner of 401) told me he had had that particular lotus in his shop 3 times.
It makes you wonder about the lives of these cards.
Congratulations!

I never owned it, so it's not my story to tell, but I will say that a Lotus with "For Mike!" written on it made it's way through southern New England about two years ago

[KIP_NZ]

Nice! How many bits left to go now?

In answer to your question, I played and quit a couple times 94->2002 and sold all my cards in 2004. I owned pretty much everything during that time except a Black Lotus. 1 year ago today my friend loaned me a standard zombies deck & I played at FNM the next night & realised I still loved playing the game. During the middle of the next week I wandered into a game store near work & they had a signed by Garfield lotus under the counter for an amount of money that I could afford so I bought it Fast forward a year from then & yesterday I ordered my Time Walk to complete my P9 set (I have the vault instead of twister).

[PeAcH]

First Lotus I had was one I won in a tournament back in 1994/95 (was the last piece of power I was missing). The joy I had when I got in after the tournament cannot be described. If you have felt it, you know it's too much for a player to have it in your hands winning it was one of the best achievements I have in my memory as a player.

Then when First PT came along and Type2 was born I sold all my vintage stuff and went on playing non Eternal Formats for many years.

However, I got back to Vintage 7 years ago and started building my power back on slow mode: Ancestral, Walk, Saphire, Pearl, Jet, Emmerald, Ruby in that order. Started with UW Fish and went up from there. Finally after some months of savings I got my Lotus from a friend who won it in a tournament. At last, my Power was complete again (and it only took me just a little more than 15 years)

Since then, every time I think about the story of my Lotus and the rest of P9 and the amount of time and effort it took me to get them back together into my collection (of which I´m very proud of) makes me love the moment in my life I am right now with the game.

Being the owner of your Lotus is a great feeling.

It´s pure Magic in a card

[BC]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BLACK-LOTUS-Unlimited-Power-Nine-Signed-by-Rush-Garfield-FREE-WORLDWIDE-SHIP-MTG-/330877312668?pt=Trading_Card_Games_US&hash=item4d09d31e9c

If anybody else wants to own the "To Mike!" Lotus.

[Samoht]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/BLACK-LOTUS-Unlimited-Power-Nine-Signed-by-Rush-Garfield-FREE-WORLDWIDE-SHIP-MTG-/330877312668?pt=Trading_Card_Games_US&hash=item4d09d31e9c

If anybody else wants to own the "To Mike!" Lotus.

It's a bit overpriced considering the savage creasing and personalized text.

[John Cox]

This is blowing my mind.

[tito del monte]

Really glad this thread got started, as I finally got my Lotus at GP London last month. It's a real beat up one, but I knew I was in the right frame of mind and right financial situation to finally get one - to me, it didn't matter what state it was in, as long as I could play it. I love knowing that someone played the crap out of it before back when Magic was something so radical and new that no-one had thoguht to sleeve up their cards yet; they weren't thinking about it as an investment nor of the future, just as a great game that they could play in a frenzy again and again and again, even as their cards started to get mashed up.

Considering I got my first piece of power over a decade ago, also at GP London - this time in 2001 - it was great to finally complete the set. I wasn't quite sure what I was going to feel when I handed over the money - I had though maybe I would whooping or shaking or screaming... I actually felt really zen. Like this was a journey that had a taken a long time, that deserved to be concluded and that filled me with peace at its completion. It was just a very quiet inner victory. And I'm so glad I could finally achieve it.

[Prospero]

First Lotus - traded away everything I had from my Standard collection (Gaea's Cradles, Morphlings, Treacheries, Lin-Sivvi's, etc.) to Mark's Comics for an Unlimited Lotus in beautiful shape.  I was upset that it was $300, as it had been $125 a year prior.

First BB Lotus - traded away five beat Unlimited Moxen to TrollandToad for it.  Was shown a Fraternal Exaltation, Splendid Genesis and blue Hurricane that day.  Specifically remember staring out the train window on the ride into Manhattan.  Spent a few moments staring at the NYC skyline, admiring it.  The date was 9/9/01.

[shrewarmies]

I never owned it, so it's not my story to tell, but I will say that a Lotus with "For Mike!" written on it made it's way through southern New England about two years ago

Im pretty sure the matching Ruby or the lotus itself is on ebay at the moment. I am trawling around trying to finish my power and saw one last night

[Samoht]

I never owned it, so it's not my story to tell, but I will say that a Lotus with "For Mike!" written on it made it's way through southern New England about two years ago

Im pretty sure the matching Ruby or the lotus itself is on ebay at the moment. I am trawling around trying to finish my power and saw one last night

BC already linked it in this thread. Props for not reading before posting.

[Klep]

My story is pretty boring. I didn't try to get a Lotus until I got my Ph.D.  Then I drove up to StarCity and bought one.

[marcb]

It was my freshman year of college at Caltech in 2000. I was feeling like I was working too hard and wanted to reward myself. I got a Black Lotus on eBay for $100 because it was signed so no one else wanted it.

Marc

[TheWhiteDragon]

When I got my first real job, I hunted on ebay and with my first paycheck bought the lotus + 5 mox.  Next paycheck, I bought a playset of all the duals and the big blue three.   Third paycheck, I put a down payment on a new car and had piecemealed a massive collection since then.  I know the value of the cards never goes down - only stays level or increases, so I had no problem dropping $2000 on the mox/lotus 6 (2001).  Same for the duals/blue 3.  When it comes to vintage cards, almost every penny in is a positive return.  If you want P9, just go on ebay and buy it!:)

[Royal Ass.]

I bought my first lotus probably around 2003.  I bought it from a local card shop and paid $325.  It had a small crease in the top corner.  A year or so later I traded that lotus plus $50 to a friend for a signed one in played condition - but looks nice in a sleeve.  I still have that Lotus.  The Lotus with the crease was sold on ebay by my friend to someone in Spain for around $550. 

I had wanted a BB lotus however.
A couple years ago I bought a Moderately played Beta Lotus from SCG.  They sent me scans of a couple MP ones and one was in very nice condition, could possibly be SP.  So that's the one I bought.  I thought at the time that SCG's prices on BB lotuses was a little below market even compared to what I was seeing on ebay.  A couple months after buying my lotus they hiked the prices up on them quite a bit.  Now a MP lotus is twice what I paid.

So now I have a signed Unl lotus and a Beta Lotus.  I'd like to get an Alpha one someday...

[0/2 Drop]

I started playing for real at Zendikar, i played mercadian when i was young but i was poor so i can't afford cards, Moxen was at 125$ and was like a dream of child at that period.
I directly follow the vintage scene and see videos, i saw that moxen and the BLACK LOTUS, i will make me happy and own this a day.

In 2012, we spoke about that with my wife, we just got a child a year ago so the money started to be ok (nothing very expensive to buy in emergency), and i decide to buy pieces of history month by month, 300$ each.
5 moxen, ancestral recall, time walk, time vault, and finally for the 3 last month of the year : Black lotus.

A unlimited, played, at 600$.

Sometimes I look at it and think about what that cards means, sometimes i just smash it and put it in graveyard like a lotus petal ! Haha

The problem is : when you have a full unlimited P9, assuming time vault is the new 9th piece. You want to upgrade it into black board

[KIP_NZ]

The problem is : when you have a full unlimited P9, assuming time vault is the new 9th piece. You want to upgrade it into black board

I totally hear you! I've not yet received my UL Time Walk in the mail yet and I already catch myself checking the prices of BB power online....

[kwis]

Owned a very pretty beta Lotus back in 2001, I got as a gift from my parents.

Sold it 1.5 years later, when I quit magic (for the first time...).

Second lotus I got was in 2009, and I still have that one, even though it's just a fake (UL lotus...)

So stupid to sell BB P9. :/

[phil]

Second lotus I got was in 2009, and I still have that one, even though it's just a fake (UL lotus...)

Hey, an unlimited Lotus still plays just as well as a BB Lotus.

Anyway, I had my first chance at winning one in maybe 1997. My regular shop had a type 1.5 (You would call it Legacy now, but the banned list had a different structure) tournament where a UL Lotus was the top prize. I made a couple of errors on my last game and came in third.

I just acquired my beta this month, hoping to throw something together to take to Chicago later this month or maybe in May.