Are you a generalist or specialist?

[dicemanx]

In a recent thread, Smmenen mentioned that few players venture outside of their favorite archetypes, preferring to tinker with or metagame with their pet decks rather than experimenting with radically different archetypes. What I'm curious about is whether this is true, or if some of the more recognized players have played a gamut of archetypes at the more serious events over the years? To start things off, here's what I have played in the past two years:

WGD
WGD-CA hybrid
4CC
4CC-Oath hybrid
HyperMUD
Stax
Shop Aggro (Transmute Artifact version)
Shop-Titan-Slaver
Eureka.dec (yes, thats correct - made semis)
Fish
Landstill
DDD (Shockwave's Shop Drain deck...thats right)
Goth Slaver
Gifts

And back in the day, I was a rabid GAT player and dabbled a little with TnT as well.


I have played just about everything . The only decks i haven't really touched are any of the fast combo decks, such as Long, Belcher, or the slower TPS.

So, what have you played over the years?

[Machinus]

I think it's okay to have an archetype preference, especially if it's a deck you have contributed innovation to in a significant way. Even the best players prefer to play one style of deck over another, and this ultimately causes them to perform better with those decks. However, it is really important to have experience with all strategies, since obviously you need to understand how to beat other decks. You may even discover something you like better.

[Bardo]

I started playing during Revised/Fallen Empires and my first favorite deck was mono-Blue aggro-control. Efreets, Djinns, Counterspells, Power Sink, Braingeyser, Control Magic, Boomerang. It was terrible, but everyone else had terrible decks, so it wasn't that bad. By the time I was in college, I'd added some power, Drains, Library, Psionic Blasts, etc. and was probably the most feared MtG player on campus.

Then I quit playing Magic for like 6 or 7 years.

But all of the decks I've put my effort in to since I started playing again (Mirrodin) -- Tog, Threshold, Fish, 3c Dumptruck, Accelerated WW/u (aka Neo-Fish), U/R CounterBurn, GaT, and Zoo -- are all archetypal variations on my favorite original MtG deck. Because those decks give me what I enjoy most out this game: drawing cards, countering shit, and winning in the combat phase. So after twelve years, I'm still playing my original favorite deck, just a better version of it.

I'd describe myself as a generalist of the aggro-control brand -- which I suppose makes me a specialist. Similarly I find playing combo dirty and I absolutely loathe losing to it -- which may account for my passion for aggro-control. The closest I have ever and will ever come to playing combo is mono-Red burn.

[Juggernaut GO]

After playing workshops forever I picked up meandeck gifts like 3 weeks ago, top 8 at one 5 round tournament and went 5-0 at star city on saturday before losing my next 2 rounds.  I have said for a long time that a deck like gifts can play itself and overpower your opponent.  Simply because of its power level and ability to tinker-collossus/sundering titan early with double force backup.  I think I proved my point, to myself at least.

[Scoops666]

I'm by far and away a control deck specialist. In the past 2 years I played Tog, 3cc, Mono Blue, Gifts, and Slaver. Not to mention I always play some form of control in whatever other formats I might play (Though admittadly the only other format I play regularly is limited)

Now this isn't to say that I'm necessarily amazing w/ them, just that I consistently play them.  :lol:

[Matt]

Anything with creatures that aren't Goblin Welder.

[jpmeyer]

Suicide Black
Keeper
RDW
Stacker
Multicolor WW decks (W/U/R and W/U/B)
Tog
GAT
Madness
Oshawa Stompy
Slaver
Gifts

(that "Tog" in the middle always seems to drown out the fact that I've actually historically preferred aggro-control decks)

[Moxlotus]

Fish
Shop aggro
Belcher
Oath
IT

I'm pretty comfortable with decks that don't run Mana Drain or Smokestack.

[Dante]

Waaay back in the day:
Rack/4 Balance deck
4 Vise Zoo
"The Deck"
Necro

Post Vise and necro restriction up til 2001-ish:
4 Color Zoo (labeled by Rudy Edwards as "some fruitiness", which happened to go further in the Inquest tournament than his Keeper)
Keeper - Mirror Universe, morphling, and Titania's Song versions

Gencon 2002
Keeper

late 2002 - mid 2003
TnT (2 and 3 color)

mid 2003 - november 2003
Welder MUD
Hulk

December 2003 - end of 2004
3c Dragon (ubg)
4cc - only for some of the smaller gencon 2004 tournaments, mostly Dragon

SCG Chicagos
Welder MUD
Control Slaver
SSB Gifts
5c Dragon

Fun decks I enjoy - Dragon and Aggro (i.e. draw 7) Madness

[vartemis]

I am a generalist.  There is no point in listing all the decks I play because I basically play them all.  I have about 15 decks that I play at any time.  Many are just different versions, like GWS and Meandeck Oath, but I try to give every deck a spin at least a few times.  I am in the middle of playtesting the new meandredge deck to get an understanding of how it works.

I have found by playing other decks, I get a good idea of each decks strengths and weaknesses.   If I am planning on playing Deck A at an upcoming tournament, I can play as Deck A against decks B and C to determine how to beat them.  Then I turn around and play Deck B against deck A to find out what other people will be doing to try and beat me.  It also stops me from getting bored by playing the "same game" all the time.

j

Edit: grammer fix.. stupid homonyms.

[forests failed you]

Keeper
GroAtog
Psychatog
Long.Dec
5 C Stax
TPS
Trinistax
Gifts
Flame Gifts
UBA Stax
Tendrils
CS
BS
TNT
DRAGON
UG Fish
Chalice Oath
Vintage Avant Garde Combo
Kobald Clamp
Affinity combo

You name it and I've pretty much played it in a tourney somewhere over the years.

[God_Campbell]

the past 2 years or so?
Keeper,Tog and Control slaver, I really enjoy using my set of Drains

[MoxMonkey]

Past 2 years in tournament play.

Control Slaver
Burning Slavery
5 Color Stax - Local tournament
Gifts with TFK x4
Gifts with Merchant Scrolls x4
Keeper
3CC
TPS
Grim Long
Hulk Smash
U/W Fish

Anything with Mana drains or Dark rituals and I'm fine running it.  I'm more of a specialist since in Good sized tournaments I've only run Control Slaver since its the deck I'm most comfortable with.

[Smmenen]

oh god, don't get me started....

[MoxMonkey]

Smmenen -  Heres your Question.

What haven't you played?  I'm guessing Mono Green Beatz.   

[Disburden]

Lets see here:


Gifts- Both MEandecks and Brassman's lists. Depending on the mood I'm in.

5c Stax

Uba Stax

Madness (way back when)

Tog

Dragon

Long

Control Slaver

5/3

Doomsday

But mostly I switch between Drain combo (Gifts, slaver) and Chang style Stax. Those would be my top picks since forever. I remember playing Stax back when Winter Orb was in the deck.. 

[The Atog Lord]

Long-->GAT-->Slaver.
I'm pretty much the definiition of a specialist.

[Klep]

I'm very much a generalist.  In the past couple years I've played Long, 4CC, Tog, Belcher, Stax, CS, and Gifts, while occasionally dabbling in things like Fish and TPS for purposes of testing.  I've always considered the best way to learn to do anything is to learn the process before looking at specifics.  In other words, learn to be a good player before trying to learn the specifics of any one deck.  As a result I can pick up pretty much any deck and start off with a reasonable level of proficiency, and can swiftly overcome what ever learning curve it may have.

Now if only I got to play more.

[Komatteru]

Is there a point to all this besides listing out all the decks we've dicked around with in the past forever?

[Moxlotus]

Is there a point to all this besides listing out all the decks we've dicked around with in the past forever?

Stop ruining our fun, jerk

Its kind of interesting to see how many people are specialists and generalists.

[Law]

How about this I am an evolving MTG player. This is how it has gone since I started into type 1:

W/G Enchantress -> Affinity -> Tempo based decks (R/G, R/W, ect...) -> Budget oath

Thats how its been for the last two years. Right though I am still working on getting the oath together but it is almost in a working form.

Though its nice that each time I change decks it has been a step up. When I played affinity I came in 2nd twice at my local tournament. With the tempo based decks (R/G so far) I won one so far. But I hope once I get the oath together I will win alot more (given that I have such a odd type 1 meta).

But I dont think of myself as a generalist or a specialist at this point. I am more of a learning player then anything. Though its fun watching how each of the decks I have played where a step then the last one. Plus it also helps that a few of the cards I picked up at one stage help in the next.

[Clown of Tresserhorn]

I'm more of a specialist, although I've played quite a few decks.

sligh -> TnT -> TraditionalStax -> Tog -> Long -> Slaver -> uba/5c Stax -> Gifts

I did play dragon, belcher, fish, oath, and other odd decks, but not extensively like I did with the ones listed.

[Scott_Limoges]

This is a timeline of my magic career by time period and deck:


2000     2001        2002    2004     2005        2005            Current

Sligh -> Mono U -> TNT -> GAT -> U-Oath -> U/B Belcher -> CO Dragon

[cophos]

Mainly Deathlong and Belcher.
I'm familiar with stax and some drain decks too. (Paradoxically I prefer the more controlish concepts here. (CS, but no gifts, etc.)) I never quite had the heart to bring a non-combo deck to a serious tournament though.
So I'm pretty much a 100% specialist. (I play other decks to get a feeling for 'em though, regarding testing.)

[Evenpence]

I haven't played a ton of Vintage.  When I did play Vintage, I tried making my own decks to beat the format by usually porting other format decks to Vintage, like CounterPost or other such variants.  Ever since Workshop's unrestriction, I've been toying around with Workshop decks, although pretty casually.  I've gotten into Vintage Magic alot over the past two years, the first year reading TMD and SCG a good bit and the last one posting on it a good bit and actually beginning to attend major venues (this past SCG Richmond was my first).

That being said, the established archetypes that I've played have all been Workshop Variants, although I've played them all. 7/10, Workshop Aggro (didn't like ShopAggro that much), Trinistax, 5c Stax (didn't like this much either), Ubastax, UbaCap, and finally I'm on The Jester, whatever it's evolving into.  I also dabbled around in URb Landstill, Keeper, although I can't stand being reactive in a game.

[Outlaw]

I'm a gifts player.... So I guess that makes me a specialist?