Obtaining cards.

[Thehunter820]

Ok, so i'm trying to get some cards to finish my burn deck and start working on my next creation, however I dont have a steady income, so I randomly get money, so my best bet is to buy from sites on the internet, as no one in my relatively close area has anything that they are willing to sell, even if I offer to pay extra, so, I was wondering what sites you guys use to buy cards from.

The one's I've used in the past have been...

www.toadandtroll.com
and
www.blackborder.com

I've tried ebay but im not rly fond of their system, so does anyone else have any good sites they can tell me so I can look into getting cards from them. The 2 I use work well, but occasionally they are out of stock, and sometimes I like to compare prices, so if anyone has any help it'd be greatly appreciated.

[yawg07]

What cards do you need? I might have em :D

[Bovinious]

I use starcitygames.com, for chase rares they are a bit expensive but for commons/uncommons its usually pretty fair, and you can usually get everything you need in one visit.

[Nihil Credo]

I just had to buy a bunch of Dragon Stompy pieces, so I used FindMagicCards.com to pick the cheapest sellers (which I then Googled to check for horrendous reputation first). I got every possible red card for the deck plus 4 Crypts for 40 euros total plus shipping (two shops), which I suppose is a pretty good deal - assuming they arrive, of course, but if they don't it's more likely to be the postal service's fault than the shops'.

For expensive cards, where price differences can be larger than the extra shipping costs (from buying from multiple sources), I'd just scour EBay and/or CardShark.

[Getsickanddie]

http://forums.magictraders.com/Ultimate.cgi?action=intro&BypassCookie=true

[yawg07]

rofl I love the abbreviation ...assCookie=true

[Wallace]

I use starcitygames.com, for chase rares they are a bit expensive but for commons/uncommons its usually pretty fair, and you can usually get everything you need in one visit.

I also use star city, the only problem I have is there shipping costs. If you are going to buy from them, make sure you have a large order. Be sure to use the UPS shipping option because if you use the cheaper ones the don't insure them. The first two times I bought from SCG I used the USPS shipping. It took 3-6 weeks for my stuff to arrive, UPS only takes 3-6 days...

[Jaynel]

Just as a side note - be on the lookout for people who are leaving the game and selling their collections. My brother was able to acquire lots of staples (duals, fetches, Forces) this way for pretty cheap and in one bundle.

[Thehunter820]

alright thanks, i'll look these over, and I would look for people in my area leaving the format, but there's all of 3 people that have decent cards, and they're all on my team so they'd share anyways.

[TrialByFire]

I usually only buy random uncommons and cheap rares online, but when I do, I usually use Blackborder (AdventuresON) because of their $0.60 shipping cost. Also, most of their stuff is very reasonable and dare I say "cheap."

[Bovinious]

I also use star city, the only problem I have is there shipping costs. If you are going to buy from them, make sure you have a large order. Be sure to use the UPS shipping option because if you use the cheaper ones the don't insure them. The first two times I bought from SCG I used the USPS shipping. It took 3-6 weeks for my stuff to arrive, UPS only takes 3-6 days...

Yeah, shipping is a bitch. I made a few purchases of commons/uncommons my team needed right before GP Philly and the shipping cost me just as much as the cards. I usually always get the cheapest shipping when buying relatively cheap stuff, and since I live in NoVA it usually only takes 2-3 business days to get here from Roanoke :wink:

[Arsenal]

I use primarily trollandtoad.com, cheap shipping if it's 30 cards or under. Fast shipping and tracking too. The only thing that kills me is the price of commons. MINIMUM $.49 each? That's pretty steep.

[Bardo]

For regular stuff (less than $5) I go between Blackborder (BB) and StarCity (SCG), comparing prices and such; though I've ordered some sleeves from Troll&Toad before.

SCG will usually get you for $2.50 for shipping; whereas BB is $0.60, so I try to buy from BB when my order is under $10, though I'd rather give my money to SCG. Otherwise prices are generally good at either store and SCG is competitive with anything that isn't "chase."

Singles over $10 I bid on eBay; though it's not worth my time for anything less. Sometimes I get impatient with eBay and will just buy the singles from a store I know if I'm not saving more than +20%. For instance, after a couple of failed bids to get a Breeding Pool, I just bought one at BB for $12. For some people I realize it's hobby to eBay, but it's a pain to me and I don't mind paying a premium to know I'm not going to get screwed and not having to haggle. I also like being able to count on my cards being here 3 days after I push the "place order" button.

[Tacosnape]

I make local players' freaky so called 'Girlfriends' give me cards in exchange for showing them what they're missing.

Alternately, Ebay is supposedly useful.

[freakish777]

I make local players' freaky so called 'Girlfriends' give me cards in exchange for showing them what they're missing.

Sounds risky. If they catch you, they'll have to shoot you for messing with their woman and their sister.

www.magicarsenal.com occassionally has decent prices. I tend to try and use MOTL because it's easier to get 20 or so cards all from one person then it is on eBay.

[Jak]

I have been hating Starcity recently. They never have any cards in stock. I like to use them (Starcitygames.com), CCGHouse.com (always have stuff in stock and used to be the cheapest, but has kind of gone up. Ships fast also), and Coolstuffinc.com (carry a lot of supplies and have a lot of stuff always in stock). I go to a lot of different sites to see who is cheapest and if they have all the stuff I need. I have also ordered from Bigfireball.com, blackandbluemagic.com, and other abu.com sites (they bought a lot out or something I think).

[umbowta]

rofl I love the abbreviation ...assCookie=trueSeconded.

It's concise, immature, and very understandable. assCookie has a very high namecalling value.

On the topic of where I get cards, I really enjoy the eBay bid thrill but when I want something quick and cheap I go to Cardshark.com. Shipping costs are high but I am usually able to offset that with competitive pricing as well as being able to get extra trade fodder on the same order.

[Obfuscate Freely]

I haven't ordered cards in a while, but I usually use www.abugames.com for inexpensive singles. Their prices are reasonable, and sometimes they even list played or foreign versions (which they sell for less) when you look up a card.

The shipping is also reasonable, at about $2.00 an order (depending on your location). Alas, they used to charge a flat $1.00 shipping fee, but I guess they can't afford it, anymore.

The big reason I've stuck with ABU is that they almost always have obscure older cards in stock, and because they have always been extremely prompt and reliable about processing my orders. Seriously, I've probably placed close to 50 orders with them, and they have all arrived within a week, with the cheapest shipping option (USPS).

I've also ordered cards from http://www.smedlock.com a handful of times, without complaints. They offer free shipping on orders over $20 (used to be on orders over $10, lol), but don't always have older cards in stock. I used to cross-shop between Smedlock and ABUGames, and usually could save a dollar or two by placing an order from each.

[calosso]

www.Coolstuffinc.com has never let me down.

[mercenarybdu]

I use various dealerships to make the smart decision when purchesing cards....


www.bigfireball.com (they do give me the option of sending cash through the mail to pay for cards and items)
www.starcitygames.com
www.eudemonia.net
Cards and Comics Central in SF
cutting deals with people
going from booth to booth at conventions for the cards I need to see who has the better deal before making a move to buy

that is all I have for now until then.

[Eldariel]

The three sites I find worth using:

www.ebay.com
www.findmagiccards.com
www.magictraders.com


Ebay is the cheapest, FindMagicCards has a good list of a number of cheap vendors for minimizing the expenses on any given purchase and MagicTraders is a good peer-to-peer purchase/trading site where a good negotiator can get great deals.

[clavio]

www.Coolstuffinc.com has never let me down.

Yeah, I like this one.

[Pulp_Fiction]

www.cardkingdom.com
They have a lot of stuff at really decent (especially in bad condition) prices. However you will find your best deals on eBay.

[iceage4life]

Ebay can be amazing or so-so. Hard to find niche cards (full-art champs foils) are overpriced on ebay. However stuff like Dark Confidants or dual lands can be had really cheap.