[Podcast] "Humans of Magic" -- interviews with players about life & Magic.

http://i.imgur.com/cdMPaN9l.png

I'm excited to launch a brand new podcast that's been lurking in my head for awhile: Humans of Magic.

HUMANS OF MAGIC: THE BOOK

The book! (COMING SOON)

HUMANS OF MAGIC: THE PODCAST

Subscribe on iTunes

Soundcloud page

THE GUEST LIST

Dan Signorini. The People's Champ. Creator of "Team America" and living legend in these parts.

Martin Juza. Hall-of-Famer. One of the greatest Limited players ever.

Noah Walker. Legacy grinder, best known for his finishes with Grixis Delver and 4c Control a.k.a. Czech Pile. Gold Level pro.

Tifa Robles. Founder of Lady Planeswalker Society, ex-WOTC employee, gamer extraordinaire, mother.

Will Jonathan. Sports psychologist, mental performance coach, and Channel Fireball contributor. Writes about how to mentally excel at the game.

Christian Calcano. Well-known NYC grinder. Finished 2nd at GP Seattle in 2015.

Kai Sawatari. Legacy Storm player with 4th and 17th places at GPs.

Wilson Hunter. Co-host of "The Brainstorm Show" podcast. Several Legacy GP Top 8s and SCG Invitational Top 16s.

Roland Chang. Mr. Vintage AND Legacy World Champion. Roland's pretty good with the Eternal formats.

Matt "sdematt" Pavlic. Source regular, lover of Siege Rhino, and a true card pimp. Also...power to Porsche.

Gerry Thompson. Gerry is a very, very good Magic player.

Bob Huang. The 2015 Legacy Champion! Mr. Bob Huang popularized the infamous UR Delver deck with Treasure Cruise, as well as the original BUG Delver with Lilianas and Abrupt Decays. You may have seen those decks before.

Michael Bonde. Danish Gold Level pro. 2013 Bazaar of Moxen Vintage champion. Legacy Grand Prix Top 4 with Death and Taxes.

Damon Whitby a.k.a. Parcher. Dredge specialist and one of the elder statesman of the 1.5 format.

Alex Majlaton. Affinity specialist and player from the Maryland area. 26 Pro Tour appearances and 8 Grand Prix Top 8's.

Jonathan Alexander: Part 1. Part 2. Part 3. Creator of Grinding Station and 24th place finisher in Grand Prix Prague.

Mike Turian: Part 1. Part 2. Hall of Famer. One of the best Limited players ever.

Bryant Cook. Creator of The Epic Storm and one of the original 1.5 players from Syracuse, NY.

Paulo Vitor Damo Da Rosa. Hall of Famer and one of the best ever.

Rodrigo Togores. Dedicated Storm specialist and winner of 2016 Grand Prix Prague.

Ben Friedman. 3 GP Top 8s, 2 Pro Tour Top 16s, 1 Pro Tour Top 32. 150 Lifetime Pro Points. He plays Legacy.

Thomas Enevoldsen. The Death and Taxes master. 2 Legacy GP Top 8s (including 1 win), Magic World Cup winner, 13 Pro Tours played.

Anh Dao. Good friend of mine from the Bay Area. Legacy Grinder and Elves enthusiast.

Caleb Durward. Remember Vengevine Survival? Yes, Caleb broke the format.

Travis Woo. Magic Thinker and Content Creator.

Julian Knab. Best Legacy Elves player on the planet. Eternal Grinder and Co-Creator of the Legacy Mediocre League.

Jarvis Yu. Jarvis knows Legacy. Legacy GP Seattle 2015 Winner. Legacy GP Columbus Top 8.

WHAT'S IT ABOUT?

Traditional Magic: The Gathering podcasts discuss the game itself. What deck should I play this week? How will the new set change the metagame? What happened last weekend in Grand Prix X? Should I invest in card Y? There are a number of podcasts that conduct this analysis exceedingly well.

I'm taking a different approach by focusing on the players themselves. Every player has a story -- their background, origins, and motivations. Every player has goals and experiences to share.

Humans of Magic will focus on highlighting the players' journeys and how they came to be who they are. The game is only the starting point, but conversations can and will flow in multiple directions. The goal is to learn from each guest and hopefully give the audience some new ideas as well.

In some ways, this is a continuation of my book about Magic. In my writing, I shared my personal struggles and experiences with the game. I feel that I've written enough about myself. Now I want to tell other players' stories.

I'm new to podcasting, so I will need lots of feedback on the content in order to improve. I promise that I will get better with time.

THAT'S IT!

Thanks for reading (and listening!).

James

Reserved for future updates.

I still feel so stupid about my "best Magic experience" answer. OF COURSE it was Team Euroswags 2 week US raid with my friends. Amazing time, would love to do it again! :-)

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Originally Posted by Julian23

I still feel so stupid about my "best Magic experience" answer. OF COURSE it was Team Euroswags 2 week US raid with my friends. Amazing time, would love to do it again! :-)

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We DEFINITELY need a part 2. I haven't even asked you about Mario Kart and Yoshi!

Don't feel bad about missing out on that mention, you've got too many awesome memories.

This sounds awesome! It's always good to see another podcast that's less about (e.g.) how to cast Brainstorm, and more lifestyle-oriented. I'll add it to my rotation.

Woo. Yu. Hsu.

I'm sensing a theme. No, not that one. Well.....yes that one. But alliteration was what I was referring to.

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Originally Posted by Parcher

Woo. Yu. Hsu.

I'm sensing a theme. No, not that one. Well.....yes that one. But alliteration was what I was referring to.

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You're on to me!

Seriously though, I'd love to know what you think. And knowing that you have an illustrious Magic past, maybe we could even set up a 1:1...

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Originally Posted by Plague Sliver

You're on to me!

Seriously though, I'd love to know what you think. And knowing that you have an illustrious Magic past, maybe we could even set up a 1:1...

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Well I love me some Jarvis. So I will give a listen later. It seems a weird site to be blocked at work. I am probably one of the only ones on The Source that's been playing as long as you.

Any chance that you'll be putting this up on Itunes, or is Soundcloud the only option?

Listened to the Jarvis one. I loved it! Exactly as described. The whole interview was about Jarvis. And while the central theme of the interview centered around Magic, it wasn't about Magic. It also spilt the difference between a structured questionnaire and a stream-of consciousness conversation between friends perfectly. It was a bit long, but I feel that's necessary for what you want to accomplish with these.

One complaint, and one concern.

The opening intro was pretty bad. The deep announcer's voice with the ultra slow diction made me almost turn it off before I realized that it was just an intro, and not the structure of the interview itself. You were very involved and upbeat throughout the entirety of the discussion, and that short opening was the opposite of that.

My only concern is that Jarvis is a friendly acquaintance of mine, which gave me interest in most of what was said. I don't know that I would have kept interest in the breadth of personal topics covered if it was someone I didn't know or care about. I have no solution for this, just being honest. The appeal of these might get lost on the MtG public in general, since they're not really "getting" anything applicable to the game out of this two-hour podcast. Jarvis is a bit dry, and maybe a more effusive personality who is a stranger might keep me engaged otherwise.

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Originally Posted by Stuart

Any chance that you'll be putting this up on Itunes, or is Soundcloud the only option?

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I will definitely be putting it up on iTunes soon.

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Originally Posted by Parcher

The opening intro was pretty bad. The deep announcer's voice with the ultra slow diction made me almost turn it off before I realized that it was just an intro, and not the structure of the interview itself. You were very involved and upbeat throughout the entirety of the discussion, and that short opening was the opposite of that.

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I will re-record the intro for new episodes. Failed attempt at gravitas :laugh:

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Originally Posted by Parcher

My only concern is that Jarvis is a friendly acquaintance of mine, which gave me interest in most of what was said. I don't know that I would have kept interest in the breadth of personal topics covered if it was someone I didn't know or care about. I have no solution for this, just being honest. The appeal of these might get lost on the MtG public in general, since they're not really "getting" anything applicable to the game out of this two-hour podcast. Jarvis is a bit dry, and maybe a more effusive personality who is a stranger might keep me engaged otherwise.

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This is good feedback. I think my show will, by definition, be niche. And I'm OK with that. I want to highlight the personalities of the players and see it both as a personal challenge as well as mission. It's an interview show, not a Magic strategy show.

Having said that, I'm hoping to get better at asking questions and generalizing the guests' learnings in real-time so that there are tidbits of knowledge to be had.

Everything I've done so far -- both book and podcast -- are niche. And it's by design, because I have no intention of doing strategy or game-based content. I like the confessional format, and I like to draw it out of people.

I think the Internet is big enough where this is OK, but we'll see.

/soapbox

Aaaaaaand....we have an iTunes podcast link now! Please subscribe because more exciting episodes will be coming!

https://itunes.apple.com/ca/podcast/...122286222?mt=2

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I also want to share a currently-unreleased episode, featuring my friend Anh Dao. Anh plays Legacy Elves and even though he's not well known in the Magic community, I wanted to feature people who were (1) friends of mine and (2) had Magic-related learnings to share. This episode will be added later, but for now you can get the direct MP3 link here:

https://db.tt/cWipPxWj

In the latest episode of "Humans of Magic," I interview the one and only Caleb Durward! If you've played Magic in the past five years, chance are you've played with or against one of his sick brews.

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...-caleb-durward

We talk about:
- Caleb's early playing days
- Breaking out at GP Columbus with UG Survival
- Scumbag betrayals
- The true grinder lifestyle
- And much more!

Caleb also made me laugh non-stop with his sense of humor and wicked stories. Check it out!

This one was great to compare with the Jarvis interview. They are both very different, but not in the ways I would have thought. Caleb appears to be very outgoing and gregarious normally, to me. While Jarvis is more terse and introverted. But I only know Caleb online, and Jarvis IRL. Caleb is a huge proponent of social media, and shows great personality when running his own show. But seemed to have difficulties with quite a few of the questions. Jarvis posts at most, one sentence responses on social media, but was very forthcoming and open in the interview. I believe it might be as simple as Jarvis, being who he is, fiercely studying the prep questions. As he had obviously thought over his answers at some point before. Even if unrelated to this interview. And Caleb, most likely, had not. That's just my impression.

On a more general note; the vast majority of MtG players are highly analytical, and will respond best to singular, direct questions. Especially when they have time to comfortably form their answers while not on the spot. I think the Jarvis interview was a good example of this. The problem with that tactic is what I saw in this interview, when Caleb kept giving one word replies. Or, had trouble forming a cogent/complete response to the more open-ended and nebulous questions he didn't have pre-conceived answers for. I think this is going to be one of your most difficult tasks considering your chosen targets for interviews. Forming questions direct enough that the analytical mindset can allow for a succinct answer, while leaving both of you enough flexibility in what they may answer with to continue the line of questioning.

I did enjoy it enough to listen for an hour and a half. So it was interesting and entertaining regardless. Please keep it up.

Excellent feedback. I think every player is different, and sometimes it's a combination of:

1) Their preparation
2) My preparation
3) Our "on-air" chemistry

I'm still quite new at it and I promise I will work on getting better. In fact, I've been analyzing the recordings, as well as studying how other interviewers do their thing.

Some of my questions have been awkward -- one example being the "introduce yourself" question -- and I'm going to revise them. On one hand, it's awkward. On the other hand, sometimes it draws out interesting answers. I think the key is to go towards what my guests want to talk about.

I also want to keep the recordings largely "organic" -- minimal editing. For example, when I asked Caleb a question which only prompted a "no" answer, I could have easily cut it out of the recording. But I chose to include so that it feels more raw and authentic to our conversation.

Regardless, I must say that I've had fun talking to every single guest on the show, and there will be some more great people appearing very, very soon...so please stay tuned!

This week we have Thomas Enevoldsen on the show!

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...mas-enevoldsen

Thomas Enevoldsen is one of the best Danish Magic players on the planet, with two Grand Prix Top 8s, a Magic World Cup win, and 13 Pro Tours played. Thomas talks about his childhood, a lifetime of competition, and what Magic means to him. Along the way, he also talks about a critical friendship that has kept him going strong over the years.

Ben Friedman is in the house.

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...7-ben-friedman

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Originally Posted by Plague Sliver

Ben Friedman is in the house.

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...7-ben-friedman

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I think this one was the most different from the others. Ben almost completely took over the interview. But in a great way. He's another local to me. And while he was always smart and talented, I'm amazed at how far he's matured in the past 2-3 years. This one is a great listen for the younger players, wanting to find balance between chasing the Magic dream, and determining what is actually most important to your life.

Rodrigo Togores Moli is in the house! I talk to the Grand Prix Prague champion about winning the biggest event of his life, the dark art of storm, past mastery in other card games, and lots more.

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...odrigo-togores

is there a problem on my side or why are episodes 3+ unavailable for download?

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Originally Posted by Sloshthedark

is there a problem on my side or why are episodes 3+ unavailable for download?

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Ah, it was on my end. Downloads have been enabled for all episodes now.

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This week, I'm super excited to have PAULO VITOR DAMO DA ROSA in the house to talk life and Magic.

You won't want to miss it. Check it out here: https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...r-damo-da-rosa

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Originally Posted by Plague Sliver

Ah, it was on my end. Downloads have been enabled for all episodes now.

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This week, I'm super excited to have PAULO VITOR DAMO DA ROSA in the house to talk life and Magic.

You won't want to miss it. Check it out here: https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...r-damo-da-rosa

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This was great. No surprise considering that it's well known how intelligent, kind, and open PV is, in addition to his obvious skill at Magic. I was a bit surprised how ego-driven he is, though. It kept coming up how important it was to him how everyone knows who he is and how well he performs. Either in his writing, or at tournaments. None of that made me think any less of him, since it doesn't change who he is as a person. But I didn't think someone of legitimate HoF stature would still be concerned with the opinions of redditors and his extended family. A lot of pros who are still very competitive don't take their results to heart to that degree. And even fewer stil feel that they have anything to prove to anyone but maybe themselves.

I have mentioned this before, but just to give any example of how to be a good person vs how to be a douche; PV, Calosso and I are chatting in between rounds at GP Indy. A wizards cruises by us. Full on azure furry robe with stars, pointy hat and boots, full white beard. The works. Calosso starts laughing, saying what a dork, etc. He then offers PV $10 to go over an ask the guy if he can take a picture with him. PV looks incredulously at Calosso, asks "Who wouldn't want a picture with him?", proceeds to get one, and chats up the dude for the remaining time. That's the type of person people like, and respect. Regardless of their MtG accomplishments.

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Originally Posted by Parcher

This was great. No surprise considering that it's well known how intelligent, kind, and open PV is, in addition to his obvious skill at Magic. I was a bit surprised how ego-driven he is, though. It kept coming up how important it was to him how everyone knows who he is and how well he performs. Either in his writing, or at tournaments. None of that made me think any less of him, since it doesn't change who he is as a person. But I didn't think someone of legitimate HoF stature would still be concerned with the opinions of redditors and his extended family. A lot of pros who are still very competitive don't take their results to heart to that degree. And even fewer stil feel that they have anything to prove to anyone but maybe themselves.

I have mentioned this before, but just to give any example of how to be a good person vs how to be a douche; PV, Calosso and I are chatting in between rounds at GP Indy. A wizards cruises by us. Full on azure furry robe with stars, pointy hat and boots, full white beard. The works. Calosso starts laughing, saying what a dork, etc. He then offers PV $10 to go over an ask the guy if he can take a picture with him. PV looks incredulously at Calosso, asks "Who wouldn't want a picture with him?", proceeds to get one, and chats up the dude for the remaining time. That's the type of person people like, and respect. Regardless of their MtG accomplishments.

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That's an awesome story! Also, I respect PV for being honest. He's earned the recognition.

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I'm cranking out episodes FAST.

Just in time for TES 10-year anniversary...an audio interview with the one and only Bryant Cook, on "Humans of Magic."

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...10-bryant-cook

Bryant Cook is the innovator and creator of The Epic Storm deck, which is approaching its ten-year anniversary. He joins me to discuss the origins of the 1.5 format, the strong Syracuse, NY scene, and his earliest tournament successes. We also talk about fun stuff like reading opponents, table banter, and beating a turn 1 Griselbrand. This is one conversation you won't want to miss.

Time stamps:

[01:02] Introduction
[03:28] Family background and origins
[04:52] Earliest gaming experiences
[06:18] Playing sports
[06:52] Playing Magic for the first time
[08:31] His first tournament
[10:34] On never splitting prizes in a tournament
[12:15] Improving as a player and first major tournament success
[15:00] The Syracuse crew
[16:29] The 1.5 scene in New York and origins of The Source
[17:22] Playing combo for the first time
[18:47] The beginnings of “The Epic Storm”
[22:17] The beginning of The Epic Syndicate
[23:54] How Magic friends have helped him in life
[25:15] Applying Magic learnings to life
[25:49] First major success with The Epic Storm
[27:22] Playing in Jupiter Games events and SCG Opens
[30:10] Getting nervous at high-level events
[32:48] Reading opponents
[36:25] The origins of The Epic Storm website
[38:30] Why he writes content
[39:23] Dealing with online trolls and haters
[40:59] Why Magic?
[42:36] Why he is competitive
[43:31] Tournament mindset and habits
[46:35] Table banter with opponents
[48:02] Codes of conduct and ethical gaming
[49:13] Most challenging Magic-related situation
[51:05] Best Magic moments
[55:19] Future evolution of The Epic Storm
[56:38] Magic-related goals
[59:43] Life-related goals
[01:01:19] What would Bryant tell himself if he could go back 5 years?

Thanks for having me James! I think it turned out well. I wish my audio was slightly better :(

MIKE TURIAN is in the house this week, on "Humans of Magic."

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...-turian-part-1

"Magic is kind of mind-blowing."

Mike Turian is one of the greatest Limited players ever in the history of the Magic Pro Tour, and a bona fide Hall of Famer. He is also a key driving force within Wizards of the Coast, having held key roles in R&D, Organized Play, Technology, Magic Online, and Magic Duels teams.

In this no-holds-barred conversation, I talk to Mike about both his illustrious playing career (Part 1) and the decade that he's spent at Wizards of the Coast (Part 2). Mike has tons of great stories and learnings to share, so please do come along for the ride!

Time stamps -- Part 1:

[03:21] Introduction
[09:49] Growing up in Pittsburgh
[12:04] Earliest gaming experiences
[15:51] Being competitive with his best friend
[19:42] Playing Magic for the first time
[29:24] Getting hooked on tournaments
[32:40] Booster drafts with two packs, not three
[34:34] The appeal of the Limited format
[36:06] Learning the basics of Limited
[38:45] The outside world through The Duelist magazine
[41:10] Making a splash in larger events
[43:21] Playing against Brian Kibler in Grand Prix Toronto
[45:02] Mike’s first Pro Tour in Chicago
[46:18] Randy Buehler
[50:05] Being part of a team and preparation process
[55:17] Teaming up with Gary Wise and Scott Johns
[1:00:04] Skills learned through team play
[1:01:10] Best Magic memories
[1:03:10] On sportsmanship
[1:04:16] What the Hall of Fame means to him
[1:06:17] Mike’s Hall of Fame achievements
[1:09:25] Focusing on Limited vs. Constructed
[1: 11 :16] Mike’s criteria for Hall of Fame membership

Really enjoy Mike Turian interview. Can't wait to listen part 2 (wotc good stuff).

Thanks for the time stamps and descriptions. I cherry-picked the Mike Turian episode and enjoyed his recollection of the Wild West era of early tournaments. I was a little surprised that he and I are almost the same age. We started playing around the same time, but he got into tournaments shortly after he started, whereas I was a casual player for at least a year before I had an opportunity to play in structured events. It cracked me up that he got back into a single-elimination tournament after Round 1. The first time I ever played in a tournament, I lost Round 1 in two quick games and thought I was out, so I dejectedly made my way to the door only to be saved by the store owner or clerk, who told me it was Swiss-style and not single-elimination. I knew nothing about the structure of the event I was playing in! That amazes me now, but life was so much different at age 15. Also, I believe single-elimination events were rather unpopular (even though they were the norm at the time), which is probably why Swiss became the standard.

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Originally Posted by tianyuan2k4

Really enjoy Mike Turian interview. Can't wait to listen part 2 (wotc good stuff).

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Thanks!

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Originally Posted by ESG

Thanks for the time stamps and descriptions. I cherry-picked the Mike Turian episode and enjoyed his recollection of the Wild West era of early tournaments. I was a little surprised that he and I are almost the same age. We started playing around the same time, but he got into tournaments shortly after he started, whereas I was a casual player for at least a year before I had an opportunity to play in structured events. It cracked me up that he got back into a single-elimination tournament after Round 1. The first time I ever played in a tournament, I lost Round 1 in two quick games and thought I was out, so I dejectedly made my way to the door only to be saved by the store owner or clerk, who told me it was Swiss-style and not single-elimination. I knew nothing about the structure of the event I was playing in! That amazes me now, but life was so much different at age 15. Also, I believe single-elimination events were rather unpopular (even though they were the norm at the time), which is probably why Swiss became the standard.

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Thanks for listening, Jeremy. All 3 of us (you, Mike, myself) are basically around the same age. I guess we all went our separate paths, but what I love most about doing the show is being able to listen to stories of nineties Magic. I was playing, albeit not competitively, so it is always fun to live vicariously through someone.

Single elimination feels like such bad value, but I do like hearing about how the game was "tougher" back then.

I think you'll REALLY enjoy the next episode too, where Mike goes into the cards he's designed. You may have heard of some of them. Jace the Mind Sculptor, Tarmogoyf, Stoneforge Mystic. Amongst others :cool:

Part 2 with Mike Turian -- all about his work at Wizards of the Coast. Designing cards like Jace TMS, Tarmogoyf, and Stoneforge Mystic.

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...s-of-the-coast

Time stamps -- Part 2:

[02:06] How Mike started working at Wizards
[05:22] The most important advice that Randy gave Mike at the beginning
[06:53] Working at Wizards vs. being a competitive player — tough decision?
[09:28] Winning for the community vs. for yourself
[11:08] Summary of Mike’s different roles at Wizards
[11:57] Insights Mike gained from the Market Research team
[14:53] The best way to provide user feedback for Magic Online
[15:58] The Magic expansion sets that Mike led from a development perspective
[16:38] Leaving R&D to drive the Planeswalker Points program
[17:14] How hard was it to leave R&D?
[20:36] Most memorable R&D moments
[23:25] Developing the planeswalker card type
[26:35] “With [Jace, the Mind Sculptor] we wanted to make a card that people loved, and I think we accomplished that.”
[31:09] Favorite cards that Mike’s worked on
[36:23] Advice for folks who want to work in Magic R&D
[42:10] Mike’s current role in the Brand team — what does it involve?
[46:53] Most exciting thing in Mike’s current role
[49:54] Advantages of working in the digital domain
[52:08] Favorite colleagues
[55:27] The unsung heroes of Wizards
[56:48] Personal and career goals — and the one competitive goal he’s yet to achieve
[58:15] The competitive fire, and the purity of tournament Magic

This week -- Jonathan Alexander, creator of Grinding Station:

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...exander-part-1

What started as an innocent discussion about Magic turned into an epic podcast of sorts. Probably the most fun I’ve had so far recording for this show. At one point we asked each other, 2 hours in, if we wanted to stop or keep going. The answer was an encouraging KEEP GOING. And so we did.

There are 3 parts to this talk, that’s how crazy it was. Unfortunately (fortunately?), our hour-long discussion on hip-hop didn’t make the final cut. Jonathan and I probably need to create our own podcast show at some point.

Jonathan’s web site: http://theweeklywars.wordpress.com/

Time stamps — Part 1:

[03:21] Intro / the metric system
[06:54] Jonathan's own intro
[08:17] Family background and brief personal history
[12:42] There and back again: university in Berlin
[16:04] Homework? What's that?
[18:09] Memorable teenage moments
[23:06] Amsterdam
[26:37] "It's all upside to not drink, in my eyes."
[30:25] Happiness
[31:13] Earliest gaming experiences
[32:31] Playing Magic for the first time, and getting competitive
[36:32] First Legacy deck
[39:09] Local German Legacy scene
[43:26] Initial breakthroughs in competitive Magic, and Mental Misstep
[46:33] All time favorite decks
[47:58] An ode to Canadian Threshold
[51:44] The art of quoting stuff out of context / trolls
[53:08] Good stuff deck vs. tempo deck / why he doesn't play Grixis delver
[56:16] Incredible run at Bazaar of Moxen with Canadian Threshold
[1:05:04] “Don’t be afraid to use your cards as Lightning Bolts.”
[1:07:17] Starting to play Storm and the beginnings of Grinding Station

Jonathan Alexander, Part 2.

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...exander-part-2

Part 2 is all about the evolution of Grinding Station, the beauty of Canadian Threshold, Magic player name-drops, and bromancing. That’s right, folks — it’s everything you ever wanted in an interview podcast, and then some.

Time stamps — Part 2:

[02:32] Grinding Station origins
[04:35] The perfect storm (of a metagame)
[09:23] Putting it to the test with 200+ players
[12:36] The natural Tendrils revelation
[14:38] Card evaluation tendencies
[16:31] “That was only because it was the card I wanted.”
[20:04] The complexity in the game // learning through observation
[21:42] Thoughts on Team America
[24:39] Having a point of view
[26:06] Why Jonathan didn’t play Storm in Prague
[28:59] Shout out to Rodrigo Togores, GP Prague winner
[30:08] Best high-level tournament finishes
[32:02] Prague preparations and changing decks
[34:15] “With Canadian, you’re not playing the matchup lottery that hard.”
[36:35] Minimizing variance / Why Miracles is so good
[38:48] Deck selection and having the right goals
[40:37] “The hard part about Magic is getting X, Y, AND Z right.”
[42:31] The joy of blind Cabal Therapy
[45:41] Pascal Wagner, the fastest Storm pilot ever
[47:38] “Can you tell me about your relationship with Kai Sawatari?”
[52:46] The bromance triangle in Seattle / a debt of gratitude
[54:35] No regrets
[55:35] Going back to Storm
[56:59] Playing Magic Online for the first time / dabbling in the Standard format
[1:00:11] Goals

Just finished up Pt 1 of the Jonathan Alexander interview and enjoyed it! Enjoyed Chance the Rapper, too.

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Originally Posted by Stuart

Just finished up Pt 1 of the Jonathan Alexander interview and enjoyed it! Enjoyed Chance the Rapper, too.

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Glad you've enjoyed it!

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Now we're at Part 3 -- the final chapter -- of my talk with Jona:

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...exander-part-3

What does it mean to be the best at Magic? What’s the real life cost of getting too involved in the game? As content creators, why do we do the things that we do? My audio interview with Jonathan Alexander, creator of the Grinding Station deck, concludes with Part 3.

“Humans of Magic” has been slower to release as of late, due to my real-life commitments. Nonetheless, I intend to continue interviewing cool people. Please keep listening and let me know what you think.

Time stamps — Part 3:

[02:48] Legacy goals
[05:41] How he plans to become the greatest
[08:02] On the power level of Miracles, and not playing it
[11:30] Miracles answers: “People are not willing to go far enough”
[13:35] What would happen if the Legacy format had an upheaval?
[16:46] Effort commensurate to success
[18:42] On the recognition of effort and hard work
[22:58] The negative impacts of Magic
[26:12] “I definitely always wanted to do what I wanted to do”
[27:25] The challenges of the grinder lifestyle
[31:31] The best part of competitive Magic
[34:43] “Most of the time, if you did not win the tournament, you did not deserve to win…”
[37:14] The impossibility of complete consistency // X, Y and Z
[40:31] How Jonathan started his blog, The Weekly Wars
[41:24] Coming up with topics for the blog
[46:13] Writing content in an open, accessible manner // Giving back to the community
[49:18] Doing things for the love of it
[51:41] Content for the masses — Jonathan’s criteria for doing it
[53:46] The Storm Box (which has now been updated!)
[55:48] Martin Juza likes Grim Tutor! // Be careful of the card readers

This week on Humans of Magic -- Alex Majlaton:

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...-alex-majlaton

Alex is a pretty darn good Magic player, with 26 Pro Tour appearances and 8 Grand Prix Top 8’s. He is doing solid work as the mathematical mind behind Team East-West Bowl. But more importantly, he’s humble about his status as a player and incredibly passionate about giving back to the community.

Alex and I talk about his early childhood days, forays into competitive Magic, learning from experiences, and more. If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to chase Pro Tour dreams, this episode is worth the listen.

Time stamps:

[3:15] Introduction
[5:50] Growing up
[9:02] Childhood hobbies
[10:21] Washington, DC / Maryland / Baltimore
[13:42] How Alex got into Magic
[16:12] Earliest Magic decks
[18:11] Alex’s two favorite cards of all time
[20:37] Getting competitive — the why and how
[27:04] The advantages of being a mathematician
[30:20] The Pro Tour scene / First major success with Affinity
[33:09] Affinity for Affinity (pun intended)
[36:49] Alex’s approach to Magic improvement
[39:11] No sacred cows — a learning breakthrough at the Pro Tour stage
[44:35] Lessons from Pro Tours / Quantitative approach to Limited
[49:46] Maintaining the fire
[51:34] Questions that people ask Alex about
[55:16] Contributing to the community = personal improvement
[57:51] Team East-West Bowl / Breaking the format / Analyzing Limited
[1:01:46] Magic-related goals
[1:04:57] What needs to happen for Magic to advance as a game
[1:07:03] How Alex plans to get from Silver to Gold status
[1:09:23] What would Alex tell himself, if he could go back five years?
[1 : 12 : 58] Shout-outs to Ben Friedman, Team East-West Bowl, the Maryland community, and Andrew Mitchell

New this week...

Damon Whitby, a.k.a. Parcher. One of the original proponents of the Legacy, or 1.5, format.

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...7-damon-whitby

http://i.imgur.com/WwVx1AQl.jpg

“The most important lesson I’ve learned is letting that which truly does not matter, go.”

Damon Whitby has been advancing the Legacy format for over a decade. These days he can usually be found terrorizing opponents with his Dredge deck, although he has played a wide range of archetypes over the years.

This episode is filled with Damon’s experiences and musings on life. Never one to hold back, he talks about his rough childhood and what lies beneath his gruff exterior. Damon also talks about the mid-Atlantic Magic scene and some of the best players he’s interacted with. In many instances, the discussions verged into personal and life-related observations. The honesty really came through in this conversation.

As someone who grew up with The Source, I hope that I have done Damon justice in representing his views and that you will enjoy this recording.

Time stamps:

[4:33] Introduction
[7:01] Early childhood // family history // Seattle memories
[12:00] Hanging out with the punks
[14:57] Hooked on wargames
[19:58] Joining the army
[20:40] Games Workshop in Maryland
[22:47] Magic first impressions
[27:24] Breaking out of casual play with Pros-Bloom
[30:59] Meeting top local players and pros: Matt Linde, Kyle Rose, Brock Parker
[36:10] How “Huey” Jensen got his nickname
[38:06] Building the White Weenie deck that Linde won Nationals with
[39:47] Mike Long and Tongo Nation
[41:22] The greatest match ever played in Rochester draft
[43:50] Success at ’98 Regionals
[45:59] Transitioning to Extended and Legacy // First contact with The Source
[48:32] The Virginia crew: Anwar Ahmad, The Hatfields, David Gearhart, Dan Signorini, Dave Price, and Jesse Krieger
[53:25] Virgnia vs. Syracuse rivalry
[54:27] Perceptions of Legacy and its legitimacy
[58:06] Alix Hatfield: the best deck builder
[1:02:20] Mental preparation and honing one’s deck over time
[1:05:31] The importance of format knowledge
[1:08:43] The luckiest man in the world with Cabal Therapy?
[1 : 10 : 39] “Where other people have decision trees, I see my job as pruning the trees.”
[1 : 14 : 32] Dredge puts the fear into opponents // Letting opponents beat themselves
[1:20:12] Team Dredge goes on a tear // Keeping things fresh
[1:25:39] “I am my [tournament] record” — a fallacy
[1:27:53] Learning to let go of things that don’t matter
[1:29:23] On being direct
[1:31:47] Perceptions people have of Damon
[1:24:16] On legitimately disliking some people
[1:36:22] “You don’t break somebody else’s rice bowl to refill your own.”
[1:38:04] Origins of the name Parcher
[1:39:22] Dan Signorini
[1:45:32] Helping Dan prepare for PT Honolulu // Shaheen Soorani // Alex Majlaton
[1:47:32] From one generation to the next
[1:48:54] Ben Friedman’s rapid growth as a person
[1:52:10] Jarvis Yu
[1:55:14] “At his heart, Dan is a gigantic nerd” // judging a book by its cover
[1:59:44] Why BBD is a great player
[2:04:50] The power of listening // Signal to noise in the online community
[2:07:10] Generalizing Magic lessons to life
[2 : 12 : 50] How has the game been detrimental to Damon?
[2:17:03] Shoutout to the mid-Atlantic area

This week -- Michael Bonde:

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...-michael-bonde

“When I get a challenge, I really just want to be the best at what I do.”

Michael Bonde is a fixture in the Danish Magic scene, and one of the game’s most outgoing personalities. He created Magic history by becoming the first European player to win a Star City Games Open. He has also enjoyed two Top 4 finishes in Grand Prix events, along with a 17th place finish at Pro Tour Madrid. Through skillful play and collaboration with the game’s top talent, Michael has become a powerful force to be reckoned with.

In this no-holds-barred conversation, I speak to Michael about his lifelong passions for learning, teaching, and competition. He shares his earliest childhood memories, and explains how joining the military contributed to his personal and Magic development. Michael also talks openly about staying true to his goals, and the dedicated life of the grind. The overarching theme is that of self-improvement — Michael is constantly looking to raise the bar, both for himself and others. Tune in for an inside look at one of the game’s fiercest competitors.

Time stamps:

[4:20] Introduction
[7:15] The Pro Tour grind
[9:18] Childhood and family background
[11:15] Sibling rivalry and love of sport
[14:11] Rifle skills // The art of the grind
[17:20] Earliest Magic memories
[21:22] Discipline and the Danish military
[26:33] The power of routine // New experiences
[30:28] A burgeoning military career // Learning to lead
[35:29] Kosovo
[41:11] Transitioning back to civilian life
[43:20] Adjusting to the academic world
[48:02] Balancing life priorities
[49:55] Leveling up in competitive Magic // Love of the game
[55:53] Thomas Enevoldsen, Martin Dang, and the Secret Society of Good Magic Players
[1:01:07] American life and the allure of the Pro Tour
[1:07:26] Playing all the time and its positive impacts
[1:09:32] Magic goals
[1: 11:06] Breakthrough: 17th place at Pro Tour Madrid
[1: 14:56] How Michael plans to further improve his game
[1:17:35] Preferred style of play
[1:20:02] Helping friends succeed
[1:22:40] Detrimental effects of being committed to the game
[1:26:25] “Magic is the place where I want to be”
[1:28:58] Gratitude // Conclusion

This week - it's Legacy Champion BOB HUANG!

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...-020-bob-huang

http://i.imgur.com/iYR7b09l.jpg

“Everybody’s on their own journey, on their own spiritual path.”

If you follow Magic, chances are you’ve heard of Bob Huang. Bob is the 2015 Legacy Champion and one of the game’s top Eternal format players. He’s put several popular Delver variants on the map and has had a major impact on how the game is played. But what you might not know about Bob is his world view and perspective on life. In this talk, we discuss some of the recent things he’s gone through, the trip of a lifetime that opened his eyes to possibilities, and his changing relationship with competitive Magic. Don’t miss this chance to get to know one of the game’s brightest minds.

Great episode! Thanks James and thanks Bob!

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Stuart

Great episode! Thanks James and thanks Bob!

---

This week, it's Gerry Thompson.

https://soundcloud.com/humansofmagic...gerry-thompson

Not much reference to Legacy, other than the fact that he says he sold all his Legacy cards. But there ya go :cool:

-- INTRODUCTION --

“The negative stuff just kind of hits you a little bit harder.”

Gerry Thompson is a consummate pro and all-around good guy. His Magic accomplishments are plentiful. But there is another side to Gerry that he recently opened up about, in a groundbreaking Reddit post: “A Rebuttal: The Lifestyle of the Professional Magic The Gathering Player.” It’s a hard-hitting look at what it means to be a Magic pro. More importantly, Gerry opened up about this lifelong struggle with depression. It’s a great piece and I encourage you to read it if you haven’t done so already.

After reading the article, I knew that I absolutely had to talk to Gerry about the themes he explored in his writing. In this 90-minute conversation, we talk about depression, perspective, life goals, and the power of community. While the topics were heavy, we had fun in the process.

This is not your typical Magic strategy podcast. Rather, it’s about what it means to be human. You won’t want to miss it.

-- SHOW NOTES --

“A Rebuttal: The Lifestyle of the Professional Magic: The Gathering Player” by Gerry Thompson
https://www.reddit.com/r/magicTCG/co..._professional/

“Gamers and Depression” by Noah Weil
http://www.starcitygames.com/php/new...?Article=11045

“Leffen: Resurrection” series
http://www.redbull.com/us/en/esports...tion-episode-1