Every Nostalgic Legacy Player should look into Premodern

[Captain Hammer]

Ive gotten super into Premodern the past few months and its amazing. Everyone that played Magic before 2010 (ie everyone that occasionally ventures onto this forum or mtgsalvation, manadrain, scg etc) should absolutely look into Premodern for the following reasons…

1. Nostalgia - Every premodern card is available in the old border which featured far better art. The format revolves around legendary cards we grew up playing like…

Masticore, Exalted Angel, Standstill, Survival, Wild Mongrel, Cursed Scroll, Pernicious Deed, Humility, The Rack, Treetop Village, Armageddon, Hypnotic Specter, Oath of Druids, Wrath of God, Nimble Mongoose, Phyrexian Negator, Decree of Justice, Jackal Pup, Blastoderm, Counterspell, Rancor, Vindicate, Sarcomancy, Fact or Fiction, Spiritmonger, Recurring Nightmare, Verdant Force, Natural Order, Ball Lightning, Akroma, Angel of Wrath and so so many other classic cards. Some of these old cards went for a $100 and I was a teenager with a small allowance so I never got to play with them, but now those same cards cost a few bucks and its awesome being able to play these cards that I lusted after in the past.

2. Stability - Ever since 2018 when FIRE and UB started up, the eternal formats have been rotating like crazy. Many of us got into Legacy because we liked the idea of building a deck and playing it for years with minor changes. Older players with jobs, families and other responsibilities left rotating formats for stable ones for precisely this reason. Back in 2015, you could build a Legacy/Modern deck or two, play it a couple of times a month, for years and years and stay competitive. Premodern offers this option, Legacy no longer does.

Now there is too much powercreep, decks change too fast and its way too expensive to stay competitive, with very little time to enjoy the deck you built or staple you finally acquired before it gets pushed out of the meta. Alternatively, these variant formats are all sooo much cheaper. The decks and cards that dominate Premodern and 2015 Modern/2018 Legacy can almost always be built for under $100, or often far cheaper especially if you still have some of your old cards as I am sure most of us do. And because these formats dont rotate, you dont feel compelled to constantly buy new shit to upgrade your decks. But they surprisingly do not get stale and the meta keeps rotating due to people bringing foils to dominant strategies leading to surprise wins with rogue strategies nearly every week.

3. Fun - Cards and boardstates back then were much less complicated. Post Tarmogoyf, creatures needed fantastic bonuses in order to be revelant in formats dominated by an easily splashable 2 mana 5/6. So creatures became giant walls of text with an enchantment or artifact stapled onto them.

I mean take a look at this $80 giant wall of text thats pushed out to be a staple in literally every format and printed as a Mythic Rare (Does anyone remember when they promised that the Mythic rare slot would be reserved for niche cards rather than overpowered format defining staples.)

It packs literally 5 Premodern cards worth of text on one card. And given the extra turn the on cast trigger and life gain gets you. It would be better if the card instead just said, “I win the game at the start of my next turn.”

Its easier to enjoy the game without having to expend resources keeping track of the wall of text that accompanies current day magic staples. I mean I got a headache just trying to figure if my opponents Sire of Seven Deaths is worth double blocking. Premoderns simpler cards and board states creates a more laidback atmosphere that creates less stressed out and therefore nicer friendlier players.

Its also a lot of fun playing Premodern decks against Standard, Pioneer and older Modern decks. Premoderns creatures are very weak but its spells are more powerful so they fare better than you would expect vs modern decks.

If youve played Magic in the 2000s, you likely have many of the staples already. The ones you dont are much cheaper to buy now than they were back then as Premodern is the only format where these cards are relevant. But the cards have started to go up in price as Premodern gains popularity, so I actually think building Premodern decks is a viable investment. Premodern is so much fun and will absolutely grow in popularity in the coming years.

Encourage your local shop/playgroup to try a Premodern night. Here are the top decks in the format if you want to learn more…

https://www.mtgtop8.com/format?f=PREM

https://www.reddit.com/r/premodernMTG/

[snugar_i]

Yeah, we know, you already posted the same post some time ago. Good for you, I guess, but why post it again? This forum is dead anyway...

[PirateKing]

be the change you want to see

[Captain Hammer]

Overall very happy with the Troll ban. But I was secretly hoping they nuke Entomb so that its price collapses and it gets unbanned in Premodern.

Dark Ritual into Duress, Entomb, Reanimate/Exhuming an [[Akroma, Angel of Wrath]] or [[Verdant Force]] is such a nostalgia rush.

[the Thin White Duke]

I'm with you on the Premodern tip. I'm looking at decklists and getting that warm fuzzy feeling. I'm putting together Goblins and Elves (w/Survival) so I can show my son what the world was like in the before times.

[KobeBryan]

I don't understand discord. People in the 90s hate chat rooms and moved to forums because we can read at your own leisure. Now its all moved to discord like a chatroom.

THen you need to scroll thousands of messages to see what it is.

[hjalte]

I don't understand discord. People in the 90s hate chat rooms and moved to forums because we can read at your own leisure. Now its all moved to discord like a chatroom.

THen you need to scroll thousands of messages to see what it is.

This resonates with me so much. Should we attempt to revive the source to "Your source for Premodern"?

[H]

I don't understand discord. People in the 90s hate chat rooms and moved to forums because we can read at your own leisure. Now its all moved to discord like a chatroom.

THen you need to scroll thousands of messages to see what it is.

I like Discord for what it is. Which is basically just a chat function. But, with formats moving so quickly and most people thinking they have little time for the "long form" it's what people have been gravitating toward. That long form isn't really dead, it's just moved into spaces more like blogs, or paid content. Which means that "average users" don't seem to be creating it as much as in our heyday here. Might come back, who knows.

Which is why I am still trying to keep this place in some sort of order.

This resonates with me so much. Should we attempt to revive the source to "Your source for Premodern"?

We even have a section for Premodern already!

Premodern Subforum

[Kap'n Cook]

[PirateKing]

Very beautiful.

Like an old Lamborghini Countach: very pretty to look at; might be fun to use once just to say you have; but the novelty would wear off quickly, at least for me.

[Kap'n Cook]

Very beautiful.

Like an old Lamborghini Countach: very pretty to look at; might be fun to use once just to say you have; but the novelty would wear off quickly, at least for me.

Working on a Rebel Still list ill post that photo soon too :)

[wolfstorm]

I personally prefer the middle school card list, though it’s very similar to PM.

[FourDogsinaHorseSuit]

High School for me

[Captain Hammer]

I personally prefer the middle school card list, though it’s very similar to PM.

Why isnt middle school popular enough to be listed on mtgtop8 and reddit? It seems wiser to invest in Premodern lists since that format actually seems have to surged in popularity and has an active MTGO scene and tons of YouTube content as well.

Is there any Premodern deck that wouldnt also be legal in middle school. Or can I take my Premodern lists to a Middle School tournament without issue.

[wolfstorm]

Why isnt middle school popular enough to be listed on mtgtop8 and reddit? It seems wiser to invest in Premodern lists since that format actually seems have to surged in popularity and has an active MTGO scene and tons of YouTube content as well.

Is there any Premodern deck that wouldnt also be legal in middle school. Or can I take my Premodern lists to a Middle School tournament without issue.

Unfortunately I got logged out with my long reply and it got wiped out - There is a large group where I play called romancing the stones, they also have a large 50+ person webcam league.
https://stonesmtg.com/

It’s proxy friendly and anyone is welcome, there is even a group from Japan that plays in it.

Short answer is yes, just the ban list is different(a lot more open), damage uses the stack and there is mana burn.
https://www.eternalcentral.com/middleschoolrules/

[Captain Hammer]

Unfortunately I got logged out with my long reply and it got wiped out - There is a large group where I play called romancing the stones, they also have a large 50+ person webcam league.
https://stonesmtg.com/

It’s proxy friendly and anyone is welcome, there is even a group from Japan that plays in it.

Short answer is yes, just the ban list is different(a lot more open), damage uses the stack and there is mana burn.
https://www.eternalcentral.com/middleschoolrules/

I think its a mistake that Dark Ritual is banned in Middle School.

Dark Ritual was always legal and is legal in Premodern and causes zero issues. The best black deck (BW Control) doesnt even play it.

Ritual Hyppe is the classic middle school play.

[Tylert]

All these new formats... :p
What about kindergarten?

[wolfstorm]

I think its a mistake that Dark Ritual is banned in Middle School.

Dark Ritual was always legal and is legal in Premodern and causes zero issues. The best black deck (BW Control) doesnt even play it.

Ritual Hyppe is the classic middle school play.

It took the bullet for Necropotence, but I do agree and think it would be fine even with Necro being legal.