Editor: Professor X. Tuesday 29th June 2004.
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Editor: Professor X. Tuesday 29th June 2004.
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 Quick, to the Fantasticar!!! or Getting Started with Marvel Get in, sit down, hold on and shut up. That's pretty much how I'd expect a ride in the Batmobile to play out. Unfortunately, the Caped Crusader and his associated cool stuff will not be added to the new Vs System card game (most commonly known as Marvel hereabouts) until the release of DC Origins. Regardless, there's plenty of wow factor in the game's first release, Marvel Origins. In my last article, I talked about why I thought the Vs System and Marvel Origins was the best trading card game since Magic - The Gathering. Admittedly, I haven't played every TCG out there, but if you have a pet game that you love I suggest you put some energy into writing an article about it (rather than tell me how wrong I am). The TCG's I have played at least once are Star Trek - The Next Generation, Star Wars, Magic, Legend of the Five Rings, Over Power, C-32, Doom Town and even Pokemon (my only defence is that my much-younger brother needed someone to play against). Having collected three of those games, I know how hard it is to get started in any other game than Magic. Firstly you have to find out about the game. This will usually come by word of mouth, at the games shop or from some form of advertising. Secondly you will want to either see the game played, be taught how to play it by an experienced player (preferably with their cards at no cost to you) or find a mate - the friend kind, not the life partner kind - and together buy a starter and muddled your way through those early games. The first two steps aren't that hard. Considering you're here reading this, I'll assume you've already heard about Marvel Origins. As for the second, according to the Marvel thread in MTG Paradise's very own forums, there are a couple of venues in Sydney and some of the other major cities and plenty of people who are ready and willing to show/teach the game to anyone who is interested. If you're in Canberra, I'm willing to try and lend a hand. If you're interested in the game but not sure about where to go or who to ask about it, check out the aforementioned thread and leave a post of your own if you can't find the answers that you seek. Beyond the second step has been treacherous territory in the past with regard to other TCG's. The greatest fear is always that the makers will shut up shop, or even worse, simply abandon the game after they make a quick buck. We are all cynical about this happening with any new TCG. If a game is not no longer made or supported, the player pool for that game will dry up very fast. Marvel Origins, though, has a few things really going for it. Unlike Pokemon or subsequent games based on popular cartoons, Marvel Origins' core following will not lose interest in the game as soon as the originator cartoon is taken off the tube. The game is based, in some instances, on over 60 years of comic book continuity. The characters at the game's centre have already crossed into every media outlet conceived of and have generated billions of dollars for the companies that own and produce these products. People are passionate about these characters and they won't be soon forgotten. But you can say the same thing about Star Trek and Star Wars, I hear you say. That's very true, but games such as these, with perhaps the exception of Star Wars (which I found to be relatively enjoyable), are often mediocre at best. The producers simply don't put the time or resources into the game's development and will rarely follow up a good start with continued design, development and support. Marvel Origins, again, is different. As I mentioned in my last article, the game's owners, Upper Deck Entertainment, have made a substantial investment into the future of the game, particularly in the form of careful design and development and the establishment of organised tournament play. Furthermore, Upper Deck has hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of comic book issues to draw inspiration from, not just a few movies or a couple of seasons of a television series. At any rate, the proof is in the pudding. The first run of Marvel Origins has already sold out and a quick trip around the various websites dedicated to the game will reveal numerous articles by Magic pros who have given this game the thumbs up. Scott Smith (AKA Optimusprime on the MTG Paradise boards), the winner of the first Marvel PCQ in Australia, has said, "This game should be around for more than 5 years, which is a decent amount of time in any gamer language." So, it seems we needn't worry about Marvel Origins disappearing out from under us in the near future. The main difficulty then, especially for people like me who don't live in Sydney, is how to take your Marvel Origins game playing from the cracking-the-starter stage to more serious constructed play and maybe even tournament play. I hosted a four person draft for friends recently (which will be the subject of another article coming soon), teaching them how to play and going through some of the basics I had picked up off the Internet beforehand. This was an excellent way for me to open some booster packs and maybe get some potential play partners - again, very different from life partners - interested in the game. Limited play is a great way to get a feel for key mechanics and individual card strategies and, I think, will ultimately help you with your constructed play. Organising similar, relatively casual events could be a good way to "grow" your game. While everyone at my draft seemed to enjoy the game, though, the simple fact is that Magic is already an all-consuming and expensive hobby. Marvel Origins will very likely never replace Magic for these guys, who are regular and at least semi-serious constructed and tournament players (two have already qualified for Nationals). Unless Marvel Origins develops a separate, new group of players - which it has the potential to do - or almost wholly converts a good number of Magic players (less likely), it may prove a little difficult in the future to find quality collaborators and people to trade with to increase and focus your collection. Finding a relatively small number of people who are willing to build a collective card pool with you is one option. Everyone puts in an amount of money every week or so and you play some draft or sealed games to make the whole cracking experience more fun (I can't recommend this enough, whether it be for Marvel Origins or Magic). This will also provide you an instant play test group. Anyone who has seen that excellent episode of The Simpsons where Bart, Milhouse and Martin pool their money to buy an expensive issue of Radioactive Man, however, know this can be a dangerous course. Therefore it's very important that you keep it small (absolutely no more than four) and be sensible and careful about forming this group. Perhaps most importantly, work out a fair and reasonable way to compensate anyone looking to get out of the arrangement. I suggest letting deserters "draft" out the cards they want or offer to buy out their share. This is definitely not an option for people who want to play very seriously, as you want to be able to play with all the best cards, which could lead to conflict. Another strategy, and perhaps a better one, might be to find a group of people that are interested in swapping for specific teams, different to your preferred team, and build your collection that way. This group can later form the foundation of an excellent play testing group. The only problem with this strategy is that all participants have to be pretty serious about not keeping their off-teams and some of the chase cards are not team specific, such as Savage Beatdown. Furthermore, just as there is nothing wrong with making a two or three colour Magic deck, hybrid Marvel Origins decks that bring together a couple of different teams are viable. For either of these options, though, the MTG Paradise boards may prove an invaluable networking tool. "Networking tool" ... that's what I'd normally call someone who presents you a business card the minute you meet him. Anyway, you can already see a Marvel community of sorts developing on our boards, so finding people who have a similar level of interest in the game and who live in your relative vicinity, shouldn't be that hard. The next step, after getting a bit a playing under your belt and developing a more than passing familiarity with the rules, will obviously be to form up a pile of 60 cards and pack them off to a tournament of sorts. Playing any game at a more serious level will improve your skills with regards to that game. Sitting around the kitchen table, it's too easy to allow bad habits or incorrect play to creep into your game. If you only ever want to play casually then this is fine. Who gives a hoot as long as everyone is having a swell time? But if you do want to take your game to the next level, you will want to tighten up your play. As yet, to my knowledge, there is no organised Marvel Origins play in my local area. In Sydney and some of the bigger capital cities, however, the game is picking up momentum. "Check the MTG Paradise Marvel Thread" is fast becoming my answer for everything, but it applies here too. I've already noticed a few postings regarding organised play, so keep an eye out there for upcoming events. If you're having trouble finding events, though, your next and best course of action might be to ask (repeatedly) about the prospect of such events at your favourite gaming store. I doubt proprietors will want their customers travelling to another area or shop to satisfy their Marvel Origins cravings, so if you and your friends make enough noise you might be pleasantly surprised. On that note, I might up, up and away. Michael Pittman AKA Ike E Bear |