iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

loving that "BREAD" guide

an orange sheet of paper on the table next to Magic cards, titled "Booster Draft". There's a guide outlining the "BREAD" acronym: Bombs, Removal, Evasion, Aggro, Duds

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 08/10/2026

honestly I feel like that the "YOU DID IT" token makes the whole thing less cool. I don't rip Pokemon packs, but I think it's neat how god packs *feel* a little bit like the luckiest manufacturing error. Like the stars aligned and your pack is fully blung. this is too "I've got a golden ticket 🎵"

010

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 07/10/2026

Are you finding that the board gets kinda overloaded with rules text, kind of like Saga decks? That's my concern with Codie, just having a lot of cardboard that opponents have to not forget about in order not to misplay.

000

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 04/10/2026

It's probably fine, but the bracket system is just a communication tool - the Bracket Police aren't gonna roll up and ban you from play. If the pod's understanding is that you're all playing B2, it doesn't hurt to say "I'm running an alter of T Pro that I made - is that cool?"

010

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 28/09/2026

2-1 at Reality Fracture prerelease with Boros Aggro! Some close shaves, but it did alright. Can't knock the jump spell.

Boros limited deck with Red Chandra, White Ajani, and three Campus Criers

030

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 27/09/2026

good lord that's some heat

001

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 26/09/2026

Disappointing trend, but Reality Fracture and Marvel Heroes landing in the same year also just feels like bad luck. FRA's whole "Bizzaro world" theme really needs the original reference and mirror version to be legible. Then of course there's no more main character property than Marvel, so.

010

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 24/09/2026

Smaller than the Xteink X3 perhaps! Wow, that's incredibly small

110

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 20/09/2026

And by that I mean, I think you can genuinely *try* to make a good EDH deck with a slightly challenging commander, and end up with a solidly Bracket 2 deck. And that's fine, but there's a lot of them out there - and prob many miscategorized as Bracket 3, because B3 feels like "hey I'm really tryin"

000

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

Hmmm...I feel like this underestimates how many decks out there are built with "suboptimal" commanders, with "suboptimal" cards, and not packed with EDHRec auto-includes. If you regularly play mid/high-power EDH, you lose sight of decent decks that *aren't as well-designed/functional as precons*.

101

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 19/09/2026

The Unexpected Windfall art goes so hard. I know it's not new for Arena, but I really dig it.

Unexpected Windfall. New Capenna-looking Woman dashes through an old gate clutching some big scrolls as she leaves a wake of calamity behind her

110

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 17/09/2026

lol, get that bag rolling stone?

Use that rolling stone promo code on seat geek to get your deeply discounted Ed Sheeran ticket?

010

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

maybe from here on it'll be corny and dumb to preface talking about Macklemore with "He may be cringe, but..." that is no longer Macklemore's defining trait, i feel

040

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 16/09/2026

"Okay so that spell resolves, and I'll devou--ah, *empower* Jace..."

020

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 11/09/2026

"For the price of a 40 nugget" -- and that's how they getcha.

000

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

snagging a copy before FRA prerelease and slipping it in my sealed deck

110

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 09/09/2026

Oh god, it's like the moment where you gotta push up your glasses and explain that coming in "tapped and attacking" does not count for a "when this creature attacks" trigger...that, except for spell copying.

120

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 02/09/2026

1. go berserk 2. make berserk

berserk, in the style of a Zeta set/playtest card

020

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 01/09/2026

heads up, she may start playing MtG when the Star Trek set (yes really) comes out in November

010

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 28/08/2026

you can just do whatever you want!!

111

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

I so hope this drop makes people think "Oh shit, I could probably do something like that" and then *do it*.

010

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Just 👏 Make 👏 Singles 👏

100

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Yeah, maybe a little "DIY repackaged and sold back to you", but I hope it inspires at least a few people to try making some alters/proxies/art for the first time.

010

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 27/08/2026

Just Make Singles (actually IMO the coolest thing about this Zeta Set is that it's an official product that comes the closest to saying: "you know you can just like...do this at home, yeah? Do you have access to scissors, glue, and a copier?")

150

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 24/08/2026

my aragorn black my gandalf chinese we recruit, don't connive knicks in five

040

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

That said, check out mtgen.net - I can't speak to the accuracy (and they don't have a price thing), but it's quite complete if you're looking to go way back in time!

mtgen.net

Magic: The Gathering: Sealed/Booster Generator

000

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 20/08/2026

I can only go so far back, really just the last few years. Accuracy is really important to me, so I rely on the published pull rates that WotC has been putting out in the past few years: magic.wizards.com/en/news/feat... Before around mid-2023, the default just isn't there.

magic.wizards.com

Collecting The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™

Prepare yourself for the epic products and card treatments coming with The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ before the adventure begins on June 23.

000

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

What about the inverse? Punch me and bugs fall out

Broodhatch Nantuko
{1}{G}
Creature — Insect Druid

Whenever this creature is dealt damage, you may create that many 1/1 green Insect creature tokens.

Morph {2}{G} (You may cast this card face down as a 2/2 creature for {3}. Turn it face up any time for its morph cost.)

1/1

020

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 18/08/2026

90's Magic game designer also be like "Oh, in case you don't get it: FOR EXAMPLE...a normal non-flying target defender can and must block all normal non-flying attackers at once"

This Yugioh-ass rules text on Blaze of Glory, {W}, Instant, "Target defending creature can and must block all attacking creatures it can legally block. for example, a normal non-flying target defender can and must block all normal non-flying attackers at once, but it cannot block any flying attackers. Controller of target defender may distribute amage among attackers as desired. Play before defense is chosen."

120

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Kinda wild to do prerelease in an LGS and just see what $50, $60 can get you on the wall behind you filled with board games. Like damn, I coulda walked out with that giant, beautiful, replayable box of *stuff* instead of this stack of chaff and one or two Commander-playable singles?

060

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 15/08/2026

Yes, but from a "I like it when I can recognize the game pieces in my game" angle too. I know we've long jumped the shark, but it's not like it doesn't matter. A great piece on this: "Framing A Magic Accessibility Issue" blog.cardkingdom.com/framing-a-ma...

blog.cardkingdom.com

Framing A Magic Accessibility Issue

Accessibility is an important part of Magic growing as a game, but some card treatments cause problems with typical heuristics.

030

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 14/08/2026

and it's only gonna get worse as we get further from release day 🫠

010

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

thanks for the shout again @tolariancommunitycollege.com! A hefty bump in the traffic tipped me off 😅 Hobbit is now live ✨

Screenshot of Prof opening Hobbit Collector Boosters

2686

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 11/08/2026

4 of 5 bans were UB, but 4 of 6 recent *sets* were UB too (5 of 7 if you include The Hobbit). So yeah it just kinda tracks with UB's large presence in Magic overall.

000

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 10/08/2026

rest in peace my granny, she got hit by a ban-zooka

030

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

Hype on this guy too. I just wonder what happens if he gets removed repeatedly or turned off. Will I have a deck that just kinda does...very little? Hmm

100

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

how does it feel to create a Magic: the Gathering card just by posting?

150

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

But then we're just kinda talking around the fact that Commander is a cursed format when we're stuck between "have fun" and "try to win, but not too hard".

000

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

I'm 100% on board with you there. I own a Grave Pact, have a Golgari sacrifice deck, will never run it. I guess I'd word it as: more players should care about the net game experience of the cards they run. Highly oppressive, highly logistical (Cathar's Crusade, infinitoken hell), etc.

010

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

We never praise an excellent precon by saying "It's so restrained! Look how much restraint the designers employed!"

000

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 03/08/2026

It's a take directed at a specific slice of deckbuilding. On the whole though, it doesn't seem totally aligned with the general Commander mandate of "You can play whatever cards make you happy, have fun!" Any other format incentivizes/rewards restraint much more than Commander.

200

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

and done - just before Hobbit time! Experience the thrill of hitting a foil borderless Orcish Bowmasters and still getting totally wrecked on value!

screenshot of justbuysingles.com, MtG pack simulator. Set to LOTR.

001

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

Yeah, I've been playing Commander for the last few years and still find it...generally overwhelming. As my and my opponents' cards get more complex, I have to dedicate so much time to figuring out what my turn's gonna look like, resulting in tuning out their turns. ✨Gameplay!✨

110

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

It's pretty obvious in the case like Cathar's Crusade, where common sentiment seems to be like tracking is just not worth the logistical headache. Cards like Roaming Throne are a lot more insidious though. It's the complex logistics of Commander, but *more*, and we sure love *more*, right?

040

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

Like obviously doubling effects, double card draw, double cascade, double Blood Artist, etc, are things players love. We love an engine engining. But the ease and degree to which you let players do that is a game design choice. Letting players monopolize game time with huge stacks is a choice!

010

gpwaltz @gpwaltz.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

"[text-heavy Commander design] can remove the ability to be as social with friends as you're all too busy figuring out triggers and resolving the stack instead." This is a big deal! I feel like players can easily optimize the fun/flow out of a game in they're not careful. Those costs are hidden.

360