The List Is Broken | Here's How To Fix It | Magic The Gathering
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Hey Prof, I have a question. Is this a limited time offer?
Lemme find out your magnus in final fantasy 14 just met this guy talks and acts just like you
I do not like sticking earbuds into my ears
“Set boosters were designed to remove draft chaff but they filled the List with draft chaff”. That is an excellent summary/critique, prof. (A retro-frame OG art delver would be fire).
Agreed. OG frames would be an awesome and easy solution for the majority of cards.
Definitely agreed!!!
That completely explains why set boosters don't have to contain all colors.
Old frame cards should definitely be set on fire.
that is one of the most wotc things to do. Design something to remove chaff and them after the first 2~3 releases start to add chaff until people don't care/want it anymore and kill the product and wonder why the hell it got to the point where it barely sold.
They did exactly with the List what I feared it would become: An additional spin on the gacha machine to trick people into buying set boosters instead of mini-masterpieces.
I got them instead. After being extremely disappointed with all of the booster boxes that I've bought this year, save for MH2, I've just stopped buying boosters all together.
I've always known that it was better to buy singles, but it is fun to open packs, and it's a quick and easy way for me to support my LGS without having to spend hours combing over their available singles from each new set. But thanks to Wizards horrid business decisions, I've stopped buying boxes again.
At this point I'm just looking for another game to replace Magic entirely.
@@Xoulrath_ I'm pretty sure this is why flesh and blood took off?
@@Troglodytemtg maybe, but FaB is already pulling stuff like this. Crucible of War, a set just released in Unlimited form in July, has already been removed from print. It became a FOMO as soon as the announcement was made, and prices spiked.
According to some in the FaB community, there aren't a ton of cards in the set that are widely needed. According to others, it was a bad move to cut the set because it has tournament staples. I don't know because I'm still learning about the game.
What I do know is that I'm currently on the fence about jumping into FaB, because even games like the WoW TCG, which had a fantastic foundation and the popularity of the biggest game around at the time, ultimately failed.
Legend Story Studios making a short print set, in Unlimited no less, of just three waves and then calling it, reeks of market manipulation. The game is 2 years old and hasn't even gained a foothold yet in my LGS. They are actively pushing it and can't get anyone to play currently. I imagine it's wallet fatigue as opposed to the game itself.
Regardless, I've been looking into FaB as well (obviously), precisely because of Magic's current business practices. But I don't want to trade the devil I know for one that I don't, and stunts like short printing a set that was just released in Unlimited, of a game that is 2 years old and still trying to gain market share, is maybe just getting a different devil.
Damn, I just commented something damn near similar about the gacha, I was late by two days xD
Yup
Such a well presented and thoughtful argument. Find myself totally agreeing.
Well he is an English teacher lol
@@yungfatass445 Was he really an English teacher or is this a meme?
My experience was completely the opposite than Prof’s. I cracked like 3 boxes and 70% of my list pulls were fire. Ancient tomb, krark’s thumb, sneak attack, hermit Druid, animate dead, grand arbiter Augustus, aura shards, and that red 3 drop ritual that gives 5 red (I never remember the name)
@@WhosTurnIsIt yes he taught English at the college level. I can’t remember what video it was, but he talked about a time some people looked him up and found him on campus to play their cube. He was flattered but also nervous about the whole situation.
Was in IHYD vs Posty vs Prof.
This is great.
When you're already getting The List in only 1/4 of your set booster packs, they should ALWAYS be exciting - they're essentially all mythic-rares. They should feel that way.
Shrinking the list down to 50 cards gives you a reasonable chance to get any individual List card. At 300, you don't.
'a great idea that has been implemented poorly'
almost every single MtG product for several years, in a nutshell
*waves at Arena*
and yet thet are making more money then ever. the world is a strange place.
At least their off that "it's for new players" so it's completely garbage kick.
Yep, exactly. Like look what they are doing to bundles now. lol so many bad decisions.
Wotc companion app was shown on their products five years before release and it feels like something made in a one day gamejam, and done poorly if that point didn't come across
I want to add my 2 cents. I'm a new player and I started playing buying AFR commander decks and bundles. When Innistrad came out I've decided to buy a couple of bundles just because I wanted to see wizard approach on "classic" horror. Searching online I've found out that the bundles contained set boosters instead of draft, after some researches my thought was "Oh cool, so there are some packs that are more 'opening experience' oriented and contains more valuable cards". Bought them, opened them and the result was approximatly the same amount of rares/mythic, some common foils, and 3/4 commons from "the list". I've sincerily felt bad of that pack opening... Why removing two packs only to give shitty cards and saying on your website that set boosters are more valuable.
Another problem, in my opinion, not mentioned in this video is localization. I'm an italian player, I know english, but when I've opened the packs and found out that the list was not localized even if the cards have a localized counterpart I felt like wizard don't care at all to make a well thought product and put the list in there just to fuck around with prices.
I've decided that I will never buy set boosters again and just buy drafts. Yea there are more commons and useless card but at least I can have good times with my friends
i agree. i also got into MTG around AFR and bought bundle of AFR, game nights box, and Commanders Legends booster box. I will not buy set boosters. And now that WotC has changed bundles into set boosters, i will not buy bundles. To be fair, i also buy a lot more singles for my deckbuilding than draft boosters anymore regardless, so im not the kind of player who is looking for an opening experience
welcome to the game, as a fairly new player myself (only 8 months at this point) id reccommend to not buy any more packs / bundles unless you really want it or u just want to support your LGS, 1 piece of advice is to buy singles over packs / bundles (precons are good to buy if u like em just upgrade em with singles)
@@moe3120 Exactly. Just buy the cards you want.
I feel like how they did the mystical archive cards from strixhaven, would have been perfect for the list
The Mystic Archive was the List done (mostly) right. A small curated group of cards with at least 1 card from it appearing in every pack. Cards had unique alt art and were thematic to the setting being some of the more evocative and well known spells from across the multiverse. The fact they did this so easily puts paid to the lie that they can't do it for the List.
I wish they would just continue the MA and ditch the List.
Exactly, quality over quantity please.
It's been two decades since I was in meetings about product content such as this. But, everything you point out in this video demonstrates just how damaged and broken the current process inside of Wizards is. Back in our day, we would have immediately recognized the stupidity of this design and quickly fixed it long before launch.
They could improve the list by simply adding one to every pack-- if there must be chaff then you'd expect at least this.
This is by far the best idea I've seen to remedy The List with a single move. Why introduce the extra 1-in-4 gamble if there's already a low chance of you getting a card you really want? Atm you're gambling on not getting a List card in the first place, then gambling on whether or not it's worth your time. Having one in every pack would go a long way to alleviate peoples' concerns, I feel.
@@liamcolligan packs with List cards still have tokens... on top of that I think you are missing the point
@@cubencis they might also be saying that sarcastically.
Why don’t they just give boosters away for free? That would improve the packs even more.
@@liamcolligan Cards from The List replace the ad cards, which are literal actual garbage.
Cutting the number of cards on The List to 50-75 high quality cards is a great idea. Adding in new art for each set for theme will make WOTC raise the prices of set boosters. I'd much rather just have the list be small with good, useful cards that may be thematic to each set, with some old art/borders thrown in.
As someone relatively new to MTG, I was pretty excited by the idea of the list. I would get to experience some of Magic's history. However, after opening some boxes, the list cards were by far the least exciting part of the openings. I started really excited every time I noticed there would be a list card, but in the end, uncommon showcases from the set were far more exciting. I like the idea of the list, but it's so bloated that it just feels not at all noteworthy. At least if they had cool treatments, I could feel like they could be worth throwing in a binder. Right now, they're all just in a box with the rest of my bulk.
Agree with all of these points, I thought they would act as lottery cards with rares/mythical only but getting some bulk common I pulled a few years ago is such a feel bad. Only pull that was worth was a Cavern
I’ve opened 3-4 set booster boxes and only found 1 card on the list that had any value, and none I actually wanted to play. As it is I don’t even consider it when buying a booster box. There’s got to be a better way to do it.
You missed an easy improvement Prof. If they're going to leave a lot of the chaff on the list, they could put one in each set booster, not just 1/4 of them
1/8 after New Cappena comes out, as Blake revealed on the weekly stream that New Cappena will be the set that has the alternative versions of the Stranger Things, and the rate will be 1/8 packs have a random non ST card from the list, 1/8 will have the stranger things cards specifically (so the other cards on the list basically doubled in rarity).
The timing is interesting. Just yesterday they previewed the Stranger Things Secret Lair and said those functionally unique cards will have MTG versions on "The List" in New Capenna, appearing 1 in 8 packs.
So, if we go with 300 cards on list, then you can get whole collection in around 2400 packs, 67 boxes. Yop. This will centrainly make them affordable enought...
I keep opening jank list cards...keep being like ok did this really need a reprint.
@@101Shifty No no, it's not 1 List card in every 8 packs. It's 1 non-MUB Stranger Things card every 8 packs. There are 8 of those. (Although Mind Flayer is Mythic and will be less frequent.)
@@notme222 Well, if thats true, im ok with this. Having all 8 in ~2 boxes sounds cool. They could even end quite cheap.
I used to think FTV was a soulless cash grab but then I met Secret Lairs. Sad part is as long as dumb people buy them they will keep printing them.
it also feels bad having very recent cards in it. The first list had ikoria, eldrain and theros beyond death cards in it. with each of the added card came more of those recent sets. At least wait until the cards aren’t in Standard, preferably longer
Man you are pumping out the quality content!
The list definitely feels like something that an AI made by hitting ‘Random’ on Scryfall 300 times instead of something that was crafted with mortal hands.
An intern probably wrote the script and they wanted to find a use for it haha
I'm pretty sure that's actually what happened.
I've got a new drinking game: take a shot every time the Professor says something reasonable that would positively impact Magic and its community of players and retailers.
Maybe you'd better call the ambulance ahead of time, just to be on the safe side.
lol, that's a dangerous game ;p
Having the list be themed to the set would be amazing. I pulled a Moonmist in the same pack as an Arlinn and it felt just about as good as if I pulled some random expensive mythic off the list.
Honestly I forgot The List existed. It's such an underwhelming thing that I simply haven't thought about it in ages. Absolutely fantastic ideas as always, Professor.
"a great idea, but implemented poorly" could be an apt description of MTG in the past 3-ish years.
exactly
I really like your suggestions. It rarely feels special to get a list card because most of the time when you get one, it's some worthless card I couldn't trade even if I wanted to.
The List having filler cards really discourages me from ever wanting to buy set booster packs.
it's a trap, don't buy it. Collector boosters or bust.
Just buy singles
"It would be nice if you told viewers to buy set boosters..."
"It would be nice if they were worth purchasing!"
That's it, that's the whole crux.
Prof really hit the nail on the head with this one. I’ve never gotten a set booster box, only loose booster packs here and there, and every time I’ve gotten a List card it’s been some common I’ve never even heard of before
The points in this video are so spot on. You have to wonder how WOTC misses the mark so badly.
Because disappointing you is their business model.
They are not aiming for the mark you think or want them to be.
The "cards being presented in their original frame concept" isn't something I _mind,_ per se, but it worked a lot better in the Mystery Booster set because of the theming of it being a Chaos/Cube draft in a booster pack. That said, as cool as set themed List Cards would be, I doubt it'll ever happen because it's more cost (they'd need to commission a new artist for every set that List card appears in) when the List seems like it's supposed to be an inexpensive way to get reprints out there.
I think your improvements to the list are exceptional. Having masterpieces that are more accessible than a golden ticket is a great idea
Probably makes the chocolate taste bad anyway. 😒
At first I thought the list was going to be evocative of mystery boosters and everyone loved mystery boosters. If set boosters came with a guaranteed card from the list in every pack, that would make much more sense
I do wish the list was better, I've had some decent luck with it and I love getting some of the older cards. And my friends love seeing the crazy older stuff they never got to experience. Art and frames and such its fascinating.
I do agree tho the chaft being there is not needed. There are plenty of pauper cards that are useful but cheap. Or low value useful rares.
Similarly, I feel ‘The List’ is wasted opportunity for new and experienced players alike to build their collection of potentially playable cards outside of the current standard environment. These cards could be used in commander or as a way to help get a newer player into an eternal format. A steady drip of playable “old” cards would do wonders for the overall MTG environment. I feel that the Mystical Archive cards in Strixhaven was a positive example of how this can be done. 25-30 reprint cards per standard set with “archival art” would be plenty. Only available in set boosters, not drafts.
The List cards are too watered down and unfocused (especially considering the rate at which they appear in set boosters) to make them chase-worthy for an average player.
Blend the execution of Mystical Archive and “The List” and that might be a winning formula.
I'm coming from the perspective of someone who has played for a looong time, but just recently started buying actual products. I had two or three old decks I just ran casually against people, but since starting my own commander circle (sadly a very small one at this point) I've started actually collecting more cards. I found the Mystical Archive to be an amazing concept and so I bought a box of Strixhaven. I didn't even regret it after opening it! If these "Mystical Archive" things would appear in future packs I would love it. They could even be themed around the cards in standard. For example Innistrad could have featured reprints of old classics from the OG Innistrad and Shadows over Innistrad blocks. That would be amazing for us coming in late into the hobby. I'd def buy more boxes atleast!
Agree with this completely. In fact, I ended up buying a booster box of Strixhaven specifically because I wanted the mystical archive cards. I love alternate art/bordered cards and those are normally enough to get me to invest in product. The list is kinda the opposite of that.
The idea of a new player buying set boosters and slowly getting a playset of lightning bolts would be cool if they were to put "old" but decent cards in the list
@@NULLxFORxNONE On the other hand, Lightning Bolts from more recent printings sell for less than two dollars. Obviously WOTC can't make products that are more valuable for resale than they are in-store (although since they don't make money off secondary market sales I don't see why not, beyond potentially offending the resalers who field Pro Tour teams), but you'd hope for a rare specialty item they could include things a bit more exciting than a two dollar common. If you're making a product that serves to get people into an eternal format, you're not selling to the purely casual players anymore - reprint some of the good stuff that's actually expensive and keeps people out of the format! Why not throw in some Goblin Guides if you want to rope in those Burn players? At very least, don't reprint cards that are super common - back when I was still playing a lot of paper magic, I ended up with at least a few bolts and I never once played Burn at an event or anywhere else.
You're right on Prof. The list is a failure. IMO - the rarity of the good hits, the inclusion of BS commons from the previous sets (so weird). I absolutely LOVE the idea of the list but the implementation as you said is flawed. It needs to feel impactful when you hit one, and right now, seeing an Eldraine common... The List needs a revamp. I really hope WOTC watches this video :)
Yah pulling a common from a set that rotated less than a month ago is…. Eesh.
What's worse is getting a card from literally the previous set (d&d cards in innistrad)
I remember pulling common AFR cards in my recent set boosters and was livid. I don't care if it was a werewolf and thematic. Telling me there wasn't any other innistrad card to put in instead?
I wish the Prof was in every WotC board meeting. Even if his ideas only made it through 10% of the time, the game would be better for it. And for the 90% of the time his council fell on deaf ears, I’d be happy just knowing he’d be standing in the corner, arms folded, shaking his head violently.
Counsel. I feel like it's OK to do this because we're on a Prof's channel.
@@nottsfhj I appreciate the correction, man. Bet you weren’t expecting that, huh? 😄
I opened a 30 cent hidden agenda uncommon in a list slot today
Ye
Pretty much not a scroll rack
To be honest, I regularly forget The List exists until I'm reminded of it like I was with this video. I guess that supports everything you said on the current state of The List quite well.
Oh my god, I would love a Midnight Hunt Scroll Rack...
I got into Magic in the 90’s primarily because I loved collecting. I play more now than collect, but I love the alt-art cards. I LOVE the idea of “the list” having set themed art versions!
Sorry Prof, your first mistake was taking WotC at their word about what their goals were. The confounding factor that you didn't touch on is "reprint equity" and WotC is VERY conservative in how much of that they spend on reprint sets. I think the reason there are so many complete dud and draft chaff cards on The List is because the suits were only willing to allow a specific (if arbitrary) value for that "The List" booster pack slot. In order to have actually in demand cards on the list, they had to pad it out with complete trash to bring the average down.
However even if this analysis I've given is exactly correct, this leads to an interesting dial WotC can turn for "power-down" standard sets. Since weak power level sets are always and will always be unpopular, they could crank up the average value of the "The List" slot to compensate, maintaining the overall value of the pack while giving standard it's lame sets.
As a relatively new Magic player, I like the list. At first, when I was only playing standard, I hated them. "Why is there a random old card in my pack?" But now, after playing Commander for awhile, I really enjoy them. Even if they're not crazy powerful cards, they help me rethink what kind of mechanics I can try to run in my deck, and better, they often wind up adding a fun mechanic to my deck that effects not only me but often other players.
"Legally not gambling."
That's the theme, face it.
I managed to pull a Scroll Rack out of a Commander Legends booster that I randomly picked up at Target one day. That felt so awesome! I feel like pulls like that out of boosters are too few and far between
“Set boosters were designed to [introduce a lottery mechanic so WotC could justify charging more money to a variation without a difference product]” - there, fixed that for you ;)
Isn't booster packs nothing but lottery machines with very set prizes?
Agree completely! What moved me away from set booster boxes was the list being so unpredictable and without any flavour to it!
Professor: "I bet you didn't even KNOW this card was on the list!"
Me, who didn't know about the list: "Nope, I sure didn't."
Lol, same
@@jackwilson5050 I was like, yeah prof, tell us all about the problems with the reserved list! Took me a few minutes to figure out those are not the same thing. But I'm old.
I am so happy Prof put out this vid. I felt the very same way, I thought the list was supposed to be an outlet for decent reprints. I have really only remembered draft chaff in those slots...
The wizards economists in the ivory tower won’t approve one set card in each pack, since there that single digit percentage of getting 4 rares/mythics per pack, and a fifth would make their heads explode.
Going back through the videos I haven't watched in full, this really is a strong one that I somehow overlooked!
A very very good in-depth quality opinion on fixing, nay, improving the game's core issue. 🤙🏻
Just my two cents after having opened over a dozen set boxes since they started this thing. I've only ever opened 3 relevant list cards. A Monastery Mentor, an AEther Vial, and a Hermit Druid. Literally every other list card I've opened has been junk or worthless. It feels like they are intentionally limiting the relevant card's pull rates as to not tank the values and upsell you on the chance. Also, as of Innistrad: Midnight Hunt, the set boosters I opened contained a lot of duplicate rares and mythics. Along with several packs containing multiples of the same commons and uncommons in a row in the pack.
They really don't feel like they're worth it at all. Maybe if they were the same price as a draft box, but it's Wizards. That ain't happening.
Thank you for this wonderful and passionate discussion. I was very wary to begin playing Magic, from the outside it looked like just brainless nerds and expensive paper but I was so quickly shown otherwise. Your vigor for the quality of the game and it's products is very reassuring. Here's to hoping WotC can add some value and clarity to the List's features.
I opened two set boosters and only pulled commons from The List. It definitely left me with a feelsbad moment.
If you mean two set booster boxes? That’s simply not true, they are track printed to include at least one mythic or high value rare per box.
I think they meant two boosters. Still, you open 2 boosters, get 2 cards from The List, you feel lucky, but in the end it’s just draft chaff. I understand the disappointment.
@@pikmaniac1557 welcome to randomness of opening packs.
@@SB-yq5wb Yup I opened two set boosters boxes and only got commons and uncommons from The List. This isn't the first time something like this happened to me. I bought some theme boosters from Kaldheim and I didn't get a rare in two out of the 3 theme boosters. Either I got really bad luck or production is really garbo.
My two cents: something like Strixhavens “Mystical Archive” subset would work great for what prof is suggesting
I think the list should be akin to the mystical archive from Strixhaven. All of them say at least some play, had unique art, tied into the theme of the set and got people talking about them.
I was really sad (but not suprised) to see mystical archive or even just the idea of a showcase in every pack was not going to be permanent
The ways I would improve the list.
1. list card in every booster.
2. Every card on the list is somewhat relevant or special in some way.
3. Trim the list down to 121 cards per set (1 sheet)
Sometimes you get things right, this would be one of those times. We can only hope that someone at WotC actually hears the communities cry on this one and gives us what we want
List pulls can definitely make for an exciting opening, I was lucky enough to get an Emrakul, Thrumming Stone, and a Primal Vigor in that slot.
Alternative idea: reprint high-demand old sets as a 'themed list' set and recommission new art either across the board or art for cards that were originally commissioned by now problematic artists
And don't make the boosters ridiculously expensive. Anything over £6 a pack is really pushing it IMO
Such a great idea! I would love to buy set busters If the list were on one of those treatments. MEMORABLE its the word the list needs.
These past two years of Magic have felt like Wizards is throwing everything they can think of at the wall to see what sticks, and I feel like they're hitting the target with some things, mainly sets like Time Spiral Remastered and Modern Horizons 2, but also hitting all around the target with things like Mystical Archive (too many available, made it not special), or The List (not special or desirable, too random to be interesting). A middle ground would be excellent, and The List is a perfect place to do it. Alternate art, or alternate frame versions of themed cards as you said, even not very valuable ones would be special and collectible, as people might want a different version of Mind Stone or Chromatic Sphere. Or even better, have the list contain old frame versions of the current set's cards, and make that a permanent, predictable part of sets from now on. There's so many ways to make it good, and it just isn't right now.
Sidenote, I think you're slightly misrepresenting Mystical Archive here. It wasn't just a reprint thing, it was a unique way to bring interesting spells into limited without having to worry about Standard. It was very special. (At least until they do it three times in short order in back to back sets.)
I don't have any knowledge of MtG, nor the inclination to learn or start collecting, but for some reason can't stop watching these videos. Like, I just let the words I don't understand wash over me. Thanks for coming to my Ted talk
New idea for set boosters: $10, 3 commons, 2 uncommons, 4 rare/mythics, 2 showcase cards of any rarity, 1 foil of any rarity, 1 list card with the changes Prof. suggested.
Then you might as well change the name of rares and mythics to commons and uncommons...
I do love Prof calling out Scroll Rack; I opened a Kaldheim set box last week and pulled one. VERY happy about that, by far the best List pull I've ever had.
The list is so garbage. Just make it 1 in each pack at least.
This might be an option I might be fine with but would mean they'll either keep all the list shaft or raise the price.
thank you for your insight on the subject, as always. It finally put words on why i was never interested in buying set booster packs
"The List" is just a hook to make sales grow, you need to buy five boxes just to have a chance to get one card of that list, but they put commons so this is just the money hunger tactic of hasbro
I got a scroll rack from a list slot, was neat to see... I got more but couldn't even tell you what they were after 3 booster boxes.
I just realized I still used the original scroll racks in recent decks instead of the list version.
Not to put down this video, but looking forward to your reaction/thoughts to the new Secret Lair. This one's a doozy.
And while I'm aware this comment could go into almost every one of his videos, I'm specifically talking about the Stranger Things one.
Huh?
@@butterbeef8504 Prof tends to have entertaining responses to obvious money-grabbing secret lairs, and this one is insultingly so with ridiculously powerful cards that are mechanically unique. This checks off every one of his boxes for a bad Lair, and I'm looking forward to his thoughts.
Travesty
You're totally correct. The list was supposed to help, not be a part of the problem. It just needs fixing, maybe one in every 2 packs has a list card...?
As much as the list is a secondary thing, me pulling a Mikaeus the Unhallowed in my box of MID was the most amazing pull i have ever gotten, alongside also a Warp World.
I personally really like the list, I’m new to mtg so it’s fun opening an old card out of a pack and seeing the card formatting of a bygone era and also getting to have a refreshing break from the same theme I’m opening constantly from the same set.
It’s like they got the same genius who designed the M25 and iconic master sets got to come up with and make The List.
lol so true
I agree, if they want the product to stick they have to grant it a special feel, that unique something only provided by a list card, even if it would be a special border, alternate art, etc (also cutting out draft clutter).
The only cards from The List that have even been remotely "cool" to me are the Future Sight shifted cards. Worthless but neat.
Glad someone is talking about this! I was excited about the list at first, but my experience with opening set boosters has taught me not to be. As others have said it should either be the currently list with one in each pack or only good cards in a similar frequency.
Instead of having a list, simply put 1 completely random old card in each pack.
Can be anything, makes it at least nice to have a "nostalgia" card at all times.
I totally agree with Prof when it comes to the value of booster packs and what comes in them...that being said my very first experience with the List was pulling a Cavern of Souls from a midnight hunt pack 🤷🏽♂️ also on that note, cavern was the most expensive hit I got from that entire set booster box...
I'm one of those people who gets a real kick out of cracking packs, finding random cards, and building around them in kitchen table or commander. So I really like Set Boosters. And I'd like them even more with resonant arts and themes, ESPECIALLY for a set like Kamigawa, which was when I first started seriously collecting myself back in the day. Seeing masterpiece art for things like Jitte, Top, the Hondens, the Dragons... it would be a dream come true.
I love this video! This is the best review and viewpoint on the List yet. I would love to see special treatments to List cards, heck yea!
IMO the goal of the list should be to drive down secondary market prices for staples. If Wizards officially sanctions formats with expensive staples then they need to ensure some version of that card isn't cost prohibitive.
Good show Professor! I agree with all of it, the list definitely fell short of what it could be!!
What you describe is what I THOUGHT the list was when I first heard of it. But quickly learned it’s pointless. You’re dead on
MY GOD MAN!!! Your research on this was top-notch and makes complete sense to me. Great job prof!
I agree completely. The List is a good idea implemented in a clumsy way. All of your suggested improvements would vastly increase the odds I spend money cracking packs.
I didn't know Snapcaster Mage was on the list until I pulled one. Definitely way more exciting than pulling yet another common or land!
The Professor is such a nice dude that I don't even mind the earbud ad he's doing, I'm actually watching and thinking "awesome that he's got sponsors, he deserves to make some money"
Love your videos and ideas. The changing the art idea isn't for me but reducing the size and associating the rotating part of the list to the current set in some way sounds cool
I love that you showed the Jumpstart Island...not only are you getting MAYBE 7 list cards in a box of set, but when you open an island... (opened that exact island across the table from someone opening an eldrazi...) it feels bad. SO much in this resonated with me on my issues with the list.
Furthermore getting chaff hurts more when its wasted on your already slim chance of getting a list card. If I knew every pack had a list card I would be less bothered by the chaff.
Last I cannot get over how disappointing it is to open a set booster and see a token backed card on the top...knowing I didn't get a list card so its already a let down...
A big part missed is cube. Snubhorn sentry is great in limited and I literally just ordered a Nightshade Peddler because I was already using my copy and my LGS didn’t have one (turns out it goes great with Halana, Kessig Ranger or really any commander with first/double strike).
I agree they are not all for me as I do not have a cube (I know, I know) but the list is not just for commander
The idea of new, thematic art is appealing, but I think the core needed fix is what the first parts of the video covered: a smaller, more focused List of composed of higher quality and actually played cards. Hell, they could even keep the 300+ size with a selection best described as "lol, random" so long as the cards were all worth cracking in some way, shape, or form.
The first--and only--time I opened a set booster box was for Kaldheim after I opened a draft booster box (I got a bonus at work, loved the set, and decided to satiate my desire a couple times a year to crack a box or two of packs). I was distinctly underwhelmed by the set booster--which is extra damning because I'm nominally the target audience--and for the life of me cannot remember what List cards I opened. I remember retail Mystery Boosters' foils better and still have a more positive opinion after opening back to back Storm Crow and One With Nothing.
You have good points about the size and changes, and your ideas are pretty good. Overall I like how WOTC has recognized the secondary markets and is adding cards into the list. The "good cards" are really hard to try to get so at least I'm glad there are more on other markets
It's cool to find an art style or card border or frame that is wildly different from the rest of the pack. I pulled a foil, old frame 'Ornithopter of Paradise' in MH2, and I fricking loved how much it sent me back to the days of Pit Trap and the pre-mirrodin artifact style.
Now if they increased the odds for List cards to 1/4 and trimmed the List down to "awesome reprints with new treatments" instead of "you just opened a common from 10 years ago, congrats", that would be amazing.
I've pulled the Jumpstart island from two different packs. The disappointment both times can't be understated. The list is a cool idea but it is terribly flawed in implementation. This video was needed, thank you.
Great suggestions! I am an avid fan of Set booster packs and boxes, but the endless janky cards on The List is frustrating. I like the concept, but it is too dominated by junk. I have opened Snubhorn Sentry and Basic Waste myself and they don’t feel great. I also was lucky enough to open a Cavern of Souls and the lottery sensation was certainly euphoric. You hit the mark perfectly - playable cards (some of high value and some of low value) are what The List needs. Thanks for the video!
I love your criticisms because you just don’t say “oh I don’t like it”. You provide ways that something could be better. I have a coworker who once told me “people don’t want to hear complaints. They want to hear solutions”. And you provide those solutions.
Absolutely agree! Bought a zendikar set booster box because I was excited about the list. Didn't care for the new expedition art, but other than pulling chulane my whole box including the list were duplicates. Getting 1 cent chaffe in the list slot has completely spoiled me wanting to ever justify paying more for set boosters. Haven't bought a set booster since.
I like that I opened an og art snapcaster in my set box but I have no use for any of the other list cards I’ve opened since the list was established. I agree 100% with your points. Even if there were only a handful of new arts and they got rid of the chaff I’d be thrilled.
To my mind they already have a better framework for the List; its called the Mystical Archives. They had good reprints, amazing themed art, and even the cheap cards they printed see lots of play! Plus they were common enough pulls that everyone who wanted a copy could get one. I might be one of the few people who enjoyed the Amonket Invocations (although they probably should have taken more inspiration from Ancient Egypt in the actual art), but I'm never going to own them because even the cheapest ones are like $70. Mystical Archives though? I got copies of every spell I play or might play for a great price.
Great video, been done over with the list recently with 5 rootrunners in one set booster box.
Exactly how I feel. On one hand, I pulled Doubling Cube and Herald's Horn from my AFR set box and was thrilled. On the other, I only pulled things like Runed Stalactite and Venerated Teacher (< $0.10 cards) in my MID set box. That AFR box felt super satisfying as a result, and the MID box was a bit more of a letdown. I'd love a more focused List for each set, that would 100 % make buying the boxes feel more worthwhile.
75 total cards on The List would be such an improvement
I have to say- I love the Unaccustomed Earth book right in the background, what a good book prof :)