Humans of Magic

I am pleased to have Wilson Hunter on “Humans of Magic.” Wilson is a co-host of the amazing “The Brainstorm Show” podcast, a father, and an intense competitor. Or to use his words — ultra-competitive! We talk about parenthood, the origins of his competitive drive, and growing up with Magic friends that inspire each other to perform better everyday. Wilson also self-reflects on taking losses hard, working with the community to improve his game, and the guilt that he feels in having a hobby like Magic. It gets deeply personal in places, and that’s where the learning happens. I’m grateful to know a great competitor and human being like Wilson, and hope that you’ll enjoy the listen.

Roland Chang is the only player to have won both the “Magic: The Gathering” Vintage and Legacy format World Championships. He is a mainstay on the East Coast Eternal Magic scene. What you may not know about Roland, however, is that he was close to leaving the game for good. A seriously unfortunate event almost led him down that path, but the power of the community brought him back. Like all of us, he has had his share of adversity and comebacks. In this 1:1 interview, Roland opens up about his childhood and handling the weight of familial expectations. He talks about his involvement in social activities, seeking life balance, and finding a significant other. Join us for a glimpse inside one of the game’s fiercest competitors.

“And then I decided that’s how I want to conduct myself…and it’s worked out very well for me.” Matt Pavlic is one of my best friends. He also happens to be the person that led me down the path of competitive Magic. I’ve had almost a decade of amazing gaming memories, in no small part due to Matt’s influence. I could not be where I am today were it not for his steady friendship and support. Most notably, Matt’s matured a ton over the years as a person. In this conversation, he talks about growing up fast and getting a new outlook on life. He’s worked hard for everything that he has, and as a result, he has a bright future ahead of him. I am truly honored to have my friend on “Humans of Magic” to share his perspective.

“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/comments/58slc5/a_rebuttal_the_lifestyle_of_the_professional/ “Gamers and Depression” by Noah Weil http://www.starcitygames.com/php/news/print.php?Article=11045 “Leffen: Resurrection” series http://www.redbull.com/us/en/esports/episodes/1331816544534/cultivation-season-2-leffen-resurrection-episode-1

“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.

This week, we interrupt your regularly scheduled programming for a different kind of interview. I appear on the Power Nine Magic podcast starring Mikail Lo to spread the word about a book I wrote called "Magic: The Addiction." That's right -- I wrote a book about Magic. It's about my personal experiences, but it's also a little bit more than that. I hope that you'll give the book a chance, because I poured my heart and soul into it. It took me down into many dark places, but there is redemption at the end. Take a listen and you'll know what I mean. And not to worry -- we'll get back to the regular show next week.

“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

“The most important lesson I’ve learned is letting that which truly does not matter, go.” Damon Whitby, also known as “Parcher” on The Source, is one of the elder statesman of the Legacy format. He’s been advancing the 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] Virginia 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

“There’s really no reason to not be direct about what you want, or what you’re going for.” Alex Majlaton 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

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