Best products from r/ModernMagic

Copypasta #3 from an answer I gave to a similar thread:
You could pick up a 2014 Modern Event Deck (B/W Tokens). Add a couple Sorin, Solemn Visitors to go alongside the Elspeth the deck comes with, 2 more Inquisition of Kozileks, 2-3 Fatal Push, another Path and trade the Shrine of Loyal Legions for Secure The Wastes and suddenly you have a pretty viable deck. Tokens has a great matchup against Death's Shadow, just about any midrange deck, Burn and Affinity. The Tron matchup is godawful, and playing against combo decks can be interesting, but you could easily go 3-1 with this deck if you play enough to understand how matchups against the meta decks work. People seem to overlook Tokens most of the time, but when it comes to building a budget modern deck I don't think it gets much better to be honest. It is also much more flexible and much more fun to play than the next best budget deck choice, which would likely be Burn. There are tons of strong possible curve outs and a lot of disruption, which makes it very versatile. Comes with a playable sideboard, too. If you want to upgrade later on down the road, its pretty easy to get Marsh Flats, Godless Shrines, RIPs, Stony Silence and Thoughtseizes. 90 bucks on Amazon. Also comes with some really nice sleeves and a deckbox if you don't have one for it already. https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B00IR2W4WA/ref=dp_olp_new_mbc?ie=UTF8&condition=new
PS: Many of the cards, esp the manabase, hand disruption and sideboard can be used in other W/B/X Midrange decks or Hatebears, if you decide to go all-in on the format later on.

1. My favorite card is the card that I played in the most decks in Magic Duels back when it was still current and never stopped loving; [[Nissa, Vastwood Seer]]. She helms my one and only commander deck (which needs updating), and I'm trying to make her work in Pioneer, where she's just barely above the bar. I also have a shirt with her image.
   
   
2. My second favorite card - that I'm sad is not good enough for Modern and will never be in Pioneer - is [[Abyssal Persecutor]]. It's such a glorious Timmy/Johnny/Spike mix-up; I love every part of it. I've used the art as my desktop background multiple times. It is a masterful example of extremely complex game-play from (relatively) simple design.
   
   
3. My third favorite card is harder, since it's a long drop past the first two. I think I have to go with [[Ulamog, the Ceaseless Hunger]]. I loved the Eldrazi ever since I first saw Legacy Twelve-Post decks trying to cast them off Candelabra of Tawnos back in 2012-2014. I'm a fan of Eldritch Horror, and I like being able to go absurdly over the top of people; the idea of hard casting Emrakul seemed delightful. Unfortunately, I'm also a Spike, and that's not really a viable thing in most formats.
   Cheating it into play just doesn't feel the same. But Ulamog was an Eldrazi that you could reasonably hardcast, still felt absurdly huge, and came around in a set while I was playing in paper. In fact, in my very first pre-release (after having played online for a few years) I went 3-1 with BW Fliers (on the back of a Drana, Liberator of Malakir who easily won every game I cast her in). Rather than draft with my three reward packs, I decided to open them, because they felt special to me. One of them had an Ulamog, and I'm pretty sure it's still the most valuable card in my (tiny) paper collection.

BW Tokens lists can shift depending on your local meta-game, so if you're interested in the deck you can invest in many of the "flex" cards that can rotate out depending on what you're looking to beat. Check out primers for BW Tokens here and here, and check out some of the decklists that have placed in Grand Prix and Qualifier events. It's a deck whose list can shift quite a bit beyond the key cards.

Your quickest route to build BW Tokens will be to pick up the Modern Event Deck. It has most of the staples you'll need plus some good starting sideboard tech. Here are the individual prices of those cards as of this morning, and you can check out how it does against some other decks in the meta by reading the recent "Modern Hero" series of articles. Even with minor modifications, the deck has game against a lot of other things in the format. The MSRP is $75 U.S., but you can often find it online for around $50 U.S. With the remaining budget you have, you can easily invest in more expensive staples like [[Thoughtseize]], a few Planeswalkers, and a play set of [[Godless Shrine]].

The good thing about BW Tokens is that you're in colours that give you access to some of the hatiest hate cards in the format, so your sideboard will really shine. [[Stony Silence]], [[Rest in Peace]], [[Rule of Law]], [[Oblivion Ring]], and [[Torpor Orb]] can all be picked up on the cheap, as can more hand disruption like [[Sin Collector]] or [[Duress]]. Things like [[Aven Mindcensor]], [[Leyline of Sanctity]], or [[Auriok Champion]] are more expensive, but still within your budget as you only need about two of them for the sideboard.

One last thing to mention: fetchlands are often a huge barrier for entry in to the format. While they can definitely give you an edge in competitive play, a play set of [[Marsh Flats]] isn't necessary when starting out with this particular deck. You already have access to cheaper sources of mana fixing, and you can always pick them up later if you plan on playing the deck in a larger competitive event.

Err... to get into magic in general? Or to the modern specific one?

For modern format I think the march madness event deck which is $70 but it's really a good value, if you can splurge the extra $20.

http://www.amazon.com/Magic-Gathering-2014-MODERN-Event/dp/B00IR2W4WA

It went up in price but it's the best imo starting point for this modern format.

I think your brother should try standard first to see if he like mtg before going into modern format. Standard is probably would be cheaper in short term and more costly in long term vs modern. If you want to go standard route then /u/traceurling advice seems pretty good.

edit:

Because you get two deck with traceurling's advice and you both can play. With my modern advice you only get one deck.

Although it only has 0-2 creatures, I think you want B/W tokens. In truth, affinity's probably your best bet, but with a but with a budget of $150, that's not going to happen. Tokens is good because it makes a lot of small creatures using spells like [[Lingering Souls]], [[Spectral Procession]], etc. and uses anthem effects like [[Intangible Virtue]] to make them bigger. If you're interested, you can buy the Modern Event Deck on Amazon for ~100 dollars and use the rest of your funds to upgrade it.

Based upon what you mentioned in your post, I think a Deckbuilder's Toolkit or two makes more sense for what you're looking for. You get plenty of lands, lots of commons and uncommons, as well as a few packs.

Even better, you could always go to your local game store and ask for intro decks. They hand them out for free and they're great for beginners.

https://www.amazon.com/Stanley-25-Removable-Compartment-Professional-Organizer/dp/B00005QWYF?ie=UTF8&dpID=51QYerluqbL&dpPl=1&keywords=stanley%20organizer%20box&pi=SX200_QL40&qid=1464451376&ref=plSrch&ref_=mp_s_a_1_1&ref_=redir_mobile_desktop&sr=8-1
there is a larger version too its only 2 more dollars i think Also, wine opener boxes the nice ones, you can find at resale shops without the opener sometimes. And I use a towel for my playmat can wipe up spills, keep your cards unscuffed its great :) Don't be a yes man, be unique, the tacklebox guy at your shop! For the individual decks, I use the magic inserts and the prerelease boxes, you can give them some spirit, like arts and crafts.

I recently had a bad injury and lots of surgery on one wrist, and was sad b/c playing magic was difficult. A friend got me one of these type of things: http://www.amazon.com/Ableware-15-Playing-Card-Holder/dp/B000TYO1XO that really helped in general. Main problem was shuffling but you could ask your opponent, a friend or a judge to shuffle for you. If you roll up with an obvious injury, people will be hopefully be patient. It was nice to get back out there and play.

On another note, I would say go over to r/magictcg, as this is a pretty specialized type of magic/subreddit and is not always the best entry point for people. Either standard or limited (draft) is a common place for people to start. Good luck and heal up!

Everyone else has been saying Ultimate Guard or the Satin Towers, and I have to say I agree with u/sarithe. I recently switched to the ultra pro dual box they're referencing, and I just love it. One half perfectly holds 60 double-sleeved (with room to pull it out), and the other half keeps my sideboard separate (which I like) and also leaves room for dice etc.

Link.

I just resleeved the deck for this tournament!

The first layer is perfect fits, for which I chose KMC Perfect Hards. The next layer is normal sleeves. I used Pokemon 20th Anniversary sleeves. The third layer is character guards. I used KMC Character Guards (you can get better deals than this). The fourth layer is effectively impossible to purchase now, but they're KMC Strong Hards. I've heard that Broccoli also makes sleeves this size, but I have no first-hand experience with that.

I love the Ultra Pro 150-Count 2-Piece Plastic deck boxes. They look great on my shelf with the key card for each deck displayed in the front. The are water resistant and don't open in my backpack. They are cheap and tough to break. They hold a 60-card double sleeved, extra sleeve, the sideboard, and tokens well.

http://www.amazon.com/Ultra-Pro-150-Count-2-Piece-Plastic/dp/B0002TT3LG?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o08_s00

Magic the Gathering Dark Ascension DKA Sealed Intro Starter Deck Green Blue Grave Power https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006YC6TXA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awd_aHL5wb6PE2GGY
My first deck. Super fun. Extremely powerful for an intro deck.

Hey, this seems like a really sweet gesture. I'm sure your husband will love it!

I would caution against white sleeves. They tend to get dirty more easily, and they don't always do a good job of fully blocking out the back of the card.

My personal recommendation for sleeves would be Dragon Shield Matte sleeves in a dark color. Here is an amazon listing for the Black version (which are generally the cheapest): https://www.amazon.com/Dragon-Shield-Matte-Protective-Sleeves/dp/B00WX57O7M/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500663177&sr=8-1&keywords=dragon+shield+matte

This is just around $30 and should be the best value as far as staples goes.

Paper and pen, for the win.

I personally love a notebook like this one.

There are card holders that can help you hold cards. Then for life tracking use something like the Legion LifeCalc. These solve some of the issues OP is having, I think.

I've been using a little pouch of Christmas Reindeer figurines to great effect.

​

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075838CKN/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Get either this: http://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Guard-UGD010148-Deck-Leather/dp/B00GIQKFWS/ref=sr_1_7?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1452472220&sr=1-7&keywords=ultimate+guard+leather+deck+box


or this: http://www.amazon.com/Monolith-Deck-Case-Standard-Green/dp/B00P9FJALQ/ref=sr_1_4?s=toys-and-games&ie=UTF8&qid=1452472254&sr=1-4&keywords=ultimate+guard+monolith

I have a buddy that carries his around in a dope dewalt toolbox....heres the link

Here is a link to the event deck for OP

https://www.amazon.com/Magic-Gathering-2014-MODERN-Event/dp/B00IR2W4WA

With a 200$ budget he/she could already grab the rest of the Inquisitions they need and some thought seizes or lands.

Also for OP, http://www.hipstersofthecoast.com/modern-hero/ is an 8 week series where these guys bought the event deck and upgraded it over time. To give OP some idea of what to buy first.