Locations
Welcome back, everyone! With Gatecrash brand new, I wanted to share with you some influential deck-builders last time to help you get in the mood to brew with some new cards. Now that you’ve taken some of their advice and made some brews of your own, it’s time to jam games. Playtesting can start to feel like a second job that doesn’t pay as well, and beating the same matchup to death is monotonous and can quickly feel as though it’s not worth it. What if there were a way to gather valuable testing data, see how the meta is shaping up, and be entertained all at the same time?
There’s obvious value to having a peek at other players’ playtesting sessions because it can inform how you attack the meta and can give you ideas you may not have had. And what if you could watch players who aren’t likely to make a ton of play mistakes and who have proven track records as players? Sound too good to be true? Now what if I told you that some of those same players were willing to do their testing in front of a live audience for free? If you’re not aware of Twitch, you should really pay attention to this site.
First of all, anything you’re interested in has a Twitch page. Since I’m primarily a financier, I typically watch a lot more chess videos on Twitch than I do Magic playtest videos, but most of your hobbies are represented. When they begin streaming, your favorite Magic players will announce on Twitter and/or Facebook they’re about to begin streaming. Hop onto Twitch, and watch the Magic. You can even comment on the match as it’s going on and interact with the player and the other spectators. I hope you’re sold on the value of Twitch as a data stream for Magic. But now that you want to start watching . . . Who to Follow?
Cedric Phillips
Where You Know Him From: StarCityGames, Twitch (it bears repeating!)
Current Title: SCG Live broadcast commentator, StarCityGames writer
Social Media:
To my mind, no one better embodies the spirit of this new medium for Magic “edutainment” than Ceddy P. Not shying away from teachable moments or opportunities to express his opinion about the state of Magic coverage, Phillips is on a one-man crusade to bring Magic coverage up to the level of other e-sports, such as League of Legends event coverage. Bringing his A game to his own stream as well as SCG event coverage, he just might make it happen. The consummate entertainer, watching his stream just might make you forget you’re learning about the metagame.
Streaming often, and streaming well, you’d be well-served if you decided you could only choose one stream to follow and you chose Cedric Phillips as that player.
Travis Woo
Where You Know Him From: ChannelFireball
Current Title: ChannelFireball Pro, writer
Social Media:
Woo, Woo, it rhymes with Brew (sorry, I am anxious for new Game of Thrones episodes, okay?). I would say Travis Woo is responsible for a great deal of fun at Friday Night Magic. Responsible for off-the-wall goodness such as OmniDoor ThragFire, a Woo brew is fun, goofy, and occasionally very potent. It’s gratifying when a fun deck can get there (two of the last three FNMs at my store were won by ThragFire then Griselbros. Not bad for “fun” decks!), and these decks are as fun to play against as they are to wield. Woo likes to stream on Tuesday nights in what he calls “Tuesday Brewsday,” which is a lot of fun to watch.
I hope this series doesn’t seem tinged by my personal bias, but on principle, I really like people who are like Travis. His contribution to the game is hard to overstate because he is the perfect mix of Spike and Timmy. I became distracted by his stream tonight for longer than I’d care to admit, and I had a great time watching him try to get there with Unexpected Results. An entertaining character, a competent technical player, and an exceptional deck brewer, Woo would have been at home during last week’s Brewmaster article just as easily as he feels at home here. I can’t recommend his stream highly enough.
Bonus Section
Just like Travis Woo would have been a fine choice to profile for the Brewmaster Article (I haven’t ruled him out of inclusion in a future installment), I feel that Sam Black, a contributor I felt could easily have fit in any number of installments of this series, is worth mentioning here.
If you’re following Sam Black on Twitter, you may catch an announcement that he’s about to begin streaming on his Twitch page, and I think he is well worth the time spent watching. Sam thinks about this game on a level that I can only hope to someday achieve, and his insights are very valuable. Sam’s SCG articles are behind a pay wall, but his stream is free to watch. I’m sure you can see the value in enjoying free, unfettered access to his opinion as well as the value of being able to watch one of the game’s great minds at work.
Please don’t make the mistake of thinking that my choosing these two for the first installment means that people profiled in future installments are not equally valuable contributors. There are plenty of other streamers worth watching, and I have decided to semi-randomize the list of contributors to remain dispassionate and refrain from appearing to endorse certain contributors over others. That said, both of these gentlemen have strong cases to be made for being called the best streamer, although that’s not the goal of this series. Why pick and choose a “best” when you can watch both of these very different streams and learn from both? The contributors I’ve selected for future installments are equally worth following, so keep checking this space for “Who to Follow – The Stream Team, Part 2,” coming soon.
Until we meet again!
