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End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Mon Dec 02, 2019 8:30 pm
by cryogen
Posting this for Sheldon. He's doing one final AMA for 2019. You can ask your questions here or on the official forums.

As usual, questions can be on any topic, just keep them respectful.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 03, 2019 6:21 pm
by Dunharrow
Hi Sheldon,
Thank you for doing these AMAs.
What do you think of tutors in Commander? Do they support or circumvent the singleton nature of Commander?

(People seem to dislike specific strategies like combo or stax, and we are encouraged to talk to discuss power level before a game is played, but I find that low-cost tutors are what make these strategies viable)

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 03, 2019 6:44 pm
by RxPhantom
Do you think the format is better or worse for having tuck removed? I miss it, personally.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 03, 2019 7:14 pm
by ISBPathfinder
Sheldon,

What is your opinion of taking the 100 card mandatory deck size to being a minimum instead of a mandatory number? I guess its a bit of a question of should Battle of Wits function and be an option in commander. The change in rules would be incredibly minor and really not change how things are done. Its also not really a big deal but it would take a card that's more or less functionally banned and allow it to be played.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Fri Dec 06, 2019 10:01 am
by 3drinks
Good morning Sheldon, I trust your day is going well;

What is your opinion of the partner mechanic, both in it's implementation originally and it's subsequent revamp in Battlebond? Has it made the format better or worse in your estimation? What would it take (if it were even on the chopping block) for the mechanic to get the axe?

How has the advent of 4c affected (if at all) the drive to build 5c instead? Do you find your builds (those you either play against or self-brew) homogenizing with such easy access to your colours?

How does the current suite of power creep we're being served bode in relation to the commander format, and what do you anticipate if the creep continues in such a way? How long at that rate would you predict before the average game inadvertently enters into the "arms race" just by sheer virtue of good cards that continue getting released?

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Sat Dec 07, 2019 2:40 pm
by 5colorsrainbow
Hey Sheldon what do you think overall was the highlight(s) of 2019 for Commander and what need aspect(s) improvement? D

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Mon Dec 09, 2019 12:53 am
by toctheyounger
I don't have anything heavy to enquire about in terms of the format as I'm pretty happy with where it's at and how things are going, so a few basic trivial questions for fun.

What is your favourite card printed this year? You only get one but you can justify it however you like.

If you were going to build a theme deck around any character from a book you've read, who would it be and who would helm the deck?

Favourite album of the year?
(if you don't have one yet, check out In Cauda Venenum by Opeth. It's a modern day prog rock masterpiece.)

How many cats is the right amount of cats to own?

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 7:48 am
by DirkGently
How interested are you in the commander draft thing coming next year? How much do you draft, anyway?
toctheyounger wrote:
4 years ago
Favourite album of the year?
(if you don't have one yet, check out In Cauda Venenum by Opeth. It's a modern day prog rock masterpiece.
Lol, is sheldon a known prog rock fan? I mean, I like opeth, but it seems like a shot in the dark.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 9:34 am
by Serpent_Steve
Hi Sheldon hope everything is going well with you!

As a fan of movies and TV shows I'm looking forward to seeing what Netflix does with the Magic the Gathering series. Is there a particular moment in Magic's history you'd like to see or character you'd like to be referenced?

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 12:31 pm
by cryogen
DirkGently wrote:
4 years ago
How interested are you in the commander draft thing coming next year? How much do you draft, anyway?
toctheyounger wrote:
4 years ago
Favourite album of the year?
(if you don't have one yet, check out In Cauda Venenum by Opeth. It's a modern day prog rock masterpiece.
Lol, is sheldon a known prog rock fan? I mean, I like opeth, but it seems like a shot in the dark.
Not Sheldon, but he has professed to be a huge Dream Theater fan, and I think prog rock in general.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 1:28 pm
by Legend
Greetings!
Thank you for this opportunity. It's become clear that WotC has put wishing back on the design table. As the number of wish cards stacks up, does the RC have plans to address this growing elephant in the room - that being an entire class of cards that are de facto banned in Commander?
Be well!

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 5:34 pm
by toctheyounger
DirkGently wrote:
4 years ago
How interested are you in the commander draft thing coming next year? How much do you draft, anyway?
toctheyounger wrote:
4 years ago
Favourite album of the year?
(if you don't have one yet, check out In Cauda Venenum by Opeth. It's a modern day prog rock masterpiece.
Lol, is sheldon a known prog rock fan? I mean, I like opeth, but it seems like a shot in the dark.
I dunno. Don't really care either tbh, I just figured not every question in an AMA needs to be a heavy philosophical MTG question; we take this pretty seriously and I assume that gets a little tiresome for someone in Sheldon's position.

Aside from that I have no serious questions for him. I'm pretty happy with the format atm, so why not. That second a stands for anything.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 6:57 pm
by 3drinks
toctheyounger wrote:
4 years ago
I just figured not every question in an AMA needs to be a heavy philosophical MTG question; we take this pretty seriously and I assume that gets a little tiresome for someone in Sheldon's position.
That's me. Always shooting heavy philosophical questions straight from the hip lol.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 7:03 pm
by toctheyounger
3drinks wrote:
4 years ago
toctheyounger wrote:
4 years ago
I just figured not every question in an AMA needs to be a heavy philosophical MTG question; we take this pretty seriously and I assume that gets a little tiresome for someone in Sheldon's position.
That's me. Always shooting heavy philosophical questions straight from the hip lol.
I mean most people try to think up something deep to ask right? I figured screw it. Life's busy enough for me and heavy enough for him going through immunotherapy why not ask 20 questions style stuff and give him an easy one.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Tue Dec 10, 2019 9:47 pm
by DirkGently
toctheyounger wrote:
4 years ago
I dunno. Don't really care either tbh, I just figured not every question in an AMA needs to be a heavy philosophical MTG question; we take this pretty seriously and I assume that gets a little tiresome for someone in Sheldon's position.

Aside from that I have no serious questions for him. I'm pretty happy with the format atm, so why not. That second a stands for anything.
Oh, I don't have any issue with the question, I just usually shy away from recommending music to people since everyone's tastes are so different.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Thu Dec 12, 2019 1:20 pm
by RxPhantom
DirkGently wrote:
4 years ago
toctheyounger wrote:
4 years ago
I dunno. Don't really care either tbh, I just figured not every question in an AMA needs to be a heavy philosophical MTG question; we take this pretty seriously and I assume that gets a little tiresome for someone in Sheldon's position.

Aside from that I have no serious questions for him. I'm pretty happy with the format atm, so why not. That second a stands for anything.
Oh, I don't have any issue with the question, I just usually shy away from recommending music to people since everyone's tastes are so different.
Oh man. Not sharing music with people does them a disservice, especially if you listen to anything even remotely out of the mainstream. Gimme some recommendations!

Anyway, I'm shocked that this thread hasn't had more traffic, but I think I can manage one or two more questions.

1. Are there any cards that are on the RC's radar for an unban? (yes or no is fine on this one, I don't expect any examples to be given)

2. Would you oppose cEDH having it's own RC, essentially splintering off from Commander proper?

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Thu Dec 12, 2019 4:28 pm
by bobthefunny
Hey Sheldon,

For next year Wizards has announces a lot of Commander products, increasing the cadence of Commander releases significantly. Do you feel there is any risk of product fatigue that would be introduced from this higher cadence, or do you think that this increased cadence will be only a net positive?

There is a new player in my group. He runs Derevi, probably because it was simply gifted to him. His entire deck is draft chaff, and on a scale of 1-10, probably lies at a 2, and that might be generous. He seems excited by Commander though. If you had a brand new player with no collection, what cards would you gift to them to help them move into Commander a bit more?

What commander deck should I build next?
RxPhantom wrote:
4 years ago
Oh man. Not sharing music with people does them a disservice, especially if you listen to anything even remotely out of the mainstream. Gimme some recommendations!
I'm currently listening to Paddy and the Rats. Wikidepia describes them as Celtic Punk? But it's more like Pirate Shanty Metal?
Castaway
One Last Ale

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Fri Dec 13, 2019 7:18 pm
by Sharpened
The last AMA was on reddit. Sort of disappointing to realize this one is behind a paywall.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Fri Dec 13, 2019 7:52 pm
by Hermes_
Sharpened wrote:
4 years ago
The last AMA was on reddit. Sort of disappointing to realize this one is behind a paywall.
That one was aimed at reddit, you could tell by the fact that almost all of the questions that got asked were questions that had been answered on Salvation and over at the official forums.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Sat Dec 14, 2019 12:16 pm
by cryogen
Sharpened wrote:
4 years ago
The last AMA was on reddit. Sort of disappointing to realize this one is behind a paywall.
With the exception of his Reddit AMA, all previous ones have been published on SCG. It is unfortunate that they changed their site and now stick everything behind a paywall, but all articles become free after one week.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Fri Dec 20, 2019 5:38 pm
by cryogen

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Fri Dec 20, 2019 5:44 pm
by lyonhaert
Also a bit unfortunate that they changed how their article URLs work and now older links here and on Sally don't work. :mad:

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Fri Dec 20, 2019 8:27 pm
by Shabbaman
lyonhaert wrote:
4 years ago
Also a bit unfortunate that they changed how their article URLs work and now older links here and on Sally don't work. :mad:
I noticed that as well. I have a collection of bookmarks to good articles (because face it, SCG has had its fair share of great writers) but I can't find them. The search function on the new site just doesn't seem to work properly. I hope that'll improve.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Sat Dec 21, 2019 6:36 pm
by Dunharrow
I am impressed by the fact that he answered so many questions.
I am also relieved by his stance on wishes.

I am surprised the 100-card limitation has been coming up in discussion.

Re: End of 2019 Sheldon AMA

Posted: Sat Dec 21, 2019 10:16 pm
by cryogen
I'm surprised he likes Popeye's.