Story time

First games i played were against the meanest woman you can imagine. I don't know why she had it out for me in particular but I was a back packer freshly traumatized from life on the road and her going out of the way to say mean shit was the last thing i needed. She of course played a control deck soully designed to cripple her opponents then laugh at them or insult me as we were beaten down. (No spite on any archetype just some of the reasons one might play any of em). I used magic as an escape when i had the means to do so but she was making that impossible cause fewer and fewer people i knew wanted to play.

Any way though time wound down and i was about to skip town, but not before i got into a Four way game with some dudes rocking far stronger decks than mine (mixed basic red and black 30 card starters with a booster pack or 2 mixed in). There were no teams but I knew this was a real chance for me to win against her if only once. So I stashed my cards and let her do what she did best, shit talk me. Little by little i put my cards on the table, keeping my defence solid and she laughed and insulted me as they tapped or died or lost power. But the other guys were starting to catch wind of what she was doing, and they sure as hell didnt like it. One of the dudes was her boy friend so he wouldnt go against her but he left my life points alone when it counted, other guy used artifacts to cripple her enchantments, and i went full kamikaze on her ass.

At a certain point her fate was sealed and she started slinging more mud than a pig pen, but that's when i really got the pearls from that situation. This woman was so desperately insecure and angry she thought she needed to belittle and dominate me to feel good about herself. This wasn't a game to her it was a coping mechanism, just like it was to me. I learned then and there i would never let it get to that point, I would never ruin the game for another person or play as she did just to win. I wish there was some greater rapport that could have emerged out of it but that was all. She lost the game then later so did I.

All these years later i still play the game I love with every cool person I can find. I treasure the journey and i look forward to all to come.