CSCI 18
The Evolution of Magic: The Gathering - Deck Archetypes and Strategies from 1993 to Today Winter 2025

Class Details

Magic: The Gathering is a collectible card game that has been in continuous development since 1993 and has featured regular high-level professional events since Pro Tour New York in 1996. In these competitive events, players construct their own sixty-card decks that must conform to the deckbuilding restrictions of the particular tournament environment. New card designs are regularly developed, and the release of these cards in new expansions increases the size of the available card pool and also introduces new rules and strategies to the game. Since competitive decks must carefully consider card synergies, the design of newly introduced cards influences the balance among various competitive strategies. This class will study the evolution of deck designs throughout Magic’s thirty-year existence. It will focus on the elements that define classic archetypes, so-called “Aggro”, “Combo”, and “Control”, as well as elements that define the hybrid strategies present in many tournament environments. By studying representative tournament environments from different Magic eras, we will appreciate the ways that shifts in card design philosophy continuously shape tournament metagames.
The Class: Format: lecture
Limit: 12
Expected: NA
Class#: 1110
Grading: pass/fail only
Requirements/Evaluation: Paper(s) or report(s); Other: participation in competitive play and write-ups
Prerequisites: Knowledge of Magic the Gathering rules and gameplay experience. Interest in competitive play and tournament analysis.
Enrollment Preferences: Students with greater depth of magic-playing experience.
Unit Notes: Mark Tocco has been playing Magic: the Gathering since 1998 and has had a history of competitive Magic the Gathering success, including winning the Vintage World Championship in 2014. He now makes his living with card games, including poker.
Materials/Lab Fee: $20
Attributes: SLFX Winter Study Self-Expression
STUX Winter Study Student Exploration

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