Obviously Magic as a game play system is complex and deep but between the game itself and the ecosystem it has created there exists a number of avenues for things to change or improve. We started with a the simple idea of "identify" a few things surrounding that game, within the control of WotC that would fix, or improve, Magic the Gathering. It could be as simple as "bring back From the Vaults" or as complex as "update an underlying core concept of the game engine", anything we thought needed to be identified, addressed, and discussed with thought and purpose.
In the past we've discussed the utility of "hot lists" and generic buy lists as backpackers, vendors, and at the LGS level; effectively all levels of the singles selling ecosystem. Their importance to the health and growth of any business cannot be understand. But what we have not discussed is the importance of making your buylist available and visible to people in an online fashion. Why would you want to maintain a digital footprint like this? What benefits does it afford you? This week, we remedy our errors and take a look at the importance of an online buylist.
Yeehaw... This week we look at Outlaws of Thunder Junction. So saddle on up and hear us spin yarns about tales from out yonder. What cards do we think are prices well? Which are priced poorly? What's a "case" and how do we solve it, or do they even matter? What's a mole god?
With Outlaws of Thunder Junction set to release shortly, we look back at our Murders at Karlov Manor card assessment to see how discerning an eye we cast at the set. It feels like we just did this...
Usually we discuss how to protect yourself while speccing and in the past have discussed protecting your physical assets but we have no talked about how we, personally, identify vendors we like working with. Until now. We breakdown not just some of the vendors that we continue to shop with or at, either on their dedicated sites or on various market places but the "why" behind that as well. If you've ever been curious about why we shop where we do, why we recommend the companies and people we do, or how to help identify these people yourself... this episode is for you.
That's a big question but an important one. An idea born out of an older Reddit thread (link below), we decided to take a look at what WotC has left in the tank for chase reprints in supplemental sets. What does the current reprint philosphy offer? What cards can even be reprinted to get people motivated to buy into supplemental packs? And seemingly, most importantly, how often can we expect to see these cards because they lose their luster. https://www.reddit.com/r/magicTCG/comments/14zpquw/current_list_of_mythicrare_cards_valued_over_20/
Stepping outside our normal procedure of, "skip the supplemental analysis" we found a desire to discuss the Fallout product. There were a number of interesting and likeable things we saw within the set as well as some details surrounding the product on the whole that we thought were worth the discussion. Grab a can of Nuka-a-cola and join us as we dive through Fallout (PIP).
We've covered the numbers, the jargon, and the delviered outlook but now it's time for us to give out actual reviews and thoughgs. Strap in as we discuss our thoughts on not only the earnings report but the future of HAS and WotC. The 2023Q4 earnings call is rough read. Full of business jargon about writedowns and "goodwill" Hasbro put on paper an over $1 billion dollar loss. Once you cut through that, there are number of important take away, especially surrounding eOne and various licenses. https://icv2.com/articles/news/view/56234/hasbro-loses-1-06-billion-q4 https://investor.hasbro.com/news-releases/news-release-details/hasbro-reports-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2023-financial https://pocketsense.com/calculate-percentage-decrease-revenue-year-year-4087.html https://finance.zacks.com/diluted-vs-undiluted-shares-7866.html https://finance.yahoo.com/news/hasbro-buy-studio-entertainment-one-204840431.html https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/goodwill-impairment.asp
The 2023Q4 earnings call is rough read. Full of business jargon about writedowns and "goodwill" Hasbro put on paper an over $1 billion dollar loss. Once you cut through that, there are number of important take away, especially surrounding eOne and various licenses. This week we cut through the jargon as best we can and give a quick breakdown, with a side of MH3 tangent to help give an overview of how HAS is currently performing. https://icv2.com/articles/news/view/56234/hasbro-loses-1-06-billion-q4 https://investor.hasbro.com/news-releases/news-release-details/hasbro-reports-fourth-quarter-and-full-year-2023-financial https://pocketsense.com/calculate-percentage-decrease-revenue-year-year-4087.html https://finance.zacks.com/diluted-vs-undiluted-shares-7866.html https://finance.yahoo.com/news/hasbro-buy-studio-entertainment-one-204840431.html https://www.investopedia.com/terms/g/goodwill-impairment.asp
There's a lot that goes into being a successful financier, regardless of that product(s) that you are dealing with. A lot of lessons learned come from exposure and failure and we're here to discuss a number of the lessons we have learned over the years. One of the most important lessons, though, is establishing a support network of people who you can work with and listening to those who are already in the space and the knowledge they have to share: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cQ1fyTOHdtY
With full spoilers, a prelease, and several high profile events behind us, this week we look at and discuss the Murders at Karlov Manor. What cards do we think are prices well? Which are priced poorly? What's a "case" and how do we solve it, or do they even matter? What's a mole god?
With Murders at Karlov Manor set to release shortly, we look back at our Caverns of Ixalan to see how discerning an eye we cast at the set. Were we right, were we wrong? Are we out of touch, or is it truly the children?
Keeping people engaged at the LGS level can be one of the most difficult things to do but one of the most rewarding as you see your players returns, bring new people, or covert walk-ins to lifers. This week we discuss some of the challenges of engaged your yours players, regardless of the game they play. How do you keep people coming back and opening their wallets? How do you make the comfortable? We cover all that and more, this week. Bonus: We spend a lot of time talking about the benefits of table top gamers!
Adding a new vertical to your current product selection is never a simple or easy task, whether your an LGS or a vendor, but it is something you will be tasked to do. We break down some of the more important and, in some cases, often overlooked aspects of what goes into picking new product. https://web.archive.org/web/20200605203544/https://magic.wizards.com/en/articles/archive/skullclamp-we-hardly-knew-ye-2004-06-04
Ravnica Remastered is upon us and Murders at Karlov Manor is rapidly approaching; spoiler season clobbering the landscape. But what was the reception to RVR like compared to Timespiral Remastered and Dominaria Remastered before? From a player perspective, how did the limited format feel? Was it diverse and engaged or restrictive and boring? As an LGS did it move well, what was the hype like for the set? What's it like trying to figure out what to stock as a vendor? What was the overall reception to Ravnica Remastered?
With MaRo telling players to continue to voice their contempt for the current product schedule, WotC walking back their double down that they totally didn't use AI art, combined the OpenGL walk back, WotC has had a string of good decisions. Now, a lot of this still demonstrates initial bad intentions and/or poor first decision making, but we all have to start somewhere and, hopefully, the vocal majority has finally started to make enough noise for both WotC and HAS to care. https://twitter.com/SaffronOlive/status/1742939507979399669 https://twitter.com/wizards_magic/status/1744056808254173447?t=Di8yepxgmsrkaOUwHDC9SQ&s=19
It's 2024 and we're back with our yearly tradition of discussing what we would do if we ran Hasbro. Somehow we're back to talking about how Alta Fox was right, some rather obtuse earnings calls, and a product release schedule bordering on lunacyon top of holiday layoffs. 2023 was a certified corporate banger! So buckle up and enjoy some fun back and forth about how we, two dudes yelling over the internet, would change Hasbro. https://www.forbes.com/sites/robwieland/2023/12/13/hasbro-layoffs-affect-wizards-of-the-coast/ https://twitter.com/mtgaaron/status/1736495952914268245 https://twitter.com/mtgaaron/status/1736527729208827909 http://www.brand-licensing.com/CompanyPage.aspx?IzmLang=9&CMP=49&
It's 2024 and we're back with our yearly tradition of discussing what we would do if we ran Hasbro. Somehow we're back to talking about how Alta Fox was right, some rather obtuse earnings calls, and a product release schedule bordering on lunacyon top of holiday layoffs. 2023 was a certified corporate banger! So buckle up and enjoy some fun back and forth about how we, two dudes yelling over the internet, would change Hasbro.
With 2024 approaching rapidly we go through a few "thought experiments" and discuss what we expect to happen, what we want to happen, where we want to be... even what we want from Organized Play. All in the hopes that our dreams and wishes will come true for the next year and we see positive change and growth from both WotC and Hasbro.
This week we circle back to our Annual Over Under lead in to the next calendar year and make wild bets about even wilder events. Taking into account both recent and historic events, we put together a list of items worth discussing, but only through the lens of degeneracy. Come for the specs, stay for the grumpy discussion.