Since I wrote my first post on finding the treasure trove of the wretched Lich I’ve managed to find the entirety of my original MtG collection. During the down moments in life I took to organizing and cataloging my cards — only the 93/94-ish cards are currently organized.

2351 Cards

76 Alpha

2 Beta

41 Unlimited

24 Arabian Nights

167 Antiquities (5 Mishra’s Factories)

131 Legends

1161 Revised (3 Scrublands and 1 Shivan Dragon)

308 The Dark

410 Fallen Empires

31 Chronicles

As you can probably infer from the list above, the bulk of my collection is from the OGT2 (i.e. Original Type-2) days of Revised, Fallen Empires, and The Dark though I also have my fair share of 4th Edition, Homelands, Ice Age, Mirage, and Alliances cards with random singles gathered piecemeal over the years. Below I’ll talk a tiny bit about how this collection got this way and where it’s going next.

The post-Alpha Lull

Me and my friends were fortunate enough to come across a nice cache of Alpha cards in the very early days, but wow did the supply run bone dry thereafter. Indeed, for many months after building the original Lich deck I can’t recall ever seeing more than a handful of MtG booster packs in the local stores. From Alpha to Beta to Unlimited through Arabian Nights there were literally none to be found. The only way to get new cards at the time was via trades set up on BBS systems. It wasn’t until Antiquities and then Revised did I start seeing boosters at the shops. At the time I didn’t make much money, but what I made was spent on boosters.

The Dual / Shivan Economy

Since I managed to come into a bonanza of fresh cards with the release of Revised I was able to bolster my total collection while narrowing the focus of my lovely lovely Lich. At the time the best way to get pieces via trade was to offer either dual lands or Shivan Dragons (at least in my area). This was a great deal for me since at the time my primary focus was on mono-black. I can’t rightly recall how many Shivans and duals passed through my fingers at that time, but it must’ve counted in the dozens. It wasn’t until around Fallen Empires that I branched out into mutli-colored decks, adding white for Healing Salve, Pump Knights and javelineers and therefore keeping a few Scrublands. In hindsight I most certainly lost out value-wise in what I got in return for the dual lands and made out like a bandit on the Shivans — so I guess it’s probably a wash in the end.

The “Pumping Phase”

I went through a phase during the OGT2 days of building decks that had combat tricks and pumping. Between Factories and Pump Knights and Frozen Shades and even Frankenstein’s Monster I was certain that I was onto something!

I wasn’t.

But I am glad that I managed to hoard a few Mishra’s Factories, as I think that they’ll wind up being very important for what comes next.

Deadguy Ale

Having looked over my collection, explored the 93/94 landscape, and counted my savings I’ve come to the realization that the most economical way for me to build a semi-competitive Swedish-legal deck is to go Black/White — i.e. Deadguy Ale (the spelling being inspired by a band that I loved in my MtG days). While I eventually came to (and still so it seems) love the more control-style decks, Deadguy Ale would allow me to taste hints of a control-flavor to this mid-range brew.

As far as I can see I’m still missing a few key cards:

City of Brass — While I have a single Chronicles version, I’d like to get 2x Arabian Nights copies.

— While I have a single Chronicles version, I’d like to get 2x Arabian Nights copies. Chaos Orb — I’ve never seen a Chaos Orb in person, but it seems that it would behoove me to invest in one as it’s so versatile and easily added to ANY deck.

— I’ve never seen a Chaos Orb in person, but it seems that it would behoove me to invest in one as it’s so versatile and easily added to ANY deck. Scrubland — I’d like to complete the playset.

— I’d like to complete the playset. Karakas — I’ll admit that this is a card that I’ve always wanted but could never get my hands on. The nostalgic allure is too tempting to pass on.

— I’ll admit that this is a card that I’ve always wanted but could never get my hands on. The nostalgic allure is too tempting to pass on. Juzams — These are longer-term objectives as the cost for a playset is cost-prohibitive. Until that time I will probably use stand-ins for these nasties along the lines of Su-Chi, Segirs, and/or Juggernauts.

— These are longer-term objectives as the cost for a playset is cost-prohibitive. Until that time I will probably use stand-ins for these nasties along the lines of Su-Chi, Segirs, and/or Juggernauts. Moxes — specifically Pearl and Jet, but like the Juzams these are long-term objectives. For now I can substitute in a Mana Vault or two.

And that’s really all I need.

Here’s what I’m aiming for (italicized cards are those I’m missing):

Land

2x City of Brass, 1x Karakas, 8x Swamp, 1x Urborg, 4x Mishra’s Factory, 3x Scrubland + 1x Scrubland, 1x Strip Mine

Instant

4x Dark Ritual, 4x Disenchant, 4x Swords to Plowshares

Enchantment

4x Underworld Dreams

Sorcery

1x Balance, 1x Demonic Tutor, 1x Mind Twist, 4x Sinkhole

Creature

3x Black Knight, 4x Hyppies, 2x Sengir Vampire, 4x Su-Chi

Artifact

1x Chaos Orb, 1x Mana Vault, 1x Sol Ring

Sideboard

Some combination of COPs, Deathgrip/Gloom, artifact hate, Nev’s Disk, Royal Asses, Spirit Link, more removal (Terror/Paralyze/Drain Life/etc).

Seems like a good start to get back into the swing of things and with requirements that won’t break the bank… a nice bonus.

Updates forthcoming as they happen.