CardShark

Okay guys, even though there’s no episode for the next two weeks due to vacation, I’ve got something to ask of you. We’re constantly trying to improve the show, but what we think is an improvement and what the listeners think is an improvement could be vastly different. And since we don’t care what we think, it’s what you think that’s important, I’ve compiled a list of questions I’d like you guys to take some time and answer for us. Treat this like one of those MySpace surveys, where you answer in a numbered list of your own. And away we go.

1. How did you first hear about the show?

2. Do you listen to the music in each episode?

3. Should we pick a theme and go with it or keep having different music?

4. How is the sound quality of the show, both the music and the actual show?

5. Is the current episode length (60-75 minutes or so) good, too long, or too short?

6. What about splitting longer episodes into two parts like Episode 27? Is this a good idea or a bad one?

7. Would “quickie” episodes that are 20-40 minutes in length be a good idea?

8. What about number of hosts per show? If there’s only two of us, is it worth listening to? What about when we’re all there – do we seem to get in each other’s way?

9. How do you feel about the length, quality, and depth of the new set preview episodes? Do we spend too long on individual cards? Do you feel like two episodes a week during preview weeks are too much?

10. Would you be interested in the development of another fun theme deck, like the Clash deck? Oh yeah, we’ll be touching that one again soon too. We never actually did the Morningtide follow-up, and it bothers me professionally.

11. We once picked a handful of fun rares from a set and went over them. Should we keep doing this? If so, just with new sets or should we go back to old ones too?

12. We’ve done a couple of Magic Etiquette segments (what to do about that guy with just one deck, and when are proxies okay). What did you think of that? Should we keep doing etiquette questions when they occur to us, or is this just too silly?

13. We’ve done a few tournament reports too (Prereleases, Launch Parties, FNM). Does that interest you at all, or should we skip those?

14. We’ve done some episodes that involve the various philosophies of the game that go beyond just playing (Timmy, Johnny, Spike; Aggro, Combo, Control). Does this sort of thing interest you at all, or should we skip those?

15. We haven’t focused terribly much on the flavor of the game (flavor text, characters in the storyline, the world each set has built). Should we?

16. Episode 15 was the Multiplayer Free-For-All Extravaganza, which means we played lots of games of multiplayer Magic, took notes, and told you all about them. Should we do more things like that in the future? If so, should we limit it to simple multiplayer, or should we branch out into things like Winston Draft picks and games, booster draft picks and games, and new formats or variants?

17. We’ve done several episodes involving tips for new players. Should we keep this up? If so, should we go more into strategy, rules issues, or both?

18. Out of the Deck Box seems to be a fairly popular segment. Should we keep doing individual decks, or do more like comparing the two Multiplayer Discard decks?

19. Pimp My Deckbox (we really need to pick another name for that) does really well on the forums, but we’re usually a little wary of doing this on the show. We don’t want to sound like experts telling people what to put in their decks, especially since we’re not experts and what we suggest you might not have. I’ve been thinking of doing something like this using broader strokes, but I haven’t quite figured it out yet. Do you guys have any suggestions for improvements or special requests for this?

20. And finally, let us know anything else you might want to throw out there. Suggestions for any of these segments, suggestions for future episodes, comments, criticisms, whatever you want. We want any and all feedback.

Thanks a lot you guys! Once we get back from Disney, we’re going to get together (hopefully literally) and go over all the answers we’ve received. I know this was a lot of effort just for a silly podcast you listen to, and I appreciate it more than you know. I’m really trying to make the show better, as you can tell from the list of questions. These are all topics or issues that have concerned me at some point since we started the show. Thanks again to all of you who take the time to answer. I’ll try to come up with something special to do for everyone who took the time to go through all this.

1. I played against Chewie and Squanto at the Morningtide Prerelease.

2. Sometimes, it usually depends on the music. The snippet during the intro tells me whether I'll listen to the whole thing at the end.

3. I kinda like the different music. It's usually something I've never heard or haven't heard in a while.

4. The sound quality on the music is always good. The voice is usually pretty good, though as we've seen(or heard) things can get iffy when people move away from their mics(or mikes)

5. The current lengths are usually good. I'd lean more towards the 75 minute shows when possible.

6. Splitting it up messes with continuity a bit. I'd rather have the option to listen to it all at once or split it up myself if need be.

7. Not such a fan of shorter episodes unless they're extras to supplement the normal episodes. By the time you get through introductions and all the normal rigamarole, the show is almost half way over.

8. Generally speaking, the more the better. I prefer when you've got 4-5 people around, because people think different ways and have different expertises. There's not usually a problem of you guys stepping on each other.

9. Meh doesn't really tell us anything.

13. I'm a fan of the Tournament reports. Hearing how others are doing and what they're seeing is definitely helpful for the few times that I do go to a tournament.

16. If nothing else, it was fun to hear that you guys were actually playing magic. Hearing about big flashy plays in multiplayer games is always fun.

17. The audience has a variety of experience levels. Providing tips to newer players never hurts. Plus, crazy interactions always come up in multiplayer games, so covering crazy interactions can definitely be useful.

18. Deck comparisons are cool, just as a way to see how different people would work with the same theme. It also gives people options if they're interested in building a similar deck. The downside to double deckboxes is that they do take a bit more time than average.

19. Just because you guys aren't experts, doesn't mean that you can't make suggestions. There are usually different takes that can be done with a deck. Sometimes it's just a pile that needs some focus, sometimes there are strictly better cards that shouldn't be too expensive or hard to find. You can especially throw out a bunch of different cards if you know the deckbuilder in question doesn't have a working knowledge of Magic's history.

20. FYI: If I didn't comment on it, that generally meant I was ambiguous or apathetic on the topic.

5.5 hours finish up that post. Man I hate when work gets in the way of doing important stuff.

1) I was searching Itunes for Magic podcasts.

2) Most episodes

3) Different music

4) Besides the obvious (the clicking, and talking over), it's good

5) I love the long episodes

6) It's ok but I tend to listen to them together so i don't post on the forums until im done.

7) For preview episodes yes, regular episodes no.

As long as your talking Magic it's good

9) I enjoyed all the preview episodes, they helped me figure out the best cards to play at the prerelease.

10) I thought the theme decks are fun to listen about.

11) Yes, the old ones too.

12) I enjoy the etiquette episodes, but im still new.

13) I like the tournament reports.

14) I wasn't a fan of the philosophy episodes they were alright but I didn't take much away from them.

15) I personally don't follow the flavor of magic.

16) I thought episode 15 was great and I would like to hear more, but I know you guys can't get together often.

17) yes do both.

18) Comparing decks is more helpful for variety.

19) Keep it to the forums but I would like to hear the hosts replies.

20) I think you guys are doing great, you seem to be getting better and better each episode, keep it casual there are to many serious Magic podcasts and they are hard to understand for newer players. Also thanks for reminding us what cards do, I hate listening to other podcasts where I should be in front of my computer the whole time looking up the cards they talk about, or just trying to memorize all the cards.

1.) Chris talked about how awesome the show was so i started listening.

2.)Nope, I usually skip right by it, i am either to excited about the episode or looking forward to the banter that will soon insue

3.) If your going to keep the music at least change it up a little, the each month is a theme idea is cute.

4.)Usually the sound quality is pretty good, minus the cellphones, geese, and that occasional talk over each other thing you guys get by technical difficulty

5.) Episode length is good.

6.) I think bad, I usually lose interest

7.) Nope, well only if you guys don't talk about magic, i think 20 minutes of you guys giving each other a hard time would be worth it.

8.) I like the episodes much more when there are more hosts. I think after doing as many episodes as you guys have you don't really talk over each other. so it works.

9.) I felt some cards during this last preview got talked about alot more then was maybe needed, but i really enjoy the two episodes a week when there is alot to talk about.

10.) I don't know what you are talking about so..... Ninja Flying Monkeys?

11.) Yes, the more the better

12.) I think those episodes are awesome because you guys answer the questions nobody really wants to ask.

13.) I always enjoy hearing about how everyone did at events and it makes me want to go and more prepared for when i do go.

14.) Meh.

15.) Nah.

16.)Yes , i really enjoy those topics because it helps me expand my horizons of magic playing. I learn new styles of playing to help always keep things fresh.

17.)Yes, Please

18.) Compare

19.) Thats my favorite so i hope you keep it in both places

20.) Can i get back to you on that one?

Thank you very much Jason, Chris, and Molly. After a week I had hoped there would be more than 3 responses, but that's better than nothing! I'd really like to have somewhere between 5 and 10 responses if at all possible, which means at least two of you out there should think about doing it. I'll keep myself from reading these until we get at least two more, how's that?

1. How did you first hear about the show?
Found it on iTunes while searching for MTG podcasts to listen to.

2. Do you listen to the music in each episode?
Yes.

3. Should we pick a theme and go with it or keep having different music?
I like variety, though Chewie gravitates toward Swift more than anything else.

4. How is the sound quality of the show, both the music and the actual show?
The voices need to be louder. In a silent room it's easy to hear but I am almost never in a silent room and even the littlest background noises cause me to rewind the show to hear what someone said. We can always turn the volume on our iPod down, but it will only go up so high. Louder please if you can manage it. The music is usually fine.

5. Is the current episode length (60-75 minutes or so) good, too long, or too short?
I like this length but would enjoy more because I really like the show.

6. What about splitting longer episodes into two parts like Episode 27? Is this a good idea or a bad one?
I did not like the split show. If longer episodes would mean splitting them up then don't try to reinvent the wheel, stick with the current format.

7. Would “quickie” episodes that are 20-40 minutes in length be a good idea?
I find them to be a tease, but if the content is strong then I'd welcome them. If however its light on content then I'd rather wait for a more significant presentation.

8. What about number of hosts per show? If there’s only two of us, is it worth listening to? What about when we’re all there – do we seem to get in each other’s way?
The round table discussion format for you guys works great. There are a lot of opinions and perspectives coming to the table and it lends to strong content. With a lot of people on the show there is always someone with something interesting to say. The two person shows are okay for a change now and then but I would not want to see that become the norm, the way you guys bounce off each other makes the show very entertaining and quite comical.

9. How do you feel about the length, quality, and depth of the new set preview episodes? Do we spend too long on individual cards? Do you feel like two episodes a week during preview weeks are too much?
I think you guys do a great job with previews, you give us a good amount of things to think about reguarding card uses and combo potentials without boring us with minutia. I'm all for more episodes, so two a week works for me.

10. Would you be interested in the development of another fun theme deck, like the Clash deck? Oh yeah, we’ll be touching that one again soon too. We never actually did the Morningtide follow-up, and it bothers me professionally.
Deck developement, like many other ideas, is a show concept or a support concept. You could use it as a partial piece of a show or dedicate an entire show to it now and then. Again, the different ideas that you guys bring to the table for other players (that would be us) is always interesting. So yes, I could go for more of this.

11. We once picked a handful of fun rares from a set and went over them. Should we keep doing this? If so, just with new sets or should we go back to old ones too?
New sets definately, old sets are a toss up. What might be cool would be to highlight a few rares and have each member of the show take those cards from the format they are legal in and come up with combos or deck ideas and then share them all. You guys could all take a card like Enduring Renewal for instance after annoucing it at the end of a show and not talk to each other about it, then come to the next episode and share ideas from each guy. Just a thought.

12. We’ve done a couple of Magic Etiquette segments (what to do about that guy with just one deck, and when are proxies okay). What did you think of that? Should we keep doing etiquette questions when they occur to us, or is this just too silly?
These are important to cover every now and then. New players come into the game all the time and we were all noobs once. Though an old player myself, there are a few things I've learned from these shows and I appreciate that, but newer players I've sure take a tons away from those shows.

13. We’ve done a few tournament reports too (Prereleases, Launch Parties, FNM). Does that interest you at all, or should we skip those?
I don't know if this is your target audience. For me the light coverage is good but I wouldn't go to in depth here. There are other podcasts that cover these areanas. You guys seems to have found your niche with the casual crowd and I think you should stick to catering to that audience.

14. We’ve done some episodes that involve the various philosophies of the game that go beyond just playing (Timmy, Johnny, Spike; Aggro, Combo, Control). Does this sort of thing interest you at all, or should we skip those?
As with question 12, I think this is very helpful from time to time. I think it is a great change of pace and informative. We don't need it every episode, just now and again.

15. We haven’t focused terribly much on the flavor of the game (flavor text, characters in the storyline, the world each set has built). Should we?
Again, in the vain of casual card players this doesn't seem necessary but mabye once in a while you give some background. Even if a player is REALLY into the back stories, and novels, and the characters, it's still the card game that has him/her playing with his/her buddies and listening to your show.

16. Episode 15 was the Multiplayer Free-For-All Extravaganza, which means we played lots of games of multiplayer Magic, took notes, and told you all about them. Should we do more things like that in the future? If so, should we limit it to simple multiplayer, or should we branch out into things like Winston Draft picks and games, booster draft picks and games, and new formats or variants?
I, for one, LOVED Episode 15. I really enjoyed listening to the rediculous things that happened (Partiarch's Bidding, Noctious Ghoul, into Warp World) here is it weeks since Ive listened to that episode, I wasn't even at your table and I still remember that play. I don't get to play anywhere near enough as I'd like (married, two kids) so I get to play vicariously through you guys on episodes like that. Keep them coming. As far as the other play formats go, I don't know. Try a draft, take notes, and lets see how an episode sounds.

17. We’ve done several episodes involving tips for new players. Should we keep this up? If so, should we go more into strategy, rules issues, or both?
Yes, we can all learn together from new perspectives.

18. Out of the Deck Box seems to be a fairly popular segment. Should we keep doing individual decks, or do more like comparing the two Multiplayer Discard decks?
I like individual decks, especially if the deck designer gets into details on the deck's synergy, strengths and weaknesses.

19. Pimp My Deckbox (we really need to pick another name for that) does really well on the forums, but we’re usually a little wary of doing this on the show. We don’t want to sound like experts telling people what to put in their decks, especially since we’re not experts and what we suggest you might not have. I’ve been thinking of doing something like this using broader strokes, but I haven’t quite figured it out yet. Do you guys have any suggestions for improvements or special requests for this?
This would not be much different then Out of the Deck Box except you've got a round table of changes to suggest as opposed to just whats in the deck. You guys are very clear that you are not experts and as long as you continue to be clear about that, the listeners can take or leave your suggestions without feeling pressure that you know best. Your's is just another opinion, and with a few people at the table there are more eyes to see problems with a deck and more ideas to fix them. As far as your recommendations go, I wouldn't worry about what the player has or doesn't have. Make your suggestions and offer inexpensive alternatives if your first solution is a pricey fix. Let us worry about getting the cards. Just help us with ideas.

20. And finally, let us know anything else you might want to throw out there. Suggestions for any of these segments, suggestions for future episodes, comments, criticisms, whatever you want. We want any and all feedback.
I just gave you 19 questions worth, right now I am tapped, but I know I've come up with show ideas before. If I get a good one I'll email it to you.

Hey, thanks a lot Mayshod! Anyone else out there? I know some of you guys that are active on the forums have seen this survey. Wolfstalker, you've got the most posts of any non-host. Where have you been lately? Hiding from the questions? Spaceninja, how about you? I was just down in your neighborhood for a week, it's too humid down there. You should totally answer 20 questions for me just to spite me.

Bueller?


Bueller?

1. How did you first hear about the show?
Searching for magic podcasts on i tunes

2. Do you listen to the music in each episode?
Sometimes, othertimes I find it to be too soft.

3. Should we pick a theme and go with it or keep having different music?
Metal, or just good rock

4. How is the sound quality of the show, both the music and the actual show?
On a few episodes there was alot of talking over each other, but lately its been good

5. Is the current episode length (60-75 minutes or so) good, too long, or too short?
Id say its good just pls no more 2 part episodes

6. What about splitting longer episodes into two parts like Episode 27? Is this a good idea or a bad one?
I didnt care for it

7. Would “quickie” episodes that are 20-40 minutes in length be a good idea?
On ocasion, like when you have 2 people, but I like 40 to 60 min

8. What about number of hosts per show? If there’s only two of us, is it worth listening to? What about when we’re all there – do we seem to get in each other’s way?
I think with 2 people you get alot more production(i guess youd say) however when you have more, its more chaotic, which is the fun part of your show

9. How do you feel about the length, quality, and depth of the new set preview episodes? Do we spend too long on individual cards? Do you feel like two episodes a week during preview weeks are too much?
Not really too much, but I think everybody who is wanting previews, has already seen most of the cards by the time your cast gets out there

10. Would you be interested in the development of another fun theme deck, like the Clash deck? Oh yeah, we’ll be touching that one again soon too. We never actually did the Morningtide follow-up, and it bothers me professionally.
I think themed decks are fun, o and morningtide was so last month, lol

11. We once picked a handful of fun rares from a set and went over them. Should we keep doing this? If so, just with new sets or should we go back to old ones too?
Yes pls do, everybody knows about the new stuff, go old school

12. We’ve done a couple of Magic Etiquette segments (what to do about that guy with just one deck, and when are proxies okay). What did you think of that? Should we keep doing etiquette questions when they occur to us, or is this just too silly?
I think etiquette is a fine line, because its a personal thing, what you think is ok and not ok

13. We’ve done a few tournament reports too (Prereleases, Launch Parties, FNM). Does that interest you at all, or should we skip those?
Yes!

14. We’ve done some episodes that involve the various philosophies of the game that go beyond just playing (Timmy, Johnny, Spike; Aggro, Combo, Control). Does this sort of thing interest you at all, or should we skip those?
Yes#2!

15. We haven’t focused terribly much on the flavor of the game (flavor text, characters in the storyline, the world each set has built). Should we?
I wish, I did a post on here a while back on the novels, and nobody seemed to respond, I love the books

16. Episode 15 was the Multiplayer Free-For-All Extravaganza, which means we played lots of games of multiplayer Magic, took notes, and told you all about them. Should we do more things like that in the future? If so, should we limit it to simple multiplayer, or should we branch out into things like Winston Draft picks and games, booster draft picks and games, and new formats or variants?
Ive been getting into EDH I want to here ya'lls views

17. We’ve done several episodes involving tips for new players. Should we keep this up? If so, should we go more into strategy, rules issues, or both?
Both, noobs need lovin too

18. Out of the Deck Box seems to be a fairly popular segment. Should we keep doing individual decks, or do more like comparing the two Multiplayer Discard decks?
I liked them both, id jump around

19. Pimp My Deckbox (we really need to pick another name for that) does really well on the forums, but we’re usually a little wary of doing this on the show. We don’t want to sound like experts telling people what to put in their decks, especially since we’re not experts and what we suggest you might not have. I’ve been thinking of doing something like this using broader strokes, but I haven’t quite figured it out yet. Do you guys have any suggestions for improvements or special requests for this?
You might do something like WOTC's BOAB

20. And finally, let us know anything else you might want to throw out there. Suggestions for any of these segments, suggestions for future episodes, comments, criticisms, whatever you want. We want any and all feedback.
Sorry I haven't written in for a while.

1. Found it on podcast alley or google while browsing for new podcasts.

2. Usually not.

3. Different music is good, but themes for short periods of time like classics month is also good.

4. For the most part i'ts good although sometimes it's sort of bucket-y-ie-ish-whatever and i can't really say i was a fan of the ep where you talked over each other.

5. Depends on the subject, don't try to push conversation to much and definetly don't cut the conversation short for the sake of episode lenght. I like it 60-120 min or so.

6. I'd much rather have two episodes (one long and one normal) then have the long one split up into two weeks.

7. For the previews and such when there is new information on almost a daily basis it's a good idea. Don't do it just for the sake of doing it.

8. it's more fun when there's atleast three of you, gives more angles to the subject and makes it more interesting.

9. I liked it, can't really remember enough to get into details but I remember enjoying them.

10. Yeah, that was fun, could probaly be a regular segment like once a month or so.

11. You could do a couple of nostalgia episodes insted where you go back and talk about all the sets in chronological order.
Maybe have one of these episodes every so often and go through a couple of sets each time.

12. That's to specific a subject, if you think it's an interesting question then go ahead and talk about it on the show, if it's not then it's not going to make for a good segment.

13. It's interesting when you have taken notes and have some detail, when it's just "uhm, got manascrewed and lost"... not so much.

14. If you go a little deeper with that it is definetly an interesting subject.

15. Only if it's an episode dedicated to it (which I think you should) or if it's part of reading cards as you do for previews.

16. Yes and yes.

17. It's quite hard to know all the subtle nuansces of the rules so I like it when you go into that more.

18. If two or more of you have similar decks then ofcourse you should compare them but don't do thoose exclusively.

19. I'd like to see this segment exchange for a somewhat similar one where you're given a theme like say elves and a budget and you put together the best/most interesting deck you can,
motivate the choices you make and tell us what you're thinking. Take it one step further and you can split up into two teams do one deck each, proxy them and battle it out.

20. Nothing I can come up with right now, you're doing a great job, keep it up.

Thank you guys so much for responding. Those of us here in The Mana Pool really appreciate it. I'm going to leave this survey up in hopes that others will see it and take a few minutes for it.

1. I saw the link on CardShark and Chewie invited me to listen via email.
2. I only heard epi 30, so no music.
3. Different Music unless there's one track that everyone agrees is perfect
4. Sound quality on ep 30 was good. You can tell different people are in different locations with respect to the mike, but you can hear everyone very well.
5.-7. Episode 30 was too long. 20-40 would be more listenable.
8. Number of hosts was fine; if anyone ever spoke over anyone else, it seemed like a genuine thing and not rude. The key I think is to be having fun, that (or the opposite) comes across in moments like that.

11. Discussing cool new cards is a great idea.
12. Etiquette is a worthwhile topic. Otherwise the MTGcom guys would be the only ones opining about it.
13. I'm indifferent to tourney reports
14. I'm interested in game-philosophy topics.
15. To me, flavor is more of a subsidiary or sidebar aspect of the game. I think people don't play because they really enjoy the fantasy aspect of it, but because they enjoy the game mechanics.
16. I'd be bored just listening to a report about other people playing the game, unless it was like a recap of all the coolest moments the players had experienced.
17. Although I'm not a new player, I think tips on how to play best is something I would listen to.
18. Whatever format, talking about cool decks is good.
19. Oh but you ARE experts. Come on, now. Own it!
20. I'd have to listen more to make better suggestions.

1. Found it on iTunes when looking for Magic The Gathering podcasts.

2. Sometimes?

3. Either would be find with me.

4. Sometimes when many are in the same room, it's hard to hear everyone.

5. Perfect.

6. Good.

7. Yes!

8. I like when everyone is there though sometimes it feels like people are stumbling over each other. My friend was a bit turned off by the number of hosts but I like it most of the time. I enjoy everyone's different role.

9. I like the preview eps and the more time on a card, the better.

10. Yes!

11. Yes! And with old sets as well.

12. I like the etiquette episodes and have linked it to all of my friends that play magic. It was super helpful.

13. I like them. I like hearing what people got and how they did.

14. It's interesting to me but not terribly.

15. Eh...the storyline doesn't interest me very much.

16. I thought it was great and would be interested in you branching out. It's awesome to hear what you played, how it went, who won, etc.

17. Yes. Yes.

18. Comparing.

19. No...I really don't.

20. I'm a really big fan. It's really fun to hear you guys just talking about the game. I have one friend that has been playing for a while and I feel terrible probing him with questions all the time. It's really cool to hear you guys discussing and debating different cards and aspects of the game. I always look forward to the next podcast.

1. How did you first hear about the show?

Searched iTunes for MTG

2. Do you listen to the music in each episode?

Sometimes.

3. Should we pick a theme and go with it or keep having different music?

Perhaps a theme for a month, then change to different stuff, but a theme being like "Tom Petty Month" or something similar.

4. How is the sound quality of the show, both the music and the actual show?

I'm no audio freak, if I can understand it, I'm happy.


5. Is the current episode length (60-75 minutes or so) good, too long, or too short?

A little long at times, a little short at others... You're doing pretty good.

6. What about splitting longer episodes into two parts like Episode 27? Is this a good idea or a bad one?

Bad, because then we have time to think about what you said in the first part... \b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b\b.
Actually, I don't like it because then we forget what happened in the first part.

7. Would “quickie” episodes that are 20-40 minutes in length be a good idea?

Sometimes, but rarely.

8. What about number of hosts per show? If there’s only two of us, is it worth listening to? What about when we’re all there – do we seem to get in each other’s way?

The numbers seem to work out quite well. Part of the reason I listen is because of the times you get in each other's way - it's obviously not scripted, which I like. Two hosts are good too, but the shows with two should be a little shorter, perhaps.

9. How do you feel about the length, quality, and depth of the new set preview episodes? Do we spend too long on individual cards? Do you feel like two episodes a week during preview weeks are too much?

Eh, previews. I tend not to listen to them, but that's only because by the time I've got the episodes on my iPod, it's after the release and everything.

10. Would you be interested in the development of another fun theme deck, like the Clash deck? Oh yeah, we’ll be touching that one again soon too. We never actually did the Morningtide follow-up, and it bothers me professionally.

How soon? Yeah, I'd like more of those. Exalted, anyone?

11. We once picked a handful of fun rares from a set and went over them. Should we keep doing this? If so, just with new sets or should we go back to old ones too?

I liked that episode, it gave me a lot to think about. Old ones would be neat too - and perhaps an entire episode on Black Lotus. Because a lot of people don't understand why it's so good. That's why it was featured at the [url=mtg.wikicomplete.info]MTGW[/url]

12. We’ve done a couple of Magic Etiquette segments (what to do about that guy with just one deck, and when are proxies okay). What did you think of that? Should we keep doing etiquette questions when they occur to us, or is this just too silly?

Definitely keep them up. I've not heard a more useful thing about Magic in a while.

13. We’ve done a few tournament reports too (Prereleases, Launch Parties, FNM). Does that interest you at all, or should we skip those?

Skip the tourneys - there's enough coverage of those. On the other hand, what you guys are in, and how you personally did, those are interesting.

14. We’ve done some episodes that involve the various philosophies of the game that go beyond just playing (Timmy, Johnny, Spike; Aggro, Combo, Control). Does this sort of thing interest you at all, or should we skip those?

I like 'em, their fun to listen to.

15. We haven’t focused terribly much on the flavor of the game (flavor text, characters in the storyline, the world each set has built). Should we?

I'd say about the time of the prerelease, have an entire episode on the flavor of a new set, perhaps starting with Alara.

16. Episode 15 was the Multiplayer Free-For-All Extravaganza, which means we played lots of games of multiplayer Magic, took notes, and told you all about them. Should we do more things like that in the future? If so, should we limit it to simple multiplayer, or should we branch out into things like Winston Draft picks and games, booster draft picks and games, and new formats or variants?

Branch out. The more the better.

17. We’ve done several episodes involving tips for new players. Should we keep this up? If so, should we go more into strategy, rules issues, or both?

Of course, and both.

18. Out of the Deck Box seems to be a fairly popular segment. Should we keep doing individual decks, or do more like comparing the two Multiplayer Discard decks?

I'd say keep doing both. It's nice to have a little bit of change every now and then.

19. Pimp My Deckbox (we really need to pick another name for that) does really well on the forums, but we’re usually a little wary of doing this on the show. We don’t want to sound like experts telling people what to put in their decks, especially since we’re not experts and what we suggest you might not have. I’ve been thinking of doing something like this using broader strokes, but I haven’t quite figured it out yet. Do you guys have any suggestions for improvements or special requests for this?

As a name, The Deck Garage is used a lot, or perhaps something like "Free Oil Change for Your Deck." And we understand you aren't experts, and that you have no clue what we have.

20. And finally, let us know anything else you might want to throw out there. Suggestions for any of these segments, suggestions for future episodes, comments, criticisms, whatever you want. We want any and all feedback.

Perhaps a Cheap Deck segment? Where you take an archetype, then change it to be really inexpensive to build?

First off, I want to say that it's not a silly podcast, but instead a very witty and insightful podcast and one of my favorites.

1. How did you first hear about the show?

Found it on iTunes while looking for Magic the Gathering Podcasts

2. Do you listen to the music in each episode?

The opening music, but not the closing music.

3. Should we pick a theme and go with it or keep having different music?

No. I like the random music.

4. How is the sound quality of the show, both the music and the actual show?

Music is always good, and recently the voices have been very good. You seem to have fixed Dirk's (?) microphone skipping problems that I noticed during the Morningtide previews.

5. Is the current episode length (60-75 minutes or so) good, too long, or too short?

They're exactly the right length. Any longer and I'd be bored, but any shorter and I'd be disappointed.

6. What about splitting longer episodes into two parts like Episode 27? Is this a good idea or a bad one?

I haven't listened to 27 yet, but I think it was fine with such a large subject, but for smaller ones I think one episode is fine.

7. Would “quickie” episodes that are 20-40 minutes in length be a good idea?

Only during periods of previews when new cards are being released or in event of very important news.

8. What about number of hosts per show? If there’s only two of us, is it worth listening to? What about when we’re all there – do we seem to get in each other’s way?

Only two hosts get boring, but when you're all there it's just fine. You cooperate excellently and your squabbling improves the podcast if nothing else.

9. How do you feel about the length, quality, and depth of the new set preview episodes? Do we spend too long on individual cards? Do you feel like two episodes a week during preview weeks are too much?

I like the in depth reviews and I don't think two episodes are too many. In fact, they help me get to know the set and prepare for the prerelease, when I'll be running across the cards.

10. Would you be interested in the development of another fun theme deck, like the Clash deck? Oh yeah, we’ll be touching that one again soon too. We never actually did the Morningtide follow-up, and it bothers me professionally.

I'd be totally in favor of seeing a new "fun" deck. The clash deck seemed awesome, and it'd be great to see you guys play with some of the new mechanics. By the way, I'd like to see Fire Juggler. He can clash multiple times, so he'd work well.

11. We once picked a handful of fun rares from a set and went over them. Should we keep doing this? If so, just with new sets or should we go back to old ones too?

Yes, yes you should. It was really fun to listen to those and I think it's your choice. If you have time, it'd be cool if you went over old sets, but Ron Vitale on The Magic Sock already does that, so you don't necessarily have to.

12. We’ve done a couple of Magic Etiquette segments (what to do about that guy with just one deck, and when are proxies okay). What did you think of that? Should we keep doing etiquette questions when they occur to us, or is this just too silly?

I wasn't fond of the etiquette questions. In all honesty, they really kind of bored me, although the "guy with one deck" question really helped out my friend with...you guessed it, one deck at a multiplayer game. Still managed to pull off a victory with a Mycoloth, amazingly enough.

13. We’ve done a few tournament reports too (Prereleases, Launch Parties, FNM). Does that interest you at all, or should we skip those?

I liked them, because I like to hear about you dorks in public and what shenanigans you get up to.

14. We’ve done some episodes that involve the various philosophies of the game that go beyond just playing (Timmy, Johnny, Spike; Aggro, Combo, Control). Does this sort of thing interest you at all, or should we skip those?

These also interest me, since I'm new and I'm trying to learn all I can.

15. We haven’t focused terribly much on the flavor of the game (flavor text, characters in the storyline, the world each set has built). Should we?

YES, YES, YES! I am a huge flavor fan and I'd be so grateful to hear your guys' opinions on the flavor side of magic.

16. Episode 15 was the Multiplayer Free-For-All Extravaganza, which means we played lots of games of multiplayer Magic, took notes, and told you all about them. Should we do more things like that in the future? If so, should we limit it to simple multiplayer, or should we branch out into things like Winston Draft picks and games, booster draft picks and games, and new formats or variants?

Again, YES, YES, YES! The gameplay episodes, especially the multiplayer episodes, are my favorite episodes in the podcast. It's so fun to hear how the games went and what hilarity ensued. I'd be ok if you guys just stuck to magic, but I'd be good with learning about the other sets.

17. We’ve done several episodes involving tips for new players. Should we keep this up? If so, should we go more into strategy, rules issues, or both?

I'd be good with the strategy aspect, but only "eh" with rules. Rules really bore me and might not even be relevant. And yes, keep up the n00b advice.

18. Out of the Deck Box seems to be a fairly popular segment. Should we keep doing individual decks, or do more like comparing the two Multiplayer Discard decks?

Either/or would be fine by me. I see why pimp my deck box is popular and am considering submitting some of my own, such as my Gargantuan (Naya with other 5 power creature mixed in) deck.

19. Pimp My Deckbox (we really need to pick another name for that) does really well on the forums, but we’re usually a little wary of doing this on the show. We don’t want to sound like experts telling people what to put in their decks, especially since we’re not experts and what we suggest you might not have. I’ve been thinking of doing something like this using broader strokes, but I haven’t quite figured it out yet. Do you guys have any suggestions for improvements or special requests for this?

Not really. I'd just like to hear your opinions on what you think people could do to improve their decks. You may not be experts, but between you, you probably add up to...with Mike's rules knowledge and Dirk's experience factored in...about one and a half experts. So yeah, just keep suggestin' stuff to add to people's decks.

20. And finally, let us know anything else you might want to throw out there. Suggestions for any of these segments, suggestions for future episodes, comments, criticisms, whatever you want. We want any and all feedback.

I'd like to hear follow ups on the sets. I don't mean indepth discussions of the entire set, but fun things that you see that could be done with the set. Or how the set cooperates with previous sets. Or whether it harkens back to a previous set. Whatever. I'd also like to hear more gameplay episodes, since those are probably some of the funniest and most enjoyable podcasts.