When all else fails, use a Sabertooth Alley Cat

When all else fails, use a Sabertooth Alley Cat

Al Stover / Reporting

Britney Locati / Images


published in issue 41.11 of the SFCC Communicator

Students drink their coffee and soda surrounding Josh Arnold as he tilts nine of his mana cards, and plays the card that represents a fireball, dealing damage to his opponent and winning the game.

Arnold is one of many SFCC students who play Magic: The Gathering in the cafeteria every day.

Magic: The Gathering is a strategy card game owned by Wizards of the Coast (WOTC), a hobby and gaming company based out of Seattle.  Two or more players use a deck of 40 or more cards, depicting an image of either mana (magical points), a magic item, a spell, or a creature.  Players use their cards and to defeat their opponents' creature and drain them of their life points to win the game.

According to the WOTC website, Magic premiered in 1993, and in its first year, 10 million cards were distributed.  Today Magic has thousands of players from all corners of the world.

Arnold, a psychology major has been playing Magic since 1998. He said he started playing after walking into a game shop.

"An employee gave me a deck and I started playing from there," Arnold said.

Arnold said his collection of cards is around 15,000 alone, and that he spends around $100 a month on cards.

"Four times a year, it's closer to $1,000," Arnold said. "It's not something that can break your bank, but it can if you let it."

Game shops such as Uncle's Games, Puzzles, and More, located in downtown Spokane, sell 15 card booster packs a price range from $3.29 to $5.99, while Introductory decks sell for $11.99.  Cards and sets on Ebay are priced anywhere from 1 cent to $25,000.  Donn Eschelmann, a manager of Uncle's, said he includes a 20 percent for boxes of containing 36 booster packs, making the total $115.50.

Sean Mattix, a first year student has been playing Magic for three years.  He currently has over 10 decks.

"I put together different themes and use numerous strategies, whether they are good or bad," Mattix said.

Clinton Montague, a first-year student has been playing since middle school.  He says he enjoys the game's strategy and quick thinking.

"You try to make something work and it doesn't, so you have to come up with something new," Montague said.

Montague currently has a collection of 13,000 cards.  He spends anywhere between $100 on cards per month, and between $500 to $1,000 when a new set is released.  He also said that his card spending does not come close to cleaning out his wallet.

One thing Arnold enjoys about the game are the players he meets at tournaments.

"It's a good social mechanism," Arnold said.

Eschelmann said players come to Uncle's to play Magic on Thursdays and Fridays.

"We have about 30 players come each time," Eschelmann said. "I think it went down for a while, but the trend is going back up."

Mat Van Blaricom, a first-year student no longer plays Magic, however he still supports his friends playing the game.

"Everyone plays it, and they're not living in their mother's basement," Van Blaricom said.  "They're functioning members of society who have this as their quirk."


To read the story on the Communicator Online, follow the link


Related content: 


The actual Sabertooth Alley Cat magic card


Pinball Wizard by Andy Thew, published in 41.8 of The Communicator


Weekend Warriors, a multimedia production by Madison McCord and Joseph Engle