Some playgroups fall into the trap of doing the same activities every time they meet. If your playgroup does the same thing each time, you may not be meeting the needs of everyone in your group. Whether conscious of the fact or not, most playgroups stay together through unspoken compromises.
Sometimes, this isn't a problem. The intentions can be clear; your group may only draft cubes. If you want something other than cube, you know to look elsewhere. These one dimensional groups are rare, but they exist. However, most casual playgroups have to feed a mix of MTG interests.
Our group is one of these. We have new players, returning players, and veterans. Favorite formats include Draft, standard, Canadian Highlander, and EDH. Even where format preferences align, preference within those formats vary. Competitive EDH, Casual EDH, and themed EDH. Heads up draft matches compared to casual multiplayer draft formats like Emperor.
The telltale sign you are in a group with differing preferences is an awkward silence when someone asks: "What are we playing Saturday?" Everyone has their own answer. They just don't want to offer it up to watch it substituted for someone else favorite.
These "feel bads" can't be completely diminished, but acknowledging that they exist goes a long way. One way I like to acknowledge these interests in our playgroup is to hold special scheduled events that cater to different tastes.
Once every few months I host a Beer and Brew and Ben's. B^3 Events for short. The date and format are set months in advance. The intention is to give players something to look forward too. There is a MTG theme and a food/beer theme.
The first event was for my own tastes. Going first is one of the perks of organizing the event series. I love watching Canadian Highlander, but I never get to play. Big shout out here to the Loading Ready Run highlander content! Unfortunately, the barrier to entry is just too high for some in my playgroup right now.
To scratch that itch, the MTG theme for first event was Standard Highlander. Standard banlist; 100 card singleton. We held this right before the release of Guilds of Ravnica as a final tribute to the sets rotating out of the standard format. It's not quite Canadian Highlander, but it's something accessible that people can dive into for a short period of time. The beer theme was also singleton. Each attendee was to bring a bomber that they thought no one else will bring. If someone else brings the same brew you did, you both get the pleasure of drinking a Zima as a penalty. Turnout was great, 9 off our invite list of 20 attended, which is pretty good for one of our night events. Highlights included a highly effective mono red burn deck, a Simic creature control deck, and Esper Control deck of my own creation. This event will probably be repeated before each set rotates.
The second event was for our drafters. We set a date for December and started watching Card Kingdom sales. Card Kingdom sells a Chaos Draft kit containing 24 different packs; Ultimate draft nonsense. Here.
A Secret Santa beer theme was scrapped during the hustle of Thanksgiving. It was replaced by the requirement to bring a Holiday Ale. We received 6 inches of snow the night of the event. We lost a drafter in the blizzard, then found a substitute. To cap it all off, I turned on the Home Alone movie score while we drafted. I didn't tell anyone I had it on repeat. Four hours went by before someone noticed. Check it out, that soundtrack is remarkable.
The next event is for our EDH players. This is by far our widest demographic. The theme, Blind Commander. Scheduled for February 2019.
Keep Tapping Left,
Benjamin