New to Magic: The Gathering? Start Here

New to Magic: The Gathering? Start Here

Magic: The Gathering has been going strong for over thirty years, which means there is a lot to wrap your head around. You do not need to learn all of it. Here is the short path.

Pick one way to play first. The format you choose shapes everything:

• Commander — The most popular casual format. Build one 100-card deck around a legendary creature and play multiplayer. Preconstructed Commander decks let you skip deckbuilding entirely.
• Standard — Smaller, rotating card pool. Good if you want to play competitively at Friday Night Magic without owning decades of cards.
• Arena — The free digital client is the cheapest way to learn the rules at your own pace before you ever sit at a table.

Then find a table. Most game shops welcome newcomers at FNM and will happily lend a deck or pair you with a patient regular. Quarterstaff Games in Burlington and Tinker & Smithy in Middlebury both run weekly events — see our events page.

Do not buy a giant collection on day one. A single preconstructed deck and a willingness to ask questions will get you surprisingly far.