Podcast

This is probably the reason you’re here, but I’ll explain just in case. Started in November of 2007, The Mana Pool is a podcast for all the things that casual Magic players might enjoy. We talk about new cards, old cards, decks we’ve played, Commander/EDH, drafting, tournaments we attend, flavor, tribal, basically anything we can think of. We answer rules questions for listeners. We have segments like Out of the Deck Box (showing off our decks), Story Circle (building a deck on the fly live on the air), Magic Mad Libs (just what it sounds like), Mortal Instinct Fighter Calibur Vs (a flavorful random creature tournament fight), and several others that show up from time to time. Whenever we all get together, we record a live episode of us playing games, which listeners seem to enjoy because it gives more insight into who we are rather than because of the games themselves. Hope you enjoy!

Episode 544 – Dorky Deckbuilding Advice

By The Mana Pool | Published March 3, 2019 Leave a comment

First up the dorks are taking a look at the brand new reveal of Modern Horizons! Two of them hadn’t seen it yet, so we get actual first impressions!

Then it’s time for the main topic of this week’s episode, suggested by the TMP Discord server – deckbuilding! We’ll explain why some old deckbuilding rules we learned aren’t great and offer up plenty of actual tips. And we’ll even go further than that and discuss building for different environments and playgroups with plenty of personal experiences thrown in for good measure.

Let us know what we missed!

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:54:47 — 39.4MB)

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Episode 543 – Jungles & Panthers & Ants Oh My

By The Mana Pool | Published February 24, 2019 Leave a comment

The dorks are back on Trivester with Brian’s custom MTG RPG! This episode is pretty heavy on the combat encounters and light on the narrative, but I’m sure we’ll get back to the mystery in the next installment! If you want to know who gets mauled horribly out of nowhere, who is stalking the party through the jungle, and who you should have rolling your D20s, you’re in for a treat!
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:44:51 — 36.0MB)

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Episode 542 – Dirk Ruins Everything

By The Mana Pool | Published February 10, 2019 4 Comments

Don’t worry, Dirk doesn’t really ruin EVERYTHING. In fact, Dirk was on fire for most of this episode. Like in Overwatch or NBA Jam, not like actual fire. Anyway…

This episode we’re putting Mirage through a Mythic Conscription. And unlike several of the Conscriptions we’ve done for older sets, this one actually has plenty of cards to talk about. During the episode we even dig up some actual recent evidence for why certain cards would be mythic! Be sure to let us know what you think about Mirage’s potential mythics!

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:03:02 — 42.2MB)

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Episode 541 – Don’t Live on Amonkhet

By The Mana Pool | Published February 3, 2019 Leave a comment

The dorks begin with an oddly appropriate Magic Mad Lib (written by Chewie this time!) and then dive into another edition of There’s No Plane Like Home. To follow up last week’s Theros episode we decided to go to the OTHER plane where the gods are definitely real and you can totally talk to them: Amonkhet.

It turns out the Amonkhet discussion is really…weird. Compared to other planes, Amonkhet really doesn’t have normal life exactly. It’s not really a place to live, it’s a Nicol Bolas warrior factory.

With the subject matter of the Mad Lib and the harsh reality of Amonkhet, this episode is surprisingly somber at times. But don’t worry, we’re still just as happy and dorky as usual!
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:55:03 — 39.5MB)

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Episode 540 – There’s No Plane Like Home: Theros

By The Mana Pool | Published January 27, 2019 Leave a comment

The dorks are back! We’ve got an epic-length Mad Lib that Brian wrote! It’s seriously long, but the payoff is totally worth it. Just don’t deathtouch yourselves, please.

After that it’s time to return to a segment we started late last year! It’s (now) called There’s No Plane Like Home! We’re looking at how everyday life on the various planes of Magic might be. This episode we’re focusing on Theros, the plane based on ancient Hellenic Greece. The gods are real and they are not to be trifled with. And watch out for hydras. And those savage brutes, the minotaurs. But don’t worry, it’s not all bad! Now offer up a sacrifice to John, God of Toilets and enjoy civilization!

Oh yeah, and there are tangents involving Super Smash Bros and Kingdom Hearts. You know, because reasons.
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 2:08:57 — 44.3MB)

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