First of all, there are three questions I would like to pose, which I will keep in italics to distinguish.
What should you do if you suspected/suspect your opinion untapped previously tapped land, but you aren't too sure?
This is a shame. I have personally seen someone claim their opponent untapped mana, but he didn't actually see it happen, so he didn't even bother grabbing a judge. Was this the right thing to do? I feel that this is a real shame because most times when you suspect an opponent untapped previously tapped land, you can't always prove it, especially in commander.
When playing with friends or casually at a shop, what is the best way to resolve a situation where one player claims the other player untapped land but didn't *see* it?
There was a recent problem at my house when friend A suspected friend B of cheating mana by untapping it. He was playing a mono-blue Teferi deck (the planeswalker one). The problem I had in determining what to do was...
1. He has a habit of tapping and untapping lands often when making decisions on whether to use artifacts or land for mana.
2. He has a lot of artifacts that make his spells cost less.
3. It is near impossible to remember what cards he played in a turn. His turns are longer, because he often does a ton of little things, so it's hard to go back and check to see if he used his mana properly.
The suspicion wasn't invalid, however, as this person was once caught untapping his mana. However, what are we to do in this situation? Simply telling the mono-blue to tap the rest of his landbase isn't fair if he truly was playing cards correctly, because he might have needed that mana. However, letting him get away with it is a big deal because it isn't fair to the rest of the group that play honestly.
How to watch for mana untapping?
Let's be honest. No one wants to strain themselves to watch and make sure the one friend isn't cheating mana. Even if we did, it would be futile, because he will just play correctly until we turned our backs, and that accomplishes nothing other than knowing he could be cheating mana when we don't feel like straining ourselves.
The best thing I can think of is to stop zoning out during his turn. I was considering taking the simple steps to...
1. As he plays cards, count how many he has played.
2. Check where those cards went (artifacts go with artifacts, creatures go with creatures, enchantments goes to enchantments everything else goes to graveyard) that way I can remember things like "well he played 3 creatures and 1 spell, so I better check the three newest creatures and the card on top of the graveyard"
Yet this can still be an issue because Teferi allows him to untap permanents, and a friend has suspected him of using Teferi's ability twice by being quiet the first time, to which he will say "I changed my mind, I didn't do Teferi's ability the first time." (this could be true.)
No one wants to have to deal with a friend who cheats, but at the same time, I can't accuse him of it unless I am positive he has done it more than that one time. It's not fair to him and, if he was being honest, we lose a person to play magic with.
What should you do if you suspected/suspect your opinion untapped previously tapped land, but you aren't too sure?
In a tournament setting, call a judge, if you suspect cheating. You won't be penalized for doing so, even if there was no cheating. The judge will determine what to do. At the very least, your opponent's habbit of tapping and untapping his permanents should warrant a Caution if not a Warning for confusing the game state. Repeated offense can even get a harsher penalty (game loss). And if it is determined, that your opponent did indeed cheat, well, that's a disqualification.
In a Casual game, there are no official judges, of course. But that doesn't hinder you to remind your opponent, that he has to keep the board state clear, and that he should refrain from his tap/untap habit. You can and should do this in a tournament setting as well, naturally.
When playing with friends or casually at a shop, what is the best way to resolve a situation where one player claims the other player untapped land but didn't *see* it?
1. He has a habit of tapping and untapping lands often when making decisions on whether to use artifacts or land for mana.
There's not much you can do for this game, so just continue playing with the game state as it is. But again, you should remind that player, that he should stop his peculiar habit. It's an overall bad practice, that can get him into trouble in a tournament setting.
2. He has a lot of artifacts that make his spells cost less.
3. It is near impossible to remember what cards he played in a turn. His turns are longer, because he often does a ton of little things, so it's hard to go back and check to see if he used his mana properly.
If he is playing a complex deck, that requires lots of actions during a turn and has lots of interactions, then it is not unfair to anyone, if you pay closer attention. Even if his actions don't directly influence the other players, he is not playing solitaire. He should at least announce what card he is playing and should allow everyone time to respond to any one action he takes and to check that he did everything correctly. He is, after all, just a human, bound to make errors. Don't feel bad about checking on him. This will make all of you better players.
How to watch for mana untapping?
The first thing to do, of course, as I mentioned before, is to make him stop his peculiar habit. Of course, in the spirit of fairness, this has to go for all other players as well.
In a larger multiplayer game, many people tend to let their attention wander to other stuff (texting on the phone, reading books, etc.). This, too, is a bad habit. You're there to play Magic, so keep your mind on the game! Watch what the other players are doing, even if it doesn't affect you directly. If you all keep focussed on the game, then it becomes much harder to do underhanded stuff like untapping a tapped land. So discourage non-Magic stuff during the game.
This stuff can be tough to track in Commander, no doubt. In a really casual setting among closer friends I honestly don't worry about it that much. Those are people I really trust, so while they will undoubtedly make mistakes here and there (me too), I'm not worried about them intentionally cheating. I had one friend who I did catch doing exactly this kind of stuff repeatedly (he was fairly new and not smooth about it at all, so easy to catch), I talked to him about it and he denied it...so now we don't play much EDH together anymore, and when we do I watch him like a hawk. Unsurprisingly it makes him uncomfortable knowing that I know, and am watching him for it, so he basically doesn't show up to our group EDH games anymore. If he had just admitted it and I believed he was done then it would be a different story, but with him denying I lost interest in reconciling. (still friends outside of Magic though)
OTOH if I'm playing with people I don't know as well at the shop I pay very close attention to what an opponent is doing on their turn, that way I know what they are doing and how they are paying for it. That way if something seems off before their next turn I have the knowledge to spot it and replay/recount it to know. The important thing is that you mention it immediately if it seems off, and not as an accusation. Just be inquisitive and have them go through their plays that led to them having X mana open. If the count is off then correct it in that game and move. If that is happening repeatedly with the same person then you have a cheater. If it's a friend then I'd try talking to them about it. If it's just a random at the shop then I'd simply stop playing with them (we have a couple of these at our shop), and if they want to know why be honest with them.
In your case with your Teferi friend specifically it sounds like you just need to be extra vigilant on his turns. Even on a complicated board you guys should be able to follow what he is doing and revisit it within a game round (i.e. before his next turn) if need be. You can't play EDH and watch everyone's hands/lands all the time outside of their turns, so knowing exactly what he is doing on his turns is really the only way to police him. If I were in your shoes and caught him cheating again I'd be done with him as a member of the EDH playgroup. Having to watch your own friends like a hawk isn't fun.
I have a friend whose tapped mana looks more like / than -, so I constantly ask him to make his tapped lands more apparent. It wasn't so much that I suspected him of intentionally cheating, but he has a similar habit of tapping mana all at once for multiple spells, then changing his mind, or just untapping to retap a different way. So the possibility for mistakes is certainly there.
I like the ideas. I've told the entire playgroup to watch their mana habits. It's actually very common for this specific person to tap an artifact for mana, then change his mind and choose lands, then change his mind and use one artifact and a land. However, now that the group knows, they can watch it and make sure they don't do it too much either.
I also told the group to start announcing their cards. Typically, when people cast a card, they usually just say the name of the card and put it down, or they read the statline but mumble the name and "summarize" what the card does (which isn't always accurate, not on purpose) so I told my friends to clearly pronounce the name, it's abilities, the statline, and the manacost especially.
Thanks for the help guys. I am positive this will help out a lot.
I also told the group to start announcing their cards. Typically, when people cast a card, they usually just say the name of the card and put it down, or they read the statline but mumble the name and "summarize" what the card does (which isn't always accurate, not on purpose) so I told my friends to clearly pronounce the name, it's abilities, the statline, and the manacost especially.
This seems excessive. Magic is a game of shortcuts, and a full rundown of every card all the time is going to seriously slow down your play. Traditionally, if a player doesn't understand a card that their opponent plays, they just ask to read the card or have it explained to them. One of the inescapable realities of Magic is that, to succeed, players generally need to memorize or nearly memorize most or all of the cards in the format they're playing. Using a card that the opponent doesn't understand should be a rare occurance, and should occur less and less frequently as the players get experienced.
Cheating can be hard to catch, but in the case of mis-tapping mana sources, I'm having a hard time sympathizing. Being aware of your opponents' available resources is part of the game, after all. If you and your friends are keeping a trained eye on the board state, catching somebody misusing their mana sources should be trivial.
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I also told the group to start announcing their cards. Typically, when people cast a card, they usually just say the name of the card and put it down, or they read the statline but mumble the name and "summarize" what the card does (which isn't always accurate, not on purpose) so I told my friends to clearly pronounce the name, it's abilities, the statline, and the manacost especially.
This is too extreme. Clearly announcing the name of the card that's being played should suffice most of the time. Additional information can be asked for if nessessary. It's things like "I'm playing this" and then flashing the card for just a microsecond (if anything is said at all) that should be discouraged. And those effect summaries are usually more confusing than helping, too, in my experience. Just let a player who wants more information read the card himself, or just have the owner read it aloud.
Politely ask your opponent to explain where the mana came from to fund a particular spell or group of spells and abilities. Encourage yourself and other players to watch each other. Play a strategy that requires one to pay more attention to the turns of one'e opponents (e.g. draw-go or control). When playing EDH I often find myself catching players forgetting to tap enough mana or making other mistakes (sometimes I make mistakes too). Part of the fun of the game is observing and interacting with the cards of your opponents. Games move faster when players pay attention during all turns (not just their own).
This seems excessive. Magic is a game of shortcuts, and a full rundown of every card all the time is going to seriously slow down your play. Traditionally, if a player doesn't understand a card that their opponent plays, they just ask to read the card or have it explained to them. One of the inescapable realities of Magic is that, to succeed, players generally need to memorize or nearly memorize most or all of the cards in the format they're playing. Using a card that the opponent doesn't understand should be a rare occurance, and should occur less and less frequently as the players get experienced.
Cheating can be hard to catch, but in the case of mis-tapping mana sources, I'm having a hard time sympathizing. Being aware of your opponents' available resources is part of the game, after all. If you and your friends are keeping a trained eye on the board state, catching somebody misusing their mana sources should be trivial.
The converse to this is that there are players who play in a manner which make following their actions difficult. Another player whom I've played with would mumble through his turn, often casting multiple spells or activating abilities without pausing to allow reactions from other players. Like the previous example I gave, I had to ask him to slow down and speak up so that I (and others) knew what he was doing and could choose to respond.
Bottom line, Magic is a social game and as long as you aren't being making unreasonable demands, asking your opponents to play in a clearer manner isn't that different than knowing board states. However, I do agree with you and others that reading the full text of each card being played isn't necessary unless it is specifically requested.
My friends and I stopped allowing takebacks on tapped mana -- takebacks on most anything. You tap it, it's tapped; you do it, it's done. The whole trying every possible contingency on the board before making a decision was irritating, made responding difficult, was too conducive to cheating at mana expenditures, and well, you get the idea. A player can still manipulate his or her land-base into stacks for visual planning purposes, but that's where going through the motions ends.
My friends and I stopped allowing takebacks on tapped mana -- takebacks on most anything. You tap it, it's tapped; you do it, it's done. The whole trying every possible contingency on the board before making a decision was irritating, made responding difficult, was too conducive to cheating at mana expenditures, and well, you get the idea. A player can still manipulate his or her land-base into stacks for visual planning purposes, but that's where going through the motions ends.
We did this as well. Once everyone in the group were well beyond noob status, we tightened up the game for everyone's benefit. It will make them better players in the end.
Lots of people to reply to. Instead of quoting, i'll just run down the list.
FuriousMarispul: I think you have to realize two things. The first is that I am not asking them to do this every single time. If they believe the card is known well enough, they can just say the name. Second, the problem is that most people have only ever mumbled in the past, so 70% of the cards we remember, but can't remember by name, so we have to constantly ask every single time what it does. My group usually works itself out as long as you give them a starting point, such as announcing the entirety of the card.
Also, regarding the "mana untapping." It becomes a problem because he is constantly switching around what he wants to tap for mana. We don't want to enforce the "tap once and you're done rule" but instead the "once the card is announced, the mana is set." We operate best when we give leeway but actually give warnings for things like confusing the board state. Anyways, when untapping and retapping constantly, and having multiple cards that reduce mana cost, it can be difficult to keep up. Usually we have a good understanding of what the costs are. However, the problem arises that we believe he is tapping the appropriate mana, and then untapping later. He uses the excuse "I used my artifact instead, you just didn't notice." As others have said, you need to watch a player, but it loses fun when you have to watch them like a hawk. When we don't, however, is when we suspect him of doing these things. That's why we are taking precautions.
MastersElf: This is a good point that I have noticed before. It isn't so much that we are not paying attention as it is the transforming state of the board. A new creature is cast who is a threat, so people immediately go to their hand to try and make a new plan to stop said creature. This is inevitable, and a crucial part of the game, but this is when people take advantage of the lack of eyes.
Cryogen: Yes, my point exactly. The thing I love most about my playgroup is that we usually share the same positive and negative concepts in the game. When I make a request such as "read off each card clearly", most players are in total agreeance and are glad we instituted it. I can honestly say there hasn't been a time yet when it's become an issue that a player doesn't like the way we do things (the people in our group.) The nice thing about this is that we tend to just sort of "get" each other without needing to talk. You sort of just *know* when a friend may want to use his priority to play an instant, or when you don't even have to bother explaining what a card does because the first word of the card is enough for everyone. This is why we usually start with strict rules, because they eventually become easy habit on it's own. Besides that, clearly reading a card from top to bottom is important because you'd be surprised how many people misunderstand the card, or simply say it wrong. When I play Geth, Lord of the Vault I have, for some reason, a habit of saying the cards are exiled from the top of the library, not put into the graveyard, or I will say that they are discarded. I know what I mean, but it comes out wrong. This happens a lot with new cards. At first, we read them, and all is well, but sometimes the second or third time someone misinterprets it because it was summarized and not read properly.
BaronCappucino: This is an interesting play-style, but my play group tries to keep out things that would sway the game negatively without warrant. In a sanctioned event, you are allowed to change your mana decisions as long as you do so before you actually put the card out. Forcing players to keep their lands tapped would result in some people having major advantage simply because their opponent didn't tap properly, and it gives major advantage to mono-colored decks.
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What should you do if you suspected/suspect your opinion untapped previously tapped land, but you aren't too sure?
This is a shame. I have personally seen someone claim their opponent untapped mana, but he didn't actually see it happen, so he didn't even bother grabbing a judge. Was this the right thing to do? I feel that this is a real shame because most times when you suspect an opponent untapped previously tapped land, you can't always prove it, especially in commander.
When playing with friends or casually at a shop, what is the best way to resolve a situation where one player claims the other player untapped land but didn't *see* it?
There was a recent problem at my house when friend A suspected friend B of cheating mana by untapping it. He was playing a mono-blue Teferi deck (the planeswalker one). The problem I had in determining what to do was...
1. He has a habit of tapping and untapping lands often when making decisions on whether to use artifacts or land for mana.
2. He has a lot of artifacts that make his spells cost less.
3. It is near impossible to remember what cards he played in a turn. His turns are longer, because he often does a ton of little things, so it's hard to go back and check to see if he used his mana properly.
The suspicion wasn't invalid, however, as this person was once caught untapping his mana. However, what are we to do in this situation? Simply telling the mono-blue to tap the rest of his landbase isn't fair if he truly was playing cards correctly, because he might have needed that mana. However, letting him get away with it is a big deal because it isn't fair to the rest of the group that play honestly.
How to watch for mana untapping?
Let's be honest. No one wants to strain themselves to watch and make sure the one friend isn't cheating mana. Even if we did, it would be futile, because he will just play correctly until we turned our backs, and that accomplishes nothing other than knowing he could be cheating mana when we don't feel like straining ourselves.
The best thing I can think of is to stop zoning out during his turn. I was considering taking the simple steps to...
1. As he plays cards, count how many he has played.
2. Check where those cards went (artifacts go with artifacts, creatures go with creatures, enchantments goes to enchantments everything else goes to graveyard) that way I can remember things like "well he played 3 creatures and 1 spell, so I better check the three newest creatures and the card on top of the graveyard"
Yet this can still be an issue because Teferi allows him to untap permanents, and a friend has suspected him of using Teferi's ability twice by being quiet the first time, to which he will say "I changed my mind, I didn't do Teferi's ability the first time." (this could be true.)
No one wants to have to deal with a friend who cheats, but at the same time, I can't accuse him of it unless I am positive he has done it more than that one time. It's not fair to him and, if he was being honest, we lose a person to play magic with.
Thanks for the help guys.
Just watch closely, and if he seems to be going back and forth on his turn, ask what is untapping what and what mana is being used for what.
Planeswalker Teferi is quite hard to pilot as a general, so he may just be messing up. I know I occasionally did while playing him.
UTeferi, Temporal ArchmageU's prison: blue is the new orange is the new black.
Mizzix Of The Izmagnus : wheels on fire... rolling down the road...
BSidisi, Undead VizierB: Bis zum Erbrechen
GTitiania, Protector Of ArgothG: Protecting Argoth, by blowing it up!
GYisan, The Wanderer BardG: Gradus Ad Elfball.
Duel EDH: Yisan & Titania.
In Progress: Grand Arbiter Augustin IV duel; Grenzo, Dungeon Warden Doomsday.
In a tournament setting, call a judge, if you suspect cheating. You won't be penalized for doing so, even if there was no cheating. The judge will determine what to do. At the very least, your opponent's habbit of tapping and untapping his permanents should warrant a Caution if not a Warning for confusing the game state. Repeated offense can even get a harsher penalty (game loss). And if it is determined, that your opponent did indeed cheat, well, that's a disqualification.
In a Casual game, there are no official judges, of course. But that doesn't hinder you to remind your opponent, that he has to keep the board state clear, and that he should refrain from his tap/untap habit. You can and should do this in a tournament setting as well, naturally.
There's not much you can do for this game, so just continue playing with the game state as it is. But again, you should remind that player, that he should stop his peculiar habit. It's an overall bad practice, that can get him into trouble in a tournament setting.
If he is playing a complex deck, that requires lots of actions during a turn and has lots of interactions, then it is not unfair to anyone, if you pay closer attention. Even if his actions don't directly influence the other players, he is not playing solitaire. He should at least announce what card he is playing and should allow everyone time to respond to any one action he takes and to check that he did everything correctly. He is, after all, just a human, bound to make errors. Don't feel bad about checking on him. This will make all of you better players.
The first thing to do, of course, as I mentioned before, is to make him stop his peculiar habit. Of course, in the spirit of fairness, this has to go for all other players as well.
In a larger multiplayer game, many people tend to let their attention wander to other stuff (texting on the phone, reading books, etc.). This, too, is a bad habit. You're there to play Magic, so keep your mind on the game! Watch what the other players are doing, even if it doesn't affect you directly. If you all keep focussed on the game, then it becomes much harder to do underhanded stuff like untapping a tapped land. So discourage non-Magic stuff during the game.
Former Rules Advisor
"Everything's better with pirates." - Lodge
(The Gamers: Dorkness Rising)
"Any sufficiently analyzed magic is indistinguishable from science."
(Girl Genius - Fairy Tale Theater Break - Cinderella, end of volume 8)
OTOH if I'm playing with people I don't know as well at the shop I pay very close attention to what an opponent is doing on their turn, that way I know what they are doing and how they are paying for it. That way if something seems off before their next turn I have the knowledge to spot it and replay/recount it to know. The important thing is that you mention it immediately if it seems off, and not as an accusation. Just be inquisitive and have them go through their plays that led to them having X mana open. If the count is off then correct it in that game and move. If that is happening repeatedly with the same person then you have a cheater. If it's a friend then I'd try talking to them about it. If it's just a random at the shop then I'd simply stop playing with them (we have a couple of these at our shop), and if they want to know why be honest with them.
In your case with your Teferi friend specifically it sounds like you just need to be extra vigilant on his turns. Even on a complicated board you guys should be able to follow what he is doing and revisit it within a game round (i.e. before his next turn) if need be. You can't play EDH and watch everyone's hands/lands all the time outside of their turns, so knowing exactly what he is doing on his turns is really the only way to police him. If I were in your shoes and caught him cheating again I'd be done with him as a member of the EDH playgroup. Having to watch your own friends like a hawk isn't fun.
Misc. EDH Stuff: Commander Cube | Zombies (Horde)
Resources:Commander Rulings FAQ | Commander Deckbuilding Guide
Follow me on Twitter! @cryogen_mtg
I also told the group to start announcing their cards. Typically, when people cast a card, they usually just say the name of the card and put it down, or they read the statline but mumble the name and "summarize" what the card does (which isn't always accurate, not on purpose) so I told my friends to clearly pronounce the name, it's abilities, the statline, and the manacost especially.
Thanks for the help guys. I am positive this will help out a lot.
This seems excessive. Magic is a game of shortcuts, and a full rundown of every card all the time is going to seriously slow down your play. Traditionally, if a player doesn't understand a card that their opponent plays, they just ask to read the card or have it explained to them. One of the inescapable realities of Magic is that, to succeed, players generally need to memorize or nearly memorize most or all of the cards in the format they're playing. Using a card that the opponent doesn't understand should be a rare occurance, and should occur less and less frequently as the players get experienced.
Cheating can be hard to catch, but in the case of mis-tapping mana sources, I'm having a hard time sympathizing. Being aware of your opponents' available resources is part of the game, after all. If you and your friends are keeping a trained eye on the board state, catching somebody misusing their mana sources should be trivial.
This is too extreme. Clearly announcing the name of the card that's being played should suffice most of the time. Additional information can be asked for if nessessary. It's things like "I'm playing this" and then flashing the card for just a microsecond (if anything is said at all) that should be discouraged. And those effect summaries are usually more confusing than helping, too, in my experience. Just let a player who wants more information read the card himself, or just have the owner read it aloud.
Former Rules Advisor
"Everything's better with pirates." - Lodge
(The Gamers: Dorkness Rising)
"Any sufficiently analyzed magic is indistinguishable from science."
(Girl Genius - Fairy Tale Theater Break - Cinderella, end of volume 8)
Modern: URW Madcap Experiment
Pauper: MonoU Tempo Delver
My EDH Commanders:
Aminatou, The Fateshifter UBW
Azami, Lady of Scrolls U
Mikaeus, the Unhallowed B
Edric, Spymaster of Trest UG
Glissa, the Traitor BG
Arcum Dagsson U
The converse to this is that there are players who play in a manner which make following their actions difficult. Another player whom I've played with would mumble through his turn, often casting multiple spells or activating abilities without pausing to allow reactions from other players. Like the previous example I gave, I had to ask him to slow down and speak up so that I (and others) knew what he was doing and could choose to respond.
Bottom line, Magic is a social game and as long as you aren't being making unreasonable demands, asking your opponents to play in a clearer manner isn't that different than knowing board states. However, I do agree with you and others that reading the full text of each card being played isn't necessary unless it is specifically requested.
Misc. EDH Stuff: Commander Cube | Zombies (Horde)
Resources:Commander Rulings FAQ | Commander Deckbuilding Guide
Follow me on Twitter! @cryogen_mtg
We did this as well. Once everyone in the group were well beyond noob status, we tightened up the game for everyone's benefit. It will make them better players in the end.
FuriousMarispul: I think you have to realize two things. The first is that I am not asking them to do this every single time. If they believe the card is known well enough, they can just say the name. Second, the problem is that most people have only ever mumbled in the past, so 70% of the cards we remember, but can't remember by name, so we have to constantly ask every single time what it does. My group usually works itself out as long as you give them a starting point, such as announcing the entirety of the card.
Also, regarding the "mana untapping." It becomes a problem because he is constantly switching around what he wants to tap for mana. We don't want to enforce the "tap once and you're done rule" but instead the "once the card is announced, the mana is set." We operate best when we give leeway but actually give warnings for things like confusing the board state. Anyways, when untapping and retapping constantly, and having multiple cards that reduce mana cost, it can be difficult to keep up. Usually we have a good understanding of what the costs are. However, the problem arises that we believe he is tapping the appropriate mana, and then untapping later. He uses the excuse "I used my artifact instead, you just didn't notice." As others have said, you need to watch a player, but it loses fun when you have to watch them like a hawk. When we don't, however, is when we suspect him of doing these things. That's why we are taking precautions.
MastersElf: This is a good point that I have noticed before. It isn't so much that we are not paying attention as it is the transforming state of the board. A new creature is cast who is a threat, so people immediately go to their hand to try and make a new plan to stop said creature. This is inevitable, and a crucial part of the game, but this is when people take advantage of the lack of eyes.
Cryogen: Yes, my point exactly. The thing I love most about my playgroup is that we usually share the same positive and negative concepts in the game. When I make a request such as "read off each card clearly", most players are in total agreeance and are glad we instituted it. I can honestly say there hasn't been a time yet when it's become an issue that a player doesn't like the way we do things (the people in our group.) The nice thing about this is that we tend to just sort of "get" each other without needing to talk. You sort of just *know* when a friend may want to use his priority to play an instant, or when you don't even have to bother explaining what a card does because the first word of the card is enough for everyone. This is why we usually start with strict rules, because they eventually become easy habit on it's own. Besides that, clearly reading a card from top to bottom is important because you'd be surprised how many people misunderstand the card, or simply say it wrong. When I play Geth, Lord of the Vault I have, for some reason, a habit of saying the cards are exiled from the top of the library, not put into the graveyard, or I will say that they are discarded. I know what I mean, but it comes out wrong. This happens a lot with new cards. At first, we read them, and all is well, but sometimes the second or third time someone misinterprets it because it was summarized and not read properly.
BaronCappucino: This is an interesting play-style, but my play group tries to keep out things that would sway the game negatively without warrant. In a sanctioned event, you are allowed to change your mana decisions as long as you do so before you actually put the card out. Forcing players to keep their lands tapped would result in some people having major advantage simply because their opponent didn't tap properly, and it gives major advantage to mono-colored decks.