Am I The Bolas? - Why am I Always Called a Threat?
Waves of Aggression Illustrated by Jim Pavelec
Hello, and welcome to Am I the Bolas?
This column is for all of you out there who have ever played some Magic and wondered if you were the bad guy. I'm here to take in your story with all of its nuances so I can bring some clarity to all those asking, "Am I the Bolas?"
I'm ready to hear you out and offer advice. All you have to do is email amithebolas@gmail.com! You might see your story in the column. You might even hear it on the podcast. Which podcast?
I'm Mike Carrozza, aka Mark Carbonza, and hey, don't forget your jacket!
The wind never stood a chance.
This week, if you're an early threat, will you always be the biggest threat?
(Post edited for brevity, clarity, a little bit of this, and I took a break to listen to Mambo No. 5.)
HEY, MIKE!
Hey Mike,
First and foremost, I just wanted to say I love your podcast and articles. I first found them a couple months ago and have been hooked ever since. I really like discussing EDH social dilemmas, and I think it's a super cool and underrated topic to dissect, so thank you for shedding some light on it all.
For my Bolas situation, it mostly comes down to am I the Bolas for being annoyed when my opponent can't see that they're the threat?
I play in a casual, kitchen-table style pod with three longtime friends, and we all have drastically different playstyles. However, one player and I are constantly butting heads over who's the bigger threat. I tend to play hyper aggressive decks that can deal damage quickly but lack longevity, typically falling off after turn five or six. Meanwhile, the other player has the opposite playstyle: weaker in the early turns before assembling a daunting value engine by the midgame.
However, even after that point, that player still calls for the other players to assist him in dealing with me, stating that I'm still a threat to the table because I'm trying to win, while never acknowledging his own deck's strengths or potential for winning. He enjoys politicking a lot in our group, so it's not unusual for him to begin the discourse on who's the threat, which opens up the conversation for all of us to discuss threats or solutions as a table.
We've discussed different playstyles among us, and while I publicly admit to being a Spike and enjoying the thrill of having an efficient gameplan for winning, this player simply says that he wants to see everyone do the thing and doesn't plan out his deck's clock for winning like I do. The problem arises when he uses that same logic to defend himself while he is actively positioning himself for a stranglehold on a game or assembling a massive board state.
The issue comes to a head when we enter the midgame and I've been set back several times, but he still points to me as the threat to be dealt with. Often, when I point out his growing board state or potential for a powerful engine, he counters by pointing out that he's only doing so because he needs to defend himself from my attackers. So we end up in a rivalry where I attack him so he doesn't have time to set up an engine to shut me down, and he calls for the other players to aid him in stopping me before I kill the table.
So in short, am I the Bolas for getting annoyed when my opponent continues to say I'm the threat after I'm dealt with, while never acknowledging his own deck's seemingly obvious strengths?
Thank you, and I look forward to hearing back from ya!
Sincerely,
Luke
HELLO, LUKE!
Thank you so much for writing in. As I say every week, without folks writing in, there is no column, so if you, the reader, have a story you'd like to share or a Reddit post I should check out, send it over to amithebolas@gmail.com and I'll get to it here or maybe even the podcast!
I think this might be a short one.
When you like to go fast and be aggressive, that becomes your thing and you quickly establish a reputation for being the Spiky aggro guy. The other player - let's call him Midgame, we can't just keep saying the other player when discussing more than one other player - makes it to the late game because other players see themselves in him. You're going after Midgame because of the looming threat of his decks which may be the correct move, but the others see your power to attack or even kill a player and wonder whether they're next... but they don't have to wonder much, because they know they are.
Being an aggressive player means bearing the cross of being dealt with early and having players use a bulk of their interactive plays on you, leaving the opening for Midgame to snatch a win. If I were at this table, watching one player use all their aggro on a player that ends up strangleholding the game later on, I'd probably keep them alive a little longer so I could get set up, but in the end, I'd be happy to use some interaction to slow you down because when you focus my way, I wouldn't be able to keep up.
It comes down to the fact that the pod seems to benefit from you going fast and losing steam. I understand that this is your playstyle. However, having noticed this pattern and being part of a consistent playgroup, it's time to make some changes. I'm not saying completely change the way you play, but definitely include ways to come back from "being dealt with". It's one thing to go hard in the paint and hope it works out, but it's another that when Midgame and the other control you down, you don't seem to have a way out. Is thumb twiddling a game action?
Playing a Rakdos aggro deck and got blown out with board wipes? Run a Living Death! Playing green beatdown and keep getting targeted? Heroic Intervention and Asceticism can go a long way. Play a little bit more conservatively and I bet you'll find some things go your way. I understand that the rest of the playgroup isn't quite clocking Midgame as the threat he is, but he's playing an incredible social game. You've got the Spike reputation and are going hard at "the correct target". Midgame is saying "I love when players get to do their thing" and getting help from the table while assembling an engine and preventing your thing from being done.
It's a social format, Luke! Start thinking on how that can be used for yourself as well, I reckon.
I will say: you are not the Bolas. It's infuriating being at a table where people can't seem to clock the biggest threat at the table. "Seem", importantly. They might know Midgame is the biggest threat, but you are the more immediate threat and you need handling, too. You can be an immediate threat, but you can also make room to be a recurring, impending, or resilient threat. Adjust yourself and you'll find a way to get what you want more, I'm sure of it.
Thanks for writing in!
