Welcome to BadMagic's History!
Wow, you must be bored or trying to check me out before doing business.
Either way, I'll try to give you some of what you're looking for. If you
have any additional questions, please contact me at:
tony_manion@hotmail.com
THE HOOK:
It all started on a fine day back in 1994 (vision blurring, image appearing - This was not
the beginning, but it was a beginning...) I got addicted to MTG that summer with
the rest of the
local gaming group. It was my house, Saturday night, and out came the Magic. Two guys
had bought a Revised Starter deck and two Revised Booster packs. They played a little
and within the hour had the rest of us hooked. I bought the same at a local store
[Middle GA Cards & Comics, Macon, GA] and brought them out for the Sunday gaming session.
Needless to say, we skipped AD&D that night and opted for MTG instead. I made my first
and probably only RAPE trade - I traded my Cockatrice for his Rod of Ruin! In Macon, only
James Braswell would knowingly do such a thing... He retained the title of doing the same
with many others... I learned to check the value before making any trade! The first wave
of Revised dried up in Middle GA, the first cards any of us saw! The first wave of The
Dark was released, not a box hit Middle GA!
THE LINE:
At another local store [Komix Kastle, Warner Robins, GA], I saw an index card with a Revised
set for sale AT $700!!! I was stunned and knew I needed to get involved (to get a piece of
the action). I traded a slew of hot comic books [Platt Moon Knight's, Jim Lee autographs,
Todd McFarlane autographs and the like] for 5 boxes of Revised. With these comic trades and a
little card trading, I had the set complete within two weeks. I posted a similar index card
for $650 - After a week, lowered to $600 - After two more, lowered to $550 - without ever
selling. All the extra cards gave me quite a stock to create decks with! The favorite was the
"Flame On" deck, including: 3 Sol Rings, 5 Fireballs, 2 Forks, and 2 Wheel of Fortunes
with around 35 cards. With college at GA Tech, came "Tournament Rules", "Deckbuilding 101",
"Killer Dave [Mimm]" and ...
THE SINKER:
I ran across a Magic: The Gathering newsgroup, with prices SO CHEAP I had to BUY! Up to
this point, I avoided paying cash for cards, opting to trade only. I struck a deal with
William Kinkella [BC Canada] on some AN Rukh Eggs and other AN commons, 'knowing' I'd get
ripped off! The total was $20 and took the chance. I didn't get ripped and after that,
cash was just another option. As most people would sell for less than a trade amount, I
began to buy/sell/trade through multiple markets to my favor - 'triangle trade' between
college, hometown events, local tournaments, and online. At the same time, I bought every
good deal I found and had quite the 'cardboard-empire' at any given time! I never made a
profit, always turning greenbacks into say... whitebacks :)
The empire scaled to dealing internationally on a daily basis - back before the web, where
newsgroups & e-mail references were the norm. Hundreds and thousands of deals later, I
established quite a reference list and solid reputation as a "good guy". I can proudly say
that I've never had a bad reference or ended a deal without making one smile.
Things have changed since '94, the MTG market, the rules (only 187+ times), the
combos, and definitely the cards. My e-mail address and hair-line have changed a couple times
along with the above. I still love it and happy to get back in the saddle after some time
in the shade!
Oh, and I still have the Revised set that started it all if anyone is interested... :)
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