Misconception #1: They Hurt Local Shops

There are a few common fallacies about MTG proxies that come up among players. 

One of these fallacies is that proxies are bad for LGSs (Local Game Shops) and WotC (Wizards of the Coast). The argument is that a player won’t go to one of these businesses and buy a $20 card when they can buy a high quality proxy at a fraction of the price. 

This simply isn’t true. There’s no way to tell how a players resources are going to be allocated or distributed within the economy. For example, Ben might want a Mana Crypt card but realizes he can’t find one below $100. Ben has a $100 budget and doesn’t want to use it all on one card. So instead, he buys a beautiful Mana Crypt proxy from Abyss Proxy Shop for $6 and has a great evening playing with his friends. That could be the end of the story… or he could use his remaining $90+ buying booster packs from his local game shop. The shop now sells $90 worth of merchandise instead of nothing. This is simple scenario but it illustrates a valuable point – you can support your LGS in a variety of ways.

Misconception #2: Players Will Abuse Them

Some believe that MTG proxies will hurt the game because some players will build over-powered decks. This could force other players to spend big money on cards or use proxies in order to stay competitive. 

There are a few reasons why this a flawed way of thinking: 

1. You can play with anyone you want.

You’re never going to be forced to play with someone you don’t want to. If you don’t like the way someone plays the game, play with someone else. 

1. Less expensive decks can still be competitive. 

Cheaper card decks can regularly compete with expensive ones. This is especially true in multiplayer games like Commander.

1. Decks should have similar power levels anyway.

There’s always the chance that you’ll run into a player with a truly robust deck. If that deck is clearly more powerful than others at the table, they should find different competition. For the most part, good players want competitive games. Sometimes it’s not a fair fight and one players deck is out of another’s league. The problem here is generally deck compatibility and little to do with proxies. 

Misconception #3: It’s Not As Fun

This may be the most common fallacy we hear at Abyss Proxy Shop. There’s an argument that building your deck piece by piece is where the fun lies. A player shouldn’t need to proxy the best cards and should instead find replacements until they can build the deck they want. 

The truth of the matter is that proxying doesn’t affect this much. Proxies don’t allow you to just arrive at your destination and skip the journey. Each card needs to be tested to make sure it’s compatible with your deck and strategy.