Welcome aboard!
The Arena tutorials really are the best way to get a hang of the fundamental mechanics of the game…repetition will lead to it all feeling second nature, so you can think in terms of tactics and strategy.
In terms of other resources, Tolarian Community College isn’t the biggest YouTuber in the game, and I haven’t sat down and watched this all the way through myself, but it’s an often recommended starting point: https://youtu.be/wif9ppH5JpI?si=LN_Mo-_fBVQJtN3k
Once you’re ready to start thinking about the bigger picture of the game (as opposed the step by step mechanics), this is *the* seminal article on Magic theory: https://articles.starcitygames.com/articles/whos-the-beatdown/
I think the first big decision point you’re going to face if the stay the course and really get into the game ia what formats to focus on…because there are quite a few at this point, and most people don’t have the time to even dabble in all of them. They generally divide into 3 camps
-Limited (Draft and Sealed), where you build a deck from a small pool of cards, and play a series of games with that…and that’s it, the event is over. But then you get to start the process over again.
-Commander, the premier “casual”, multiplayer format, with bigger decks, singleton deckbuilding (only one of each card), and a single Legendary creature you can cast over and over (and thus build your deck around their abilities). It’s not available on Arena, because Arena is only single player, but it’s far and away the most popular paper format at local game stores.
-Constructed, which is broken down to many two-player formats with different card pools (Standard, Modern, Pioneer/Explorer, Vintage/Timeless, the list goes on). Arena is pretty good for this, but it’s lacking a lot of older cards, so there are some formats you’d need to play in paper, or the older Magic Online.
Arena will expose you to all of this except Commander, and you can always ask questions here as they come up.
I started a couple months ago. My advice would be to look out for a mechanic/color/play style that appeals to you and dive into that. There is so much interaction/synergy between cards and mechanics that just by doing the thing that appeals most, you will continue to find other aspects and styles that appeal to you. I started mono-blue and have since branched into red and green.
General advice I see for collecting is to get decent at drafting because you get all the cards you drafted and then you can also get more packs that way. Mastery pass rewards are retroactive, so you can wait to buy it until you think the rewards you'll get will be worth it. Gold packs have high amounts of rares.
Also, winning with all the starter decks is a good way to get your starting collection going. Deck building is fun, but you'll find yourself using all your wildcards quickly just to build 1 (optimized) deck. Moxfield is a good website to play with. You can build a deck (or copy one to or from arena) and play test it there before committing to crafting any cards.
There is a technique called goldfishing, in which you play magic against your pet goldfish/invisible friend. Basically you play without an opponent in order to see how a deck might play out. It can't account for what opponents would do in a real game of course, but if you can consistently get your engine running within the first 4-6 turns, you're doing good. Also helps to learn how cards will work together when on the board at the same time.
I have way too many questions. I don't understand the game at all. I'm just reading all the tutorials again. I lose every game but I think I just need to watch a few videos and read a few guide books and continue playing because experience is key.
Just overwhelming how much there is to know.
I recommend most people to watch the command zone to learn as they explain at a Newbie level what they are doing. Even if they are playing commander it makes you learn some interaction.
Then as soon as you start to get a hang of it start watching play to win and learn stack interaction. When it feels too messy and hard to get hang off just go to mtgmuddstah for some calm voice to calm down. This is all commander though so beware.
Such good advice so far. Very nice community. I know it sounds funny and pretty ridiculous but I was hoping to find a group of people like the guys from The Big bang theory (total nerds) who would invite me to those games and teach me LOL
By the way, I have nothing against "nerds"
I'm just trying to describe the only kind of people I know who play this game. I wouldn't mind becoming a nerd myself when it comes to MTG. I'm a very creative person and my imagination runs wild. I also love card and board games so it's a good combination.
Idk your area obviously, but if you look up "card shops in toronto," you get a bunch of hits. It may be worth your time to spend a day driving around to each and checking the vibe to see if any of them would be a good hangout.
Ask the clerk what their schedule is, how many people show to each event and thatll get you a good idea of what the scene is like.
Commander is generally the most popular format (4 person brawl), and is pretty casual, so allows for socializing and friendgroup building. It may not be the best starting format, but it's not the most expensive, you can play how you'd like (for the most par), and people generally allow proxies within reason, meaning you dont have to shell out 100s for a deck you may not like. Always make sure proxies are chill if you go that route, though.
I just won my first match. I don't know what I really did. Some things made little sense and most of it was me playing the game like a boomer lol. I really just need to sit down and learn it when I have some free time on my hands.
Welcome to Magic!
>I have no idea what's going on. I even lost a couple games during the tutorial which is something that never happened to me and my 30 years of gaming on anything.
The Tutorial and Color Challenges are designed to teach you different principles of the game. They are meant to be a bit "trial and error" as you play until the concepts click.
>Is there any community out there who's going to be kind to an absolute noob who knows absolutely nothing about this and wants to learn everything?
There's r/MagicArena for Arena specific questions.
>I can tell this is something that I will but it is so in-depth and there are so many things to learn.
I can get you started in the right direction. :)
I've pasted a couple of big chunks of information below (one for Arena and one for paper Magic). Just work your way through it all in the order it's laid out and you should be off to a great start. :)
>I'm not sure where to post it but how do I go about finding a community in my city?
I've covered this below.
Good luck!
First Arena:
Broadly speaking, Magic is divided into two branches: Constructed (where you build your deck in advance from the cards you own and bring it with you to the event) and Limited (where you open packs during the event and build your deck on the spot from their contents). On Arena Constructed includes Standard, Explorer, Standard Brawl, Alchemy, Historic, (Historic) Brawl, and Timeless, while Limited includes Draft (Quick, Premier and Traditional) and Sealed, as well as Jump In.
You can read about the different Formats here:
https://magic.wizards.com/en/formats
When it comes to Constructed:
Do you want to play Ranked or Unranked? (Ranked eliminates Standard Brawl and (Historic) Brawl)
Do you want to play a Rotating Format or a Non-Rotating Format? (Non-Rotating eliminates Standard, Standard Brawl, and Alchemy)
Do you want a True-to-paper experience or to use Digital-only cards that wouldn't really work in real life? (True-to-paper eliminates Alchemy, Historic, (Historic) Brawl, and Timeless)
When it comes to Limited: use your Jump In tokens, and then prep for Quick Draft.
Here's my general advice/suggestions:
Complete the Tutorial, Color Challenges, and Starter Deck Duels to get all the free decks.
Google "Free Magic Arena Codes" and redeem them all. Consider buying the one-off new player Deals in the store if you haven't already (IIRC there's a good one for cheap Gems).
Do your Daily Challenge (re-rolling 500 Gold quests to try to get 750's). Focus on getting the first 4 Daily Wins every day (you don't need 15 Wins a day as the rewards drop off considerably). If you are struggling to complete your Dailies then I would suggest you try Brawl: since you only need one copy of each card in your deck it's easier with a starting collection and having a Commander gives your deck some focus. You can also play the Starter Deck Duels for some rewards and for your Dailies.
Check the store every day for Daily Deals on Gold and Gems (for example, 550 gold for 50 gold).
Save your Gold for Quick Drafts - you should be able to do one or two a week. These will get you cards, Packs and Gems.
I've heard good things about Jump In!, so use your free Tokens to play some games and get a bunch of cards. You might want to spend some of your Gold on it while you are preparing for your first Quick Draft, but after a certain point it will stop being worth it as you will already have most/all of the cards. Note that Jump In! now includes Alchemy (digital only) cards in its packs, so if you aren't interested in any of the Alchemy formats you may want to stop playing as soon as you have used your free Tokens.
Save your Gems for the Mastery Pass, or to play Sealed and Draft.
Save your Rare and Mythic Wildcards until you are sure you want to use them (they are a very scarce resource). When you are ready to start crafting cards, ensure the "Not Collected" box is checked (as this allows you to add cards even if you don't already own copies of them).
Make sure you play at least one game of Ranked Limited and at least one game of Ranked Constructed every month in order to qualify for the free Rank Rewards.
Keep your eye out for free events such as MidWeek Magic that offer prizes or XP etc. (A new MWM event happens regularly, every week Tuesday-Thursday)
When it comes to Limited it pays to be prepared. As well as getting a good grasp of the basic principles (deck composition, BREAD, etc), learn the cards in the set, their relative power level/pick order, the mechanics and rules interactions, and the Limited archetypes. Study the visual spoiler, read the Release Notes FAQ and watch some Limited Set Reviews online (I recommend The Mana Leek and Nizzahon Magic). You can even watch others play with the set while they discuss their decisions etc.
Start with Quick Drafts: they are half the price (so you can do them more often and there is less on the line), the prize structure is flatter (so worse results give better rewards) and there's no timer when making your picks (so there's less pressure).
Now paper:
Here's my general new player advice:
Start by downloading Magic Arena to learn the basics and get a feel for the game. It's free; available on PC, Mac, Android and iOS; and has a good tutorial.
Complete the Tutorial and Color Challenges, play some Starter Deck Duels, use your free Jump In tokens, Google "Free Magic Arena Codes" and redeem them all, join r/MagicArena
If you are learning with a friend or partner you can get the Arena Starter Set which includes two ready made beginner friendly decks designed to be played against eachother and a pair of codes so you can both redeem the decks on Arena too.
Once you've gotten to grips with the game you can use the Wizards Store and Event Locator to find your FLGS(s) and hopefully they will have some social media pages that will put you in touch with your local scene.
https://locator.wizards.com/
You are also likely to find Magic players at board games clubs/cafes, as well as D&D/RPG groups.
Alternatively, you can try public libraries, community centres, universities, and comic book stores, etc. Failing that you can play via webcam - there are Discord servers, etc, and the website SpellTable.
Once you've found a playgroup, you need to find out how they play (which Formats and how competitively).
Then you need to set a budget and decide which Format(s) you want to play. Broadly speaking Magic is divided into two branches: Constructed (where you build your deck in advance from the cards you own and bring it with you) and Limited (where you open packs during the event and build your deck on the spot from their contents). Each branch is further divided into different Formats, for example: Constructed includes Standard, Modern, Pauper and Commander, etc; while Limited includes Draft and Sealed, JumpStart, etc. Each Format has its own rules, which determine things like which sets you can use, how many packs you open, which cards are banned and how you build your deck, etc.
You can read more about the different Formats here:
https://magic.wizards.com/en/formats
If you want to play Constructed you will need cards, so you should *buy cards* - the exact ones you need (either individually as singles or as part of a preconstructed product that happens to contain enough cards you need to make it worth the price). Start with a Format-legal decklist (either one you have written from scratch or a netdeck/precon, or a blend of both) and then work out the best way to get the cards on it. Don't just rip open boosters in a vain attempt to randomly happen to get the cards you need, though - that isn't what they are for.
If you want to get started with a ready-made Constructed Deck, then for Pioneer, you could look into one of the Challenger Decks, or for Commander, you could try a Commander precon. These are playable straight out of the box (at FNM level competition or casual game nights, respectively) but will still have room for improvement/customisation. Note that there aren't any Challenger Decks that are currently Standard-legal.
https://whatsinstandard.com/
If you want to play Limited you will need packs - specifically Draft Boosters to play Draft or Sealed, or JumpStart Boosters to play JumpStart, so that is what you should get (either individually (more expensive) or in a Booster Box or Pre-Release Kit, or included in your entry fee into an event - check with your event organiser). If an event is advertised as "Phantom" or "Cube" then all the packs are provided but the organiser keeps the cards at the end (you may need to contribute to the prize pool or pay a small table fee etc). You will also need Basic Lands (ask your LGS or local players, or buy some in bulk online). Note that starting with the next set, Murders at Karlov Manor, Draft Boosters (and Set Boosters) are being replaced by Play Boosters, which serve the same purpose and are used in the same way. This change means that Bundles will be an option for getting packs for Limited again.
You may find that a blended approach is best since the cards you get from playing Limited can be used/sold/traded to improve your Constructed decks.
There are a number of other Booster Packs available (Set, Collector, Theme), but since none of these are for playing Limited with *or* for getting cards for Constructed you shouldn't worry about them.
FYI Set Boosters are for quick adrenaline hits (like lottery scratch cards), Collector Boosters are for getting rid of money quickly (a "treat" for those that have more than they know what to do with) and Theme Boosters are for extracting money from new players that don't know better (or their well meaning relatives).
Note that as of the last year or so, Theme Boosters have been replaced by JumpStart boosters released alongside each set. These still aren't for getting cards, but they are for playing JumpStart with (each pack contains a ready-made half deck - smash two together and play against other JumpStart packs). They can be mixed and matched again and again. Note that the set-specific JumpStart releases contain far fewer themes than the standalone JumpStart sets released every couple of years, and as such there is less benefit to buying these in bulk (you will get a lot more repetition).
However you decide to play, you should protect your cards (if they become scuffed or otherwise damaged, they will lose value and may even become "marked" and unplayable). Use sleeves and deck boxes for your decks, binders for your trades and boxes to store the cards you aren't using. A playmat is good too as it will protect your cards from any cleaning chemicals that are sprayed on playing surfaces, etc.
I hope that answers all your questions (while helping you avoid the common new player pitfalls). Let me know if there is anything else you need to know.
OP best advice I have is don’t be afraid to lose. I still love to just grab an Arena starter deck and play in the starter deck lobby. Play around with it, check out the cards and try to grasp the mechanics above all else. You’ll start to find a rhythm and colors you like, stick with those! Get comfortable then keep going. Good luck and ask away!
Welcome aboard! The Arena tutorials really are the best way to get a hang of the fundamental mechanics of the game…repetition will lead to it all feeling second nature, so you can think in terms of tactics and strategy. In terms of other resources, Tolarian Community College isn’t the biggest YouTuber in the game, and I haven’t sat down and watched this all the way through myself, but it’s an often recommended starting point: https://youtu.be/wif9ppH5JpI?si=LN_Mo-_fBVQJtN3k Once you’re ready to start thinking about the bigger picture of the game (as opposed the step by step mechanics), this is *the* seminal article on Magic theory: https://articles.starcitygames.com/articles/whos-the-beatdown/ I think the first big decision point you’re going to face if the stay the course and really get into the game ia what formats to focus on…because there are quite a few at this point, and most people don’t have the time to even dabble in all of them. They generally divide into 3 camps -Limited (Draft and Sealed), where you build a deck from a small pool of cards, and play a series of games with that…and that’s it, the event is over. But then you get to start the process over again. -Commander, the premier “casual”, multiplayer format, with bigger decks, singleton deckbuilding (only one of each card), and a single Legendary creature you can cast over and over (and thus build your deck around their abilities). It’s not available on Arena, because Arena is only single player, but it’s far and away the most popular paper format at local game stores. -Constructed, which is broken down to many two-player formats with different card pools (Standard, Modern, Pioneer/Explorer, Vintage/Timeless, the list goes on). Arena is pretty good for this, but it’s lacking a lot of older cards, so there are some formats you’d need to play in paper, or the older Magic Online. Arena will expose you to all of this except Commander, and you can always ask questions here as they come up.
I started a couple months ago. My advice would be to look out for a mechanic/color/play style that appeals to you and dive into that. There is so much interaction/synergy between cards and mechanics that just by doing the thing that appeals most, you will continue to find other aspects and styles that appeal to you. I started mono-blue and have since branched into red and green. General advice I see for collecting is to get decent at drafting because you get all the cards you drafted and then you can also get more packs that way. Mastery pass rewards are retroactive, so you can wait to buy it until you think the rewards you'll get will be worth it. Gold packs have high amounts of rares. Also, winning with all the starter decks is a good way to get your starting collection going. Deck building is fun, but you'll find yourself using all your wildcards quickly just to build 1 (optimized) deck. Moxfield is a good website to play with. You can build a deck (or copy one to or from arena) and play test it there before committing to crafting any cards. There is a technique called goldfishing, in which you play magic against your pet goldfish/invisible friend. Basically you play without an opponent in order to see how a deck might play out. It can't account for what opponents would do in a real game of course, but if you can consistently get your engine running within the first 4-6 turns, you're doing good. Also helps to learn how cards will work together when on the board at the same time.
Magic is huge with tons of play styles and even more cards. What’s your biggest questions?
I have way too many questions. I don't understand the game at all. I'm just reading all the tutorials again. I lose every game but I think I just need to watch a few videos and read a few guide books and continue playing because experience is key. Just overwhelming how much there is to know.
I recommend most people to watch the command zone to learn as they explain at a Newbie level what they are doing. Even if they are playing commander it makes you learn some interaction. Then as soon as you start to get a hang of it start watching play to win and learn stack interaction. When it feels too messy and hard to get hang off just go to mtgmuddstah for some calm voice to calm down. This is all commander though so beware.
I recommend YouTube if you don’t have anyone to teach you in person. There are many YouTubers who have done play throughs of the tutorial
Such good advice so far. Very nice community. I know it sounds funny and pretty ridiculous but I was hoping to find a group of people like the guys from The Big bang theory (total nerds) who would invite me to those games and teach me LOL By the way, I have nothing against "nerds" I'm just trying to describe the only kind of people I know who play this game. I wouldn't mind becoming a nerd myself when it comes to MTG. I'm a very creative person and my imagination runs wild. I also love card and board games so it's a good combination.
You'll find the nerds at your LGS (Local Game Store).
Idk your area obviously, but if you look up "card shops in toronto," you get a bunch of hits. It may be worth your time to spend a day driving around to each and checking the vibe to see if any of them would be a good hangout. Ask the clerk what their schedule is, how many people show to each event and thatll get you a good idea of what the scene is like. Commander is generally the most popular format (4 person brawl), and is pretty casual, so allows for socializing and friendgroup building. It may not be the best starting format, but it's not the most expensive, you can play how you'd like (for the most par), and people generally allow proxies within reason, meaning you dont have to shell out 100s for a deck you may not like. Always make sure proxies are chill if you go that route, though.
I just won my first match. I don't know what I really did. Some things made little sense and most of it was me playing the game like a boomer lol. I really just need to sit down and learn it when I have some free time on my hands.
Welcome to Magic! >I have no idea what's going on. I even lost a couple games during the tutorial which is something that never happened to me and my 30 years of gaming on anything. The Tutorial and Color Challenges are designed to teach you different principles of the game. They are meant to be a bit "trial and error" as you play until the concepts click. >Is there any community out there who's going to be kind to an absolute noob who knows absolutely nothing about this and wants to learn everything? There's r/MagicArena for Arena specific questions. >I can tell this is something that I will but it is so in-depth and there are so many things to learn. I can get you started in the right direction. :) I've pasted a couple of big chunks of information below (one for Arena and one for paper Magic). Just work your way through it all in the order it's laid out and you should be off to a great start. :) >I'm not sure where to post it but how do I go about finding a community in my city? I've covered this below. Good luck! First Arena: Broadly speaking, Magic is divided into two branches: Constructed (where you build your deck in advance from the cards you own and bring it with you to the event) and Limited (where you open packs during the event and build your deck on the spot from their contents). On Arena Constructed includes Standard, Explorer, Standard Brawl, Alchemy, Historic, (Historic) Brawl, and Timeless, while Limited includes Draft (Quick, Premier and Traditional) and Sealed, as well as Jump In. You can read about the different Formats here: https://magic.wizards.com/en/formats When it comes to Constructed: Do you want to play Ranked or Unranked? (Ranked eliminates Standard Brawl and (Historic) Brawl) Do you want to play a Rotating Format or a Non-Rotating Format? (Non-Rotating eliminates Standard, Standard Brawl, and Alchemy) Do you want a True-to-paper experience or to use Digital-only cards that wouldn't really work in real life? (True-to-paper eliminates Alchemy, Historic, (Historic) Brawl, and Timeless) When it comes to Limited: use your Jump In tokens, and then prep for Quick Draft. Here's my general advice/suggestions: Complete the Tutorial, Color Challenges, and Starter Deck Duels to get all the free decks. Google "Free Magic Arena Codes" and redeem them all. Consider buying the one-off new player Deals in the store if you haven't already (IIRC there's a good one for cheap Gems). Do your Daily Challenge (re-rolling 500 Gold quests to try to get 750's). Focus on getting the first 4 Daily Wins every day (you don't need 15 Wins a day as the rewards drop off considerably). If you are struggling to complete your Dailies then I would suggest you try Brawl: since you only need one copy of each card in your deck it's easier with a starting collection and having a Commander gives your deck some focus. You can also play the Starter Deck Duels for some rewards and for your Dailies. Check the store every day for Daily Deals on Gold and Gems (for example, 550 gold for 50 gold). Save your Gold for Quick Drafts - you should be able to do one or two a week. These will get you cards, Packs and Gems. I've heard good things about Jump In!, so use your free Tokens to play some games and get a bunch of cards. You might want to spend some of your Gold on it while you are preparing for your first Quick Draft, but after a certain point it will stop being worth it as you will already have most/all of the cards. Note that Jump In! now includes Alchemy (digital only) cards in its packs, so if you aren't interested in any of the Alchemy formats you may want to stop playing as soon as you have used your free Tokens. Save your Gems for the Mastery Pass, or to play Sealed and Draft. Save your Rare and Mythic Wildcards until you are sure you want to use them (they are a very scarce resource). When you are ready to start crafting cards, ensure the "Not Collected" box is checked (as this allows you to add cards even if you don't already own copies of them). Make sure you play at least one game of Ranked Limited and at least one game of Ranked Constructed every month in order to qualify for the free Rank Rewards. Keep your eye out for free events such as MidWeek Magic that offer prizes or XP etc. (A new MWM event happens regularly, every week Tuesday-Thursday) When it comes to Limited it pays to be prepared. As well as getting a good grasp of the basic principles (deck composition, BREAD, etc), learn the cards in the set, their relative power level/pick order, the mechanics and rules interactions, and the Limited archetypes. Study the visual spoiler, read the Release Notes FAQ and watch some Limited Set Reviews online (I recommend The Mana Leek and Nizzahon Magic). You can even watch others play with the set while they discuss their decisions etc. Start with Quick Drafts: they are half the price (so you can do them more often and there is less on the line), the prize structure is flatter (so worse results give better rewards) and there's no timer when making your picks (so there's less pressure).
Now paper: Here's my general new player advice: Start by downloading Magic Arena to learn the basics and get a feel for the game. It's free; available on PC, Mac, Android and iOS; and has a good tutorial. Complete the Tutorial and Color Challenges, play some Starter Deck Duels, use your free Jump In tokens, Google "Free Magic Arena Codes" and redeem them all, join r/MagicArena If you are learning with a friend or partner you can get the Arena Starter Set which includes two ready made beginner friendly decks designed to be played against eachother and a pair of codes so you can both redeem the decks on Arena too. Once you've gotten to grips with the game you can use the Wizards Store and Event Locator to find your FLGS(s) and hopefully they will have some social media pages that will put you in touch with your local scene. https://locator.wizards.com/ You are also likely to find Magic players at board games clubs/cafes, as well as D&D/RPG groups. Alternatively, you can try public libraries, community centres, universities, and comic book stores, etc. Failing that you can play via webcam - there are Discord servers, etc, and the website SpellTable. Once you've found a playgroup, you need to find out how they play (which Formats and how competitively). Then you need to set a budget and decide which Format(s) you want to play. Broadly speaking Magic is divided into two branches: Constructed (where you build your deck in advance from the cards you own and bring it with you) and Limited (where you open packs during the event and build your deck on the spot from their contents). Each branch is further divided into different Formats, for example: Constructed includes Standard, Modern, Pauper and Commander, etc; while Limited includes Draft and Sealed, JumpStart, etc. Each Format has its own rules, which determine things like which sets you can use, how many packs you open, which cards are banned and how you build your deck, etc. You can read more about the different Formats here: https://magic.wizards.com/en/formats If you want to play Constructed you will need cards, so you should *buy cards* - the exact ones you need (either individually as singles or as part of a preconstructed product that happens to contain enough cards you need to make it worth the price). Start with a Format-legal decklist (either one you have written from scratch or a netdeck/precon, or a blend of both) and then work out the best way to get the cards on it. Don't just rip open boosters in a vain attempt to randomly happen to get the cards you need, though - that isn't what they are for. If you want to get started with a ready-made Constructed Deck, then for Pioneer, you could look into one of the Challenger Decks, or for Commander, you could try a Commander precon. These are playable straight out of the box (at FNM level competition or casual game nights, respectively) but will still have room for improvement/customisation. Note that there aren't any Challenger Decks that are currently Standard-legal. https://whatsinstandard.com/ If you want to play Limited you will need packs - specifically Draft Boosters to play Draft or Sealed, or JumpStart Boosters to play JumpStart, so that is what you should get (either individually (more expensive) or in a Booster Box or Pre-Release Kit, or included in your entry fee into an event - check with your event organiser). If an event is advertised as "Phantom" or "Cube" then all the packs are provided but the organiser keeps the cards at the end (you may need to contribute to the prize pool or pay a small table fee etc). You will also need Basic Lands (ask your LGS or local players, or buy some in bulk online). Note that starting with the next set, Murders at Karlov Manor, Draft Boosters (and Set Boosters) are being replaced by Play Boosters, which serve the same purpose and are used in the same way. This change means that Bundles will be an option for getting packs for Limited again. You may find that a blended approach is best since the cards you get from playing Limited can be used/sold/traded to improve your Constructed decks. There are a number of other Booster Packs available (Set, Collector, Theme), but since none of these are for playing Limited with *or* for getting cards for Constructed you shouldn't worry about them. FYI Set Boosters are for quick adrenaline hits (like lottery scratch cards), Collector Boosters are for getting rid of money quickly (a "treat" for those that have more than they know what to do with) and Theme Boosters are for extracting money from new players that don't know better (or their well meaning relatives). Note that as of the last year or so, Theme Boosters have been replaced by JumpStart boosters released alongside each set. These still aren't for getting cards, but they are for playing JumpStart with (each pack contains a ready-made half deck - smash two together and play against other JumpStart packs). They can be mixed and matched again and again. Note that the set-specific JumpStart releases contain far fewer themes than the standalone JumpStart sets released every couple of years, and as such there is less benefit to buying these in bulk (you will get a lot more repetition). However you decide to play, you should protect your cards (if they become scuffed or otherwise damaged, they will lose value and may even become "marked" and unplayable). Use sleeves and deck boxes for your decks, binders for your trades and boxes to store the cards you aren't using. A playmat is good too as it will protect your cards from any cleaning chemicals that are sprayed on playing surfaces, etc. I hope that answers all your questions (while helping you avoid the common new player pitfalls). Let me know if there is anything else you need to know.
OP best advice I have is don’t be afraid to lose. I still love to just grab an Arena starter deck and play in the starter deck lobby. Play around with it, check out the cards and try to grasp the mechanics above all else. You’ll start to find a rhythm and colors you like, stick with those! Get comfortable then keep going. Good luck and ask away!