Hi,
Background: I’ve just started to pick Jyhad/VTES back up and I need to use card protectors to disguise which cards are Jyhad and which are VTES. I’ve never used these before, but I was hoping I could get some suggestions on which to use. I’m guessing some are better than others, and was hoping to get some opinions on which ones to get.
I've seen different colors, do people tend to use different colors to keep the Crypt and Library separate? Are there different textures to the surfaces? Any to avoid?
I will also need to keep different decks color coded since I am having to supply all the cards for my group, and I think I remember cards can travel around a little during the game. Different colors would make it easier to return them to the correct deck when play is finished.
How do you store them with the plastic on the cards? I guess you have to buy some of those deck boxes made for the sleeves.
Thanks for any help you can offer me and I'm sorry if this is a really basic question. I've never used them before, but with mixed card backs, I think I need to get a bunch and start using them.
I'm sure plenty of people can give you lots of good advice on what card sleeves are good and what aren't, but I'll just chime in and point out that you can play without sleeves if you want, and nothing bad will happen; don't feel that you *need* to use sleeves even with the different backs. I mean, if you want to, do so. But the rules let you play without sleeves as long as you keep the cards reasonably mixed.
> minionhunter wrote:
> How do you store them with the plastic on the cards? I guess you have to buy some of those deck boxes made for the sleeves.
>
Well, if you're feeling cheap and don't mind the way it looks you can cut off the upper half of a milk/juice carton. Just leave a flap that you can use as a lid. It's pretty much a perfect fit for 90+12 sleeved cards.
I swear by Ultra Pro or Dragonshield for the library cards. In my experience Ultra pro usually is slightly more expensive but are less "slippery" (although both can be somewhat slippery until "broken in").
For the crypt cards I usually spice it up a bit and go with the pretty expensive Fantasy Flight sleeves with nice looking images on (Chtulhu, Cersie Lannister etc) since even though they're expensive one pack usually sleeves about 3-4 crypts which is a lot. Otherwise I also use spare sleeves from the library cards for crypts.
As a rule I always sleeve the crypt and the library of the same deck in different sleeves (colour/type) so I can easily see where the library stops and the crypt begins. I also attempt to have different sleeve colours on all my decks so I can easily see which decks are which at a glance.
For transportation I have 3 Magic: The Gathering big sturdy cardboard boxes that fits about three fully sleeved decks each with crypt. It might not be optimal, but it works just fine for me. I don't really like deck boxes, although most players around here seems to use them...
> wastaz wrote:
> I swear by Ultra Pro or Dragonshield for the library cards. In my experience Ultra pro usually is slightly more expensive but are less "slippery" (although both can be somewhat slippery until "broken in").
>
I used to like Ultra Pro. They used to have a wide variety of sleeves and the quality was good. Nowadays, they have far less selection (just a lot of plain colors) and A LOT of their sleeves are way too slippery. They have fallen far, in my opinion.
The current trend nowadays (unfortunately) is a heavy emphasis on illustrated sleeves, which I'm not that big of a fan of. ::sighs::
pckvtes.wordpress.com
@pckvtes
I recommend not buying Ultra Pro with holographic backs (the ones with circles on it). After some (too short) time the layer at the back loosens and that looks awful and prevents shuffling. The newer Ultra Pros are very good. I have some Dragonshields I play since 2001 with and they are still good. I often use clear sleeves too just to protect the cards from tear and wear through shuffling. I take sleeves just for protection and don't mind the different backs.
Baron of Frankfurt
Dragonshield are great, but some colours are not perfectly opaque. Otherwise, the size and quality are very good.
Prince of Paris, France
Ratings Coordinator, Rules Director
> minionhunter wrote:
> I've seen different colors, do people tend to use different colors to keep the Crypt and Library separate? Are there different textures to the surfaces? Any to avoid?
>
> How do you store them with the plastic on the cards? I guess you have to buy some of those deck boxes made for the sleeves.
>
I don't use sleeves myself (except RTFC ), though I have played against many who have.
To store the decks once they are sleeved, look for the cardboard boxes, like those here:
www.bcwsupplies.com/products/trading-card-boxes/
in particular, this one to hold ~5-6 decks:
www.bcwsupplies.com/products/trading-card-boxes/800-count-storage-box.htm
You can find samples of them at sports card shops or game shops that sell Magic the Gathering.
I would check with your local game shop that has Magic players for the examples of sleeves that withstand the test of time, and then I'd probably go with someone like Potomac Distribution if I were headed that way.
UltraPro:
www.potomacdist.com/list.asp?code=4070
Max Protection:
www.potomacdist.com/list.asp?code=4044
KMC:
www.potomacdist.com/list.asp?code=4040
I tend to lean to the plain opaque coloured sleeves and these clear plastic sleeves I bought way back in my foolish days (when I played MtG and TrekCCG) which I bought on the super-el-cheapo plan because they were something like $2 for 200 or some obscene amount.
I've found the artworked ones tend to have the edges lift after a while and I'm not using them on library, mostly on Crypt cards. It's a bit disappointing because while they look good, they lasted maybe 1 year of fairly light casual use.
Retired Baron of Sydney, Australia, 418
I usually play with Ultra Pro / Dragonshield sleeves. Non-slippery black UltraPro.
For transport, I use Twinnings tea boxes:
They are solid and can contain approx 180-190 sleeved cards.The major drawback, of course, is that they come full of tea.
Tea tins don't have to come with tea in them.
For the Battle for Atlanta 2012 league, we are keeping the league decks in tins like these:
www.specialtybottle.com/tinteasquare38wsliplid.aspx
They are tall enough for sleeved cards, but then you have to have something to carry the tins in, which is why I recommend the card board boxes instead.
No eBay APP ID défined in Kunena configurationbeing able to physically see the texture of the sleeves is the easiest read of how slippery they are, but most new sleeves have that "air hockey table" effect until you shuffles all the air out of them. the best sleeves i've ever had were flat black max pro sleeves that came in a box of either 80 or 100 and have the strongest seams of any sleeves i've used. they've lasted years, and are some of the only sleeves i've bothered cleaning, since they haven't shuffled apart. but i can't seem to find them anywhere anymore. sleeve quality in ultra pro and dragon shield used to be very high, but i've had issues with both shuffling apart at the seems after minimal use recently. i had looked for quite awhile to find a double pack of textured back green ultra pro sleeves, and when i'd found them @ origins last year i used them for a googly moogly deck, and have had to replace roughly 4 sleeves from them breaking at the seams. has anyone else had issues like this?
EDIT: found 'em:
some players also use cheap transparent sleeves where they insert their own custom deckbackers. I only do this for my crypt cards, but it looks very dashing.
For boxes, I'd check a trading card (baseball card) shop first, I think you'll get a better price and there will be more varieties. Game shops will push fancier boxes and jack up the price more. The mark-up your typical game store will charge on basic supplies like card boxes is just insane.
I stock the Ultra Pro deck protectors in my eBay store, one of the lowest prices on eBay, see the link in my signature. In the US the shipping won't be above $6 or so unless you're buying more than 10 packs.
The basic Ultra Pro sleeves now fit VtES cards very well (the standard size they were selling up until last year was a little large, but their "new standard" size sleeve is much better). Shuffling is much easier than it used to be.
When you first sleeve a deck, the sleeves will be a little slippery and an 80+ card library may fall over when bumped. After you break them in with a couple of games, this problem goes away.
The backs of the basic Ultra Pro sleeves are lightly textured these days (they didn't use to be), which for me took a little getting used to, but now I like it better. Mostly because they're easier to hold on to and slide around less on the table.
Another brand to consider is KMC, I like these a lot, but I find they are too expensive for most people and so I don't carry them in my store. The KMC sleeves are nice because they don't have stupid holographic dots on the transparent side, they come in a wider variety of colors, and they shuffle much more easily.
VtES store : www.prunesquallor.net
Card supplies & games : stores.ebay.com/Prunesquallors-Secret-Cache
> Pascal wrote:
> The major drawback, of course, is that they come full of tea.
>
Heresy!
Tea = nectar of the gods.
That is to say it most certainly isn't a drawback, let alone a major one to have the tin full of tea when you purchase it.
> prunesquallor wrote:
> Game shops will push fancier boxes and jack up the price more. The mark-up your typical game store will charge on basic supplies like card boxes is just insane.
>
I doubt it is the stores that have jacked up the prices, but the manufacturers. Stores usually tend to use SRP for normal margins.
Rook Steel Storage used to make Deluxe Capsules that ere exactly the same size as the 10th Anniversary Tins in like, 4-5 different basic colors. Unfortunately they seem to have gone tits up...
I've tended to use the cheapest possible sleeves for playing but occasionally I've been purchasing sleeves with opaque backs. When I saw RTFC sleeves tehy just HAD to be mine.
Just today I bought some Max Protection's "I Want Your Brains" sleeves that i'd imagine would downright fit a Shambler deck...
Finnish Politics!
> Lönkka wrote:
>
> > Pascal wrote:
> > The major drawback, of course, is that they come full of tea.
> >
> Heresy!
> Tea = nectar of the gods.
> That is to say it most certainly isn't a drawback, let alone a major one to have the tin full of tea when you purchase it.
>
Well, I've been trying to teach my card sleeves to drink tea for about 3 years now, and all it tells me is that they're aquaproof.
They won't eat tea neither, which means I have to drink the tea (I'm actually quite happy with that, actually. But it does represent quite some amount of tea)
> Lönkka wrote:
>
> > prunesquallor wrote:
> > Game shops will push fancier boxes and jack up the price more. The mark-up your typical game store will charge on basic supplies like card boxes is just insane.
> >
> I doubt it is the stores that have jacked up the prices, but the manufacturers. Stores usually tend to use SRP for normal margins.
>
Trust me, many game stores charge 2-4X the actual cost for some basic supplies like card boxes and penny sleeves. I buy these things from distributors, and can get smaller (both cardboard and plastic) card boxes so cheaply that I use them for shipping without worrying about passing on the cost. At least in the US, I recommend looking for a store that's more about trading cards, baseball cards, etc if you want boxes or other basic supplies.
> Lönkka wrote:
> Just today I bought some Max Protection's "I Want Your Brains" sleeves that i'd imagine would downright fit a Shambler deck...
>
Great fun The Legion brand has a bunch of novelty sleeves, most of them are awful, but they do have a "BRAINS..." deck protector with a Zombie face. I use it with my Khazar's Diary deck to be able to have those card sleeves out on the table as my wraiths...
VtES store : www.prunesquallor.net
Card supplies & games : stores.ebay.com/Prunesquallors-Secret-Cache
> prunesquallor wrote:
> Trust me, many game stores charge 2-4X the actual cost for some basic supplies like card boxes and penny sleeves.
>
You know, it's the normal amount of margin to actually live from your physical store on a lot of product. Didn't experienced deck protector, but it's not exactly shocking that they do x3.
> prunesquallor wrote:
> I buy these things from distributors, and can get smaller (both cardboard and plastic) card boxes so cheaply that I use them for shipping without worrying about passing on the cost.
>
Sorry but I find that very hard to believe, at least if you use the hobby trade distributors.
I'm a buyer for the local importer/distributor and for the past 22 years I haven't noticed anyone dumping boxes at pittance.
Drop me a PM if you know such distributors -I'd LOVE to be able to offer our clientele even cleaper boxes!
> prunesquallor wrote:
> but they do have a "BRAINS..." deck protector with a Zombie face. I use it with my Khazar's Diary deck to be able to have those card sleeves out on the table as my wraiths...
>
Nice.
We carry those sleeves too.
Finnish Politics!
I think that you can continue playing with no sleeves. The players have to shuffle the card anyway. For me it is important to sleeves with opaques sleeves when you are in tournamnent until this moment you just play for fun that is why you don't have to sleeve your deck.
> Adonai wrote:
> Tea tins don't have to come with tea in them.
>
> For the Battle for Atlanta 2012 league, we are keeping the league decks in tins like these:
>
> www.specialtybottle.com/tinteasquare38wsliplid.aspx
>
> They are tall enough for sleeved cards, but then you have to have something to carry the tins in, which is why I recommend the card board boxes instead.
>
Does anyone knows another company I can get those unused Tea Tins from? Specialtybootle told me, they don't ship overseas if orders are less than 1000 USD . And I would love to have those awesome tins (without drinking tea like crazy).
Baron of Frankfurt
Previously Juggernaut1981 had found tins in Australia, here:
www.tinboxaus.com/product.php?productid=16232&cat=254&page=1
and
www.atomicon.com.au/html/rectangle_tin_boxes.html
this was back in 2010.
groups.google.com/group/rec.games.trading-cards.jyhad/browse_thread/thread/ba04b0f3d76dfbea/
I don't know what search terms eventually found the useful bits.
> Joscha wrote:
> Specialtybootle told me, they don't ship overseas if orders are less than 1000 USD
>
You need to buy a LOT of tea for that amount!
As a sucker for Art Nouveau, while visiting Wien/Vienna a couple of years ago I bought a beautiful tea tin from the Museum of Modern Art featuring Gustav Klimt's The Kiss on it. Very appropriate for breed decks as isn't the act of making a Progeny also called a "Kiss"?
(the above link, BTW, leads to a company that sells the same tins/tea online)
Finnish Politics!