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I've been having fun practicing drafts on draft simulators like this one, but sometimes I'd like to actually be able to play with the deck I built. Since all of the other players on these simulators are Bots, I have to be content with always wondering if I actually drafted well or not.

Are there any ways to do this on the computer? All I really want is the ability to be able to draft and then play against my opponents without having to pay every time; I don't really care if they are human or not, but I'd prefer it if they were actually decent at the game if they are bots. I also don't care about the creating a virtual collection as I have all the pictures of cards I could possibly want on this cool little website.

I know there is Magic Online, but it's my understanding that it is far from free, so unless somebody knows of a way I can draft as many times as I want on MTGO without ever paying a dime, it does not meet my requirements. Am I doomed to never being able to get any experience similar to MTGO without shelling out a decent amount of money every time I want to play? Or is there some way to practice realistic drafts complete with swiss rounds online without paying a continual monetary upkeep?

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    At the risk of offering an unpopular opinion, this question is effectively asking 'is there a way for me to pirate the draft experience?' - whether you're a fan of their choice or not, Wizards has chosen to make the draft experience a 'pay' one. While there aren't great online options for it (there are some, but not great ones), you could always cube live if you want the draft experience without the draft costs...
    – Steven Stadnicki
    Commented Nov 4, 2013 at 22:49
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    @StevenStadnicki Not that I'm offended, but I don't think the word "pirate" really applies to the draft any more than it does any other form of unofficial online play.
    – Samthere
    Commented Apr 8, 2016 at 10:01
  • @Gordon you should accept bobsbeenjamin's answer since this problem is (now) completely and fully solved, by WOTC
    – Brondahl
    Commented May 13, 2022 at 16:19

7 Answers 7

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You can draft at CCGdecks.com, tappedout.net, or drafts.in, and the free client Cockatrice is excellent for playing.

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You can use Magic Workstation. It works well and you always find player of different levels.

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I know this question is extremely old by online standards, but I'm adding an answer in case anyone that doesn't know about Arena stumbles on this question in the future...

Answer: Wizards of the Coast now offers an option to draft and play against real opponents, possibly free. Magic: Arena (sometimes referred to as MTGA or just Arena) is freemium software that has a realistic free-to-play path, similar to Hearthstone. There are plenty of YouTube videos and podcasts that will help you "go infinite" with drafting, and you should be able to at least draft once a week if you just play a few hours per week to grind out the rewards.

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Check out magic-league.com. They have a community of gamers who use the above-mentioned tools (MWS & NetDraft) to do free drafts and sealed deck games. Its a good way to connect with outher ppl looking to draft and play. They use IRC channels to organize the drafts:

http://magic-league.com/play/chatroom.php

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Netdraft is free. It is unfortunately a bit of a hassle to set it all up (find opponents via mIRC, opening your firewall...).

http://netdraft.wikispaces.com/

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MTG Mirror.com is a free draft/sealed simulator. You can also use UnTap.in, another free site, to test the decks you made to see if they're any good

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  • I can't find untag.in; can you provide a working link?
    – Gordon Gustafson
    Commented Apr 7, 2016 at 16:54
  • it's actually untap.in
    – Robert Wertz
    Commented Apr 7, 2016 at 17:15
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The open source http://xmage.de/ program is exactly what you need! Draft and play with full rules enforcement, just like MTGO, for free.

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    What fraction of time over (say) the past 2 years has the most recent Standard set been available to draft on XMage? The vast majority of draft players want to play the most recent set, not one from 6+ months ago.
    – Philip Kendall
    Commented Dec 3, 2021 at 12:54

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