Magic: The Gathering Drive to Work Podcast - #1055: Black-Red-Green

Episode Date: July 28, 2023

This is another podcast in my three-color series. Today, I talk about black-red-green.

I'm pulling out my driveway. We all know what that means. It's time for another drive to work. Okay, so I've been doing a series of podcasts talking about the three color pairs, or not pairs, three color triplets. So today I'm up to black, red, green. So the way the structure works is I will talk through each color individually, I will talk through the color pairs, and then I will approach each of the three color pair with each color as. I will talk through the color pairs, and then I will approach each of the three-color pair with each color as the center color. Okay, so let's begin with the three colors. Okay, black. Black is all about power through ruthlessness. So black believes that the world is the way it is, that every other color wants to change the world.

And, you know, Black's like, I want to acknowledge that the world is what it is, which is everybody's out for themselves. And that everybody is after, you know, everyone wants to grab what they can grab for themselves. Okay, that is what the world is. Let's not be ignorant of that fact. And that's fine. You know, we should just structure it such that people have the opportunity that the powerful

will thrive. Essentially black-like systems where it lets people who, you know, who have the most drive, who have the most desire, who work the hardest to be the ones that get the most. And so black is very much about,

hey, fundamentally what black wants is I want to have enough power that I have control of everything I need to have control of that, you know, you know, if I do what it takes, then I can have absolute power. Now with that, in order to do that, in order to get the power that it wants, black is like, look, I have to be willing to do what it takes, whatever that is. If I have to pay certain costs, if I have to make certain trades, if I have to do certain actions, black is like, I have to be willing to do whatever.

So when we say ruthlessness, what it means is there's nothing off limits for black. There's nothing too taboo for black. There's nothing that black goes, I will not do. Black is willing to do just about anything if there's a means, you know, if it gets it what it wants. And as far as black is concerned, it's this willingness to do whatever that is black's greatest strength. Because a lot of other colors create things, as far as black is concerned, they create things that slow them down. Like white creates morality. Morality doesn't exist, you know. And so black is very much about trying to

get individuals to understand that they are responsible for their own fortune and whether they succeed or fail is of their own doing. That your life is in your hands and if you want to succeed, you got to do what it takes. And black sees people prioritizing anything but themselves as weakness. And that one of the things that will keep you from getting what you want is such weaknesses as prioritizing things other than yourself. Red wants freedom through action. Red feels that life is about living, following your heart.

That internally, you know what you want. You know what makes you happy. And the key to life is recognizing that and embracing that. That whatever the emotion you're feeling, feel that emotion. And Red is all about creating bonds and red is all about, you know, passion and loyalty and figuring out the things that matter to you. Now, black is all for itself. Black is very me, me, me. Red is sort of like, well, I want to make sure that I'm living up to the extent that I can and doing what I want. Red is much more willing to sort of grant power to other people if those people mean something to you. You know, red will bend over backwards for someone that it loves.

You know, red's big belief is, look, emotions exist for a reason. They are telling you what you want. You know, and that happiness is just fulfilling those needs that your body is saying that it wants to do. That emotions are just guiding you. There's things that can guide your path. And what red really wants is red wants the ability to be able to express itself.

And everybody expresses itself. Red does not like rules. Red doesn't like things that get in the way of people being able to do what they want. And red is very much about action. Red is very much about, how do I get what I want? I act on it now. If I am sad, I cry.

If I am happy, I laugh. If I am mad, I punch somebody. That red is very much about acquiring what it wants here and now. Red is not about thinking long term. Black, for example, is much more about thinking long term of, I want to get something. What do I need to get there? And blue is super long term. But red for example, is much more about thinking long term of I want to get something, what I need to get there. And blue is super long term. But red, red is the here and now. Red is like, if I'm happy in the moment, I will do what I want or sad in the moment or

angry in the moment. I will act on how I'm feeling right now because I want to live every moment. Every moment should be lived as if it's your last. Every moment should be embraced. And so red is very much about the here and the now. Red is very spontaneous. Red is very in the moment. Because red is trying to capture what is going on right now. Red is trying to capitalize its emotions right now. Green is about growth through acceptance. Green is like everybody else wants to change the world.

I accept that the world is the way it is and that the key to happiness is letting the world be the way it is. Of understanding that you have a role that you play, that you have a relationship to the web of life. You know, that green feels that the key to life is understanding your role in it, is accepting what is, and then meeting those demands of you. Understanding what your role is in the world, and then embrace that role and be the best

you can in that role. Green very much believes that we're all interconnected. And that part of what makes life so wonderful is the synergies that happen between things. But it's not that green doesn't believe that things can change. They can, but they will naturally change slowly. Things will slowly evolve with time. So green is fine with natural change. It is not like artificial change. It is not like things that sort of jump systems or mess with the natural systems. And so green very much

is like, what I want to do is accept things the way they are. And when I do that, when I accept my role and I accept, you know, my place in the world, then I will thrive. I will grow. That is through acceptance. That's where the growth will come, is through realizing, you know, looking within and recognizing what you are. Okay, so when you start pairing these colors, you get some very interesting combinations. So we'll start with black and red. So black and red are the two colors that are most about the self. Their shared enemy is white. White is all about the good of the group. Now, black and red are selfish in different ways.

Black sort of wants, black wants itself to get power over everybody else. Red just wants to do what it wants to do because it wants to have its freedom of expression. But black and red get together and you get a very hedonistic combination. It's very much me, me, me. But what you get is you get, so with the color pairs, I'll look at ends and means. So let's say you have black ends and red means, meaning you want power, but you have red action. So what that means is I want what I want, and I will do, I will take whatever action I need. Black in a vacuum is a little more, because it's weighted by blue as much as red, black can think things through.

Black can be a little more careful by its lonesome. But when black and red get together, it's really like, I'm going to enforce what I want now. I'm going to get the power I want now. I'm not playing the long game. I'm playing the short game. And so when black wants power with red's tools, it is going to use it to, When black wants power with red's tools, it is going to use it to, I mean, you know, whether it needs to beat somebody up or whatever. It's like intimidation is pretty big in black-red. The idea that I'm going to get what I want and whatever I have to do, whatever action I have to take.

It's less so when black and blue get together, it's all about understanding the larger structural issues and how do I make decisions that over time will pay off. Black and red is about now, now, now. And it's very, very self-centric. Now, if you take red's means of freedom and black's means of ruthlessness, the idea is you start getting a lot of anarchy and black sort of like, I will take out those that are, like, for example,

red wants freedom and black is ruthless. Okay, well, what is in my way? What is stopping me from the freedoms I have? And black will just go kill those people. Black is sort of like, oh, if you want total freedom, I'll do whatever it takes to get freedom. I'll do whatever it takes to get freedom. I'll do whatever it takes to get there. So when it's red goals and black means, it's more about trying to reach this anarchy state, but doing whatever it takes to get there.

Red in a vacuum, I mean, not that red won't be destructive, not that red won't get in a vacuum, I mean, not that red won't be destructive, not that red won't get in a fight, but red isn't quite so power-hungry without black. That red is definitely more, you know, it'll take action, do what it wants, but it's less inclined to kill. And then when black and red get together, much more likely to do that. much more likely to do that. Black and red is also pretty dangerous because when you have the ruthlessness of black and the desire to act in the moment of red that just makes a very dangerous combination. Okay next up is red green. So red and green shared enemies blue. Blue is all about taking time to get things right.

Red and green are about, so blue is all sort of intellectual. Red is about following your emotions. Green is about following your instincts. So red and green, when they come together, are kind of about not thinking, of looking within, of being internal, of doing what feels right. Red and green are about feeling and about gut and about sort of the general sense. Also, blue is the slowest of the cowers because it wants to be careful. It wants to think through everything. Red and green, because they're driven by

internal things, can act very fast. Red and green is one of the fastest combinations. And that it's act on instinct, act on impulse, do it now. And red and green also have a very feral side. You know, that you get to the sort of raw emotional state of red and the animal-ish quality of green, and you can get things that are quite ferocious. That red and green is very much about acting in the moment and acting on whatever you're feeling and then just following through on that.

When red gets to green, red and black are much more this purpose of power, where red and green are more about sort of being and existing. Okay, so if you have red, ends, and green means, so you want freedom and you're using acceptance, it's, you know, red and green is kind of figuring out how, you know, I think red with black is about changing whatever you need to do to get what you want. And red and green is more about recognizing what's already there. You know, red and green is sort of embracing your wild side.

And it's not that red and green, red and green will be quite active. When you get red and green together, they will, but it's more about sort of showing your ferocity and show, you know, it's a little more about intimidation. Like black gets together with red and black are like, what do I got to do? But green is more about sort of the visceralness of show who you are, show what you are. You know, you're king of the, you're king of the kingdom. Show that off. Now, if you have green means with red, I'm sorry, green ends with red means,

so green wants growth. Red is action. The idea there is when you mix those two is it really wants to, it sort of gets a little bit impatient. When red and green get together with the green ends, it wants natural growth, but it is willing to sort of push things a little bit of trying to find it in the now, right? Green, when it gets together with white, has a lot more patience. Green with red does not have patience. Green with red is very much about, and that's why you get some of the more ferocity, you know what I'm saying? It's like, how do I get what I want? Well, you embrace your animal side.

And if, you know, there's meat you want, you take that meat. You know, if there's something you want, you take it. And red and green really has the might makes right sort of mentality. Red and green get together of, you know, the power of might. It's very red and green. Okay, then you get to black-green. So black-green is kind of the cycle of life. Black embraces death. Green embraces life. And so there's a real recursion-ish inequality where it is sort of

using all of the whale or whatever. Using every piece of whatever you're doing. And that there's a lot of the whale or whatever, using every piece of whatever you're doing. And that there's a lot of the idea of, okay, so if you take black's desire for power with green's desire for acceptance, it's sort of looking at what are your natural strengths and what can you lean into. Part of black and green getting together is this idea that I can master the whole system

that if I truly understand the life death cycle I can master all of it I can take advantage of all of it and so when you're trying to get power through green means it's sort of about understanding what naturally exists

where is there power to be had and it's about finding the natural systems and exploiting the natural systems. When you better understand life and death, well, you can use that to your advantage to get what you want. Now, if you have black ends with green means, meaning I want power, but I do it through acceptance, the idea there is that, you know, there is a lot, oh sorry, I said that backwards. If you want green ends through black means, green wants growth, black wants ruthlessness. And so the idea there is, and this is kind of similar in that making use of whatever natural resources exist. And definitely there is a quality of embracing the power of death and embracing

you know, if you're doing black means you really get on the truly vicious side. Green can get pretty vicious. And when married with black you see the most vicious side. Okay. So that brings us to

black, red, green. Black, red, green Green We've done two times We've really messed with it In Shards of Alara we had Jund Jund was a world in which Red's enemies were gone There was no white or blue And then in Streets of New Capenna

We had the Riveteers And the idea there was The Riveteers were talking about wanting crime, but they were very much men on the street, that they were people that were acting. They weren't sort of building higher systems. They were taking action right there. And they were sort of building, they very much sort of were street crime, and really getting your hands dirty. Okay, so let's talk about what happened.

So we'll start with red, since red is the center color. Okay, if red's means is freedom, and you have black's, I'm sorry, red's end is freedom, and you have black means of ruthlessness and greens means of acceptance, it's very much about sort of understanding your role, your natural role, and then doing whatever it takes to absorb that role. So the idea is if I want freedom, it's the green side of you wants to understand the natural system. Like what system are you in, how do you relate to those around you

what role do you play, and the black side is like, okay, once I understand that role, once I see where I am in the hierarchy, I will take out those above me so when you've read means with black and green, sorry, I keep saying backwards. When you've read ends with black and green means, it is very much about, I want to do what I want to do. I want to sort of live my moment. I want to, you know, I want to be free. And it's really about understanding the systems. And when black, red, and green get together, you very much get might make right. You very much get the power of the strong to survive. You really get the idea of a lot of the Darwinian sort of that.

The thing that will advance and continue will be the thing that's the most powerful, the thing that adapts best to the system. And so with red ends, it's sort of like, okay, look at Jund. Jund is like, okay, I want a world of total freedom. And what that means is there's no rules. There's no laws. So the laws of the land are power that, you know, might makes right. That if I'm, you know, if I want to do

something, it's because nobody can stop me from doing it. I am the mightiest. I am the biggest. I am the strongest. And so really the hierarchy that happens in a red base world is one of which freedom comes from embracing your ferocity, you know, of being the biggest and the baddest. Now, when you apply that to Sri Srinivasa Kampena, the idea there is, okay, I want what I want. I want the freedoms I want. And so it is really sort of understanding the systems from the ground. How do people interact with people it is very much trying to be the alpha male

on some level of of trying to like we're going to be the biggest, the baddest, the meanest and you're going to give us money because if you don't you have to answer to us and so very much they're about threatening and intimidation and just being the scariest thing out there.

That the reason people bow to them and do what they say is because you know how ferocious and vicious they can be. Okay, now let's shift it around. What if we say that black is the center, black is the end? So black ends his power. So black ends his power. So if black ends his power, it looks at the red mean of action and the green means of acceptance and says, okay, if I want power, I need to A, really understand the nature of the system that I am,

what's the synergy between me and other people, and then I have to take action to get what I want. So the idea there is that with a black center is you look and see, okay, what's the hierarchy? What's the power structure? Okay, I need to establish the power structure so that I'm on top. What do I need to do that?

Is there somebody bigger and badder than me that I need to figure out how to get rid of? You know, what are the obstacles in my way? And with the black ends of power, it's sort of like, I want to be in charge. And so I'm going to prioritize whatever actions I have to take, whatever sort of synergy that is there, I'm going to take it and understand it. And a lot of... The interesting thing about black, red, green with a black center is that it really wants to

understand... It wants to understand those interconnectivities. And that black by itself is willing to absorb things. One of the reasons black and green are enemies is green says you fulfill a role in your life

and black started like, I'll do whatever I want to do. Don't tell me that I I'm destined to do something. I'll do what I want to do. Not what you tell me I have to do. But when black gets together with red and green, there's definitely this idea of

embracing the hierarchy and then subverting it. Understand the hierarchy and then figure out a way in which you can come up on top. And with black around, you know, a lot of that is just, if I have to kill or weaken or intimidate, whatever I got to do so those that are above me in the hierarchy no longer are above me in the hierarchy and now they're below me in the hierarchy. Okay, so now let's look at a green end. So green wants growth. Green just wants the natural systems to exist.

So a green end of growth with a black end of action and ruthlessness really is sort of a system by which it recognizes the systems that are causing problems. Like the green center says, I want to understand the web of life. I want to understand what is the natural system. And then with the black and red of it, it says, I'm going to find anything that messes with the system,

and I will destroy it. You use the ruthlessness of black and the action of red to do what you need to do to fight anything that's getting in your way. Green, in its lonesome, is a little more about letting the things as they are exist and that if there's a hierarchy in which green's not on top of green's like well that's that's the way it is i'm not on top but you add in black and you add in red and green is like okay i'll make sure you know the way for this system to be the best that the system can be is for me to be at the top of the food chain.

At top of, you know, me to have the meat, you know. I will use the tools available to me to make sure that the system is run like it needs to be run. And a lot of that is green when it faces change and stuff. It really tries to double down on its natural systems. But when it gets together with black and red, one of the things you'll notice is it's a little more about, I'm going to find the elements that are causing me problems and I will do what it takes to get them out of the picture. Because green is sort of like, hey, the most important thing is growth.

I will be ruthless. I will take action. I'll do what it needs so that those things can thrive. And anything to get in the way of those things, any things that are trying to subvert nature, I will take out. Now, red, I would say green in a vacuum does try to resist things that are usurping nature, Green in a vacuum does try to resist things that are of serpent nature, but it's not quite as mean as when you mix black and red into it. Okay, so next up, let's talk a little bit about the shared enemies of white and blue.

So white very much is about the good of the group. Blue is about perfection. So when white and blue get together, it's very much about civilization. It's about building something and creating something. And white and blue, when they get together, love making rules and laws and embracing technology. But they want to build something. They want to make a larger system. So one of the interesting things when you look at black, red, green,

is they're very anti-system. They don't want rules. The rules they want are, well, sorry. I think when white and blue set up rules, it's to make sure that everything's kept in check. I'm going to make laws that make sure that the powerful don't prey on the weak. But in red, black, green is like, it very much, the strong survive is sort of the core of black, red, green. That, you know, when you look at something like John, it's definitely a world where, like, you know,

look, the strong thrive and the weak are dead. And that's another thing that I think white, especially married with blue, is about figuring out how to make everybody sort of safe on some level. You know, I'm going to make laws so that it's not okay to kill. It's not okay to beat somebody up. You know, it's not okay. And that black, red, green is almost the antithesis of that, which is there is no rules.

If you can do it, you can do it. If you're stronger, you're stronger. And that, you know, very much might makes right. It's very the antithesis of, it's anti-civilization, right? It's a means by which we have a system, and you can see that like in Jund,

that Jund of the five shards in Alara is the least organized. It's the most, what will be is what will be. Even Grixis, which definitely has, I mean, you look at something like Bant, which is super organized, Esper, super organized. Naya and

Grixis, less so, but there's a little bit more structure. The just sort of the anarchy that is Jund is very much the nature of a red base world where, you know, anybody can do what they want and then feeds on others. Well, you know, that's what happens. Um, so the interesting thing I think about Jund is it is probably the one that most embraces the nature of, you know, it says, be you. Be who you want to be. You know, it takes the red center of listening to your heart, right?

Listening to what you want. red center of listening to your heart, right? Listening to what you want. And then it adds in sort of, you know, the ruthlessness of black and the ferocity of green. And there very much is this kind of, it is the three-color pair that is most about doing what you want in a way that there's no, there's no sort of inherent responsibility.

There's no, you know, you just, you act in the moment and, hey, you know, at some point somebody gets stronger than you, then you might be subservient to them. And that it is very raw and simple. It is the simplest in some ways of the three-car... Meaning, it's very straightforward. If you can do something, you can do it.

If you can't, you can't. And that's the way, you know... I think black, red, green really takes this very raw look at life of life is what life is. You do what you can make of it

and you survive however you can survive. And it definitely has this sort of like survivor mentality of do what you got to do. It's very anti-technology just because it doesn't have blue. It's very primal, maybe it's a good word. You know, it's the, of the three color pairs, it is definitely the most primal. It's definitely the most sort of acting in the moment, acting,

you know, doing what you need to do, scratching to get by sort of thing. But anyway, so that, my friends, is Black Red Green. I'm trying to think of any other final thoughts on Black Red Green. The thing that I find interesting about black, red, green is there's something very there's something about it that is very

much understanding the it tries to boil everything down to the essence of what you are in a way that is very I keep coming back to the word of what you are in a way that is very, I keep coming back to the word primal, but it's very primal. And it is interesting that in a black, red, green world, there is no civilization, there

is no structure, there is no larger constraints of what can be. And so there's something very liberating about that. You know, mechanically, when you get the three colors together, it's definitely about build the biggest, baddest thing you can. You know, it's about going big and making giant things and attacking.

And that is kind of cool. That it definitely is... Of the three color pairs, it is the least think about things. It is like you know, play your mana, make giant creatures, and attack with giant creatures. It has a mindlessness to it. Not in a

bad way, but just in you know, black, red, or green is the color least about thinking things through, and most of the color about sort of just acting and doing what you're going to do. Anyway, guys, I hope you enjoyed that. It's fun talking through the three color pairs, but I am approaching wizards.

So we all know what that means. This is the end of my drive to work. So instead of talking magic, it's time to be making magic. I'll see you all next time. Bye-bye.