Humans of Magic Humans of Magic

An introduction to the Israel-Palestine conflict with Spice8Rack, Magic YouTuber and political activist.

0:00 Intro
3:00 Ground rules and expectations
6:47 Resources - journalists
9:07 Resources - coordination
10:32 Resources - education
11:15 Resources - books
22:26 How do we know if a resource is legitimate?
32:12 How do we know if an influencer is legitimate?
40:32 Social media has real value (but use it wisely)
49:52 Be well-informed - and take action
53:10 It's okay to be emotional (on the internet)
58:59 Willful ignorance and team mentality
1:03:18 Why the Israel-Palestine conflict is important
1:09:52 Campus protests and institutional response
1:16:15 Student protesters should be commended
1:19:23 anti-Zionism vs. anti-Semitism
1:27:04 Scale of what's happening, business interests
1:35:46 Use of force - the Israeli state's position
1:44:59 Definition of "Nakba"
1:49:44 What needs to happen next?
1:58:25 Israeli government and American dependency
2:08:28 Managing expectations with the West
2:16:38 Final words - call for action

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Spice8Rack's recommended resources:

[JOURNALISTS]
- WizardBisan1 - on Instagram & TikTok
- Eye on Palestine, Middle East Eye - on Instagram & TikTok

[COORDINATION]
- National Students for Justice in Palestine - on Twitter & Instagram
- BDS (Boycott Divest & Sanction)
- Palestine Action
- Jewish Voice for Peace
- Palestine Solidarity Campaign

[EDUCATION]
- Dr. John Duncan - "JohntheDuncan" on YouTube

[BOOKS]
- S. Englert - "Settler Colonialism: An Introduction"
- R. Khalidi - "The Hundred Year’s War on Palestine"
- S. Awad, & B. Bean - "Palestine: A Socialist Introduction"
- B. Bashir, & A. Goldberg - "The Holocaust & the Nakba"
- A. Lowenstien - "The Palestine Laboratory"
- A. Davis - "Freedom is a Constant Struggle"
- F. Fanon - "The Wretched of the Earth"
- J. Abusalim, J. Bing & M. Merryman Lotze - "Light in Gaza"

In the conversation, we referred to Kyle Hill as "Phil" -- sorry, Kyle!

Alison Luhrs is a creative writer and worldbuilder for Magic The Gathering. She was also the creative lead for Baldur's Gate 3, and is currently the narrative director for Destiny 2.

0:00 Intro
1:00 Doing improv
6:49 Improv's learning curve, embracing failure
12:23 Connecting with the audience
15:37 "Book Club"
19:21 Getting into the games industry
21:46 Career at Wizards of the Coast
24:25 Ixalan
25:38 Magic storytelling evolution
29:27 Writing the Thunder Junction epilogues
32:29 Why Alison left her name off the Ixalan stories
38:12 Subverting expectations
39:50 Research and writing frameworks
43:23 Magic storyline starter kit
46:13 Collaborative writing with friends
49:30 Advice for folks entering the games industry
54:56 Living through the COVID era
56:53 "Badass wilderness woman" (and "Lost" commentary)
1:03:25 Alison's friendship philosophy
1:10:11 Legendary Kaladesh PAX improv event
1:13:15 Being the Baldur's Gate 3 creative lead
1:21:54 Lightning round Q&A

Patreon: patreon.com/humansofmagic

Andrea Mengucci is a Magic The Gathering content creator and player.

0:00 Intro
1:27 Interview start
3:14 Content evolution, new YouTube channel, logistics
8:32 Connecting with audience, making it fun
13:02 Magic content innovation
16:29 Why Mengu isn't making Commander content
17:56 Modern format bans
20:35 Tournament and Pro Tour mindset
23:00 COVID changed EVERYTHING
26:04 The REAL life of a top Magic content creator
35:38 Surrounding oneself with strong players
38:01 Competitive Magic is in a weird place
39:02 CovertGoBlue's big impact on Mengu
43:31 "I have a bad relationship with Magic Arena"
49:21 The Karnies podcast
54:36 Content creator vs. pro player lifestyle
1:01:12 Mengu's legacy

Patreon: patreon.com/humansofmagic

Victor Adame Minguez is an artist and illustrator for Magic The Gathering.

Victor's Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/victoradameart/

0:00 Intro
1:00 Beginning of Victor's creative journey
5:53 Making art a viable career
6:38 Artistic ability vs. practice
9:30 "I don't have any other skills"
15:32 Magic art guidelines
17:06 Advice for aspiring Magic illustrators?
20:18 The Grist that sold for $35K
26:09 Early days of working with Wizards of the Coast
29:05 Moving from digital art to oil paintings
35:42 Experiencing creative burnout
41:45 Developing the grind mindset
44:44 How Victor met his wife, Carley Hart
50:17 Magic artist celebrity
57:50 Magic Con Chicago
1:02:39 Fun fact about Victor (that nobody knows about)
1:06:39 Favorite illustration / favorite artists
1:10:23 Value of original paintings
1:12:19 Illustrating for different card rarities
1:14:41 Victor's new passion project

Patreon: patreon.com/humansofmagic

Evart "Aspiringspike" Moughon is a Magic player and streamer. He is best known for his deckbuilding innovations in the Modern format.

0:00 Intro
0:50 Streaming Dark Souls
6:02 Personal off-stream projects
7:58 Value of effective practice
13:45 Viewership drop when variety streaming
15:53 Deckbuilding process
23:17 Innovating (and breaking) the Modern format
27:50 The Crokeyz tweet
31:30 Right place, right time
36:01 Talking about success
37:42 What Spike learned from Kai Budde and Reid Duke
46:59 Level-up - Pro Tour deck selection process
53:01 Questioning assumptions, intuitive learning, stream feedback
58:28 On expressing negative emotions on-stream
1:01:55 Working on the Lord of the Rings set
1:15:34 Making a tabletop RPG with TCG elements
1:19:12 Boundaries of creative output and personal life
1:22:06 Five questions with Aspiringspike (lightning Q&A)

Patreon: patreon.com/humansofmagic

Javier Dominguez is a Magic pro player from Spain. He won the 2018 Magic World Championship.

0:00 Intro
1:24 The language of Magic
3:43 Repeatable decision-making
5:23 Leveraging poker skills, studying the game
10:20 Frustrations
12:49 Being competitive vs. having fun
16:46 Choosing Magic over poker (and Hearthstone)
24:57 Was the old Magic Pro Tour ACTUALLY good?
34:42 The love of the game
37:42 Nature of competitive games
42:43 How Javier wants to be remembered
43:15 Becoming World Champion - did Javier change?
49:40 Preparing for Worlds (work-life-happiness balance)
59:33 Javier's climb to greatness
1:01:49 Hitting a ceiling and starting over
1:05:54 "You can be wrong" - a healthy approach to doubt
1:08:16 Goals and process for 2024
1:10:31 Lightning round Q&A

Patreon: patreon.com/humansofmagic