It took me about two days to go through and sleeve all of my SotM decks, but with the latest expansion coming out I'm considering unsleeving everything so that I can return to the original feel of the cards and to ensure that I can fit everything in the box.
Wanted to hear what everyone else has to think on the subject. My main reason for sleeving them was to keep them in good condition, but from what I've heard from just about everyone they don't need any extra protection.
Lets hear your thoughts before I go through and start removing sleeves.
I go unsleeved for two reason. Number one the size. Number two it would actually cost slightly more to sleeve the cards than I’ve spent on the game and every promo and expansion. I can replace the game for about the same cost as buying sleeves for everything. Though I do plan on sleeving all the hero and villain character cards just because it will set them apare from the deck as a whole.
I think going bareback is the way to go. Sleeved cards take too much space and slide around too much when you try to shuffle or stack them. I think you should unsleeve them, man.
I think everyone should unsleeve their cards to cut down on the QQ we get from people who want to wrap their cards in yards of plastic then complain that, after they've done that, the cards no longer fit in a box designed to fit unsleeved cards. ;)
I don't particularly like sleeved cards either. In fact, I'm seriously considering printing labels (using the Zebra labeler I have at work) and label the changes made to my original set cards rather than sleeve and set a cutout of the changes. The label method seemed to work well with this playtesting set I just printed over last week.
The only reason I don't want to sleeve my cards is so they can all fit in the box. But, I play my game at game bars, kitchen tables, and palces that tend to be dirty. Also, some of my friends have surprosingly dirty/greasy fingers. I don't want my cards to get damaged.
I've always kept my cards unsleeved, with the exception of the promo cards (especially Young Legacy). I just want to make sure those are preserved. However, all the other cards are unsleeved. I think it's going to be important to have unsleeved cards soon. As stated in today's Kickstarter update, yes, all the cards fit in the box, but I tested it myself to see if it would all fit (put a villain and evironment deck together, =40 cards) and with three new hero decks, they will just BARELY fit in the box. They're really squeezed on that side. I think I might have to use the ST box to keep the core ST decks, because it was really difficult to wiggle out the decks when there are 18 hero decks. So having those cards sleeved would certainly cause a space issue. Though I'm sure once Vengeance is out, we'll only need the core box and the Vengeance box to hold everything.
I find this thread very enlightening and uplifting. I play with my cards unsleeved and the abundance of "Best Sleeves" threads here and an on BGG made me feel like I was doing something dumb. I'm happy to see so many other community members have made the same decision.
I played M:tG back in Revised and never sleeved my cards with the exception of one brief foray which was quickly reversed. Some of the cards I shuffled back then were worth more than all of the SotM cards combined and I didn't think twice about bringing down the value. I debated sleeving SotM until a friend I used to play Magic with reminded me that SotM is not a collectible game and the cards will function fine even if they get dinged up a little.
I am a real stickler for clean hands and not snacking while playing. My friends are used to my OCD behavior by now, so we should be able to maintain the set for a long time. For anyone that's still on the fence, I recall a post from Christopher (possibly on BGG) where he stated that the >G demo set is unsleeved and looks practically brand new after hundreds of plays.
I've played more than a hundred games, with cards unsleeved, and they don't show much damage. One or two have scratches, one is a little bent, that's all. They seem to have a natural damage reduction of one. So unless you play in dangerous environments (kitchen, bar, Pike laboratories), they should be fine !
On the other hand, if you get some acid lodged inside a sleeve, it's going to end up as just a little packet of dissolved goop. Better put each card in a sealed ziploc bag to be safe.
The best investment I have made in protecting my cards is a tablecloth sized piece of black felt. Since i dont own or have room for a card table, it helps to make the cards easier to pick up thus preventing those nasty tears and wear marks on the border from peoples finger nails. It also prevents scratching by giving you a clean surface to play on and stops the sliding that happens on glass and other super smooth sufaces. The color, in addition to looking bad ass, helps you identify any grit that the cloth might have picked up. And the best part it only cost me $3 with a coupon at my local fabric and craft store.
Well, you guys might be happy to hear that it was fairly quick going unsleeving the cards. I got through 3/4 of the box in about an hour before I got tired of unsleeving. I'll finish the rest tomorrow.
I am with UXM. I really like my sleeved cards and think they shuffle nicely. I can deal if they don't all fit in the box as long as the cards look great and my OCD is satisfied.
I generally prefer sleeved cards, but I'm super picky about sleeves. Got burned by some really crappy batches of Mayday sleeves that stuck together, and nicer sleeves are way too thick and expensive to sleeve up this many cards at once.
At least you're not shuffling every other turn so the wear is less than a game like Thunderstone or Dominion.
Given everything I know now I'm not sure I would make the same decision -- to not only sleeve but use premium sleeves. I love the game and really enjoy having the premium sleeves in terms of their feel and the ability to, er, side shuffle.
The inability to fit in the original box is an anoyance. There was not such an awesome box when I originally decided to sleeve ...
My briefcase solution works well enough now, but it won't be able to accommodate all of the cards (not sure it will even contain all of Vengeance, much less the two sets after that).
I've heard a rumor that there might eventually be an ultimate storage solution available. I wonder, if such a thing were to be created, if it would accommodate sleeved cards.
Out of curiosity, for those planning to fit all 3 expansions. How do you plan to transport the tokens?
Currently unsleeved and still with the foam I am able to carry all the tokens and cards. (mInus mini-expansions)
Personally I was thinking of placing Shattered Timelines into Vengeance since Vengeance won't fit in the main box anyways. (Mainly cause I saved on shipping by combining my Vengance and ST shipment)
I will probably continue sleeving, but I have to saythat I met the >G guys at conventions, their cards are NOT sleeved and they look perfect. That copy must have had more games than I will ever do!