A tribute to the GOAT of MTG Kai Budde
702 words (~5 mins read)
I was honored to play against Kai Budde in June 2024
In June 2024, I participated in Magic: the Gathering's (MTG) Pro Tour (PT) held in Amsterdam. While I had been playing MTG as a hobby for 6 years before then, it was still unbelievable to me that I had reached the top level of competition of this card game, yet there I was. For Round 2, I was paired with Kai Budde. Unless you're into competitive MTG you probably don't know the name. But this guy, nicknamed the German Juggernaut, holds tons of records in the MTG competitive scene, and is considered the Greatest of All Time (GOAT) by many. You can imagine my excitement and nervousness at the pairing.
MTG is a strategy game that has a heavy dose of variance, which means sometimes the less skilled player will beat the more skilled player. That's exactly what happened that time: I got lucky and managed to eke out a 2-1 win vs Kai. The guy was super friendly and accepted to take a picture with me, allowing me to immortalize that unique highlight. If you're into MTG and want to know more details of how that match went, they're available in this video where I summarize my PT experience.
This was undoubtedly the highlight of the PT for me, but in a sad turn of events, Kai announced publicly the next day that he had what was likely terminal cancer. The MTG committee then announced that from now on, the prize for best MTG player of the year would be named the "Kai Budde Player of the Year".
Kai passed away recently, and tribute videos and messages have flooded the MTG social scene. I have abandoned MTG since my participation in that PT, yet I felt compelled to write this blog post and dedicate some words to this MTG GOAT, who used competition to bring the best in him and others. His streak of winning several high-level tournaments in a row back in the early 2000s is legendary to this day. He will be missed in the MTG scene.
Thoughts on life and our given time
I am also reminded that human life is quite frail. We never know if we will live one more year, 10 more years, or 50. Hence, we should be mindful and careful in how we're spending our time and life. Nothing wrong with enjoying life and indulging in pleasures, but are we foregoing opportunities that we will regret later? Are we living the life we want to live, or the life that society and others have imposed on us? What legacy do we want to leave behind when it's our time to sleep and never wake up again? What and who do we value the most in our life, and are we spending the time and effort on those endeavors and relationships?
I am truly passionate about strategy games and technology. I find them fascinating. But I need to remind myself to not put them above my family relationships and my ethical values, for example. After finishing the MTG PT in June 2024, I came at a crossroad: get deeper into MTG, participate in more top-level tournaments, and potentially become a professional; or pursue other endeavors. The game was too addictive to me to be kept as a hobby. In the end, I decided to let go of it. After taking that decision, I started to use my free time to level up my skills in tech instead of playing MTG. I studied and passed AWS certifications, published and sold my study notes and flashcards, started my blog and a tech YouTube channel, built my personal website, and got up to date in the AI craze. Almost two years later, I'm enjoying a really engaging job position as AI engineer at Wave Company.
I might grind MTG again in the future. Maybe I don't. No matter what I do, however, I will always remember that match I had the honor to play against the GOAT of MTG, as well as his passion for the game, for the thrill of competition, and for becoming the best he could be. Ruhe in Frieden, Kai!
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