I'm Addicted to Something Worse Than Drugs

[00:00:00]I have what is officially known as an addiction problem.

[00:00:06]While I haven't been professionally diagnosed, I think all of the symptoms and signs are abundantly clear.

[00:00:16]But I just disagree with that nomenclature. I don't subscribe to the idea that it's an addiction problem. I prefer to call it an addiction blessing.

[00:00:25]And as you can probably tell, this old Florida homunculus ain't looking to change it. You see, on the totem pole of addictions, you have your standard ones everyone's familiar with.

[00:00:36]You've got alcohol, porn, drugs. But what a lot of people don't mention is at the very top, sitting on on the throne above all the others is an addiction far more insidious and let's be honest, far more embarrassing. Trading card addiction.

[00:00:53]And that's what I have. You see, as I've always said, drugs are temporary. Shiny cardboard is forever. And many of you might recall six years ago, I was lost in the whirlwind of this addiction. It had me by the nipples and it was clamped on, [ __ ] titty twisting them.

[00:01:12]Couldn't stop myself from buying more boxes to open constantly.

[00:01:18]Thanos with all the Infinity Stones couldn't stop me from buying more boxes of cards to open, specifically like Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon. And also, people got the timeline super twisted, just super [ __ ] up, cuz I started ripping boxes on stream all the way back in August of 2020. It actually I started doing it in July of 2020, but those streams are lost to the ether, but there are still a few surviving streams of me ripping Yu-Gi-Oh on stream in August.

[00:01:44]Logan Paul when he blew up the TCG space with his Pokemon video was a couple months later. I had already ripped a thousand boxes by the time Logan Paul even learned how to spell Pokemon. So, it wasn't Logan Paul's laring adventure that he started up that got me back into opening cards. I've been cracking these sarcophagus full of treasure since like 2016. I was buying Pokemon and Magic the Gathering to open. Then I took a break, came back in 2020, did it again. And then I finished the collections I set out to achieve, which in Pokemon was every first dead card, as well as gold stars, and Yu-Gi-Oh was Starlights, ghost rares, and some really meaningful vintage ultra rares and such. All first dead. I finished my collection. I beat the addiction. I I gave it the smackdown.

[00:02:40]And for four years, I was clean. I was sober. And then I made a big mistake. So many of you have noticed I have been [ __ ] on scalpers relentlessly for like the last 6 months cuz the hobby has completely gone to the birds. It has spiraled down the [ __ ] It is just disgusting. It is degenerate. People are fighting and [ __ ] over Pokemon cards every single day, scamming each other.

[00:03:03]There was even a murder over Pokemon cards cuz they wanted to steal their collection. It is a disgusting environment that the hobby has became has become. And as I've been making these videos, I decided, you know what?

[00:03:16]I never learned how to play this card game. I never learned how to play Pokemon TCG. I only ever collected it.

[00:03:21]And I'm a big TCG guy. I have a whole channel dedicated to like Magic the Gathering, and I have like hundreds of videos on Yu-Gi-Oh across multiple channels. So, I wanted to learn this one. Maybe it's a fun card game and I feel like I owe it to Pokemon to at least learn how to play the TCG. So, I did a little over a month ago. I learned how to play Pokemon.

[00:03:42]That was a big mistake, man. Cuz the card game is actually super fun. So, I was I learned on TCG Live and then I thought to myself, okay, let's make some decks. Let's make these in real life.

[00:03:52]Cuz like in One Piece, for example, in the One Piece card game, I actually went to tournaments and competed. I had a great time doing so. I love card games and the Pokemon TCG was actually a lot of fun. So, I wanted to make the decks in the real world physical, but I didn't want to just buy the singles. I thought, what's the harm in getting some some boxes to open and pull the cards myself? Plus, in doing so, you get the code cards, which I know basically everyone who opens Pokemon boxes just throws that right in the trash, but they have a legitimate use, which is on TCG Live, where you scan them and then you get packs in the game.

[00:04:29]It's like the only way to do so. So, I've been keeping like all the code cards and stuff to build my decks in game and in real life.

[00:04:37]And that opened up a big can of worms cuz now I haven't been able to stop myself from buying boxes of Magic the Gathering and Pokemon specifically cuz now I'm doing the same for Magic where well, I want to build myself a really cool commander deck and I love the Lord of the Rings set. So, I've been buying a [ __ ] ton of Lord of the Rings boxes, and now on the Skill Check channel, I have been opening so much sealed Magic and Pokemon. Bro, I even went to a [ __ ] card show a week ago cuz we had some friends in town and they're big Pokemon uh fans. So, they wanted to go to a card show and I was like, "That sounds fun." So, we went to a card show.

[00:05:15]I bought so much sealed Pokemon to open on the channel and it was such a good time and now I just can't stop opening cards again. So, the addiction is fully in place again and I don't regret it. I I have been having such a good [ __ ] time with it.

[00:05:32]Now, I still refuse to engage with scalpers, so I don't pay scalper prices or anything like that. And I think there's been a big confusion and misconception on what scalping even is.

[00:05:41]Scalpers aren't someone that like has a Lord of the Rings box that they got back when the set launched and they've just held it for all this time as it's appreciated in value. That's not scalping. Scalpers are those worms, this [ __ ] fungus that goes around to get as much of the new product as they can, whether it's through botting at MSRP when the like Sam's Club does an MSRP launch or going to the Pokemon vending machines and exchanging knuckle sandwiches. But they get new product and immediately try and turn it around for a huge markup because now it is more scarce because all the scalpers have flocked to it. So now normal people can't find it at MSRP. So the scalpers try and take advantage of that by making it a huge markup for a quick profit.

[00:06:22]Scalping is not someone that has like a case of [ __ ] Pokemon forbidden light that they got in 2018 and now all of a sudden they decide to try and sell it while it's much higher now than it was in 2018. That's not what scalping is.

[00:06:35]Scalping is when they hit this product and immediately try and turn it around for a huge markup for a quick profit to capitalize off this new scarcity that's been introduced into this market. So, they are constantly trying to just flip it immediately for a profit off of the big hype train around this product. But anyway, I just couldn't resist talking about my addiction popping off again because I've been opening boxes like every day now on the Skill Check channel. So, if you ever want to see like a bunch of card openings for Magic and Pokemon, I've been doing that [ __ ] over there daily. I wanted to show you like a little montage of some of the wackier pulls. These aren't even like the best polls I've gotten so far, but these are just some of the really fun moments from some of the openings I've been doing with Magic Lord of the Rings special edition boxes as well as the Pokemon Convention Hall. Riders of the mark. Shielders fade.

[00:07:29]Surge foil paragant.

[00:07:32]This can't. No.

[00:07:36]What is this even a real card? I haven't even seen this in the set. What is this one? I haven't even seen this poster.

[00:07:42]There's no way on pack one. Come on now.

[00:07:45]Come on now. What do you got for me?

[00:07:47]Bang.

[00:07:49]Wow. A Quinton Tarantino card.

[00:07:52]Very cool. Foot fetish hobbit. Beasting hobbit. Devour food three. What a cool keyword though. Oh, nice.

[00:08:04]Battle by water. Surge foil. ELAND. OH MY GOD.

[00:08:10]Mount Doom. Oh, it's not foil though.

[00:08:13][ __ ] bro. I'm already cook. Are all of the special edition boxes like this? Do they all have just a ton of poster cards?

[00:08:23]Like is that just how it goes? This card even not foil 180 clams, bro.

[00:08:30]Holy Toledo.

[00:08:32]The Shire Aroreal Alliance, Serge, King of Oath Breakers, and oh, Yami Maya. Yami Maya. Oh, there's something else there, too. Just nothing.

[00:08:46]That's a good card, actually. That's a really good card. I shouldn't say nothing. Whenever another creature enters, gain a life. Actual just banger card. I think the Surah Javi Maya is also a juicer.

[00:08:56]I'm pretty sure it is.

[00:09:00]Oh my god.

[00:09:02]$365 for the surge foil Yavi Maya. What a what?

[00:09:10]We are going ballistic in here.

[00:09:14]The [ __ ] is this thing? I've never seen this card in all of the boxes I've opened.

[00:09:20]They got Tree Beard in here.

[00:09:23]Why does he look so goofy? Take a look at that guy.

[00:09:26]He looks like the glob gabla.

[00:09:30]Can you see him? It's not focusing super well. There it goes. Actually looks like the [ __ ] gibble gibble gibble gibble.

[00:09:38]A surge elven chorus. And bro, what?

[00:09:45]Another poster. It's the same one I got, but this time nonfoil.

[00:09:49]That's kind of cringe. That's actually kind of cringe. They did that to me.

[00:09:53]That's You hate to see that. Surge foil.

[00:09:56]Shagrat loot bearer. Not exactly the surge foil you want to see there. Oh, right into a pheramir. Yikes.

[00:10:08]And it's just that easy. And it's just that easy.

[00:10:14]Yep.

[00:10:16]Yep.

[00:10:18]Last march of the ins.

[00:10:21]Nonfoil, by the way, is 150 bucks. I'm waiting for foil to load. Foil 235.

[00:10:30]235 clams for the last March of the Ins.

[00:10:33]I'm pretty sure I pulled the nonfoil in one of the first boxes of these I opened.

[00:10:39]Sarroman, Rise of the Witch King. Yeah, we got some good we got some good commons and uncommons in here. A nauseoul. How much is just a normal nause?

[00:10:50]Oh my god. Near mint nonfoil is 60 bucks. Foil, bro. Foil is 123 bucks for the 727 nausehoul.

[00:11:04]That is not bad.

[00:11:06]Okay, no more courageous resolve, please. Both those definitely nothing.

[00:11:10]And then a Froto. Oh no, no, no, no, no, no, no. I have three of this poster. Oh my god. I have three Hue the Antwood.

[00:11:19]Actual worst poster in the set. I have three of it. Stop.

[00:11:23]Please.

[00:11:25]It's a $15 or $14 card, so I mean it's not bad.

[00:11:31]I thought that was serialized for a second. Okay, finally a juicer.

[00:11:41]Okay, bro. I really thought that was serializ. Maybe it is. Let me let me let me take a closer inspection.

[00:11:48]Yeah, upon closer inspection, I'm not seeing X out of 100. Not serialized, but finally a new poster foil, and it's a really good one. It is that can't be right. Hold on.

[00:12:09]Wow. No, it is $300.

[00:12:13]I thought it was like 150.

[00:12:16]Wow. The Palunteer 300 clams.

[00:12:20]Rangers. We looked that up last time. It was like five bucks or something if I remember right.

[00:12:26]Okay, I'm not even going to make any predictions here. Just surprise me.

[00:12:34]There's no way.

[00:12:36]There's no way.

[00:12:38]There is no way. I've just pulled my fourth border. My fourth poster Huegh the Antwood.

[00:12:45]My fourth Hue the Antwood poster. Or is it third? Third or fourth? I can't remember. I have two poster foil Hugh the Antwoods now. And then I think I have two nonfoil.

[00:13:01]That is tragic. That is actually that is my least favorite card in Magic the Gathering history. I want it to be known.

[00:13:09]And you couldn't even you couldn't even do me the kindness of at least being serialized or something. At least that would have been fitting.

[00:13:17]Oh wow. I am deflated. I am very very sad now. Holy.

[00:13:24]You cannot pass. You cannot escape. Hugh the antwood. Wow. I can't. Thank you build a pony. It's good to see you. I actually I made up for it.

[00:13:38]Yeah, I made up for it.

[00:13:40]Mhm.

[00:13:42]Okay. Can't be that mad anymore. Cannot be that mad anymore.

[00:13:49]It's not foil, though, which is a shame.

[00:13:52]If it was foil, it's $1,000. Nonfoil is $270.

[00:13:57]Wow.

[00:13:59]Wow.

[00:14:01]That's hot. That That is hot.

[00:14:07]Man, if that was just foil.

[00:14:10]Still looks beautiful. That [ __ ] is precious, man.

[00:14:16]Just wasn't foil, which which hurts me a little bit. Here, I'll set it up like that. That looks cool. Okay.

[00:14:23]Wow. 270. Our first one ring hit.

[00:14:27]Gloin. We know he's like a dollar. I remember him from last time. Oh my god.

[00:14:32]Herborg to him of Yogmoth.

[00:14:35]We dead I know dead marshes is big and it's surge and it's surge. I know that this is huge. Yeah. Holy [ __ ] 365 clams.

[00:14:51]Holy Toledo, bro. We are starting to cook. Oh, also that's the end of the pack, by the way. I don't know why I set those off to the side.

[00:15:01]We are really starting to scale into the late game here from Chargers born upon a wind surge. Already had that Gimly and why, bro? What? So, here's what I've noticed. Here's what I've noticed.

[00:15:17]Here's what I've noticed. These two travel together.

[00:15:21]I I constantly hit these two in the same box. Hugh the Intwood and Treebeard are legitimately always paired together.

[00:15:32]I don't man I don't I've had enough of it. So Born Upon a Wind Surge is 10 bucks. That is not bad. But what I'm looking for is this poster behind it. So one thing I've noticed is that when I have an uncommon in this slot with one more slot behind it, it means it's a poster. So I just need this to be serialized.

[00:15:54]And we can all smile. We can all smile ear to ear.

[00:15:58]Holy [ __ ] I actually thought I hit serialized.

[00:16:02]I actually thought I hit serialized. I Oh my god, that's still okay. It's still a really good poster. I really thought it was serialized.

[00:16:22]Wow. Wait, this is a Whoa. This is still Whoa. I thought this was like a hundred bucks. This is 350 poster foil. 350.

[00:16:34]I genuinely thought we just hit serialized off rip.

[00:16:40]Still very very very very good. Still very very very very good. Let me get a sleeve on that puppy. I'm I'm happy that gives me a slight smile.

[00:16:51]Not big time cheesing, but smiling.

[00:16:57]We got the Aragorn.

[00:17:00]Wait, we looked this one up last time.

[00:17:01]It actually wasn't that huge, I don't think. Oh, there's the Loath though.

[00:17:05]Hey, that when I said this guy's definitely nothing. He is something. He is something. He's pretty good.

[00:17:10]Definitely not bad.

[00:17:12]Oh, wait, wait, wait. We're going back to back on posters. Back to back on posters.

[00:17:18]I think this one has to be uh nonfoil as well. I'm pretty sure. Nope. It's foil.

[00:17:24]It's Gandalf.

[00:17:26]I thought I'm not gonna lie. I thought for a second right here was serialized.

[00:17:31]Oh, that's nice though. That's big.

[00:17:33]That's big. That's one of the That's one of the better ones.

[00:17:39]Oh, that's nice.

[00:17:43]Having a hard time typing.

[00:17:48]Okay, there we go.

[00:17:50]Oh yeah, this one's chunky. This one is very chunky.

[00:17:56]Oh my god, bro. Near mint foil for Gandalf is 515. 514, excuse me. 514 for the Gandalf the white poster foil.

[00:18:09]This This is our juiciest box yet.

[00:18:12]Somehow we keep getting juicier boxes, bro. We keep getting juicier boxes.

[00:18:18]Let's go. Let's [ __ ] go, bro. Never mind. We're early game comp.

[00:18:28]Another Tommy Bammy poster foil. Bro, we're cooking. We're kind of cooking.

[00:18:36]It is unfortunate because I've already pulled this card before. Holy though. Wait, the price on it the price on it's gone astronomically up since the last time I hit this.

[00:18:51]It's 440 bucks now. It's a dollar.

[00:18:55]Shouldn't have I shouldn't have looked.

[00:18:56]We've hit this a thousand times. We've hit this a thousand times. We've hit this a thousand.

[00:19:04]New poster. Witch king.

[00:19:07]We got the witch king.

[00:19:09]Not boiled though. [ __ ] my tight little [ __ ] ass. Dude, this could have been huge.

[00:19:18]Still a great one. Would have loved loved if this was serialized or foil, but even nonfoil.

[00:19:26]$300.

[00:19:28]Oh, $40 for this version. That's kind of surprising. I thought it would still be like a ton like the other.

[00:19:37]I was not expecting another poster.

[00:19:40]We have hit this one before, but I don't think it was foil last time. Watcher in the water foil $80, I think. Let me double check. No. Watch her in the water foil $172. I don't know why I thought it was 80. It looked like it said 80, but that one was just normal.

[00:20:02]Wow.

[00:20:04]We are cooking.

[00:20:06]>> I'm kind of feeling this one.

[00:20:07]>> All right. I'm excited.

[00:20:08]>> Kind of feeling this one. energy. Okay, so I think it's three.

[00:20:12]>> Three.

[00:20:12]>> Yeah, I think so. What? Gio, dude.

[00:20:14]>> Mhm.

[00:20:16]>> Oh.

[00:20:17]Oh my [ __ ] >> That's That's actually unbelievable.

[00:20:20]That's actually unbelievable. That's unbelievable.

[00:20:22]>> Oh my god.

[00:20:23]>> Way.

[00:20:23]>> Oh my god. What' I say?

[00:20:25]>> You actually [ __ ] said it. You actually [ __ ] said it.

[00:20:27]>> Oh my god.

[00:20:28]>> Oh my god.

[00:20:28]>> All right. All right. What are we looking at? What are we looking at?

[00:20:31]>> Come on. Look. I look. They're beautiful cards. They're great cards. How do you >> OH MY GOD.

[00:20:36]>> OH MY GOD.

[00:20:36]>> OH MY GOD.

[00:20:39]OH, WHAT THE [ __ ] >> Oh my god.

[00:20:44]>> 150 on that.

[00:20:45]>> That's not quite as good, but man, it's beautiful.

[00:20:47]>> What the [ __ ] bro?

[00:20:49]>> My bones, man.

[00:20:50]>> Dude, that's sick.

[00:20:51]>> OH, THAT'S >> GODAMN YOU, KYLE. WHAT THE [ __ ] BRO?

[00:20:55]OKAY. OKAY. PLEASE. Three for four.

[00:20:58]Three for four. Three for four. Come on.

[00:21:00]>> Oh, wait. I think I see I think I see something.

[00:21:02]>> Oh my god. Do it.

[00:21:03]>> I think I see something.

[00:21:04]>> Do it.

[00:21:06]>> No, that's still >> It's still It's not bad. It's not bad.

[00:21:09]>> I thought it was I thought it was I was >> THAT'S YES. YES. It's still good. It's still good.

[00:21:16]>> That's not bad.

[00:21:16]>> Oh, it's just Yeah, it's just a what it could have been.

[00:21:19]>> Yeah, the near mint is still 80 bucks.

[00:21:21]>> You just cooked so hard on those packs.

[00:21:24]>> Three out of four with juice. That's crazy.

[00:21:28]>> Good idea.

[00:21:28]>> I need to end the dry spell here. Come on, >> Kyle. We need you now, brother.

[00:21:31]>> Come on.

[00:21:32]>> We need you now.

[00:21:33]>> Change the winds, man. Come on.

[00:21:34]>> Bring that Bring that down a little bit.

[00:21:36]Bring it down. Bring it down. Bring it down. Bring it down.

[00:21:41]>> Oh my god. That's [ __ ] crazy.

[00:21:44]>> There's no way, >> dude.

[00:21:48]No way.

[00:21:49]>> I wish it was I wish it was a different one, but that is a beautiful hit.

[00:21:53]>> No, you take them.

[00:21:54]>> We take those.

[00:21:56]>> Juiced. They are so juiced.

[00:21:58]>> And Chansy. Oh boy, guys.

[00:22:01]>> Show no fear. Show no fear. I think I've been I think I've been had they've they've played me like a fiddle.

[00:22:09]>> Unless >> Unless >> Unless obviously >> nothing yet.

[00:22:13]>> Unless >> Unless Unless Unless >> Wait, playing with a reef blower.

[00:22:18]>> Let's just have a little bit of >> Mhm.

[00:22:20]>> Oh, nice and slow. Nice and then fast.

[00:22:23]>> We pick up THE SPEED.

[00:22:25]>> OH, WAIT. JESUS.

[00:22:26]>> I WENT TOO FAST. I WENT TOO FAST. I DON'T KNOW WHAT HAPPENED.

[00:22:29]>> DUDE, YOU GOT THE BLASTOISE, >> DUDE. LISTEN, I just I could I told you it was just talking to me. Talking to me.

[00:22:34]>> That was a good good technique.

[00:22:36]>> No, nothing in there.

[00:22:37]>> Get in there.

[00:22:39]>> I've not done well with the ones yet.

[00:22:41]Yet yet.

[00:22:44]>> Yet.

[00:22:44]>> Yet.

[00:22:45]>> YET.

[00:22:47]>> OH my god. No way.

[00:22:48]>> Oh my god.

[00:22:53]>> I looked AWAY FOR ONE SECOND. THAT'S ALL I DID. MY GOD. IT'S FAST. WHAT?