Cockatrice is a Magic the Gathering game simulator. You can create decks and play Magic online with your friends easily with the cards you physically own. While a bit controversial as Wizards of the Coast keeps closing the project down, this case makes it abundantly clear that good ideas cannot be held down by big business forever.
In this article I will show you how to get connected to Cockatrice and start playing magic with your friends.
Step 1: Download and Install Cockatrice
First off, Cockatrice is currently being run by Woogerworks, and all downloads can be found on their website on the right bar. For your convenience here are the client downloads: Cockatrice Clients
Make note that 2 applications will be installed, one called Cockatrice and one called Oracle. Cockatrice is the game client and Oracle is the card updater. You will need both.
Step 2: Make a Server Account
Update 2015: This step was moved into the application itself. View the link below for additional information:
The next step is to register for a server account. Be sure to remember your sign in information as there is no account recovery and you will need this login information later.
Step 3: Update your Card Database
Next you will need to open Oracle and run the card database updater. The updater will take you through a few steps with information pre-filled. Just hit next throughout the wizard and you should be prompted with successful card database update at the end.
Step 4: Create a Deck
Once your card database is updated you can open Cockatrice and choose New Deck from the menu. You will need at least 1 pre-made deck to begin playing online, so enter one of your decks before signing in.
Step 5: Sign Into the Server
Now that you created a deck you are free to sign in to the server. From the menu, hit Connect? The host should be cockatrice.woogerworks.com and the port should be 4747. Player Name and Password are what you entered on Step 2 of this guide.
Step 6: Find your Friends and Friend Up!
How you find your friends in Cockatrice is a bit annoying, but not overly difficult. Once signed in, you should have a bunch of tabs on your cockatrice client. Click Chat Rooms and look at the right side of the tab. Scroll through the list of users until you find your friend. He/she must also be signed in.
Once you find your friend, right click them and select add to buddy list from the dropdown menu. We are doing this because it?s the best and easiest way to find your friends games and join them.
Step 7: Find and Join your Friends Game
To make a game click the create button on the chat rooms tab. Be sure to select that only buddies can join. Once the game is created, your friend can right click your name in the user list and select the show this user?s games item from the dropdown. Once your friend is in your game room, you are free to select your decks and start playing Magic!
I hope this guide was helpful for anyone looking to play Magic the Gathering with their friends! Let me know if you experienced any issues with this guide and I can refine it.
