What are your must haves for a die cutting machine?

I have quite a few dies that coordinate with stamps. Now that I have a Cameo I'm on a bit of a freeze in terms of buying more, but I might still look for things that do more than just cut out a shape e.g. something that adds texture/embossing as well such as an embossed edge.

I also still use dies to cut felt - just because it seems easier than with the Cameo.

Most of my dies are from Papertrey Ink, Simon Says Stamp and Paper Smooches.

I love a nested parenthesis die set, leaves, flowers and a flourish set is always handy.

Not die related but I love my magnetic plate. It really does hold those metal dies in place. This is great when youre trying to cut over a certain part of pattern paper or if you use die cut/stamp sets.

Lots of Quickutz dies and alphas are very affordable on eBay.

The basics for sure, circles, squares, rectangles, stars, hearts etc. For many years all I had was the basics and have used the small and large circles the most with the scalloped circles coming in a close second. I recently started to buy a few different dies but have bought things that I know I will use over an over again, shells and starfish and nautical styles and I did get a few doily and the coffee cup die.
If you get embossing folders I love the real simple ones again, swiss dots, woodgrain, stripes, hearts nothing too fancy or theme specific at all.

You can get all kinds of embossing folders inexpensively on sale at the big box stores.

Frame-type dies are great for focal accents and sentiments.

Sets of stamps + dies are fun, too!

A big pile of embossing folders &/or die sets just doesn't take up that much space in your craft area. Love that!

Definitely get the magnetic platform. I use mine all the time.

As for the dies, it depends on what you do or plan to do most. I mostly bought it because even though I have multiple electronic cutters, I found I really don't like using one for making cards and that was something I figured I probably would do more of if I could work more quickly on the fly.

Most of the cards I make are quick one-offs for a thank you note or kid birthday, and I either don't have the time or want to take the time to turn it all on, dig through my literally THOUSANDS of saved designs to find just the right thing, size it to just the right size, mess with the mat and the paper, etc. all to make ONE card. I need it to be faster than that. The dies I have are ones that work great with stamped sayings and designs. I also have a nice collection of embossing folders. I think they add a nice professional looking touch to handmade cards.

If you have a Tuesday Morning store, it's a great place to find inexpensive embossing folders.

No it isn't a must, but I do like mine. You can use washi tape to tape it in place, although I find if I am careful to not let it shift when I make my "sandwich", it's fine.

I buy dies like Spellbinder's because they can emboss. Everyone always gives the great advice to buy basic dies like squares & circles. I buy dies that are quirky like unicorns and peacocks. I use those more than I do my squares and circles. My great advice is buy dies that are quirky.

I do still by steel rule. Apparently those are old dinosaurs now. Since I love dinosaurs I will keep buying steel rule. I cut a lot of heavier materials like metal, felt, fabric, etc... It does save me a fortune when the newest trend embellishment comes out. I will use my die and materials to make my own.

I love embossing folders.

Accessories- I don't want a magnetic plate. That pacemaker warning really did keep me from buying it. I know it is probably just a cautious warning but I have loved ones who have pacemakers. I would never forgive myself if something happened. I did buy magnetic vent covers to make my own magnetic plate. I love it.

Wax Paper is a must if you buy detailed dies. Make sure you buy wax paper.

If you work with detailed dies you have to get the Spellbinder's All-in-One tool. I scoffed at that thing when I saw it at it's CHA release. I said "There is another gimmick." Fast forward I am thinking of buying another one for a backup. Egg on my face for the gimmick tool. It really does save your sanity when working with intricate dies. I just roll that little brush over my die and it is clean.

Get an extra set of cutting plates. I have one for cutting and one for embossing.

I can't cut a straight line. I bought the squares and rectangles. I make cards using them.

I watched a YouTube video by the Cheery Lynn Designs guy who says NOT to use waxed paper with detailed dies because the wax eventually gums them up. His recommendation is to use a cut to size piece of those very thin plastic grocery shopping bags as a release instead, and he shows how well it works in his video. It's worth a watch, here's a link: 

Cheery Lynn YouTube