Post by Xxsuperheroxx on Apr 20, 2019 12:14:26 GMT -6
Magic tournaments regularly occur in gaming stores and other venues. Larger tournaments with hundreds of competitors from around the globe sponsored by Wizards of the Coast are arranged many times every year, with substantial cash prizes for the top finishers.[20] A number of websites report on tournament news, give complete lists for the most currently popular decks, and feature articles on current issues of debate about the game. The DCI, which is owned and operated by Wizards of the Coast, is the organizing body for sanctioned Magic events. The two major categories of tournament play are "Constructed" and "Limited".
Constructed
In "Constructed" tournaments, each player arrives with a pre-built deck, which must have a minimum of sixty cards and follow other deck construction rules. The deck may also have up to a fifteen card sideboard, which allows players to modify their deck. Normally the first player to win two games is the winner of the match.
Different formats of Constructed Magic exist, each allowing different cards. The DCI maintains a "Banned and Restricted List" for each format; players may not use banned cards at all, and restricted cards are limited to one copy per deck. The DCI bans cards that it determines are damaging the health of a format; it seeks to use this remedy as infrequently as possible, and only a handful of cards have been banned in recent years.
Alchemy Arena play mode based on the Standard format that incorporates new-to-digital Magic alongside rebalanced Standard cards to create a fast, ever-evolving experience for players.
Standard, formerly known as Type 2, contains anywhere from five to eight sets. The Standard card pool undergoes a "rotation" once a year, usually in October, when older sets rotate out of the format and the fall set is released. As of October 10, 2018, the Standard card pool consists of Ixalan, Rivals of Ixalan, Dominaria, Core Set 2019, Guilds of Ravnica, and Ravnica Allegiance, with one card banned. For the history of Standard, see Timeline of Magic: the Gathering Standard (Type II).
Modern is a non-rotating format where all previously standard legal cards from 8th Edition forward are legal. It was first played at the Magic Online 2011 Community Cup, a response to players' desire for a non-rotating format that is more accessible to newer players. Wizards of the Coast introduced Modern as a legal format on August 12, 2011, and saw its first paper magic play at Pro Tour Philadelphia 2011. Certain cards that released in products that are not standard legal such as Planechase or Commander series cards, are not legal in Modern.
Legacy is an Eternal format, meaning it allows every card ever printed except cards on the Legacy banned list. It is distinguished from Vintage in that certain cards are banned for power reasons.
Vintage is an Eternal format, meaning it allows every card ever printed except the Vintage banned list. The only banned cards in Vintage are cards using the "ante" mechanic or have "dexterity issues" which the DCI considers inappropriate for competitive Magic. However there is a unique "Restricted List" where only a single copy of a card is allowed to be played instead of the traditional 4. Because of the expense in acquiring the scarce old cards to play competitive Vintage, some unsanctioned Vintage tournaments permit players to proxy a certain number of cards.
Proxy cards are forbidden in DCI-sanctioned tournaments, except as replacements for damaged cards when created by the event judge.
Pauper is a format that only allows cards with the common rarity to be played. Although the format is played mainly on Magic: The Gathering Online, it has seen a physical resurgence after Pauper was featured in several Grand Prix events.
Commander (originally known as Elder Dragon Highlander or EDH) is a casual format, but can be played competitively. In this format each player constructs a 100 singleton deck that has a legendary creature that acts as a commander. The deck construction is limited to the colors that are represented by the chosen commander and there cannot be two or more cards with the same name with the exception of basic lands. The legendary creature chosen as commander is kept in a special "command zone" and may be cast at any time you can afford to cast the creature. If the commander card would enter any zone other than the battlefield from anywhere, its owner has the choice to return that card to the "command zone", where it can be cast again for an additional two generic mana to its regular cost. The banned list and unique rules are governed by an independent body (not by Wizards of the Coast), although Wizards of the Coast has tried to make variants of Commander like 1v1 Commander, which has its own banlist, and Brawl, which only allows the use of Standard-legal cards. Wizards of the Coast releases pre-built commander decks on a yearly basis.
Two Headed Giant is a multiplayer format played in two-player teams. One team shares a life total and their turn phases, but have separate mana, cards, decks, and battlefields, and graveyards. Each player can block any creatures that are attacking them, their teammate, or any planeswalker their team controls. Cards that read "each opponent" or "each player" target each opponent, not the team together.
Block Constructed formats are defined by the cycle of three sets of cards in a given block. For example, the Ravnica block format consists of Ravnica: City of Guilds, Guildpact, and Dissension. Only cards that were printed in one of the sets in the appropriate block can be used in these formats.
Limited
In "Limited" tournaments, players construct decks using booster packs plus any additional basic lands of their choice. The decks in Limited tournaments must be a minimum of forty cards. All unused cards function as the sideboard, which, as in "Constructed" formats, can be freely exchanged between games of a match, as long as the deck continues to adhere to the forty card minimum. The rule that a player may use only four copies of any given card does not apply.
Sealed Deck tournaments give each player six 15-card booster packs from which to build his or her deck.
Booster Draft is usually played with eight players. The players are seated around a table and each player is given three booster packs. Each player opens a pack, selects a card from it, and passes the remaining cards to the next player. Each player then selects one of the remaining cards from the pack he or she just received, and passes the remaining cards again. This continues until all of the cards are depleted. Players pass left for the first and third packs, and right for the second. Players then build decks out of any of the cards that they selected during the drafting. Talking, signaling, and showing cards is forbidden during the drafting process, except for double faced cards from the Innistrad and Shadows over Innistrad blocks and "Magic Origins", which cannot be hidden as each side of the physical card has a spell printed on it.
Other formats
Players often create their own formats based on any number of criteria. Sometimes these can be based on limiting the financial value of a deck, mixing and matching different blocks or sets, or taking an existing format and modifying the DCI Banned List. Commander (formerly Elder Dragon Highlander) was one such format, before being officially supported by wizards. One of the most popular player created formats for Limited is Cube Drafting. Similar in structure to Draft, players will instead use a collection of pre-selected cards instead of random boosters to draft from. Since 2014 player created formats are allowed as Friday Night Magic events, so long as they follow basic Magic Tournament Rules (no fake cards, no gambling etc.)
Tournament structure
The DCI maintains a set of rules for being able to sanction tournaments, as well as runs its own circuit. Local shops often offer "Friday Night Magic" tournaments as a stepping-stone to more competitive play. The DCI runs the Pro Tour as a series of major tournaments to attract interest. The right to compete in a Pro Tour has to be earned by either winning a Pro Tour Qualifier Tournament or being successful in a previous tournament on a similar level. A Pro Tour is usually structured into two days of individual competition played in the Swiss format. On the final day, the top eight players compete with each other in an elimination format to select the winner.
At the end of the competition in a Pro Tour, players are awarded Pro Points depending on their finishing place. If the player finishes high enough, they will also be awarded prize money.[78] Frequent winners of these events have made names for themselves in the Magic community, such as Gabriel Nassif, Kai Budde and Jon Finkel. As a promotional tool, the DCI launched the Hall of Fame in 2005 to honor selected players.
At the end of the year the Magic World Championship is held. The World Championship functions like a Pro Tour, except that competitors have to present their skill in three different formats (usually Standard, booster draft and a second constructed format) rather than one. Another difference is that invitation to the World Championship can be gained not through Pro Tour Qualifiers, but via the national championship of a country. Most countries send their top four players of the tournament as representatives, though nations with minor Magic playing communities may send just one player. The World Championship also has a team-based competition, where the national teams compete with each other.
At the beginning of the World Championship, new members are inducted into the Hall of Fame. The tournament also concludes the current season of tournament play and at the end of the event, the player who earned the most Pro Points during the year is awarded the title "Pro Player of the Year". The player who earned the most Pro Points and did not compete in any previous season is awarded the title "Rookie of the Year".
Invitation to a Pro Tour, Pro Points and prize money can also be earned in lesser tournaments called Grand Prix that are open to the general public and are held more frequently throughout the year.[80] Grand Prix events are usually the largest Magic tournaments, sometimes drawing more than 2,000 players. The largest Magic tournament ever held was Grand Prix: Las Vegas in June 2013 with a total of 4,500 players.
Constructed
In "Constructed" tournaments, each player arrives with a pre-built deck, which must have a minimum of sixty cards and follow other deck construction rules. The deck may also have up to a fifteen card sideboard, which allows players to modify their deck. Normally the first player to win two games is the winner of the match.
Different formats of Constructed Magic exist, each allowing different cards. The DCI maintains a "Banned and Restricted List" for each format; players may not use banned cards at all, and restricted cards are limited to one copy per deck. The DCI bans cards that it determines are damaging the health of a format; it seeks to use this remedy as infrequently as possible, and only a handful of cards have been banned in recent years.
Alchemy Arena play mode based on the Standard format that incorporates new-to-digital Magic alongside rebalanced Standard cards to create a fast, ever-evolving experience for players.
Standard, formerly known as Type 2, contains anywhere from five to eight sets. The Standard card pool undergoes a "rotation" once a year, usually in October, when older sets rotate out of the format and the fall set is released. As of October 10, 2018, the Standard card pool consists of Ixalan, Rivals of Ixalan, Dominaria, Core Set 2019, Guilds of Ravnica, and Ravnica Allegiance, with one card banned. For the history of Standard, see Timeline of Magic: the Gathering Standard (Type II).
Modern is a non-rotating format where all previously standard legal cards from 8th Edition forward are legal. It was first played at the Magic Online 2011 Community Cup, a response to players' desire for a non-rotating format that is more accessible to newer players. Wizards of the Coast introduced Modern as a legal format on August 12, 2011, and saw its first paper magic play at Pro Tour Philadelphia 2011. Certain cards that released in products that are not standard legal such as Planechase or Commander series cards, are not legal in Modern.
Legacy is an Eternal format, meaning it allows every card ever printed except cards on the Legacy banned list. It is distinguished from Vintage in that certain cards are banned for power reasons.
Vintage is an Eternal format, meaning it allows every card ever printed except the Vintage banned list. The only banned cards in Vintage are cards using the "ante" mechanic or have "dexterity issues" which the DCI considers inappropriate for competitive Magic. However there is a unique "Restricted List" where only a single copy of a card is allowed to be played instead of the traditional 4. Because of the expense in acquiring the scarce old cards to play competitive Vintage, some unsanctioned Vintage tournaments permit players to proxy a certain number of cards.
Proxy cards are forbidden in DCI-sanctioned tournaments, except as replacements for damaged cards when created by the event judge.
Pauper is a format that only allows cards with the common rarity to be played. Although the format is played mainly on Magic: The Gathering Online, it has seen a physical resurgence after Pauper was featured in several Grand Prix events.
Commander (originally known as Elder Dragon Highlander or EDH) is a casual format, but can be played competitively. In this format each player constructs a 100 singleton deck that has a legendary creature that acts as a commander. The deck construction is limited to the colors that are represented by the chosen commander and there cannot be two or more cards with the same name with the exception of basic lands. The legendary creature chosen as commander is kept in a special "command zone" and may be cast at any time you can afford to cast the creature. If the commander card would enter any zone other than the battlefield from anywhere, its owner has the choice to return that card to the "command zone", where it can be cast again for an additional two generic mana to its regular cost. The banned list and unique rules are governed by an independent body (not by Wizards of the Coast), although Wizards of the Coast has tried to make variants of Commander like 1v1 Commander, which has its own banlist, and Brawl, which only allows the use of Standard-legal cards. Wizards of the Coast releases pre-built commander decks on a yearly basis.
Two Headed Giant is a multiplayer format played in two-player teams. One team shares a life total and their turn phases, but have separate mana, cards, decks, and battlefields, and graveyards. Each player can block any creatures that are attacking them, their teammate, or any planeswalker their team controls. Cards that read "each opponent" or "each player" target each opponent, not the team together.
Block Constructed formats are defined by the cycle of three sets of cards in a given block. For example, the Ravnica block format consists of Ravnica: City of Guilds, Guildpact, and Dissension. Only cards that were printed in one of the sets in the appropriate block can be used in these formats.
Limited
In "Limited" tournaments, players construct decks using booster packs plus any additional basic lands of their choice. The decks in Limited tournaments must be a minimum of forty cards. All unused cards function as the sideboard, which, as in "Constructed" formats, can be freely exchanged between games of a match, as long as the deck continues to adhere to the forty card minimum. The rule that a player may use only four copies of any given card does not apply.
Sealed Deck tournaments give each player six 15-card booster packs from which to build his or her deck.
Booster Draft is usually played with eight players. The players are seated around a table and each player is given three booster packs. Each player opens a pack, selects a card from it, and passes the remaining cards to the next player. Each player then selects one of the remaining cards from the pack he or she just received, and passes the remaining cards again. This continues until all of the cards are depleted. Players pass left for the first and third packs, and right for the second. Players then build decks out of any of the cards that they selected during the drafting. Talking, signaling, and showing cards is forbidden during the drafting process, except for double faced cards from the Innistrad and Shadows over Innistrad blocks and "Magic Origins", which cannot be hidden as each side of the physical card has a spell printed on it.
Other formats
Players often create their own formats based on any number of criteria. Sometimes these can be based on limiting the financial value of a deck, mixing and matching different blocks or sets, or taking an existing format and modifying the DCI Banned List. Commander (formerly Elder Dragon Highlander) was one such format, before being officially supported by wizards. One of the most popular player created formats for Limited is Cube Drafting. Similar in structure to Draft, players will instead use a collection of pre-selected cards instead of random boosters to draft from. Since 2014 player created formats are allowed as Friday Night Magic events, so long as they follow basic Magic Tournament Rules (no fake cards, no gambling etc.)
Tournament structure
The DCI maintains a set of rules for being able to sanction tournaments, as well as runs its own circuit. Local shops often offer "Friday Night Magic" tournaments as a stepping-stone to more competitive play. The DCI runs the Pro Tour as a series of major tournaments to attract interest. The right to compete in a Pro Tour has to be earned by either winning a Pro Tour Qualifier Tournament or being successful in a previous tournament on a similar level. A Pro Tour is usually structured into two days of individual competition played in the Swiss format. On the final day, the top eight players compete with each other in an elimination format to select the winner.
At the end of the competition in a Pro Tour, players are awarded Pro Points depending on their finishing place. If the player finishes high enough, they will also be awarded prize money.[78] Frequent winners of these events have made names for themselves in the Magic community, such as Gabriel Nassif, Kai Budde and Jon Finkel. As a promotional tool, the DCI launched the Hall of Fame in 2005 to honor selected players.
At the end of the year the Magic World Championship is held. The World Championship functions like a Pro Tour, except that competitors have to present their skill in three different formats (usually Standard, booster draft and a second constructed format) rather than one. Another difference is that invitation to the World Championship can be gained not through Pro Tour Qualifiers, but via the national championship of a country. Most countries send their top four players of the tournament as representatives, though nations with minor Magic playing communities may send just one player. The World Championship also has a team-based competition, where the national teams compete with each other.
At the beginning of the World Championship, new members are inducted into the Hall of Fame. The tournament also concludes the current season of tournament play and at the end of the event, the player who earned the most Pro Points during the year is awarded the title "Pro Player of the Year". The player who earned the most Pro Points and did not compete in any previous season is awarded the title "Rookie of the Year".
Invitation to a Pro Tour, Pro Points and prize money can also be earned in lesser tournaments called Grand Prix that are open to the general public and are held more frequently throughout the year.[80] Grand Prix events are usually the largest Magic tournaments, sometimes drawing more than 2,000 players. The largest Magic tournament ever held was Grand Prix: Las Vegas in June 2013 with a total of 4,500 players.