So I've decided to put together a Vintage tournament with the best prize support in the U.S.
What:N.Y.S.E. Open I
$100 entry, 15 proxy, non-sanctioned Vintage tournament
The top eight will be doing a draft for some cards you may have heard of:
Unlimited Black Lotus
Unlimited Ancestral Recall
Unlimited Time Walk
Unlimited Mox Sapphire
Unlimited Mox Jet
Unlimited Mox Ruby
Unlimited Mox Emerald
Unlimited Mox Pearl
Selection in the draft will go according to how you finished in the event. Thus, if you win, congratulations on your new Black Lotus...
On top of that, for winning the event you'll also win this:
This is easily the sweetest alter I've ever seen done to Karn, Silver Golem.
We'll have the following support at the following attendance levels:
50 Players:1st: Black Lotus & Karn, Silver Golem (alter done by Poxy)
2nd: Ancestral Recall
3rd: Time Walk
4th: Mox Sapphire
5th: Mox Jet
6th: Mox Ruby
7th: Mox Emerald
8th: Mox Pearl
9th-12th: English Mana Drain
60 Players:1st: Black Lotus & Altered Karn, Silver Golem
2nd: Ancestral Recall
3rd: Time Walk
4th: Mox Sapphire
5th: Mox Jet
6th: Mox Ruby
7th: Mox Emerald
8th: Mox Pearl
9th-12th: Bazaar of Baghdad
13th-16th: English Mana Drain
70 players:1st: Black Lotus & Altered Karn, Silver Golem
2nd: Ancestral Recall
3rd: Time Walk
4th: Mox Sapphire
5th: Mox Jet
6th: Mox Ruby
7th: Mox Emerald
8th: Mox Pearl
9th-12th: Mishra's Workshop
13th-16th: Bazaar of Baghdad
With 70 players, I've decided to just funnel another $200 worth of giveaways into the event. Regardless of what level we hit, there will be giveaways for the full day (shirts, sleeves, cards, along with whatever other good things I think of between now and then).
In the likely event that we don't hit an attendance number that ends in a zero, there will be adjusted prize support that I'll figure out the day of the event. If we hit 80, 90, or even 100 players, the support will continue to be adjusted up, with more prizes going further down the line.
Random Prizes:I have a fair amount in random prizes that will be given out over the course of the day to players who have signed up for the main event. Anyone who plays in the main event will be eligible to receive prizes from the random drawing, even if you've dropped from the event; if you really wanted to play in that side event, no worries, play away!
Drawings for prizes will be done at the beginning of every round. You have to be in the hall to receive your prize! My goal is to have two drawings at the beginning of every round - one for a draft set of Modern Masters and another for one of the random prizes. The more expensive the prize, the later in the rounds that it will be given out. Please, be in the hall at the beginning of each round to receive the giveaway!
Right now we've got:
1. One sealed box of Modern Masters to be given away.
2. Eight draft sets of Modern Masters that will be given away to eight different winners.
3. One English Mana Crypt.
4. Foil Necropotence.
5. Dan Frazier signed, limited edition playmat.
6. Foil Future Sight Tarmogoyf
7. Foil FTV signed Memory Jar
8. Japanese Rishadan Port
9. HP Slate 500 Tablet
10. Foil Judge Sword of Fire and Ice
12. Black Lotus deck box with Black Lotus sleeves
12. Arabian Nights Ali from Cairo
13. Beta Clone
14. Altered art Sword of Fire and Ice
Once you've won one of the random prizes, your name will be removed from the random prize pool. As much as I'd like to have repeat winners, the goal is to give away as much stuff as possible to different people.
Best Performance:The person who has accumulated the most match points from Friday through Sunday will be awarded an altered Trinisphere on Sunday, at Comic Book Depot.
Team Event:Some of the most fun that I've ever had at events has been when I've participated in team events. Playing with your friends is always awesome. In the spirit of that, there will be a team event for the main event!
The entry is free. There will be three trophies, engraved noting that you are the team victors, that are given out to the team winners. Points will be calculated by the total number of match points that a team receives.
For example, if a team has three players who finish with the following records:
5-2-1
4-3
4-3
That team would receive three points for each win (for a total of 39 points off the wins), with an additional point received for the draw (for a grand total of 40 points). Losses have no point value.
Best of luck to all my teams!
Proxy & Proxyless Prizes:I wanted to find a way to reward the budget players, but was having a difficult time doing so. After much thought, I decided to offer part of the prize support to the person who is deemed to have the nicest proxies. The staff of the event will vote on this and determine the winner. The winner will receive one foil Ravnica Dark Confidant.
But you can't just reward people for having the nicest proxies without rewarding the players who have purchased all the cards. I've tried to work in rewards to the highest finishing player with no proxies in the past and this is a good opportunity to do that again. The highest finishing player who has no proxies in his deck will win a foil Urza's Legacy Goblin Welder.
When:Saturday, June 15th
11 am registration, 12 pm start
Where:Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
3434 Hempstead Turnpike
Levittown, N.Y.
11756
(516) 221-9337
Qualifiers:If you're a T/O, and you want to run a qualifier to the N.Y.S.E Open, reach out to me via PM and we can discuss details.
Starting on 3/10, I'm going to be running qualifiers for the June power tournament. Entry fee will be $13 for each eight man pod that kicks off, with the winner earning free entry to the big event.
Qualifiers will be run at the Comic Book Depot credit tournaments and power tournaments from now until the N.Y.S.E. Open!
Additional qualifiers will be run at the following fine establishments:
One qualifier at Pandemonium Games in Massachusetts.
One qualifier at MVPLS in Pennsylvania.
One qualifier at Mark's Comics and Collectibles in New York.
Two qualifier event at Top Deck Games in New Jersey.
Two qualifier events at The Player's Guild in Pennsylvania.
Those of you who know me know that I've been considering running something like this for quite a while. We're lucky enough to have Mox events available to us nearly every weekend, but an event of this caliber is rare.
This will be the only time that I run an event like this in 2013. If you'd like to play, this is your chance to make it happen!
Pre-Registration/Entry:Pre-registration is open for the event. We have moved to a larger location, which has given us more than the initial 47 spots. Pre-registering for the event helps me gauge the kind of prize support that I'm going to need for this event. Please, if you're interested in making it out to this event, pre-register!
Qualifier Victors:1. Greg Fenton
2. Tom Dixon
3. Justin Kohler
4. Mike Egan
5. Matt Murray
6. Joel Lim
7. Mike Eckert
8. Josh Butker
9. Josh Potucek
10. Vincent Forino
11. Bobby Fortanely
12. Lance Ballester
Pre-Registration List:1. Rob Edwards
2. Phillip Bergeman
3. Raffaele Forino
4. Blaine Christiansen
5. Ryan Bergeman
6. Isaac Foote
7. Ryan Fisher
8. Steve 'Hancho'
9. Visna Harris
10. Dominic DiFebo
11. Brian Kelly
12. Ben Carp
13. Mike Hajduk
14. Shawn Griffiths
15. Vincent Pau
16. Keith Seals
17. Kevin Goscinak
18. JP Kohler
19. Joshua Krause
20. Nick Coss
21. Craig Maisley
22. Scott Hughes
23. Steve Menendian
24. Bill Copes
25. Ray Robillard
26. Duane Haddix
27. Brian Ritter
28. Will Magrann
29. Craig Berry
30. Chris Song
31. Bogdan Vygovsky
32. Tom Daliapes
33. Keith Newyear
34. John Jones
35. Daniel Friedman
36. Bill Sees
37. Mike Moy
38. Mark Hornung
40. Adrian Becker
41. Lou Stefanovic
42. Brian Schlossberg
43. Grant Seltzer-Richman
44. Mike Sorrentino
45. Mike Byrne
46. Jesse Martin
47. Chris Ferry
48. Paul Mastriano
49. Jason Jaco
50. Mitesh Rao
51. Brandon Adams
52. Ryan Glackin
53. Mickey Mahr
54. Pat Albergo
55. Joe Brown
56. Garrett Rooney
57. Mitchell Foley
58. Mike Solymossy
59. John Grudzina
60. Nick Vallas
61. JR Goldberg
62. Samantha Bitzer
63. James Hangley
64. Jake Gans
65. Warren Connell
66. Charles Rolko
67. Fred Ehrhart
68. River Finken
69. Mike Lieberman
We're at 81 players right now, which means that this is a seven round event! Registration spots are still open; if you're interested in registering for the event, please reach out to me via PM or request that your name be added to the list by posting in this thread!
Proxies:Most everyone on these forums knows what a proxy is. A proxy, for the N.Y.S.E. Open, will be defined as the following:
A Magic the Gathering card with the full name, card type (instant, sorcery, land, artifact, creature, enchantment), full mana cost and text
clearly displayed. This can be done in one of two ways:
1. Using a Sharpie,
not pen or pencil, to fill in the required text on a card where it can clearly be read. (Revised lands are excellent for this, new commons and uncommons aren't usually, as they're darker, and far less legible.)
2. Using acetone to remove certain text from a card that's close to the intended proxy (i.e. Lotus Bloom, with certain words removed to proxy a Black Lotus, Ancestral Visions with certain words removed to proxy an Ancestral Recall).
Take pride in your proxies! Your opponents should know (at all times) what your proxies are, because they're clearly defined. Using 15 Swamps to make your proxies is a bad idea, as it's going to create confusion. If you're proxying Moxen, please, use a Land from each appropriate color to make a proxy for that Mox (i.e., a Mox Sapphire is on an Island, a Mox Jet is on a Swamp, a Mox Pearl is on a Plains...). Beyond that, please use your best judgment when creating your proxies - we know what will, and what won't, be easily recognizable.
Your cards could be displayed in a feature match camera, and the audience online will want to know just what you're playing. Your opponents should not ever be at a disadvantage because you don't own the physical cards. There is nothing wrong with using proxies as you slowly pick up the cards that you need to play Vintage, but please consider your opponents while you're making them, as we're out to make this an enjoyable experience for everyone involved.
If you're worried that your proxies may not pass muster, please speak to the head judge of the event
before the event starts. Leave enough time to create new proxies, if necessary.
Using paper printouts of card faces, and gluing them to cards,
is not acceptable! This alters the thickness of the cards, making the cards marked, for all intents and purposes.
Please don't do this, as the judges will be instructed to consider these as marked cards, and enforce punishment according to a DCI Competitive REL event! Artist Appearance:Does this card seem familiar?
How about this one?
Maybe this one?
Magic artist Jeff Menges will be making an appearance at the event, arriving at 2 pm. Jeff will be doing alterations, signings, selling prints and trading stories of the early days of Magic. Be sure to bring some cards to get signed, and an extra few bucks for a great print of an iconic card!
Site Security:Theft has never been an issue at my events. This, however, doesn't mean that I'm oblivious to what has gone on recently. Security for this event is going to be tight. I have hired licensed security guards for this event. The play area will be separated from the rest of the room. Not everyone will be afforded access, as only those players who are playing in the event will be able to get into the play area. There will be numbered wristbands that match players with their bags and if they don't match, you're not leaving.
The value of the cards now demands measures like this. I know that this is the least fun aspect of a big event. That being said, I know that we all realize how important measures like this are. I hope that everyone remains patient, as these measures are in place to ensure that the downfalls of other events are not realized at the N.Y.S.E. Open.
Custom Playmats:Greg Fenton will have a table at the event where he will be selling custom playmats with Vintage themes. Greg has done some incredible work.
Here are a few of the mats that Greg recently completed:
If you'd like to speak to Greg about having a custom playmat done, please reach out to him here:
http://www.themanadrain.com/index.php?action=pm;sa=send;u=20926Magic Original Art:Josh Krause will have a table at the event where he will be selling pieces of original Magic art, sketches, and more. If you'd like more information regarding what Josh will be bringing to the event, please reach out to him here:
http://www.themanadrain.com/index.php?action=pm;sa=send;u=672Side Events:There will be side events available during the day, including a 20 man, $20 entry, 15 proxy Mox tournament that will start taking registrations at 3pm. There will also be Modern Masters drafts, as well as a few more events that I'm working on.
Friday Night Vintage:So, you just fought your way through N.Y.C. traffic, or you just enjoyed some New York hospitality courtesy of that effervescently upbeat cabbie. You're back at your hotel, friends house, wherever, and you're wondering what to do on a Friday night in New York. Catch a Yankee game? Head out to a local bar? Spend time with family and friends? Clearly not. What's the best way to kick off this weekend? With Friday Night Vintage at Comic Book Depot, of course:
Where:The Comic Book Depot
2847 Jerusalem Avenue
Wantagh, NY 11793-2016
(516) 221-9337
When:Friday, 6/14
7 pm registration, 7:30 pm start
What:$10, 15 proxy, non-sanctioned Vintage tournament.
Prize Structure:1st - $60 store credit (at 8 players)
2nd - $20 store credit (at 8 players)
A commensurate amount in store credit will be added with every entry beyond the eighth. It seems like we're going to have a fair amount of locals in the area looking to get some games in, so we should have a pretty strong turnout. Depot has a strong selection of sleeves and deck boxes too, so even if you're just looking to jam a few games, re-sleeve your deck and talk with some of the guys who are going to be playing in the main event, it's a great opportunity for you.
Sunday Vintage at Depot: Clearly, if you've played Vintage on Friday and Saturday, the only thing to do before you leave is to play in one more Mox tournament...
Where:The Comic Book Depot
2847 Jerusalem Avenue
Wantagh, NY 11793-2016
(516) 221-9337
When:Sunday, 6/16
11 am registration, 12 pm start
What:$20, 15 proxy, non-sanctioned Vintage tournament
Prize Structure:1st - Unlimited Mox (guaranteed at 20 players)
2nd - $60 credit (at 23 players)
An additional $20 in credit will be added to the prize pool with every entrant.
In Conclusion:Questions, comments, concerns? Reach out to me here, or via PM and I'll address any questions you may have.
Running an event like this is a big commitment, but it's a huge prize pool, and I think it's going to be a great day for Vintage.
I hope to see you all then!
