Regional Championships Series 2010

by James Hoskin, Director of Organized Play

26th January 2010

While we don't yet know exactly where the road to the 2010 World Championships in Germany will take us, it is time to begin our journey.

Last year, there were a total of 34 First Edition and Second Edition Regional Championships, and they attracted 288 players. The three Continental Championships then attracted 71 players between them, and a total of 45 players competed at the World Championships for both editions. With your help, it is our intention to smash these numbers in 2010.

The first step on the Road to Worlds 2010 is the Regional Championships. This year, Regional season for both editions extends over a three-month period between April 2nd and June 30th. Any player from any region can play in a Regional, and any judge can run a Regional. Subject to unanimous player agreement beforehand, judges are also permitted to play in their own Regional. The tournaments will all be flagged as 32K events in the tournament system, and while deck lists will be required, deck checks will not. Players should hand in their deck lists after the tournament has finished so that the judge can enter the top decks along with the tournament results.

Make your vote count!
UPDATE: All votes are now closed.
• You decide where the 2010 World Championships should be held in Germany.
• You decide which First Edition card should be made into an Alternate Image Regionals 2010 virtual promo.
• You decide which Second Edition card should be made into an Alternate Image Regionals 2010 virtual promo.

This year, The Continuing Committee is providing a FREE Regional prize kit. This kit will include three copies of 0P81 No Kill I (dAgent exclusive) foils, and five other Decipher foils. It will also include a number of Series III and/or Series IV virtual promos, Skill Buttons and Raffle Tickets. As well as this, we are currently running two polls (see the links to the right), to determine which Alternate Image Regionals 2010 virtual promos get made. Each kit will include eight copies (three foil and five regular) of whichever card the community picks.

On top of the physical prizes, each Regional will also offer a Day One Round One bye into the Continental Championships for every ten players in attendance. This means Regionals with between four and ten players (inclusive) will award the top player a bye. Regionals with between eleven and twenty players (inclusive) will award the top two players byes, and so on. Should the recipient have already received a bye, then it will "trickle down" to the next highest player without a bye.

The application process is now open. The deadline for all applications is MIDNIGHT GMT on SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 21st. All applications are subject to a $25 application fee (fully refundable in the event that the tournament can't be scheduled).

Successful applications will be announced on or before Sunday, February 28th. This will give our warehouse time to ship the FREE Regional prize kit, and allow enough time for it to be delivered before the tournament starts.

There is no limit on the number of Regionals that can be held in a region, but the Department of Organized Play will be working to balance the applications against the needs of the player base.

In an effort to publicize individual Regionals more effectively, we will endeavor to spread the applications out over the three-month period. We anticipate that not everyone will be awarded their first choice date, so you are encouraged to apply early to avoid disappointment.

For more information on the Regional Championship Series, or to ask a question, check out the 2010 Regional Championships forum and join the discussion.

-djl-