#512610
Welcome to today's First Edition Friday Question, where you get a chance to answer questions that will help shape the future of First Edition. If you'd like to catch up on previous entries, here's a list of all of my previous Friday Questions:
Happy Friday all. Today's question is going to be "ripped out of the headlines," so to speak. There's been a lot of discussion about deck lists recently, and as part of that discussion, the topic of bans and when they come into effect came up. So I figured this would be a good chance to see what people think about how bans work.
Should additions to the OTF ban list become effective immediately?
First of all, let's set a ground rule, so we're all operating from the same page. Please assume, for the purposes of this question and this discussion, that the OTF ban list is a vital and necessary part of the game's health. And, as part of that health, there will be additions to the ban list. Take these as fact, so that we can discuss the timing of the bans taking effect.
Here's what happens now: the first Monday of each month is the standard day that we announce Errata, Rules changes, and changes to the Ban and Watch lists. (The next such day is June 1st.) As things stand now, all of these changes are effective immediately - except for tournaments in progress, like online tournaments. On very rare, game-breaking occasions, we can issue an emergency ban at any time - but this has only happened a very small number of times.
This means that, if a player has been working on a deck that includes a just banned card, their deck would now be illegal for a tournament that weekend. Now, we do try to be mindful of major event schedules when taking these actions. It's pretty rare for big changes to happen the month of Worlds, or event Continentals. But if there is a problem, it needs to be fixed, and it is possible.
One proposal that came up recently was to announce bans, and have them come into effect at a later date. This isn't something that had ever occurred to me, and I have my own opinions on the matter, but this isn't about my opinion - it's about yours. When do you think an announced ban should take effect? Immediately? 1 Week later? 2 Weeks? The next First Monday? Please vote in the poll in this thread, and sound off with your thoughts. I'm eager to see where public opinion lands.
In the mean time, keep safe and sane. I could use a temporal agent like Daniels to help me remember what day it is, because I keep losing track.
-crp
Happy Friday all. Today's question is going to be "ripped out of the headlines," so to speak. There's been a lot of discussion about deck lists recently, and as part of that discussion, the topic of bans and when they come into effect came up. So I figured this would be a good chance to see what people think about how bans work.
Should additions to the OTF ban list become effective immediately?
First of all, let's set a ground rule, so we're all operating from the same page. Please assume, for the purposes of this question and this discussion, that the OTF ban list is a vital and necessary part of the game's health. And, as part of that health, there will be additions to the ban list. Take these as fact, so that we can discuss the timing of the bans taking effect.
Here's what happens now: the first Monday of each month is the standard day that we announce Errata, Rules changes, and changes to the Ban and Watch lists. (The next such day is June 1st.) As things stand now, all of these changes are effective immediately - except for tournaments in progress, like online tournaments. On very rare, game-breaking occasions, we can issue an emergency ban at any time - but this has only happened a very small number of times.
This means that, if a player has been working on a deck that includes a just banned card, their deck would now be illegal for a tournament that weekend. Now, we do try to be mindful of major event schedules when taking these actions. It's pretty rare for big changes to happen the month of Worlds, or event Continentals. But if there is a problem, it needs to be fixed, and it is possible.
One proposal that came up recently was to announce bans, and have them come into effect at a later date. This isn't something that had ever occurred to me, and I have my own opinions on the matter, but this isn't about my opinion - it's about yours. When do you think an announced ban should take effect? Immediately? 1 Week later? 2 Weeks? The next First Monday? Please vote in the poll in this thread, and sound off with your thoughts. I'm eager to see where public opinion lands.
In the mean time, keep safe and sane. I could use a temporal agent like Daniels to help me remember what day it is, because I keep losing track.
-crp
Director of First Edition, 2019 - now
"Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations. Symbolizing the elements that create truth and beauty."
Klingons say TRANS RIGHTS.
"Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations. Symbolizing the elements that create truth and beauty."
Klingons say TRANS RIGHTS.