Here is Wizards announcement.
First, lets take a look at the Preliminary PTQs:
Preliminary PTQs Summary
- Each advanced store can run one Preliminary PTQ per season, open to anyone who wishes to compete.
- Ok, so I think this is great other than stores need to be incentivized into signing up to put on these events. I have been to many, many stores where store owners "forgot" to sign up for GP Trials, FNM foils, etc. In short, if you have diligent local TO/Store owners then you should have plenty of events to go to.
- Stores can choose between running a Standard, Modern, or Sealed Preliminary PTQ during each season, regardless of the format the Pro Tour it leads to is.
- This is a really nice bonus for both the stores and the players. As long as the stores support the format you enjoy the most then this should be a selling point for you. It also lets stores not have to run Sealed PTQs if their players are not interested in sealed events.
- The winner of a Preliminary PTQ will qualify for the season's Regional PTQ.
- I see a potential problem here, since you only qualify for that season's Regional PTQ (of which there are 16 for US and Canada). If the timing of that event doesn't work in your schedule your invite is worthless.
Second, lets take a look at the Preliminary PTQs:
Regional PTQs Summary
- These will be run by hand-selected advanced and advanced plus WPN stores, based primarily on accessibility and the ability to host over 100 players.
- How this process works will be very interesting. Will it be a similar process to how PTQs are run now or more like the GP process? What is the solution to people who are geographically isolated i.e. Alaska or Iceland?
- Regional PTQs are planned to be held at least four weeks after the end of the Preliminary PTQ season (the first one ends in February).
- If that time period doesn't work for you then you forfeit your invite? I think a system more like SCGs Invitational system would be an improvement over this. SCG Invitational invites allow you to go to any of the next 4 Invitationals. Are all of these Regional PTQs held on the same date?
- 31 Regional PTQs will take place worldwide, and qualified players may choose which they compete in.
- Just to note that there are 16 Regional PTQs for the US and Canada. How they carve up the US will be interesting.
- Each competing player will receive an exclusive participation promo card.
- Don't care unless it is super rare and worth cash money. Which you will need to sell to make back the cost of driving/travelling to the Regional PTQ.
- Top 4 of Regional PTQs receive invitation and airfare to the qualifying season's Pro Tour; 5th–8th receive invitations to the next Pro Tour's Regional PTQs. If attendance is over 128 players, Top 8 receive airfare and invitations to the qualifying season’s Pro Tour.
- This is a nice gesture. A question I have that will only be answered by time is whether the Regional PTQs will be huge or quite small since many people may be unable to make it due to distance or timing.
Overall, I think the changes definitely make it much more challenging to get on the Pro Tour, if only by making you 100% have to travel to at least 2 events. There may be a few lucky people who manage to win a preliminary PTQ and play in a Regional PTQ in the same city but the vast majority of people will be unable to do so and will have to do some travelling. For individuals that win a preliminary PTQ but are unable to attend the Regional PTQ it is bad news bears since your invite is totally useless if you cannot attend one of the Regional PTQs.
If I could make one change to the new process it would be to have the Regional Invites be valid for 12 months so that people with busy lives/families/work/school,etc. can still feasibly attend the Regional PTQs. As mentioned above this is how the SCG Invitational system works and I think it is working pretty well.
-Cheers-
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