Yea, I've been pretty busy traveling.
So, you coming to
Sunday drafts now?
Absolutely. I’m
grinding for points. Didn’t you hear? There’s a GP in Philadelphia in October.
Got to be ready.
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As some of you may know, this coming Sunday represents
the end of the second Planeswalker Points season. For some of us, that makes
this week a flurry of furious playing and grinding, with the hopes of gathering
those last few points. For others, the entire idea of planeswalker points seems
alien and obtuse.
Why are we seeking planeswalker points like they’re some
finite resource? Why do some of us keep track of the number with post-its and
bookmark the page in our browser to make sure that everything is up to date?
There’s a couple reasons for it, honestly, and to start,
I’d like to tell you my story.
A few months ago, I decided that I was interested in
joining the Magic Competitive Scene. Previously, this meant going to GP’s and
PTQ’s, hoping to qualify and make it to the Pro Tour. Unfortunately, my level
of skill at that point was nowhere near where it would need to be to have a
chance at either of those events. I wasn’t thinking clearly about what I’d need
to do to succeed. I was flush with success with a Top 8 at a 75 person GPT, and
I thought I was one of the best players ever. Seriously. I actually thought
that.
Unfortunately, I didn’t really have anything to work
towards. There weren’t any GP’s in the area, so I just shrugged it off and kept playing in GPT’s and SCG:IQ’s.
The story could have ended here.
Then there was an announcement. A special tournament –
held three places across America. The World Magic Cup Qualifier. All jokes
about qualifying for a qualifier aside, I knew that this was an event I wanted
to participate in – and it was fairly local: just past Baltimore, maybe a two
hour drive. I checked the requirements and found that I needed 300 Planeswalker
Points to get an invitation.
I fired up the handy website and took a look. The system
is pretty simple – three points for a win, one for a draw, none for a loss, and
then multiplied by the kind of event it was.
FNM – 7 points
FNM – 4 points
FNM – 7 points
This looked like it was going to take a while.
GPT Baltimore – 66 points.
Wait, what? Sixty six? Well, I suppose that the event was
seven rounds of Swiss, where I went 6-1, and you get some points for
participation…
If you’re looking
to grind points, events with a multiplier are where it’s at. There’s just no
competition. You could win 9 rounds of FNM, and it’s likely worth less than
winning three at a GPT – or just a little bit more than two at a PTQ. A single
win at a GP is worth more than two flawless Friday victories at your local game
shop.
But why do we want these points? Even ignoring the primal
urge – present in every nerd – to make numbers go upwards. (Seriously, take a
look at every RPG ever. That’s all we’re doing) Surely there are rewards for
earning all these points! Well, luckily for us, there are – and the rewards are
significant. Let’s take a look at some of the numbers to know for the current
system.
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Byes:
By gaining planeswalker points in the current system, you
can earn Byes at Grand Prix events. A bye is a free win in one of the early
rounds, and any player can have up to three. Having them is an enormous
advantage, and for many, these are the primary benefit of Planeswalker Points.
These points accrue over the course of a season. The most recent season ran
from April 2, 2012 – August 19, 2012. The next season, which begins on Monday,
runs from August 20, 2012 – December 16, 2012. If you earn byes during a
season, they will apply for the duration of that season and for the next one as
well.
-One
Bye: 400 points
-Two
Byes: 750 points
-Three
Byes: 1500 points
Invitation to the
World Magic Cup Qualifier:
Where Grand Prix
Byes count based on a single season, the World Magic Cup Qualifier tracks
points over an entire year. The most recent World Magic Cup Qualifier season
began on April 2, 2012, and will end on March 17, 2013. To be invited, you need
to reach a threshold based on your country. These range from the USA – where you’d
need 500 points within the year, to small countries like Peru, where the cutoff
is a mere 100 points. You can find the list of thresholds HERE.
-----
For those of you wondering if a Bye is even worth
anything to you, it’s a fairly simple question. If you are going to a GP, the
bye is absolutely worth it. Compared to the FNM’s and other events that you’ve
gone to, GP’s can be more likened to a marathon. With two days of play and thousands
of dollars of prize on the line, you need to be at your best to have a chance,
and that means giving yourself advantages before you walk in the door.
A normal GP plays 9 rounds on Day 1. To advance, you need
to be 7-2 or better. Going 7-2 in a tournament is no mean feat, and even a
single bad mulligan could spell the end of your tournament aspirations. With
three byes under your belt, you mitigate that to a paltry 4-2 to make the
second day of play (and put yourself in contention for a reasonable cash
payout!) In addition, the three byes have the related side effect of making
your tiebreakers markedly higher than those without byes. Because people
playing since round one will have their tie breaks calculated off all their
opponents, they account for the person who started off 0-1, 1-1, and 2-1. Your
worst tiebreaker player is the person you hit in the fourth match, who
(assuming you win) will be 3-1 at that point. This could buy you the crucial
percentage points that elevate you into the “I won something!” arena.
This coming season, for example, I’m planning on
attending two GP’s – one in Boston, and one in Philadelphia. Each Bye I earn
puts me that much closer to Day 2. Because I played in GP Atlanta, as well as a
number of other events, I’ve earned over 900 points, easily enough for my
second bye, but still a far cry away from my third. With the addition of a
second GP to my personal schedule in this coming season, it would be a
reasonable thing for me to expect getting a third bye in the coming season. As
my play gets more precise, I expect to earn more points for any given
tournament. GP Atlanta earned me a cool 200 points, and I didn’t even make Day
2. If I had, it easily could have been a 350-400 point weekend. I certainly wouldn’t have been as close as I
was if not for the three byes I had.
 |
| This is more or less how GP Atlanta felt with three free wins.. |
[Editor's Note: The Planeswalker Point website can be found HERE.]
-----
I hope that you guys enjoyed this look at the
planeswalker point system, and what we can get out of it as a competitive
player. Next post comes in Thursday, where I’ll talk a little bit about what I
see in the format going forward.
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