All,

Well I hope you all had a great festive period and enjoyed both Christmas and the New Year. It seems to have gone past in a flash to me and here we are getting ready for the 2009 events. I have been busy booking dates for the first half of the year and they are all detailed in the Future Events 2009 section of the e-mail. Now, there is quite a lot of information on a number of topics in this e-mail. I have divided it up into the following sections so that you can go straight to the bits you want to read most.

1. Magic price changes and how they affect my events.
2. Birmingham and Stafford Conflux Pre-Releases.
3. Stafford Conflux Release
4. PTQ Honolulu
5. Future Events 2009

Here we go:

Magic price changes and how they affect my events.

Well, as you probably already know the cost of Magic has risen since the start of the year. Booster prices are the most significant part of this increase as they underpin all sorts of limited events from Drafts to PTQs so that is what I’m going to concentrate on. The RRP of an individual booster has risen from £2.49 to £3.50. This in turn has led to an increase in the buy-in cost of boxes of boosters. The end result is that unfortunately the entrance fees for limited events are also affected.

My booster drafts used to cost £8.00 to enter and I gave away 12 prize boosters, using up a full box per draft. I also used to get 4 boosters sent to me eventually by Wizards as prize support. The prize support has been stopped and the cost of product has risen as described above. For the time being, I’m going to continue to give away 12 boosters as prizes for an 8 player draft and I’m going to increase the cost of the drafts to £10.00 to limit the cost increases. I run drafts as an accompaniment to my main events so the drafts don’t really pay things like venue costs etc so I’m not factoring that in. My feeling is that £10.00 is already a significant prize increase and I don’t want to charge any more at this time. However, I may in the future have to reduce prize support per draft in order to maintain this price. I know that this is a 25% increase in entrance fee but it is simply unavoidable.

My Pre-Release events use 6 boosters to run and entrance fees have been £16.00 at recent events. I am going to apply the same 25% increase in entrance fee to cover the booster price increase and the corresponding increase in event kit costs. This will bring the entrance fee for a Pre-Release/Release event up to £20.00. I’m going to offer the same £2 discount at Stafford for players who take part in both Conflux Pre-Releases and also a discount for the Conflux Release event at Stafford.

Obviously, prices on www.magicgeek.co.uk will also be changing to account for the increased costs.

Birmingham and Stafford Conflux Pre-Releases.

Event notes

[1] As I have had so many enquiries about the forthcoming Conflux Pre-Release tournaments, this e-mail includes all relevant information for both the Stafford and the Birmingham tournaments. Pick and choose the information that you need.

[2] We will be continuing to use deck pool registration at all pre-release events.

[3] Price for admission is £20.00 for two reasons. Firstly, it falls in line with Wizards of the Coast pricing guidelines and secondly because the product given to each player to use on the day is three [3] Shards of Alara boosters and three [3] Conflux boosters.

[4] To encourage players to attend both events, I will be continuing with the £2.00 deduction in the cost of entry to any player enrolling in the Stafford Pre-Release who played in the Birmingham Pre-Release the previous day. I realise that this isn’t an enormous saving, but I received positive feedback for this at previous Pre-Release weekends so I’m happy to continue to offer this discount.

[5] As usual I’ll be filling the traditional Grab Bag with the contents of some Conflux boosters as additional prizes.

[6] Again as usual, I have had winner’s trophies engraved. The trophies are a popular part of the Pre-Release events and everybody wants to win one!

[7] Booster drafts are back at Pre-Release!!!!!!!!!!! The Conflux events will feature drafts during and after the main event.

[8] Prize support has changed. Generally, this is a good thing as the booster support at big events has increased. One casualty of this has been that smaller events [such as booster drafts] no longer receive any booster prize support.

[9] The Birmingham event will be limited to 60 players; the Stafford event will be limited to 48 players. Please pre-register to ensure that you can guarantee your place in the event.

Here are the usual event details:

BIRMINGHAM CONFLUX PRE-RELEASE SATURDAY 31st OF JANUARY 2009

VENUE: Quality Hotel Birmingham, 166 Hagley Road, Birmingham, West Midlands, England B16 9NZ

The venue is probably only about 15 minutes from the city centre easily accessible from New Street Station. Road links are very good from the M6 and the M5 as you will see on the map.
If you are travelling by car, there is parking for over a hundred cars but most of the spaces are at the back of the hotel. Drive towards the red barrier at the right hand side of the venue and it will automatically open. All you need to do when leaving is pick up a parking token from the hotel reception. Parking is free if you have used the hotel facilities, so there will be no parking charge for players attending the event.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT: According to locals, as far as trains are concerned, it’s quicker to go to Five Ways station if possible, walk to the Five Ways shopping centre and then just walk down Hagley Road. From New Street Station the 128 and the 129 buses from Corporation Street (1 min walk from New Street) go down the Hagley Road (and I’m sure there must be others too). If you are travelling by train and you are running late I’d suggest just getting a taxi to the venue. I suspect that it is less than a 10 minute drive from New Street Station.
Website: http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/

Directions: These are available from the Hotel’s website:
http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/details/GB605%20large%20map.jpg

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for each Pre-release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Conflux TM and Shards of AlaraTM Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £20.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes three (3) Shards of AlaraTM boosters and three (3) Conflux TM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

Special commemorative Conflux card for each tournament participant, while supplies last.

SIDE EVENTS: Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £10.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

STAFFORD CONFLUX PRE-RELEASE SUNDAY 1st OF FEBRUARY 2009

VENUE: Oddfellows Hall, Greengate Street, Stafford, ST16 2HP.
Please contact me for more directions if you haven’t been to this venue before.

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for each Pre-release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Conflux TM and Shards of AlaraTM Sealed Deck.
Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £20.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes three (3) Shards of AlaraTM boosters and three (3) Conflux TM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

Special commemorative Conflux card for each tournament participant, while supplies last.

SIDE EVENTS: Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £10.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

TO PRE-REGISTER FOR AN EVENT:

Send an e-mail to this address: stephen DOT avann AT ntlworld DOT com with your FULL NAME and DCI NUMBER (If you have one) BEFORE 5:30PM on the FRIDAY NIGHT before the events, as this is the last time that I will check my e-mail before the tournament. Alternatively I can be contacted on my mobile from 6:30pm until 10pm on the following number: 07989201808. Please don’t try to phone me before 6:30pm as I will be busy.
Hope to see you at the events over the weekend,

Steve

Stafford Conflux Release Event

Event notes

[1] This event will be held on SATURDAY instead of the usual Sunday. This was due to a scheduling conflict at the venue so I moved our event to the Saturday on this occasion.

STAFFORD CONFLUX RELEASE SATURDAY 7th OF FEBRUARY 2009

VENUE: Oddfellows Hall, Greengate Street, Stafford, ST16 2HP.
Please contact me for more directions if you haven’t been to this venue before.

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for each Pre-release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Conflux TM and Shards of AlaraTM Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £20.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes three (3) Shards of AlaraTM boosters and three (3) Conflux TM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

SIDE EVENTS: Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £10.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

PTQ Honolulu

My PTQ event has been confirmed and will be taking place at the usual Birmingham venue on the 28th of February 2009. I have had requests to pre-register players for this event already and pre-registration is now open for this event which will be limited to 90 players. The event format is extended constructed. More details will follow once the Conflux events are out of the way.

Future Events 2009

January – Saturday 31st – Birmingham – Conflux Pre Release
February – Sunday 1st – Stafford – Conflux Pre Release

The first events of 2009 are the Pre-Releases for the second set in the Shards block, Conflux.

February – Saturday 7th – Stafford – Conflux Release

PLEASE NOTE: The date for this event has been changed.

As usual the Release event will take place on the following weekend at Stafford. This is the first chance to buy Conflux singles, boosters, boxes, intro packs and fat packs.
February – Saturday 28th – Birmingham – PTQ Honolulu

March – Saturday 29th – Stafford – Event Format To Be Confirmed.

April – Saturday 25th – Birmingham – Alara Reborn Pre Release

April – Sunday 26th – Stafford – Alara Reborn Pre Release

These events are the Pre-Releases for the third set in the Shards block, Alara Reborn.

May – Sunday 3rd – Stafford – Alara Reborn Release

As usual the Release event will take place on the following weekend at Stafford. This is the first chance to buy Alara Reborn singles, boosters, boxes, intro packs and fat packs.

June – Sunday 7th – Stafford – Event Format To Be Confirmed.

June – Saturday 13th – Birmingham – Event Format To Be Confirmed.

Please note that event dates for June are subject to change to fit in with the 11th Edition release schedule.

July – Saturday 11th – Birmingham – Event Format To Be Confirmed.

Please note that event dates for July are subject to change to fit in with the 11th Edition release schedule.

Hello again everyone,

The Stafford Shards of Alara Release Event went well with a good turnout of 24 players. After five rounds of Swiss our champion was Jonathan Randle, well done Jonathan! Everyone received Shards boosters, promo cards and some lovely alternate art Jace prints. The special shard rule in force prompted some player feedback and I hope that these players will in turn send this on to Colin Smith as I’m sure that Colin would appreciate the feedback. Our top eight was dominated by Naya and Jund players with the other three shards far less popular.

We ran one draft after the main event which was won by Baljeet Samra, well done Baljeet!

In other news, Ticket to Ride the card game was enjoyed by the event staff. Pete was 3-0 for the weekend. Ho hum.

Want is the latest www.magicgeek.co.uk news?

Well, Shards of Alara has hit and has so far proven to be extremely popular. Single cards are now on the website but you already know that if you have a customer account and signed up to receive the newsletter. Mythic Rares do seem to be quite elusive, averaging about 4 to a box of boosters but all are currently in stock.

On to the next event:

BIRMINGHAM ALL DAY STANDARD EVENT SATURDAY 11th OF OCTOBER 2008

This date in the calendar was booked as one of two possible dates for the upcoming PTQ Kyoto which is instead happening in November. As a result I have a spare date and I wondered what to do with it. I decided that in a flood of limited events, a standard challenge day might be something that people might want to take part in. As usual, Standard Challenge works like this: You pay an entrance fee of £5 for the day and from there you enter as many 8 player single elimination standard events as possible from 09:30 when I open until I close at about 6 to 7pm. Booster prizes are awarded to the finalists in each event. Booster drafts will also be available for those wishing to take part.

As a special incentive to arrive early to get the day going as quickly as possible, those players that arrive before 10:30am and pay to enter the Standard Challenge Day will receive one free Shards of Alara booster.

As a second incentive, players involved in the Standard Challenge Day can get a special £2 discount from their first draft of the day.

Hope to see you there!

Here are the usual event details:

BIRMINGHAM ALL DAY STANDARD EVENT SATURDAY 11th OF OCTOBER 2008

VENUE: Quality Hotel Birmingham, 166 Hagley Road, Birmingham, West Midlands, England B16 9NZ

The venue is probably only about 15 minutes from the city centre easily accessible from New Street Station. Road links are very good from the M6 and the M5 as you will see on the map.

If you are travelling by car, there is parking for over a hundred cars but most of the spaces are at the back of the hotel. Drive towards the red barrier at the right hand side of the venue and it will automatically open. Parking is free if you have used the hotel facilities, so there will be no parking charge for players attending the event.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT: According to locals, as far as trains are concerned, it’s quicker to go to Five Ways station if possible, walk to the Five Ways shopping centre and then just walk down Hagley Road. From New Street Station the 128 and the 129 buses from Corporation Street (1 min walk from New Street) go down the Hagley Road (and I’m sure there must be others too). If you are travelling by train and you are running late I’d suggest just getting a taxi to the venue. I suspect that it is less than a 10 minute drive from New Street Station.

Website: http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/

Directions: These are available from the Hotel’s website:

http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/details/GB605%20large%20map.jpg

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am onwards.

FORMAT: The format for the event is Standard Constructed.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £5.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes as many Standard events as you manage to enter!

PRIZES: Per 8 player event.

SIDE EVENTS: Triple Shards of Alara Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

TO PRE-REGISTER FOR AN EVENT:

Send an e-mail to this address: stephen DOT avann AT ntlworld DOT com with your FULL NAME and DCI NUMBER (If you have one) BEFORE 5:30PM on the FRIDAY NIGHT before the events, as this is the last time that I will check my e-mail before the tournament. Alternatively I can be contacted on my mobile from 6:30pm until 10pm on the following number: 07989201808. Please don’t try to phone me before 6:30pm as I will be busy.

Hope to see you at the event,

Steve

PTQ Kyoto

As I will be limiting this event to 96 players I think that early pre-registration to guarantee your place in the event is essential. Pre-registration is now open so please feel free to contact me with your name and DCI number to reserve your space.

Big Bag Draft

Similarly, as this event is limited to 40 players I think that early pre-registration to guarantee your place in the event is essential. Pre-registration is now open so please feel free to contact me with your name and DCI number to reserve your space in what is usually one of the most fun events of the year. As well as the usual boosters, a trophy and bragging rights, this year’s winner will also receive a sealed set of the extremely hard to track down From the Vault: Dragons that I have squirreled away for this event. Mmmmmmm….. foil goodness.

The Big Bag Draft marks the end of my events for 2008 and is always a great day as we look back over the past year’s campaign.

Thanks for reading,

Steve

FUTURE EVENTS 2008

November – Saturday 8th – Birmingham – PTQ Kyoto

The November Birmingham event has been confirmed as my PTQ slot for Kyoto. Pre-registration is open now for those of you that want to get in early and book your place.

November – Sunday 16th – Stafford – Big Bag Draft

The Big Bag Draft is the usual way to end the year. This year in response to player demand I have moved this iconic event into November so that players can manage to fit it in around the demands of the festive season. This year the places will be limited to probably about 40 players so when registration opens for the event make sure you get your name down as soon as possible.

NOTE: I have a set of From the Vault: Dragons to give away as part of the prize fund for this event!

December – No events are currently booked for December.

FUTURE EVENTS 2009

January – Saturday 31st – Birmingham – Conflux Pre Release
February – Sunday 1st – Stafford – Conflux Pre Release

The first events of 2009 are the Pre-Releases for the second set in the Shards block, Conflux. It may seem a long way away but try to get these events in your diaries now! More details as they appear.

February – Sunday 8th – Stafford – Conflux Release

As usual the Release event will take place on Sunday at Stafford. This is the first chance to buy Conflux singles, boosters, boxes, intro packs and fat packs.

All,

Well, the dust has barely settled on the Pre-Release weekend and here I am again. I have a number of things to tell you about, firstly the report form the Pre-Release events. Secondly, the forthcoming Release event at Stafford and finally an update on my PTQ Kyoto date. Phew.

The Shards of Alara Pre-Release weekend report.

The Pre-Releases themselves were well received by the players. On Saturday at Birmingham we had 41 players for a great first day. After six rounds of Swiss the event was finally won by Ben Beck. Well done Ben!

The next day at Stafford we had 35 players in the event which was great. At the end of six rounds of Swiss our Champion was Bill Johnson! This brings Bill’s trophy tally to a massive 4 trophies! Well done Bill, can Ian Davis or brother Tom Johnson win the event this weekend to bring their trophy count to four? Can anyone stop Bill “Magic” Johnson? [I slipped in a little NBA basketball reference there. He he.]

So overall the weekend was a success as usual and my thanks go out to all the players who attended, and the judges Pete and Glyn who worked so hard all weekend.

What is the latest www.magicgeek.co.uk news?

The Shards of AlaraTM pre-orders have been coming in and will be despatched as soon as the Shards of AlaraTM stock arrives. Shards of AlaraTM single cards will arrive on the site after the weekend.

Well, on to the Shards of AlaraTM Release event next weekend at Stafford. Here are the event details:

STAFFORD SHARDS OF ALARA RELEASE EVENT SUNDAY 5th OF OCTOBER 2008

To ensure your place in the events and to reserve your promotional foil card, please pre-register by following the process described below.

Event notes:

[1] This event is limited to 48 players so please make sure that you pre-register to guarantee your place and receive a promotional foil.

[2] We will be using deck pool registration at all Release events.

[3] Price for admission is £16.00 for two reasons. Firstly, it falls in line with Wizards of the Coast pricing guidelines and secondly because the product given to each player to use on the day is one Shards of AlaraTM tournament pack and three Shards of AlaraTM boosters.

[4] As an incentive to those of you who attended the Shards of AlaraTM Pre-Release events at Stafford and Birmingham I am running the following promotion. If you played in either of the Stafford or Birmingham Shards of AlaraTM Pre-Release events, I will offer a £1.00 deduction on the entry fee into the Release event. If you played in BOTH of the Stafford and Birmingham Shards of AlaraTM Pre-Release events, I will offer either a £2.00 deduction in the cost of entry OR a free pack of 50 plain Ultra Pro sleeves of the colour of your choice [while stocks last]. I realise that this isn’t an enormous saving, but I think that it rewards my most regular players for their loyalty.

[5] Those of you who pre-ordered a box of Shards of AlaraTM boosters from me can also claim your £2 discount per box from the entrance fee for the Release event on top of any other discounts explained in point [4] above.

[6] I’ll be filling the traditional Grab Bag with the contents of some Shards of AlaraTM boosters as additional prizes.

[7] As an additional prize, I have had a winner’s trophy engraved. The trophies are a popular part of the Pre-Release events and have been made part of the Release event tradition too.

Here are the usual event details:

STAFFORD SHARDS OF ALARA RELEASE EVENT SUNDAY 5th OF OCTOBER 2008

VENUE: Oddfellows Hall, Greengate Street, Stafford, ST16 2HP.

Please contact me for more directions if you haven’t been to this venue before.

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for the Release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Shards of AlaraTM Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £16.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes one (1) Shards of AlaraTM tournament pack and three (3) Shards of AlaraTM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

Special commemorative Shards of AlaraTM card for each tournament participant, while supplies last.

SIDE EVENTS: Booster Draft side events [triple Shards of AlaraTM] available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

TO PRE-REGISTER FOR AN EVENT:

Send an e-mail to this address: stephen DOT avann AT ntlworld DOT com with your FULL NAME and DCI NUMBER (If you have one) BEFORE 5:30PM on the FRIDAY NIGHT before the events, as this is the last time that I will check my e-mail before the tournament. Alternatively I can be contacted on my mobile from 6:30pm until 10pm on the following number: 07989201808. Please don’t try to phone me before 6:30pm as I will be busy.

Hope to see you at the events over the weekend,

Steve

FUTURE EVENTS 2008

October – Saturday 11th – Birmingham – Standard Day or Shards Draft – you decide.

I’m kind of at a loss for an event here so I think I’m going to offer all day Standard [with Shards] as most other events are limited format at the moment. Since we were so cruelly denied any chance to draft Shards at the Pre-Releases, this event will also allow Birmingham regulars to draft triple Shards all day long.

November – Saturday 8th – Birmingham – PTQ Kyoto

The November Birmingham event has been confirmed as my PTQ slot for Kyoto. Pre-registration is open now for those of you that want to get in early and book your place.

November – Sunday 16th – Stafford – Big Bag Draft

The Big Bag Draft is the usual way to end the year. This year in response to player demand I have moved this iconic event into November so that players can manage to fit it in around the demands of the festive season. This year the places will be limited to probably about 40 players so when registration opens for the event make sure you get your name down as soon as possible.

NOTE: I have a set of From the Vault: Dragons to give away as part of the prize fund for this event!

December – No events are currently booked for December.

FUTURE EVENTS 2009

January – Saturday 31st – Birmingham – Conflux Pre Release
February – Sunday 1st – Stafford – Conflux Pre Release

The first events of 2009 are the Pre-Releases for the second set in the Shards block, Conflux. It may seem a long way away but try to get these events in your diaries now! More details as they appear.

February – Sunday 8th – Stafford – Conflux Release

As usual the Release event will take place on Sunday at Stafford. This is the first chance to buy Conflux singles, boosters, boxes, intro packs and fat packs.

All,

First things first, I hope that you have all had a good summer. My summer went by in a blur. A couple of holidays and in between an M-Fest trade stand have kept me nice and busy. Eventide events seem like a long time ago and the set appears to have been a huge hit. Our attention turns to the new block starting with the Shards of Alara Pre-Release weekend at the end of the month.

By the way, in case you don’t usually read to the end of the e-mail you may want to scan the 2008 and 2009 future event dates as these have been updated.

Changes to Pre-Releases.

You may or may not have heard about changes to the way Pre-Releases as a whole are run from this point on so I’ll run down the changes as they will affect events that I run.

Firstly, the Wizards Play Network has been introduced. This is a global look at organised play and as the Wizards web-site says “Within the network, organizers will be grouped by level, with increasing level denoting increased responsibility for event reporting, increased prize support, and increased freedom to run more prestigious content.” Currently there are three levels available: Gateway, Core and Advanced. My application has been processed and I have been awarded ‘Advanced’ level status for Magic the Gathering.

Advanced level organisers can run Pre-Release events on both days of the Pre-Release weekend. For me, that means that I’ll be running as usual with an event at Birmingham on Saturday and an event at Stafford on Sunday. I won’t be running flights; I’ll just be running one main event as usual. No changes there.

Now for the bit that does change. Booster drafts using the pre-release product aren’t allowed on the Pre-Release weekend anymore. This is a change that will affect some of you as in the past I have run two or three drafts per day after the main event has finished for those players that want to take part. This isn’t any longer an option so it means that the Pre-Release weekend is all about the main events. I am able to run booster drafts, but with older product so I’ll be able to run a Shadowmoor block draft for example if people wanted me to.

Finally for new players there is a new option available. Any new player [one that registers for a DCI number and has not played in organised events before] who doesn’t feel that they want to take part in the main sealed event will be able to purchase an Intro Pack [the new replacement for Theme Decks] and be able to play friendly duels with other new players or duels with players from the main event who have either finished their round or have the bye. The idea of this is that the new player doesn’t have to muddle through deck construction in the main event but can just come along, get an Intro Pack and get some tips from the more experienced players or judging staff playing friendly duels. If you already come along to my events and have played sanctioned events before, you aren’t really the target audience for this additional way to play so don’t worry about it.

Please note that the Intro Packs themselves are not on general sale until the Release Events the following weekend.

That is it folks. Hopefully I have explained the changes as best I can with the information that I have, please e-mail me if you have heard anything different from the above just in case I have the wrong end of the stick.

If you have any strong feelings on the changes, please mention them to me at the events so that I can get a good idea of the player reaction to the changes. It is always useful to hear about what you do or don’t like for feedback to Colin and Tom at Hasbro.

On to the Pre-Release Weekend details:

SHARDS OF ALARA PRE-RELEASE WEEKEND 27th and 28th OF SEPTEMBER 2008

Event notes:

[1] As I have had so many enquiries about the forthcoming Shards of AlaraTM Pre-Release tournaments, this e-mail includes all relevant information for both the Stafford and the Birmingham tournaments. Pick and choose the information that you need.

[2] We will be continuing to use deck pool registration at all pre-release events.

[3] Price for admission is £16.00 for two reasons. Firstly, it falls in line with Wizards of the Coast pricing guidelines and secondly because the product given to each player to use on the day is one Shards of AlaraTM tournament pack and three Shards of AlaraTM boosters.

[4] To encourage players to attend both events, I will be continuing with the £2.00 deduction in the cost of entry to any player enrolling in the Stafford Pre-Release who played in the Birmingham Pre-Release the previous day. This makes it a nice even £30 to play in both events. I realise that this isn’t an enormous saving, but I received positive feedback for this at previous Pre-Release weekends so I’m happy to continue to offer this discount.

[5] As usual I’ll be filling the traditional Grab Bag with the contents of some Shards of AlaraTM boosters as additional prizes.

[6] Again as usual, I have had winner’s trophies engraved. The trophies are a popular part of the Pre-Release events and everybody wants to win one!

I look forward to seeing you at the events.

Steve

Here are the usual event details:

BIRMINGHAM SHARDS OF ALARA PRE-RELEASE SATURDAY 27th OF SEPTEMBER 2008

VENUE: Quality Hotel Birmingham, 166 Hagley Road, Birmingham, West Midlands, England B16 9NZ

The venue is probably only about 15 minutes from the city centre easily accessible from New Street Station. Road links are very good from the M6 and the M5 as you will see on the map.

If you are travelling by car, there is parking for over a hundred cars but most of the spaces are at the back of the hotel. Drive towards the red barrier at the right hand side of the venue and it will automatically open. All you need to do when leaving is pick up a parking token from the hotel reception. Parking is free if you have used the hotel facilities, so there will be no parking charge for players attending the event.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT: According to locals, as far as trains are concerned, it’s quicker to go to Five Ways station if possible, walk to the Five Ways shopping centre and then just walk down Hagley Road. From New Street Station the 128 and the 129 buses from Corporation Street (1 min walk from New Street) go down the Hagley Road (and I’m sure there must be others too). If you are travelling by train and you are running late I’d suggest just getting a taxi to the venue. I suspect that it is less than a 10 minute drive from New Street Station.

Website: http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/

Directions: These are available from the Hotel’s website:

http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/details/GB605%20large%20map.jpg

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for each Pre-release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Shards of AlaraTM Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £16.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes one (1) Shards of AlaraTM tournament pack and three (3) Shards of AlaraTM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

Special commemorative Shards of AlaraTM card for each tournament participant, while supplies last.

SIDE EVENTS: Booster Draft side events [non Shards of AlaraTM] available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

STAFFORD SHARDS OF ALARA PRE-RELEASE SUNDAY 28th OF SEPTEMBER 2008

VENUE: Oddfellows Hall, Greengate Street, Stafford, ST16 2HP.

Please contact me for more directions if you haven’t been to this venue before.

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for each Pre-release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Shards of AlaraTM Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £16.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes one (1) Shards of AlaraTM tournament pack and three (3) Shards of AlaraTM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

Special commemorative Shards of AlaraTM card for each tournament participant, while supplies last.

SIDE EVENTS: Booster Draft side events [non Shards of AlaraTM] available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

TO PRE-REGISTER FOR AN EVENT:

Send an e-mail to this address: stephen DOT avann AT ntlworld DOT com with your FULL NAME and DCI NUMBER (If you have one) BEFORE 5:30PM on the FRIDAY NIGHT before the events, as this is the last time that I will check my e-mail before the tournament. Alternatively I can be contacted on my mobile from 6:30pm until 10pm on the following number: 07989201808. Please don’t try to phone me before 6:30pm as I will be busy.

Hope to see you at the events over the weekend,

Steve

FUTURE EVENTS 2008

October – Sunday 5th – Stafford – Shards of Alara Release

As usual the Release event will take place on Sunday at Stafford. This is the first chance to buy Shards of Alara singles, boosters, boxes, intro packs and fat packs.

October – Saturday 11th – Birmingham – TBC

November – Saturday 8th – Birmingham – TBC

The format of both Birmingham events is to be confirmed pending PTQ applications.

November – Sunday 16th – Stafford – Big Bag Draft

The Big Bag Draft is the usual way to end the year. This year in response to player demand I have moved this iconic event into November so that players can manage to fit it in around the demands of the festive season. This year the places will be limited to probably about 40 players so when registration opens for the event make sure you get your name down as soon as possible.

NOTE: I have a set of From the Vault: Dragons to give away as part of the prize fund for this event!

December – No events are currently booked for December.

FUTURE EVENTS 2009

January – Saturday 31st – Birmingham – Conflux Pre Release
February – Sunday 1st – Stafford – Conflux Pre Release

The first events of 2009 are the Pre-Releases for the second set in the Shards block, Conflux. It may seem a long way away but try to get these events in your diaries now! More details as they appear.

February – Sunday 8th – Stafford – Conflux Release

As usual the Release event will take place on Sunday at Stafford. This is the first chance to buy Conflux singles, boosters, boxes, intro packs and fat packs.

All,

This latest e-mail mainly details the Eventide Pre-Release events in July. The full details are contained below. Before that though, I just wanted to remind everyone that I won’t be running an Eventide Release Event as I will be away on holiday during the Release weekend.

What is the latest www.magicgeek.co.uk news?

I have re-stocked Shadowmoor singles recently and have been making additions to various sections of the inventory. Foil cards now have their own section and I’ll keep adding to the selection whenever possible.

I will be on holiday from Saturday the 19th of July until Monday the 4th of August. The last date for placing orders pre-holiday will be Wednesday the 16th of July to give me time to process and post them. Any orders placed after Wednesday the 16th of July will not be processed until Monday the 4th of August.

Eventide will not be listed for sale on my site until I return from holiday on Monday the 4th of August. This will prevent anyone from ordering without realising that the orders won’t be processed until my return. So, don’t worry if there don’t appear to be any Eventide items on the site as they will appear in August.

On to the Pre-Release Weekend details:

EVENTIDE PRE-RELEASE WEEKEND 12th and 13th OF JULY 2008

Event notes:

[1] As I have had so many enquiries about the forthcoming Eventide TM Pre-Release tournaments, this e-mail includes all relevant information for both the Stafford and the Birmingham tournaments. Pick and choose the information that you need.

[2] We will be continuing to use deck pool registration at all pre-release events.

[3] Price for admission is £16.00 for two reasons. Firstly, it falls in line with Wizards of the Coast pricing guidelines and secondly because the product given to each player to use on the day is one Shadowmoor TM tournament pack and three Eventide TM boosters.

[4] To encourage players to attend both events, I will be continuing with the £2.00 deduction in the cost of entry to any player enrolling in the Stafford Pre-Release who played in the Birmingham Pre-Release the previous day. This makes it a nice even £30 to play in both events. I realise that this isn’t an enormous saving, but I received positive feedback for this at previous Pre-Release weekends so I’m happy to continue to offer this discount.

[5] As usual I’ll be filling the traditional Grab Bag with the contents of some Eventide TM boosters as additional prizes.

[6] Again as usual, I have had winner’s trophies engraved. The trophies are a popular part of the Pre-Release events and everybody wants to win one!

I look forward to seeing you at the events.

Steve

Here are the usual event details:

BIRMINGHAM EVENTIDE PRE-RELEASE SATURDAY 12th OF JULY 2008

VENUE: Quality Hotel Birmingham, 166 Hagley Road, Birmingham, West Midlands, England B16 9NZ

The venue is probably only about 15 minutes from the city centre easily accessible from New Street Station. Road links are very good from the M6 and the M5 as you will see on the map.

If you are travelling by car, there is parking for over a hundred cars but most of the spaces are at the back of the hotel. Drive towards the red barrier at the right hand side of the venue and it will automatically open. All you need to do when leaving is pick up a parking token from the hotel reception. Parking is free if you have used the hotel facilities, so there will be no parking charge for players attending the event.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT: According to locals, as far as trains are concerned, it’s quicker to go to Five Ways station if possible, walk to the Five Ways shopping centre and then just walk down Hagley Road. From New Street Station the 128 and the 129 buses from Corporation Street (1 min walk from New Street) go down the Hagley Road (and I’m sure there must be others too). If you are travelling by train and you are running late I’d suggest just getting a taxi to the venue. I suspect that it is less than a 10 minute drive from New Street Station.

Website: http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/

Directions: These are available from the Hotel’s website:

http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/details/GB605%20large%20map.jpg

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for each Pre-release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Eventide TM Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £16.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes one (1) Shadowmoor TM tournament pack and three (3) Eventide TM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

Special commemorative Eventide TM card for each tournament participant, while supplies last.

SIDE EVENTS: Eventide TM Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

STAFFORD EVENTIDE PRE-RELEASE SUNDAY 13th OF JULY 2008

VENUE: Oddfellows Hall, Greengate Street, Stafford, ST16 2HP.

Please contact me for more directions if you haven’t been to this venue before.

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for each Pre-release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Eventide TM Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £16.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes one (1) Shadowmoor TM tournament pack and three (3) Eventide TM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

Special commemorative Eventide TM card for each tournament participant, while supplies last.

SIDE EVENTS: Eventide TM Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

TO PRE-REGISTER FOR AN EVENT:

Send an e-mail to this address: stephen DOT avann AT ntlworld DOT com with your FULL NAME and DCI NUMBER (If you have one) BEFORE 5:30PM on the FRIDAY NIGHT before the events, as this is the last time that I will check my e-mail before the tournament. Alternatively I can be contacted on my mobile from 6:30pm until 10pm on the following number: 07989201808. Please don’t try to phone me before 6:30pm as I will be busy.

Hope to see you at the events over the weekend,

Steve

FUTURE EVENTS 2008

August – No events are currently booked for August due to summer holidays. There is always M-Fest to go to though!

September – Saturday 20th – Birmingham – Shards of Alara Pre-Release
September – Sunday 21st – Stafford – Shards of Alara Pre-Release

Wow, another Pre-Release already? Yes, at the end of September the new block begins with a set entitled Shards of Alara.

October – Sunday 21st – Stafford – Shards of Alara Release

As usual the Release event will take place on Sunday at Stafford. This is the first chance to buy Shards of Alara singles, boosters, boxes, theme decks and fat packs.

November – Sunday 16th – Stafford – Big Bag Draft

The Big Bag Draft is the usual way to end the year. This year in response to player demand I have moved this iconic event into November so that players can manage to fit it in around the demands of the festive season. This year the places will be limited to probably about 40 players so when registration opens for the event make sure you get your name down as soon as possible.

December – No events are currently booked for December.

All,

A quick Nationals Qualifier report. We had a good turnout for the Nationals qualifier at the weekend with 48 players and 6 qualification slots up for grabs. The top six players that qualified were:

Manveer Samra
Tom Van Doorsselaere
Matthew Reynolds
James Corwood
Phil Scott
Nigel Barham

Congratulations to you all!

Next up, a change of pace.

STAFFORD ALL DAY STANDARD EVENT SUNDAY 22nd OF JUNE 2008

After a long time debating what to run this weekend at Stafford I settled on a popular event that I haven’t run in a while, the all day standard event. For those not familiar with the event, you turn up in the morning when we open, pay the £5 entry fee for the day and then put your name onto an 8 player elimination standard event sign up sheet. When the sheet fills, the event runs and the next sheet goes out. This works really well with more than 12 players at the venue because that way as soon as you are knocked out of an event, you have to quickly get yourself onto a rapidly filling sheet for the next event. You can play in as many Standard events as you want to, all for just the original £5 cost paid at the start of the day.

This type of event has been popular in the past for two reasons. Firstly it is a whole lot of fun and you can end up playing in multiple sanctioned events [great for Frequent Player Rewards]. Secondly it allows you to test a deck and make changes between events to tune your build. With the Nationals on the horizon all qualified players ought to be interested in a bit of practice. All players that haven’t yet qualified might want to come along and tune a deck for the next Qualifier they plan to attend.

So, I hope to see you at Stafford bright and early for the All Day Standard on Sunday.

STAFFORD ALL DAY STANDARD EVENT SUNDAY 22nd OF JUNE 2008

VENUE: Oddfellows Hall, Greengate Street, Stafford, ST16 2HP

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am onwards.

FORMAT: The format for the event is Standard Constructed.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £5.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes as many Standard events as you manage to enter!

PRIZES: Per 8 player event.

SIDE EVENTS: Triple Shadowmoor Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

TO PRE-REGISTER FOR AN EVENT:

Send an e-mail to this address: stephen DOT avann AT ntlworld DOT com with your FULL NAME and DCI NUMBER (If you have one) BEFORE 5:30PM on the FRIDAY NIGHT before the events, as this is the last time that I will check my e-mail before the tournament. Alternatively I can be contacted on my mobile from 6:30pm until 10pm on the following number: 07989201808. Please don’t try to phone me before 6:30pm as I will be busy.

Hope to see you at the event,

Steve

Future Events 2008.

I have been at work to try to book my events for the rest of 2008. Please note that additional Birmingham dates will be confirmed as forthcoming PTQ dates are announced. At the moment the calendar looks like this:

July – Saturday 12th – Birmingham – Eventide Pre-Release
July – Sunday 13th – Stafford – Eventide Pre-Release

Eventide arrives in July and the usual Pre-Release Weekend has been booked. Please note, at the moment I haven’t planned on running an Eventide Release event [which would also take place in July] because I am on holiday then. I suspect that a lot of players will also be away on holiday too. This may change but if so I’ll make an announcement in a future e-mail.

August – No events are currently booked for August due to summer holidays. There is always M-Fest to go to though!

September – Saturday 20th – Birmingham – Shards of Alara Pre-Release
September – Sunday 21st – Stafford – Shards of Alara Pre-Release

Wow, another Pre-Release already? Yes, at the end of September the new block begins with a set entitled Shards of Alara.

October – Sunday 21st – Stafford – Shards of Alara Release

As usual the Release event will take place on Sunday at Stafford. This is the first chance to buy Shards of Alara singles, boosters, boxes, theme decks and fat packs.

November – Sunday 16th – Stafford – Big Bag Draft

The Big Bag Draft is the usual way to end the year. This year in response to player demand I have moved this iconic event into November so that players can manage to fit it in around the demands of the festive season. This year the places will be limited to probably about 40 players so when registration opens for the event make sure you get your name down as soon as possible.

December – No events are currently booked for December.

All,

It has been a while since I last e-mailed hasn’t it? Thanks to those people who nudged me and said “Steve, stop lounging about in the sunshine and send us an event announcement message.” Well, it hasn’t been all play and no work as I have confirmed the schedule for the rest of the events in 2008 in the event calendar below. First things first though:

Stafford Shadowmoor Release Event

Shadowmoor has hit the ground running with many positive reviews from players and consistent sales. The Stafford Shadowmoor Release event was won by James Noott, well done James!

The player perspective

In unrelated news, I went to the Stafford FNM and played in a draft. I know, I know, and since when did I play? I had a really enjoyable evening [despite the thrashing I got] and I did some valuable market research. I have to say that I found the whole experience of drafting very demanding. It has been a long time since I last drafted and I had forgotten how quickly a player is expected to analyse and pick. It gave me a new appreciation for the player perspective and I promise to allow as much time as possible for draft and deck construction in limited events in future. It may be that for future limited events I’ll end registration slightly earlier so that this time can be used for the card pool/deck construction stage. If you have any strong opinions on this topic, please feel free to drop me an e-mail.

What is the latest www.magicgeek.co.uk news?

Shadowmoor is proving to be extremely popular and Fat Packs are now back in stock. I have also have lots of older theme decks and Fat Packs at low low prices. If you didn’t get the Coldsnap theme decks with re-printed Ice Age and Alliances cards such as Swords to Plowshares then it might be worth picking one up while they are so cheap. Discounted prices hold until the end of the month. I have also added books to the inventory starting with the books from the Time Spiral block.

On to the next event:

BIRMINGHAM NATIONALS QUALIFIER SATURDAY 14th OF JUNE 2008

Event notes:

[1] The event is limited to 72 players so please make sure that you pre-register to guarantee your place. Pre-registration for the Birmingham event ends on FRIDAY THE 13th OF JUNE. Please help me to ensure that I have an accurate assessment of attendance figures by pre-registering. It helps me enormously.

[2] We will be continuing to use deck registration at all Nationals Qualifiers events. Please bring pens with you.

[3] Price for admission is £5.00 for the Qualifier event.

[4] A qualification slot is available to one player for every eight participants at the event. So for example if we have a 40 player event, the top 5 finishers will qualify for Nationals!

I look forward to seeing you at the event.

Steve

Here are the usual event details:

BIRMINGHAM NATIONALS QUALIFIER SATURDAY 14th OF JUNE 2008

VENUE: Quality Hotel Birmingham, 166 Hagley Road, Birmingham, West Midlands, England B16 9NZ

The venue is probably only about 15 minutes from the city centre easily accessible from New Street Station. Road links are very good from the M6 and the M5 as you will see on the map.

If you are travelling by car, there is parking for over a hundred cars but most of the spaces are at the back of the hotel. Drive towards the red barrier at the right hand side of the venue and it will automatically open. All you need to do when leaving is pick up a parking token from the hotel reception. Parking is free if you have used the hotel facilities, so there will be no parking charge for players attending the event.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT: According to locals, as far as trains are concerned, it’s quicker to go to Five Ways station if possible, walk to the Five Ways shopping centre and then just walk down Hagley Road. From New Street Station the 128 and the 129 buses from Corporation Street (1 min walk from New Street) go down the Hagley Road (and I’m sure there must be others too). If you are travelling by train and you are running late I’d suggest just getting a taxi to the venue. I suspect that it is less than a 10 minute drive from New Street Station.

Website: http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/

Directions: These are available from the Hotel’s website:

http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/details/GB605%20large%20map.jpg

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Round One will start at about 10:45am.

FORMAT: The format for each Nationals Qualifier tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Standard Constructed.

Rules Enforcement Level: Competitive

ENTRY FEE: £5.00 for main event

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

A qualification slot for the GB Nationals is available to one player for every eight participants at the event.

SIDE EVENTS: Shadowmoor TM Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

Future Events 2008.

I have been at work to try to book my events for the rest of 2008. Please note that additional Birmingham dates will be confirmed as forthcoming PTQ dates are announced. At the moment the calendar looks like this:

June – Sunday 22nd – Stafford – Standard Challenge Day

I haven’t run a standard challenge day for a while so this gap in the schedule allows me to do so. Full details of the day will appear in a forthcoming e-mail but basically you pay the entrance fee in the morning and then play in 8 player elimination events all day long. An ideal way to practice with your standard decks for Nationals qualification or the Nationals itself if you are already qualified.

July – Saturday 12th – Birmingham – Eventide Pre-Release
July – Sunday 13th – Stafford – Eventide Pre-Release

Eventide arrives in July and the usual Pre-Release Weekend has been booked. Please note, at the moment I haven’t planned on running an Eventide Release event [which would also take place in July] because I am on holiday then. I suspect that a lot of players will also be away on holiday too. This may change but if so I’ll make an announcement in a future e-mail.

August – No events are currently booked for August due to summer holidays. There is always M-Fest to go to though!

September – Saturday 20th – Birmingham – Shards of Alara Pre-Release
September – Sunday 21st – Stafford – Shards of Alara Pre-Release

Wow, another Pre-Release already? Yes, at the end of September the new block begins with a set entitled Shards of Alara.

October – Sunday 21st – Stafford – Shards of Alara Release

As usual the Release event will take place on Sunday at Stafford. This is the first chance to buy Shards of Alara singles, boosters, boxes, theme decks and fat packs.

November – Sunday 16th – Stafford – Big Bag Draft

The Big Bag Draft is the usual way to end the year. This year in response to player demand I have moved this iconic event into November so that players can manage to fit it in around the demands of the festive season. This year the places will be limited to probably about 40 players so when registration opens for the event make sure you get your name down as soon as possible.

December – No events are currently booked for December.

All,

Here is the latest news from me about the Shadowmoor events and MagicGeek news.

Shadowmoor Pre-Release Weekend Report

It felt a bit strange to be at Birmingham on the Saturday rather than the Sunday but it was a great weekend. Birmingham attendance was stronger than Stafford as a few Stafford/Wolverhampton regulars were missing for a variety of reasons. The Birmingham event was won by Tom Johnson, and the Stafford event was won by Stefano Gatolin so congratulations to both Champs.

Overall, the set seemed well received by the players and only the art on the promo card seemed got negative comments.

What is the latest www.magicgeek.co.uk news?

Well Shadowmoor orders have piled up and they will ship later this week. Shadowmoor single cards will be added to the site ahead of the release date on Firday. As usual, mailing list subscribers will get an e-mail notification once the single cards go on-line. Remember that all Shadowmoor items can be collected at the Stafford Release event and get postage costs refunded in full. Just specify ‘Collect at Stafford’ in the customer comments when ordering.

On to the Shadowmoor Release event this weekend at Stafford. Here are the event details:

STAFFORD SHADOWMOOR RELEASE EVENT SUNDAY 4th OF MAY 2008

To ensure your place in the events and to reserve your promotional foil card, please pre-register by following the process described below.

Event notes:

[1] This event is limited to 36 players so please make sure that you pre-register to guarantee your place and receive a promotional foil.

[2] We will be using deck pool registration at all Release events.

[3] Price for admission is £16.00 for two reasons. Firstly, it falls in line with Wizards of the Coast pricing guidelines and secondly because the product given to each player to use on the day is one Shadowmoor tournament pack and three Shadowmoor boosters.

[4] As an incentive to those of you who attended the Shadowmoor Pre-Release events at Stafford and Birmingham I am running the following promotion. If you played in either of the Stafford or Birmingham Shadowmoor Pre-Release events, I will offer a £1.00 deduction on the entry fee into the Release event. If you played in BOTH of the Stafford and Birmingham Shadowmoor Pre-Release events, I will offer either a £2.00 deduction in the cost of entry OR a free pack of 50 plain Ultra Pro sleeves of the colour of your choice [while stocks last]. I realise that this isn’t an enormous saving, but I think that it rewards my most regular players for their loyalty.

[5] Those of you who pre-ordered a box of Shadowmoor boosters from me can also claim your £2 discount per box from the entrance fee for the Release event on top of any other discounts explained in point [4] above.

[6] I’ll be filling the traditional Grab Bag with the contents of some Shadowmoor boosters as additional prizes.

[7] As an additional prize, I have had a winner’s trophy engraved. The trophies are a popular part of the Release events and everybody wants to win one!

Here are the usual event details:

STAFFORD SHADOWMOOR RELEASE EVENT SUNDAY 4th OF MAY 2008

VENUE: Oddfellows Hall, Greengate Street, Stafford, ST16 2HP

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for the Release tournament is DCI TM-sanctioned Shadowmoor TM Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £16.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes one (1) Shadowmoor tournament pack and three (3) Shadowmoor boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

Special commemorative Shadowmoor card for each tournament participant, while supplies last.

SIDE EVENTS: Triple Shadowmoor Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

TO PRE-REGISTER FOR AN EVENT:

Send an e-mail to this address: stephen DOT avann AT ntlworld DOT com with your FULL NAME and DCI NUMBER (If you have one) BEFORE 5:30PM on the FRIDAY NIGHT before the events, as this is the last time that I will check my e-mail before the tournament. Alternatively I can be contacted on my mobile from 6:30pm until 10pm on the following number: 07989201808. Please don’t try to phone me before 6:30pm as I will be busy.

Hope to see you at the event,

Steve

All,

Here is the latest news update from the Stafford and Birmingham tournaments.

First up, a brief Champs report. We had a really good turn-out of 18 teams for the Champs event on Sunday the 30th of March and the new venue seemed to work well. I got positive feedback from the players and if you didn’t have time to make a comment on the day, please feel free to drop me an e-mail to let me know what you thought. The venue owners seemed to be happy with us as an event and have authorised future bookings based on what they saw so thanks to everyone who helped to make the day a success, particularly Rich “I’ll carry that” Rowe and Pete “Not judging today but let’s sweep the floors” Stephenson. At the end of the Swiss rounds the following teams made the top four:

‘Team Ian’ [Ian Davis and Gavin Goh]
‘Coming back up again’ [Bill Johnson and Tom Johnson]
‘manaleak.com’ [Dinh Tu Nguyen and Marco Orsini-Jones]
‘Pickled egg lover and hater’ [Richard Parker and Stefano Gattolin]

The teams then had a Lorwyn/Lorwyn/Morningtide 2-Headed draft and then they settled in for the playoffs.

Semi-Finals

‘Team Ian’ defeated ‘Pickled egg lover and hater’
‘Coming back up again’ defeated ‘manaleak.com’

Finals

‘Team Ian’ defeated ‘Coming back up again’

Congratulation to Ian and Gavin for their win! You are County Champs of Staffordshire forever……..

What is the latest www.magicgeek.co.uk news?

Shadowmoor pre-sale items are already listed so if you want to place your orders for prompt Release date delivery then you can. For the first time I have listed common and uncommon sets and play sets as pre-sale items. Remember, you can also choose to collect the order at the Release Event on Sunday the 4th of May at Stafford and get any postage costs refunded. Just put “Collect at Stafford Release Event” in the customer comments so that I know what to do with the order.

I have also have Coldsnap and Dissension theme decks and Fat Packs at low low prices. If you didn’t get the Coldsnap theme decks with re-printed Ice Age and Alliances cards such as Swords to Plowshares then it might be worth picking one up while they are so cheap. Discounted prices hold until the end of the month.

On to the next event:

SHADOWMOOR PRE-RELEASE WEEKEND 19th and 20th OF APRIL 2008

Well, on the strength of the Champs event the new Stafford venue has been secured. However, this does come with yet another change. The Stafford venue is only available to us on a Sunday which means that for future Pre-Release weekends starting with Shadowmoor I will be running the Birmingham event on a Saturday and the Stafford event on a Sunday. For those of you who come to one or both of the events it isn’t really a huge change. However, I appreciate that for those of you who attend one of my events and one by another Organiser it may make a difference to your plans. I have sent another e-mail to fellow organisers in the midlands to make them aware of the changes to my events.

SHADOWMOOR PRE-RELEASE WEEKEND 19th and 20th OF APRIL 2008

Event notes:

[1] As I have had so many enquiries about the forthcoming Shadowmoor TM Pre-Release tournaments, this e-mail includes all relevant information for both the Stafford and the Birmingham tournaments. Pick and choose the information that you need.

[2] We will be continuing to use deck pool registration at all pre-release events.

[3] Price for admission is £16.00 for two reasons. Firstly, it falls in line with Wizards of the Coast pricing guidelines and secondly because the product given to each player to use on the day is one Shadowmoor TM tournament pack and three Shadowmoor TM boosters.

[4] To encourage players to attend both events, I will be continuing with the £2.00 deduction in the cost of entry to any player enrolling in the Stafford Pre-Release who played in the Birmingham Pre-Release the previous day. This makes it a nice even £30 to play in both events. I realise that this isn’t an enormous saving, but I received positive feedback for this at previous Pre-Release weekends so I’m happy to continue to offer this discount.

[5] As usual I’ll be filling the traditional Grab Bag with the contents of some Shadowmoor TM boosters as additional prizes.

[6] Again as usual, I have had winner’s trophies engraved. The trophies are a popular part of the Pre-Release events and everybody wants to win one!

I look forward to seeing you at the events.

Steve

Here are the usual event details:

BIRMINGHAM SHADOWMOOR PRE-RELEASE SATURDAY 19th OF APRIL 2008

VENUE: Quality Hotel Birmingham, 166 Hagley Road, Birmingham, West Midlands, England B16 9NZ

The venue is probably only about 15 minutes from the city centre easily accessible from New Street Station. Road links are very good from the M6 and the M5 as you will see on the map.

If you are travelling by car, there is parking for over a hundred cars but most of the spaces are at the back of the hotel. Drive towards the red barrier at the right hand side of the venue and it will automatically open. All you need to do when leaving is pick up a parking token from the hotel reception. Parking is free if you have used the hotel facilities, so there will be no parking charge for players attending the event.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT: According to locals, as far as trains are concerned, it’s quicker to go to Five Ways station if possible, walk to the Five Ways shopping centre and then just walk down Hagley Road. From New Street Station the 128 and the 129 buses from Corporation Street (1 min walk from New Street) go down the Hagley Road (and I’m sure there must be others too). If you are travelling by train and you are running late I’d suggest just getting a taxi to the venue. I suspect that it is less than a 10 minute drive from New Street Station.

Website: http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/

Directions: These are available from the Hotel’s website:

http://www.quality-hotels-birmingham.com/details/GB605%20large%20map.jpg

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for each Pre-release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Shadowmoor TM Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £16.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes one (1) Shadowmoor TM tournament pack and three (3) Shadowmoor TM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

Special commemorative Shadowmoor TM card for each tournament participant, while supplies last.

SIDE EVENTS: Shadowmoor TM Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

STAFFORD SHADOWMOOR PRE-RELEASE SUNDAY 20th OF APRIL 2008

VENUE: Oddfellows Hall, Greengate Street, Stafford, ST16 2HP.

Please contact me for more directions if you haven’t been to this venue before.

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for each Pre-release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Shadowmoor TM Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: 1

ENTRY FEE: £16.00 for main event

Cost of entry includes one (1) Shadowmoor TM tournament pack and three (3) Shadowmoor TM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast premier event prize structure.

Special commemorative Shadowmoor TM card for each tournament participant, while supplies last.

SIDE EVENTS: Shadowmoor TM Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

TO PRE-REGISTER FOR AN EVENT:

Send an e-mail to this address: stephen DOT avann AT ntlworld DOT com with your FULL NAME and DCI NUMBER (If you have one) BEFORE 5:30PM on the FRIDAY NIGHT before the events, as this is the last time that I will check my e-mail before the tournament. Alternatively I can be contacted on my mobile from 6:30pm until 10pm on the following number: 07989201808. Please don’t try to phone me before 6:30pm as I will be busy.

Hope to see you at the events over the weekend,

Steve

FUTURE EVENTS 2008

May – Sunday 4th – STAFFORD – Shadowmoor Release Event

The release event at Stafford for the Shadowmoor set. If you have enjoyed the Pre-Releases this will be another chance to play with the new cards in a limited format event. I will have boosters and single cards on sale and you can also collect your www.magicgeek.co.uk orders in person and get the postage costs refunded.

May – Saturday 17th – BIRMINGHAM – TO BE CONFIRMED

When I have more details confirmed, I’ll update this event.

All,

Well the GP Trial event at Birmingham on the 15th came and went in a bit of a haze for me. Struck by illness in the morning I was absolutely no use all day and the event literally passed me by while I slept in another room. My thanks to the judges Pete and Nick for their running of the event and again to Rich Rowe for helping with the set-up/tear-down. Oh, and Tu for getting me a life saving energy drink and bottle of water. :o)

Anyway, I’m told that the winner was Jonathan Randle so well done Jonathan!

We didn’t run any drafts and I beat a hasty retreat home to bed.

On now to the next event.

STAFFORD 2HG CHAMPS EVENT SUNDAY 30th OF MARCH 2008

The Champs events taking place on the weekend of the 29th/30th of March in the UK are the last time there will be a Champs event as Wizards have removed it from the list of events that Organised Play offer. So there are numerous reasons to attend this event:

[1] A chance to play 2HG with the very popular Lorwyn block.

[2] A final chance to be crowned County Champion.

[3] The participation card is a promo full art Bramblewood Paragon [while stocks last].

[4] The top eight players [four teams] receive a foil full art Mutavault. Not only is Mutavault the most expensive single card from Morningtide, these are promo foil versions.

[5] It doesn’t stop there. Champs is the only place in the world to get these cards and Champs events in other countries have been cancelled, we are very lucky to have them in the UK. I can’t even begin to imagine the secondary market price for these cards as they will be in global demand. They could be the most expensive single cards in a long long time.

The format for the tournament is 2 Headed Giant [or 2HG] Sealed Deck which means that you and a partner get issued with a tournament pack and some boosters and build two 40 card minimum decks with which to play for the duration of the event. More Champs information can be found here:

http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=events/magic/champs

Event notes:

[1] This event is limited to 25 teams so please make sure that you pre-register to guarantee your place and receive a promotional card.

[2] We will be using deck pool registration as we do at all limited format events.

[3] Price for admission is £20.00 per team for two reasons. Firstly, it falls in line with Wizards of the Coast pricing guidelines and secondly because the product given to each player to use on the day is one Lorwyn TM tournament pack, one Lorwyn TM booster and three Morningtide TM boosters.

Here are the usual event details:

STAFFORD 2HG CHAMPS EVENT SUNDAY 30th OF MARCH 2008

VENUE: Oddfellows Hall, Greengate Street, Stafford, ST16 2HP.

Parking for the new Stafford venue.

I have had some requests about parking at the new venue. There is no car park, but fortunately the nearest public car park is just a stone’s throw away and is free all day on a Sunday. To get to this car park as you can see from the map, come off of the big Asda roundabout heading for the town centre in the left hand lane. When the right hand lane branches off stay left and carry straight on. On your right you will see a large car park, pull into here and head for the far left hand side to park. Then on foot walk out of the car park at the far left hand corner up a narrow road for about 20 yards and join the main high street [Greengate Street on the map]. If you turn to your right you should be by a shoe repair shop and the Oddfellows Hall is next door with large glass doors. If you have any trouble give me a call on the day and we will guide you in.

START TIME: Enrolment from 9:30am till 10:30am. Deck construction will start at about 11:00am.

FORMAT: The format for the Release tournament is DCITM-sanctioned Lorwyn TM and Morningtide TM 2HG Sealed Deck.

Rules Enforcement Level: Competitive

ENTRY FEE: £20.00 for main event PER TEAM

Cost of entry includes one (1) Lorwyn TM tournament pack, one (1) Lorwyn TM booster and three (3) Morningtide TM boosters.

PRIZES: As per Wizards of the Coast event prize structure.

SIDE EVENTS: Lorwyn TM and Morningtide TM mixed Booster Draft side events available all day long.

ENTRY FEE: £8.00 for Booster Drafts (12 Boosters as prizes split 5/3/2/2)

TO PRE-REGISTER FOR AN EVENT:

Send an e-mail to this address: stephen DOT avann AT ntlworld DOT com with your FULL NAME and DCI NUMBER (If you have one) BEFORE 5:30PM on the FRIDAY NIGHT before the events, as this is the last time that I will check my e-mail before the tournament. Alternatively I can be contacted on my mobile from 6:30pm until 10pm on the following number: 07989201808. Please don’t try to phone me before 6:30pm as I will be busy.