Announcements

THE LEAD - Wilds of Eldraine on MTGO Today!​

Our return to the fairy-tale plane of Eldraine is here – Wilds of Eldraine events and products will be live on Magic Online today at 10 a.m. Pacific time (17:00 UTC)! Check out our traditional set article for information on a ton of new initiatives (we’ll go into deeper detail on a few below).

The Deck Brewer’s Pass​

Our first offer of All-Access at a set’s launch – it's a big deal and a great deal!

The sooner you buy the Pass, the longer you can brew deck ideas with (almost) every card in MTGO – including Wilds of Eldraine & Wilds of Eldraine Commander!

$20 USD gets you All-Access until next Wednesday, September 13th at 10:00 a.m. PT. Full details are available here.

Anime Borderless Bundles​

Featuring whimsical illustrations by Japanese artists, 20 cards on the Enchanted Tales bonus sheet have been given an anime makeover!

Each of our Anime Borderless Bundles will sell for $19.99 USD starting today in the MTGO Store.

Event Updates​

Limited​

Limited players, we haven’t forgotten about you. We’ve boosted prizes in our Core Limited events:

• Draft League: +1 booster per prize level
• Elimination Draft Queue and Competitive Sealed League: +33% prizes at top

Also, the Friendly Sealed League has morphed to 2 stages of three matches after a successful experiment last set. Costs and prizes have been adjusted – see the MTGO Limited Events page for details.

Finally, Limited Challenge events have trimmed their entry cost from 40 Event Tickets to 35.

Constructed​

There’s a new prize structure for our most popular Challenge event on weekends, Saturday’s Modern Challenge! The Extra Large structure reaches down to 96th place and prizes are higher across the board. Our Preliminary and Challenge page has all the details.

Even More​

We’re not done – check out the article for details on these items

• Commander Gauntlet and the shift in events for New Players
• Commander Decks, Booster Fun, a handful of Unfinity cards, a Treasure Chest update, and more
  • NOTE: Changes were made to “Name-Sticker” Goblin after original publication.
  • Additional Note 9/5: "Name-Sticker" Goblin will be banned in all formats until its additional text can be added - current plan is September 13. The card will still be available in Treasure Chests from launch.

MTGO UI Improvements​

On top of all of that, our new Associate Product Manager, Aaron Penfold, has his own article demonstrating some of the quality-of-life improvements we implemented following last week's downtime. This includes:

• Improved event filtering on the Home Scene and in the Constructed Play Lobby
• Right-clicking a Commander to see how many times it’s been cast this game
• Shifts in timer location and in how Atraxa, Grand Unifier works
• Choosing favorite lands for Limited and Constructed (#Yes!!!)

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MTGO BROADCASTS​

The Super League is Back – Wednesdays at 1pm PT​

One of Magic Online’s most popular streams is back – Super League Season 1 continues every Wednesday at 1 p.m. PT (4 p.m. ET / 20:00 UTC). Catch all the action at twitch.tv/officialmagiconline or twitch.tv/anzidmtg. 16 Magic: The Gathering celebrities will compete over 12 weeks to determine who reigns supreme in the ever-evolving Modern format.

In Week 1, Jim Davis swept his pod. while YungDingo took three matches to advance to the upper bracket – one step away from the Top 8. Javier Dominguez and Mason Clark fared worse, so they head to the lower bracket looking to avoid elimination in their next appearance.

Week 2 features current Magic: The Gathering World Champion Nathan Steuer, 3-time top finisher Simon Nielsen, and maestros of coverage Corey Baumeister and Carmen Klomparens.

Some others competing in upcoming weeks include Hall of Famer Reid Duke, kanister, AspiringSpike, plus Gavin Verhey from Wizards of the Coast.

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PREMIER PLAY​

Two Super Qualifiers This Weekend​

One awesome way to take advantage of your Deck Brewer’s Pass is to enter a Super Qualifier event this weekend! Ready to take on a field full of Legacy lovers and Modern maestros? Eight invitations to the first round of tabletop Regional Championships in 2024 are at stake.

On Saturday, it’s the Legacy Super Qualifier. Then on Sunday, it’s the Modern Super Qualifier! These tournaments each start at 7 a.m. PT (14:00 UTC).

Each Super Qualifier’s entry options are 40 Event Tickets, 400 Play Points, or 40 MOCS Season 3 Qualifier Points. The Top 4 finishers in each event earn seats at the RC round that starts in January and prizes pay out to the Top 128!

Click the Premier Play Information link at the top of this Blog for full details. For more details on tabletop Regional Championships, visit magic.gg.

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ALTERNATE PLAY​

Here’s a look at the schedule of events coming up between now and The Lost Caverns of Ixalan®. Each description mentions whether or not the Draft is Phantom – cards won’t be added to players’ collections in Phantom events. All transitions take place at 10:00 a.m. PT (17:00 UTC) unless otherwise noted.

• Today-September 20 – Wilds of Eldraine will be the focus. Its Best-of-One League will run exclusively during these dates.
• September 20-27 – While the MTGO team is at Magic Con Las Vegas, the game will celebrate the final run of the Magic 30 Cube. (Phantom)
• September 27-October 4 – Designer John Terrill is bringing back his CubeCon Cartographia Cube with updates to its land-focused play experience. Look for his article on September 26. (Phantom)
• October 4-18 – The current version of the Vintage Cube returns here, but it's getting the Supreme treatment - pick 2 cards from a pack, discard the pack, pick 2 from a different pack, etc. The power levels of these decks are Off. The. Charts! (Phantom)
• October 18-25 – To kick off Spooky Season, it’s Innistrad Chaos Draft! (Phantom)
• October 25-November 1 – We’re lining up something spooky for Halloween week, but it’s not ready to talk about yet ...
• November 1-8 – Let's kick Wilds of Eldraine draft up a notch and give it the Supreme treatment too! (Phantom)
• November 8-14 – There’s something even cooler in the works here – more details closer to this time.

Vintage Cube Wraps Up Tomorrow​

This iteration of Magic Online’s most popular format – Vintage Cube – closes up shop soon. Get your last matches in before entries close tomorrow at 10 a.m. PT (17:00 UTC).

Creative Director Ryan Spain details the suite of updates to the Cube and his thinking behind the changes in this article.

The full Cube card list and change list can be viewed on this page.

Entry options for this Phantom event (your choice – League or single-elimination Queue) are the customary 10 Event Tickets or 100 Play Points. See you in the Cube!

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WEEKLY UPDATES​

Redemption Corner​

We’ve updated our Redemption page with new quantity percentages – we are now completely sold out of Dominaria United regular sets.

For those who will be collecting sets of Wilds of Eldraine, you can circle Wednesday, October 4 as our anticipated on-sale date.

Information on remaining stock of March of the Machine (regular and foil), Phyrexia: All Will Be One (regular) and The Brothers' War (regular) can be found on that link above.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, all new orders of Redemption Tokens are non-refundable!

Freeform with Commander Now Available​

We’re particularly excited with our newest game mode – Freeform with Commander!

Check out Ryan Spain’s article describing the how, what, and why of this wild new play mode, then give it a shot!

Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live – Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part Magic Online – check out Ryan Spain’s article to learn the why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.

NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 3, Vintage and Pauper Challenges are never pre-empted.
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.

LIMITED

• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff.
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff.

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 a.m.		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m.		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		96-Player Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

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PATCH NOTES – September 5, 2023​

• Loamcaster Faun and Liberated Livestock will be implemented, completing the Virtue and Valor deck one day earlier than originally announced.

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NEXT SCHEDULED DOWNTIME – November 8, 9 a.m. to Noon PT​

After tomorrow’s downtime, the next scheduled maintenance will be Wednesday, November 8 from 9 a.m. to noon PT (16:00-19:00 UTC). This is to support the release of The Lost Caverns of Ixalan®.

 

THE LEAD​

Tune in to the MOCS Season 2 Showcase This Saturday!​

Tune in as eight of Magic Online's best players compete for their share of $70,000 and two invitations to the 2024 World Championship! Headlining the field are former Rivals League members Sebastian Pozzo and Sam Rolph, as well as 2-time Pro Tour Top 8 competitor Jesse Hampton.

The broadcast begins this Saturday, August 26, at 10 a.m. Pacific (17:00 UTC/19:00 CEST/02:00 Sunday JST) on twitch.tv/magic.

Tannon Grace and former MPL member Gavin Thompson-Exner enter the commentary booth, joining Carmen Handy and Haiyue Yue to call all the action in Vintage Cube and Legacy!

Learn more about the Showcase in this Viewers Guide article.

Vintage Cube 64-Player Elimination Events Start Friday!​

To fill the gap between qualifying seasons for Premier players, we present a special treat – 64-Player Vintage Cube Single Elimination Draft tournaments.

Draft Vintage Cube once, win your pod, then draft Vintage Cube again with big prizes on the line.

These events will run around the clock at varying intervals starting this Friday, August 25 until the release of Wilds of Eldraine on September 5. Events will appear in the client to join starting Wednesday morning around 10 a.m. PT.

Here are the details:

64-Player Vintage Cube Elimination Draft

Location: Limited Play Lobby -> Premier Events

Entry Options: 15 Event Tickets or 150 Play Points

Number of Players: 64 minimum, 64 maximum (event will wait up to 15 minutes after start time to fill)

Format: Vintage Cube Draft, then three 50-minute single elimination rounds. Players who finish 3-0 draft again in a similar fashion. This event is Phantom – cards opened will not be added to Collections.

Prizes:

Match Wins	Play Points	Treasure Chests	Season 3 Qualifier Points
6	500	50	24
5	350	35	12
4	300	20	6
3	150	10	3
2	150	5	1

Schedule for Week 1 (all times Pacific – local time will appear when events are added to game):

• Friday 8/25 – midnight (pre-empting Limited Prelim), 5am, 9am, 1pm, 7pm
• Saturday 8/26 – 5am, 7am, 9am, 11am, 1pm, 5pm, 7:30pm, 10pm
• Sunday 8/27 – 5am, 7am, 9am, 11am, 1pm, 5pm, 7:30pm, 10pm
• Monday 8/28 – 1am, 5am, 10am, 3:30pm, 5:30 pm, 7:30pm
• Tuesday 8/29 - midnight (overwriting Limited Prelim), 5am, 8am, 12pm, 3:30pm, 5:30pm, 7:30pm, 9:30pm
• Wednesday 8/30 – 1am
  • More events will be added following the downtime on 8/30

Vintage Cube Continues Through September 6​

Magic Online’s most popular format is back – Vintage Cube – to support this weekend’s MOCS Season 2 Showcase event! We have also extended these events by one day to enable three full weeks in all – the close time is Wednesday, September 6 at 10 a.m. PT (17:00 UTC).

Creative Director Ryan Spain details the suite of updates to the Cube and his thinking behind the changes in this article.

The full Cube card list and change list can be viewed on this page.

Entry options for this Phantom event (your choice – League or single-elimination Queue) are the customary 10 Event Tickets or 100 Play Points. See you in the Cube!

Wilds of Eldraine on MTGO Article Next Tuesday​

Our return to the fairy-tale plane of Eldraine will be chronicled in a MTGO.com article that will go up alongside next week’s Blog – be sure to check it out!

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PREMIER PLAY​

Schedule for Rest of 2023 is Live​

The Premier Play schedule for the remainder of 2023, including events that qualify for the Regional Championship round in the first quarter of 2024 (feeding the second Pro Tour in 2024), is now available at this link.

Standard Preliminaries Are Back!​

Because Standard is the rotating MOCS format for the current season, we have added Preliminary events to the Weekly Schedule. They will be held at the following times:

Day	Time (PT)	Time (UTC)
Wednesday**	9:00 a.m.	16:00
Thursday	5:00 p.m.	Midnight*
Monday	4:00 a.m.	11:00
Monday	9:00 p.m.	04:00*
Tuesday	5:00 p.m.	Midnight*

*indicates next-day

** This event won’t run on weeks with Wednesday downtime

Like other Constructed Preliminaries, the entry option for these four-round events is 20 Event Tickets or 200 Play Points – full details can be found here.

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WEEKLY UPDATES​

Commander Masters on MTGO!​

Check out our latest set article to get all the ins and outs of Commander Masters (CMM)! Get all the info on:

• CMM Draft Leagues (Keeper and Phantom), which run until downtime on August 30.
• Store offerings, including the stunning Unfinity land bundles (only available for a month) and CMM Boosters & its powerful Commander Decks
• Treasure Chest updates

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ on MTGO​

Check out this article for the scoop on everything on offer:

• Art Bundles and other items
  • Note: LTR Bundles will continue to be sold until September 5
• Event updates, including special prize structures
• Jumpstart’s return as a New Player experience

Redemption Corner​

We’ve updated our Redemption page with new quantity percentages – we are now completely sold out of Dominaria United regular sets.

Information on remaining stock of March of the Machine (regular and foil), Phyrexia: All Will Be One (regular) and The Brothers' War (regular) can be found on that link above.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, all new orders of Redemption Tokens are non-refundable!

Freeform with Commander Now Available​

We’re particularly excited with our newest game mode – Freeform with Commander!

Check out describing the how, what, and why of this wild new play mode, then give it a shot! And what better way to try out cards in a new format than ...

Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live – Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part Magic Online – check out Ryan Spain’s article to learn the why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.

NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 3, Vintage and Pauper Challenges are never pre-empted.
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.

LIMITED

• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 a.m.		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m.		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

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NEXT SCHEDULED DOWNTIME – August 30, 9 a.m. to Noon PT​

After Thursday’s downtime, the next scheduled maintenance will be Wednesday, August 30 from 9 a.m. to noon PT (16:00-19:00 UTC). This is to support the release of Wilds of Eldraine.

 

Thank you for your patience on the issue with the game reinstalling multiple times per week. This is a confirmed bug in Windows 10 with ClickOnce apps. Microsoft is rolling out a fix that will take up to 24 hours to reach all users worldwide.

A clean reinstall of MTGO shouldn't be needed once the fix is applied. A Windows reboot may speed up resolution.

 

THE LEAD​

Commander Masters Live on MTGO!​

Check out our latest set article to get all the ins and outs of Commander Masters (CMM) before it goes on sale this Thursday following downtime! Get all the info on:

• CMM Draft Leagues (Keeper and Phantom), which run until the downtime on August 30.
• Store offerings, including the stunning Unfinity land bundles (only available for a month) and CMM Boosters & its powerful Commander Decks
• Treasure Chest updates
• Alternate Play, featuring Vintage Cube starting August 16 and the long-awaited return of 64-player single-elimination drafts
• Technical improvements – including smaller download size and a new feature for streamers

Changes to Banned & Restricted List Live on MTGO​

As announced yesterday, the two unbannings have been applied to Magic Online play. They are:

• Preordain unbanned in Modern
• Mind’s Desire unbanned in Legacy

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PREMIER PLAY​

It's Showcase Challenge Weekend – With Increased Prizes!​

A new MOCS season is underway, so it’s time to qualify the first players for the next round of Showcase Qualifiers in December.

It takes 40 Season 3 Qualifier Points to enter a Showcase Challenge. The Top 8 finishers in each event earn a Championship Entry Token for the event’s format plus earn Leaderboard Points toward an At-Large berth in the next Showcase!

Due to the growing popularity of these events over the past year, we have increased the prize pool for Showcase Challenges starting with this season – prizes now go down to 128th place! The increases are:

• Regular full set for players finishing in 9th-16th places
• Regular full set for players who finish the Swiss rounds with an X-2 record (only 2 match losses)
  • The sets for X-2 will be granted by Customer Support in the week following the event
• Prizes for 33rd-64th places increased to 200 Play Points and 10 Treasure Chests
• Prizes for 65th-128th places added – 150 Play Points and 5 Treasure Chests

Here are the dates and times for this weekend’s events:

DATE	TIME (PT)	TIME (UTC)	EVENT
Saturday, August 12	8:00 a.m.	15:00	Modern Showcase Challenge
Sunday, August 13	6:00 a.m.	13:00	Pioneer Showcase Challenge
Saturday, August 19	6:00 a.m.	13:00	Standard Showcase Challenge
Sunday, August 20	8:00 a.m.	15:00	Legacy Showcase Challenge

For more information on these events, click the Premier Play Information link at the top of the Blog.

Prize Increases for Super Qualifiers & Retroactive Grant​

We are also boosting prize support for the lower places of Super Qualifier events starting with Season 3! The increases are:

• 33rd-64th places – 400 Play Points & 10 Treasure Chests (a boost of 200 PP)
• 65th-128th places – 200 Play Points & 5 Treasure Chests (a boost of 100 PP & 5 TCs)

Customer Support will be granting the difference in prize to those who finished 33rd-128th in Super Qualifiers so far this season (July 30 Modern, August 5 Limited, and August 6 Limited) later today.

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ALTERNATE PLAY​

Chaos Draft Starts Tomorrow​

The theory goes that putting 50-plus different boosters into a grab bag and drafting can lead to Limited chaos. So this week’s alternate play format is Chaos Draft! The entry options for both are 10 Event Tickets or 100 Play Points for the usual three-match League.

Here’s the full pool of boosters available in the draft – only one copy of each booster will appear in a pod, so only 24 different packs will be opened in the pod.

Adventures in the Forgotten Realms, Aether Revolt, Alara Reborn, Apocalypse, Avacyn Restored, Betrayers of Kamigawa, The Brothers' War, Champions of Kamigawa, Conflux, Dark Ascension, Darksteel, Dominaria, Dominaria United, Dragon's Maze, Dragons of Tarkir, Eldritch Moon, Eventide, Fate Reforged, Future Sight, Gatecrash, Guildpact, Guilds of Ravnica, Hour of Devistation, Ikoria, Innistrad, Innistrad: Crimson Vow, Innistrad: Midnight Hunt, Ixalan, Judgement, Kaladesh, Kaldheim, Kamigawa: Neon Destiny, Khans of Tarkir, Legions, Lorwyn, March of the Machine, Mirrodin, Mirrodin Besieged, Modern Horizons, Modern Horizons 2, Morningtide, New Phyrexia, Oath of the Gatewatch, Phyrexia: All Will Be One, Ravnica Allegiance, Ravnica: City of Guilds, Return to Ravnica, Rise of the Eldrazi, Rivals of Ixalan, Scourge, Shadows over Innistrad, Shards of Alara, Streets of New Capenna, Strixhaven: School of Mages, Theros, Theros Beyond Death, Throne of Eldraine, Time Spiral, Torment, Urza's Legacy, Urza's Saga, Visions, War of the Spark, Worldwake, Zendikar, Zendikar Rising

Upcoming Schedule​

Here is the schedule of upcoming alternate play offerings on MTGO between now and the release of Wilds of Eldraine in September:

• August 9-16 – It's time to dip into the Grab Bag with the return of Chaos Draft. (Phantom, see above)
• August 16-September 5 – Vintage Cube is back for a three-week run to support the Season 2 MOCS Showcase on August 26 (Phantom). Ryan Spain’s article detailing this session’s Cube updates will go live alongside the Blog next Tuesday. But we have an extra trick up our sleeve this time:

The Return of 64-Player Single-Elimination Drafts – with Vintage Cube​

We have a two-weekend gap of Premier Play at the end of August and the beginning of September, so we’re bringing back an old favorite – 64-Player Single-Elimination Draft events!

Draft Vintage Cube once, win your pod, then draft Vintage Cube again with big prizes on the line.

We’ll have exact scheduling and prize details in a couple weeks, but we will run these tournaments every 4-6 hours from Friday, August 25 through Monday, September 4 – so mark your calendar!

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WEEKLY UPDATES​

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ on MTGO​

Check out this article for the scoop on everything on offer:

• Art Bundles and other items
  • Note: LTR Bundles will continue to be sold until September 5
• Event updates, including special prize structures
• Jumpstart’s return as a New Player experience

Redemption Corner – DMU Returns​

We’ve updated our Redemption page with new quantity percentages – this includes a limited re-stock of Dominaria United available today. That set was the first under our new system, so we were conservative about how many to hold onto to cover possible issues. Fortunately, we’ve learned a bunch over this year, so we are able to put the last amounts held back on sale.

Information on remaining stock of March of the Machine (regular and foil), Phyrexia: All Will Be One (regular) and The Brothers' War (regular) can be found on that link above.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, all new orders of Redemption Tokens are non-refundable!

Freeform with Commander Now Available​

We’re particularly excited with our newest game mode – Freeform with Commander!

Check out Ryan Spain’s article describing the how, what, and why of this wild new play mode, then give it a shot! And what better way to try out cards in a new format than ...

Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live – Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part Magic Online – check out Ryan Spain’s article to learn the why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.

NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 3, Vintage and Pauper Challenges are never pre-empted.
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.
  

LIMITED

• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 a.m.		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

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PATCH NOTES – August 9, 2023​

• Sauron’s Ransom and other cards that make face-down piles will correctly not show white borders on cards.
• Minds Aglow will correctly function if a player concedes during resolution.

NEXT SCHEDULED DOWNTIME – August 30, 9 a.m. to Noon PT​

After Thursday’s downtime, the next scheduled maintenance will be Wednesday, August 30 from 9 a.m. to noon PT (16:00-19:00 UTC). This is to support the release of Wilds of Eldraine.

 

We have applied the unbans announced today - Preordain is now legal in Modern and Mind's Desire is now legal in Legacy. https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/announcements/august-7-2023-banned-and-restricted-announcement

 

MTGO is down for scheduled maintenance - it is expected to last until 12 noon Pacific time (19:00 UTC).

 

THE LEAD​

Commander Masters Live on MTGO Thursday!​

Check out our latest set article to get all the ins and outs of Commander Masters (CMM) before it goes on sale this Thursday following downtime! Get all the info on:

• CMM Draft Leagues (Keeper and Phantom)
• Store offerings, including the stunning Unfinity land bundles (only available for a month) and CMM Boosters & its powerful Commander Decks
• Treasure Chest updates
• Alternate Play, featuring Vintage Cube starting August 16 and the long-awaited return of 64-player single-elimination drafts
• Technical improvements – including smaller download size and a new feature for streamers

Downtime Thursday Morning PT​

Our next scheduled maintenance will take place this Thursday, August 3rd from 9 a.m. to 12 noon Pacific time (16:00-19:00). Commander Masters Leagues as well as Store and Treasure Chests updates will be available immediately following maintenance.

Freeform with Commander Now Available​

We’re particularly excited with our newest game mode – Freeform with Commander!

Check out Ryan Spain’s article describing the how, what, and why of this wild new play mode, then give it a shot! And what better way to try out cards in a new format than ...

---

PREMIER PLAY​

LTR Limited Super Qualifiers This Weekend​

The last eight MTGO invitations to this fall’s round of Regional Championships will be given away in a pair of Super Qualifiers this weekend featuring The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ Sealed Deck with Top 8 Draft.

The first Limited Super Qualifier starts at 3 a.m. PT (10:00 UTC) on Saturday, August 5. The second Super Q kicks off at 7 a.m. PT (14:00 UTC) on Sunday, August 6.

Because we are utilizing LTR product, each Super Qualifier’s entry options are 50 Event Tickets, 500 Play Points, or 40 MOCS Season 3 Qualifier Points. The Top 4 finishers in each tournament earn seats at the RC round this fall and prizes pay out to the Top 128! The prizes are enhanced as well:

Place	Play Points	Treasure Chests	LTR Full Set	LTR Boosters	Leaderboard Points
1	1000	200	1 foil	3	10
2	1000	200	1 foil	3	9
3-4	900	150	1 regular	3	8
5-8	750	100	1 regular	3	7
9-16	500	50	--	3	--
17-32	500	25	--	3	--
33-64	250	10	--	3	--
65-128	250	--	--	3	--

Click the Premier Play Information link at the top of this Blog for full details. For more details on tabletop Regional Championships, visit magic.gg.

---

ALTERNATE PLAY​

Magic 30 Cube Ends at Downtime​

You still have time to explore the Magic 30 Cube, but only until Thursday’s downtime.

There will be the usual League Draft option as well as the Single Elimination Queue. The entry options for both are 10 Event Tickets or 100 Play Points.

---

WEEKLY UPDATES​

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ on MTGO​

Check out this article for the scoop on everything on offer:

• Art Bundles and other items
  • Note: LTR Bundles will continue to be sold until September 5
• Event updates, including special prize structures
• Jumpstart’s return as a New Player experience

---

Redemption Corner​

Redemption Tokens for March of the Machine, Phyrexia: All Will Be One and The Brothers' War remain available – except for The Brothers’ War Premium (foil) and Phyrexia: All Will Be One Premium (foil), which are now completely sold out. We’ve updated our Redemption page with that information.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, all new orders of Redemption Tokens are non-refundable!

For more details on the redemption program, click here.

---

Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live – Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part Magic Online – check out Ryan Spain’s article to learn the why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

---

Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.

NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 3, Vintage and Pauper Challenges are never pre-empted.
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.
  

LIMITED

• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 a.m.		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m.		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

---

PATCH NOTES – August 3, 2023​

• A number of issues tied to Animatou’s Augury will be fixed
• Forth Eorlingas! will work correctly when the opponent damages its controller mid-combat
• Coalition Relic will correctly not provide mana if no charge counters have been removed
• Relic of Sauron’s mana ability will correctly not use the stack
• Change the Equation will no longer be able to counter Magma Opus or other high-cost red/green spells
• Myriad issues with the Myriad ability will be fixed (creatures tapped and attacking, creating tokens in multiplayer games, etc)
• Certain effects that grant their controller hexproof or protection (Blossoming Calm, Seht’s Tiger, The Stasis Coffin, and Teferi’s Protection) will work as expected
• Wernog, Rider’s Chaplain will correctly give its controller's opponents who investigate Clue tokens.
• Tiebreaker values in Scheduled Events will be hidden
  • We are actively working on the underlying display issues and hope to restore tiebreaker values soon
• The scroll icon of Lesson cards will display as expected

---

NEXT SCHEDULED DOWNTIME – August 30, 9 a.m. to Noon PT​

After Thursday’s downtime, the next scheduled maintenance will be Wednesday, August 30 from 9 a.m. to noon PT (16:00-19:00 UTC). This is to support the release of Wilds of Eldraine.

 

Hello Magic Online fans! A packed late-summer lineup is headed your way, starting with Commander Masters (set code CMM) which goes on sale one day prior to tabletop – this Thursday, August 3rd.

The downtime to add this set to MTGO will also take place on Thursday from 9 a.m. to approximately 12 noon Pacific time (16:00-19:00 UTC). Be sure to follow our social media outlets (Discord, Twitter/X, and more) to keep real-time tabs on this release. That means Leagues will be live and items in the Store will be available as soon as we are up!

The month of August features a number of high-power Commander decks, some out-of-this world Bundles, and the return of Vintage Cube …

---

How to Collect and Play Commander Masters​

Boosters and Events​

Each 20-card CMM booster pack will sell for just $4.99 USD in the MTGO Store starting after downtime on Thursday. There are two rares and/or mythics per pack, plus a non-common of any rarity and a premium foil of any rarity.

Our experiment with four-player, single-game pods continues with tweaks. The Phantom League will remain at 4 Event Tickets, plus we are dropping the price of the Keeper League from 15 Event Tickets to 12!

Like previous multiplayer leagues, prizes are based on how many votes each player receives from the game. Each player gets one vote, and the game’s winner receives two bonus votes for themself – a maximum of five votes can be earned by one player. Votes are cast as players are eliminated or when the game ends, though the decision can be deferred if players want to watch the rest of the action before choosing.

These Leagues will run from the end of downtime on Thursday until our next downtime on August 30. Here are the event details:

Commander Masters Keeper Draft League

Entry Options: 12 Event Tickets, 3 Commander Masters (CMM) boosters and 2 Event Tickets, or 120 Play Points

Prizes (based on player votes with two bonus votes to the game winner):

• 5 votes: 4 CMM boosters + 140 Play Points
• 4 votes: 4 CMM boosters + 80 Play Points
• 3 votes: 2 CMM boosters + 80 Play Points
• 2 votes: 1 CMM booster + 80 Play Points
• 1 vote: 60 Play Points

Commander Legends Phantom Draft League

Entry Options: 4 Event Tickets or 40 Play Points

Draft Product: 3 Commander Masters boosters – cards opened in Phantom events aren’t added to players’ Collections

Prizes (based on player votes with one bonus vote to the game winner):

• 5 votes: 1 CMM booster + 90 Play Points
• 4 votes: 1 CMM booster + 70 Play Points
• 3 votes: 1 CMM booster + 50 Play Points
• 2 votes: 40 Play Points
• 1 vote: 20 Play Points

Don’t forget – our new Freeform with Commander room is the perfect place to play with your CMM keeper draft deck in a casual setting once your League match is complete!

The Commander Masters Draft Format​

For those of you who just enjoyed Commander Legends draft, Commander Masters draft will look very similar: draft 2 cards at a time, build a 60-card deck including either a single commander or two with the partner ability, play only cards with your commanders’ color identity, multiple copies of cards are OK, and each player starts with 40 life.

An additional wrinkle unique to CMM Limited is that colorless & single-color legendary creatures have the Partner ability stapled onto them – keep this in mind during the draft! As a last resort, the Prismatic Piper is an available partner if you are short a color (or two) in the Command Zone.

---

Commander Masters Commander Decks​

Four heavy-hitting themes are covered in CMM’s suite of Commander decks – Slivers, planeswalkers, Eldrazi, and enchantments! Each deck is $39.99 USD in the MTGO Store and includes 10 cards that are new to the game plus a strong set of reprints – check out the decklists here. The decks are:

• Eldrazi Unbound (colorless)
• Enduring Enchantments (white-black-green)
• Planeswalker Party (red-blue-white)
• Sliver Swarm (five-color)

---

Booster Fun​

Some groups of art will appear in Treasure Chests and (rarely) within boosters once CMM goes on-sale. These include:

• Extended-Art Rares and Mythics from the Commander decks
• Foil-Etched Legends
• The Legends in Profile
• Borderless Favorites

---

Unfinity Land Bundles​

We have a special treat this month – the space-themed lands from Unfinity land on MTGO for a limited time!

Space-ic Lands​

These cards are anything but basic … even though they are, in fact, basic lands! Choose from either the Atomic Space-ic Land Bundle (with their fancy atomic mana symbols) or the Orbital Space-ic Land Bundle (featuring planets – many of them). Each Bundle contains 10 of each space-ic land type (50 cards in all) and sells for $24.99 USD in the MTGO Store starting Thursday morning.

Atomic Space-ic Lands (left), Orbital Space-ic Lands (right)

Planetary Shocklands​

The stars of these bundles are the Shocklands (Watery Grave, Hallowed Fountain, and friends), each showcasing a gorgeous space scene that pops on the screen. The Planetary Shocklands Bundle consists of one digital copy of each of the 10 Shocklands – choose either Regular or Foil – and sells for $39.99 USD.

Regular Planetary Shocklands (top) and Foil Planetary Shocklands (bottom)

Perfect for blinging all of your Commander decks in one purchase, get it before it’s gone! Like previous Bundles, these cards will not appear in Treasure Chests and will leave the Store with the release of Wilds of Eldraine on September 5th.

---

Treasure Chest Update​

Treasure Chests will update with Thursday’s downtime – but be sure to watch our Twitter/X (@MagicOnline) and our Discord channel to confirm this before opening Chests.

Chests will look a little different this month due to the sheer number of alternate-art treatments available in Commander Masters. The Curated slot will have a smaller list than normal compared to the TC-Only slot. All of the foil-etched CMM cards and extended-art Commander will be in TC-Only, while the profile, frame break, and borderless favorites will appear In the Curated slot.

Also, March of the Machine regular and foil sets have been added to the Curated slot!

For full details on the changes to come, check out the Treasure Chest information page.

The next Treasure Chest update takes place with Wilds of Eldraine on September 5.

---

Commander Corner​

We have made further progress against the Commander backlog during this development cycle. As with last time, the cards added this time were basically free to us while coding cards for upcoming sets. These will appear in the TC-Only slot.

Additions from Commander Backlog

Astral Dragon (CLB)

Creative Technique (C21)

Deep Gnome Terramancer (CLB)

Imposter Mech (NEC)

Tivit, Seller of Secrets (NCC)

Wall of Mourning (MIC)

---

Magic Online Players Rewards (MOPR) Update​

The September MOPR refresh – based on store and play activity in August – will contain foil versions of the borderless commons and uncommons from Commander Masters – including classics like Sol Ring, Path to Exile, Elvish Mystic, and Vandalblast.

These will only be available for one month, then MOPR switches to Wilds of Eldraine, so don’t miss out!

For more information on earning Player Rewards, click here.

---

Alternate Play Schedule​

Here’s a look at the schedule of events coming up between now and Wilds of Eldraine. Each description mentions whether or not the Draft is Phantom – cards won’t be added to players’ collections in Phantom events.

• August 3-9 – No alternate play – enjoy Commander Masters!
• August 9-16 – It's time to dip into the Grab Bag with the return of Chaos Draft.
• August 16-September 5 – Vintage Cube is back for a three-week run to support the Season 2 MOCS Showcase on August 26 (tv/magic) (Phantom). But we have an extra trick up our sleeve this time:

The Return of 64-Player Single-Elimination Drafts – with Vintage Cube​

We have a two-weekend gap of Premier Play at the end of August and the beginning of September, so we’re bringing back an old favorite – 64-Player Single-Elimination Draft events!

Draft Vintage Cube once, win your pod, then draft Vintage Cube again with big prizes on the line.

We’ll have exact scheduling and prize details in a couple weeks, but we will run these tournaments every 4-6 hours from Friday, August 25 through Monday, September 4 – so mark your calendar!

---

Technical Improvements​

We found a way to get the file size back under control – starting with Thursday’s patch, the installation will be under 500 MB like it was last year.

Also, we’ve added a minor improvement that will appeal to our growing streamer community! After arranging your MTGO windows the way you want them, you can go to the Settings menu (gear icon) and in the top-right corner click the Export button to save a file to your desktop. Then, after a fresh installation, you can click the Import button to load that file and have the client position the zones the way you prefer.

---

Odds and Ends​

• Commander Masters is a non-redeemable set and is not included in New Account products.
• There are no avatars associated with this set. Prestige Avatars for LTR will be provided shortly after Wilds of Eldraine begins in September.

We’ll see you on the battlefield!

The Magic Online Team

---

P.S. Join Our Team​

The game team of Magic Online has been growing over the last several months, and we’re looking to expand some more! Check out Daybreak’s careers page – most jobs are found by filtering the location to Washington, though you can apply if you are (or can become) legally able to work from Washington state, California, Texas, or New York.

All images can be seen here: https://www.mtgo.com/news/mtgo-cmm-812023

 

THE LEAD​

Save the Date – Commander Masters Article Next Tuesday​

Commander Masters will be added to Magic Online during our next downtime on August 3. We’ll spell out all the details on that set and some other special Store offerings when the set article next Tuesday, August 1st at 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC).

---

Congratulations MOCS Season 2 Showcase Qualifiers​

The MTGO team would like to congratulate these 8 players who have qualified for the next MOCS Showcase event (Vintage Cube and Legacy formats, twitch.tv/magic) on Saturday, August 26th.

Backoff	Phill_Hellmuth
Beenew	Qua4tre
Deemagth	sebastianpozzo
N01	slaxx

---

Freeform with Commander Now Available​

We’re particularly excited with our newest game mode – Freeform with Commander!

Check out Ryan Spain's article describing the how, what, and why of this wild new play mode, then give it a shot! And what better way to try out cards in a new format than ...

---

ALTERNATE PLAY​

Magic 30 Cube Returns Tomorrow​

To celebrate Pro Tour Barcelona at MagicCon, we’re continuing our celebration of the 30th year of Magic: the Gathering with another round of Magic 30 Cube!

Cube Designer Carmen Handy has thrown in quite the wrinkle for this iteration – in the spirit of the events of March of the Machine and its Aftermath, all planeswalkers have been removed from the Cube!

Card In	Card Out
Ledger Shredder Nissa, Resurgent Animist Mirran Crusader Cemetery Illuminator The Cruelty of Gix Outpost Siege Terror of the Peaks Ephara, God of the Polis Third Path Iconoclast Lorehold Command Nashi, Moon's Legacy Elven Chorus Emeria Angel Ancient Copper Dragon Bearscape Gisela, the Broken Blade Bruna, the Fading Light	Jace, Vryn's Prodigy Nissa, Vastwood Seer Gideon Blackblade Teferi, Master of Time Liliana, Death's Majesty Jaya, Fiery Negotiator Sarkhan, the Dragonspeaker Venser, the Sojourner Ral, Storm Conduit Ajani Vengeant Tamiyo, Compleated Sage Nissa, Ascended Animist Archangel Elspeth Chandra, Hope's Beacon Wrenn and Realmbreaker Ajani Goldmane Galepowder Mage

There will be the usual League Draft option as well as the Single Elimination Queue. The entry options for both are 10 Event Tickets or 100 Play Points.

---

PREMIER PLAY​

Modern Super Qualifier This Sunday​

The pros take on the Modern metagame at Pro Tour Barcelona on Friday and Saturday. Then on Sunday, a Modern Super Qualifier will reward four MTGO players who solve that metagame the best with Regional Championship invitations.

The Super Qualifier begins Sunday, July 30th at 7 a.m. PT (14:00 UTC).

The Super Qualifier’s entry options are 40 Event Tickets, 400 Play Points, or 40 MOCS Season 3 Qualifier Points. The Top 4 finishers earn seats at the RC round this fall and prizes pay out to the Top 128!

Click the Premier Play Information link at the top of this Blog for full details. For more details on tabletop Regional Championships, visit magic.gg.

---

WEEKLY UPDATES​

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ on MTGO​

Check out this article for the scoop on everything on offer:

• Art Bundles and other items
• Event updates, including special prize structures
• Jumpstart’s return as a New Player experience

---

Redemption Corner​

Redemption Tokens for March of the Machine, Phyrexia: All Will Be One and The Brothers' War remain available – except for Phyrexia: All Will Be One Premium (foil), which are now completely sold out. The Brothers War Premium is nearly sold out as well.

We’ve updated our Redemption page with that information.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, all new orders of Redemption Tokens are non-refundable!

For more details on the redemption program, click here.

---

Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live – Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part Magic Online – check out Ryan Spain’s article to learn the why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

---

Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.

NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 3, Vintage and Pauper Challenges are never pre-empted.
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.
  

LIMITED

• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 a.m		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m.		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

---

NEXT SCHEDULED DOWNTIME – August 3, 9 a.m. to Noon PT​

The next scheduled maintenance has been pushed back one day from the original announcement – it will be Thursday, August 3, from 9 a.m. to noon PT (16:00-19:00 UTC). This is to support the release of Commander Masters.

 

We are aware of issues with tiebreaker display in events with a Top 8 cut. To be clear, all final places shown in client are accurate based on calculations on server side. We are investigating and will remove tiebreak displays at next downtime until the root cause is found.

 

THE LEAD​

MOCS Open Weekend – Last Chance to Reach the Showcase!​

We are down to the final weekend of qualification events for the next MOCS Showcase on August 26th. If you haven’t punched your ticket into that elite 8-player event, your last chances to score an invitation will be in this weekend’s MOCS Showcase Opens!

Featuring The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ Sealed Deck with a Top 8 Draft, this is your opportunity to spike a tournament for a big payoff.

In addition to reaching the Champions Showcase (with its $70,000 prize pool and two Worlds invitations), the winner of each Showcase Open is invited to the first Pro Tour of 2024 plus the Regional Championship round this fall feeding that event.

DATE

TIME (PT)

TIME (UTC)

EVENT

2023 SEASON 1 POSTSEASON EVENTS

Saturday, July 22	7:00 a.m.	14:00	MOCS Showcase Open
Sunday, July 23	7:00 a.m.	14:00	MOCS Showcase Open

The final batch of Leaderboard Points are up for grabs in the Opens, and when the weekend ends the two highest finishers on the Leaderboard snag At-Large invites to the Showcase.

NOTE: Because we’re using LTR product for these events, the entry options are 50 Event Tickets or 500 Play Points. Prizes have also increased compared to normal Opens – see this page for details.

Our intrepid team of Digital Event Coordinators will also be on hand inside the game during the Opens to lend a hand if something goes awry. To contact a DEC, click the Chat button in the top-right corner of the Home Scene, choose Create/Join New Chat …, then type in #DEC and press Enter to join the room.

For more information on MTGO Premier Play, click the link at the top of the Blog.

---

Commander Masters on MTGO August 3rd​

Commander Masters will be added to Magic Online during our next downtime on August 3. We’ll spell out all the details on that set and some other special Store offerings when the set article goes live Tuesday, August 1st at 8 a.m. PT (15:00 UTC).

---

Freeform with Commander Now Available​

We’re particularly excited with our newest game mode – Freeform with Commander!

Check out Ryan Spain's article describing the how, what, and why of this wild new play mode, then give it a shot! And what better way to try out cards in a new format than ...

---

All-Access - Now Until July 24th!​

Back by popular demand, All-Access is back in the Magic Online Store. The sooner you purchase it, the longer its benefit works for you! This edition will run until next Monday, July 24th at 10 a.m. PT.

Like the June version, the Mythic Event Token will cost $25.00 USD. July’s version is running a few days longer than usual to support those playtesting for Pro Tour Barcelona, the Modern-format tabletop Premier event that starts July 28.

To use the Mythic Event Token, simply purchase it in the Store, build any legal deck in your chosen format, and enter a game or event. No cards will be added to your collection, but you'll be able to play even if you don't have all the cards in your collection.

There are no Super Qualifiers during this run, so the most any account needs is one Mythic Event Token to get All-Access.

We'll remove all Mythic Event Tokens from accounts and turn off All-Access on July 24. If you’re still competing in a Constructed League when access ends, you’ll be allowed to complete that course.

Note: Just like previous All-Access periods, certain cards (Secret Lair versions, TRANSFORMERS, Battlebond, and old-frame Power Nine) are unavailable. All-Access doesn’t apply to Limited events.

---

ALTERNATE PLAY​

Aether Revolt-Kaladesh Flashback Draft Starts Tomorrow​

Next up for MTGO draft fans, a return to the plane of innovation – Kaladesh! We hope you'll have the energy to play this first-time flashback offering.

The Aether Revolt-Kaladesh Flashback Draft League starts tomorrow at 10 a.m. PT (17:00 UTC). Entry options are 10 Event Tickets, 100 Play Points, or you can enter with 2 Event Tickets combined with either 2 Kaladesh or 2 Aether Revolt boosters.

---

Commander Legends Draft Wraps Tomorrow​

Your chance to try out the revamped Commander Legends Draft Leagues – 4-player draft pods into a single match – ends tomorrow at 10 a.m. PT (17:00 UTC).

Commander Legends booster packs – which each contain 20 cards – will remain in the Store at a reduced price of $4.99 USD, but only until Commander Masters debuts following the next downtime on August 3.

---

Upcoming Schedule​

Here is the lineup of other play formats that will be available between The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ and the release of Commander Masters on August 3rd:

• July 19-26 – We return to the plane of innovation and energy – for the first time (somehow), it's Aether Revolt-Kaladesh Flashback Draft! (Phantom)
• July 26-August 3 – Magic 30 Cube returns for its penultimate run. The Cube’s designer, Carmen Handy, has some extra special surprises in store for this edition.

---

WEEKLY UPDATES​

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ on MTGO​

Check out this article for the scoop on everything on offer:

• Art Bundles and other items
• Event updates, including special prize structures
• Jumpstart’s return as a New Player experience
• Treasure Chest update

---

Redemption Corner​

Redemption Tokens for March of the Machine, Phyrexia: All Will Be One and The Brothers' War remain available – except for Phyrexia: All Will Be One Premium (foil), which are now completely sold out. We’ve updated our Redemption page with that information.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, all new orders of Redemption Tokens are non-refundable!

For more details on the redemption program, click here.

---

Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live – Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part Magic Online – check out Ryan Spain’s article to learn the why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

---

Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.

NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 3, Vintage and Pauper Challenges are never pre-empted.
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.

LIMITED

• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff

---

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 a.m.		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m.		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

---

PATCH NOTES – July 19, 2023​

• Merry, Esquire of Rohan will correctly lose first strike once Equipment is no longer attached to it.
• Peregrin Took will correctly not trigger when Horn of Gondor creates no Human tokens.
• Error messages in the MTGO Store have been made more human-readable.
• URLs in tooltip (hover-over) text have been updated.

---

NEXT SCHEDULED DOWNTIME – Now August 3, 9 a.m. to Noon PT​

The next scheduled maintenance has been pushed back one day – it will be Thursday, August 3, from 9 a.m. to noon PT (16:00-19:00 UTC). This is to support the release of Commander Masters.

• Legal Notices
• Privacy Policy
• Terms of Service
• Photosensitive Warning
• Cookie

 

THE LEAD​

Freeform with Commander Debuts Tomorrow!​

We’re particularly excited to roll out this new feature following tomorrow’s downtime – Freeform with Commander!

Imagine an Open Play room with the ability to use Commanders (with color identity rules in place).

• Perhaps you’re seeking a Duel Commander match with someone who agrees to use that ruleset* – go for it!
• Want to try out Oathbreaker with its Signature Spell variant*? Go for it!
• Maybe you just finished a Commander Legends draft league match (see below) but want to play another game – go for it!
• Wanna make up and test the newest variant using the Command Zone? Go for it!

How is all this possible? Freeform with Commander doesn’t have a Banned List – it's essentially Bring Your Own Ban List.

Check out Ryan Spain’s article describing the how, what, and why of this wild new play mode, then give it a shot! And what better way to try out cards in a new format than ...

*NOTE: Recent rule changes in Duel Commander (removal of Commander damage win condition, etc) and playing Oathbreaker with partners (I.e. more than 2 objects in the Command Zone) are not supported.

---

All-Access - Now Until July 24th!​

Back by popular demand, All-Access is back in the Magic Online Store. The sooner you purchase it, the longer its benefit works for you! This edition will run until Monday, July 24th at 10 a.m. PT.

Like the June version, the Mythic Event Token will cost $25.00 USD. July’s version is running a few days longer than usual to support those playtesting for Pro Tour Barcelona, the Modern-format tabletop Premier event that starts July 28.

To use the Mythic Event Token, simply purchase it in the Store, build any legal deck in your chosen format, and enter a game or event. No cards will be added to your collection, but you'll be able to play even if you don't have all the cards in your collection.

There are no Super Qualifiers during this run, so the most any account needs is one Mythic Event Token to get All-Access.

We'll remove all Mythic Event Tokens from accounts and turn off All-Access on July 24. If you’re still competing in a Constructed League when access ends, you’ll be allowed to complete that course.

Build anything cool and new to you in Commander using All-Access? We want to hear all about it on our Discord’s Commander channel!

Note: Just like previous All-Access periods, certain cards (Secret Lair versions, TRANSFORMERS, Battlebond, and old-frame Power Nine) are unavailable. All-Access doesn’t apply to Limited events.

---

Commander Legends Draft Returns Tomorrow With New Wrinkles!​

It’s time to return to a draft format that got a bad rap on MTGO the first time out – Commander Legends Draft! The set returns for one week only, from the end of tomorrow’s downtime until July 19 at 10 a.m. PT (17:00 UTC).

In the spirit of experimentation, we’re going to try things a different way this time …

First of all, Commander Legends booster packs – which each contain 20 cards – will return to the MTGO Store following downtime at a reduced price of $4.99 USD.

Rather than having 8 players draft together and split into games, we’re trying a 4-player draft pod. To the MTGO team, that experience represents how this format is played now at the kitchen table.

If you need a refresher on the nuances of Commander Legends Draft – draft 2 cards at a time, 60-card minimum including commander(s), duplicates permitted, what The Prismatic Piper is – check out this short Good Morning Magic video from the set’s release.

There will be two Leagues available over the course of this week – Keeper and Phantom. Like the previous iteration, prizes are determined by player votes. Each player gets to vote for their favorite opponent – which is cast when that player is eliminated or at the end of the game – and the game’s winner receives two bonus votes.

Each League course is just one round of play. However, if you play a Keeper match (or have All-Access activated) and had a particularly good experience, you can opt to create a match in the new Freeform with Commander room to play additional games for fun.

Here are the details for the Leagues – we hope you have a great time!

Commander Legends Keeper Draft League

Entry Options: 15 Event Tickets, 3 Commander Legends (CMR) boosters and 2 Event Tickets, or 150 Play Points
Prizes (based on player votes with one bonus vote to the game winner):

• 5 votes: 4 CMR boosters + 100 Play Points
• 4 votes: 3 CMR boosters + 100 Play Points
• 3 votes: 2 CMR boosters + 80 Play Points
• 2 votes: 1 CMR booster + 80 Play Points
• 1 vote: 50 Play Points

Commander Legends Phantom Draft League

Entry Options: 4 Event Tickets or 40 Play Points
Draft Product: 3 Commander Legends boosters – cards opened in Phantom events aren’t added to players’ Collections
Prizes (based on player votes with one bonus vote to the game winner):

• 5 votes: 1 CMR booster + 90 Play Points
• 4 votes: 1 CMR booster + 70 Play Points
• 3 votes: 1 CMR booster + 50 Play Points
• 2 votes: 40 Play Points
• 1 vote: 20 Play Points

---

Store Outage Plus Downtime Tomorrow​

Magic Online will be down for scheduled maintenance tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 12 noon Pacific time (16:00-19:00 UTC).

Additionally, the MTGO Store will not be available for purchases starting 3 hours prior to downtime at 6 a.m. PT (13:00 UTC). The rest of the game will function normally – trade, play, opening packs, etc until downtime, then everything will work normally once downtime concludes.

---

PREMIER PLAY​

MOCS Season 2 Postseason Continues This Weekend!​

It’s time once again to qualify players for the next Magic Online Champions Showcase on August 26th! This weekend, Top 8 finishers from Showcase Challenges and 5-win players from Last Chance events in Pauper and Legacy will battle until one remains as this season’s Showcase Champion for that format.

In addition to reaching the Champions Showcase (with its $70,000 prize pool and two Worlds invitations), the winner of each Showcase Qualifier is invited to the first Pro Tour of 2024 plus the Regional Championship round feeding that event this fall. Leaderboard Points are also on the line as players seek one of two At-Large invites at the end of the postseason.

DATE

TIME (PT)

TIME (UTC)

EVENT

2023 SEASON 2 POSTSEASON EVENTS

Saturday, July 8	8:00 a.m.	15:00	Modern Showcase Qualifier
Sunday, July 9	6:00 a.m.	13:00	Pioneer Showcase Qualifier
Saturday, July 15	8:00 a.m.	15:00	Pauper Showcase Qualifier
Sunday, July 16	8:00 a.m.	15:00	Legacy Showcase Qualifier
Saturday, July 22	7:00 a.m.	14:00	MOCS Showcase Open
Sunday, July 23	7:00 a.m.	14:00	MOCS Showcase Open

If you did not reach the Showcase Qualifier stage, your chance to reach the Showcase will be the weekend of July 22-23 in the Showcase Opens – events featuring The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ Limited where the winner earns a Showcase invitation.

For more information on MTGO Premier Play, click the link at the top of the Blog.

---

Showcase Prestige Avatars for 2023​

We had a fan request to see what avatars are being given to Showcase Qualifier participants.
Look here to see the images: https://www.mtgo.com/news/mtgo-blog-7112023

---

ALTERNATE PLAY​

Supreme Draft: Gold Edition Ends at Downtime​

We’ve got a treat for multicolor aficionados wrapping up tomorrow – it's Supreme Draft: Gold Edition! This Phantom experience starts with a single-player draft. Select two cards, then that pack goes away. Repeat that until you have 36 cards in your pool, build a draft deck, then play up to three matches.

Do you aim for mana fixing or take the best available cards? The choice is yours! Entry options are 10 Event Tickets or 100 Play Points, and prizes are the same as normal Phantom Leagues. Be sure to get your matches in before tomorrow’s downtime.

Each entry will see one booster from each of the following sets (cards won’t be added to Collections):

• Invasion, Planeshift, Apocalypse
• Ravnica: City of Guilds, Guildpact, Dissension
• Return to Ravnica, Gatecrash, Dragon's Maze
• Guilds of Ravnica, Ravnica Allegiance
• Shards of Alara, Conflux, Alara Reborn
• Shadowmoor, Eventide
• Khans of Tarkir
• Streets of New Capenna

---

Upcoming Schedule​

Here is the lineup of other play formats that will be available between The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ and the release of Commander Masters on August 3rd:

• July 12-19 – Commander Legends makes its return to digital draft tables in a very different form! Each League course will consist of a 4-player draft pod, followed by a single game of play. Prizes are still awarded by votes with the game’s winner receiving an extra vote. (Keeper and Phantom)
• July 19-26 – We return to the plane of innovation and energy – for the first time (somehow), it's Aether Revolt-Kaladesh Flashback Draft! (Phantom)
• July 26-August 3 – Magic 30 Cube returns for its penultimate run. The Cube’s designer, Carmen Handy, has some extra special surprises in store for this edition.

---

WEEKLY UPDATES​

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ on MTGO​

Check out this article for the scoop on everything on offer:

• Art Bundles and other items
• Event updates, including special prize structures
• Jumpstart’s return as a New Player experience
• Treasure Chest update
• Alternate Play, including Supreme Draft and Commander Legends in a whole new format

---

Redemption Corner​

Redemption Tokens for March of the Machine, Phyrexia: All Will Be One and The Brothers' War remain available – except for Phyrexia: All Will Be One Premium (foil), which are now completely sold out. We’ve updated our Redemption page with that information.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, all new orders of Redemption Tokens are non-refundable!

For more details on the redemption program, click here.

---

Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live – Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part Magic Online – check out Ryan Spain’s article to learn the why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

---

Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.

NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 3, Vintage and Pauper Challenges are never pre-empted.
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.

LIMITED

• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 am.		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m.		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

---

PATCH NOTES – July 12, 2023​

• Freeform with Commander is now available as a MTGO game mode.
  • Support for the Commander 1v1 format has been removed. Players who still have Commander 1v1 decks can convert them to Freeform with Commander format.
• If a player has multiple Bewitching Leechcrafts on an opponent’s creatures, the game will correctly leave them all tapped unless a +1/+1 counter is removed.
• Clues created by Wernog, Rider’s Chaplain will correctly draw cards.
• Gonti’s Machinations will function correctly in all cases.
• Graveyard order will be selectable for cards leaving a library (Grisly Salvage, Old Stickfingers, Hermit Druid, etc) in formats that care about graveyard order.
• The minimum costs of X spells imposed by Trinisphere will correctly be payable using delve, convoke, and other non-mana payment methods.

---

NEXT SCHEDULED DOWNTIME – August 2, 9 a.m. to Noon PT​

After tomorrow, the next scheduled maintenance is set for Wednesday, August 2, from 9 a.m. to noon PT (16:00-19:00 UTC). This is to support the release of Commander Masters.

 

We're pleased to announce that All-Access will return Wednesday for 2.5 weeks + LTR Win-a-Box Sealed every 2 hours (mostly) around the clock thru July 4th, starting at 3pm PT today - Details:

MTGO All-Access Returns July 5th | Magic: The Gathering Online

Plus Win-a-Box Sealed all long-weekend long!

www.mtgo.com

 

THE LEAD​

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ on MTGO​

Check out this article for the scoop on everything on offer:

• Art Bundles and other items
• Event updates, including special prize structures
  • NEW: Prizes have been increased since initial publication in several LTR Leagues
• Jumpstart’s return as a New Player experience
• Treasure Chest updated
• Alternate Play, including Supreme Draft and Commander Legends in a whole new format

---

Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live – Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part Magic Online – check out Ryan Spain’s article to learn the why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

---

PREMIER PLAY​

MOCS Season 2 Ending Soon & MOCS Season 3 First Look​

The current season’s Qualifier Points expire next week. These are the remaining events that accept Season 2 QPs:

• The LTR Limited Qualifier this Friday, June 30
• The last round of Showcase Challenges
  • Pauper/Legacy this weekend: July 1-2
• The Last Chance events July 2-5
  • Additional events will be created for Pauper Last Chance (see Last Chance item below)

Also, we've updated the Premier Play Calendar (link at top of Blog) with dates through August for the first part of Season 3. The first event is a Modern Super Qualifier on Sunday, July 30 (the day of Pro Tour Barcelona’s Top 8).

---

LTR Limited Qualifier Friday​

Your next chance to earn a seat at this fall’s round of Regional Championships comes up this weekend. The name of the game this weekend is The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ Sealed Deck with Top 8 Draft.

The Limited Qualifier begins at 7 a.m. PT (14:00 UTC) this Friday, June 30.

Each Qualifier’s entry option is 40 MOCS Season 2 Qualifier Points. The Top 2 finishers in this tournament earn seats at the RC round that starts in late September, and prizes pay out to the Top 64!

Click the Premier Play Information link at the top of this Blog for full details. For more details on tabletop Regional Championships, visit magic.gg.

---

Final MOCS Showcase Challenge Events of Season 2 This Weekend​

We're into the final stretch of MOCS Season 2, so it’s time for the last round of Showcase Challenges feeding the next Showcase Qualifiers in July.
It takes 40 Season 2 Qualifier Points to enter a Showcase Challenge. The Top 8 finishers in each event earn a Championship Entry Token for the event’s format plus earn Leaderboard Points toward an At-Large berth in the next Showcase!

Here are the dates and times for this weekend’s events:

DATE	TIME (PT)	TIME (UTC)	EVENT	FORMAT
Saturday, July 1, 2023	8:00 a.m.	15:00	Pauper Showcase Challenge	Pauper
Sunday, July 2, 2023	8:00 a.m.	15:00	Legacy Showcase Challenge	Legacy

For more information on these events, click the Premier Play Information link at the top of the Blog.

---

MOCS Last Chance Events Start Saturday​

Did you fall just short of a Top 8 Showcase Challenge finish? Did you scrape together that 39th and 40th Qualifier Point at the last second? If so, your ticket to the upcoming Showcase Qualifiers could be earned in a Last Chance Event!

Starting Saturday afternoon Pacific time (changed from Sunday in previous seasons), all Preliminaries in Modern, Legacy, and Pioneer convert to Last Chance Events. In addition, Pauper Last Chance Events will be sprinkled across the schedule. Finish with a 5-0 record in that event to earn an Entry Token to that format’s Showcase Qualifier later in July.

Entry options require both 40 Qualifier Points plus either 30 Event Tickets or 300 Play Points.

Here’s the schedule of Last Chance Events this round:

Day	Time PT	Time UTC	Format
Saturday	3 p.m.	22:00	Pauper
Monday	Midnight and 7 p.m.	07:00 and 02:00*	Pioneer
Monday	7 a.m. and 3 p.m.	14:00 and 22:00	Modern
Monday	11 a.m.	18:00	Legacy
Monday	5 a.m.	Noon	Pauper
Tuesday	3 a.m. and 11 a.m.	10:00 and 18:00	Modern
Tuesday	1 p.m. and 11 p.m.	20:00 and 6:00*	Pauper
Tuesday	7 a.m. and 3 p.m.	14:00 and 22:00	Pioneer
Tuesday	7 p.m.	02:00*	Legacy
Wednesday	3 a.m.	10:00	Legacy

*indicates next-day
Last Chance Events pre-empt Preliminaries of the same format normally scheduled at those times.

Click the Premier Play Information link at the top of this Blog for full Last Chance Event details.

---

ALTERNATE PLAY​

Upcoming Schedule​

Here is the lineup of other play formats that will be available between The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ and the release of Commander Masters on August 3rd:

• Now-July 5 – As usual, we will provide a Best-of-One Draft league with the newest set.
• July 5-12 – It's time for Supreme Draft – Gold Edition: 18 multicolor sets enter, all but 36 cards leave. (Phantom)
• July 12-19 – Commander Legends makes its return to digital draft tables in a very different form! Each League course will consist of a 4-player draft pod, followed by a single game of play. Prizes are still awarded by votes with the game’s winner receiving an extra vote. (Keeper and Phantom)
• July 20-26 – We’re still considering our options for this week ...
• July 26-August 3 – Magic 30 Cube returns for its penultimate run. The Cube’s designer, Carmen Handy, has some extra special surprises in store for this edition.

---

WEEKLY UPDATES​

Store Outage Wednesday Morning​

To assist with company-wide infrastructure needs, the MTGO Store will not be available for purchases tomorrow, June 28, from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. PT (13:00-17:00 UTC). The rest of the game will function as expected – trade, play, opening packs, etc.

---

Redemption Corner​

Redemption Tokens for March of the Machine are now on sale in the MTGO Store.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, all new orders of Redemption Tokens are non-refundable! We’ve updated our Redemption page with that information.

Tokens for Phyrexia: All Will Be One and The Brothers' War remain available.

For more details on the redemption program, click here.

---

Pauper League Update Reversed​

The idea of reducing the entry option for Pauper League from 10 Event Tickets to 6 Event Tickets starting July 5 is being dropped. The current League has been extended to end at the same time as other Constructed Leagues on September 5.

We appreciate the constructive conversations held regarding this change. This was intended to be an experiment within the broader attempt to flatten new players’ learning curve for playing events.

However, between feedback from Pauper players and the concern internally that this won't get us where we want to be with event onboarding anyway, we won't make any changes while we rethink event onboarding for MTGO.

---

Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.

NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 2, Vintage and Standard Challenges are never pre-empted.
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.
  

LIMITED

• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 a.m.		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m.		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

---

PATCH NOTES – June 22, 2023 Hotfix​

• Shire Shirriff and Invasion of New Capenna now can’t select opponents’ tokens/creatures to sacrifice (even though the sacrifice was impossible).
• If Sauron, the Necromancer was the ring-bearer and was removed from the battlefield, its end step trigger will correctly exile the created token.
• The Add Lands button in LTR Limited has reverted to use the normal frame basic lands.
• Outdated descriptions of the contents of Jumpstart boosters have been corrected.

---

PATCH NOTES – June 28, 2023​

• In Collection, searching for specific words within quotes will return only cards matching all words.
  • Searches not using quotes still works as a Boolean OR command – returning all cards containing any of the words.
• Coalition Relic’s trigger will correctly only add mana if a charge counter is removed.
• Cards with Fading will correctly be sacrificed to the upkeep trigger if no counters remain.

---

NEXT SCHEDULED DOWNTIME – July 12, 9 a.m. to Noon PT​

The next scheduled maintenance is now set for Wednesday, July 12, from 9 a.m. to noon PT (16:00-19:00 UTC).

 

THE LEAD​

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ on MTGO TODAY!​

The wait is over – the straight-to-Modern set featuring The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ debuts on Magic Online today at 10 a.m. Pacific time (17:00 UTC). Check out this article for the scoop on everything on offer:

• Art Bundles and other items
• Event updates, including special prize structures
  • NEW: Prizes have been increased in several LTR Leagues since initial publication, and entry was reduced for Limited Preliminaries
• Jumpstart’s return as a New Player experience
• Treasure Chest update - watch Twitter and Discord for the exact time it takes effect
• Alternate Play, including Supreme Draft and Commander Legends in a whole new format

---

Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live – Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part Magic Online – check out Ryan Spain’s article to learn the why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

---

PREMIER PLAY​

MOCS Season 2 QPs Expire Soon​

Also, this is a reminder that the current season’s Qualifier Points expire on July 5th. These are the remaining events that accept Season 2 QPs:

• The LTR Limited Qualifier next Friday, June 30
• The last round of Showcase Challenges
  • Modern/Pioneer this weekend: June 24-25
  • Pauper/Legacy next weekend: July 1-2
• The Last Chance events July 2-5
  • Additional events will be created for Pauper Last Chance

For those of you planning your event calendar for MOCS Season 3, the first event is a Modern Super Qualifier on Sunday, July 30 (the day of Pro Tour Barcelona’s Top 8).

---

MOCS Showcase Challenge Events This Weekend​

We're into the final stretch of MOCS Season 2, so it’s time for the last round of Showcase Challenges feeding the next Showcase Qualifiers in July.

It takes 40 Season 2 Qualifier Points to enter a Showcase Challenge. The Top 8 finishers in each event earn a Championship Entry Token for the event’s format plus earn Leaderboard Points toward an At-Large berth in the next Showcase!

Here are the dates and times for this weekend’s events:

DATE	TIME (PT)	TIME (UTC)	EVENT	FORMAT
Saturday, June 24, 2023	8:00 a.m.	15:00	Modern Showcase Challenge	Modern
Sunday, June 25, 2023	6:00 a.m.	13:00	Pioneer Showcase Challenge	Pioneer

For more information on these events, click the Premier Play Information link at the top of the Blog.

---

ALTERNATE PLAY​

Upcoming Schedule​

Here is the lineup of other play formats that will be available between The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ and the release of Commander Masters on August 3rd:

• June 20-July 5 – As usual, we will provide a Best-of-One Draft league with the newest set.
• July 5-12 – It's time for Supreme Draft – Gold Edition: 18 multicolor sets enter, all but 36 cards leave. (Phantom)
• July 12-19 – Commander Legends makes its return to digital draft tables in a very different form! Each League course will consist of a 4-player draft pod, followed by a single game of play. Prizes are still awarded by votes with the game’s winner receiving an extra vote. (Keeper and Phantom)
• July 20-26 – Surprisingly, it's our first return to the plane of innovation - Aether Revolt-Kaladesh Flashback Draft. (Phantom)
• July 26-August 3 – Magic 30 Cube returns for its penultimate run. The Cube’s designer, Carmen Handy, has some extra special surprises in store for this edition.

---

WEEKLY UPDATES​

Redemption Corner​

Redemption Tokens for March of the Machine are now on sale in the MTGO Store.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, all new orders of Redemption Tokens are non-refundable! We’ve updated our Redemption page with that information.

Tokens for Phyrexia: All Will Be One and The Brothers' War remain available.

For more details on the redemption program, click here.

---

League Update - Pauper​

Pauper’s next League that starts today will only run two weeks until July 5.

Once we move to MOCS Season 3 and Pauper rotates away from being a MOCS format (replaced by Standard), we will introduce a lower price point for Pauper Leagues – 6 Event Tickets or 60 Play Points. Prizes will be adjusted to ratios in line with the current prize table – we'll provide more details in two weeks.

---

Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.

NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 2, Vintage and Standard Challenges are never pre-empted.
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.
  LIMITED
• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 a.m.		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m.		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

---

PATCH NOTES – June 20, 2023​

General​

• When a player controlling the Monarch or the Initiative leaves or loses the game, the system will correctly revert that status to the active player.
• In formats that care about graveyard order, it will be selectable when piles of cards are put into the graveyard (Fact or Fiction, etc)

---

NEXT SCHEDULED DOWNTIME – To Be Determined​

The next scheduled maintenance has not yet been finalized. There will definitely be one on Wednesday, August 2 to support Commander Masters, but we may also take one in mid-July if we are able to complete some new features in time.

Also, the MTGO Store will be out of order on Wednesday, June 28 from 6-10 a.m. PT (13:00-17:00 UTC) for maintenance across all of Daybreak's games.

 

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ Event Structures​

With a price point of $4.99 for each The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ booster pack, we have created a new set of entry options and prize structures. All listings take effect June 20th at 10 a.m. PT and close on September 5th at 10 a.m. PT unless otherwise noted.

Friendly Modern​

5 Matches per League course

Entry Options

• 6 Event Tickets
• 60 Play Points

Prizes

Match Wins	Play Points	Treasure Chests
5	90	3
4	60	2
3	50	1
2	30	0

Friendly Sealed​

2 Stages of 3 Matches Each, Option to Buy 1 Booster between Stages

Entry Options

• 30 Event Tickets
• 6 Boosters + 3 Event Tickets
• 300 Play Points

Stage Upgrade Option

• 5 Event Tickets
• 1 The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth Booster
• 50 Play Points

Prizes

Per Stage:

Match Wins	Play Points
3	80
2	60
1	40
0	30

End of Event:

Match Wins	Play Points	Boosters
6	200	3
5	100	2
4	100	1
3	50	0
2	50	0

Competitive Sealed​

5 Matches per League course

Entry Options

• 30 Event Tickets
• 6 Boosters + 3 Event Tickets
• 300 Play Points

Prizes

Match Wins	Play Points	Boosters	Qualifier Points
5	450	6	5
4	300	4	2
3	150	2	1

Draft League​

3 Matches per League course

Entry Options

• 15 Event Tickets
• 3 Boosters + 2 Event Tickets
• 150 Play Points

Prizes

Match Wins	LTR Boosters	Qualifier Points
3	5	2
2	3	0
1	1	0

Best-of-One Draft​

(This League closes July 5 10 a.m.)

Up to 9 single games per League course – play to 7 wins or 3 losses

Entry Options

• 15 Event Tickets
• 3 Boosters + 2 Event Tickets
• 150 Play Points

Prizes

Match Wins	Play Points	Boosters	Qualifier Points
7	300	3	3
6	150	2	2
5	150	1	0
4	120	0	0
3	60	0	0
2	30	0	0

Elimination Draft Queue

Up to 3 matches – play until 3 wins or 1 loss

Entry Options

• 18 Event Tickets
• 3 Boosters + 5 Event Tickets
• 180 Play Points
• 3 Boosters + 50 Play Points

Prizes

Match Wins	Play Points	Boosters	Qualifier Points
3	200	8	3
2	200	4	1

Limited Preliminary​

4 Swiss rounds of Sealed Deck

Entry Options

• 40 Event Tickets
• 400 Play Points

Prizes

Match Wins	Play Points	Qualifier Points
4	800	40
3	400	20
2	200	10

Limited Challenge​

6 Swiss rounds of Sealed Deck

Entry Options

• 45 Event Tickets
• 450 Play Points

Prizes

Match Wins	Play Points	Boosters	Qualifier Points	Treasure Chests	Full Set (Regular)
6	600	6	40	30	1
5	500	3	20	20	0
4	400	3	10	5	0
3	0	3	0	0	0

Limited Qualifier​

Same entry, structure, and prizes as normal

Limited Super Qualifier​

Swiss rounds based on attendance Sealed Deck with Top 8 Draft

Entry Options

• 50 Event Tickets
• 500 Play Points

Prizes
Top 4 invited to Regional Championship

Place	Play Points	Treasure Chests	Full Set	Boosters	Leaderboard Points
1	1000	200	1 foil	3	10
2	1000	200	1 foil	3	9
3-4	900	150	1 regular	3	8
5-8	750	100	1 regular	3	7
9-16	500	50	--	3	--
17-32	500	25	--	3	--
33-64	250	10	--	3	--
65-128	250	--	--	3	--

MOCS Showcase Open​

Swiss rounds based on attendance Sealed Deck with Top 8 Draft

Entry Options

• 50 Event Tickets
• 500 Play Points

Prizes
Winner invited to MOCS Showcase and first Pro Tour of 2024

Place	Play Points	Treasure Chests	Full Set	Boosters	Leaderboard Points
1	1000	200	1 foil	3	8
2	1000	200	1 foil	3	7
3-4	900	150	1 regular	3	6
5-8	750	100	1 regular	3	5
9-16	500	50	--	3	--
17-32	500	25	--	3	--
33-64	250	10	--	3	--
65-128	250	--	--	3	--

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth Jumpstart​

Up to 7 single games per League course – play to 5 wins or 3 losses This event is Phantom – cards won’t be added to players’ Collections

Entry Options

• 10 New Player Points
• 4 Event Tickets
• 50 Play Points

Game Wins	Play Points
5	50
4	40
3	20

All accounts that reach max wins in one or more Jumpstart courses between June 20 10 a.m. PT and July 4 10 p.m. PT will be granted a Samwise Gamgee avatar by July 7.

NOTE: While tabletop Jumpstart boosters provide a random rare, MTGO’s Jumpstart decks feature a fixed rare.

Deck	Rare Card
Courageous 1	Boromir, Warden of the Tower
Courageous 2	Frodo, Determined Hero
Journey 1	Legolas, Master Archer
Journey 2	Delighted Halfling
Marauders 1	There and Back Again
Marauders 2	Fall of Cair Andros
Mordor 1	Orcish Bowmasters
Mordor 2	Lobelia Sackville-Baggins
Tricksy 1	Borne Upon a Wind
Tricksy 2	Lost Isle Calling

 

THE LEAD​

The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ on MTGO!​

The wait is nearly over – the straight-to-Modern set featuring The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ will debut on Magic Online next Tuesday, June 20th. Check out this article for the scoop on everything on offer:

• Art Bundles and other items
• Event updates, including special prize structures
• Jumpstart’s return as a New Player experience
• Treasure Chest update
• Alternate Play, including Supreme Draft and Commander Legends in a whole new format

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Downtime Tomorrow – 9 a.m. to Noon PT​

Magic Online will have a scheduled maintenance tomorrow at 9 a.m. Pacific time (16:00 UTC). It is expected to last three hours.

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Battle of the Planes Returns Tomorrow!​

As we send off March of the Machine and its epic interplanar war, we thought it a great moment to bring back an epic interplanar event for the first time in four years – the Battle of the Planes!

Starting after tomorrow’s downtime, you can join this Phantom Sealed experience for 10 Event TIckets or 100 Play Points. When you do, you’ll choose one of five planes to represent and will open 8 packs to build a high-powered Sealed deck. The planes are the same as before, but the packs in each plane have been updated …

• Dominaria: 2 Dominaria Remastered; 1 each of Dominaria, Time Spiral, Planar Chaos, Dominaria United, The Brothers’ War, and March of the Machine
• Innistrad: 2 each of Innistrad and Innistrad: Midnight Hunt; 1 each of Dark Ascension, Shadows over Innistrad, Eldritch Moon, and Innistrad: Crimson Vow
• Mirrodin: 2 each of Scars of Mirrodin and Phyrexia: All Will Be One; 1 each of Mirrodin, Darksteel, Mirrodin Besieged, and New Phyrexia
• Ravnica: 1 each of Ravnica: City of Guilds, Guildpact, Dissension, Return to Ravnica, Gatecrash, Guilds of Ravnica, Ravnica Allegiance, and War of the Spark
• Zendikar: 2 each of Zendikar, Battle for Zendikar, and Zendikar Rising; 1 each of Worldwake and Oath of the Gatewatch

Each League course is three matches long and the normal Phantom League prizes are in effect. Give each plane a try!

NOTE: This League ends a day earlier than normal – next Tuesday, June 20 at 10:00 a.m. PT (17:00 UTC)

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Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live – Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part Magic Online – check out Ryan Spain’s article to learn the why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

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ALTERNATE PLAY​

All-Access Wraps Up Tomorrow​

For those of you who have enjoyed All-Access over the last two weeks, thank you! We'll remove all Mythic Event from accounts and turn off All-Access during tomorrow’s downtime. If you’re still competing in a Constructed League on that day, you’ll be allowed to complete that course.

---

PREMIER PLAY​

No Premier Play This Weekend​

We don’t have any Premier Play events lined up for this weekend, but we’ll still have our normal slate of Preliminaries and Format Challenges at their regularly scheduled times.

Also, this is a reminder that the current season’s Qualifier Points expire on July 5th. There are the remaining events that accept Season 2 QPs:

• The LTR Limited Qualifier on Friday, June 30
• The last round of Showcase Challenges
  • Modern/Pioneer June 24-25
  • Pauper/Legacy July 1-2
• The Last Chance events July 2-5
  • Additional events will be created for Pauper Last Chance

For more information on these events, click the Premier Play Information link at the top of the Blog.

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WEEKLY UPDATES​

Redemption Corner​

Redemption Tokens for March of the Machine are now on sale in the MTGO Store.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, all new orders of Redemption Tokens are non-refundable! We’ve updated our Redemption page with that information.

Tokens for Phyrexia: All Will Be One and The Brothers' War remain available.

For more details on the redemption program, click here.

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Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.
NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 2, Vintage and Standard Challenges are never pre-empted.
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.

LIMITED

• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 a.m.		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m.		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

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NEXT SCHEDULED DOWNTIME – To Be Determined​

After tomorrow’s downtime, the next scheduled maintenance has not yet been finalized. There will definitely be one on Wednesday, August 2 to support Commander Masters, but we may also take one in mid-July if we are able to complete some new features in time.

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P.S. – Come Work For Us!​

We have recently rolled out a slate of positions now available on the Magic Online team, ranging from Associate Product Manager to Software Engineer to Producer. If you want to review open positions and live/can legally work in:

• The United States – check our Daybreak Games’ careers page (CTRL+F for Renton).
• Canada – check out the career page of our sister company Big Blue Bubble.

 

THE LEAD​

Two-Factor Authentication Is Now Live - Protect Your Account Today!​

A long-requested security feature is now part of Magic Online - check out Ryan Spain's article to learn why, what, and how to put Two-Factor Authentication into effect to help protect your account!

---

LTR Article Next Tuesday​

We will put out our normal new set article for The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ next Tuesday, June 13 alongside the Blog. We can tell you now that the price of a The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ booster on MTGO will be $4.99 USD.

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All-Access Continues!​

Good news, All-Access Weeks continue for one more week. The Mythic Event Token is available in the Magic Online Store allowing players to use almost every card in the game.

To use the Mythic Event Token, simply purchase it in the Store, build any legal deck in your chosen format, and enter a game or event. No cards will be added to your collection, but you'll be able to play even if you don't have all the cards in your collection.

The token is $25.00 USD and goes on-sale tomorrow following downtime. The access will last from time of purchase until downtime on June 14. We'll remove all Mythic Event Tokens from accounts and turn off All-Access during that downtime. If you’re still competing in a Constructed League on that day, you’ll be allowed to complete that course.

You can also enter  Friday’s Pioneer Super Qualifier by purchasing a second Mythic Event Token and spending both as an entry option. Don’t worry, you’ll still have the access until June 14 even if the Token is no longer on your account in this case.

Additionally, for players with enough Qualifier Points, there are 2 more Showcase Challenges in the All-Access period - with extra prizes included (see below. And as usual, the normal suite of Preliminaries and Challenges are available to try out.

Build anything cool and new to you in Commander using All-Access? We want to hear all about it on our Discord’s Commander channel!

Note: Just like previous All-Access periods, certain cards (Secret Lair versions, Battlebond, and old-frame Power Nine) are unavailable. All-Access doesn’t apply to Limited events.

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PREMIER PLAY​

Aftermath Sets Added to Premier Prize Pools During All-Access!​

For one more weekend only, we are sweetening the prize pool for players competing in Super Qualifiers or Showcase Challenge events!

The Top 16 finishers in each event will receive a March of the Machine: The Aftermath regular set in addition to the normal prizes – and the Top 4 will get a premium set instead.

Additionally, any players below 16th place who complete all Swiss rounds with just 2 match losses will be granted a regular Aftermath set by Tuesday of the following week.

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Pioneer Super Qualifier This Friday​

Your next chance to earn a seat at this fall’s round of Regional Championship comes up at the end of the week. A Pioneer Super Qualifier begins this Friday, June 9th at 2 p.m. PT (21:00 UTC).

The Super Qualifier’s entry options are 40 Event Tickets, 400 Play Points, 40 MOCS Season 2 Qualifier Points, or 2 Mythic Event Tokens (see All-Access item above). The Top 4 finishers earn seats at the RC and prizes pay out to the Top 128!

Click the Premier Play Information link at the top of this Blog for full details. For more details on tabletop Regional Championships, visit magic.gg.

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MOCS Showcase Challenge Events This Weekend​

We're midway through MOCS Season 2, so it’s time for another round of Showcase Challenges feeding the next Showcase Qualifiers in July.

It takes 40 Season 2 Qualifier Points to enter a Showcase Challenge. The Top 8 finishers in each event earn a Championship Entry Token for the event’s format plus earn Leaderboard Points toward an At-Large berth in the next Showcase!

Additionally, the note above about Aftermath set prizes applies to these events.

Here are the dates and times for the next group - note that Pauper is at a different time than its normal weekly Challenge:

DATE	TIME (PT)	TIME (UTC)	EVENT	FORMAT
Saturday, June 10, 2023	8:00 a.m.	15:00	Pauper Showcase Challenge	Pauper
Sunday, June 11, 2023	8:00 a.m.	15:00	Legacy Showcase Challenge	Legacy

For more information on these events, click the Premier Play Information link at the top of the Blog.

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ALTERNATE PLAY​

Tempest Remastered Flashback Returns Tomorrow!​

The plane of Rath is the setting for this week’s Flashback format – it's Tempest Remastered!

This Draft League is a Phantom play experience that runs for one week until next Wednesday’s downtime (no new entries after 5 a.m. PT – 12:00 UTC). Entry options are 10 Event Tickets or 100 Play Points.

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Alternate Play Schedule​

Here’s a look at the schedule of events coming up between now and The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™. Each description mentions whether or not the Draft is Phantom – cards won’t be added to players’ collections in Phantom events. All event transitions are at 10 a.m. PT unless otherwise noted:

• June 7-14 – Another famous Phyrexian battle front was the plane of Rath. We’ll head back there via Tempest Remastered. (Phantom)
• June 14-LTR Release – Emblematic of March of the Machine and back for the first time in four years – it’s Battle of the Planes! In this Phantom event, choose one of five planes (Zendikar, Innistrad, Ravnica, Dominaria, and Mirrodin), then you get a mix of boosters of sets from that plane and build a Sealed Deck as normal. Four years ago, they were 7-booster Sealed decks ... this time they will be 8-booster Sealed decks!

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WEEKLY UPDATES​

Redemption Update​

Redemption Tokens for March of the Machine are now on sale in the MTGO Store.

IMPORTANT: As of May 23, Redemptions Tokens are non-refundable! We've updated our Redemption page with that information.

Tokens for Phyrexia: All Will Be One and The Brothers' War remain available.

For more details on the redemption program, click here.

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March of the Machine: The Aftermath on MTGO​

After the battle of the Multiverse has been won, what becomes of the story’s key figures? All is explained in the 50-card micro-set March of the Machine: The Aftermath! This Standard-legal expansion – which has a set code of MAT – is now available in the Magic Online Store.

The booster sells for $2.49 USD in the MTGO Store. Because the set is not designed for Limited play, the main way to get the cards will be by purchasing boosters. (Note: Cards in the set will be available for use in future Cubes)

You can get more descriptions about each 5-card booster’s contents in this article from Wizards of the Coast. MAT will not be redeemable, though regular and foil digital sets will exist inside the game.

Like most expansions, extended-art and retro versions of the cards are now available in the Curated slot of Treasure Chests. They will also appear in the Booster Fun slot of each pack.

The next Magic Online Player Rewards drop on June 1st (based on play and purchases in May) will feature foil, alternate-art versions of the set’s uncommons.

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Magic Online Format Challenges Every Weekend​

Format Challenges are the first step toward qualifying for Premier Play through your favorite Magic formats and provide excellent prizes for those looking to test their mettle in their favorite formats. Learn more about Premier Play qualification to get started today.

Magic Online's Format Challenges run as shown on the schedule below.

On weekends featuring Showcase Challenge events, the Format Challenge that starts at either 6 a.m., 8 a.m., or 10 a.m. Pacific time is pre-empted by the Showcase Challenge; Format Challenges scheduled at other times remain in place.
NOTES:
CONSTRUCTED

• In MOCS Season 2, Vintage and Standard Challenges are never pre-empted
• 32-Player events require 32 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 32.
  • Pauper and Vintage Challenges are always 32-Player tournaments.
• All other events listed require 64 players to fire and give prizes to the Top 64.

LIMITED

• 32-Player Limited Challenge events are 6 rounds with no playoff
• 64-Player Limited Challenge events are 7 rounds with no playoff

TIME (PT)	FRIDAY	SATURDAY	SUNDAY
12:00 a.m.			Vintage Challenge
1:00 a.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 a.m.		Pauper Challenge
4:00 a.m.		32-Player Legacy Challenge	Modern Challenge
6:00 a.m.		32-Player Standard Challenge	Pioneer Challenge
8:00 a.m.		Modern Challenge	Legacy Challenge
10:00 a.m.		Vintage Challenge	Pauper Challenge
12:00 p.m.		32-Player Limited Challenge	32-Player Limited Challenge
2:00 p.m.		Pioneer Challenge	32-Player Standard Challenge
4:00 p.m.	32-Player Limited Challenge
6:00 p.m.	Modern Challenge	Modern Challenge

Check out the Magic Online Format Challenges page for further event details.

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Next Scheduled Downtime - June 14 at 9 a.m. PT​

Our next scheduled downtime will be Wednesday, June 14 from 9 a.m. to 12 noon Pacific time (16:00-19:00 UTC) to install support for The Lord of the Rings: Tales of Middle-earth™ - events and products to go on-sale Tuesday, June 20.

 

Magic Online is now Live following maintenance - be sure to look at your 2FA settings as noted in yesterday's article.

Also, the All-Access Token is now available in the MTGO Store.

 

We apologize for the network issue that caused this unscheduled downtime. League players: We have nullified your last match. If that was the last match of your course, we will reimburse your entry within 1 hour.

Vintage Cube Elimination Draft players have had their entries returned automatically. Scheduled Events have been re-posted.

Downtime remains planned for 9 a.m. PT (16:00 UTC tomorrow). Our Help site is back up as well. Again, we apologize for this unforeseen issue.