Oct 20, 2020 — In-Store Play, EMES

In-Store Play Temporarily Suspended in Europe

We've made the difficult decision to resuspend in-store play in Europe, including Russia. Here's what you need to know.

Oct 20, 2020 — In-Store Play, EMES

In-Store Play Temporarily Suspended in Europe

We've made the difficult decision to resuspend in-store play in Europe, including Russia. Here's what you need to know.

After reviewing feedback from Zendikar Rising Prerelease, closely monitoring the state of the pandemic, and above all considering the safety of the community, we've made the difficult decision to place in-store play under suspension in Europe, including Russia.

Need-to-Knows—Click to Learn More

  • Commander Legends will offer remote Prerelease only. Organizers may repurpose Promo Packs as sales incentives. Sengir, the Dark Baron will go to players who join a remote Prerelease via Magic Companion.

  • Kaldheim Season will also feature remote events only. Scheduling for those events begins October 26.

  • We have resources available to help organizers run remote play. TOs can find guides below for webcam events, events in Magic Arena, as well as setting up an online community on Discord.

  • "Unofficial" in-store events organized before set launch constitute a street date violation. Prerelease materials may only be used by WPN members for official Prerelease events or the Prerelease Early Sale Promotion.

  • We'll update the community on the state of in-store play on the second Wednesday of each month. Updates will come regardless of whether we choose to take action.

Remote play remains available in EventLink, but in-store events will be removed and any existing in-store events will be automatically cancelled and taken out of the Store and Event Locator on Thursday, October 22nd.

We realize that this decision has important implications across the entire Magic community. So we want to be as clear as we can about our plans going forward.

Here's what you need to know.

Commander Legends and Kaldheim will offer remote events only.

We'd love to provide a timeline for the return of in-store play, but this would be too vulnerable to disruption. We want to facilitate stability of play where we can and in whatever form makes sense for the foreseeable future.

Of course, we want to offer as much information as possible to help our partners adapt. So for now, we can confirm that the suspension is temporary but will last through Kaldheim Prerelease in January. This also means any in-store Commander Legends Prerelease events must be run remotely.

Any Commander Legends Prerelease events that are currently scheduled will automatically be changed to a remote event. WPN members may use Promo Packs as sales incentives (We suggest giving them out to fans purchasing three or six packs) or for players who join an event with Magic Companion. The Sengir, the Dark Baron promo card will be given to players for using Magic Companion to join an At-Home or Webcam Prerelease. The Prerelease Early Sale Promotion is unaffected.

TOs should please remember that, before the official release date, Prerelease materials can only be used by WPN members for official (i.e. organized via WER or EventLink) Prerelease events or the Prerelease Early Sale Promotion.

Note that this means any in-store events organized outside of EventLink or WER before launch constitute a street date violation.

We have resources available to help run remote play.

As you are likely aware, in-store play has been suspended in the United Sates and Latin America since July. In those regions, organizers have found that remote play is a valuable tool for keeping their communities close, connected, and safe.

Here are some resources to help get TOs started.

How to Start an Online Community on Discord

How to Organize Webcam Events via Discord

How to Use EventLink to Run Events in Magic Arena

Over the course of the pandemic, so much of our lives has migrated to the web. If Magic communities can do the same, there are many wonderful, meaningful experiences to be had—the same kind of experiences that have kept the community vibrant and thriving for more than twenty-five years.

We also want you to know that we are currently working toward additional tools and resources to refine the remote play experience. We can't wait to show you—stay tuned for more details.

We'll update on a monthly basis, starting in November.

On the second Wednesday (Pacific time) of every month, we will publish an update on whether we've decided to continue the suspension or lift it for the following month. We will publish the update on WPN.Wizards.com, even if we choose to take no action. WPN members should an eye on the weekly WPN Update email for this announcement.

We hope this will help you navigate this disruption and inform your mitigation plan with the best available information. The next update will come on Wednesday, November 11.

Until then, be safe.

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