Scheduling: Between November 15, 2024 – January 30, 2025; use the Magic Academy: Deck Building scheduling template

Format: New Player Event

Rules Enforcement Level: Any

Pairing Method: Player List Only

Material Support:

• Learn-to-Play Brochure and pocket reference card for participants
• Sticker Sheets for new and experienced player participants
• Gift-with-purchase for Magic: The Gathering Foundations Beginner Box, Magic: The Gathering Foundations Starter Collection, Starter Kit or to players who purchase 6 Play Boosters at the Deck Building event
• Magic Community Tutor pins by Pinfinity AR for the most helpful, friendly players (given at your store's discretion)
• Promos will be included with your Magic: The Gathering Foundations seasonal promo kit
• All promos are available while supplies last. For complete promo details, refer to the Promo Usage & Policies hub.

What is Magic Academy: Deck Building?

Magic Academy: Deck Building is the second of a two-part series that guides players through deck building and their first foray into Limited format play. We recommend that you require players purchase six Magic: The Gathering Foundations Play Boosters to build their deck from so it prepares them for Prerelease, but this event can also be run with Magic: The Gathering Foundations Starter Collection, an example Sealed pool, leftover Prerelease Packs from previous set releases, or even the player’s own collection.

Think of this event as an upgrade to the Open House events we’ve offered in the past, now with more resources and a two-part series you can invite new players to join in. You can schedule and run Magic Academy: Deck Building as many times as you like, all season long!

How to Run Magic Academy: Deck Building

Before beginning the event, we strongly encourage that you let players know that they must register with their Wizards Account in order to receive the event materials and participate. If the player doesn’t yet have an account, help them register, set up the Magic: The Gathering Companion App, and enter the event using their Wizards Account.

Start the event by playing the deck building instructional video, which explains how to put together a 40-card Magic deck. Topics include:

• Which Magic formats use this style of deck
• Sorting cards by color
• Identifying key cards in the pool
• Mana curve planning
• Color combinations

After the video, provide each player with six booster packs to use as their sealed card pool, a Learn-to-Play brochure, pocket reference card, and sticker sheet. We encourage you to run this event using Magic: The Gathering Foundations Play Boosters, however you may use other product you have on-hand.

Players will sort out their cards into piles, identify the cards they want to build around, then build their first 40-card deck. Before event organizers split players into pairs for casual one-on-one matches, include a deck review phase where new players show their deck to experienced staff or players who can provide advice to those building a deck for the first time.

Event organizers will then help split players into pairs to play against each other; we encourage you to run this as a free-play event and assist players in finding new opponents as needed. We also encourage you to have players share their decks with each other before beginning the match and discuss strategies while they play to help build understanding of different colors and strategies.

Players who purchase six Play Boosters, a Starter Kit, a Magic: The Gathering Foundations Beginner Box, or a Magic: The Gathering Foundations Starter Collection at the event will earn the promo Darksteel Colossus.

Retailer Run & Report Reward Details

WPN retailers that run and report at least one of each Magic Academy event with a minimum of two players—Learn to Play and Deck Building—will receive a sales incentive item to be used during a future play season after Foundations. The reward will be delivered with the promo materials kit for a future play season after Foundations.