JudgeCast

Uh…what happened this week? Bryan, Charles, and Marcus talk about the recent commander bans and the community response that became so reprehensible it culminated in the RC ceding ownership of the format to Wizards in order to protect themselves.

Oh, and there were some policy updates to Missed Trigger and such. That’s what you are really here for. You can get that commander chatter on countless youtube videos, but you can only get a thoughtful discussion regarding the MTR shortcut and how it applies to Cavern of Souls but not Arena of Glory right here!

Toby’s Blog – https://blogs.magicjudges.org/telliott/2024/09/26/policy-update-for-duskmourn/

Wizard’s Announcement regarding Commander: https://magic.wizards.com/en/news/announcements/on-the-future-of-commander

On this episode, follow Bryan, Charles, and Marcos as they run, Scooby Doo style through multiple Rooms in the House of Horror release notes! The Eerie vibes of the house, combined with their ability to Manifest Dread makes us all question our hero’s chances of Survival, especially when you factor in the Impending doom that awaits them behind every locked door.

Also, there’s a very weird math problem, plus a question about infinite copying of abilities around a VERY creepy ventriloquist dummy. Sort of brings me back to those Goosebumps days…

Link to the Reddit Post about unprovable math equations: https://www.reddit.com/r/BadMtgCombos/comments/1feps3y/deal_infinite_damage_for_4gru_as_long_as_the_twin/

Video that inspired the Marvin talk: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/ATTw4G1gKys

Bryan, Charles, and Marcos were at SCGCon Tampa this past weekend working Magic events. However, there were THREE other TCGs at the SCGCon; Lorcana, Star Wars: Unlimited, and Flesh and Blood. We took the opportunity to speak to three head judges for the three games this weekend. Join us as we gain a little insight into other games, and their judge programs.

Ben Harris – Lorcana

Seth Arar – Star Wars

Dan Collins – Flesh and Blood

Discord Link for the Start Wars Judge Discord: https://discord.gg/HtkJUcHT6a

Bryan, Charles, and Marcos all have SCGCon Tampa this weekend, so we need a small episode with little prep. Or thats what we THOUGHT. Join us as we take turns stepping on and off the soapbox for topics like: the recent bannings, excessive charging for store championships, Wizards giving Judges the finger AGAIN, the new Spotlight Series of Tournaments, and the importance of Online Judge Communities.
Unfortunately the cEDH drama hadn’t fully exploded when we recorded or that would have been a topic too.

Judges are not immune to twitter drama. We get sucked in the same way players do when there is a post about a potentially bad judge call. In this episode, Bryan, Charles, and Marcos talk about how judges respond when we hear about an issue on social media, and how we go about trying to figure out what really happened, and how we attempt to reconcile the player version of the story with what we know about policy. We also discuss why judges typically don’t make comments about contentious calls. It’s a very meta episode.

Join Bryan, Charles, and Marcos as we discuss the up-and-coming format cEDH. That’s Competitive Elder Dragon Highlander to the uninitiated. However, to do that we bring on Michael Arrowsmith, also known as Baldy, to go over what the format is, how it’s different from commander and the various logistical challenges that might arise at a cEDH tournament from the Judges perspective.

Baldy’s Spice shop: baldysblends.com
MTR-A & IPG-A: Comp Rel MTR/IPG Addendum for Commander Events
Monarch Policy Documents: https://www.monarch.cards/policy-documents
Command Tower Software: https://topdeck.gg/subscribe

Join Bryan, Charles, and Marcos as we forage over the mechanics of the newest set, as well make a valiant effort to review some cards that you might have questions about at your prerelease or local commander game. We spring off into a tangent about a punk band, and have an otter ridiculous Mickey Mouse impersonation (Steamboat Willy version), and discuss the proper ways to gift a fish.
Oh, frogive me, did I mention this set was Bloomburrow?

The Proper Way to Gift a Fish – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8XeDvKqI4E

Preview of Emmet Otter’s Jug band Christmas – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFJ2jxIe4CQ

Join Bryan, Charles, and Marcos this week as they talk about the system Magic uses to determine which player can act when, what they can do, and how the game advances to the next part. This is a fundamental MTG topic, so if you are looking to become a judge, an existing judge looking to brush up, or an old-timer just listening to hear them say things you already know, this is the episode for you!

Is it a reference to a Celine Dion Song, or a little-known skit from The State. How about both? Both is good.

Join Bryan, Charles, and Marcos as we talk about the Judging at Regular Policy document. This document governs judging at Regular Rules Enforcement Level (REL), which covers the vast majority of events. Everything from 8-player Wednesday night drafts to 200-player Myster Booster Sealed events at MagicCons, the JAR tells us how to handle common problems that can occur in games. The JAR is also part of any L1 exam you might be considering. We go over the philosophy, and the various categories of issues, making sure you know everything you need to know.

If you are studying to become an L1, or just need a refresher, this is an episode you don’t want to miss.

Did you know there are a lot of rules regarding ending the game? There sure are! Join Bryan, Charles, and Marcos as we go into the rules around ending the game. There’s a surprising amount of rules around this seemingly simple task. And not just the Comprehensive rules, we talk about Tournament rules and Infraction procedures. There’s even a “blink and you’ll miss it” shout out to the old Platinum Angel/Sudden Death scenario. I won’t spoil the answer; you’ll have to listen. Or Google. I guess you could google it. If you wanted to be lame.