We have events all week long - and we know that turning up the first time can provoke some anxiety. How competitive is it? How much is it? What do I get for my money? When's it likely to finish? Will I be able to catch my bus home, am I likely to win a prize, will people mind if I bring my top-tier deck? This is to try and ease some of that anxiety and let you know the basic info. Please note, sometimes we do change from the typical events. The best place to check is to go our Facebook page, 'Gamers-at-Hart Community'!
Yu-Gi-Oh! Tuesday Night Locals
What: Constructed YuGiOh tournament
When: 6:30pm, Tuesday nights (doors open at 6)
Where: Our shop in Bovis House, Hartlepool
Format: Usually 4 rounds, 40 minutes per round, swiss tournament. Each round is ‘best of three’.
How Long: Usually finished by 9pm, sometimes earlier if we have 8 or fewer players
Cost: £6
How many: Anywhere between 8 and 18 participants, more usually around 12.
Prize support: Everyone receives a booster for participating from any recent set. Then, we add one OTS pack per 2 people into a prize pool, usually distributed amongst those who one 3 or 4 matches (at the moment, OTS prize support is doubled as we have old boosters). Therefore, winners can typically expect 3 OTS packs, 2nd to 4th usually expect 2 OTS packs. Any spare packs are distributed at random.
Competitive level: Moderately competitive. Some people come with challenging decks, and people often test out new decks.
League: We keep a record of the results and every 12 weeks provide league prizes – usually promos, playmats, and rare YGO items.
Magic: The Gathering - Intro League
What: Limited-format MTG event
When: 6:30pm, Friday nights (doors open at 6)
Where: LilyAnne’s Coffee Bar, Hartlepool
Format: 3 rounds, 45 minutes per round, swiss tournament. Each round is ‘best of three’.
How Long: Usually finished by 9pm.
Cost: £15 for the first week, £6 for all subsequent weeks.
How many: Anywhere between 6 and 14 participants, more usually around 10.
Competitive level: Casual tournament. People’s decks are limited by the cards they pull, therefore decks often are not particularly competitive outside of the league.
Prize support: Week 1: Everyone receives 2 Jumpstart boosters which they use for their deck. At the end of the first week, you also get a draft booster to improve your deck. Every subsequent week: 1 draft booster. Those who win 2 or 3 matches receive an official tournament promo pack, and one promo is given at random amongst everyone else.
League: We keep a record of the results and every 12 weeks provide league prizes – usually modest shop vouchers of £15, £10 and £5.
Magic: The Gathering - Commander
What: MTG: Commander
When: 6:30pm, Saturday nights (doors open at 6)
Where: The Dancing Cup, York Road, Hartlepool
Format: 2 rounds, untimed but usually around 60-90 minutes. Pods of 3 or 4. Winners of each pod play against each other in round 2, all other pods are randomly determined. You can, but don’t need to, change decks between rounds.
How Long: Usually finished by 9pm.
Cost: £6 (£1 of this is donated to People’s Meeples, our charitable arm).
How many: Anywhere between 8 and 16 participants, usually 10-12.
Competitive level: Variable. Most regulars bring more than one deck and will choose their deck according to the power-level of everyone else. Sometimes, people can bring powerful decks, othertimes more casual. If you bring a pre-constructed deck, most people would play a deck of a similar level.
Prize support: Everyone who plays to the end recieves a draft booster, winners of each pod receive a set booster per win.
Magic: The Gathering - Modern
What: MTG: Modern (starts 29th April 2023)
When: Saturdays, 1pm
Where: Our shop in Bovis House, Hartlepool
Format: 3 rounds
How Long: Usually finished by 4pm.
Cost: £6
How many: We expect around 8-12
Competitive level: Competitive event
Prize support: Everyone who plays to the end receives a draft booster, and 1 set booster per 2 people is put into a prize pool, usually distributed across the top 3 with any remaining boosters given out at random.