Judges are great. They are, simply put, The Best. I love judges. Throw enough judges at any problem — any problem — and they’ll solve it. Judges are inventive, dedicated, selfless, and perhaps above all, selflessly dedicated. We tend to be willing to jump in at a moment’s notice to tackle the problem, whatever it […]
Stepping Away From The Table
On any judge call, in the abstract, it’s better to be quicker than longer. Every minute added to a time extension is another minute that might end up delaying the whole tournament, if this match happens to be the last one playing. And more than that — players come to events to game, not to […]
Setting up Melee for Floor Judging
Melee is the current event software du jour. Most large competitive card tournaments at the moment seem to be favoring the platform, so it’s important to know how, as a floor judge, to get it set up. Navigating through all the menus and options to get to the point it’s actually ready to go can […]
A Showdown in Caldwell
I just got home from a weekend of judging at Apex Gaming, in Caldwell, Ohio – which, depending on where your allegiances lie that day, may or may not be the central home for competitive Magic in the Midwest. Not bad for a town with (as far as I can tell) approximately one intersection, two […]
A Lagging Indicator
This is a story about the best piece of advice anyone ever gave me. It was from one of my first mentors, Scott Shapiro-Neiwert, and is nearly as true in life as it is in judging. I was certified as a judge at a conference when Scott and a bunch of other judges traveled quite […]
Cutting to Top8
So, you got to HJ your first event with multiple judges. Congratulations! That’s quite a feather in the cap. You got your briefing out before the event, took a couple appeals, and guided the event through the Swiss rounds. You even remembered to take some notes so you’re ready to write a review or two […]
On Player Meetings
Don’t have them. Good talk.
The One About Card Names
Most of the time, judge calls have a clear cut answer. Rules questions, most player Whoopsie Doodles, what to do if someone needs to use the restroom…these are usually pretty black-and-white. Occasionally, however, we come across a situation that has some more nuance to it. A spot where even experienced, well-practiced judges might strongly disagree […]
All Things Agatha’s
So, the thing about Agatha is she’s an ancient red dragon who is holding the adventurer’s home village hostage, demanding they- Hmmm? Uh, ok, my bad – that’s Argethra the Vicious. Must have gotten my DnD campaign notes mixed in here by accident. Agatha’s Soul Cauldron is a hilarious black and white movie about two […]
On Shadowing
Watching another judge take a call is often referred to as “shadowing.” There’s a lot of slang in judging but this is one of my favorite bits. Like all the best jargon, its meaning is immediately clear when you hear it, even if you’ve never heard the term before. A shadow sticks near the original, […]