This document is a collection of frequently asked questions that will get you the most basic information you need to start your journey to Level 2.

When should I start thinking about L2?

There isn’t an official restriction on how long you need to be a L1 before attempting L2 certification, but it is usually recommended to spend at least 6 months as an active L1, so there’s enough time to gain some experience.

Why would L2 interest me?

After the latest judge level redefinition, the role of a L2 is identified as а judge of competitive events. If you want to judge Competitive REL events then L2 is for you! L2 should also interest you if you want to mentor L1’s or in general get involved at a larger scale than your local store.

What do I need to do to become L2?

There are certain requirements you need to meet in order to test for L2. Read all the details on the Level 2 definition on the Official Resources site.

What new knowledge do I need?

The major change will be transitioning from Regular REL to Competitive REL tournaments, which means learning the Infraction Procedure Guide. You will also need to get into more detailed study of the Comprehensive Rules to understand more complex and advanced interactions.

Regarding practical skills, you will have to transition from judging events on your own to becoming a leader of other judges by being able to work with them and to mentor them.

Where do I find the information I need?

Start with the Level 2 definition on the Official Resources site. Study the Infraction Procedure Guide, Magic Tournament Rules and the Comprehensive Rules. You can find links to these documents on the Official Resources site.

We also recommend you read the annotated versions of those documents available at the Rules Resources site, which are expanded versions that detail the reasoning behind every section in deeper detail.

A very good tool to test your knowledge is the JudgeApps (still in beta), where you can take practice exams – most appropriate are L2 Practice (you need a L3 to create this one for you), Hard Practice and Policy Practice. Your goal should be to score at least 80% on those tests consistently.

Another good resource is Mystical Tutor, where you can find videos, articles, presentations and textbooks for learning rules and policy.

Remember to visit the Regional Judge Training website, where you will find a comprehensive guide for your road to L2.

Are there any resources in the region?

The regional forums and the regional Facebook group are open for your questions. Those are also your sources both for regional affairs, as well as for program-related updates and news.

The L2 Training Europe East project

We are now introducing a regional project that aims at helping you get to L2. This project is ran by Jernej Lipovec, John Papadakis, Zoltan Toth and Yuval Tzur and consist of several exercises and resources that can help you study and prepare for L2.

How do I join the project and what will we do?

Contact Jernej Lipovec or John Papadakis privately via Facebook or JudgeApps. The project’s main communication platform is a Facebook group called “L2 Training Europe East”, where you can find useful tools to study the documents, and also rules and policy questions, investigation scenarios, official announcements and updates. For more information on the actual procedure and tools to help you do that, there’s a PDF document in the Facebook group and JudgeApps project, explaining the process in more detail.

How can I find a mentor?

What usually works best is to find someone locally that you have opportunity to work with regularly. Every L2 should be able to help you get ready to become L2. If you don’t have anyone locally, we can find you one within the scope of the project.

How do I find my tester?

Inside our region we currently have 3 Level 3 judges that can test you: Jernej Lipovec in the north, Giorgos Trichopoulos in Cyprus and occasionally Greece and Christian Gawrilowicz in Turkey and certain GPs. The best way to meet them is at the regional conferences or other events inside the region. If you happen to live nearby, you can also contact them and try to arrange a meeting outside events.

At the RC’s discretion, there are other possibilities, such as testing at a GP or any other major event you are attending as a player, but ideally you should be able to test locally.

What does the test look like?

The test is similar to the one you took to become а level 1 judge. The written test consists of 50 questions of similar difficulty to the L2 Practice tests on JudgeApps. About 70% of the questions cover the Comprehensive Rules and the other 30% are about Policy (MTR and IPG). The passing score is 80%. This article explains in detail what you can expect to see covered in the L2 test.

What can this project do for you? What can it not do?

This project is meant to help gather all available study tools, to provide ways to test new knowledge, and to find a mentor who can assist with challenges and questions the candidate may have. It cannot guarantee success though, since that requires you to do a lot of work on your own.