And now we reach our final week of going over the Judging at Regular REL document. And the topic of this week is Serious Problems. In the past few weeks, we’ve been going through trying to fix problem as best as we can. However, there are still actions that players can take that should not be tolerated at all, and should result in that player being removed from the tournament (we call this “disqualification”). Let’s look over the examples from the Judging at Regular REL document:

• Aggressive, violent or abusive behavior (physical or verbal) -You want players to feel safe at your events. They shouldn’t feel threatened or afraid that someone might hurt them or their stuff. Each community might treat verbal abuse a little differently, but hopefully, you should know when a player has gone too far and crossed the line.
• Intentionally breaking the rules (both game and tournament) or lying – Players should not be intentionally breaking the rules to gain some advantage. If a player knowingly plays a Day of Judgment for 3W, that’s an extremely bad thing. Obviously, play mistakes happen, but intentionally doing something illegal should not be tolerated.
• Influencing match outcomes by incentives, coercion, or outside-the-game methods, or gambling on any part of a tournament – You’re at the tournament to play games of Magic. You should never offer anything in exchange for match result from your opponent. Gambling or betting on the outcome of match is also a no-no at tournaments. Local gambling laws vary on location, but many locations frown upon them. So don’t bet on the outcome of the final match in the round.

This also includes”rolling a die” or “flipping a coin” to pick a winner when your match would otherwise end in a draw. This is probably the most common disqualification, and it feels bad for everyone. So please, don’t do that!

• Theft – This one should be self-explanatory. Don’t steal other people’s stuff.

So if you’re the tournament official and you find out someone is doing this, what should you do? You should inform the player that they are being removed from the tournament. Let the player know what exactly they’re doing wrong and what they can do to fix it or prevent it from happening in the future. Also, let them know that while your decision is final, the judge program still wants to hear their side of the story if they want to provide it. If you need any more help with dealing with disqualifications, feel free to contact your local regional coordinator, a high level judge, or a WPN representative.

Hopefully, these last few weeks have been helpful in exploring the Judging at Regular REL document and understanding how we fix things at events like Friday Night Magic and Prereleases.

Today’s Tournament Tip written by Nathan Long