So I learned while at nats that wizards have now changed the pre-
release schedule so that there can only be flights run, most places
will only be allowed 1 flight on 1 day (anyone with multiple flights
has to have new people in each one). That means no drafts, not team
events.

Now I understand why they have done this so that players can't get
hold of to many of the new cards.

Just wanted peoples thoughts on this?

It will probably mean that I won't bother playing in prereleases as it
is to far to travel, play 1 event then come home.

Glenn

It's the lack of drafts that annoys me - I very rarely enter a second flight 
unless my pool is very weak, but an early draft of main set is often 
interesting (I saw pili power gifted to me at the pre-rel)


"watch_it_son"  wrote in message 
news:8ca29bea-e189-4d98-b053-23b8848dbd94@d1g2000hsg.googlegroups.com...
> So I learned while at nats that wizards have now changed the pre-
> release schedule so that there can only be flights run, most places
> will only be allowed 1 flight on 1 day (anyone with multiple flights
> has to have new people in each one). That means no drafts, not team
> events.
>
> Now I understand why they have done this so that players can't get
> hold of to many of the new cards.
>
> Just wanted peoples thoughts on this?
>
> It will probably mean that I won't bother playing in prereleases as it
> is to far to travel, play 1 event then come home.
>
> Glenn

I gotta be honest, I don't think this will change much.  Basically the
launch party will become what the prerelease was and the prerelease
will be phased out.  In some ways this could be a good thing for
smaller organisors who could only organise one or the other. Our
players will be 'condensed' from two tournaments into one.

I think it is the big organisors like Jason in London who will
suffer.  Unless they have a lot of notice of changes like this then it
is diffiicult for them to respond and change their practices.  This
could lead to organisors like Jason making a massive loss.

I know one thing, I'll be HJing the prerelease for Shards in London
and it's going to be interesting.  300+ players only playing flights.
A lot playing in several if they can.  Hmmmmm.  :-) Wanna judge Glenn?

Cheers

Glen

The basic aim of the pre-release change is to help stores get new players. 
Right now we have a few big tournaments that people will go to, then the 
following Friday (or Wednesday in some cases), they'll not bother playing 
again.  Instead, the smaller stores will all be running a pre-release on 
either Saturday or Sunday, and hopefully someone else relatively local may 
be running on the other day.  Players will look up online as to where they 
can play in a pre-release (often because Wizards mail bombs them to say 
"it's pre-release weekend, click here to see a list in your territory"), 
while usually they'll only go to a game store because someone else brought 
them along.  So mostly it's an exercise in raising the profile of game 
stores, to gain them extra regular players.  I stand to gain from this 
approach, as does my local store, so I'm quite in favour of it, but I'd also 
like to play team sealed once in a while without having to go to GenCon for 
it...

I agree that Jason probably has the most to lose in the UK (but hopefully 
not as much as he lost at Spearmint Rhino the other day).

"Cannar Wilm"  wrote in message 
news:0d28ba3d-36bb-4f4e-a753-879685e80e26@e53g2000hsa.googlegroups.com...
> I gotta be honest, I don't think this will change much.  Basically the
> launch party will become what the prerelease was and the prerelease
> will be phased out.  In some ways this could be a good thing for
> smaller organisors who could only organise one or the other. Our
> players will be 'condensed' from two tournaments into one.
>
> I think it is the big organisors like Jason in London who will
> suffer.  Unless they have a lot of notice of changes like this then it
> is diffiicult for them to respond and change their practices.  This
> could lead to organisors like Jason making a massive loss.
>
> I know one thing, I'll be HJing the prerelease for Shards in London
> and it's going to be interesting.  300+ players only playing flights.
> A lot playing in several if they can.  Hmmmmm.  :-) Wanna judge Glenn?
>
> Cheers
>
> Glen

I understand that for the smaller stores this is good news but for
people who play in my neck of the woods it is bad news, the 10 or so
local players in colchester will have to travel a decent way for what
will be 1 flight if we don't go to london, as our nearest store is
Ipswich and there tourneys are nowhere near the train station or town
centre, as Paul (runs in chelmsford) has said thats it's just simply
not worth his while running these as no drafts or 2nd days, I do hope
that the release events take over as without these events run on a
regular basis there will be no players down my neck of the woods (when
you consider at 1 stage we constantly help PTQ's for 70 odd people).

P.S. I basically go to prereleases to play the 2HG

Glen - I would assume that there won't be as greater need for judges
but if 1 is required count me in

Our local shop was doing pre-releases on both Saturdays and Sunday, as
well as the release events on both days too. As this seems to be down
to one of each now, where are the pre-releases in Bristol/Bath going
to be, and on which days? It's time to resurrect the border raiding
trips I feel.

I'm hoping they are with convenient access to a rail node.

Thanks, Phil.

According to Tournament locator
http://webapp.wizards.com/tournaments.aspx?gamecode=0&eventcode=45&status=Future&startdate=&startdate=&startdate=&enddate=&enddate=&enddate=&countryid=246®ionid=&marketingareaid=&city=&postalcode=&distance=&action=search&brandid=1

Area 51 have both days (bigger tournament organisers can still run both 
days) and Bath Sunday only.  And one in Cardiff Sunday too, if you've gotta 
go on a raid.  There's only 2 in total in Wales though (Cardiff and 
Pembroke), has there been enough info given out to organisers about running 
them?  Oh.  I just checked to see where there was FNM, and there's only 
Swansea does it and not doing a pre-release.

 wrote in message 
news:0aabb79b-b268-4505-8500-08489acab607@73g2000hsx.googlegroups.com...
> Our local shop was doing pre-releases on both Saturdays and Sunday, as
> well as the release events on both days too. As this seems to be down
> to one of each now, where are the pre-releases in Bristol/Bath going
> to be, and on which days? It's time to resurrect the border raiding
> trips I feel.
>
> I'm hoping they are with convenient access to a rail node.
>
> Thanks, Phil.

On 25 Aug, 11:23, Cannar Wilm  wrote:
>  In some ways this could be a good thing for
> smaller organisors who could only organise one or the other.
>
> Glen

Except the the cost of the cards for the Release events is much
higher. Also the prize support is not only lower, it's not Shards and
the TO's don't get it before the event.

I know too many TO's whose Pre-release basically sibsidies their
weekly FNM.
I would quite happily do away with Pre-release if Release became the
new Pre-release but they are not - certainly not from a cost
perspective.

Paul
TO