Your First Competitive Magic Event: Store Champs and RCQs

A Store Championship or a Regional Championship Qualifier is where competitive Magic starts for most players. You play in your own city, often in a store you already know, against the strongest players in the area. The cards are the same. The day is longer and the room is quieter.

Two kinds of first events

Store Championships. Wizards’ Store Championship page describes high-stakes Magic at your local store, with every round played in Standard. The prizes are promos and, in Wizards’ words, bragging rights. The Tournament Rules list Store Championships at Regular REL, with Competitive recommended. It is not one of the qualifiers on the road to the Pro Tour; it is a goal in itself.

Regional Championship Qualifiers (RCQs). These are the first rung on the ladder to the Pro Tour. They run at Competitive REL. At stores in the Wizards Play Network, an RCQ can be Standard or a limited format; larger destination qualifiers may use other constructed formats. Top finishers earn an invitation to their region’s Regional Championship. According to Wizards’ current play update, the current round of RCQs runs from August 15 to November 29, 2026.

How many invitations an RCQ awards depends on the event. A Wizards guide on qualifying for the Pro Tour says in-store RCQs typically award one, and larger destination RCQs often award more. Check the listing before you register.

Find both on the Wizards store and event locator.

Choosing a deck

For your first event, the best deck is the one you have played the most. A popular deck you picked up last week will lose to the player who has piloted it for a year.

If you are buying or borrowing a Standard deck for the event:

• Pick a deck from recent published results that suits how you like to play: fast, slow, or in between.
• Play it at least twenty times before the event, with your sideboard, against the decks you expect.
• Write your sideboard guide, from the sideboarding lesson.

For a limited RCQ, practice drafting the current set. Your draft strategy work is the preparation.

Swiss rounds

Most events use Swiss pairings. Every round, you play someone with a similar record. Nobody is knocked out early; everyone plays every round unless they drop. After the Swiss rounds, the top players often play a single-elimination cut.

The Tournament Rules set the number of Swiss rounds for Premier events like RCQs by attendance:

With 50-minute rounds plus deckbuilding, pairing, and breaks, a five-round event with a top 8 is a full day.

Points and tiebreakers

You earn 3 match points for a win, 1 for a draw, and 0 for a loss. When players finish with the same points, these tiebreakers apply in order:

1. Opponents’ match-win percentage.
2. Your game-win percentage.
3. Opponents’ game-win percentage.

The first tiebreaker means your opponents’ results matter. You cannot control them, so focus on your own record. A match you draw is worth a third of a win, which is why playing at a steady pace matters.

The day

• Register your decklist before the deadline and double check it. A wrong list at Competitive REL is a penalty.
• Bring your deck in good sleeves, extra sleeves, a pen and paper for life totals, dice or tokens, water, and food.
• Check pairings every round. Many stores use Wizards’ Companion app.
• Report your result with your opponent at the end of each match.
• Take a few minutes between rounds. Eat something. Do not replay the last game in your head.

After the event

Write down every match: the opponent’s deck, the result, and the one decision you would change. That list is your practice plan for next time. Whether you finish first or last, your first competitive event shows you exactly where your game stands.