The October 2020 State of the Game blog has arrived from Wizards of the Coast!

Quote From Wizards of the Coast

There's a lot to explore in the world of Zendikar, particularly when an expedition of adventurers triggers the ancient magical defenses of long-lost bastions built by the ancient kor empire, causing them (and their hidden treasures) to rise once more. Stretch your legs, gather your party, and keep your wits and limbs about you, because the Festival of Adventure is about to begin.

FESTIVAL OF ADVENTURE EVENTS

• October 17–20: Zendikar World Tour (Preconstructed Decks)
• October 24–27: Cascade Singleton
• November 1–4: Mastermind
• November 7–12: On the Edge

As with our other Festival series, these events will allow you to explore the hidden depths and soaring Skyclaves that make up Zendikar—and earn you some cool in-game cosmetic rewards along the way. Things kick off on October 17 with our Zendikar World Tour, allowing you to pick and play with seven locally and sustainably sourced Zendikari decklists. In addition to the uncovering Zendikar Rising showcase card styles for your collection, you'll also be able to gather some words of wisdom along the way in the form of a new text emote for your collection.

FOR A LIMITED TIME

If you prefer to proceed in an orderly left-right-left fashion, you still have plenty of important decisions ahead of you. In addition to Zendikar Rising, we'll be adding multiple stops to our premier drafting itinerary for those of you who prefer group tours across the multiverse.

UPCOMING PREMIER DRAFT SCHEDULE

• September 17–Winter 2020: Zendikar Rising
• October 23–30: Throne of Eldraine
• October 30–November 6: Theros Beyond Death
• November 6–13: Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths

UPCOMING QUICK DRAFT SCHEDULE

• October 16–June 30: Theros Beyond Death
• October 30–November 12: Zendikar Rising

THE BEST OF BOTH WORLDS

We'll be closing out the month of October with the return of the Arena Open, our two-day competitive event where the top players will be able to receive monetary rewards by playing MTG Arena.

THE FINE PRINT

• You must be 18 years or older to participate.
• Regional eligibility restrictions apply, void where prohibited.
• Receiving monetary rewards requires having or creating Wizards, DCI, and i-Payout accounts.
• Refer to the official Terms and Conditions for complete details.

We'll be returning to Standard Constructed for this event, and for those of you with your eyes on the prize, keep your sideboard handy, because this time you'll be able to qualify for Day 2 by playing either Best-of-One or Best-of-Three matches.

If you recall back to May, two of our three key pillars for this event was both ease of access and to create a competitive experience. While most of our players opt for Best-of-One matches in MTG Arena, we know that some of our players prefer the Best-of-Three match structure when it comes to high-level competitive play.

So, why not both?

For Day 1, there will be two options (and two in-game events, so pay attention!) in which to participate. The entry fee is the same for both, and you will be able to enter Day 1 multiple times regardless of your preferred match structure. Since there tends to be more games played per match in Best-of-Three formats ( . . . yes, we're stating the obvious here), we made adjustments to try and keep the total playtime, likelihood of qualifying for Day 2, and expected overall rewards as close as possible between the two Day 1 event structures.

Here's a side-by-side comparison:

DAY 1

Format: Best-of-One or Best-of-Three Standard Constructed
Start: October 31, 2020 at 8 a.m. PT
Signups End: November 1, 2020 at 4 a.m. PT*—you'll still have a few hours to complete your current run, but you won't be able to join after this deadline.
Event End: November 1, 2020 at 7 a.m. PT*

BEST-OF-ONE	BEST-OF-THREE
Event Record: 7 wins or 3 Losses	Event Record: 4 wins or 1 Loss
7 Wins: 2,000 Gems, Qualification for Day 2	4 Wins: 5,000 Gems, Qualification for Day 2
6 Wins: 1,600 Gems	3 Wins: 5,000 Gems
5 Wins: 1,200 Gems	2 Wins: 2,500 Gems
4 Wins: 800 Gems	1 Win: 1,000 Gems
3 Wins: 400 Gems	0 Wins: No Reward
0-2 Wins: No Reward

*Important Note: Daylight Savings Time ends in the United States on November 1.

Entry Fee: 20,000 Gold or 4,000 Gems (Both Best-of-One and Best-of-Three) 
Entry Reward: Sea Gate Stormcaller; Leyline Tyrant; Scourge of the Skyclaves; Tazri, Beacon of Unity; and Ashaya, Soul of the Wild card styles.

DAY 2

Start: November 1, 2020 at 6 a.m. PT*
Signups End: November 1, 2020 at 9 a.m. PT—you'll have until the event ends to complete your matches, but you must join during this 2-hour window.
Event End: November 1, 6 p.m. PT
Format: Best-of-Three Standard Constructed
Event Record: 7 wins or 2 losses

• 7 Wins: $2,000 USD, Zendikar Rising Qualifier Weekend Eligibility
• 6 Wins: $1,000 USD, Zendikar Rising Qualifier Weekend Eligibility
• 5 Wins: 20,000 Gems, Zendikar Rising Qualifier Weekend Eligibility
• 4 Wins: 10,000 Gems
• 3 Wins: 6,000 Gems
• 2 Wins: 4,000 Gems
• 1 Win: 2,000 Gems
• 0 Wins: No Reward

Entry Fee: None—previous qualification from Day 1 required.

*Important Note: Daylight Savings Time ends in the United States on November 1.

REINVENT YOURSELF

So, uh . . . big hint as to what's coming in November! Kaladesh Remastered is scheduled to arrive next month, and since certain "archeological digs" will be able to excavate this information, we've decided to save you the trouble of pulling out your pickaxes.

Starting on November 5, players will have the option to preorder Kaladesh Remastered for a special deal on packs, Player Draft tokens, and in-game cosmetics:

• 10 Kaladesh Remastered booster packs
• 3x Draft Tokens
• Playset (4x copies) Aether Hub cards
• 1x Aether Hub alternate-art card style

Price: $29.99 USD/€29.99

EXTRA LIFE 2020

It's almost that time of year again! Wizards of the Coast is proud to be raising funds for Extra Life, benefiting Seattle Children's Hospital—and you can help!

In addition to tuning in to twitch.tv/Magic on Saturday November 7 to watch some of your favorite content creators come together for an incredible cause, we'll be offering an Extra Life logo sleeve in-game with the proceeds (less transaction fees) donated to Extra Life, benefiting Seattle Children's Hospital. This sleeve will be available November 6–9 for $3.99 USD.

We thought Ajani couldn't get any cuter, but here we are . . .

CLEANUP STEP

Adventure awaits, and the October game update will be lifting off this Thursday, October 15. Keep an eye on our status page for scheduled maintenance times, and as always, follow us @MTG_Arena for the latest news and updates.