D.1 - Tournament Structure


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Note- The rulings in this sub-section may be out of date. Refer to the latest DCI rules for more accurate information.

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D.1.1- Tournaments are single elimination, double elimination, round-robin, or Swiss draw format with each round consisting of up to 3 duels during a fixed time limit. [Tournament Rules 1995/10/01]

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D.1.2- In the Swiss format, each win of a match gets 3 points and a draw for the match gets 1 point. A "bye" gives a player 3 points.

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D.1.3- A time limit of 45 or more minutes may be placed on a round other than the semi-final or final rounds. A.11 minute warning should be given. The duel is over when the time is called, except the current player has 60 seconds to finish their turn. The turn is considered started if they had already untapped all their cards. [Tournament Rules 1995/10/01] A time limit may be placed on the final rounds, but it is strongly recommended that the judge not do so. [Aahz 1997/01/14]

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D.1.4- The head judge may terminate a match early. If this is done, at least a 30 minute warning must be given. If a game is terminated this way, the judge will give the player who is currently in the middle of their turn a fixed amount of time to finish it. The "middle of the turn" is defined as being after the current player finished their untap step. [Tournament Rules 1996/10/01]

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D.1.5- If time runs out before all the games in the match are completed, the player who won the most games wins the match. If time runs out during a game, neither player is considered the winner of that game. If neither player won more games than the other, the match is a draw. If the tournament is an elimination tournament where a player must advance, the judge should declare the player with the higher life total the winner. [Tournament Rules 1996/10/01]

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D.1.6- Players in a tournament environment that withdraw before the first match will receive a loss for that match and the opponent will receive a win. Players may withdraw between matches without penalty. To withdraw, the proper official must be notified prior to the pairings being assigned for the next round. Failure to do so, such as just wandering out of the tournament area, will result in a loss of the next round for failing to show up. [Update 1997/04/01]

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D.1.7- Both players may agree to call a match a draw before the start of the first duel of that match. This is called the "Intentional Draw" rule. This rule does not apply to individual games. This is not considered to break any other rules. It cannot be declared during or just after a duel. Each player receives one match point. [Tournament Rules 1997/10/01]

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D.1.8- Players can request of the head judge that no spectators be able to watch the match, just tournament officials. [Tournament Rules 1997/10/01]

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D.1.9- Players in the tournament are never allowed to observe matches by other players in the tournament. [Tournament Rules 1997/10/01]

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Acknowledgments and Disclaimers