Sunday - The Calling Crowns A Champion
After 14 hard fought rounds we have our top 8 for Calling Hartford and they have played down to a champion!
The eight fiercest from this weekend sat down and drafted again knowing that they were assured of a PTI, a Gold Foil, and cash but winning still matters as every match increases the prize (and the likelihood of earning the title of Calling Champion).
A majority of players told us that they felt confused by this draft so it created a lot of interesting matches. Several players told us that they changed their game plan part way through pack one which may have added to the pressure and confusion.
Ultimately Mark Morrison from Cleveland, OH became our champion piloting Kayo for the Top 8. It's kind of becoming his thing as he also played Kayo yesterday for sealed and in both earlier drafts today. He went 6-2 in the sealed then 2-1 in the first draft today and 3-0 in the second draft.
Right after he drafted he told us he felt that the draft "couldn't have gone better!" and he was right -- taking out 1st seed Yuanji Li in the quarters, David lee in the semis, and Cody Williams in the finals.
We salute our newest Calling Champion and look forward to seeing him at Pro Tour: Los Angeles and US Nationals!
Sunday - A Battle Hardened Champion Is Crowned
After eight rounds we have our top 8 for Battle Hardened Hartford!
The big surprise of the day was neither of the two most frequently played heroes were represented in the top 8 - both Dromai and Victor hit the showers early. Though both were strong in the field with 5 Dromai pilots and 3 Victor pilots getting to 6 wins none of them had good enough tiebreakers to make into one of the two six win slots in the top 8.
After a long battle Yuki Lee Bender continues to show her expertise at this game piloting Kayo to a perfectly undefeated day. She'll be taking the trophy back with her to favorate local game store Invasion CNC in Vancouver, British Columbia where she's making a strong claim to being ready to take back her title as Canadian National Champion.
After the match she told us that she was always happy to see a Prism as it's her strongest matchup with her build of Kayo but was a bit worried about the Victor and Dorinthia decks floating around room.
Sunday - The Richest Side Events
On both sides of the hall at the same time there were some of the rarest prizes in Flesh and Blood going out the door -- on one side a draft of Welcome to Rathe Alpha Edition, and on the other a Gold Foil being played for in the Commoner event.
Starting with our first Gold Foil of the weekend has gone out the door for our Commoner Gold Foil event! This format of very common cards has drawn a devoted following particularly among those whose favorite heroes have achieved Living Legend status in Blitz.
Of the 14 challenges Ira was far and away the favorite and ultimately delivered Zoey Gerstner the victory and a common Gold Foil as a reward (plus prize tickets to spend at our wonderful prize wall).
A number of players told us that they were excited to compete for the coveted Black Envelope as the lack of Legendaries makes it much more fun to add the rarest of shiny cards to their pool.
Moving across the hall we have our Welcome to Rathe Alpha draft. The eight players in this event won their way here by playing in other events across the weekend. From each of those eight qualifier events one player was randomly drawn to get a seat to help crack one of the rarest boxes in recent gaming history.
All eight were excited leading into the second pack when the rarities revealed themselves in two packs with a red Sink Below and a Cold Foil Ironrot Gauntlet both made themselves known at the same time.
And ultimately just like the Heavy Hitters On Demand Drafts this too did pay out prizes to its finalists -- 100 prize tix for 2nd, and 300 prize tix plus, as a bonus, the actual booster box (with the empty wrappers in it) from this draft for the winner.
Sunday - The Battle Hardened Begins
Today we're getting our first look at what the new world of Classic Constructed with Heavy Hitters looks like and, at least this first time out, it looks like Victor and Dromai are the ones to watch.
With 189 players competing across eight rounds we're going to get a lot of insights into how these decks go against each other. We're looking for answers to some big questions that may set the tone for the new meta heading into Road to Nationals season: Will Victor live up to his name in CC? Will Dromai continue her ascent towards Living Legend or can someone new open their account on the leaderboard? With nine heroes appearing in double digits in the field will we see an unexpected winner? We'll find out today.
No matter what happens today it's clear that the world of Classic Constructed is changing with the launch of Heavy Hitters so it's going to be exciting to follow this all the way til we crown a champion tonight!
Sunday - The Calling Continues
Just after 9am 64 players sat down to resume their quest for a coveted spot in the top 8 and with cash payouts going all the way down to 32nd everyone is in the hunt for the money.
Over half of the players who made day 2 used Kayo to get here with the other half split between Kassai, Betsy, and Olympia. We'll have to see how the drafts break down today as not everyone can play Kayo in the draft.
After three rounds eight players gained three more important wins towards their goal of making top eight - Elly Bird (Kayo), David Lee (Kassai), Jodey Burney (Betsy), Alexander Vore (Kassai), Sabastian Chizhik (Kassai), Tariq Patel (Kayo), Caleb Engen (Kassai), and Nicolas Jamoulle (Kayo).
The second draft continued with 7 new pods and we congragulate the following players for going 3-0 in these second, tougher pods: Yuanji Li (Victor), Tariq Patel (Kayo), Cody Williams (Olympia), Mark Morrison (Kayo), Ryan Goldfinger (Betsy), Liam Trodden (Betsy), Merrick Kemp (Kayo).
Our Top 8 is now set!
You can watch along live on YouTube, use the link at the top of the page to join in!
Saturday - Ravenous for a Fable
Mark from Grand Rapids, Michigan came out to The Calling hoping to make day 2 with his Olympia deck but things didn't go according to plan. After losing the first two rounds he knew his odds of making day 2 were slim so decided to head over for side events.
That's when his day turned around -- he joined the sealed event to get the extended art Ravenous Rabble promo and got more than he bargained for when he opened a Cold Foil Deathmatch Arena!
Opening the rarest card in the set is an amazing bonus but it won't help him win the five rounds as in sealed events you don't get to use the cards in the Expansion Slot (including Cold Foils, Legendaries, and Marvels). He'll have to fight his way through the field of 300 to claim even more riches from the prize wall.
We'll see if lightning strikes twice for him when the draw happens to determine which player will pick up the next to last seat in tomorrow's Welcome to Rathe Alpha draft. It's random which of the 300 players in this event will get that rare oppertunity.
For the other 299 there's still the lure of the Ravenous Rabble extended art promo to bring the joy of shiny cards to their deckboxes tonight.
Saturday - The Commoner Language of Playing Great Games
While the Calling was the main event in the room it was far from the only event drawing the attention of players - two rows over from the top players in The Calling were a dedicated group of players battling it out in Commoner.
For those who haven't played it's a format that plays like Blitz but the games tend to go a few more turns with the lack of the rare and up cards that can be so swingy. It's also a format that's pretty easy to get into because you only have common cards in your deck along with common or rare equipment, weapons, and heroes.
It's also an arena where heroes who have achieved Living Legend status in Blitz may ride again as shown by the only player to go 5-0 in the event, JP Coleman who was on Iyslander. The field also contained more than its fair share of Ira supporters but a Kassai or two also showed their faces.
As an added incentive to play in this event one random player was drawn to take up the seventh of the eight seats in tomorrow's Welcome to Rathe Alpha draft.
In this group many were getting additional games in to be ready for tomorrow's Gold Foil Commoner event where they'll be competing for the ultimate Commoner bling - a random Gold Foil Common in the famous black envelope (we look forward to bringing you that result tomorrow!).
Saturday - The Calling Begins
Our main event begins with 422 players sitting down to open their six packs of Heavy Hitters to begin battling through eight rounds of sealed today.
Our broadcast team is hard at work to bring you the games as they happen! Join the fun on our YouTube stream using the link at the top of the page.
Two heroes are standing tall in terms of the selections during deck building -- Kayo and Kassai together make up just under 70% of the field. We'll see if those who are going against the grain wind up being the wiser ones at the end of the day.
Interestingly it appears that among our players here there's a clear preference within each class -- Kayo for the brutes, Kassai for the warriors, and Betsy for the Guardians with each outnumbering their class counterpart by at least 3 to 1.
Friday - Armory Goes Super
The events here on Friday night close out with not one, not two, but three Armories! This Super Armory lets players pick their favorite format (Heavy Hitters Sealed, Classic Constructed, or Blitz) and play for additional prizes from Armory kits!
Tonight 140 players are battling it out with a majority choosing to battle it out in Classic Constructed. The players we talked to were excited to finally let the axes hit the battlefield with the new cards from Heavy Hitters joining the fray. Several of the new heroes are also being sleeved up for people testing their battles before the Battle Hardened on Sunday.
All players who go undefeated will get to walk away with a People's Champion mat and a cold foil from a recent Armory kit. Those who lose only one game tonight will walk walk away with a rainbow foil from a recent Armory kit. And on top of that all players will walk away with prize tickets based on their record.
For those who wish to play something a little faster the last few Heavy Hitters on demand drafts for tonight are also getting underway but will begin again tomorrow morning as soon as eight new players join the fight.
Friday - Players Ravenous For New Promo
The Friday event schedule is off to a roaring start as 359 players have joined us for the first sealed event of the weekend!
The field contains players ranging from a few who told us that they're playing in their first events outside of their local game store to some of the best in the world. Michael Hamilton (#6 in the world of limited players) rocked his Kassai deck to a round one win and going into round two he told us that he's excited for this format because "it's so good!" We're excited to see what he chooses to play in the Calling tomorrow!
Others are here for the chance to potentially draft a box of Welcome to Rathe Alpha! This is the first of eight events this weekend where one lucky player will be selected to join an Alpha draft on Sunday. No wins are required to qualify for this as it's a random selection from everyone playing in the event!
But the biggest draw within this event is the shine of the new Ravenous Rabble extended art promo. The promo was first released at Calling: Queenstown two weeks ago but for anyone who didn't make the trek to New Zealand this is the first chance to get their hands on it in North America.
There are two more chances to pick up this promo this weekend so we'll see how large those events get!
Friday - Welcome to the Calling: Hartford Live Blog!
The doors have just opened here at the Connecticut Convention Center with players arriving to pick up their event packages and sign up for the first side events today!
With the excitement of release day for Heavy Hitters and the first chance to pick up the new alternate art Ravenous Rabble in the US many players are here right as the doors open to start play.
A number of players are also getting their first look at a new prize on the prize wall -- a mini uncut sheet featuring all of the marvel heroes in a 3 by 3 grid! Those who want to take home this very special prize will have to fight their way through the side events this weekend.
Others have their eye on the main prize - their share of the $20,000 main event prizes, the coveted Gold Foil Extended Art Balance of Justice, and one of the last chances in North America to pick up a Professional Tournament Invitation in time to redeem it for Pro Tour: Los Angeles.
Stay with us all weekend as we bring you the latest as it happens!
