On Sunday, we held a championship event consisting of a draft for the Top 8 players from Saturday's 2 qualifier events. Competitive REL was used since this was a major event for very significant prize support (5th-8th got a box . . .). As a new judge, I hoped to be selected to run this event and gain some experience at Comp REL. Our Event Manager started to run it himself, but then asked if L1s could do it. I volunteered that I could run a GPT, so I should be able to do this too. (Probably reaching a bit here, since I had never even been on the floor at a Competitive event, but excitement got the best of me.) Luckily, he told me I could!
I had prepared the night before by looking over the IPG, and after seating a draft incorrectly on Friday, I had been taught how to do it correctly. I gathered my product, prepared the table, and printed seatings.
A diverse group of players greeted me. A 12 year old, 2 guys who had never played in a competitive event, a guy who had never drafted, a guy whose English was not strong, a grinder type, and an L2. All were excited to be there and eager to get started. I seated them clockwise around the table as I had been instructed and carefully explained how a draft works. I asked if there were questions, and answered them. They seemed eager to get started.
I instructed them to open the first pack and remove the basic land card, token, and/or checklist card and set those aside. Then I asked them to verify that they had 14 cards. Most nodded or mumbled affirmatively. I collected the trash while they announced their double faced cards. Then instructed them to select a card and place it in facedown in front of them. Then they passed to the left and the draft began. I watched closely as they selected a card and passed the remaining ones. They were careful to zone draft and not let any packs get messed up along the way.
Then a player stopped and started counting cards. He had passed 2 cards twice in a row. Somehow a card was missing. We checked and the other packs remaining all had the correct number of cards. The players counted their piles of drafted cards. All were correct. Finally we located the missing card in a pile of lands and tokens. Unsure of what to do, I consulted a nearby L3. He told me to return the card to its proper pack and continue drafting. I looked at the card and it was a common that likely would not have been drafted by this point anyway. I still felt terrible about the mistake, but didn't know what to do but make the best of things.
After that pack, I repeated my instructions about verifying that there were 14 cards before passing the pack and reminded the players to keep their drafted cards in a single facedown pile in front of them.
We opened the 2nd pack and the Event Manager sent an L1 judge over to Floor Judge for me. I stationed him at the other end of the table so that we could see everything better. The players opened pack 2, verified 14 cards and revealed the DFCs. L1 picked up the trash and walked to the trash can to toss it. This pack seemed to be going more smoothly. I focused on my 4 players leaving the far end of the table to L1. Somehow it happened again. Around the 4-6 cards left in each pack point, players started pointing out that cards were missing. Investigation revealed 3 missing cards from 2 different players. Another L2 came over to investigate. A player then told him that he had seen some cards on an opponent's playmat and had told the opponent to put all the cards in his drafted pile. We asked all the players to count their cards, and the player who had misplaced the card in pack one reported have 3 too many cards in his pile. The L2 examined the player's pile and easily identified 3 cards that would not have been drafted given the rest of the cards. L2 took those cards, randomized them, and gave them to the players missing cards. The draft continued, but it had a more ominous feel to it.
Pack 3 went without incident, but 4 judges camped at the table. Then we let the players spread out for deck construction. We worked to explain how decklists functioned and supervise the players as necessary. After the construction period ended, the FJ and I handled the rest of the event with no other major incidents. Overall the players seemed a bit miffed by the draft, but pleased as they left with their boxes of cards and other goodies.
I, on the other hand, felt sick over the entire incident. I couldn't identify my mistakes in handling the draft. Frustration over it happening twice overwhelmed me. I replayed each moment over and over in my head trying to see what I could have done better. Self-evaluation is both a blessing and a curse sometimes.
That evening I met with L3 to talk about what happened. He walked me through the event step by step. His conclusion was, "You didn't mess up the draft. The players did." As the judge, I felt responsible for the players, so wasn't that still me? He stated that I had done everything correctly including seating them properly, instruction them to count the cards, and watching them closely. He also pointed out that every player had passed the defective packs at least once each time. Now noticing that you passed 12 cards twice in a row might be hard. But players passed 3 cards twice in a row and didn't mention it. I started to feel a little better, but deep down it still ate at me.
After returning home, I discussed the incident with my judge mentor. His exact words, "You didn't mess up the draft." Ok, he didn't say 'mess,' but for the sake of this blog . . . . He even pointed out that the L2 and L3 judges in attendance had already told me it wasn't my fault. My husband (L2) and a couple of other L2 friends all told me the same thing. But it didn't matter, no amount of people telling me not to blame myself took the guilt off my shoulders. L3 later pointed out that the players still had fun and that perhaps I hadn't been set up for success with that particular group of players. While all of their words made sense, I just couldn't shake the feeling that I was missing something.
Fast forward 3 weeks: While studying the IPG before running a GPT at my local store, I found the answer I had been looking for . . . *lightbulb moment.* If this were a movie you would see a bright light and hear that "ahhh" otherworldly sound right now.That's what I should have done. I could have given the player who misplaced the first card a warning. That would have emphasized to him that he needed to be more careful and it would have given the other players a sense that the player had received an appropriate penalty. It would have demonstrated that I as the judge had the situation under control and that it had been dealt with. Then when it occurred again in the second pack, it would have been upgraded to a Game Loss. While issuing penalties is never fun, it does provide a way to 'right the wrong' that has occurred in an event and allow the players to see that a solution is taking place.
When I asked my judge mentor about it he agreed that I should have given the penalties. He also said, "I cannot explain why I did not mention that to you previously." I also find it odd that none of the 6 judges (all L2+) with whom I have spoken about this draft mentioned this particular rule to me. One suggested that it's so rarely used that most everyone forgets about it. Perhaps he is right?
In the end, I'm glad I found it. I feel a measure of pride in being able to find the answer to a question that has haunted me for weeks now. It affirms my worth as a judge when I am able to evaluate my own failure and create a plan for future success. Mostly, I'm just glad to have the closure I needed and to allow my brain to let go of this incident and move on.
I'd like to add a special thanks to all of judges that have listened to me rant about this draft. I appreciate your listening ears and your kind words. However, despite what all of you said, I DID MESS UP THE DRAFT!
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