Well, it finally went live today, the Mother ship has announced a rebranding of Pro Tours into what will now be called “Magic weekend“. This means great things for non pros as well as competitive types. It’ll be like the PT many of you have experienced, but BIGGER. I’ve gotten some rumors of things coming down the pipe and while I don’t know details of anything, this should be a great step for PTs. Party time!
In the jumbling of things apparently a date got missed (or possibly ignored, who can stop the turning gears?) and despite being told that I *should* be safe for MC3 (I had hoped for no domestic GPs and no PTs that weekend, and no one at HQ guaranteed my safety on those dates, just thought that it SHOULD be OK) it turned out not to be. I know there were some scheduling hassles, you guys cant imagine how hard it is to coordinate a show of that size all around the world! Unfortunately I have to plan these cruises a year out to get the good rates. And I know that the next year schedule rarely hits before august. so it’s a bit scary waiting and hoping. Last year I got munched by GP Oakland, this year we’re getting munched by the Magic Weekend in France. C’est la vie. 
What does that mean? well it just means we will not be likely to have a current active pro on the PT. But we do already have a NUMBER of WotC types from both R&D and MtGO already booked on board. So we’ll just ask those guys (it’s usually not too hard) to hangout with us, play some magic and maybe do a pretty cool panel discussion.
Bill Stark has already confirmed with me that he’s sticking through with this so he’ll be on board reporting and playing and I hope to get him to MC a panel discussion with his ex-co workers (Bill was an R&D intern himself!). Regardless, MC3 is still rolling (or sailing, as the case may be!) and i STILL expect it to be the most ridiculous time you’ve ever had playing your favorite game!
In other random MC3 related news, my wife Lindsey and I will actually NOT be attending MC3… Because we’re expecting a Baby due February 6th, 2011, the day the cruise leaves port! So I’ve made arrangements for Matthew Danner and his amazing artist girlfriend Alayna Lemmer to host the shindig in my absence. He’ll be there to run and judge the events, Alayna will help you registering and score keeping and just being cool. With any luck… she’ll work on a piece all cruise like she did last year, watching her art come to life throughout the cruise was simply amazing!
We’re still looking at a pretty full boat, there are a FEW spots still available, but they are first come first served and we can’t go over 60 total. Right now we’re at right around 60 “committed” to buying spots with 40 actually paid for. So the next 20 folks who put a deposit down on room and pay for the tournament package of their choice (deposit first, then you’ll be cleared to pay for tournament package!) are in!
And that’s the state of things. I know some folks have expressed concern and dismay on my behalf over the apparentl scheduling conflicts, but lets be realistic. we’re talking about 100-120 total people (thats including significant others, families, etc) on the cruise. MOST of them would not have gone to the Magic weekend in France ANYWAY… SO the crossover/impact is actually pretty small. We get a mostly casual crowd… although Zaim Beg Qed for his First Pro Tour after returning from MC2, coincidence? Hmmm and Dwayne St Arnauld landed a gig at WotC after returning from MC2… MORE coincidence? Hrmmm? not sayin’ nothin’… I’m just sayin’.
Sail on!
Steve
百万博客 -Many subjects relevant to life and living are not taught in school. One of them is ‘How to Get Rich’.
This is getting a bit more subjective, but I much prefer the Zune Marketplace. The interface is colorful, has more flair, and some cool features like ‘Mixview’ that let you quickly see related albums, songs, or other users related to what you’re listening to. Clicking on one of those will center on that item, and another set of “neighbors” will come into view, allowing you to navigate around exploring by similar artists, songs, or users. Speaking of users, the Zune “Social” is also great fun, letting you find others with shared tastes and becoming friends with them. You then can listen to a playlist created based on an amalgamation of what all your friends are listening to, which is also enjoyable. Those concerned with privacy will be relieved to know you can prevent the public from seeing your personal listening habits if you so choose.