A Tough Decision

Attempting to Plan For My Card Game Participation in 2027

Hello everyone, I have been spending a lot of time trying to figure out what my relationship with card games is going to look like going forward, and I figured that writing about it would be helpful for others who are also attempting to juggle similar things. I am starting law school later this year, and this has caused me to have to think through the tough decision of what I will be dropping going into next year. The reality of the situation is that I need to pick one between Magic: The Gathering and Pokémon, as I am already having difficulty balancing the two. This is an incredibly difficult choice as both games have so many friends, and both have incredible competitive environments. Luckily, the competitive circuit for each game makes this an easier decision.

My Expectations for Magic Going Forward

One of the cons of the Magic: The Gathering competitive circuit is that if you are off the Pro Tour, it is difficult to get back on due to how few events there are that qualify you for it. Currently, I have one more Pro Tour invite, which is for the next one in May. The reality of the situation is that if I have a poor performance, it will force me into retirement. This is something that I do my best to not have happen, as I am very motivated to play my second Magic: The Gathering World Championship later this year, and that involves doing well the rest of the Pro Tour season. The reason why I am motivated to play in Worlds later this year is that I plan on taking a break from Magic starting in January of next year. Balancing two card games has come with a lot of sacrifice that I can no longer afford while in law school.

This decision is one I am not looking forward to having to lock in later this year, but until then, I will be working hard towards my dream of winning a Pro Tour and meeting as many people along the way. I hope that next season, I will not have to cut down on the number of tournaments I attend for Pokémon, as I have already cut down compared to how many I used to attend.

I hope that people find my thought process interesting or even helpful for making their own decisions. Until next time, Ian out.