This week in MTG Arena, it’s all about the Standard format. With The Meathook Massacrenow officially banned a little over a month after rotation, players have a mere few days to prepare for this weekend’s Qualifer Play-In and Qualifier Weekend. Both formats are for Traditional Best of Three (Bo3) Standard, which we will provide an update for the competitive players leading up to the events. In the meantime, check out our article below:
In addition, Diviner of Fates has (finally) been nerfed from a 2/3 to a 2/1 allowing it to be vulnerable to removal spells such as Cut Down and Lightning Strike. Even though it didn’t win the most recent Arena Championship, it has been a dominant mainstay of Alchemy and even Historic for a while in Esper decks.
Other than that, we have a run down on the new key highlights of the latest patch (collection tracking and high resolution card art) and the usual upcoming event schedule. As always, check out the full post by Wizards of the Coast below!
Magic 30 Virtual Experience
The Magic 30 celebration kicks off October 28, and MTG Arena has ways you can virtually join the festivities—including the Mixed-Up Premier Draft! Stay tuned—more details are coming soon.
This Weekend: Qualifier Play-In and Qualifier Weekend Events
This weekend, you can fast-track into Magic competitive play through two events that can put you well on your way to the top!
First Stop: Best-of Three Qualifier Play-In
The Best-of-Three Qualifier Play-In event starts this Friday, October 14, at 6 a.m. PT (13:00 UTC). Face off against players in Standard until Saturday, October 15, at 3 a.m. PT (10:00 UTC) to earn a place in the Qualifier Weekend.
Next Stop: Qualifier Weekend
The Qualifier Weekend event is two days of Standard Best-of-Three competition against some of the best MTG Arena players. Day One begins Saturday, October 15, at 6 a.m. PT (13:00 UTC)—right on the heels of the Qualifier Play-In. Seven wins gets you into the Day Two event that starts on Sunday, October 16, at 6 a.m. PT (13:00 UTC).
The entry window for both Day One (Saturday) and Day Two (Sunday) events in the Qualifier Weekend is just two hours on each day, from 6–8 a.m. (13:00–15:00 UTC), so don’t be late!
Meathook Massacre Banned in Standard
The Meathook Massacre has been banned in Standard. This will take effect in MTG Arena tomorrow, October 13. For details on this and a look at other formats, including Pioneer, check out the October 10, 2022, Banned and Restricted Announcement.
Collection Progress Tracking!
Have you seen the new collection progress tracker? Now you can track how many cards from each MTG Arena set you’ve collected!
You can find the tracker by selecting the Profile tab and looking under the Progression section. Select Set Collection to see your progress as you collect cards from each MTG Arena set.
A further improvement to collection tracking is coming tomorrow (Thursday, October 13) that will prevent uncraftable cards from Ikoria: Lair of Behemoths and other older sets from counting toward your collection progress.
High-Resolution Mobile App Card Art
No, your vision didn’t suddenly get better—but the card art in the MTG Arena mobile app did! Now you can enjoy Magic‘s amazing artwork on mobile devices even more thanks to higher resolution card images.
Rebalancing: Diviner of Fates
While we were satisfied with the metagame of the first Arena Championship, Diviner of Fates was a power outlier in the tournament. We are removing 2 toughness from Diviner of Fates to make it easier to attach through and remove with toughness-based removal such as Cut Down. and Lightning Strike.
We still believe Diviner of Fates will have a place in Esper decks, as it will still be just as effective at generating card advantage.
Event Schedule
Events open at 8 a.m. PT (UTC 15:00) and close to new entries at 8 a.m. PT (UTC 15:00) on the dates shown unless otherwise noted.
Midweek Magic
Midweek Magic events open on Tuesdays at 8 a.m. PT (UTC 15:00*) and close to new entries on Thursdays at 8 a.m. PT (UTC 15:00*).
*Please note the change to Pacific Standard Time on November 6, 2022, when Midweek Magic UTC times will change from 15:00 to 16:00.
October 18–20: Explorer
October 25–27: Standard Shakeup
November 1–3: Singleton
November 8–10: Phantom Chromatic Cube Bot Draft
Quick Draft
October 14–28: Dominaria United
October 28–November 11: Innistrad: Crimson Vow
November 11–15: Kamigawa: Neon Dynasty
Additional Premier Drafts
October 6–17: Alchemy: Dominaria Premier Draft
October 13–21: Streets of New Capenna Planeshifted Draft
Best-of-One Qualifier Play-In November 5, 6 a.m. PT (13:00 UTC)–November 6*, 6 a.m. PT (14:00 UTC) *Note the shift on November 6 to Pacific Standard Time
Qualifier Weekend events are two-day events in which eligible players compete for invitations to the Arena Championship 1 held in the fourth quarter of 2022.
Qualifier Weekend Day One and Day Two events open to entries at 6 a.m. PT (13:00 UTC, 14:00 UTC from November 6) and close to new entries at 8 a.m. PT (UTC 15:00, 16:00 UTC from November 6) each day. You must enter within this two-hour window—late entries cannot be accommodated.
