Cash Prizes
Tens of thousands of MTG Arena gems
MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend invitations
MTG Arena Championship invitations
Star City Games Invitational qualifications
Satellites
Satellites are open events that take place on select Fridays and Saturdays in which players can earn an invitation to compete in that Sunday’s $5K Championship Qualifier, up to two (2) byes in that event, and invitations to participate in the MTG Arena Qualifier Weekends.
Players will also earn SCG Tour Online points based on their record.
Structure
Six (6) rounds of Swiss. Players are eliminated after receiving their third loss.
Entry
$8 USD (Inclusive)
Format
Each SCG Tour Online Weekend will feature either all Standard or all Historic events. Formats will be confirmed and announced on the Monday prior to each event.
Prizes
SCG Tour Online Points accumulated during each weekend will reset following each SCG Tour Online Championship Qualifier.
$5K Championship Qualifiers
$5K Championship Qualifiers are invitation-only events that award a total of $5,000 USD, hundreds of thousands of MTG Arena gems and invitations to compete in the MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend or MTG Arena Championship.
Structure
Modified Swiss rounds based on the number of qualified players*
Players are eliminated after receiving their third loss.
After the Swiss rounds are completed, the Top 12 finishers advance to a single-elimination playoff with first-round byes awarded to each of the Top 4 ranked players from the Swiss rounds.
Entry
Free, Invitation only
Prizes
All players who finish with a record of X-2, but do not finish in the Top 12, will receive 10,000 MTG Arena gems and an invitation to compete in an MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend.
*The number of Swiss rounds also take byes into account to ensure that all players with an x-1 record make the Top 12 single-elimination playoff.
SCG Tour Online Schedule
Register now to begin your journey on The Road to The MTG Arena Championship!
Friday, October 8th
- Satellite #1 – 6:00 AM ET (3:00 AM PT)
- Satellite #2 – 1:00 PM ET (10:00 AM PT)
- Satellite #3 – 7:00 PM ET (4:00 PM PT)
- Satellite #4 – 10:00 PM ET (7:00 PM PT)
Saturday, October 9th
- Satellite #5 – 5:00 AM ET (2:00 AM PT)
- Satellite #6 – 10:00 AM ET (7:00 AM PT)
- Satellite #7 – 4:00 PM ET (1:00 PM PT)
- Satellite #8 – 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT)
Sunday, October 10th
- $5K Championship Qualifier - 10:00 AM ET (7:00 AM PT)
Qualified Players
Check your eligibility for the MTG Arena Championship Qualifiers and the MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend in the table below.
FAQ
General
- What is the SCG Tour Online?
- Will I be provided with any MTG Arena cards for use in playing in SCG Tour Online events?
- Where can I learn more about MTG Arena?
- Where can I learn more about MTG Melee?
- Can Star City Games store credit be used for SCG Tour Online entry fees?
- Will the SCG Tour Online be offering any events on Magic Online (MTGO)?
Eligibility
- What are the eligibility requirements for participating in SCG Tour Online events?
- What happens if I participated in an event that I was not allowed to?
Processes & Procedures
- How do I participate in an SCG Tour Online event?
- Can I cancel my registration for an SCG Tour Online event?
- My information (email address, MTG Arena username, etc.) is incorrect. What do I do?
- Do I need to submit a decklist, and how do I do so?
- Why do I need to check-in before an event begins, and how do I do so?
- Do I need to check-in every round?
- Where do I find my pairings?
- How do I connect to my opponent?
- Can I use my tracking software (MTGA Pro Tracker, Untapped.gg, 17Lands, etc) during my SCG Tour Online tournament match?
- I have the MTG Arena client on my mobile device. Can I use that to participate in the SCG Tour Online?
- My opponent just disconnected. What do I do?
- Do SCG Tour Online events have time limits? What is the "End-of-Round" procedure?
- Where can I view a list of current standings?
- If I have won a monetary prize, what do I need to do in order to receive it?
Events
- Where can I check if I am qualified to participate in this weekend’s SCG Tour Online Championship Qualifier?
- Due to extenuating circumstances, I cannot play in the SCG Tour Online Championship Qualifier I am eligible to participate in. Can I defer or extend my qualification to another event in the future?
- Are SCG Tour matches played as Best of One or Best of Three?
- How can I qualify for the MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend through the SCG Tour Online?
- How do I know which MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend an SCG Tour Online event qualifies for?
- How do I earn byes in an SCG Tour Online Championship Qualifier?
- Will an invitation to the MTG Arena Championship pass down if the recipient is already qualified?
- I want to stream an SCG Tour Online event. Are there any rules and policies that I should know?
- My opponent is streaming our match. Am I allowed to watch their stream?
- I believe that my opponent is watching my stream during the round. What should I do?
Problems
- Why do I need to be on your Discord server, ready to share my screen?
- How do I verify my Discord account in MTG Melee?
- My opponent and/or I cannot connect, what do I do?
- My opponent and I accidentally started a "Challenge Match" instead of "Tournament Match" within MTG Arena. What do we do?
- What happens if my opponent plays a card that is not on their decklist?
- There was a game play issue within the MTG Arena client. What do I do?
Other Questions
General
What is the SCG Tour Online?
The SCG Tour Online is a series of online tournaments played on Magic: The Gathering Arena (MTG Arena), in which players from around the world will compete for cash prizes, MTG Arena gems, and qualifications for Wizards of the Coast Premier play! SCG Tour Online events are administered by Star City Games' Organized Play team using MTG Melee’s top-rated online event software. Although both exist under the "SCG Tour" umbrella, the online and tabletop versions of the SCG Tour are two separate tournament series and operate independent of each other.
Will I be provided with any MTG Arena cards for use in playing in SCG Tour Online events?
No. Each player may only use the contents of their personal MTG Arena account when participating in SCG Tour Online events. Decklists must be submitted beforehand, and all cards contained within must be available in the account of the player competing. Using an incorrect or different deck than the one submitted will be penalized according to tournament policy.
Where can I learn more about MTG Arena?
You can learn more about MTG Arena at https://magic.wizards.com/en/mtgarena.
Where can I learn more about MTG Melee?
You can learn more about MTG Melee at https://mtgmelee.com/.
Can Star City Games store credit be used for SCG Tour Online entry fees?
No. All SCG Tour Online event entries are processed by MTG Melee. MTG Melee offers Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, and Diners Club as payment options.
Will the SCG Tour Online be offering any events on Magic Online (MTGO)?
The SCG Tour Online only offers events on MTG Arena at the moment. However, anything is possible in the future!
Eligibility
What are the eligibility requirements for participating in SCG Tour Online events?
To be eligible to participate in SCG Tour Online events, players must:
- Be eighteen years of age or older
- Have Internet access
- Have access to a personal computer
- Have accounts in good standing on MTG Arena, MTG Melee and Star City Games
- Not currently be suspended from participating in/on tabletop Magic: The Gathering events, The SCG Tour Online and/or tabletop SCG Tour events
Players who have won a monetary prize will be contacted by one of our SCG Tour Online administrators following the conclusion of the event. In order to receive prizes, players will be required to have up to date tax paperwork on file with Star City Games and a valid PayPal account.
Regional eligibility restrictions also apply, void where prohibited.
What happens if I participated in an event that I was not allowed to?
Prizes for ineligible players will be void, and players found to have participated against local rules will be prohibited from participating in future SCG Tour Online events.
Processes & Procedures
How do I participate in an SCG Tour Online event?
To participate in an SCG Tour Online event:
- Download Magic: the Gathering Arena
- Create an MTG Melee account. You can create an account by clicking "Sign in" on the menu bar at the top and selecting "Register". To play in MTG Arena tournaments, you will need to enter your MTG Arena screen name into the account registration form.
- Select the SCG Tour Online tournament that you wish to play in
- Register for the tournament. Note that registration for each tournament closes ten (10) minutes before the advertised start time of that tournament. All players are required to check-in on MTG Melee before the event begins.
- Navigate to your Player Controller. Decklist submission, result submission, pairings, standings, organizer chat, and tournament announcements can all be found on your Player Controller for the event. You can find links to your Player Controller on the home page and on the tournament details page.
- All players should also join the SCG Tour Online Discord server, and be prepared to share their screen, if necessary, for feature matches or to resolve any issues that may arise.
- For SCG Tour Online Championship Qualifiers, all players are required to be active and available on the SCG Tour Online Discord server. Not being ready to screen share during those events in an infraction that carries up to a match loss penalty.
Pairings for each round can be viewed in your MTG Melee player controller, then you will use MTG Arena's Direct Challenge function to play your match. Once you've completed your match, results are reported through your MTG Melee Player Controller.
If you have any questions during the event, please message a member of our Star City Games event team through MTG Melee's "Contact Tournament Staff" option.
Can I cancel my registration for an SCG Tour Online event?
If you have already registered for an SCG Tour Online event, you can cancel your entry into the tournament any time before its advertised start time by navigating to the tournament's registration page on MTG Melee, and clicking the red "Unenroll" button next to your registration details. MTG Melee will refund the full amount of the entry fee (including MTG Melee's processing fee) that you paid to participate in that event.
My information (email address, MTG Arena username, etc.) is incorrect. What do I do?
Log into your MTG Melee account, navigate to the dropdown menu next to your profile icon, and select "Settings". From there, you should be able to update whatever piece(s) of your information is incorrect.
Do I need to submit a decklist, and how do I do so?
Your decklist for an SCG Tour Online event can be submitted from within your MTG Melee Player Controller. Simply export your list from MTG Arena, then follow MTG Melee's instructions for decklist submission. A decklist must be submitted for each SCG Tour Online event and becomes public once that event begins.
Why do I need to check-in before an event begins, and how do I do so?
In order to ensure that everyone who has registered for a particular SCG Tour Online event is present for that event, we require all players to check-in beforehand. To do so, simply log into your MTG Melee account and navigate to your Player Controller for the event. Check-in for each SCG Tour Online event is available starting 90 minutes before that event begins.
Do I need to check-in every round?
Yes, all players are required to check-in for each match. Once your pairing for a round has been posted on MTG Melee, you will need to click "Check-In" to confirm that you have received your pairing, and that you are starting the processes of Direct Challenging (via MTG Arena) your opponent.
Where do I find my pairings?
Your pairings will be posted for each round within your MTG Melee Player Controller.
How do I connect to my opponent?
Once you have your pairing, use the Direct Challenge feature (Crossed Swords in the top right) in MTG Arena to challenge your opponent. Set up your match by selecting "Tournament Match" (Standard) or “Historic Tournament Match” (Historic), enter your opponent’s Direct Challenge ID (include the hashtag and five-digit number), and selecting the deck you've registered. Remember than MTG Arena user names are case sensitive.
Can I use my tracking software (MTGA Pro Tracker, Untapped.gg, 17Lands, etc) during my SCG Tour Online tournament match?
Yes. These tracking programs use only public data from the MTG Arena client. The trackers provide you with information that you could ascertain on your own, simply presented more clearly.
I have the MTG Arena client on my mobile device. Can I use that to participate in the SCG Tour Online?
We do not recommend competing in SCG Tour Online events on a mobile device. If you choose to do so, please note that players are responsible for any gameplay or connection issues.
My opponent just disconnected. What do I do?
If a player disconnects from an ongoing game of MTG Arena, but is able to reconnect before timing out of the current match, the game in progress will continue. Any game actions that took place while a player was disconnected will stand.
If a player disconnects from an ongoing game of MTG Arena, and loses that match in client (MTG Arena will show the opponent a "Victory" screen), that player will lose the current game. The player receiving the "Victory" screen should take a screen shot to share with staff if requested.
An "Ongoing Game" is defined as when a card has been played by either player before a "Victory" screen is displayed.
The players should contact an administrator (via the MTG Melee Player Controller) as soon as this happens. One of our SCG Tour Online administrators will assist in resolving the situation. If the match is not yet complete (no player has won two games), and at the administrator's sole discretion, it may be possible to continue the rest of the match.
Do SCG Tour Online events have time limits? What is the "End-of-Round" procedure?
Each round of an SCG Tour Online tournament has a 50 minute timer in MTG Melee — Players have 5 minutes to check in and connect with their opponents, then have their full Arena timers to complete their match. Players must report the status of their match to an admin by the end of the Melee timer.
Near the end of the round, an SCG Tour Online Administrator will reach out to all players involved in outstanding matches.
"End-of-Round" Procedure:
- There are no draws, intentional or unintentional, in SCG Tour Online events.
- When a player's MTG Arena timer runs out, they will lose the match.
- If some issue required the match to receive a manual end time different from the MTG Arena
timers for their match, and the match is unfinished at that time, players will be
asked
to share their screen via our SCG Tour
Online Discord with an SCG Tour Online
Administrator to apply tiebreakers, and determine a winner, as follows:
- The player who has won the most games wins the match.
- If both players have the same number of game wins, the player with the higher life total wins the match.
- If life totals are tied, players continue to play until the first life total change, at which point the player with the higher life total wins the match.
- If neither player is in contact with a Star City Games Administrator within three minutes of the round ending, both players will receive a loss for that round.
Where can I view a list of current standings?
Current standings will be posted for each round within your MTG Melee Player Controller.
If I have won a monetary prize, what do I need to do in order to receive it?
Players who have won a monetary prize will be contacted by one of our SCG Tour Online administrators following the conclusion of the event. In order to receive prizes, players will be required to have up to date tax paperwork on file with Star City Games and a valid PayPal account.
Events
Where can I check if I am qualified to participate in this weekend’s SCG Tour Online Championship Qualifier?
Players with ten (10) or more SCG Tour Online Points qualify for the SCG Tour Online $5K Championship Qualifier. SCG Tour Online Points and qualification information can be viewed at https://scgtouronline.starcitygames.com/#qualified-link and is updated following each SCG Tour Online Satellite.
Due to extenuating circumstances, I cannot play in the SCG Tour Online Championship Qualifier I am eligible to participate in. Can I defer or extend my qualification to another event in the future?
While we understand that situations may arise which prevent you from participating in a SCG Tour Online Championship Qualifier, we unfortunately cannot defer or extend qualifications to future SCG Tour Online events.
Are SCG Tour matches played as Best of One or Best of Three?
All SCG Tour Online matches are played as Best of Three.
How can I qualify for the MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend through the SCG Tour Online?
In SCG Tour Online Satellite events, all players who have five or more wins (15+ points) qualify for the MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend.
In SCG Tour Online Championship Qualifiers, the Top 12 players as well as all players still active at the end of Swiss rounds (2 or less losses) qualify for the MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend.
How do I know which MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend an SCG Tour Online event qualifies for?
SCG Tour Online weekends beginning in July qualify players for the MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend on August 7-8, 2021.
SCG Tour Online weekends beginning in August qualify players for the MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend on October 9-10, 2021.
SCG Tour Online weekends beginning in September qualify players for the MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend on October 30-31, 2021.
SCG Tour Online weekends beginning in October qualify players for a future MTG Arena Qualifier Weekend.
How do I earn byes in an SCG Tour Online Championship Qualifier?
Byes are earned through doing well in SCG Tour Online Satellite events. Players with fifteen (15) SCG Tour Online Points (5-1 record in a Satellite) receive one (1) bye, players with thirty (30) SCG Tour Online points (6-0 record in a Satellite) receive two (2) byes, and players with fifty (50) SCG Tour Online points receive three (3) byes. Players can also accumulate points from multiple SCG Tour Online Satellite events to reach those thresholds.
Will an invitation to the MTG Arena Championship pass down if the recipient is already qualified?
In the event the recipient of a MTG Arena Championship invitation has already been invited to compete in that tournament at the time of receiving an invitation from a $5K MTG Arena Championship Qualifier, the invitation will instead pass down to the next available recipient based on the final standings of that $5K Championship Qualifier.
I want to stream an SCG Tour Online event. Are there any rules and policies that I should know?
We strongly recommend streaming with a delay. Streaming without a delay can put you are risk for infractions and having private information from your game such as hand contents compromised.
If you still choose to stream with no delay, setting chat to emote only and using an overlay that hides your hand can minimize the risks. Be aware that soliciting advice or receiving coaching is considered an Outside Assistance infraction.
My opponent is streaming our match. Am I allowed to watch their stream?
No. This is considered Outside Assistance and carries a Match Loss penalty.
I believe that my opponent is watching my stream during the round. What should I do?
If you believe that your current opponent is watching your stream, please take a screen shot of their name in your watcher list and contact a tournament admin on the SCG Tour Online Discord.
Problems
Why do I need to be on your Discord server and ready to share my screen?
When something goes wrong, or needs to be verified, Discord is the easiest tool to ensure fast and efficient communication, and screen sharing. Being responsive to SCG Tour Online administrators also helps with the overall efficiency of the tournament, which is why it's required.
How do I verify my Discord account in MTG Melee?
In the dropdown menu under your profile picture, click on "Settings", then select the "Third-party Apps" tab. Click the "Authorize Discord" button and follow the prompts to verify your Discord account.
My opponent and/or I cannot connect, what do I do?
The most common issue when you're unable to connect with your opponent is that one of you has entered an incorrect Direct Challenge ID. Please note that MTG Arena usernames are case sensitive, and ensure that you have included the exact username, hashtag (#) and five-digit number when issuing a Direct Challenge via MTG Arena.
If you're still unable to connect, please contact an SCG Tour Online administrator by using MTG Melee's "Contact Tournament Staff" feature.
My opponent and I accidentally started a "Challenge Match" instead of "Tournament Match" within MTG Arena. What do we do?
If there is a problem with the type of direct challenge used to connect with your opponent, please contact an SCG Tour Online administrator by using MTG Melee's "Contact Tournament Staff" feature.
What happens if my opponent plays a card that is not on their decklist?
If you notice that you and/or your opponent are playing a card that is not on the decklist, take a screenshot and contact an SCG Tour Online administrator by using MTG Melee's "Contact Tournament Staff" feature as soon as you discover the problem.
If the incorrect card is in your opponent's deck, please be prepared to provide a screenshot through Discord. Please note that playing a deck that does not match the decklist you submitted before the event is an infraction and may result in penalties.
There was a game play issue within the MTG Arena client. What do I do?
The SCG Tour Online cannot be held responsible for any issues encountered within the MTG Arena client. Players are encouraged to review MTG Arena's Known Issues List, and to report any new issues that may arise to MTG Arena customer service.
Other Questions
What do I do if I have a question that wasn't answered by this FAQ?
Please email our Star City Games Organized Play team at [email protected], and we'll be happy to help!