Hello everyone, this is Carl Godon giving a PSA to remind everyone that the Weiß Schwarz Regionals are coming up to qualify Nationals.

What is Weiß Schwarz?

I think the first question of most people’s mind though is ‘What is Weiß’? Weiß (German for white) is a card game origination from Japan. You choose various series from anime and video games and fight against other series. Examples of some series are Da Capo, Nanoha, Angel Beats, Evagelion, Persona, Idolm@aster, Madoka, Fate/Zero, Fairy Tale, and many more. This game has both a Japanese version and an English version, and while official tournaments at the highest level do not allow for mixed languages, many stores allow for mixed language events. Battleground Games & Hobbies is one of those stores.

Why Play?

Weiß is a great game where you can play your favorite series. Being able to build decks around your favorite characters is extremely satisfying. Your favorite series isn’t in Weiß or not into anime? Well mechanically the game is great as well. The game has a great ebb and flow where until the very end, anything can happen. Worse case scenario, a series might have a cute girl or sexy women that you just like to look at, who cares what series your playing. Having a solid game base is only half the fun though. In additional to all the above, all Weiß events are free, and most event even come with free promos just for playing. How sweet is that? Did you know you get free stuff if you play in a Weiß regional?

If you participate in a Japanese qualifier, you get one of these just for entering. If you play in an English qualifier you get a Kill la Kill Promo, a World Championship Lanyard, and a Fairy Tale play mat just for entering. Regionals qualify you for Nationals, and if you win at the national level, you qualify for Worlds. Japanese Weiß even includes a plane ticket to Japan in the winter! Battlegrounds is always looking for more players. Come down most Saturdays between 12 PM and 6 PM and join in all the fun. We have monthly promos to give to all the players who show up and play.

How to Play

Sounds like a game you want to play? Need to know how to get started? Battleground Games & Hobbies has trial decks available from all the latest English sets. Are you thinking that a trial deck is no good because you’re used to other games not having good intro product? Well stop that. In the past years, under skilled pilots, trial decks have qualified many people for nationals throughout the world. Trial decks are well built and give new players a great balanced deck to play with. You can supplement them with boosters and start making more decks. Some people like making character only decks. Some people want to make one color decks. Others just like playing with foils. All kinds of decks can be made. Build whatever you want to your liking.

Getting Ready for Regionals

Have you started to play, started playing with your friends and at your local store? Great, now the next step is getting ready for your local Regionals. Playing in a qualifier is easy, just get a deck, sign up for a regional and go play.

Where to Sign up

For those who don’t know, you can find a Japanese Weiß national qualifier near you at:

http://www.heartofthecards.com/ws/wgp2014.html

And you can find an English national qualifier near you at:

http://ws-tcg.com/en/events/worlds2014/

In case you missed it, Battleground Games & Hobbies is hosting a Japanese Weiß Schwarz Regional October 19th at the Abington store.

What Skill level Do You Need

Players of all skill levels play at Regionals. You have players who have played at nationals before, as well as players playing for their first time. Everyone has a shot. Last year at Battlegrounds, we had a player who played three times in his life Top 4 and qualify for Nationals. Don’t think that just because you are new, you cannot win. Think you need to get better? You should come play at Battlegrounds on Saturdays. Locally we have a player who has played at Japanese Nationals the past two years, and we have two players who Top’d 8 at Neo-Showdown New York earlier this year. One of them even made Top 3! As long as you’re willing to learn, everyone is willing to teach. There is still time to get ready for Nationals.

What To Do

So you are ready for your Regional? Here are some quick tip to making your Regional run smoothly.

DON’T FORGET TO PRE-REGISTER

While Pre-registering is not required, it makes sure that if there is a shortage on promos, you are first in line to receive them. It also helps the Regional coordinator plan and get ready for the event by having a rough idea on how many players will be participating in their event. Help the event run smoother by Pre-registering at one of the links above.

FILL OUT A DECKLIST (& TRANSLATION SHEET FOR JPN EVENTS)

Just like other games at high level events, Weiß Schwarz also has deck list requirements. Some notes to remember. Cards of different rarities have different set numbers. As an example, the Triple R version of “Messenger of God” Angel has a card number of AB/W31-E002R, while the RR version has a card number of AB/W31-E002. Note that the “R” was added for the Triple R version. SP Versions normally add an “S”, and Trial Deck Versions normally add a “T” to the number. Don’t get game losses for miswriting a deck list. If you are playing in a Japanese Regional, do not forget to bring your HeartoftheCards.com translations for the cards in your deck. HeartoftheCards makes it easy by having reference card links for easy printing.

BRING EXTRA SLEVES

During an event, sleeves get damage all the time. Don’t forget to bring extra sleeves in case any break. No reason to get a loss for having a marked deck because your sleeves got damaged and a pattern was created. Be on the safe side and have extra on you.

CALL A JUDGE WHEN SOMETHING GOES WRONG

Mistakes and accidents happen all the time. If something goes wrong during a match, call the judge or advisor of the event. They are there to make sure everything happens correctly. A lot of accidents are reversible that allow the game to continue as it should, but if the game state is destroyed such that the game cannot be undone, matches could end in a less than desirable outcome. Call for a judge as soon as something wrong happens to prevent the unreversable from happening.

HAVE FUN

Last but not least, make sure to have fun. Everyone is there to have a good time. Don’t ruin it for others by being unpleasant. Yes you are playing at the highest of level of play, but that doesn’t mean you have to be unpleasant. Remember some people might be playing for the free stuff, don’t make them have a bad day because you’re having a bad day.

Whether you are a new person who now wants to get into the game, or someone just recently introduced who wants to play at the next level. I hope you learned something about Weiß, and hopefully I will see you either at the local store, at Regionals, or even hopefully Nationals. Don’t forget, Battlegrounds runs weekly events every Saturday at the Abington store.

About the author

Carl Godon is a national level player for Weiß Schwarz. He is also a regular “Magic: The Gathering” player. His most recent achievement was a Top 32 finish at this past GP Boston-Worcester 2014.

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