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Highlights of Mythic Championship VII Day One

December 06, 2019
Corbin Hosler

With eight rounds of Standard behind us, and another day ahead on the way to the Top 8, we've seen it all: a diverse metagame, thrilling moments, exciting locks, the announcement of where Magic World Championship XXVI will be and more.

Here are the highlights that stood out from Friday of Mythic Championship VII.

The Magic World Championship Heads to Honolulu

It's been almost four years since Magic made its way to bright and sunny Hawaii. For the biggest tournament of the year, Magic World Championship XXVI headed back this February as the ultra-exclusive field of sixteen players will compete for their share of the $1,000,00 prize pool—including the largest winner's prize ever for Magic at $300,000.

The location was announced today at Mythic Championship VII, as players competed fiercely for the final few spots available.


Honolulu has played host to some of the best competitive Magic moments over the years, including memorable victories by Hall of Famer members Brian Kibler and Shota Yasooka, as well as deckbuilding legend Mark Herberholz. It also played host to one of the most memorable topdecks in Magic history.



Hawaii has a way of bringing out the best of Magic, and it's going to be an exciting trip back.

Who's In and Who's Out for the World Championship?

Because Mythic Championship VII is the last tournament of the season, players have more riding on it than any other. From Magic World Championship XXVI to the next season of the Magic Pro League and the new Magic Rivals League, a plethora of races will be decided by the end of Sunday.

Let's start at the top. The most recent locks for the Magic World Championship are Raphaël Lévy and Sebastian Pozzo, who used their strong performances at Mythic Championship VI in Richmond to secure their spots.

Joining them from hard work at Mythic Championship VII will be Chris Kvartek, who will be one of the Top 4 Challengers my Mythic Points from the 2019 season after locking up Day Two here in Long Beach.

Chris Kvartek



Still in the hunt is Gabriel Nassif, who also advanced but will need a Top 16 finish to pass Luis Scott-Vargas, watching closely from home. Stanislav Cifka, meanwhile, fell out of the race by narrowly missing Day Two in the final round today.

From the MPL, Márcio Carvalho also locked up a slot at the World Championship as one of the Top 4 MPL finishers after anyone who could catch him fell out of the tournament. Day Two is the next step to decide the remaining three open MPL slots for Hawaii, and we'll see more races conclude after seven rounds of play on Saturday.

Márcio Carvalho



The Standard Metagame is Wide Open

It's no secret that Standard has had its ups and downs this year. But with a handful of cards now banned, the metagame has completely opened up in Long Beach and players found success on Friday with strategies running the entire spectrum.



From aggressive decks to control decks to The Great Henge to Casualties of War, you couldn't be blamed if you thought you were watching a game of Commander for a second, as we even saw Finale of Devastation into End-Raze Forerunners win a wild game.



Here's how the metagame broke down heading into the tournament.





In this new world of Standard, truly anything is possible, from giant Dragons to little Cats (alongside Witch's Oven, of course).

The Sights and Sounds of the Tournament

24 players will return for Day Two tomorrow, alongside the four Eldraine Split MPL division champions joining them, and all will play their best Magic on their minds as they chase a Top 8 berth. One player—the rising star Chris Kvartek—also has one other project to worry about.

Even at the Mythic Championship, you can't escape your finals.

Magic finals are different, of course, but successful champions from previous finals are still alive in Long Beach as well. Andrea Mengucci won the Mythic Invitational earlier this year, and the reigning Magic World Champion (and Mythic Championship V winner) Javier Dominguez will be back to battle in Day Two as well.


And, of course, no tournament is complete without a Brad Nelson-Mike Sigrist mixup.

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