Tournament Etiquette

R.E.S.P.E.C.T. What it’s Meant to Be

Hello all lovers of Final Fantasy. Curtis Kang (A.K.A. Tseng) here from the FXBG Turks with some words of wisdom to help improve your tournament play. If you don’t know me, I have been featured on the RVA Returners podcast a couple of times and have placed in top cut for several events. Now that we got that out of the way, let’s get to it. With the Tampa Crystal Cup coming up, a good amount of content creators have been putting out some outstanding pieces about how to prepare for the event; how to decide on what deck to play, how to test certain techs, and etc. However, I wanted to bring up an equally important topic that doesn’t seem to get as much attention: tournament etiquette and procedures. I’ll explain. You might think that tournament etiquette is simply “put on deodorant and be nice to people.” Not really. That’s just basic decency. What I mean is practicing habits that encourage clean play so that you are not bogged down with unnecessary hostility which can lead to misplays and unneeded judge calls. You’re on a timer. Maximize your time.

So what is proper tournament etiquette? I’ll list it out and explain their importance as we go on:

1. Announcing phases.

2. Asking opponent for responses.

3. Paying cards and costs in correct order.

4. Confirming plays and being clear in intent.

Announcing Phases

Never forget that FFTCG is a very interactive game and phases matter. In FFTCG, characters can only be played in Main Phase 1 & 2 (unless it has back attack) and effects can only be activated during Main Phase 1, Combat Phase, and Main Phase 2. The only exception to this is any card that specifically states that it triggers outside of this timeline. Be clear. When turn starts say, “Start turn. Go into Main phase 1. Attempt to enter combat phase? Attempt to enter main phase 2. Attempt to end turn? Pass to you.”

You don’t have to be this guy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rutj-j--GU0) (because I will laugh at you) but help your opponent out and yourself.

Let’s go over an example. You start turn and you need to deal 1 point of damage to win. You have 2 forwards on board and they have an open board. You swing with a forward. They extend their hand about to say good game. BUT, they go “Oh wait (I wasn’t paying attention). Before you attack, I will play Shiva to dull both forwards.” So what is going to happen? You were about to win and this gives your opponent another turn to potentially turn the game around. Do you say ok and go back and not take the clear victory? Do you tell your opponent “No, it’s too late” and risk confrontation? Let’s examine what is going to happen in this situation:

You- Judge! I swung for game and opponent is trying to play Shiva after I declared attack for game.

Opp- My opponent never announced phases so I never had a chance to play Shiva correctly.

You- Uh….

Some random near you- Yes, it’s true. He/she never announced phases and just swung.

Judge- Rewind, Shiva dulls both forwards before attack is declared.

Now what happens? You might win next turn. You might not win. Let’s say the opponent turns the game around and now you lose. Your opponent might be salty. Let’s say after winning, he gives you a smug grin or says something that really grinds your gears. Now you’re mad. You are tilted. You take that energy into the next round and now you’re in a slump. But what could have happened if you announced your phases?

You- Start turn. Enter main phase 1. Ok?

Opp- Yeah, that’s fine.

You- Enter combat phase?

Opp- Okay.

You- Anything to play?

Opp- No.

You- Declare attack with this forward.

Opp- Okay. Yeah, that’s game. *Extends hand* Oh wait, I want to play Shiva.

You- I am sorry but we both agreed to the attack being declared.

Now how is this going to go down? Same situation, opponent wasn’t really paying attention to all of his options. However, now that random player next to you can advise the judge that you had announced everything clearly and that both players agreed to what happened in the game state. Most likely, in my opinion, in this situation, the judge should rule in your favor. There is no reason to rewind because both players agreed to move on in the game state. Going back would just mean that because your opponent made a misjudgment, they are attempting to correct a mistake. The term “misplay” is called misplay for a reason. Sure, your opponent might be mad. But if they are introspective they will realize their loss had nothing to do with you. You played clean. You did not trick your opponent in any way. You did nothing to sway the game in your favor. You simply followed the rules; this is not rule-sharking. This is playing the game as it was meant to be played; correctly.

Asking Opponent for Responses

This is kind of adding to announcing phases. Like in the example above, always ask your opponent if they are fine with whatever you are doing. I will play this character. Response? Enter combat phase. Is this ok? I will activate this summon. Response? Don’t get caught off guard. Sometimes we get caught up in the moment and start to play a bunch of stuff and the stack gets pretty complicated. But if you are not careful and your opponent now has a response, you may have to rewind and re-account for everything and that could derail your line of thought. So ask them if they would like to activate an effect. Give them time to change their mind. So that way, if they suddenly change their mind, you are prepared to respond accordingly. You can use this to your advantage too. Sometimes, people will activate effects and while thinking. Then suddenly, they will take it back and play something else. If you are not careful and reach for a card quickly, they know you have something now. So wait. When they play a card ask them “Are you going to play that card?” Now they have to say something. If they say yes, now you can play something and not worry about a judge call to rewind. If they say “No, I am thinking” you just sit back and appreciate the new knowledge you have of what is in their hand.

Paying Cards and Costs in Correct Order

Tournaments can be very grueling and everyone makes mistakes. So just take the time to pay for cards correctly so you can avoid any accusations of cheating or hazy situations. The correct order to play and pay cards is:

1. Put card that is being played on the board.

2. Pay the cost.

This is the best way to avoid any complications. By playing the card you intend to play, your opponent knows what is coming and you can watch their body language to see how they feel about what is going to come. By paying the cost afterwards, now both you and your opponent can check if costs were paid correctly. From what I have seen, most players pay cost first and then play the card. When this happens most people are paying attention to the card that just hit the board and the cost is an afterthought. Paying correctly will help with Phoenix issues as well; if done correctly you can easily see what was paid in cost. Doing so will avoid any complications of “was this forward included in the cost?” Another thing I do which I find useful is putting your break zone above your deck. That way the deck is not hovering over it in the early game where it may be hard to see what exactly was paid.

Confirming Plays and Being Clear in Intent

Be respectful of your opponent. If you are playing in a major event, this is serious business. But of course you can still have fun. People may travel long distances to perform well and every event is an experience. Don’t let sloppy play sour it. Help yourself and your opponent out by doing what you mean to do. Trust me; it will make your life easier. Good luck in all of your future endeavors and I’ll see you in Tampa!