All honor to the Riftbound Players!

Thanks to your overwhelming response to the Riftbound Showdown Series, here is the home of all the important tournament details so you have the best experience possible with the most complete understanding of what's to come.

TL;DR

• More than 450 players are already registered for the Riftbound Showdown Series in Milwaukee.

• At 512 players, the tournament reaches Tier I, awarding the maximum number of Riftbound invitations: Regional Championship invites to the Top 4 and Regional Qualifier passes to the Top 16.

• Saturday will feature 10 rounds of Swiss, beginning at 9:00 a.m. Central.

• We will play as much of the Top 8 as possible Saturday night. No additional Top 8 round will begin at 11:01 p.m. or later.

• Any remaining Top 8 rounds will begin at 8:00 a.m. Sunday.

• Sunday’s NRG Series: Riftbound $5K Showdown begins at 9:00 a.m., awards NRG Series points and an NRG Championship invite, and caps at 256 players.

• If you want to play Sunday, register now. Do not wait until Saturday night.

• Players advancing to Sunday’s Top 8 rounds may receive up to two rounds of byes in the Sunday $5K. If they remain in the Saturday event when Round 3 of the Sunday event begins, they must accept a Round 3 loss or drop from the Sunday event.

More Than 450 Players—and Tier I Is In Your Reach

More than 450 players have already registered for the Riftbound Showdown Series, taking place Saturday, August 22, at the Baird Center in Milwaukee.

Under the Riftbound Showdown Series structure, attendance determines the event’s tier and the number of invitations awarded:

At 512 players, Milwaukee becomes the first Tier I Showdown Series event and awards the maximum number of Riftbound invitations.

This means if you have friends who plan to attend but have not registered, encourage them to secure their seats now. Once enrollment closes, so do the tiers.

Saturday Tournament Schedule

The Riftbound Showdown Series will be run at Competitive Organized Play Level.

• Hall opens: 8:00 a.m. Central

• Tournament begins: 9:00 a.m. Central

• Format: Constructed

• Saturday Swiss rounds: 10

• Top cut: Top 8, single elimination

• Decklists: Required and must be submitted through Carde.io before the tournament begins

Please arrive with enough time to enter the hall, find your seat, and resolve any registration or decklist issues before the scheduled start. Round 1 player meeting will begin promptly at 9:00 a.m.

Top 8 and the 11:00 P.M. Cutoff

After all 10 Swiss rounds have been completed, the tournament will cut to the Top 8.

We will play the quarterfinals and as many additional Top 8 rounds as timing allows Saturday night. A Top 8 round will proceed time permitting, though no additional round will begin at 11:01 p.m. or later.

Any Top 8 rounds not completed Saturday night will begin at 8:00 a.m. Sunday. Players still competing should be prepared to return before the hall’s general 8:00 a.m. opening so play can begin promptly.

Register for Sunday’s $5K Now

The NRG Series: Riftbound $5K Showdown begins Sunday, August 23, at 9:00 a.m. Central.

The Sunday event features:

• A $5,000 prize pool

• NRG Series: Riftbound leaderboard points

• An invitation to the NRG Championship: Riftbound

• Competitive Organized Play Level

• Constructed play with a cut to Top 8

• A hard cap of 256 players (Currently reduced to 12 based on expected byes from Saturday)

With more than 450 players already registered for Saturday, Sunday does not have enough seats for everyone who may want to play. Even at the current attendance, nearly 200 Saturday players would be unable to enter if everyone attempted to register—and the gap will grow as Saturday registration approaches 512 players or beyond.

If you want to play in Sunday’s $5K, register now. Do not wait until Saturday evening to decide. Last-minute registration will remain available only if seats remain. While the NRGEvents.gg staff may have a trick up their sleeve to give you even more competitive play options; this will be the ONLY event to offer NRG Points and an invite. Your ability to have more of those options published early is directly linked to how quickly this event caps.

Sunday Byes for Saturday’s Top Players

Registering for Sunday’s $5K will not prevent you from continuing in Saturday’s Top 8.

Players whose remaining Top 8 matches carry into Sunday morning may receive up to two rounds of byes in the Sunday $5K. These byes allow advancing players to register for Sunday with confidence while continuing to compete for the Saturday title.

The byes cover only the first two rounds of Sunday’s $5K. If a player remains in the Saturday event when Round 3 of the Sunday $5K begins, that player must either:

• Accept a Round 3 match loss and play starting in Round 4, or be dropped from the event.

Registering now secures your opportunity to play Sunday. The bye policy protects players who advance deep into Saturday’s tournament, but it cannot create additional seats after the 256-player cap has been reached because having even 257+ players adds one or more additional rounds exceeding the time reserved at the venue.

Welcome to you and the more than 450 other Riftbound players—and potentially the Showdown Series’ first Tier I field—to Milwaukee.