Get ready ? “Magic: The Gathering” invades Baltimore this weekend.
The fantasy card game?s national championship will play out over the next three days at the Baltimore Convention Center. Hundreds of the game?s best players have traveled to the city from all corners of the county.
Tournament registration and qualifying games were held at the convention center Thursday. Local Magic fans enjoyed the exhibits and spent the day playing the game that?s part card game, part board game and part role-playing game.
“It?s the biggest Magic tournament I?ve ever been to,” said 14-year-old Ben Friedman, of Baltimore County. “If I really wanted to, I could play Magic for four days straight for 16 hours a day.”
Baltimore hosted Magic?s national championship in 2005. The tournament returned because the last go-around was so successful, said Scott Larabee, tournament director.
“Baltimore was really a great host city,” Larabee said. “It?s a central location along the East Coast, the Baltimore Convention Center is a great facility and we?re close to the Inner Harbor.”
About 1,500 people will attend the three-day tournament, which includes Magic?s national championship, a scholarship series and several side events. More than 1,200 will play the game, Larabee said.
“Most people who show up are looking to play,” Larabee said.
The tournament will award $20,000 in prize money, split among the top 20 finishers. The winner will take home $5,000, and the top four will advance to Magic?s world championship in New York in December.
The Magic scholarship series will award a total of $100,000 in college scholarships to the top 50 under-18 finishers. First prize is a $10,000 scholarship.
The weekend should prove profitable for local businesses. Walt?s Sports Cards on German Hill Road has more than 10,000 cards in stock and expects heavy customer traffic, store manager Dan Barnett said.
“Without ?Magic: The Gathering,? we wouldn?t be in business,” Barnett said. “This game has had a staying power unlike any other game.”
