Okay, so you’re taking your child to an Organized Play event. What now?
First off, make sure you arrive before the starting time. If a player arrives late to a tournament, he or she may not be allowed to enter, or may be entered into the tournament with an automatic loss for the first round.
Secondly, check if your child needs to fill out a registration slip or Deck List. At some local tournaments, your child can participate simply by telling the tournament organizer that he or she would like to play, and paying an entrance fee (if there is one). At many events, however, your child will need to fill out a registration slip before he or she will be entered into a tournament. A registration slip is a small sheet of paper that asks for basic information, like your child’s first name, last name, and birthday. It’s used to help the tournament organizer keep track of who is playing in the tournament, and enter each player into the tournament software.
The registration slip may also ask your child for his or her COSSY ID number. COSSY is the global ranking system for the Yu-Gi-Oh! TRADING CARD GAME. Your child’s COSSY ID identifies him or her as a Duelist, and lets you track his or her performance in sanctioned tournaments. Your child can get a COSSY ID for free at any Konami Official Tournament Store, or any event that requires Duelists to have a COSSY ID number to participate.
Depending on the type of event that your child is entering, he or she may need to fill out and submit a “Deck List” before the event, along with his or her registration slip. Deck Lists list every card that is used in a player’s Main Deck, Side Deck, and Extra Deck. They’re most commonly required at Tier 2 events, which are the most competitive Yu-Gi-Oh! TRADING CARD GAME tournaments. Deck Lists are used to make sure that a player does not change the contents of his or her Deck throughout the duration of a tournament. For more information about filling out a Deck List, click here.
After all of the players have registered and handed in their Deck Lists (if Deck Lists are required), there might be a Player Meeting. During the Player Meeting, tournament officials talk to all of the players at once to give them important information about the tournament. Players are usually seated alphabetically for the Player Meeting. After the Player Meeting concludes, pairings for Round 1 of the tournament are posted, and the tournament is underway!
Each table in the tournament hall is usually numbered, and the pairings indicate at which table each player in the tournament will be playing. Have your child find his or her name on the pairings sheet, and then report to the table at which he or she will be playing. Pairings will be posted before every round of the tournament. Your child needs to check the pairings each round to find out where he or she is playing.
Although some parents participate in the same tournaments that their children enter in order to stay as busy as their kids, many parents do not. Most events have an area where parents who aren’t playing can wait for their kids, so bring along something to read or do while your child plays in the event. You can also choose to watch from the side of the tournament to see how your child is doing.
If you do decide to watch your child play, remember that you cannot interfere in any of your child’s Matches. If you are concerned about something going on during the game, you can always alert a judge, who can investigate. Before the tournament begins, make sure your child knows that he or she is always welcome to call over a judge too, if he or she is concerned about something. You can certainly talk to your child about their Duels when the Match is over, but offering advice or suggestions during the Match is not allowed.
It’s a good idea to stay at the event with your child, at least for the first few events. Remember that store owners and employees or tournament staff cannot be responsible for looking after your child for the duration of the event. Judges and tournament officials are often a great source of information about the tournament and the game in general, but try to hold any questions that aren’t directly related to what is going on during the games until after the tournament is over, so they can stay focused on the event.