Introducing new players to Magic the Gathering is easy. It's an incredible game, it's easy to learn, and there is lots of support from your local community (and of course, us!)

The next step to learning is getting involved with all of the great events at your local game store, and for some players this seems a lot more daunting - this is something that we frequently see new players face.

We want to do our best to try and offer support to new players looking to play in more local events, starting with FNM. We want you to know that FNM is not the "local pro tour" but a fun place to hang out with fellow players, play cards and enjoy yourselves. As such, we're restructuring our FNM’s to include a low entry fee, participation-based standard tournament each week.

Starting Friday 21/10/16 we will have a £3 entry Standard tournament every week with every player receiving a booster pack on entry along with an FNM promo.

This will run alongside, not instead of, our current FNM (£5 entry / 400 JustPlay Points in the prize pool per player). Now that we're coming to the end of the new set draft scycle, we'll be returning to running Modern and Legacy formats at FNM, alternating with standard. This means a regular month of FNM at JustPlay would look like this:

Week 1

Standard - £3 entry, each player receives 1 booster on entry 

Modern - £5 entry, each player adds 400 JustPlay Points to the prize pool

Week 2

Standard - £3 entry, each player receives 1 booster on entry 

Standard - £5 entry, each player adds 400 JustPlay Points to the prize pool

Week 3

Standard - £3 entry, each player receives 1 booster on entry 

Legacy - £5 entry, each player adds 400 JustPlay Points to the prize pool

Week 4

Standard - £3 entry, each player receives 1 booster on entry 

Standard - £5 entry, each player adds 400 JustPlay Points to the prize pool

If this seems in any way confusing, we're making it very easy to see what your options are week to week; our events calendar is always up to date week to week as is Russell's local event round-up in the Magic the Gathering: Liverpool Central Facebook group.

Coming up for the next two weeks (21/10 and 28/10) we'll still be running

Draft (£14pp)
New Player Standard (£3, booster on entry)
Standard (£5, 400 JPP per entrant)

And then switching to the new format cycle at the start of November. All of this is in the calendar.

We look forward to seeing you at FNM - no matter your level of magic experience or the format that you enjoy we have something for you at JustPlay's FNM!

Today I'd like to talk about a new program we're launching, which we're calling Store Champions!

As players in a hobby that is generally a little niche, we're always looking to recruit new players. Whether those are existing gamers that play other games, or people that are completely new to the hobby, one thing is always true; without passionate players to champion games, our community doesn't grow.

JustPlay, like any games store, has some players that do just that - give demos to potential new players, help people organise games, and sing the praises of their favourite game. We want to recognise, reward, and most of all support the players who do that at our store which is what the Store Champion program is all about.

What is a Store Champion?

We feel that a perfect store champion is someone who...

• Is outgoing, approachable, personable, and gives a great impression of our gaming community
• Is at JustPlay on the game night for their game come hell or high water - that way potential players know that they can always turn up and get a game without having to ask "is anyone playing tonight" on Facebook
• Is proficient, prepared, and easily available to demo their game to potential new players - mostly on game night, but potentially on other nights too
• Actively participates in their game's wider community - frequently attends events, is an active member of popular forums, facebook groups and twitter
• Actively participates in our community - helps people to find opponents on Facebook, introduces new players to the area, and is passionate about the game
• Wants to help organise and promote both their own and JustPlay's events
• Is willing to become an official rep for their game where applicable - Guild Ball Pundits, Malifaux Henchmen, and so on

What do I get for being a Store Champion?

• Actively help the community for your favourite game grow and flourish
• Become (or continue to be) a community leader for your game
• Dedicated support from JustPlay for any events that you want to run or cool things that you want to do for your game
• Additional 10% discount on products for your game at JustPlay
• Free entry to events for your game at JustPlay
• Other free benefits in the future as the Store Champion program matures!

What games are you looking for Store Champions for?

We are currently looking for Store Champions for the following games:

• Star Wars: Armada
• Star Wars: Imperial Assault
• Flames of War

How do I apply to become a Store Champion?

Get in touch with us in store, or via Facebook or email (hello@justplaygames.uk)

Thanks for reading, and we look forward to hearing from anyone who's interested!

Today sees the launch of JustPlay Points, our combined tournament prize and rewards program!

JustPlay Points lets you generate yourself free store credit every time you make a purchase from us either in-store or online. You can also earn yourself free store credit for simply signing up to the program, sharing our page on Facebook and Twitter, and more.

The highlight of our rewards program is our "refer a friend" bonus - give your referral link to a friend and they'll get 10% off their first order, and you'll earn yourself a cool £5 in JustPlay points!

To get started earning free stuff, simply head to http://justplaygames.uk, click the "rewards program" button in the bottom right corner, and get started!

In addition to free stuff for helping spread the word of JustPlay, our events that award store credit will award JustPlay Points too. This means that you can see easily at a glance how much you have to spend your well-deserved points on; spend them quickly or save them up for something later on, the choice is yours. And of course, you can combine them with points earned from sharing and referrals to get even bigger free things!

Thanks for reading - we hope you're as excited about free stuff as we are about giving it away.

Go to https://justplaygames.uk now and get started earning free things!