The second Pro Tour of the 2023 season arrives with nearly 250 players facing off for $500,000 in prizes at Pro Tour March of the Machine, taking place May 5–7 at MagicCon: Minneapolis!
How Can I Follow the Event?
Pro Tour March of the Machine will be streamed from MagicCon: Minneapolis all three days of the event, May 5–7, at twitch.tv/magic. Catch players, fans, and social coverage across the weekend at @PlayMTG with the hashtag #PTMachine on Twitter.
On Friday and Saturday—May 5 and 6—broadcast begins at 12 p.m. ET (9 a.m. PT // 6 p.m. CEST // 1 a.m. JST May 6 and 7) with three rounds of March of the Machine Draft followed by five rounds of Standard Constructed.
On Sunday, May 7 for the Top 8 playoff, broadcast begins at 11 a.m. ET (8 a.m. PT // 5 p.m. CEST // 12 a.m. JST May 8) with all four quarterfinal matches played concurrently, followed by semifinals matches then the finals of Pro Tour March of the Machine.
While competitors begin their Friday and Saturday at 10 a.m. ET on-site, broadcast begins later in the day at 12 p.m. ET with a featured drafter to follow into their Round 1 gameplay. As we continue the Pro Tour March of the Machine broadcast we'll catch up to the tournament, showing a full feature match from every round and reducing downtime until we're pacing live gameplay on a short delay.
The Sunday Top 8 playoff begins at 11 a.m. ET with a full quarterfinal match and as many games from other quarterfinal matches as possible, moving on to a full semifinal match (and as much of the remaining semifinals match) then the complete finals.
When Will Pro Tour March of the Machine Decklists Be Published?
Standard Constructed decklists for the tournament will be published on the Pro Tour March of the Machine event page on Friday, May 5 at the beginning of Round 4 gameplay, approximately at 3 pm. ET (12 p.m. PT).
March of the Machine Draft decklists will not be published.
Ahead of the event, there's even more decklist content for fans (and players) to experience being published:
- April 27: Frank Karsten breaks down the first events—and data—on how March of the Marchine is making its mark on Standard.
- May 3: Corbin Hosler catches up with Team Handshake, the hottest group of Magic players in the world. Just what are the best of the best cooking up for Standard at the Pro Tour?
- May 4: The decklists are in and the data is ready. Frank Karsten has the full scoop on the Standard metagame at Pro Tour March of the Machine.
These articles will be available here on Magic.gg and the Pro Tour March of the Machine event page.
Broadcast Schedule
Friday, May 5: 12 p.m. ET // 9 a.m. PT // 6 p.m. CEST // 1 a.m. JST (5/6)
- Broadcast ends after Round 8 at the end of Standard Constructed rounds.
Saturday, May 6: 12 p.m. ET // 9 a.m. PT // 6 p.m. CEST // 1 a.m. JST (5/7)
- Broadcast ends after Round 16 at the end of Standard Constructed rounds and the Top 8 for Pro Tour March of the Machine is announced.
Sunday, May 7: 11 a.m. ET // 8 a.m. PT // 5 p.m. CEST // 12 a.m. JST (5/8)
- Broadcast ends after the Pro Tour March of the Machine Top 8 is complete and the champion is determined.
You can watch coverage for Pro Tour March of the Machine each day here at Magic.gg and at twitch.tv/magic.
Who Are the Casters?
- Maria Bartholdi: Host
- Mani Davoudi: Expert
- Cedric Phillips: Reporter
- Eilidh Lonie: Play-by-Play
- Corey Baumeister: Expert
- Marshall Sutcliffe: Play-by-Play
- Paul Cheon: Expert
Can I Co-Stream the Event?
Following Twitch's Content Sharing Guidelines, you can co-stream Pro Tour March of the Mahcine broadcast from twitch.tv/magic using OBS or XSplit. This allows anyone on Twitch to cover the event in their voice and with their community. To be clear, co-streamed content is not endorsed by Wizards, and we expect anyone who participates in co-streaming to follow Wizards' Fan Content Policy.
Who Is Playing?
Nearly 250 competitors—from Regional Championship events, past event performance, MTG Arena and Magic Online Premier Play, Magic Hall of Famers and more—have invitations to play in Pro Tour March of the Machine. The invitation list for Pro Tour March of the Machine is available online (and subject to change).
How Will the Tournament Play Out?
Pro Tour March of the Machine features two formats across three days of play, beginning with March of the Machine Draft followed by Standard Constructed on each of the first two days, then a Top 8 single-elimination playoff featuring Standard Constructed on the final day.
Day One, Friday May 5:
- Rounds 1–3: March of the Machine Draft
- Rounds 4–8: Standard Constructed
Day Two, Saturday May 6:
- Rounds 9–11: March of the Machine Draft
- Rounds 12–16: Standard Constructed
As players earn their 12th match win, they will automatically advance to the Top 8 playoff. Final standings at the end of Round 16 will determine any remaining Top 8 slots available after all players with 12 wins have advanced—and any ties for a Top 8 slot will be determined by final standings after 16 rounds.
Day Three, Sunday May 7:
- The Top 8 single-elimination playoff will feature Standard Constructed.
- All playoff matches, including the finals, will be Best-of-Five games. The first two games of the match will be played without competitors using sideboard cards.
What Do Players Win?
Competitors that finish with 27 or more match points at Pro Tour March of the Machine earn invitation to Pro Tour The Lord of the Rings taking place at MagicCon: Barcelona, July 28–30, 2023.
All players compete for their share of $500,000 in prizes. Prizes for the Top 8 finishers are awarded as follows. All competitors will receive at least $1000 regardless of the final placing.
| Place | Prize |
|---|---|
| 1 | $50,000 |
| 2 | $30,000 |
| 3–4 | $15,000 |
| 5–8 | $10,000 |
| 9–16 | $5,000 |
| 17–24 | $3,000 |
| 25–48 | $2,000 |
| 49–100 | $1,500 |
| 101–160 | $1,250 |
| 161–245 | $1,000 |
| 245+ | $1,000 |
| Total | $500,000** |
**Assumes 245 players
Pro Tour participants also receive a non-foil copy of 2023’s Secret Lair prize card featuring Jace, the Mind Sculptor with art from Wizard of Barge.
The top 16 competitors will also receive a foil copy of Jace, the Mind Sculptor.
How Can I Play in a Pro Tour?
Beginning with Regional Championship Qualifiers at your local game store, you can start on your path to the Pro Tour today. Earn your invitation to your Regional Championship at a qualifier event, then battle through the best from across your region in a Regional Championship to clinch your Pro Tour invitation!
Regional Championship Qualifier participants in qualifiers now through August 20 can earn their invitation to Regional Championships feeding the first Pro Tour of the 2024 season (which takes place sometime in early 2024) receive an Unholy Heat promo card.
Top finishers in qualifiers can also earn an Eldritch Evolution promo card, with those earning invitations to the Regional Championship snagging it as a traditional foil version.
Your local WPN game store has the opportunity run these events, and they may be hosting one near you: check with your local store for more details on the what, the when, and the where.
To learn more about Regional Championship events for your location please visit your location’s tournament organizer:
- USA – Dreamhack
- Canada – Face to Face Games
- Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) – Legacy
- Australia/New Zealand – Good Games
- China – Kadou
- Japan/Korea – Big Magic
- Southeast Asia – Oracle Events
- Chinese Taipei – Game Square
- Brazil – City Class Games
- Mexico/Central America/Caribbean – Yellow Rabbit
- South America – Magicsur