By now, you probably know how Fantasy Flight Games, Richard Garfield, and KeyForge have introduced the world to an entirely new category of hobby game—the Unique Deck Game.

While KeyForge, in many ways, feels comfortably like a customizable card game, it isn’t actually customizable at all. Its decks are, instead, procedurally generated as complete—and entirely unique—entities.

Each of these Archon Decks is checked for uniqueness against every other deck ever created, and each comes ready to play straight out of the box.

This means that KeyForge places an extraordinary emphasis upon discovery. Every new deck is a new Archon, scouring the Crucible for hidden Vaults, and relying on its own combination of cards,  personality, tricks, and tactics. Exploring these elements through play is one of the game’s greatest joys, and that joy is echoed and amplified at every level by the game’s Organized Play program!

The Organized Play Pyramid

KeyForge Organized Play is a player’s portal to the Crucible and the worldwide KeyForge community.

It exists to help build and grow KeyForge communities—to help players find places to play, meet other players, make new friends, and enjoy more of the game they love. And because there are all kinds of KeyForge players, the game’s Organized Play program runs across a whole range of levels—all the way from casual Open Play Nights to the top-level competitions of the Vault Tour and the KeyForge World Championship.

The majority of these events—the ones that form the foundation for the whole program— take place exclusively at brick-and-mortar retailers, who can choose to host in-store events ranging from Open Play Nights to ChainBound events, Store Championships, and Prime Championships.

Players participating in these events can earn rewards, ranging from the alternate art status cards included in Seasonal Kits to the playmats, deck boxes, and other prizes awarded at Store Championships and Prime Championships.

But the most exciting prizes that players can earn at the game’s Store Championships and Prime Championships—as well as its ChainBound events—may be the valuable Æmbershards that seamlessly integrate into every level of the game’s Organized Play program.

What Are Æmbershards?

Æmbershards are a digital reward associated with players’ accounts in the KeyForge Master Vault. They mirror the collection of Æmber within the game and can be redeemed at any event with a Prize Wall for custom prizes such as card sleeves, playmats, tokens, metal keys, t-shirts, hoodies, and even one-of-a-kind items like KeyForge-themed gamer chairs and game tables. If there’s a physical object that might demonstrate your love of KeyForge, you’re likely to find it on a KeyForge Prize Wall!

This means there’s always plenty of reason for players to participate in local ChainBound events—even if they don’t expect to win. Qualified retailers can host ChainBound events as often as once per week, and players can earn one Æmbershard just for attending these fast and fun tournaments, plus one more Æmbershard for each game they win.

ChainBound events and KeyForge Organized Play also utilize two innovative tools to promote a healthy and dynamic local metagame—Chains and Power Levels. Chains are handicaps placed on decks that win consistently (reducing the number of cards its owner can hold in hand), and if a particularly strong deck manages to dominate their local competition even with these handicaps, that deck will eventually gain enough Power Levels to graduate out of eligibility for the local tournaments—and to become eligible for other events!

The fact that players can gain Æmbershards at their favorite local game stores also means these local, in-store events are intricately linked to the Vault Tour, World Championship, and other events where players will find the KeyForge Prize Walls to redeem their Æmbershards. Players looking to travel to those events will find their ambitions firmly rooted at home—in their local game stores—where they can play regularly to build their supply of Æmbershards.

Getting Started

As the Vault Tour kicks into high gear and players across the world look forward to the Age of Ascension and all of its new Archon Decks, the desire and demand for KeyForge Organized Play are rocketing upward.

Due to its integration of Æmbershards and the KeyForge Master Vault, KeyForge Organized Play offers a uniquely robust, integrated, and customizable player experience—just the sort of thing you’d expect for the world’s first Unique Deck Game!

Of course, it’s also terrifically easy to get involved. Players just need to head to their local game store, bring a deck (or buy one), setup an account in the Master Vault, and jump in on the first Open Play Night or ChainBound event available.

For more information about KeyForge Organized Play—and how you can get involved—visit: FantasyFlightGames.com/OP/KeyForge