TGP Dispatch: 9/16/25
September 16, 2025
2:37 pm
(you can find the full TGP weekly/monthly calendar right here)
Hello and good afternoon one and all!
It’s time to talk about what’s happening at The Gathering Place this week, and boy howdy is it about to be a WEEK at TGP! We’ve got Commander League X kicking off today, Spider-Man prerelease events this weekend, Flesh and Blood Super Slam kicking off, an Old School Thursday, a mini paint night and all the usual stuff.
Speaking of League, worth noting Preston has added a bunch of fresh precons to the TGP website. Decks from Bloomburrow, Lost Caverns of Ixalan, Duskmourn – there’s new inventory, so if you want to take a look in advance of this evening’s kickoff event you totally should!
Obviously, Commander League X begins this week!
Click right here for all the details about Commander League, and what this season will look like.
This evening’s kickoff event begins at 6:00, games start at 7:00. We’ll be podding up League players, raffling off prizes, cracking packs and getting the League X season going good and proper. We’ll see you there!
Outside of League X, the banner item this week is the MTG Spider-Man Prerelease. It’s going to be a busy, packed week at TGP if previous prereleases are any indication, so be ready for that. There’s a post on the TGP website detailing Spider-Man, but it’s worth it to say here:
E is $35 per player. Typical prerelease structure, three Swiss rounds, 1 pack per win. Entrants will all receive a Spider-Man prerelease kit.
Here’s the days/times:
- Fri 9/19: 2:30 + 7:00
- Sat, 9/20: 12:00 + 4:00
- Sun, 9/21: 12:00 (Two-Headed Giant)
Players can preregister for the prerelease events on TGP’s online store.
We’ll also have as much Spider-Man sealed product for sale as we can, per-customer limitations will most likely be in effect, and product will be sold first-come, first served. Customers who preordered Spider-Man product will be able to pick up their orders on Friday.
As always, you can find the full TGP weekly/monthly calendar right here, and you can pop over in the discord with any questions you might have. See you around!
TGP Dispatch: 9/9/25
September 9, 2025
3:33 pm
Hey all! Our beloved Victor is currently down for the count with Covid, so this week’s TGP Dispatch is brought to you by your friendly neighborhood dork and social media post goblin, Will Joseph.
This week at The Gathering Place, we’re spotlighting competitive Magic in many of its forms, with three major events of different formats (CEDH, Sealed, and Vintage) in one weekend! If you’ve been looking to get into a more serious side of MTG, maybe this is your sign to start!
(as always the full event calendar can be found right here)
Of course our more casual events are still firing, with a draft for FNM and a standard set draft on Sunday. For commander players, remember to drop by our free Commander Meetups (Tuesday/Thursday nights at 7pm)!
Have you ever wanted to win a Black Lotus? Bring your best CEDH deck down to TGP at 12pm, Saturday, 9/13 to fight for your spot in the Land, Go Black Lotus Invitational! This is a full-proxy event, with $25 of your $35 entry going into the prize pool. The winner will also receive an invitation to play in a future event with an Unlimited Black Lotus on the line! Preregistration and more info for this event is available on Topdeck HERE, and entry is capped at 80 players, so consider preregistering now!
Looking to jam some of Magic’s most powerful cards in a format with a lot of history? TGP is also hosting a Vintage cash tournament, also at 12pm on Saturday, 9/13. Resolve a Black Lotus while the CEDH players are fighting to play for one!
Our 9/14 RCQ, which was previously switched from EOE Sealed to Standard due to allocation concern, has now been changed again, this time back to EOE Sealed. At 11:30am on Sunday, bring a pack of sleeves, your best Sealed luck, and a good attitude to compete in our 1-slot RCQ! All material on the website is being updated, and once again we plan to update our social media with this change. We’re aware of the frustration that the flip-flopping nature of this event could cause, and we’re doing our very best to ensure that we never have to do this odd dance again.
Bandai games also continue to be a growing presence, with our official Gundam weeklies becoming a highlight of Wednesday nights. We’re also officially going to receive product for future Gundam TCG sets, so expect to see boxes, packs, starter decks, and more in-store when set 2 releases! One Piece also continues to fire multiple events per week, so if you’re looking to become a Pilot or a Pirate, now’s a great time to learn!
Looking forward to next week, it’s time for a return to Universes Beyond with Spider-man prereleases on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. Just in time for those prereleases, Commander League X will be kicking off Tuesday, 9/16, so get yourself ready for the most X-TREME league so far, as well as a newly updated League Rules document with a more comprehensive ruleset.
For all the details on COMMANDER LEAGUE X, click here!
That’s all, folks! Please wish Victor a speedy recovery from Covid so you can get back to hearing his sultry voice over the interwebs.
TGP Dispatch: 9/2/25
September 2, 2025
5:07 pm
This week at The Gathering Place, we’re starting September off strong with another round of our in-house CEDH Dual Land tournaments, the monthly first-Saturday Comedy Showcase, and a Warhammer 40k Meetup on Sunday afternoon!
In terms of what Magic we’re Gathering, this week we’ve got another Old School Thursday (iykyk), FNM is another round of Final Fantasy, and Saturday we’re firing the aforementioned showdown for a gen-yoo-wine Dual Land on Saturday starting at high noon.
Perhaps most importantly for our local competitive Magic: The Gathering Players – the EOE Sealed RCQ at TGP scheduled for Sunday, 9/14, has been changed to a Standard RCQ out of necessity. Distribution for MTG has been rough as of late, and The Gathering Place has not received enough allotted sealed EOE product to hold the tournament. In fact, TGP doesn’t even have any EOE, period. We’ve adjusted the listings for the event everywhere the event is currently appearing, and we’ll be posting about the change on social media as well to fully drive the point home. Given how… difficult navigating allocation and distro has become, it is unlikely TGP holds a sealed RCQ event in the future.
While serious matters are being discussed, it’s worth bringing up something important to all TGP patrons, guests, friends and neighbors.
You may have noticed, in the past week, new signs have appeared in the parking lot beside the Alpha Pie / TGP Building. This is because, since 2022, we have not monitored any parking directly associated with TGP, we have never booted, we have never towed. Starting this week, that is no longer the ca se. Unauthorized vehicles parked at TGP outside of business hours will be towed, without exception or hesitation. Vehicles parked anywhere that isn’t a designated and marked parking spot will be towed. Vehicles parked across multiple spots will be towed. Spread the word. Be advised. The signs have been up for five days, and towing starts today.
On a more positive note!
Bandai card games have a strong community at TGP, so expect more of the same from One Piece and the newly-popping Gundam TCG. For those without their finger on the pulse of the TGP OP Community, check in over on the Discord channel for a poll and updates about how prizing is moving and shaking going forward. Gundam is going strong with official Bandai-logged events, promos, and numbers counting toward future Gundam events and support. Thanks to all pilots who’ve been showing up to play, and we’ll keep seeing you on Wednesdays!
Since it’s the start of the month, here’s a quick breakdown of events further down the line:
- Saturday, 9/13: MTG CEDH Invitational
- Saturday, 9/13: MTG Vintage Cash Tournament
- Sunday, 9/14: MTG Standard RCQ
- Tuesday, 9/16: Commander League X Begins + League Kickoff Event
- 9/19 – 9/21: MTG Spider-Man Prerelease
- Saturday, 9/27: Biddie’s Night Bingo III: Ultimatum
See you around, folks! (also, Alpha Pie’s delivery service may be temporarily unavailable, but you can still order online for pickup!)
TGP Dispatch: 8/26/25
This week at The Gathering Place, you can expect to see MTG Commander meetups happening, Sorcery players drafting, Gundam locals firing off and a great deal more!
We’re officially locked in with Bandai, so Gundam local will be featuring prize support in the form of packs for Top 4, promos for participation, and the special Bandai promo for the tournament winner. Gundam is picking up steam, so we’ll see you Newtypes there for some mobile suit action!
Friday Night Magic is about to be another round of FINAL FANTASY draft, so come on down Friday evening to crack packs and draft some of Magic’s most flavorful and fun cards. FF Limited seems to have a good bit of staying power, and we’re glad we picked up some extra boxes to keep the good times rolling.
Saturday night, we’re bringing back an instant classic: Biddie’s Night Bingo is back! The second iteration of what just might become a semi-regular feature is on the table and starting at 6:00 p.m. – bingo cards will be free to all comers, and we’ll have some nice little prizes for folks lucky enough to hit the coveted B-I-N-G-O.
Noon on Sunday, we’re hosting the first-ever TGP Flesh and Blood cash tournament. Exactly what it says on the tin: $25 entry for high-stakes FAB action and cash tournament spoils. Battle with your best, tournament-level rules enforcement and all relative regulations apply. See you there! (you can preregister for the event here)
Since we’re close to ending August, here’s some stuff to keep in mind and on your calendar:
- CEDH Dual Land Tournament, Saturday 9/6
- Warhammer 40k Kill Team Monthly Meetup, Sunday, 9/7
- CEDH Invitational, Saturday 9/13
- MTG Vintage Cash Tournament, Saturday 9/13
- MTG EOE Sealed RCQ, Sunday 9/14
- MTG Commander League X Kickoff Event, Tuesday 9/16
- MTG Spider-Man Prerelease Weekend, 9/19 – 9/21
As always, you can see the rest of what’s happening week after week and month after month at TGP over on the calendar, now featuring dates running through December as we work to plan the rest of our year out. See you around, have a great start to your week!
TGP Dispatch: 8/19/25
This week at The Gathering Place: Commander League’s summer session finale tournament, Flesh and Blood Living Legends, MTG Old School Thursday, an MTG Standard RCQ, and more!
Before we get into the weeklies, tournaments and updates – some big news from TGP, perhaps the biggest news we’ve shared in a while:
THE TABLES NO LONGER WOBBLE. THEY DO NOT MOVE. THEY ARE SOLID, STABLE. LIKE A ROCK. LIKE A BOULDER. LIKE A MIGHTY OAK TREE, A BEAUTIFUL AND ETERNAL FOUNDATION ON WHICH TO BUILD YOUR LEGACY.
We heard you. We made it happen. We hope you enjoy your improved TGP Table Experience.
Check the full TGP Weekly Calendar (and the rest of month, and also September, and so on and so forth) right here!
Quick hits on times and days for the week:
- MTG Old School: Thursday, 7:30 p.m.
- MTG Standard RCQ: Saturday, 11:30 a.m.
- FAB Living Legends Tournament: Saturday, 12:00 p.m.
- Commander League: Summer Session Finale: Sunday, 12:00 p.m.
Since we’re in the home stretch of August, it’s worth bringing a little attention to what’s happening in-store come September.
- CEDH Dual Land Tournament, Saturday 9/6
- Warhammer 40k Kill Team Monthly Meetup, Sunday, 9/7
- CEDH Invitational, Saturday 9/13
- MTG Vintage Cash Tournament, Saturday 9/13
- MTG EOE Sealed RCQ, Sunday 9/14
- MTG Spider-Man Prerelease Weekend, 9/19 – 9/21
As always, thanks for hanging out, thanks for playing and thanks for making The Gathering Place your neighborhood hangout. See you around!
TGP Dispatch: 8/12/25
This week at The Gathering Place, August continues in earnest. Lots of weekly events are recurring, so all the usual suspects are in the shop this week. D&D Learn to Play sessions, one-shots, Magic Commander Nights, meetups and board games free to play on the wall — same as it ever was.
The banner item for the week is, without a doubt, the prerelease for the new One Piece TCG set: OP-12, Legacy of the Master! Bandai seems as bullish as ever on this one, promising brand-new cards, six Leaders and new effects, a focus on attribute-driven decks and promising “a twist on traditional gameplay.”
The Gathering Place will have two OP-12 prerelease events, one on Saturday and another on Sunday. 8/16 begins at 1:00 p.m. and 8/17 starts at 12:00 p.m. Entry per player is $30, we’ll see you there to crack packs, build decks and engage in some good ol’ fashioned high-seas fisticuffs.
Speaking of Bandai, Gundam TCG weeklies continue, and the first official Bandai-backed event is next Wednesday’s get-together. If you’ve been waiting ti jump on the train, TGP still has starter decks in stock for $20.
Worth noting, next weekend is looking STACKED, PACKED and CRACKED. Saturday, 8/23 has both a FAB Living Legend Skirmish and an MTG Standard RCQ on the docket, and then Sunday is the Finale Tournament of Commander League’s Summer Session.
Next week is also FWOC for UNC students, and the rumblings are already happening around town as The Return takes full effect. Keep that in mind, and know that we’re about to add a special “Parking” section to the TGP website.
Be safe, be well, we’ll see you around!
TGP Dispatch: 8/5/25
This week at The Gathering Place, the month of August formally begins and we’re kicking off another section of summer at your favorite neighborhood game shop + 30-tap bar!
Specifically, this upcoming Saturday, we’re hosting the usual Cash Tournament. It rotates in format between Modern, Legacy and Vintage. This month? It’s Legacy! $30 entry, entry in the prize pool, 15 proxies per deck permitted, and all proxies must be clearly representative of the intended card and contain all information the official printing does in an easy-to-identify fashion).
For the Magic players with more of an old-school bent, we’re also hosting another Old School Thursday this week! For the uninitiated, every first and third Thursday for $15 you get a cold beer, a hot slice of pizza, and the chance to party like it’s ’93 jam some Old School MTG!
This month, and this Sunday specifically, TGP is also hosting its first formal Warhammer 40k Kill Team meetup! We had that special one-off tournament a while back, we’ve had some folks coming in casual-style to play some games, and we’re excited to make it a monthly feature for real. We’ll be setting space aside for 40k this Sunday, games start at 1:00, so we’ll see you there when things get grimdark and tactical at TGP!
Since it is the first week of August, worth noting everything else that’s happening this month. Check in right here for details, event guides, and pop in the Discord or call the shop if you’ve got any questions or concerns.
Be well, be safe, and we’ll see you around!
TGP Dispatch: 7/29/25
This week at The Gathering Place, we’re kicking off a new month and there’s plenty to discuss in terms of what’s going on at your friendly neighborhood game shop!
It’s Week 9 of Commander League (the finale tournament is on Sunday, 8/24!) Sorcery is back on its Constructed grindset, we’re hosting another MTG Old School this Thursday at 7:30 p.m. and Trivia is BACK in a BIG WAY this Friday returning post-EOE with bonus prizes and all the bells and whistles.
Summer at TGP continues to heat up with August’s CEDH Dual Land tournament on Saturday, as well! $30 buy-in, a Dual Land to first, payout to Top 4 and prizing based on attendance!
As August begins, here’s a few things to keep on your calendar:
- Saturday, 8/9: MTG Legacy Cash Tournament
- Sunday, 8/10: Warhammer 40k Kill Team Meetup
- 8/16 and 8/17: One Piece OP-12 Prerelease Weekend
- Saturday, 8/23: MTG Standard RCQ
- Saturday, 8/23: FAB Living Legend Skirmish
- Sunday, 8/24: Commander League: Summer Session – TOURNAMENT III, THE FINALE
- Saturday, 8/30: Biddie’s Night Bingo Vol. II
- Sunday, 8/31: FAB Cash Tournament
Expect a full “this month at TGP” announcement on August 1 (especially relevant as we see some new additions to the TGP lineup, like Gundam!) and some other special things popping up here and there, as well. Special things like Ben getting showered in packs, and our love, at the same time
see you around, friends!
TGP Dispatch: 7/22/25
This week at The Gathering Place, get ready to go to spaaaaaaaaaaaace!
Magic’s new set, a Spelljammers type beat where the Blind Eternities and the space between worlds is host to untold wonders and unforeseen dangers, Edge of Eternities is MTG’s foray into science fiction flavored fantasy and things are certainly taking off! Shocklands back in Standard, some of these cards sure look like they might have an effect on other formats, EOE has some real potential.
With all that hype on the table, you can preregister for a prerelease tournament at TGP online, and here’s the official schedule:
Friday, 7/25
2:30 p.m. (sealed prerelease tournament)
7:00 p.m. (sealed prerelease tournament)
Saturday, 7/26
12:00 p.m. (sealed prerelease tournament)
4:00 p.m. (sealed prerelease tournament)
Sunday, 7/26
4:00 p.m. (Two Headed Giant sealed prerelease tournament)
Again, registration for these tournaments is being done via the TGP website! Click here to snag your ticket for the prerelease event(s) you want to play in!
Other than big-mode MTG prerelease tournaments, we’ve also got a One Piece Box Break Tournament on Sunday! The event kicks off at 1:00 p.m. – it’s $25 entry per player and every six players who enter add another box of One Piece packs to the prize pile.
We’re also getting ready for August’s monthly CEDH Tournament, but there’s a whole lot happening in August. Check out our shop event calendar here, and expect to see a full August breakdown in next week’s announcement!
TGP Dispatch: 7/15/25
This week at The Gathering Place, we’re hosting our monthly Mini Paint Night, an MTG Old School Thursday, a celebration of all things Pokémon on Saturday, a clash for cash starring some ancient Magic: The Gathering history, a Digimon TCG prerelease and the second tournament for Commander League’s Summer Session (can you believe it’s Week 7 already?)!
(all that in addition to our usual roster of events, conveniently located and listed on our full weekly/monthly calendar – and now featured in a ‘highlights’ section directly on the soon-to-be-overhauled event page on the TGP website!)
Here’s some event details, taken straight from the calendar:
MTG THEME DECK CASH CLASH, 12:00 pm, Saturday 7/19
EVENT CANCELLED
While combing through the treasure troves in the TGP basement, crawling the depths of the Card Dungeon, we found a box of some classic, vintage, aged-like-fine-wine MTG Theme Decks! If you’ve got fond memories of what Magic once was, nostalgia for when precon product was this weird, a curiosity to see what all the fuss was about back in the earlier days of the world’s most popular TCG — this is a great opportunity to play in a fun, environment!
Here’s the tournament details:
$40 entry, you receive a random, sealed 60-card theme deck. 16 player capacity, 4 rounds, payout to top 4, 50 minute rounds, best 2 of 3
Here’s a link to sign up for the Theme Deck Cash Clash!
EVENT CANCELLED
Pokéfest, 3:00 pm, Saturday 7/19
A few weeks back, The Gathering Place hosted a small event focused on meeting up, trading cards, and potentially jamming a couple Pokémon games. We want to continue to turn up that dial, so we’re holding another fun, casual, friendly day of Pokémon-centric stuff!
What’s special this time? Glad you asked!
We’ve put together a display, similar to the ones we make full of Magic cards for conventions, of nothing but super cool Pokémon cards! We’ll have all those illustrations, holos, rarities and more neat stuff upstairs and available for perusal and purchase. We’ll be putting aside space specifically for folks to talk, trade and play Pokémon AND we’ve lined up a friend of the store to come by with a custom-built Pokémon Cube for up to 8 players to draft! Here’s the details on the Cube which you should totally check out because it looks like it RULES.
Here’s a link to sign up to play the PokéCube!
Digimon BT-22, Cyber Eden Prerelease, 1:00 pm, Sunday 7/20
$30 entry gets you a slot in the digital world, six packs to play a prerelease with prizing and promos based on attendance!
COMMANDER LEAGUE SUMMER SESSION: TOURNAMENT 2, 3:00 pm, Sunday 7/20
The second in the series, smack dab in the middle of the Summer Session, it’s Tournament 2/II/Two! All Commander League players are cordially invited to battle it out once again, to continue field testing decks and strats in a competitive environment, all on the road to TGP’s final Summer Session Showdown.
We’ve got prizes for winners, raffles throughout the event, and entry was already covered when you joined League! So, we’ll see you there!
(here’s the link to the tournament signup)
That’s a quick roundup of what’s coming in hot this week! Other items of note, all the cases have been restocked with some fresh inventory, the Spicy Foils box is refreshed, and the air conditioning is FIXED and we are STOKED. See you around, have a great rest of your week!
