Open
Open is the constructed format for current virtual play: Decipher-printed cards plus the post-2014 Virtual Sets and Defensive Shields. The Players Committee created it as the Standard format at the 2014 Virtual Card Pool Reset and has used it for its championship circuit since then; "Open" is its name on GEMP.[1][2][3] On GEMP this is the environment used for virtual championship events such as the 2026 Tenth Annual GEMPC.
- Type: constructed
- Defined by: Players Committee (2014)
- Card pool: every Decipher card plus the post-reset ("standard") Virtual Sets
- In use: 2014 –
- Also called: Standard (Players Committee)
- GEMP: Open (
open) on both the Players Committee GEMP and play.swccg.com
This is not the same label as Premiere - Death Star II (no current virtual cards) and is not a closed or limited format. The pre-reset pool is Legacy Open.
Card pool
The Players Committee's 2015 guide defines Standard events as constructed tournaments in which players build their decks from any Decipher cards and any of the "standard" Virtual Set cards. These carry the standard Virtual Set icon, a slanted ring around the set number. The guide calls them "reset cards", the Virtual Cards legal after the Virtual Card Reset of fall 2014. Players using cards from Set 0 (the Base Set) may keep using earlier slips with accurate game text from their Legacy release.[2] The Players Committee's 2019 Tournament Formats page adds that no "legacy" Virtual Cards may be used.[4]
Each player uses two 60-card decks, one Dark Side and one Light Side, not counting cards from outside the deck such as Defensive Shields placed under a Starting Effect. Decks may not be changed during the tournament.[2][4]
On GEMP the format's set list is Decipher-printed set ids 1–14 (Premiere through Theed Palace), premium ids 101–112, current Virtual Sets 0–27 (ids 200–227) and the Virtual Premium Set (id 301).[3][5] The GEMP format definition sets no deck size, so GEMP uses its default of 60 cards.[3][6]
History
Standard (2014)
On 25 July 2014 the Players Committee's Advocate Council announced the reset of the virtual card pool under the title "Reset of Standard Format". It said: "The new Standard tournament format will consist of all post-reset V Cards." The cards would carry a new V-set icon, and players could keep using earlier slips for cards that stayed legal. The same announcement created a separate Legacy format for the pre-reset cards (Legacy Open).[1] By October 2014 the Players Committee's event listings used the name, for example a "Kansas City Standard Format Event".[7]
The 2015 guide calls Standard "the most common type of Constructed Tournament" and the format of the championship circuit, including Worlds. It notes that the 2014 World Championship was the last championship circuit event to allow Legacy cards.[2] The 2019 Tournament Formats page still lists the two constructed formats as Standard and Legacy.[4] In late 2020 the Players Committee filed its post-reset championship decklists, through the 2020 events, under "Standard Decklists".[8]
Open (GEMP)
On GEMP the same pool is named Open (code open). The Players Committee GEMP code makes it the default format: "Open should ALWAYS be first in this list as the default format."[9][3] The earliest Players Committee article found using "Open" for the format is from 19 December 2020: introducing the Limited Resources Format on GEMP, it contrasted that format with "a broader, more power-creeped card pool such as Open".[10] Most GEMP variant formats are named after it, such as Open (100 cards) and Open (no shields).[3]
When GEMP first named the format "Open", and whether the Players Committee ever formally renamed Standard, is not known from these sources. Both names appear in Players Committee material of 2020: "Standard" for the decklist archive, "Open" for GEMP play.[8][10]
Tournaments
27 tournaments on List of SWCCG tournaments used this format, newest first.
| Tag | Event | Dates | Site | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-11 | 2026 World Championship | 24–25 October 2026 | Bloomington, Minnesota | Brian Fred |
| 2026-10 | 2026 European Championship | 19–20 September 2026 | Bochum, Germany | Timo Dusel |
| 2026-08 | 2026 U.S. National Championship | 1–2 August 2026 | New Brunswick, New Jersey | Hayes Hunter |
| 2026-06 | 2026 Tenth Annual GEMPC | May–July 2026 | GEMP | Patrick Johnson |
| 2026-05 | 2026 Regional Championships | 23 May – 6 September 2026 | various | — |
| 2026-04 | 2026 San Diego Super Open | 10–12 April 2026 | San Diego, California | Joe Olson |
| 2026-02 | 2026 Outrider Cup IV | 13 January – 4 February 2026 | GEMP (teams) | Team USA |
| 2026-01 | 2026 Boston Winter Classic | 10–11 January 2026 | Boston, Massachusetts | Phil Aasen |
| 2025-10 | 2025 Online Championship Series Playoffs | 20 October – 25 November 2025 | GEMP | Patrick Johnson |
| 2025-09 | 2025 World Championship | 4–5 October 2025 | Seattle, Washington | Greg Shaw |
| 2025-08 | 2025 European Championship | 20–21 September 2025 | Bochum, Germany | Emil Wallin |
| 2025-07 | 2025 U.S. National Championship | 23–24 August 2025 | Columbus, Ohio | Matt Scott |
| 2025-05 | 2025 Ninth Annual GEMPC | May–July 2025 | GEMP | Matthew Harrison-Trainor |
| 2025-03 | 2025 Regional Championships | 21 June – 15 November 2025 | various | — |
| 2025-02 | 2025 Morristown Melee | 24–27 April 2025 | Morristown, New Jersey | Greg Shaw |
| 2025-01 | 2025 Las Vegas Grand Prix | 11–12 January 2025 | Las Vegas, Nevada | Joe Olson |
| 2024-12 | 2024 Champions League | December 2024 – February 2025 | GEMP | Matthew Harrison-Trainor |
| 2023-11 | 2023 Outrider Cup III | 16–28 January 2024 | GEMP (teams) | Team USA |
| 2022-11 | 2022 Online Championship Series Playoffs | October–November 2022 | GEMP | Justin Desai |
| 2021-12 | 2021 Outrider Cup | November 2021 – 26 January 2022 | GEMP (teams) | Team Europe |
| 2020-12 | 2020 World Championship | 5–6 and 12–13 December 2020 | GEMP | Joe Olson |
| 2019-12 | 2019 Outrider Cup | 3 December 2019 – 20 January 2020 | GEMP (teams) | Team USA |
| 2018-12 | 2018 Online Championship Series | 2018 | GEMP | Justin Desai |
| 2017-10 | 2017 Texas Mini Worlds | 20–22 October 2017 | Texas | Steve Baroni |
| 2016-10-28 | 2016 Texas Mini Worlds | 28–30 October 2016 | Houston, Texas | Steve Baroni |
| 2015-10-23 | 2015 Texas Mini Worlds | 23–25 October 2015 | Texas | Brian Fred |
| 2014-10-03 | 2014 Philadelphia Premiere Event | 3–5 October 2014 | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | Chris Gogolen |
See also
- Formats
- Legacy Open
- 2014 Virtual Card Pool Reset
- GEMP
- 2026 Tenth Annual GEMPC
- Virtual Modern
- Championships
| Star Wars CCG Eras | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Decipher 1995–2001 |
Virtual Original 2002–2009 |
Virtual Legacy 2009–2014 |
Virtual Modern 2014– |
| Premiere - Theed Palace | Premiere - Original VS17 | Legacy Open | Open |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Reset of Standard Format, Advocate Council (byline darkjediknight11), Players Committee (25 July 2014). Preserved copy: Internet Archive, 6 March 2017
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Star Wars CCG Alternate Format Tournament Guide (revised 09/2015), Players Committee. Preserved copy: Internet Archive.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 swccgFormats.json, GEMP source code (billbisco/swccg-gemp, commit 16168b26), GitHub. Preserved copy: Internet Archive. Preserved copy: Internet Archive.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Tournament Formats, Players Committee (27 June 2019). Preserved copy: Internet Archive.
- ↑ ExpansionSet.java, GEMP source code (billbisco/swccg-gemp, commit 16168b26), GitHub. Preserved copy: Internet Archive. Preserved copy: Internet Archive.
- ↑ SwccgoFormatLibrary.java, GEMP source code (billbisco/swccg-gemp, commit 16168b26), GitHub. Preserved copy: Internet Archive. Preserved copy: Internet Archive.
- ↑ Kansas City Standard Format Event, Players Committee events listing. Preserved copy: Internet Archive.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 Standard Decklists Archives, Players Committee. Preserved copy: Internet Archive.
- ↑ swccgFormats.json, GEMP source code (PlayersCommittee/gemp-swccg-public, commit 5e26dd19), GitHub. Preserved copy: Internet Archive.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 NARP-Friendly "Limited Resources" Format Debuts on Gemp, Players Committee (19 December 2020). Preserved copy: Internet Archive.