Multi-Deck and Qualifier

Is there something (in the VEKN tournament rules/qualifier rules) that prevents a 12-or-less player qualifier to utilize the multi-deck format?

A "continental qualifier" is: a standard constructed tournament that is approved to be a continental qualifier by that country's National Coordinator.

As to your question:

a. Multi-deck is not defined as any particular deck format -- although we can presume it is standard constructed, as it couldn't be any other format.

b. Tournament Rule 3.1.5 states that "Organizers choosing to use this [multi-deck] system must announce its use in advance of the tournament date."

c. Tournament Rule 3.1.5 also states that "A tournament begun with the multi-deck system cannot admit more players between rounds if doing so would create a round with 12 or more players."

So:

1. You couldn't announce a qualifier -- which is defined as a standard constructed tournament -- and then change it to multi-deck when everyone got there. (CAVEAT: As the NAC Tournament Organizer, I have done exactly this at the NAC twice, but both times I had the National Coordinator's blessing and all the players involved voted "for" the option.)

2. You couldn't announce a qualifer as multi-deck, and then admit more than 11 players total

3. While I'm sure that, if more than 11 players showed up and you put it to a vote, that they would all be happy to play a non-multideck tournament at that point, be aware that you could still encounter a problem if someone had come specifically to play in the multi-deck format that you had previously announced, because then you couldn't admit more than 11 players.


Note that we didn't address "Tournament Without Final" [3.1.6], but if you had a tiny qualifier of less than 8 players and you therefore chose to have three rounds and no final, you must announce that option before the first round begins, and you may not later admit more than 7 players total.