Judge Terminology

Magic players use a lot of terms of art, and judges are no different. Being inundated with unfamiliar words and phrases can lead newer judges and judge candidates to feel overwhelmed or like they're an outsider to the judge community. This is not ideal.

There's a glossary of Magic acronyms and slang on the MTG Wiki, but that page doesn't include most judge terms. So this page is an attempt to compile a comprehensive list of the terms you might hear judges use. If there's anything I missed, please let me know so I can add it in.

Acronyms

• 2HG: Two-Headed Giant. A format where two players play together on the same team.
• AIPG: The Annotated IPG. A judge-maintained resource that provides additional context to what's said in the IPG. (Not Official.)
• AMTR: The Annotated MTR. A judge-maintained resource that provides additional context to what's said in the MTR. (Not Official.)
• AP: The active player; the player whose turn it currently is. Contrast to NAP.
• AR: Academy Ruins. A website that hosts old versions of Magic's rules and policy documents, a convenient display of the differences between them, a hyperlinked CR, and other useful tools.
• B&W: Bribery and Wagering. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• CC: Community Consultant. Judge Academy's version of Regional Coordinators, no longer in existence.
• CCTTCAP: An easy-to-remember mnemonic for the 7 layers: copy, control, text, type, color, abilities, power/toughness.
• CFB: ChannelFireball. A former PTO.
• CFBE: ChannelFireball Events. A PTO. May be three CFBs in a trench coat, unknown.
• CMC: An outdated term for MV.
• CO: Conference Organizer. Someone who's in charge of running a judge conference.
• CR: The Magic Comprehensive Rules. These dictate how the game itself works, no matter where it's being played.
• CPV: Communication Policy Violation. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• CREL: An abbreviation for Competitive REL.
• DCI: Duelists' Convocation International. The organization that used to be in charge of organized play. Mostly superseded by the WPN.
• DCIR: DCI Reporter. Very old tournament software used prior to WER.
• DEBT: A mnemonic to remember what protection does: it prevents damage, enchanting/equipping, blocking, and targeting. (There's also a song.)
• DIPG: The Digital IPG. Like the IPG, but for events run on Magic Arena.
• DOJ: Development of Other Judges. One of the L3 Qualities.
• DMTR: The Digital MTR. Like the MTR, but for events run on Magic Arena.
• DLP: Desklist Problem. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• DP: Deck Problem. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• DQ: A disqualification.
• EDB: Eric Dustin-Brown.
• EDH: Elder Dragon Highlander. An old name for the Commander format.
• EL: Eventlink. The current tournament software that WOTC provides.
• EOR: End-of-Round. The period of time starting 5-10 minutes before the round ends, and continuing until the next round starts. Judges are often busy during this period performing sweeps and sitting on tables.
• EOY: End-of-year. Usually used in reference to the end-of-year conferences run by JAC.
• EtB: Enters the Battlefield. Usually used to refer to replacement effects that replace a permanent entering the battlefield, or triggered abilities that trigger upon a permanent entering the battlefield.
• EW: Eternal Weekend. A yearly convention for Legacy and Vintage players.
• F2F: Face-to-Face Games. A PTO.
• FJ: Floor Judge. The rank and file of judge staff at an event.
• FCE: Fixing Common Errors at Regular REL. The old name for the JAR.
• FLGS: A synonym for LGS. Stands for "friendly local game store".
• FNM: Friday Night Magic. The most common type of tournament, run at Regular REL by LGSs.
• FtMGS: Failure to Maintain Game State. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• GL: Game Loss. A type of penalty that can be issued at Competitive REL events. See the IPG for more details.
• GRV: Game Rule Violation. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• GP: Grand Prix. Used to be the premier type of large Magic convention, with 1-2 main events and hundreds of side events. Renamed to Magicfests, then ceased entirely.
• GPE: Game Play Error. A category of infractions that includes MT, LEC, HCE, MPE, GRV, and FtMGS. See the IPG for more details.
• GPHJ: Grand Prix Head Judge. A defunct certification to allow people to head judge Grand Prix. Replaced with LTHJ, and then PTHJ.
• GPT: Grand Prix Trial. A defunct type of store-level Competitive REL event that used to earn the winner 2 byes for their next Grand Prix.
• HCE: Hidden Card Error. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• HBMO: Hunter Burton Memorial Open. A yearly charity event in Texas.
• HJ: Head Judge. The person in charge of that tournament.
• IDaW: Improperly Determining a Winner. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• INV: Investigations. One of the L3 qualities.
• IPG: The Infraction Procedure Guide. This is the document that tells judges how to fix mistakes that players have made at Competitive REL events.
• JA: 1) Judgeapps. The previous home for the judge program, back when it was community-run. 2) Another acronym for Judge Academy.
• JAC: Judge Academy. The company that certifies judges and provides training resources.
• JAR: The Judging at Regular document. This is what tells judges how to handle mistakes that players have made at a Regular REL event.
• JB: The Judge Booth. A defunct website hosting hundreds of rules questions for use as a study resource, and a linked project to have physical judge booths at events to help recruit new judges. Replaced by RulesGuru.
• JCC: The Judge Conduct Committee. A committee of judges in charge of reviewing accused violations of the Judge Code of Conduct and determining what action must be taken. No longer exists.
• JCoC: The Judge Code of Conduct.
• KCI: Krark-Clan Ironworks. The namesake for a deck that led to increased employment for judges.
• L1/L2/L3/L4/L5: A level 1/2/3/4/5 judge. Levels 4 and 5 are defunct.
• LCT: Last Chance Trial. A defunct type of Competitive REL side event that players could enter at large events in order to get them two byes in the main event.
• LCQ: Last Chance Qualifier. A small Competitive REL side event that players can enter at large events in order to qualify them for the main event. (Usually the main event starts on Saturday, so the LCQs happen on Friday.)
• LEC: Looking at Extra Cards. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• LGS: Local game store.
• LKI: Last known information. A concept in the CR.
• LPC: Leadership, Presence, and Charisma. One of the L3 qualities.
• LPV: Limited Procedure Violation. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• LTHJ: Large Tournament Head Judge. A defunct certification for people capable of head judging large tournaments. Replaced with PTHJ.
• LTO: Logistics and Tournament Operations. One of the L3 qualities.
• MF: Magicfest. A stage magic performance festival in Edinburgh. No, wait, now it's WOTC's new name for Grand Prix.
• ML: Match Loss. A type of penalty that can be issued at Competitive REL events. See the IPG for more details.
• MC: Mythic Championship. An outdated name for the Pro Tour.
• MCQ: Mythic Championship Qualifer. A now-defunct tournament type that would qualify players for the Mythic Championship.
• MCR: An alternative name for the CR. (Stands for Magic Comprehensive Rules.)
• MEL: Medium Event Lead. A badge on Judge Academy on the path to L3.
• MIPG: An alternative name for the IPG. (Stands for "Magic IPG".)
• MT: Missed Trigger. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• MTG: You really should know this one.
• MTR: The Magic Tournament Rules. These are additional rules that apply to real-life tournaments, but not to casual play or online play.
• MPE: Mulligan Procedure Error. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• MV: Mana value. A concept in the CR.
• NAP: A non-active player; a player who is not currently taking a turn. Contrast to AP.
• NRG: Nerd Rage Games. A PTO.
• OA: Outside Assistance. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• ODEs: On-demand events. A form of side event that launches as soon as it has enough players, rather than waiting for a certain time. Contrast with scheduled sides.
• OP: Organized play. The systems behind Magic tournaments, such as how players can qualify for other events.
• PAC: Personal Accountability. One of the L3 qualities.
• PANTS: "Paul, Again Not Thinking Straight". An acronym used by judges who want to apologize for an error and also show off how much time they spent on the old judge forums. Warning: only suitable for use by people named Paul.
• PC: Program Coordinator. The people in charge of the judge program prior to Judge Academy.
• PCP: Program Construction and Philosophy. A defunct L3 quality.
• PCV: The old name for CPV.
• PE: Policy Expert. A badge on Judge Academy on the path to L3. Also Procedural Error; a now defunct category of infraction.
• PEI: Pre-Event Interview. The penultimate step in the L3 process, before the final panel.
• PEIP: Premier Event Invitation Policy. A document from Wizards detailing how you get invited to premier events. (Duh.) No longer in use, you can see an old version here.
• PESL: Public Events Shift Lead. An outdated term for sides lead. (Side events used to be called "public events".)
• PIC: The Player Investigation Committee. A committee of judges in charge of reviewing disqualifications and determining whether the player should be banned. No longer exists.
• PPP: Penalty and Policy Philosophy. One of the L3 qualities.
• PT: The Pro Tour. The highest level of Competitive Magic play. (Except for the World Championship. It's complicated.) Briefly called the Mythic Championship, and then the Players' Tour, and then back to Pro Tour.
• PTHJ: Professional Tournament Head Judge. A certification for people who can head judge Professional REL events.
• PTO: Premier Tournament Organizer. A TO who runs many large conventions and has a special contract with WOTC.
• PTQ: Pro Tour Qualifier. A defunct type of large event that was basically a slightly less prestigious RC.
• PPTQ: Preliminary Pro Tour Qualifier. A defunct type of store-level Competitive REL event. Largely indistinguishable from an RCQ.
• RC: 1) Regional Championship. A large event that qualifies players for the PT. 2) Regional Coordinator. A defunct judge role that used to be in charge of a region. Replaced with Community Consultants.
• RCQ: Regional Championship Qualifier. A store-level Competitive REL event that qualifies players for their RC.
• REL: Rules Enforcement Level. A sanctioned Magic tournament can be run at one of three different Rules Enforcement Levels: "Regular", "Competitive", or "Professional". Later RELs tend to have higher prizes and hold their players to a stricter standard. Regular REL events use the JAR for their tournament policy, while Competitive and Professional REL use the IPG. People also sometimes refer to "Casual REL", which doesn't technically exist, and just means "an unsanctioned event that isn't following any strict tournament rules".
• RA: Rules Advisor. A certification from Judge Academy intended to prove you know some of the basic rules of the game. It's a step on the path to L1.
• RAI: Rules as Intended. The way that WOTC would like their game to work. Contrast with Rules as Written.
• RAW: Rules as Written. The answer given by the CR as it's actually written. Contrast with Rules as Intended.
• RG: RulesGuru. A community-maintained study resource.
• RREL: An abbreviation for Regular REL.
• RTFC: An acronym used by people who want to be condescending while explaining what a card does.
• SANTA: "Scott Again Not Thinking Accurately". An alternative form of PANTS. Avoid usage without a beard of significant length.
• SCG: Star City Games. A PTO. Also used to refer to an event that's part of the Star City Games Tour, as in "I'm going to an SCG next month".
• SCM: Stress and Conflict Management. A defunct L3 Quality.
• SEL: Small Event Lead. A badge on Judge Academy on the path to L3.
• SK: Scorekeeper. Somebody who stays up at the stage and runs the tournament software.
• TDC: Teamwork, Diplomacy, and Conflict Management. One of the L3 qualities.
• TDM: Teamwork, Diplomacy, and Maturity. A defunct L3 quality.
• TL: Team lead. A judge in between the Head Judge and the Floor Judges on the hierarchy, generally assigned several floor judges in order to accomplish a certain task.
• TLC: Team Lead Certification. A defunct certification for people who could lead teams at large events. Replaced with the TLTP.
• TLTP: Team Lead in Training Position. A defunct certification for people on the road to L3. Replaced with the "Medium Team Lead" badge.
• TO: Tournament Organizer. A store owner or employee who is in charge of the tournament's scheduling, organization, and logistics. (Some events may have multiple TOs.)
• USC: Unsporting Conduct. A category of infractions that includes USC - Minor, USC - Major, IDaW, and B&W. See the IPG for more details.
• VC: Verification Committee. A group of judges involved in the L3 process. No longer exists under Judge Academy.
• VJ: Venser's Journal. A defunct website that hosted old versions of the rules and policy documents. Replaced by Academy Ruins.
• WER: Wizards Event Reporter. The premier piece of tournament software for many years, now replaced by Eventlink. Infamous for being extremely buggy.
• WER-SE: Wizards Event Reporter - Side Events. A variant of WER designed to handle side events. Yes, that is its real name and acronym in the software.
• WPN: Wizards Play Network. The organization in charge of organized play.
• WLTR: Wizards Large Tournament Reporter. Software similar to WER, but designed for events with upwards of 500 players, that WER would not be able to handle.
• WOTC: Wizards of the Coast, the company that makes Magic and designs the game's rules and tournament policy.

Other terms of art

• All Crazy Teens Have Tried Magic Pills: A mnemonic for the steps to casting a spell: announce the spell, make most choices, choose targets, choose how to divide damage, determine the total cost, activate mana abilities, pay the cost. It's a terrible mnemonic and hasn't been accurate in years since the process has changed since then, but people keep using it anyway. Some alternatives can be found here.
• Backup: When a judge reverses a game state back to some previous point. See the IPG for more details.
• Board state: A synonym for "game state", that you shouldn't use because it implies that anything not on the battlefield is unimportant.
• Boneyard: The hidden area at a large Magic convention where all the packing materials are stored while the convention is ongoing.
• Call: A judge call. When a player calls a judge over to ask a question or resolve a situation.
• Card count: When a judge must count up how many cards have left a player's library in order to determine information such as whether they've drawn for the turn, whether they have the correct number of cards in hand, or what turn of the game it currently is.
• Card pool: In a limited event, the total set of cards that the player has available to build their deck.
• Cascading re-pair: When a result was reported incorrectly at a large tournament, and several matches need to be broken and those players paired with different players in the new round in order to fix it. Also just called a "cascade re-pair".
• Caution: Warning. A defunct type of penalty that used to be issued at Competitive REL events.
• Comes into play: A synonym for "enters the battlefield", used by the sort of people who tell stories about having opened 18 Black Lotuses and trading them all away for a Juju Bubble.
• Coverage: 1) The tournament coverage, where some matches are streamed online with commentators. Often placed in a separate area and assigned a dedicated judge. 2) Floor coverage, referring to the quantity of judges that are available to take calls from players relative to the number of calls that are occurring. For example, a head judge might tell a floor judge "our coverage looks pretty good, so you can go on break now".
• Sent to Dairy Queen: A euphemism for disqualification.
• Deck check: When a judge pauses a match to take the players' decks and confirm they are legal.
• Fizzle: When a spell or ability fails to resolve due to having an illegal target.
• Flip the round: To end one round of the tournament and begin the next. Once the last result of a round has been submitted, a judge might say "ok, we're ready to flip".
• Full backup: A backup that is not a simple backup.
• Game state: The current state of the game.
• Grinder: A player who frequently plays in Competitive REL events.
• Judge-breaker: A deck built to lead to a lot of rules and policy questions rather than to try to win.
• Kefka: A piece of judge-designed software for streamlining side events.
• L3 qualities: A group of personality traits and knowledge that people must have in order to become L3.
• Lapsing triggers: A phrase used by judges who want to show off how long they've been a judge.
• Layers: The section of the CR that handles the interactions between conflicting continuous effects. It has gained infamy as a notoriously complicated and unintuitive part of the rules.
• Main deck: Your deck. Not your sideboard.
• Main event: The headlinder event for a convention. Usually the largest, with a high prize pool, and run at Competitive REL. Contrast to side events.
• Mana weaving: A process that a player will perform when they want to indicate that they don't understand the purpose of shuffling.
• Match Point Penalty: A defunct type of penalty that used to be issued at Competitive REL events.
• MTG Melee: A piece of judge-designed software for running events on Arena. Also sometimes used for large tabletop events. Infamous for being extremely buggy.
• On the bubble: When it's the last round of Swiss and a player may or may not make the cut for top 8 depending on their tiebreakers, that player is said to be "on the bubble".
• Official: Sometimes the rules and policy documents that WOTC provides us with are incorrect or incomplete, and they will make a fiat ruling to clear things up. These Official rulings supersede the CR, IPG, and MTR, and other policy documents, and judges must adhere to them.
• Otherjudge: The judge who is always making mistakes or behaving inappropriately in players' stories.
• Pile Shuffling: A form of legal Slow Play.
• Purple Fox: A piece of judge-designed software for streamlining EOR at large events.
• Rewind: An alternative name for a Backup.
• Scoop: To concede.
• Scheduled sides: A form of side event that launches at a specific time. Contrast to on demands.
• Sides: Side events. The smaller, more frequent, and more causal events at a large convention. Usually Regular REL, but not always. Contrast to the main event.
• Simple backup: A specific subcategory of backups. Does not just mean "any backup that isn't complicated".
• Sitting on a table: When a judge sits (or sometimes stands) next to a match in progress in order to watch the players play and take their match results once it's over.
• Sweep: A verb, meaning to walk by all the tables and check if their status matches up with the tournament software. If the players have finished their match, the judge doing the sweep will either ask them to report their result or take the result themselves. Near the end of each round, a head judge or team lead may tell a floor judge to "do a sweep", so that the next round can get started promptly and we don't have to wait on players who failed to report their results on time.
• Swiss: A certain type of pairing algorithm used at most Magic events.
• Swoop: A verb, meaning to pause a match right after the players have presented their decks to their opponents in order to perform a deck check.
• Top 8: The final portion of some tournaments after the Swiss rounds where the 8 highest-ranked players play against each other in single-elimination rounds to determine a winner. Sometimes there's a top 4 or top 16 instead.
• USC - Major: Unsporting Conduct - Major. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• USC - Minor: Unsporting Conduct - Minor. One of the infractions that players can commit at Competitive and Professional REL. See the IPG for more details.
• Warning: Warning. A type of penalty that can be issued at Competitive REL events. See the IPG for more details.