The World Series of Poker may have its coveted bracelet, but the Disney Lorcana trading card game now has its own piece of hardware for its highest-performing players. Naturally, it’s a golden Mickey Mouse.
The very first Lorcana Challenge regional tournaments were held over the Memorial Day weekend, with two-day events taking place in both Lille, France and Atlanta, Georgia. The game’s publisher, Ravensburger, confirmed Wednesday to trendsnapnews that the tournament in Lille concluded first by just a few hours. That means Frank Karsten, Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour player and a member of the Magic: The Gathering Hall of Fame, is the world’s first Lorcana Challenge champion.
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Karsten beat out a field of more than 2,000 participants in a white-knuckle final that was broadcast on YouTube by Mushu Report. His deck, a variant of the Steelsong Aggro strategy, emphasizes powerful songs sung by powerful characters from the Disney universe, including Ariel, Spectacular Singer; Rapunzel, Gifted with Healing; The Queen, Commanding Presence; and Robin Hood, Champion of Sherwood.
But enough about those old cards. What about the new ones that Karsten went home with? The Lorcana Challenge champion’s prize package includes a binder filled with one foil version of every tournament-legal card currently in print — including the line’s coveted and rare Enchanted cards. It also includes an alternate-art, gold foil version of Mickey Mouse, Brave Little Tailor. Only 500 of these cards have been produced, and each one has been serialized with its own unique number.
To commemorate Disney’s 100th anniversary this year, Karsten was given card number 100.
The next Lorcana Challenge tournament will take place in the United States on June 8 and 9 in Chicago. Tickets to the event are still available, while opportunities to play in the tournament appear to be limited to waitlist applications at this time.
