Our Open Series stop this weekend is Kansas City and it's the last one before Gen Con! That makes this weekend your last chance to win one of our free Gen Con badges during the Top 8 Twitter trivia giveaways so you'll want to tune in for those.

Of course there's going to be a few matches of Magic worth watching as well—Reid Duke's Wolf Run Blue put Primeval Titan back into primetime in Washington DC but there's considerable doubt as to whether the 6/6 for six can repeat the feat this weekend. U/W Delver was the other success story and you can be sure that those players will be adapting in Borg-like fashion to dismantle the new contender.

For a breakdown of every Open Series weekend you can tune into the In Contention podcast with hosts Joey Pasco Reuben Bresler and Matt "Kranny" Kranstuber! Their latest episode is right here and includes special guest Brian Braun-Duin.

Here's a handy map of the tournament venue for our attendees guiding you right to the doors of the Open Series proper. We're in the Kansas City Convention Center on 301 W 13th Street and in Bartle Room 2103.

You can find nearby lodging at the Holiday Inn Aladdin on 1215 Wyandotte Street a stone's throw from the site itself. If you're hungry we've collected a list of some nearby watering holes and feeding troughs that might interest you...

Flying Saucer—'nuff said.

If you're attending SCG Open Series: Kansas City then make sure you've got all the cards you need. Any orders placed prior to noon on Thursday August 9th are available for free on-site delivery. That's right—no shipping charges we'll just pack them into our van and hand-deliver them to you at the sales booth!

We've got three alterists attending Kansas City as well each offering a unique set of talents.

Amber Musick will be at this event offering custom full art playmats and tokens as well as creating new works of original art for playmats on-site! Pricing and her current offering of playmats can be found on her deviantART page and you can contact Amber at zhycalui@gmail.com to request a playmat for event pickup.

A fresh face in the altering world Christopher Barracuda will be on-site creating his one-of-a-kind alters as well as mingling and getting to know everyone. So stop by and chat him up! Check out his creative works at www.photobucket.com/cbarracuda and contact Chris at christopher.barracuda@yahoo.com for special requests and commissions.

Eric Claar will be once more offering his specialty alters on the StarCityGames.com Open Series. Known for his minimalist "blueprint" style as well as full art pieces you can check out his work on Facebook and deviantART. For commissions you can contact him through Facebook or email cbalters@gmail.com.

As a special surprise we've also added Dan Scott to our show! Dan's the artist behind some iconic pieces of Magic art including the “three moons” Ponder that all those Delver players love to cast. Repeal Terramorphic Expanse Intet the Dreamer and Akroma's Memorial are also among his better-known pieces so be sure to check your collection for his work and come on down! He'll only be available from noon to 5 PM on Saturday so plan accordingly.

SCG Open Series: Kansas City will be hosted by commentators Brad Nelson and Jacob Van Lunen along with myself in the Sideboard. This is Jake's first event since his nuptials; be sure to wish the newly married man a congratulations on Twitter! We'll be monitoring the hashtag #SCGKC all weekend long so use it to get in touch with us and anyone else watching the @SCGLive broadcast.

Glenn Jones

@SecludedGlenn

Event Coverage Coordinator

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Here at StarCityGames.com we were sad to hear that a member of our community has fallen ill. Last year Magic artist Cyril Van Der Haegen—the mind behind pieces likeMaelstrom ArchangelJoraga Treespeaker and Springleaf Drum—was diagnosed with leukemia and myeloma two forms of cancer.

In order to assist Cyril with his fight StarCityGames.com will be collecting donations at the registration area of every Open Series weekend throughout the remainder of 2012. 100% of the money donated will be sent to Cyril after each event. Those who can't make it out to an Open Series weekend can read more about Cyril's situation and make a donation online at hispersonal blogonFundly.com.

To see some of the incredible work Cyril has done for Magic check outhis galleryonGatherer.

Best wishes

Pete Hoefling
President StarCityGames.com