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MTGO Pauper Challenge Data Limitations

1 requestsStarted 3/12/2026, 10:26:13 AM
Bluesky mention by @cross__entropy: @_MetaMage_ For the MTGO data, do you have the round matchup data? Can you breakdown exactly which tournaments are you using for this report (Pauper, last month)? Also if you have it, show me the results of every match in Round 1 of one recent Pauper MTGO challenge. Please answer the question based on MTG tournament data. The full thread JSON is available but omitted here.

Let me pull all of this data simultaneously.

🛠️Get Meta Report

Good. Now let me get the most recent MTGO Pauper Challenge and query its Round 1 matches.

🛠️QueryMTGO Pauper Tournaments February to March 2026

Good. Now let me query Round 1 matches from the most recent MTGO Challenge (2026-03-09, id: 8d9f0d41-7667-44df-a9ff-c7582fbb11e7). I need to find how round data is stored.

🛠️QueryTournament matches with player records and archetypes

I can see the match data is not explicitly tagged by round number, but the pair_id groups each match (each pair appears twice — once from each player's perspective). The records on each entry let me infer round progression. Let me now deduplicate the pairs and clarify what we actually have — this tournament appears to be a small event. Let me also check the total entry count.

🛠️QueryTotal entries in specific tournament

32 entries and only 7 unique pair_ids (14 rows = 7 matches, each recorded twice). This confirms the database stores only the matches involving top-finishing players, not every round for every player — a known limitation of MTGO data sourcing. Let me present everything cleanly.


Here is the full breakdown for @cross__entropy:

Do we have round matchup data?

Yes, partially. The database does store individual match results (wins/losses per pairing), but for MTGO events the coverage is not complete — only matches involving players who made the published standings/top cut are captured. Round numbers are not explicitly stored; rounds are inferred from pair_id groupings and player records. For the most recent Pauper Challenge 32 (2026-03-09, 32 players), we have 7 unique match pairings on record out of the full bracket.


Tournaments used for the Pauper meta report (last 30 days, Feb 9 – Mar 11):

67 total tournaments across three sources:

  • MELEE: 28 events (41.8%) — paper and LGS events like Lega Pauper Genova, Mont Weekly FNM, Path to Paupergeddon
  • MTGO: 23 events (34.3%) — Pauper Challenge 32 events + 2x RC Qualifiers
  • CARDSREALM: 16 events (23.9%) — Tropical Pauper, Pauper Royale, Meeple's Club series

Full MTGO event list (23 events): all labeled "Pauper Challenge 32" except two RC Qualifiers on 2026-02-22.


Round 1 results — Pauper Challenge 32, 2026-03-08 (most recent MTGO Challenge):

As noted above, round numbers aren't explicitly stored, but here are the 7 recorded match pairings, deduplicated (each match is stored twice, once per player perspective):

Pair 1: billsive (White Aggro) def. irrrwin (Spy Combo)
Pair 2: NickNorman (Golgari Garden) def. AnpanMoeMoe (Red Madness)
Pair 3: MisterTwin (Red Madness) def. billsive (White Aggro)
Pair 4: MisterTwin (Red Madness) def. Boin (Aura Bogles)
Pair 5: irrrwin (Spy Combo) def. FRFSEIXAS (Gruul Ponza)
Pair 6: MisterTwin (Red Madness) def. NickNorman (Golgari Garden)
Pair 7: billsive (White Aggro) def. Denisevich (Red Madness)

Note: These are not confirmed to all be Round 1 — they represent all matches on record for this event. MisterTwin (Red Madness) went 3-0 in this data set, and billsive (White Aggro) went 2-1. Because the full bracket isn't stored, we cannot guarantee complete Round 1 coverage for all 32 players.


Sources: Data from 67 tournaments (Feb 9 – Mar 11, 2026): 41.8% Melee, 34.3% MTGO, 23.9% Cardsrealm.

Recent MTGO Pauper Challenges:
https://www.mtgo.com/decklist/pauper-challenge-32-2026-03-0812834527
https://www.mtgo.com/decklist/pauper-challenge-32-2026-03-0712834508
https://www.mtgo.com/decklist/pauper-challenge-32-2026-03-0612834493