We talk competitive Keyforge with the current UK Vaults champion, and how the community is at the heart of the game

Words by Christopher John Eggett

John Pickavance is the current champion of Keyforge’s UK Vaults Tour. Having rocked up with his twin brother, part of his birthday gift to his twin, he experienced a day of competitive play which he was “never so streaky in my life.” The event was a sealed deck event, with all new Archons decks unwrapped and played for the first time. Of course, twins choosing Keyforge, a game most notable for its entirely unique decks, as their game of choice is a joke that tells itself. Despite being the giver of the gift, it was John who advanced to the final and his eventual win.

For Pickavance the win isn’t the story however. Instead, the atmosphere of the new game, and the expansions released on the day lead to a huge friendly group which has become part of his Keyforge community. Watching people understand that “This isn’t a scary thing. This is something anyone could do,” while it is a competitive environment, it was possible to have fun and make friends. This fits with how players term these Vaults Tours as ‘competitive casual’. This, mixed with what some see as a high level of randomness and luck in the game, has a competitive scene of contradictions. “It seems hard to game at a super competitive level,” says Pickavance “as you’ll never have a perfect deck.” And while this would make other competitive game feel strangely unviable, Keyforge flourishes.

LUCK OF THE DRAW

“You’re always dealing with this kind of randomness. That’s not to say it’s random,” says Pickavance. In Keyforge, unlike other card games, luck is baked into the game at a high level. Buying a pack gives you all the randomness you need, and as such, the competitive scene doesn’t feign that the game is entirely intentional.