Last updated on May 23, 2025
Storm-Kiln Artist – art by Manuel Castañón
Ever dreamed of helping Wizards of the Coast craft a Secret Lair? Now's your chance! WotC and Star City Games invite you to compete in the Magic Spotlight: Secret Lair event, headlining SCG CON Indianapolis from May 30 to June 1, 2025.
For an entry fee of $75 (plus Melee.gg fees), you'll be battling it out in a major Modern Constructed tournament with a hefty $50,000 prize pool, featuring 15 rounds of Swiss over two days, with a Top 8 playoff on Sunday.
Just for showing up, you'll receive a borderless, non-foil Garruk Wildspeaker promo card illustrated by Merwan Chabane, and if you finish among the top 128 players, you'll snag a special foil version.
If you make it to the Top 8 you'll have a shot at. Plus, you'll secure an invitation to Pro Tour Edge of Eternities at MagicCon: Atlanta in September 2025. And here's the coolest part: If you win, you'll get an exclusive opportunity to collaborate directly with Wizards of the Coast’s Secret Lair team on a future Secret Lair drop!
What Is the Magic Spotlight Series?
Source: PlayMTG
Officially announced back in August last year, the Magic Spotlight Series are a set of open tournaments, organized by Star City Games, that over the course of a weekend that act as a spiritual successor to the Grand Prix system. In this case, “open” means “Sign up, show up, and play”: You don't need to qualify for these, just bring your deck, your sleeves, and yourself. These Spotlight Series tournaments are capped at 2K players, but anybody registering gets to play.
The Magic Spotlight: Secret Lair itself was announced last February, and it brings:
- A $50,000 prize pool that 2,000 Modern MTG players will battle for,
- Eight invitations to Pro Tour Edge of Eternities (MagicCon: Atlanta in September),
- Consult on a future Secret Lair drop if you take the whole thing down,
- Everyone walks away with a non‑foil borderless Garruk Wildspeaker; crack the Top 128 and it flips to foil.
Source: SCG CON – Indianapolis 2025
Whoa… I Get to Design Snapcaster Mage 2!?
Snapcaster Mage – art by by Ryan Alexander Lee
Well… no, not exactly. According to the Secret Lair Prize Terms and Conditions‘ fine print, you’ll be helping with card selection, and maybe suggesting an artist or a theme. It looks much closer to a brainstorming session than the full‑blown Invitational card treatment that gave us Tiago Chan's Snapcaster Mage.
Source: Secret Lair Prize Terms and Conditions
But if pro bono creative consultancy isn't your thing, you can instead opt for an alternative prize of three booster displays: one each of Foundations, Aetherdrift, and Tarkir: Dragonstorm.
And first you need to win the whole thing, of course!
Wrap Up
Thinking of jumping in? Remember, you'll need to submit your deck list by 6:00 p.m. on Friday, May 30. Day One action kicks off at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 31!
Magic Spotlight: Secret Lair – Fact Sheet
- Where: SCG CON Indianapolis, Indiana Convention Center
- When: May 30 – June 1, 2025.
- Deck List Deadline: 6:00 p.m., Friday, May 30.
- Event starts on Saturday, May 31 ⋅ 9:00 a.m.
- Format: Modern Constructed (15 rounds Swiss + Top 8 playoff)
- Entry Fee: $75 (plus Melee.gg fee +$3.48)
- Register at: https://melee.gg/Tournament/View/285048
- Participation Promo: Non-foil borderless Garruk Wildspeaker (Foil version for Top 128)
- Prizes: $50,000 total prize pool, Top 8 Pro Tour Edge of Eternities invites
- 1st: $10,000.00, Invitation to Pro Tour Atlanta, Spotlight Series: Secret Lair winner will also consult on a Secret Lair.
- 2nd: $5,000.00, Invitation to Pro Tour Atlanta
- Top 4: $2,500.00, Invitation to Pro Tour Atlanta
- Top 8: $1,000.00, Invitation to Pro Tour Atlanta
- Top 16: $750.00
- Top 32: $550.00
- Top 64: $350.00
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