Understanding WPN Metrics
One of the defining features of the Wizards Play Network program is the use of metrics to measure a store’s activity and determine various rewards and product allocations. If you’ve been a WPN member for a while, you’ve likely heard terms like “Tickets” and “Engaged Players” – these are the core metrics that Wizards uses to gauge how active your store’s organized play scene is. In this article, we’ll break down what each of these key metrics means, how they impact the amount of promo and product support your store receives (your allocations), and what you as a retailer can do to improve your numbers. By understanding and focusing on these metrics, you can grow a healthier Magic community and in turn reap greater rewards from the WPN program.
What Are WPN Metrics?
WPN metrics are data points collected by Wizards of the Coast that reflect participation in Magic: The Gathering events at your store. Unlike the old days of WPN (which had a simple level system like Core, Advanced, Advanced Plus), the modern WPN rewards system is dynamic and metrics based. This was implemented to reward sustained engagement and community building rather than one-off big events. There are two primary metrics that every WPN store should understand:
- Total Tickets: A “Ticket” is essentially one entry of one player into one event. More formally, total tickets is the total number of player entries across all your Magic events in a rolling 12-month period. Every time a player sits down to play in a reported event at your store, that’s one Ticket. If 8 players play in Friday Night Magic this week, that’s 8 Tickets. If one person plays in two different events, that counts as 2 Tickets (because it’s entries, not unique individuals). Tickets accumulate continuously over time – Wizards looks at roughly the last year of data at any given point to evaluate your total. This metric is a raw measure of how much play is happening at your location. It rewards running events frequently and getting as many seats filled as possible. Note that all sanctioned Magic event types count towards Tickets: tournaments, leagues, casual play sessions logged in EventLink, Prereleases, Friday Night Magic, Commander nights, etc. If you report it, it adds to your Ticket count. So, even a 4-person draft or a 2-player learn-to-play session contributes something. We want to encourage regular play of any scale, and Tickets are the way they track that volume.
- Engaged Players: Engagement goes a step beyond raw attendance. An Engaged Player is a player who has played in a certain number of events at your store within the last year. Specifically, a player becomes “engaged” once they have participated in six events at your store in a rolling year. This means even if players love Commander or Modern at your store, their repeat attendance still matters. Once a person hits that 6-events threshold, they count as 1 Engaged Player in your metrics. Importantly, no matter how many events beyond six they play, they still count as one engaged player – the metric is about unique players who are active, not total entries (that’s what Tickets covers). So if Alice comes to 5 events, she’s not engaged (yet). When she comes to her 6th event, she flips to engaged and now adds to your count. If Bob comes to 20 events, he’s also just one engaged player after the first 6 events mark, though of course his many entries help your Tickets. Engaged Players metric effectively measures your store’s ability to retain players and get them to come back consistently. It highlights community loyalty and the creation of regulars. If a player only shows up once, that helps Tickets a bit but not engaged; if you can turn that player into a regular attendee, they become engaged and boost that metric.
All these metrics operate on a rolling 365 day year, meaning at any point, the system looks back at approximately the last 12 months of reported play. They are continuously updated as you report new events. If someone hasn’t come in a long while, they might fall off the engaged count after a year of inactivity. If you had a big spike of tickets in the fall last year and now it’s winter this year, some of those will “roll off” once they’re older than a year, unless you’ve kept numbers up. So there’s an element of maintaining consistent activity to keep metrics from slipping.
Tips for Growing Your Metrics (and Rewards)
Increasing your Tickets and Engaged Players is a direct path to getting more goodies for your store and players. Here are some strategies to boost those numbers, which also essentially translate to building a thriving play community:
- Run Events Regularly and Diversify Offerings: The simplest way to get more Tickets is to host more play opportunities. Look at your weekly schedule – are there days without any events that you could add something? If you only run Friday Night Magic and occasional weekends, consider adding a weeknight draft league, a Commander night, or a Standard/Modern tournament. Even casual play meetups that you report (you can report casual sessions in EventLink) count. The more sessions you have, the more entries you’ll accumulate. Diversifying formats can attract different segments of players: Limited enthusiasts, competitive constructed players, Commander casuals, etc. Each of those groups can contribute to your metrics. Just ensure you report everything – if folks gather at your store to play Magic in any organized way, put it into EventLink as an event (even if it’s just casual). Those Tickets will count and also it signals to Wizards that your store is active.
- Encourage Repeat Attendance (Engagement): To turn one-time players into engaged players, focus on player retention. Some practical ways: Start a loyalty program or achievement card for attending events. For example, give out a “play punch card” where after 6 events, the player gets a small prize or discount – that aligns nicely with the 6 needed to be engaged! Or simply make sure new players feel welcome: greet them, introduce them to regulars, perhaps have a staff or volunteer offer to play a casual game with newcomers outside of the main event to break the ice. Running consistent weekly events, that people can rely on helps a lot – if someone knows every Tuesday is Commander Night, they may make it a habit. Consistency breeds engagement. Also, when someone misses a couple weeks, there’s no harm in a gentle nudge – if you have a Discord or Facebook group, tag absent regulars with “We missed you last week, hope to see you this Friday!” (if done in a friendly way, it can pull people back in).
- Leverage Big Releases and Follow Up: Prerelease is often your biggest event of the season – you might see many faces, new and old. Don’t let those be one-and-done visits. After Prerelease, encourage those players to return for events like a Launch Party, Friday Night Magic the next week, or a new set draft league. Have a flyer or announcement ready that “the fun continues next week.” Perhaps run a special “New Set League” where players use their Prerelease cards or new booster packs to play casually over a few weeks; this can convert Prerelease excitement into sustained play (which translates into more events to report). The idea is to capitalize on spikes in interest and convert them to long-term engagement.
- Community Building: A strong, welcoming community tends to grow organically. Be active on social media and local groups to promote your events. Encourage players to bring friends (maybe implement a “bring-a-friend get a prize” where if a regular brings a completely new player to an event, you give both a little bonus like a promo card or a discount – note, you can pair this with the official Bring-a-Friend promos Wizards provides). New players through referrals help both metrics: new bodies (tickets) and if they stick around, new engaged players. Host beginner-friendly sessions or formats like Planeswalker Deck leagues or Commander nights where the environment is less intimidating. A comfortable newcomer is likely to become a regular.
- Track Your Progress: Keep an eye on your reported numbers periodically. Some stores maintain their own internal count to predict where they stand. For instance, you might set goals like “We’re at ~800 Tickets for the year, let’s aim for 1000 by year’s end” or “We have 15 engaged players; which customers are at 4 or 5 events? Let’s invite them personally to the next events to get them over the hump.” Wizards doesn’t provide individual player counts directly to stores, but you can often infer from your event data who your near-engaged folks are. If you spot someone who’s at, say, 5 events attended in the last months, giving them an extra nudge to attend one more (maybe a direct email or a casual “see you next time?” chat) could convert them into an engaged player for your metrics. Obviously, do this in a genuine way – the goal is players have fun and want to come back, not just to tick a box.
- Use EventLink and Companion App fully: Make event reporting seamless by encouraging players to use the Companion App to join events and report results. This not only makes your life easier but ensures every player gets logged with their Wizards Account. Having players sign up via their Wizards Accounts is crucial because that’s how unique players are tracked. If someone just walks in and you don’t add them properly or they play casually off-record, you miss an engaged player opportunity. So always register everyone, even casual participants, in EventLink (you can use the Casual Event type if needed). The Companion app adoption can help – that’s why Wizards even suggests rewarding it with promos. When players are accustomed to joining via the app, they’ll check in themselves and you won’t accidentally miss adding Joe who came late, etc.
- Quality Events = More Players: Remember, metrics ultimately reflect real human behavior. If your events are fun, fair, and well-run, people will return and bring others. Prizing structure, entry fees, and atmosphere all matter. For instance, having an affordable or free casual night can lower the barrier for new folks to show up (boosting headcount). Word of mouth is powerful; people will drive an extra 30 minutes to the store that has a great community versus one that doesn’t, and those players will count towards your metrics.
- Communicate with WPN Reps: Wizards has WPN community managers and reps who can advise you, especially if you’re aiming for higher goals like WPN Premium. They can sometimes provide insights into how to improve metrics or share what similar stores are doing. Don’t hesitate to reach out and say “Hey, I’d like to grow my engaged players, any suggestions?” They have a vested interest in your success and often have play programs or promotional ideas that can help.
The Benefits of Strong Metrics
It’s worth summarizing why chasing these metrics is worthwhile, beyond just the numbers:
- More Promo Packs and Giveaways: High metrics mean you’ll be swimming in Promo Packs, which in turn makes your events more attractive (you have more prizes to give out, can do more random rewards, etc.). Players notice when a store is generous with support – often that generosity is enabled by the allocations you get. For example, a store that meets certain metrics might get, say, 50 Promo Packs for a season instead of 30. That’s 20 more happy moments you can create for your customers, which builds loyalty.
- Community Vibrancy: Beyond Wizards’ direct rewards, having a high metric count correlates with having a vibrant store community. If you’re reporting hundreds of Tickets and dozens of engaged players, that means your tables are often full and people are spending time (and likely money) at your shop regularly. This is the lifeblood of an LGS – a consistent community that treats the store as a hub. It drives sales of not just Magic product but sleeves, snacks, other games, etc. It also creates an atmosphere that draws in more customers. So even if the term “metrics” sounds like just numbers, they reflect something very human and valuable: a thriving in-store culture.
In conclusion, WPN metrics are both your scoreboard and your lever for growth. They tell the story of your store’s organized play success. By focusing on inclusive, frequent, and well-run events, you’ll naturally see those numbers rise. Keep an eye on Tickets and Engaged Players, set goals, and celebrate milestones (why not throw a little thank-you party for your community when you hit a new high in attendance?). As your metrics grow, enjoy the benefits of more product and promos – and be proud, because those rewards are a direct result of the community you’ve built. The WPN program is fundamentally about partnership: you bring people together to play, and Wizards will back you up with resources. Here’s to leveling up your metrics and reaping all the rewards that come with a bustling, engaged player community!