This weekend marks the end of the 2018 Card Market Series season. That means, by the end of it, players will have determined who gets to be a member of the Power 8 and will be rewarded with bountiful benefits in 2019. So, in the run-up to our stop in Zaragoza, I decided to do a little interview with a few of the most likely candidates: about their back story, about their experience at the Series this year, and about their hopes and aspirations for the Power 8.

Let's meet Rafael Boog, who faithfully attended all stops this year, quietly reached the Legacy Top 8 in Rome, and who's tied for ninth place going into the weekend.

How old are you, where are you from, and what do you do with your time when you're not busy winning at Magic?

I'm from Switzerland and 31 years old. Besides playing Magic, I'm also self-employed selling cards via Cardmarket.com. My account name is CARAB and offers singles of Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh, and Dragon Ball Super. I sell singles in person too, at GamePlace in Lucerne.

When and how did you first get into Magic?

My first contact with Magic was at a shopping center circa 1998. A friend and I bought a starter pack of Portal. We were mostly clueless when we played our first duels with it, but it always was a lot of fun.

What are your favorite formats currently? What do you like about them?

My favorite formats are Modern and Legacy. I can't really get behind formats that change whenever a new set is released. Basically, I don't like to switch decks.

Looking back at the 2018 Cardmarket Series so far, what's your biggest regret, what was your closest miss or your most upsetting bad-beat story? Conversely, what's your happiest memory, what was your luckiest break or your favorite game/match/tournament?

Looking at the leaderboard, my biggest mistake probably was to drop from the Top 8 in Rome to go for food.

At the same time, it was my favorite moment. Playing the quarterfinals against Raffaele Cefalà had an unbelievably relaxed atmosphere to it. About ten Italians were gathered around us, watching and applauding every move. Then when I had him beat but told him, “Good luck in the semifinals”—simply perfect. And the food was brilliant.

Are you going to attend MKM Series Zaragoza? If so, what tournaments are you going to play and what are your expectations for them? If not, how nervous are you about losing your position? And either way, where do you think/hope you'll end up in the ranking after Zaragoza?

Well, seeing as I already was at every stop this year, I'm certainly not going to miss Zaragoza. As always, I'll play Legacy and Modern.

Honestly I don't care much about this leaderboard of yours. I attend the MKM Series because I see potential for it to get bigger and better. That's why I go and why I try to take a few people from our community from time to time. We'll see where I'll end up. It's going to be fun regardless of what happens with that.