Judging with Phil

My name is Phil and I am a Disney Lorcana judge and fanatic. A father of two and a software developer from southern California. I am lucky enough to have a supporting family that lets me travel and pursue judging.

I started playing Disney Lorcana since the very beginning and have always been intrigued with trading card games. A few decades ago, I was playing Magic: The Gathering, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and Pokemon. I’ve always wanted to understand the rules of the games I played so that I never felt that I was cheating or misleading others. There were times when I was learning games that I felt so confident in how I was playing to later be told that I did something wrong or won because both myself and my opponent didn’t fully understand what was happening. Those experiences made me want to ensure correctness in the games I played and that everyone understood the games we played.

Disney Lorcana brought me back into the magic of TCGs as it had been a long while since I touched a competitive TCG. Lorcana’s start was shaky as there was limited product availability and with that, limited areas to play. One of my first forays in the space was creating a spread sheet that started categorizing all of the stores that played, when they played, and when their set championships were. That eventually evolved into my community the Inland Empire Enchanted. But not only did I want to ensure players found places to play, I wanted to ensure the health of the game by helping players understand how to play and introduce the game to them. I started engaging in the Disney Lorcana Discord‘s rules channels and pushed to understand the foundations of the game so I could bring that to others as I believe solid foundations are what we can build upon.

I was lucky enough to be chosen to judge at the first North American Disney Lorcana Challenge – DLC Atlanta and from there the rest is history. I have worked across southern California, bringing my community together, and ensuring players are enjoying and having a fair play experience. I have built relationships and have been lucky to be a part of Disney Lorcana’s growth in all areas, working on projects with JDZ Quest, Pavel, vVonderland, the Illumiteers, and more.

I hope to share my experience and growth with all of you as I will be your head judge at Disney Lorcana Challenge – Richmond, 2026.