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THE FORBIDDEN MOUNTAIN

Official Statement

June 23, 2026

By now, many of you have seen posts circulating on Facebook and Reddit about a disqualification that occurred this past weekend involving TFM member Colby Gerrish. I want to address this directly, because what is being shared appears to be third-hand information — relayed by people who were not present in the room when this incident took place. This community deserves an accurate account of what happened based on what Colby reported to us.

Colby entered round five of the event at 4-0, undefeated. During game one, he drew an uninkable card and, knowing it likely cost him the game, reacted with frustration — throwing his hands down on the table. When he did, a card from his hand bounced into the inkwell. His opponent called a judge.

The investigation determined the card was a Sisu. It was removed from the inkwell and returned to his hand. No penalty was issued — no warning, no game loss, nothing. Play continued. His opponent legitimately won game one, and then game two as well. Colby lost the match.

After that match concluded, the judges returned and disqualified Colby from the event, citing intent to cheat. The investigation, to Colby's knowledge, involved only the floor judge and the head judge — no other witnesses were consulted.

I, Dan Arnold, was not present. I did not witness this game, and I want to be transparent about that. There are always three sides to any story: Colby's, his opponent David's, and the truth. And in situations like this, the full truth is rarely known.

What I can say is this: I have known Colby for ten years. I can believe, without question, that he was frustrated. Drawing an uninkable card at a critical moment in an important match is genuinely upsetting. I do not believe, based on my knowledge of his character, that there was any premeditated intent to cheat in that moment.

That said — and I want to be absolutely clear about this — throwing your hand on the table in frustration during a competitive event is unacceptable regardless of intent. In another context, that action alone could have and arguably should have resulted in a game loss for unsportsmanlike conduct. I do not condone that behavior under any circumstances, even in a world where no disqualification follows. Again remember i was not there and I'm unsure of the complete Truth like many of you reading this, just simply word of mouth. 

I believe Colby understands that now as well.

This incident does not exist in a vacuum. Earlier in Season Two, TFM was involved in a separate situation involving a player disqualified for marked cards. That was discussed at length on the podcast, and I do not intend to relitigate it here. What I will say is that two significant conduct incidents in a single competitive season is something I cannot look past as the co-founder of this brand.

Team TFM  has meant a great deal to me since I Co-founded it in February 2024. Building The Forbidden Mountain (the content channel since May 2023), developing its content, and establishing it as a serious voice in the competitive Lorcana community has been one of the most meaningful things I have done in this game. I am proud of what we built.

But I also have to be honest about what has happened. The brand has been tarnished by incidents tied to players who are rarely featured in our content and who represent only a small slice of what TFM actually is. I did not make these mistakes. Scott did not make these mistakes. And yet the reputation we have spent years building is being judged through the lens of actions we had no control over.

What makes this harder is that it is not just affecting me. This past weekend, I watched people direct genuine hostility toward Melissa simply because she appeared on official community channels. That is completely unacceptable and deeply unfair to her. The idea that anyone associated with this team should receive that kind of treatment because of an incident they had absolutely nothing to do with is something I refuse to accept.

The jersey should not carry that weight. No one on this team deserves that.

And so, effective immediately, Team TFM is disbanded. The competitive team structure of The Forbidden Mountain will no longer exist going forward.

I want to be clear about what this does and does not mean. The content continues. The YouTube channel, the podcast, the Metafy coaching, the data-driven competitive analysis that TFM has always been built on — none of that goes away. What goes away is the competitive roster, the jerseys, and the organizational structure that has become a liability to the people I care most about in this community.

I want to be seen for what I actually do: the content I create, the information I deliver, and the contributions I make to this game. I do not want the association with incidents I did not cause and could not have prevented to define what this brand stands for.

To everyone who has worn this team's name, competed alongside us, or supported what we built — I am grateful for every bit of it. This is not an ending I wanted. But it is the right one.

Dan Arnold

Co-Founder, The Forbidden Mountain

June 23, 2026