Well, on Thursday I finally escaped that institution known as high school. It's onwards to college for me. And to celebrate (since the after-graduation party pretty well sucked) we have a rip-snorting update for you this week. First: Fixes galore! Second: The poll is here! Third: Letters, which you are reading right now!


>Subject:question
>
>This is another question. Is the "pojosama" a person.
>If so does he have any screen name.If he exists. Which I thibkn he does
>can
>you tell him that everyone knows he is awesome.
>Oh yah i think mewtwo is better than vulpix/
>The way he destroys buildings, causes storms, erases minds it's just
>too cool


1) Pojosama is a person. 2) I don't think he has AOL. 3) He already knows he's awesome. =)

And yeah, Mewtwo might seem cooler than Vulpix. If you're into that sort of thing, which I'm not.


>Subject:My Q
>
>Whats the best deck


Oh, my God. I'm out of a job as a deck mechanic! Some genius finally saw through the lies and realized that all anybody had to do was ask what the best deck was! That's all you need to do to win at this game, just find the best deck and play it! What insight! What ingenuity! That's the spirit that made America great...


>Subject:Help
>
>I know im not writing a deck but im am in desperate  need of a killer
>deck so can you tell me what is your best deck you've played with.
>
>Thank you for your time


Okay, now THIS question is a bit better, so I'll answer it. MY best deck is the "Cinder" deck (posted on 4/24 under the name "Spike's Deck." I'm serious when I say this is my best deck. I can actually play it better than I would some archetype like hay or raindance, simply because it suits my style and I have been playing it for so long. I also have a Nidoqueen deck which is fairly good and which I will post sometime. Go check my deck out... but remember, what works for me may not work for you. That's the thing that keeps this game from stagnating: everybody plays a little differently.


>Subject:pokemon lady
>
>If you have time to answer, where can I find the pokemon lady? I was reading old decks, and I saw the >162 card deck, then her dare. I wanna know where I can find out if she held up her part of the bargain.
>thanx
>P.S. How old are you? from some of your reports, your past finals (probably college/university)


She did indeed hold up her part of the bargain... after a fashion. I believe her AOL address is the same as it always was. And, as it says above, I just graduated from high school. =)


>Subject:pokemon
>
>I have to say something about the codes in Red and Blue for the new
>pokemon.
>I tried them but they do not work if you find out the right codes for
>the new
>pokemon could you please put the right ones one on the Internet.


Codes? Yeah... I know codes. For example, if you press the "A" button four million times at the start screen, then go to the Safari Zone and catch three Kangaskhans in a row, you can unlock "X-rated" mode.  That's only one of the many top-secret codes I know for Gameboy!


>Subject:(no subject)
>
>What deck do you play in Magic: The Gathering?  If anyone doesn't know
>how to play then they can go to Magiccampus.com and learn how.


Well, it's no secret that I play Magic. And since Scott got to post his PTQ report, I'll take a short break here and tell you what deck I play most of the time as far as Magic goes.

What deck do I play? The answer is simple: A scrub deck. Please understand that I hardly ever play in tournaments, so most of my playing is against my brother and his friends. As such, I'm not really limited to any particular sets.

This scrub's deck:

4 Jackal Pup
4 Mogg Fanatic
4 Suq'Ata Lancer
3 Keldon Champion
1 Ball Lightning (AIH)
2 Rathi Dragon
4 Shock
3 Incinerate
3 Seal of Fire
3 Disintegrate
2 Scent of Cinder
4 Granite Grip
1 Landslide
1 Wake of Destruction
16 Mountain
3 Ancient Tomb
2 Ghitu Encampment

Strategy: Kill opponent. Kill opponent dead. What can I say, it's a red deck.

Comments (constructive ones) are welcome. I know I've probably got too many 4cc creatures in there, along with a bit too little land. And the Wake of Destruction doesn't make much sense, but what can I say... I just wanna have fun. =)


>Subject:How do you become a deck mechanic?
>
>Sorry Spike, you probably have a lot of people ask you
>this question, but how do you become an deck mechanic?
>I'd really like to know because I like helping people
>with their decks..


Okay. You're right a lot of people do ask me this question. I am now going to answer it once and for all:

I was picked to be a mechanic by a special contest. This probably will not be repeated. Every now and then, mechanics are just picked out of the blue by Scott, usually because he sees them writing articles and likes what they have to say. Unfortunately, that means that most of you who want to be mechanics will never get that chance. Sorry, but what can I say...

Now don't ask me this anymore.


>Subject:Hey Spike...GREAT DECK YOU HAVE!
>
>Awesome, dude!  Exstensive explinations on strategy...good
>basics...deadly evolutions...useful trainers...Great job!  You are
>truly worthy of a deck mechanic.


I'm worthy of a deck mechanic! Great! Which mechanic am I worthy of?

Seriously... thanks for the positive feedback. My deck may not be the best in existence, but I like to think it's solidly constructed.


>Subject:Just wondering....
>
>Hey Spike,
>In your 5-8-00 letters section, you said that the Maryland police
>dropped charges against you. That statement brought to my mind the day
>I
>was at the station that week. I was wondering, were you the one with
>the
>"Ray Lewis is my hero" shirt and with that furry masked animal with
>him?
>
>In all seriousness, I was wondering what you would think of the concept
>of a Raindance and Speedrill deck mixed (I sent a deck like that to
>Crash, so that is why I won't send it here). I would appreciate any
>input you have. Thanks


My opinion is that mixing archetypes is generally a bad idea. Generally, such mixings drag both decks down and make it impossible for either strategy to effectively go off. And I was NOT wearing a "Ray Lewis is my hero" T-shirt.

Fortunately, we're done.

SPIKE'S RANDOM THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:

On a slightly more forward-looking note, I'm thinking I should really make a deck to show off all the Prerelease Gyaradoses and Foil Mews I've acquired from the good people at Pokemon League. I just need to find the energy for it...

Catch y'all next week.

-Spike
spike@pojo.com



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