Not even sure how to start THIS one off...

I know all of you out there would like to become better players.  Also, except for Phil Mondiello, we all want to do it legally.  But no matter what, you can't outwit the coin.  You can't stack your deck.  Or can you?  This article is all about things you can do in tournaments that will gain you a bit of an edge without a drawback of losing games because of cheating.

Plus, I want everyone that goes to Pojo.com to have an advantage in battle for doing so, and everyone that does not visit Pojo.com to have a disadvantage for not doing so.

COINS

1.  Ask your tournament organizer what coins are legal for the tourney.  If the Lugia coin is ruled legal for that particular tournament, USE IT!  I went to an STSQT (albeit in the 15+ division) and the only rule on coins was, "If your opponent agrees to it, you can use it."  Use any advantage you can get without actually rigging the coin.

2.  Know how to flip your coin!  As I said above, do NOT rig your coin.  I mean "practice-flip".  I've seen Starmie coins out of theme decks get heads after heads, while Aerodactyl or Pikachu could never find one.  Find a theme deck coin that works best for you, and practice flipping it.  All theme deck coins are NOT created equal.

3.  Know how to flip your coin!  This is different from part 2.  Some coins end up giving you heads if you flip it off of your thumb with the heads already up, and vice versa.  (The Lugia and Starmie coins are good examples.)  If your opponent doesn't know how to flip it, and demand to use your randomizer (which they can legally do) and flip with the tails side up, then it's a double advantage for you!

4.  Watch your opponent's randomizer!  Sometimes your opponent may have a similar streak of luck as I'm advising you to induce your coin with.  (The inernal Chansey coin that can get either all heads or all tails, for one.)  If your opponent is having a luck streak, use their coin...and use it the way they use it.  (heads up or tails up off of the thumb.)  Use their luck to your advantage.

DECKS

1.  Tracking 1 card.  This is borderline.  You obviously can not stack your deck to get 6 basics and an Oak or something, but you can possibly force one card to be in your opening hand.  This does not work if your opponent cuts decks.  At nearly all tournaments I go to, the only person who cuts decks in play is the tournament organizer if he plays.  Therefore, if you watch where one of the three Cleffa in your deck is when you originally put it into your deck before shuffling, and track that spot with your eyes, you can probably force that Cleffa to be in your opening 7 cards.  The downside is if that you're bad at this, it can end up as a prize or at the bottom of your deck.  But if you're good, another advantage.

2.  Seeing your opponent's deck (at least once).  Wait for your opponent to shuffle before you, or if you do shuffle at the same time, keep your eyes on the bottom cards of his deck.  Look for Pokemon, trainers, or a general energy type that may cause you problems.  For example, if playing Wiggly/Zappy, if you see all Fighting cards cycle through your opponent's shuffles, you might want to consider sending Zappy to the front lines.

3.  The only real time to cut your opponent's deck.  There's only one time you may want to cut your opponent's deck--when you Lassed them and they had something good.  In this case, they may use the techniques described above to make sure the Oak they lost finds its way near the top of the deck.

MISC.

1.  Metal energy.  When using a non-metal Pokemon with a Metal on it (such as Wiggly), let your opponent place damage on themselves when they attack.  They may forget that the Metal reduces the damage you do by 10.  However, never forget to let them know that you take 10 less when THEY attack...if your opponent misses it, and "you miss it", the DCI rules say to let play continue because the players "may have already taken actions based on the current state of play."  Another DCI loophole that you can use to your advantage.

This is all I have to offer.  Granted, these are shaky methods, but ones you can use to give you that critical, critical edge in the big match...The coin flips may not work every time, but it's nice to know that you have a 75% chance of flipping a heads sometimes...

Comments, suggestions, flames, etc. can be sent to MewtwoStruckBack@aol.com

I suggest any other ways to gain the legal upper hand be posted in reply to this in the same section.