“They came from near…”
Phillip and James sneak in a little practice match before the tourney.
“…and they came from far…”
Two out of towners prepare to challenge a variety of players from all over Texas.
“…for…
The San Antonio Duel Masters Qualifiers”
The Place:
Gamelot
(inside Purple Cactus)
8180 Tezel Rd
San Antonio, Texas 78250
(210) 722-3236
The Time:
Sunday, June 12th, 2005
The Weapon of My Choosing:
“The Answer” – 5 Civ. Control
First I’d like to say thanks to all those who came out. I know many of you had a long trip just reach San Antonio and another long trip all the way back. I’ll be doing the same for you guys next month in Austin and I’m considering hitting up the Houston tourney in August.
Tony and I attempted to show up early, however a closed highway on the way forced us to barely be on time. With what little time I had left I located a few of the people from out of town I had been communicating with. My wife took off and started a little bit of trading while the rest of us prepared ourselves for the tournament.
About My Weapon of My Choice:
While this deck has undergone some revisions from when I first began playing it in tournaments, it’s essentially the same. Lu Gila, Silver Rift Guardian was added for each evolution creatures and Pyrofighter Magnus grants early creature kill and late finishers. A strong deck that can always have the answer – if only I can be smart enough to make the right play.
“The Answer” – Five Civilization Control
Total Cards: 44
4x Emeral
3x Hypersquid Walter
4x Corile
3x Lu Gila, Silver Rift Guardian
3x Illusionary Merfolk
3x Rothus, the Traveler
3x Searing Wave
4x Natural Snare
4x Terror Pit
4x Holy Awe
2x Sundrop Armor
4x Mana Nexus
3x Pyrofighter Magnus
Ding! Ding! Round One!
James
James is a local player who has been ranked slightly above me for sometime. The last time we faced off several weeks ago we both possessed the same decks and many of the changes I had made to my deck had been because of my loss to him – my only loss that day. It was time to see if alterations where correct.
His Deck: Fire/Darkness Agro
Early into the first game James is able to knock a few of my shields. Soon enough I was able to steal control of the game and pummel him for a full out final assault. The second game went pretty much the same granting me the match. So – either my alterations worked or James had some severe bad luck. Either way game and match goes to me.
Results: 2/0
Ding! Ding! Round Two!
Jacob
Jacob is new to me and an out of towner, I believe. If I’m wrong on this account then I apologize to Jacob. Obviously I was not sure what to expect and so I prepared myself for the worst.
His Deck: Mono-Fire Agro Speed Attacker
First turn Fighter Braid Claw – they always seem to get one, don’t they. They seem to forget that early shield breaking means early card advantage for the opponent. After several shields had been broken I manage to gain control of the board and await enough creatures to burst through a creature kill he may have in his shields.
Second game I suppose I became anxious and thus stupid. Early in this game I hit a few of his shields granting him a few extra cards, which would prove to be the end of me. Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!
Final game of the match – I couldn’t make the same dumb mistake. Play out the second the same way as the second. This, of course, works – to top it off his deck runs slow for mono-fire and I am easily able to dominate the board.
Results: 2/1
Ding! Ding! Round Three!
Matt
Matt’s from out of town – somewhere around Dallas, I believe (feel free to correct me if I’m wrong, Matt). He’s also Pojoer! Great to meet you, Matt!
His Deck: Mono-Water
*Okay – I’m going to sound like a pathetic whiner here but I don’t give a darn! We all should have our chance to whine so long as we don’t do it often…
First game Matt came at me pretty hard, though I felt I pretty much had control of the game. He begin whittling away at my shields while I did the same to his only for my deck to stall and his go into multiple Aqua Hulcus. Game one Matt.
Second game Matt’s deck stumbled all over itself as I ran away with the game. Frankly, it could not have been more one sided and I knew the ease of win was greatly due to the lack of his deck functioning. One more and I could take the match.
Last game goes much like the first only Matt takes the lead earlier. I fight him off however there just isn’t enough punch coming out of my deck. I’m slapping additional shields down as fast as I can and adverting nearly any attack he throws at me. Finally, I’m in position to go for the kill only to find a well place Aqua Surfer under the first of his shield stealing the first game and match from me.
Robbed! This match SSSSOOOO should have been mine as mono-blue just isn’t as adaptable as my own deck can be. Ugh! I’ll get my revenge in Austin, Matt!
Results: 1/2
Ding! Ding! Round Four!
James H.
Another out of towner, I was frankly surprised to meet up with James at this point in the tournament as this meant he had managed to go 2/1 also. From our conversations I found that he was a relatively new player to the game who enjoyed the collectibility factor. I’d already seen him beat Joshua C Weisbrod-Torres in the first round thanks to a lucky Holy Awe. I wasn’t about to underestimate him at this point.
His Deck: Fire/Darkeness/Light
Our first game James began laying down a few cheap blockers. Holding back a bit I tossed out a Lu Gila only for to see him drop a Photocide on his next turn. I began to worry about what attackers he might come at me with however I found that I was easily able to put a halt to anything he might normally be able to attack with. Nervous of a Diamond Cutter I forced myself to hold steady until I had enough creatures to swing for the kill…barring the likes of a Holy Awe. Searing Wave clears the board or any significant blockers and finally manage to swing for the kill.
Second game I believed I pretty well knew how to beat him. Worse yet, he seemed to have a poorer draw. Sure enough, I mange to dominate the board and take him much more quickly with this game.
Results: 2/0
Ding! Ding! Round Five!
Aaron
Yet another out of towner – I’d yet to see Aaron’s deck and so I wasn’t sure what to expect.
His Deck: Water/Light HydroControl
This match was such a blur for me as I quickly became frustrated. Basically, I’d played someone with a very similarly deck the week before, however since I had beaten him I was a fool. I did not take into any considerations for being sure I could take this deck on and suffered a sound thrashing for it. Aaron made me look like a total scrub as he maintained COMPLETE control of both games. The match ended with a solid win for him.
Results: 0/2
So – my match results went 3/2…I still had a chance for top 4 as one 3/2 would go on. Results are released and Matt, from Round Three takes that spot in the tiebreakers! More reason for revenge…revenge…revenge….
Khan!
Khan!
Khan!
Oh wait…lapsing into my Star Trek nerdom.
So, unfortunately I did not make top 4 however I did make 5th place. Not bad, but not good enough. While I should get an invite for Top 75 in North America I intended to earn my invite. Onto Austin next month…
Click here for 9 more bonus photos from the event