DeathJester

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Don’t Get Left Behind
by Bryan Camareno a.k.a. DeathJester
February 5, 2007 

Today’s YGO environment makes it difficult for those duelists who lack the know-how to keep up with how quickly the metagame changes. I’d estimate that the metagame shifts gears every 2-3 SJCs. Whether there are new variations of the current winning deck(s) or new winning decks altogether the metagame shifts and it shifts quick.

Things aren’t what they used to be where we had to wait for a new expansion set to come out or a new structure deck. Since most hard-to-get cards are being reprinted as commons every few months, it’s becoming much easier to make Tier 1 decks for less than they are worth.

In order to compete in today’s national metagame you have to be willing to let go of old ideas and try to adapt to new ones. Things are always changing and there aren’t really any excuses. One of the best things you can do is make mistakes and learn from them quickly so you have a grip on what’s going on in the metagame.  

One of the most important lessons I’ve learned is that you can’t let yourself fall behind if you want compete on the Regional and SJC levels of play. I've had to learn that lesson WAY too many times, the hard way, to get that drilled into my head. Here are a few tips I can offer to save you the frustration I’ve had to go through:

1. Keep up-to-date with new ideas on the net.

I can’t tell you how important this is. Pay attention to new ideas that are out there on forums, websites, and your local metagame. It’s up to you to find out whether that “piece-of-crap” idea turns into the metagame’s next latest trend. Always keep a lookout for some piece of tech that can rock the metagame or make your deck more competitive against the metagame. Keep a lookout for any new deck builds that might turn into something deadly against the metagame. It’s up to you to recognize these opportunities and use them to exploit the slowness of other players.

A word of caution though; Forums are a double-edged sword. I’m always extremely wary of advice from forums. Not that I don’t like them or spend time on them. You need to think like a skeptic and validate many obnoxious claims that so and so’s deckbuild is the best deck build in the format. 90% of the time they are just good at hyping their own deck. Some duelists are just good salesman…as odd as that sounds.

Always test these claims and test them well. Testing is NOT playing against your best friend, beating him 5 times in a row, and then declaring that this deck is the best deck in the format (A horrid mistake I made before the last SJC except I put more than 30 hours into testing OK builds against crappy players). Don’t fall into that trap.

2. Know the difference between a Local, Regional, and Shonen Jump.

Now I know you must be thinking: “First one is easy, the second one is a little harder, and the third one is the hardest one.” Yes, that is true in some cases. In this case I’m referring to the volatility of each metagame.

What the heck is a metagame’s volatility?

It is the susceptibility of that metagame to change. In other words, how often and how dramatically it changes. It is important to know this difference to further your duelist intelligence.

The Local Level

The Local metagame doesn’t change very often at all. Most of the time your local store is still stuck on last year’s best deck. Sometimes your store is full of casual players and their calling you a net-decker because they refuse to get with the times. That’s not your problem. It’s theirs. I think I’m comfortable with winning my locals and getting free packs with decks that are far superior.

In rare cases, your metagame contains some of the national metagame’s most prominent players. Even then though, the metagame doesn’t change all that much. Most of the time, these players play less-than-competitive builds to test out ideas. In Local metagames, certain builds always win because of the over abundance of casual players. Don’t look down on casual players though; they play to just to have a good time. They’re not there to compete at all. A local tournament is enough for them to compete in.

The Regional Level

On the Regional level, the metagame is a bit more volatile yet still relative to the area it is held in. You may have your out-of-area players come in from here and there, but the hometown decks are prominent. I suggest doing your homework a particular city’s metagame before charging in there with a deck that will perform poorly.

The most important thing to remember is that your deck should be a bit more varied and should cover a wider variety of match-ups. Focus on your strategy, but leave a little wiggle room for cards that do well against certain popular deck types.

The SJC Level

At this level, your deck’s resiliency is its most important component. You have to build your deck last through 10 Rounds of Swiss and possibly 3 more rounds if you make the Top 8. With at least 10-13 different opponents, you have to do the math and figure what percentage of those matches will feature the most popular deck first. Then, you have to be wary of all the other decks in the metagame. Sometimes the most obscure match-ups can ruin your record. Be prepared.

Also, the caliber of players is much higher. Be very wary of who’s attending this event. I’m not saying be afraid, I’m telling you pay attention to the way they play. Do your homework on these players. They’re not chumps.

The deck builds at these events, especially the ones that win, are usually classified as inconsistent or “horrible”. You have to understand that these deck builds are built to cover such a wide variety of matches in the Main-Deck alone and then they have to worry about how to stick to their core strategy. It’s not easy.

I wouldn’t knock a guy for making Top 8 if his deck looked like crap on paper. Fact of the matter is, he’s there and you’re not. If you were at the event and you didn’t make it up there, then maybe…just maybe…there’s a slight chance that you probably aren’t that good or even an even slighter chance…you don’t know what the hell you’re doing.

I’m not trying to change the politics of YGO here. There’s always going to be some elitist know-it-all who thinks they can do better than the Top 8 and never actually get there. Sometimes this know-it-all will look for every excuse NOT to go to an SJC; consciously or subconsciously. Making excuses and winning tournaments are not synonymous.

3. Know your limitations.

Listen, it’s ok to admit that you are not that good. It’s best to know your limitations. No one really cares all that much anyway. You are responsible for your own performance in this game or in anything really.

Don’t go to an SJC unless you are 100% positive that you will go. Don’t make any excuses. If someone asks you “Why aren’t you going?” you can just say that you don’t want to. There’s nothing wrong with that. I’ve had tons of friends who turn flaky right before big events and don’t show up when they say they will. It happens all the time.

Heck, I’ve done it. If there’s anyone that has made more mistakes or has scrubbed out (and still does) at as many events as I have. I would like to meet that person and shake his hand. It’s not a big deal is you mess up or to admit that maybe you didn’t prepare like you should have. Or you didn’t realize that your way in over your head.

Again, learn and move on quickly. The old saying “You win some, you lose some” isn’t some phrase to justify the fact that you lost. Nobody likes losing. I certainly don’t. Winning and losing can teach you valuable lessons. Failing to learn from either will prevent you from achieving any kind of success.

In Conclusion

 Do your best to stay on top of things. It’s ok to lose a lot. The more you lose the more you can learn. That isn’t always the case though. I don’t look for the lesson hidden inside your failures you’re ultimately doomed to repeat them. And those repeat mistakes are usually a cruel reminder that you forgot to learn something the first time you did it.

If you want first-hand experience of guy who makes mistakes and learns from them visit my blog at: www.thebestyugiohblog.com

I’m not shy about losing and telling the world about it. It’s what you learn from it that really counts anyway. Ultimately, wisdom is gaining through making mistakes and learning from them. I’ve got that duelist wisdom you’re looking for to give you the extra edge in your competitive endeavors.    

If you’ve made mistakes and failed a couple of times, believe me I’ve lost more times than you have. The difference between me and the average players is that I learn. What’s my advice to you?

Don’t be average.

Come to my blog to learn how NOT to be average: www.thebestyugiohblog.com