supertyranitar
New Member
At first, I wasn't sure if I would actually do a tournament report considering I bubbled at 67th, and it still burns thinking about it. But, eh, why not?
So, I pack my things up on Monday night, we're leaving for Indianapolis the next day, since my dad was on staff and was going to attend the PTO Conference. Tuesday comes quickly, and we find ourselves on the road in no time. Of course, instead of the nine or so hours that it should have taken us, it ended up taking us about eleven and a half, give or take. Traffic was awful. So, we get in around 3, and sleep for as long as we can.
Wednesday hits, and we've got to take dad to the PTO conference since we've only got one car. Once that's done, I head over to a hotel along with TJ Claypoole to see buddies of ours from Tennessee. After hanging out for a little bit, we head down to the pool to hang for a little longer. We ended up staying at this La Quinta hotel until around 4 am, and head back once we realize how late it's getting.
Thursday hits, and it ends up being a nightmare. I forget my bulk list, but, thankfully, I remembered a lot of the counts, so I only had to count up the Reverse Holos. I got my stuff sold off, but, not at the price I had previously totaled up. I wasn't happy, but, I was at the very least glad to see all that DP-AR stuff get out. I hang out for a bit, just trying to relax after stressing myself out over the bulk stuff I was to sell, find Chad Harris and some of his gang, play him a couple rounds, and soon go back to the Hotel once dad is done for the day with staff responsibilities. And, thus, Friday hits. The beginning of a long tournament weekend.
Prior to this weekend, and even before Canada Nationals, I had been testing Yanmega/Magnezone, Typhlosion, and tested against Donphan. I liked all the decks, but, I was afraid to play Donphan because of the possible random stuff. I didn't have a good feeling about Typhlosion, can't really explain why, and that left me with Yanmega/Magnezone, which I will refer to as PrimeTime, to play for Nationals.
Sitting down for the player meeting, I meet some pretty cool people, we all talk for a little bit while waiting for the pairings to go up. One of the people I sat by mentioned how it'd be funny if one of us had to play one another...well. About that.
Round 1: Mike T. (MagneBoar)
Sure enough, one of us had to play. He's playing MagneBoar, and I was fairly estatic about the match-up. Of course, I was also slightly nervous considering Nationals was finally starting. So, we set up, and wait to be started. Once we are, I flip over a Yanma I believe, and he flips over some basics like Magnemite. I'm a little fuzzy on the details. We get into a prize war, I'm getting pretty lucky on my Reversal flips, so I'm able to rid of his one Magnezone, and his two Magnemites before they're too problematic. Eventually, he gets down to two prizes to my two, but, I'm able to Reversal up an Emboar and keep it in place. His hand is pretty small, and he wasn't able to do much, so I snipe some babies and take the game. Great game, Mike!
1-0
Round 2: ??? (MagneBoar)
So, I'm a little jittery after that match-up, considering it came pretty close. So, pairings go up, and I eventually find out that I'm up against another MagneBoar. I love this match-up to death, but, I wouldn't like it this game. Not much to say here, I didn't start very great, but, he didn't have the best start either. I'm able to fend him off with a Pachirisu for one prize, and eventually pump out some Yanmegas to take it down to two prizes. But, I never see a Magnezone actually hit the field on my side. That eventually ends up being my downfall. If I had gotten it sooner, I would've been fine. To add insult to injury, my fourth prize held a Magnezone Prime...and I had the Candy. Painful. GG nonetheless!
1-1
Round 3: ??? (Feraligatr/Wailord)
Pretty discouraging to see that happen last round. But, my deck seems to pick up a little bit, and I set up much better this time around. However, there are some pitfalls during the game. I didn't hit a switch when I needed it. But, he didn't seem to draw much either, so, I was able to speed around him with Yanmega, and slap the Wailords down via Magnezone.
2-1
Round 4: ??? (MagneBoar)
You can probably guess that I'm pretty happy to see myself get paired against yet another MagneBoar. I'm not going to lie, I'm glad that I hit yet another one. Lucky on my part, though, I will admit. This was an incredibly close game. He set up as many as 3 Magnezone, but, he never played down more than one Tepig. I decided that I'd forgo what I normally do, and go for Emboar instead. I hit the Reversal heads I need, and kill his Emboar via Magnezone. From there, he goes downhill fairly fast, and I'm able to clench another necessary Reversal heads, after going through three, to kill his RDL. Once that's down, it's smooth sailing. Great game, though!
3-1
Round 5: ??? (Vileplume/Mew/Jumpluff/Yanmega)
I was wondering when I'd hit a trainer lock deck. I hadn't tested agianst one, but, I felt fairly confident going into the match. I snipe off an early Oddish, he pulls out two, so, I figured I'd limit his odds. I decide that it's time to take prizes outside of the Oddish, since he evolved his other one to Gloom, and start killing off his Mews pretty handily. I had also managed to set up a Yanma, iirc, at one point, which hurt him since Yanmega would then die to a Sonicboom. This game was mostly in my favor, but, he definitely made me work for it. He dragged up Magnemites, and I couldn't really retreat them. I pretty much wasn't going to go for Magnezone this game, as it seemed pointless after seeing both Magnemites get trapped. Yanmega alone was enough for this game.
4-1
Round 6: ??? (Kingdra/Cinccino/Zoroark)
I start with a lone Cleffa, and nothing else to get a basic in my opening hand. At this point, I've already accepted that I've lost, but, I wait to see what he does...oh, yeah, he went first, too. He Collectors, and I'm just waiting for the Tyrogue. He pulls one basic, then another, then his last one...no Tyrogue! I top deck the Collector I desperately needed, and proceed to set up against him. It wasn't easy, but, I manage to take control of the game once I get a Magnezone out. Despite him Lost Burning me via Zoroark, he's left without energy on his board, which put him in a bind. Meanwhile, I'm rebuilding, and I've got Yanmegas going at him. Once I get another Magnezone set up, he can't do much against it, and I pull the win.
5-1
So, I'm feeling pretty confident, having just won 4 in a row now, and going into day 2 with a 5-1 record. If I won just two more, I'd be in. Of course, disaster would strike.
Round 7: Caleb Cline (PrimeTime/Kingdra)
Before the match, he offers me a card to pick, and I happen to land a Flygon ex from Power Keepers, which was pretty cool. Soon, we set up, and when he flips his stuff over, I see I'm playing mirror. To be honest, I had never played the mirror match before. I figured I'd be best going after the Yanmegas, since, if those are gone, the Magnezones are left stranded. But, tragedy struck, as I never saw a Magnezone of my own. I Judged him, attempting to disrupt his eeeek, but, it only hurt me instead. He sets up after another Eeeeeek, and I can't do much against his set up. GG!
5-2
Round 8: ??? (PrimeTime/Kingdra)
I figure that was my one bad match for the day, so, it's whatever. Well, that wasn't the case. I see I'm facing yet another mirror. I still feel, going into this match, that the Yanmegas are probably the better thing to kill. Well, that would be my downfall, as I evolved a Magneton, and had two energy attached to it. I don't know what I was thinking, now looking back at the moment, but, I go for Tri Attack. He doesn't have anything else set up on his board, so, I figure it'd be fine. I flip all tails against his Yanma. He Copycats for 6, and proceeds to rip Rare Candy and Magnezone, and then gets Yanmega out. Everything goes downhill for me.
5-3
Very discouraging. I know I can still make it if I win this last one, but, I was kind of angry about the last game. I knew I had to calm down, so, I pull my Droid Eris out before the ninth round, and just try to relax.
Round 9: Chris Cobi (Kingdra/Zoroark/Cinccino)
I see what the match-up is, and I draw an incredible opening hand. I manage to land a turn 2 Magnezone, and set up fairly well. However, this game comes all the way down to the wire, both of us going to 1-1 prize. I wasn't thinking clearly in this match, but, I manage to pull the win out in a tough game nonetheless. Great game, Chris!
6-3
The standings eventually go up, and I rush toward them. I was so hoping I'd make it, but, I soon see that I'm 67th. I believe Joseph Conrad described moments like this perfectly: "The horror...the horror."
I'm kinda bummed, I dunno what would have been if I didn't keep that Magneton active in Round 8, it's hard to say at this point. So, I play in the modified with the same deck, proceed to go 6-0 until they cut to a "top 4". To shorten time, they took all the undefeateds, and paired them together in a top 4 kind of set up, but had the same formula of 30+3. I lost to a Typhlosion/Reshiram deck, couldn't keep up with it, and got 18 packs, which was kinda cool. Then, the next day, I play in the Professor Cup, and get top 16, going 6-1, only losing to mirror. I played Typhlosion for the Cup, I figured it'd be the best play. I lose in top 16. I hate to blame it on luck, but, game 3 I never saw a fire for Ninetales, and in the previous games, I must have played like...6-7 Reversals, maybe slightly more between games 1-2. I only saw one heads. Kind of disappointing. But, I got my backpack, which was great to get.
Glad to be home now, even though Nationals was pretty good.
So, I pack my things up on Monday night, we're leaving for Indianapolis the next day, since my dad was on staff and was going to attend the PTO Conference. Tuesday comes quickly, and we find ourselves on the road in no time. Of course, instead of the nine or so hours that it should have taken us, it ended up taking us about eleven and a half, give or take. Traffic was awful. So, we get in around 3, and sleep for as long as we can.
Wednesday hits, and we've got to take dad to the PTO conference since we've only got one car. Once that's done, I head over to a hotel along with TJ Claypoole to see buddies of ours from Tennessee. After hanging out for a little bit, we head down to the pool to hang for a little longer. We ended up staying at this La Quinta hotel until around 4 am, and head back once we realize how late it's getting.
Thursday hits, and it ends up being a nightmare. I forget my bulk list, but, thankfully, I remembered a lot of the counts, so I only had to count up the Reverse Holos. I got my stuff sold off, but, not at the price I had previously totaled up. I wasn't happy, but, I was at the very least glad to see all that DP-AR stuff get out. I hang out for a bit, just trying to relax after stressing myself out over the bulk stuff I was to sell, find Chad Harris and some of his gang, play him a couple rounds, and soon go back to the Hotel once dad is done for the day with staff responsibilities. And, thus, Friday hits. The beginning of a long tournament weekend.
Prior to this weekend, and even before Canada Nationals, I had been testing Yanmega/Magnezone, Typhlosion, and tested against Donphan. I liked all the decks, but, I was afraid to play Donphan because of the possible random stuff. I didn't have a good feeling about Typhlosion, can't really explain why, and that left me with Yanmega/Magnezone, which I will refer to as PrimeTime, to play for Nationals.
Sitting down for the player meeting, I meet some pretty cool people, we all talk for a little bit while waiting for the pairings to go up. One of the people I sat by mentioned how it'd be funny if one of us had to play one another...well. About that.
Round 1: Mike T. (MagneBoar)
Sure enough, one of us had to play. He's playing MagneBoar, and I was fairly estatic about the match-up. Of course, I was also slightly nervous considering Nationals was finally starting. So, we set up, and wait to be started. Once we are, I flip over a Yanma I believe, and he flips over some basics like Magnemite. I'm a little fuzzy on the details. We get into a prize war, I'm getting pretty lucky on my Reversal flips, so I'm able to rid of his one Magnezone, and his two Magnemites before they're too problematic. Eventually, he gets down to two prizes to my two, but, I'm able to Reversal up an Emboar and keep it in place. His hand is pretty small, and he wasn't able to do much, so I snipe some babies and take the game. Great game, Mike!
1-0
Round 2: ??? (MagneBoar)
So, I'm a little jittery after that match-up, considering it came pretty close. So, pairings go up, and I eventually find out that I'm up against another MagneBoar. I love this match-up to death, but, I wouldn't like it this game. Not much to say here, I didn't start very great, but, he didn't have the best start either. I'm able to fend him off with a Pachirisu for one prize, and eventually pump out some Yanmegas to take it down to two prizes. But, I never see a Magnezone actually hit the field on my side. That eventually ends up being my downfall. If I had gotten it sooner, I would've been fine. To add insult to injury, my fourth prize held a Magnezone Prime...and I had the Candy. Painful. GG nonetheless!
1-1
Round 3: ??? (Feraligatr/Wailord)
Pretty discouraging to see that happen last round. But, my deck seems to pick up a little bit, and I set up much better this time around. However, there are some pitfalls during the game. I didn't hit a switch when I needed it. But, he didn't seem to draw much either, so, I was able to speed around him with Yanmega, and slap the Wailords down via Magnezone.
2-1
Round 4: ??? (MagneBoar)
You can probably guess that I'm pretty happy to see myself get paired against yet another MagneBoar. I'm not going to lie, I'm glad that I hit yet another one. Lucky on my part, though, I will admit. This was an incredibly close game. He set up as many as 3 Magnezone, but, he never played down more than one Tepig. I decided that I'd forgo what I normally do, and go for Emboar instead. I hit the Reversal heads I need, and kill his Emboar via Magnezone. From there, he goes downhill fairly fast, and I'm able to clench another necessary Reversal heads, after going through three, to kill his RDL. Once that's down, it's smooth sailing. Great game, though!
3-1
Round 5: ??? (Vileplume/Mew/Jumpluff/Yanmega)
I was wondering when I'd hit a trainer lock deck. I hadn't tested agianst one, but, I felt fairly confident going into the match. I snipe off an early Oddish, he pulls out two, so, I figured I'd limit his odds. I decide that it's time to take prizes outside of the Oddish, since he evolved his other one to Gloom, and start killing off his Mews pretty handily. I had also managed to set up a Yanma, iirc, at one point, which hurt him since Yanmega would then die to a Sonicboom. This game was mostly in my favor, but, he definitely made me work for it. He dragged up Magnemites, and I couldn't really retreat them. I pretty much wasn't going to go for Magnezone this game, as it seemed pointless after seeing both Magnemites get trapped. Yanmega alone was enough for this game.
4-1
Round 6: ??? (Kingdra/Cinccino/Zoroark)
I start with a lone Cleffa, and nothing else to get a basic in my opening hand. At this point, I've already accepted that I've lost, but, I wait to see what he does...oh, yeah, he went first, too. He Collectors, and I'm just waiting for the Tyrogue. He pulls one basic, then another, then his last one...no Tyrogue! I top deck the Collector I desperately needed, and proceed to set up against him. It wasn't easy, but, I manage to take control of the game once I get a Magnezone out. Despite him Lost Burning me via Zoroark, he's left without energy on his board, which put him in a bind. Meanwhile, I'm rebuilding, and I've got Yanmegas going at him. Once I get another Magnezone set up, he can't do much against it, and I pull the win.
5-1
So, I'm feeling pretty confident, having just won 4 in a row now, and going into day 2 with a 5-1 record. If I won just two more, I'd be in. Of course, disaster would strike.
Round 7: Caleb Cline (PrimeTime/Kingdra)
Before the match, he offers me a card to pick, and I happen to land a Flygon ex from Power Keepers, which was pretty cool. Soon, we set up, and when he flips his stuff over, I see I'm playing mirror. To be honest, I had never played the mirror match before. I figured I'd be best going after the Yanmegas, since, if those are gone, the Magnezones are left stranded. But, tragedy struck, as I never saw a Magnezone of my own. I Judged him, attempting to disrupt his eeeek, but, it only hurt me instead. He sets up after another Eeeeeek, and I can't do much against his set up. GG!
5-2
Round 8: ??? (PrimeTime/Kingdra)
I figure that was my one bad match for the day, so, it's whatever. Well, that wasn't the case. I see I'm facing yet another mirror. I still feel, going into this match, that the Yanmegas are probably the better thing to kill. Well, that would be my downfall, as I evolved a Magneton, and had two energy attached to it. I don't know what I was thinking, now looking back at the moment, but, I go for Tri Attack. He doesn't have anything else set up on his board, so, I figure it'd be fine. I flip all tails against his Yanma. He Copycats for 6, and proceeds to rip Rare Candy and Magnezone, and then gets Yanmega out. Everything goes downhill for me.
5-3
Very discouraging. I know I can still make it if I win this last one, but, I was kind of angry about the last game. I knew I had to calm down, so, I pull my Droid Eris out before the ninth round, and just try to relax.
Round 9: Chris Cobi (Kingdra/Zoroark/Cinccino)
I see what the match-up is, and I draw an incredible opening hand. I manage to land a turn 2 Magnezone, and set up fairly well. However, this game comes all the way down to the wire, both of us going to 1-1 prize. I wasn't thinking clearly in this match, but, I manage to pull the win out in a tough game nonetheless. Great game, Chris!
6-3
The standings eventually go up, and I rush toward them. I was so hoping I'd make it, but, I soon see that I'm 67th. I believe Joseph Conrad described moments like this perfectly: "The horror...the horror."
I'm kinda bummed, I dunno what would have been if I didn't keep that Magneton active in Round 8, it's hard to say at this point. So, I play in the modified with the same deck, proceed to go 6-0 until they cut to a "top 4". To shorten time, they took all the undefeateds, and paired them together in a top 4 kind of set up, but had the same formula of 30+3. I lost to a Typhlosion/Reshiram deck, couldn't keep up with it, and got 18 packs, which was kinda cool. Then, the next day, I play in the Professor Cup, and get top 16, going 6-1, only losing to mirror. I played Typhlosion for the Cup, I figured it'd be the best play. I lose in top 16. I hate to blame it on luck, but, game 3 I never saw a fire for Ninetales, and in the previous games, I must have played like...6-7 Reversals, maybe slightly more between games 1-2. I only saw one heads. Kind of disappointing. But, I got my backpack, which was great to get.
Glad to be home now, even though Nationals was pretty good.
. I know bubbling out stings, and my example is on a much smaller scale, but I've finished 9th out of top 8 cut at NC states for 2 years in a row. So, I empathize with you in some way.