King Piplup
Active Member
So, decided in my boredom of not having anything Pokemon related to do to write a report for my past two weekends of SPT. As quick background, I was fortunate enough to obtain the 400 CP required for the invite from Cities/BR’s/2 Regionals, plus my “run” at Worlds 2012, so going into States I technically didn’t have the need for points, but alas, I sort of had an issue with qualifying with the assistance of Worlds 2012, so part of me still really wanted 50 CP, and when Stipends/Byes at Nats are on the line, taking these events seriously is something I chose to do.
Anyway, through some testing starting all the way back in January, Garbador/Landorus/Mewtwo was the deck of choice for myself, my brother, my mom, and for a few other Masters that had been collaborating on the list.
First up was Ohio…In advance I apologize for my memory, choosing to write this so late wasn’t the greatest choice ever. In addition, the games at like 10:00 at night sorta are a mystery to me.
65 Seniors/7 Rounds/Top 16.
Round 1 vs Marcus R w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Tornadus EX/Bouffalant (Finished 4/3)
Great, get to start off the tournament with the matchup I admittedly tested the least. He went first which was unfortunate enough, but when I set myself up for the Mewtwo KO on turn 3, it set me back in a hole I was never going to overcome barring him misplaying. However, he did not, and after outplaying me extremely well, I fell 2-6.
0/1
Round 2 vs Jacob M w/Blastoise/Kyurem EX/Kyogre EX (Finished 3/4)
So, at first when I saw Squirtles and Kyogres I was feeling fairly good, as I was able to eliminate all his Squirtles earlier with Tornadus EX. However, I soon found Kyurem EX eating my DCE was going to be a huge pain. Key play was Scramble Switch into a Mewtwo that enabled me to OHKO a fresh Kyurem EX with the help of HTL and Virbank, then sweep for the rest of my prizes. Definitely was given a scare by the energy eating potential here.
1/1
Round 3 vs Carson S w/Darkrai EX/Lasers (Finished 3/4)
Hehe, well, to be honest, in early testing this deck never could do anything for anybody in my family, and therefore I didn’t test against it a ton, but I knew the gist of the matchup was going to be Hammerheading to setup easy Lands Judgment KO’s, and after setting up Garbador, I stalled Darkrais in active and with the assistance of HTL, quickly drew my prizes.
2/1
At this point it was lunch. My mom and brother were both undefeated with identical lists to mine, facing much harder matchups than I had thusfar. The other MI Masters playing the deck were 3-0, 3-0, 2-1, and 2-1. Fantastic start, hopefully it’d continue.
Round 4 vs Jarret Dunn w/Eel/Zekrom EX/Mewtwo EX/Lasers (Finished 3/4)
So, the Mewtwo Eel matchup was pretty heavily focused on eating Tynamos with Landorus, and using Landorus to soften Mewtwos for the KO’s later in the game. I ended up getting a quick start, but Garbador evades me until a bit later in the match, when I get it down at a key moment to keep him from easily responding to my Mewtwo KO. Once I realize he doesn’t appear to run Tool Scrapper, I Scramble Switch into a Landorus (With Giant Cape for added Zekrom EX surprise protection) and sweep his field on Lightning types.
3/1
Round 5 vs Wesley P w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Bouffalant (Finished 5/2, lost in T4)
This was my first of 4 games against Wesley, and boy, was this thing annoying. Potions, Gold Potion, Max Potion, it was neverending…thankfully, I managed to get a jump on the prize exchange by Max Potioning a Landorus I’d chosen to hide behind for setup time, leaving him having wasted 3 turns pounding it with Mewtwo, and leaving me able to jump on his Mewtwo with a Mewtwo of my own. Bouffalant taking advantage of an early Hammerhead on a Landorus of his with a Laser enabled me to grab an EX out of nowhere midgame. N made it a tough win, but I pulled it out (barely!) 5-6.
4/1
Round 6 vs Malachi L w/Rayeels (Finished 4/3)
So, finally, a matchup I felt very comfortable with. Landorus enables me to get their very important Eels off the field in Tynamo form, making the game fairly easy from there.
Unfortunately, this one proved a bit of a challenge, as I drew a bit dead toward at the beginning as he set up the dreaded Eelktrik. At this point, I felt I was probably in trouble and would be a in a “win and in” situation in Round 7. However, I managed to squeeze Garbador in play around Midgame, and through some major Hammerhead/Laser shenanigans pull out a very narrow victory. Great game!
5/1
At this point, my mom and brother are still undefeated, as is Alex Hill (Kazambolt). A this point the other MI Garbador players in Masters were all 5-1. No record worse than 5-1 among all of MI’s Garbadors is nothing to sneer at. A friend of mine in Seniors, Josh F was also 5/1 and in need of one win to cut. I calculated that all 5/2’s would cut in Seniors (and even one 4/3), so even losing this one wouldn’t be that awful.
Round 7 vs Brian P w/Klinklang/Cobalion EX (Finished 5/2, lost in Top 8)
Having not really played this one enough either, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Very quickly in this match I learned Cobalion is an ANNOYING attacker when it gets setup. It easily trades with Tornadus EX, especially when my DCE were all eaten early by a certain Cobalion. Quickly I realized it was going to be key to use Landorus and HTL to setup KO’s for Mewtwo and Tornadus, lest my DCE be eaten very quickly. I won this 2-6 if I remember correctly, but it was definitely a lot closer game than the prize count suggested.
Top 16 was…
1. Alex S w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Garbador (7-0)
2. Matthew D w/Plasma Klinklang/Cobalion EX (6-1)
3. Josh F w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Garbador (6-1)
4. Christopher S w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Garbador (6-1)
5. Brian P w/Plasma Klinklang/Cobalion EX/Cobalion NVi (5-2)
6. Seth H w/Eelektrik/Mewtwo/Zekrom EX/Zekrom BW (5-2)
7. Austin H w/Plasma Klinklang/Cobalion EX/Cobalion NVI (5-2)
8. Sanjay S w/Darkrai EX/Terrakion NVI/Landorus EX (5-2)
9. Wesley P w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Bouffalant/Terrakion NVI/Reshiram BW (5-2)
10. Connor M w/Sigilyph/Drifblim/Darkrai EX (5-2)
11. Alexander H w/Darkrai EX/? (5-2)
12. Johnny Y w/Darkrai EX/Lasers (5-2)
13. Andrew D w/Darkrai EX/Lasers (5-2)
14. Nolan K w/Blastoise/Keldeo EX/Black Kyurem EX (5-2)
15. Jaysin K w/Rayquaza EX/Eelektrik/Emolga/Rayquaza DRX (5-2)
16. Justin B w/Mewtwo EX/Eelektrik/Zekrom EX (4-3)
So, I got Andrew D for my T16. Having little idea what he was playing, I knew to go in expecting the worst and be pleasantly surprised if it was a positive matchup. At this point I learn that my mom is 7/1 and assured cut in Masters. Alex Hill is 8/0 and also assured cut (obviously). The other two Garbador players from MI also made Top 16 at 6/2, as did my friend Josh in seniors.
A little issue of mine is that I have never in my life made it past the first round of Top Cut in any event bigger than States. I’ve never missed Top Cut at regionals, but can’t close the event with a strong cut performance. With this constantly on my mind, I head to T16…
Top 16 vs Andrew D w/Darkrai EX/Lasers
So, in the end it ended up being a matchup I definitely liked, however I know that Andrew is definitely a dangerous player.
He drew fairly dead the first game, only getting a Darkrai to mount a charge after I’d already gotten four prizes by sniping Sableyes and Garby-stalling Darkrais in active (good grief Max Potion is obnoxious) for a few prizes. Unfortunately for him, even N can’t overcome a fully powered Landorus, and with careful Switch conservation, I got game 1.
1/0
Game 2 went much like the first, except by about turn 3 he seemed to have acknowledged there wasn’t much he could do as his field succumbed to the quick Garbador and sniping onslaught Landorus provided. He did make this one much closer, but in the end the conclusion was fairly inevitable.
2/0 (7/1)
Wow, finally! I made it past the first round of a top cut. My brother also won his first round. If both of us won this round, we’d meet in Top 4…that’d be…”fun”.
Top 16 resulted in this…
1>16
214
4>13
5>12
6>11
7>10
8Seth
Austin>Jaysin
Top 4 was…
Christopher vs Wesley
Josh vs Austin
Additionally, my mom advanced to Top 8, as did all of the rest of Michigan’s Garbador players. With Top 8 Masters being 3 Garbador mirrors, I think we had the play figured out.
Top 4 vs Wesley P w/Big Basics
Game one he absolutely did not draw well, and I made him suffer for it. Quick hammerheads and Xballs were only offset by his enormous suite of healing and other annoying factors of his list. It wasn’t enough, and I won this one in about 15 minutes.
1/0
Game two was an entirely different story…neither of us drew anything of note, and once we finally got energy, a hammerhead war ensued. Silly us, all the Max Potions we each ran made that equate to nothing. At this point it was ~10:30, and neither of us could say we were in top form, and it took quite an amount of time to make even the simplest play. I sorta-eventually got myself into a 2-4 lead, but with time running very short in the match, I knew the time crunch was crunching. He drew Prize #4 to make the game count if time was called, which was sad, but I knew he’d draw 5 and 6 fairly quickly as I had very few resources left to make a fight. I was correct, and only mustered the resources to KO a Bouffalant. His healing was just too much.
After feeling in control for much of the match, it was fairly intimidating to know I was likely going to be playing to the first or second prize in Game 3 based on time.
Alas, I was correct. I thankfully got my choice of going first off. We both opened Bouffalant, not the ideal starter for "draw prizes NOW". I got a T1 energy drop to Landorus, Lasered his Bouffy/Got Virbank in play and passed. He went, attached to Bouffy and Lasered me. I, of course, stay asleep, but Switch into Landy hitting 30 to Bouff and 30 to his Landy, missing the energy drop. Time is called on his turn, and he catcher's Bouffalant, lasers, and attaches to a second Landorus, with a new, fresh Bouffalant in active. I simply attach to Landorus and pass, allowing Bouffalant to hit 90 damage going into Turn 2 tied 6/6. He Hammerheads for the KO on Bouffalant, but I can attach to my Landorus, Catcher his, and Lands Judgement for the game and match, winning 1-2 prizes drawn on time.
The other match also goes to time, and Austin outlasted Josh's comeback in Game 3 by a single turn, winning on time.
Austin>Josh
Christopher>Wesley.
In masters, my mom lost in T8 to the eventual winner, one of the Michiganders playing Garbador.
Finals vs Austin H w/Klinklang
So, 10:50 at night and the time had come...
Game 1 was very quick, with both us trying to get finals done with quickly. I setup the Turn 2 Garbador, and although his Max Potions were highly annoying, it made it so that my Mewtwo that was trying to sweep his Cobalions was only taking 30 damage a turn. At one point he attempted to bait me into an Energy Press KO, but instead of attaching and dying, I attached a Fighting and a Giant Cape preventing the KO to Mewtwo. From there he isn't able to mount much more of a game and I take it 3-6.
1/0
Game 2 was more of the same, but he went turbo-Juniper trying to setup and get the resources to disrupt my Garbador's existence. I felt like I was probably going to lose the game narrowly until I see he has a very small deck and 5 prizes to draw. I conserve my attackers, putting just enough pressure on to force him to make plays and mill himself, but not over-investing in any one attacker. The result was him decking out with the prize count 3-4 in his favor. Was legitimately afraid of this one going the wrong way, but it worked out in the end.
2/0
And there it was, I'd won Ohio States! I'd achieved my preseason goal of getting a bye of some sorts for Nationals, and won the travel stipend, which my mom was obviously happy about. Definitely a great night, and a great day of some fabulous games.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Spoiler alert: Same list all 3 weeks.
Week 2 was my home state of Michigan, always some sort of pressure to keep the title within the State (not that a Michigander has won the title in my time playing)
Somehow my memory is already failing, so details will be scarce at best.
So, got there, registered, my brother dealt with sleeve issues (I was highly amused that my sleeves I'd used in Fall Reg, 2 CC's, Winter Reg and Ohio States were still in great shape, while his he'd used for one tournament unfortunately weren't...), and we started playing. This week, the group of us using Garbador was much smaller, 3 Masters (my mom included), my brother, and I. Sadly, we wouldn't see the same level of success as we had in Ohio...
48 players, 6 Rounds+Top 8
Round 1 vs Awais K (CA) w/Big Basics (Finished 4/2)
So, my brother got a Hydregion.dec, another friend playing Big Basics got a Garchomp/Altaria, yet another friend got Manoswine.dec, and I get an actual player with a real deck? Sigh. If nothing else, my resistance would be in decent shape regardless of the outcome.
He went first, getting an early jump on me. Pretty early on in the game I'd resigned myself to a loss, but not all hope was lost. I managed to pull of a Max Potion cleansing on my Landorus I'd been using on a meat shield, and with Lasers/Landorus, managed to pull of back-to-back KO's on his EX's, putting the prize count 2-4 my favor. He was able to N me to two, but one of the cards was Bianca, enabling me to get back in the game and pull of a KO on his Landorus. (Don't exactly remember what with, but it works)
1/0
Round 2 vs Alex S (MI) (Not my brother) w/Blastoise/Keldeo (Finished 4/2)
Got the turn two Garbador, shutting any chance of a major attacker hitting my field unless he was running Scrapper, which, based on his demeanor at the T2 Garbador, I figured he was not. I got an early leg up on him with a Mewtwo+DCE eating his Keldeo for breakfast. He took the risk of dropping a Mewtwo+Water knowing I could get a DCE+Catcher to KO it. Got said combination, going up 2 prizes. Finished off aforementioned Keldeo, carefully putting a Rescue Scarf on Mewtwo in case he could DCE and KO, which he did pull off. Noting all 4 of his N were gone, along with 2 DCE (all he ran, I figured), I drop the Rescued Mewtwo and another, leaving him no out as long as I have a DCE (I do). Eventually he Catcher+KO's one, and I revenge immediately after.
2/0
Round 3 vs Nathan L (OH) w/Darkrai (Finished 4/2)
Alas, I didn't get to know much other than it ran Darkrai. I won the flip, and Mewtwo+DCE+Laserbank ended his lone Sableye's chances at a win.
Of course, of all rounds to donk, it was the one before lunch. Normally good, but having to wait for 3 others to finish their games got tiresome. If nothing else, I got some decent spectating done, if that counts for anything...
3/0
Round 4 vs Logan H (MI) w/Rayeels (Finished 4/2)
The summary of this game is that once he finally got Eels up past the Landorus onslaught, Garbador was already there to control them. He did make effective use of his lone Scrapper to make the game somewhat tight, but since his Dowsing Machine was already used, the damage was kept under control. Game was still close, and if he hadn't had to waste time chasing the Garbadors/Trubbishes instead of dealing with my EX's, the game may've been very different.
4/0
Round 5 vs Joey N (OH) w/Darkrai/Hammers (Finished 5/1, 5th overall)
Soooooo, ideal hand against this deck would be something like Landorus/Laser/Virbank/Fighting/Trubbish/Trubbish/Juniper, right? Aside from the absurd odds of that happening, even something remotely resembling such a hand would be nice. But no, I was blessed with a hand of
Fighting
Fighting
Fighting
DCE
Bouffalant
DCE
Juniper
...and draw Bianca.
Although getting rid of around half my energy off the bat was far from ideal, I had to do it to get the T2 Hammerhead (He rudely removed my T1 Fighting attachment, requiring me to Juniper T2 for hopes of ANYTHING). With a combination of Mewtwo/Landorus, I managed to kill enough Sableyes to take a lead, and eventually KO'd a Darkrai. However, my energy reserves were quickly vanishing, and I still had a Darkrai to take out. It might've been feasible if two Fighting hadn't been prized (5 Fighting in the top 13 cards, yay!), but he smartly nipped the Mewtwo potential in the bud by taking him out. Having no more usable attackers, I can only watch as my field is wrecked.
4/1
Round 6 vs Ethan P (CA) w/Blastoise/Keldeo/Black Kyurem (Finished 5/1, 3rd overall)
So, my brother's first loss of the day came Round 3 to this exact list, which seemed to be running at least 2 Scrapper, if not 3. I knew my odds were a long shot, but oh well. Key moment was my Turn 1, when I had the opportunity to Catcher+Laserbank KO his lone Squirtle, but alas, I instead decide to Catcher the Keldeo...ugh. He got the T2 Blastoise, followed by my T2 Garbador, which he negated with the use of Scrapper T3. I drew nothing more, and was benched out with him having drawn 3 prizes to my 4...
4/2
My mom dropped 3/3, and my brother went 3/3, both using Garbador.
Thankfully, all my opponents had done better than 4/2, and therefore I made cut with 72.22% Opp Win, placing me 6th seed. Top 8 was...
1. Ashir K (CA) (Garbador/Big Basics)
2. Joey N (OH (Hammertime)
3. Brian P (OH) (Klinklang)
4. Ethan P (CA) (Blastoise)
5. Eric M (CA) (Darkrai)
6. Christopher S (MI) (Garbador/Big Basics)
7. Josh F (MI) (Big Basics)
8. Corinna C (?) (Big Basics)
Top 8 vs Brian P w/Klinklang
So, Game 1 and 2 were pretty similar to my Swiss game with him in Ohio, us both drawing decently, but my deck just being better in the matchup. Max Potion played an annoyingly large role in the games taking any time, as Cobalion just can't keep up with Landorus and Mewtwo. In the end, I won both games with him drawing 2 prizes in each.
2/0
Ashir>Corrina
Josh>Joey
Christopher>Brian
Ethan>Eric
Remaining:
Ashir (CA) w/ Garbador vs Ethan (CA) w/Blastoise
Josh (MI) w/Big Basics vs Christopher (MI) w/Garbador
So, the plus was that at least one Michigan player would make finals, and it'd be US vs Canada in the Finals...only in border states can we have these problems.
Top 4 vs Josh F w/Big Basics
Game 1: I go second, my Landorus to his lone Bouffalant. He can only attach/Bianca for 1. I decide to drop a Trubbish, having the Turn 2 Garbotoxin in my hand should it be necessary to KO the Bouffalant next turn. In this matchup, Garbage Collecting for one turn doesn't hurt so much, as unless they have a Catcher, all they can do is kill the one Trubbish I'll bench. I do that, hoping the other basics have deserted him. He does get a Juniper and is forced to use that in an effort to stay in the game. He does get another basic, but at this point I have the advantage of my board position, and he was forced to Juniper resources, leaving me in a comfortable position the whole game.
1/0
Game 2: We both start out quickly, with me grabbing four early prizes, but my field gets gradually worse as I lose Tornadus EX to his Mewtwo, leaving me with 2 Trubbish I'm forced to bench to stay alive. Since all I've played in the game supporter wise is one Bianca and one N, my Garbage Collection options are fairly limited. I choose the Bianca for 2 next turn rather than the N to two, but get no Basic on that as I'm forced to Catcher stall and collect garbage again. He has the Switch for the win.
1/1
Game 3: Game was admittedly pathetic. He didn't play more than two supporters all game, and my Mewtwo steamrolled to win easily. Wish it'd been a better game, but we'd both had our share of bad drawing that match.
2/1
Ashir beats Tristan, so onto Finals...
Top 2 vs Ashir K w/Garbador/Big Basics
Game 1: We both shuffle and draw our cards, and both remark this could get ugly quickly. Alas, we both open lone Trubbish. He goes first, and decides to go for a donk. Among the first 5 cards are the Mewtwo/DCE/Switch...I had a completely awful hand anyway (3 mulligans by him later, I had a BIANCA for a Supporter...), so all it really did was keep my misery to a minimum.
Game 2: Possibly the silliest game I've played all year. We both had chances to completely bury the other at times, only to whiff the Catcher/Laser/Fighting/DCE/etc. draw. At one point, I need either a Catcher or a Laser off my Juniper, having used 0 of either. Whiffff! Next turn set him up for a Laser KO though, so prizes were 4-2 in his favor. I'm able to Catcher/KO his other Mewtwo, and I suddenly though I just might have a chance at this. He has only a Landorus and a Trubbish. Landorus has 1 energy, and he attaches to it during his turn, making it 2, and hitting Mewtwo for 30. All HTL are gone, so I know he won't be pulling any sleep silliness, nor any damage manipulation. With prizes 2-2, my hand is DCE/Juniper/Ultra Ball/Fighting/Switch, with 3 of the all important Giant Cape in deck, which would prevent any KO by him next turn. I consciously decide to Juniper, but Ultra Ball for a look at my deck first. Somewhere between the shuffling and rechecking my hand, I, in my tired state, decide not to Juniper because I wanted to save the DCE or something, forgetting I sort of need a Giant Cape to stay in the game. I hit for 80, and he attaches/KO's next turn. I flip the Juniper over and show Top 7 of my deck. 2nd and 6th cards were Capes. Alas, not the end of the world, as I imagine he probably would've wrecked me game 3 going first and all, plus him/his family were all very nice, didn't mind losing it too much.
0/2, 2nd
Week 3 in Indiana...
Same list as before. 57 or so Seniors, just a few short of the Top 16, unfortunately. My brother also decided to use Garbador again, while my mom chose to switch to Eel/Mewtwo and didn't do so well...
Round 1 vs Christian K (OH) w/Blastoise/Keldeo/Bouffalant/Mewtwo
I'm able to keep his Squirtles off the field, leading to a fairly quick board position advantage. Mewtwo just ripped through things with Poison's help, and he wasn't in any position to make a comeback without a Blastoise.
1/0
Round 2 vs Josh F (?) (Not one from Michigan/last week) w/Klinklang
Essentially he doesn't even bother with Plasma Klinklang and elects to go Gear Grinding with the other, since he went first and dropped energy on the Klink simply thinking I was playing Big Basics. Trubbish changed that opinion. He ends up runing out of attackers to use after loading so much on the Gear Grind KK early, leaving him defenseless against Mewtwo/Tornadus. Not a ton he could do against the rampage.
2/0
Round 3 vs Malachi L (OH) w/Rayeels
He went first, I missed the turn 1/2 attack, and from there I struggled to get board position back. Towards the end I finally eliminated his Eels, and the game was tied 1-1 on prizes. I'd just killed his Ray EX with a Landorus EX, leaving myself with only a Bouffalant charged on my field. He uses Emolga to CFF for two Rayquaza EX, having 2 Eels on the board. I never actually got Garbador into play by the way of his Catcher KO's on Trubbish. Knowing him having a Fire ends it for me, I simply Gold Breaker for 60, not having a HTL to end it. He in fact has the fire, and I lose. Fabulous game for sure.
2/1
Round 4 vs ??? w/Giratina PLS/Lugia/Darkrai
Only round I forgot to note a name across all 3 weekends, sigh. Anyways, the game was incredibly short, as I got a T1 Laser/Hammerhead, putting him at 90 HP. He failed to get another basic, attached a DCE to Giratina and entered his turn with 80 HP left. On my turn I hit Mewtwo/DCE/Switch for game.
3/1
Round 5 vs Johnny Y w/Darkrai/Lasers/Keldeo
He starts lone Keldeo, I go first getting T1 Xball for 70 w/Laserbank. He Biancas for 1, hits no other basic. He Catcher stalls for a turn, but still can't hit another basic, and poison ends him.
4/1
Round 6 vs Nathan L w/Darkrai/Lasers
This game was...unpleasant. I got going incredibly quickly, while he hardly got going at all. By about Turn 3 this one was fairly well wrapped up, as I had a fully powered Landorus ready to wreck the first thing he got going, and if nothing else, Darkrai is a bit slow if you can OHKO the only energy they have on the board. I was able to do so, and he couldn't recover.
5/1
Top 8:
1. Austin H w/Big Basics (6/0)
2. Beckett P w/Blastoise (5/1)
3. Malachi L w/Rayeels (5/1)
4. Alex S w/Garbador (5/1)
5. Wesley H w/Big Basics (5/1)
6. Christopher S w/Garbador (5/1)
7. Luke T w/Durant/Plasma Klinklang (5/1)
8. Jared W w/Lugia/Victini EX/other Big Basics (4/2)
1 out of 12 4/2's made it...yikes.
Top 8 vs Malachi L w/Rayeels
Game 1 I get going incredibly fast, Turn 1 Hammerhead (after he nicely used Emolga to get me some Tynamos for Landorus to KO), Turn 2 Garbador, I had it all. Not a ton he could do without any source of energy acceleration.
1/0
Game 2 He got a little better start, but by midgame I'd eliminated all of his Eels and Tynamos from existence, leaving him a bunch of Rayquazas, big and small (aka EX and Regular) to try and attack with. Unfortunately for him, they weren't quite enough, although the second game was closer.
2/0
Sad they couldn't have been better games, but that's really the nature of that matchup, in my experience.
Austin>Jared
Beckett>Luke (Phew, Durant would NOT have been fun)
Christopher>Malachai
Wesley>Alex
Austin vs Wesley
Beckett vs Christopher
Top 4 vs Beckett P w/Blastoise/Keldeo/BKEX/Mewtwo (No Tool Scrapper)
Game 1: He apparently decided the best strategy was simply to avoid Blastoise altogether and go for a manual Keldeo. Not sure it was the greatest play at the time considering my lack of Garbador for most of the game, as Mewtwo was able to do a nice job of handling such basics. Game 1 ended in short order, with him scooping to my board poistion.
1/0
Game 2: He got a much better start this time, and elected to setup Blastoise. He got a Turn 2 KO on my poor lone Trubbish, then another the turn later; passing up on a Landorus both times. My last Trubbish was prized, and I scoop to his enormous advantage in board position.
1/1
Game 3: This time I got the Garbador, but not before he got enough energy down with Blastoise to make it a rough ride. Prizes ended up 2-2, with me having 1 Catcher and 1 Switch remaining, needing to Switch out of active AND Catcher his damaged Keldeo before he can retreat his Blastoise in order to win. Unluckily for him, I TD'd the Switch the turn he Catcher stalled the Garbador in active, letting me advance to Top 2. Super fun games though, always enjoy them.
2/1
So, we managed to play all 3 games in the time it took the other match to even finish 1 (admittedly, we both play fairly quickly), so I had some free time. Since Big Basics mirror is the most boring thing to watch on the planet, I watched Masters TC until time was called on Seniors and watched Austin beat Wesley out on time, though, he probably would've won anyway from my limited view of the board.
Finals vs Austin H w/Big Basics
Aha, Ohio rematch. This time, the games were definitely toward his favor. Both were similar, his deck being built to beat my list (He himself said this. Guess that's my punishment for being quite so linear in my deck choice), and both games ended with me being 2 prizes away when he wins due to my lack of field. The deck definitely met it's match here.
0/2, 2nd
So second again, absolutely nothing to complain about there. Will be in attendance in Madison for my last shot at Regionals as a Senior, hope to see some of you there.
Anyway, through some testing starting all the way back in January, Garbador/Landorus/Mewtwo was the deck of choice for myself, my brother, my mom, and for a few other Masters that had been collaborating on the list.
First up was Ohio…In advance I apologize for my memory, choosing to write this so late wasn’t the greatest choice ever. In addition, the games at like 10:00 at night sorta are a mystery to me.
65 Seniors/7 Rounds/Top 16.
Round 1 vs Marcus R w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Tornadus EX/Bouffalant (Finished 4/3)
Great, get to start off the tournament with the matchup I admittedly tested the least. He went first which was unfortunate enough, but when I set myself up for the Mewtwo KO on turn 3, it set me back in a hole I was never going to overcome barring him misplaying. However, he did not, and after outplaying me extremely well, I fell 2-6.
0/1
Round 2 vs Jacob M w/Blastoise/Kyurem EX/Kyogre EX (Finished 3/4)
So, at first when I saw Squirtles and Kyogres I was feeling fairly good, as I was able to eliminate all his Squirtles earlier with Tornadus EX. However, I soon found Kyurem EX eating my DCE was going to be a huge pain. Key play was Scramble Switch into a Mewtwo that enabled me to OHKO a fresh Kyurem EX with the help of HTL and Virbank, then sweep for the rest of my prizes. Definitely was given a scare by the energy eating potential here.
1/1
Round 3 vs Carson S w/Darkrai EX/Lasers (Finished 3/4)
Hehe, well, to be honest, in early testing this deck never could do anything for anybody in my family, and therefore I didn’t test against it a ton, but I knew the gist of the matchup was going to be Hammerheading to setup easy Lands Judgment KO’s, and after setting up Garbador, I stalled Darkrais in active and with the assistance of HTL, quickly drew my prizes.
2/1
At this point it was lunch. My mom and brother were both undefeated with identical lists to mine, facing much harder matchups than I had thusfar. The other MI Masters playing the deck were 3-0, 3-0, 2-1, and 2-1. Fantastic start, hopefully it’d continue.
Round 4 vs Jarret Dunn w/Eel/Zekrom EX/Mewtwo EX/Lasers (Finished 3/4)
So, the Mewtwo Eel matchup was pretty heavily focused on eating Tynamos with Landorus, and using Landorus to soften Mewtwos for the KO’s later in the game. I ended up getting a quick start, but Garbador evades me until a bit later in the match, when I get it down at a key moment to keep him from easily responding to my Mewtwo KO. Once I realize he doesn’t appear to run Tool Scrapper, I Scramble Switch into a Landorus (With Giant Cape for added Zekrom EX surprise protection) and sweep his field on Lightning types.
3/1
Round 5 vs Wesley P w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Bouffalant (Finished 5/2, lost in T4)
This was my first of 4 games against Wesley, and boy, was this thing annoying. Potions, Gold Potion, Max Potion, it was neverending…thankfully, I managed to get a jump on the prize exchange by Max Potioning a Landorus I’d chosen to hide behind for setup time, leaving him having wasted 3 turns pounding it with Mewtwo, and leaving me able to jump on his Mewtwo with a Mewtwo of my own. Bouffalant taking advantage of an early Hammerhead on a Landorus of his with a Laser enabled me to grab an EX out of nowhere midgame. N made it a tough win, but I pulled it out (barely!) 5-6.
4/1
Round 6 vs Malachi L w/Rayeels (Finished 4/3)
So, finally, a matchup I felt very comfortable with. Landorus enables me to get their very important Eels off the field in Tynamo form, making the game fairly easy from there.
Unfortunately, this one proved a bit of a challenge, as I drew a bit dead toward at the beginning as he set up the dreaded Eelktrik. At this point, I felt I was probably in trouble and would be a in a “win and in” situation in Round 7. However, I managed to squeeze Garbador in play around Midgame, and through some major Hammerhead/Laser shenanigans pull out a very narrow victory. Great game!
5/1
At this point, my mom and brother are still undefeated, as is Alex Hill (Kazambolt). A this point the other MI Garbador players in Masters were all 5-1. No record worse than 5-1 among all of MI’s Garbadors is nothing to sneer at. A friend of mine in Seniors, Josh F was also 5/1 and in need of one win to cut. I calculated that all 5/2’s would cut in Seniors (and even one 4/3), so even losing this one wouldn’t be that awful.
Round 7 vs Brian P w/Klinklang/Cobalion EX (Finished 5/2, lost in Top 8)
Having not really played this one enough either, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Very quickly in this match I learned Cobalion is an ANNOYING attacker when it gets setup. It easily trades with Tornadus EX, especially when my DCE were all eaten early by a certain Cobalion. Quickly I realized it was going to be key to use Landorus and HTL to setup KO’s for Mewtwo and Tornadus, lest my DCE be eaten very quickly. I won this 2-6 if I remember correctly, but it was definitely a lot closer game than the prize count suggested.
Top 16 was…
1. Alex S w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Garbador (7-0)
2. Matthew D w/Plasma Klinklang/Cobalion EX (6-1)
3. Josh F w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Garbador (6-1)
4. Christopher S w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Garbador (6-1)
5. Brian P w/Plasma Klinklang/Cobalion EX/Cobalion NVi (5-2)
6. Seth H w/Eelektrik/Mewtwo/Zekrom EX/Zekrom BW (5-2)
7. Austin H w/Plasma Klinklang/Cobalion EX/Cobalion NVI (5-2)
8. Sanjay S w/Darkrai EX/Terrakion NVI/Landorus EX (5-2)
9. Wesley P w/Landorus EX/Mewtwo EX/Bouffalant/Terrakion NVI/Reshiram BW (5-2)
10. Connor M w/Sigilyph/Drifblim/Darkrai EX (5-2)
11. Alexander H w/Darkrai EX/? (5-2)
12. Johnny Y w/Darkrai EX/Lasers (5-2)
13. Andrew D w/Darkrai EX/Lasers (5-2)
14. Nolan K w/Blastoise/Keldeo EX/Black Kyurem EX (5-2)
15. Jaysin K w/Rayquaza EX/Eelektrik/Emolga/Rayquaza DRX (5-2)
16. Justin B w/Mewtwo EX/Eelektrik/Zekrom EX (4-3)
So, I got Andrew D for my T16. Having little idea what he was playing, I knew to go in expecting the worst and be pleasantly surprised if it was a positive matchup. At this point I learn that my mom is 7/1 and assured cut in Masters. Alex Hill is 8/0 and also assured cut (obviously). The other two Garbador players from MI also made Top 16 at 6/2, as did my friend Josh in seniors.
A little issue of mine is that I have never in my life made it past the first round of Top Cut in any event bigger than States. I’ve never missed Top Cut at regionals, but can’t close the event with a strong cut performance. With this constantly on my mind, I head to T16…
Top 16 vs Andrew D w/Darkrai EX/Lasers
So, in the end it ended up being a matchup I definitely liked, however I know that Andrew is definitely a dangerous player.
He drew fairly dead the first game, only getting a Darkrai to mount a charge after I’d already gotten four prizes by sniping Sableyes and Garby-stalling Darkrais in active (good grief Max Potion is obnoxious) for a few prizes. Unfortunately for him, even N can’t overcome a fully powered Landorus, and with careful Switch conservation, I got game 1.
1/0
Game 2 went much like the first, except by about turn 3 he seemed to have acknowledged there wasn’t much he could do as his field succumbed to the quick Garbador and sniping onslaught Landorus provided. He did make this one much closer, but in the end the conclusion was fairly inevitable.
2/0 (7/1)
Wow, finally! I made it past the first round of a top cut. My brother also won his first round. If both of us won this round, we’d meet in Top 4…that’d be…”fun”.
Top 16 resulted in this…
1>16
214
4>13
5>12
6>11
7>10
8Seth
Austin>Jaysin
Top 4 was…
Christopher vs Wesley
Josh vs Austin
Additionally, my mom advanced to Top 8, as did all of the rest of Michigan’s Garbador players. With Top 8 Masters being 3 Garbador mirrors, I think we had the play figured out.
Top 4 vs Wesley P w/Big Basics
Game one he absolutely did not draw well, and I made him suffer for it. Quick hammerheads and Xballs were only offset by his enormous suite of healing and other annoying factors of his list. It wasn’t enough, and I won this one in about 15 minutes.
1/0
Game two was an entirely different story…neither of us drew anything of note, and once we finally got energy, a hammerhead war ensued. Silly us, all the Max Potions we each ran made that equate to nothing. At this point it was ~10:30, and neither of us could say we were in top form, and it took quite an amount of time to make even the simplest play. I sorta-eventually got myself into a 2-4 lead, but with time running very short in the match, I knew the time crunch was crunching. He drew Prize #4 to make the game count if time was called, which was sad, but I knew he’d draw 5 and 6 fairly quickly as I had very few resources left to make a fight. I was correct, and only mustered the resources to KO a Bouffalant. His healing was just too much.
After feeling in control for much of the match, it was fairly intimidating to know I was likely going to be playing to the first or second prize in Game 3 based on time.
Alas, I was correct. I thankfully got my choice of going first off. We both opened Bouffalant, not the ideal starter for "draw prizes NOW". I got a T1 energy drop to Landorus, Lasered his Bouffy/Got Virbank in play and passed. He went, attached to Bouffy and Lasered me. I, of course, stay asleep, but Switch into Landy hitting 30 to Bouff and 30 to his Landy, missing the energy drop. Time is called on his turn, and he catcher's Bouffalant, lasers, and attaches to a second Landorus, with a new, fresh Bouffalant in active. I simply attach to Landorus and pass, allowing Bouffalant to hit 90 damage going into Turn 2 tied 6/6. He Hammerheads for the KO on Bouffalant, but I can attach to my Landorus, Catcher his, and Lands Judgement for the game and match, winning 1-2 prizes drawn on time.
The other match also goes to time, and Austin outlasted Josh's comeback in Game 3 by a single turn, winning on time.
Austin>Josh
Christopher>Wesley.
In masters, my mom lost in T8 to the eventual winner, one of the Michiganders playing Garbador.
Finals vs Austin H w/Klinklang
So, 10:50 at night and the time had come...
Game 1 was very quick, with both us trying to get finals done with quickly. I setup the Turn 2 Garbador, and although his Max Potions were highly annoying, it made it so that my Mewtwo that was trying to sweep his Cobalions was only taking 30 damage a turn. At one point he attempted to bait me into an Energy Press KO, but instead of attaching and dying, I attached a Fighting and a Giant Cape preventing the KO to Mewtwo. From there he isn't able to mount much more of a game and I take it 3-6.
1/0
Game 2 was more of the same, but he went turbo-Juniper trying to setup and get the resources to disrupt my Garbador's existence. I felt like I was probably going to lose the game narrowly until I see he has a very small deck and 5 prizes to draw. I conserve my attackers, putting just enough pressure on to force him to make plays and mill himself, but not over-investing in any one attacker. The result was him decking out with the prize count 3-4 in his favor. Was legitimately afraid of this one going the wrong way, but it worked out in the end.
2/0
And there it was, I'd won Ohio States! I'd achieved my preseason goal of getting a bye of some sorts for Nationals, and won the travel stipend, which my mom was obviously happy about. Definitely a great night, and a great day of some fabulous games.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Spoiler alert: Same list all 3 weeks.
Week 2 was my home state of Michigan, always some sort of pressure to keep the title within the State (not that a Michigander has won the title in my time playing)
Somehow my memory is already failing, so details will be scarce at best.
So, got there, registered, my brother dealt with sleeve issues (I was highly amused that my sleeves I'd used in Fall Reg, 2 CC's, Winter Reg and Ohio States were still in great shape, while his he'd used for one tournament unfortunately weren't...), and we started playing. This week, the group of us using Garbador was much smaller, 3 Masters (my mom included), my brother, and I. Sadly, we wouldn't see the same level of success as we had in Ohio...
48 players, 6 Rounds+Top 8
Round 1 vs Awais K (CA) w/Big Basics (Finished 4/2)
So, my brother got a Hydregion.dec, another friend playing Big Basics got a Garchomp/Altaria, yet another friend got Manoswine.dec, and I get an actual player with a real deck? Sigh. If nothing else, my resistance would be in decent shape regardless of the outcome.
He went first, getting an early jump on me. Pretty early on in the game I'd resigned myself to a loss, but not all hope was lost. I managed to pull of a Max Potion cleansing on my Landorus I'd been using on a meat shield, and with Lasers/Landorus, managed to pull of back-to-back KO's on his EX's, putting the prize count 2-4 my favor. He was able to N me to two, but one of the cards was Bianca, enabling me to get back in the game and pull of a KO on his Landorus. (Don't exactly remember what with, but it works)
1/0
Round 2 vs Alex S (MI) (Not my brother) w/Blastoise/Keldeo (Finished 4/2)
Got the turn two Garbador, shutting any chance of a major attacker hitting my field unless he was running Scrapper, which, based on his demeanor at the T2 Garbador, I figured he was not. I got an early leg up on him with a Mewtwo+DCE eating his Keldeo for breakfast. He took the risk of dropping a Mewtwo+Water knowing I could get a DCE+Catcher to KO it. Got said combination, going up 2 prizes. Finished off aforementioned Keldeo, carefully putting a Rescue Scarf on Mewtwo in case he could DCE and KO, which he did pull off. Noting all 4 of his N were gone, along with 2 DCE (all he ran, I figured), I drop the Rescued Mewtwo and another, leaving him no out as long as I have a DCE (I do). Eventually he Catcher+KO's one, and I revenge immediately after.
2/0
Round 3 vs Nathan L (OH) w/Darkrai (Finished 4/2)
Alas, I didn't get to know much other than it ran Darkrai. I won the flip, and Mewtwo+DCE+Laserbank ended his lone Sableye's chances at a win.
Of course, of all rounds to donk, it was the one before lunch. Normally good, but having to wait for 3 others to finish their games got tiresome. If nothing else, I got some decent spectating done, if that counts for anything...
3/0
Round 4 vs Logan H (MI) w/Rayeels (Finished 4/2)
The summary of this game is that once he finally got Eels up past the Landorus onslaught, Garbador was already there to control them. He did make effective use of his lone Scrapper to make the game somewhat tight, but since his Dowsing Machine was already used, the damage was kept under control. Game was still close, and if he hadn't had to waste time chasing the Garbadors/Trubbishes instead of dealing with my EX's, the game may've been very different.
4/0
Round 5 vs Joey N (OH) w/Darkrai/Hammers (Finished 5/1, 5th overall)
Soooooo, ideal hand against this deck would be something like Landorus/Laser/Virbank/Fighting/Trubbish/Trubbish/Juniper, right? Aside from the absurd odds of that happening, even something remotely resembling such a hand would be nice. But no, I was blessed with a hand of
Fighting
Fighting
Fighting
DCE
Bouffalant
DCE
Juniper
...and draw Bianca.
Although getting rid of around half my energy off the bat was far from ideal, I had to do it to get the T2 Hammerhead (He rudely removed my T1 Fighting attachment, requiring me to Juniper T2 for hopes of ANYTHING). With a combination of Mewtwo/Landorus, I managed to kill enough Sableyes to take a lead, and eventually KO'd a Darkrai. However, my energy reserves were quickly vanishing, and I still had a Darkrai to take out. It might've been feasible if two Fighting hadn't been prized (5 Fighting in the top 13 cards, yay!), but he smartly nipped the Mewtwo potential in the bud by taking him out. Having no more usable attackers, I can only watch as my field is wrecked.
4/1
Round 6 vs Ethan P (CA) w/Blastoise/Keldeo/Black Kyurem (Finished 5/1, 3rd overall)
So, my brother's first loss of the day came Round 3 to this exact list, which seemed to be running at least 2 Scrapper, if not 3. I knew my odds were a long shot, but oh well. Key moment was my Turn 1, when I had the opportunity to Catcher+Laserbank KO his lone Squirtle, but alas, I instead decide to Catcher the Keldeo...ugh. He got the T2 Blastoise, followed by my T2 Garbador, which he negated with the use of Scrapper T3. I drew nothing more, and was benched out with him having drawn 3 prizes to my 4...
4/2
My mom dropped 3/3, and my brother went 3/3, both using Garbador.
Thankfully, all my opponents had done better than 4/2, and therefore I made cut with 72.22% Opp Win, placing me 6th seed. Top 8 was...
1. Ashir K (CA) (Garbador/Big Basics)
2. Joey N (OH (Hammertime)
3. Brian P (OH) (Klinklang)
4. Ethan P (CA) (Blastoise)
5. Eric M (CA) (Darkrai)
6. Christopher S (MI) (Garbador/Big Basics)
7. Josh F (MI) (Big Basics)
8. Corinna C (?) (Big Basics)
Top 8 vs Brian P w/Klinklang
So, Game 1 and 2 were pretty similar to my Swiss game with him in Ohio, us both drawing decently, but my deck just being better in the matchup. Max Potion played an annoyingly large role in the games taking any time, as Cobalion just can't keep up with Landorus and Mewtwo. In the end, I won both games with him drawing 2 prizes in each.
2/0
Ashir>Corrina
Josh>Joey
Christopher>Brian
Ethan>Eric
Remaining:
Ashir (CA) w/ Garbador vs Ethan (CA) w/Blastoise
Josh (MI) w/Big Basics vs Christopher (MI) w/Garbador
So, the plus was that at least one Michigan player would make finals, and it'd be US vs Canada in the Finals...only in border states can we have these problems.
Top 4 vs Josh F w/Big Basics
Game 1: I go second, my Landorus to his lone Bouffalant. He can only attach/Bianca for 1. I decide to drop a Trubbish, having the Turn 2 Garbotoxin in my hand should it be necessary to KO the Bouffalant next turn. In this matchup, Garbage Collecting for one turn doesn't hurt so much, as unless they have a Catcher, all they can do is kill the one Trubbish I'll bench. I do that, hoping the other basics have deserted him. He does get a Juniper and is forced to use that in an effort to stay in the game. He does get another basic, but at this point I have the advantage of my board position, and he was forced to Juniper resources, leaving me in a comfortable position the whole game.
1/0
Game 2: We both start out quickly, with me grabbing four early prizes, but my field gets gradually worse as I lose Tornadus EX to his Mewtwo, leaving me with 2 Trubbish I'm forced to bench to stay alive. Since all I've played in the game supporter wise is one Bianca and one N, my Garbage Collection options are fairly limited. I choose the Bianca for 2 next turn rather than the N to two, but get no Basic on that as I'm forced to Catcher stall and collect garbage again. He has the Switch for the win.
1/1
Game 3: Game was admittedly pathetic. He didn't play more than two supporters all game, and my Mewtwo steamrolled to win easily. Wish it'd been a better game, but we'd both had our share of bad drawing that match.
2/1
Ashir beats Tristan, so onto Finals...
Top 2 vs Ashir K w/Garbador/Big Basics
Game 1: We both shuffle and draw our cards, and both remark this could get ugly quickly. Alas, we both open lone Trubbish. He goes first, and decides to go for a donk. Among the first 5 cards are the Mewtwo/DCE/Switch...I had a completely awful hand anyway (3 mulligans by him later, I had a BIANCA for a Supporter...), so all it really did was keep my misery to a minimum.
Game 2: Possibly the silliest game I've played all year. We both had chances to completely bury the other at times, only to whiff the Catcher/Laser/Fighting/DCE/etc. draw. At one point, I need either a Catcher or a Laser off my Juniper, having used 0 of either. Whiffff! Next turn set him up for a Laser KO though, so prizes were 4-2 in his favor. I'm able to Catcher/KO his other Mewtwo, and I suddenly though I just might have a chance at this. He has only a Landorus and a Trubbish. Landorus has 1 energy, and he attaches to it during his turn, making it 2, and hitting Mewtwo for 30. All HTL are gone, so I know he won't be pulling any sleep silliness, nor any damage manipulation. With prizes 2-2, my hand is DCE/Juniper/Ultra Ball/Fighting/Switch, with 3 of the all important Giant Cape in deck, which would prevent any KO by him next turn. I consciously decide to Juniper, but Ultra Ball for a look at my deck first. Somewhere between the shuffling and rechecking my hand, I, in my tired state, decide not to Juniper because I wanted to save the DCE or something, forgetting I sort of need a Giant Cape to stay in the game. I hit for 80, and he attaches/KO's next turn. I flip the Juniper over and show Top 7 of my deck. 2nd and 6th cards were Capes. Alas, not the end of the world, as I imagine he probably would've wrecked me game 3 going first and all, plus him/his family were all very nice, didn't mind losing it too much.
0/2, 2nd
Week 3 in Indiana...
Same list as before. 57 or so Seniors, just a few short of the Top 16, unfortunately. My brother also decided to use Garbador again, while my mom chose to switch to Eel/Mewtwo and didn't do so well...
Round 1 vs Christian K (OH) w/Blastoise/Keldeo/Bouffalant/Mewtwo
I'm able to keep his Squirtles off the field, leading to a fairly quick board position advantage. Mewtwo just ripped through things with Poison's help, and he wasn't in any position to make a comeback without a Blastoise.
1/0
Round 2 vs Josh F (?) (Not one from Michigan/last week) w/Klinklang
Essentially he doesn't even bother with Plasma Klinklang and elects to go Gear Grinding with the other, since he went first and dropped energy on the Klink simply thinking I was playing Big Basics. Trubbish changed that opinion. He ends up runing out of attackers to use after loading so much on the Gear Grind KK early, leaving him defenseless against Mewtwo/Tornadus. Not a ton he could do against the rampage.
2/0
Round 3 vs Malachi L (OH) w/Rayeels
He went first, I missed the turn 1/2 attack, and from there I struggled to get board position back. Towards the end I finally eliminated his Eels, and the game was tied 1-1 on prizes. I'd just killed his Ray EX with a Landorus EX, leaving myself with only a Bouffalant charged on my field. He uses Emolga to CFF for two Rayquaza EX, having 2 Eels on the board. I never actually got Garbador into play by the way of his Catcher KO's on Trubbish. Knowing him having a Fire ends it for me, I simply Gold Breaker for 60, not having a HTL to end it. He in fact has the fire, and I lose. Fabulous game for sure.
2/1
Round 4 vs ??? w/Giratina PLS/Lugia/Darkrai
Only round I forgot to note a name across all 3 weekends, sigh. Anyways, the game was incredibly short, as I got a T1 Laser/Hammerhead, putting him at 90 HP. He failed to get another basic, attached a DCE to Giratina and entered his turn with 80 HP left. On my turn I hit Mewtwo/DCE/Switch for game.
3/1
Round 5 vs Johnny Y w/Darkrai/Lasers/Keldeo
He starts lone Keldeo, I go first getting T1 Xball for 70 w/Laserbank. He Biancas for 1, hits no other basic. He Catcher stalls for a turn, but still can't hit another basic, and poison ends him.
4/1
Round 6 vs Nathan L w/Darkrai/Lasers
This game was...unpleasant. I got going incredibly quickly, while he hardly got going at all. By about Turn 3 this one was fairly well wrapped up, as I had a fully powered Landorus ready to wreck the first thing he got going, and if nothing else, Darkrai is a bit slow if you can OHKO the only energy they have on the board. I was able to do so, and he couldn't recover.
5/1
Top 8:
1. Austin H w/Big Basics (6/0)
2. Beckett P w/Blastoise (5/1)
3. Malachi L w/Rayeels (5/1)
4. Alex S w/Garbador (5/1)
5. Wesley H w/Big Basics (5/1)
6. Christopher S w/Garbador (5/1)
7. Luke T w/Durant/Plasma Klinklang (5/1)
8. Jared W w/Lugia/Victini EX/other Big Basics (4/2)
1 out of 12 4/2's made it...yikes.
Top 8 vs Malachi L w/Rayeels
Game 1 I get going incredibly fast, Turn 1 Hammerhead (after he nicely used Emolga to get me some Tynamos for Landorus to KO), Turn 2 Garbador, I had it all. Not a ton he could do without any source of energy acceleration.
1/0
Game 2 He got a little better start, but by midgame I'd eliminated all of his Eels and Tynamos from existence, leaving him a bunch of Rayquazas, big and small (aka EX and Regular) to try and attack with. Unfortunately for him, they weren't quite enough, although the second game was closer.
2/0
Sad they couldn't have been better games, but that's really the nature of that matchup, in my experience.
Austin>Jared
Beckett>Luke (Phew, Durant would NOT have been fun)
Christopher>Malachai
Wesley>Alex
Austin vs Wesley
Beckett vs Christopher
Top 4 vs Beckett P w/Blastoise/Keldeo/BKEX/Mewtwo (No Tool Scrapper)
Game 1: He apparently decided the best strategy was simply to avoid Blastoise altogether and go for a manual Keldeo. Not sure it was the greatest play at the time considering my lack of Garbador for most of the game, as Mewtwo was able to do a nice job of handling such basics. Game 1 ended in short order, with him scooping to my board poistion.
1/0
Game 2: He got a much better start this time, and elected to setup Blastoise. He got a Turn 2 KO on my poor lone Trubbish, then another the turn later; passing up on a Landorus both times. My last Trubbish was prized, and I scoop to his enormous advantage in board position.
1/1
Game 3: This time I got the Garbador, but not before he got enough energy down with Blastoise to make it a rough ride. Prizes ended up 2-2, with me having 1 Catcher and 1 Switch remaining, needing to Switch out of active AND Catcher his damaged Keldeo before he can retreat his Blastoise in order to win. Unluckily for him, I TD'd the Switch the turn he Catcher stalled the Garbador in active, letting me advance to Top 2. Super fun games though, always enjoy them.
2/1
So, we managed to play all 3 games in the time it took the other match to even finish 1 (admittedly, we both play fairly quickly), so I had some free time. Since Big Basics mirror is the most boring thing to watch on the planet, I watched Masters TC until time was called on Seniors and watched Austin beat Wesley out on time, though, he probably would've won anyway from my limited view of the board.
Finals vs Austin H w/Big Basics
Aha, Ohio rematch. This time, the games were definitely toward his favor. Both were similar, his deck being built to beat my list (He himself said this. Guess that's my punishment for being quite so linear in my deck choice), and both games ended with me being 2 prizes away when he wins due to my lack of field. The deck definitely met it's match here.
0/2, 2nd
So second again, absolutely nothing to complain about there. Will be in attendance in Madison for my last shot at Regionals as a Senior, hope to see some of you there.
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