I find that this is often one of the most critical parts of the game. Obviously I'm a huge anti-netdecker. I've never netdecked anybody in my life and never plan to. I've asked many people for advice and ratings, but never for a list or a piece of a list. Last season I played nothing but DialgaChomp, as well as the last half the previous season. So, you'd assume the locals who play me over and over would expect DialgaChomp every time they see me. Eventually, yes. But it took them over an entire season to learn what to expect. :thumb:
99% of us can make a mental list right now of people who we don't want knowing what we're playing. Personally, I don't want anybody to know what I'm playing. These tips will be helpful in detering, confusing, bewildering, and eventually probably defeating that person in a tournament. Now, say you tell one person you trust. Well, that person trusts another person or two. Those people each trust another person or two. And eventually, it's a public secret.
There are two types of surprise. There's ultimate surprise, which is ideal, and plain vanilla surprise. Vanilla surprise is good, but not always a game-swinger. Ultimate surprise is when your opponent has no idea what you could possibly be playing, is unprepared, and is overtaken because they don't know how to react. Plain vanilla surprise is a card or combo they don't expect. An unexpected disruption card or a tech that doesn't see as much play as it should does nicely.
Many times I've been asked what I'm playing for a tournament, which I actually find a tad rude. This rant is a guide as well, for the people who want to master the arts of secrecy, confusion, and surprise to make sure nobody knows what the heck you're playing. When asked what you're playing you can:
1.) Laugh and say "Pokemon!" When asked about the particular deck, say, "The one with 60 cards in it." Continue to seemingly joke around and talk in circles until they give up.
2.) Flat out lie. "MagneBoar." As you slip the BlastiGatr deck in your bag...
3.) If they start guessing, say "Yup, that one." sarcastically many times, and "Yeah, like I'd play that!" as well. Make sure all your answers are the same, as in, don't pause before responding if they guess your deck. Or anything like that.
4.) Tell them it's a secret. However, from experience, this is a bad option. They'll only be more curious.
5.) Pretend you didn't hear them. Doesn't matter if you did or not, who'll know but you?
6.) Change the subject. "Sudden indigestion" works nicely here. Who wants to sit through that and continue the conversation?
7.) Say you haven't decided.
8.) Retaliate with "I dunno. What are you playing?"
These next bits are just tips for throwing people off your scent. Alternate at random which tactics you use.
1.) Resleeve often! Use very peculiar sleeves for the first portion of a tournament, then switch to something generic. Find a more private area to resleeve in, so no other players know about it. (It's perfectly fine for judges to see.) They'll be looking for a certain type of sleeve, and I garuntee they'll pass you up when looking for it.
2.) Guard your deckbox. I've seen plenty of cases where nosy people get to looking into the deckboxes of others.
3.) If somebody is done with their match and is watching yours a little to closely for comfort, don't be afraid to ask a judge to ask them to leave.
4.) Don't list everything you need on your Wants list in the trading forum. People who know you look at that and see you need Emboars. You just narrowed it down a whole lot for them. Mix in things you don't need, make it look like you're playing some idiotic deck choice, and leave out some of the more common things that you do need.
5.) When using a decklist creator in which you get to name the deck and pick a favorite pokemon to be pictured on it, DO NOT name it what your deck really is, and especially DO NOT put a picture of your main pokemon on there. Playing MagneBoar? Slap on a Blastoise or a Squirtle and call it BlastiGatr. Or a Donphan, Machamp, Kingdra, etc.
6.) Guard your list. Don't flash it around. Keep it hidden in your jeans pocket or your wallet, not in a bag or tucked in a binder. Hand it to the deck-checking judge folded in half. Odds are he'll unfold it and lay it down while he checks the deck. If you see a prying eye, use yourself as a vision blocker.
7.) Don't stick the same deck into the same deckbox. Switch them around when in a more private location. Bad: "Oh, Bill is getting out his blue deckbox, he's playing Donphan." Game starts, Bill turns over a Phanpy. Good: "Oh, Bill is getting out his blue and red deckboxes and setting them both on the table. Maybe he's playing Donphan. Yeah, he's getting the deck out of the blue one, so he's playing Donphan." Game starts, Bill turns over a Mew Prime and uses See Off on a Gengar Prime.
8.) Play random slop-decks at league. Save your bad boy for a tournament. If you want to playtest, find strangers online to play on things like Redshark. More convenient and you don't play the same decks over and over.
9.) Don't brag on your win. Even if you annihilate somebody 6-0, when talking of it say it was close, and that you barely scraped off a win. Then people will think what you have isn't worth watching.
10.) When in Top Cut, ask the judge(s) to make sure a crowd doesn't gather. "Hmm.... Bill is in Top Cut. This is a close match. While I'm watching, I'll just write down and/or watch what he plays and in what amounts, and I'll have me a partial list!" Seems like nobody would go to all that trouble, but I've seen this more than once, sadly.
11.) Shuffle carefully. Keep your deck pointed away from all people, especially your opponent. If they decide to cut or shuffle your deck, make sure they leave it facedown. No peeking for them.
12.) Don't post your deck in an article or in the Deck Help section. It may be harder doing it on your own, but I promise it will pay off in many ways. You'll know your deck better, be able to work it better, know all its rulings, etc. as well as have the element of surprise.
13.) Don't dress like your deck. Your favorite Pokemon, okay. If you're playing Gengar, don't wear a Gengar-face shirt and red contacts. One of my friends did this and nobody could guess what he was playing! :lol: *Sarcasm There*
This by no means you should play rogue instead of meta. Like I said, I played DialgaChomp for a season and a half. Meta is fine. If a deck works for you, it works. Meta or rogue, doesn't matter. Meta is okay, but netdecking is not. Besides, netdecking means others already know what that list is and how to react to it. I've tried to write several articles about decks I like but wasn't going to play, and tey got rejected because I refused to put in a decklist. I was told to "Give them a list to start with." *Caution! Metaphor Ahead!* In other words, "Sacrifice a limb to the carrion-eating vultures we know as netdeckers."
But anyways, I hoped you've learned a few things here, and will use these elements to give you the edge before the match even starts. Bring down those netdeckers and protect your secrets.
~Rikko145
99% of us can make a mental list right now of people who we don't want knowing what we're playing. Personally, I don't want anybody to know what I'm playing. These tips will be helpful in detering, confusing, bewildering, and eventually probably defeating that person in a tournament. Now, say you tell one person you trust. Well, that person trusts another person or two. Those people each trust another person or two. And eventually, it's a public secret.
There are two types of surprise. There's ultimate surprise, which is ideal, and plain vanilla surprise. Vanilla surprise is good, but not always a game-swinger. Ultimate surprise is when your opponent has no idea what you could possibly be playing, is unprepared, and is overtaken because they don't know how to react. Plain vanilla surprise is a card or combo they don't expect. An unexpected disruption card or a tech that doesn't see as much play as it should does nicely.
Many times I've been asked what I'm playing for a tournament, which I actually find a tad rude. This rant is a guide as well, for the people who want to master the arts of secrecy, confusion, and surprise to make sure nobody knows what the heck you're playing. When asked what you're playing you can:
1.) Laugh and say "Pokemon!" When asked about the particular deck, say, "The one with 60 cards in it." Continue to seemingly joke around and talk in circles until they give up.
2.) Flat out lie. "MagneBoar." As you slip the BlastiGatr deck in your bag...
3.) If they start guessing, say "Yup, that one." sarcastically many times, and "Yeah, like I'd play that!" as well. Make sure all your answers are the same, as in, don't pause before responding if they guess your deck. Or anything like that.
4.) Tell them it's a secret. However, from experience, this is a bad option. They'll only be more curious.
5.) Pretend you didn't hear them. Doesn't matter if you did or not, who'll know but you?
6.) Change the subject. "Sudden indigestion" works nicely here. Who wants to sit through that and continue the conversation?
7.) Say you haven't decided.
8.) Retaliate with "I dunno. What are you playing?"
These next bits are just tips for throwing people off your scent. Alternate at random which tactics you use.
1.) Resleeve often! Use very peculiar sleeves for the first portion of a tournament, then switch to something generic. Find a more private area to resleeve in, so no other players know about it. (It's perfectly fine for judges to see.) They'll be looking for a certain type of sleeve, and I garuntee they'll pass you up when looking for it.
2.) Guard your deckbox. I've seen plenty of cases where nosy people get to looking into the deckboxes of others.
3.) If somebody is done with their match and is watching yours a little to closely for comfort, don't be afraid to ask a judge to ask them to leave.
4.) Don't list everything you need on your Wants list in the trading forum. People who know you look at that and see you need Emboars. You just narrowed it down a whole lot for them. Mix in things you don't need, make it look like you're playing some idiotic deck choice, and leave out some of the more common things that you do need.
5.) When using a decklist creator in which you get to name the deck and pick a favorite pokemon to be pictured on it, DO NOT name it what your deck really is, and especially DO NOT put a picture of your main pokemon on there. Playing MagneBoar? Slap on a Blastoise or a Squirtle and call it BlastiGatr. Or a Donphan, Machamp, Kingdra, etc.
6.) Guard your list. Don't flash it around. Keep it hidden in your jeans pocket or your wallet, not in a bag or tucked in a binder. Hand it to the deck-checking judge folded in half. Odds are he'll unfold it and lay it down while he checks the deck. If you see a prying eye, use yourself as a vision blocker.
7.) Don't stick the same deck into the same deckbox. Switch them around when in a more private location. Bad: "Oh, Bill is getting out his blue deckbox, he's playing Donphan." Game starts, Bill turns over a Phanpy. Good: "Oh, Bill is getting out his blue and red deckboxes and setting them both on the table. Maybe he's playing Donphan. Yeah, he's getting the deck out of the blue one, so he's playing Donphan." Game starts, Bill turns over a Mew Prime and uses See Off on a Gengar Prime.
8.) Play random slop-decks at league. Save your bad boy for a tournament. If you want to playtest, find strangers online to play on things like Redshark. More convenient and you don't play the same decks over and over.
9.) Don't brag on your win. Even if you annihilate somebody 6-0, when talking of it say it was close, and that you barely scraped off a win. Then people will think what you have isn't worth watching.
10.) When in Top Cut, ask the judge(s) to make sure a crowd doesn't gather. "Hmm.... Bill is in Top Cut. This is a close match. While I'm watching, I'll just write down and/or watch what he plays and in what amounts, and I'll have me a partial list!" Seems like nobody would go to all that trouble, but I've seen this more than once, sadly.
11.) Shuffle carefully. Keep your deck pointed away from all people, especially your opponent. If they decide to cut or shuffle your deck, make sure they leave it facedown. No peeking for them.
12.) Don't post your deck in an article or in the Deck Help section. It may be harder doing it on your own, but I promise it will pay off in many ways. You'll know your deck better, be able to work it better, know all its rulings, etc. as well as have the element of surprise.
13.) Don't dress like your deck. Your favorite Pokemon, okay. If you're playing Gengar, don't wear a Gengar-face shirt and red contacts. One of my friends did this and nobody could guess what he was playing! :lol: *Sarcasm There*
This by no means you should play rogue instead of meta. Like I said, I played DialgaChomp for a season and a half. Meta is fine. If a deck works for you, it works. Meta or rogue, doesn't matter. Meta is okay, but netdecking is not. Besides, netdecking means others already know what that list is and how to react to it. I've tried to write several articles about decks I like but wasn't going to play, and tey got rejected because I refused to put in a decklist. I was told to "Give them a list to start with." *Caution! Metaphor Ahead!* In other words, "Sacrifice a limb to the carrion-eating vultures we know as netdeckers."
But anyways, I hoped you've learned a few things here, and will use these elements to give you the edge before the match even starts. Bring down those netdeckers and protect your secrets.
May you always have friends that care, and fortune to spare.
~Rikko145
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