Report by: Erik Nance
Deck(s): Empoleon/Mantine
Event: Fort Mill, SC Battle Road; Morrisville, NC Battle Road
Format: Modified (HP-on)
So after winning with Mario last week I decided to change things up a bit. I felt that Empoleon seemed to be a pretty strong deck in the format, so I thought I should give it a try. High Point's (NC) Battle Road was won by Burt running Empoleon anyway, so that kind of strengthened my trust in the deck.
Fort Mill, SC Battle Roads:
So before I get into the rounds, I think it would good to describe the trouble it took just to get to this place. Now, I've been to Fort Mill before and I knew how to get there and everything, but that didn't prepare me at all for the major traffic jam that we got stuck in on the way down. My girlfriend Paige and I had plenty of time to talk as we sat in the traffic for 1 hour and 45 minutes. All I can do at this point is give my thanks to Jeff Reynolds for pushing the registration time back a bit (apparently, I wasn't the only one stuck in traffic). Had it not been for his flexibility, things might have gone very different at the tournament. We get there with about 5 minutes to go and still get registered. On to the matchups...
(4 rounds with a top cut of 4)
Round 1: Empoleon vs. Paige L. (Quicketune)
So after teaching my girlfriend how to play with her deck and then driving all the way over to Fort Mill, we ended up having to face each other in the first game. Needless to say, Quicketune isn't really that hard to handle, so I was still quite afraid of the T2KO. After setup, my hand looks pretty bad, but I do have some time to kill with a Holon Mentor. I sacrifice things pretty early on to activate my Scramble Energy late-game while I build an Empoleon. Unfortunately, the weight of my first Empoleon was too much for her, as she had a horrible energy drought that lasted until I knocked out all of her Pokemon. I also picked very well with Empoleon Lv.X's "Supreme Command," keeping her options very limited.
1-0
Round 2: Empoleon vs. Sam R. (Empoleon)
I honestly didn't think that I would see many Empoleon decks at Fort Mill, but it seemed as if I had to go against one. Overall, the mirror match is pretty much up to the better player, as too many considerations take place over the course of the game to let luck decide the victor. I concentrate a great deal on spreading damage where it needs to go early on, being careful to sacrifice only what I can. I let Scramble Energy activate and hope to flip some heads with Aqua Jet. Of course, I can't flip a heads to save my life, so I have to do weird things like send out Mantine and Giant Wave while I get things set up on the bench. I remember that at one point Sam had a very vulnerable bench, so I put Empoleon Lv.X into play and used a Team Galactic's Wager. After winning the RPS, I gave him only a couple of cards to work with while I softened his bench. At about 5 minutes to go, I was able to take out both his active Empoleon and a benched Mantine for what was basically the win. He didn't have any energy on board after that, but time was called with me having taken all but 2 prizes -- he had 4 left. Good game Sam!
2-0
Round 3: Empoleon vs. Mike R. (DuskQueen)
Fortunately for me, I've worked quite a bit on DuskQueen, and though I haven't played the deck in a tournament, I still know all of its ins and outs. Things move at a fairly brisk pace for both of us, but Mike has trouble getting any Nidoqueens into play. I notice this and take advantage of it by spreading damage on his benched Nidorans/Nidorinas instead of targeting the Dusclops. I knew that if I could get his Nidoqueens at KO range with Ice Blade that Aqua Jet would clean up late-game. I ended up playing (and winning) a Team Galactic's Wager, then keeping him limited with "Supreme Command." It was too much for him, and I won soon afterwards. Sorry about the bad luck Mike. : (
3-0
Round 4: Empoleon vs. Brian L. (Quicketune)
Once again, I'm playing against Quicketune. Of course, Brian's running the decklist that I helped him out with, so I know pretty much everything he's got in it. He only runs 6 Basic Pokemon, so I expect a couple of mulligans, but he ends up starting with 2 Kricketot instead. I play things smart by sending up stuff for him to KO, putting me at strength with Scramble Energy. It takes a while before I get board control again, but it looks like I have an easy win until I end up going into an energy drought. I once again have to sacrifice stuff, and win I'm actually able to knock out his Kricketune, I make a mistake by missing the Crystal Beach that's in play. Lame, since it was covered up by my Supporter. When I remove the Supporter, Brian points out the mistake. He lets me Ice Blade instead of taking back the play (I had 2 Windstorm and a Battle Frontier in hand). Fair enough. Not long after that, Brian makes a mistake by using Sore Performance on my Empoleon with a Water Energy and Holon Energy WP attached to it. Though I had told him earlier about what the two energy together did, he still made the mistake. It didn't make much of a difference though, as I had his two remaining Kricketune with enough damage for a KO with Aqua Jet.
4-0
I go undefeated into a top cut that looks like this:
1. Me with Empoleon
2. Brian L. with Quicketune
3. Mike R. with DuskQueen
3. David B. with Quicketune
So yeah, no Mario this time and 2 Quicketune. It does look like some Poke-Powers/Poke-Bodies made it into the top cut this time, though both decks that use them use them very sparingly. I am glad to see DuskQueen in, since I'm fond of the combo, but I honestly can't stand that donkalicious Quicketune deck. @_@
TOP CUT:
Top 4: Empoleon vs. David B. (Quicketune)
Round 1: By this time I've become an expert on playing against Quicketune. I send up stuff for him to KO, and then come back with Scramble Energy. I remember being able to limit him extremely with "Supreme Command," and soon afterwards I won. : P
Round 2: He donks me because I have no Supporters for the entire game. By turn 3 it's game. : (
Round 3: Pretty much the same as round one except for the fact that I send an early Prinplup up to Aqua Shower everything he has into KO range with a later Aqua Jet. Things get pretty simple soon afterwards and I win. : )
5-0
Top 2: Empoleon vs. Brian L. (Quicketune)
Round 1: Seriously, I can't really stand Quicketune anymore, as it only depends on the opponent not getting anything within the first couple of turns. That's not the case here though, as I go with the same strategy that won me my games against Quicketune before: get behind in prizes and overpower the opponent with Empoleon/Scramble Energy. About mid-game Brian fails to play an energy, signaling to me that he's on a drought. He hangs with it for awhile, but gives up with plenty of time for the next game.
Round 2: I do what I've already done before, and though it takes me a bit longer to get everything out, I'm still able to overpower his deck with ease. Good games Brian.
6-0
So I go undefeated, marking my second Battle Roads win. This one made me feel a bit more accomplished, since the deck I used took a bit more strategizing than something like Mario or Quicketune (what most of our metagame is composed of right now). I head out with quite a bit of driving to go, both sleepy and happy from playing to the best of my ability.
Morrisville, NC Battle Roads:
(4 rounds with a top cut of 4)
So I'm pretty tired by now even with all the sleep, but I head on over to Morrisville anyways for a day of Pokemon-filled fun. : ) Alright, here are the matches:
Round 1: Empoleon vs. Michael B. (BlissCatty/Swampert ex)
I haven't been able to test this matchup, so I'm interested in how it will go. Unfortunately, my start is rather atrocious with a Rayquaza d. Fortunately, I ignore the killer weakness by using Delta Search for a Holon Energy WP, knocking off the colorless KO. The first few turns find me in a frenzy, as I can only get out one Empoleon that takes considerable damage before top-decking a Holon Mentor. From there I set up fairly well, but I'm still nervous about such things as Boost Energy, PlusPower, Strength Charm, etc. etc. My Battle Frontier keeps his Delcatty at bay, and after awhile he doesn't seem to draw into anything. I get Empoleon Lv.X on board, keeping him further limited. I finally end up winning after awhile.
1-0
Round 2: Empoleon vs. Will V. (Feraligatr d/Exeggcutor d)
Thank God for hand disruption again, otherwise his Holon Castform would have Delta Drew him to victory. It's all I can do to Team Galactic's Wager before I send up Rayquaza d to take care of my glaring weakness. Sure enough, he's not able to get what he needs from the Wager, so I get a little time to set up. After getting Mantine and Empoleon on board, this game is pretty easy. Hydro Impact cleans up the Feraligatrs I Ice Blade early game. Of course, I know this deck extensively as well, so I'm careful about the damage I put on those Gatrs (for fear of Memory Berry). Leaving him with absolutely nothing, and with Mantine negating the energy cost for anything he Drags Off, I win this one with ease.
2-0
Round 3: Empoleon vs. Mike R. (BlissCatty)
Things go pretty smoothly until I use a Team Galactic's Wager and win, then it all goes downhill for Mike. That's pretty much all I remember from the match and -- I think Mike will agree here -- that's pretty much all I want to remember from the match. Hooray for lame hand disruption! : (
3-0
Round 4: Empoleon vs. Tatiana M. (Mario)
This is another matchup that I haven't really tested, so I get to see first thing how it goes. Had I played an early Team Galactic's Wager and won, I might have had this one. However, I'm always afraid to play the dumb card for fear of losing RPS, which usually means losing the game. She gets set up pretty fast, getting two Machamps on board within no time. I recognize the hill I have to climb, and she outspeeds me enough to where I'm as vulnerable as I possibly can be. With Rayquaza d's resistance as my only hope, I look into building up a final Empoleon. Two turns later, her Machamp takes Rayquaza d out. Good game Tatiana!
3-1
So I get into the top cut again with Empoleon. Sweet! The top cut is actually pretty varied for once. It looks something like this:
1. Tatiana M. with Mario
2. Me with Empoleon
3. Mike R. with BlissCatty
4. Linda H. with Alakazam/??? (if anyone can fill me in on this one, it'd be great)
Poke-Powers are represented, Poke-Power counters are represented... it looks pretty interesting overall. Maybe things are shaping up for the format. MAYBE...
TOP CUT:
Top 4: Empoleon vs. Mike R. (BlissCatty)
Round 1: Things move pretty fast for Mike, but not very fast for me. After awhile, however, I'm able to get two Empoleon ready with Scramble Energy for a comeback. Like the first game of this season, I'm only able to play two Celio's Network and nothing else for quite some time, but it's enough to buy me the time I need to topdeck a Team Galactic's Wager. I win, but things are still looking pretty bad on my side. I remember that at one point I would have probably had the game if I could have top-decked an energy, but I don't. Instead, I have to fish out my Empoleon with a Celio's Network (punny) and Ice Blade a Blissey for the not KO. I take a ton of damage because I didn't have the energy for Aqua Jet. Later, I won another Team Galactic's Bet and put Mike with two cards to work with after using "Supreme Command." He top-decked a Copycat. Finally, the last straw was my prize situation, in which I had a Night MaintENANCE and an Empoleon prized out of 3 prizes. With no way to get an Empoleon back, I had to rely on Mike not having a Boost Energy, but he had it FTW. : ( : ( : ( How unlucky could I get??? Well, that answer came to me when...
Round 2: ... my opening hand was: Holon's Castform, Rare Candy, Rare Candy, Windstorm, Scramble Energy, Scramble Energy, and Water Energy. I choose to go first and draw a Water Energy! I pass. He does stuff and it's my turn. I topdeck a Steven's Advice that I can't use! He does stuff and it's my turn. I topdeck a Scramble Energy!!! He knocks my Castform out. Lame. In our defense (seeing as we had some pretty rough games), our game Round 1 was pretty good. I can blame bad luck all I want, but Mike played his deck to near-perfection, which is always good to see. Great job Mike!
3-2
-----------------------
Well, you can't win them all. Besides, I had some great games within the past two days. Not only that, I played with a deck that I had never even used before Saturday. Sure, I had played with Empoleon a bit, but not like I played it this weekend. It was fun to figure out matchups as I played them out, and it was even better when those matchups were as hard as they were. Everyone I played against had a great attitude, and both Paige and I had a bunch of fun this weekend. Which leads me to my next thing...
Jeff, Toni, and the judges this weekend (Josh W. and Randy M), you guys are awesome. Leave it to Jeff to figure out how to accomodate everyone in the tournaments he organizes. Him and Toni are a rock-solid team when it comes to organizing tournaments. Though I left Morrisville before the tournament was over, I have no doubt in my mind that they got everyone out by the 600 pm deadline that they had for the tournament, which is simply amazing considering the number of people that tournament had (not to mention the fact that league was going on at the same time in the same location). These are top-notch organizers, and they deserve your thanks whenever you can give it to them. Thanks again guys!
Props:
Everyone (especially Riddle, who gave me an Ultra Ball)
Slops:
Ummmmmmm.... TRAFFIC. >: (
Deck(s): Empoleon/Mantine
Event: Fort Mill, SC Battle Road; Morrisville, NC Battle Road
Format: Modified (HP-on)
So after winning with Mario last week I decided to change things up a bit. I felt that Empoleon seemed to be a pretty strong deck in the format, so I thought I should give it a try. High Point's (NC) Battle Road was won by Burt running Empoleon anyway, so that kind of strengthened my trust in the deck.
Fort Mill, SC Battle Roads:
So before I get into the rounds, I think it would good to describe the trouble it took just to get to this place. Now, I've been to Fort Mill before and I knew how to get there and everything, but that didn't prepare me at all for the major traffic jam that we got stuck in on the way down. My girlfriend Paige and I had plenty of time to talk as we sat in the traffic for 1 hour and 45 minutes. All I can do at this point is give my thanks to Jeff Reynolds for pushing the registration time back a bit (apparently, I wasn't the only one stuck in traffic). Had it not been for his flexibility, things might have gone very different at the tournament. We get there with about 5 minutes to go and still get registered. On to the matchups...
(4 rounds with a top cut of 4)
Round 1: Empoleon vs. Paige L. (Quicketune)
So after teaching my girlfriend how to play with her deck and then driving all the way over to Fort Mill, we ended up having to face each other in the first game. Needless to say, Quicketune isn't really that hard to handle, so I was still quite afraid of the T2KO. After setup, my hand looks pretty bad, but I do have some time to kill with a Holon Mentor. I sacrifice things pretty early on to activate my Scramble Energy late-game while I build an Empoleon. Unfortunately, the weight of my first Empoleon was too much for her, as she had a horrible energy drought that lasted until I knocked out all of her Pokemon. I also picked very well with Empoleon Lv.X's "Supreme Command," keeping her options very limited.
1-0
Round 2: Empoleon vs. Sam R. (Empoleon)
I honestly didn't think that I would see many Empoleon decks at Fort Mill, but it seemed as if I had to go against one. Overall, the mirror match is pretty much up to the better player, as too many considerations take place over the course of the game to let luck decide the victor. I concentrate a great deal on spreading damage where it needs to go early on, being careful to sacrifice only what I can. I let Scramble Energy activate and hope to flip some heads with Aqua Jet. Of course, I can't flip a heads to save my life, so I have to do weird things like send out Mantine and Giant Wave while I get things set up on the bench. I remember that at one point Sam had a very vulnerable bench, so I put Empoleon Lv.X into play and used a Team Galactic's Wager. After winning the RPS, I gave him only a couple of cards to work with while I softened his bench. At about 5 minutes to go, I was able to take out both his active Empoleon and a benched Mantine for what was basically the win. He didn't have any energy on board after that, but time was called with me having taken all but 2 prizes -- he had 4 left. Good game Sam!
2-0
Round 3: Empoleon vs. Mike R. (DuskQueen)
Fortunately for me, I've worked quite a bit on DuskQueen, and though I haven't played the deck in a tournament, I still know all of its ins and outs. Things move at a fairly brisk pace for both of us, but Mike has trouble getting any Nidoqueens into play. I notice this and take advantage of it by spreading damage on his benched Nidorans/Nidorinas instead of targeting the Dusclops. I knew that if I could get his Nidoqueens at KO range with Ice Blade that Aqua Jet would clean up late-game. I ended up playing (and winning) a Team Galactic's Wager, then keeping him limited with "Supreme Command." It was too much for him, and I won soon afterwards. Sorry about the bad luck Mike. : (
3-0
Round 4: Empoleon vs. Brian L. (Quicketune)
Once again, I'm playing against Quicketune. Of course, Brian's running the decklist that I helped him out with, so I know pretty much everything he's got in it. He only runs 6 Basic Pokemon, so I expect a couple of mulligans, but he ends up starting with 2 Kricketot instead. I play things smart by sending up stuff for him to KO, putting me at strength with Scramble Energy. It takes a while before I get board control again, but it looks like I have an easy win until I end up going into an energy drought. I once again have to sacrifice stuff, and win I'm actually able to knock out his Kricketune, I make a mistake by missing the Crystal Beach that's in play. Lame, since it was covered up by my Supporter. When I remove the Supporter, Brian points out the mistake. He lets me Ice Blade instead of taking back the play (I had 2 Windstorm and a Battle Frontier in hand). Fair enough. Not long after that, Brian makes a mistake by using Sore Performance on my Empoleon with a Water Energy and Holon Energy WP attached to it. Though I had told him earlier about what the two energy together did, he still made the mistake. It didn't make much of a difference though, as I had his two remaining Kricketune with enough damage for a KO with Aqua Jet.
4-0
I go undefeated into a top cut that looks like this:
1. Me with Empoleon
2. Brian L. with Quicketune
3. Mike R. with DuskQueen
3. David B. with Quicketune
So yeah, no Mario this time and 2 Quicketune. It does look like some Poke-Powers/Poke-Bodies made it into the top cut this time, though both decks that use them use them very sparingly. I am glad to see DuskQueen in, since I'm fond of the combo, but I honestly can't stand that donkalicious Quicketune deck. @_@
TOP CUT:
Top 4: Empoleon vs. David B. (Quicketune)
Round 1: By this time I've become an expert on playing against Quicketune. I send up stuff for him to KO, and then come back with Scramble Energy. I remember being able to limit him extremely with "Supreme Command," and soon afterwards I won. : P
Round 2: He donks me because I have no Supporters for the entire game. By turn 3 it's game. : (
Round 3: Pretty much the same as round one except for the fact that I send an early Prinplup up to Aqua Shower everything he has into KO range with a later Aqua Jet. Things get pretty simple soon afterwards and I win. : )
5-0
Top 2: Empoleon vs. Brian L. (Quicketune)
Round 1: Seriously, I can't really stand Quicketune anymore, as it only depends on the opponent not getting anything within the first couple of turns. That's not the case here though, as I go with the same strategy that won me my games against Quicketune before: get behind in prizes and overpower the opponent with Empoleon/Scramble Energy. About mid-game Brian fails to play an energy, signaling to me that he's on a drought. He hangs with it for awhile, but gives up with plenty of time for the next game.
Round 2: I do what I've already done before, and though it takes me a bit longer to get everything out, I'm still able to overpower his deck with ease. Good games Brian.
6-0
So I go undefeated, marking my second Battle Roads win. This one made me feel a bit more accomplished, since the deck I used took a bit more strategizing than something like Mario or Quicketune (what most of our metagame is composed of right now). I head out with quite a bit of driving to go, both sleepy and happy from playing to the best of my ability.
Morrisville, NC Battle Roads:
(4 rounds with a top cut of 4)
So I'm pretty tired by now even with all the sleep, but I head on over to Morrisville anyways for a day of Pokemon-filled fun. : ) Alright, here are the matches:
Round 1: Empoleon vs. Michael B. (BlissCatty/Swampert ex)
I haven't been able to test this matchup, so I'm interested in how it will go. Unfortunately, my start is rather atrocious with a Rayquaza d. Fortunately, I ignore the killer weakness by using Delta Search for a Holon Energy WP, knocking off the colorless KO. The first few turns find me in a frenzy, as I can only get out one Empoleon that takes considerable damage before top-decking a Holon Mentor. From there I set up fairly well, but I'm still nervous about such things as Boost Energy, PlusPower, Strength Charm, etc. etc. My Battle Frontier keeps his Delcatty at bay, and after awhile he doesn't seem to draw into anything. I get Empoleon Lv.X on board, keeping him further limited. I finally end up winning after awhile.
1-0
Round 2: Empoleon vs. Will V. (Feraligatr d/Exeggcutor d)
Thank God for hand disruption again, otherwise his Holon Castform would have Delta Drew him to victory. It's all I can do to Team Galactic's Wager before I send up Rayquaza d to take care of my glaring weakness. Sure enough, he's not able to get what he needs from the Wager, so I get a little time to set up. After getting Mantine and Empoleon on board, this game is pretty easy. Hydro Impact cleans up the Feraligatrs I Ice Blade early game. Of course, I know this deck extensively as well, so I'm careful about the damage I put on those Gatrs (for fear of Memory Berry). Leaving him with absolutely nothing, and with Mantine negating the energy cost for anything he Drags Off, I win this one with ease.
2-0
Round 3: Empoleon vs. Mike R. (BlissCatty)
Things go pretty smoothly until I use a Team Galactic's Wager and win, then it all goes downhill for Mike. That's pretty much all I remember from the match and -- I think Mike will agree here -- that's pretty much all I want to remember from the match. Hooray for lame hand disruption! : (
3-0
Round 4: Empoleon vs. Tatiana M. (Mario)
This is another matchup that I haven't really tested, so I get to see first thing how it goes. Had I played an early Team Galactic's Wager and won, I might have had this one. However, I'm always afraid to play the dumb card for fear of losing RPS, which usually means losing the game. She gets set up pretty fast, getting two Machamps on board within no time. I recognize the hill I have to climb, and she outspeeds me enough to where I'm as vulnerable as I possibly can be. With Rayquaza d's resistance as my only hope, I look into building up a final Empoleon. Two turns later, her Machamp takes Rayquaza d out. Good game Tatiana!
3-1
So I get into the top cut again with Empoleon. Sweet! The top cut is actually pretty varied for once. It looks something like this:
1. Tatiana M. with Mario
2. Me with Empoleon
3. Mike R. with BlissCatty
4. Linda H. with Alakazam/??? (if anyone can fill me in on this one, it'd be great)
Poke-Powers are represented, Poke-Power counters are represented... it looks pretty interesting overall. Maybe things are shaping up for the format. MAYBE...
TOP CUT:
Top 4: Empoleon vs. Mike R. (BlissCatty)
Round 1: Things move pretty fast for Mike, but not very fast for me. After awhile, however, I'm able to get two Empoleon ready with Scramble Energy for a comeback. Like the first game of this season, I'm only able to play two Celio's Network and nothing else for quite some time, but it's enough to buy me the time I need to topdeck a Team Galactic's Wager. I win, but things are still looking pretty bad on my side. I remember that at one point I would have probably had the game if I could have top-decked an energy, but I don't. Instead, I have to fish out my Empoleon with a Celio's Network (punny) and Ice Blade a Blissey for the not KO. I take a ton of damage because I didn't have the energy for Aqua Jet. Later, I won another Team Galactic's Bet and put Mike with two cards to work with after using "Supreme Command." He top-decked a Copycat. Finally, the last straw was my prize situation, in which I had a Night MaintENANCE and an Empoleon prized out of 3 prizes. With no way to get an Empoleon back, I had to rely on Mike not having a Boost Energy, but he had it FTW. : ( : ( : ( How unlucky could I get??? Well, that answer came to me when...
Round 2: ... my opening hand was: Holon's Castform, Rare Candy, Rare Candy, Windstorm, Scramble Energy, Scramble Energy, and Water Energy. I choose to go first and draw a Water Energy! I pass. He does stuff and it's my turn. I topdeck a Steven's Advice that I can't use! He does stuff and it's my turn. I topdeck a Scramble Energy!!! He knocks my Castform out. Lame. In our defense (seeing as we had some pretty rough games), our game Round 1 was pretty good. I can blame bad luck all I want, but Mike played his deck to near-perfection, which is always good to see. Great job Mike!
3-2
-----------------------
Well, you can't win them all. Besides, I had some great games within the past two days. Not only that, I played with a deck that I had never even used before Saturday. Sure, I had played with Empoleon a bit, but not like I played it this weekend. It was fun to figure out matchups as I played them out, and it was even better when those matchups were as hard as they were. Everyone I played against had a great attitude, and both Paige and I had a bunch of fun this weekend. Which leads me to my next thing...
Jeff, Toni, and the judges this weekend (Josh W. and Randy M), you guys are awesome. Leave it to Jeff to figure out how to accomodate everyone in the tournaments he organizes. Him and Toni are a rock-solid team when it comes to organizing tournaments. Though I left Morrisville before the tournament was over, I have no doubt in my mind that they got everyone out by the 600 pm deadline that they had for the tournament, which is simply amazing considering the number of people that tournament had (not to mention the fact that league was going on at the same time in the same location). These are top-notch organizers, and they deserve your thanks whenever you can give it to them. Thanks again guys!
Props:
Everyone (especially Riddle, who gave me an Ultra Ball)
Slops:
Ummmmmmm.... TRAFFIC. >: (
