NEVADA STATES
So we take off Friday afternoon from LA to Vegas and run into all kinds of traffic. Make a few pit stops..... and get to the room around 8:30-9:00. No one in the room playtests at all and we're rollin' deep (7 people, 1 it) and head to the strip around 1am dont get back until 3:45-4am... we're ready to sleep. Everyone in the room can't sleep because of all the noise the it and two others are making, but we try. I get 30 minutes of sleep.
Day, er morning of the tournament
We stop by the gas station for some 5-hours and eat at ihop. Get to the tournament see a huge line and wait for the store to open. We get in get registered and theres 83 masters so we'll be cutting to a t16 after 7 rounds of swiss. I'm playing jumpluff here is the list I used.
4 hoppip
2 skiploom
4 jumpluff
3 baltoy
3 claydol
2 uxie
1 azelf
3 crobat g
1 luxray GL Lv.X
1 luxray GL
1 chatot
4 roseanne research
4 bebe's search
1 luxury ball
3 pokemon communication
4 broken time-space
3 rare candy
4 poketurn
3 warp point
2 expert belt
1 palmer's contribution
4 grass energy
2 multi energy
Rd.1 vs Gyarados
Well early game a lot things went my way. I got a t1 pluff and started KOing guys and it didn't take him long to get a gyarados. He played claydol and kept using cosmic power to keep up which meant he would have to draw into rescues combees and gyarados/bebes. There were 2 turns that I thought he wouldn't be able to comeback and KO me with gyarados but he cosmic'd into whatever it was he needed. Didn't really matter though I was way ahead and warp KO'd for the game. 1-0
Rd.2 vs Random deck
I get an amazing set up and bench her. She never got anything going and all I KO'd was a Giratina and Unown W. 2-0
Rd. 3 vs Luxchomp
Well this game was terrible. I was up against what appeared to be a bad player and was what I initially anticipated. My opening hand is baltoy crobat g grass grass multi warp point poketurn. I start and have to psychic balance two turns in a row for only one card. By the time I get a claydol up and uxie drawing card I whiff on the jumpluff and she is already two prizes ahead. Next turn she actually rushes my hoppip and eventually outraced me to the 6 prizes. I think I took two. 2-1
Rd. 4 vs Shuppet
This game wasnt that great I open bat going first bench a hoppip and bounce for 10. He warp points and gets the t1 KO on my hoppip. I'm kinda drawing dead right now and 2-3 turns later I finally get a pluff going but he has mime active. It's really the only thing on my field with any relevance as I don't have claydol and next turn he plays a reversal targetting the pluff, gets tails but uxie set ups for 4 cards. He plays down his second reversal flips heads and KO's my jumpluff. I know I'm screwed now as he's taken 3-4 prizes already and just scoop after not top-decking anything relevant. 2-2
Rd.5 vs Gyarados
Well, my hand isn't terrible this time around I actually get a claydol going t1 after I think he opened sableye. Anyways the Claydol doesn't help me one bit because I still cant seem to draw a pluff. I sit there bouncing with a belted hoppip for 3 turns until I finally get it to evolve into a jumpluff. Anyways his set up is good despite his refusal to bench anything. He felicity drawing into everything he needs and even used back-to-back VS Seekers to fetch them out of the discard after he'd used all four. It got to the point where all he had was an active Gyarados with a bench on it after SSUing the azelf he'd benched. I did'nt have enough juice left to do 150 and the next turn he just benched something to be safe. He beat me to 6 prizes. 2-3
Rd.6 vs Blastoise Feraligatr....
NOW my set up is good and his is sort of meh. I get the pluff t1 and start beating him down taking a prize every turn. Once he gets his set up he is also taking a prize or two prizes every other turn, but I beat him to 6. 3-3
Rd.7 vs Machamp
Well I get a decent start not too sure if I got the t1 Jumpluff or not but It doesnt matter as I resist his machamp and once I got a decent board theres nothing he can do. 4-3
So I head back to LA the next morning dissapointed in my performance the first weekend. Friday comes and Chad shows up at my place in the afternoon. We playtest a bit as we wait for my friend to show up and then go to the mall, playtest a bit more and knockout at around 2 am making some great inside jokes. (Josh Bangle, ROFL!)
CALIFORNIA STATES
We get up head to the Queen Mary and register. The place is noticeably a lot more crowded than regionals last year. They post pairings and I sit down to hear the player announcements. Its then announced that we have 230 MASTERS which I think is a record for state championships, I'm not sure, but then came this part. They announced 7 rounds of swiss. I was like WHAT?! 83 masters in Nevada we get 7 rounds, 230 masters in California and we also get 7 rounds? I don't know about that man sounds like some POOR PLANNING on the organizer's part. I went in with Jumpluff again except this time I added a tech.
4 hoppip
2 skiploom
4 jumpluff
3 baltoy
3 claydol
2 uxie
1 azelf
2 crobat g
1 luxray GL Lv.X
1 luxray GL
1 giratina let-loose
4 roseanne research
4 bebe's search
1 luxury ball
4 pokemon communication
4 broken time-space
3 rare candy
4 poketurn
3 warp point
2 expert belt
1 palmer's contribution
4 grass energy
2 multi energy
Rd.1 Gengar
I open crobat g and he opens gastly. He's first and thinks for a second and decides to attach call instead of using pitch dark. BIG MISTAKE! I had no supporters in my hand but I had two comm which I used next turn to explode off of and get the T1 pluff and the KO. He can't keep up and when he finally gets a curse gengar with 2 energy on it I simply bright look it up and mass attack KO it. 1-0
Rd.2 Luxchomp
His start is bad and mine is decent if I avoid getting my lone hoppip start T1'd. He goes first and doesn't have the DCE and calls. I don't have too much either first turn and have to settle for bouncing into another hoppip. His hand is bad he doesn't even have a supporter even after using uxie set up to draw 5, but still KO's my hoppip. I top-deck into a search and use it to explode into a jumpluff to KO him. He proceeds to draw nothing for the duration of the match and when I have two prizes left he decides to belt his active luxray LV.X with nothing else on his bench. I belt my pluff drop a crobat g and play 2 Poketurn to deal 130 damage after flash bites and the bounce from my first hoppip to his luxray. 2-0
Rd.3 Charizard
Oh man, this was the ONE MATCHUP I wanted to avoid and after being 2-0 I thought I would be able to avoid it. He opens charmander and does 10 damage to my active pokemon. I get the t1 pluff and the t1 KO on him but next turn he gets ninetails out and starts using it's energy draw power. He follows that up with a reheat from vulpix and now I'm sure his hand is pretty good. This is where I win the game, I bright look up his ninetails and then search out giratina let loose and use it on him. We both shuffle up draw 4 and after 2 cosmic powers I get the poketurn I need to KO his ninetails. After that hes sitting there drawing dead as I proceed to take 6 prizes after some more bright looks/ warp points. 3-0
Rd.4 Gyarados
So I sit down and the guy recognizes me from Nevada states 09 where he recalls not taking a single prize vs me during the swiss. I recognized him too, but wasn't in the mood for much conversation at the time. He opens sableye to my Crobat and benches azelf to time walk for regice and then impersonates. My turn I go do an uxie set up and cant get a claydol up this turn nor can I get a pluff out. I think I bounce for 10 into crobat. His turn he goes ahead and regimoves then benches his karp uxie set up and then impersonates again. His hand is pretty big so this turn I play BTS, claydol and search out my let loose. We shuffle up and draw 4 and after a cosmic and search I get a jumpluff to KO his sableye. Next turn he sends up his karp and can't get the gyarados so he seasprays, tails. I draw bench some guys and leaf guard KO. Next turn he gets a gyarados out but I easily KO it and then from there it was pretty much over. 4-0
Rd.5 Gyarados
He opens sableye to my hoppip. He benches chansey attaches to it and does impersonate. I cant get much going right away but by turn 2 I have a jumpluff and play warp point in order to get a KO. He got gyarados out swinging with a limited bench and next turn I decide I'll giratina him. I think I did this too early, but whats done is done. He draws really good off of it and it isnt long until he gets another gyarados out. I do what I have to go to get KO's play belt on my jumpluff only to have it KO'd next turn. The key point in this match was when he had a gyarados out with a belt on it and I couldn't KO it because his bench was so limited. I go in and do a psychic restore with uxie to put it in KO range and send up a bat. He has 3 cards in his hand, draws and play down a chansey then evolves into a blissey to heal the 20 damage on his gyarados, darn! It's okay though because I still have another turn to set up a KO before I lose the game. He knocks me out and I send up my pluff. I play down a pluff without a belt on it and mass attack him for 80, leaving his gyarados at 70. He has two card in his hand, draws and play pokemon rescue for the chansey I KO'd earlier. Then he plays Bebe's search grabbing blissey and played it down to heal his gyarados. I couldn't believe it, of all the card left in his deck he had these in his tiny hand. He only used one felicity's drawing the entire game and never even used uxie's set up. Next turn I can't KO him and its game... 4-1
Rd.6 Luxchomp
This game I start lone hoppip and am afraid of getting t1'd. He shows garchomp C and plays down a colorless energy, it's call energy *phew* and uses it to call for only luxray GL. I draw and get out dol and uxie set up into another dol and then eventually the pluff KOing his active garchomp. He draws plays cyrus bright looks claydol and does 60 to it. I draw play warp point do somc cosmics and KO him. I was clearly in control of the game and he only took 2 prizes. 5-1
Rd.7 SP-Vomit
Okay so this guy was sort of weird and was also playing a weird deck. He opened ambipom g to my lone uxie and I go first doing 20 to ambipom. He gets out a houndoom G and either used a switch or poketurned the ambipom to black cry my uxie. Next turn I top-deck roseanne and play it to grab a crobat and uxie. I'm desperate for a set up because I just KNOW if i can get a jumpluff out theres no way he's ever going to win the game because he has such a limited damage output and I dont have recovery issues. I play bat use two poketurns and uxie set up for 4 and just psychic restore into my bat. Next turn he does some stuff uxie set up for 4-5, plays a cyrus and then black cries my crobat for 20. I draw and somehow thin my hand down to 3 after I play a poketurn and a comm for the uxie I put back. I set up for 4, draw a roseanne and figure my best play is just to grab two baltoy and uxie psychic restore back into the deck again. He draws, cyrus grabs a spray, cyrus and energy. He poketurns his active houndoom G and sends up honchkrow G then flash bites my baltoy to KO it with target attack. I draw and know that I can't just search out uxie or else he'll spray it so I go in and play another comm but for giratina. I play it and his hand is big so he sprays it. I then go in with a roseanne's and grab hoppip+uxie. I bench hoppip attach a grass, play a warp point, and set up for five cards, If I draw a candy or bts with skiploom/comm or luxball then I'm sure this game is over as I have the jumpluff in hand and his bench is way too congested to KO it next turn. I WHIFF! I couldn't believe it! I have to send up hoppip and then bounce him for 10. Next turn hoppip dies and I play bebe's search for claydol and cosmic into nothing. No pluff all game long = you can't win. 5-2
So I'm sure I'll whiff the cut, but I'm used to running this bad in life so I do my usual rant and just hangout for a bit. I don't want to be in the room when the standings go up because every time I've played at the queen mary I came in 17th place (STS 17th 09 regionals 17th) I'm sure I'll come in 17th place and be bubbled out of the cut, especially with only 7 rounds of swiss being recorded. Standings go up and a while later I head back to the room and everyone is telling me I better win so I figured I made the cut and it turns out I did make it as the 15th seed, but what shocked me even more than this was that there were 14 people with 6-1 records, clearly we needed to have 8 rounds, not 7.
T16 Wesley Bartlett
I remember this guy's name from way back in the day when I first used to play. We sat down and had a bit of a friendly conversation, I joked with him saying that if he wanted to beat me he was going to have to pull out an STS champ medal and he says he doesn't have one because he lost in the t8 so I joked back at him saying well then he can't win.
Game 1: The first game seems like a bit of a blur but I think I opened baltoy to his gastly with him going first. He attached a call benched gastly and used pitch dark. My hand was bad and all I had was a comm so I had to bench hoppip attach a grass to baltoy and pass. Next turn he plays roseanne for a baltoy and spiritomb retreating his gastly and attaches a Psychic to it and darkness graces into claydol. I draw and I think its a roseanne and right now I'm really wishing I included that regice in my list, but I play it and grab I think a crobat+hoppip and bench the crobat flashbiting the spiritomb and attach to hoppip retreat baltoy and bounce into bat. I never got enough going for me this game he got out SF gengar next turn and started doing damage and eventually gengar while I sat there with a lame board. 0-1
Game 2: This game I open hoppip to his spiritomb and have him go first. He benches something then darkness graces it. I draw, play bts bebe search for skiploom evolve into skiploom and jumpluff attach an energy uxie set up for 6 and never look back. I rail him pretty bad this game although I prized luxray X and he dark palmed my 2 energy pluff. After I take a fair amount of prizes he decides to scoop it up into a game 3.
Game 3: I open baltoy to his gastly and he makes me go first. I draw dont do much and just bench an Azelf and see two roseanne and a comm prizes. He goes attaches psychic to his gastly plays roseanne for a baltoy and a spiritomb and then time is called, He plays a belt on gastly and trick gasses into spiritomb. I draw and don't have much hope for my situation, I get a claydol out I think with a bebe's search and then do some stuff to cosmic into 4. I draw two multi a grass and a roseanne. I observe the board and see that no matter what I do this turn a fainting spell gengar will kill me. So I attach a grass to claydol and pass. He thinks about the situation for a second and knows that if he doesnt draw gengar this turn and leaves the tomb active he will probably lose so he goes into claydol and tries to draw what he needs for the fainting spell gengar. He whiffs and decides to roseanne for two mimes so that my claydol cant KO him and he passes. I draw and double cosmic trying to get some kind of thing going, but with two mime this is going to be hard. I know what I need and I know how I'm going to have to do it, I search out my luxray and attach to my benched azelf to threaten with lock up and pass. I'm sure now that I'm going to lose, all he needs is a fainting spell gengar and I'll lose to sudden death rules. He draws, cosmic powers, no gengar, but baltoy and claydol and plays then both down with help from my BTS and cosmics again, still nothing! He attaches Q to his active mime and passes to me. I know now that if I want to I can azelf lock up him, but I know he's smarter than that and has the warp energy in his hand. I do my work start cosmic powering away. I get the pluff and then search out luxray X. I warp point, level up bring out spiritomb and KO him with jumpluff to win the game. 2-1
Okay so story time (sorry) theres this guy who is bald and we used to call him staller because he would always try to stall you out during his games, but I havent seen him at an event in who knows how long. Well theres a new staller in town and you can guarantee I have people who can back me up and say he stalls 100%. Who in the world takes a five-minute turn to play cyrus, sp radar, attach an energy, attach an energy gain, and declare an attack? Well, you're about to find out.
T8 Curtis Fu Luxchomp Donphan aka TRASH
Game 1: He opens either garchomp or luxray to what I think was my crobat and he attaches call then searches out baltoy and phanpy....... LOL WHAT?! My go I get a good set up although I prized 3 claydol with the jumpluff swinging away at him and he tries to get something going but all he can come up with is a donphan that does 40 to my jumpluff and 10 to his entire bench. I kill it and then kill everything else he tries to fight me with and he scoops. 1-0
He tilts me so much right now, I'm shuffling my deck and I ALWAYS pile shuffle I don't care if I'm playtesting or at a battleroads I ALWAYS do it. He has the NERVE to say "okay I think your deck is shuffled now" obviously trying to throw the clock at my face when he sits there with a card in his hand staring at God knows what with his mouth open for 3 hours during his turns.
Game 2: I open lone hoppip to his Lucario GL. I can tell he isn't very happy about his start, but Its actually good aside from opening lucario. This game was bad I couldn't draw into much I got a single claydol in play and cosmic powered into a pluff with no way to evolve my hoppip. I think I made a slight misplay in this game but it would not have mattered as his start was much better and I whiffed on my draws all game long. I scoop some time into it to try and get as much of a full game possible. 1-1
He doesn't complain about my shuffle this time, he got his complete game and now its his turn to stall me out.
Game 3: My start is very slow and his isn't. I make some progress and have to play from behind the whole game. I eventually get a decent board and then do 110 to his donphan with my belted jumpluff. He takes a long time, then plays bebe and takes a long time them puts a card back and takes a long time, then some more time and grabs crobat g. He benches it and flash bites my active jumpluff then earthquakes me for 40. This is the turn where I really just, win the game after playing from behind the whole time. I draw, poketurn and flash bite to KO his donphan. He sends up crobat and I go out and search for my giratina. I poketurn my crobat, giratina let loose and we both shuffle up. at this point his board is just an active crobat a benched dol and a benched luxray with 2 energy on it. I go in and do some double cosmic powering drawing into 1 of my 3 remaining warps and then warp him. He takes a while, then sends up claydol and I KO it with a different, 90hp pluff. Prizes are at 4-4 he sends up crobat and draws, takes a while...... then some more time..... and then plays premier ball which I'm sure he top decked and then they called time. I looked at my board, looked at him and before I knew it there was already a luxray X on the field. That was it, I had lost to time after completely destroying his board and hand in one turn. I was in disbelief, this stalling player who made a terrible deck choice was going to go home with not only the win, but the glass that I was so sure I deserved. I shook his hand, said bye to everyone and left. 1-2
Props
Jumpluff for going to the gym everyday
Giratina, it's awesome!
Truk and Genny for being cool
Chad for inventing Jumpluff
Everyone for cracking me up Norwalk crew Garden Grovers, Ricky, Ruben, Albert and Eddy
Chago for just being at the event even though you suck at the game rofl! If I had to pick a BFF it would be you bro.
Josh Bangle
Slops
Karl, for not anticipating the huge attendance even though he "ran" a majority of the cities in California.
Blissey Prime
The food, it was expensive and tasteless
Staller
Lady luck, why don't you find me attractive?
Karl, for giving a dinner break and 7 rounds instead of no dinner break and 8 rounds.
$12 Parking
Josh Bangle
So we take off Friday afternoon from LA to Vegas and run into all kinds of traffic. Make a few pit stops..... and get to the room around 8:30-9:00. No one in the room playtests at all and we're rollin' deep (7 people, 1 it) and head to the strip around 1am dont get back until 3:45-4am... we're ready to sleep. Everyone in the room can't sleep because of all the noise the it and two others are making, but we try. I get 30 minutes of sleep.
Day, er morning of the tournament
We stop by the gas station for some 5-hours and eat at ihop. Get to the tournament see a huge line and wait for the store to open. We get in get registered and theres 83 masters so we'll be cutting to a t16 after 7 rounds of swiss. I'm playing jumpluff here is the list I used.
4 hoppip
2 skiploom
4 jumpluff
3 baltoy
3 claydol
2 uxie
1 azelf
3 crobat g
1 luxray GL Lv.X
1 luxray GL
1 chatot
4 roseanne research
4 bebe's search
1 luxury ball
3 pokemon communication
4 broken time-space
3 rare candy
4 poketurn
3 warp point
2 expert belt
1 palmer's contribution
4 grass energy
2 multi energy
Rd.1 vs Gyarados
Well early game a lot things went my way. I got a t1 pluff and started KOing guys and it didn't take him long to get a gyarados. He played claydol and kept using cosmic power to keep up which meant he would have to draw into rescues combees and gyarados/bebes. There were 2 turns that I thought he wouldn't be able to comeback and KO me with gyarados but he cosmic'd into whatever it was he needed. Didn't really matter though I was way ahead and warp KO'd for the game. 1-0
Rd.2 vs Random deck
I get an amazing set up and bench her. She never got anything going and all I KO'd was a Giratina and Unown W. 2-0
Rd. 3 vs Luxchomp
Well this game was terrible. I was up against what appeared to be a bad player and was what I initially anticipated. My opening hand is baltoy crobat g grass grass multi warp point poketurn. I start and have to psychic balance two turns in a row for only one card. By the time I get a claydol up and uxie drawing card I whiff on the jumpluff and she is already two prizes ahead. Next turn she actually rushes my hoppip and eventually outraced me to the 6 prizes. I think I took two. 2-1
Rd. 4 vs Shuppet
This game wasnt that great I open bat going first bench a hoppip and bounce for 10. He warp points and gets the t1 KO on my hoppip. I'm kinda drawing dead right now and 2-3 turns later I finally get a pluff going but he has mime active. It's really the only thing on my field with any relevance as I don't have claydol and next turn he plays a reversal targetting the pluff, gets tails but uxie set ups for 4 cards. He plays down his second reversal flips heads and KO's my jumpluff. I know I'm screwed now as he's taken 3-4 prizes already and just scoop after not top-decking anything relevant. 2-2
Rd.5 vs Gyarados
Well, my hand isn't terrible this time around I actually get a claydol going t1 after I think he opened sableye. Anyways the Claydol doesn't help me one bit because I still cant seem to draw a pluff. I sit there bouncing with a belted hoppip for 3 turns until I finally get it to evolve into a jumpluff. Anyways his set up is good despite his refusal to bench anything. He felicity drawing into everything he needs and even used back-to-back VS Seekers to fetch them out of the discard after he'd used all four. It got to the point where all he had was an active Gyarados with a bench on it after SSUing the azelf he'd benched. I did'nt have enough juice left to do 150 and the next turn he just benched something to be safe. He beat me to 6 prizes. 2-3
Rd.6 vs Blastoise Feraligatr....
NOW my set up is good and his is sort of meh. I get the pluff t1 and start beating him down taking a prize every turn. Once he gets his set up he is also taking a prize or two prizes every other turn, but I beat him to 6. 3-3
Rd.7 vs Machamp
Well I get a decent start not too sure if I got the t1 Jumpluff or not but It doesnt matter as I resist his machamp and once I got a decent board theres nothing he can do. 4-3
So I head back to LA the next morning dissapointed in my performance the first weekend. Friday comes and Chad shows up at my place in the afternoon. We playtest a bit as we wait for my friend to show up and then go to the mall, playtest a bit more and knockout at around 2 am making some great inside jokes. (Josh Bangle, ROFL!)
CALIFORNIA STATES
We get up head to the Queen Mary and register. The place is noticeably a lot more crowded than regionals last year. They post pairings and I sit down to hear the player announcements. Its then announced that we have 230 MASTERS which I think is a record for state championships, I'm not sure, but then came this part. They announced 7 rounds of swiss. I was like WHAT?! 83 masters in Nevada we get 7 rounds, 230 masters in California and we also get 7 rounds? I don't know about that man sounds like some POOR PLANNING on the organizer's part. I went in with Jumpluff again except this time I added a tech.
4 hoppip
2 skiploom
4 jumpluff
3 baltoy
3 claydol
2 uxie
1 azelf
2 crobat g
1 luxray GL Lv.X
1 luxray GL
1 giratina let-loose
4 roseanne research
4 bebe's search
1 luxury ball
4 pokemon communication
4 broken time-space
3 rare candy
4 poketurn
3 warp point
2 expert belt
1 palmer's contribution
4 grass energy
2 multi energy
Rd.1 Gengar
I open crobat g and he opens gastly. He's first and thinks for a second and decides to attach call instead of using pitch dark. BIG MISTAKE! I had no supporters in my hand but I had two comm which I used next turn to explode off of and get the T1 pluff and the KO. He can't keep up and when he finally gets a curse gengar with 2 energy on it I simply bright look it up and mass attack KO it. 1-0
Rd.2 Luxchomp
His start is bad and mine is decent if I avoid getting my lone hoppip start T1'd. He goes first and doesn't have the DCE and calls. I don't have too much either first turn and have to settle for bouncing into another hoppip. His hand is bad he doesn't even have a supporter even after using uxie set up to draw 5, but still KO's my hoppip. I top-deck into a search and use it to explode into a jumpluff to KO him. He proceeds to draw nothing for the duration of the match and when I have two prizes left he decides to belt his active luxray LV.X with nothing else on his bench. I belt my pluff drop a crobat g and play 2 Poketurn to deal 130 damage after flash bites and the bounce from my first hoppip to his luxray. 2-0
Rd.3 Charizard
Oh man, this was the ONE MATCHUP I wanted to avoid and after being 2-0 I thought I would be able to avoid it. He opens charmander and does 10 damage to my active pokemon. I get the t1 pluff and the t1 KO on him but next turn he gets ninetails out and starts using it's energy draw power. He follows that up with a reheat from vulpix and now I'm sure his hand is pretty good. This is where I win the game, I bright look up his ninetails and then search out giratina let loose and use it on him. We both shuffle up draw 4 and after 2 cosmic powers I get the poketurn I need to KO his ninetails. After that hes sitting there drawing dead as I proceed to take 6 prizes after some more bright looks/ warp points. 3-0
Rd.4 Gyarados
So I sit down and the guy recognizes me from Nevada states 09 where he recalls not taking a single prize vs me during the swiss. I recognized him too, but wasn't in the mood for much conversation at the time. He opens sableye to my Crobat and benches azelf to time walk for regice and then impersonates. My turn I go do an uxie set up and cant get a claydol up this turn nor can I get a pluff out. I think I bounce for 10 into crobat. His turn he goes ahead and regimoves then benches his karp uxie set up and then impersonates again. His hand is pretty big so this turn I play BTS, claydol and search out my let loose. We shuffle up and draw 4 and after a cosmic and search I get a jumpluff to KO his sableye. Next turn he sends up his karp and can't get the gyarados so he seasprays, tails. I draw bench some guys and leaf guard KO. Next turn he gets a gyarados out but I easily KO it and then from there it was pretty much over. 4-0
Rd.5 Gyarados
He opens sableye to my hoppip. He benches chansey attaches to it and does impersonate. I cant get much going right away but by turn 2 I have a jumpluff and play warp point in order to get a KO. He got gyarados out swinging with a limited bench and next turn I decide I'll giratina him. I think I did this too early, but whats done is done. He draws really good off of it and it isnt long until he gets another gyarados out. I do what I have to go to get KO's play belt on my jumpluff only to have it KO'd next turn. The key point in this match was when he had a gyarados out with a belt on it and I couldn't KO it because his bench was so limited. I go in and do a psychic restore with uxie to put it in KO range and send up a bat. He has 3 cards in his hand, draws and play down a chansey then evolves into a blissey to heal the 20 damage on his gyarados, darn! It's okay though because I still have another turn to set up a KO before I lose the game. He knocks me out and I send up my pluff. I play down a pluff without a belt on it and mass attack him for 80, leaving his gyarados at 70. He has two card in his hand, draws and play pokemon rescue for the chansey I KO'd earlier. Then he plays Bebe's search grabbing blissey and played it down to heal his gyarados. I couldn't believe it, of all the card left in his deck he had these in his tiny hand. He only used one felicity's drawing the entire game and never even used uxie's set up. Next turn I can't KO him and its game... 4-1
Rd.6 Luxchomp
This game I start lone hoppip and am afraid of getting t1'd. He shows garchomp C and plays down a colorless energy, it's call energy *phew* and uses it to call for only luxray GL. I draw and get out dol and uxie set up into another dol and then eventually the pluff KOing his active garchomp. He draws plays cyrus bright looks claydol and does 60 to it. I draw play warp point do somc cosmics and KO him. I was clearly in control of the game and he only took 2 prizes. 5-1
Rd.7 SP-Vomit
Okay so this guy was sort of weird and was also playing a weird deck. He opened ambipom g to my lone uxie and I go first doing 20 to ambipom. He gets out a houndoom G and either used a switch or poketurned the ambipom to black cry my uxie. Next turn I top-deck roseanne and play it to grab a crobat and uxie. I'm desperate for a set up because I just KNOW if i can get a jumpluff out theres no way he's ever going to win the game because he has such a limited damage output and I dont have recovery issues. I play bat use two poketurns and uxie set up for 4 and just psychic restore into my bat. Next turn he does some stuff uxie set up for 4-5, plays a cyrus and then black cries my crobat for 20. I draw and somehow thin my hand down to 3 after I play a poketurn and a comm for the uxie I put back. I set up for 4, draw a roseanne and figure my best play is just to grab two baltoy and uxie psychic restore back into the deck again. He draws, cyrus grabs a spray, cyrus and energy. He poketurns his active houndoom G and sends up honchkrow G then flash bites my baltoy to KO it with target attack. I draw and know that I can't just search out uxie or else he'll spray it so I go in and play another comm but for giratina. I play it and his hand is big so he sprays it. I then go in with a roseanne's and grab hoppip+uxie. I bench hoppip attach a grass, play a warp point, and set up for five cards, If I draw a candy or bts with skiploom/comm or luxball then I'm sure this game is over as I have the jumpluff in hand and his bench is way too congested to KO it next turn. I WHIFF! I couldn't believe it! I have to send up hoppip and then bounce him for 10. Next turn hoppip dies and I play bebe's search for claydol and cosmic into nothing. No pluff all game long = you can't win. 5-2
So I'm sure I'll whiff the cut, but I'm used to running this bad in life so I do my usual rant and just hangout for a bit. I don't want to be in the room when the standings go up because every time I've played at the queen mary I came in 17th place (STS 17th 09 regionals 17th) I'm sure I'll come in 17th place and be bubbled out of the cut, especially with only 7 rounds of swiss being recorded. Standings go up and a while later I head back to the room and everyone is telling me I better win so I figured I made the cut and it turns out I did make it as the 15th seed, but what shocked me even more than this was that there were 14 people with 6-1 records, clearly we needed to have 8 rounds, not 7.
T16 Wesley Bartlett
I remember this guy's name from way back in the day when I first used to play. We sat down and had a bit of a friendly conversation, I joked with him saying that if he wanted to beat me he was going to have to pull out an STS champ medal and he says he doesn't have one because he lost in the t8 so I joked back at him saying well then he can't win.
Game 1: The first game seems like a bit of a blur but I think I opened baltoy to his gastly with him going first. He attached a call benched gastly and used pitch dark. My hand was bad and all I had was a comm so I had to bench hoppip attach a grass to baltoy and pass. Next turn he plays roseanne for a baltoy and spiritomb retreating his gastly and attaches a Psychic to it and darkness graces into claydol. I draw and I think its a roseanne and right now I'm really wishing I included that regice in my list, but I play it and grab I think a crobat+hoppip and bench the crobat flashbiting the spiritomb and attach to hoppip retreat baltoy and bounce into bat. I never got enough going for me this game he got out SF gengar next turn and started doing damage and eventually gengar while I sat there with a lame board. 0-1
Game 2: This game I open hoppip to his spiritomb and have him go first. He benches something then darkness graces it. I draw, play bts bebe search for skiploom evolve into skiploom and jumpluff attach an energy uxie set up for 6 and never look back. I rail him pretty bad this game although I prized luxray X and he dark palmed my 2 energy pluff. After I take a fair amount of prizes he decides to scoop it up into a game 3.
Game 3: I open baltoy to his gastly and he makes me go first. I draw dont do much and just bench an Azelf and see two roseanne and a comm prizes. He goes attaches psychic to his gastly plays roseanne for a baltoy and a spiritomb and then time is called, He plays a belt on gastly and trick gasses into spiritomb. I draw and don't have much hope for my situation, I get a claydol out I think with a bebe's search and then do some stuff to cosmic into 4. I draw two multi a grass and a roseanne. I observe the board and see that no matter what I do this turn a fainting spell gengar will kill me. So I attach a grass to claydol and pass. He thinks about the situation for a second and knows that if he doesnt draw gengar this turn and leaves the tomb active he will probably lose so he goes into claydol and tries to draw what he needs for the fainting spell gengar. He whiffs and decides to roseanne for two mimes so that my claydol cant KO him and he passes. I draw and double cosmic trying to get some kind of thing going, but with two mime this is going to be hard. I know what I need and I know how I'm going to have to do it, I search out my luxray and attach to my benched azelf to threaten with lock up and pass. I'm sure now that I'm going to lose, all he needs is a fainting spell gengar and I'll lose to sudden death rules. He draws, cosmic powers, no gengar, but baltoy and claydol and plays then both down with help from my BTS and cosmics again, still nothing! He attaches Q to his active mime and passes to me. I know now that if I want to I can azelf lock up him, but I know he's smarter than that and has the warp energy in his hand. I do my work start cosmic powering away. I get the pluff and then search out luxray X. I warp point, level up bring out spiritomb and KO him with jumpluff to win the game. 2-1
Okay so story time (sorry) theres this guy who is bald and we used to call him staller because he would always try to stall you out during his games, but I havent seen him at an event in who knows how long. Well theres a new staller in town and you can guarantee I have people who can back me up and say he stalls 100%. Who in the world takes a five-minute turn to play cyrus, sp radar, attach an energy, attach an energy gain, and declare an attack? Well, you're about to find out.
T8 Curtis Fu Luxchomp Donphan aka TRASH
Game 1: He opens either garchomp or luxray to what I think was my crobat and he attaches call then searches out baltoy and phanpy....... LOL WHAT?! My go I get a good set up although I prized 3 claydol with the jumpluff swinging away at him and he tries to get something going but all he can come up with is a donphan that does 40 to my jumpluff and 10 to his entire bench. I kill it and then kill everything else he tries to fight me with and he scoops. 1-0
He tilts me so much right now, I'm shuffling my deck and I ALWAYS pile shuffle I don't care if I'm playtesting or at a battleroads I ALWAYS do it. He has the NERVE to say "okay I think your deck is shuffled now" obviously trying to throw the clock at my face when he sits there with a card in his hand staring at God knows what with his mouth open for 3 hours during his turns.
Game 2: I open lone hoppip to his Lucario GL. I can tell he isn't very happy about his start, but Its actually good aside from opening lucario. This game was bad I couldn't draw into much I got a single claydol in play and cosmic powered into a pluff with no way to evolve my hoppip. I think I made a slight misplay in this game but it would not have mattered as his start was much better and I whiffed on my draws all game long. I scoop some time into it to try and get as much of a full game possible. 1-1
He doesn't complain about my shuffle this time, he got his complete game and now its his turn to stall me out.
Game 3: My start is very slow and his isn't. I make some progress and have to play from behind the whole game. I eventually get a decent board and then do 110 to his donphan with my belted jumpluff. He takes a long time, then plays bebe and takes a long time them puts a card back and takes a long time, then some more time and grabs crobat g. He benches it and flash bites my active jumpluff then earthquakes me for 40. This is the turn where I really just, win the game after playing from behind the whole time. I draw, poketurn and flash bite to KO his donphan. He sends up crobat and I go out and search for my giratina. I poketurn my crobat, giratina let loose and we both shuffle up. at this point his board is just an active crobat a benched dol and a benched luxray with 2 energy on it. I go in and do some double cosmic powering drawing into 1 of my 3 remaining warps and then warp him. He takes a while, then sends up claydol and I KO it with a different, 90hp pluff. Prizes are at 4-4 he sends up crobat and draws, takes a while...... then some more time..... and then plays premier ball which I'm sure he top decked and then they called time. I looked at my board, looked at him and before I knew it there was already a luxray X on the field. That was it, I had lost to time after completely destroying his board and hand in one turn. I was in disbelief, this stalling player who made a terrible deck choice was going to go home with not only the win, but the glass that I was so sure I deserved. I shook his hand, said bye to everyone and left. 1-2
Props
Jumpluff for going to the gym everyday
Giratina, it's awesome!
Truk and Genny for being cool
Chad for inventing Jumpluff
Everyone for cracking me up Norwalk crew Garden Grovers, Ricky, Ruben, Albert and Eddy
Chago for just being at the event even though you suck at the game rofl! If I had to pick a BFF it would be you bro.
Josh Bangle
Slops
Karl, for not anticipating the huge attendance even though he "ran" a majority of the cities in California.
Blissey Prime
The food, it was expensive and tasteless
Staller
Lady luck, why don't you find me attractive?
Karl, for giving a dinner break and 7 rounds instead of no dinner break and 8 rounds.
$12 Parking
Josh Bangle
