Hi
It has been a pretty slim season for pokemon for our family as sports and work have dominated most of my time. I was pretty happy when I got the chance to hit the road with the family and spend time together traveling to the MW regional. What makes pokemon travel so special is the fact that you get family time seeing friends from other areas of the country. These are some of my favorite people and me and my family has found memories of times spent with them at pokemon events. It truely is the best part of the game.
I decided to play a rogue deck. Surprise! I chose to play a cess beach lock houndoom absol deck. It had tested well locally and I thought it had a chance in this meta. Here's the strategy. Either an absol or houndour start is OK. You will mulligan with the low basic count. Lock a cess and fetch a beach using a scott/castaway based search engine. If you start with absol, apply a cess and bayful wind away hands. Build houndoom on the bench. Houndoom is the main hitter, If you start with a houndour, build a doom, apply a cess, drop the gym, and attack. The crystal beach negates the use of DRE in this deck but my supporter engine is designed to fetch basic energy so it combos well with scott castaway. With the low poke count I am able to play a few gym counters to allow the use of a few tech dre's, Tauros was big in this tournies metagame as a counter to gyms. The cess crystal stopped the use of tauros so I was able to stick gyms and stop scrambles all day long. The deck is only about 50/50 against GG and magmorter but I figured that I would not see many windstorms so I went with it. We test til 12, I don't get enough sleep, we eat at a amish breakfast , and head to the tourney. Here is how my day went....
Round 1 - Scott fellow OldPoke with magmorter/delcatty/typlosion
Figures, round 1 - I face my good friend Scott. He has been hot all year long and is super with this deck. As I mentioned the houndoom match up is about a 50/50 . I managed to get a cess and a beach lock with a houndoom and got ahead quickly. Scott came roaring back in the last ten minutes. The game was in question til the last turn where I luck sacked the two cards I needed on the last 2 cards of a stevens for a narrow victory. It was the best game I played in all day. 1-0
Round 2 - Nick -Feraligator
Nick had a delta deck that relied on powers to work. I got a turn 3 doom after using absol/cess to destroy his set up. I benched him. 2-0
Round 3 - Jordon - GG
I again manage a turn 2 doom with a cess beach lock and bench him quickly. 3-0
Round 4 -Cris Fullop - GG
Again another friend. Everybody knows Chris. He is a legend in this game. I again have a turn 2 doom and he draws nothing and I bench him quick. We play 2 side games and he crushes me in both. He quickly exploits the decks weakness in both games with the correct build of GG. I write note to self, play lotto on way home. 4-0 I am wondering around in a caffine induced coma at this point.
Round 5 _ My son Dan GG
What do you do here? Here is what I did. I opened with a perfect hand, never attached, He benched me turn 3. No telling who would have won as Dan knows how to beat this deck but for me I would rather he get the win. 4-1
Round 6 BT Magmorter/Blaze
Wow, another friend. I now begin wondering about the pairings process Oh well. The up side is I enjoy BT's wit and we always have good laughs when we battle. He hates this match up as I have done well in recent testing with him. I tell him it is 50/50 and suggest he use the power of positive thoughts! We start and I mulligan 3 times (a down side of this deck) and the hand I get stuck with is weak and lame compared to the previous 3. I never get a cess lock and BT plows thru me like a hot knife thru butter. 4-2
I am now back on planet earth as the caffine wears off and find myself in 13th going into the last round. It was a top 16 so I had to win.
Round 7 Heather - magmorter/blaze
Wow another magmorter. This game went back and forth at first but then I got the upper hand with the cess/beach/doom lock and benched her. 5-2
I wait for the standings and find out both me and my son are in. Too much.
Top 16 - Rob D zero supporter togikiss/garchomp/claydol
Again, another good friend. Bummer. Rob is also fellow OldPoke and has place high in many regional and national events. His decks are always unique. This deck plays no supporters and is super fast and stable. We discuss the match up and he states that these will be quick games and could go either way. He wins the 1st game in 2 turns. I win the next 2 games in pretty short order with the cess lock. 6-2
Top 8 -Austin Reed GG
I am not to confident going into this match up. 1st game he wins pretty quick. Next 2 games go long as we both draw nothing. In game 2 I used an absol cess beach lock and discarded a bunch of good stuff. I finally get a doom going and he scoops as key cards are buried in his prizes. Game 3 I get out faster and he again has key cards in his prizes and I end up ahead on prizes as time is called. I am now shaking as a danagerous amount of adrenaline rushes though my veins. Between rounds I kick back and start to crash. It is getting late and I need more coffee!
Top 4 Matt GG
Matt is undefeated. I figure at 50/50 I am due to lose. I get 2nd turn dooms in 2 games straight with the cess beach lock. His deck stalls and he gets nothing. I bench him in 2 quick games. Wow top 2. It is now past my bedtime. My good friend Rob comes thru with a cup of joe. I wait around for 40 minutes until my top2 opponent is determined.
Top 2 AJ GG
AJ is another super player and he has the correct tech and build to beat my deck as does so easily in 2 pleasant but quick games. Good job AJ!!
I finish 2nd. I am pleased with this rogue decks performance at such a large event, We pack up and drive home. It was another wonderful pokemon weekend.
Props
Good times with good people
Dan making cut in his first masters regional
Well run tourney - GJ & GL Dererk
Slops
Horse dung on my shoe, wasn't looking, Amish Country
Rain and cold
It has been a pretty slim season for pokemon for our family as sports and work have dominated most of my time. I was pretty happy when I got the chance to hit the road with the family and spend time together traveling to the MW regional. What makes pokemon travel so special is the fact that you get family time seeing friends from other areas of the country. These are some of my favorite people and me and my family has found memories of times spent with them at pokemon events. It truely is the best part of the game.
I decided to play a rogue deck. Surprise! I chose to play a cess beach lock houndoom absol deck. It had tested well locally and I thought it had a chance in this meta. Here's the strategy. Either an absol or houndour start is OK. You will mulligan with the low basic count. Lock a cess and fetch a beach using a scott/castaway based search engine. If you start with absol, apply a cess and bayful wind away hands. Build houndoom on the bench. Houndoom is the main hitter, If you start with a houndour, build a doom, apply a cess, drop the gym, and attack. The crystal beach negates the use of DRE in this deck but my supporter engine is designed to fetch basic energy so it combos well with scott castaway. With the low poke count I am able to play a few gym counters to allow the use of a few tech dre's, Tauros was big in this tournies metagame as a counter to gyms. The cess crystal stopped the use of tauros so I was able to stick gyms and stop scrambles all day long. The deck is only about 50/50 against GG and magmorter but I figured that I would not see many windstorms so I went with it. We test til 12, I don't get enough sleep, we eat at a amish breakfast , and head to the tourney. Here is how my day went....
Round 1 - Scott fellow OldPoke with magmorter/delcatty/typlosion
Figures, round 1 - I face my good friend Scott. He has been hot all year long and is super with this deck. As I mentioned the houndoom match up is about a 50/50 . I managed to get a cess and a beach lock with a houndoom and got ahead quickly. Scott came roaring back in the last ten minutes. The game was in question til the last turn where I luck sacked the two cards I needed on the last 2 cards of a stevens for a narrow victory. It was the best game I played in all day. 1-0
Round 2 - Nick -Feraligator
Nick had a delta deck that relied on powers to work. I got a turn 3 doom after using absol/cess to destroy his set up. I benched him. 2-0
Round 3 - Jordon - GG
I again manage a turn 2 doom with a cess beach lock and bench him quickly. 3-0
Round 4 -Cris Fullop - GG
Again another friend. Everybody knows Chris. He is a legend in this game. I again have a turn 2 doom and he draws nothing and I bench him quick. We play 2 side games and he crushes me in both. He quickly exploits the decks weakness in both games with the correct build of GG. I write note to self, play lotto on way home. 4-0 I am wondering around in a caffine induced coma at this point.
Round 5 _ My son Dan GG
What do you do here? Here is what I did. I opened with a perfect hand, never attached, He benched me turn 3. No telling who would have won as Dan knows how to beat this deck but for me I would rather he get the win. 4-1
Round 6 BT Magmorter/Blaze
Wow, another friend. I now begin wondering about the pairings process Oh well. The up side is I enjoy BT's wit and we always have good laughs when we battle. He hates this match up as I have done well in recent testing with him. I tell him it is 50/50 and suggest he use the power of positive thoughts! We start and I mulligan 3 times (a down side of this deck) and the hand I get stuck with is weak and lame compared to the previous 3. I never get a cess lock and BT plows thru me like a hot knife thru butter. 4-2
I am now back on planet earth as the caffine wears off and find myself in 13th going into the last round. It was a top 16 so I had to win.
Round 7 Heather - magmorter/blaze
Wow another magmorter. This game went back and forth at first but then I got the upper hand with the cess/beach/doom lock and benched her. 5-2
I wait for the standings and find out both me and my son are in. Too much.
Top 16 - Rob D zero supporter togikiss/garchomp/claydol
Again, another good friend. Bummer. Rob is also fellow OldPoke and has place high in many regional and national events. His decks are always unique. This deck plays no supporters and is super fast and stable. We discuss the match up and he states that these will be quick games and could go either way. He wins the 1st game in 2 turns. I win the next 2 games in pretty short order with the cess lock. 6-2
Top 8 -Austin Reed GG
I am not to confident going into this match up. 1st game he wins pretty quick. Next 2 games go long as we both draw nothing. In game 2 I used an absol cess beach lock and discarded a bunch of good stuff. I finally get a doom going and he scoops as key cards are buried in his prizes. Game 3 I get out faster and he again has key cards in his prizes and I end up ahead on prizes as time is called. I am now shaking as a danagerous amount of adrenaline rushes though my veins. Between rounds I kick back and start to crash. It is getting late and I need more coffee!
Top 4 Matt GG
Matt is undefeated. I figure at 50/50 I am due to lose. I get 2nd turn dooms in 2 games straight with the cess beach lock. His deck stalls and he gets nothing. I bench him in 2 quick games. Wow top 2. It is now past my bedtime. My good friend Rob comes thru with a cup of joe. I wait around for 40 minutes until my top2 opponent is determined.
Top 2 AJ GG
AJ is another super player and he has the correct tech and build to beat my deck as does so easily in 2 pleasant but quick games. Good job AJ!!
I finish 2nd. I am pleased with this rogue decks performance at such a large event, We pack up and drive home. It was another wonderful pokemon weekend.
Props
Good times with good people
Dan making cut in his first masters regional
Well run tourney - GJ & GL Dererk
Slops
Horse dung on my shoe, wasn't looking, Amish Country
Rain and cold
Last edited:
.
