This tourney was run by one of our 4 TD's here, but not the usual one,who is also a Red Squadron member, so he could play in a tourney since 8 months!
This Red Squadron is a cool guy, I know him since I started playing. He qualified for the 1st World Championship being very young (I think he was 17 by then). He became inmediatly a Squadron member (48, I guess), has been running most of our tourneys. This past year he even bring our Regional to be celebrated here in Madrid (the 2 before were in Barcelona, 500 km. away...). And he has contributed translating SWCCG to spanish, which I hope to be released sometime...
We and me were menacing each other this past week, via e-mail:
dj: 'Hey, Cuky (his name), cool that you play so I can humiliate you...'
Cuky: 'Yeah, tell me the same after you hear: I drain you for a total of 24'
dj: 'I find your lack of pants disturbing...'
Cuky: (unable to translate)
Okay, into the tourney. We were only 12 players, and for once, my friend Victor and me weren't paired! yeah!
Game #1 (dj's DS 'Trying Not To Be Cheese ISB' vs. LS Tibrin Operatives)
I played my 1st game with a boy about 16 that I've seen playing a lot, but it was his 1st tourney. I was so scared -I always begin tourneys really nervous- that I completely destroyed him. It wasn't fun, believe me.
I start, got 2 locations in hand and stuff. Deploy the locations and draw. He looks for his location, deploys an operative and 1 Ithorian. I already had 4 ISB in hand, including 5D6, Scout Walker and 2 more locations. I deploy the locations and draw up to 12 in hand. I eat his drain with a Control, he deploys another operative to another location with another guy ability 3. I know hes going to die because I dont think that's a good timing to deploy if you play operatives, and cause I had in hand, more or less, Tarkin, Zuckuss, his ship, 2 ORS, 2 Probe droids, Bubo (!), a Dune Walker plus 2 locations. Deployed ORS to Tatooine with the Scout Walker and a Probe, and 5D6 to his planet. He seems not to have more characters in hand, so he draws. There goes Zuckuss, another Probe and Bubo to munch on his Momaw Nadon and get some cleaning over there, and move my characters away so I'll drain 12 next turn (2 at his planet, 2 at JP:AC, 2 at T:JP, 3 at T:LMFarm, and 3 at T:JWastes. (Hey, I'm talking this is 3rd turn). I dont know what happened with his deck, I think it's just he has to learn how to play that kind of deck. It happened to me at first with ISB. He also, I think, got a really bad draw. (I finished my game in about 15 minutes, so I traded something and saw how Cuky was about to loose his game, but ended winning by 1!). Win by 31 (2+31)
Game #2 (dj's 'Fake HB/Tatooine Celebration/'Savrip made my day' deck vs. I. Esteban's)
This guy is a cool person, young (about 19 I think), and pretty good player -well, we both are always at same ranking, I dont know if that's being 'pretty good' :-)
We played each other at the previous tourney, and my HB killed him well. We got paired the game after and his HB killed my ops (my deck wasnt tuned enough...).
We had a very good time then, so we were happy to play again. We kept menacing, bluffin' and mind tricking each other all the time. :-) Both knew that his DS and my LS deck are mostly 'reacting' decks, so, when I could amass 32 force, I finally deployed Ben & stick, EPP Luke & Anakin's, Chewbacca and EPP Han to my Jundland Wastes. He then deployed Vader, Tarkin and another guy to a CC site which drains +1 (I don remember...) *AND* U3PO to my site. I was waiting for that.
My turn I deploy Mister R3PO to the site and EPP Leia with Lando to a site adjacent to his guys, Mantellian Savrip and Meditation on Leia. Of course, I had a Nabrun, as I knew he had an Elis, but as we kept leaving some cards in our force pile, no one tried anything. And I never got my Frozen Assets. I dont know very well how this was, but mostly, me running and blocking some of his drains where he was weak, me draining for 4 at my site (I didn't get more locations, grrrr...) and a big fight at Tatooine system between Executor and my ships (and Savrip) to back up TatCelebration.
At the end, it was a matter of a single turn. If I had had 1 more card, I'd won. But no. Loss by 4 (2+27)
Game #3 (dj's DS deck vs. I. Esteban's HB deck -with Corvettes)
Hehheheh, 2nd tourney in a row we get paired two times. Cool! More
menacing, threatening, etc., with big laughs and people coming to see a
bunch of cards on table (overdeploying, yeah!).
Well, I took my time since I know his drains at systems wouldn't hurt me until 4-5th turn. I get like 3 locations in hand, and Resistance. Deploy, draw and get 2 more locations, the Victory-Class SD, Bossk In His Bus and 3 ISB. He deploys locations, draws. I deploy, draw, and get Zuckuss, his ship, but no more ISB! Grrrr... I flip my Objective next turn, and drained him for once before he can flip his.
He got his fleet all over the sky for then, The Planet That Is Farthest From on Dagobah, with Chewbacca with KFC aboard Tantive, draining at Kessel meanwhile preparing to go to Tatooine to crush me.
Next turn, as you see, I drained for a big fat 0. Let me tell you how I survived... It was his fault! I deployed 3 more sites, Sunsdown on Tatooine for free deploying of my 4 ISB in hand, Vader&Stick, and the Victory to Kessel, which I probed with a Probe. Then moved to Dagobah (his fault for leaving it alone) and cancelled TPTIFF. The game changed.
He cancelled 2 of my force drains and I ate 7 from his systems, but I deployed BIHT with another Probe to Tatooine, probed with my Restraining Bolt (it's good to get it back -destiny 6- after finding the Hidden Base!) and moved to Yavin 4. After recirculating, I used Masterful Move to get Ghhhk in hand... His face was turning blue.
His turn, deploys, I probe Yavin 4 and IT IS THE BASE! Yeah! He battles me there, but the droid aboard eats the attrition, I loose 1 more and BITH is still flying. I move then the Victory to meet Bossk at Tatooine and drain 2 morefor a total of 14 (2 at Tatooine, 2 at JP:AC, 3 at T:JP, 3 at T:LarsMF, 4 at T:Jawa Camp (with Darth+saber+ISB here and Expand the Empire in the middle). Ouch! He even tried to land on Tatooine with EPP Leia, but It was too late. Even though, I only won by 9. Again, the battles were with ships. The game was mostly about strategy. For me, there were in it everything I like of this game. For example, I even traded my Princess Organa for his Jabba The Hutt MEANWHILE playing... but I'm considering now that was another ****ing mind trick... :-) Win by 9 (4+36)
Game #4 (dj's LS deck vs. ... Cuky's ISB/Dark Deal deck)
I was scared, I have to recognize it. But he looked to be too! Cool! It happended that he was undefeated, but If I'd won for +20 I'd win the tourney. That, if another guy doesn't win his game, cause he had higher differential. Woaw! Our tourneys are always very competitive and balance, as you see...
Cuky told me to make a deal. We will share the prize if any of us ended 1st. That was cool by him, cause this way we played more comfortably. And it was incredible:
Sorry, I dont remember it each turn. But we both got playing NOT our objective. In 2nd turn we were battling almost every turn (and I had deployed Draw Their Fire... big laughs!). I got incredibly bad luck when I deployed my RLIR1 to his B:Cloud City against his BIHT & multiple ships. The first battle I wiped out 2 of his ships (I used Savrip) leaving his Bus alone against my Red Leader. Can you believe I drew like three 0 in 3 battles there? And can you believe he did the same??? The best was the final battle between a Nabruned EPP Leia and EPP Luke from the Wampa Cave (where they had to deal with a Wampa!) vs. a Dune Walker on Cloud City! Yeah! Loss by 12 (4+24)
Cuky ended 1st, the only one undefeated. The other guy who had some chances got creamed by Victor (my pal -who was very angry after losing his first game... and ended 2nd). I ended 4th.
The prize was a box of SE for the winner (which Cuky and I shared. He changed his boosters for Star Trek Dominion's. I got Jabba in mines). Everybody got 2 Premiere boosters. Everybody got crap. We were 10 players, and as you see, it's very competitive here, but everybody plays for fun =)
dj