lakewood-wa-8-18-00

Title: lakewood-wa-8-18-00
Author: Douglas "Douglas" Harvilla
Date: Aug 19, 2000

Eleven players braved the downpour that always seems to follow me into Lakewood for Roy Scales’ latest tournament at Coach’s Corner Collectibles. After spening two hours in traffic (Seattle’s rush hour is five days long), I reached the place with only a few minutes to spare, so I’ve got no time to build a new Light deck.

Light Side: "Super Mon" - A hoot to play, it starts with Home One: War Room (thumbing my nose at Sarkli) and sets up big drains in space while holding its own on the ground with a fair-sized mains complement and some anti-Rops tech.

Dark Side: "Vader, May I?" - Hunt Down updated for the new environment, more powerful than it has ever been. It wins a lot, and your vanquished foe gets that look on his face. You know, the one from the slasher movies, before the preppy prankster gets butchered by the old guy he left for dead on the roadside.

THAT look.


Game 1 - DS versus Paul Eaton’s Mains and Toys

He starts with Home One: War Room, I get all my Hunt Down stuff out, plus IAO, Mobilization Points, and Crush The Rebellion. On our first turns, we just deploy docking bays and draw. Second turn, I get Vader down to Death Star: Docking Bay 327 and flip.

Paul is still a bit short on force, so he deploys a couple Yavin twix sites. I deploy Mara and her saber to the Yavin War Room. He saves all his force on his turn, so he must have a hit squad of mains ready to go. Deploy the Emperor at the War Room with Mara and move him over to the Headquarters.

EPP Leia, EPP Obi-Wan, and Chewbacca of Kashyyyk deploy to pound Mara, but when Paul tries to initiate battle, I remind him of the game text on Their Fire Has Gone Out Of The Universe. No battles there. He doesn’t have enough force to move them all to the HQ, which is now a battleground thanks to Palpatine’s icon, so he draws and ends his turn.

Move Mara to the HQ on my turn. Paul deploys Yavin 4 and reveals Gold Squadron 1 to go get a pilot and deploy them. He finds Nien, and deploys him with the ship. Track destiny, deploy Zuckuss In Mist Hunter and Bossk In Hound’s Tooth, battle. Flip a 5 and 7, clearing out the system and making him lose some force.

Paul deploys EPP Han to face Mara and Palpatine, and moves his other three mains over. You Are Beaten on Obi-Wan, deploy IG-88 With Riot Gun, battle, capture Han. I Have You Now (he’s a Dark Jedi) adds a destiny and I clear the site of Rebels, forfeiting Mara. The drains and Visage end it quickly.

Win by 32

2(+32)
Highs: Inteaction. Seeing someone else go objectiveless.
Lows: None, really.


Game 2 - LS versus James Medlin’s Endor Troopers

James starts with the Death Star, IAO, Mobilization Points, and An Entire Legion Of My Best Troops. I start with the Home One: War Room, Insurrection, Squadron Assignments, and Your Insights Will Serve You Well for flexibility.

We both get docking bays out. I draw Endor in my opening hand, so I ditch Insights for Strike Planning and go get my Generals. Squadron Assignments for Gold Squadron 1 to match General Calrissian, and deploy both at Endor to get the ball rolling.

He drops an ability 2 Imperial to the Endor: Landing Platform for force generation. I deploy EPP Leia and a H’nemthe, Draw Their Fire, and battle, retrieving my Insights. Shoot him, 3. Battle destiny of 4, he loses the Imperial and 6 cards.

James deploys a Great Forest and inexplicably pays the extra 2 for the H’nemthe and deploys an Elite Squadron Stormtrooper to the Landing Platform with a Blaster Rifle, He battles and plays Trooper Assault. I want to keep him there for a pounding next turn, so I pass up the shot and decline to draw battle destiny. Lose by 1, cover it from hand. No force left, so he can’t move away to the Great Forest.

Deploy EPP Han and Wedge to the Landing Platform with Leia and the H’nemthe, battle, shoot the Elite Stormie twice, 0 and 3. Draw two battle destiny, 3 and 2. 16 to 3, he loses 13 cards. On his turn, he deploys Mara and her saber to my War Room. I just reinforce Calrissian with Luke on R2 In Red 5. Menace Fades kills his drain bonus, though, and Honor Of The Jedi wipes out the remaining 2 force loss, so Mara is quite harmless.

As a last gasp, he drops Colonel Davod Jon at the Great Forest. I trap him for a beatdown. He takes a bit more battle damage and drains end the game soon after.

Win by 32

4(+64)
Highs: There were some battles.
Lows: Couldn’t get to the Death Star to drain. I tried.


Game 3 - LS versus James Bedford’s non-objective Jabba’s Palace

James starts with Lars’ Moisture Farm and goes for JP with Combat Readiness. I get my three effects. He gets out his JP sites, I get out my docking bays. Getting Kiffex in my opening hand, I can’t resist going for the early damage, though I suspect he might be setting up for inserts. My deck satisfies Battle Order easily, at least, and reshuffles like mad, so I’m not too concerned.

Ditch Your Insights Serve You Well for Strike Planning, get General Calrissian from the deck, followed by Gold Squadron 1 with Squassin to take over Kiffex. I’m sure Lando doesn’t object to being used in an early-game gamble. Unfortunately, James is ready for me. He deploys Zuckuss In Mist Hunter against Gen. Cal. and battles. He flips a 1, I get a zero, which is reduced to zero by ZIMH. Phooey.

So he loses by 1 and covers it from hand. My turn, I still am not seeing any more ships or ability 4 pilots who could help Cal take down the Mist Hunter. So I drop Jeroen, who at least cuts my opponent’s battle destiny down. Draw Their Fire, battle, retrieve Insights, and snicker when I flip a zero and it is again reduced to zero by Zuckuss In Mist Hunter. James gets a 1, which is also reduced to zero.

He loses by 4 this time and loses it all from his Reserve Deck, including the Executor. The situation at Kiffex is now getting downright absurd. So James drops Dengar In Punishing One and battles, getting a 3 and making me forfeit Jeroen. Thankfully, however, I’ve drawn the cards to clean up this mess.

Deploy EPP Luke piloting and General Solo in the backseat, battle, play Don’t Get Cocky. Now I’m gonna do it, gonna clear this system come hell or high water. Draw a 1, a 1, and a 2. It really isn’t a low-destiny deck, folks, honest. James is having some bad draws still, too, and flips a 1. Still enough to make me lose General Solo, since DIPO canceled my immunity.

He forfeits ZIMH instead of DIPO, curiously. Then he has nowhere to run the poor ship to, nowhere to land, and nothing to back it up with.
All he can do is get his theme started on the ground, with Jabba The Hutt and EPP Boba at the Audience Chamber. On my turn, I deploy Thaneespi to the War Room, making Home One deploy -5 and power +3. I hear a faint "oh, no."

Deploy Home One at Kiffex and battle, draw a 3 for battle destiny. 25 power to 4, he loses DIPO and 16 more cards. Now that I’m in control of space, James fortifies on the ground with Vader at Lars’ Moisture Farm. He gets me for a couple turns there and at the Audience Chamber. I cancel the big drain with Control and wait for an opportunity to strike. Meanwhile, I get Liberty with General Blissex piloting to Kessel.

James deploys Pote Snitkin and General Tagge at Jabba’s Palace to try and inch ahead in the drain race. I track a few destiny and drop EPP Leia, EPP Han, and Biggs. Battle, shoot both of his characters, draw a 4 and a 5 for battle destiny, he gets a 5. He loses by 8, and this is all he has left.

Win by 25

6(+89)
Highs: Lots of fights in space, and some on the ground.
Lows: Frantically trying to get reinforcements to Kiffex.


Game 4 - DS versus David Kitzman’s Train To 6 Deck

Sigh. Time to face the turtle n’ pounce deck.

We get out our effects, I have a strange opening draw with 3 Senses, no Alters. Deploy Vader to DB 327, flip. Kitz gets out Honor on his first turn. Needless to say, he doesn’t have a battleground to protect it, but I can’t take advantage of that.

Drawing cards, I eventually hit a pair of Alters and take two shots at Honor. Both miss, so I’ve got to wait and just keep up my modest drains. I back Vader up with Tarkin. Not anxious to face these two if he can pounce on a weaker force, Kitz lures me out for a beating
by deploying Mos Eisley.

I oblige and take the place with Emperor Palpatine and Mara Jade, The Emperor’s Hand. Weaker force, my foot. He goes after Vader and Tarkin instead. EPP Han, EPP Obi-Wan, ECC Chewie, Draw Their Fire, battle. I’ve got force saved, so I cancel Han’s text with Put All Sections On Alert, and play I Have You Now. But he plays Life Debt, shoots at Tarkin, and plays Slight Weapons Malfunction.

Unfortunately, Test 3 cuts my attrition down low enough that Obi covers all the attrition. So Chewie and Han stay, Vader and Tarkin are out of action. Drain at Mos Eisley, deploy Lord Vader with his saber, battle, You Are Beaten on Han, slice Chewie, but flip a 1 for battle destiny, which is reduced to zero. Oh well.

Next turn, back Vader up with Janus Greejatus, who does no good with Palpatine since Great Warrior is in effect. Kitz drops Jedi Luke with Luke’s Lightsaber at DB 327. Han is back to normal, so he shoots Janus and Slight Weapons Malfunction adds a battle destiny, Don’t Get Cocky adds a couple more. He swings and hits Lord Vader, I swing and hit Jedi Luke, despite Test 3. Flip a 3, so he has to forfeit them both.

Unfortunately, I lose the battle by a lot and take a big hit on my life force. Next turn, I still manage to get Lord Vader down and flip. Now Kitz is out of characters (too many interrupts, maybe?) and can’t do anything to stop my drains. He deploys ECC Lando against Mara and the Emperor in a suicide move, and gets clobbered senseless.

Win by 8

8 (+97)
Highs: Outlasting the pounce deck.
Lows: A bad shuffle, having to spread out like a buffet to get any damage past the turtle shell.

So I finish 4-0 and win the tournament, making up for the long drive down and back from Bothell. Earlier, I remarked that the entry fees had gone to the shopowner and were not used for prize support, but I’ve since contacted the TD and cleared the matter up. Roy was supposed to receive Cloud City packs from Decipher for prize support, but these did not arrive and the store owner supplied the prizes himself. When we
received Cloud City boosters as our prizes, I was under the impression that these were the prizes supplied by Decipher and not by Coach’s Corner Collectables. I aplogize to the owner of Coach’s Corner Collectables and the Decktech readers for this confusion.

Thanks to Roy Scales for running another fine tournament, and getting us back on the road in short order. Two rounds and done right on schedule, shortly after ten.