parker-06-29-01-the-whos-keen-show
Title: parker-06-29-01-the-whos-keen-show
Author: Jason "Qui" Keen
Date: Jul 12, 2001
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You can feel me coming, a new vibration! You can see me coming, I’m a sensation!
Prologue:
So Colorado we know that John Arendt is the State Champion, hence he is the only one in Colorado with a Bye into Day 2 of Worlds, however Brain Hunter did not. So the Ultimate goal of this tournament was to get into one of the Top 2 spots and get a bye into Day 2 since I would really like to go to worlds this year. So this was not going to be an easy task seeing that I have a 1844 rating going into this weekend, at a glance I AM not Day 2 material. This weekend was going to be a 3-day Collectormania Festivus so I wanted to do a lot of play testing to prepare for the meta. So in the prior week I was able to play with a rather new compatriot of mine Josh Bader, who is rather knowledgeable of this game, and the great John Arendt who I am blessed to play test with. I’m not going to say this is the most that I have play tested for a tournament, but I felt pretty good about walking in and trying to upset some great players. I additionally had no real clue who was gonna show up for this tournament, being an open in Colorado I imagined we would see some great players. So after play testing I decided on my decks, Pods, Profit and @#$%es (go look at it and rate please) , and My Garrison Hunter Wannabe deck. I felt confident that I could win most of my games with these decks, although they of course have broken weaknesses.
Since I came down from Ft. Collins I decided to stay in a hotel for the Weekend with my friend Tom Meade of Team Loveland fame. I however would drive down to the tournament with Jeremy Gray, a SW player of major obscurity, however a member of Team Collins. I have apparently put myself into Team Collins and Loveland now? We rolled out of my Crib in Collins at like 10am and got to Collectormania at about noon. We opened the day up with an Old Skool sealed deck which involved a Limited Premiere Starter deck, 2 Limited A New Hope Packs, and 2 Unlimited Premiere Packs. This was about a 14 person tournament and was hellacious fun, I however got the worst Ability/Starship draw ever so I went 2-2 and did absolutely nothing in the Tourney. It was this evenings Tournament that was important however. The tournament was at 7pm and the Grand Prize was a SET of DS2, for a 5 dollar entry fee. Not bad if I do say so myself. What was more important was that good players such as Brian Hunter, Van Melancanon, Josh Bader, Matt Reicks were all present to compete for this action. What was tricky about this tournament is that it was a 4 gamer, which pretty much meant that I would HAVE to go 4-0 to even compete for 1st place. So decided to jump in the water and bust out my decks that I have play tested to hell and back against John and Josh and hope they do good.
Game 1 Mike Girard MKOS Mains vs. Pods, Profit, and @#$%es!
Me and Girard have a little history dating back to the CO Grand Slam in April of 2000. I don’t feel like going into to too much detail but involved me winning the game due to a Non-Epic Vader’s Obsession it was too damn classic. However in my career against Girard I am 1-0. I think Girard is a pretty good player considering how active he is in the game, and he comes from the cheesiest SW state in the country in my opinion. However, this game had been a long awaited rematch, hence there was a little trash talking going on before the game. And it did amount to something, this was a rather fun game. He was using the Chevin/Chall Bekan Deck Type of this Mains Deck so it was pretty solid against the Profit Beats. But since I run Both the Camp and Goo Nee Tay, the gayness builds up really quick. I believe I won the Podrace in about 3 turns this game by flipping 25 by the 3rd turn. All the while Mike built up his Audience Chamber. He of course flips easy due to the fact all the locations are Tatooine. I on the other hand started the Game with Mirax Terrik and Naked 3PO so I could stack my deck, literally. Basically I built up for a mean beat crew for after the race that would deploy to the Jabba’s Palace and then move inside and beat down. I don’t remember specifics about who lost what characters and what not, but I invade with the Jedi Trifecta and that is enough to make him run at least (Chevins/Challs saved his bacon) As soon as a I clear the AC to flip he plays a spy on my dumb @#$% So I can’t drain like a madman in the AC. So the Game quickly became me digging for my stuff to kill spies. At the Same time I move my other Direct Damage Mains out to deal with the Aliens he’s trying to deal drain damage to me with. A very well played game, but as soon as the spy was cleared, I was able to deal more damage to him. A well played game by a true sportsman. Full Win +26
Highs: Getting to play against MKOS, a deck that I believed to be deader than dead in our region.
Lows: Getting my drain blocked in the AC because of u3PO for like 5 turns.
2 +26
A pretty strong start, but it could put me in a place to get my @#$% kicked in by Hunter or Bader, however . . .
Game 2 Joe Helfrich RST Explosion vs. My Garrison Hunter Wannabe
I have played against Joe’s deck before, I have also mentioned how I have an excellent record career wise against Joe (like 4-0) so I was stoked that I avoided Hunter, Bader, and Fanchi somehow. There isn’t too much to report in this game cause it was very non-confrontational. Basically I set up the Executor, play some walkers, do some effect DD. He blows up the bunker, I put my hand back in and track it. In the final turns I get my Garrisons back due to the RST Explosion Tracking, and I hit him for like 20 in one control phase. He sets up everyone on Endor, he never came to play, even after he made me lose my hand. In a sense it was an easily won silly game, cause if you let Garrison do what it wants to do then it will win. Although the game was not a blowout, it was enough to get me into the Win Column. Full Win +9
Highs: Mr. Garrison coming through for me in Parker, Colorado.
Lows: Not killing off Joe before the explosion, the Garrison deck is sooooo slow.
4 +35
Still doing pretty good, I saw Hunter pound Fanchi into the ground right next to me by like 39 so I know I don’t have that kind of diff. I was a little worried that it wouldn’t matter if I went 4-0 cause Brian would have like 1.2346553454 million diff. But I just said to myself I got to hang in there.
Game 3 Justin Beal QMC vs. My Garrison Hunter Wannabe
This was a good match up in theory for my deck, cause I ignore the CC action, but try to take hold of Bespin, and I tech heavily against this retarded ness, Overload, Endor Occupation. So in theory this is a great match up for me. Will it prove True? Just gets going quick. He Flips pretty fast Getting Leia to her room and Luke to the +1 Drain location. He gets Melas and Dash in the Outrider to hold Bespin, that is gonna be a pain. But I also do my own thing and I set up the Executor and all that jazz. I get some walkers, I get Igar in a walker, I start doing awesome damage with YMSYL, the Admirals Order that does damage, and my Drains of about 5. This causes Justin to love cards from his deck, and I see some of his space fall of the table. I play Arica to Luke to prevent a drain of 2 there, so Justin is pinging me for 2, and I’m getting him for a few. Justin Brings down Qui-Gon I believe to kill a walker. And he k9ill the walker, but when good ol’ Qui drains he gets eaten up by the Always thinking with your Stomach interrupt. The next turn he brings down Wedge and Corran Horn to try to find Qui-Gon, but to no avail. So I only hold 2 Hoth sites, and Hoth, while he drains me. I decide to make the mad bash for Space control. I decide to play the Chimeara and the Grand Admiral on top of the Outrider and I battle. I don’t do amazing damage but I crack the attrition with like 5 or 6 and he has to lose his pilot. So now I have space control, and the Battle Order in effect, not mine, but his ; ) So I begin to sit back on my drains and direct damage while he kind of fades away due to no retrieval. It become hard for him to do damage to me with the Battle Plan kicking his @#$% so in a sense Battle Plan wins again : P Full Win by +15
Highs: Another good match up for me, but also a well played game, Justin played that game about as well as he could, but I was able to control the board and win it.
Lows: Sigh, Mr. Garrison has such low differential, so it is no good, and first place may be out of reach ; (
6 +50
Hum so I need to win my last game to even compete . . . Unless, what? Josh Bader Beat Brian Hunter in round 3, kick ass! So me and Josh are the only 3-0 and I can’t play Josh cause he played dark that last game too. Yay! I might be able to win the Set of DS2 if I win my next game.
Game 4 Courtney Haggerty Pods & Odds vs. Profit
Wow, I have been dreading this match up cause Pods are so gay, and seeing that this is what Hunter lost too also, I was in trouble. But like did the Hagg from Utah know that I am heavily teched against the Podracing, but interestingly enough, the Hagg decides to forgo the Watto’s Box and plays another effect. SO sweet, now I have a much better Chance. He also does not give any aliens. So I’m set, I’ll pop Han quick and eat damage from Visage, and so will the Hagg, and while I do that I’ll try to win the Podrace. Now since I play 3 a step backwards I should be set, and I am. Due to enough Steps, I’m able to take the race with my gay high destinies. So I win the Race. Additionally, the Hagg can never get his Odds going, he popped me once for 3 cause I had 3 to his 6, and Then I got the Ultimatum swinging late game so I wouldn’t die to the Cheese. It must have taken Courtney forever to get out his Vader and Tech Mor’ either way, the Pod Damage and the DD Damage did Courtney in, there was no confrontation against Vader so I took the game. Full Win +29
Highs: Winning against a feared deck type and playing the Hagg, what a cool Utah person, it proves that Mormons are not all that bad, not that he’s a Mormon, I would never say that about anybody.
Lows: Feeling the love from 3720 to 1 for 3 cards . . . Cheese~
8 +79
Wow so it seems Josh Bader lost to Brian in the uber revenge beat down game. Brian always takes his revenge . . . ALWAYS. But his revenge twas bitter sweet cause at the end of the night I have 4 wins and he did not. In fact I was the only fool with 4 wins, making me the Tournament Winnah! So this means that I get the Phat Lewt, aka DS2 set - 3 cards, but hey I still got the power cards. This was a tourney I will relish cause I placed higher than Brian Hunter for the first time in my life, I’m sure it will be the last. But this is how you can win a Parker Tournament, without having to play Brian, while he is there. Ok, enough of my self glorification. It seems that Jeremy Gray in his 2nd Tournament after a year went 2-2 with like +3 diff, and Tom Meade went 1-3. So I guess my sucsess caused failure in others, however Grayfox has an excuse. Overall an excellent tournament, and I was real anxious to see how I would do in the World Qualifier, although it can all easily go downhill from here.
After the Tournament I took my set and went to the hotel and made out my deck lists for the next day. I then picked apart the set for the rares and put them in my trade piles. I have to admit this was the best prize support I have seen for a Tournament in quite some time. After that I got some sleep, and had dreams about unmodified force drains and multiple destiny draws . . .
Props
Scott Gaeta: Arranging this massive weekend, and also putting up a set of DS2 for first place, pretty damn cool in my opinion.
Me: for winning that set of DS2!
Jeremy Gray: For driving me down despite the warm Mountain Dew, and also for jumping back into the game after a year.
Josh Bader: For taking down Brian Hunter and keeping him tied down so I could even dance into first place . . . Also major props for play testing.
John Arendt: Preparing me for this weekend and actually having it pay off in some way!
The Armadillo: For delivering the goods for dinner.
Tom Meade’s Mother: For letting me stay with them in Denver so I would not play SW sleep deprived.
All of my opponents: For on the most being worthy opponents and being good sports through the games.
King of Mediocracy: This guy is just hilarious.
Slops
Van and Mike: For dropping the tournament after the second round . . . How wude!
Brian Hunter’s Fury: Although I didn’t play him his aura of anger was obviously present, and it had me, gulp, scared ; P
Chris Fanchi: I have no idea why he is here, but I gotta keep him in my slops, it’s a tradition.
Tom Meade: For Beating Matt Reicks in the first game and then losing his next 3!?!?!?
Parker: For not having any eateries in a 5 mile radius that is open after midnight, guess I’m going hungry ; (
Thank for the read!
-OUT
Jason “Qui-Gon” Keen