san-diego-comicon-open-by-girard
Title: san-diego-comicon-open-by-girard
Author: Michael "Dvader" Girard
Date: Jul 22, 2001
ANYWAY
I wasn’t planning on going to San Diego because my Tracker needed new brakes, but I swung a cheap ticket so I decided to join my friends in San Diego. I recently made a big, patented Girard mistake at Origins and tried to meta game for the environment, but I didnt’ succeed. I went 1-3 drop and did horrible on the weekend, however I did have a blast. For San Diego I figured I would just go with some old reliable decks and win. We had some hotel trouble and what not but I am sure you want to hear about my tournament more then that stuff. So here it is...
Light Deck - WYS/balanced. I am playing a Palace Raider/Patrol Craft variant that has a good amount of retreival as well. Start Squadron Assignments, Insurrection, Your Insights Serves Phil Well. Deck to be posted on decktech soon enough.
Dark Deck - Start Your Landing. I decided that this was a great force battery early and could set up much like Rops used to set up like clockwork. Start You May Start Your Landing, Imperial Arrest Order, and Mobilization Points.
Game 1 LS vs. Green from Lodi Crew (prenounced Lodee)’s court.
I knew that this should be an auto win for me. I got the Han in the Falcon to Tatooine first turn and my deck was setting up nicely. He drains early for some in the AC. 2nd/3rd turn Han and the Falcon get battled by Zuckass in Mist Hunter, but Green forgot to lay his Lateral Damage so they were safe. Next turn I layed Jedi Luke to Home One docking bay, palace raider/patrol craft to <> docking bay, Melas to the falcon and the Lars family to the farm and Tatooine Celebration, and I’ll take the Leader. I moved Luke over to the Tatooine Docking bay and proceeded to drain for bunches and retreive bunches. He pitched his catch card early so the Harvest went uninterrupted.
FW by 20something
Game 2 DS vs. Green guy that is not from Lodi Crew’s MWYHL
I like this matchup. My drain bonuses are canceled but I can cause massive direct damage with Rebel Base Occupation and Start your Landing. This game was pretty uneventful. I started stacking cards on the podrace so that he couldn’t sandbag the race. I lost the race and the turn after caused 7 force loss. And this went on every turn. He couldn’t lose cards from his deck cause he hadn’t searched for all the vital training stuff yet. He completed test 5 and didn’t have any characters left so it was just a matter of time.
FW by Highteens
Game 3 DS vs. Wayne Waitons (sorry wayne I butchered it)’s TIGIH
Well, I did forget to put Vader in the deck. Emperor came down early to the docking bay and picked up Luke and avoided the beatdown squad for a couple turns. I set up methodically and finally got the emperor killed off with no force loss. But this is the play of the game. He used Insertion Planning in the Fight vs. the emperor. On the Next turn he laid Home One vs. Chimeara and Chirneau. If he wouldn’t have mistracked and drawn a one, he could have swung the game. But instead I drew a 5 and he drew a 1 and he had to sack Home One. I layed some walkers and drained for some bonuses and he was finished, but it was an incredibly close game.
FW by 6
Game 4 LS vs. The Game’s Desert Landing JP start
I told Alfred before we sat down that this was a bad matchup for him and he agreed. He got vader early to the cantina and I setup in space. He couldn’t find a ship to save his life. I retreived a bunch (well at least what he drained for) and I drained a bunch with I’ll Take the Leader. I retreived a bunch and beat the crap out of a ship that he played to tatooine. Never have I trash talked that much with a player before. It was fun.
FW by 25
Game 5 DS vs. Paul from Lodi Crew’s WYS/racing
This was a good game. He forgot about the race a few times and I played balls out. 2nd turn I dropped a random Imperial Walker to the 3rd Marker and it stayed there for awhile. I was lucky enough to get Maul early and cause him some problems. The Executor held the system for Rebel Base Occupation and I did enough damage on the ground to keep WYS unflipped for a better part of the game. I lost the race, but won the game.
FW by Highteens
Game 6 LS vs. Paul from Lodi Crew’s Court
See Game One, This was a bad matchup for him and he knew it. I dropped random guys everywhere and held the system. Celebrated and reacted around to cause some major damage. WYS is just too strong of an objective.
FW by 20something
Game 7 LS vs. Jim Lafferty’s Brangus
Now I know the Brangus deck, I just to keep the mains from hurting and recurring. I dropped some early guys and he battled with mara. She was lost and I OOC’d her so he couldn’t get her back. I got counter assaulted for a drain and he used a docking bay to get the counter assault back. I OOC’d the docking bay and now it was just a matter of causing damage, avoiding the characters and retreiving. The Lars family was set up at the farm and I covered 4 sites for retreival.
FW by 20
Game 8 DS vs. Chris Kroutil’s MWYHL Racing
This game was pretty much uneventful. He only had Yoda’s hut so he needed a 6 to pass jedi test 1 and it took him too long to pass it. I was causing early damage on Hoth. He set up at the lars farm, with quigon/stick, ben/stick, and some random characters. I laid Imperial decree. The damage was starting to take it’s toll. He kept topdecking low race destiny so I stayed in the race. I pod collisioned him, and then laid no escape to get the collision back and do it again. I got a 6 and a 5 with it. Needless to say, his last force left in his deck, he stacked on Anakin’s to win the race :)
FW by 19
So I am undefeated and I play Matt Berta in the final confrontation.
My DS vs. his Pile
This should be an auto loss for me. 3rd I have piett/majjerk at the executor docking bay and I say, alright, it’s my control phase and i’ll pass on an action. He looks puzzled and says, alright, I’ll pass too. I said first action of my deploy phase, I’ll get Hoth with Majjerk. He’s like DOH!!!! So that was my Jedi Mind trick to save this game. I set up in space with majjerk and some on the ground. We have a few skirmishes where he drops Corran Horn and tawss khaa against majjerk and piett at the executor DB. He takes out majjerk, next turn I take Tawss to the bank by dropping Xizor, Veers and someone else. That was pretty much game. The heavy force loss from occupation did him in.
FW by 9
My LS vs. HuntDown Pods
I was worrying left and right about this game. I lost the race early, was being dealt direct damage early and the cards were flying off my deck. He dueled Luke, I lost, I crossed and lost 4 (cause of Honor which was the MVP in both games). At that point, I had 7 cards in my life force, 4 in hand (lars, farm, harvest, raider). Next turn, I celebrated for 2, laid the lars farm, lars and harvested. On his turn, I harvested from the lost pile, and on my turn, harvested again, and retreived with celebration, so I was back in the game at over 15 cards. I avoided vader/luke for a couple turns, and then just baited him and switched. I fallen portaled vader with a tracked harvest and took luke to the bank and had the board clear. I continued to keep his vaders at bay and retreived like a madman. This game was my greatest comeback ever.
FW by 32...that’s right, 32. I was at 7 life force left. WYS is unstoppable.
So I am the ComiCon champion and am all ready for Worlds.
Props
- Brian Garrison for convincing me to go, not change my decks, stayed with me through the hotel problems and everything. congrats on the Coruscant Rare sheet as well.
- Jon Dunn for the hearts games, giving steve crap all weekend, for getting glass and being all around fun to be...uhhh..around.
- Jay Webb for keeping up on the 8
- Steve Ward for going with a bunch of Starwars gamers and having fun in San Diego. 4 beeing teh best at magical cards...MTG4L!!!
- Justin Beal for being the ComiCon Open JK champion, for getting glass, for convincing me to play JK thereby allowing me to get glass.
- Alfred Dong for a fun game, and for allowing me to bring the smackdown on your roody-poo candy-ass.
- Dan Bojanowski for being a great TD coordinator and having to make some (correct) tough calls
- The random Convention hotties for being random convention hotties
- Brandon Allen cause you know you’ll get slops from Justin :)
- Star Ballz for being funny as hell
- The Jenna Jamason doll for being hot and anatomically correct
- Hottie Decipher chicks for knowing how to attract peeps to the booth :)
- My opponents for good games.
- Arizona Players for taking 1st in light side in the Thursday pre-release, taking 4th in light side in the Thursday pre-release, taking first at the SW open, first at the JK open, 4th and 7th at the JK open, and first in light side for the prerelease on Saturday...we rock!!!
- AMPM in El Cajon for giving us free stuff cause we were at the convention.
- Denny’s on Pacific Highway for being Awesome.
Slops
- Jay for @#$%ing about my driving
- the Ramada Inn for f-ing us left and right
- Con food for costing me my life savings
THE WEEKEND WAS AMAZING!!!!!!!