the-encounter-allentown-pa-10-6-01
Title: the-encounter-allentown-pa-10-6-01
Author: Kelly "dr_divot" Krieble
Date: Oct 7, 2001
For the tourney we each get 4 packs of Coruscant and 2 of Tatooine rather than 3 of each (since a lot of the characters in Tatooine can’t be played since they don’t have the Ep1 icon, which screws over LS). Anyway, my draft partner is Gary and I get to be DS via a lucky die roll (this would be omen #1 of my luck that day). So he opens his packs and pulls out the DS cards to give to me, noting that I get the DS senate objective (omen #2), and I give him my LS cards. Turns out my rare pulls were: Aks Moe (omen #3), Maul’s site, Watto (omen #4), a couple of combo cards, and Maul Strikes. Luckily I get two common/uncommon cards which would make my tourney: Galactic Senate (so I can actually play the Senate objective - omen #5), and Watto’s junkyard (omen #6). I also pull 3 of 4 political effects and a couple more senators, and a couple of key interrupts (add a destiny, etc). I also pull the docking bay puller effect and a couple of docking bays, which would allow me to move around and pull some of my sites from reserve (it also adds to forfeit of republic characters, which was key!). All of this basically puts me one up on the field. Turns out that I am the only one who is able to play an objective. No one pulls the full podrace package, though a couple of us come up one card short (I needed Boonta to podrace). Also, no one pulls a Maul or a Quiggy. Some of the pulls of note:
Gary - Obi Wan, Capt. Madakor, Ki-Adi, (yes I know he is not a rare, but Gary used him WONDERFULLY!)
Mike - Keder, P-60
Dan - Keder
Chad - Jedi Council
Game 1: My DS Senate vs. Gary’s LS
This is the first time we have played in a tourney, even though we play every week in our little gaming group (including Chad). He starts the Theed Palace Throne room, which I convert turn one, and I start the senate and Watto’s junkyard. I pull Watto turn one and put down Gragra with him (tech!). He drops a senator to Watto’s site, converts the site, then I use Gragra’s text to make him pay an extra 2 force for the senator. Not having enough force, he leaves the senator there and i proceed to beat it down next turn for a few force overflow. He deploys some systems, I deploy some sites, take over the senate to get some political effects going (and deploy the Marketplace for retrieval), and move over to the market to retrieve. He plops down Obi, and I’m like DAMN! We battle and he eventually loses Obi and I drain him out. FW by 14.
2(+14)
Highs: Being dark and getting all my stuff to work
Lows: none, really, though I could have retrieved more than I did (he drew up to prevent this, which was a good move on his part)
Game 2: My DS deck vs. Jared’s deck
Jared runs the store and didn’t have any help, so he had to withdraw to attend to business, so he gave me a bye. FW by 0.
4(+14)
Highs: winning, I guess
Lows: getting a bye
Game 3: My DS vs. Chad’s LS
Chad starts the Jedi council to force choke me, and I deploy my objective AND Watto’s junkyard, to which Chad replies…"if you pull out Watto, I’m gonna kick your %$#". I just smile… and pull out Watto again first turn for the second straight game and deploy him for free. Deploy some friends. I also get my docking bay effect in my opening hand and proceed to deploy them. I also deploy the marketplace (which he later converts). He also has enough senators and effects to keep me out of the senate (after a battle which kills most of my senators). BUT, I am able to move over to the Jedi council to drain for 3 a couple of turns (huge!). He’s built up at the marketplace (retrieving), and at the senate, and at the coruscant docking bay. He Nabruns (forget the actual card name) over to the council, and we spend a couple of turns evading each other - I also am down to few force, but just barely enough to be able to move my guys away. The key to this game was my decision to put Naboo system in the deck along with two droid starfighters (my only space package), and I eventually deploy them for an uncontested drain of two for most of the game (which eventually did him in). Anyway, I spread my guys, we have one final small battle (where neither of us draw destiny) and I drain him out. FW by 5.
6(+19)
Highs: a GREAT game. Very strategic and INTENSE!
Lows: having the senate taken over.
Game 4: My DS vs. Gary’s LS
Final confrontation. Gary has actually won 2 games, which is amazing! (one of them I watched was funny, because during one battle Mike drew destiny - a site!, then Gary drew destiny - a site!…which could only happen in this type of format). Anyway, I get my same start, pulling Watto and Gragra again! What luck! This was to be a little different game than the first one, as he had some tech in his deck that he never got to use during the first game. He deploys Obi, he gets killed, then he uses A Step Backwards to regenerate him. And he’s got 3 ASB’s in the deck. Combine that with his Ki-Adi character and he’s got some offensive punch! We had a battle in space where I deployed one droid starfighter at Naboo (gamble that didn’’t pay off) and he deployed a republic cruiser AND Capt. Madakor and beat me to a bloody pulp since he got a destiny draw and I didn’t. I had to lose about 5 cards on that one, which made it very close in the end. Eventually my political effects save the day (getting to add 3 to battle destiny, add 2 to force drain at a battleground) and I win by 5 (sorry about the detail here). FW by 5
8(+24)
So I go undefeated and win the tournament and get a foil EPP Obi and some store credit. Cool!
Mike E. take second (DS 3 wins) and gets a foil EPP Han.
Dan takes third (DS 3 wins?) and gets a foil EPP Leia.
Recap:
I retrospect, the DS is at a big advantage, I think, due to the characters available. Being able to play an objective is HUGE! Also, your mental frame of mind is very different in this type of format. EVERY force counts, every battle is huge. Getting ability 4 to be able to draw destiny is SO HUGE that you are always scrapping and scraping to achieve this. How many time did Jawas, Tusken Raiders, and Coruscant guards bail me out. One of the problems also with the Ep1 environment is that many of the weapons deploy on warriors only, but the only warriors I had were coruscant guards. Space can be a big advantage if your opponent doesn’t have any, since the drain at Naboo can be a gamebreaker. I got lucky with my deck, which was half the battle.
Props:
Jared for the great prize support and running the tourney
Pulling some OK rares in my packs
Slops:
Gary should probably have gotten a prize for being the top LS player
All those people who were supposed to be there but weren’t
Not pulling any Mauls or Quiggies.
.