wrights-anticlimatic-return-4-21-02

Title: wrights-anticlimatic-return-4-21-02
Author: Brian "Bean2213" Wright
Date: Apr 24, 2002

Well, it’s been a long time since I last played SW, over a year since my last sanctioned event. But out of nowhere, about two weeks ago, I got the urge to get back into the game. I started signing onto Decktech again, to see what was up; and I also checked out Decipher to see what the new cards were. The last time I bought cards, Tatooine was a brand new expansion.

But, like so many others, I had to feed my SW:CCG craving. I decided to go to the local card shop to pick up some new cards. I new Decipher had lost the license to WotC, but I figured there would still be some cards available. I live in Galveston, TX, so the nearest card shops are Galaxy Comics and Cards, and Horizon Games, both about 30 miles from where I live.

I hit Horizon first. Sure enough, there was a big sign that read "All SW:CCG products 50% off". I thought, "wow, this will be great". There were DS2 starters, and a big unopened box of R3. I asked about the box, but the guy behind the counter told me that it was reserved for a sealed deck tournament that Keya Saleh was hosting in 2 weeks.

I left somewhat dejected, since I couldn’t satisfy my craving immediately, and was further dejected when I discovered that Galaxy is closed on Tuesdays (this was a Tuesday in case you didn’t guess). I got back home, got on Decipher’s website, and sure enough, there was Keya’s tournament. So I decided to go, thus satisfying both my craving for new cards and my urge to play, which had gone totally unsated since my friend Wes Brown graduated from college, got married, and moved to VA. He was the one who got me into the game, and sadly the only one I know around here who played.

4/21/02, the day of the tournament arrives. For those of you unfamiliar with the Galveston area, let me explain what this weekend was. This weekend was "Kappa Weekend". Kappa weekend is when about 200 thousand party animals who all belong to the same fraturnity show up in Galveston and party for 48 hours. Some businesses close for the weekend, and locals lock themselves in their homes. Its rather crazy, but I wasn’t about to let it deter me. The tournament was at noon, so I left about 10:30, figuring that ought to give me enough time to get there and still have some time to spare.

Well, here’s where the "anticlimatic" part of the day begins. I had absolutely NO difficulty getting to Horizon. I was there by 11am, a full hour before the store even opens. Nobody else is there yet, so I dug out my notepad and start writing down things I’d need to remember for this TR. Another player named Jimmy Corley shows up about 30 minutes later, and we wait together for the store to open.

Noon rolls around, the store opens, and Jimmy, myself, and a few others stroll in. Jimmy and I sit down opposite each other at a table. He goes through my box of rares and pulls out about 8 rares that I haven’t played with in years, meanwhile trading me about 15 cards I desperately wanted from Tatooine on forward, including Darth Maul and some stuff from R3.

The tournament is getting ready to start, and the only people I recognize are Keya Saleh (the TD), and Mike Patterson. Keya calls for everyones attention and starts assigning sides of the force. This is a DS2 sealed deck, in case you were wondering. I get assigned Light, and Keya, who is playing to give us with even numbers, is my opponent.

Game 1: Me vs. Keya Saleh

I start the Home One: DB, Prepared defenses, Squadron Assignments, Staging Areas and Superficial Damage in all of my games. My first three opponents all start Kessel, and all of the Dark Side counterparts to those cards. Nothing interesting happens for the first several turns, I get some good early activation with a scout at the Home One:DB. He sets up and starts draining in space. I decide to make a run at him at Gall, deploying several ships to back up the few I had there, and battling. The key mistake I made is forgetting to save force to fire my weapons at his ships. The result: He kicks my @$$, I lose about a third of my forces, he sends weapons to his used pile to cover attrition. Next turn, he beats me down again, I lose all but two ships. I start running like hell. He chases me around the systems, I get a drain in here and there by spliting up my ships, but Lt. Helsby in Scythe 3 keeps shooting down my ships during his move phase. He makes a run at me on the ground with Tempest 1, and I go down in flames.

FL by 14 (0, -14)

Highs: None
Lows: Forgeting to shoot at him.
Ugly: Gall allowed him to make my characters immediately lost when he shot them with blasters. I had no chance.

Game 2: Me vs. Michael Richards

I’d never met Michael before, but I learned after the tournament that he’s the guy running Dantooine Regionals in June. He’s a hell of a nice guy too. I hit him early with a good battle at Gall for 4 overflow, but other than that this game went almost exactly the same way the previous game did. The only other difference is that this game almost went to time, so I drew up to give him the full win.

FL by 22 (0, -36)

Highs: Meeting someone new, who was able to tell me about Regionals.
Lows: This game was just like the last one.
Ugly: Lt. Helsby in Scythe 3. A total MONSTER.

Game 3: Me vs. Mike Patterson

Mike is one of the best players I know of around here. But, I figured if he was playing me after I lost 2 games, and since it was a sealed deck tournament, maybe I had a chance. I was mistaken. This game was almost exactly the same as the first two, except he didn’t put Helsby on Scythe 3, he used someone else. Oh, and he managed to draw the FLAGSHIP EXECUTOR in a sealed deck tournament. Still, I managed to give him the best game I’d had so far, losing only by 10.

FL (0, -46)

Good: Mike is a good guy. He’s a damn good player, but doesn’t come off as arrogant.
Bad: Yet another loss.
Ugly: The F***ing FLAGSHIP EXECUTOR in sealed deck play!

Well, despite my horrible performance in the tournament, I am the number 2 light side player going into the final game. Jimmy Corley, that cool mo-fo who traded me all those cards I wanted, is the only DS player who has given up a game. He is my opponent in game 4.

Game 4: Me vs. Jimmy Corley
Jimmy starts the same stuff as the other guys have, except he didn’t get a Mob. Points so he starts Battle Order instead. Turn one he activates, and saves force. I put a scout at the Home One:DB for extra activation. Turn 2, he puts down a Victory Star Destroyer at Kessel. I put down a site and draw a few cards. Next turn, he lays down a TIE and matching pilot at Kessel. This turn wins me the game. I have in hand a few starships, a pilot, and 2 intruder missles. One of my starships is a Blue Squadron B-Wing. On my turn, I deploy the B-Wing and both intruder missles to Kessel and battle him. He only has 3 ability, so he gets no destiny draw. The B.S. B-Wing adds 2 to each of its weapon destinies, so I fire the first missle and miss, then fire the second (B.S. B-Wing can fire 2 weapons per turn), and add 5 to the total since I had previously targeted the Vic. BAM! It dies, and the B-Wing has just enough forfeit to cover my damage. In one turn I eliminate his only capital ship, thus restricting his mobility in space, and put two 7 destiny cards back in my deck. He drops another system, and a TIE and matching pilot at Kessel to back up the other. I begin to drain on the ground and save force to deploy the other starships I have in hand. Jimmy makes one run at me on the ground, but I kick him off. He drains at Kessel (paying 3 for it each time because of Battle Order) the whole game, but I control a system and 2 sites, so I drain him out.

FW by 23 (2, -23)

High: Blowing away the Vic. with my lone B-Wing
Lows: Causing Jimmy, who was so cool in trading with me early, to pick up his second loss.
Ugly: Dark Side TOTALLY owned the Light Side

Winning by as much as I did allowed me to move into the top Light Side position. All 4 dark side players were ahead of me, with Keya narrowly beating out Mike Patterson for first, but considering that the DS2 sealed deck invironment totally favors the Dark Side, I don’t feel too bad.

As you can see by my less that stellar performance at the tournament, this really was "Wright’s ANTICLIMATIC Return". But I had fun, and the game is still alive, and I guess that is what’s most important.

Props: To Keya, for running a tournament within an hour of where I live. Nobody else seems interested in running down here.
To Jimmy, for trading me those cards. Between your trades and the cards I got after the tournament, I cut down on my proxy cards by about HALF. Thanks man.
Michael Richards and Mike Patterson, for being cool enough to talk to a scrub like me about the current meta (I’ve been out of the loop so long I have no clue what’s out there), and talking about regionals with me. I may be a scrub, but I still want to go.
Me, for sacrificing that B-Wing to shoot down the star destroyer and win myself that game. Normally I won’t initiate a losing battle, but for once I was able to see how losing the battle could win me the war.

Slops: Me, for playing like a scrub. Wes Brown got me into this game right before Special Edition came out, and my rating is still a pathetic 1513.

Thanks for reading everyone. I’m sure it wasn’t very exciting, but you need scrubs like me to help keep the game alive. Later!