I'm back! Now that I'm into college I have way more free time, so after my last thread died when I scrubbed out hard at Nationals, I'll try to keep this one up to date as best I can. First up is the NJ Marathon--I won't include Day 1 because I had no idea what I was doing and went 2-2-2 lol. I may not remember a lot of details but I'll do the best I can.
I played Aromatisse/M Manectric/Techs all 4 days.
Day 2 NJ Marathon--West Berlin Cities
Day 3 NJ Marathon--Mays Landing Cities
Day 4 NJ Marathon--Howell Cities
Nanuet Cities
Delaware States
Pennsylvania States
I'm playing Donphan/Primal Groudon
Round 1 vs. Brian Bray w/ Primal Groudon
Game 1:
I almost feel bad for him at this point. This is the third time we've played in tournaments, and it's always a bad matchup for him and he always gets destroyed. This time wasn't much different--I get a quick stream of Donphans rolling and quickly kill his Landorus before snipe damage adds up too much. I proceed to Lysandre his Lucario and Wreck it for an OHKO, and he concedes the turn after since he has no way to kill the donphan with 4 energy on it.
Game 2:
Instead if going for an early Landorus EX, he decides to set up Primal Groudon instead. He has a really hard time doing any damage since Hawlucha resists baby Landorus, and while he's slowly setting up his Primal Groudon, I set up mine as well. The moment he brings it up, mine's ready to OHKO it, and since it's the last pokemon on his field, I win.
1-0-0
Round 2 vs. Yveltal/Seismitoad/Garbodor
Game 1:
This game doesn't last very long. He gets an early Seismitoad but I quickly take it down with Hawlucha and Donphan. He promotes an Yveltal, but makes a crucial misplay--he uses Evil Ball instead of Y cyclone, which allows me to move up Donphan and Wreck for an OHKO. He no longer has any energy on his field, so he's helpless as the 4 energy donphan steamrolls the rest of his board.
Game 2:
He starts Seismitoad again, and this time Lysandres my Groudon in an attempt to stall. I let it die and set up my bench instead--and since he never uses baby Yveltal, I'm able to consistently take two hit KO's on his Seismitoad and Yveltal EX's. He makes it very close with a late game N and then Lysandre, but I draw energy off the N so I'm able to Wreck to end the game.
2-0-0
Round 3 vs. Yveltal/Seismitoad/Garbodor
Game 1:
He gets an early Seismitoad and I dead draw for a while. The game doesn't last very long--I continue to dead draw even after the Seismitoad goes away, and I concede after I realize I have no way of winning
Game 2:
He AGAIN gets an early Seismitoad, but I have cards to work with this time. I use Spinning Turn with a Muscle Band and a Strong Energy on Donphan, hitting for 80. He then uses a Xerosic of all cards to discard the Strong energy--and it's extremely crucial, because I miss the Fighting Stadium the next turn for my Hawlucha to deal 100 damage. He retreats his Seismitoad and later uses an AZ on it, denying me two prizes and essentially sealing the game. My Donphans consistently get Lysandred before they can use Wreck and I can't seem to get Groudon out.
2-1-0
Round 4 vs. Eggs
Game 1:
Get benched on turn 2 by a Virizion with a Muscle Band against my Mr. Mime. Lol.
Game 2:
He dead draws early on so I get a ton of energy on my board and consistently two hit KO Eggs (and OHKO exeggcutes with Phanpy, lol) . He never really gets a crucial lock and concedes after he realizes he's too far behind.
Game 3:
I get benched out on turn 3 because I draw into 6 supporters after my turn 1 Sycamore and he gets the t2 lock.
2-2-0
Round 5 vs. Yveltal/Seismitoad/Garbodor
Game 1:
This was an extremely good game. He gets an early Seismitoad as always, but I get a quick Donphan and start putting a lot of damage on his board. He hits a few crucial Lysandres that kill the donphand that are doing the most damage, and after he locks my Groudon active and KO's it, we're very even on prizes. I get a Donphan with 4 energy, N, and Wreck his Yveltal EX for the KO. He doesn't have another attacker at ready that can KO the Donphan, so he concedes.
...and he scoops the next game, because he says he's too tired to play. Oh well.
3-2-0
Round 6 vs. Seismitoad/Bats
Game 1:
I hit no basics and get benched on turn 2. I don't fully understand why this happens so often when I play 4 Korrina.
Game 2:
He misses the t2 lock and I get a huge set up with a lot of basics and robo subs. I get energy everywhere, put Mr. Mime down, and simply spam Spinning Turn the whole game. He doesn't hit the Lysandres when he needs them so he concedes once I kill two Seismitoads, since he's simply too far behind.
Game 3:
I play down Groudon and make my best attempt to set it up, but I dead draw after drawing all three vs seeker in my turn 2 hand and never get enough energy on it.
3-3-0
Round 7 vs. Seismitoad/Bats
Game 1:
He starts Jirachi, so I assume he can't get the turn 1 lock and play it as such. He of course draws into Seismitoad, DCE, Muscle Band, and he hits heads on Jirachi to start the lock. I proceed to dead draw for the rest of the game.
Game 2:
I get an early Groudon and focus the entire game around setting it up. I manage to snag two crucial prizes with Donphan before the Groudon comes up, so after the first Gaia Volcano, I only have two prizes left to take. He's forced to attack with Crobat, but I have the stadium to OHKO it, and I have the Lysandre on his benched Golbat to end the game the next turn.
Game 3:
Exactly the same as the game before. I get Groudon going as fast as I can, hit stadiums, and OHKO everything.
4-3-0
So, I ended the day with a crappy record once again. I'm probably not going to play much more this format--I'll go to NJ states, but 12 of the 14 decks that I've played against over the last two tournaments have involved Seismitoad, and one of the 2 that didn't was Eggs. Even when I beat the decks, it's not really fun--it often just involves drawing a single card, attaching energy, and attacking (or whiffing energy and supporters, passing, and losing). I don't think playing a different deck solves that since the only thing you can do under item lock is play energy and Pokémon anyway.
Props:
OHKOing a Primal Groudon for 260 damage
Watching Seismitoad crumble in fear under Primal Groudon
SLAAAAASH BLAAAAAAST
Russian Retreat
Wave Splash Rain Splash wombo combo in pack wars
Slops:
Seismitoad
Missing literally almost every matchup I wanted to see--Flareon, Manectric/Rough Seas, Night March, Virizion/Genesect
Seismitoad
Laser Flips
Seismitoad
Coming soon with NJ states in two weeks...
Total CP: 60
I played Aromatisse/M Manectric/Techs all 4 days.
Day 2 NJ Marathon--West Berlin Cities
Round 1 vs. Joan w/ Yveltal
Oh man. I played against her at the last marathon, after playing out a super close game, I had lost on a laser flip. I was out for blood...and I got it pretty quickly, since I got turn 2 spirit linked M Manectric out and wiped her board clean of Pokémon before anything happened. Felt good to 6-0.
1-0
Round 2 vs. Orrin w/ Yveltal/M Manectric
Oh hey, it's the guy who stopped me from making cut at the same location last year. We both get fairly early M Manectrics and going at each other, with me Max Potioning when I can. This is pretty much the whole game--we both keep smacking each other for a lot of damage but I can OHKO his Yveltals and I win most of the prize trades. He manages to make it close with well-timed N's, but I topdeck a VS Seeker for Lysandre as time is called to end the game.
2-0
Round 3 vs. Night March
Er...this is a deck? This matchup SUCKS, and it goes about how you would expect it to--he gets a couple early battle compressors and starts hitting for massive damage with Flareon and Pumpkaboo. He misses a lot of crucial energy drops but I make a major misplay where I go for some fancy math with Xerneas EX's snipe, he OHKO's it the next turn, and I lose all my energy off the board. I bring myself down to one prize somehow using M Manectric but at this point, he has so many things to work with and ends up OHKOing it with Pumpkaboo.
2-1
Round 4 vs. Matt Rockwell w/ Faires
Again someone I lost to at the last marathon. There's not really a lot to say here--I run Aeigislash EX and he doesn't, so I'm at an advantage the entire game. I hit a lot of things for 20 damage with Manectric's first attack to conserve energy and then end up walling him for most of the game with Aesiglash and set him way back after OHKOing his Xerneas EX with it.
3-1
Round 5 vs. Sam Chen w/ Faries
ANOTHER person I've lost to in the past multiple times--and he also doesn't run Aegislash, so the matchup pretty much goes the same way it did the previous round. He runs Charizard so he has reasonable way to deal damage to it, but I end up killing the Charizard pretty early and he struggles the entire game to handle the Aegislash. He brings himself to one prize with constant Lysandres, but I'm so far ahead at this point it doesn't matter.
4-1
Round 6 vs. Pyroar/Reshiram/Ninetails
His main attacker is Pyroar. I run M Manectric. It takes me around 6 turns to get it out but there's really not a lot Pyroar can do to a monster that OHKO's it every turn and never dies because of Max Potion.
5-1
I ID round 7 into cut. Record: 5-1-1 5th seed
Top 8 vs. Aziz Al Yami (Hax) w/ "Cancer" Seismitoad/Garbodor
Game 1:
I lost to this the day before, so I wasn't expecting this to go well. He runs 4 SSU which is really annoying since I have no way to OHKO his toads. I set up M Manectric and Mewtwo and keep pounding into his toads. He flips a ton of tails on SSU so I actually manage to kill two Seismitoad, and then I kill his Garbodor which puts me in a great position since he has a very hard time handling my Aesiglash. He can't drop another trubbish since I'll just Lysandre it for game, so he brings up my Keldeo and puts it to sleep a lot to kill it. Lasers then become a serious problem and after a lot of catchers, he gets down to one prize as well. He starts hitting heads on SSU (he has more after he plays Trump Card) and finally ends a very close game by catchering and lasering my Aegislash for the final bit of damage.
Game 2:
Very similar to the game before, except he gets very fast Garbs so I don't really have the option to kill them early. I set up M Manectric with a spirit link early and attack with that and Mewtwo. I manage to kill a Seismitoad after he flips a few tails on SSU and then both Garbodors as the game progresses. I rotate around between attackers a lot and this time, he can't seem to hit the catchers to take his prizes like last game. Time is called, and he's out of catchers and his trump card is prizes so I end up being ahead on prizes and winning.
Sudden Death Game 3:
He goes first (classic Blah) and gets DCE Muscle Band Laser--everything he needs...but I start Aegislash, which is the best starter I could have asked for. I ultra ball for Manectric and play the only supporter in my hand--N. I look at my one card--Fairy Garden. Useless. I pass the turn to him and he gets...random receiver. I don't see anything useful for the rest of the game so he takes his one prize fairly quickly. Pokémon is a game of skill guys. Pure skill.
Final standing: 7th
Props:
Top 8
Wait, I can cut at tournaments again? Is this a miracle?
Wait, I managed to use ID's to my advantage? What is happening?
REVENGEEEEEEE
Aegislash EX is god
Slops:
Laser coin flips. Man, this one never gets old.
Seismitoad EX is annoying
Sudden Death
Blah still can't win top cut matches
AZ sucks. No really, it sucks. Arjun, you suck too.
Oh man. I played against her at the last marathon, after playing out a super close game, I had lost on a laser flip. I was out for blood...and I got it pretty quickly, since I got turn 2 spirit linked M Manectric out and wiped her board clean of Pokémon before anything happened. Felt good to 6-0.
1-0
Round 2 vs. Orrin w/ Yveltal/M Manectric
Oh hey, it's the guy who stopped me from making cut at the same location last year. We both get fairly early M Manectrics and going at each other, with me Max Potioning when I can. This is pretty much the whole game--we both keep smacking each other for a lot of damage but I can OHKO his Yveltals and I win most of the prize trades. He manages to make it close with well-timed N's, but I topdeck a VS Seeker for Lysandre as time is called to end the game.
2-0
Round 3 vs. Night March
Er...this is a deck? This matchup SUCKS, and it goes about how you would expect it to--he gets a couple early battle compressors and starts hitting for massive damage with Flareon and Pumpkaboo. He misses a lot of crucial energy drops but I make a major misplay where I go for some fancy math with Xerneas EX's snipe, he OHKO's it the next turn, and I lose all my energy off the board. I bring myself down to one prize somehow using M Manectric but at this point, he has so many things to work with and ends up OHKOing it with Pumpkaboo.
2-1
Round 4 vs. Matt Rockwell w/ Faires
Again someone I lost to at the last marathon. There's not really a lot to say here--I run Aeigislash EX and he doesn't, so I'm at an advantage the entire game. I hit a lot of things for 20 damage with Manectric's first attack to conserve energy and then end up walling him for most of the game with Aesiglash and set him way back after OHKOing his Xerneas EX with it.
3-1
Round 5 vs. Sam Chen w/ Faries
ANOTHER person I've lost to in the past multiple times--and he also doesn't run Aegislash, so the matchup pretty much goes the same way it did the previous round. He runs Charizard so he has reasonable way to deal damage to it, but I end up killing the Charizard pretty early and he struggles the entire game to handle the Aegislash. He brings himself to one prize with constant Lysandres, but I'm so far ahead at this point it doesn't matter.
4-1
Round 6 vs. Pyroar/Reshiram/Ninetails
His main attacker is Pyroar. I run M Manectric. It takes me around 6 turns to get it out but there's really not a lot Pyroar can do to a monster that OHKO's it every turn and never dies because of Max Potion.
5-1
I ID round 7 into cut. Record: 5-1-1 5th seed
Top 8 vs. Aziz Al Yami (Hax) w/ "Cancer" Seismitoad/Garbodor
Game 1:
I lost to this the day before, so I wasn't expecting this to go well. He runs 4 SSU which is really annoying since I have no way to OHKO his toads. I set up M Manectric and Mewtwo and keep pounding into his toads. He flips a ton of tails on SSU so I actually manage to kill two Seismitoad, and then I kill his Garbodor which puts me in a great position since he has a very hard time handling my Aesiglash. He can't drop another trubbish since I'll just Lysandre it for game, so he brings up my Keldeo and puts it to sleep a lot to kill it. Lasers then become a serious problem and after a lot of catchers, he gets down to one prize as well. He starts hitting heads on SSU (he has more after he plays Trump Card) and finally ends a very close game by catchering and lasering my Aegislash for the final bit of damage.
Game 2:
Very similar to the game before, except he gets very fast Garbs so I don't really have the option to kill them early. I set up M Manectric with a spirit link early and attack with that and Mewtwo. I manage to kill a Seismitoad after he flips a few tails on SSU and then both Garbodors as the game progresses. I rotate around between attackers a lot and this time, he can't seem to hit the catchers to take his prizes like last game. Time is called, and he's out of catchers and his trump card is prizes so I end up being ahead on prizes and winning.
Sudden Death Game 3:
He goes first (classic Blah) and gets DCE Muscle Band Laser--everything he needs...but I start Aegislash, which is the best starter I could have asked for. I ultra ball for Manectric and play the only supporter in my hand--N. I look at my one card--Fairy Garden. Useless. I pass the turn to him and he gets...random receiver. I don't see anything useful for the rest of the game so he takes his one prize fairly quickly. Pokémon is a game of skill guys. Pure skill.
Final standing: 7th
Props:
Top 8
Wait, I can cut at tournaments again? Is this a miracle?
Wait, I managed to use ID's to my advantage? What is happening?
REVENGEEEEEEE
Aegislash EX is god
Slops:
Laser coin flips. Man, this one never gets old.
Seismitoad EX is annoying
Sudden Death
Blah still can't win top cut matches
AZ sucks. No really, it sucks. Arjun, you suck too.
Day 3 NJ Marathon--Mays Landing Cities
The only change I make in my deck is adding Gensect to counter Cancer Seismitoad/Garbodor from the day before.
Round 1 vs. Aaron w/ Faries
SOOOO I search my deck turn 1 to find out I have two spritzees prized. He gets an explosive start with a t2 Aromatisse and Spirit Linked M Gengar AND he's using Geomancy. He kills my Aromatisse on turn 4 and my deck basically collapses from there as I have no simple way to take a prize and no way to keep up with attacks. I make a valiant effort to comeback using Aegislash, but at this point, I'm so far behind that he doesn't have much of a problem handling it.
0-1
Round 2 vs. Pyroar
K.
1-1
Round 3 vs. Sam (Machamp the Champion) w/ Yveltal/Seismitoad/Garbodor
We both get off to fairly normal starts, with me getting out spritzees and him starting to set up his board with baby Yveltal. He gets a Garbodor, I immediately kill it, and then he sends up Seismitoad. I Sycamore into the explosive hand of Rainbow Energy, Aromatisse, and Genesect, and OHKO the Seismitoad. He then manages to OHKO the Genesect back with Yveltal EX, but I have the Rainbow to KO the Yveltal with Manectric and, having no energy left, his board crumbles. I find a Lysandre in the next two turns to KO his benched baby Yveltal for the game.
Pokémon is pure skill. Always.
2-1
Round 4 vs. Joan w/ Donphan
HAHA I GET REVENGE AGAIN. This is a phenomenal matchup for Faries and it goes about how you would expect it to--I get Aegislash out early which she has a lot of trouble dealing with and KO Donphans before they get too big with Keldeo. She actually manages to bring herself down to two prizes by killing the Manectric that I started with and has opportunity to win the game...if she had any Hawluchas left, which she doesn't. I kill her last Donphan, and sweep the rest of her board from there.
3-1
Round 5 vs. Metal
Er, so I've never played this matchup before and wasn't sure how to go about it. He grabs an early Cobalion EX and I can't seem to draw my basic energy so I lose nearly all of my Rainbows at the beginning of the game. Aegislash becomes a serious threat because he'll KO my Charizard with Mewtwo if I attack with it. I start by taking out his Mewtwo with my own, then attacking the Aegislash with Charizard and M Manectric (basic lightning energy yay). However, he keeps rotating between attackers, and even though I'm at a huge advantage, time is called and I can't seem to get my last Lysandre or VS seeker to end the game, so we end up tying. We all love ties, don't we?
3-1-1
Round 6 vs. Mike w/ Fairies
This wasn't much of a game. He starts Aegislash but has a horrific opening hand and can't seem to draw out of it. I get an explosive start despite discarding two max potions on turn 1 and proceed to roll over his field with M Manectric and various other attackers. By the time he finally draws a supporter and gets an Aromatisse out, it's far too late. I KO the Aromatisse and end the game a turn later.
4-1-1
Wait, Blah lost round 1 but won out to make cut? Is this possible?
Just kidding, I got 9th and bubbled. Some things never change #DBT
Props:
#DBT
#DBT
Genesect being all skill
#DBT
Slops:
#DBT
#DBT
#DBT
Round 1 vs. Aaron w/ Faries
SOOOO I search my deck turn 1 to find out I have two spritzees prized. He gets an explosive start with a t2 Aromatisse and Spirit Linked M Gengar AND he's using Geomancy. He kills my Aromatisse on turn 4 and my deck basically collapses from there as I have no simple way to take a prize and no way to keep up with attacks. I make a valiant effort to comeback using Aegislash, but at this point, I'm so far behind that he doesn't have much of a problem handling it.
0-1
Round 2 vs. Pyroar
K.
1-1
Round 3 vs. Sam (Machamp the Champion) w/ Yveltal/Seismitoad/Garbodor
We both get off to fairly normal starts, with me getting out spritzees and him starting to set up his board with baby Yveltal. He gets a Garbodor, I immediately kill it, and then he sends up Seismitoad. I Sycamore into the explosive hand of Rainbow Energy, Aromatisse, and Genesect, and OHKO the Seismitoad. He then manages to OHKO the Genesect back with Yveltal EX, but I have the Rainbow to KO the Yveltal with Manectric and, having no energy left, his board crumbles. I find a Lysandre in the next two turns to KO his benched baby Yveltal for the game.
Pokémon is pure skill. Always.
2-1
Round 4 vs. Joan w/ Donphan
HAHA I GET REVENGE AGAIN. This is a phenomenal matchup for Faries and it goes about how you would expect it to--I get Aegislash out early which she has a lot of trouble dealing with and KO Donphans before they get too big with Keldeo. She actually manages to bring herself down to two prizes by killing the Manectric that I started with and has opportunity to win the game...if she had any Hawluchas left, which she doesn't. I kill her last Donphan, and sweep the rest of her board from there.
3-1
Round 5 vs. Metal
Er, so I've never played this matchup before and wasn't sure how to go about it. He grabs an early Cobalion EX and I can't seem to draw my basic energy so I lose nearly all of my Rainbows at the beginning of the game. Aegislash becomes a serious threat because he'll KO my Charizard with Mewtwo if I attack with it. I start by taking out his Mewtwo with my own, then attacking the Aegislash with Charizard and M Manectric (basic lightning energy yay). However, he keeps rotating between attackers, and even though I'm at a huge advantage, time is called and I can't seem to get my last Lysandre or VS seeker to end the game, so we end up tying. We all love ties, don't we?
3-1-1
Round 6 vs. Mike w/ Fairies
This wasn't much of a game. He starts Aegislash but has a horrific opening hand and can't seem to draw out of it. I get an explosive start despite discarding two max potions on turn 1 and proceed to roll over his field with M Manectric and various other attackers. By the time he finally draws a supporter and gets an Aromatisse out, it's far too late. I KO the Aromatisse and end the game a turn later.
4-1-1
Wait, Blah lost round 1 but won out to make cut? Is this possible?
Just kidding, I got 9th and bubbled. Some things never change #DBT
Props:
#DBT
#DBT
Genesect being all skill
#DBT
Slops:
#DBT
#DBT
#DBT
Day 4 NJ Marathon--Howell Cities
I add a Venusaur EX over the Genesect lol.
Round 1 vs. Bryan (guy I ID's with Day 2) w/ Plasma
Aegislash. There's not really a whole lot more details to go into--I misplay by actually playing down other cards besides Aegislash, but the game was over before it started as he can't ever really damage the thing. He attempt to take prizes by using Lugia on my non-ex's, but I kill the Lugia with Manectric and sweep the game from there.
1-0
Round 2 vs. Os w/ "Cancer" Virizion/Genesect
Ughhhhh this engine again. I get an explosive start but he flips a lot of catcher heads at the beginning and sweeps my field of Aromatisse fairly quickly. I actually manage to keep taking prizes with low energy attackers like Mewtwo and Manectric and get down to one prize--all I need is a Lysandre to win. I have the VS Seeker hand and think the game is over...but he had used Trump Card a few turns earlier, so there was no Lysandre in the discard. He junipers his next turn into a Plasma Energy to KO my baby Xerneas for game.
1-1
Round 3 vs Matt w/...Fighting/Garb...
...really. This matchup is about as bad as it gets although I get an extremely fast start and take out his Garbodor as soon as he gets it up. I then KO a Landorus with Keldeo and think I have the game all sealed up...until my Keldeo stays asleep on Laser. He puts 60 damage on my Aromatisse from snipes so I know it's going to get knocked out the next turn and place my energy accordingly...but I make a crucial mistake by not keeping 3 energy on the Keldeo, thinking it will get knocked out. I keep two on it because I forget about the Head Ringer on it, and he misses the KO by 10 damage. However, without Aromatisse, I now can't attack with it or KO the Landorus. Without any efficient way to KO the Landorus which is threatening a Land's Judgement, I crumble as he quickly cleans up the rest of his prizes with it.
1-2
Round 4 vs. Yveltal
I get a very early M Manectric while he dead draws. The game lasts about 4 turns.
2-2
Round 5 vs. Fighting
He opens by dropping 3 Landorus EX, which is a huge mistake because he doesn't know I play Keldeo EX. I get an early Geomancy and Aromatisse, and he seems content to snipe around with Landorus EX...until I drop Keldeo, move all the energy to it, and KO his Landorus, wiping all his energy off the board. He moves up his baby Landorus to try and recover, but I topdeck Lysandre to KO the benched Landorus EX with energy to prevent him from really doing anything. He doesn't play N, so I play the VS seeker in my hand the next turn to KO the third Landorus EX the next turn. Clean 6-0.
Funny story--I played against this guy last year in the Marathon and 6-0'd him with a t2 Snorlax. Wow.
3-2
Round 6 vs. Nicholena w/ Virizion/Genesect/M Manectric
We both get fairly standard starts--I Geomancy, she Emerald Slashes. However, every single time she gets energy on a Genesect, I Lysandre it and hit it for at least 60 damage--which is really crucial for later in the game, because if she ever wants to play Muscle Band or G Booster to KO something, regular Manectric can KO it back. She actually ends up misplaying by forgetting she didn't have the energy in her hand to attack after playing a Skyla, so she's forced to grab Professor's Letter and misses the KO by 20 damage. I Max Potion, KO the Genesect with Mewtwo, and then seal the game that I'm already very far ahead in from there with a Lysandre in the next few turns.
4-2
Final standing: 15th place
Props:
6-0 all the things
Winning out? Kinda?
Aegislash EX is still god
Managing to borrow cards to complete the deck from like 10 people
Slops:
Laser flips. Noting that yes, I will be having a ceremony to burn lasers when they are rotated.
Cancer engine >:[
Venusaur sucks lol
Round 1 vs. Bryan (guy I ID's with Day 2) w/ Plasma
Aegislash. There's not really a whole lot more details to go into--I misplay by actually playing down other cards besides Aegislash, but the game was over before it started as he can't ever really damage the thing. He attempt to take prizes by using Lugia on my non-ex's, but I kill the Lugia with Manectric and sweep the game from there.
1-0
Round 2 vs. Os w/ "Cancer" Virizion/Genesect
Ughhhhh this engine again. I get an explosive start but he flips a lot of catcher heads at the beginning and sweeps my field of Aromatisse fairly quickly. I actually manage to keep taking prizes with low energy attackers like Mewtwo and Manectric and get down to one prize--all I need is a Lysandre to win. I have the VS Seeker hand and think the game is over...but he had used Trump Card a few turns earlier, so there was no Lysandre in the discard. He junipers his next turn into a Plasma Energy to KO my baby Xerneas for game.
1-1
Round 3 vs Matt w/...Fighting/Garb...
...really. This matchup is about as bad as it gets although I get an extremely fast start and take out his Garbodor as soon as he gets it up. I then KO a Landorus with Keldeo and think I have the game all sealed up...until my Keldeo stays asleep on Laser. He puts 60 damage on my Aromatisse from snipes so I know it's going to get knocked out the next turn and place my energy accordingly...but I make a crucial mistake by not keeping 3 energy on the Keldeo, thinking it will get knocked out. I keep two on it because I forget about the Head Ringer on it, and he misses the KO by 10 damage. However, without Aromatisse, I now can't attack with it or KO the Landorus. Without any efficient way to KO the Landorus which is threatening a Land's Judgement, I crumble as he quickly cleans up the rest of his prizes with it.
1-2
Round 4 vs. Yveltal
I get a very early M Manectric while he dead draws. The game lasts about 4 turns.
2-2
Round 5 vs. Fighting
He opens by dropping 3 Landorus EX, which is a huge mistake because he doesn't know I play Keldeo EX. I get an early Geomancy and Aromatisse, and he seems content to snipe around with Landorus EX...until I drop Keldeo, move all the energy to it, and KO his Landorus, wiping all his energy off the board. He moves up his baby Landorus to try and recover, but I topdeck Lysandre to KO the benched Landorus EX with energy to prevent him from really doing anything. He doesn't play N, so I play the VS seeker in my hand the next turn to KO the third Landorus EX the next turn. Clean 6-0.
Funny story--I played against this guy last year in the Marathon and 6-0'd him with a t2 Snorlax. Wow.
3-2
Round 6 vs. Nicholena w/ Virizion/Genesect/M Manectric
We both get fairly standard starts--I Geomancy, she Emerald Slashes. However, every single time she gets energy on a Genesect, I Lysandre it and hit it for at least 60 damage--which is really crucial for later in the game, because if she ever wants to play Muscle Band or G Booster to KO something, regular Manectric can KO it back. She actually ends up misplaying by forgetting she didn't have the energy in her hand to attack after playing a Skyla, so she's forced to grab Professor's Letter and misses the KO by 20 damage. I Max Potion, KO the Genesect with Mewtwo, and then seal the game that I'm already very far ahead in from there with a Lysandre in the next few turns.
4-2
Final standing: 15th place
Props:
6-0 all the things
Winning out? Kinda?
Aegislash EX is still god
Managing to borrow cards to complete the deck from like 10 people
Slops:
Laser flips. Noting that yes, I will be having a ceremony to burn lasers when they are rotated.
Cancer engine >:[
Venusaur sucks lol
Nanuet Cities
I'm playing the exact same Faries list as before except with an extra Mewtwo and a Virizion EX over the Venusaur lol. I'm going to be as detailed as I can but I may not remember a lot of the tiny stuff that happened during matches.
Round 1 vs. Jarod Morales w/ Yveltal/Garbodor
He starts Trubbish and I immediately assume that it's Seismitoad/Garbodor and that I'm doomed. He proceeds to bench an Yveltal and I breathe a sigh of relief. He actually gets a blazing start whereas I'm struggling to get anything going. He's already shoveling energy on to multiple Yveltals before I finally get a Manectric to kill his Garbodor. I kill his second Trubbish the next turn, and proceed to go to town on his Yveltals with Mewtwo and Manectric. He can't seem to get OHKO's, so I constantly Max Potion, eventually getting an M Manectric to further my advantage. He makes one last ditch effort with baby Yveltal to try and get a gigantic Yveltal EX but I already have the Lysandre in hand to end the game.
1-0
Round 2 vs. Anthony w/ Pyroar
I go first and get pretty much everything I need in this matchup--spritzees and Manectric. He also gets an early double Pyroar--the Flare Command one and the Intimidating Mane one...but he uses his entire hand to do it. He never draws out of it so I get a quick M Manectric and clean up the game 3 turns later.
2-0
Round 3 vs. Yveltal w/ Shadow Circle
Like the Shadow Circle actually matters when I run 4 Fairy Garden. He starts with an early baby Yveltal to power up his bench, and I grab my Spritzees and Manectrics. I grab a quick three prizes with Manectric, and then he N's and proceeds to make a reallyt weird play. He plays Shadow Circle, attaches a DCE to Mewtwo, then brings up Aromatisse and hits it for 40, assuming I can't retreat without Fairy Garden. But I have 5 energy in play--and even though I don't hit Fairy Garden the next turn, I just retreat my Aromatisse using 2 energy and then use the other three to KO the Mewtwo. The weakness isn't even removed because it doesn't have any Dark attached. He has basically no energy on his field at this point, so he rotates between Darkrais while I fish through my deck for a Lysandre to kill an Yveltal for the game.
3-0
Round 4 vs. Jason Annicherico (however you spell it) w/ Yveltal
He gets a blazing start and starts knocking out Spritzees left and right with Yveltal EX. Thankfully, after he kills the second one, I topdeck my last Spritzee and kill his Yveltal with Manectric. He can't find a way to kill the third Spritzee, so I get an Aromatisee and the game swings heavily in my favor. Later in the game however, I end up running out of Max Potions because I can't use Dowsing due to his Spiritomb, and he manages to kill a M Manectric and a Mewtwo, all the while keeping my hand low with N's. I'm staring down a Darkrai that I can't kill with 2 cards in my hand and...topdeck Lysandre. Phew.
4-0
Round 5 vs. Nick Chimento w/ Donphan
Downpaired so I can't ID. I get an extremely fast start with multiple Aromatisse, Aegislash, and Keldeo, while he struggles to even get attackers going. He starts dead drawing very early on and I Lysandre all of his Donphans and kill them with Keldeo. He has an army of Hawluchas behind the Donphans, but since he can't actually KO anything due to Max Potions, the game ends fairly quickly. Despite my win, I decide to ID because this is a matchup I'd want to play in top cut.
4-0-1
I ID my last round with a fellow fairy player so we both make cut.
Final Swiss record: 4-0-2 3rd seed
Top 8 vs. Tommy w/ Yveltal/M Manectric
Game 1:
I open Manectric and seem do be doing fine--I get my Spritzees out and start setting up. He knocks out a Spritzee early on, but whatever, I have more. I then proceed to make possibly one of the worst misplays I have ever made--I consciously decide to use Overrun on his baby Yveltal because I can't OHKO it anyway, but I leave the second energy on it by mistake. He won't be able to KO it still...right? He explodes with a DCE laser muscle band and my Manectric goes down on turn 3, wiping the energy off my board, and leaving him with a gigantic Yveltal ready to go. I don't have baby Xerneas ready so I try to keep energy on my bench, but he knocks out a Mewtwo and is now down to 5 prizes. Thankfully, he doesn't have a way to take a KO the next turn, so I use Manectric to kill his Yveltal and N him to one, clearing the energy off his board. He gets a Skyla and grabs VS seeker...but I N him again, and this time, he draws nothing. I get M Manectric out and start tearing apart his field of Yveltals while he can't really do anything. He tries to power up something at the end with baby Yveltal to try and get his last prize, but I've got the Lysandre ready.
Game 2:
This game was much smoother. I get a blazing start and OHKO his Yveltal EX on turn 2 with a Manectric. He struggles to make anything work and his only real out his to attack my M Manectric with his Manectric for 120--and I proceed to shovel 7 energy onto a Mewtwo and OHKO his Manectric. I'm so far ahead at this point that he concedes few turns later.
Top 4 vs. Bart w/ Yveltal
Before this match I think I'm playing against Greg, the other Fairy player, and we actually sit down to start playing before the judge tells us to get up and switch opponents. Fine by me.
Game 1:
He gets a very quick start and goes on a Spritzee murdering rampage while I fish for my Manectrics. My last Spritzee goes down and I'm stuck without an Aromatisse for the entire game. Luckily, I get a fairly early M Manectric and start cleaning up Yveltals while setting up my bench. He constantly uses baby Yveltal to keep energy on his field, but I hit Lysandres when I need them and even though he KO's my M Manectric, I've got such a great board that I find a way to kill his baby Yveltal within the next few turns for the game.
Game 2:
This game was /fast/. He gets an early Yveltal, but I KO it with Manectric while setting up Aromatisses. He gets another Yveltal, and to my surprise, he puts a Muscle Band on it. Fine by me--I Skyla for a Max Potion and KO this Yveltal as well. He sorta figures out that putting a tool on things is a bad idea, so he doesn't attach a muscle band to his benched Yveltal, stopping me from KOing it with a Lysandre the next turn. It doesn't matter much though--I VS seeker for Skyla instead, grab Spirit Link, and KO his baby Yveltal with M Manectric. He moves up Darkrai to try and stall, but I've got the Lysandre still so I KO the benches Yveltal for the game.
Top 2 vs. Nick Chimento w/ Donphan
The guy I ID'd with to allow him a chance at cut. Supposedly the right decision, right?
Game 1:
I get a very quick start with multiple Aromatisse and Aegislash again. And he proceeds to dead draw AGAIN and I start putting damage all over his field, constantly missing KO's since his Enhanced Hammers stop Aegislash from ever doing real damage. He manages to get 4 energy on a Donphan at one point to set it up for a Wreck...but I drop the Keldeo I'd been holding in my hand and Lysandre the Donphan to KO it. The game basically ends on the spot--he has no other way to deal more than 60 damage so I clean up most of his board before he concedes a short while later.
Game 2:
My hand opens with...5 Pokémon and 2 energy. Wow. I start baby Xerneas to get energy on my field and luckily topdeck Colress a few turns later. He's once again not drawing too well, so luckily I didn't fall to far behind during the first few turns. He gets two quick enhanced hammers so I struggle to take KO's with anything, not having a Rainbow in several crucial turns to be able to KO Donphan. I end up running out of Fairy Garden and despite us being very close, I have to burn a bunch of energy to retreat every turn and despite having 1 prize left, I end up being 1 energy short (my last prize, of course) of a KO on his donphan.
Game 3:
I would go into detail but I don't see supporters or anything remotely useful the first four turns. He takes 4 prizes and time is called. Yay.
Final placing: 2nd
Final record: 9-2-2
Props:
2nd? I guess?
Undefeated until the finals
Yveltal everywhere
Ridiculous pulls (M Manectric, Dialga, Malamar, FA Trump Card, FA Xerosic, and a bunch of good holos and rares)
Spirit Link is good Arjun sucks
Fan club also sucks because Arjun sucks
Placing higher than Jason K (ssshhhhh I'm proud don't hate)
Vending machine decided to give me free water because lol
Slops:
2nd. #thecurselives
Dead draws against good matchups are my favorite thing in the world
Enhanced Hammer
Laser flips (never actually flipped tails on sleep but this deserves to go here anyway)
Round 1 vs. Jarod Morales w/ Yveltal/Garbodor
He starts Trubbish and I immediately assume that it's Seismitoad/Garbodor and that I'm doomed. He proceeds to bench an Yveltal and I breathe a sigh of relief. He actually gets a blazing start whereas I'm struggling to get anything going. He's already shoveling energy on to multiple Yveltals before I finally get a Manectric to kill his Garbodor. I kill his second Trubbish the next turn, and proceed to go to town on his Yveltals with Mewtwo and Manectric. He can't seem to get OHKO's, so I constantly Max Potion, eventually getting an M Manectric to further my advantage. He makes one last ditch effort with baby Yveltal to try and get a gigantic Yveltal EX but I already have the Lysandre in hand to end the game.
1-0
Round 2 vs. Anthony w/ Pyroar
I go first and get pretty much everything I need in this matchup--spritzees and Manectric. He also gets an early double Pyroar--the Flare Command one and the Intimidating Mane one...but he uses his entire hand to do it. He never draws out of it so I get a quick M Manectric and clean up the game 3 turns later.
2-0
Round 3 vs. Yveltal w/ Shadow Circle
Like the Shadow Circle actually matters when I run 4 Fairy Garden. He starts with an early baby Yveltal to power up his bench, and I grab my Spritzees and Manectrics. I grab a quick three prizes with Manectric, and then he N's and proceeds to make a reallyt weird play. He plays Shadow Circle, attaches a DCE to Mewtwo, then brings up Aromatisse and hits it for 40, assuming I can't retreat without Fairy Garden. But I have 5 energy in play--and even though I don't hit Fairy Garden the next turn, I just retreat my Aromatisse using 2 energy and then use the other three to KO the Mewtwo. The weakness isn't even removed because it doesn't have any Dark attached. He has basically no energy on his field at this point, so he rotates between Darkrais while I fish through my deck for a Lysandre to kill an Yveltal for the game.
3-0
Round 4 vs. Jason Annicherico (however you spell it) w/ Yveltal
He gets a blazing start and starts knocking out Spritzees left and right with Yveltal EX. Thankfully, after he kills the second one, I topdeck my last Spritzee and kill his Yveltal with Manectric. He can't find a way to kill the third Spritzee, so I get an Aromatisee and the game swings heavily in my favor. Later in the game however, I end up running out of Max Potions because I can't use Dowsing due to his Spiritomb, and he manages to kill a M Manectric and a Mewtwo, all the while keeping my hand low with N's. I'm staring down a Darkrai that I can't kill with 2 cards in my hand and...topdeck Lysandre. Phew.
4-0
Round 5 vs. Nick Chimento w/ Donphan
Downpaired so I can't ID. I get an extremely fast start with multiple Aromatisse, Aegislash, and Keldeo, while he struggles to even get attackers going. He starts dead drawing very early on and I Lysandre all of his Donphans and kill them with Keldeo. He has an army of Hawluchas behind the Donphans, but since he can't actually KO anything due to Max Potions, the game ends fairly quickly. Despite my win, I decide to ID because this is a matchup I'd want to play in top cut.
4-0-1
I ID my last round with a fellow fairy player so we both make cut.
Final Swiss record: 4-0-2 3rd seed
Top 8 vs. Tommy w/ Yveltal/M Manectric
Game 1:
I open Manectric and seem do be doing fine--I get my Spritzees out and start setting up. He knocks out a Spritzee early on, but whatever, I have more. I then proceed to make possibly one of the worst misplays I have ever made--I consciously decide to use Overrun on his baby Yveltal because I can't OHKO it anyway, but I leave the second energy on it by mistake. He won't be able to KO it still...right? He explodes with a DCE laser muscle band and my Manectric goes down on turn 3, wiping the energy off my board, and leaving him with a gigantic Yveltal ready to go. I don't have baby Xerneas ready so I try to keep energy on my bench, but he knocks out a Mewtwo and is now down to 5 prizes. Thankfully, he doesn't have a way to take a KO the next turn, so I use Manectric to kill his Yveltal and N him to one, clearing the energy off his board. He gets a Skyla and grabs VS seeker...but I N him again, and this time, he draws nothing. I get M Manectric out and start tearing apart his field of Yveltals while he can't really do anything. He tries to power up something at the end with baby Yveltal to try and get his last prize, but I've got the Lysandre ready.
Game 2:
This game was much smoother. I get a blazing start and OHKO his Yveltal EX on turn 2 with a Manectric. He struggles to make anything work and his only real out his to attack my M Manectric with his Manectric for 120--and I proceed to shovel 7 energy onto a Mewtwo and OHKO his Manectric. I'm so far ahead at this point that he concedes few turns later.
Top 4 vs. Bart w/ Yveltal
Before this match I think I'm playing against Greg, the other Fairy player, and we actually sit down to start playing before the judge tells us to get up and switch opponents. Fine by me.
Game 1:
He gets a very quick start and goes on a Spritzee murdering rampage while I fish for my Manectrics. My last Spritzee goes down and I'm stuck without an Aromatisse for the entire game. Luckily, I get a fairly early M Manectric and start cleaning up Yveltals while setting up my bench. He constantly uses baby Yveltal to keep energy on his field, but I hit Lysandres when I need them and even though he KO's my M Manectric, I've got such a great board that I find a way to kill his baby Yveltal within the next few turns for the game.
Game 2:
This game was /fast/. He gets an early Yveltal, but I KO it with Manectric while setting up Aromatisses. He gets another Yveltal, and to my surprise, he puts a Muscle Band on it. Fine by me--I Skyla for a Max Potion and KO this Yveltal as well. He sorta figures out that putting a tool on things is a bad idea, so he doesn't attach a muscle band to his benched Yveltal, stopping me from KOing it with a Lysandre the next turn. It doesn't matter much though--I VS seeker for Skyla instead, grab Spirit Link, and KO his baby Yveltal with M Manectric. He moves up Darkrai to try and stall, but I've got the Lysandre still so I KO the benches Yveltal for the game.
Top 2 vs. Nick Chimento w/ Donphan
The guy I ID'd with to allow him a chance at cut. Supposedly the right decision, right?
Game 1:
I get a very quick start with multiple Aromatisse and Aegislash again. And he proceeds to dead draw AGAIN and I start putting damage all over his field, constantly missing KO's since his Enhanced Hammers stop Aegislash from ever doing real damage. He manages to get 4 energy on a Donphan at one point to set it up for a Wreck...but I drop the Keldeo I'd been holding in my hand and Lysandre the Donphan to KO it. The game basically ends on the spot--he has no other way to deal more than 60 damage so I clean up most of his board before he concedes a short while later.
Game 2:
My hand opens with...5 Pokémon and 2 energy. Wow. I start baby Xerneas to get energy on my field and luckily topdeck Colress a few turns later. He's once again not drawing too well, so luckily I didn't fall to far behind during the first few turns. He gets two quick enhanced hammers so I struggle to take KO's with anything, not having a Rainbow in several crucial turns to be able to KO Donphan. I end up running out of Fairy Garden and despite us being very close, I have to burn a bunch of energy to retreat every turn and despite having 1 prize left, I end up being 1 energy short (my last prize, of course) of a KO on his donphan.
Game 3:
I would go into detail but I don't see supporters or anything remotely useful the first four turns. He takes 4 prizes and time is called. Yay.
Final placing: 2nd
Final record: 9-2-2
Props:
2nd? I guess?
Undefeated until the finals
Yveltal everywhere
Ridiculous pulls (M Manectric, Dialga, Malamar, FA Trump Card, FA Xerosic, and a bunch of good holos and rares)
Spirit Link is good Arjun sucks
Fan club also sucks because Arjun sucks
Placing higher than Jason K (ssshhhhh I'm proud don't hate)
Vending machine decided to give me free water because lol
Slops:
2nd. #thecurselives
Dead draws against good matchups are my favorite thing in the world
Enhanced Hammer
Laser flips (never actually flipped tails on sleep but this deserves to go here anyway)
Delaware States
I'm playing Seismitoad/Slurpuff/Swampert.
Round 1 vs. Yveltal
Game 1:
I get T1 Swampert. From testing, a T1 Swampert basically autowins every matchup in the format except Virizion/Genesect and Primal Groudon, which it did here. Every time he Lysandred something, I had a response. He Xerosics, I search for DCE. He does damage, I use Scoop Up Cyclone. And when I have a free turn, I can Trump Card to get all those responses back. I also flipped almost purely heads on hammer flips so he
s starved for energy the entire game. He concedes about 7-8 turns in.
Game 2:
I'll be honest, I don't remember much about this game. I don't get the Swampert out, but he struggles to get set up early after I get a T1 Quaking Punch and I hit a lot of heads on Crushing Hammers. I eventually put two water energy on another Seismitoad and win by Grenade Hammering the rest of his field.
1-0-0
Round 2 vs. Geoffery Sauk w/ Seismitoad/Bats
Game 1:
REALLY not a matchup I wanted to see. He straight up does more damage than me, and I can't get Swampert out anyway unless I pull it off on turn 1. He gets early Head Ringers on my Seismitoads so I struggle to even get an attack off early. I don't quaking punch until he's taken 4 prizes, and at that point, it's too late. I scoop to conserve time.
Game 2:
I get off to a much better start with an early Quaking Punch, but I make a crucial mistae by playing down another Seismitoad without a DCE on it and it get's Lysandred, stopping me from using Quaking Punch for a few turns. The game swings drastically in his favor and I actually run out of almost every resource I have. I'm forced to Jirachi for Trump Card, but at that point, it's too late for me to bring the game back as I proceed to whiff anything useful the next few turns.
1-1-0
Round 3 vs. Arjun w/ Seismitoad/Bats
Game 1:
ANOTHER Seismitoad/Bats. Eh, but it's Arjun, and the laws of Pokémon dictate that he gets horribly unlucky against me everytime we play. I bench him out after he draws no basics or energy for the first few turns.
Game 2:
Same thing in reverse.
Game 3:
He gets basics and energy this time, but I get a T1 Swampert. I quickly get a full board as I set up everything using Swampert and we both spam Quaking Punch, with him using bats when I can. I use Xerosic to get rid of the DCE on his Seismitoad, and he whiffs DCE the next turn, so he Lysandres my Swampert and puts it to sleep, so I can't retreat using Float Stone and the only way to get it out of the active spot is to Scoop Up Cyclone. So I do exactly that--I use Scoop Up Cyclone on the Swampert, discard it with Ultra Ball, and immediately Archie it back into play again. The game basically ends as I have a far better board and no longer has a way to stall.
2-1-0
Round 4 vs. Yveltal
Game 1:
I see no basics and lose on like turn 3.
Game 2:
I get an early Swampert and the matchup goes as it should--I search out every response when I need it. I head ringer all of his Yveltal EX's so he has a really tough time getting attacks off through the hammers, and he eventually concedes after he realizes that he has no options against the Swampert.
Game 3:
This game was really close. I don't get a Swampert out early so I have to constantly scramble for the cards I need, and I whiff a LOT. The worst part is that I prized 2 Seismitoad, so I only had one to work with. Luckily, he plays down a Seismitoad and has no room for a Darkrai on the bench, so I Lysandre it in hopes of Stalling and taking some prizes. I manage to get the Seismitoad out of my prizes right as my first Seismitoad is about get KO'd--and he N's it away. I manage to Archie right as time is called in hopes of forcing a tie, but I whiff everything off of it and he has the Lysandre on my Jirachi for the win.
2-2-0
Round 5 vs. Dylan Bryan w/ Manectric/BKEX/Suicune/Empoleon/Rough Seas lol
Game 1:
Wow. Talk about a lot of stuff. He plays all 4 Acro Bike on turn 1 and gets Empoleon out as well, so I assume I'm screwed. I manage to get an early Swamper though and it puts me at a huge advantage throughout the game. I'm able to spam Scoop Up Cyclone to stop him from taking prizes and I slowly build up damage all over his board with Quaking Punches and keeping rough seas out of play. I search out my water energies with Swampert, and proceed to Grenade Hammer is damaged field into oblivion. He brings up Swampert to stall, but of course that doesn't work since all I need is float stone which I can search out. His Jirachi is on his bench with 60 damage on it and he knows I can search out the Lysandre next turn, so he concedes to save a bit of time.
Game 2:
I don't get the Swampert out, and it becomes very clear that I'm at a severe disadvantage. Rough Seas basically stops me from doing any real damage as he spams retreat and I can't hit the Laser heads I need to to try and win. After fishing for the Swamper throughout most of the game, I eventually scoop since I know I can't win.
Game 3:
We agree to go by prizes since a tie kills both of us. I get a very early Quaking Punch on his BKEX and since it's massive retreat cost stops it from moving, I take my two prizes just as time is called. He has no energy on his board after a mound of crushing hammers, so I win on prizes.
3-2-0
Round 6 vs. ...Seismitoad/Bats...
Game 1:
....why. This game goes about as badly is it can go. He puts a Head Ringer on my Jirachi that I started with so I can't retreat it to Quaking Punch T1 using a Float Stone, so I have to pass with a Seismitoad on the bench. He topdecks his only other Head Ringer, Xerosics the DCE off of it, and Quaking Punches me. I concede a few turns later considering I have no outs to do anything.
Game 2:
I get the first Quaking Punch this game but the Bats damage starts to add up really quick, the main reason why this matchup is so bad. We quaking punch back and forth as normal, and he sets up a Seismitoad with 170 damage on it so it can be knocked out by a Golbat whenever he wants. But I topdeck my Xerosic right when I need it, and he whiffs a DCE the next turn. I have a gigantic hand of items after using Tasting for several turns in a row, and so I yell "FREEDOM" and go absolutely insane with Lasers, Muscle Bands, Head Ringers, and most importantly, I play Scoop Up Cyclone on the damaged Seismitoad to heal 170 damage. Ouch. He scoops the next turn.
Game 3:
Basically the same as game 1. I manage to get off the early quaking punch this time, but I go for a stupid hail mary play with Xerosic off a Jirachi and he has the DCE to replace it. He then uses Xerosic, I don't have the replacement DCE, and he takes the game from there.
3-3-0
Rond 7 vs. Yveltal
I was out of any sort of prizes at this point so I was sort of out of it this last round. All I remember is I win two games in a row using Grenade Hammers to finish off Yveltals and a Jirachi.
4-3-0
Final placing 33rd (actually 1 spot off from 10 CP lol).
Props:
Swampert is a god
The tradition of lucksacking Arjun lives on
FREEDOM
Slops:
Managing to play literally the only three people in the room playing Seis/Bats
So. Much. Seismitoad.
Head Ringer
Laser flips (has to go here even tho they can't even play laser after Quaking Punch)
Round 1 vs. Yveltal
Game 1:
I get T1 Swampert. From testing, a T1 Swampert basically autowins every matchup in the format except Virizion/Genesect and Primal Groudon, which it did here. Every time he Lysandred something, I had a response. He Xerosics, I search for DCE. He does damage, I use Scoop Up Cyclone. And when I have a free turn, I can Trump Card to get all those responses back. I also flipped almost purely heads on hammer flips so he
s starved for energy the entire game. He concedes about 7-8 turns in.
Game 2:
I'll be honest, I don't remember much about this game. I don't get the Swampert out, but he struggles to get set up early after I get a T1 Quaking Punch and I hit a lot of heads on Crushing Hammers. I eventually put two water energy on another Seismitoad and win by Grenade Hammering the rest of his field.
1-0-0
Round 2 vs. Geoffery Sauk w/ Seismitoad/Bats
Game 1:
REALLY not a matchup I wanted to see. He straight up does more damage than me, and I can't get Swampert out anyway unless I pull it off on turn 1. He gets early Head Ringers on my Seismitoads so I struggle to even get an attack off early. I don't quaking punch until he's taken 4 prizes, and at that point, it's too late. I scoop to conserve time.
Game 2:
I get off to a much better start with an early Quaking Punch, but I make a crucial mistae by playing down another Seismitoad without a DCE on it and it get's Lysandred, stopping me from using Quaking Punch for a few turns. The game swings drastically in his favor and I actually run out of almost every resource I have. I'm forced to Jirachi for Trump Card, but at that point, it's too late for me to bring the game back as I proceed to whiff anything useful the next few turns.
1-1-0
Round 3 vs. Arjun w/ Seismitoad/Bats
Game 1:
ANOTHER Seismitoad/Bats. Eh, but it's Arjun, and the laws of Pokémon dictate that he gets horribly unlucky against me everytime we play. I bench him out after he draws no basics or energy for the first few turns.
Game 2:
Same thing in reverse.
Game 3:
He gets basics and energy this time, but I get a T1 Swampert. I quickly get a full board as I set up everything using Swampert and we both spam Quaking Punch, with him using bats when I can. I use Xerosic to get rid of the DCE on his Seismitoad, and he whiffs DCE the next turn, so he Lysandres my Swampert and puts it to sleep, so I can't retreat using Float Stone and the only way to get it out of the active spot is to Scoop Up Cyclone. So I do exactly that--I use Scoop Up Cyclone on the Swampert, discard it with Ultra Ball, and immediately Archie it back into play again. The game basically ends as I have a far better board and no longer has a way to stall.
2-1-0
Round 4 vs. Yveltal
Game 1:
I see no basics and lose on like turn 3.
Game 2:
I get an early Swampert and the matchup goes as it should--I search out every response when I need it. I head ringer all of his Yveltal EX's so he has a really tough time getting attacks off through the hammers, and he eventually concedes after he realizes that he has no options against the Swampert.
Game 3:
This game was really close. I don't get a Swampert out early so I have to constantly scramble for the cards I need, and I whiff a LOT. The worst part is that I prized 2 Seismitoad, so I only had one to work with. Luckily, he plays down a Seismitoad and has no room for a Darkrai on the bench, so I Lysandre it in hopes of Stalling and taking some prizes. I manage to get the Seismitoad out of my prizes right as my first Seismitoad is about get KO'd--and he N's it away. I manage to Archie right as time is called in hopes of forcing a tie, but I whiff everything off of it and he has the Lysandre on my Jirachi for the win.
2-2-0
Round 5 vs. Dylan Bryan w/ Manectric/BKEX/Suicune/Empoleon/Rough Seas lol
Game 1:
Wow. Talk about a lot of stuff. He plays all 4 Acro Bike on turn 1 and gets Empoleon out as well, so I assume I'm screwed. I manage to get an early Swamper though and it puts me at a huge advantage throughout the game. I'm able to spam Scoop Up Cyclone to stop him from taking prizes and I slowly build up damage all over his board with Quaking Punches and keeping rough seas out of play. I search out my water energies with Swampert, and proceed to Grenade Hammer is damaged field into oblivion. He brings up Swampert to stall, but of course that doesn't work since all I need is float stone which I can search out. His Jirachi is on his bench with 60 damage on it and he knows I can search out the Lysandre next turn, so he concedes to save a bit of time.
Game 2:
I don't get the Swampert out, and it becomes very clear that I'm at a severe disadvantage. Rough Seas basically stops me from doing any real damage as he spams retreat and I can't hit the Laser heads I need to to try and win. After fishing for the Swamper throughout most of the game, I eventually scoop since I know I can't win.
Game 3:
We agree to go by prizes since a tie kills both of us. I get a very early Quaking Punch on his BKEX and since it's massive retreat cost stops it from moving, I take my two prizes just as time is called. He has no energy on his board after a mound of crushing hammers, so I win on prizes.
3-2-0
Round 6 vs. ...Seismitoad/Bats...
Game 1:
....why. This game goes about as badly is it can go. He puts a Head Ringer on my Jirachi that I started with so I can't retreat it to Quaking Punch T1 using a Float Stone, so I have to pass with a Seismitoad on the bench. He topdecks his only other Head Ringer, Xerosics the DCE off of it, and Quaking Punches me. I concede a few turns later considering I have no outs to do anything.
Game 2:
I get the first Quaking Punch this game but the Bats damage starts to add up really quick, the main reason why this matchup is so bad. We quaking punch back and forth as normal, and he sets up a Seismitoad with 170 damage on it so it can be knocked out by a Golbat whenever he wants. But I topdeck my Xerosic right when I need it, and he whiffs a DCE the next turn. I have a gigantic hand of items after using Tasting for several turns in a row, and so I yell "FREEDOM" and go absolutely insane with Lasers, Muscle Bands, Head Ringers, and most importantly, I play Scoop Up Cyclone on the damaged Seismitoad to heal 170 damage. Ouch. He scoops the next turn.
Game 3:
Basically the same as game 1. I manage to get off the early quaking punch this time, but I go for a stupid hail mary play with Xerosic off a Jirachi and he has the DCE to replace it. He then uses Xerosic, I don't have the replacement DCE, and he takes the game from there.
3-3-0
Rond 7 vs. Yveltal
I was out of any sort of prizes at this point so I was sort of out of it this last round. All I remember is I win two games in a row using Grenade Hammers to finish off Yveltals and a Jirachi.
4-3-0
Final placing 33rd (actually 1 spot off from 10 CP lol).
Props:
Swampert is a god
The tradition of lucksacking Arjun lives on
FREEDOM
Slops:
Managing to play literally the only three people in the room playing Seis/Bats
So. Much. Seismitoad.
Head Ringer
Laser flips (has to go here even tho they can't even play laser after Quaking Punch)
Pennsylvania States
I'm playing Donphan/Primal Groudon
Round 1 vs. Brian Bray w/ Primal Groudon
Game 1:
I almost feel bad for him at this point. This is the third time we've played in tournaments, and it's always a bad matchup for him and he always gets destroyed. This time wasn't much different--I get a quick stream of Donphans rolling and quickly kill his Landorus before snipe damage adds up too much. I proceed to Lysandre his Lucario and Wreck it for an OHKO, and he concedes the turn after since he has no way to kill the donphan with 4 energy on it.
Game 2:
Instead if going for an early Landorus EX, he decides to set up Primal Groudon instead. He has a really hard time doing any damage since Hawlucha resists baby Landorus, and while he's slowly setting up his Primal Groudon, I set up mine as well. The moment he brings it up, mine's ready to OHKO it, and since it's the last pokemon on his field, I win.
1-0-0
Round 2 vs. Yveltal/Seismitoad/Garbodor
Game 1:
This game doesn't last very long. He gets an early Seismitoad but I quickly take it down with Hawlucha and Donphan. He promotes an Yveltal, but makes a crucial misplay--he uses Evil Ball instead of Y cyclone, which allows me to move up Donphan and Wreck for an OHKO. He no longer has any energy on his field, so he's helpless as the 4 energy donphan steamrolls the rest of his board.
Game 2:
He starts Seismitoad again, and this time Lysandres my Groudon in an attempt to stall. I let it die and set up my bench instead--and since he never uses baby Yveltal, I'm able to consistently take two hit KO's on his Seismitoad and Yveltal EX's. He makes it very close with a late game N and then Lysandre, but I draw energy off the N so I'm able to Wreck to end the game.
2-0-0
Round 3 vs. Yveltal/Seismitoad/Garbodor
Game 1:
He gets an early Seismitoad and I dead draw for a while. The game doesn't last very long--I continue to dead draw even after the Seismitoad goes away, and I concede after I realize I have no way of winning
Game 2:
He AGAIN gets an early Seismitoad, but I have cards to work with this time. I use Spinning Turn with a Muscle Band and a Strong Energy on Donphan, hitting for 80. He then uses a Xerosic of all cards to discard the Strong energy--and it's extremely crucial, because I miss the Fighting Stadium the next turn for my Hawlucha to deal 100 damage. He retreats his Seismitoad and later uses an AZ on it, denying me two prizes and essentially sealing the game. My Donphans consistently get Lysandred before they can use Wreck and I can't seem to get Groudon out.
2-1-0
Round 4 vs. Eggs
Game 1:
Get benched on turn 2 by a Virizion with a Muscle Band against my Mr. Mime. Lol.
Game 2:
He dead draws early on so I get a ton of energy on my board and consistently two hit KO Eggs (and OHKO exeggcutes with Phanpy, lol) . He never really gets a crucial lock and concedes after he realizes he's too far behind.
Game 3:
I get benched out on turn 3 because I draw into 6 supporters after my turn 1 Sycamore and he gets the t2 lock.
2-2-0
Round 5 vs. Yveltal/Seismitoad/Garbodor
Game 1:
This was an extremely good game. He gets an early Seismitoad as always, but I get a quick Donphan and start putting a lot of damage on his board. He hits a few crucial Lysandres that kill the donphand that are doing the most damage, and after he locks my Groudon active and KO's it, we're very even on prizes. I get a Donphan with 4 energy, N, and Wreck his Yveltal EX for the KO. He doesn't have another attacker at ready that can KO the Donphan, so he concedes.
...and he scoops the next game, because he says he's too tired to play. Oh well.
3-2-0
Round 6 vs. Seismitoad/Bats
Game 1:
I hit no basics and get benched on turn 2. I don't fully understand why this happens so often when I play 4 Korrina.
Game 2:
He misses the t2 lock and I get a huge set up with a lot of basics and robo subs. I get energy everywhere, put Mr. Mime down, and simply spam Spinning Turn the whole game. He doesn't hit the Lysandres when he needs them so he concedes once I kill two Seismitoads, since he's simply too far behind.
Game 3:
I play down Groudon and make my best attempt to set it up, but I dead draw after drawing all three vs seeker in my turn 2 hand and never get enough energy on it.
3-3-0
Round 7 vs. Seismitoad/Bats
Game 1:
He starts Jirachi, so I assume he can't get the turn 1 lock and play it as such. He of course draws into Seismitoad, DCE, Muscle Band, and he hits heads on Jirachi to start the lock. I proceed to dead draw for the rest of the game.
Game 2:
I get an early Groudon and focus the entire game around setting it up. I manage to snag two crucial prizes with Donphan before the Groudon comes up, so after the first Gaia Volcano, I only have two prizes left to take. He's forced to attack with Crobat, but I have the stadium to OHKO it, and I have the Lysandre on his benched Golbat to end the game the next turn.
Game 3:
Exactly the same as the game before. I get Groudon going as fast as I can, hit stadiums, and OHKO everything.
4-3-0
So, I ended the day with a crappy record once again. I'm probably not going to play much more this format--I'll go to NJ states, but 12 of the 14 decks that I've played against over the last two tournaments have involved Seismitoad, and one of the 2 that didn't was Eggs. Even when I beat the decks, it's not really fun--it often just involves drawing a single card, attaching energy, and attacking (or whiffing energy and supporters, passing, and losing). I don't think playing a different deck solves that since the only thing you can do under item lock is play energy and Pokémon anyway.
Props:
OHKOing a Primal Groudon for 260 damage
Watching Seismitoad crumble in fear under Primal Groudon
SLAAAAASH BLAAAAAAST
Russian Retreat
Wave Splash Rain Splash wombo combo in pack wars
Slops:
Seismitoad
Missing literally almost every matchup I wanted to see--Flareon, Manectric/Rough Seas, Night March, Virizion/Genesect
Seismitoad
Laser Flips
Seismitoad
Coming soon with NJ states in two weeks...
Total CP: 60
