Luck and other issues: any advice?

Blah said:
One quick question about shuffling. How the heck do you do the shuffling method that you see top players do? (Example: Top 2 at Worlds this year.) They like take half of their deck and mash it into the other half, but they do it in a really weird and fast way.
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That's exactly how I shuffle. Fast riffle shuffling is tough, but you get used to it as you do it more. It's so hard not to damage your sleeves in the process though.
 
Blah said:
I'll see about the RH thing, I often use as many as I have but I'll definitely be sure to look out for them sticking to each other.

One quick question about shuffling. How the heck do you do the shuffling method that you see top players do? (Example: Top 2 at Worlds this year.) They like take half of their deck and mash it into the other half, but they do it in a really weird and fast way.
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Well, I know Igor personally so I can ask him if you want :p
I shuffle like that as well. You just have to do it the right way. It is kind of hard, especially with Ultra Pros since they break easily when you do that shuffle unless you do it right. You have to put the bottom corners of the sleeve on the other half, and then slide the rest of the sleeve. It's hard to explain...

Also, as for the RH thing, that is just what happens with me. I don't really like to use RHs anymore unless it's the full deck.
 
Consistency is so important. In my early testing for BW-on, I was convinced that 12 was the magic/best number for supporters/receivers. Now, I realize that you MUST have 14-16. I used 10 (4 Juniper, 4 N, 2 Bianca) supporters and 4 random receivers in two battle Roads this season and won both of them. I know that is unorthodox, and I don't have THAT much testing with it, but I VERY OFTEN find myself having a supporter in my hand that I don't want to use, using Random Receiver, and then using the supporter I get off Random Receiver. This strategy is kinda rogue, and it does sometimes backfire.
 
@Blah- pay attention to the little things. If you know you're going to need a Catcher in a few turns, start fishing for it so you'll have it when you need it. Think twice about playing a Super Rod if you don't need the cards you're shuffling in. Ultra Ball away the cards you want lower quantities of late-game, not necessarily the cards you don't need at the exact moment. Although it's not as important in this format as last, watch when you play your N's. If you're taking an early lead, try to burn them off rather than use Cheren or Bianca. You'd rather draw those late-game. Just pay attention to how you're refining your deck over the course of the game, and do what you can to increase your odds of having what you want when you want it.

Zangoose said:
When you do a pile shuffle, what number of piles do you use? If you use a number that goes into 60 evenly, you're off to a bad start. 7 is what I do. Another way to shuffle is to organize you're cards into trainer / energy / pokemon(Like a decklist). Mash shuffle the energy and the pokemon together, do this 12 times or so. I tend to have a stack of ~20 Pokemon and Energy so it's not that hard to do it. If you're looking for how to know when to stop, when you're shuffling, not in a tournament but before, look through and see if any of the same cards are next to each other. If they are next to each other then do a couple more shuffles. After that do the same with the trainers(this will be more time consuming than the others), and when you are done take half of each pile(Trainers/ Pokemon and Energy) and do a bridge. Then do a bridge with the other half of the two piles. Then, still keeping them in stacks, mash shuffle the half piles together randomizing them. Then do the same to the other, then finally bridge and pile shuffle into 7's. Then do a couple riffles like you were doing earlier and present to cut.
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That's really just a baseless rumor. I've been 12-pile shuffling for as long as I can remember and have no issues. I don't always get the greatest starting hands, but really, who does? I win most of my games and that's what really matters.
 
I once shuffled my deck with force, and I would always start with lone shaymin or ho oh.:angry
I started shuffling differently and got more luck.
 
@Celebi23

Heard of Double Nickeling? If you're deck is organized for a decklist, and you do a six-pile, then pick up top left to bottom right you're just reorganizing your deck. Not in the decklist order, but you're not randomizing it as much as a 7 pile.
 
Well, my BR today was terrible. Hopefully I can get someone to teach me how to shuffle better at regs. I'll also be using a better deck.

Also, this is a stupid question, but is there any logic in going first? I wouldn't ask this, but out of the 16 tournament matches I've played I've only gone first 4 times :/.
 
Blah said:
Well, my BR today was terrible. Hopefully I can get someone to teach me how to shuffle better at regs. I'll also be using a better deck.

Also, this is a stupid question, but is there any logic in going first? I wouldn't ask this, but out of the 16 tournament matches I've played I've only gone first 4 times :/.
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Before every match I pile shuffle twice and then do a minute or so of side shuffling. Works good enough for me.

And what do you mean by logic in going first? If you're asking if it is better to go first, then the answer is yes. If you're asking if the way we decide who goes first is the best way to do so, the answer is also most likely yes. The only way to do so is to do it randomly, and sometimes luck just doesn't go your way. But, I also do not think going first makes that huge a difference. I didn't go first once in my BR today, and I won the whole thing. You just have to play through the disadvantage.
 
alexmf2 said:
Before every match I pile shuffle twice and then do a minute or so of side shuffling. Works good enough for me.

And what do you mean by logic in going first? If you're asking if it is better to go first, then the answer is yes. If you're asking if the way we decide who goes first is the best way to do so, the answer is also most likely yes. The only way to do so is to do it randomly, and sometimes luck just doesn't go your way. But, I also do not think going first makes that huge a difference. I didn't go first once in my BR today, and I won the whole thing. You just have to play through the disadvantage.
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Well, I lost two of my matches today because I didn't go first. And it was a stupid question, so I won't bother explaining it. Just disregard it.
 
Zangoose said:
@Celebi23

Heard of Double Nickeling? If you're deck is organized for a decklist, and you do a six-pile, then pick up top left to bottom right you're just reorganizing your deck. Not in the decklist order, but you're not randomizing it as much as a 7 pile.
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It's not exactly a matter of being "more random", it's a matter of how many iterations it takes for the deck to revert to its original state.
 
Zangoose said:
@Celebi23

Heard of Double Nickeling? If you're deck is organized for a decklist, and you do a six-pile, then pick up top left to bottom right you're just reorganizing your deck. Not in the decklist order, but you're not randomizing it as much as a 7 pile.
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Yeah, I guess I should have explained myself better. If I have two lines of piles, the first being 1 2 3 4 5 6 and the second 7 8 9 10 11 12, I shuffle by going 1-8-3-10-5-12-6-11-4-9-2-7 then picking up piles 1, 7, 6, and 12 then shuffling those together. This way still randomizes the deck. I guess people who shuffle with even numbers might pick them up in order, but I never do, so I just naturally (and stupidly) get in the mindset that nobody else does either. :p
Blah said:
Well, my BR today was terrible. Hopefully I can get someone to teach me how to shuffle better at regs. I'll also be using a better deck.

Also, this is a stupid question, but is there any logic in going first? I wouldn't ask this, but out of the 16 tournament matches I've played I've only gone first 4 times :/.
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Not really. I always call heads in case they've practiced flipping, but it usually doesn't make a difference.
 
I know how you feel Blah. Some people are just unlucky when they play. I consider myself to be one of those people. Most of the time, things just don't go my way. A game will come down to me hitting a heads out of 3 flips, and I'll get all tails. Really, my best advice would be to just suck it up and recognize that your luck sucks. Except that things will go wrong every game and be prepared for them when they do. Be on the safe side when you play, and when you build decks. I personally don't even bother playing things like Crushing Hammer or Super Scoop Up, even if they would help me drastically, because I will flip all tails, all the time. Make things more consist, try to take luck out of the game. Don't play things that require coin flips, and up the count of essential cards in your deck. Play more Supporters, important Pokémon etc... I've also started flipping coins as opposed to rolling dice, they flip heads more often from what I have seen.
 
Vulpix Yolk said:
I know how you feel Blah. Some people are just unlucky when they play. I consider myself to be one of those people. Most of the time, things just don't go my way. A game will come down to me hitting a heads out of 3 flips, and I'll get all tails. Really, my best advice would be to just suck it up and recognize that your luck sucks. Except that things will go wrong every game and be prepared for them when they do. Be on the safe side when you play, and when you build decks. I personally don't even bother playing things like Crushing Hammer or Super Scoop Up, even if they would help me drastically, because I will flip all tails, all the time. Make things more consist, try to take luck out of the game. Don't play things that require coin flips, and up the count of essential cards in your deck. Play more Supporters, important Pokémon etc... I've also started flipping coins as opposed to rolling dice, they flip heads more often from what I have seen.
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Yeah, I've done that as much as I can. Supporter counts are hard because most of the decks I play are very tight for space, but I try to veer away from decks that require coin flips (I'm not playing Hammertime soon lol).

As an added note, I may be overreacting considering I've only been to three tournaments so far, and it's not like I've lost every match I've played in them (3-4, 2-2, 2-3.) I think with a little bit better deckbuilding, metagaming, and practice, I might be able to do a lot better.
 
Luck can be a cruel mistress when it comes to Pokemon. As Blah said, I would avoid playing very many flip cards in decks. This will eliminate at least some of the luck factor in your deck. Shuffle differently if you end up getting a group of bad hands/clumping. I would accept your luck and find a way to play to your skills. Good luck!
 
Ugh I feel bad for you. I would just like make your decks more consistent. Like lots of random receivers. Also more Pokemon if they are prized.. That's all I can think of...
 
Blah said:
Yeah, I've done that as much as I can. Supporter counts are hard because most of the decks I play are very tight for space, but I try to veer away from decks that require coin flips (I'm not playing Hammertime soon lol).

As an added note, I may be overreacting considering I've only been to three tournaments so far, and it's not like I've lost every match I've played in them (3-4, 2-2, 2-3.) I think with a little bit better deckbuilding, metagaming, and practice, I might be able to do a lot better.
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Don't get discouraged. As a newer player, you're not going to to amazing at tournaments. But don't worry, as time goes on, you'll start improving, and start to get better results.
 
He's not really new. But I agree with the rest of it though because he is new to masters.
 
Glace said:
He's not really new.
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I suppose that's a compliment?

Anyway, I'm going to Regionals with a deck that has been very successful for me so far, so hopefully my luck will improve. I also got Dragon Shield sleeves to make shuffling easier.

If it's not...well, maybe I just need more practice.
 
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