After the end of Autumn Battle Roads, I decided to start preparing for cities. My two deck choices were either DialgaChomp or Luxchomp. I thought about DialgaChomp because several players from my league suggested it, and being SP, it could be a good deck for me to try. I got used to it after a while, but I also had my Luxchomp in mind. I had been playing Luxchomp for a while now, and being quite a veteran with such a deck, I thought that it could still have a chance, so I ultimately decided to use Luxchomp for the first weekend of cities I'd be going too.
Now that I decided to use Luxchomp, I decided to make some slight changes to it. I decided to put in either a Roserade GL or a Twins into it. The reason for Roserade GL was because of the first attack, where it can poison and prevent something from being retreated after a Bright Look on a heavy retreater, allowing me to snipe the bench a lot with cards like Garchomp C. The reason for Twins was because it could provide some nice advantage of gaining two cards if I was falling behind. In the end, after some initial playtesting, I decided to use Roserade GL.
Another change I made was the removal of Mismagius for Drifblim UD. The reason is because Drifblim can easily OHKO a Machamp Prime using the first attack with an Expert Belt attached, and I knew well that Machamp Prime was going to see some popularity too.
I even added Dragonite FB into the deck. I ran both Ambipom G and the Dragonite FB for situational purposes in the mirror. That is, if an opposing Garchomp had no energies on it from a Dragon Rush, I would use Ambipom, but if it still had some energies on it, then Dragonite comes into use.
As for the Luxchomp, it was pretty much like a usual Luxchomp. It had the usual Pokemon line, trainer line, and energy line. It ran Smeargle because of how useful it can be with Portrait, and as mentioned, it now ran Drifblim, Dragonite FB, and Roserade GL as well. With that out of the way, looks like it is time to get to the main bulk of the report.
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Deerfield, IL.
On November 27, 2010, Dad and I get to the tournament area at around 9:00 A.M. We turn in our decklists and have our decks checked. We then wait around as more and more players start coming in. In fact, many good players came to this cities tournament, including Pooka, Ness, Alex B, and JWittz and his family. My usual TCG friends also came, including Tommy M, Jason P, and Jeremy P.
Eventually, at 9:45 A.M, the pairings are posted, and we go to our respective seats. We learn that masters have quite a lot of players, so they have 5 rounds and a top 8. The juniors have around 8 players and a top 2. As for the seniors, there aren't a lot, so we have 3 rounds and a top 0. Despite this, I have to say, seniors had quite some competition. About half of the seniors played SPs, while the other half played Machamps. Now let's get to report shall we.
Round 1 : Seth V. (Sablelock)
I start with Lucario GL to his Crobat G. Early in the game, I had quite a bad start, so I had to play down Uxie, and then shortly later, a Uxie Lv.X. As for him, he initially starts setting up and then he passes. Eventually, I draw a Cyrus, which ultimately gives me a nice advantage. I grab what I need with Cyrus, and then I attack with Uxie Lv.X. He proceeds to KO the Uxie with his Garchomp C, so I proceed to KO it back. Shortly after, I start taking multiple prizes.
A bit later into the match, he pulls out Honchkrow G and uses Honcho's Command to grab a Poke Turn and a Power Spray. I then KO his Honchkrow with Luxray GL. Now, he uses a Pokemon Collector to grab a Chatot G and a Uxie. I Power Spray his Chatot G, but then he uses a Poke Turn to attempt to reuse his Chatot G. I decide to let him use it since I'm in the lead, and I want to save a second Power Spray for the Uxie, so I eventually do so. I take a few more prizes afterward, and then I use Trash Bolt to KO his Uxie to take the final prize. Good game Seth!
1/0
Round 2: Jeremy P. (GeChamp)
Yep, it looks like he is still running GeChamp, and I could tell I would be in for another epic match with him once again.
I started with Smeargle, while he starts with Spiritomb. For some reason in this match, Smeargle gives me some bad luck. Whenever I used Portrait, he only had a Judge available in his hand for me to use,and being forced to use a Judge in this case, it sort of messed me up, but not too much, so it eventually goes to the point in the game where I consider Smeargle to be risky.
Anyways, as for his Spiritomb, it slows me down and he begins setting up his Machamp using it. As for me, I begin to set up Drifblim, realizing that a Machamp is soon to come. Shortly after, he starts setting up a Gengar. I then pull out Garchomp C to KO the Spiritomb, stopping the trainer lock. It is then at this point he pulls out Machamp, where he uses it to KO the Garchomp back. I then Retaliate with Drifblim to KO the Machamp with the help of Lucario GL.
During the middle of the match, I made some slight misplays, but luckily, I manage to get through them. As for him, after his Machamp gets KOd, he starts focusing on his Gengar, so I do my best to avoid the Fainting Spell. Around this point, he also starts to set up another Machamp, only in this case, I can see a Machamp Prime coming soon, so I attach an Expert Belt on my Drifblim just in case.
Eventually, I KO the Gengar with Uxie, and I put Uxie to the bottom of my deck to avoid Fainting Spell. He then plays down his Jirachu UL tech, which gets Power Sprayed, and then he pulls out a Uxie so that he can safely draw some cards. Shortly after, he pulls out another Machamp to KO my active Garchomp C Lv.X, and so I retaliate it with Drifblim once again.
A bit later, time is called, and he is on turn 0. He doesn't do a lot that turn sadly. As for me, on my next turn, I pull off the winning move; that is, a double KO I should say. I use a Cyrus to grab a Poke Turn and a Lightning Energy. I use that Poke Turn to use Flash Bite on his Cursegar (which has only 10 HP left at this point) to KO it. I then pull out Luxray to Bright Look his Spiritomb, and I proceed to use Flash Impact on it to take the final prize. Awesome game Jeremy!
2/0
Round 3: Tommy M. (BlazeRayChomp)
Looks like I'm against my TCG Friend Tommy for another fine match once again.
I started with Smeargle with a Garchomp C on my bench. He starts with Luxray GL with a Garchomp C on his bench. I start the game, so I use Portrait to use an early Cyrus. He goes and does his play and passes. Unlike the last game, Smeargle helps me a lot in this match as I continuously manage to have the advantage of playing two supporters a turn with the help of Portrait. As for him, he doesn't have a lot of luck in this match as he isn't primarily having good draw.
Eventually, I KO his Luxray GL with Garchomp C, and then he counters back with his Ambipom G, but then I counter it back with my Promocroak. I continue to pull off more KOs using Garchomp C and Luxray GL (most of which being opposing Garchomps and Luxrays). After I take my 5th prize, he scoops since there wasn't much else he could do, winning me the game. Good game sir!
3/0
The seniors have now finished their rounds, so it is now time to wait for the standings to come out. They eventually come up, and it turns out I won the Deerfield, IL cities! I am pretty happy at this point since this is my first ever cities win in my life. I get 18 packs and my first Cities medal. Shortly after, Dad and I leave the tournament to go back home. Definitely an awesome day.
Props:
First time ever winning a city championships
Pulling out a Gengar Prime, Mew Prime, and two bottom halfs of Darkrai and Cresselia Legend in the 18 packs.
Getting my first cities medal
Many good players showing up
Lots of TCG Friends coming as usual
Winning a Play! Pokemon hat
Alex B. for winning masters
Xander P. for winning juniors
Tommy M. for taking 2nd in seniors
Stephen M. for taking top 8 in masters
Slops:
None
================================================
Chicago, IL.
A day later (November 28, 2010), Dad and I show up to the Chicago, IL, city championships at around 9:00 A.M. Dad and I turn in our decklists, and then wait for the remaining minutes. After such a success in yesterday's cities, I decide to use Luxchomp once again.
I was originally expecting a ton of players to show up (it did happen last year), but that wasn't the case. Luckily, some usual TCG friends showed up. Jason P. and Jeremy P. arrive once again, but Tommy M. doesn't show up. However, my other TCG friends, Nathan P. and Ben M, show up. Many good Illinois players also come to this cities as well.
Eventually, the pairings go up, and once again we go to our respective seats. This time, the seniors have slightly more players than the day before, giving us 4 rounds and a top 2. The juniors once again have 4 rounds and a top 2. The Masters have fewer players than the day before, so they have 5 rounds and a top 4. Now lets get back into action!
Round 1: Xavier H. (Tyranitar Prime/ Kingdra Prime)
He started with two Spiritombs, which was quite a pain considering I had a hand full of trainers. As for me, I started with a Garchomp C. He started off playing down a Larvitar and then evolving it into Pupitar with the Spiritomb and passes. I start hitting through each of his Spiritombs with Garchomp C. Around this time, he begins to set up a Kingdra Prime as well. Eventually, I KO both of his Spiritombs, freeing myself from a quite a trainer lock. It is around this point he manages to pull out a T-tar Prime. Though he had enough energy to use the third attack on it, he surprisingly just used the second attack instead. This gives me a chance to get a good shot on the T-tar, so I Dragon Rush it twice to KO it, and then I KO the Kingdra with Luxray.
Later into the match, I have quite a lead, taking several more prizes. As for him, he manages to set up another T-tar Prime. This time, he uses Darkness Howl to KO my Smeargle and my Bronzong G, so I use my Promocroak to counter it back for the KO and take the final prize to win it. Good game Xavier!
1/0
Round 2: Ben M. (Mew Prime/Rhyperior/Techs)
Unlike my recent matches with Ben M, it is now his turn for him to get rather unlucky. He had quite a bad start, where he started with a Crobat G with a Skitty on the bench. Furthermore, he isn't having good draw, so it looks like I have the advantage. I KO the Skitty with Garchomp C, so he plays down yet another Skitty. I once again KO Skitty with another Dragon Rush, leaving only his Crobat. I KO the Crobat with Luxray to win the match.
Ben showed me his hand after the match, which turned he didn't have the right cards to pull out any good Pokemon. Man, that must definitely suck. I even know that he was running a good deck, which is starting to become popular here in Illinois. Oh well, good game though.
2/0
Round 3: Jeremiah W. (BlazeRayChomp)
Like the last match, my opponent has a bad start and isn't having good draw either. I start with Smeargle, while he starts with an Unown Q with a Blaziken FB on his bench. Smeargle doesn't seem to come into much use in this game, because whenever I used Portrait, the only thing he had in his hand was an Aaron's, and that couldn't do me much. As for him, he doesn't do a lot in the first few turns.
Shortly later in the match, I KO the Blaziken with Garchomp C Lv.X. He then gets it back with his Aaron's. Since I pulled off a KO with Garchomp last turn, he pulls out Ambipom, but sadly, he makes a misplay. When he played back the Blaziken, he attached an energy and an Energy Gain onto it, and then he soon realized that he couldn't attach another energy to the Ambipom, so there just went his only shot to KO my Garchomp. I KO the Blaziken yet again.
Shortly afterwards, he has a way that could give him a comeback. He plays a Pokemon Communication to grab a Uxie, but then I Power Spray his Uxie, allowing me to still have an advantage. I KO the Ambipom, and then I attach an energy and an Expert Belt onto my benched Luxray. I pull out the Luxray to level up to the Lv.X and proceed to 80 to his Uxie to win it. Good game Jeremiah!
3/0
Round 4: Jason P. (Flychamp)
Yep, looks Jeremy P's brother, Jason, is still running Flychamp. He is now 3/0 at this point, so we are both in for quite a match.
Sadly, early in the match, I don't have the best draw, so I don't really have an early advantage. As for him, he starts with a Machop, so I knew I'll have to be setting up my Drifblim to get ready for the Machamp. He eventually pulls out a Machamp, and I have to let him KO some of my Pokemon so that I can fully set up Drifblim. I pull out a Lucario GL so that I'll have an easy time with his Machamps, and so I eventually manage to pull out Drifblim and KO the Machamp.
The game proceeds where he manages to pull out another Machamp, so I end up doing 120 to it with my Drifblim (with the help of Lucario GL). He then gets lucky with Hurricane Punch, knocking out my Drifblim. I proceed to KO the Machamp with a single Flash Bite to it.
I then continue to KO more of his Pokemon, and the game eventually comes down to a 2-prize away tie for both of us. It is around this point he manages to win the game. He gets lucky on a Pokemon Reversal, where he ends up bringing up my Bronzong G to the active spot. At this point, I needed to draw a PokeTurn to get me out of this state so that I could still have a chance, but now I'm not having a lot of good draw, so it looks like this won't happen anytime soon. He ends up using his Flygon Lv.X to KO my Luxray GL Lv.X and my Garchomp Lv.X to take the last two prizes. Oh well, good game Jason!
3/1
At this point, the seniors have finished their swiss rounds, so now we have to wait for the standings to see who made top 2. They eventually come up, and it turns out it's Jason and me in top cut. I kind of knew I would make top since my rankings would shoot up for beating Ben and Jeremiah.
We are given a lunch break before the top 2 matches, so Dad and I go to McDonald's for a quick lunch. We come back shortly afteward just in time for the top 2 cut. Jason and I shuffle up our decks, set up our prizes, and then the finals begin.
Top 2: Jason P. (Flychamp)
Game 1:
He starts with a Machop with a Trapinch on his bench, while I start with Luxray GL. He starts off doing 20 to my Luxray due to my weakness. I go and attach a DCE to my Luxray GL. I play a Crobat G down to Flash Bite his Machop. Then, I follow up with an SP-Radar to pull out yet another Crobat, and then I play a Poke Turn to leave the Machop at 30 HP, which is perfect KO range for Luxray's Bite. I use Uxie to draw some handy cards, and then I KO the Machop with Luxray.
He soon pulls out Vibrava and does 40 to me. I then hit it back for 50 damage with Garchomp. He also begins to play some more Pokemon as the game progresses. I eventually KO the Vibrava by Bright Looking it and then using Uxie to pull off a safe KO. I proceed to KO some more Pokemon, and evetually, I KO his Uxie to win Game 1.
1/0
Game 2:
This game was a lot fiercer than the first game. He started with a Trapinch with a Machop on the bench. As for me, I instantly begin setting up my Drifloon, aware about an imminent Machamp. I manage to pull out the Drifblim to KO the first Machamp he eventually manages to pull out. He pulls out yet another Machamp, but this time, I have to sacrifice my Drifblim in the process of knocking out that Machamp.
He then pulls out a Flygon. I do 80 to with Garchomp, and then I do it again a turn later to KO it. He pulls out another Machamp, and he uses it KO my Garchomp C. Now that my Drifblim is gone, I use Uxie Lv.X to KO the Machamp instead, but then he retaliates it back with his Uxie Lv.X to pull off the KO on my Uxie.
It is soon down to one prize card from each side. At this point, he wants to be sure he'll get some good draw, so he plays a PONT. He does get a Uxie out of it and attempts Set Up, but I Power Spray it, so I now have the advantage. Now that his Uxie got Power Sprayed, he can't do much else, so he ends up doing 80 to my active Garchomp C Lv.X with his Flygon. It is at this point I pull off the winning move. I Poke Turn my Garchomp C, and then I pull out Luxray GL. I level up and Bright Look his benched Machop. Then, I retreat the Luxray to pull out a Uxie. I level up the Uxie to Uxie Lv.X, attach a DCE to it, and use Zen Blade on it to take the final prize to win top cut. Great games Jason!
2/0 (4/1 overall)
And so I win yet another cities! I get 18 packs and a cities medal once again, but no door prize. I eventually stay around to see the top 4 matches for masters, and Dad and I eventually leave. Definitely another awesome day!
Props:
Winning yet another city championships
Pulling out a Machamp Prime, an Electrode Prime, a Celebi Prime, an Alph Lithograph, and one more bottom half of Darkrai & Cresselia Legend
Getting yet another cities medal
Lots of TCG Friends showing up as usual
Luke S. for winning in masters, and Steve B. for taking 2nd in masters
Xander P. for winning in juniors, and Michael B. for taking 2nd in juniors
Jason P. for taking 2nd in seniors
Vincent B. for taking top 4 in masters
Slops:
None
At this point, I have won a full weekend of cities, which also happened to be the first initial weekend of the city championships. I have gotten two cities medals and literally an entire box of HS Triumphant (18 packs+18 packs=36 packs=1 box). I feel quite happy about such a victorious weekend.
Of course, I will be going to other city championships as well, so if I manage to do well in some future city championship(s), I might write yet another report, so stay tuned!
Now that I decided to use Luxchomp, I decided to make some slight changes to it. I decided to put in either a Roserade GL or a Twins into it. The reason for Roserade GL was because of the first attack, where it can poison and prevent something from being retreated after a Bright Look on a heavy retreater, allowing me to snipe the bench a lot with cards like Garchomp C. The reason for Twins was because it could provide some nice advantage of gaining two cards if I was falling behind. In the end, after some initial playtesting, I decided to use Roserade GL.
Another change I made was the removal of Mismagius for Drifblim UD. The reason is because Drifblim can easily OHKO a Machamp Prime using the first attack with an Expert Belt attached, and I knew well that Machamp Prime was going to see some popularity too.
I even added Dragonite FB into the deck. I ran both Ambipom G and the Dragonite FB for situational purposes in the mirror. That is, if an opposing Garchomp had no energies on it from a Dragon Rush, I would use Ambipom, but if it still had some energies on it, then Dragonite comes into use.
As for the Luxchomp, it was pretty much like a usual Luxchomp. It had the usual Pokemon line, trainer line, and energy line. It ran Smeargle because of how useful it can be with Portrait, and as mentioned, it now ran Drifblim, Dragonite FB, and Roserade GL as well. With that out of the way, looks like it is time to get to the main bulk of the report.
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Deerfield, IL.
On November 27, 2010, Dad and I get to the tournament area at around 9:00 A.M. We turn in our decklists and have our decks checked. We then wait around as more and more players start coming in. In fact, many good players came to this cities tournament, including Pooka, Ness, Alex B, and JWittz and his family. My usual TCG friends also came, including Tommy M, Jason P, and Jeremy P.
Eventually, at 9:45 A.M, the pairings are posted, and we go to our respective seats. We learn that masters have quite a lot of players, so they have 5 rounds and a top 8. The juniors have around 8 players and a top 2. As for the seniors, there aren't a lot, so we have 3 rounds and a top 0. Despite this, I have to say, seniors had quite some competition. About half of the seniors played SPs, while the other half played Machamps. Now let's get to report shall we.
Round 1 : Seth V. (Sablelock)
I start with Lucario GL to his Crobat G. Early in the game, I had quite a bad start, so I had to play down Uxie, and then shortly later, a Uxie Lv.X. As for him, he initially starts setting up and then he passes. Eventually, I draw a Cyrus, which ultimately gives me a nice advantage. I grab what I need with Cyrus, and then I attack with Uxie Lv.X. He proceeds to KO the Uxie with his Garchomp C, so I proceed to KO it back. Shortly after, I start taking multiple prizes.
A bit later into the match, he pulls out Honchkrow G and uses Honcho's Command to grab a Poke Turn and a Power Spray. I then KO his Honchkrow with Luxray GL. Now, he uses a Pokemon Collector to grab a Chatot G and a Uxie. I Power Spray his Chatot G, but then he uses a Poke Turn to attempt to reuse his Chatot G. I decide to let him use it since I'm in the lead, and I want to save a second Power Spray for the Uxie, so I eventually do so. I take a few more prizes afterward, and then I use Trash Bolt to KO his Uxie to take the final prize. Good game Seth!
1/0
Round 2: Jeremy P. (GeChamp)
Yep, it looks like he is still running GeChamp, and I could tell I would be in for another epic match with him once again.
I started with Smeargle, while he starts with Spiritomb. For some reason in this match, Smeargle gives me some bad luck. Whenever I used Portrait, he only had a Judge available in his hand for me to use,and being forced to use a Judge in this case, it sort of messed me up, but not too much, so it eventually goes to the point in the game where I consider Smeargle to be risky.
Anyways, as for his Spiritomb, it slows me down and he begins setting up his Machamp using it. As for me, I begin to set up Drifblim, realizing that a Machamp is soon to come. Shortly after, he starts setting up a Gengar. I then pull out Garchomp C to KO the Spiritomb, stopping the trainer lock. It is then at this point he pulls out Machamp, where he uses it to KO the Garchomp back. I then Retaliate with Drifblim to KO the Machamp with the help of Lucario GL.
During the middle of the match, I made some slight misplays, but luckily, I manage to get through them. As for him, after his Machamp gets KOd, he starts focusing on his Gengar, so I do my best to avoid the Fainting Spell. Around this point, he also starts to set up another Machamp, only in this case, I can see a Machamp Prime coming soon, so I attach an Expert Belt on my Drifblim just in case.
Eventually, I KO the Gengar with Uxie, and I put Uxie to the bottom of my deck to avoid Fainting Spell. He then plays down his Jirachu UL tech, which gets Power Sprayed, and then he pulls out a Uxie so that he can safely draw some cards. Shortly after, he pulls out another Machamp to KO my active Garchomp C Lv.X, and so I retaliate it with Drifblim once again.
A bit later, time is called, and he is on turn 0. He doesn't do a lot that turn sadly. As for me, on my next turn, I pull off the winning move; that is, a double KO I should say. I use a Cyrus to grab a Poke Turn and a Lightning Energy. I use that Poke Turn to use Flash Bite on his Cursegar (which has only 10 HP left at this point) to KO it. I then pull out Luxray to Bright Look his Spiritomb, and I proceed to use Flash Impact on it to take the final prize. Awesome game Jeremy!
2/0
Round 3: Tommy M. (BlazeRayChomp)
Looks like I'm against my TCG Friend Tommy for another fine match once again.
I started with Smeargle with a Garchomp C on my bench. He starts with Luxray GL with a Garchomp C on his bench. I start the game, so I use Portrait to use an early Cyrus. He goes and does his play and passes. Unlike the last game, Smeargle helps me a lot in this match as I continuously manage to have the advantage of playing two supporters a turn with the help of Portrait. As for him, he doesn't have a lot of luck in this match as he isn't primarily having good draw.
Eventually, I KO his Luxray GL with Garchomp C, and then he counters back with his Ambipom G, but then I counter it back with my Promocroak. I continue to pull off more KOs using Garchomp C and Luxray GL (most of which being opposing Garchomps and Luxrays). After I take my 5th prize, he scoops since there wasn't much else he could do, winning me the game. Good game sir!
3/0
The seniors have now finished their rounds, so it is now time to wait for the standings to come out. They eventually come up, and it turns out I won the Deerfield, IL cities! I am pretty happy at this point since this is my first ever cities win in my life. I get 18 packs and my first Cities medal. Shortly after, Dad and I leave the tournament to go back home. Definitely an awesome day.
Props:
First time ever winning a city championships
Pulling out a Gengar Prime, Mew Prime, and two bottom halfs of Darkrai and Cresselia Legend in the 18 packs.
Getting my first cities medal
Many good players showing up
Lots of TCG Friends coming as usual
Winning a Play! Pokemon hat
Alex B. for winning masters
Xander P. for winning juniors
Tommy M. for taking 2nd in seniors
Stephen M. for taking top 8 in masters
Slops:
None
================================================
Chicago, IL.
A day later (November 28, 2010), Dad and I show up to the Chicago, IL, city championships at around 9:00 A.M. Dad and I turn in our decklists, and then wait for the remaining minutes. After such a success in yesterday's cities, I decide to use Luxchomp once again.
I was originally expecting a ton of players to show up (it did happen last year), but that wasn't the case. Luckily, some usual TCG friends showed up. Jason P. and Jeremy P. arrive once again, but Tommy M. doesn't show up. However, my other TCG friends, Nathan P. and Ben M, show up. Many good Illinois players also come to this cities as well.
Eventually, the pairings go up, and once again we go to our respective seats. This time, the seniors have slightly more players than the day before, giving us 4 rounds and a top 2. The juniors once again have 4 rounds and a top 2. The Masters have fewer players than the day before, so they have 5 rounds and a top 4. Now lets get back into action!
Round 1: Xavier H. (Tyranitar Prime/ Kingdra Prime)
He started with two Spiritombs, which was quite a pain considering I had a hand full of trainers. As for me, I started with a Garchomp C. He started off playing down a Larvitar and then evolving it into Pupitar with the Spiritomb and passes. I start hitting through each of his Spiritombs with Garchomp C. Around this time, he begins to set up a Kingdra Prime as well. Eventually, I KO both of his Spiritombs, freeing myself from a quite a trainer lock. It is around this point he manages to pull out a T-tar Prime. Though he had enough energy to use the third attack on it, he surprisingly just used the second attack instead. This gives me a chance to get a good shot on the T-tar, so I Dragon Rush it twice to KO it, and then I KO the Kingdra with Luxray.
Later into the match, I have quite a lead, taking several more prizes. As for him, he manages to set up another T-tar Prime. This time, he uses Darkness Howl to KO my Smeargle and my Bronzong G, so I use my Promocroak to counter it back for the KO and take the final prize to win it. Good game Xavier!
1/0
Round 2: Ben M. (Mew Prime/Rhyperior/Techs)
Unlike my recent matches with Ben M, it is now his turn for him to get rather unlucky. He had quite a bad start, where he started with a Crobat G with a Skitty on the bench. Furthermore, he isn't having good draw, so it looks like I have the advantage. I KO the Skitty with Garchomp C, so he plays down yet another Skitty. I once again KO Skitty with another Dragon Rush, leaving only his Crobat. I KO the Crobat with Luxray to win the match.
Ben showed me his hand after the match, which turned he didn't have the right cards to pull out any good Pokemon. Man, that must definitely suck. I even know that he was running a good deck, which is starting to become popular here in Illinois. Oh well, good game though.
2/0
Round 3: Jeremiah W. (BlazeRayChomp)
Like the last match, my opponent has a bad start and isn't having good draw either. I start with Smeargle, while he starts with an Unown Q with a Blaziken FB on his bench. Smeargle doesn't seem to come into much use in this game, because whenever I used Portrait, the only thing he had in his hand was an Aaron's, and that couldn't do me much. As for him, he doesn't do a lot in the first few turns.
Shortly later in the match, I KO the Blaziken with Garchomp C Lv.X. He then gets it back with his Aaron's. Since I pulled off a KO with Garchomp last turn, he pulls out Ambipom, but sadly, he makes a misplay. When he played back the Blaziken, he attached an energy and an Energy Gain onto it, and then he soon realized that he couldn't attach another energy to the Ambipom, so there just went his only shot to KO my Garchomp. I KO the Blaziken yet again.
Shortly afterwards, he has a way that could give him a comeback. He plays a Pokemon Communication to grab a Uxie, but then I Power Spray his Uxie, allowing me to still have an advantage. I KO the Ambipom, and then I attach an energy and an Expert Belt onto my benched Luxray. I pull out the Luxray to level up to the Lv.X and proceed to 80 to his Uxie to win it. Good game Jeremiah!
3/0
Round 4: Jason P. (Flychamp)
Yep, looks Jeremy P's brother, Jason, is still running Flychamp. He is now 3/0 at this point, so we are both in for quite a match.
Sadly, early in the match, I don't have the best draw, so I don't really have an early advantage. As for him, he starts with a Machop, so I knew I'll have to be setting up my Drifblim to get ready for the Machamp. He eventually pulls out a Machamp, and I have to let him KO some of my Pokemon so that I can fully set up Drifblim. I pull out a Lucario GL so that I'll have an easy time with his Machamps, and so I eventually manage to pull out Drifblim and KO the Machamp.
The game proceeds where he manages to pull out another Machamp, so I end up doing 120 to it with my Drifblim (with the help of Lucario GL). He then gets lucky with Hurricane Punch, knocking out my Drifblim. I proceed to KO the Machamp with a single Flash Bite to it.
I then continue to KO more of his Pokemon, and the game eventually comes down to a 2-prize away tie for both of us. It is around this point he manages to win the game. He gets lucky on a Pokemon Reversal, where he ends up bringing up my Bronzong G to the active spot. At this point, I needed to draw a PokeTurn to get me out of this state so that I could still have a chance, but now I'm not having a lot of good draw, so it looks like this won't happen anytime soon. He ends up using his Flygon Lv.X to KO my Luxray GL Lv.X and my Garchomp Lv.X to take the last two prizes. Oh well, good game Jason!
3/1
At this point, the seniors have finished their swiss rounds, so now we have to wait for the standings to see who made top 2. They eventually come up, and it turns out it's Jason and me in top cut. I kind of knew I would make top since my rankings would shoot up for beating Ben and Jeremiah.
We are given a lunch break before the top 2 matches, so Dad and I go to McDonald's for a quick lunch. We come back shortly afteward just in time for the top 2 cut. Jason and I shuffle up our decks, set up our prizes, and then the finals begin.
Top 2: Jason P. (Flychamp)
Game 1:
He starts with a Machop with a Trapinch on his bench, while I start with Luxray GL. He starts off doing 20 to my Luxray due to my weakness. I go and attach a DCE to my Luxray GL. I play a Crobat G down to Flash Bite his Machop. Then, I follow up with an SP-Radar to pull out yet another Crobat, and then I play a Poke Turn to leave the Machop at 30 HP, which is perfect KO range for Luxray's Bite. I use Uxie to draw some handy cards, and then I KO the Machop with Luxray.
He soon pulls out Vibrava and does 40 to me. I then hit it back for 50 damage with Garchomp. He also begins to play some more Pokemon as the game progresses. I eventually KO the Vibrava by Bright Looking it and then using Uxie to pull off a safe KO. I proceed to KO some more Pokemon, and evetually, I KO his Uxie to win Game 1.
1/0
Game 2:
This game was a lot fiercer than the first game. He started with a Trapinch with a Machop on the bench. As for me, I instantly begin setting up my Drifloon, aware about an imminent Machamp. I manage to pull out the Drifblim to KO the first Machamp he eventually manages to pull out. He pulls out yet another Machamp, but this time, I have to sacrifice my Drifblim in the process of knocking out that Machamp.
He then pulls out a Flygon. I do 80 to with Garchomp, and then I do it again a turn later to KO it. He pulls out another Machamp, and he uses it KO my Garchomp C. Now that my Drifblim is gone, I use Uxie Lv.X to KO the Machamp instead, but then he retaliates it back with his Uxie Lv.X to pull off the KO on my Uxie.
It is soon down to one prize card from each side. At this point, he wants to be sure he'll get some good draw, so he plays a PONT. He does get a Uxie out of it and attempts Set Up, but I Power Spray it, so I now have the advantage. Now that his Uxie got Power Sprayed, he can't do much else, so he ends up doing 80 to my active Garchomp C Lv.X with his Flygon. It is at this point I pull off the winning move. I Poke Turn my Garchomp C, and then I pull out Luxray GL. I level up and Bright Look his benched Machop. Then, I retreat the Luxray to pull out a Uxie. I level up the Uxie to Uxie Lv.X, attach a DCE to it, and use Zen Blade on it to take the final prize to win top cut. Great games Jason!
2/0 (4/1 overall)
And so I win yet another cities! I get 18 packs and a cities medal once again, but no door prize. I eventually stay around to see the top 4 matches for masters, and Dad and I eventually leave. Definitely another awesome day!
Props:
Winning yet another city championships
Pulling out a Machamp Prime, an Electrode Prime, a Celebi Prime, an Alph Lithograph, and one more bottom half of Darkrai & Cresselia Legend
Getting yet another cities medal
Lots of TCG Friends showing up as usual
Luke S. for winning in masters, and Steve B. for taking 2nd in masters
Xander P. for winning in juniors, and Michael B. for taking 2nd in juniors
Jason P. for taking 2nd in seniors
Vincent B. for taking top 4 in masters
Slops:
None
At this point, I have won a full weekend of cities, which also happened to be the first initial weekend of the city championships. I have gotten two cities medals and literally an entire box of HS Triumphant (18 packs+18 packs=36 packs=1 box). I feel quite happy about such a victorious weekend.
Of course, I will be going to other city championships as well, so if I manage to do well in some future city championship(s), I might write yet another report, so stay tuned!
