Hey guys, I'm João Motrena, a TCG player. I'm 12 years old (will be 13 in July ), that means I'm a Senior. I was fairly confident for this National, since I've prepared very well for it.
Done with introductions, so let's get to the list:
I decided to play Hammertime 2 days before the event, because I felt very comfortable with it, and had many good matchups across the board. I also thought my main opponents were going to play decks with no energy acceleration, and I was right.
This was The List:
Pokémon (11):
3 Darkrai EX
1 Mewtwo EX
1 Tornadus EX
2 Sableye DE
2 Smeargle
2 Shaymin
T/S/S (37):
4 Professor Juniper
3 Professor Oak's New Theory
2 N (FA, btw
)
3 Random Receiver
2 Ultra Ball
1 Dual Ball
4 Junk Arm
4 Dark Patch
3 Pokémon Catcher
2 Eviolite
1 Dark Claw
2 Max Potion
4 Crushing Hammer
2 Enhanced Hammer (because I lost my Lost Removers)
Energy (12):
10 Darkness Energy
2 Double Colorless Energy
Now, some of you may disagree with the 1/1 split of TornadusEX and MewtwoEX or using 2 Shaymins, but I wanted to be able to use both Mewtwo and Tornadus and I didn't want to limit my Shaymins. Max Potion is also way better than SSU, because it's safe.
Now, on to the Tournament Report:
I slept 9 hours so I could be focused the whole day. I ate a bowl of Cereals and got off to the tournament.
I arrived at 9:15, talked to some friends, etc. At 9:30 I went to the Registration place and 5 minutes later I was already registered. I also won a P!P Binder, because I flipped heads (strange stuff), and then traded it for the Playmat, which I liked more. The tournament was a Best-of-Three with 40 minutes. There were 5 Rounds for seniors and Top 4 (we were 2 players short of Top 8).
We waited 'till 11:00 AM, and then the tournament started!
Round 1 VS Emboar/Reshiram
Game 1 - I got T2 Darkrai and benched him by turn 5.
Game 2 - Copy paste game 1.
So, 1-0. Nice.
Round 2 VS VVV (Y U NO LOVE ME ARCEUS!?!?!?)
Game 1 - I got T2 Darkrai and he got T2 Vileplume, but due to my pre Vileplume Catcher and Crushing Hammer plays, the Plume was active. I KO'd it and just steamrolled through his 'Mons.
Game 2 - This was harder, since he got T3 Plume and Vanilluxe with Victini too. in fact, I started losing, and that actually helped me since he couldn't use Twins. I had discarded like 4 of his energy, so when I KO'd his Vanilluxe with Tornadus (had 30 from Darkrai), he had no energy in play. From there, he couldn't keep up with the energy drops and I KO'd 4 of his 'Mons, until he got a Vanillish using Ice Beam. Those 2 flips would probably decide the game. He got double tails. I won.
2-0. Won against one of my worst matchups. Guess Arceus does love me after all. Feeling pretty confident.
Round 3 VS Zekrom/Terrakion/Eelektrik/Raikou
Game 1 - I don't remember much, but I only started attacking by T4 and he had a 2 prize lead (I think), but I still managed to win.
Game 2 - With my bad luck, I only started attacking by T6, and he had taken 3 prizes already. However, I still managed to be at 2 prizes while he was at 1. I would win next turn, but time was called so sudden death.
Sudden Death - He opens with Tornadus EX and DCE for 30 on my Smeargle. I use 2 Supporters and I'm unable to find a basic or Ultra Ball, so I retreat to Sableye. He has the energy and uses Power Blast ftw.
2-1. Guess my luck from Round 2 turned against me. Dunno if I can still get to Top 4, but I'll have to win my next two matches.
Round 4 VS KyuremEX/KyogreEX
Just me killing his high HP basics both games.
3-1.
Round 5 VS Donphan/Tornadus/Terrakion
I'm at the last table of the 4-1s... not looking good.
Game 1 - I start with Mewtwo and DCE and decide to go agressive. He doesn't get any Supporters and really can't get anything going, so he scoops.
Game 2 - Exactly the same as the first game, but this time I start with Tornadus EX instead of Mewtwo.
So, at this point there are five people 4-1 and one person 5-0 (that guy is Slayer, he is a member of pokébeach too).
We were speculating who would enter, since 2 of the 4-1s were already confirmed to be in the cut. At this point I'm just praying to Jesus I get in, and not bubble at 5th because of bad luck in one round...
We wait for like 30 minutes, and then the Top 4 for Seniors is announced... and guess what. I'M IN!!! I was so happy when I knew I was in the Top 4.
Top 4 VS Zekrom/Eelektrik/Terrakion/Raikou (same guy from round 3)
Game 1 - I start with Mewtwo and he starts with Shaymin. He can't get any basics and even with a bad start from my side I bench him by T3.
Game 2 - This time, I get a T2 Night Spear. At some point in the game he gets a Retaliate and ties the game at 3-3. I kill his Terrakion and his benched Eel with 60 Damage on it using Night Spear. I make a worried face while staring at his Terrakion, like saying: "Don't Retaliate or I'm screwed!", because I have a Catcher in hand to get the last prize. He Retaliates, I promote my other Darkrai, and Catcher KO the Eel for the win.
Got my revenge from round 3 ahah
Now, on Top 2 I play VS Slayer and he didn't lose any game yet. He's playing Terrakion/MewtwoEX/TornadusEX w/1 normal Tornadus (I think). I know it's gonna be tough.
Game 1 - I get a T2 Night Spear w/Dark Claw on his Terrakion and do 30 to the benched one after we N'd ourselves 4 times (yes, 4 times with some help of Smeargle). He benches another one and I Catcher it, do 30 to a normal Tornadus and 110 to the Terrakion. He somehow gets a Shaymin and Land Crushes me, which caught me off guard, but I proceed to kill 2 of his Terrakions in 1 turn with Darkrai (the one with 3 energys was killed with the 30 snipe damage on the bench, so it wouldn't activate the EXP. Shares). From there on I just kill everything with Tornadus EX. I think he tries to go for Mewtwo but I quickly answer with my own.
Game 2 - I get a T2 Night Spear again (with help of a Shaymin) and this time I hit all my Crushing Hammers, preventing him from getting any Retaliates. By the time he does kill me, I have already spreaded a lot of damage on his board, so his Terrakion are basically useless. I kill 1 of his Terrakions with Tornadus. Then he goes for Mewtwo (which had 60 damage), which I KO with Darkrai, that now has 80 damage on it. Now, he isn't able to attack due to my Crushing and Enhanced Hammers, so he benches a Mewtwo w/EXP. Share and no energys and basically sacrifices his Terrakion with 1 Energy to power up the Mewtwo. However, I have 8 energy on the field (including 2 DCE). So, I retreat the Darkrai and promote a fresh Mewtwo. I then use my second Shaymin to move a DCE and 3 Darks on my Mewtwo and also move all energys away from my Eviolited Darkrai EX (with 80 damage) to Tornadus EX. Then, I Max Potion the Darkrai (now he can't be KO'd by Retaliate since he has Eviolite), Catcher his Mewtwo, and KO it. Right now the prizes are 1-4 in my favor, and since he already had discarded a Mewtwo when he used a Juniper, he can't respond. He also can't OHKO Darkrai and next turn I have the win, so he concedes.
YEAH!!!!! I get the 1st place!!!! Nice!!!! I can't describe how happy I was. It was just awesome. I enjoyed the finals so much, and Slayer is one of the coolest Portuguese players IMO Definitely one of the best matches I had in a while. I had to focus so much because 1 misplay would cost me the finals.
So, I get 49 Boosters (31 from DE) and only pull junk. Pulled 2 Kyogre EXs and none of them was FA. Meh. The best I pulled was a Meowth Secret Rare.
I also got the invite for Worlds and fully paid trip to Hawaii, so it's the second time I'm going to Worlds in Hawaii!!! Definitely very excited!
Props:
- Winning!
- Hanging out and having fun with my friends!
- Prizes being awesome!
- Going to Worlds and Hawaii again without spending even 1$ !!
- Using my awesome Full Art N's that I got from cf11 one day before Nats!
- Everybody saying my Energy Japanese Sleeves were awesome!
- Many more stuff I don't remember!
Slops:
- There wasn't really a big slop, only the fact that I got 2 Kyogre EXs, but that isn't really a slop !
If you don't understand something in the report, tell me and I'll clarify it ASAP. Also, my English may not be the best since I'm 12 years old and I'm portuguese.
Thanks for reading!
P.S.: Is anyone from the forum going to Worlds this year?
Done with introductions, so let's get to the list:
I decided to play Hammertime 2 days before the event, because I felt very comfortable with it, and had many good matchups across the board. I also thought my main opponents were going to play decks with no energy acceleration, and I was right.
This was The List:
Pokémon (11):
3 Darkrai EX
1 Mewtwo EX
1 Tornadus EX
2 Sableye DE
2 Smeargle
2 Shaymin
T/S/S (37):
4 Professor Juniper
3 Professor Oak's New Theory
2 N (FA, btw
)3 Random Receiver
2 Ultra Ball
1 Dual Ball
4 Junk Arm
4 Dark Patch
3 Pokémon Catcher
2 Eviolite
1 Dark Claw
2 Max Potion
4 Crushing Hammer
2 Enhanced Hammer (because I lost my Lost Removers)
Energy (12):
10 Darkness Energy
2 Double Colorless Energy
Now, some of you may disagree with the 1/1 split of TornadusEX and MewtwoEX or using 2 Shaymins, but I wanted to be able to use both Mewtwo and Tornadus and I didn't want to limit my Shaymins. Max Potion is also way better than SSU, because it's safe.
Now, on to the Tournament Report:
I slept 9 hours so I could be focused the whole day. I ate a bowl of Cereals and got off to the tournament.
I arrived at 9:15, talked to some friends, etc. At 9:30 I went to the Registration place and 5 minutes later I was already registered. I also won a P!P Binder, because I flipped heads (strange stuff), and then traded it for the Playmat, which I liked more. The tournament was a Best-of-Three with 40 minutes. There were 5 Rounds for seniors and Top 4 (we were 2 players short of Top 8).
We waited 'till 11:00 AM, and then the tournament started!
Round 1 VS Emboar/Reshiram
Game 1 - I got T2 Darkrai and benched him by turn 5.
Game 2 - Copy paste game 1.
So, 1-0. Nice.
Round 2 VS VVV (Y U NO LOVE ME ARCEUS!?!?!?)
Game 1 - I got T2 Darkrai and he got T2 Vileplume, but due to my pre Vileplume Catcher and Crushing Hammer plays, the Plume was active. I KO'd it and just steamrolled through his 'Mons.
Game 2 - This was harder, since he got T3 Plume and Vanilluxe with Victini too. in fact, I started losing, and that actually helped me since he couldn't use Twins. I had discarded like 4 of his energy, so when I KO'd his Vanilluxe with Tornadus (had 30 from Darkrai), he had no energy in play. From there, he couldn't keep up with the energy drops and I KO'd 4 of his 'Mons, until he got a Vanillish using Ice Beam. Those 2 flips would probably decide the game. He got double tails. I won.
2-0. Won against one of my worst matchups. Guess Arceus does love me after all. Feeling pretty confident.
Round 3 VS Zekrom/Terrakion/Eelektrik/Raikou
Game 1 - I don't remember much, but I only started attacking by T4 and he had a 2 prize lead (I think), but I still managed to win.
Game 2 - With my bad luck, I only started attacking by T6, and he had taken 3 prizes already. However, I still managed to be at 2 prizes while he was at 1. I would win next turn, but time was called so sudden death.
Sudden Death - He opens with Tornadus EX and DCE for 30 on my Smeargle. I use 2 Supporters and I'm unable to find a basic or Ultra Ball, so I retreat to Sableye. He has the energy and uses Power Blast ftw.
2-1. Guess my luck from Round 2 turned against me. Dunno if I can still get to Top 4, but I'll have to win my next two matches.
Round 4 VS KyuremEX/KyogreEX
Just me killing his high HP basics both games.
3-1.
Round 5 VS Donphan/Tornadus/Terrakion
I'm at the last table of the 4-1s... not looking good.
Game 1 - I start with Mewtwo and DCE and decide to go agressive. He doesn't get any Supporters and really can't get anything going, so he scoops.
Game 2 - Exactly the same as the first game, but this time I start with Tornadus EX instead of Mewtwo.
So, at this point there are five people 4-1 and one person 5-0 (that guy is Slayer, he is a member of pokébeach too).
We were speculating who would enter, since 2 of the 4-1s were already confirmed to be in the cut. At this point I'm just praying to Jesus I get in, and not bubble at 5th because of bad luck in one round...
We wait for like 30 minutes, and then the Top 4 for Seniors is announced... and guess what. I'M IN!!! I was so happy when I knew I was in the Top 4.
Top 4 VS Zekrom/Eelektrik/Terrakion/Raikou (same guy from round 3)
Game 1 - I start with Mewtwo and he starts with Shaymin. He can't get any basics and even with a bad start from my side I bench him by T3.
Game 2 - This time, I get a T2 Night Spear. At some point in the game he gets a Retaliate and ties the game at 3-3. I kill his Terrakion and his benched Eel with 60 Damage on it using Night Spear. I make a worried face while staring at his Terrakion, like saying: "Don't Retaliate or I'm screwed!", because I have a Catcher in hand to get the last prize. He Retaliates, I promote my other Darkrai, and Catcher KO the Eel for the win.
Got my revenge from round 3 ahah
Now, on Top 2 I play VS Slayer and he didn't lose any game yet. He's playing Terrakion/MewtwoEX/TornadusEX w/1 normal Tornadus (I think). I know it's gonna be tough.
Game 1 - I get a T2 Night Spear w/Dark Claw on his Terrakion and do 30 to the benched one after we N'd ourselves 4 times (yes, 4 times with some help of Smeargle). He benches another one and I Catcher it, do 30 to a normal Tornadus and 110 to the Terrakion. He somehow gets a Shaymin and Land Crushes me, which caught me off guard, but I proceed to kill 2 of his Terrakions in 1 turn with Darkrai (the one with 3 energys was killed with the 30 snipe damage on the bench, so it wouldn't activate the EXP. Shares). From there on I just kill everything with Tornadus EX. I think he tries to go for Mewtwo but I quickly answer with my own.
Game 2 - I get a T2 Night Spear again (with help of a Shaymin) and this time I hit all my Crushing Hammers, preventing him from getting any Retaliates. By the time he does kill me, I have already spreaded a lot of damage on his board, so his Terrakion are basically useless. I kill 1 of his Terrakions with Tornadus. Then he goes for Mewtwo (which had 60 damage), which I KO with Darkrai, that now has 80 damage on it. Now, he isn't able to attack due to my Crushing and Enhanced Hammers, so he benches a Mewtwo w/EXP. Share and no energys and basically sacrifices his Terrakion with 1 Energy to power up the Mewtwo. However, I have 8 energy on the field (including 2 DCE). So, I retreat the Darkrai and promote a fresh Mewtwo. I then use my second Shaymin to move a DCE and 3 Darks on my Mewtwo and also move all energys away from my Eviolited Darkrai EX (with 80 damage) to Tornadus EX. Then, I Max Potion the Darkrai (now he can't be KO'd by Retaliate since he has Eviolite), Catcher his Mewtwo, and KO it. Right now the prizes are 1-4 in my favor, and since he already had discarded a Mewtwo when he used a Juniper, he can't respond. He also can't OHKO Darkrai and next turn I have the win, so he concedes.
YEAH!!!!! I get the 1st place!!!! Nice!!!! I can't describe how happy I was. It was just awesome. I enjoyed the finals so much, and Slayer is one of the coolest Portuguese players IMO Definitely one of the best matches I had in a while. I had to focus so much because 1 misplay would cost me the finals.
So, I get 49 Boosters (31 from DE) and only pull junk. Pulled 2 Kyogre EXs and none of them was FA. Meh. The best I pulled was a Meowth Secret Rare.
I also got the invite for Worlds and fully paid trip to Hawaii, so it's the second time I'm going to Worlds in Hawaii!!! Definitely very excited!
Props:
- Winning!
- Hanging out and having fun with my friends!
- Prizes being awesome!
- Going to Worlds and Hawaii again without spending even 1$ !!
- Using my awesome Full Art N's that I got from cf11 one day before Nats!
- Everybody saying my Energy Japanese Sleeves were awesome!
- Many more stuff I don't remember!
Slops:
- There wasn't really a big slop, only the fact that I got 2 Kyogre EXs, but that isn't really a slop
!If you don't understand something in the report, tell me and I'll clarify it ASAP. Also, my English may not be the best since I'm 12 years old and I'm portuguese.
Thanks for reading!
P.S.: Is anyone from the forum going to Worlds this year?
