Though this event was eagerly anticipated by those with whom I most frequently test, disappointment was to be had. Following the staggering turnout of 20+ players that has since become a regular occurrence, a large turnout was certainly expected for an event offering chase cards such as Steelswarm Roach as prizes. However, a mere 11 players turned up to compete on the day. Whether it was the cost, prizes, time or the expected difficult competition that put people off, this was a major blow for the competitive scene in Liverpool. Following my success in the weekly event, I continued to wield a tweaked version of Agents to a relatively successful finish.
Round 1 - Dragons - 2-1
I essentially hand my first game of the day over to my opponent with a single utterance of “ok” in response to his activation of Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon’s revival effect. Clearly unfocused, I allowed this activation despite having Herald of Orange Light in hand with another Fairy to discard. I calm myself swiftly, and attempt to bring my mind under control as I sideboard. Game 2 starts with his summoning of a Koa’ki Meiru Drago, which paralyses my mind with fear that my ridiculous errors would leave me with a loss in the first round. Thankfully his summoning was merely for tempo, as he proved to have no access to dragons and only sought to set up the dragon for reanimation later. I leapt on the opportunity, and won that game and the one that followed.
Round 2 - Lightsworn - 2-0
Paired against my round 4 opponent from Wednesday, I knew a good match would follow. His practice was evident in skillful plays throughout, but despite that and the powerful tweaks that had been made since the previous match I felt far more confident with the matchup than expected. Thrown into focus by fear in the first round, I continue to push for the win.
Round 3 - Blackwings 0-2
As one of the more unique decks seeing play at the event, I wasn’t quite prepared to face down the winged menace. Though I played carefully around the various traditional pieces of the puzzle, the inclusion of Ryko to feed Black Luster Soldier was a devastating surprise. Both games ran long, with him dutifully pushing through my misplays to seize the win.
Round 4 - Macro Cosmos 2-0
Yet again I’m paired against an opponent from Wednesday night, and yet again the deck and player have greatly improved. Having pushed consistently to improve upon my play since my initial misstep at the start of the day, I’m very much in the zone as I fight past the grave hate and seize every opportunity presented to efficiently win.
Quarter Final - Gladiator Beasts - 2-0
Following a lengthy break the quarter finals begin, and I am dreading it. Having built momentum throughout the constant play of the last three rounds, I could feel myself lacking in focus as the match began. With little experience against Gladiators I was incredibly wary of the use of my counters. Extensive experience in using counterspells in Magic allowed me to gauge the right timing for my limited responses, and I managed to push for the win in both games.
Semi Final - Blackwings - 0-2
I fall to the naive mindset of hoping to face Lightsworn in the semis, and so it was inevitable really that I face Blackwings yet again! The match plays out quite similarly to the previous one, though in this case with the added difficulty factor of drawing numerous copies of Mystical Shine Ball. Once my Gachi Gachi Gantetsu’s fall, the match up is lost yet again.
Conclusion - 3/4th
I’m relatively happy with my result, especially considering my lack of time for preparation. The turnout was very disappointing, but the concentration of solid players with strong decks made it worthwhile. With another Agent deck falling to Blackwings in the finals, to very much the same horrendous draws as I saw in my semi final match, I felt at least confident that I am finally on track to developing my skills ready for the next wave of competitive events.
No comments:
Post a Comment