Thanks Bucky!
@Castanietzsche 3 - 0 @Happy_Thoughts
@Happy_Thoughts has to concede because the match lasted too long 
thanks for the games mate ! 
2 Likes
Bomber678 3-2 zeromh
Starting bank:
Risky Move
Bang then Fizzle
Training Day
Gem Essence
Colour Panic
Hundred Fist Frenzy
Pick Your Poison
Signature Move
Punch, Punch, Kick
X-Copy
I couldnāt react fast enough to turn 1 dragon form
X-Copy dcg and cg to send 6 gems in one turn is pretty good. Risky Move>Secret Move
Similar things happen. Colour Panic>Recklessness
I didnāt buy enough dcgs. Hundred Fist Frenzy>Stolen Purples
I bought enough dcgs.
Ggs.
3 Likes
Should be 3-2.
ggs!
2 Likes
Btw if anybody has ideas for how I couldāve done better in the Midori v. Setsuki matches that I lost, Iām all ears! My only ideas at this point are āuse a few reds,ā though thatās hard with Midori, or delay dragon form, though Setsuki moved so fast Iām not sure Iād be able to keep up.
The replays are, for the moment, under bryce āthe riceā fieldworker .
I only reviewed the final game. I see two points of strategic divergence:
First, you couldāve played Dragon Form on turn 1, and gone all in on grabbing purples with Training Day.
Second, you couldāve responded to the DCG buy with an immediate Stolen Purples buy. Stealing the DCG wouldāve been game-winning even if you needed to ditch Dragon Form to do so.
1 Like
Thanks for the comments! On the second point, I had really considered buying SP during the game, but didnāt prioritize it enough to make sure I had the $4 to do so. Looking back, I had a couple of opportunities to buy it, and I wish I had!
As a bisexual man, Iām very glad to have media representation in Valerie. Alas, The Bullās pilecontrol has become so second-nature to me, that switching to a character thar lacks those qualities ends up badly. I played as Troq after one loss.
Big chips that gave me the win include Mix Master, Ebb or Flow, and Hundred Fist Fury! Just a Scratch helped too. Jainaās gem-sending is barbaric!
5 Likes
Alrighty, that locks in our top 4.
Congrats, @quaz, @petE, @keithburgun, and @Zqxx for making it into the playoffs!
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petE 3 - 1 keithburgun
Game 1
Bank: secret move; now or later; training day; chip damage; gem essence;
one true style; riskonade; dashing strike; option select; itās combo time
Graveās economy reached DCG early, won out in the slug as Onimaruās hands didnāt line up for a 9-buy all game.
Game 2
Random bank: really annoying; money for nothing; sale prices; chip damage; color panic;
gem essence; one true style; riskonade; improvisation; iron defense
A bizarre game. As in the first, Graveās gem buying economy reached an early DCG and some combines, while Onimaru didnāt get a 9-buy. I lost internet contact mid-game, and the server auto-bought me 2 wounds on successive turns. But before drawing into that garbage, a lucky improvisation into DCG found Onimaru without enough pile control for the turn.
Game 3
Random bank: itās a trap; draw 3; gem essence; riskonade; chips for free;
dashing strike; mixmaster; self-improvement; axe kick; itās combo time
Onimaru used chips for free to match Graveās early economy, and we both ended up with good decks with cantrips, purples and reds. Onimaru was able to combo better into reds, consistently drawing or WTTāing into mixmasters, until Grave ran out of pile control.
Game 4:
Switch chips for free into master puzzler.
Without a good econ chip for Oni, this game was favoured for Graveās econ towards master puzzler. Grave ended up with two MPs, though it took drawing one on three successive turns to end the game, crashing 6+ gems a time with the help of riskonade, and Oni drawing both itās combo times without a 1 gem.
Good games! Maybe the deciding factor was a decent fork for Grave in every bank (and no stolen purples).
1 Like
9pm pst tonight my match with zqxx, if anyone wanted to watch
2 Likes
Is that PST for real, or PDT?
Probably both if the match lasts long enough
Qauz 3 vs 2 Zqxx
Close game with Vendetta getting good surgical strikes but Zqxxās Val had just enough not to succumb. Ven lost at pile height 10 to Valās pile height of 9, as close as it comes.
A short technical display where Onimaru was able to quickly put Val away with some knockdowns and Oniās early crashing abliity.
Another medium length match where Onimaru used dashing strike, knockdowns, and crashes to overwhelm Rook before he got going.
Rook got an early double crash gem, he wasnāt under as much pressure, and had a nice advantage early. Oni had some chances, couldnāt quite get his hands to line up right though and Rook was able to pull out a clutch win to bring it to a match 5!
This was an extremely fun game, best game of the tournament. Rook had some excellent early game where he was in a position to threaten a KO of menelker early. I had to do a really early deathstrike dragon, but I was prepared to transition afterwards with a good deck which had double crash gems, Rook transitioned as well, moving towards a better economy to compete in the late game. Rook took a double crash gem but couldnāt compete with the 3 DCGās of menelker. I am saving this replay in my profile if you want to check it out!
4 Likes
Nice games!
I notice zqxx has a tendency to not want to play with a high gem pile, even when itās safe to do so (i.e. you have a large gem ready to go, and you know youāll draw a crash gem next turn). There were instances in both Rook v. Oni games where zqxx couldāve crashed a 1-gem and then crashed a 3- or 4-gem on the next turn, allowing him (let me know if pronoun is wrong) to draw more chips for a turn.
This wouldāve made a difference in the game that Rook lost. zqxx wouldāve drawn an extra chip that turn, which would have been a Crash.
3 Likes
Thatās a fair analysis! That tendency is probably an over correction on my part. I used to play Puzzle Strike with a tendency towards never crashing until I absolutely had to, because I was greedy for extra draws and further combines. Which, got me into a lot of lost games where I could have saved myself if I had just crashed my bigger gem(s) a turn earlier.
Also he/him is correct!
4 Likes
@qauz: for posterity, what was the score in the finals?
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Qauz 3-2 petE
I used Zane and randomized the bank on my losses for as much maximum anarchy as possible. PetE used rook then Onimaru.
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@vengefulpickle @Nopethebard Thanks very much for organizing the tournament. Itās been a lot of fun, and great to revive interest in a good game.
Any thoughts of a re-run sometime soon? Or some kind of weekly league?
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I may run another PS tournament this summer. I havenāt decided yet.
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