There were eight other teams there, which was a lot less than expected. About half of them were just teams of the newbs who usually show up, so they weren't much of a threat. Quite honestly, none of the teams were a threat to us, since I observed only one good player (my Round 3 opponent from this evening Vanguard tournament), and his team had one of the random newbs on it because one of his teammates didn't show up. There was one team that was using three expensive decks (The End Kagero, Majesty Lord, and Tsukuyomi), but from what I saw, they were really bad... So, we were confident that Team Snogal would qualify.
As for our team, Riku was our first player using my Dark Irregulars, I was the second player using my Pale Moon deck, and my friend was our third player using the Great Nature deck he built earlier this week. Just like the previous qualifier, the format for this one was double elimination, and the tournament would continue until two teams were left.
Round 1: vs Gold Paladin (Agravain)
We were up against one of those newb teams. I was playing against someone whom my friend had taught how to play, so I expected him to be a decent player. However, I got double Critical Triggers to win, so that exemplified the skilllessness of Vanguard.
Riku won against a Gold Paladin player (I guess they cheated, but we didn't notice until afterwards, and it didn't really matter...), and my friend won against a Narukami player.
OOO
Round 2: vs Dark Irregulars (Reijy)
This was another one of those newb teams, because we were paired down for some reason, and my opponent was my Round 3 opponent from this morning Vanguard tournament. He still doesn't really know what he's doing, but I got gradestuck on Grade 0 for the whole game, so he won.
Riku won against an Aqua Force player (I just knew someone would play Aqua Force with just the Trial Deck), and my friend won against a Neo Nectar player (my Round 1 opponent from last weekend's morning Vanguard tournament).
OXO
Round 3: vs Royal Paladin (Majesty Lord)
This was one of the actual teams (as in, not a newb team), but we didn't really see them as a threat anyways. I ended up winning because, despite me not getting many triggers, my opponent got gradestuck on Grade 0. I told him that happened to me last round.
The only difference is that my teammates were able to pull through and win the match for the team last round. Riku won against a Tsukuyomi Oracle Think Tank player, but my friend lost against an Ezel/Pellinore Gold Paladin player. Leo-pald was supposed to strike Ezel three times, but apparently he got sacked. It didn't matter, since we still won the match.
OOX
Round 4: vs Royal Paladin (Snogal)
This was one of the actual teams, and I had never seen any of them before yesterday. Anyways, she used an interesting Snogal Royal Paladin build with Wingal Brave and Blaster Blade (so she could actually use Wingal Brave). I knew that she wasn't playing Majesty Lord, so I let her Wingal Brave through, and she searched Exculpate the Blaster... So, I knew that I had to conserve my cards for when she dropped it. To that end, I used Luquier's Limit Break early so that I could make a field for free, then beat her down with 20k columns. She dropped Exculpate when she was almost out of cards (which was good timing, since she was able to use it to attempt final turn, and even if she failed, she'd be able to kill my field). However, I had like ten cards in hand, so I perfect guarded my Vanguard to protect myself and let my field go. I then made three 19k columns on the following turn to beat up the Blaster Blade she had to ride and win.
However, my teammates had let me down. Riku lost to a Shadow Paladin player (he complained about not having gotten enough triggers), and my friend got sacked by a Pellinore Gold Paladin player again (he complained about not having gotten any boosters). So we lost the match.
XOX
At this point, there were four teams left, including ours. If the team we had just lost to (now the only undefeated team) were to win their next match, then the next round would be the last.
Round 5: vs Gold Paladin (Ezel)
We were playing against the team that had the one good player I mentioned earlier. I just had to play against a Gold Paladin player, so 20k columns across the board won the game.
Before I even finished, Riku won against a Nova Grappler newbie (he played Cat Butlers...), and my friend won against a Spike Brothers player (the one good player) by getting double Critical Triggers.
OOO
So it turns out that the undefeated team played against our team's Round 5 opponents from last weekend's evening Vanguard tournament (except that their third player, the The End Kagero one, couldn't make it, so spondo filled that spot with his The End Kagero deck). The undefeated team won, so that ended up being the last round.
So, Team Snogal ended up making the Top 2 and qualifying for the Team League Regional. We got the invite and the cheap little buttons they give out, so that was alright, I guess. Either way, we accomplished our goal and have gotten the invite to go to the Regional, get free deck boxes, then get sacked and lose. Our Regional will probably be in June, so that's when we'll go and get our free deck boxes.
But yeah, after that, Riku had to leave, so my friend, Aki, and I went to the evening card shop. I also gave the one good player from before a ride there. In between the tournaments, we had a few hours to just do whatever, like eat, play Vanguard, and play the Vanguard video game.
I let my friend play using my Maelstrom Aqua Force deck so I could convince him of how bad Maelstrom's Limit Break is. He understood after playing it, and he has decided to make a Navalgazer build until Set 9 comes out with Glory Maelstrom. I'm planning on making a Tristinger Dragon build, so we'll see how that goes. But yeah, I let him rack up VP by playing random matches so that I could get cards for other decks, so that was good.
In between tournaments, Aki said that he wanted to try out my Dark Irregulars for the tournament. Then my friend said that he wanted to try Aki's Narukami deck for the tournament. So then I asked my friend if I could use his Great Nature deck for the tournament. And so we all rotated decks.
There were 14 players there for the evening Vanguard tournament. Aside from Team Snogal, the one good player whom I gave a ride to the evening tournament, and my Round 4 opponent from this evening Vanguard tournament, everyone there was a newb and/or a little kid.
Round 1: vs Nova Grappler
I was up against my Round 4 opponent from this evening Vanguard tournament... Anyways, I ended up winning the first game since I got two triggers to push through his two-to-pass guard, and I won the second game because I got more triggers than him. And also, Nova Grapplers aren't that great. It's sad, since Nova Grappler is my clan, but they're honestly pretty bad, and I may just give up on making them since they're not worth the cost. I mean, Ethics Buster and Illuminal Dragon will probably be hyped and cost a bunch (I mean, apparently Twin Bladers cost $25 right now), but they're really not that great. But whatever, maybe I'll test out an Illuminal Dragon crossride deck on the video game and see how it goes.
OO
Round 2: vs Gold Paladin (Spectral Duke)
This was my Top 4 opponent from this evening Vanguard tournament. It's always worrying to play against Spectral Duke, since the ride chain is so good and Spectral Duke's Limit Break is quite powerful, too. Luckily, he missed the entire ride chain in the first game, so I was able to win by making 20k columns in the beginning, then a 25k column later in the game. I won the second game because I got a sixth-damage Heal Trigger.
OO
Round 3: vs Gold Paladin (Spectral Duke)
I was up against the guy whom I had given a ride here. He had borrowed my Round 1 opponent's Spectral Duke deck. Also, earlier, he predicted that the two of us, Aki, and my friend would end up being the Top 4 because there wasn't much competition here today. Well, we were on the first table, and my friend and Aki were up against each other on the second table, so that was a good prediction. Anyways, he ended up getting the Grade 1 Vortimer each game, but he never got the Grade 2 Vortimer. I won the first game because 20k columns are good, he won the second game because he got two triggers to push through my two-to-pass guard, and I won the third game in time because the time limit is too short.
OXO
Round 4: vs Narukami
I was up against my friend. We knew we'd both make Top 4, so we just had fun with our match. In the first game, he had to ride the Grade 3 Djinn, so I expected to win. But of course, he ended up getting a bunch of triggers, and I couldn't pull a trigger to push through his one-to-pass guard... twice... so I lost. In the second game, he killed me with a Critical Trigger and 20k columns. Ugh, this is why I don't like playing 10k Vanguards.
XX
Aki ended up beating my Round 1 opponent, and my Round 3 opponent beat a little kid with Granblue, so we were all 3-1, and my friend was undefeated. The four of us made Top 4 and split the prizes. Aki and I shared seven packs of Set 2 (apparently Twin Bladers are $25 right now...) and I pulled a Scarlet Witch, Coco. My friend got the Bermuda Triangle Extra Booster and I didn't care what he pulled, so yeah. And my Round 3 opponent got three packs of Set 7 and pulled a Dark Lord of Abyss and a Sword Magician, Sarah. We were talking earlier, and he mentioned that he wanted to make a Soulless OTT deck again, so I traded my Coco to him for those two cards.
Now I finally have a third Dark Lord of Abyss, and I now have one Sarah. If I could get two or three more, that'd be cool, but it's not too important. The reason being that I will not be using Pale Moon after Set 8 is legal. Aqua Force is really hyped, so I expect a lot of people to use it. In my experience, it's really difficult to win against an 11k Vanguard using Aqua Force, so I want to use an 11k Vanguard to mess with those people. One of my options is to switch back to Dark Irregulars, but I'm not sure yet.
But yeah, next weekend is the Sneak Preview for Set 8, and I probably won't be wasting my money on it. I mean, who would want an ugly Great Daiyusha mat...? I don't even use the awesome Kai/The End mat I have, so I don't see a point in going to the Sneak Preview. We'll see what happens, though.
Can you elaborate on the cheating part of Round 1: vs Gold Paladin (Agravain)? I don't quite understand.
ReplyDeleteEach team member has to run a single-clan deck, and they all have to use different clans. That team had two Gold Paladin players, so they broke the rules. But like I said, it didn't really matter to us.
DeleteYou don't sound so enthusiastic when your team wins. What about your friend and Riku? How do they feel when they win?
ReplyDeleteWell, we expected to qualify, so it's not like we were surprised. And at least some of the teams that qualified have to know what they're doing, so it's not like we'll be able to win so easily at the Regional.
DeleteI mean, we win consistently at locals because very few people there actually know how to play properly, but when competent players play each other, then the luckier one wins. So, assuming that there are a higher concentration of competent players at the Regional than were at the qualifiers, we'd basically have to be the luckiest team there to win.
So what you mean is that if you somehow faces the toughest opponents at the regional and by sheer luck, your team survive the onslaught, but not without breaking the sweat. Only then, you will feel proud and happy that you finally survive the horror of competitive regional?
DeleteNo, there's really nothing to feel proud of when winning a game of Vanguard. If you won, that either means that your opponent has no idea of what they were doing (which happens a lot) or you just got sacked. In a game where the impact of player skill is so low, what is there to be proud of?
DeleteVanguard is awful... only consolation is that every fight would seem fair. No otks, no meta calls, no elaborate combos, no rulings, less reading, less thinking...
ReplyDeleteGo back to yugioh then. Why are you here? This is vanguard and kaijudo.
DeleteWell, Vanguard is awful, but the only reason I post about it is because there's nothing else to post about.
DeleteAnd to be fair, there are meta calls. For example, I wouldn't play Granblue or Neo Nectar (even after Set 8) because they can't make 18k rear-guard columns to effectively hit crossrides. That's about it, though, just basic math.
@Anon: Who mentioned anything about yugioh? I'm just sharing my 2 cents on how misleading a win at cfv is, and how it's just about right to feel "meh" when you win or lose in this "game" :/
ReplyDelete@grunty: Not playing granblue is hardly a meta-call though, its really more of not playing an underpowered deck... they CAN push out 18k rgs with cocytus reviving ruin shade or 11k swordsman, cocytus + romario is also a comfy 23k, and they can run 12 crits to boot...
why not post more on kaijudo basics? And perhaps links on other good kaijudo resources?
I wouldn't say that Granblue is an underpowered clan. They obviously don't have as much support as Gold Paladin, Royal Paladin, or Kagero, but I wouldn't say they're underpowered. They have fairly good support, and they actually have a static 11k Vanguard, unlike a lot of clans. But I suppose this is besides the point.
DeleteAs for why I haven't been posting more about Kaijudo, I don't really have much time, and I can't really figure out what to write about. The official website does a pretty good job teaching new players how to play, so I don't think that posting about how to play would be a good use of my time and effort.
I could discuss some more advanced strategies, but it's quite difficult to explain such abstract concepts. I can only think of one topic that I could write a concrete post about, and that's about different situations in which it is correct to conserve cards which you would normally play, but I just haven't been able to find the time to post during the week. Perhaps I'll be more motivated to post about Kaijudo when I start going to Kaijudo tournaments more regularly (probably next month).
Is there any glitches in vanguard 3DS game? I heard from others there are many glitches like able to use Ezel LB even though the field is full and the game crashes or game crashes when CPU attempt to ride Grade 3 over another Grade 3 while Zanbaku is on field.
ReplyDeleteI don't use those cards, so I haven't experienced any of those glitches.
DeleteHow's the online WIFI?
DeleteI've only played online against Aki, so I don't know how the random online fights are. Regardless, the online games seem to move pretty smoothly, and of course, there are time limits for making your moves. But seeing as how it's Vanguard, it shouldn't really take that long anyway.
Delete