FlashFire. Serf. A World of Books. San Leandro, CA. Monsters: 20 1 Invader of the Throne 1 cyber jar 3 Giant Germ 2 sangan 1 witch of the black forest 3 magician of faith (MOF) 3 giant soldier of stone (GSOS) 2 cannon soldier 3 wall of illusion 1 Flash Assailant (the FLASH) Magic: 13 3 Tremendous Fire (the FIRE) 1 Change of Heart 1 Pot of Greed 1 Raigeki 1 Dark Hole 1 Monster Reborn 2 Heavy Storm 3 Ookazi Trap: 7 1 Mirror Force 3 Attack and Receive 2 Just Desserts 1 Gravity Bind Total 40 Tournament on February 16, 2003 (Official UpperDeck Tournament) The day started out nice and sunny, however there were some dark clouds in the distant horizon. A slight hint of moisture was in the air, possibly foreshadowing some rain. I grabbed a light jacket along with my deck and set out to duel. 1st match Opponent: Joseph (Beatdown/Burn) Joseph first appeared about a month ago, but now he’s a regular advanced duelist. I had to be careful because last week, Joseph had beaten PinayMai (one of the top duelist at the store) and that is a big accomplishment. First duel, Joseph didn’t know what deck I had and same for me. He started out with some 4 star attackers and I figured beatdown. Then later on, he hits me with Just Desserts. Interesting combination. I saw more of the burn-side of his deck as the duel went on. But burn vs. burn, he was no match against FlashFire. I’m at 2500 and he’s at 3000. He has 5 monsters and I Just Dessert to bring him down to 500, then launch with Cannon Soldier for the win. Second duel was a classic beatdown for both of us. Joseph pulled an early Jinzo and my defense couldn’t hold. That freaky-looking monster destroyed my LP; all I could do was 500 LP damage. I think I lost in 5 turns! Wow, was I going to be another victim to Joseph’s rampage? Third duel, I had no choice but go to the side deck. I put in some Messenger of Peace (MoP) and Princess of Tsurugi. Joseph also goes to the side deck (he put in Infinite Dismissal). It turned out that I didn’t even need the MoP for this duel. I was able to burn his LP fast enough before he could put Jinzo on the field. I was at 4000 LP and he had 3200 when I burned him with 2 Just Desserts in a row, while he had 4 monsters on the field. 2nd match Opponent: Gavin (Beatdown with power-ups) Gavin is Blake’s cousin, and Blake is the guy that has knocked me twice out of tournaments the two times I have faced him. Would I be able to pull out the win? Or is there something sinister going on…say a family curse? First duel, I’m burning his LP slowly, it took me about 8 turns to burn off 7000 LP. A little here, and a little there. The biggest hit was a 2000 Just Desserts burn. But in the meantime, Gavin had been powering up his Maha Vailo, his Skull, and his Fiend MegaCyber with Axes and Nuzzlers. This awesome display of power had me holding on at 1200 LP. Thanks to Premature Burial and a couple of equip cards, Maha was at 4000 something. I knew I had to win soon, or I would get crushed like a bug hitting a windshield on a car traveling down the highway at 75 MPH. I stall a couple of turns thanks to the Wall of Illusion sending monsters back and dumping the equip cards to the graveyard. Then I draw Cannon Soldier and send my monsters flying for the win. Second duel was quick. Since I didn’t see a Jinzo in the first duel, I went into an aggressive strategy and kept burning his LP down. One turn, I did 4000 damage, thanks to a little Fire in the Dessert. I win with 7950 LP left. 3rd match Opponent: Froilan (Collectors Corner Beatdown) Froilan is a Collectors Corner regular that wanted a different level of competition, so he took a little trip down to San Leandro. Considering that he just started playing less than 2 months ago, he has gotten good very fast. He has been mopping up the competition at Collectors and he wanted to do some cleaning at a new location. First duel, I have him on the ropes right away, burning his LP with crazy combinations. I would Change of Heart his monsters, launch with Cannon Soldier, launch the Soldier himself, set a Magician. He would reborn my Soldier, launch it, I would chain with Attack and Receive. Next turn, flip Magician, Change of Heart again, and again, and again. Let’s just say that I left him dizzy from all the smoke inhalation. FlashFire was searing his LP. Second duel, the tables turned on me very quick. Where there once was fire, now there was stars. 4 stars that is. As in 4 star beatdown monsters! I couldn’t get a defense up and he just pummeled me. And to add insult to injury, he tributed for a Jinzo. So he had Jinzo leading a bunch of angry 4 star monsters…Goblin Attack Force…La Jinn…Harpie’s Brother…end of second duel. Third duel was getting intense. This was the tie breaker, and winner would go to the Championship. The pressure was on, and I see Froilan breaking a sweat. FlashFire must be getting to him. The first few turns were a blur, but I know we didn’t touch each other’s LP. The only problem was, he had accumulated and army. He had Summoned Skull, Barrel Dragon and a Jinzo he just tributed for on the field. I knew I was in trouble. At least I have three monsters in DEF mode…Barrel Dragon might get rid of one with his effect, but I won’t take a direct hit. Then he plays the unthinkable…Raigeki! He clears the field and attacks me with three of the most powerful tribute monsters. I was shaken. I couldn’t believe that I was down to 500. I almost give up, but no, a true duelist never gives up. As long as there are cards, there is hope. So I draw, and get Dark Hole! First I Heavy Storm, then Dark Hole. The whole field was clear. Then I reborn his Barrel Dragon and attack. Main Phase 2 and I set a Magician down. His turn, monster in DEF mode. My turn, I flip MoF and get back reborn, and play it on his Jinzo! I get Barrel’s effect and blow up his Sangan. He grabs a MoF with it. I attack with both monsters, and he’s down to 400. His turn and he sets a monster face down. I go and draw Change of Heart. I play it and flip his MoF and get back reborn again. This time I choose his Skull and I attack for the win. Don’t call it a comeback! 4th match Opponent: AzNPlaya (Beatdown Burn) Playa had gone on a quest…a search for “his” deck. He was tired of the regular beatdown and tried a lot of different decks. None suited or worked for him; until he found the one. This one. It was a Beatdown with Burn. I guess he wanted to beat me to a pulp then set me on fire…geez, people are so violent these days. First duel started out like a typical duel between me and Playa. I basically burn his LP to a crisp and leave him shaking his head in disbelief. His deck had worked so well for him, bringing him to Holy Ground, the Championship. Why was it failing now? Maybe it’s because he’s facing the top dog. Second duel, was the complete opposite of the first. I had won the first with 6600 LP left, and he won this one with 6000 LP. He was shooting monsters like crazy, I thought I was in a drive by, but then I looked around and saw ZeenO having a dispute with his AzN friend AzNBrad (the Notorious P.H.O.) over some clear dice, graceful dice and skull dice. By the way, Happy Birthday ZeenO! I hope you and the P.H.O. are friends again! hahaha Third duel was close. Playa was at 5400 while I had 4400. Before I made my move to play Monster Reborn, ZeenO comes over and starts arguing with Playa now. I don’t know what’s with ZeenO and his AzN friends…I was just glad my name wasn’t AzNSerf or ZeenO would be arguing with me too. They must have argued for 10 minutes about Science class, getting F’s and fear of Moms. It was weird…I just wanted to duel. When they were finally done, Playa was so charged up and pumped from his argument that he beat me in the next two turns. Congratulations Playa! On the win and the new deck! I give ZeenO my tournament pack for his Birthday gift and he pulled a Morphing Jar! Ask ZeenO if he has a Morphing Jar and he’ll say yes. Ask him if he got it from Serf and he’ll say no. Punk! hahaha What’s up! to the hardcore Yu-Gi-Oh! gamers at a World of Books. Get lost! to the thieves that steal cards. Serf buffserf@yahoo.com