Here goes nothing.
So, to start off I should explain that there were actually two Dominion tournaments running at PAX over the weekend. The first was in the League Block, the second was a focused tournament held on Saturday for a few hours. The League block was advertised as a 'more casual' tournament while the official tournament was 'more serious.' Personally, I think the EXACT OPPOSITE turned out to be true. I had fun in both (well, aside from the very first game, which you'll see)
Also, I met a lot of awesome people playing these games. Didn't get everyone's contact info/usernames, but I would love to play everyone I did again. If you read these forums, hit me up!
So I'll cover the games in the order I played them.
First, here's how the League worked:
- You had to play six 4 player games, each using a different expansion with a predetermined Kingdom (Base, Intrigue, Seaside, Alchemy, Prosperity and Cornucopia)
- Your score was a combination of your placement in all six games
- The four finalists were those with the highest scores. We played a "draft" match combining the cards from Base and Hinterlands. By turn order, we each eliminated one card until only ten remained, then played that set. It was like Veto Mode on crack.
So, on Friday I managed to get four of my games in. Let me tell you, it was a wonder I did. Finding 3 opponents who needed to play all the same rounds you did? Not always easy.
First round: Seaside
This was one of the most grueling games of Dominion I have ever been in, and it didn't go well from the beginning. The kingdom's cards: Sea Hag, Ghost Ship, Ambassador, Wharf, Tactician, Lookout, Militia, Warehouse, Caravan, Bazaar
I'll try and describe my opponents for each match, but PAX is kind of a blur so I may forget some. First was a man who was very eager to play a match, get done, and move to the other League game he was interested in. We soon discovered he was very new to Dominion and didn't have much grasp on the rules just yet. This was a BAD, BAD board for a new player. Second opponent was a nice, older gentleman who I remember having pleasant conversations with throughout this game. Before the game started, he looked at Ambassador and said it seemed like a weak card unless there were Curses. I could tell right then he had little experience with Seaside, though he had a good grasp of Dominion otherwise. Probably only plays IRL. Third opponent was a bald man who feigned being mediocre before we started, but was clearly better than he let on as he dominated the entire match. I never saw him again after this game, but he was good for sure.
So we rolled the turn order. I was going last. Shoot. Due to our seating, the bald man was going first. As expected, everyone purchased attacks right away. I opened Sea Hag/Ambassador, which turned out to be a fatal mistake in this game as I didn't get a $5 hand for at least 15 turns. Ambassador/Silver or Ambassador/Ambassador or even Lookout/Ambassador probably would served me better since everyone got Hags and I didn't have a prayer of winning the Curse war due to table position.
The bald man got a Tactician between turns 4-6, then loaded up on Wharfs and Caravans, ending his turns with a Ghost Ship eventually. I say eventually because this game ended up dragging on for at least 25 turns, as Sea Hag is wont to accomplish. Halfway through the game, the man who was unfamiliar with the game ran off for whatever reason, leaving us with extra Curses because of his original presence. Fantastic! After over an hour of play (seriously), I ended up placing third, in part due to my refusal to purchase a Lookout. No kidding, it probably would have been a godsend in hindsight. My deck was so cluttered from taking 2-3 attacks per turn that if I wanted any chance I needed to clear the dreck. I played poorly, but again, I also got incredibly unlucky.
It's amazing how much more clear Wharf and Tactician's powers are in a real game. When you see that table side full of orange, you KNOW horrible things are about to happen. I got off to a lousy start, but things started going better for me soon enough...
To be continued