Fitchburg, MA 11/05/06 All-Axxess

Today we had an All-Axxess tournament at iGamespot in Fitchburg. I don't particularly like All-Axxess so while I was toying with building a different deck in the morning before leaving, I wound up just sticking with the D-X I'd used in All Axxess and Afterburn for the last few weeks (Heat/prematch hand destruction). One way or another after this tournament I'm putting the thing on the shelf - I make WAY too many dumb mistakes with it.

We've got a total of eight people so we're good to go:

Me - D-X
Family Guy - The Crippler
Will Alessi - Raven
Rob Hawkins - Mr. PPV
Mike Knight - Test
Rog Ballou - BA Billy Gunn
Texan - Lashley
Shawn - Carlito

Round 1 vs. Rob Hawkins Mr PPV

This is the second tournament in a row Hawkins and I have played this match, first in Afterburn and now in All Axxess. I know I'm in for a hell of a time because blanking Mr. PPV's ability is no guarantee of success. He uses Managed by Vince to get rid of my Spinner Belt and Unscripts Icon, Showstoppa, Main Event, knowing from our last encounter that this is the best way to disrupt me. I am able to lead off with a Pump Kick but things go south quickly as I am forced to play a move he can reverse after a couple of turns, so he hits Mr. Monday Night and the fun never stops. He draws tons of cards via Everything's Cool, fetches Germans with Hidden Dragon and Ready to Fight, and generally smacks me around horribly and I never had a chance to get back into the game.

0-1

Round 2 vs. Texan Lashley

Texan is one of our newer players and thus doesn't have a really optimal First of All Lashley, due to lack of belts, so he's got the random Chain maneuver Lashley. I destroy his starting hand, I lead off with Sucker Punch that goes all the way and I am able to control the game with Headstrongs and good reversals from hand. After a while I go over four cards because I'm holding Managers and That Damn Good. I play Pedigree twice and get Hold-the-Phoned twice, then I reshuffle it into my deck via New Orleans and search it out with I Change the Questions to finally land it on the third attempt.

1-1

Round 3 vs. Shawn Carlito (dropped)

Shawn decides to drop before this round and play some magical cards. His deck is afterburn, and I'm a massive nightmare matchup for Carlito, so he wasn't really missing on anything.

2-1

Round 4 vs. Will Alessi Raven

Will is going old school today....he puts 3 Handcuffed under the shopping cart, I obliterate his starting hand, and it's on. I lead with Sucker Punch, losing my Road to Victory (this is key in a turn or two). I reverse a handcuffed with headstrong. I play a move that he elbows, he plays Raven's Playground, then ROLL OUT OF THE RING. I give this a quick 'WTF' as he goes and gets two cards including Raven's 7F omni reversal. Then he pulls out the most amazing tech ever:

VELOCITY
77/150
Title Belt Clubberin'
Mid-match Strike: Foreign Object / Reversal: Special: Heel
Can only be played if there is a Title Belt card in any Ring area.
Can only be reversed by cards that specifically reverse the card titled Roll Out of the Ring OR a card played after it. As a maneuver, can only be played after the card titled Roll Out of the Ring.
As a reversal, reverse any card played after the card titled Roll Out of the Ring and end your opponent's turn.
When successfully played, your opponent must discard 4 cards.
F: 7 D: 5

I had to put the text up 'cause nobody remembers this friggin' thing. It was -6F due to Raven's playground. I discard down to two cards and take my medicine. He says go, I lob heat something and get reversed. He throws the other two handcuffed and I am able to stop them, once with headstrong and once at the cost of my hand. I finally break through to 16F by reversing stuff and drop the bomb - I've Got Two Words For Ya. Since I have F from headstrongs I know I can quickly get back up to 10 to utilize the Manager Interfereses in my hand. Unfortunately, while scooping cards into the ringside pile Will points out the text on Raven's Shopping Cart - if I move it from his ring area, I have to END MY TURN AND SKIP MY NEXT TURN. Even though it was empty. ARRRRGH! So he's able to play a Super Punch, which I headstrong, then another Super Punch, which goes, followed by a miraculous Ap-Chaki kick to empty my hand. I play For the Love of the Game, he Roads. He hits me with Kidney Punch, I can't do anything about it. I play a move and get reversed again. He plays another Kidney Punch, and I sustain to six and the last card of my deck is an elbow but Will takes the countout. At first I'm pissed off because I figure I could've played my last turn differently, but in hindsight I really don't think it would've made the difference.

2-2

Top 4 vs. Rob Hawkins Mr PPv

How's this for irony? Last tournament Rob and I both played the same decks, and he beat me in the semis after I beat him in the swiss. This week he beat me in the swiss....and I beat him in the semis. This game doesn't go terrifically different from our previous match except that I get some favorable spins out of deck and I am able to work through what feels like a BILLION reversals with my 0F Heat multis. Sizzling Clothesline for MVP! As the game winds down he's literally running out of cards to throw at me. I reverse The Finisher with a Manager from hand and a King Interferes, and my Neck Torque is able to go almost the whole distance before hitting Dude Whatever at almost the bottom of Rob's deck. He lobs a move and I Revo for the win.

3-2

Finals vs. Rog Ballou BA Billy Gunn

This is weird because Billy Gunn with The Best Surprises naming Afterburn was a deck idea I was tossing around the previous day to possibly build and play in this tournament, and that's precisely what Roger is playing. Two heat decks colliding is TONS of fun let me tell ya. I demolish his starting hand but he plays Best Laid Plans, so he goes back to 7 (with a heel card revealed) and I go to 6. I am able to jump out in front with a Pump Kick, but with only 4 heat in the ringside pile (and an Elbow to the Face in hand!) I am unable to stop his That One Thing for 9D (thanks to ECW title). I sustain it down and then play I Already Warned You when he goes for The One Billy Gunn (What ARE these crazy cards???). On my turn I play a For the Love of the Game, which he roads. He plays Change in Programming Lineup and I reverse it with Volley This, then lob a random maneuver that gets reversed. For the next several turns I reverse a couple of his maneuvers and then I reverse Afterburn three times while he reverses every maneuver I lob -including with Rico Enters and Vince GRA (I had Sizzling Clothesline out) - until I finally break through. Rog breaks through with his Afterburn, then pops Fifth Anniversary to lose 15 heat cards. I Don't Try his first use of Afterburn, then play I've Got Two Words For Ya to annihilate Roger's rather substantial hand. This is the beginning of the end as I am able to play a Neck Torque and pick up another Don't Try. He plays a move I reverse with Headstrong, I hit him with Maneuver of Doom to reshuffle a bunch. He successfully plays a Daivari but still can't get a move off, I play Backfire to start using up his Leave Me Alones. In the end I am able to finish Rog with Backfire before he is able to land another move or successfully activate Afterburn again. Rog says "Curse you and your wooden leg!" ...I don't know what to make of that.

4-2

I've definately had my fill of D-X for the forseeable future, but I'm glad it could come through for the win one more time. Not much more to say other than I'll be glad when we go back to Afterburn.

-John of Team BTY