The Epic Tale Of Regionals! – Gyarados LOCK

Hey, guys. Let’s get through these introductions quickly. Basically, this is my first article and I’d like to make my Regionals adventure into a story (Like, use really short chapters). Anyway, let’s get started!

PROLOGUE: THE RISE OF AYDAN AIRES

So, how to put this simply… I’m 18, started playing Fall 2010, and my name is Aydan. I love this game sooo much. I’ve met so many fun and cool people and it has helped me become more active in the Pokémon community.

Honestly, I’m a jock at my high school playing 3 varsity sports, and as you know, it’s hard to be an accepted high school student if you play Pokémon. I love the game so much, though, that I don’t really mind what others think of me.

ALRIGHT! So, for my first Regionals, I decided to play Gyarados (Mesprit Lock). I really love Power Locking people while setting up my Gyarados and it has helped me so much. I’ve played the deck for a good 5 months so I knew my deck very well. (AND YES, YOU GREEDY DECK COPIERS! THE LIST IS AT THE BOTTOM! Just kidding about calling you greedy.)

Something you should know about my deck is THAT I PLAY ALL 4 DIFFERENT MAGIKARPS IN THE FORMAT. I like to be different :D

The Regionals was at Indiana and after placing 17th at Ohio States, I was begging for a top-cut. Today, there were 146 Players with a Top Cut of 32 in the Master’s division.

Friday night, we arrived at the hotel (Thanks to a sweet family from our league) and to be strictly honest, WE HAD NO IDEA WHERE WE WERE GOING TO STAY. It was me and my friend, Nick (playing DialgaChomp), and we were stupid enough not to make any plans. We just thought…

“Let’s go to Regionals!”
“Shouldn’t we have a room?”
“Nah, let’s wing it!”

Stupidest move ever. We play tested and met a lot of Poké-Players in the lobby. We even used the Lobby computer to print off papers that read:

“2 Poké-players in need of a floor to sleep on :D”

A nice woman named Michelle and her 2 sons that were playing in the junior divisions offered us their hotel floor after I helped one of the boys with their Gyarados build. (It was a very unique build that focused on Crobat Drops, Poké Turns, And PlusPowers. So more attack, less recovery.)

And with that, we went to sleep that night with high hopes for the next day…

CHAPTER 1: DON’T JUDGE A PLAYER BY THEIR STARTING POKEMON

(Gyarados Lock vs. Magnegatr)

We woke up, walked to McDonald’s for food, then headed to the convention center to take in the Pokémon atmosphere. A lot of my friends from the many leagues I visit were there and I sat around with their families as I waited to turn in my decklist. I spent the rest of the time texting excuses to my tennis teammates as to why I wouldn’t be at practice that day.

We turned in our decklists and waited a little longer. I used the bathroom a good few hundred times before the roster and first round pairings were released. Then, FINALLY, they were put onto the table for everyone to see. I was paired with a 31 year old man. I can’t remember his name but I only remembered his age, haha.

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When we sat down, we shook hands (something I believe is crucial to do numerous times with your opponent), and talked. He said he started playing 3 weeks beforehand, but played a little bit in the past years. I felt comfortable knowing that newer players aren’t USUALLY as good as veterans… Not that I’m calling myself a veteran!

We flipped our cards over when the match began. It was my Sableye to his Totodile. WHEW! I get to play a Feraligatr theme deck of some sort! Oh boy, was I sooooo wrong. I set up fairly quickly in the first few turns. Got my Magi’s in the discard, had Gyarados on my bench with an Expert Belt, I had a whole lot of Super Scoop Ups and Seekers in my hand, and plenty of switching options, like Warp Point.

Then he pulled out Magnemite.

“Great,” I laughed to him. “Magnegatr.”

I knew it was going to be a painful match. Using my Broken Time-Space, he fully evolved his Feraligatr and Magnezone Prime. He resumed to get a revenge K-O on my Belted Gyarados. I know what you’re thinking. Why did you stupidly attach an E-Belt?

Well, for starters, I thought this was a theme deck. Secondly, I was making space for an Uxie Drop. I’m stupid! I know…

Then, I realized how much of a genius I am! (not really). Both Magnezone and the Gatr have Poké-Powers. Isn’t my deck built to stop them?

I Power locked him for a good 6 turns or so. His high HP Pokémon gave me trouble and his Magnezones were still getting energy on them.

The match came down to 1 Prize each. Thanks to my Power locking, I was able to win the match. I shook the man’s hand and told him he would play very good at this tournament. And with that, we signed the slip, and I told him bye. It was a good game… And by far one of the scariest!!! Thank you for playing me!

Things Learned:

• Don’t judge your opponent by how long they’ve played.
• Don’t judge your opponent by what they start with.
• Don’t attach an E-Belt “Just ’cause.”
• MagneGatr cripples to Powerlock.

:D

1-0

CHAPTER 2: THE REVERSE DONK!

(Gyarados Lock vs. Uxie Donk)

pokebeach.comPokémoms. You gotta love ’em. Especially when you’re only 18 and league buddys with most of their children. After your match, they’re always there to support you. Win? They congratulate you and give you food. Lose? They say how sorry they are and give you some encouragement. Gotta love it. So, I want to thank all the Pokémom’s out there who helped me! (It’s Justin :D)

I sat at our table and waited for everyone that I knew. Luckily, most of the people who were around us won. I felt pretty good about going into the next round. We waited a bit for the pairings to go up so I ate some of my snacks that I packed. Girl scout Cookies FTW!

Pairings were up and I actually went down quite a few tables. I was playing this older teenager-looking dude and we shook hands. He wasn’t that much of a talker but I didn’t think about it. I was just having fun being at this event.

We started and it was my Uxie and Magikarp to his Uxie. I went first, topdecked a Sableye, used Warp Energy to bring up the Sableye, then Impersonated for a Collector to get a Regice, and 2 Magikarps. Normally, I would get a Mesprit or something else, but I had an extra Collector in hand.

He went, attached energy to Uxie, attacked for 20, then passed. I saw the win pretty clearly right now. I Collectored for a Crobat, Unown Q, and a random Sableye as Pokémon Communication usage. I dropped the Unown Q and Crobat to Flash Bite the Uxie. I attached Q to Sableye for free retreat.

Then I used Communication to get out Gyarados. I Regi-Moved the 2 Magi’s away, evolved the Magi on the bench, retreated to Gyarados and hit for 60.

I felt really bad because this guy looked sad.

“Uxie Donk has been donked.” He said.

I apologized many times. I don’t like to donk but being realistic, if I get the chance, I will donk. I normally never donk with Gyarados but hey, I guess everything has the ability, right? Thank you.

Things Learned:

• Donks happen at Regionals, too.
• Donk Decks have chances of being donked, too.

:D

2-0

CHAPTER 3: TO BATTLE AGAINST A FRIEND! AT REGIONALS? NO WAY!

(Gyarados Lock vs. Blaziken FB – Garchomp C – Luxray GL)

Well, they announced that lunch break was right after the 2nd round and since I donked, it meant I had extra time. I decide to walk around the convention center and I… Am… So… Glad… I… Did.

I had probably 75 minutes until 3rd round pairings would be up. So I took the long walk toward the other side of the center, also known as Grand Wayne Center. There, a Hilton Hotel laid rest and it was very fancy. Indoor plants, fancy couches and seats, etc.

But what really caught my eye were all the girls dressed up as if they were heading to prom! Woot! They sat around the Hilton lobby and I grabbed myself a seat and started texting people (I must admit, to look slightly cool). In the end, they left. :(

What was I thinking? That I was going to get some random girls number 130 miles away from home? Gosh, teenagers these days are stupid, right? I headed back to the Pokémon site and talked to my friends who had finished their matches.

My friend Nick was 1-1 now and we were planning on going to Taco Bell, but the Pokémoms gave us a packed lunch. Go Pokémoms! (Again)

After much time, the 3rd round pairings were up. I wasn’t too happy. I had to play against my friend C (Abbreviated because I don’t think he’d be too happy with me mentioning his name and strategy :D). He’s a great person and gave me my first competitive loss at Battle Roads last Fall. He plays a special variant of Luxchomp that I will explain below.

He’s a very risky player and a very, very dangerous one. He came 2nd at a recent States. One of the main reasons I admire the way he plays is the fact that his decks are always special and have their own twist in all of them. You might notice what I mean later on.

pokebeach.comC and I sat down and I told myself that I was going to lose. What, Aydan, are you a wimp? Why, yes. This is a stupid strategy, but when I play someone that I feel I’ll lose to, I tell myself I’m going to lose. DO NOT DO THIS. It’s just a bad habit of mine so I feel better about the loss. :)

I had a nice start and was able to keep the Power Lock toward the beginning of the game. I believe I started with a Sableye and Impersonated for a Collector and snatched my Regice, Uxie, and Magikarp.

Then what does C do? He pulls out his own Sableye, then Impersonates for a Judge! In a Luxchomp variant? Let me tell you, it hurts Gyarados and other Luxchomp decks pretty bad.

This slowed me down but I was able to keep some mild-high power locking going. I got Gyarados out swinging for 90 but C had his Luxray’s buffed up with energy. Because C knew how much I liked power locking with Mesprit, he would be sure to Flash Bite my Gyarados whenever he wasn’t locked. Again, he’s a great player and it really hurt my strategy!

The game was close and we went into time. He was up by 2 Prizes on my last turn and I knew I couldn’t defeat him, but I continued to play anyway. I never really scoop at these events since I like playing them out! Thanks, C!
It was a good match but he smartly used his Luxray and even sniped with Garchomp C X. Congratz C.

Things I learned:

• Unique techs in Luxchomp are good! Don’t follow the Status Quo!
• C and I had a 3.7% chance of playing each other.
• Luxchomp is going to hurt later on if I play against another one.
• Why bother checking out girls from other states?

:D

2-1

CHAPTER 4: A MIRROR MATCH?! NOPE, IT’S A ROGUE DECK!

(Gyarados Lock vs. Feraligatr/Delibird/Flygon/Gyarados CoL)

Well, I just had my first loss of the day. Oh well. It was bound to come sooner or later. I relaxed at a table and snacked on some cookies.

Let me tell you something. I really love the competition aspect but sometimes people tend to forget why they started playing. I met someone who threatened her young child that if they didn’t come first place, they wouldn’t go to Nationals. That’s a bit too much pressure, wouldn’t you say?

So, what I’m saying is, never forgot why you’re reading this. Never forget why you build decks. Never forget why you started playing in the first place.

It’s because Pokémon is fun.

—

Pairings went up pretty quickly since I went into overtime last round. I was paired against a guy (Beard Guy) with his own playmat and I remember thinking, “Uh-oh. Playmat means he’s good.”

We talked about how he owned a Pokémon league up in the Northern Ohio region. He was a very nice guy and I was interested in hearing how his day went. He said he was winning pretty smoothly, but there was another rogue deck running around the high numbers.

“Watch out. There’s a Cranidos player around here and his deck is pretty good.”
“Cranidos?” I knew he meant Rampardos right away.
“Yup, it beat me. It’s undefeated at the moment.”

Little did I know this was a bit of foreshadowing…

I flip over a Sableye to his Chatot. I quickly get out my Regice, Mesprit, and Uxie. After “Set Up” On my second turn, I was able to get the resources to get a Gyarados out swinging for 60.

However, I decided to get out my Uxie LV.X before anything. BIG MISTAKE. Beard Guy starts setting up a Magikarp and a Trapinch and then Mimics me for the first couple of turns to get better hands.

Honestly, when you play a rogue deck, don’t you feel a sense of relief? I mean, rogue decks aren’t USUALLY as strong as metagame decks. I felt this relief, but I was in for a big surprise. I leveled up my Uxie and then… I was stuck in the Active Spot.

pokebeach.comFor 3 turns, I couldn’t find any Super Scoop Ups, Switches, Warp Points, Warp Energy, or Unown Q! I was stuck up there while he built a Flygon, Feraligatr, and Gyarados CoL. This was a problem because his Pokémon had massive amounts of HP.

When I finally brought Gyarados up, it took 2 hits on all of his Pokémon to Knock them Out. That “Rainbow Float” Poké-Body didn’t help much either since it gave his Pokémon free retreat due to the water energy on them.

In the end, it was just me slowly chipping away at his high HP Pokémon when they could only do so much damage. I had great recovery options so I was able to bring Gyarados out whenever it died. I think I won with 2 Prizes left? Anyway, awesome match against a rogue deck!

I told him right away that I appreciated playing a different deck and he showed me how to respect rogue decks more. Thank you, Beard Guy!

Things I learned:

• Do what your deck tells you to. Don’t waste a turn Leveling Up a Uxie when you can send up your main attacker and do some damage.
• Respect the rogue decks!
• Take heed of your opponent’s warnings!

:D

3-1

CHAPTER 5: THE REAL-QUICK REAL MIRROR MATCH!

Here’s some random thinking. People say that this game is based on luck. Then why is it that the really good players end up taking top cut? Usually, an experienced player that the population knows will do good at a tournament. What I believe is this:

• A good player will normally play well in any tournament.
• Luck does play a factor, but a person’s skill exceeds one’s luck.
• Chris Fulop and Drew Holton (2 guys that are usually in my tournys) always do well and are expected to do well. These are examples of the points just mentioned.

So everyone, don’t believe this game is all luck. It takes Luck and Skill. I’m still learning aspects of this game that I didn’t know exist. And it’s fun learning new cards and new combos. I’ll always be learning. There’s a famous quote by a philosopher I learned in English class yesterday.

“I know, that I know nothing.”

Pretty deep, right?

pokebeach.comI check the pairings and notice that I play this kid that’s been sitting around our table’s perimeter. He shares my real name (Justin).

“Justin?”
“What’s up?”
“My name’s Justin?
“Ah, what’s up, Justin?
“Not much, Justin!”

This guy was around my age and fun to talk to. We talked about each other’s day and I’m glad we got paired against one another. After this, we started talking after rounds. I look forward to seeing him again! See, people always make friends at these events!

We both flip Magikarp. His: the “Sea Splash” Standard one. Mine: A Magikarp with “Splash” for 10 damage. If I go first, I’ll lose. If I go second, I’ll win. I had the ability to search out Crobat and “Flash Bite” twice and “Splash” for knockout. Instead, he goes second and “Flash Bites” me 3 times for the win. :(

However, because he was nice to me and all, I didn’t mind losing by getting donk. So, remember, always make good talk before your match. It can help your opponent feel better knowing that they lost to someone nice and formidable. Thanks for Playing!

What I learned:

• There are always cool people in the world of Pokémon.
• Magikarp start usually ends in a quick match.
• Always make friends. :)

:D

3-2

CHAPTER 6: REMEMBER THAT FORESHADOWING FROM CHAPTER 4? WELL, IT’S HERE!!!

(Gyarados Lock vs. Rampardos)

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Justin from last round helped me figure out some card values to sell my BlazeChomp Deck to some boy from my league. I wasn’t feeling bad about getting donked, either. However, I noticed something.

If I want to make Top 32, I need to win every game now so I can get a 6-2 Record. Rumors were spreading that some 5-3’s were going to make it but I didn’t want to take that chance!

When we were seated for the next round, my opponent (Smooth Guy) told me how much he disliked donks. We had a nice conversation how we both disliked donks but would take the win if that was the only way to do so.

When we flipped, I realized why. He only had a Skull Fossil. I had a Uxie.

This is when I realized what deck I would be playing. I got excited because I knew Gyarados had resistance on Rampardos. I went first and only attached an energy. I “Psychic Restored” the Skull fossil for 20.

On his turn, he benched something else, then passed. I somehow got a Crobat out and was able to “Flash Bite”. Then I played Seeker, then used Uxie’s attack again for the game.

My opponent laughed and said he didn’t mind getting donked. It was ironic after all that talk before hand about donking. However, Smooth Guy was a very nice player and I applaud him for bringing a rogue deck to Regionals.

Thank you!

Things I learned:

• Rampardos and fossil decks in general could use more hype.
• Donking feels better when you talk to your opponent about donks to begin with.

:D

4-2

CHAPTER 7: MACHAMP MAKES HIS APPEARANCE!

(Gyarados Lock vs. Machamp/Luxray)

I can’t believe 3-of my matches have been donk related. Even more luckily, I’ve won two of those matches. Speaking of donks, have you guys seen what Sabledonk can do? It’s scary. D:

The next few months will be donk heavy if Sabledonk is legal. Everyone will be sad if this happens.

I chill with the Pokémoms before round 7 starts. Nick is sitting with me with a great score, exactly the same as mine. Earlier in the day, he said he played a man that started with 7 Pokémon in his opening hand. Talk about bad luck. Then Nick, who plays Chatot G, locked his draw power with Chatot’s Poké-Power.

Next round, I had to play this man.

He was older, about in his 50s, and was playing while his daughter was in the Junior Division. She told up that she made top-cut before our match. The man told me about his battle with Nick earlier in the day and I felt pretty bad for him.

“I hope this is a good match,” He told me. “It’s my last for the day.”

This pumped me up! Of course I’m going to give you a great match, Old Man! When we set up, he had one Pokémon out and I was afraid I was going to donk him. When we flipped, however, it was Machamp GL. AKA 100 HP Basic. There was not going to be donking anytime soon. Oh, and I started with a Sableye, Magikarp, and Regice.

The beginning of the match was fairly standard. I got my Magi’s in the discard rather quick and had him power locked for the first 3 turns. He still managed to set up a Luxray GL and Machamp Prime. As he was trying to load up his Pokémon with Energy, I swung through 3-of his Pokémon for 3 quick prizes. Hurray! However, for one of the Pokémon, I had to attach an Expert Belt to my Gyarados.

The man played Lucario and was able to Knock Out my weakened Gyarados with his Luxray GL X. From here, we exchanged prizes until it was 1 Prize each. After Luxray was gone, I didn’t have any other problem, however, it was a close match. I ended up winning. The man told me that he was happy to play me and would’ve given me the win even if I had lost. That made me feel better. Thank you for playing me!

Things I learned:

• Don’t judge older men.
• Machamp can successfully tech in a Luxray to Up their Gyarados match ups.

:D

5-2

CHAPTER 8: FAMOUS MATCHUP?! Lost ZonE THEM ‘KARPS!

(Gyarados Lock vs. LostVilegar)

The final match of Swiss Rounds can be the most nerve-wracking and crucial. It can decide whether you make Top Cut, or not. I was in this situaution. Team Pokémom was telling me that I could do it and that I had to believe I can. I believed I could win, too. When pairings went up, I heard a friend say that the guy I played was using Vilegar.

I felt pretty relaxed then. I’ve never lost to a Vilegar in my entire competitive career. I know how to play Vilegar with my Gyarados deck. When we sit down, my opponent looked very tired and said he hadn’t slept in 20 hours.

pokebeach.comPoor guy. We’ll call him Sleepy.

Sleepy starts with an Oddish and I have a Magikarp and Regice. Sleepy goes first and attaches Call Energy and gets out 2 Spiritombs, knowing that Regi Move could end the lock early. I was able to get out Sableye and Impersonated for a Collector to get Uxie, and 2 Magi’s.

I discovered that both my Azelf and a Magi were prized so that meant a maximum damage output of 60. Kinda sucks. But, with the 60 damage, I take out 2 Spiritombs. I still didn’t draw into the Azelf or Magi.

He gets a Lostgar out and starts Lost Zoning some Pokémon. I slowly chip away at his Lostgar (Which has 130 HP!). I “Flash Bite” him once so it only took 2 hits to Knock it Out. Then guess what? He had a Rescue Energy on it and he just brought it back out!

I kept killing his 1 Lostgar, that revived every 3 hits, ever so slightly until I had 1 Prize left.

By then, he had 6 Pokémon in the Lost Zone. And you know what? One of them was a Magikarp. How did that happen? I picked it from the Prizes right before he used his Gengar Prime to send it away. Although he had 6 Pokémon in the Lost Zone, he couldn’t draw into Lost World.

I ended up defeating his final Gengar SF and won the game! Thank you for playing me and I hope you got some sleep!

Things I learned:

• Lostgar is very unique.
• Gyarados can still hold its own during a bad matchup..
• Lostgar can be used as a tech in Vilegar. It still did the job on me.

:DDDD

6-2

Yes! Top Cut!

CHAPTER 9: YOU’RE ON FIRE? WELL, I MAKE IT RAIN!

Top 32: (Gyarados Lock vs. BlazeChomp)

The judges took my deck when they calculated I would be in top cut. Every 6-2 would make it. About ten 5-3’s made it, too. When ranks were placed out, I noticed something very funny. I was ranked 17th! The very same at Ohio States!

Except this time, I was in top cut! Woot! When the judges gave me back my deck, I had to resleeve them in these black Dragon Shield sleeves. Very nice, but very slippery.

There was a very interesting group at Regionals, I noticed. Team Warp Point. I remember in the Fall, 2 of its members arrived at a Battle Road. I didn’t know how big the group was, though. There were at least 15 members here. And let me tell you. They. Were. Legit.

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Matching designer shirts, a singing performance, and a vast amount of great players, everyone seemed to know Team Warp Point. Even the Pokémoms were inspired to create Team Pokémom shirts. These guys were good, too. I believe 3 or 4 of them made top cut. Little did I know I was going to face one.

My opponent was a young adult who was very, very kind. His name was Nick Galli. He wore the Team Warp Point shirt well and I was happy I finally got to play one of them.

We talked to each other about how this was both of our first Regionals. He said it was his first top cut. I told him I had made top cut once with Donphan and I was very grateful to have made it again. He was a really nice guy to talk to and I’m glad I played him.

The match began.

It took me only a few turns to realize what deck he was playing. BlazeChomp with Honchcrow Tech. I wasn’t to worried about Honchcrow’s Poké-Power which involved pulling cards out of the discard and onto the bench. I normally have my bench filled.

I steamrolled through his Garchomps and Blazikens with a healthy Gyarados. I had him Power-Locked for at least 5 turns of the match. All and all, the match was in my favor.

I won the game fairly quickly but this guy was a great player. I had to make sure to do the same thing in Game 2.
In this game, he set up more quickly. I basically did the same thing as Game 1 and ended up winning, again, using the same strategy.

There was some misplays in this game. Big misplays that could cause both of us penalties. My opponent was generous enough to tell the judges that he didn’t want me to get any penalties when we both messed up on a Power Locked turn.

I forgot to call him out whenever he used a Power. I hate it when i get those opponents that tattle to the judges when one little thing goes wrong. This guy was the opposite!

In the end, I won Game 2. We shook hands and he told me to go all the way. I hope I’ll see this man soon enough. Thank you for playing me and congratulations on making top cut!

Things I learned:

• Don’t fret on little mistakes. Don’t complain to the judge for little things.
• Be a cool player like Nick Galli. :)
• BlazeChomp players should beware of Gyarados builds.

:D

Made it to Top 16!

CHAPTER 10: THE TOUGHEST BATTLE!

(Gyarados Lock vs. Luxchomp)

When I made it this far, I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t expect to make top cut. I didn’t expect to win a top cut match. I’m very grateful.

The night was getting late and I was pumped for my next match. Remember C? He’s my friend and Round 3 opponent. He was in the bathroom with me before top 16 and I knew right away who I was playing. Drew Holton. This guy was good. He was the only person to go 8-0 in swiss.

I remembered playing him at Ohio States, but he donked me. C gave me a good amount of warnings about him. He believed I could win and I did, too.

Only time can tell.

Drew and I sit down and begin out match right away. I start without a Sableye and go second. I’m about to use a Communication to search out an Uxie but then I realize something.

I FORGOT TO PUT MY Prize cardS!

I look at the judge next to us and said:

“I think I messed up. I forgot my prizes.”

The judge smacked his head on the table and called the head judge. The head judge told me that my opponent could take a Prize card as a penalty. Drew responded by saying he wouldn’t do that. My respect for this guy sky rocketed and honestly, I think I would’ve done the same thing.

Drew was a veteran player and wanted to win the “true” way. Thank you, Drew. Although I don’t know if his decision was right, I accepted it.

I ripped through half om my deck on my first turn hitting 4 heads on Super Scoop Up and constantly laid down Uxie. I had him Power locked, too. However, he played through the lock by buffing out his Luxray. Something to note is that he was building up his Garchomp C, too. I figured he was planning on sniping once a Luxray fell. And I was right.

Even though I had an amazing start, all Drew needed was a Twins. He used it to get energy and a much-needed Expert Belt. Luxray + Expert Belt = DEADLY TOWARD GYARADOS!

He started tanking with that Luxray, healing with Garchomp, and ripping through my Gyarados lines. He defeated me, simply like that.

pokebeach.comThen, I realized something. I had a godsend start and I still couldn’t defeat him. It’s a hard fact for someone to accept. If he plays his best, then I won’t be able to win. I couldn’t imagine a better start than I had just gotten! I went into Game 2 figuring I’ve lost.

… but then:

We both started with mediocre starts in Game 2. I had a Magikarp active against his Unown Q and benched Lucario. I became instantly happy when I chose to go second and noticed Seeker in my hands! Could I get the donk? (I was playing my donking Magikarp with “Flail Around”. It can do 0-30 damage.)

On Drew’s first turn, he retreaded the Unown and stuck Lucario up. Now, all I needed was a Regice to pull up the Unown. I had a Crobat in hand and was well prepared to “Flash Bite” the Unown twice. I looked at my hand. I had no other way to get out a Pokémon to use Pokémon Communication to grab the Regice.

I failed the donk.

The second game continued but with my poor start, it didn’t take long for him to build up a Luxray and start destroying my Gyarados. I think he used his Garchomp to snipe a few times in this game, too. All in all, the match ended up worse than the first. But, I played a good game. That’s all that really matters. Thank you for playing me!

:D Finished Top 16 at Indiana Regionals!

EPILOGUE: THE END OF THE RISE

Well, I lost at top 16. I’m so happy that I made it there, though! I just want to send out my list of thanks!

• Pokémoms. Thank you for your support and food!
• Stacia and Darrin, thank you for the ride!
• Zach H, my playtesting buddy, thanks for everything.
• C, thank you and good luck!
• Michelle and her children, Thank you very much!
• The judges were great.
• Nick, for coming with me.

Well, that’s the end of the story. You still want the decklist? Well, I promised it so here it is:

Pokémon – 224 Magikarp (Varying sets) 3 Gyarados SF 2 Mesprit LA 4 Sableye SF 1 Smeargle CoL 2 Uxie LA 1 Uxie LV.X LA 1 Regice LA 1 Crobat G PL 1 Azelf LA 1 Unown Q MD 1 Combee SF

Trainers – 322 Bebe’s Search 4 Pokémon Collector 4 Seeker 1 Palmer’s Contribution 4 Broken Time-Space 3 Expert Belt 2 Pokémon Communication 4 Super Scoop Up 2 Pokémon Rescue 3 Junk Arm 1 Warp Point 1 Switch 1 Luxury Ball

Energy – 64 Rescue 2 Warp

I hope you enjoyed my article and I look forward to writing my next one! Thank you! So, see ya.

~Aydan Aires