J-Wittz’s 5th Place 2011 World Championships Report

Preface: As a lot of you know, I love doing things by video. I’ve included both a link to my official video for my tournament report for those of you who would like my more in-depth explanation of in-game scenarios, and for those of you who prefer the visual format of reading, there’s a mini-report at the end. I hope you enjoy either format!

Hey everybody! My name is Josh Wittenkeller, and over the past 2 years I’m sure most of you have begun calling me J-Wittz. I’ve been working since November of 2009 on a YouTube show called Prof-It! The show’s aim is to help the beginning player with the competitive atmosphere of the Pokémon Trading Card Game.

Eventually as time went on, I’ve made it my goal to improve myself as a player to A) perform the best that I can while still having fun, B) legitimize the show by showing that the information comes from a good and experienced player, and C) eventually allow myself to provide information to both the new and seasoned players at the same time.

Despite not really achieving much as the show started, things got way bigger (and I mean way, WAY bigger) than I ever expected while still having minimal experience back in the game, I was also forced with D) the expectation that I needed to well because I’m “that famous YouTube guy”.

Inversely, I also wanted to do better because of E) the guys who DON’T expect me to do well because “I’m that YouTube guy” and nothing more.

I feel like with this season finally over, I’ll come much closer to achieving those five things.

Long story short, I’ve worked hard and turned out a heck of a season. I had a mediocre Cities slump that was broken with a win at the very end, and things just turned around from there. I ended up taking 2nd at IL and WI states, followed by a 5th place at Regionals, and from there my rating skyrocketed and I was pretty much set for a spot to compete in the 2011 World Championships.

At Nationals I went 2-1 drop to play it safe and not take any possible risk of dropping below the “safe zone” for qualifying on rating. I ended up being far above what was needed to be safe, but I regret nothing. I had an amazing time at Nationals meeting everyone and getting the best coverage that I could, and I left the event very satisfied.

After now being at Worlds and seeing “what the fuss” is all about, I’d make the same decision every single time—EVEN if I went 2-5 for the day at Worlds itself! Yes, the rating system is a little flawed, but being given the option to at least deal with its flaws and prevent myself from losing the opportunity was enough for me.

I know everyone has their opinions, but for me Worlds was another level from Nationals entirely. I felt like I was still able to meet a large amount of the people that I’ve grown to become friends with in the game, all while meeting an amazing amount of friends and fans from across the globe. Throw in the greater hype, atmosphere, and sheer amount of options than any tournament out there, and I was blown away.

But let’s be honest, you didn’t come here to read some sappy emotional stuff! You probably just want to get to my report and see how the games went! As I’ve put at the top—you can skip out on my life story and instead listen to me talk about my games in my video.

I thought it’d be a nice quick way to deal with things, but I actually went into a great amount of detail with my full story—the video itself is half an hour! I know that might sound daunting, but just play it in the background while doing something else that requires a minimal attention span, and I’m sure you’ll still get a lot out of it without getting bored : P.

One last thing before I get to what you really came here to read—thank you, everybody! Staff of all kinds, players of all kinds, and fans of all kinds, you guys truly are the best community for a competitive card game, and I hope to see things grow year after year.

Thanks for all the support for me as either a YouTuber or a player, and I definitely wouldn’t be doing anything close to what I’ve done in either category without the thousands of you that make this game awesome. I hope you all had a great season, and I’ll see you guys at Battle Roads soon!

– J-Wittz (but I’ll still always just be Josh : P)

Quick-And-Dirty Report

I played: Magnezone/Yanmega with 1-0-1 Kingdra and Jirachi

Round 1 vs. Curtis Lyon (CA) w/ Reshiphlosion + Kingdra

pokebeach.comI go first, set up fast, and take over his slower setup.

1-0

Round 2 vs. Tom Hall (UK) w/ Zekrom/Yanmega

I go first, and take a large lead off his weak start. I’m about 2-3 Prizes up on time despite a few misplays, and he can’t come back after the +3 time extention.

2-0

Round 3 vs. Bruno Martin (AR) w/ ZoneMega + Kingdra

I go first, and he gets 2 basics over the course of his 2 turns. I set up basics turn 1, and ko each of his basics turns 2 and 3 for a very lucky and fast win.

3-0

Round 4 vs. Jayson Harry (US) w/ ZoneMega + Kingdra

I go first, but start slower. I use Reversals on his 0-energy zones to buy time to catch up, and eventually getting the only Kingdra on either side of the board lets me mount a comeback. I eventually win with a double devolve with Jirachi sealing the deal.

4-0

Round 5 vs. Ross Cawthorn (US) w/ Pichu/Tropical Beach/Vileplume/Reuniclus/Blissey/Donphan/Zekrom/Entei Suicune Legend

Yes I’m serious. That was the deck. Yes, the Tropical Beach was the promo we got the DAY BEFORE. Props for going so risky and so rogue.

I go second. This one is best explained in the video, but long story short I take the first 4 Prizes, and he isn’t given enough time with 30+3 to mount a potential comeback.

5-0

Round 6 vs. Tom Dolezal (US) w/ Reshiphlosion

pokebeach.comI go second. He starts poor, I start poor. Ends up being a close prize exchange, with me pulling ahead for the win on turn 3 of time, despite drawing my entire deck to do it.

6-0

Round 7 vs. Sami Sekoum (UK) w/ ZoneMega + Kingdra/Jirachi

I go second. I start terribly while he sets up well. He goes up around 2 Prizes before I’m able to come back and get the Kingdra out to start doing what I did against Jayson. I mount a great comeback but am just one turn and 1 Prize behind to end up on the great game.

6-1

I enter top 16 as the 4th seed!

Top 16 vs. Miska Sarim (FI) w/ Reshiphlosion

I go second games 1 and 2. Both games he struggles to setup with Manaphy starts, while I go exceptionally well with both setup and reversal flips. I win both pretty easily and quickly to earn a spot in the top 8.

7-1

Top 8 vs. Tom Dolezal (US) w/ Reshiphlosion

Game 1: I go second. He sets up 2 Typhlosion Primes before I have anything, and proceeds to go up 2-3 Prizes before I quickly scoop to a new game.

Game 2: I choose to go first and set up well. I misplay several times, but started well enough to carry the game to victory regardless.

Game 3: He chooses to go first and sets up very well to my incredibly poor start. I luck out with great Cleffa flips to deny prizes and set up myself. We end the game in a prize exchange that is cut short by time about halfway through the game prize-wise.

I attempt to Eeeeeeek with Cleffa to deny him his chance at taking a prize every turn, and flip heads this time. It doesn’t give him the game right there, but it allows him to take the lead before I tie back up again on turn 3, allowing him to end the game on “turn 4” with a double pluspower blue flare.

7-2, 5th Place Overall.

Whether you watched the full video or just read my mini report, I hope you enjoyed it!

Props

• Renae, my girlfriend, for coming with, getting great coverage for when I couldn’t, providing constant support, and being the reason I even came back to this game in the first place. I love that girl to death.
• My friends and family for the encouragement and practice along the season
• Having an amazing run for my first Worlds
• SixPrizes Underground Staff for helping me hone my skills and test before the event
• Alex, Con, and Jay for crushing me in the mirror, and then helping me make my list more consistent
• Countless Reshiram players who helped me test the night before the main event
• Mike S. and Kevin K. for surviving the grinder
• Alex from Oregon for letting us keep our luggage safely in your room until I could switch over to the new hotel. It shows a lot about this community that I could trust someone I met at Worlds for the first time with all of my Worlds swag and personal belongings.
• Carlos P. for providing additional Reshiphlosion testing (and additional beatings), along with the generous help providing a room for Renae and me when he had an extra.
• Every match I played had a respectful and fun opponent
• Countless foreign players coming up to me with praise for the show (and more local players I didn’t meet at Nats!)
• Judges, staff, translators, and everyone who helped the project come together!
• Lucky Hoppips!
• Exobyte (Dylan M—TPCi) for the lols, praise, and gift of a signed WC Hoppip card!
• Amazing venue, atmosphere, and event
• Everyone else I forgot!

Slops

• Hour+ delays due to having to move planes
• Cloudy and moderately chilly weather in San Diego
• Nothing Else!

The Video Report