Preview: Fight Night - October 3, 2026

It's been a cold (less hot?), wet week in the 2-5-4, which must mean the seasons are changing and October is upon us!  And that also means our 13th annual FIGHT NIGHT has arrived too!  It's a spooky time of year, and it doesn't get any less terrifying when you're trapped with eleven other Duelers in the Naboo Reactor Pit.  The lasers walls will go up and down all night, and only the most committed Dueler will avoid elimination!

HISTORY OF FIGHT NIGHT:

2025 - Jillian won with Grand Moff Tarkin in the Geonosis Arena

2024 - Jonah won with Sol in the Naboo Reactor Pit

2023 - Penny won with Tobias Beckett in the Geonosis Arena

2022 - Rob won with Jyn Erso on the Conveyex Train

2021 - Kat won with Rey in the Emperor's Throne Room

2020 - Duncan won with Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Naboo Reactor Pit

2019 - Rob won with Boba Fett in the Emperor's Throne Room

2018 - JD won with Mace Windu in the Carbon Freezing Chamber

2017 - Joel won with the Darth Vader in the Emperor's Throne Room

2016 - Stephen won with Emperor Palpatine in the Geonosis Arena

2015 - Curtis won with Han Solo in the Emperor's Throne Room

2014 - Grant won with Darth Vader in the Emperor's Throne Room

MEET THE DUELERS:

It's the best "meet the duelers" of the year!  For each October's Fight Night preview, we introduce the Duelers by sharing the Star Wars costume they're going to wear for Halloween this year!

Curtis - Curtis has played with a Jedi in his last four Duels.  That, his elder statesman vibe, and wisdom makes his costume...Oppo Rancisis!

Emmanuel - partnered with his fellow Tealthica CL Kaizer, this dynamic duo has finished third and fifth in both Duels they've played this year.  That makes his perfect costume...one of the Hutt twins!

Eric - after his impressive CL Training Duel, his finishes have slid into 7th and 12th.  He's looking for a rebound at Fight Night.  That makes his perfect costume...basketball Jango Fett!

Grant - after not playing since this past April, somehow Grant has returned.  That makes his perfect costume...Episode IX Palpatine!

Ian - Ian had a tale of two Duels at the Doubleheader, where he finished in last in the first game and first in the second game.  Doubleheader lore makes his perfect costume...Fode and Beed!

Jonah - he's had a solid 2026 but no victories to show for it.  Time is running out to secure a spot for the Championship!  Otherwise, his perfect costume is...Ratts Tyerell!

Joshua - rookie Dueler alert!!  Joshua is jumping in for his first Duel ever.  Let's hope this padawan doesn't end up like his perfect costume...Sors Bandeam!

Junior - poor Junior is in a tailspin right now.  He's finished 9th, 8th, and last in his last three Duels.  He needs to pull out, but until then, his perfect costume is...Arvel Crynyd!

Kaizer - partnered with his fellow Tealthica CL Emmanuel, this dynamic duo has finished third and fifth in both Duels they've played this year.  That makes his perfect costume...one of the Hutt twins!

Nathan - blink your eyes all you need to, but yes, retired Hall of Famer Nathan is stepping back into action from deep space for Fight Night!  That makes his perfect costume...Admiral Thrawn!  

Nayshaun - it's nice to have Nayshaun back at the table for the first time since CL Training.  He's still looking for career victory number one.  Perhaps his perfect costume is a character also looking for his first win...Moff Gideon?

Rob - after a nice run of top five finishes, Rob has finished in the gutter over his last two games, with 10th and 11th place results.  His perfect costume is...hobo Clone Trooper!

MEET THE CHARACTERS:

Ok, we know you want it so here it is - the Fight Night Characters playing in the Naboo Reactor Pit!

I have to say...this is a really weird group of characters, lol!  Should be hilarious.  Saturday, 7PM, North Village Fine Arts Studio...somebody is winning FIGHT NIGHT!  PEW PEW!!

The Fall Brawl - September 6, 2026

 

Geonosis Arena (via Hoth)

We love to see a huge turnout of students at a Duel, and the Fall Brawl delivered on that front.  8 of the 12 Duelers were students, and three of the four "adults" were in their early 20s...leaving one sad "unc" to navigate gen Z slang all by his lonesome.  One thing's for sure: that guy is buns.

From Brawler to Bawlers...

Things started quite spicy in this year's Fall Brawl when Jonah's Captain Phasma shot Riley's Lobot down the Geonosis alley before she and Lando could even flip to the dark side!  Similarly, Sam's Jabba the Hutt dispatched his lil' piggies to block Rob's Rey from doing the same.  With Lobot on just one point of health, Rob decided he would stick with the light side and used Jedi Healing to bring Lobot back to life!  That ensured it would be a true 6v6 match, and poor Junior suffered for it.  His Allegiant General Pryde lost his Sith Troopers and his life not long after that.  Junior was out in twelfth!

The dark side focused many of their attacks on the over-powered Rey, but Rob managed to use Rise of Skywalker to return to full health, ready to help his alliance continue to press the bad guys.  But Emmanuel/Aayla Secura had seen enough, and attacked Rey two different times!  Rob's fate was sealed when Sam played My Kind of Scum.  Jonah's Captain Phasma (Sam's not-so-secret crush) hit the kill shot and Unc Rob was done in eleventh.

We are laughing!

By this point most of the characters were in the middle of the board, and a light vs. dark alliance was still mostly in place despite Emmanuel betraying Rey.  That's when Kaizer's Supreme Leader Snoke pulled a dastardly maneuver.  He played his All Is Lost attack on Caden's Bo-Katan, who chose not to defend.  That caused Caden to dump the rest of his hand!!  A whacky night got even whackier and poor Caden had no cards to defend.  Jabba knocked him out in tenth.

After that, the momentum swung back to the light side.  James, who was a much appreciated last-minute sub, had been laying nice hits with Reva.  But he got caught under multiple attacks, including Emmanuel's wild Aayla Secura.  But Mason would use the splash damage of his Clone Commando Grenade Launcher to auto-damage James into ninth.  Ka-boom!!  

Riley always peeps the camera.

The light side was surging at this point.  Sam's Jabba retreated behind the snow mounds, locked into 1v1 battle with Riley's Lando Calrissian.  Karis' Jod Na Nawood had deftly sent shots across the board and rehealed by axing Brutus, but she soon found herself the next target.  Once again Emmanuel's Aayla delivered big - rolling a "5" for his Acrobatic Attack, making it a ten point swing of his light saber!  Karis was benched in eighth.

Her fellow Penland conspirator Poe/Yoyo was delivering nice shots against the dark side, but when mean ol' Jonah killed BB-8, the tide turned against Yoyo.  Some of the melee folks started attacking too, and Captain Phasma delivered the death knell when Yoyo only had one card left.  That's two seventh place finishes for Yoyo in two career Duels!

Supreme Leader Switzerland

With six Duelers to go, Jonah/Phasma and Sam/Jabba were desperate to get Riley/Lando to join them against the Tealthica power-duo of Kaizer/Snoke and Emmanuel/Aayla.  Mason's Clone Commandos were navigating the middle of that alliance switch.  In the end, it was once again Emmanuel dictating the next move, as he unloaded on Captain Phasma and blasted Jonah off the board in sixth place with the Rotary Cannon.

There was a LOT of jawing after that, as everyone was pleading with Kaizer to have him join their respective side.  But Kaizer treated Supreme Leader Snoke like Switzerland for most of the night.  When Emmanuel's Aayla was finally taking damage, Kaizer used a double-dose of Force Lightning to halve Tealthica in two.  What a night of chaos and carnage for Emmanuel, though!

Aayla wreaking havoc!

With four Duelers left Mason's last remaining Clone Commando was bruised and battered.  Jonah's Phasma had managed to New Recruit the first two.  Mason had a chance to Detonate Sam's Jabba, but let the Hutt pass.  That proved to be fatal, as Jabba attacked twice.  Mason survived those attacks, but Kaizer's Snoke layed two points on the final Clone and Mason was gone in fourth.  That's his personal best finish, though.  Well done, Mason!

The jig was finally up for Kaizer's Snoke as well.  Though he had plenty of cards in his hand, few of them were defensive.  He faced an agonizing moment with six points of health left.  Riley's Lando was attacking, and Kaizer had to decide whether or not to take one more hit before trying to use I Cannot Be Beaten - his guard resurrecting defense.  He chose not to defend...but Riley used her Battle of Tanaab to off Snoke in third!  Both Emmanuel and Kaizer have finished in the top five in their first two career Duels - wow!  Tealthica has replenished their ranks for sure.

Ten round, knockdown fight ahead...

And then there were two!!!  Sam's Jabba and Riley's Lando had largely avoided the chaos of the night and the two wily veterans were just about dead-evenly matched with their characters.  And this final two went a LONG TIME...deep into the night, shuffling through their decks MULTIPLE times.  This one was no joke - maybe the longest final two in league history because neither character could ever get the upper hand.  It was going to come down to one reshuffle being very lucky while the opponent was unlucky...and that's what happened!  Poor Riley got caught with nine Lobot cards in her hand while crack Hookah Pipe-loving Jabba had a beautiful run of cards.  Give Sam credit, he stayed aggressive the entire time and it paid off!  With just two points of health left, Salacious B. Crumb took a bite out of Lando to seal the victory for Sam!!!

This marked Sam's first career win - way to go Sam!  He previously held the record for most career Duels without a win, but that monkey is now officially off of his back.  Congrats!!!  And this is Jabba's second victory in a row - yikes!!!  The galactic gangster is a new force to be reckoned with.  Riley deserves kudos as well - she nearly won her second Duel in her last three games!

Final order of finish:

12.  Junior/AG Pryde

11.  Rob/Rey

10.  Caden/Bo-Katan

9.  James/Reva

8.  Karis/Jod

7.  Yoyo/Poe

6.  Jonah/Phasma

5.  Emmanuel/Aayla

4.  Mason/Commandos

3.  Kaizer/Snoke

2.  Riley E./Lando

1.  Sam S./Jabba

Your 2007 US Open Champion.

Congrats again to Sam!  That win was well deserved and a long time coming.  Our streak of no repeat winners in 2026 is still alive!!  We'll see if that continues at next month's FIGHT NIGHT!  Pencil in Saturday, Oct. 3rd, as the tentative date for that one.

Until then...PEW PEW!

Preview: The Fall Brawl - September 6, 2026

Due to a weird glitch in the calendar matrix, we're playing this year's Fall Brawl just one weekend after the Doubleheader!  Labor Day is on Monday and then the next three Saturdays after that are all home football games...so yeah, why not?  LET'S FALL BRAWL!!!

HISTORY OF THE FALL BRAWL:

2025 - Rob won with Mace Windu in the Narkina 5 Imperial Prison

2024 - Rob won with General Grievous in the Eravana Cargo Hold

2023 - Isaiah won with Cad Bane in the Rancor Dungeon

2022 - Ian won with Tobias Beckett in the Rancor Dungeon

2021 - Natalie won with Anakin Skywalker on the Kamino Platform

2020 - Ryan won with Jango Fett on Arvala-7

2019 - Ryan won with Mace Windu in the Carbon Freezing Chamber                                                

2018 - Courtney H. won with Emperor Palpatine in the Emperor's Throne Room

2017 - JD won with Han Solo in the Geonosis Arena

2016 - Ian won with Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Carbon Freezing Chamber

2015 - Rob won with Obi-Wan Kenobi on the Kamino Platform

2014 - David C. won with Darth Maul on the Kamino Platform

MEET THE DUELERS:

We have a lot of student Duelers this go-round, which we love to see!  These are the 12 mixing it up on Sunday...

Caden - welcome back to the fold, Caden!  He's making his first appearance since a frustrating last place finish at the 2025 Championship.  Here's to a better outcome!

Emmanuel - after an amazing debut Duel at CL Training (third place with Dr. Evazan!), Teal is once again represented well at the Dueling table.

Jonah - it was a tale of two Duels for Jonah at the Doubleheader.  After a lackluster tenth place finish in game one, he nearly took it home in third place (Grand Inquisitor) in game two!

Junior - there are rumors around the league that Junior was found wandering the halls of Brook this week, mumbling something like "...it wasn't fair...I was Han Solo...he blocked my Bowcaster..."

Kaizer - speaking of hotshot Teal rookies who debuted well at CL Training...Kaizer was as cool as the other side of the pillow, landing in fifth place with Reva.

Karis - the league's newest grad student wunderkind dabbled in her first 12-way at the Doubleheader during game one last weekend, guiding Poe to a ninth place finish after four+ hours of play.

Mason - in just three career Duels, Mason has played with both the KX Security Droid and K-2SO.  He wouldn't mind a non-robotic main character at the Fall Brawl.

Ramiro - he got aced out of the 12th chair at CL Training, but Ramiro makes his debut at the Fall Brawl, one of a trifecta of Teal Duelers trying to bring home gold to their trophy case.

Riley - it was a great day to Duel twice for Riley at the Doubleheader!  She won game one, becoming the first Dueler to win with Jabba the Hutt.  Ho ho ho, ha ha ha!

Rob - Rob had the opposite day of Jonah at the Doubleheader, grinding out a third place in game one (Aurra Sing) and then literally blowing up in tenth place in game two.

Sam - The Dallas Kid is driving back down YET AGAIN!  He keeps bailing us out for our 12th spot!  What a guy!!  

Yoyo - yet another CL Training rookie has come back for more!  Yoyo's aggressive style of play was appreciated at the CL game, which finished in under three hours!

MEET THE CHARACTERS:

Ok, ok, I know why you really read the previews...to see the characters being played!  Here you go you ungrateful nerf herders...

These 12 will mix it up on the Geonosis/Hoth board!  If you're in town feel free to swing by on Sunday!!

Doubleheader #2 - August 29, 2026

Death Star

We were starting the second Duel almost three hours late (poor Michael showed up on time, too!), and the grousing about the unusual layout of the Death Star of course started immediately.  Suck it up, Duelers!  Warfare isn't always symmetrical!!!  

They're doomed.

The map was a bit odd in that there were only three narrow passages running the length of the board.  With that kind of congestion, the light side decided to turn on one of their own.  Poor Eric/Yord was the target as he was in a friendly kill box.  Scratch that, no such thing...  Anyway, folks were fully carded and Yord needed to put his clothes on.  Multiple people contributed but CJ's Clone Commando made the final shot.  In a way Eric was the real winner, because he got to go home before midnight...

Miles/Mother Koril, playing his second creepy Night Sister of the evening and turning pro in his sixth career Duel, Possessed one of CJ's Commandos.  CJ didn't like that and moved to try and shoot Koril.  But the light side wasn't too keen on an Order 66, so they all attacked the Commandos!  CJ was gone after James/Jar Jar threw an Oopsa Bomb Bad on the last Commando and Rob's Saesee Tiin.  Ouch!

Curtis loves sitting on the corner spot.

There was mythical talk about starting in one of the four corners of the board, but that fairytale ended quickly when Rob's Saesee (he's bringing Saeseeeeee back ((yeah)) took more shots.  A stalemate had formed so, to mix things up at some prompting by Rob, Mason's KX Security Droid Crowd Dispersed Sam's IG-88 into a mini kill box!  But Sam got ruthless and played Security Protocols - self-destructing and killing Rob in tenth in the process!

Curtis also sacrificed his main character for the sake of his minor when he played Force Ghost, making young Luke Skywalker the main.  Mason's actions won him no favors (guys - it was just his third game - relax!) and they took KX down in ninth.  Mason has played just three times but has already played KX and K2 - weird!

 

James on a Jar Jar murder spree

Though Sam was still on the board with danger Dengar, his options were limited.  James, who was having the time of his life as everyone's least favorite Gungan, used Accident Prone to auto-damage Sam out in eighth!!  Talk about your low blows!!!  Sam took a Dr. Pepper and made the long drive back to Dallas...

Riley/General Grievous was fairly spry in the middle of the board, but Jonah's Grand Inquisitor finally got loose and jacked up the first year Brooks student.  Riley couldn't survive, especially with Ian's Phasma New Recruiting one of her minors.  The game one winner would have to settle for seventh this time.

Half done, half to go...

That left just six Duelers at the table.  Ian/Captain Phasma and Curtis/Old Ben had been beefing all game long, especially after Ian killed R2-D2.  But with just young Luke left Curtis' hand was half Old Ben.  Phasma used On My Command and Luke couldn't defend.  That just seems wrong!  Curtis rested in sixth.

And then there were five!  Despite being booted into a kill box earlier in the game, and having Kelnacca destroyed before he could do real damage, Miles had hung in there with Mother Koril.  But once again the rest of the Duelers had the heebie jeebies about the Night Sisters.  Jonah used a Ringed Lightsaber to off Miles in fifth.  Congrats on turning pro, Miles!

How is Ian still alive?

There were just four Duelers left:  James/Qui-Gon & Jar Jar, Ian/Phasma, Michael/Commander Cody, and Jonah/Grand Inquisitor.  Michael had laid low through a lot of the game after taking spalsh damage from Jar Jar.  But he was healing up and starting to shoot folks.  Ian was really banged up with Phasma and couldn't heal.  So James/Qui-Gon and Jonah/Inquisitor locked horns.  But Jonah played Ready To Die, which lowers numerical defense values by two.  It just so happened James' only had two point defenses in his hand!!!  Jonah sliced through him like butter and Jar Jar, I mean Qui-Gon, was finally out in fourth.  That was a great day of Dueling for James!

Ian was down to his last two health points, while Michael was fully healthy again.  Somehow Ian convinced Jonah not to off him!  It would prove to be Jonah's undoing, as the shooters combined to blast the Grand Inquisitor off the board in third place.  

Slow motion car wreck in 3...2...1...

With just two Duelers left it was Michael with the fully healthy but not particularly great character Commander Cody up against Ian and his two points from dying Captain Phasma.  The only thing that could change the tide would be an undefended, 8-point Make Them Suffer bluff by Ian AND OH MY GOD THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED!!!  Cody took eight points of damage and was suddenly on tilt!!!  Ian pulled his last Backup Pistol for two more points too!!  It was absolutely sickening to watch as poor Michael went from a near win to a second place finish!!!  Ian pulled it out!!!  Poor Michael!!!

This marks Ian's twentieth career victory!  He's just the second Dueler in league history to reach that milestone.  It's also Captain Phasma's first win too.  

Here's the final order of finish:

12.  Eric/Yord

11.  CJ/Clone Commandos

10.  Rob/Saesee

9.  Mason/KX

8.  Sam/Degnar (IG-88)

7.  Riley E/Grievous

6.  Curtis/Luke (Old Ben)

5.  Miles/Mother K.

4.  James/Qui-Gon

3.  Jonah/Grand Inq.

2.  Michael/Cody

1.  Ian/Phasma

Here's something cool - we haven't had a repeat winner in 2026!  That means nine Duelers have already secured a spot in the finals with three Duels remaining before the Championship!

Congrats again, Ian!  12th place in game one to 1st place in game two is a special kind of torture...

 

Doubleheader #1 - August 29, 2026

Kamino Platform

It was a glorious Saturday afternoon.  The Yoda Soda was flowing, the tie-fighter ties were warm, and the hum of lit lightsabers filled the air.  IT WAS TIME FOR DOUBLEHEADER #1!!!

This should be a quick one.  *gulp*

Is there a reason a game on the Kamino Platform should take 5+ hours?  That's a fair question.  We don't have an answer, but it definitely did.  Curtis/Kit Fisto immediately flipped to the dark side, but Ian/Leia sweet talked James/Beckett to flip to the light side!  It was still 6 vs 6.  No progress!  It was a long stalemate until Eric/Snoke decided to Tied To A String Ian's Leia into a kill box!  Ian couldn't survive, and the longtime pro was in an uncharacteristic last place.

Around the three hour mark we were still eleven strong, but the dark side finally coordinated their attacks enough to isolate Mason's Armorer.  Sam's Sith Apprentice Anakin was no laughing matter, chopping the Mandalorian down in eleventh place.  You should get more than eleventh with that long at the table, unfair!!

Delirium sets in for Karis...

Jonah's Plo Koon was the defacto general leading the light side, but in a bitter backstab, James flipped once again!  And he did it in classic fashion, using Val's It's Been A Ride, Babe, to auto-kill the prequel Jedi into tenth!  Jonah was gob smacked for sure.

It had gotten so late into the afternoon/early evening that Karis had somewhere else to be, so she got more aggressive with her Poe.  She and Rob/Aurra Sing traded shots across the board at each other, but it would be Miles' Morgan Elsbeth, who was all hopped up on Nightsisters magics, that landed the final shot.  Not a bad Duel for Karis' first!

Seriously, let the Wookie win!

Junior had a frustrating game, and not just because he drew Han.  His Chewbacca tried to eliminate Rob's Bossk, only to have the entire Bowcaster shot blocked.  Han hung tough after that, but as the light side crumbled he could no longer defend himself.  Curtis' Kit Fisto used a Form One attack to seal the deal.  Junior was out in eighth.

With the original light side extinguished, the infighting commenced!  Eric's Supreme Leader Snoke was a menace throughout the match, but the group turned against the sequels villain and Aurra Sing put them down in seventh.

Shoot - they figured out we're working together!

The objectively scariest character left at that point was Sam's Sith Ani, though Miles' Morgan was super creepy with her zombie troopers in full effect.  But the table put the target on Sam.  Rob had been the feeder fish swimming under Sam's shark all game and couldn't bear to join in, but Riley's Jabba had no problem and knocked Sam out in sixth.

It looked like Rob's Aurra Sing might be next, but he threw it out there that Miles' Morgan looked unbeatable.  He proceeded to prove it by withstanding several attacks in a row.  But the rest of the Duelers slowly whittled her down.  Miles' own father bestowed the terminating shot with yet another Kit Fisto Form One.  Fifth place in your fifth career Duel ain't bad though, Miles!

Somebody get these beggars off the Kamino Platform!

With four to go we were down to two shooters (Rob/Aurra, James/Beckett) and two melees (Riley/Jabba, Curtis/Kit).  Curtis had prematurely started the attacks against Rob, so he pointed his sniper rifle at the green-dreaded alien in return.  Riley joined in too, and Jabba squished Fisto in fourth place.

James' Beckett was bouncing all over the board for the entire game, flipping sides more than once...basically, playing EXACTLY like his character!  It worked to great success, because despite Rob trying to align with Riley/Jabba, he couldn't survive James' Double Blasters.  The birthday boy was benched in third.

Did we even razz him for his Cowboys shirt?

You know what the worst possible thing is when a game has already taken too long?  The last two characters chasing each other around Slave One!!!  WHEEEE!!!!  And to make matters worse, Riley's Jabba can't move as quickly because Jabba occupies two spaces.  But in the end, after much chasing...Riley played one of the funniest titled attack cards in the league:  "HO HO HO, HA HA HA!"  It was no laughing matter - Riley won her fourth career Duel!!!  That ties her with Kat for the most wins by a woman in league history, woot woot!  This was also Jabba's first career win in just his second career Duel!  James deserves a tip of the cap too - what a great way to play Beckett!

Final order of finish:

12.  Ian/Leia

11.  Mason/Armorer

10.  Jonah/Plo Koon

9.  Karis/Poe

8.  Junior/Han

7.  Eric/Snoke

6.  Sam/Sith Ani

5.  Miles/Morgan

4.  Curtis/Kit

3.  Rob/Aurra

2.  James/Beckett

1.  Riley E./Jabba

First win as an ADULT, as a COLLEGE STUDENT...

Well done again, Riley...but there was still another game on the night, on to Doubleheader #2!!!