New Character Test - December 18, 2020

 

Carbon Freezing Chamber (not that it matters when it's just a test)

Ohhhhhh doctor!!!  For the first time in league history, we (unofficially) played with 12 brand new characters!!!  This new character test drive was intended to see if the new characters Rob created were league-worthy.  The goal is to play the A New Hope Duel in January with all the new characters, and then integrate them into all future Duels, randomly picking six light side and six dark side characters each month.  But first...we need to see how they do in action!

This will be a truncated recap, where I'll reveal who played, who they played with, how they died, and a cool card in the new character's deck.  Here we go...

12th Place - Duncan

Character - Supreme Leader Snoke

How He Died - Double Blasters from Krennic (Kaleb), which is a cool card, similar to Han's Never Tell Me the Odds, but it does three points of damage instead of two (because he's holding two guns!)  Duncan had a lot of fun early, playing some cool cards that scared the crap out of everyone, including...

Cool New Card - Tied To A String.  This one stirred some controversy as it enabled Snoke to bring any character on the board adjacent to him for two points of damage.  It pairs with Snoke's version of Force Lightning, which he does for three points of damage to an opponent adjacent to him.  After using it he can then move that character to any open space on the board!

11th Place - Miguel

Character - Rey

How He Died - Jyn Erso's I Rebel card, an eight point attack that does additional damage to surrounding characters.  Miguel had a volatile night as he locked horns with several characters, including Kylo.  He was the victim of Snoke's Tied To A String, but used his Backflip to move out of his kill box!  His light side allies eventually turned on him.

Cool New Card - The Rise of Skywalker.  This is a 12 point defense card that heals up to ten points of damage!

10th Place - David

Character - General Grievous

How He Died - Moff Gideon's Accute Pain, a six-point attack that, if it causes damage, makes the victim discard the next two cards in their draw pile.  David had one of the most jaw-dropping moments of the night when he played Reinforcements.  Both of his MagnaGuards were dead, but this card allowed both of them to reappear at full health!!!  It pairs with Spare Parts, a card that allows Grievous to heal at the expense of his minor character's health points.

Cool New Card - Trophy.  David used this 8 point attack but couldn't use the bonus, which allows you to pick up an attack card from your enemy and put it in your hand if you kill them!

9th Place - Rylie

Character - Kylo Ren

How She Died - Cara Dune's Heavy Weapon, a 5 point attack that doesn't count as an action if it does damage.  Rylie had a blast, shaking things up and flexing new cards all over the board, all in a desperate attempt to get to bed early for her holiday travel the next morning.  One eye-opening moment was when folks realized both Kylo and Rey have Force Dyad cards, that turn 5 attack/5 defense cards into 7's if Rey and Kylo stand next to each other!

Cool New Card - I Know What I Have To Do.  This is now the most powerful attack card in the game...12 points!!!

Crash Test Dummies

8th Place - Ryan

Character - Orson Krennic

How He Died - 3 point attack from Moff Gideon.  Krennic's troubles came when Wicket the Ewok used a Surprise Attack, which doubles the damage of the target.  The board turned on Ryan's Krennic and Elliot's Lando at the same time.  He also caused a collective groan when he played Peace and Security, a special that requires opponents (but not Krennic) to discard their hands and draw four new cards.

Cool New Card - Execution.  For the first time we saw unique attack cards for non-distinct minor characters.  This card is a 4 point attack, and allows the card to be used again by the other Death Trooper if he can attack the same opponent, and the second attack doesn't count as an action!

7th Place - Elliot

Character - Lando Calrissian

How He Died - Moff Gideon's Dark Saber, an 8 point attack and defend card!  Elliot was kind of running things on the down-low until Kaleb called him out.  One of the big impacts of the game was when he played Lobot's Disarmed, which forces any opponent Lobot can attack to discard two cards of their choosing.

Cool New Card - Evacuation.  Lando has three of these 8 point defenses, that allows him to move all adjacent characters to him as well as himself.  Lando is the first defense-oriented shooter, and he proved really hard to take down!

Anybody know how to produce these 3-D?

6th Place - Chris K.

Character - Jyn Erso

How He Died - The Mandalorian's 6 point attack, called This Is The Way.  Chris had to fight and scrape his way through the game, especially after his minor, Cassian Andor, died early.  But Jyn had a few tricks up her sleeve, including Stardust, a defense card that allowed her to change the attack card used against her!

Cool New Card - Trust Goes Both Ways.  This special card provides another league-first: it allows Jyn and Cassian to switch who the main character is!  If Jyn is hurting but Cassian is healthy, they can flip!

5th Place - Grant

Character - The Mandalorian

How He Died - a 4 point attack from Moff Gideon.  Perhaps no other character had as an exciting array of unique cards than Grant, including his 10 point Disintegration (which you have to sacrifice your next three draw cards to play) and Rising Phoenix, a special that allows Mando to fly in the air for the duration of his turn.

Cool New Card - Whistling Birds.  Oh yes, the series-favorite weapon inflicts two points of damage on up to 12 different characters!  But, BUT, it can only be used ONCE per game, so choose wisely!

4th Place - Natalie

Character - Qui-Gon Jinn

How She Died - a 4 point attack from Leia.  Hand it to Natalie, neither of her characters were shooters and that's all she was surrounded by.  Her use of Jar Jar throughout the night was humorous but effective, especially when she played Humble Servant, a card that doesn't count as an action but allows for three actions on a turn!

Cool New Card - There's Always A Bigger Fish.  This special is pretty cool, and she used it brilliantly against Leia earlier in the game.  Qui-Gon picks an opponent with more cards in their hand, draws cards until they have the same amount, and then the opponent has to discard by choice the same number of cards in return!  Ouch!

3rd Place - Kaleb

Character - Tobias Beckett

How He Died - Leia's Camouflage attack, good for 6 points and the victim can't attack them back on their next turn.  Kaleb really channeled his inner-scoundrel and had a blast playing Beckett, especially his 6 point defense called One Step Ahead.  It allows Beckett to pull back the card and replace it with another defense card if he wants to adjust after seeing the attack card.  The final two Duelers found that VERY frustrating!

Cool New Card - Kaleb didn't get a chance to play many of Val's cards, and the one he had hoped for but couldn't is called It's Been A Ride, Babe!  This special card is a 5 point self-destruct, injuring Val and all characters adjacent to her!  BOOM!

Look at these new damage indicators!

2nd Place - Riley

Character - Moff Gideon

How She Died - Covert Operation, an auto-4 points of damage special from Leia.  Riley, or the "Tiny Titan of Terror" as Kaleb dubbed her, took a lot of hits early but partnered with Beckett to make an unexpected deep run, all the way to second place.  She got jacked up when Leia played her two best defense cards, I Know, which does no damage to Leia but 4 to the attacker!

Cool New Card - The Dark Troopers were dead before she could use it, but they have a new card called Kidnapped, which allows a Dark Trooper to move itself and a character adjacent to it to any two empty spaces on the board!

1st Place - Ethan

Character - Princess Leia

How He Won - Our old Dueling friend Ethan won by laying low, taking distance shots, and using Speeder Chase cards to move all over the board!  One of the chief complaints about the original 12 characters is that there were no female leads, and here in our first test with the new characters we see women heroes of the rebellion are just as capable as the fellas!  Ethan played great.

Cool New Card - Wicket died before he could use it, but Whirling Rocks allows 4 points of damage to any character if you roll the dice and DON'T get a 2-all, otherwise, that two points of damage to Wicket!

It was a lot of fun playing with the new characters!  I would like to do another test Duel on the afternoon of December 30th, 1PM.  Let Rob know if you can play in that one!  He's going to tweak the cards based on feedback and what we saw in this first test drive.  Speaking of...

...if you would like to see all the new character cards, let Rob know!  He'll forward you the PDFs.  He would love any feedback or suggestions you have before they go into permanent rotation!

These are exciting times!!!  Thanks for being part of the insanity!

2020 Championship - December 5, 2020

 

Naboo Reactor Pit

What a doozy, folks!  The action was fast and furious (at least until the final five) and at the end of the night we had our first ever two-time winner of a Championship!  In normal years we take a picture of each person as they die, holding the card that eliminated them, but stupid COVID has disrupted that a bit.  I'll sprinkle in a few pictures as we do our Championship breakdown!

The top 12 Duelers of 2020

12th Place - Rob

Character - Darth Maul

Card that killed him  - Precise Shot from Padme

Padme finished him off, but it was Boba Fett's shocking attack and Rocket Retreat that doomed Rob.

11th Place - Grant

Character - Obi-Wan Kenobi

Card that killed him - 4 point attack from Greedo

It was a rough night for Grant too.  He tried to get the board to go in on Count Dooku, but others rallied to his aid and Grant's alliance crumbled and betrayed him.

Ryan working on 3D boards...

10th Place - Rylie

Character - Luke Skywalker

Card that killed her - Han Solo's Heroic Retreat

Rylie tried to argue going after her was silly and short-sighted, but her own backline alliance member finished her off in tenth.

9th Place - Duncan

Character - Han Solo

Card that killed him - Throw Debris from Vader

Duncan legitimately drew mostly defense cards at the start of the game, precluding him from helping any alliance, but it left a sour taste in folks' mouths so they offed him early.

The "where are my defense cards???" look

8th Place - Alex C.

Character - Jango Fett

Card that killed him - 3 point attack from a Super Battle Droid

We've played Naboo twice.  Alex has been Jango both times.  Both times the doors never opened for him.  Then everyone killed him.  Twice.

7th Place - Delaney

Character - Darth Vader

Card that killed her - 5 point attack from Mace Windu

This should have been a joyous evening for Delaney, who was turning pro with a good character, good placement, and solid allies.  The only thing missing from her night?  Not a single defense card.  One of the worst luck decks we've seen in years.  Brutal.

Ryan makes a move.

6th Place - Nathan

Character - Count Dooku

Card that killed him - 3 point attack from an Imperial Guard

Nathan was the first person attacked in the game but he stuck with the corridor folks with his have-no-cares attitude and was cruising until he launched an attack against Yoda.  It didn't end well after that.

5th Place - Ryan

Character - Anakin Skywalker

Card that killed him - Force Push by Yoda

Nobody had more character kills on the night than Ryan, and towards the end he made a bold move by Wrathing to the Emperor to attempt a kill box, but nobody followed.  He weaseled his way out of it but finally bowed out in fifth.

4th Place - Curtis

Character - Mace Windu

Card that killed him - 4 point attack from the Emperor

Curtis kept his head down at the start of the game and moved around the board well.  He just ran up against a three-person alliance that wasn't interested in shaking things up.  It was a solid night for the former champ.

A super-tense final two.

3rd Place - Kaleb

Character - Yoda

Card that killed him - Force Lightning by the Emperor

At one point Yoda was the strongest character on the board, health-wise, and that scared the other two.  He hung around a long time messing with the final two, trying to find a crack, but they weren't willing to make a deal.  Kaleb played great!

2nd Place - Ian

Character - Emperor Palpatine

Card that killed him - Wrist Cable

From his very first turn on the night, Ian made it clear the road to victory ran through the Emperor as he took control and haunted Duelers beyond reach at the end of the hall.  He was the mafia don ordering many of the hits, he just ran out of cards at the end.  Three straight second place finishers, and he almost defended his Vader trophy.  Outstanding!!!

TWO championship titles???

1st Place - Ben H.

Character - Boba Fett

How he won the game - by being a mother fetting fett!!!

Ben laid the first big attack on the night, and somehow survived a nightmare final three against Yoda and Emperor to become the first person to win the Championship twice in our league!  He consistently moved around the board and took the knee in bowing to Ian's Emperor.  He was down to his last two health points before Ian was drawing cold.  He survived multiple You Will Die's and landed an undefended Kyber Dart to put the Emperor in big time trouble.  The laser walls stayed open and he finally drew an auto-damage card - the Wrist Cable - to win the day!  This dude will now have two years of his life with the prized Darth Vader trophy in his possession.  Unreal!!!

FINAL ORDER OF FINISH:

12 - Rob/Darth Maul

11 - Grant/Obi-Wan Kenobi

10 - Rylie/Luke Skywalker

9 - Duncan/Han Solo

8 - Alex C./Jango Fett

7 - Delaney/Darth Vader

6 - Nathan/Count Dooku

5 - Ryan/Anakin Skywalker 

4 - Curtis/Mace Windu

3 - Kaleb/Yoda

2 - Ian/Emperor Palpatine

1 - Ben H./Boba Fett

Our next Duel isn't an official Duel, it's a "test" Duel for our 12 new characters!  We're playing on December 18, and Rob still has two spots open.  Let him know if you want to play!!!

We'll kick off 2021 with the A New Hope Duel...which will be the 12 new characters too!  After that, we'll mix all the characters for future Duels.  And...we have more new boards coming.  2021 is shaping up to be out biggest year yet!

Congrats to Ben H. again, and Merry Christmas everyone!  Christ the Savior is born!

Preview: The 2020 Championship - December 5, 2020 and...NEW CHARACTERS!

 

It's been a long, strange year, but the 2020 Championship is finally here!  This is usually the top 12 ranked Duelers in the league, but this year we added the tweak that a win during the year qualified you to play as well!  So in many ways, this is the best/toughest Championship ever played!

But we have other things afoot too!  After years of playing with the same 12 characters...we're expanding!  Later this month we're going to do a "test run" of the brand new characters.  If we like what we see...we'll start playing with them in 2021!  Before we get to that, though, let's take a look at the history of the Championship as well as the Duelers who are playing in the biggest game of the year!

CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY:

2019 - Ian won with Darth Maul in the Emperor's Throne Room

2018 - Ben H. won with Jango Fett on the Kamino Platform
2017 - Austin won with Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Carbon Freezing Chamber
2016 - Curtis won with Mace Windu on the Kamino Platform
2015 - Nathan won with Count Dooku in the Carbon Freezing Chamber
2014 - Ryan won with Boba Fett on the Kamino Platform

MEET THE CHAMPIONSHIP DUELERS:

Historically we use this section of the Championship preview to assign each Dueler's ideal character.  However, because we're playing online, the characters have already been assigned.  As such, we'll list a compatibility rating for the pick!

The Championship is also different in that the chair order goes from the top ranked Dueler to the 12th best playing.  That's the bonus for doing well in the rankings!  Also, we've already picked the board too.  We'll be back in the Naboo Reactor Pit, one of our new ones!

Chair #1 - Alex C. w/ Jango Fett

Dueler ranking:  #1 professional

Character compatibility: 71%

He's going to hate getting this character for the Championship, but Jango is the number one ranked character and Alex has a strong history with the senior Fett.

Chair #2 - Ryan w/ Anakin Skywalker

Dueler ranking:  #2 professional

Character compatibility:  43%

Ryan just missed the number chair for this Duel...ironically, because he finished poorly with Anakin at Thanksdueling!.  He does better with Emperor or shooters.

Chair #3 - Kaleb w/ Yoda

Dueler ranking:  #3 professional

Character compatibility: 68%

Kaleb does especially well with characters that can go deep into games, and Yoda definitely qualifies.  He'd rather have a character with better movement, though.

Chair #4 - Rob w/ Darth Maul

Dueler ranking:  #4 professional

Character compatibility: 31%

Though Rob has won with Maul before, he's his least favorite character.  Rob would rather play with Machiavellian characters and not living weapons like Maul.

Chair #5 - Grant w/ Obi-Wan Kenobi

Dueler ranking:  #5 professional

Character compatibility: 81%

Few Duelers understand the multiple variables of a match like Grant, and Obi is prone to control those variables in ways other characters can't.  Good match!

Chair #6 - Ben H. w/ Boba Fett

Dueler ranking:  #6 professional

Character compatibility: 76%

Like Alex, Ben won't be overjoyed to play Boba, but he has a very solid track record with the character, even after multiple Bowcasters.  Pew pew!

Chair #7 - Ian w/ Emperor Palpatine

Dueler ranking:  #7 professional

Character compatibility: 91%

Ian found a new gear in 2020 in leading alliances, and who better to control the board with than the Emperor???  This is a match made in heaven.

Chair #8 - Curtis w/ Mace Windu

Dueler ranking:  #8 professional

Character compatibility: 89%

Everyone knows Curtis is a cautious and deliberate Dueler, and Mace is a great meat and potatoes character, strong in offense and defense.  Curtis will feel better with Mace.

Chair #9 - Nathan w/ Count Dooku

Dueler ranking: #9 professional

Character compatibility: 98%

Did you all know Nathan just got engaged!!?!?  Congrats Nathan!  The league's early wedding present to you is Count Dooku, a character you won twice with, including the '15 Championship!

Chair #10 - Rylie w/ Luke Skywalker

Dueler ranking: #10 professional

Character compatibility: 37%

Rylie's had a real up and down 2020, but we can't imagine she's overly excited to play with Luke.  At least it's not Boba again!

Chair #11 - Duncan w/ Han Solo

Dueler ranking: #1 amateur 

Character compatibility: 61%

Duncan's only played four times, but one of those times was with Han.  He doesn't mind taking a supporting role to go deep in a game, so Han ain't bad in that respect.

Chair #12 - Delaney w/ Darth Vader

Dueler ranking: #4 amateur

Character compatibility: 87%

Delaney turns professional at the Championship, how cool is that?  She also can be on the non-confrontational side, so using distance attacks from Vader could be a great fit for her.

One of these 12 Dueler/Character combos will walk away the Champion of 2020.  GET PUMPED!!!

STAR WARS POSTER BOOK PREDICTS THE WINNER:

Ok - the Poster Book had its first truly bad miss last month.  Let's see what the semi-all-knowing text picks this week:

The Poster Books is 3-2 on the year.

MEET AND PLAY WITH THE NEW CHARACTERS!!!

Here we go friends, we're ready to introduce the 12 new characters we plan to introduce to the league.  Rob created all of these for league use, but he wants to do a "test run" of the new dozen before making them league official.  That's where you come in!  If you could play online with us on Friday, December 18th, at 7PM...you'll be the first person to EVER (unofficially) play with a new character.  Imagine that!!!

Ok, let's meet the new character combos.  First, our six new light side characters in rough chronological order...

Qui-Gon Jinn and Jar Jar Binks

Jyn Erso and Cassian Andor

Lando Calrissian and Lobot

Princess Leia and Wicket

The Mandalorian and Cara Dune

Rey and Finn

Ok...those were the six new light side characters!  Fun, right???  Now, let's take a gander at the new dark side combatants...

General Grievous and 2 MagnaGuards

Tobias Beckett and Val

Orson Krennic and 2 Death Troopers

Moff Gideon and ??? (still working on this one - probably Dark Troopers)

Supreme Leader Snoke and 2 Elite Praetorian Guards

Kylo Ren and 2 Knights of Ren

How sweet are these???  We won't have Moff Gideon done until this season of The Mandalorian wraps up.  But!  The deck of 31 are finished for the other 11 characters already!  Do you want in?  Email Rob today if you can play on Friday, Dec 18th, at 7PM online!!!  

And for the 12 playing in the Championship this Saturday...May the Force Be with You.

Thanksdueling! - November 14, 2020

 

Rancor Dungeon

Not unlike after a Thanksgiving meal, when you push back from the table and start to question your gluttonous behavior, twelve gathered and braved a different kind of feast...the Rancor Dungeon!  

We continued our streak of new boards, this time playing the basement of Jabba's Palace, but in a league-first, we had a 13th character...the Rancor!

Release the Kraken!

We had a not-so-mysterious Dueler lined up to play the Rancor...Riley!  The youngest winner in league history was more than excited to play the mindless killing machine.  We hid the identities of the other Duelers and chatter to eliminate any possible bias.  She had one directive - cause as much chaos and destruction as possible.  

Of course, for the Rancor to be released, a character on the board had to be killed first.  And just like the preview post predicted, it was Ian's Luke Skywalker who opened the gate!  He destroyed one of Troy's Battle Droids to release the Rancor, and she made her presence known by immediately attacking and killing the other Battle Droid and then playing Sheer Terror, which discarded several valuable draw cards of the 12 Duelers.  

Those nervous "we're fighting a Rancor???" smiles...

But just as the Rancor entered the fray, Miguel, using Boba Fett, asked Stephen/Obi and Rob/Emperor if they wanted to join him in taking out Ryan's Anakin.  That was a bold declaration for a weaker character with Padme's gun pointed at him.  It would come back to haunt Miguel because Ryan and Rob unleashed attacks on him to nearly kill him.

Meanwhile...there was still a Rancor on the loose!  After playing the Bone Crusher card (every player has one less action), the Rancor took a Big Swing and sent Lucas' Mace Windu flying across the board.  But the rest of the Duelers started peppering the Rancor with distance attacks, including a Sniper Shot from Kaleb's Zam.  As the characters backed up, the Rancor couldn't help but move out of its caged area, putting itself at risk for getting crushed by the gate.  Sure enough, Troy's Darth Maul rushed past and destroyed the gate control panel, crushing and killing the Rancor!  Give Riley credit, she took down four minor characters before exiting the game, and giggled the entire time.

Miguel's Boba was bleeding out, and Stephen's Clone Trooper showed no mercy by shooting the Fett out in 12th place.  After that, Rob/Emperor, Stephen/Obi, and Ryan/Anakin formed up near each other, inadvertently signaling to the rest of the board they were together.  Ian's Luke wasted no time calling it out and rallying the other Duelers, including Kevin's Count Dooku.  Rob scrambled by playing You Will Die on Kaleb's Jango, hoping to put some blood in the water to distract them.  Sure enough, the mega-alliance decided they didn't need the other Fett and he was done in eleventh after Lucas' Mace finished him off.

How did Stephen save himself???

Kevin, literally playing next to Stephen from his home in Florida, Force Pushed his houseguest into the alliance kill box.  But Obi-Wan went next and, using two Force Controls, somehow wiggled out of danger while creating the biggest mess of characters anyone can remember in a long time.  That led to poor Kevin's Dooku becoming the next target, falling to Troy's Darth Maul in tenth.

From there Ian once again led the charge, putting the focus back on Ryan/Anakin and Rob/Emperor.  Ryan and Rob tried desperately to form a new alliance against Curtis/Yoda, Grant/Han, and Ian/Luke.  The rest of the board wasn't having it, though, and Duncan Threw Debris to finish off Ryan in ninth.

It got a little testy after that.  Troy's Maul was making his way across the board to attack Rob's Emperor, but Ian got nervous about Troy's intentions and called on everyone to go after Maul next.  Troy was incensed as the others betrayed him.  It would Duncan again with the kill shot, this time using a Wrath.

First time a Dueler played from a moving vehicle.

Rob was next to go, but before falling, he knocked Ian's Luke down to one point of health.  Surely somebody would finish him off immediately after, right?  Right!?!?!?  Wrong!  Ian stayed around for a LONG time after, but I'm getting ahead of myself...

With six to go, nobody was quite sure who to go after next, until Grant reluctantly pointed at the fully healthy Yoda who had been reluctant to do much damage against Troy's Maul.  The rest of the board eventually came around to that line of thinking.  The big damage came from Chewbacca's Bowcaster, which Yoda didn't defend!  It was brutal.  Stephen's Obi finished it and Curtis was out in sixth.

That left five Duelers, and Kevin finally kicked Stephen out of his house, meaning he had to play from his phone in the car (don't worry, his wife was driving).  His Obi, though, became the next target, led by Lucas' Mace Windu.  Obi fought valiantly, but he ran out of defense before Mace Whirlwinded him into fifth.

Final Three Chaos

At this point in the game it really looked like Grant's Han Solo was going to bring it home but, after Wookie Tossing Ian's still-weak Luke, Ian rolled a five, bringing him in range of Han.  He got an evil grin and moved in to hit him with the Justice - ten points!  Duncan's Vader got the last shot, and Grant was gone.  He almost became the first Dueler in league history to win four times with one character!

That left a final three of Mace/Lucas, Vader/Duncan, and Luke/Ian.  Lucas was in a strong position, but as Ian continued to heal up, the balance shifted.  They couldn't agree to team with each other against Duncan, and damaged each other in the process.  Ultimately it was Luke who got the final hit on Mace, and Lucas was done in third.  He played a great game, though, especially after getting smacked early by the Rancor!

That left the same final two from last month's Fight Night - Ian and Duncan!  Master and apprentice!  Jedi and Padawan!  Both were only at half health, and Duncan combo-ed a Throw Debris and Wrath to bring Ian within two points of death.  Ian responded by charging Vader and unleashing his second Justice.  He followed up with a four point attack, which left Vader within two of dying too!  But Duncan had one last Wrath, and he used it to win his second Duel in a row!!!  No amateur Dueler has EVER won back to back, and it was the first back to back win since Ben H. two years ago (Thanksdueling! and the 2018 Championship).  Duncan might be the chosen one Qui-Gon Jinn was speaking of!!!  Congrats Duncan!!!  And let's not forget Ian, who finished second two games in a row and somehow got this second place despite only having a point of health for a good portion of it!

Hand it over, Alex!

Here's the final order of finish again:

12.  Miguel/Boba Fett

11.  Kaleb/Jango Fett

10.  Kevin/Count Dooku

9.  Ryan/Anakin Skywalker

8.  Troy/Darth Maul

7.  Rob/Emperor Palpatine

6.  Curtis/Yoda

5.  Stephen/Obi-Wan Kenobi

4.  Grant/Han Solo

3.  Lucas/Mace Windu

2.  Ian/Luke Skywalker

1.  Duncan/Darth Vader

My goodness - what a night!!!

The new Rancor's Dungeon board is a definite keeper, it sure was fun to have that fantastic beast mixing things up for us.

So December brings us...THE 2020 CHAMPIONSHIP DUEL!!!  This is the biggest Duel of the year.  It's our SUPER BOWL of Dueling.  The top 12 ranked Duelers and winners from 2020 are invited to play and capture the Darth Vader trophy, the best trophy there is.  We'll have more information on that soon!  Also, keep an eye on your email in December...there's a rumor Rob is working on something big...

Preview: Thanksdueling! - November 14th, 2020

 

My goodness, here we go again!  November is the second to last month of the year, and the last month for Dueling before the 2020 Championship in December!  But let's not get ahead of ourselves!  Thanksdueling! provides an opportunity for us to reflect and appreciate all that this glorious board game provides us, like trust issues, ulcers, late nights, and sweet gold spray-painted trophies!

With COVID forcing us to stay online, the league has stayed committed to sprucing up the normal routines and adding a little more chaos.  Once again we're playing on a new board - the Rancor Dungeon!  And what good is a rancor dungeon without...a RANCOR!  That's right, for the first time in 12-Way Duel League history, we'll have a 13th "character" on the board, in the form of a mighty monster created just for this occasion.  Check out the map and Rancor below:

You might notice right away this is the smallest, tightest board we've ever had - it's even smaller than the Carbon Freezing Chamber.  You're welcome!  You might also notice the Rancor takes up four spaces at time.  The blue horizontal line is the dungeon door.  When the first character dies - minor or major - the door is open and the Rancor can start wreaking havoc!  For the Rancor to move, he must have an empty four-square space to occupy.  Opposing characters, however, will be able to run through/under him!  Just like Luke Skywalker ran under his legs in Return of the Jedi, so can you.  

You might also notice that red dot - that's the dungeon door control panel.  If you have a character standing on that square, and can inflict three points of damage, the dungeon door will crash half way down.  If the Rancor is under it, that's 12 points of damage!  That could be huge, because...it takes 30 hit points to kill the Rancor.  Thirty.  Points.  

We have a mystery Dueler controlling the Rancor, and when the door opens the Rancor starts with 10 cards already in its hands!  That's right - the Rancor has a deck of action cards just like the Duelers.  Let's take a look at some of what he's toting:

These are the cards we're facing, people.  It won't be easy.  And if you think you can negotiate with it, align with it, persuade it to go after others instead of yourself, don't even try it.  It's a mindless beast, meaning it won't even share a video screen on the Zoom call!  The Dueler playing the Rancor has no mercy.  The Rancor can't win the Duel either, it can only make life miserable for the other 12 trying to bring home the trophy.  We've all been warned.

Gobble Gobble!

HISTORY OF THANKSDUELING!:

2019 - Alex C. won with Darth Maul in the Geonosis Arena

2018 - Ben H. won with Luke Skywalker in the Geonosis Arena
2017 - Rob won with Boba Fett on the Kamino Platform
2016 - JD won with Yoda in the Emperor's Throne Room
2015 - Nathan won with Darth Vader in the Geonosis Arena
2014 - Alex R. won with Boba Fett in the Geonosis Arena

MEET THE DUELERS:

Our normal ritual for the Thanksdueling! preview is to introduce the combatants with a quick quip on what they're thankful for this time of year...

Chair #1 - Kevin with Count Dooku.  Who is Kevin?  Even I don't know!  But he's a friend of Stephen's, and we're thankful he volunteered so we could proceed with the Duel!

Chair #2 - Rob with Emperor Palpatine.  Rob is thankful for the Star Wars Epic Duels wiki page, that provided cool software to create these life-like cards for the Rancor.

Chair #3 - Ryan with Anakin Skywalker.  Ryan is thankful for his second garage!  That's right, Ryan's house has two garages, and the extra one is where he creates our awesome 3D boards.

Chair #4 - Joel with Darth Maul.  Joel is thankful for Zoom!  Usually when a Hall of Famer retires, they're done playing, but COVID has allowed us to invite old friends back to the board.

Chair #5 - Stephen with Obi-Wan Kenobi.  Speaking of retired Hall of Famers!  Stephen is thankful for the August Doubleheader, where he added to his career victory total, which now stands at three.

Chair #6 - Curtis with Yoda.  Curtis is thankful for stress.  The sweet, joyful stress of playing this game and having to account for new variables like a freakin' Rancor!!!  YOU LOVE IT CURTIS.

Chair #7 - GRANT WITH HAN SOLO.  I swear this isn't rigged, but the best ever character/Dueler combo is hear to save us from the Rancor!  NEVER TELL GRANT THE ODDS!!!

Chair #8 - Miguel with Boba Fett.  Miguel is thankful for learning the ropes of this strange world of Dueling.  He's also thankful for the laser walls that saved him from a last place finish last month.

Chair #9 - Lucas with Mace Windu.  Lucas is thankful for his growing experience in the game.  He's tossed some good arguments out lately, he's due for his first win!

Chair #10 - Ian with Luke Skywalker.  What???  Ian is Luke in back to back Duels?  He's thankful for being a true pacifist...bwahahaha.  I couldn't even type that without laughing.  I've got a side bet going he kills the first character to spring the Rancor.

Chair #11 - Kaleb with Jango Fett.  I'm pretty sure Kaleb is NOT thankful for getting saddled with a Fett again.  But he is thankful for his new Survivor podcast - Speaking Llama!

Chair #12 - Duncan with Darth Vader.  I don't even think we can call him an amateur since he just won the third Duel he ever played last month!  Duncan is thankful for that Fight Night trophy!

This is as good a group as any to take on the Rancor.  Who do you think will get the kill shot?

STAR WARS POSTER BOOK PICKS THE WINNER:

I'm telling you something - this poster has magical Force powers.  It was 3-0 before last month, and then the pick for Fight Night finished in second place.  What is happening!?!?!  Ok all-knowing poster book...who wins the Thanksdueling! in the Rancor Dungeon?

Battle Droids?!?  By extension I guess that means Darth Maul.  Is the poster book telling us one of Maul's minor characters has a major role to play on Saturday?  We'll have to wait and see!!!

The action goes down Saturday at 7PM. See you then!!!

Fight Night - October 24, 2020

 

Naboo Reactor Pit

The lights...they were so pretty!  I'm talking about our new board, of course - the Naboo Reactor Pit!  Ryan created a brilliant LED board to turn the playing surface different colors.  Just like the setting in Episode I, the laser walls would turn on or off if a Dueler rolled a 2-ALL or a 5.  And it created a lot of drama...TO THE RECAP!

The Inaugural Naboo Duelers

The laser walls started up, and everyone tensely started drawing cards, expecting chaos.  The first few times they turned on or off were anxiety-inducing, which was fantastic and expected.  It was Miguel's Dooku, though, who got caught with the early attention.  When the walls came down a host of folks near the reactor, led by Ian's Luke Skywalker, targeted the first Sith in the hallway.  Just as things looked grim, though...the walls came on to protect him!  That turn of events, however, hurt an unsuspecting Rylie, president of the Boba Fett Fan Club.  Kaleb's Darth Maul was standing right next to her and was fully carded.  He decided to unload on the bounty hunter!  Rylie was stunned and left critically damaged.  She fell to another attack from him a turn later.  Ouch!!!  Rylie might slash Rob's tires if she gets Boba again anytime soon.

We laugh so we don't cry...

The walls were still up when the dust settled from Boba's exit, and Kaleb's Maul was left exposed across the open air of the reactor pit.  Ryan's Chewbacca took advantage by unloading his Bowcaster for nine points of damage on the horned Sith.  It was a big blow but Ryan assured Kaleb they were good moving forward.

Meanwhile, Curtis' Anakin Skywalker abandoned the hallway to join the reactor room folks.  But his Padme got offed when Rob/Mace and Miguel/Dooku eliminated her.  Rob managed a couple of attack-Wisdom combos to thin the reactor room minor characters, but they had the advantage for sure, and Rob used a Whirlwind on them that caught Miguel in the crossfire.  It was an inglorious end for poor Dooku.

Alex's Jango was loyal to Rob's Mace the whole time, painfully discarding cards while the walls were up, but as he saw the reactor room moving forward against Mace he Rocket Retreated the heck on out of there, to hang out with Ryan's Han Solo.  It would be attacks from Hannah's Yoda and Lucas' Emperor, though, that proved damning and Rob was out in a disappointing tenth.

Lucas had a good plan

From there it was obvious the reactor room alliance wanted to march down the hallway and take out Emperor and Yoda.  But the laser walls going up and down were hampering their movement, and the alliance got twitchy as they all became full carded with nobody to hit.  Ian's Luke sensed he was on the chopping block, so he made a dramatic move to charge down the hallway, standing next to Lucas and Hannah.  This confused the rest of the alliance, especially Curtis' Anakin.  He rolled a five on his next turn and, in his stress, commented how he was in position to attack anybody on the board but not knowing who to go after.  He settled on Ben's Darth Vader, expecting Kaleb/Maul to join suit.  But his hemming and hawing didn't gain him any support, and instead, Maul attacked Ani!  Several Duelers joined in, and by the time it got back to Ben, Curtis had no defense left, and Vader eliminated him with an All Too Easy in ninth.

By this point Duncan's Obi-Wan, who had partnered with Ian's Luke the whole game, joined the Skywalker twins near Yoda and Emperor.  That's when Lucas suggested the four of them, along with Alex's Jango Fett, turn against Han/Ryan, Vader/Ben, and Maul/Kaleb.  It looked like a good move, but Hannah wasn't feeling it and turned on the Emperor!  Luke and Obi followed suit, and poor Lucas was eliminated in eighth.

Things got crazy after that.  Obi used a Force Control to make a kill box around Yoda as well as Ryan's Han, which was a bit shocking.  Kaleb's Maul was in on the attack of Ryan, so when it came to Ryan's turn, he attacked Maul but Maul used a Blinding Surge to absorb the damage but deliver three back to kill Han!  But because it was Gambler's Luck, the dying Han still got to discard another card out of Kaleb's hand.  We'd never seen that move before!

Post-Yoda kill box.

With Han off the board that left Hannah's Yoda as the next target.  The laser walls and superior defense of Yoda, though, made it tough sledding.  Hannah eventually succumbed to a Latent Force attack from Leia to die in sixth.  That's three Duels for Hannah, and she's finished top-six each time!

That left five to go - Ian/Luke, Alex/Jango, Duncan/Obi, Kaleb/Maul, and Ben/Vader.  It was pretty clear Ian and Duncan were together, even though Ian hinted that was circumstantial more than anything else.  The other three wanted Obi dead, but Ian couldn't support that.  Instead, Vader became the focus of attack, especially after Ian pitched that to the injured Kaleb.  It would be a five point attack from Maul that ended Ben's strong run in fifth place.

The final four!  By this point Duncan had taken control of the board, and favored Jango's ouster.  His Obi, though, took a number of hits from indirect damage from both Vader as well as a double Wrist Cable from Jango.  Kaleb's Maul, also banged up, figured he and Obi could partner to take out Ian's healthy Luke, so he sided with Duncan to take down Alex's Jango.  It was a Jedi Attack from Obi that ended Alex's run in fourth place.  

Blood Red

The final three featured both Kaleb and Ian pleading with Duncan's Obi to partner and eliminate the other.  This was a long debate, highlighted by Kaleb's promise/threat to use two Blinding Surges on Obi, which would have him critically damaged should he attack.  Ian, in turn, promised to use yet another I Will Not Fight You on Maul.  Duncan got the best case scenario when his Obi was safe behind laser walls while Luke and Maul went at it.  Maul smacked Luke around, but Luke won the day when he dropped a ten point Justice to kill Maul in the Naboo Reactor Pit, which is kind of meta when you think about it.

Luke was bleeding out, and Obi-Wan was loaded in defense cards, but instead of charging in to attack Luke, Duncan retreated down the hallway to play it safe and try to card and heal up.  Though this stretched the Duel out, it proved to be a patient and justified tactic.  Despite two more I Will Not Fight Yous, Duncan's Obi outlasted Luke and eliminated his real world boss with a pair of four attacks!  Congrats Duncan!  This was just the amateur Dueler's third Duel, but just like the movie, he left the Reactor Pit the victor!!!

Let's check that final order of finish again:

12.  Rylie/Boba Fett

11.  Miguel/Count Dooku

10.  Rob/Mace Windu

9.  Curtis/Anakin Skywalker

8.  Lucas/Emperor Palpatine

7.  Ryan/Han Solo

6.  Hannah/Yoda

5.  Ben H./Darth Vader

4.  Alex C./Jango Fett

3.  Kaleb/Darth Maul

2.  Ian/Luke Skywalker

1.  Duncan/Obi-Wan Kenobi

My goodness, that new board was fun!!!  And congrats again to Duncan - very, very few Duelers have ever won a Duel that early in their careers.  You deserve that Dooku trophy hanging in your room!!!

Next month's Duel is Thanksdueling!  The tentative plan is to play on the evening of Saturday, November 14th.  We have yet another new board on tap, and this one is unlike anything we've seen before.  It is our Thanksgiving-themed Duel, so here's a hint:  GOBBLE GOBBLE!

Is that not enough of a hint?  Ok, here's one more:

Stay tuned to your emails and our instagram account for more info soon!!!
 

Preview: Fight Night - October 24, 2020

 

Trick or treat,

Smell my feet,

Give me 11 Duelers

To defeat!

Happy October, y'all!  If you're down for pumpkin-spice tasting Duels, you've come to the right place!  It's the tenth month of the calendar year, and that' means it's time for FIGHT NIGHT!  

Though we're still stuck playing online (COVID you are the absolute WORST), to spice things up we're continuing our commitment to play on new boards!  And we have an awesome board ready for Saturday - the Naboo Reactor Pit - the infamous setting where Darth Maul killed Qui-Gon and then got split in half (and still lived if you believed that hologram from Solo or those Clone Wars cartoons) by Obi-Wan.  This will also be the first board in league history that CHANGES during play!  The laser walls that separated Obi-Wan from Qui-Gon are part of this board, and anytime somebody rolls a 2 or a 5, they turn off or on!  Ryan has made a board for it...that lights up the laser walls with LED lights.  It is so sick, he's a madman.  Here's a boring JPEG of the layout:

 

Ryan's LED board looks much sweeter!  In fact, you can see a sneak peek of it on the new...Instagram page!  That's right - 12-Way Duels has finally hit social media.  There goes the virtual neighborhood.  Make sure you're following us!  Now let's take a look at our Fight Night history...

FIGHT NIGHT HISTORY:

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 FIGHT NIGHT DUELERS:

Longtime readers of the blog might remember for every Fight Night preview, in honor of October and Halloween, we introduce the combatants with their perfect Star Wars costume for trick or treating!  Since season 2 of the Mandalorian debuts this month, let's go with characters from the hit show!

Chair #1 - Hannah w/ Yoda.  Fight Night marks Hannah's third career Duel, and she's yet to finish below sixth place!  That can-do attitude makes her perfect costume...Cara Dune!

Chair #2 - Rob w/ Mace Windu.  It's been a grind, but Rob has four top-five finishes in his last five Duels, including second place at the Fall Brawl.  That survivability makes him a good...The Client!

Chair #3 - Kaleb w/ Darth Maul.  I know, I know, I can't believe he didn't get Luke Skywalker either!  He played him in four of his last six Duels!  His knowledge of others, though, makes him a good...Moff Gideon!

Chair #4 - Alex C. w/ Jango Fett.  Folks might not realize it, but with Ryan's win last month Alex slipped into second place in the Dueler rankings.  That runner-up vibe makes him a good...Myhtrol!

Chair #5 - Rylie w/ Boba Fett.  Egads, Rylie is Boba Fett again!  She played him at the Twin Sun Slam and CL Training.  She's vibing on those Mandalorians, making her costume...The Armorer!

Chair #6 - Ian w/ Luke Skywalker.  Ian was the only Dueler last month who understood how to play the new board, Arvala-7.  He was clearly familiar with that world.  That makes his perfect costume...Kuiil!

Chair #7 - Ryan w/ Han Solo.  He's feeling good after his win at last month's Fall Brawl, and now he's got another shooter.  His love for laser guns makes his costume...Mayfeld!

Chair #8 - Duncan w/ Obi-Wan Kenobi.  Duncan is a tenacious player, and this is just his third Duel!  He's learning fast.  That makes his best costume...IG-11!

Chair #9 - Lucas w/ Emperor Palpatine.  Lucas got hoodwinked at last month's Fall Brawl.  He's looking to run things this go-round.  With that facial hair of his, he could pull off...Ranzar Malk!

Chair #10 - Miguel w/ Count Dooku.  Miguel is young, brash, full of confidence, and not afraid to mix it up with the veterans.  His perfect Mandalorian costume is...Toro Calican!

Chair #11 - Ben H. w/ Darth Vader.  This is Ben's first game since winning Doubleheader #2 back in late August.  The only reason I'm giving him this costume is because his wife bought him the Halloween mask.  He is...The Child!

Chair #12 - Curtis w/ Anakin Skywalker.  Curtis is easily stressed by our beloved game, and for good reason.  The new board is bound to make him cranky.  His cantankerous mood make his costume...Peli Motto! 

STAR WARS POSTER BOOK PICKS THE WINNER:

I can't believe it, but it's true.  The Star Wars Poster Book is 3-0 on the season picking winners!!!  It nailed Jango Fett winning the Fall Brawl!  It is all-knowing!  It must have been one of the books Rey stole from Luke in Episode VIII.  Ok Poster Book - who wins this month???

Whoa!!!  Luke Skywalker for the win?  He's the character with the fewest career victories - but who are we to argue with the perfect record of the Poster Book?!?

Alright Duelers...we're all set for Saturday's battle!  Rob will send out the Zoom link and character cards later in the week.  This one should be a doozy!!!