2021 Championship - December 4, 2021

 

Carbon Freezing Chamber (via Dagobah)

What a fantastic night of Dueling!  In one of the best played Duels in quite some time, the best of the best from 2021 gathered in the North Village Classroom and did battle to bring home the Darth Vader trophy, the most coveted piece of hardware our league has to offer.  

Hint: the winner is smiling in this photo.

And just to rub salt in the wounds of very grumpy and tense Duelers, for the Championship, you are forced to pose with the card that crushed your hopes and dreams.  Brutal.  WE LOVE IT.  Let's see how they did!

12th Place - Grant H.

Character - Mace Windu

Card that killed him - a one point Wicket attack

The good news is...Grant turned professional this Duel!  That bad news was...he did so while taking home the Golden Jar Jar.  

Kat's Princess Leia flipped to the dark side early, and that left poor Grant exposed and battered.

11th Place - Riley

Character - Orson Krennic

Card that killed her - a 4 point Yoda attack

The tiny titan of terror launched the first damage of the night, throwing a Grenade into a cluster of light side characters.  But when she was loaded with cards later in the game, she got over-eager and drove Krennic deep behind enemy lines.  They put her in a kill box and she didn't survive.

10th Place - Curtis

Character - Emperor Palpatine

Card that killed him - a 5 point attack from Anakin

The best Dueler of 2021 was appropriately hooded and leading his dark side alliance in domination of the light.  But in perhaps the biggest move of the game, Rob's Jango suggested their alliance eliminate the Emperor early, and they agreed.  A Wrist Cable and Flamethrower moved Palpatine into the lion's den, and he was promptly eaten.

9th Place - Ian

Character - Lando Calrissian

Card that killed him - Zam's (the changeling) Sniper Shot

Despite early and frequent offers to join the dark side alliance, Ian stayed true to the light.  He did a good job of rallying his alliance partners, but after Curtis was gone, the dark side were once again on the hunt and Ian didn't last long after that.

8th Place - Rylie

Character - Anakin Skywalker

Card that killed her - a 4 point attack from Rey

Rylie originally stayed loyal to the light side, but later in the game she flipped by Wrathing Lobot to death.  A few turns later she found herself unwittingly put in a kill box of the last remaining light side members.  

7th Place - Elliot

Character - Yoda

Card that killed him - a 3 point Magna Guard attack

Elliot had the good sense to dress to match the character he played with.  He deftly navigated Yoda as the light side crumbled around him, and managed to kill to Duelers.  However, the piper came piping in the end, as Kevin moved his minor characters in for the kill.

6th Place - Duncan

Character - Rey

Card that killed him - Maul's Super Sith Speed

Duncan could do no wrong at the Championship, even though he finished sixth.  It was amazing how he had and played the right card at the right time so many times, helping keep his alliance afloat.  He saved Ian's Lando from a last place finish with one of Rey's heal cards.  Good job, Duncan!

5th Place - JD M.

Character - Darth Vader

Card that killed him - a 4 point attack from General Grievous

The final five operated as a very tight alliance throughout the game, so everyone knew the ending would be painful.  Still, it was shocking when Kat put the target on her tablemate JD.  The rest of the Duelers basically followed suit.  JD tried his best, but he couldn't outlast the attacks.

4th Place - Kat

Character - Princess Leia

Card that killed her - General Grievous' Make Them Suffer

The final four was the second biggest moment of the game.  Both Maul and Grievous were banged up, while Leia and Jango remained undamaged.  It was Rob's turn, and he warned Leia had yet to use any of her 16 points of auto damage cards.  The shooters had originally planned to work to the end, but Maul and Grievous came around to Rob's thinking.  Kat played fantastically.

3rd Place - Kevin F.

Character - General Grievous

Card that killed him - Darth Maul's Blinding Surge

Kevin, easily the most junior Dueler at the table, played an amazing game.  His Grievous was mortally wounded for much of the last phase of the Duel, but he hung in there.  Though he had been tight with Rob throughout, Jango and Maul decided at the end to cease Grievous' relentless coughing.  It was an emotional moment for Kevin, who is a definite rising star in our league.

2nd Place - Natalie

Character - Darth Maul

Card that killed her - a 3 point attack from Jango

The top ranked Dueler in the league proved her ranking is no fluke.  Despite Maul being a target of early attacks, she weathered the storm and, throughout the night, used Sith Speed combos to tenderize the next alliance target.  She got caught low carded and wounded after scrapping with Grievous, and Rob took advantage with a couple of distance attacks.

1st Place - Rob

Character - Jango Fett

How he won - by never being attacked.  At all. The entire game!

You could argue nobody had a tougher road at the start of the game, playing with the weakest character and terrible board position.  But Kat's flip and a strong dark side alliance enabled Rob, Jango, and Zam (the changeling) to bob and weave all night.  Whether he was producing laughs with his Yoda ears or pointing out the next target for his alliance, he finally filled the biggest gap in his Dueling resume - the Championship!  It was his third win with Jango Fett in his career, and Jango's 12th career victory.  That moves Jango into sole possession of second place on the all-time character win list.

Let's take a look at those final finishes again:

12th - Grant H./Mace

11th - Riley/Krennic

10th - Curtis/Emperor

9th - Ian/Lando

8th - Rylie/Anakin

7th - Elliot/Yoda

6th - Duncan/Rey

5th - JD/Vader

4th - Kat/Leia

3rd - Kevin/Grievous

2nd - Natalie/Maul

1st - Rob/Jango

Duelers agreed that was one of the highest caliber Duels they had ever taken part of.  Good job, everyone!  We'll take a break until January's Duel, A New Hope!  Our target date right now is Saturday, January 15th.  We plan to do a matinee Duel so we can go to the men's basketball game afterwards!

Thanks for a great 2021, everyone!  What an incredible year!!!

Preview: The 2021 Championship - December 4, 2021

 

It's hard to believe, but we've reached the last Duel of 2021...THE CHAMPIONSHIP!!!  The best of the best from the 2021 campaign shall gather round the table, but just one will lay claim to the Darth Vader trophy!  If you're new to the Duels league, this is the biggest game of the year.  It's our Super Bowl/World Series/Oscars/Final Tribal Council all rolled into one.  The glory...the GLORY of it all!!!  It takes the breath away.

This year, our first with 24 characters in action, led us to make a couple of changes to the Championship.  First, if you won a duel during the calendar year, you received an automatic bid to play.  Second, if a character won a duel, they received the same!  We filled the remaining spots with the top ranked Duelers and Duelers who played the most games in 2021.  In addition, the board randomly selected for the Championship is...CARBON FREEZING CHAMBER.  The ultimate crucible.  How fitting!

There were 11 characters who won a Duel in 2021, six light side and five dark!  That was nearly perfect!  We added the top ranked dark side character who didn't win.  The characters in the 2021 Championship are:  Lando Calrissian, Yoda, Mace Windu, Anakin Skywalker, Rey, Princess Leia, Orson Krennic, Darth Maul, Jango Fett, Emperor Palpatine, General Grievous, and Darth Vader (the lone non-win character).

Before meeting the 2021 Championship Duelers, let's take a look at our Championship history!

CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY:

2020 - Ben H. won with Boba Fett in the Naboo Reactor Pit

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 DUELERS:

Another tweak to our Championship Duel is the seating order is ranked!  Here are the Duelers and a couple of their 2021 highlights!

12th chair - Grant H.  He nearly reached professional status despite only starting in the league at CL Training in August.  His best finish so far is 6th place at Doubleheader #2.

11th Chair - Kevin.  He is currently the second ranked amateur Dueler in the league, and made his debut with a splashy 4th place finish at Fight Night.

10th Chair - Elliot.  This Dueling veteran played in seven matches in 2021, and became the first Dueler in league history to make a minor character his major character (Jyn and Cassian at the Valentine's Duel).

9th Chair - Rylie. Ever the strong and silent type, Rylie logged six Duels this year and finished in the top four in half of them, including her last two games.

8th Chair - Riley.  The tiny titan of terror, just like her name-twin, played in six Duels and scored three top-three finishes, including third with Han Solo at Fight Night.

7th Chair - Duncan.  Currently the most seasoned student Dueler, Duncan sat at the table nine times in 2021, including a memorable 5th place finish with The Mandalorian at the New Year's Duel.

6th Chair - JD M.  The Championship will mark his professional debut!  JD earned his spot at the table by winning Doubleheader #1, the first-ever win for General Grievous.

5th Chair - Kat.  The Prodigal Daughter returned to Dueling in 2021, and managed her (and Rey's!) first career win at Fight Night in October.

4th Chair - Natalie.  She came out of retirement to do all of us a favor, and in one night, turned professional, won with Anakin, and became the top ranked Dueler in the league!

3rd Chair - Rob.  "The Godfather" punched his ticket twice for the Championship, once back in January at A New Hope, and then again this summer at the Twin Sun Slam.

2nd Chair - Ian.  He grabbed an amazing five top-three finishes in 2021, including wins at The Imperial March and CL Training!

1st Chair - Curtis.  He became just the second Dueler to win FOUR times in one year!  He took home trophies for Valentines Duel, The Centurion, Duel of the Fates, and Doubleheader #2.  Remarkable!!!

MONOPOLY PREDICTS THE WINNER:

Oh boy!!!  The championship!!!  That reminds me of
the time I entered a beauty pageant... 

Monopoly, nobody cares, please, just give us your prediction on which character will win the Duel...

...I won second place!  The prize was $10!!!
It was strange to win second, though...

Please make it stop...

...I was the only entrant!

As always, I'm at a loss for words, Monopoly.  It's also interesting you picked the only character who DIDN'T win a Duel in 2021...yet?

I guess we'll find out on Saturday!  8PM - North Village Classroom!  Anybody can come and watch it go down!!!

Average Character Finishes by Board - An Analysis

 

Many of you know I'm currently in an educational leadership doctoral program.  This semester I took advanced data analysis, and our final project required us to analyze a data set of our choosing and to write up a report about it.

Many of you know I collect an obnoxious level of data for this-here blog.

You know what I did next.

If you would like to read the paper I submitted, please proceed accordingly.  I warn you, this is the dorkiest thing I've done in quite some time.

Epic Duels Training Montage

 

Thanksdueling! - November 6, 2021

 

Rancor Dungeon

It was mentioned during the preview but we need to mention it again here.  The 2021 Thanksdueling! battle marked Alex's last Duel in the league.  He's moving down to Austin and plans to start wearing a lot of ugly orange in his wardrobe.  But we can't fault him for his new career opportunity - we wish you well, Alex!  In his time in the league he played 33 times (tied for 11th all-time) and won six times (tied for 7th all-time).  He also retires as the top ranked Dueler!  For all of these reasons we inducted Alex into the Duels Hall of Fame.  Congrats!!!

Two grown men trying not to cry.

Ok, ok, enough with the mushy stuff.  We have a Duel to recap!  We were playing in the Rancor Dungeon, and Rob came with a fresh new Rancor t-shirt along with matching stickers for all the Duelers.  The big intrigue, though, was who would be randomly picked for the Rancor!  After entering all of the names in the random list generator, the lucky Dueler was...Evan!!!  This was supposed to be his sixth/professional debut Duel, but he got the Rancor instead!!!

Evan wearing a Jabba shirt - he must have known!

The rest of the Duelers took their seat, knowing Evan/Rancor couldn't join them until a character died.  Surely nobody would want to do that early in the game...right?!?  Wrong!  To absolutely nobody's surprise, Miguel (The Emperor) just couldn't help himself.  He got a Force Lightning right out of the gate, and decided to fry one of Kevin's (Maul) Battle Droids!  The gate opened and The Rancor was loose!  He immediately ate one of Karson's (Mace) Clone Troopers.

In one of the more ironic moments in league history, Ian (Dooku) took great offense at Miguel's shenanigans.  The same Ian who did the exact same thing as Miguel at the last Thanksdueling! in the Rancor Dungeon!  He, combined with an outraged Kevin (who had ever seen someone so attached to a measly Battle Droid before???) lobbied the board to go after the Emperor.  Despite being in the best position on the board, Miguel had his hands full as the attacks started coming from everywhere.  He retaliated by...using Force Lightning on the other Battle Droid!  God bless Miguel, he was entertaining all the way to his last place finish - a kill shot of retribution from Kevin's Maul.

The rest of the board did little to stop the Rancor, so it made it's way into the center of the board and kept eating minor characters and attacking majors.  On one end of the board Karson/Mace and Rylie/Grievous found themselves fully carded and needing to attack.  They took out their aggression on an unlucky Juan/Beckett.  Juan couldn't do anything, stuck between a Rancor and the Whirling Arms of Grievous.  Poor Juan was out in 11th.

Behold the Rancor buffet!

JD/Boba finally started talking sense into the rest of the Duelers, encouraging them to band together to take care of the elephant Rancor in the room.  Folks complied and the Rancor started taking damage...but not before he ate two Clone Troopers, a Super Battle Droid, Lobot, and Padme!  My goodness, that guy's appetite is disgusting.  But after Rob's Lando got the Rancor within a point of dying, it would be Alex's Clone Trooper #1 that killed him with a one point attack.  Well played, Evan!

Remember that time we were friends, lol?!?

With the Rancor mercifully off the board, the next phase of the game commenced.  Peach/Han and Fiona/Anakin had been whispering furiously for most of the game.  A lot of folks assumed they were thick as thieves, so Ian's Count Dooku Force Pushed Han into a kill corner at the other end of the board while Rob's Lando took a shot at Anakin, followed by a Maul attack.  While it looked like both of them were in trouble, only one would fall...and that was Peach!  She took hits from Obi-Wan and then was shocked to see her tablemate Rylie move in to attack with Grievous!  Han fell to the Whirling Arms in 10th.

Fiona went next, and she used a Wrath to get the heck out of Dodge.  Some folks thought she was still the target...but then a surprise occurred!  A group of Duelers had conspired to go after Ian's Dooku!  Obi used a Force Control to place Ian in a custom-made kill box!  It was a shocking turn of events, and Ian had no hope for survival.  In what would be a theme for the night, Rylie's Grievous delivered the final blow and Ian, out of nowhere, was gone in 9th!

A doomed Dooku.

JD's Boba had made it known earlier he was keen on working with Ian, but he suddenly found himself without an alliance.  Rob was equally nervous, having been unaware that the hit was on for Ian.  So he positioned himself near the leftover kill box and attacked Boba with an Altered the Deal, meaning he could switch places with the Fett!  The lingering kill box participants thought, "eh, why not?", and roughed up JD's Boba.  Alex's Clone, the same one who killed the Rancor, eliminated Boba Fett too!  JD was ousted in 8th, but Boba Fett has a new series coming out on Disney+ so I think he'll be fine.

That left seven to go, and folks were getting antsy.  Kaleb (Leia) casually threw out Rob's Lando, but in a surprise twist, the majority of folks remaining went after Kevin's Darth Maul!  Kevin wasn't expecting it, and got caught low carded.  It would be Fiona's Anakin, who once looked doomed for 10th, that landed the elimination.  Kevin was gone in 7th.

Of course we didn't forget to take a group pic!

Once it was down to six Duelers, some folks were back to being fully carded, and Rylie's Grievous decided it was Anakin's turn to walk the plank.  Fiona was outraged but funny about it.  She didn't last long, and using a MagnaGuard, Rylie had yet ANOTHER kill!  Congrats to Fiona, who has played before but never in person.  Top six!

Immediately after Fiona's exit it was Rob's turn, and the board waited to see what he proposed.  A grown man wearing a cape should never be the leader in that type of situation, but alas, that was the predicament.  After some deliberation, Rob's Lando attacked Karson's Mace, noting he still hadn't used his Whirlwinds and he was at full health.  Karson went on the defensive, but his hand was unluckily weak so he had to retreat.  This had the unfortunate effect of making him look vulnerable.  Other Duelers started to attack him too.  Despite his best efforts, Karson had to bow out when - GUESS WHO - a Grievous MagnaGuard took him out in 5th.  (On a side note, Rylie looked like a Duels hustler with her hat pulled low and her eerily silent demeanor all night!)

Final Four Focus

And then there were four!  Rather than stick with his fellow shooter, Kaleb proved the only things certain in life are death, taxes, and Rob and Kaleb not working together at the end of a Duel.  He decided to use Wicket's Whirling Rocks...but rolled a 2-all!  That means they hit Wicket instead of Lando, hahahaha!  Thought it was temporarily three against one, Rob warned Alex's Obi that he would likely land in third without Lando at his side, so it turned into a Rob/Alex vs. Kaleb/Rylie battle.  This went on for quite a while before Alex played Force Balanced and dumped everyone's hand.  Not long after a badly injured Lando once again faced Whirling Rocks, but this time the Ewok's coordination was better and Rob got concussed in 4th.

Meanwhile, Alex's Obi and Rylie's Grievous were trading blows.  They were both weak and starting to turn their attention against Kaleb's Princess Leia.  Kaleb sprung into action and eliminated Rylie's Grievous in 3rd place with a You're Going to Regret This attack.  Alex was also badly wounded and now risked an automatic death if Kaleb defended with an I Know card.  But Obi had his two best attack cards in his hand, so he risked the homerun swing.  Alas...Kaleb had I Know, and Alex, in his last Duel, finished second, eliminated by his BFF and fellow Duel Hall of Famer Kaleb!  Well done to both of them, but especially Kaleb who came out of retirement to pad his resume!  This also marks the first character win for Princess Leia.

Who invited this guy???

Let's see that final order of finish one more time:

12.  Miguel/Emperor

11.  Juan/Beckett

10.  Peah/Han

9.  Ian/Dooku

8.  JD/Boba

7.  Kevin/Maul

6.  Fiona/Anakin

5.  Karson/Mace

4.  Rob/Lando

3.  Rylie/Grievous

2.  Alex/Obi

1.  Kaleb/Leia

The December Duel is the 2021 Championship!  This is a special invite Duel and the biggest Duel of the year!  Any Dueler who won a game in 2021 gets an automatic bid, and the remaining slots will be filled by the top ranked Duelers.  And now that we have 24 characters, we're doing the same for them!  Characters who won in 2021 will be used in the Championship.  Rob will contact those who qualified, but it looks like Saturday, December 4th, will be the date for the best and toughest Duel of 2021!!!

Preview: Thanksdueling! - November 6, 2021

 

Can you even believe it's November?!?  And can you believe we've even had fall-like weather?!?  You're full of surprises, Central Texas!  

You know what else is full of surprises?  Jabba's Palace.  In fact, he has a dungeon he loves to throw Duelers into, and inside of that dungeon is...A RANCOR!  That's right, this year's Thanksdueling! is once again being played in the Rancor Dungeon!  But the added element of surprise is...we don't know who is playing the Rancor yet!  We've got 13 Duelers signed up to play, but we're going to randomly select the Rancor at the start of the game.  And for the lucky Dueler who gets to wreck havoc and damage with the Rancor, check out some of the cards they get to play with:

Whoever gets the Rancor is going to have some fun.  The Rancor can't technically win the Duel, but if it outlasts the other 12 Duelers it definitely gets to hold onto the trophy for the next year!  So...much...carnage!

THANKSDUELING! HISTORY:

2020 - Duncan won with Darth Vader in the Rancor Dungeon

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 Thanksdueling! tradition is to list the Duelers and what they're thankful for.  Here we go...

Alex C. - Instead of listing what Alex is thankful for, I'm going to list what we're thankful for about Alex!  As it turns out, this will be Alex's last Duel.  He recently joined the Evil Empire down in Austin (HORNS DOWN) and will be departing our little league at the end of the month.  We're going to miss the heck out of Alex, who is in the conversation for best Dueler in league history.  In fact, he'll retire with the best average of any former professional.  We love you Alex!

Evan - Assuming Evan doesn't get the Rancor, Thanksdueling! will mark his sixth official Duel, meaning he's reached professional status.  Congrats Evan!  He's thankful for joining the big leagues.

Fiona - She played with us a few times at the beginning of the year when we were still online.  This will be her first in-person Duel!  Fiona is thankful face to face interactions!

Ian - We've only played the Rancor Dungeon once.  The Rancor doesn't enter the game until the first character is killed.  Guess who killed the first character last time?  Ian is thankful for creating sweet, sweet chaos.

JD M. - He's played four Duels so far and has finished 3rd, 1st, and 11th two times.  That's quite the seesaw.  JD is thankful for the chance to (Force)rebound.

Juan - Juan is one of three Duelers making their second career start.  He is thankful for second chances!

Kaleb - Duels Hall of Famer alert!  We sweet-talked Kaleb into coming back into town to help eliminate his good friend Alex in his final game.  Kaleb is thankful for dusting the cobwebs off.

Karson - He turned professional in his last Duel, so this marks Karson's first match with that status.  Kaleb is thankful for veteran respect.

Kevin F. - Holy cow, Kevin played his first Duel ever last month and nearly won it, making it all the way to 4th with Mace Windu.  Kevin is thankful for destroying the myth about sophomore slumps.

Miguel - What a night for Miguel last month...he finally finished in the top six of a Duel!  Let's hope he's got his sights aimed a bit higher for Thanksdueling!  He's thankful for...top five finishes!

Peach - We love when rookie Duelers come back for their second game!  You can't teach heart.  Peach is thankful for round #2.

Rob - The Godfather had a rough 11th place finish at Fight Night, so he's glad to put that one in his rearview mirror.  Secretly he hopes he gets to play the Rancor.  Rob is thankful for 1 in 13 chances.

Rylie - Always the 12th (or 13th in this case) Dueler to commit to playing, Rylie is coming off an impressive 2nd place finish at Fight Night.  She's thankful for a chance at career victory #2.

MONOPOLY PREDICTS THE WINNER:

I don't even know why I continue to ask, but...Monopoly, who will win Thanksdueling!?

Well golly, you don't even ask how I am???

Nobody likes you, Monopoly!  Please tell us who will survive the Rancor already.

That's an easy answer...NOBODY!
The Rancor will be last one standing!
And if you think he's big and scary, you should
see the rats that live under Boardwalk...

Wow.  Monopoly is siding with the Rancor.  That feels right.  We'll see if it's right after tomorrow night.  Thanksdueling!  Gobble gobble!

Fight Night - October 23, 2021

 

Emperor's Throne Room (via Mustafar)

Though the campus was quiet due to Fall Break, there were still the deafening sounds of light sabers clashing and blasters blasting in the North Village Classroom on Saturday night!  PEW PEW PEW!!!  Fight Night featured the debut of two new Duelers as well as a couple of historic firsts in the league.  Onto the recap!

Thank the maker - finally, a round table!

Fight Night technically took place in the Emperor's Throne Room, but we used the 3-D Mustafar edition (we miss you Ryan!).  Out of the gate the light and dark sides of the board tried to tempt the other into a flip, and though each side maintained the status quo through the first two rounds, it would be Kat's Rey who made the first shocking turn as she took a shot on Rob's Yoda on her way to defecting.

Not long after that Evan deployed his Dark Trooper next to Corona's Anakin Skywalker and Kidnapped him deep inside a dark side kill box.  Brutal!  Corona tried to hold out, but it would be a Force Lightning from Grant H.'s Supreme Leader Snoke that would sadly end Corona's night in last place.  He had to lug the Golden Jar Jar all the way back to East Village.

The light side was in chaos by that point.  Rob's Yoda tried to hold the line, but newbie Kevin, playing with Mace Windu, started shooting the little green Jedi!  The ultimate betrayal would come from Rob's daughter, Riley, who joined in on the mutiny with her Han Solo.  Rylie's Jango Fett landed the kill shot, and Rob was out early.

Miguel heralds Duncan's doom

With ten Duelers to go Peach's Jyn Erso was the next target for the mega-alliance.  She fought valiantly in her first Duel, but with no partners left and all of her good defense stuck at the bottom of her draw pile, she couldn't hold out long.  It would be Riley's Chewbacca, using a Wookie Toss, that would send her to the rails in tenth.

It was at this point of the game Miguel, playing with Darth Maul and bound and determined to get his first career top-six finish, called open season on Duncan's Count Dooku.  Duncan got cranky while Miguel was incredulous.  Duncan tried to talk his way out of it but others in the alliance jumped in too, and it would be Grant's Guard that delivered the death blow.  The defending Fight Night champion was out too soon!

The Force trying to exert his will.

It was about this point in the game where Miguel let it be known he was good with Evan's Moff Gideon and Grant's Supreme Leader Snoke.  The other five Duelers did not like the sound of that three-person alliance, forcing all three to back track from the declaration and start attacking each other.  Evan's Gideon, a key contributor to the early alliance, all of a sudden found himself with no partners.  Curtis' Kylo Ren moved in for the kill, using his Laser Cross-Guard.  Poor Evan was stuck in eighth.

Gideon inflicted major damage on Grant's Snoke before bowing out of the game, so he was ripe for the offing when Miguel excitedly rolled in to eliminate him in seventh place.  I don't recall a time seeing somebody so excited to finish in the top six of a Duel before, but it marked a personal best for Miguel, and he was overjoyed!  Unfortunately for him, he was low carded and low health.  Curtis' Kylo was in the neighborhood, and he reluctantly capped him in sixth.  Miguel was still happy.

Liquid-hot MAGMA

That made it five to go, and that's when Kat went into boss-mode.  As soon as Curtis' turn ended, she put the target on him.  Rey and Kylo drama!!!  So on brand.  Kevin/Mace, Rylie/Jango, and Riley/Han had no issue with that.  Kylo dropped some hits here and there, but he eventually fell to a lowly Mace Clone Trooper attack.  Still, that fifth place finish for Curtis marked a career-best finish for Kylo!  Curtis is playing so well right now an off-night still lands him in the top five!

And then there were four!  We had Kevin the rookie...and three women who said, out loud, it would be pretty cool to have the first-ever all-female top three!  And that's what they set out to do!  Though Kevin had a lot of cards in his hand, it turned out they weren't the right combination to last long.  He did manage to inflict damage on Han before Rylie's Zam ended his first Duel in fourth place.  Congrats Kevin, that's a heck of a debut!  You would never have known it was his first game with us.

History!

So, for the first time in league history, we had women in the top three spots!  Riley and Rylie were both banged up, and so was Kat, but she used her Rise of Skywalker heal card.  It was a good thing, too, because Riley's Chewbacca hit her with the second Bowcaster on the night!  Even though Riley and Rylie were both shooters, they ended up working against each other in hopes of gaining favor with Kat's Rey.  Riley's Han would fall first, after Rey hit her with a four point attack.  And after a brief chase around the board, Rylie's Jango was out in second...Kat won her first career Duel!!!  Congrats Kat!!!  And this also marked Rey's first win in the league!  That means the combined Palpatine win record is...

What a great night of Dueling!  And guess what?  It took just over three hours to play, start to finish!  AS IT SHOULD BE!  *hint hint*

Let's see that final order of finish:

12.  Corona/Anakin

11.  Rob/Yoda

10.  Peach/Jyn

9.  Duncan/Dooku

8.  Evan/Moff Gideon

7.  Grant/Snoke

6.  MIGUEL/DARTH MAUL

5.  Curtis/Kylo

4.  Kevin/Mace

3.  Riley/Han

2.  Rylie/Jango

1.  Kat/Rey

Thanks everyone for a historic night!  Next month is November, and that means... THANKSDUELING!  Right now we're looking at Saturday, November 6th, but we'll wait and see what the game time is for Baylor football at TCU before confirming.  This will also be the last chance to qualify for the 2021 Championship Duel in December!  Any Dueler who won in 2021 gets an automatic bid, and we'll fill the last chairs based on professional rankings.  Until then...may the force be with you.  Always.

Preview: Fight Night - October 23, 2021

 

An unusually high concentration of home football games this month forced our annual October Duel, Fight Night, to be played on the Saturday of Fall Break.  But there's no break from the relentless awesomeness of DUELING!  12 enterprising individuals will brave the barren campus in hopes of bringing home a Count Dooku trophy to hang on their wall for the next 12 months.

To secure victory they'll have to traverse the Emperor's Throne Room via the planet Mustafar - that's right, our lava board will be the scene of the crime!  Eleven will burn to a crisp while one is left standing.  Pew pew!

FIGHT NIGHT HISTORY:

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 DUELRS:

Since Fight Night is in October, and Halloween is in October, we always designate a Star Wars costume for each of the featured Duelers.  Here we go!

Corona - He finally got to make his debut at last month's Fall Brawl and proceeded to go on a murder spree with Darth Maul.  He was ruthless in all the best ways!  His Halloween costume should be...Cade Bane!

Curtis - Did you know that in the last six Duels Curtis has played, he's finished first four times and second the other two?  THAT IS INSANE AND THE BEST RUN IN LEAGUE HISTORY.  He has discovered a cheat code nobody else has.  For this ultimate success, Curtis should dress as...The Force for Halloween.  I know it's a bit abstract, but seriously, he's The Force.

Duncan - Nobody has more to lose at this Duel than Duncan...he's the defending champ!  He'd love to keep the Dooku trophy one more year, especially since it marks his first career victory.  Duncan's costume should be...Count Dooku!

Evan - You gotta love Evan's early success in his new Dueling career.  He's finished in the top five of his last three Duels and will be just one game away from turning pro after Fight Night.  With his impending rise in status, his perfect costume is...Padawan Anakin!

Grant H. - Nobody at the table is a bigger fan of the Star Wars universe than Grant.  In fact, I'll bet he even loved the Star Wars Visions episode "Tatooine Rhapsody," which is clearly the worst thing from Star Wars since the Christmas Special.  He should dress up as...Geezer!

Kat - She enters Fight Night coming off a career-best finish in second place at the Fall Brawl, and would love to notch her first victory Saturday night.  She's a ferocious Dueler, and her name is Kat, so her costume is a slam dunk Loth-Cat.

Kevin - Rookie Dueler alert!!!  We're proud to welcome Kevin to the table in his first-ever Duel!  Oh man, do you remember your first Duel???  So young, so innocent...Kevin's perfect Halloween costume is that lil' toddler padawan who jumped out of his skin when Anakin turned on his light saber after turning to the dark side and started cleaning out the nursery.

Miguel - I think this is it, it's finally going to happen...Miguel is going to finish in the top half of a Duel!  Everyone loves his chaotic energy at the table.  He should dress up as...Salacious Crumb!

Peach - Another rookie Dueler alert!!!  Miguel created a very convincing PowerPoint presentation for Peach, persuading her to join the nerdery Saturday night.  In reference to those slides, Peach's perfect Star Wars costume is...that piece of fruit Anakin uses the Force on while flirting with Padme on Naboo.

Riley - The tiny titan of terror is back in action.  She's had two top-three finishes in her last four Duels, so don't become entranced by her blue doe-eyes.  Her perfect Star Wars costume is...the Freman from the planet Dune.  Wait, what...?

Rob - The old man of the league has been on a nice run of late, with four top-five finishes in his last five Duels.  That includes a second place finish at last month's Fall Brawl.  Lor San Tekka is Rob's best costume!

Rylie - The mysterious Rylie loves to leave Rob in suspense with whether she'll play or not.  It's clearly a power display, to try and prove the game doesn't control her.  But who can resist the siren song of a 12-Way Duel???  For that reason, Rylie should dress up as...Max Rebo!

MONOPOLY PREDICTS THE WINNER:

Hooooooooooowdy everyone!!!

Hey Monopoly...we need this month's prediction.  I can't help but notice you missed again last month, and are now just 1-2 on the season.  Are you even good at this?

Hohoho!  Don't be such a crybaby, I don't need the..
WATER WORKS.  Hehehe, get it?

Why did I commit to a year of Monopoly jokes for a Star Ward blog?  Please...Monopoly...make with the pick.

Ooooh, this is a creepy one!  Snoke will win!!!

Well that's an interesting choice, Snoke hasn't won in the league yet.  We'll have to see how he does.  We play Saturday night at 7PM in the North Village Classroom - if you're magically back in town feel free to come and hang out!

The Fall Brawl - September 18, 2021

 

The Kamino Platform

We had a very strange start to the night.  First, the round table we ordered was only five feet in diameter instead of the requested six, meaning we needed to abandon it in favor of a square set up.  Second, we had a couple of last minute Dueler changes, that brought Ian P. into the game as well as retired amateur Natalie.  Those are two names that would make an impact later in the game...  #forshadowing 

Brawlers!

JD not only picked chair #1, but he also won the roll-off to go first.  His Mace Windu wanted the light side to start moving forward to engage the dark, but his teammates were a bit reluctant and hesitant with their actions.  This made rookie Ian M. nervous, so his Luke Skywalker started to wander forward in hopes of avoiding a kill box.  He didn't realize Rob's General Grievous, starting near Jango's ship, was about to create a spot for Ian P.'s Han Solo to flip to.  Before Ian M. knew what was happening, he got Wookie Tossed into the Dark Side!

JD's Mace, ever the noble spirit, attempted to rally the light side to Luke's rescue.  But alas, a blood-thirsty Corona, also playing in his first Duel, used his fully carded Darth Maul to combo some Sith Speeds and an Athletic Surge to kill his fellow staff member in last!  I'm requesting the Earle RHD conduct a roommate mediation between the two.

With Han flipped and Luke dead, the light side was in utter chaos.  That's when Karson, turning professional and playing with Obi-Wan, pulled a page out of his big brother's book and put the target on JD's Mace!!!  The dark side was happy to follow suit, and out of nowhere JD got stuck with his second eleventh place finish in a row.  Ouch.

Sponsored by Lucasfilm to advertise the new cartoon.

Despite Karson's willingness to overturn apple carts with the dark side, he soon found himself to be the next target.  But he pulled a move that changed the rest of the game - he dropped Force Balance!  The entire table had to dump their hands and draw three new cards.  Let's just say folks were cranky.  Natalie, standing by him with her Anakin, actually used two of her three cards to kill him right away, and nobody bothered taking advantage of her low hand because we were so happy she avenged the Force Balance.

With nine Duelers left in the game, it sure did look like Grant H./Qui-Gon, Evan/Snoke, and Juan/Krennic were thick as thieves.  Likewise, those three called out a tight bond between Rob/Grievous and Ian P./Han.  There was a lot of verbal sniping, but it would be Evan who declared himself a free agent, attacking Juan's Krennic!  Others followed suit, and it would be Corona's lowly battledroid who eject Juan in ninth.  That was Juan's first Duel, but hopefully not his last!

Maul Madness

At this point nobody was having more fun than Corona.  His Darth Maul kept jacking people up and he was thirsty for more kills.  Grant H. once again tried to call out the Rob/Ian partnership, so Rob flipped the script and had his MangaGuard attack Han!  That took the attention off Rob, but nobody could really reach Han for further attacks, so Qui-Gon ended up becoming the next target.  Ian satisfyingly got the kill shot with a Heroic Retreat.  Though Grant wasn't too excited about eighth place, that is Qui-Gon's second best finish to date.

It was around this point in the game Rob and Ian noticed Duncan's Beckett had retreated to the far end of the board and had discarded Val cards two turns in a row.  They feared he was sitting on a monster hand and called him out to the others.  As everyone found out after the game, poor Duncan had terrible cards post-Force Balance, and he was just trying to stay safe.  Elliot, who had been feisty all night as Jango Fett, got the final drop on him with a Rocket Retreat.  Unfortunately for Duncan, that was yet another seventh place finish in his ledger.

Jetpack view of the Kamino Platform

Just like that we reached the top six!  Evan's Supreme Leader Snoke was on life support, but he still had a few tricks up his robe sleeves.  Elliot's Jango had Rocketed back to the dark side of the board, where he was soon the next target.  It would be a Cruelest Stroke and Force Lightning for Elliot, who bowed out in sixth.  That's twice as good as his Jango finish from Doubleheader #2, though!

Rob's General Grievous was hiding out behind Jango's ship the entire game after the Force Balance, stuck with unhelpful Specials and defensive MangaGuard cards.  But Snoke was down to one point of health, so he finally rolled out and dropped a five point attack on Evan.  That was enough to eliminate him, but Evan deserves a round of applause because he's looking VERY good early in his Dueling career.

There were just four Duelers left:  Natalie/Anakin, Ian/Han, Rob/Grievous, and Corona/Maul.  Rob meekly suggested they go after Natalie's Anakin, especially since that would take Corona's Maul in the opposite direction of his Grievous.  Ian was playing the classic "gun for hire" role late in a Duel and was fine with it, and Corona started moving Maul in her direction.  However, Natalie pointed out that Maul was at full health and would be quite difficult to deal with.  Rob saw the light and decided to have his MangaGuard start to attack Maul.  Everyone else agreed, and soon Corona's reign of terror was over, as Anakin chopped him down in fourth.  What a debut for Corona, though!

Picture edited in post...

That left a final three of a half dead Anakin/Natalie, a banged up Ian/Han, and a pretty healthy Rob/Grievous.  If Rob could roll a "move all", he likely would have killed Han, but the single movement allowed Ian's Han to begin retreating.  Grievous started playing all of his sneaky cards, including Spare Parts and Reinforcements, and then he used a Spider Crawl to come face to face with Han.  But Rob screwed up royally when he didn't use his 4 defense against Ian's last attack...which turned out to be Gambler's Luck!  Ian discarded Grievous' A Fine Addition - an 8 point attack! - and all of a sudden Rob was in deep trouble.  He and Ian continued to batter each other as Natalie helped Ian with potshots from Padme.  Rob used his last decent attack card to kill Ian in third place, but he only had three cards left and none of them were defense.  

Natalie had stayed aggressive and low carded for most of the game, so she rolled in on Grievous with both Padme and Anakin.  With just five cards in her hand after shuffling her deck, she unloaded Shot on the Run and Anger to win the game!!!  Natalie wasn't even supposed to play, she came out of retirement, and now debuts in the professional rankings for the first time in FIRST PLACE!!!  Talk about your fairytale ending!!!  Rob's second place with Grievous moves the General into first place among the character rankings, and Anakin has now won the last two games.  Craziness!!!

Let's look at that final order of finish one more time:

12.  Ian M./Luke Skywalker

11.  JD M./Mace Windu

10.  Karson/Obi-Wan Kenobi

9.  Juan/Orson Krennic

8.  Grant H./Qui-Gon Jinn

7.  Duncan/Tobias Beckett

6.  Elliot/Jango Fett

5.  Evan/Supreme Leader Snoke

4.  Corona/Darth Maul

3.  Ian P./Han Solo

2.  Rob/General Grievous

1.  Natalie/Anakin Skywalker

What a kooky night of Dueling, and once again, congrats to Natalie, our new top ranked Dueler!  Next month is October, and that means...FIGHT NIGHT!  Due to the Baylor football schedule, we're likely going to have to play on October 23rd, which is Fall Break, so know that now and plan accordingly!