12x12-Way Weekend Episode 12: It's Been A Ride, Babes! - June 22, 2025, 8AM

Carbon Freezing Chamber

All good things - and all long, grueling things, must come to an end!  The 12x12 weekend concluded with the original 12 characters on one of the original boards that came in the box, the Carbon Freezing Chamber!  The play moved quickly as folks were ready to pack up and hit the road.  The light side dwindled the dark and Elliot managed to win the last two Duels of the weekend, this time with Anakin Skywalker!

Episode 12 - classic 12 characters in their starting positions.

Thanksdueling! - November 9, 2024

Geonosis Arena (via the Hoth 3D board)

Ok folks, before we jump into the Thanksdueling! recap, we have a couple of important public service announcements for our Epic Duels league.

First - you're taking too long on your turn.  We all our.  Let's speed it up, people!  Think of your move ahead of time, etc.  There will of course be crucial moments in the game where prolonged discussion is appropriate and even encouraged.  But if you're moving one space and drawing two cards...that should go quickly.  Thank you for your help.

Second - you don't have to hit "reply all" when RSVPing for a Duel.  Just reply to Rob - you'll be ok!  Unless you like driving Curtis crazy.  Then, by all means, hit "reply all" or at least "cc" him.  Thank you for your help.

We now return to our normal blog recap schedule... 

11 turkeys about to get basted...

Our 12 Duelers donned their parkas for the Geonosis via Hoth board.  If you're new to the league, the Hoth board is the exact same layout as the Geonosis map that came with the original game.  In other words, it's a classic!

This game was a real slobber-knocker in that the light and dark sides, at least initially, would not flip on each other.  The board got even more gummed up when Justin's Torbin took the Barash Vow, blocking the side lane from the dark side advance.  This turned the action to the middle, where the light side was quickly eliminating dark side minor characters, including Rob's Han Solo using a Bowcaster on his first turn to destroy one of James' Super Battle Droids.  A couple of hours later Rob was rewarded by being Tied To A String by Curtis' Supreme Leader Snoke.  Han had no chance in the dark side kill box, and the Godfather won the Golden Jar Jar for the second month in a row!

It looked like the light side might be in trouble, but Kiera's Yoda decided to be the true leader of the alliance by charging into the dark side to try and help Ian's Anakin.  She Force Pushed James' Count Dooku into the light side corner and tormented others, allowing Ian to retreat and Riley E.'s Mandalorian to fire Disintegration at Jonah's Maul!  Jonah couldn't block it and he was shockingly gone in eleventh.

Kiera quietly plotting while the dark side debated.

Despite Kiera's heroics, she quickly became the target and poor Yoda was down to his last two points of health.  Sam proved how sneaky Cad Bane could be, and used Flame Gauntlet to destroy Kiera's night in tenth.  It was one of the most selfless moves in recent league history though, Kiera!

Sam/Cad and Jordyn/Jango joined forces with James' Dooku, who despite saying he was joining the light side, flipped once again and had Justin's Indara pinned against the still sleeping Torbin.  But Justin was able to use Jedi Prowess to extend his life.  Meanwhile, Caden was using the double-minor character combo of Chirut and Baze.  Before Baze died he unleashed two Staccato Lightnings to eliminate three dark side minors.  A couple of rounds later Chirut used double Blind Lightbows to finish off Cad Bane.  Sam checked out in ninth!

You can't see, but James was wearing flip-flops under the table.

With eight Duelers left in the game, the light and dark sides were still locked against each other and dead even.  James flipped YET AGAIN and sweet talked himself back into the good graces of the light side, but before the ink had even dried on the new contract his Dooku Force Pushed Justin/Indara to an eighth place death!  And Torbin had just woken up and changed his galactic diaper, too!

This became a key turning point in the game, because instead of the dark side now having the distinct advantage, James/Dooku and Alex G./Grievous started acting as independent contractors.  The long term effect was they left Curtis/Snoke out to dry and open to shots when they wouldn't make room for him behind the snow drifts.  Curtis was justifiably cranky.  He inflicted some damage on his way out the door, but Ian's Padme laid down the final hit.

The Thanksdueling! trophy looming in the background...

Things were still chaotic and unsettled.  Alex/Grievous and James/Dooku looked to be in a solid alliance, but Jordyn/Jango was starting to waffle on them and was having sidebars with Riley/Mando.  Riley and Ian/Anakin looked tight with Caden/Chirut along for the ride.  Give Caden credit, navigating double minor characters on that treacherous of a board was daunting, but James/Dooku moved in and punched Chirut's card in sixth.  

Alex had a Magnaguard protecting Dooku, but moved him on his term (on purpuse?), leaving James exposed to The Mandalorian.  Riley had already reshuffled and, for the second time that night, laid wasted to a dark side character with Disintegration!  James flipped more times in a single night than I can ever recall in a game - hat tip to him for making it work all the way to fifth place!

The Mandalorian Armor Twins

That left four Duelers, and Riley made a shocking declaration by suggesting the three of them focus on Ian's Anakin and Padme, who were both in good shape.  That's how it played out for several rounds, but Ian/Anakin proved to be elusive as they darted around the snow drifts and Riley and Jordyn didn't want to commit their shooting characters to up-close attacks on Anakin.  That forced Alex/Grievous to do a lot of the heavy lifting, and he eventually grew tired of that and instead offed Jordyn/Jango in fourth.  Well done, Jordyn!  That was just her second career Duel.

Riley and Ian patched up their differences at that point and agreed to go in on Grievous.  Alex was fully healthy and had just reinstalled his Magnaguards.  Riley was drawing nothing but deceased Cara cards at that point, though, so Ian was having to do most of the work.  Alex bluffed it well, but he couldn't draw a Grievous card to save his life.  His luck finally ran out when Padme (still alive!) used a Precise Shot.  The 2024 unofficial rookie of the year was finally out in third.

GULP!

It was past 2AM for the final two, and it looked like it was going to be an epic showdown.  Anakin was banged up but still had Padme.  The Mandalorian was healing up while Ian was tracking down Grievous.  Riley came out firing with This Is The Way, which she had held back to use against Ian, and then miraculously top-decked it on the DRAW A CARD when she had to reshuffle her deck!  But Ian used a Counterattack...and then another a couple of rounds later when Riley played her third Disintegration!  Riley hit a terrible run of luck as her hand was soon almost entirely made up of Cara cards.  Ian stayed persistent and finally used an Anger to end Riley/Mando in second place...denying Riley a chair in the Championship match!  Congrats to Ian - who added to his career win total (16!), still good for second place all-time in league history.  Kudos to Riley too, who had a heck of a night with the Mandalorian.

Ani and Padme winning on Geonosis - how appropriate!

FINAL ORDER OF FINISH:

12.  Rob/Han

11.  Jonah/Maul

10.  Kiera/Yoda

9.  Sam/Cad

8.  Justin/Indara

7.  Curtis/Snoke

6.  Caden/Chirut & Baze

5.  James/Dooku

4.  Jordyn/Jango

3.  Alex G./Grievous

2.  Riley E./Mando

1.  Ian/Anakin

This win gives Ian three for 2024 - which means he'll occupy the #1 chair for the Championship next month!  More details are coming on that one.  Have a blessed Thanksgiving holiday everyone!

 

Thanksdueling! - November 5, 2022

 

Carbon Freezing Chamber (Dagobah Board)

The night started a bit chaotically as we had a last minute cancel, but we were super blessed to have Jocelyn join the fray and save Thanksdueling!  Thanks Jocelyn!!!

The kid's table!

Jocelyn impacted the game out of the gate by being the first person in ages to question the light/dark side dichotomy we operate with so frequently.  As Rob tries to remind folks, "there are no sides."  Jocelyn's Count Dooku started out in the middle of the board, and was happy to roam there as she got a sense for how everyone was going to play.  Andrew's Zam Wesell started the fighting when she attacked Riley B.'s Qui-Gon Jinn.  That pretty much solidified light vs. dark, as even Jocelyn wandered back to the dark end of the Dagobah swamp.

Bella displaying 50% sense of humor, 50% Dueling anxiety

The game truly busted open when Riley E., playing with the genuinely terrifying Supreme Leader Snoke, used Tied To A String to pull poor Michael's Rey into a dark side kill box.  Jocelyn was appalled by the brutality, while Bella laughed at the chaos.  It was a devastating turn of events for the light side, as Rey was clearly their best character.  The light side tried desperately to kill some minors to enable Michael to escape.  Michael even pulled off a Rise Of Skywalker to stave off elimination, but he eventually fell in last place.  It was brutal!

The light side needed to rally, and rally they did.  Andrew's Jango Fett was leading the front lines of the dark side alliance, but that also left him a bit exposed.  The light side jumped at the opportunity to start whittling him down.  It would be Riley B. who bravely charged into the middle of the board, after an assist from Parker's Princess Leia, to punch Andrew's ticket in eleventh.  

Rob needed a Battlemind!

With ten to go, the dark and light sides were once again balanced.  This was when the dark side decided to launch another kill box.  This time it would be Jocelyn's Count Dooku using a Force Push to send Riley B.'s Qui-Gon to the back row.  Just like in football, might as well run the same play if they can't stop it!  The light side knew it was time to rush, and Rob/Mace, Corona/Yoda, and Penny/Anakin started moving forward.  They identified Jocelyn's Dooku as the key to springing Qui-Gon from captivity.  Riley B. contributed by using a There's Always A Bigger Fish on Jocelyn, but Jocelyn countered with Gain Power.  Touché!  Dooku couldn't hold out forever, though, and Jocelyn had to exit in tenth after Penny's Anakin landed a 5-point attack.

This was the juncture in the Duel when the dark/light factions dissolved.  Grant H.'s Cad Bane made a quiet flip to the light side, but for two rounds, kept throwing Parker's Leia out as a target.  Parker was quite vocal in the attack, but Rob's Mace and Kat's Darth Vader both agreed to go in on the surprise kill box.  Parker's jaw dropped, and he had no help to escape the predicament.  Leia was finally eliminated in ninth by a 3-point attack from Kat's Storm Trooper.  The indiginity!

Riley isn't trapped on the dark side, 
the dark side is trapped with Riley!

We should pause and take a moment to recognize how crazy-good Riley B. was playing with Qui-Gon.  Despite Riley E./Snoke and Bella/Moff Gideon's best attacks, they could not destroy Qui-Gon.  They were essentially doomed when Kat declined to assist.  With Kat and Grant playing on the other side, Riley E.'s Snoke was the next target.  She fell out in eighth when her own sister Penny cracked her with an Anger!

This enabled Riley B. to finally flee his dark side prison, using Jedi Meditations to begin healing himself.  He was ready to let Qui-Gons be Qui-Gons.  But his Jedi robes weren't made of Teflon.  Bella's Moff Gideon chose to attack, and Riley chose not to defend.  Little did he know it was Astute Panic!  That attack was the exact value needed to eliminate Riley B. in seventh!!!  

Decision time for Jedi Corona

Bella pulled off the attack of the night, but she was also left without an alliance when Riley E. was removed from the game.  Penny was still low carded, but she dropped a 5-point attack on Bella to finish off Moff Gideon in sixth place.

That left a final five of Kat/Vader, Grant/Cad, Rob/Mace, Penny/Anakin, and Corona/Yoda.  (Something funny to note - Corona often wears a Yoda t-shirt to the Duels, but for Thanksdueling! he dressed up as Anakin.  But then he picked Yoda to play with!)  Rob sensed Kat and Grant were tight, and that they wanted to target Penny's Anakin, who was a bit injured and low carded.  But Rob feared he could do no better than third place in that scenario, so he suggested to Corona and Penny that their three Jedi stick together to eradicate the remaining dark side characters.  Penny liked it because she was the target, and Corona eventually decided it made sense for him too.  Kat and Grant were cranky for good reason, and they presented good counter-arguments, but the Jedi decided to stay strong.

The Grave Digger

Rob created a wall with his Mace and two Clone Troopers for Anakin to hide behind, while Padme continued to roam the board.  Kat's Vader pursued Anakin anyway, trying to get Rob to reconsider.  It turned out Vader was low on defense, and the attacks from Yoda and Mace did her in.  Corona landed a Force Strike and Kat finished the evening in fifth place.

And then there were four!  Grant was working Rob REAL hard to readjust his alliance.  His logic was sound, but Rob's gut told him his best chance was sticking with the Jedi.  While Kat's parting attacks weakened Penny's Anakin, Grant saved his last damage for Rob's Mace Windu, which was leaving Corona in good position with Yoda.  Cad couldn't withstand a 3 vs. 1 Duel, though.  Yoda's Clone Trooper popped him in fourth place.

The two pros Penny played like a fiddle.

When Cad Bane perished Rob immediately unloaded a Whirlwind on Corona's Yoda.  Corona and Penny had agreed to work together to attack Mace Windu.  Penny was in the worst shape, as she only had about seven points of health left, and couldn't heal because Padme was still very much alive.  Rob's strategy was to tell Penny, just hang back, and let him go head to head with Corona's Yoda.  That's how things started, Rob and Corona chasing each other around the board, spending 5 minutes on each of their turns trying to convince Penny to work with them to eliminate the other.  And that's when Penny used the guise of a new Dueler (this was just her second Duel) to fool two Duelers who should have known better!

Penny started taking pot shots at both Yoda and Mace, weakening them both, and pretending like she was being swayed from one side to the other.  Not once did Rob and Corona stop and say, hey, maybe we should work together?  The night ended with two consecutive actions by Penny.  She moved Padme in a direct firing line of Yoda, who was just two health points from death.  Corona tipped off he didn't have any defense left, but begged to stay in the game to use a Force Lift on Rob.  Padme killed Corona in third with a 3-point attack, which was crushing for poor Corona.  But with Yoda dead, Rob's Mace was no longer protected from Padme.  He had more health left than Yoda, but not by much.  He had enough defense in his hand to survive a smaller attack, but Penny pulled out the...PRECISE SHOT!  Nine points of damage on her dad, and Penny won her first 12-Way Duel in just her second game!!!  Rob couldn't be more proud in second place - his two oldest daughters won Duels in 2022!!!  I'm not crying, you're crying!

Slay!

The final order of finish:

12.  Michael/Rey

11.  Andrew/Jango Fett

10.  Joceyln/Count Dooku

9.  Parker/Princess Leia

8.  Riley E./Supreme Leader Snoke

7.  Riley B./Qui-Gon Jinn

6.  Bella/Moff Gideon

5.  Kat/Darth Vader

4.  Grant H./Cad Bane (Grant got Cad again, lol!)

3.  Corona/Yoda

2.  Rob/Mace Windu

1.  Penny/Anakin Skywalker

  

That was a fun night of Dueling, as the Carbon Freezing Chamber map always produces drama.  And this was the last Duel of the year except for December, which is...THE 2022 CHAMPIONSHIP!  This is the one Duel of the year that is invite only - anyone who won a Duel has an automatic seat at the table, and the top ranked Duelers fill the remaining spots.  This is what we've worked for all year!  The Championship is our Super Bowl.  More details are coming on all of that.  In the meantime...congrats again to Penny!!!  

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!

Doubleheader #2 - August 28th, 2021

 

Ewok Village

We got the first Duel done in under 4 hours - yay us!  After a brief break to stuff our faces with Tacos and set up the new board, we were ready.  For game 2 we were in Ewok Village, probably the prettiest board we play on and a lasting testament to the design stylings of Ryan.  We miss you Ryan!

Nine of these fools decided to play twice!

Ewok Village is a tricky board because of its odd design and starting points.  It doesn't favor the typical 6v6 pattern.  Nonetheless, early in the game it looked like the dark side would try to stay united.  However, Ian's Lobot was on the big bridge and positioned himself to Disarm four cards each from JD's Kylo Ren and Karson's Darth Vader!  Not long after Karson saw the light and flipped sides.  JD, still glowing from his game 1 victory but now threatened with a last place finish, attacked Vader.  He played his 12 attack - I Know What I Have To Do - on Karson...who didn't defend!!!  OUCH!!!  

Meanwhile, Grant D.'s Jyn/Cassian, Kat's lil' Leia, Evan's Mando, and Lando were peppering the dark side with shots and they weren't coping with it well.  Elliot's Jango Rocket Retreated to stand by Grant H.'s Moff Gideon...who promptly attacked him!  Jango didn't last long, and Elliot ended a frustrating day in last place.

JD had run down to the bridge, hoping to curry favor with the light side as he was bleeding health points.  That's when Rylie's Dark Trooper threw not one but TWO grenades!!!  Those did a lot of damage, but it hurt an already wounded Kylo the most.  Evan's Cara Dune used Heavy Weapon to knock him out in 11th.  It's always tough to win the first game of a Doubleheader, the target is immediately on you!

Rylie's use of the Grenades was slick, but she had taken damage from two Camouflage attacks from Rob's Big Leia.  The rest of the bridge shooters whittled her down, and Big Leia got the kill shot, allowing Rylie to play her farming game for the rest of the night.

Feed Maul or Else

Ben's Darth Maul started the game in the back corner, and by this point he was fully carded and ready for revenge on Karson for flipping.  He used an Athletic Surge to kill a Storm Trooper and move in on Vader.  Karson never recovered from the Kylo 12 attack, and Maul deep-sixed him in 9th place.  

Kat's Luke and Leia were fully carded on the other end of the board, and she took the opportunity to fire a shot at Ian's Lando, who was near Maul and Grant H.'s Gideon.  Ian used a defense card that allowed him to switch places with another Dueler, and he was going to do it on Kat's Luke when Ben mentioned he'd prefer Rob's Leia.  This was probably because Wicket the Ewok had used Whirling Rocks to put 4 points of damage on Maul, which was hilarious no matter how grumpy Ben was about it.  Ian agreed and Rob went from great standing within his alliance to alone against Maul and Gideon.  Maul and Leia did battle, with Leia using an I Know defense and Covert Operation to put auto damage on Maul.  Grant H. decided, however, to kill Ben instead of Rob, so Maul was gone in 8th.

Rising Phoenix nesting in the trees.

Ian was really grumpy Rob had survived, so he started going after Leia with renewed purpose.  He couldn't get the kill shot, though.  Rob assured the rest of the light side his only purpose in the game was to take down Lando, but Kat couldn't pass up the easy kill, so Rob came to a halt in 7th.

Evan, playing the Mandalorian, kind of took over the game at this point.  He played the brutal Disintegration on an unsuspecting Grant H., and just like the card implies, Gideon disappeared in sixth!  That's a career best finish for both the character and Grant, though! 

When you get the character of the guy
on your shirt.

Ian/Lando tried very hard to align with anyone who would take him, but it was fairly obvious he was unwanted.  It would be Mando again rising to the occasion (get it!?!?) with Rising Phoenix.  While flying among the treetops he attacked Lando and then played Whistling Birds on everyone else...and that's how Lando died!  A beskar spike to the head.  Brutal!

This brought things to the final four.  It looked like the team would go after Curtis' Anakin, who had been laying low for most of the game.  However, he was fairly isolated from the others, and he managed to put damage on Evan's Mando.  In a surprising move, Kat's lil' Leia killed The Mandalorian in 4th!  What a great run for Evan, though.  He finished tied for 5th in the first game and in 4th for his second.

Three-way tension.

With three to go it looked like Grant's Jyn and Kat's Luke would work together to knock out Curtis' Anakin.  However, Curtis got into Kat's head by commenting on how healthy Jyn and Cassian were and how hard it would be to defend against two shooters.  There was a lot of chaotic attacks between the three of them.  Eventually, though, Grant and Kat were pretty banged up while Anakin was still on his first row of health.  Rather than work together, though, Kat went for a bold strategy.  She eliminated Jyn with a Justice and then dropped I Will Not Fight You.  Curtis had the health advantage but Kat was banking on luck of the draw.  They ran around the board quite a bit, but a patient Curtis somehow pulled out the victory!!!  It was a notable victory for several reasons, too.  Not only did Curtis become the second Dueler in league history with double-digit wins, but he also became the first person to win with all six original light side characters!!!  And it was his 4th win in his last SIX games!!!!  That's insane!  Let's tip our caps to Kat too - her second place finish with Luke was a career best finish!

The final order of finish:

12.  Elliot/Jango Fett

11.  JD M./Kylo Ren

10.  Rylie/Orson Krennic

9.  Karson/Darth Vader

8.  Ben/Darth Maul

7.  Rob/Princess Leia

6.  Grant H./Moff Gideon

5.  Ian/Lando Calrissian

4.  Evan/The Mandalorian

3.  Grant D./Jyn Erso

2.  Kat/Luke Skywalker

1.  Curtis/Anakin Skywalker

That was a great night of Dueling!  And there were only 2 tacos left from an order of 50!  Next month's Duel - THE FALL BRAWL - will likely take place on September 18th.  More info to come!

Doubleheader #2 - August 29, 2020

 

Kamino Platform

The first Duel of the day started at 1PM, with the second one scheduled for 7PM.  Rob figured that would give about a two hour cushion in between games to give folks a break from staring at their screens and time to eat (or grocery shopping in Lucas' case).

WRONG!

The first Duel didn't end until about 6:40, giving Rob about five minutes to reset the board and be ready to teach rookie Duncan the ropes!  That just isn't enough time, Duelers!  But because Rob loves you all so very much, he sacrificed a real meal to give the masses what they wanted:  MORE DUELING!

Rob remembered this time!

After giving Duncan a quick crash course (he had already studied the front desk copy of Epic Duels in North Village - YOU CAN'T TEACH HEART!!!), we were off and running again!  Six folks were playing their second Duel of the day while six came in fresh and rested.  

The Kamino Platform is an interesting battleground because the dark side start split apart from each other while the light side is congested on a narrow gangway.  Flipping can happen in several different spots, but we went through a cycle of turns with the sides knotted at six-six.  That's when Elliot's Darth Maul accepted an invite from Rylie's Han Solo to come to his senses and come over.  Seeing this, Hall of Famer Joel (another alum playing with us!), quickly moved his Dooku to the light side as well, and all of a sudden the dark side was in trouble.

It's Complicated

Miguel, finally playing somebody besides Darth Maul, got into trouble very early when Rylie's Han smoked his Mandalorian armor with the Bowcaster.  He survived, but he was seriously wounded.  That's when Ian's Emperor assumed the position of actual Emperor and began directing a defensive strategy to his foursome.  At the same time, he kept trying to persuade Elliot to flip back to his original tribe.  Elliot was conflicted.  He knew he should attack Hannah's Boba Fett, but she used a solid 1-2 punch of berating him and charming him into confusion on how to proceed.  

While this was all going down, Troy's Mace Windu rolled in a little too aggressively and started taking on major damage from the dark side, especially with the distance attacks of Ian and Delaney/Vader.  To counter the offensive and protect Mace, Ben's Anakin Wrathed to the back row to keep the pressure on Jango before Wrathing back out.  Meanwhile, Joel's Dooku continued to push forward behind Jango's ship to confront Delaney's Vader.  While Delaney managed to escape, she left a shooting lane open, exposing Jango.  She still had a Storm Trooper, though, plugging the backside pathway.

And that's when Hall of Famer Joel did something I've never seen in nearly 20 years of playing Star Wars Epic Duels:  he Force Pushed his own Super Battle Droid into attack position on Jango, and then delivered a five point attack to stun Miguel into last place.

It was one of the most brilliant moves anyone has ever seen in a Duel.  DON'T MESS WITH JOEL.

The chips fell somewhat quickly after that.  Elliot, still unable to bring himself to attack Hannah's vulnerable Boba Fett, instead flipped out and hit poor Troy!  Ben used Padme's Precise Shot to get rid of Maul, but the mortal wounds left behind on poor Mace were too much.  Delaney chucked a Throw Debris and Troy was out in tenth.  But!  In the first game of the Doubleheader, Troy reached professional status, so bravo to him!

The light side had broken through the dark side ranks at that point, and Ian's Emperor was the next target.  Padme pumped him with three attack points to end his night in ninth.  Delaney's Darth Vader was the next victim.  Lucas's used a six-point attack from his Obi-Wan Kenobi to end the evening of our recent CL Training Duel winner.

And then there were seven!

With only the original alliance, plus Hannah's Boba Fett still alive, it was Rob's turn.  His Yoda was full carded, but he was nowhere near the bounty hunter.  So with his roll he had to choose between Duncan's Luke (who pulled off a nifty I Will Night Fight You against Vader early in the game) or Lucas' Obi.  Rob figured folks would be down to remove the powerful Jedi from the game.

He thought wrong.

Despite being Force Lifted and Pushed into a kill box, Joel talked everyone into going after Rob's Yoda instead.  *gulp*  Lucas made the situation worse for Yoda by playing Force Balance, which emptied his Rebound.  Not long after Rylie's Han shot Yoda down in seventh.

The Pied Piper of Dueling

It was right about here three significant things happened.  1) Joel, through his verbal influencing, started dictating the game.  2) Rylie played Wookie Instincts...but never used the Bowcaster again, instead wielding the card in her hand as a threat to others.  3) Ben subtly moved away from everyone else to watch the chaos at a safe distance.

Joel called out Lucas' Obi, and despite a heroic defense, he finally bowed out in sixth.  Joel called out Duncan, who at that time was full health and still had Leia.  The rest of the board complied, and the rookie made a drastic exit from the game in fifth.  Duncan played great in his first Duel!  Let's hope we see him back out there in the future.

Once it got down to four, Rylie/Han and Hannah/Boba verbally committed to working together.  That made Ben's Anakin quite nervous, so he swooped in and put big, unexpected hits on Boba.  She couldn't hold out, so Hannah was done in fourth.  A major tip of the cap to Hannah!  She somehow survived her starting side collapsing and maneuvered into a career-best fourth place.

At this juncture both Joel/Dooku and Ben/Anakin were pleading for Rylie/Han to side with them against the other.  She was quite conflicted, as Enneagram 9's often are in that situation.  Ben made an unexpected move, though, when he double-Wrathed Chewbacca, eliminating the threat of the still unused Bowcaster.  Rylie was stunned and fuming.  Despite flip-flopping a few times (no shame in that, that's what shooters do in the final three!), she basically agreed to work more with Ben than Joel.  Ben was super weak, though, so Joel moved in with two Taunts...only to receive two points of damage from both of Anakin's Counter-Attacks!  Clutch!!!  Dooku and Ani were both just a couple of points from dead, so it was Riley's fully-healthy Han who would choose who would get second and third.  It took two attacks, but Joel and his non-stop mouth were done in third!  He put on an EPIC performance.  That's why he's a Hall of Famer.

Everyone, including Riley, assumed just an attack or two would finish off Ben's Anakin.  She fired at him twice, but he somehow had enough defense to cover it.  He then attacked her twice, and Han being Han, she took significant damage.  Still, with two more actions left, it seemed obvious Han had it in the bag.  Except...

...nobody told that to Anakin!  YOU PLAY TO WIN THE GAME.  After surviving yet another attack, Rylie was panicked and had to retreat!  But Ben rolled a huge number and moved in for two attacks.  The second card?  ANGER.  Han couldn't defend it, and seemingly out of nowhere, Ben won the game!!!  This is no disrespect for Rylie at all - she played Han beautifully - but this had to be the biggest comeback in final two history of the league.  Fully health Han vs. two points from dying Anakin.  That double-Wrath of Chewey turned out to be the difference maker.  If you see Rylie empathize with her because she did everything right and got second.  Brutal!

The final order of finish:

12.  Miguel/Jango

11.  Elliot/Maul

10.  Troy/Mace

9.  Ian/Emperor

8.  Delaney/Vader

7.  Rob/Yoda

6.  Lucas/Obi

5.  Duncan/Luke

4.  Hannah/Boba

3.  Joel/Dooku

2.  Rylie/Han

1.  Ben H./Anakin

Our next Duel will be the seventh annual FALL BRAWL.  We'll be playing online again, and right now the tentative date is September 19th, so block your schedules now.  Rob will send out an email for sign-ups later in September.

Before signing off, I wanted to acknowledge something.  I don't think anybody in the second game knew Ben was playing from his hometown, out of state.  His father passed away a short while ago and his family picked this weekend to lay him to rest.  I know he was looking forward to playing with us this night, I'm guessing as a small relief to such a hard day, and how amazing is it he could have a little victory in the middle of all this hardship.  I think that says a lot about the fun and camaraderie a community like our Duels league can provide others in times of need.  So be it in our residence halls or around friendly board games, don't forget how privileged we are to walk alongside others.  Ben - congrats on an epic win, and know we're here for you.  And that goes to everyone else - stay safe Duelers.  I love doing life with you.

Valentine's Duel - February 8, 2020

Geonosis Arena

Nothing is sweeter than a Valentine's Duel!  And not because any chance to Duel is special.  No, this is the sweetest day of the year because of the FOOD!  JD brought his customary red velvet cake, including a Star Destroyer cake topper, the Brooks crew brought a whole batch of awesome cookies, and some lunatic brought a bunch of full-sized Skittle bags.  It was fun watching people get sick eating it all as a way to burn nervous energy!

Dueling Love

There were a few momentous moments before the game even started.  Elliot and Savannah were making their Dueling debuts, which we always love to see.  And Savannah really did us a solid by subbing for a sick Dueler at the last minute.  You can't teach heart!  And Rylie was playing in her sixth Duel, meaning she has now become a Professional Dueler.  That looks really good on your grad school resume, Rylie.

Lucas sees what's going on...

Rylie also picked chair number one, meaning she got to randomly select our playing surface.  Everybody was glad the Emperor's Throne Room wasn't a choice!  Rylie chose the Geonosis Arena, and Ryan brought along his 3D Hoth board for us to play with.  Somebody noted how appropriate that was since it actually snowed in Waco this week.  Synergy!!!

Things started off rough for the dark side.  The key to most Geonosis games is what Luke and Mace decide to do.  Luke/Lucas and Mace/Ben decided to stay on the light side of the board.  Ben moved up his clones and Ryan's Obi did the same.  Ryan operated outside of his normal style of play by playing general for the light side.  Meanwhile, Rob/Anakin sweet-talked JD/Dooku and Delaney/Maul into joining the light side.  They eventually agreed and the remaining dark side was in trouble...especially after Ryan played Force Control!  Curtis/Boba and Rylie/Emperor were put into kill boxes.  Rylie was taking a lot of damage, but it would be Ian's Chewbacca that ended her night with a Bowcaster.  Ouch!  Last place is never fun, but congrats to Rylie again, who enters our professional rankings in 11th place.

We're killing people, high-five!

Curtis managed to Rocket Retreat over to Rob/Anakin, Lucas/Luke, and Ian/Han, and swore up and down he was loyal to his new alliance.  Sadly, they weren't taking new members at the time.  Rob's Padme unloaded his Precise Shot and Lucas attacked too.  It would be Savannah's (Yoda) Clone Trooper that zapped Curtis in eleventh place.  The top two finishers from the New Hope Duel were the first two dead at Valentine's.  Brutal!

Elliot, playing his first Duel and now grossly outmatched, had little he could do as the attacks began to rain down on him.  He certainly didn't play poorly, but that's just how the Dueling fates turn sometimes.  He made the best stand he could, but a cross-court blast from Ian's Han sent the rookie home in tenth.  Come and play with us again, Elliot!

One of the critical moments of the Duel occurred next.  Ian named Delaney's Darth Maul as the next target, despite her loyalty in flipping early.  She wasn't pleased about it...and neither was Lucas!  He called out Ian's seeming dictatorship and attempted a coup.  Unfortunately, folks had trouble committing to it, and the negative attention turned to him.  He caught shots from around the board, but it was JD's Dooku who landed the kill shot.  That made it a 9th place finish for Lucas.

JD always knows when the camera is on him.

With eight Duelers to go, folks were getting full carded and itching to make moves.  Rob's Anakin had two 5-point attacks he was ready to burn, so he rolled in on Alex's Jango Fett, much to Alex's chagrin.  He managed to Rocket Retreat away from Rob and Delaney's Maul, landing near Savannah's Yoda and Ryan's Obi.  Rob expected them to finish Jango off, but Savannah declined.  That made Rob grumpy.  Ryan was reluctant to do it, but doubled down on his commitment to the alliance and shot him with his Clone.  That marked Jango's fourth straight game finishing in eighth place.  I don't know what that means, exactly, but it's statistically interesting. 

That left seven without a clear target, but Rob suggested Savannah/Yoda since she didn't take a shot on Jango.  They engulfed Yoda in a kill box, but JD ended up Force Pushing her towards Delaney's Darth Maul.  They traded blows but Ian's Chewey shot her out in seventh place.  That was a more than solid debut for Savannah!

Snack time

And then there were six!  JD's Dooku was eyeing Ryan and getting worried about Obi-Wan running the table straight to a victory.  He and Delaney's Maul were standing next to Obi, and he suggested the two of them take out Ryan.  She agreed, and started off with a Sith Speed attack, and then she drew a card for her first official action.  Ryan lobbied hard for her to hold off and, amazingly, she agreed!  JD released an audible sigh of disappointment, and the board was once again in chaos.  The attention moved off Ryan and on to Delaney's Maul.  Ironically, it was Ryan's Obi that finished her off in sixth place.  Delaney played hard and avoided early negative attention to finish in the top half.  Good job Delaney!

The final five were Rob/Anakin, JD/Dooku, Ben/Mace, Ryan/Obi, and Ian/Han.  After Maul was out it was Rob's turn, and he had to decide who to go after.  It was clear that Ian/Ben/JD wanted to eliminate Obi-Wan, but Rob felt bad because he was trying to stay loyal to Ryan.  In the end, though, he went with the majority and used a Shot on the Run to start the attack.  Ryan curiously started using his 12 defenses, but we soon learned why.  He played Force Balance and dumped everyone's hand.  In the end, he couldn't withstand the onslaught.  JD killed him with back to back Tauntings.

Partners!

Even though it was cool to kill somebody with double Taunts, it ended up being a tactical error.  Everybody was still low carded from the Force Balance and JD's Dooku was now defenseless.  It was Ian's turn at the table, and he knew what to do.  His Han rolled out and started firing on him.  Ben's Mace followed suit.  Rob's Anakin and Padme were stuck behind the snow drifts and couldn't immediately reach him.  JD tried to turn the attention on Rob, but that's when Padme finally got into shooting range and used two attacks to eliminate him in fourth place.  He consoled himself with more red velvet cake.

Then there were three!  Rob/Anakin, Ben/Mace, and Ian/Han.  All three also had their minor characters still on the board.  Initially Rob chose to side with Ben, but at the last second, his gut said to ride with Han and Chewey.  Ian agreed to stay together until Mace was dead.  Padme used her last attack card on Mace, but Mace killed Padme.  Mace was hiding behind the snow drift but his Clones were on the other end, where Han, Chewbacca, and Anakin were.  Han put holes in both of their helmets to eliminate their pestering shots.  Nobody could remember a kill collection like Ian had this game.  Anakin and Han started moving in on Ben's Mace, and Ben tried to reason with Ian that they could work together to go after Rob's healthier Anakin.  Ian stayed true to his alliance, causing Ben to throw his pretty new Boba Fett hat across the room.  Ian used a Never Tell Me The Odds on Mace to kill Ben in third.  Ben was the defending Valentine's Duel champion and nearly retained his trophy.  Nearly.

Sweet 16

Rob's hand was almost exclusively Padme cards, but he did hang onto two Wraths for the final two.  He immediately used them on Chewbacca, killing the Wookie and leaving Han all by his lonesome.  Ian was crestfallen as he forgot Anakin had those cards (and, to be honest, Rob forgot about them too until he drew them).  But Ian wasn't going down quietly, as he landed quite a few hits on Anakin while Rob desperately drew for any card that wasn't a Wrath or had Padme's picture on it.  Eventually Rob pulled both of his Angers, and in a bit of a risky move, played them back to back.  Ian didn't quite have enough defense to withstand the barrage, and bowed out in an outstanding second place with the lowest ranked character in the league.  That means Rob won the Anakin trophy while playing with Anakin...and Anakin was the BB-8 pick to win.  That's the trifecta!!!

Final order of finish:

12.  Rylie/Emperor
11.  Curtis/Boba
10.  Elliot/Vader
9.  Lucas/Luke
8.  Alex C./Jango
7.  Savannah/Yoda
6.  Delaney/Maul
5.  Ryan/Obi-Wan
4.  JD/Dooku
3.  Ben H./Mace
2.  Ian/Han
1.  Rob/Anakin

That was a great night of Dueling.  I hope everybody brushed their teeth after all that sugar.  Next month's Duel is the IMPERIAL MARCH!  We'll get the date picked a little later - stay tuned to your emails!