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BALDSDAY!: Norcal Vs. Day - Spring 2010

Blinded by the light…or is that the shine from his forehead?  Presenting…

BALDSDAY!

Hey peeps! Welcome to Baldsday! Here we celebrate all things Vs. and talk about how we can make the game we all love so much, even better.

Ok, it’s that time of year again, where I put together as big of a tournament as I can, and people (hopefully) feel the desire to flock from near and far to play and win prizes!

You get it here first…the announcement of the first of 4 events in Northern California that I will be running.  The format will be….Bring Your Own Two Teams, a constructed event, but with some modified rules.  Here is a rundown:

Date: February 6th, 2010
Registration: 11am
Tournament Begins: Noon, and will likely last until around 7-8pm
Cost: $20.00
Location:
Empire’s Comics Vault
2357 Arden Way
Sacramento, CA 95825
(916) 924-0775

1. You must choose your two teams from different sets.  Both sets must be Silver Age.

Silver Age consists of the following sets:
Heralds of Galactus
Legion of Super-Heroes
Marvel Team-up
The Hellboy Essential Collection
World’s Finest
Marvel Legends (includes Age of Apocalypse MAA, The Coming of Galactus MCG, MEX)
DC Legends (includes DC Exclusives DCX)
Marvel Universe (includes Marvel Ultimates MUL)
Marvel Evolutions (includes Marvel Equipment MEQ)

The Hellboy Essential Collection will be considered its own set for this event.
Both sets a player chooses may be either DC or Marvel, or a combination of both, or either with the Hellboy Essential Collection.

2. You must have at least 10 character cards with each affiliation you choose in your deck.  Dual affiliated characters count for only one affiliation, not for both.  This means every deck will have at least 20 character cards.

3. You may use generic plot twists.  You may not use a plot twist that references a team other than your chosen teams, unless that card references your team as well.  (For Example:  You cannot play “Teen Supremes” unless you are playing Teen Titans.)

4. Each player announces which two teams they are using after initiative is set.  Those teams are considered Teamed-Up during the course of the match.

5. We will play 6 rounds with Swiss Pairings to determine a Top 8.  In the event of a tie after 6 rounds, I reserve the right to hold a tiebreaker match or to decide the Top 8 on tiebreakers.  This will likely be determined based off how much time is available once the Swiss rounds are over.  (If we have the time, there will be a play-off, and if not, tie-breakers will determine the top 8.)

6. The top 8 will compete in a draft for a $50 American Express Gift Card.  The Draft set will be announced once the top 8 are known.  (Nobody will have advance information regarding what will be the Draft set…this gives all players the same advantage/disadvantage heading into the draft.)

7. The players who are not Top 8 will compete in a Super Cross-Over Sealed event with the winner receiving a $25 American Express Gift Card.  The players will get to choose which 5 packs (of those available) they get to use in their Super Cross-Over Sealed deck.  (Maximum of 1 pack of any set.)  We will determine the order players get to choose their 5 packs based off of standings in the constructed event.

8. There will be participation prizes and a few door prizes.  These will consist mostly of MAA, DCX, MUL, MEQ and then some of the older EA cards along with some select rare cards or in-demand foils.

And there you have it!  A day chalk full of Vs. goodness!  If anyone is considering traveling for this event, please make sure to contact me via e-mail so that I can help you set up lodging and/or locations for a good meal.  Heck, I’ll even pick you up from the airport if you are going to fly in, and drop you off when it’s time to fly out.  (The Baldman Taxi Service is the best in The Valley!)

I will likely also set up some sort of ‘after party’ that people can attend and ‘shoot the breeze’ if they like.  I find that I enjoy hanging out and talking about the matches of the day once they are done, and I’m not even playing.

The views of The Baldman are his alone and are not shared by the owner of this blog.  If you found anything objectionable, mean-spirited or maybe even funny in a sick sort of way, you can file a formal complaint by sending an e-mail to seanthebaldman@hotmail.com.  Please include an address so that we can formally apologize and refund you for the unused portion.

BALDSDAY: What's In A Name?

Blinded by the light…or is that the shine from his forehead?  Presenting…

BALDSDAY!

Hey peeps! Welcome to Baldsday! Here we celebrate all things Vs. and talk about how we can make the game we all love so much, even better.

I have been away for a bit, recovering from dealing with some nasty kidney stones. The way the doctors ultimately fixed my problem you ask?  By playing a certain frequency of sound through a special speak pressed up against my kidney. (I requested Led Zeppelin’s ‘Trampled Underfoot’, but I was denied.)  The sound shatters the stones:  It literally forces the stones to vibrate to pieces.  Sometimes it bruises the patient as well, but I was very lucky, and I had no bruising. (Or maybe I am literally developing thicker skin?)  There were a few weeks that I could do nothing but to rest and to see if the procedure had worked.  Sparing you the details that might be less appealing, I rested, I feel better, and now I am back.

Let the celebration begin:  Bring us your finest meats and cheeses in allll the land!

While sitting around, resting after my procedure, I decided to test my ‘still recovering from the anesthesia’ mental capacity and see if I could come up with a new format for the casual/hobby league gamer.  I must say that everything is much easier to do, but much harder to think about, while coming down from the effects of dilauded or morphine…I can’t remember which they used this time.  Unable to concentrate, I decided to sleep it off.

But I had the oddest dream.  Except nothing sucks more than listening to someone talk about a dream…except maybe having to read about it in a blog.  So, I am going to spare you.  I will just share the details of what I came up with.

I do not have a name for this format as of yet, and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.  I will use whatever suggestion appears to be the best.  If prizes motivate more you than fame, then we can place a couple of packs on it.  (My pocketbook would prefer those motivated by fame.)

Anyways, the idea for the format was to combine the best qualities of both constructed and sealed.  What I came up with was to create a 30 card deck, using modified creation rules limiting you to no more than 2 of any card in your deck.  Each player would show up with this 30 card deck having been already been created and assembled.

Then we get to the interesting part.  Each player takes 5 sealed packs of cards and uses a minimum of 30 cards from the sealed packs to add to the constructed deck to make….well, I am not sure what you would call it, but it’s a 60 card deck.

The Pros:
-You get some control over what you create with the 30 card deck you get to create coming in.
-You get some of the randomness of sealed without the ‘you are screwed if you don’t get a good curve’ problems.
-It’s new and different

The Cons:
-Requires the purchase of sealed packs (this may be a problem for some people)
-It’s yet another format to have to remember
-You would have to create a new deck (this would not be a con for many people, but a pro)

Something like this can be done Single Set, Two Set, DC Vs. Marvel, Golden Age, Silver Age, Modern Age, BYOT, BYOTT or even Random Punks (just don’t use the rares from the sealed packs).  This is almost more of a ‘style’ of deck creation than a true format, and I feel it would be a lot of fun for the kitchen table gamer to experiment with.

So go out and get some cards, invite your friends over, and figure out a way to play a few games.  And see if you can figure out for yourself any of the following questions that any format or style of play scream out to be answered:

What is a great 30 card deck to start with?  What sealed packs would you use?  Which format would be the most fun with this style of deck assembly?  Would Insanity be the coolest thing going?  Which team has the greatest advantage?  Can you imagine a situation or build that you would not use ‘Enemy of My Enemy’ in?

Have fun!

The views of The Baldman are his alone and are not shared by the owner of this blog.  If you found anything objectionable, mean-spirited or maybe even funny in a sick sort of way, you can file a formal complaint by sending an e-mail to seanthebaldman@hotmail.com.  Please include an address so that we can formally apologize and refund you for the unused portion.

BALDSDAY!: Polka Party at NorCal Vs. Day

Blinded by the light…or is that the shine from his forehead?  Presenting…

BALDSDAY!

Hey peeps! Welcome to Baldsday! Here we celebrate all things Vs. and talk about how we can make the game we all love so much, even better.

Wondering about the title this week? My title this week is honoring NorCal Vs Day winner Shawn Polka, his 6-0 record at the event, and his Warbound deck. Congratulations Shawn!  Shawn received a Thor playmat (still in the original wrap and untouched) as his prize. Second place overall and 1st place DC deck went to Michael Brenden who received a DC Legends Playmat.

As the winner of our latest event, Shawn will be invited back to defend his title this February when we hold our next event.  (Details, date and format to be announced.)

Congratulations as well go to Brian O’Hara for winning Mini-Cross Madness with a perfect 6-0 record and 24 points.  Way to go Brian!

The top 8 finishers were dominated by Bay Area and Reno players.  Congratulations to everyone who participated and made this event a great time for everyone!

Unfortunately, due to time constraints, I had no time to lay the smackdown with my Coming of Galactus decks:  We simply ran out of time.  (This was my fault as I did not manage time as well as I could have.)

I also did not find the time to report on a match.  If I had not been bald before this event, I would have pulled my hair out by the end of it.  But, if I had been better prepared, then I could have dealt with the minor issues that arise at any event and still had time to make a match report.  I will take what I learned from this event and apply it to the next event I run to make it that much better and more coordinated.

The format of DC Vs. Marvel Vs. Hellboy was interesting.  I expected much more in the way of competitive decks from the Hellboy mini-set, but the best finish among the players using Hellboy was 14th…out of 24 players at the tournament.

Our attendance was great!  The drop-off in attendance of 6 comes from those who had to travel the farthest last event…the players from SoCal and Washington State:  That’s a long trip to make either way, and we hope that with a little time that our friends from north and south will be able to join us again.

If you are interested in attending an event with 30 or more players in February, then please contact me so that I can assist you to make arrangement for the next event.  This includes those who may consider traveling for the event.  With enough time and notice, I may be able to work out a discount for those who might need lodging.

So, I invite you all to our next event.  The format for the event will be announced in Mid December to give everyone 2 months to create a deck or playtest for the event.

One thing I already know for certain is that the format will be a variation of Silver Age in some way, so keep an eye out for the announcement of format over at VsSystem.org!

The views of The Baldman are his alone and are not shared by the owner of this blog.  If you found anything objectionable, mean-spirited or maybe even funny in a sick sort of way, you can file a formal complaint by sending an e-mail to seanthebaldman@hotmail.com.  Please include an address so that we can formally apologize and refund you for the unused portion.

BALDSDAY!: Clone Closure and NorCal Vs Day

Blinded by the light…or is that the shine from his forehead?  Presenting…

BALDSDAY!

Hey peeps! Welcome to Baldsday! Here we celebrate all things Vs. and talk about how we can make the game we all love so much, even better.

Ok, time to come clean.  I just do not have the time (or frankly the energy) between my bouts with kidney stones to complete the Clones Brackets.  Plus, I asked people to build the best THEMED decks, not the most deadly.  Some people followed the spirit of the rules better than others, and I don’t want them to be punished for that.

So, I am instead presenting my awards to you all for what I feel where the best themed Clone Saga decks.  I understand that you all want ‘hot round on round action’ with great detail, so I am going to have a couple of people in feature matches write about those matches at NorCal Vs Day this weekend and offer it to you in the next couple of weeks along with my regular content.  I figure this way you get what you want and I get to rest between my painful procedures to shatter my stones with sound and trips to the Emergency Room:  We all win!

Here are my choices for honorable mention in the ‘Build A Clone Saga Deck’ Tournament.  I provide them here with a deck list so that you can build and play them for yourself:


Elektric Daring
By Vader

Daredevil, Fearless Survivor x4
Daredevil, Hornhead x4
Daredevil, Kitchen Cleanser x1
Daredevil, New Kingpin x2
Daredevil-Guardian Devil x2
Daredevil-Matt Murdock x2
Daredevil-Protector of Hell's Kitchen x4
Elektra, Masterless Assassin x1
Elektra-Assassin x1
Elektra-Elektra Natchios x2
Iron Fist <> Daredevil, Imposter - Secret Avenger x2
Billy Club - Unique x4
Blind Sided x4
Blinding Rage x4
Bring the Pain x4
Head Shot x4
Mobilize x4
Savage Beatdown x4
Swan Dive x4
Wild Ride x3


You Got Another Thing Coming!
by Sergio 'Shadowtrooper' Acevedo

4 MOR Yancy Street
1 MXM Sewer System
3 MOR She-Thing-Sharon Ventura
2 MOR Thing-Ben Grimm
4 MVL Thing, Heavy Hitter
4 MVL Thing, Idol O'Millions
4 MVL Luke Cage, Steel-Hard Skin
2 MVL Thing, The Ever-Lovin' Blue-Eyed Thing
1 MVL Silver Surfer, Norrin Radd 8
2 MHG Thing - Rockhead 4
1 MVL Mr. Fantastic, Critical Thinker
2 MUN Thing, Conscientious Objector
1 MUL Thing - Ultimates 4
4 MVL Signal Flare
4 MVL It's Clobberin' Time!
3 MVL Clobberin' Pine!
4 MVL Family of Four
4 MAV Framistat
3 MVL Secret Identity
3 MHG The Uni-Power
2 MOR Cosmic Radiation
2 MCG Omnipotence


Luke Cage & Iron Fist
By Vader

New Baxter Building 2
Iron Fist, Hired Hero 4
Iron Fist, Secret Avenger 4
Iron Fist-Danny Rand 4
Luke Cage, Hired Hero 2
Luke Cage, Steel-Hard Skin 4
Luke Cage-Reserve Member 4
Luke Cage-Street Enforcer 2
Brass Grill 4
Cutting Loose 4
Desert Eagle 4
Flying Kick 4
Heroes of the City, Team-Up 4
Katana 4
Neighborhood Watch, Team-Up 2
Savage Beatdown 4
Wild Ride 4


Richard Simmons & Red Bull
by Vader

Genosha3
Quicksilver-Pietro Maximoff4
Quicksilver, Mercurial Speedster4
Quicksilver - Ultimates4
Quicksilver, House Of M4
Quicksilver-Mutant Avenger4
Quicksilver, Speed Demon4
Quicksilver - Inhuman by Marriage4
Marvel Crossover, Team-Up3
Flying Kick3
Crackshot3
The New Brotherhood4
Uncertain Legacy4
Mobilize4
Forbidden Loyalties - Team-Up4
The Next Brotherhood4


Mystique!
By Ashton Atwood

Mystique - Foxx2
Rogue - Earth-10093
Gambit - Le Diable Blanc2
Mystique-Freedom Force2
Mystique, Shapely Shifter4
Mystique <> Mystiq - Earth-7974
Mystique - Short Leash4
Mystique - Raven4
Mystique - Mutant Messiah1

Master Thief4
Common Cause - Team-Up2
Mobilize4
Uncertain Legacy2
Nth Metal4
Divided We Stand - Team-Up4
Identity Theft4
Underground Resistance3
Lost City4
Avalon Space Station4

These were my 5 favorite decks…the decks I will play again and again.  I have played matches with all of the decks that were submitted at this point.  They were ALL fun to play with.  I will undoubtedly play them all again at some point in the future.  If you would like a copy of these decks for MWS use, then please send me an e-mail.  (see below)

I shared these deck lists with some of my local players, and they have created some of the decks from the tournament to play at our hobby leagues.  (We vary format regularly.)  Locally, Omacs World, one of the Invisible Woman decks and Mass Media were decks that were adopted by local players.

I also shared the listed of decks with some new friends I made recently that do not read this blog and who are not members of any of the major websites that support the game.  These friends have never seen a tournament that was played on anything but a kitchen table, and they did not know until recently about alternate formats.  Imagine their delight when they opened a care package with not only information on multiple new formats, but the decklists for 32 decks for the Clone Saga format.

Thank you to everyone who submitted an entry for this tournament…you have helped me do a very good thing for a group of players that definitely deserved a breath of fresh air, and we had fun while doing it.

Also, do not forget that NorCal Vs Day is Saturday.  If you live in California (especially Northern California) then you should show up and have some fun.  We are expecting 20-30 players at this event, and as far as I know, it will be one of the larger Vs events held this year.  (The largest NorCal event this year was NorCal Vs Day part 1, which drew 29 players and 33 people total.)

I love to make predictions about my play in events, and I am throwing down against teams of heroes and villains in the Coming of Galactus matches.

So, Nostrabaldus says:

‘The Baldman with lay the Smack down in copious amounts, and upon those who play against him in Coming of Galactus matches will be visited pains greater than a mighty Kidney Stone.’

Yay?!  Anyone for a game?

The views of The Baldman are his alone and are not shared by the owner of this blog.  If you found anything objectionable, mean-spirited or maybe even funny in a sick sort of way, you can file a formal complaint by sending an e-mail to seanthebaldman@hotmail.com.  Please include an address so that we can formally apologize and refund you for the unused portion.

DFC Preview: Koriand'r <>Starfire, Justifier

Blinded by the light…or is that the shine from his forehead?  Presenting…

BALDSDAY!

This week we take a detour from our normal Thursday unveiling to show you something so hot, I had to break out my asbestos gloves once again. By this time you are all aware of my love for fan created content and can understand my excitement. (It’s simply infectious!)

So this week I am extended the privilege of previewing a new card from the DFC fan created set. I understand that this card was created by Chris ‘Guglio’ Guglielmelli, and he sure did not disappoint. So without further delay, I present to you Koriand’r <> Starfire!

First off, her stats are within normal range for a 6 drop…just a little low on the DEF.  She also possesses Flight and Range, just like ever other version of her in the game to date, so we have consistency of concept right off the bat.  But then that is reinforced in her text.  Koriand’r is always either stunning an opposing character or playing games with your opponent’s formation.  This one accomplishes both feats in the same card without being overpowered.

While her text is powerful, she is one Pathetic Attempt away from being effectively textless for her controller.  Lots of characters have that drawback…but let’s see how she fares with it.

The next thing I notice is that she if not a Teen Titan:  She has the Darseid’s Elite and Anti-Life affiliations.  This version of Koriand’r must represent a character that was not really a ‘good guy’ in the truest sense of the term.  Or maybe she played the part of double agent.  I am unfamiliar with the storyline.  (I don’t read anything other than Iron Man, so sue me.)  But the choice of affiliations means something important or she would definitely be a Teen Titan.

So, how did the creator manage to make a character this powerful, balanced?  We got a new Keyword.  How dope is that?  Well, here is an excerpt from ‘Guglio’ that explains the new Flaw keyword better than I could hope to.

FLAW FAQ:

Some cards in this set have the Flaw keyword followed by a payment power.

1.  A Flaw payment power can be used by all opponents, and cannot be used by its controller.

2.  A Flaw payment power with a usage restriction (ie, "Use only once per turn.") can be used up to its restriction by each opponent.

3.  No effect or modifier you control can restrict an opponent from using the flaw powers of cards you control.

For example, if you control Lex Luthor, Metropolis Mogul and a character with a flaw power, your opponents may still use that flaw power even though Lex Luthor would ordinarily restrict them from using the payment powers of characters and equipment.

4. No effect or modifier you control can explicitly negate an effect created by a flaw power on a card you control. (Effects you control can still indirectly negate Flaw powers on cards you control by invalidating their targets).

For example, if an opponent uses the flaw payment power of Koriand'r <> Starfire, Justifier to remove Koriand'r <> Starfire's powers, and you control a character equipped with a Utility Belt, you may exhaust that character to attempt to negate the effect created by Koriand'r <> Starfire's power. However, since the effect cannot be negated by any effect you control, the Utility Belt's effect will do nothing on resolution.

Well, that’s definitely a flaw for the character, and I don’t mean in the ‘this card is broken’ sense…I mean that’s a damn good way to work a keyword called ‘Flaw’.

While I have no idea how this card will interact with others in the Fan Set, I am sure of one thing:  The Anti-Life affiliation is going to be used for something good one way or another, otherwise there wouldn’t be such a cool way to get the affiliation.

This idea sent me thinking about the possibilities that follow:  Will these ‘Flawed’ characters become the next hot item, or is it merely a keyword to balance power?

While Koriand’r losing her powers is a hefty drawback (like any flaw should be) it has to be since her power is so good.  This does provide additional balance, but I am guessing that much more thought went into this than just another mechanism to balance power.  While that would not be a failure by any stretch of the imagination, I have learned that when our best and brightest card designers put their mind to it, they develop really cool and well thought out stuff.

But then I started thinking in deeper terms and concepts…maybe getting the Anti-Life Affiliation is a drawback.  This would be the perfect side effect to removing a character’s power since the 2 endurance loss is an easy decision to make in light of Koriand’r’s power.  Until we know how good or bad Anti-Life affiliation can be, mark me off for 2 endurance loss any round you have this beauty on the board.

If this concept was coupled with something that prevented the payment of life by an opponent, then the Flaw effect could be effectively negated while not technically negating the power since it would never trigger to enter the chain.  This may be something more along the lines of what the creators had in mind.

So, sign me up!  Unless of course gaining the Anti-Life affiliation is like passing kidney stones…I have had enough of that for the time being.

The views of The Baldman are his alone and are not shared by the owner of this blog.  If you found anything objectionable, mean-spirited or maybe even funny in a sick sort of way, you can file a formal complaint by sending an e-mail to seanthebaldman@hotmail.com.  Please include an address so that we can formally apologize and refund you for the unused portion.

BALDSDAY!: NorCal Vs. Day, Part II

Blinded by the light…or is that the shine from his forehead?  Presenting…

BALDSDAY!

Hey peeps! Welcome to Baldsday! Here we celebrate all things Vs. and talk about how we can make the game we all love so much, even better.

This week we take a break from the Clones Tournament to announce the events for NorCal Vs. Day, Part II.  As many of you may be aware, we organized and held an event in Sacramento for Vs players on August 22nd.  We had 30 people attend, with 29 entered into the main event.  The Top 8 people played in an MEV draft while the rest played in a Super Cross-Over Sealed event.  The event was a lot of fun, so we decided to run another, at the overwhelming request of the players attending that day.

So, November 7th we have our Part II.  And I am pleased to announce the events taking place at this tournament.

The Main Event
Format: Marvel Vs. DC Vs. Hellboy.  All cards in your deck must come from one of those 3 groups.  Cards reprinted can be used in the original or reprinted group with either version of the card.  (examples: Flying Kick, Blindsided, Mobilize, etc)
Time: Noon registration (we begin at 12:30 sharp)
Cost: $10.00
Prizes:  There will be random door prizes of packs of cards, EA cards, MAA/DCX/MUL/MEQ cards
The top player in each group, Marvel/DC/Hellboy, will win a choice of packs, playmat, T-Shirt or EA cards.

Mini-Cross Madness!
Format: Marvel Vs. DC minideck matches
Time: All day long
Cost: $5
Prizes: The top 2-8 (depending on the number that play) will win packs of cards, EA cards, MAA/DCX/MUL/MEQ cards
Special Rules
Construction:  Each player will choose two packs of cards from either DC or Marvel.  Both packs must be from the same group.  You do not have to choose packs from the same set.  Each pack will have a point value assessed to it.  You use all cards from both packs to make a 28 card deck.  Affiliated Character Cards are considered to have all affiliations.
Play:  When you win a match, you gain the number of points that your opponent’s deck is worth.   The winner will be the player with the highest point total, not the most wins.  (Quality wins are the key.)

The Coming of Baldman!
Format:  Test your skill against ME personally, as you and 2-4 friends take on one of my Custom Built ‘Coming of Galactus’ decks:  ‘Denial’, ‘Destroyer’s Army’ or you can play against The Original Unmodefied deck.  (And ya better bring butter, because you’re likely to be toast!)
Time: All day long
Cost: $1 per player
Prizes: Per player – 1 pack of cards or 1 MAA/DCX/MUL/MEQ card or 1 EA card if you win.  Those who do not win get to see me dance in slow motion as I celebrate my victory.  (That’s almost a threat…)  Plus, those who do not win will receive a card for participation.    (You get to see me dance AND get a card?  Does it get any better than that?)

Near the end of the day, we will ask players to vote for someone they played against who exhibited good sportsmanship.  The player(s) with the most votes will win a prize.  I ask the players to take this vote seriously and not to vote for whoever they came with.  Sportsmanship is something not everyone possesses and it should be rewarded when it is encountered.  We often forget how much we appreciate good sportsmanship until we encounter someone who has poor sportsmanship.  This is the chance for each player to give a nod to the player that they faced that was worthy of that acknowledgement.

And there you have it!  A day chalk full of Vs. goodness, and the ability for you to promote and support your favorite card group, Marvel, DC or Hellboy.

Plus there will be specials going on all day on back-issue comics, and on our locally created comic ‘The Hunters’:  Those who buy the two issues that are available of ‘The Hunters’ get a CD with the custom created cards from that comic that you can print out and use for your own games.  Why just read a comic, when you can play a comic?!?  We will also have the demo decks available for players to play a couple games against each other.

So don’t be a Ch’od!  Show up in Sacramento on November 7th and be ready to play and defend you favorite card group at 12:30 pm that day.  The location you ask?

Empire’s Comics Vault
2357 ARDEN WAY
SACRAMENTO CA 95825
(916) 924-0775
Ask for Ben
(mapquest it!)

Next week I will be back with the second round of ‘Clones’ action…and maybe even a spotlight on one of the decks.

Until then, keep your legs straight, and keep reaching for the ground!  (Ending on an exercise joke?…how lame.)

The views of The Baldman are his alone and are not shared by the owner of this blog.  If you found anything objectionable, mean-spirited or maybe even funny in a sick sort of way, you can file a formal complaint by sending an e-mail to seanthebaldman@hotmail.com.  Please include an address so that we can formally apologize and refund you for the unused portion.

BALDSDAY!: Clones - The Second Round

Blinded by the light…or is that the shine from his forehead?  Presenting…

BALDSDAY!

Hey peeps! Welcome to Baldsday! Here we celebrate all things Vs. and talk about how we can make the game we all love so much, even better.

First off, I would like to congratulate Vader for his winning entry in the Theme category for the deck ‘Elektric Daring’!  In case you missed it, here is the deck again.

Elektric Daring
By Vader

Daredevil, Fearless Survivor x4
Daredevil, Hornhead x4
Daredevil, Kitchen Cleanser x1
Daredevil, New Kingpin x2
Daredevil-Guardian Devil x2
Daredevil-Matt Murdock x2
Daredevil-Protector of Hell's Kitchen x4
Elektra, Masterless Assassin x1
Elektra-Assassin x1
Elektra-Elektra Natchios x2
Iron Fist <> Daredevil, Imposter - Secret Avenger x2
Billy Club - Unique x4
Blind Sided x4
Blinding Rage x4
Bring the Pain x4
Head Shot x4
Mobilize x4
Savage Beatdown x4
Swan Dive x4
Wild Ride x3

What we liked about the deck:  It’s an Elektra/Daredevil deck with as many of the cards with the Elektra/Daredevil images as could be used in the deck.  And then the inclusion of the ‘blind’ cards for Daredevil: BLINDsided, BLINDing Rage.

Here are the winners of the first round of matches:

ROUND 1
Match 1
Webs of Spider-Man
Venomous!

Winner: Webs of Spider-Man

Spider-Man proved too much for Venom.

Match 2
You Got Another Thing Coming!
Darkseid's Fate

Winner: Darkseid’s Fate

I love the Thing deck, as it was my favorite submission.  But, there is just something wrong about Darkseid in Dr. Fate’s Armor.

Match 3
Your DOOM!
Sinister!

Winner: Sinister!

Neverland FTW!

Match 4
With a Little Help from My Friend
Magnetic

Winner: With a Little Help From My Friend

Magneto was good, but the characters on that side of the board spent the match exhausted.

Match 5
The Fantastic Tony Stark
Hotfoot!

Winner: Hotfoot!

This was unfair in a bunch of ways…if the Fantastic Tony Stark had matched-up against something that could not kill on turn 3 that would have been nice.

Match 6
Mr. Pym's World!
Richard Simmons & Red Bull

Winner: Richard Simmons and Red Bull!

Mr. Pym was keeping up at first, but then turn 3 happened…

Match 7
Keep It In The Family
Jean Grey All Day!

Winner: Jean Grey All Day

Aside from having a cool name, this deck drops really big characters.  I enjoyed the ‘Keep It in the Family’ deck as I love Ra’s al Ghul, but it had problems with Jean Grey being so big.

Match 8
Tim Titan
Fantastic!

Winner: Tim Titan

This deck just worked well.  Is it wrong for Tim Drake to work so well alone?

Match 9
Omacs World
Batman

Winner: Batman

The Omacs swing hard, but in the end, the Bat had their tongue.  (That’s a little misleading…my final search was nullified, but the inability to get out of the way of Batman made this a tough but fun match.  Batman’s defensive pumps were BRUTAL!)

Match 10
Invisible Woman
Cable

Winner: Invisible Woman is pretty tough to beat…especially when you miss drops with Cable…


Match 11
Mystique
Wolverine

Winner: Wolverine

Was there any doubt when these two faced off who would win?  There were too many good Wolverine attack pumps, recovery effects, etc for Mystique to be too effective.

Match 12
Mass Media
Iron Man

Winner: Iron Man

This match was a squeeker…really close.  Both decks did not hit every drop.

Match 13
Iron Style
Professor X

Winner: Iron Style

Another close match:  Did not make it to turn 7 or the Professor would have likely taken Iron Man down!

Match 14
Women of Wonder!
Elektric Daring

Winner: Elektric Daring

The Wonder Woman decks did not fare well…so many decks swung so fast and so hard that by the time our favorite Amazon hit the table, the game was generally well in hand.

Match 15
Wonderful Women
Luke Cage & Iron Fist

Winner: Luke Cage and Iron Fist

The later round drops (5/6) feed off of each other and make each other much bigger.  It’s nice to drop a 5 drop character that can attack like a 6 drop, and a 6 drop that defends like a 7 drop, etc.…

Match 16
American Woman
Punishment

Winner: Punishment

Punishment destroyed American Woman…I missed Ambassador of Peace on 4 and had to drop Avatar of Truth.  KO goes Wonder Woman!

So, here we have the second round match-ups!

Round 2

Match 1
Webs of Spider-Man
Darkseid’s Fate

Will Spider-Man be able to exhaust Dr. Darkseid Fate?

Match 2
Sinister!
With a Little Help From My Friend

Can anything beat Neverland?  Spider-Man just might be able to With a Little Help From My Friend…

Match 3
Hotfoot!
Richard Simmons and Red Bull!

This match will be fast…don’t blink or it will be over.

Match 4
Jean Grey All Day
Tim Titan

Tim is good, but can anyone deal with a 5 drop Jean Grey that is +10/+10 or more?

Match 5
Batman
Invisible Woman

A match between the two biggest denial characters I can think of.  Whoever plays the last plot twist will likely win the match.  (That is, whoever plays the last plot twist that is not denied will likely win…)

Match 6
Wolverine
Iron Man

I have to put my money on Wolverine, as much as it pains me to admit that.  Iron Man is good, but he can’t attack or recover the way Wolverine can.

Match 7
Iron Sytle
Elektric Daring

I would like to hope that at least one Iron Man deck can make it to the next round, but this match up is brutal.

Match 8
Luke Cage & Iron Fist
Punishment

Will anything stop the Punisher?  This might be the match that it happens.  Otherwise, pencil in Punishment for a seat in the next round…

So are you happy with the results so far?  Did your deck crap out in my hands?  (This is not all that uncommon as I seem to always have trouble in MWS games.)  Were you looking for more in-depth coverage?  There is a good reason there was not more detailed accounts…and that’s because exactly ONE person was willing to give it a go with their own decks, and I did not have time to run 16 matches myself AND give you a detailed account.

If anyone would like to play a deck for round 2, then please drop me a line.  You do not need to be the owner, only someone who understands how the deck works and be willing to do a small write-up on your match.  (Something like 2-3 paragraphs.)  Those who are willing will get credit.

Where is the Kaleesh Warrior when you need him?!?

*puts out the Kaleesh Warrior signal*

That should do the trick!

The views of The Baldman are his alone and are not shared by the owner of this blog.  If you found anything objectionable, mean-spirited or maybe even funny in a sick sort of way, you can file a formal complaint by sending an e-mail to seanthebaldman@hotmail.com.  Please include an address so that we can formally apologize and refund you for the unused portion.

DSM-2 Previews: Daily Planet and Supergirl

Blinded by the light…or is that the shine from his forehead?  Presenting…

BALDSDAY!

This is the Baldman.  Do not adjust your monitor.  I control the horizontal.  I control the vertical.  I have taken over The Hero Blog today Pirate style!  (The Dwarf’s desktop is displaying the My Little Ponies website currently instead of The Hero Blog today…and you thought I couldn’t be ruthless?!)

I have taken over for a good reason…I have managed to score a copy of two of the upcoming cards from the long awaited and deeply anticipated DSM remake.  These images did not come cheap, and there was even a Hobbit or two sacrificed along the way for good measure.  (See, I’m just plain Evil today…)  These images could damage your corneas!  These images have been certified as lethal weapons by the F.B.I.!!  By God man, do you hear me?!?  These things could access your e-mail, delete your hard drive and download elder porn on your desktop!!!  (Only one of the previous three to four statements bares a possibility of being true, and do not for the love-of-all-things-holy ever search for ‘elder porn’…that would likely blind you.)

So, anyways, I put on my asbestos gloves and a welding visor just to handle these cards.  I hope my acts of internet piracy, potential for bodily damage and, frankly, prison time is appreciated by everyone who reads this.  I have sacrificed greatly for you.  Not as much as the guys who put this set together for you of course, but I’m a Pirate today, and I steal everything, including credit…you’ll get over it when I show you the cards.

Have I delayed long enough?

Daily Planet

Threshold: 1
Location
Daily Planet
Game Text:
Activate -> Target Team Superman Character has reinforcement this attack.

Discard a card -> Search your deck for a Team Superman character card.  Reveal that card and put it into your hard.  If you do, replace Daily Planet.

Daily Planet Discussion

So it can be used to reinforce a Team Superman character OR to discard a card and go search for a Team Superman Character Card and then replace Daily Planet.  Since locations are unique, this could be really cool…especially if you get more than one.  With a Threshold Cost of 1, it’s a must to use 4 in any Team Superman Deck.  Period.  Search AND reinforcement…what could be better?

It looks to me that this card could be cool in another way as well.  The way the card reads, you only replace Daily Planet if you find a Team Superman Character Card.  With as many cards as you can use to see the top of your deck and certain rally effects, it may very well be beneficial to discard a card to fail to find and shuffle your deck.  You didn’t expect that did from me, did you?

Fire and brimstone coming down from the skies! Rivers and seas boiling!  Forty years of darkness! Earthquakes, volcanoes... The dead rising from the grave!  Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!

Wait, we are still here.  We did not experience ‘all life as you know it stopping instantaneously and every molecule in your body exploding at the speed of light’.  Could a player set really work?  Just take a look at this next card, and you tell me.

Linda Danvers <> Supergirl

Character
Cost: 3
Affiliation: Team Superman
Flight/Range
5 ATK
5 DEF

Game Text:
Remove a cosmic counter from Linda Danvers  While protected by Linda Danvers, target character gets +2/+2 while defending this turn.  Use only once per turn.

Cosmic – Surge: Linda Danvers gets +2/+2 and can’t attack characters with cost 3 or less.

Linda Danvers <> Supergirl Discussion

Holy gauca-L-mole!  So she can be a 7/7 3 drop on turn 4 or on 3 if you have a way to get a cosmic counter on her…AND she can protect characters like nobody else can.  And if you can get an attack legal before getting that cosmic counter on her, you would get the +2/+2 and still be attacking a 3 cost or less because the attack was already legal once you put the counter on the character.

I think she would look just lovely protecting Superman, Last Son of Krypton.  What do you do?  Attack into her at 7/7 for a 3 drop and hope you have a pump to deal with LSOK?  Or do you try to run into LSOK and run the risk that the opposing player would sacrifice his cosmic counter to make LSOK 9/9 for the turn while defending?  That makes me think of ‘Hero’s Best Friend’ from DCL…but just not quite as good.  (It is just fine though.)

‘Hero’s Best Friend’
Plot Twist
Threshold 2,
Game text:
If target defender you control is behind a character, it gets +2/+2 this attack.

Combine those two?  Dirty.  But, as a Pirate for the day, I love it.  Sign me up.  I mean, this just might get me to play Team Superman instead throwing those cards into a binder I will never open again.

So we got 2 powerful new cards that are awesome.  We also got a double dose of Badass Baldness this week!  What else could we ask for?

*knock, knock*

I wonder who that is…

Interesting, there are police outside my window…they must be after some dumbass.  Wow…two suits with the 5-0…and it looks like they are walking to my front door…

I think it’s time for me to leave and take a vacation.  I am thinking somewhere where the summers are warm and the extradition laws non-existent…probably somewhere in South America.

But, even if I do get caught, I could count on Mrs. Baldman to bake me a cake with a file in it.  They’d never see it coming….

Internet Piracy does not pay: But, The Dwarf is forgiving, so I will be back next week on my normal day.  The views of The Baldman are his alone.  If you found anything objectionable, mean-spirited or maybe even funny in a sick sort of way, you can file a formal complaint by sending an e-mail to seanthebaldman@hotmail.com. Please include an address so that we can formally apologize and refund you for the unused portion.

Baldsday! Clones - The Brackets

Blinded by the light…or is that the shine from his forehead?  Presenting…

BALDSDAY!

Hey peeps! Welcome to Baldsday! Here we celebrate all things Vs. and talk about how we can make the game we all love so much, even better.

First we have the voting for the best THEMED deck among the entries.  These decks received the most votes, and I think any of them are worthy of being crowned our ‘Best Themed Clone Saga Deck’.  Please follow this link and make your voice heard.  (Anyone whose deck has made it this far gets 2 random packs of cards regardless if they win or not: The winner will get a little something more…)

And now to the Brackets.!

I wanted to make this both fun and easy.  The easiest way to do this was to face off Vader vs. Everyone else.  I mean, Vader built HALF the decks in this challenge, and he loves him some Vs., so I made the brackets real simple so that Vader does not match up against himself round one:

ROUND 1

Match 1
Webs of Spider-Man
Venomous!

Match 2
You Got Another Thing Coming!
Darkseid's Fate

Match 3
Your DOOM!
Sinister!

Match 4
With a Little Help from My Friend
Magnetic

Match 5
The Fantastic Tony Stark
Hotfoot!

Match 6
Mr. Pym's World!
Richard Simmons & Red Bull

Match 7
Keep It In The Family
Jean Grey All Day!

Match 8
Tim Titan
Fantastic!

Match 9
Omacs World
Batman

Match 10
Invisible Woman
Cable

Match 11
Mystique
Wolverine

Match 12
Mass Media
Iron Man

Match 13
Iron Style
Professor X

Match 14
Women of Wonder!
Elektric Daring

Match 15
Wonderful Women
Luke Cage & Iron Fist

Match 16
American Woman
Punishment

If you created one of these decks, you can make arrangements to face off against Vader if you wish to play your deck.  Any matches not completed by Monday (October 19th) will be played out by me and any other volunteers I have to play one of the decks.

And now a couple of interesting match notes:

Match 1 – Spider-Man against Venom:  Classic Match-up!


Match 3 – Battle of the Really Bad Guys

Match 9 – Batman against the Omacs…old foes face each other again.

Match 11 – Wolverine against Mystique!  Does it get more classic than that?!

Match 16 – Does anything stand a chance against the Punisher?

And be sure to check back here tomorrow for my preview of two cards from soon to be released DSM-2 fan created set.  These cards are awesome and the guys who did the work on them deserve great accolades for the work they put in to help this game stay fresh and new.  I would take my hat off to you all, but the shine from my head would blind you=)

The views of The Baldman are his alone and are not shared by the owner of this blog.  If you found anything objectionable, mean-spirited or maybe even funny in a sick sort of way, you can file a formal complaint by sending an e-mail to  seanthebaldman@hotmail.com.  Please include an address so that we can formally apologize and refund you for the unused portion.

BALDSDAY!: Clones - The Decks Revealed!

Blinded by the light…or is that the shine from his forehead?  Presenting…

BALDSDAY!

Hey peeps! Welcome to Baldsday! Here we celebrate all things Vs. and talk about how we can make the game we all love so much, even better.

As I promised, we have all of the clone decks for you to see this week. There are 32 decks that I accepted into the tournament. There were a couple of submissions that were not clone sage at all…but when I sent a reply to the owners, they both had done the same thing – attach the wrong deck to the e-mail! I was delighted to see so many submissions, and for that reason, I will have a decent prize pool for this event.

But first, I come to you with the results of the 2nd NorCal qualifier for SoCal Vs Day on October 24th.

In what was a match that could have been owned by any one of three men tied at the end of Swiss rounds, the World Champion Brian Eugenio beat out our very own Dwarf, Miguel Rodriguez.  So that means that the World Champion, fresh off his 2nd place finish at NorCal Vs Day August 22nd, will have the opportunity to defend his throne and take back the NorCal Vs. Title Belt from Michael Brenden!  (I’ll bet you didn’t even know we had one of those…but don’t get me started or I will go all ‘Vince McMahon’ on you!)

Top three decks were:
1st – Brian Eugenio –Avengers Rush
2nd – Miguel Rodriguez – Crime Lords/X-Factor
3rd – Michael Brenden – Shift Deck (ShiftDeck-NoBlink.deck)

There was a 3 way playoff because a two way playoff was just not manly enough…and the top 3 were literally tied after Swiss rounds – no joke.

Congratulations to everyone who attended, and I want to wish good luck to anyone who will represent NorCal Vs. Players at SoCal Vs. Day.  I expect we are sending down a player who will take the whole tournament, but luck is involved in cards, and that’s why we play ‘em instead of just sending the SoCal Champs belt straight to NorCal. (pause)  Oh.  Yes.  I.  Did!  (Burn on you SoCal!)

Now, back to the Clones!

Below you will find a link to follow...to more links.

Baldsday Clone Saga Challenge Decks Revealed!

I do apologize for the vssystem.org links, but listing 32 decks here would make for a column that was longer than manageable. Each link will lead to a poll.  You will have the ability to access each poll if you are a registered member of the site, but it is free and SUPER easy to join: I encourage you all to do so if for no other reason than to see my silly Vs antics on something more than a weekly basis. Just don’t stalk me…I am so not worth stalking.

Prizes are:

Winning a Thread:  2 random packs from whatever I have left over from running tournaments.  (No Web of Spider-Man, I promise.)

Top Deck Overall:  I will make a T-Shirt or Mouse Pad or something equally useful with a picture of either your chosen cloned character or some other badass clone picture of your choice.

If you are outside of North America or Europe, we can discuss if shipping is worth it and an alternative prize if not.  (I will always do my best to make it worth your while for entering and winning a contest.)

I want to thank everyone who took the time to send in a submission. This event has been a blast for me to organize.

I will reveal the brackets and begin the tournament next week: There has been a lot more coordination required that I ever dreamed possible for this, so it has taken longer than anticipated. I do sincerely apologize for the delay, but I think it will be worth it for the spectators and participants alike!

The views of The Baldman are his alone and are not shared by the owner of this blog.  If you found anything objectionable, mean-spirited or maybe even funny in a sick sort of way, you can file a formal complaint by sending an e-mail to  seanthebaldman@hotmail.com.  Please include an address so that we can formally apologize and refund you for the unused portion.