“I had the craziest dream last night. I dreamed that I drafted six copies of Copperhead,” Shane Wiggans said as he shuffled up his deck, “and then I missed my 1-drop every game. I would look at hand after hand, and all the cards weren’t Copperhead—and I had drafted like, a million of the things.”
Wiggans’s luck in the waking world hasn’t been quite as bad as that. Now entering round 17, he and his opponent, Patrick Richardson, are both on the bubble. They’ve each chalked up thirteen victories and need two more to secure themselves a seat at the big table tomorrow.
“We’re both playing to secure a spot,” Richardson said.
Wiggans’s luck continued with a roll of 20 to claim the choice of initiative. He took the odds and then deliberated over his opening hand, finally deciding to keep a grip full of 2-drops. If he sent them to the bottom of his deck now, he would almost certainly not see another. Richardson also kept, and the game was afoot.
Wiggans missed his Copperhead, and turn 1 saw no recruits on either side of the table.
With a muttered, “I drafted so badly,” Richardson recruited Elasti-Man, Ralph Dibney on turn 2. Wiggans’s reply was a simple Captain Boomerang, “Digger” with a counter. Dibney swung into Digger, and both players lost 2 endurance.
Turn 3 saw Wiggans recruit Shadow-Thief and search his deck for a 1-cost Army character.
“Are you playing the concealed Army thing?” Richardson asked.
“This is my sixth JLA draft ever,” Wiggans confided. “I’ve heard of that concealed draft the Germans are targeting, but I’m just doing what I’m familiar with.”
Wiggans snagged himself an Infernal Minions and put all his characters in the front row. Richardson followed up by recruiting Joseph Jones ◊ General Glory, who formed up in front of Ralph Dibney. Shadow-Thief and the Minions ran over and slapped General Glory, with the Thief taking the stun back. A powered-up Captain Boomerang then took down Dibney while avoiding a mutual stun. Richardson lost his Elastic Man, and the endurance totals were 41 to 45 in favor of Wiggans.
Richardson hit his 4-drop, Ice, while Wiggans played nothing at all on turn 4. “Nothing.” he said simply. “I have no recruits.”
Ice attacked Boomerang, and Wiggans teamed up with a Justice League of Arkham.
“I’ll take 6,” Wiggans said.
Richardson sent Glory in for the direct attack, leaving the endurance totals at 41–34. Discretion being the better part of valor, Wiggans said he would abstain from attacking back with his hidden characters.
On turn 5, Wiggans recruited Abra Kadabra and protected his Boomerang, placing it behind the 5-drop. Richardson recruited Tasmanian Devil and put the Aussie in front alongside Glory, with Tora Olafsdotter in the back.
Shadow-Thief and Boomerang team attacked Tasmanian Devil; with their combined ATK of 7, they were barely able to stun him. “I’ll take 5 and stun back Shadow-Thief,” Richardson said.
Wiggans Death Trapped the Taz back to Richardson’s hand, exhausting the Infernal Minions, and then sent Kadabra into Glory for the damage. This put the endurance totals at 31–33 in Richardson’s favor, although Richardson only had two characters on the table.
Richardson led off turn 6 by recruiting Metamorpho. “What you got?” he asked Wiggans. Gorilla Grodd was the answer.
“Of course.”
With the initiative on Richardson’s side, Metamorpho attempted to fly into Abra Kadabra, but Wiggans used Grodd to sacrifice Kadabra and steal Ice. Richardson, seeing a chance to do some serious damage, sent Metamorpho into Ice. “Unbelievable. I’ll take 11,” Wiggans said.
Trying to slow down the endurance loss that was sure to come on Wiggans’s attacks back, Richardson sent General Glory into Grodd. “I’ll pass,” Richardson said, taking 3 from Glory’s stun and sending things over to Wiggans.
Boomerang and Grodd were able to take down Richardson’s Metamorpho with a team attack, with Grodd taking the stun back. With the board clear on Richardson’s side, the hidden characters were able to swing across directly for 5 endurance. It was now 19–14 in Wiggans’s favor.
With the initiative on turn 7, Wiggans played Solomon Grundy, Buried on Sunday and formed up with Grundy to the left of the Gorilla and Boomerang behind Grundy. Richardson played Wonder Woman, Princess Diana and put her in front of Metamorpho.
“I just drew all my characters,” complained Wiggans. “Two plot twists all game.”
Jotting some calculations on a notepad, he apologized for taking so much time. “We’re not up against the wall, though.” Wiggans worked out whether or not he could kill his opponent that turn. With the math done, he KO’d Grundy to try to take Metamorpho, but Richardson KO’d the shapeshifter with Sinister Citadel to give Wonder Woman a counter. “That’s just horrible,” Wiggans said.
Boomerang and Grodd team attacked Wonder Woman with just enough to stun her. The hidden characters then attacked directly again, putting the endurance totals at 7–8 in favor of Wiggans. With Richardson taking the initiative on turn 8, that spelled trouble for Wiggans.
Richardson’s only recruit was a Captain Marvel. On his build, Wiggans revealed a Slaughter Swamp and used it to return Solomon Grundy to his hand. He replayed Grundy and formed up with Grundy protecting Boomerang and Grodd in the back row on the side.
Captain Marvel attacked Grundy, powering up to 18 ATK/18 DEF thanks to his purely-platonic Amazon pal. A Plasma Blast from hand reduced Grundy to 17 ATK/17 DEF. Things weren’t that simple, though—Wiggans had finally drawn his plot twists, and a The Plunder Plan and With Prejudice brought Grundy up to 19 ATK/20 DEF. To prevent the endurance loss from the stun back, Richardson used Sinister Citadel to KO the Captain and put a counter on Wonder Woman.
Wonder Woman swung into Grodd. Thanks to a reinforcement from Captain Boomerang, the endurance totals were 2–7 in Richardson’s favor.
“This is the closest game either of us has played all day,” Richardson said.
“Yeah, and this turn I’m not going to make the same mistake,” Wiggans replied.
Wiggans counted his deck, trying to figure out the odds that he could win, and decided he needed to go another turn. He made no attacks.
On turn 9, Wiggans recruited Charaxes, Killer Moth and Insectoid Troopers.
“This is turn 9—that’s craziness,” Wiggans said. “You throw out Starro The Conqueror and I’ll be mad. He was going around.”
But Richardson didn’t have any hot starfish action going on. He dropped Tasmanian Devil and Ted Kord ◊ Blue Beetle. He followed that up by exhausting Blue Beetle and discarding a card to fetch Booster Gold, which he boosted out. He then recruited a second copy of Blue Beetle and used that one to fetch a High-Tech Flare Gun, which he recruited on Booster Gold. “That High-Tech Flare Gun would have been useful last turn,” he said.
Richardson formed up with Ted Kord behind Wonder Woman and Booster Gold behind Tasmanian Devil. Wiggans sent Grodd, Boomerang, Insectoid Troopers, Infernal Minions, and Shadow-Thief all into Wonder Woman, for a total of 23 ATK.
The stun back on Grodd put the endurance totals at 0 to -2. Charaxes went after Booster Gold, and when that was followed up by an attack of Solomon Grundy on Tasmanian Devil, Richardson decided to scoop.
Wiggans wins his fifteenth of the tournament!