This week represents a short interlude in my general remit of talking about the strategy of Vs. With PC Indianapolis fast approaching—while there is plenty of mileage in talking about either DC Modern Age or the finer points of draft—I would hope that those of you who are playing in the big show have the conviction in your own testing to feel prepared for the event without any huge input from me. The only tips I will send your way for Indianapolis are as follows:

1. I wouldn't recommend switching decks in Constructed now. You would be much better served practicing with the deck you’re accustomed to until the cows come home. If the mooing doesn’t distract you, you should probably continue once they are there.

2. Have a plan for dealing with a turn 2 Chopping Block. This plan should not include losing the game.

3. Drink plenty of water. For a two-day tournament, it is easy to forget about the simple things. While you might feel fine for the first day, you will get dehydrated if you don't get enough fluids, and the sorts of caffeinated beverages that keep Metagame.com coverage staff awake aren't actually the best answer to this problem. To avoid headaches and lethargy, go with water.

Now that all the serious stuff is out of the way, I want to talk about having fun. The object of any game is to win. The purpose of a game is to have fun. If you aren't having fun playing Vs., then there are definitely more attractive ways of procuring yourself money. If you are having fun at Vs., then losing at the Pro Circuit level shouldn't be something that you allow yourself to get down about.

There are a lot of “competitive” players out there that sometimes seem to forget the “fun” thing once they put their game faces on. Obviously, it is important to take the game seriously and try to win, but that and having a good time really shouldn't be mutually exclusive. It has been suggested that laughter is the best medicine. As more and more people develop tolerances to penicillin, this becomes increasingly true. I wouldn't recommend that you eschew thousands of years of advances in medical technology if you do wake up to find out that your leg has been bitten off by a tiger, but in general, making the world a better place by being positive is a good thing.*

The problem is this: once you start playing at a competitive level—trying to exploit every edge and win wherever possible—it is quite hard to go back. Crazy, fun multiplayer decks, or combo decks that win in ten different ways (all fun, but none fast) lose a little bit of their sparkle when compared to attacking with efficiently-costed characters. Drawing your entire deck might well be nice, but only if it is consistent and actually leads to a dead opponent. This is a shame. Many a card has been consigned to the ranks of “unplayable,” and all the time and trouble that R&D went to leads to naught—unless something happens in later sets to change the value of various cards.

It seems unfortunate to me that while there is a Pro Circuit that rewards the competitive players, there is no natural analogue for the people doing something a little bit different. To this end, I have decided to set one up at PC Indianapolis, where the world can see it.

Pro Circuit Indianapolis will host the very first Willoughby Invitational!

I know, the name is far from the most compelling you will ever hear, and I might change it if some kind Santa Claus decides to sponsor it with additional prize support, or I come up with something that makes me chuckle. The first half seemed deliciously self indulgent enough that it was rather fitting, and the second half is fairly functional in that I will be choosing the invitees.

The format for each invitational will be different—I already have some big plans for WI SoCal—but since Indianapolis is all about DC Modern Age, I thought it might be fun for the format to reflect this somehow.

While at $10K Munich, I was lucky enough to acquire product that, while commonplace in Germany, is rather unusual for the English-speaking world. I speak, of course, of DC Modern Age packs. These boosters, which contain product with text in German, have sixteen cards rather than the typical fourteen, and these cards are from a mix of Man of Steel, Green Lantern, and the new Batman starter. Intrigued? I definitely was. Occasionally, packs will contain more than one rare, and there is always the fun of not necessarily remembering (or being able to decipher) exactly what the cards do based on their foreign text.

While it would have been tempting to open up this box for my own pleasure, I feel that it will be a lot more fun to see it drafted—with a few special rules thrown in. At Willoughby Invitational drafts, everything works as normal but for the following extra little quirks:

1) Every rare that is drafted must be played. Failure to do so will result in a stern ticking off and exclusion from any future Willoughby Invitational events.

2) Players will naturally start with 30 endurance points. When they construct and register their decks, they must list how many teams are represented. For each team beyond the first, they will receive 5 additional endurance points.

3) Players can build their deck with as few as ten cards. For every five cards greater than this number, they will be allowed an additional card in their starting hand. This means that if they play 45 of their 48 cards drafted, they will be allowed a seven-card starting hand. Which will it be: power or consistency?

Alas, I must confess that these rules mean that the event will not be sanctioned. While there are no valuable points to be earned, this does mean that everyone—including those without UDE numbers or with full-time jobs at UDE—is eligible to play. All that anyone has to do is to get onto my invite list. If your name isn't on the list, you're not coming in, though you're more than welcome to watch.

I intend to run the Invitational right after the Top 8 of the PC has finished (and any immediate Metagame.com work is done, don't worry, Mr. Editor). Prizes** will be given out just as soon as the event is over. They have not been confirmed yet but should include some combination of cards, a nice trophy, an invite to the next Invitational, and maybe a box of Twinkies if I can keep them from being eaten for the entire weekend.

So how does one get on the list, you cry? Well, four of the eight players will be “pros” of some variety or another, lassoed and brought into the game by yours truly. My definition of “pro” encompasses people who have won fair money at a $10K or PC as well as UDE workers, such as Metagame.com or R&D staff. If you're looking for some fine scalps to take in a whole new arena, then this would be a good chance to hunt some down. The other four could be anyone. Anyone that is, who has proven himself or herself by winning one of the four incredible challenges laid out below. Each has been carefully designed to both give me a good chuckle and test each and every one of you to the limits of your ingenuity. Have a look.

Challenge 1 - Rhyme Time

Poetry was never my strong suit at school. The subtleties of layers of metaphors and flowery language left me uninspired. However, I have always rather enjoyed that highest form of art, the cheeky limerick. To this end, the first challenge is to complete the following limerick given the first line of:

There once was a player of Vs. . . .

Feel free to pronounce Vs. as “Vee Ess” or “Versus” as necessary, and try to make it rhyme. Remember, though, that the primary objective is to have fun.

Challenge 2 - If I were a Superhero . . .

I'd like to see what my readers think of themselves. Submit yourself in card form. I'm looking for something entertaining, but not necessarily powerful. But remember, I am a competitive player, so something both fun and playable might be the right way to go.

Challenge 3 - Play of the Day

Be it your greatest triumph or most stinging defeat, I want to hear about the single greatest play you have ever been involved with in Vs. Did you beat your opponent despite forgetting to play a resource for the first turn, with it ending up being the best thing that could have happened because of Strange Visitor? Did you deck someone with The Joker, Emperor Joker after he played The Fall of Oa and drew his entire deck? I want to hear it. The most entertaining story wins.

Challenge 4 - A Good Deck is a Rare Find

The latest fun Constructed format I've been pondering is one in which you are only allowed to include rare cards. Whoever submits the most original, entertaining, and potentially powerful deck wins. I will allow a little bit of artistic license in terms of how lucky you can get with the deck, and if you include a short explanation of such a lucky draw, it may well help your chances.

With the Pro Circuit only a week away, I would urge you not to eschew testing in favor of taking part in these challenges. However, if you are looking to have a bit of extra fun at GenCon and are up for a challenge, I would love to hear from you at the standard email address at the bottom of the page. I won't have time to announce the winners on Metagame before the PC, but I shall email them by the Wednesday before the PC and will provide a player list at the venue for anyone that wants to find out who is in. To avoid disappointment, I recommend you send your entries in as soon as possible. Full coverage of the Invitational will be up on metagame at the first opportunity.

Have fun, and be lucky.

Tim “I wonder if he's the same guy that came up with the Willoughby Invitational” Willoughby

timwilloughby@hotmail.com

*This doesn't necessarily include feeding tigers. If they don't learn to find food for themselves, they get all lazy and flabby. Nothing is sadder than a chubby tiger.

**Yes, that's right, prizes!