This weekend was quite a vindication for the NY/NJ Vs. System scene, with three different players from the region reaching the Top 8. Perhaps that is something the TOGIT crowd should have considered when they were testing on the flight here just a few days ago.

Apparently, Anand Khare and Adam Horvath spent the entire flight playtesting, brainstorming, and trying to anticipate this weekend’s metagame. Anyone listening in would have known all of the TOGIT decklists, what each player was going to be running and why, and various strategies and tactics to which they were vulnerable. At the end of the flight as they prepared to disembark, Anand noticed that someone sitting in their row was wearing a T-shirt for another card game.

He grew concerned that he and Adam had spilled all the secrets of the format to a potential competitor. Adam pooh-poohed the notion. “He’s one guy in the tournament among over 300 players. What are the odds we’ll end up playing him?”

Adam Horvath . . . meet Michael Dalton. Dalton is a member of EffTN and a regular on the NY/NJ tournament scene. He laughed at the story. “Anand should have recognized me sooner. I played him at a PCQ once.”

With at least 40 PC Credits being credited to each player, I asked Dalton how likely it was that he would be making an appearance at next week’s PCQ at Neutral Ground in New York. “I don’t know. I will probably be there. I wouldn’t want to play anyway after all the playing I’ve done this weekend, but I will probably be there.”

Game One

Adam took the odd initiative and looked at the gathering crowd of railbirds. “Sooo many people here to watch me mull over all my decisions.”

“It’s your time,” table judge Paul Ross offered with a smile. “At least for three hours, anyway.”

True to his word, Adam took his time examining his first set of four cards before pushing them to the bottom. Dalton joined him for a fresh set.

“Wow,” was the reaction from Dalton when Adam played no 1-drop. 

“Nice,” said Horvath when Dalton returned the favor.

Dalton ditched Dagger on turn 2 to find a Midnight Sons for his resource row, and then played Hammerhead in his front row. Horvath played Cobra but chose not to search. The two bad guys traded stuns. The score was 48 to 47 in favor of Dalton.

Obviously, Horvath had the one Mr. Hyde in hand already and played him up front alongside his partner in crime. Dalton had to decide between 3-drop Elektra and Rhino. He opted to tuck the scantily clad assassin away in his hidden area, revealing a power-up. Finally, after the obligatory think-fest, Horvath sent Cobra in to trade with Hammerhead. Mr. Hyde came over to deal 5 directly. Elektra chose to bide her time without any attack.

Dalton’s turn 4 saw Dr. Octopus, Otto Octavius join Hammerhead up front. Two Mysterios materialized for Adam, and he initially set them up in a column with Cobra in front of Mr. Hyde in the next column. Of course, Adam was not going to pass without making sure that was his optimum arrangement, and he announced that he was not passing just yet. He considered putting the illusionists in the back and then looked at how they seemed center stage. He could not make up his mind, strumming his fingers and peeking at his resource row until finally he returned to his original configuration with one behind the other.

Hammerhead came gunning for Cobra and they both flipped over. Doc Ock came after the front line Mysterio and exhausted Mr. Hyde with his triggered ability. Horvath reinforced. Elektra wanted to attack, but she could not make up her mind. She ultimately came after Hyde, and they both stunned. Dalton flipped up Midnight Sons and named Syndicate and Marvel Knights. He let Elektra go during recovery. Horvath lost one Mysterio and Cobra. The score was 35 to 34 in Horvath’s favor.

Adam played Carnage with Mysterio guarding his rear flank. Mr. Hyde was also up front. Dalton was holding Carnage, but instead opted to play Silvermane and Rhino to form a two by two grid with Hammerhead and Rhino up front and Dr. Octopus and Silvermane in back.

Mysterio came after Rhino, and both players passed with Silvermane reinforcing. Carnage came after Hammerhead. Dalton flipped up No Fear and reinforced. Both guys flipped. Mr. Hyde announced he was coming after Dr. Octopus, and Horvath flipped Uprising and Crime and Punishment. The score was 24 to 21 in favor of Horvath going into the sixth turn. Horvath could only recover one guy and chose to keep Carnage. Dalton let Dr. Octopus stick around to party with Silvermane next turn.

Dalton played Carnage and Vulture on the next turn, revealing the power-up for Otto. He put them all up front. Adam studied the forces that had marshaled against him—some 31 points of ATK were showing—and muttered, “Interesting.” John Rich and several other railbirds were confident that Dalton had things locked up. Adam finally finished his thorough examination and played his sixth resource. His plays were Vulture, Chameleon, Mendel Stromm, and Rhino . . . but how to arrange them? More thinking and careful study was called for.

Ultimately, after sifting through the various permutations and scratching his head, Adam set Vulture and Carnage up front with Rhino and Chameleon behind them respectively, while Mendel Stromm sat off to one side in the back.

Dalton sent Vulture after Chameleon, and Adam reinforced. Dalton Wild Rided for Mikado and Mosha and smoked the 1-drop. Vulture readied, and the virile old man announced an attack on Rhino. Adam saved everyone a little time—for once—and announced, “You got this one.”

Horvath 0, Dalton 1


Game Two

Adam kept his first set, while Dalton sent his back. The unofficial New Jersey State Champion had his 1-drop on the appropriate turn this game and opened with Vulture. Dalton discarded Dagger for a Midnight Sons and played his own copy of everyone’s favorite purse snatcher. The score was 48 to 50 in favor of Horvath.

Dalton laid his second resource and flipped it up to reveal Wild Ride for Iron Fist, Danny Rand and tucked him away in the hidden area. Horvath played Hammerhead and ushered him in behind Mr. Toomes. Dalton had another Wild Ride for Mikado and Mosha and shotgunned the birdman out of the way. Iron Fist launched a spin kick at Hammerhead, but Adam had two more copies of the 2-drop in his hand—no blue cards, but plenty of Hammerheads. “Ouch,” as Dalton flipped over his guy. He did not attack with Vulture. The score was 43 to 49 in favor of Horvath.

Adam had to play Cobra on turn 3, searching out Mr. Hyde should he need an underdrop on turn 4 as well. He used all his resource points by adding Chameleon to his front lines as well. Dalton played Elektra, Elektra Natchios and braced himself for a big fat serving of endurance loss. Cobra came at Vulture, and they both flipped over. With visible characters out of the way, Horvath swung in for 12 and gained 4 from his Vulture.

Of course, Dalton did get to crack back. Elektra came after Vulture, and Horvath used Chameleon’s ability to name Underworld. He then used Blown to Pieces and No Fear to make both of Dalton’s following attacks into trades. Dalton kept Elektra, while Horvath retained Cobra and Hammerhead. The score was 41 to 24 in favor of Adam.

Dr. Octopus went right up front for Dalton. Adam indeed underdropped, putting his Mr. Hyde behind Hammerhead and leaving Cobra up front. Dalton sent his assassin in with a power-up after Hammerhead. Adam revealed Honor Among Thieves, and they both stunned, with Mr. Hyde reinforcing. Dr. Octopus came after Mr. Hyde and exhausted Cobra. Horvath recovered the duo and let Hammerhead take a dirt nap. The score was 21 to 33 in Horvath’s favor.

Adam had no problem arranging all his characters in the front row as Owl and Stilt-Man—two of the truly lamer villains in the Daredevil rogues gallery—joined the scene of the crime. Dalton once again eschewed his 5-drop on turn 5 in favor of multiple characters. He dropped Dagger and Hammerhead, with the lady first in front of the gangster. Dr. Octopus was also up front, while Elektra chilled in the shadows. Cobra flew back at Hammerhead, and Dalton used Dr. Octopus’s ability to reinforce. Stilt-Man stunned Dagger. Owl came after Dr. Octopus, there was an Uprising on Adam’s side of the table, and they both stunned. Mr. Hyde attacked directly, and Adam emptied his hand by boosting it with Crime and Punishment. Dalton had no attack back, and the score was 28 to 1 in Adam’s favor.

“I am so bad . . . ” sighed Adam, as he realized that he could have attacked in such a way as to not give Dalton one more turn on a single point of endurance. Dalton played Carnage and left all his men up front. Adam bagged a Rhino during his draw and arranged his guys in a two by two grid, with Mr. Hyde and Rhino as the first line of defense while Owl and Stilt-Man watched the rear.

Elektra came after Mr. Hyde, but Dalton’s heart wasn’t in it to go through the motions as he realized he could not win despite Adam giving him one extra turn that Adam was till shaking his head about. “If I just sent Stilt-Man after Hammerhead, I win that turn.”

Horvath - 1 Dalton - 1


Game Three

Dalton took the odds and passed with no play, while Adam got get his beat on with Mendel Stromm. Horvath had Hammerhead for turn 2, while Dalton recruited Silvermane. Mr. Stromm bashed into it, and Hammerhead came in for 8 thanks to Doc Ock’s Lab. The score was 46 to 38 in favor of Horvath.

Dalton had Daredevil, Protector of Hell’s Kitchen and stuck him up front with Silvio. Adam had Cobra for turn 3, along with Chameleon to box up his guys. The 1-drops were up front with the 2-drops hanging back. Dalton’s Silvermane went at it with Chameleon. Horvath paid 1 to make it Crime Lords and reinforced with Cobra. Daredevil came at Mendel Stromm, and Adam considered reinforcing. He decided to KO him instead to put a counter on Hammerhead. Daredevil readied and attacked Cobra. Adam could not attack back with Hammerhead in the back, and he let Chameleon go. The score was 40 to 38 in Horvath’s favor.

Adam recruited Mr. Hyde and another copy of Mendel Stromm and pushed all his men to the front edge of his Top 8 playmat. A Moon Knight from Dalton hung out behind Daredevil, with Silvermane also up front. Cobra came in for Daredevil, and they traded stuns. Mendel came after Silvermane’s brittle bones. Dalton turned Wild Ride face up for Mikado and Mosha, then went to stun Mendel, but missed when Hammerhead picked up a second counter. The gangster came after Silvermane with a power-up and Doc Ock’s Lab. Dalton wanted to use No Fear from his hand, but it had no effect because the characters had the same cost. Adam understood but made him lose the card all the same. “He looks bigger than he is with all this stuff on him.”

Mr. Hyde came after Dalton’s Moon Knight, and Adam flipped Uprising so they would trade stuns. Adam kept Hammerhead and Mr. Hyde, while Dalton was left with only the Moon Knight. The score was 32 to 20 in favor of Horvath.

Dalton fetched Midnight Sons with Dagger and played Vulture, Hammerhead, and Iron Fist, putting them all up front. Adam tapped the deck and made a pair of Mysterios appear. Horvath went into hands-on-head thinking mode to strategize his formation. He put the two confusionists in the back, with Hammerhead and Mr. Hyde at the front.

Iron Fist took down Mr. Hyde with some assistance from Punisher’s Armory. Hammerhead came after the unprotected Mysterio; his doppelganger reinforced. Dalton revealed Midnight Sons and teamed up Syndicate and Knights. Vulture attacked Hammerhead. Dalton went all-in with No Fear, Crime and Punishment, and Doc Ock’s Lab (he went to 13 to use the Lab) He also flipped up a second Armory and used it five times (going to 1), and boosted the Vulture’s ATK to 17. Adam fell to 12 and Mike went up to 11. He was able to finish Adam off with Moon Knight and one more activation of the Armory.
 
Adam could not believe how many cards Dalton used to finish him off. “You had so many plot twists that game you could just throw one away for no apparent reason.”

“Exactly!” agreed Dalton, who was being alternately cheered and jeered by his teammates. He halfheartedly defended his misplay with No Fear and Hammerhead—“It looked like a 3-drop!”

Somehow, two hours had flown by at this point and Head Judge Alex Charsky advised both players—although he seemed to be looking in Adam’s direction—that they only had one hour remaining and that both players would need to pick up the pace of play for the remaining two games.

Horvath 1, Dalton 2


Game Four

Adam mulliganed, with neither player hitting a 1-drop—Zanzibar, Pygmies, and all that. Dalton Daggered for Midnight Sons during his build, and then he recruited Silvermane. It was the terrifying Stilt-Man for Horvath. The two also-ran villains collided and traded stuns.

Adam quickly played Rhino and looked to the table judge for approval. Paul Ross nodded, “You are doing good.”

Meanwhile, Dalton was trying to decide between his own Rhino and Elektra, Elektra Natchios. The judge reminded him of the time ticking away, and he decided on the 7 ATK, 4 DEF character. Adam sent Rhino into Silvermane, and Dalton’s Rhino reinforced. Stilt-Man more than earned his keep with a stun of Rhino thanks to Honor Among Thieves. Adam still had both of his dudes, while Dalton could only retain his 3-drop.

Turn 4 was Moon Knight for Dalton and a pair of illusionists for Horvath. Adam arranged the two copies of Mysterio in one column and put Rhino in charge of protecting the precariously perched Stilt-Man. Dalton announced some Rhino-on-Rhino action, and both players took 3 endurance loss when Stilt-Man reinforced. Moon Knight went after the frontline Mysterio with a little something from the Punisher’s Armory. Horvath flipped Blown to Pieces, and both characters stunned.

Mysterio was able to come back across unimpeded, and with Doc Ock’s Lab, the endurance totals were at 24 even at the end of the turn. Dalton had only Moon Knight, while Adam only lost one Mysterio.

Adam recruited Carnage and pushed him up front, while Mysterio was in the back with the other characters as his wingmen. Dalton dropped four characters: Dagger, Mikado and Mosha, Silvermane, and Mendel Stromm. He tried to find a way to optimally set his board, while Adam sat back and enjoyed the sight of someone else struggling with formations besides himself.

“What is the flavor text on the 8-drop Superman? ‘He knows he cannot save them all. And still he tries.’”

In the end, Dalton left Mendel unprotected, with Silvermane behind Dagger and M&M behind Moon Knight. Adam sent Stilt-Man—the hardest-working man in organized crime—after Moon Knight, revealing Uprising in his resource row. Both characters stunned after M&M reinforced. Mysterio wanted a piece of Mendel Stromm, so he came over with a power-up for an 8 ATK. Dalton KO’d his 1-drop and had to put the counter on Silvermane. Mysterio readied and came after Dagger. Dalton revealed Midnight Sons and reinforced with Silvermane. Rhino lumbered across after M&M, and it looked like a fifth game was in the offing.

Adam wiped his hands together and turned to judge Ross. “See there, nice and brisk. I’m trying to work with you. You just need to will Honor Among Thieves into my hand. It seems to speed things along.”

Adam Horvath wins Game 4.

Horvath - 2 Dalton - 2


Game Five

Alex Charsky came over and made it clear to each player that there was only a half hour of time remaining. He assured them that the match would definitely be called on time if it came to it, although neither player seemed to fully believe him.

Dalton looked at the judge and protested, “There are just some points in the game that take time to figure out.”

Dalton kept his opening hand, while Horvath pushed his to the bottom. Dalton played Vulture and revealed Hammerhead. Adam shrugged, saying, “I’ve got nothing. No 1-drops in my deck—not a one.”

Stilt-Man stepped up for Adam on turn 2, and Dalton Daggered up Midnight Sons before laying a resource and recruiting the previously revealed gangster. He pushed both characters up front. Adam traded stuns with the 2-drops but was behind in the race thanks to two clean hits from the purse snatcher. The endurance totals were 51 to 44 in favor of the curvaceous Dalton.

Elektra, Elektra Natchios was the next arc in the smooth draw, revealing Iron Fist. Adam had the look of a man making an under-drop, and with the specter of the Chark over his shoulder, he weighed his options as quickly as possible. With the Chark tapping his toes, he actually hit his curve with the hollow-boned Owl, and he tucked him behind Stilty. Dalton flipped up Spider Slayers and named Owl, and then he sent the Vulture in. Elektra powered-up and went after Stilt-Man, but Adam used Uprising to make them trade. Hammerhead came in for 5 endurance loss unopposed, and the endurance totals were 48 to 28 in favor of Dalton.

Horvath recruited Masked Marauder, and Dalton found it imprudent to flip down his Spider Slayers. He recruited Rhino and Dagger. He made an “L” formation in the visible area with Hammerhead at the point and Rhino up front. Elektra still loomed on the fringe. The Marauder came after Hammerhead, and Dagger reinforced. Owl came over for Rhino, and Adam played Crime and Punishment from his hand. Adam had to decide if he wanted to use the Marauder’s ability on Elektra, and he chose to pass. Dalton sent in the assassin and faced up No Fear, and they traded stuns. The endurance totals were 35 to 19 in Dalton’s favor, but he was holding nothing relevant for next turn.

Dalton chose to pay for Spider Slayers on his initiative turn, but he did not choose to pay 8 endurance to flip it twice, which set off a ripple of murmurs throughout the pro-Dalton portion of the railbirds. Michael recruited Mikado and Mosha and Iron Fist, and Adam suddenly saw some light at the end of the tunnel. He rolled his chair back from the table and appraised the situation.

“When you have five resource points and use three, that is something. It’s something.”

Adam conjured up a pair of Mysterios and Mendel Stromm. He informed the judge that even though they were approaching the ten-minute mark, he required some time to think. He put both illusionists up front and left the other two characters in the back. He quickly rethought that and arranged the Mysterios in one column, with Mendel Stromm protecting Masked Marauder in another. He wanted more time to think, but he had Charsky and the table judge spurring him on.

“I can’t believe this. There you are.”

Now, it was Dalton’s turn to think. Finally, at the prodding of the table judge, he sent Dagger after Mysterio and flipped his Spider Slayers back up. The back-row illusionist reinforced, and Adam took 3 to Dalton’s 1. Mikado and Mosha went after the second Mysterio after everyone checked that Spider Slayers would give the bonus to both of Dalton’s attackers that turn. Dalton took 1 and Horvath took 4.

Dalton’s Iron Fist and Mendel Stromm traded after Adam flipped Honor Among Thieves and reinforced. Dalton then sent in Elektra. He played Crime and Punishment from his hand and revealed Doc Ock’s Lab for additional damage, finally throwing down his last remaining card in hand—a power-up to give him exactly enough ATK to win the game . . .

 . . . unless Horvath had something of his own in hand. Horvath tallied the flurry of cards and effects, and he confirmed that he would go exactly to 0. He looked through his hand and dropped his only other copy of Masked Marauder in the deck onto the table for the power-up to remain alive for one more turn.

He took a moment and looked at Dalton’s situation. Michael had no cards in hand, and his entire resource row was turned face up.

“Nothing in hand? Stone cold off the top? Let’s go!”

Adam played Vulture, Rhino, and Stilt-Man, putting everyone but Masked Marauder up front. He tucked Marauder behind Rhino in the middle. What did Dalton’s draw offer him?

Adam waited to see what he would have to contend with. “This is definitely the tightest game I have ever played in my life.”

Dalton pointed at Marauder and rolled his eyes. “You only have two of those in your entire deck!”

“I was lucky enough to draw it.”

Dalton did the math on what kind of beatings were in store for him as he debated between the two playable characters he had drawn. On one hand, he could play Carnage, and on the other, he could play Luke Cage, Street Enforcer.

The judge asked questions to move things along. Time had run out, and this would be the last turn. “Are you playing a resource?” Dalton did not. “Slayers trigger?”

Dalton laughed, saying, “I’m not paying four.” He recruited the 5-drop, and Adam let out a “Whufff!” He took the hat from a German reporter and put it on, saying, “I’m going to need this.”

Horvath flipped up a second copy of Honor Among Thieves before doing anything else, and he thought about his attack. “Does Rhino want to attack Carnage? I think Rhino wants to attack Carnage. I know Vulture doesn’t want to attack Carnage. Stilt-Man is going to attack.”

Stilt-Man came over, and with a No Fear, he was able to take down the Spidey villain. Vulture attacked directly for 4, taking Adam from -1 back up to 3. One team attack later, Adam Horvath was the Pro Circuit Amsterdam Champion and $40,000 richer than when he started the weekend.

Horvath - 3 Dalton - 2

Adam Horvath wins PC: Amsterdam!

Dalton’s cronies rushed in and asked him why he failed to pay 4 additional endurance to flip up Spider Slayers, name Masked Marauder, and flip it back down chained to his resource step. The 2 extra points on the Masked Marauder would have been the difference in the match. Mike was stunned and more than a little disappointed with his teammates. “Way to make me feel better. I don’t think I played the game wrong.”

Gabe Alonso came over and patted his teammate on the back. “Don’t listen to those guys, Mike. You played great. Great job!”

Dalton smiled, but he also looked over at the throng of players, judges, press, and tournament staff clamoring for Horvath’s time and attention. He had to be thinking about what might have been.

After the match, I spoke with table judge Paul Ross and asked him what really would have happened if the players had run out of time. He smiled, saying, “They did run out of time.”

I rephrased the question. I asked him what he would have done if they had run out of time on a non-decisive turn. He smiled even more widely and leaned in conspiratorially.

 “Whatever The Chark told me to do.”

And that was as good an answer as I was going to get.