It’s Monday, June 12, and the 2006/2007 qualifying season has kicked off in the US of A!
2007 Nationals Qualifier Seasons Beginning
With National Championships being held all over the world this month, many countries have already begun the 2007 National Qualifying season. With the summer shifting into high gear, there are qualifying events being held all across the world, many of which are giving duelists their first chance to lock in an appearance at next year’s Nationals.
If you’re in Canada or the US, check out the official tournament locator over at the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG website. You can find it right here, and from there, just type “Regional” in the Tournament Name field. Then, choose the parameters for the dates and areas where you’re looking for competition. Alternately, you can just leave the extra parameters blank to get a full spread of the Regionals scheduled thus far for the year. With almost 100 Regional tournaments already booked between now and the end of 2006, there’s bound to be one within driving distance of wherever you are.
Even if you’re not interested in qualifying for Nationals, you can always show up in order to win one of the new Regional playmats. In the past, making it to the Top 8 of a Regional tournament would earn you one of the basic Yu-Gi-Oh! mats: you know, those ones that are basically tricked out, rubberized versions of the paper mats you find in Structure and Starter decks. The new mat, which made its American debut at US Nationals two weeks ago, features all three of the Yu-Gi-Oh! GX Sacred Beast monsters in the background with a complete set of zones for all of your cards overlaying the primary design.
While some have decreed the new mat to be “too colorful,” eBay seems to disagree, with the few mats that have been sold taking down more than $100 apiece. Whether you’re a fan of the Sacred Beasts or not, the demand for these exclusive new prizes is going to make them desirable to anyone on the bubble at a Regional. Good one, UDE.
Shonen Jump Championship Atlanta This Weekend
Don’t forget that the latest stop on the Shonen Jump Championship circuit is this coming weekend, in Atlanta, Georgia! With the pressure of Nationals gone, rivalries cooling off, and several new decks emerging in the North American metagame, Shonen Jump Atlanta should be an awesome start to the 2007 season.
Are you thinking of heading out to compete? Need details on events, times, and directions to the venue? Check out Unity Entertainment’s official website for all the info you’ll need.
Metagame.com will be attending in force, and Atlanta will mark the return of the Scrub Brush Challenge! Think you’ve got what it takes to make the Top 8? Willing to lay your reputation on the table to prove it? Come to us before the tournament starts to declare your intent, and if you make it to Day 2, we’ll give you an exclusive interview on Metagame.com. But if you don’t succeed, you’ll have to endure the shame of being photographed holding a scrub brush. Deal, or no deal? It’s up to you, this weekend.
This Week on Metagame.com
Mike starts off our week today with a look at Macro Cosmos. Examining why it didn’t see play at Nationals, and why it should have, he delves into the card’s capabilities while discussing North American metagame trends. The result is not only a great look at Macro Cosmos, but also an important statement about why innovation is a valuable asset to any duelist. Tired of your 50/50 Chaos Return deck? Read this.
Having judged at the US National Championship, Jerome McHale has a thing or two to pass along to future National competitors. Jerome’s got plenty of tips on maintaining your focus, preparing for both Day 1 and the Top 8, and some important views on approaches to game theory, all of which are going to be of interest for any Nationals-level competitor. Mix in some amusing stories, and you’ve got a must-read article for Tuesday!
One of my favorite combos from Enemy of Justice is the use of the Herald monsters, Dimensional Fissure, and Layard the Liberator to create a neverending stream of negation! Unfortunately, the combo doesn’t work: If the Heralds can’t go to the graveyard, they can’t get their effect. It’s a fact I, and Wednesday’s deck submitter, managed to miss for quite a while, so now it’s up to me to breathe new life into a deck built around a combo that doesn’t work. Check out the results in The Apotheosis!
Curtis Schultz will take a look at important group of cards with some Yu-Gi-Oh! GX flare this Thursday, as he explains the important rulings behind the cards used by Professor Banner. Golden Homunculus, the Helios monsters, and more get the full treatment this week, as Curtis answers questions like, “When do I discard for Elemental Absorber?” and “ . . . wait, Helios Duo Megistus does what now?” If you’re considering playing Macro Cosmos, or already run it, you’ll definitely want to show up for class at Curtis’s Duel Academy.
Last time around, Julia Hedberg’s Solid Ground column looked at effects and situations where a new chain would either be a good idea, or would be created automatically, with an emphasis on effects that couldn’t interrupt chains. But did you know that there are several effects that can resolve immediately after a chained effect, or “between” chain links? Julia gets down to the gritty technical details this week, as she examines how a duelist can interrupt chains while they resolve this Friday.
On Saturday, you get another top-notch tournament-worthy deck from Jae Kim. This time he sets his sights on Skill Drain, demonstrating how you can use careful card selection to mitigate Skill Drain’s effect on your deck. The result is a strategy that hampers the opponent’s monsters to a ridiculous degree, while leaving you clear to smash face with some of the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG’s biggest, baddest monsters!
Finally, Matt Peddle rounds out the week with an in-depth look at the deck that Christopher Lamp took to German Nationals. Making the Top 8 with an innovative Dark World/Deck Devastation Virus strategy, Lamp has managed to succeed in a deck category that North American duelists have widely failed with. Packing a unique blend of effects and a whopping 43 cards, this deck is nothing short of an achievement, and Matt will show you why.
That’s it for us this week, but don’t forget to check out all the action from Shonen Jump Championship Atlanta this Saturday! What decks will find glory, whose hands will they be in, and who will be left holding a scrub brush? Find out, as we bring you live, extended coverage of feature matches, decks, tech, teams, duelists, and the live Metagame.com blog.
As always, thanks for reading!
—Jason Grabher-Meyer
Contributing Editor, Metagame.com