The final Shonen Jump Championship of the October 2005 Advanced format season sent the format out with a bang! With the current Advanced list rolling over into a new format in just a handful of days, duelists the world over are testing out new ideas, hunting for new tech, and trying to predict what the metagames around them will end up looking like. Before we look ahead, let’s give one last nod to the events that transpired this past weekend.
Steven Adair Wins Shonen Jump Championship Long Beach
Long Beach may have very well been the most exciting Shonen Jump Championship of 2006. Packed with star players and plenty of successful up-and-comers, we got a new addition to the two-time Top 8 club, returning veterans coming off the bench, and an end to Sang Bui’s losing streak. Tons of tech cards emerged, many of which will only become more viable in the next format, and a couple cool decks managed to make it to Day 2 as well.
But the big story was the success of our new champion, Steven Adair! Representing Team Hustle, a group from Los Angeles that had several breakout performances at the Shonen Jump, Adair’s aggressive play style led him to an undefeated 13-0 record for the weekend. In a tournament where risk-taking and guts shaped the competition, Adair’s style fit the mold better than anyone else, and he’s got the title, prizes, and Des Volstgalph to prove it.
Congratulations to Steven Adair, Shonen Jump Long Beach Champion!
Arizona Duelist Wins Shonen Jump Long Beach Side Events
Just hours ago, Daniel Youngbull faced off against Sang Bui at Shonen Jump
Championship Long Beach. After winning a random lottery drawing along with two
other duelists, each competitor won their semifinals match and earned the right
to a fifty-fifty shot at the event's second copy of Des Volstgalph. After a hard-
fought duel, it was Youngbull that emerged victorious, defeating the veteran Sang.
Congratulations to Daniel Youngbull, the side event champion of Shonen Jump
Long Beach!
Shonen Jump Action Hits Baltimore on April 8
After two back-to-back Shonen Jump Championships that had only five days between them, more Shonen Jump action is less than two weeks away. The Shonen Jump series returns to the East Coast, and already, several teams have announced their intents to attend. It’s the first major tournament that will be adhering to the new Forbidden and Limited lists, and with nothing set in stone, it’s sure to be one for the ages.
Metagame.com will be on-site for coverage, digging deep into the beginning of this new era. We’ll be bringing you plenty of feature matches, deck profiles, and interviews as they emerge over the course of the day. April 8 will mark many new beginnings for players, decks, and more, and we’ll be there to bring you all the action. You won’t want to miss a minute of our coverage!
This Week At Metagame.com
We start to shift our views from the current format to the next, easing ourselves into the new Advanced before diving headlong into it next week!
Mike Rosenberg opens up the week today with an in-depth look at Vampire Lord. While most duelists regard the once-mighty Zombie as nothing but Cyber Dragon fodder, you might see things differently after you check out this article. Alienating many cards that the average duelist runs, combining with Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer, and counteracting many top picks in the current environment, Vampire Lord has plenty of ways to make up for its 2000 ATK. Let Mike show you how you should (and shouldn’t) play this powerhouse from the past—what you learn might just surprise you.
Tomorrow, Jerome McHale sets out to create a deck that can achieve absolute dominance over the field in his Almost There column. The goal? Use The Last Warrior from Another Planet and Light of Intervention to make approximately half of the average duelist's deck completely useless, preventing them from summoning or setting monsters. The deck takes some very recent play trends into consideration and has been carefully built to interact with decisions that duelists are making. The result is a competitive fusion-centric deck that can leave the opponent with nothing but useless cards!
I'm up on Wednesday, fixing another reader-submitted deck in The Apotheosis. Ever notice that Doom Dozer and Demise, King of Armageddon are both level 8 monsters? Ryan of San Bruno, California has, and he's created a Ritual deck that mixes the brute power of Doom Dozer with the finesse and field dominance of Demise. The synergy doesn't just stop at using Doom Dozer to tribute for the King. ATK values, summoning opportunities, and more all align to create a deck that meshes far more tightly than one would assume. If you're looking to get more out of Shadow of Infinity than Moths and Frogs, you'll definitely want to check out this article.
The Duelist Pack Special Edition promos are three of the coolest cards to hit the Yu-Gi-Oh! TCG this year, but they can also be three of the most difficult to play. Each has its own intricate complexities, and you can't get the most out of your cards without fully understanding how they work. When does Blockman add a turn to his internal count? When can you chain Treasure Map, and when can't you chain it? Curtis Schultz answers all your pressing questions about the new promos this Thursday in the Duelist Academy.
Julia Hedberg continues her popular series on alternate play formats this Friday, when she looks at what might be the most challenging limited format ever devised: Rochester draft. Often host to some of the most joyously cutthroat, deviously clever play experiences one can have, Rochester is a mainstay of the TCG world and Julia will show you how to bring all that drafty goodness to Yu-Gi-Oh! Never heard of that format before? You're not alone, so check out the article and find new ways to enjoy the game!
Then, Julia’s Agents of Judgment column returns, discussing deck check techniques. If you've never been assigned to deck checking at a major event, Julia’s dissertation is going to be the perfect introduction to one of the more important aspects of judging. If you're a veteran, you'll enjoy some of the tips that Julia shares. How to deal with problem players, when to nab a competitor’s deck, and everything in between is spelled out for your learning convenience!
That’s it for this week! With the new format just days away, we’re getting prepared for a ton of forward-thinking articles in the coming weeks. It’s an exciting time to be a duelist, and it’s certainly an exciting time for us here at Metagame.com. With Shonen Jump Championship Long Beach having such a varied metagame, the future is a bright one for the world of Yu-Gi-Oh!
Thanks for reading,
—Jason Grabher-Meyer
Contributing Editor, Metagame.com