It all comes down to this! Max Suffridge of Team Alpha Omega against Team Nexus’s Miguel Garcia! Garcia won the roll and prepared to open game one as he waited for the match to begin.

Game One

Garcia opened the game with a single card set to each of his rows. Suffridge replied with Graceful Charity backed by Sinister Serpent, and then opted to discard Scapegoat for the second half of its cost. He played Swords of Revealing Light, flipping Garcia’s Tsukuyomi (which then flipped back down) and then set a spell or trap and a monster.

Garcia did nothing on his next turn, while Suffridge just set a monster. The Floridian duelist again passed, and Suffridge filled his spell and trap zone before flipping Morphing Jar one turn later. Dust Tornado ripped apart Garcia’s one set trap, Sakuretsu Armor. Suffridge played Pot of Greed, but the face down Tsukuyomi was giving him problems. “How could I not draw a Nobleman? Stupid. You’ve got a Heavy Storm, right?” Garcia seemed to confirm.

Suffridge summoned Tribe-Infecting Virus, attacked Tsukuyomi with it and Tsukuyomi turned the Jar face down. If Garcia did have Heavy Storm, then he could equalize the field. Suffridge set one more card and passed.

He didn’t have a Heavy Storm—he set three spells or traps, a monster, and passed. Swords went to the graveyard. Suffridge drew, flipped Tsukuyomi, turned Tribe face down, and then flipped it back up. Tribe-Infecting Virus attacked, bringing down the face down monster (Sangan) and Tsuku attacked directly. In main phase two, Suffridge set another monster and then passed, taking back his Tsukuyomi.

Garcia set another monster and again passed. He was trying to remain alive and in control in his play while Suffridge figured out ways to take him apart. Suffridge flipped Gravekeeper’s Spy, pulled another, and had them both in attack position. “I’m going to run straight into that Mirror Force.” He didn’t.

Tribe-Infecting Virus attacked the face down monster and instead ran straight into Ring of Destruction. The first Spy then attacked the face down monster, revealing D. D. Assailant, and life point damage was dealt in return. Suffridge aimed Snatch Steal at the Assailant, but Garcia chained Book of Moon and Suffridge had no response. He then summoned Tsukuyomi again, turned one copy of Gravekeeper’s Spy face down, and discarded Sinister Serpent in the end phase.

Garcia needed to take some risks and he did. He sent the Assailant towards the lone face up monster on Suffridge’s side, the other Spy, and watched it smack headlong into Sakuretsu Armor. He set another monster and passed.

His opponent flipped a Spy in his first main phase, took Gravekeeper’s Guard from his deck and placed it on the field, and then turned it face down by summoning Tsukuyomi. He moved to his battle phase, attacked with a Spy and hit Spirit Reaper—a fortunate defensive play for Garcia!

Garcia moved methodically, setting a spell or trap and summoning another Assailant. He again attempted to attack a Spy, but this time his attack was bounced by Mirror Force.

Suffridge flipped the Guard, bounced the Reaper back to Garcia’s hand, summoned Tsukuyomi to turn the Guard face down again, and then attacked with the two copies of Spy and Tsukuyomi. The life point totals were down to 6000 and 1800 in Suffridge’s favor. He set a spell or trap, putting him at three spells or traps and five monsters with six cards in hand to Garcia’s four in hand and two spells or traps. He set one more spell or trap and passed, taking back Tsukuyomi.

Garcia used Snatch Steal to take a Gravekeeper’s Spy . . . or at least, he tried. Book of Moon turned the Spy face down, and Garcia summoned Tribe-Infecting Virus. Looking for an out, he sent the Tribe into the face down Morphing Jar. The Ceasefire that Suffridge drew could win him the game.

But it wasn’t to be! Garcia used Delinquent Duo, and hit the Ceasefire off the random choice! Suffridge discarded Jinzo. In Garcia’s end phase he used Call of the Haunted to bring it onto the field. Garcia had won a battle, but he seemed to have lost the war.

Suffridge attacked with Jinzo and Garcia attempted to use Enemy Controller to bring it onto his side of the field. He lost the Tribe and Book of Moon prevented his Controller from resolving. Suffridge flip summoned Jinzo, played Heavy Storm, and Garcia chained Scapegoat! Suffridge summoned Breaker the Magical Warrior though, and with five monsters to take out four Sheep tokens, Jinzo swung for game!

Max Suffridge wins game one!

Game Two

“Good luck,” Suffridge wished Garcia. “But not too good.”

His luck was indeed perhaps too good, as he opened with Delinquent Duo to discard Ceasefire and Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning. He set a card to each of his zones and passed. Suffridge played Nobleman of Crossout to remove Sangan and then set his remaining cards – two spells or traps and a monster. A turn later he flipped Scapegoat in Garcia’s end phase, took his turn, played Heavy Storm, and flipped Morphing Jar. He tributed the Jar for Jinzo, used Nobleman of Crossout on Garcia’s second face down monster for the duel, attacked for 2400 directly and played Swords of Revealing Light. A commanding board, for sure.

In an effort to make a bid for control, Garcia played Graceful Charity with Sinister Serpent and set a single monster. Suffridge had him beat for the moment, though, using Metamorphosis on a Sheep token to suck up the face down monster, revealing it to be Magician of Faith. Suffridge set a card to his spell and trap zone and passed. His own Thousand-Eyes Restrict was keeping Jinzo from attacking.

His opponent set a card to each of his zones and passed. The Thousand-Eyes was tributed for Airknight Parshath, which immediately attacked, smashing through Sinister Serpent. Jinzo then attacked directly, and Garcia had only 550 life points remaining!

Garcia summoned Breaker, broke the Swords of Revealing Light that Suffridge was controlling the field with, used Snatch Steal to take possession of Jinzo, and then sent it at the Parshath. Breaker then attacked a sheep and Garcia again ended his turn.

Suffridge set two cards to his spell and trap zone, then set a monster and announced that he was relinquishing his turn. He still had two Sheep tokens remaining on the field. Garcia summoned Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer, Jinzo attacked a Sheep token, Breaker attacked one as well, and Kycoo attacked the set monster, revealing Gravekeeper’s Spy! Garcia had only 350 life points remaining. The Spy brought out Gravekeeper’s Guard and next turn Suffridge set one more monster.

That set monster was attacked and was revealed to be Magician of Faith on the following turn. Jinzo was the attacker, so none of Garcia’s other monsters had an ATK high enough to overcome the Spy’s high DEF.

Suffridge topdecked Heavy Storm, and that was the game! All the spells and traps on the field were destroyed, Jinzo returned to Suffridge’s control, and seeing that he was beaten, Garcia instantly scooped. He didn’t need to take stock of the field—he knew that Heavy Storm was one of the cards he absolutely did not want to see.

Max Suffridge is the new 2005 U.S. National Yu-Gi-Oh! Champion!