Hey guys, Phinnegan again. About a week ago I played in the US National Championship, where I was able to make 15th as the only Seismitoad Bats player in all of top 64. This piece is going to cover how the tournament went for me, and I also include my list at the end of the piece. I don’t have a list explanation ready right now, but I plan on publishing an article sometime next week explaining my deck’s match-ups and the deck list. So, without further adieu, this is my Nationals report!
Once we landed in Columbus, things were looking shaky. I was hoping to get a ton of testing in; instead I was working with my friends trying to figure out how to get our rental car. We spent the better part of the day figuring out petty travel plans, and didn’t get much testing in.
The following time up until the tournament consisted of a good amount of confusion and caffeine. For a short period of time I was thinking of switching to a Metal Rayquaza deck, but eventually decided that it wasn’t a good idea. Nobody in the Cut or Tap group couldreally agree on a best play. We all decided to play different decks, since none of us quite sure what was correct.
Day one of Nationals came and I felt extremely nervous. I’m shaking in my seat as I wait for rosters. Eventually pairings go up and I greet my first opponent.
Round 1: Yveltal
Going into this matchup I felt very confident. Yveltal is one of Toad Bats’ best match-ups for reasons I don’t really understand. For some reason, I always win against it. I think I have played about 10 to 14 games against Yveltal and I literally have not lost once so far.
Much to my surprise, my opponent was able to get down to two prizes both games. However, Toad Bats (or TB) thrives off of losing an early prize lead. Both games, I was able to N my opponent to a low hand size and take six prizes. Item lock + N to 2 + Silent Lab is just too strong! Win 2-0; 1-0-0
Round 2: Medicham Carbink
Round two and I’m already facing someone I know! Justin Poist is a central California player who I frequently see at events. He’s a great player that often brings interesting decks.
Medicham is not what I expected to see round two; but I did feel confident because I know the deck thrives off of engines that I easily counter. Stadiums, Special Energy, and tools are most of what makes Fighting decks strong. I kept my 4 stadiums, Xerosic and Megaphone ready. I quickly learned that Carbink Break is not affected by Silent Lab, which ended up being very useful information in the long run. And while Safegaurd was annoying, it was manageable. 110 HP is not hard to get through and attacking with my Bats occasionally can help. Justin also dead drew a good amount due to the item lock. I took the games pretty easily; Win 2-0; 2-0-0
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