Some interesting plays in this round at the top tables, including 1 Match that ended in a Draw.

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Table 1: Riley Pazdera’s Chaos Piper Deck defeated  Jimmy Thao’s HEROes

Pazdera started with the key card of his Deck: Mystic Piper, but it was stopped by Effect Veiler. Thao then began to control the Duel through Skill Drain and Elemental HERO The Shining. Pazdera blocked The Shining with Gorz the Emissary of Darkness, but Thao destroyed both Gorz and its token with Dark Hole. He then summoned Gorz back with Monster Reborn. Pazdera destroyed his own Gorz with his own Dark Hole. (Poor old Gorz!!) Thao started some fresh beatings with Crusader of Endymion and another copy of The Shining, but 2 Battle Faders kept Pazdera in the game. Pazdera’s Monster Reborn once again brought Gorz out, but it was banished by Dimensional Prison (Gorz just can’t get a break…) and attacks from Thao’s monsters finished the Duel.

Once again, Pazdera started with Mystic Piper, although this time it went through. Attacks from Thao brought down Pazdera’s Tragoedia, and as soon as that was dealt with, another one! The second was taken care of, only for Gorz to show up! Thao used Miracle Fusion for The Shining, only for it to be destroyed by Bottomless Trap Hole. When Thao summoned Thunder King Rai-Oh the next turn, Pazdera used Torrential Tribute, then summoned Meklord Emperor Wisel! Wisel finished the Duel the next turn.

(Wisel is an especially powerful card, with almost every Duelist using Dark Hole and two copies of Torrential Tribute. In Piper decks it’s even better, as it’s a Level 1 monster for Mystic Piper’s effect.)

The third Duel had Pazdera once more summon Mystic Piper on his first turn, and it was stopped by Effect Veiler yet again. Pazdera Tributed it for Caius the Shadow Monarch, who was also stopped by Effect Veiler. Thao had nothing to follow up with though, and Caius attacked repeatedly to bring the Match to a close.

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Table 2: Alexander Reynolds’ Chaos Dragons defeated Michael Friend’s X-Sabers

Reynolds started off with a huge unload into his Graveyard, with Charge of the Light Brigade and two Solar Recharges, then a Future Fusion declaring Five-Headed Dragon to sent five Dragons his Graveyard. Unfortunately, his Eclipse Wyverns didn’t have anything good to search out, as most of his good high level monsters had already been sent to the Graveyard! He still summoned Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon and two Lightpulsar Dragon, but was stymied by X-Saber Pashuul! Pashuul was destroyed soon enough by Dark Hole and Reynolds swarmed with his Dragons for the win.

In Duel 2 Reynolds had Dark Armed Dragon, Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon, and Lightpulsar Dragon. Friend used Dark Hole to clear the field, with Lightpulsar Dragon reviving Red-Eyes Darkness Metal Dragon. Friend then summoned X-Saber Pashuul, and used Gottoms’ Emergency Call to revive an X-Saber Airbellum and X-Saber Urbellum. He Synchro Summoned XX-Saber Gottoms, attacked over Red-Eyes, and attacked directly with Airbellum, discarding a card from Reynolds’ hand. Gottoms then Tributed Airbellum to take out Reynolds’s last card! Reynolds just couldn’t recover and Friend attacked for the win next turn.

Reynolds was able to throw down Wind-Up Zenmaines and Dark Armed Dragon early on in Duel 3, but after using all of his DARK monsters for Dark Armed Dragon, Friend was able to stall behind X-Saber Pashuul for several turns. Reynolds wiped the field with Dark Hole eventually, and his Dragons were able to finish Friend off.

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Table 3: Pao Khang’s Wind-Ups and Steven Gibbs’ Chain Burn fought to a Draw

Khang started off with Tour Guide From the Underworld for Wind-Up Carrier Zenmaity, then Wind-Up Factory. Zenmaity brought out Wind-Up Hunter. Hunter Tributed Zenmaity to send a card from Gibbs’s hand to the Graveyard. When Gibbs set three cards on his turn, Khang used Mystical Space Typhoon in the End Phase to destroy Accumulated Fortune. Khang swarmed the field with his Wind-Ups, and although Gibbs had Just Desserts and Secret Barrel against his full field, it wasn’t enough. Hunter sent Gibbs’s entire hand to the Graveyard and Khang summoned a bunch of Xyz Monsters to win.

Gibbs immediately used Ojama Trio in Duel 2 to clog up Khang’s field. Khang had a Number 17: Leviathan Dragon and a Tour Guide From the Underworld, but Gibbs managed to stall for nearly the entire Duel! He eventually built up enough cards to set up a huge Chain with Reckless Greed, Accumulated Fortune, Legacy of Yata-Garasu, and Just Desserts. Khang finally opened up his field with Dark Hole and Summoned several Xyz Monsters, but Gibbs stalled even more until time in the round was called. Gibbs managed to deal enough damage to finish Khang off, and the Match ended in a Draw.

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Table 4: Zakary Kramer’s Chaos Dragons defeated Noah Cumming-Stangl (NCS)’s Dino-Rabbits

Lots of big monsters in this match.

NCS started off with Jurrac Guiba, which Summoned another copy of itself and then combined to Evolzar Laggia. But even though Laggia negated Kramer’s Charge of the Light Brigade, three cards were still sent to the Graveyard as its cost. That was enough to summon Lightpulsar Dragon, but when it attacked Laggia it was defeated by Forbidden Lance. Rescue Rabbit helped to summon Steelswarm Roach, but Kramer was able to force through another Lightpulsar Dragon. Its repeated attacks ended the first Duel.

NCS started Duel 2 with Rescue Rabbit, but it got hit by Effect Veiler. When Sangan tried to attack it next turn, though, Dimensional Prison banished Sangan. Next turn, the redoubtable Rabbit Summoned Laggia. After several turns Kramer finally got rid of it, but NCS replaced it with Evolzar Dolkka. Lightpulsar Dragon came out of the Graveyard however, and Dolkka was powerless to stop it! NCS tried to fight back with Gorz the Emissary of Darkness, but Kramer countered with Tour Guide From the Underworld to bring out Number 30: Acid Golem. When that got taken down by Solemn Warning, he followed up with Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning to win right then!