Round 1 Round-Up!
At Table 1, Jerred Smith (Herald Agents) defeats James Miller (Gadget Machina)
Jerred started off with a second turn Herald of Perfection, with four Fairies to lock down the game, and then he followed up with Master Hyperion! James simply couldn’t fight back with Herald negating his every move.
James got his revenge in Duel 2, wiping out Jerred on the second turn with two Machina Fortress, Machina Gearframe, and Green Gadget!
In Duel 3, Jerred banished James’s Fortress with Black Luster Soldier – Envoy of the Beginning. Because Machina Fortress was targeted, James was able to see that there were no Fairies in Jerred’s hand. He was able to use that information to safely take down a Herald of Perfection, but Jerred was able to use The Agent of Creation – Venus to help summon Gachi Gachi Gantetsu, boosting his monsters, with Black Luster Soldier continuing to banish James’s monsters. James had managed to get a few monsters in the Graveyard earlier though, and he played Overload Fusion to summon a 3200 ATK, quadruple attacking Chimeratech Overdragon! Chimeratech took down Black Luster Soldier, Venus, and took off both materials from Gachi Gachi in the same Battle Phase! Jerred had a clutch Dark Hole to take it down, however, and came out victorious.
At Table 2, Kristian Wilhite defeats Jacob Arkanoff in a HERO mirror match
Duel 1 was very straightforward, with Jacob drawing a lot of monsters and Kristian drawing few. It was Duel 2 where things got interesting.
Kristian played a Kycoo the Ghost Destroyer to attempt to cut off Jacob’s potential Graveyard plays. Kristian later used Kycoo with Miracle Fusion to summon Elemental HERO Escuridao, but Jacob used Super Polymerization to fuse that Escuridao into his own Escuridao! He then played Prohibition on Super Polymerization to prevent Kristian from doing the same, while Kristian in fact had one in his hand and drew another two turns later! Kristian used Monster Reborn on Jacob’s Elemental HERO Stratos, searched out a HERO, and used them for Heroic Champion – Excalibur to take down Escuridao!
Jacob started the final Duel with four Set cards and a Prohibition on Elemental HERO Bubbleman. Kristian poked away at his field with Elemental HERO Neos Alius and Gemini Spark, then started attacking with a lone Photon Trasher. Jacob went for Excalibur and pumped it up, attacking Trasher only to lose to Honest!
At Table 4, Damon Coburn (Wind-Ups) defeats Mike Rodriguez (Zombies)
Mike started with a Mystical Space Typhoon to blow away Damon’s Torrential Tribute. From there he was able to safely make a huge play, discarding Dandylion for One for One, summoning Effect Veiler, then Normal Summoning Spore. He used Spore and a Fluff Token for Formula Synchron, then brought Spore back and summoned T.G. Hyper Librarian. Damon blew it away with Dark Hole, then followed with Wind-Up Rabbit. Mike drew his Zombie Master, but Damon saved his Rabbit with its effect, then drew another Wind-Up Rabbit, using them both to Xyz Summoned Number 17: Leviathan Dragon! Leviathan Dragon took out Zombie Master.
Mike was forced to try a last-ditch Allure of Darkness with no monsters in his hand, and he drew Spirit Reaper and Gorz the Emissary of Darkness! He banished the Reaper, and when Damon attacked with his own Reaper, Gorz came down to threaten it. Damon had only 300 Life Points, but he had two face-down Spells or Traps, and Mike thought one of them was like Dimensional Prison. He took a risk and summoned a Thunder King Rai-Oh to play through it, only for Damon to use Torrential Tribute (the other card was, in fact, Dimensional Prison). Damon was able to finish him off shortly after that.
In Duel 2, Mike started off with Goblin Zombie. Wind-Up Rabbit destroyed it, giving Mike a Zombie Master. He Set Night Assailant to take out Wind-Up Rabbit (Rabbit can’t activate during the Damage Step). Mike used Zombie Master to revive Goblin Zombie, setting up a strong defense. It wasn’t enough though, as Damon played his Side Decked Dimensional Fissure, then went for Wind-Up Carrier Zenmaity, followed by Number 20: Giga-Brilliant! With all his Zombies being banished, Mike was unable to fight back effectively. He tried to survive with a last ditch Tour Guide From the Underworld helping summon Number 17: Leviathan Dragon, but Damon had Compulsory Evacuation Device to clear the field and finish him off!