Both of these competitors have 5-0-1 records, with five wins, no losses, and one draw.  With relatively pristine records and only two Rounds of competition left here in Day 1, they’re both making strong bids for a seat in Day 2!  Jonny Nagel made the Top 16 at YCS Providence with a Gadget Deck featuring Gear Gigant X and Magic Drain, and now he’s back with a new and improved build of that same strategy.  His opponent is local Tacoma Duelist Ryan Patajo, who’s competing in his first-ever YCS main event with a Bubblebeat HERO Deck!  Both of these strategies mix grinding game plans with the ability to explode into wins without warning, so this should be an exciting Match.

Nagel opened the Match with a hand of Torrential Tribute; Solemn Warning; Mystical Space Typhoon; Call of the Haunted; Machina Gearframe; and Mirror Force.  He Summoned Gearframe to search his Deck for Machina Fortress, then Set Call and Warning. 

Patajo tried to Normal Summon Elemental HERO Stratos, and Nagel negated the Summon with Solemn Warning.  He dropped to 6000 Life Points.  Patajo followed up with E – Emergency Call, searching his deck for Elemental HERO Neos Alius.  He Set two cards to his Spell and Trap Card Zone.

Nagel drew Dark Hole and made a direct attack with Gearframe: Patajo took 1800 Battle Damage.  Nagel Set Mirror Force and Typhoon. 

Patajo Normal Summoned Neos Alius and attacked Gearframe: Nagel blew Neos Alius away with Mirror Force, and Patajo Set a third Spell or Trap.

Nagel drew Green Gadget and Summoned it.  Patajo had no response, and Green Gadget got Nagel Red Gadget from his Deck.  He attacked with Green Gadget for 1400 Battle Damage, then Gearframe, but Patajo flipped Hero Blast to return his Neos Alius to his hand and destroying Gearframe.  Nagel Set Torrential Tribute.

Patajo Special Summoned Photon Thrasher and attacked Green Gadget, destroying it. 

Nagel drew Compulsory Evacuation Device and Normal Summoned Red Gadget, searching Yellow Gadget.  He discarded it along with Machina Fortress to Special Summon the Fortress; Patajo responded with Bottomless Trap Hole; Nagel Chained Mystical Space Typhoon targeting his opponent’s Compulsory Evacuation Device; and Patajo Chained it to return his Thrasher to his hand.  Fortress was banished, but Nagel flipped Call of the Haunted to Special Summon back his Yellow Gadget, getting another Green Gadget from his Deck.  He attacked with both Gadgets, then overlaid them to Xyz Summon Gear Gigant X in Main Phase 2.  He detached Red Gadget to search Machina Gearframe from his Deck.  Nagel Set Compulsory Evacuation Device.

Patajo Special Summoned back his Photon Thrasher, then Summoned Neos Alius.  He Set two cards to his backrow to empty his hand, then Special Summoned Elemental HERO Bubbleman: Nagel let him, not flipping Torrential Tribute yet.  Patajo overlaid Bubbleman and Thrasher to Xyz Summon Blade Armor Ninja, then detached Photon Thrasher to let the Ninja attack twice this turn.  Miracle Fusion let him Special Summon Elemental HERO The Shining, and Nagel flipped Torrential Tribute to clear the field!  Patajo took back his Stratos.

Nagel Summoned Machina Gearframe, getting another Fortress from his Deck.  He pitched Green Gadget and Machina Fortress to Special Summon Fortress, and attacked for game!

Jonny Nagel takes control of the first Duel exceedingly early, and just gently grinds his way to a win.  One more like that and he’d be on easy street to Day 2, and just two wins away from a probable Top 32 showing. 

Patajo started the second Duel with Reinforcement of the Army, getting Elemental HERO Stratos to search out Elemental HERO Neos Alius from his Deck.  He Set two cards to his back row.

Nagel had a hand of Green Gadget; Machina Gearframe; Machina Fortress; Card Trooper; Mystical Space Typhoon; and Torrential Tribute.  He Summoned Gearframe to get a second Machina Fortress, then attacked to trade off in battle with Stratos.  Both monsters were destroyed and Nagel Set two cards to his Spell and Trap Card Zone to match Patajo. 

Patajo Normal Summoned Neos Alius and attacked for 1900 Battle Damage.  Patajo Set another Spell or Trap.

Nagel drew another Torrential Tribute.  He Summoned Card Trooper and activated its effect, sending Mirror Force, Mystical Space Typhoon, and Machina Gearframe to the Graveyard to power Trooper up to 1900 ATK.  He slammed it into Neos Alius and drew one of the signature cards he’s innovated this format – Magic Drain!  He Set it.

Patajo Normal Summoned another Neos Alius and made another direct attack, dropping Nagel to 4200 Life Points.  He Set a fourth Spell or Trap.

Nagel drew Monster Reborn.  He Summoned Green Gadget, and Patajo Chained Skill Drain to Green Gadget’s effect.  Nagel responded with Mystical Space Typhoon, destroying Skill Drain and getting his Red Gadget.  He discarded two Fortresses to Special Summon one of them: Patajo responded with Torrential Tribute, then Chained his Gemini Spark to Tribute Neos Alius.  Nagel Chained Gemini Spark; Nagel Chained the targeted Magic Drain; and Patajo discarded another Spark to press his first one through and draw a card!  Nagel had two cards in hand, with two Set.

Patajo drew to three cards in hand and Set one to his back row, for a total of two Set cards in his Spell and Trap Card Zone.

Nagel drew Call of the Haunted and Summoned Red Gadget, getting Yellow Gadget.  Monster Reborn let him Special Summon Green Gadget, and he activated its effect: Patajo cleared the field with Torrential Tribute, but Nagel got another Red Gadget.  He now had three cards in hand and two more Set, to Patajo’s one Set card with two more in hand.

Patajo drew a third in-hand card and Normal Summoned Elemental HERO Bubbleman, making a direct attack for 800 Battle Damage.  Patajo Set a second Spell or Trap.

Nagel drew another Magic Drain and Summoned Yellow Gadget, getting Green.  He attacked, and Patajo flipped Super Polymerization, discarding Bottomless Trap Hole to fuse Yellow Gadget and Bubbleman for Elemental HERO Gaia.  Nagel destroyed it with Torrential Tribute, leaving Patajo with one card Set and nothing else!  Nagel closed the trap: he flipped Call of the Haunted to Special Summon Machina Fortress, and when it attacked Patajo flipped Compulsory Evacuation Device to bounce it away.

Patajo drew and Set a single card.

Nagel drew Heavy Storm and Summoned Red Gadget to get Yellow: Patajo had 7000 Life Points left to Nagel’s 3400.  Nagel’s hand was Heavy Storm, Green Gadget, Yellow Gadget, and Machina Fortress, with Red Gadget on field and Torrential Tribute and Magic Drain Set.  He discarded Yellow Gadget and Machina Fortress to Special Summon Fortress, and attacked with Fortress and Red Gadget to lower Patajo to 3400 Life Points.

Patajo drew and activated E – Emergency Call; lost out to Magic Drain; and Nagel knew it was over!  Whatever Patajo still had Set, Nagel knew it hadn’t stopped him from attacking last turn, and it wasn’t going to stop him now!  He activated Heavy Storm just to confirm, destroying Patajo’s last card and revealing it to be a dead Gemini Spark.  A couple Summons later it was all over.

Jonny Nagel is headed into the last Round of Day 1 with a 6-0-1 record, packing his signature Machina Gadget build!