Brawltimore – The End of the Beginning.
Just under two years ago, with the help of a number of players and PGs in the area, a plan was formulated to create a series of tournaments to engage and diversity the local, fractured Meta. From those late night drives and after tournament chats eventually formed the foundation of the Tournament Circuit that became known as Brawltimore.
The Inaugural Season wrapped up this weekend, and it was a complete blast. Seeing some of the highest level play that I’d seen all season, against players that had proved themselves worthy over the course of the year was awesome simply to be part of.
When I initially set up the circuit, I thought there would be few participants. In my limited and untried perspective, we would have a hard time filling the seats of a 16 man tournament at the end of a year. Most people, I assumed, would burn out.
Instead, the response was overwhelming. The first three tournaments had over 20 people each, almost 40 unique participants, and over the course of the coming months simply exploded. At the end, including some Convention Results, we ended up with over 200 Participants in nearly 100 different events, from conventions to Local tournaments, Who’s the Boss to Hardcore. It was simply overwhelming.
Which I mean, of course, literally. There were times when the information coming in was so much and so often that I couldn’t keep up. This year, we are trying a sleeker, smoother system that can record information in an easier way, so I hope that leads to a less complicated feeling for me, at the end of the day.
What the Circuit did, though, was bring together the Maryland meta, and familiarize it with the local metas nearby, specifically the Philly and NOVA players. It was fantastic to see all these people from all over the area come, get games, and vie for spots on in the tournament over the course of the year. I’ve made more than a few friends this year who I rarely would associate with otherwise, and I’m glad to have been part of the ongoing unification
now, though! the breakdown, by seed, was as follows.
- Matt Henemyre – Cryx – Asphyxious II and Skarre I
- Ryan Babcock – Skorne – Xerxis II and Morghoul II
- Gary Fortenberry – Skorne – Xerxis II and Morghoul I
- Frank Scibek – Legion of Everblight – Thagrosh I and Saeryn & Rhyas
- Justin Du – Mercenaries – Gorten Grundback and Magnus II
- David Fox – Legion of Everblight Absylonia II and Lylyth II
- Josh Drennan – Skorne – Rasheth and Mordikaar
- Justin Cronin – Cryx – Goreshade II and Asphyxious III
- Mike Ireland – Retribution of Scyrah – Rhan and Thyron
- Dutch Adams – Trollbloods – Madrak II and Doomshaper III
- Danny McGeehan – Cryx – Asphyxious III and Asphyxious II
- Donnie Gallitz – Trollbloods – Doomshaper III and Grissel I
- Andy Kirsch – Minions – Maelok and Rask
- Zach Lovett – Legion of Everblight – Vayl II and Absylonia II
- Paul Steves – Khador – Vlad I and Butcher III
- Jason Houser – Cygnar – Siege and Caine 2
With a cursory glance, you’ll see the basics start to unfold. Cryx, Skorne and Legion each have three. Trolls have two, with Mercs, Cygnar, Khador, Minions and Ret each having a single champion. For the most part, everyone knew what the others were playing. The only wild card was Jason, who came in as first alternate the day of the event.
What was great about this tournament was that no one felt like a clear front runner to win any of their games. Each player brought tons of experience to the table, so the hope that someone wasn’t up to date on the tricks you could pull could never emerge. Instead, everyone rightfully brought their A game.
Lists are Here!
Results:
After the first round, there were, as math states, 8 players left Hunting.
Paul Steves
Matt Henemyre
Josh Drennan
Ryan Babcock
Mike Ireland
Dutch Adams
Danny McGeehan
Frank Scibeck
Khador, 2x Cryx, 2x Skorne, 1x Legion, Retribution, Trolls
The Following round, only four.
Matt Henemyre
Danny McGeehan
Paul Steves
Josh Drennan
Cryx, Cryx, Khador, Skorne. Only the strongest were left. Only the bruisers. Not that anyone would have been surprised with a top four that included other names, though. They’d wrestled down to this, with just two games left to go. Cryx Paired off, a war of massive armies of undead, and Khador and Skorne paired up to determine the King of Smash. The final pair was determined.
Paul Steves – Khador
Matt Henemyre – Cryx
In the end Khador put the Axe to Cryx, and after a full year, the 16th seed upended the #1 seed and took home the prize. It was a glorious and fantastic victory for the Khdaoran Empire.
Matt, appropriately, took second, and Danny, Matts third round opponent, took Third. The Season, was over, the champion crowned, and all was settled, for a moment.
But there is no resting on the Laurels. The new season starts up this weekend, with a fresh slate and the ability for anyone to come and take the top prize at the Season II Brawltimore Championship.
