Ahead of the first Flesh and Blood World Championship in San Jose, Ryan Dinsdale of the UK joins us as a guest writer to spotlight two players from his local community who will be competing in San Jose.
It was in a Tales of Aria pre-release at London’s Dark Sphere megastore that Shahmir “Sheesh” Samee played and won his first game of Flesh and Blood with Briar, a hero that, less than a year later, he’d take to the semi-finals of Pro Tour: Lille. Alongside fellow London community member Shen Ang, who placed 48th in worldwide XP in the last 90-day period, Shahmir will board a flight to San Jose to take place in Flesh and Blood’s first World Championship next week.
His journey didn’t begin with Briar, however, as Shahmir had been eyeing up the game for a while before taking the plunge. “I heard about Flesh and Blood in June 2021 after seeing a Learn to Play video by Tolarian Community College and was super intrigued by the aesthetic of some of the heroes, Dash especially,” he says. “Through that summer I started watching what gameplay I could find, [including] lots of FaBrika, and was enthralled by the flow of the game and varying playstyles of different heroes.”
Shahmir put together a Dash, Inventor Extraordinaire Classic Constructed deck and, following the Tales of Aria event, become enthralled by Flesh and Blood. Legend Story Studios’ emphasis on organised play was another major draw, as Shahmir admits he’s always had a competitive side. “Getting into FAB’s tournament structure was very exciting to me, so I enjoyed setting myself iterative goals to try and improve,” he says.
First, he wanted to win an Armoury, then reach the Top 8 of an event, then Top 4, and so on. “Top 8ing my second ProQuest was very encouraging, and I was thrilled to win two back-to-back ProQuests in one weekend in the next season,” Shahmir says. “I think that’s when I realised that I understand the game deeply enough to play at the highest levels.”
Similarly, performing well in a qualifier event was also when Shen realised he might have what it takes to play Flesh and Blood at a higher level. He and a friend first picked up the game during lockdown but struggled to understand some of the rules and timings, so put it back down until they had a chance to play at a local game store.
“We went into one of the shops and picked up the Ira Welcome Deck,” Shen says. “We had someone from the shop explain to us the proper sequencing, what we were supposed to be doing, how we can chain combos together, and all that good stuff. I think it was from that point on that we got really hooked.”
Like Shahmir was first drawn to Dash, Shen’s first and perhaps favourite hero is Kassai, Cintari Sellsword. While her artwork pulled him in immediately, Kassai’s Hero ability was particularly interesting to Shen as it forced him to think about how the player’s Action Point – which he initially thought was restrictive – could be manipulated and used in different ways. “I tried it out and loved it, and never really looked away,” he says.
Fast forward to June 2022 and Shen was ranked at around 150th in the UK for XP. Legend Story Studios had just announced the entry requirements for a Nationals invite, and Shen wasn’t feeling optimistic as only around 30 players would qualify based on XP. “But then in my very first Road to Nationals, I surprised myself by going 4-2 and making it into the top 8,” he says. “Unfortunately I didn’t make it into the Top 4, but that made me realise that I maybe stand a fighting chance at this game.”
The performance bumped Shen around 40 places up the XP leaderboard, putting him within touching distance of a spot at Nationals. He seized the opportunity and began what he calls the XP grind, eventually being rewarded a place not only at Nationals but also at the Flesh and Blood World Championship.
“I love the XP system,” Shen says. “It’s a great way of allowing people an alternative route to get into such prestigious, invitational tournaments. It gives people something to play for, especially with regards to Armouries.”
Going a different route, Shahmir earned his World Championship invite through his performance at Pro Tour: Lille, where he reached the Top 4. “It was such a wonderful and surreal experience,” Shahmir says. “I’d prepared myself mentally for the Pro Tour weeks prior to the event. I was very practiced but knew that a bad Day 1 could just take me out of the running for Top 8. My performance in the prior ProQuest season had convinced me that I can play very well, but that meant that everyone else who qualified can too. All that said, I was aiming to win from the start.”
Shahmir was relatively unknown compared to his fellow Top 8 players, which included 2021 German National Champion Christian Hauck, 2021 UK National Champion (and eventual Pro Tour Champion) Matthew Foulkes, and Pro Tour: New Jersey Champion Pablo Pintor, who Shahmir defeated in the quarter-finals. “I hadn’t watched any coverage during the tournament, nor did I watch my Top 8 game against Pablo until after the event concluded, so I didn’t even realise it was being talked about,” Shahmir says. “While the world may have been rooting for Pablo in our Top 8 game – and who could blame them? – I think I won them over by the semi-finals and was thankful to be supported as the underdog.”
While he loves Armouries too, Shahmir thinks bigger events like Pro Tours and the upcoming World Championship have their own allure. “The prizes at the end are appealing, of course, but so is the thought of knowing that I’m playing against people who are bringing their A-game,” he says. “Armouries are all about having fun and helping each other,” but even at bigger tournaments like the Pro Tour, “I like to keep it light and have a conversation with my opponent about their day or something similar.”
This is something Shen noticed while at the Pro Tour with Shahmir. “Right before the quarter-finals, [Shahmir] was watching a game with Pablo, and they were supposed to be opponents in the next match,” Shen says. “But they were talking very openly about some of their card choices, what they thought about the match that was going on, and it didn’t feel like they were adversaries; it didn’t feel like they were rivals.
“It just felt like, ‘hey, we’re here to play the game. We’re just here to have fun and learn from each other,’” he continues. “And that’s what I love about the community. It’s essentially people teaching others how to play, how to play from their style, and having others comment on it. I’ve met many really good friends through this game.”
It’s this social aspect that’s most appealing to Shen who, despite playing in major tournaments like Nationals and the Lille Calling, still enjoys his local Armoury at London’s Bad Moon Café more than any other event. “We’ve got a great group of people there, people that genuinely love to play for fun,” he says. “I would really like to thank my lovely local community for helping me enjoy this game as much as I do: Hung, Billy, Giang, Arian, Shahmir, Stefano, Steve, Liam, Saul, David, Jaco, Cecil, Luke, Michael, Tom, and the whole gang; you know who you are.”
People just enjoy hanging out before and after each Armoury, Shen says, and one of his favourite Flesh and Blood moments came from this. One particular Armoury finished earlier than usual, so everyone decided to play Ultimate Pit Fight. Though it was his first time playing the multiplayer format, “I had a lot of fun because there’s just so much politics involved,” Shen laughs. “And it was so interesting to see the different interactions between all the different heroes. It was just a mishmash of chaos.”
Shen loves bigger events too, of course, especially when it provides an excuse to travel to places otherwise unknown like Lille, the English midlands, and soon San Jose. “It has some very real-world implications for me, and it’s also a social thing because I’m encouraged to head out to all these places,” he says. “I love meeting like-minded people and what I find about Flesh and Blood is that most of the community has been super welcoming.”
As his attention turns to the World Championship, Shen’s therefore looking forward to meeting more of the community as much as he is competing. “It’s not that I have to travel for this, but I really, really want to travel for this because it’s going to be such a great event,” he says. “As a competitor, I can see how other people across the world are playing Flesh and Blood, and it also shows me that, as a fan of the game, it’s here to say. It’s constantly trying to innovate and it’s constantly trying to involve people.”
As for his preparation, Shen has been trying more unconventional methods. “I’ve been doing the opposite of what I’d usually do to prepare,” he laughs. Playing a handful of other games in the meantime, “all I’ve done for Flesh and Blood is take a break, because I want to come back to the game really, really excited.” He has been keeping an eye on the meta and watching some games, but Shen’s main tactic is to enter the World Championship refreshed and ready to go.
Shahmir, on the other hand, is surrounding himself with as much Flesh and Blood as possible. Despite an unexpected trip home to Pakistan in September, he’s kept up with the game through coverage of events online, regularly updated deck lists on the website, and playing on online clients. “It’s certainly no replacement for playing in the flesh and blood,” Shahmir says, but “it’s been an invaluable tool for allowing me to play despite a lack of access to a local community.”
Unlike his preparation for Pro Tour: Lille, where the meta was relatively unknown due to Bravo, Star of the Show and Chane, Bound by Shadow recently hitting Living Legend status, Shahmir has focused on what he believes will be popular matchups at the World Championship. It’s still not obvious though, as “we’re currently in one of the most open metagames since Welcome to Rathe days,” he says.
Despite putting a bit of pressure on himself to perform well in San Jose, like Shen he’s mostly looking forward to having fun with the Flesh and Blood community. “I’m honoured to be able to participate in such a historic event,” Shahmir says. “More than anything else, it is a celebration of the game’s first three years and some of its most formidable players so far, and that’s an incredible thing to be a part of.”
Even outside of the main event, the artists, cosplayers, developers, and side events all turn these Flesh and Blood tournaments into weekend-long experiences, Shahmir says. “Regardless of my performance, I look forward to meeting more of this game’s wonderful community and to having a wonderful week in the States with my fabulous friends."
Ryan Dinsdale is a Flesh and Blood player, and an author of content relating to Flesh and Blood. The opinions expressed in the above article are his own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Legend Story Studios.