We kicked off our biggest weekend of the second Skirmish season with over eighty events in fourteen countries - including an incredible forty-four events across the United States alone. Wizards, illusionists and runeblades look to usurp the warriors and ninjas this week, as Prism, Chane and Kano rise through the ranks of Top 8's worldwide. Due to the unprecedented amount of events, and the great communication from stores, we've decided to follow this up with a second article next week.
Most Excellent Comics & Gaming - United States
With 164 players, Most Excellent Comics and Gaming's online Skirmish event was the largest of the week! Familiar names such as Sharif Shaaban and Rob Cygul appeared in the Top 8 for this event, alongside rising stars like Kaiser Wong, who competed in his first Skirmish just two weeks ago. This relative newcomer rose to the top of this large event, knocking out Isaiah Malana in a Kano mirror match for the final round to claim the ultimate victory!
Top 8:
- Kaiser Wong - Kano
- Isaiah Malana - Kano
- Yuanji Li - Viserai
- Tsang Chi Shing - Chane
- Rob Cygul - Dorinthea
- Rylie Groff - (dropped)
- Sharif Shaaban - Ira, Crimson Haze
- Aimran Kamarul Bahrin - Ira, Crimson Haze
BattlegroundHK - Hong Kong
34 players duked it out in BattlegroundHK's online Blitz event, including Galaxy Yang, who is quickly closing in on 1,000 XP on our global leaderboard, and Manfleo Lee, who most recently placed in the top 8 of Mox Saga's skirmish.
| Hero | Number of Players | Hero | Number of Players |
|---|---|---|---|
| Azalea | 1 | Ira | 7 |
| Boltyn | 1 | Kano | 6 |
| Chane | 9 | Prism | 6 |
| Dash | 1 | Rhinar | 1 |
| Dorinthea | 1 | Viserai | 1 |
In the final round of the day, Manfleo Lee's Prism deck dealt the killing blow for Alex Lo's Ira, claiming victory for the people of Solana.
Top 8:
- Manfleo Lee - Prism
- Alex Lo - Ira, Crimson Haze
- Mortal Chu - Chane
- Kyrios Mak - Kano
- Genin A_Manhung - Chane
- Zack Cheng - Ira, Crimson Haze
- Galaxy Yang - Ira, Crimson Haze
- Man Kwong David Yau - Dorinthea
Alara Games - Sweden
Alara Games' 54-player online blitz event featured some of the most well-established names in Flesh and Blood, including players such as Eugene Phua, Rob Cygul, Kelvin Law, and Gino Varella, all of whom have surpassed 1,000XP, and all of whom have won multiple past Skirmish events.
The final match was fought between Eugene Phua's Ira and George Karampinis' Dorinthea, and while both are experienced players, in the end, it was the practiced ninja who came out on top.
Top 8:
- Eugene Phua - Ira, Crimson Haze - Singapore
- George Karampinis - Dorinthea - Greece
- Jarel Chia - Ira, Crimson Haze - Singapore
- Viktor Stoyanov - Ira, Crimson Haze - Bulgaria
- Adam Filipchuk - Ira, Crimson Haze - Canada
- Ting Hee Yeoh - Chane - Singapore
- Zac Lau - Levia - Singapore
- Kelvin Law - Kano - Hong Kong
Sushi Knight Gaming - New Zealand
Sushi Knight Gaming's Skirmish saw 40 players battle it out in a sealed deck event, before their first Top 8 draft of Monarch first edition. Two notable players in this event were Adam Little, who has placed in the Top 8 of two The Calling events, and Kiki Labad, who placed second in our most recent tournament, The Calling Auckland 2021. Jason pulled a tight draft finish win with Levia to win against Jayden playing a crazy Chane deck.
Steve from Sushi Knight had this to say:
"Wow we had an amazing turn out for our Skirmish #2 Electric Boogaloo. Huge congrats to Jason for winning overall with a tight draft finish win... Kiki also got a special mention and thank you too for all they do in the community, inspiring others, doing super well at tournaments, and being the upmost pillar we all need and deserve in the Wellington Community. Ka mau te wehi!
As we wrap up another Skirmish event in the bag, I just want to thank all the players for coming together in the flesh and blood and playing this amazing game! We are so lucky to have the opportunity to bring this game to you all and do so in our amazing space. This community is truly amazing and we are truly humbled! Much Aroha! Ngā mihi nui! "Ehara tāku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini" - My strength is not as an individual, but as a collective. - tihei mauri ora!"
Top 8:
- Jason Thomson-Sheck
- Jayden Allan
- Adam Little
- Mark Esparas
- Jack Whitaker
- Nicholas Holding
- Bryce Lewis
- Finbar Main
Next Level Games Ormond - Australia
Eighteen players gathered at Next Level Games Ormond for their sealed deck Skirmish event, capping out their player limit for current restrictions.
| Hero | Number | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Boltyn | 2 | 11.1% |
| Bravo | 1 | 5.5% |
| Chane | 3 | 16.7% |
| Data Doll | 1 | 5.5% |
| Dorinthea | 1 | 5.5% |
| Ira | 5 | 27.8% |
| Kano | 1 | 5.5% |
| Prism | 2 | 11.1% |
| Rhinar | 2 | 11.1% |
Australian 1k XP player Luke Fletcher made it into the Top 8 of this event, fighting through to the final with his Chane deck. However, Kuan Ju Li, who also currently holds over a thousand XP, usurped him in the final round, dealing the final blow against the runeblade.
Top 8:
- Kuan Ju Li - Kano
- Luke Fletcher - Chane
- Matthew Clark - Ira, Crimson Haze
- Mitchell O'Dea - Ira, Crimson Haze
- Patrick Watt - Rhinar
- Daniel Perri - Ira, Crimson Haze
- Leigh Fletcher - Rhinar
- Vincent Lim - Boltyn
Left to right: Mitchell O'Dea, winner of the random prize draw, and Kuan Ju Li, winner of the Skirmish event
Good Games Joondalup - Australia
Twenty players competed in Good Games Joondalup's sealed deck Skirmish, and with thirteen players choosing to side with the Light, it looked as if Solana was ready to usurp the power of the Shadows. However, when the dust settled on the final match of the day, it was Tom Farrell's Chane who claimed victory. Ellen from Good Games had this to say:
"We had 20 players at our Monarch Skirmish event today! When we got here to open, a few of them were waiting for us out in the cold so we opened early to let them in. During the first round of play WA went into a 3 day Mandatory Masks and Restrictions due to community transmission. Luckily this was not a Lockdown so the event could go on as planned! We gave out some masks, used quite a bit of hand sanitizer, and soldiered on! "
While Zac Beames lost to Tom Farrell in the final match, Zac did pull both a Hexagore, the Death Hydra and a Doomsday in cold foil during the event!
Top 8:
- Tom Farrell - Chane
- Zac Beames - Prism
- Jordan Kassiotis - Boltyn
- Julian Cavenoni - Levia
- Lee Campbell - Levia
- James Medland - Prism
- Adam Parker - Boltyn
- Jordan R - Prism
A Hidden Fortress - United States
Across the 29 players who competed in A Hidden Fortress' sealed deck Skirmish, a massive 19 chose to play our resident illusionist, Prism, with 5 players each for Chane and Boltyn. Levia, however, remained completely unrepresented in this event! One player, Mark Jenkins, also pulled the fabled Great Library of Solana from his sealed packs. Steve Le's drafted Prism deck beat Jon Bar's Chane in the final match of the day, rounding out a massive win for the armies of Light. Notably, Jon also happened to be the only player to draft Chane in the Top 8, drafting five Seeds of Agony cards into his deck.
AK Games Centre - Malaysia
In the final Skirmish for Malaysia, AK Games Centre's online blitz event attracted 32 players.
| Hero | Number of Players | Hero | Number of Players |
| Bravo | 1 | Ira | 12 |
| Boltyn | 1 | Kano | 2 |
| Chane | 6 | Prism | 2 |
| Dash | 1 | Rhinar | 2 |
| Dorinthea | 3 | Viserai | 2 |
Top 8:
- Sonny Wong - Ira
- Kelvin Law - Kano
- Wilson To - Chane
- Charles Law - Chane
- Dennis Xiao - Ira
- Saiful Bahari - Ira
- Jenaguru - Chane
- Kai Young (Blue Bird) - Viserai
Pair a Dice - United States
The Pair a Dice Games Skirmish, hosted by Kitchen Table TCG, had 49 players from all over the world battle it out. Chane was by far the most represented hero, with 22% of players taking up the Shadow Runeblade mantle at the event. However, as the field narrowed to the Top 8, three out of the seven Ira players remained, joined by a Chane, Boltyn, Bravo, Rhinar, and Kano.
The final match of the day was fought between Kelvin Law and Sam Yuen, playing Kano and Ira, respectively. While it was a close match, Kelvin managed to outmaneuver the ninja, claiming the ultimate victory for this Skirmish. You can watch the final match here.
Top 8:
- Kelvin Law - Kano
- Sam Yuen - Ira
- Jump Dusuntia - Ira
- Rich Cook - Bravo
- Phillip Bradford - Rhinar
- Terry Thai - Ira
- Cody Fuller - Chane
- Jimmy Le - Boltyn
The Week Ahead:
There are just two Blitz Skirmish events scheduled for this weekend, both on July 3rd. One event at Le Coin du jeu in Canada, and one at Magnolia GaInming in Alabama, USA.