I was chatting with my friend about our preparation for Adepticon that is rapidly approaching.  An interesting topic came up on where we saw ourselves in a level of competitiveness.  I thought it could be a good talking point to discuss how someone might see themselves in the various levels of competition.

I see myself as a very competitive player.  However, Adepticon will most likely change my perspective on the matter.  In my local scene, I hang around the top tables with a high level of consistency.  I developed my taste for winning during 8th edition Fantasy and found enjoyment in developing new competitive lists and testing them on the table.  When I found that list I would play it for months constantly refining it, and committing the play style and stats to memory.  It may sound dull, but if you mix in the background and the story it can feed into a competitive style of play, at least for me it has.

I can look at my past and feel proud of my accomplishments and awards.  Recently, however, I have been challenged and it is very refreshing to get your teeth kicked in once in a while.  That may sound odd, but it is the truth. In a few short games in which I lost has given me more info about how to improve then all the wins combined.  Always ask why you lost and be honest in self-critiques.


It is easy to say that your dice went cold or your opponents dice were hot.  We all know this is a dice game and there is a level of luck involved, but when you build and play your lists you should be working to minimize how much luck affects the game.  There is always something that you could have done better.  Maybe you made one wrong move or buffed the wrong unit that swung the game against you.  Being able to see your mistake and work to correct it will make you a better general.  A good strategy I have used in the past is to play a game with a like-minded individual, but remove as much of the dice as possible.  Instead of rolling to hit, wound, or save use the average of what your dice can produce.  Same for Battleshock, running, and charging (this one can be difficult).  The only dice that I feel needs to stay random is the Turn Order roll.  Keeping that random helps you prepare to be double turned while taking advantage of gaining the double turn.  This type of practice is not for everyone, but I find it invaluable.

Getting out of your comfort zone and playing new people is an exciting a scary idea.  I like the group I play with and I do well in the local group.  I could leave it at that and be content with my current status, but what is the point.  I want to climb the next mountain no matter its height always reaching for the impossible.  I am about to go to Adepticon and I have the confidence to show up and do well, but I also know there is a good chance this mountain will kick me off its rocky slopes.  Honestly, I am not afraid to fall as I will learn from my failure and when I stop falling I will stand back up, spit the blood from my mouth and start climbing again!  Ever forward!


Dramatism aside, I look forward to Adepticon and I am going in with confidence.  If I win every game I will be over the moon, but if I lose every game I will enjoy the process of learning while meeting and playing new people.  I am competitive by nature, but I always see more opportunity to learn from my defeats.  Look forward to my post-Adepticon article that will most likely be titled “Big Fish, Little Pond”.

Until next week Happy Hobbying!

Edited by Grudgegamer

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