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Pro Circuit Sydney 2007

3/1/2007

Kyle Dembinski wins Pro Circuit Sydney! The University of Michigan student played through three days of competition to emerge on top with the Championship trophy and an unprecedented $50,000 cash prize. His QuickFate deck was geared to win quickly and decisively by pumping up Quicksilver, Inhuman by Marriage to huge stats, then attacking with him twice. With QuickFate, Kyle blazed through the Constructed portion of the tournament on Friday, ending the day with a 7-2 record. He matched that record drafting Legion of Super Heroes on Saturday and then went back to QuickFate for three more match wins on Sunday to take the title.

Other great stories emerged from this weekend. Quite a few countries were featured in the Top 8, including Australia, New Zealand, England, Germany, and the United States. Vs. System has been supported greatly by Oceania since the game was first released, and this Pro Circuit was a fitting reward for its dedicated players. Even though an American ultimately won, the locals had plenty to cheer for on Sunday, with Paul Van Der Werk, Jonathan Luey, and Shaun Hayward all in the Top 8.

With $50,000 worth of padding in his bank account and a big trophy to put in the overhead, Kyle Dembinski shouldn’t be too bothered by his long flight back to the United States. The rest of the Vs. System world now looks ahead to the next Pro Circuit at Gen Con Indy!

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Finals

Champion

Dan Clark

Erik Cabanero (2-1)

Erik Cabanero

Erik Cabanero (2-1)

Jonathan Luey

Jonathan Luey (2-1)

Shaun Hayward

Kyle Dembinski (3-1)

Paul Van Der Werk

Jonas Skali (2-1)

Jonas Skali

Kyle Dembinski (2-0)

Kyle Dembinski

Kyle Dembinski (2-1)

Ian Vincent

Pairings

Results

Standings

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Round 5

Round 6

Round 7

Round 8

Round 9

Round 10

Round 11

Round 12

Round 13

Round 14

Round 15

Round 16

Round 17

Round 18

VS Event Articles

Saturday

Final

Finals: Erik Cabanero vs. Kyle Dembinski

This is the first Pro Circuit finals for both players, and after this match one will be a Pro Circuit Champion. Both players flew into Sydney from the U.S., and not only have they nevertheless played scintillating Vs. System, they have also been fine sportsmen the whole time.

Semi-Final

Semifinals: Erik Cabanero vs. Jonathan Luey
Erik Cabanero was the only member of Team Edgeworld that decided to make the trip to Sydney, and since Pro Circuit events are notoriously difficult without a testing group, he joined with FTN for this event.

Semi-Final

Semifinals: Kyle Dembinski vs. Jonas Skali

Jonas just fought through a three-game marathon quarterfinal against the local favorite Paul “Vanwolfgang” Van Der Werk, overcoming strong local support, a funny costume and mask ensemble, and a 1-0 deficit to move into the semifinals.

Quarter Final

Quarterfinals: Jonas Skali vs. Paul Van Der Werk
Paul Van Der Werk is in a Wolverine costume. Need we say anymore?

Quarter Final

Quarterfinals: Erik Cabanero vs. Dan Clark
When posed with the question of the day, “Which Vs. character could you beat up on,” Dan responded that he could categorically take down Luna Maximoff without too much trouble.

Quarter Final

Quarterfinals: Shaun Hayward vs. Jonathon Luey
Both players are originally from New Zealand, but Luey now lives in Sydney. Hayward was there representing his team, The Four Horsemen

Quarter Final

Quarterfinals: Kyle Dembinski vs. Ian Vincent
Both Kyle Dembinski and Ian Vincent have a lot of experience in the game, and both have put in formidable efforts over the last two days to be sitting here among the Top 8.

Feature

Top 8 Poses!
The Top 8 pose as their favorite cards!

Friday

Decklist

Pro Circuit Sydney Top 8 Decklists

Interview

Pro Circuit Sydney Top 8 Profiles

Match

Round 18: Shaun Hayward vs. Erik Cabanero
With both players on the bubble of Day 3, Hayward and Cabanero were both seeking this crucial win to have a chance at the unprecedented $50,000 prize money.

Match

Round 18: Michael Jacob vs. Jonas Skali
Jonas is from Bonn, Germany and is right on the bubble. Jonas has had one Pro Circuit Top 8 out of three PC attempts, and is keen to make it two from four today.

Match

Round 18: Enchante Chang vs. Ian Vincent
Enchante Chang and Ian Vincent are both on twelve wins, and they’re playing it out for a ticket to the Top 8.

Match

Round 17: Kim Caton vs. Darryn Ying
It’s a battle of seismic proportions. One nation versus another. One hemisphere trying to overthrow the other.

Match

Round 17: Ian Vincent vs. Mario Boley
In this match, we saw the battle of two visitors to Australia, with the German Mario Boley facing off against the British Ian Vincent.

Match

Round 16: Jonas Skali vs Jason Hager
Jonas Skali has come all the way from Bonn, Germany, and has been to three Pro Circuits in 2006. He finished in the money every time, even hitting Top 8 at Pro Circuit Los Angeles.

Match

Round 16: Paul Van Der Werk vs. Erik Cabanero
Both these gentlemen are sitting a tantalizing one win outside a probable Top 8.

Feature

Draft Profile: Jonas Skali
Jonas Skali of Team Zissou is no stranger to the bright lights and the pressure of high level Vs. He made the final day of the last Pro Circuit in Los Angeles and is an influention in the band of crimson beanied Germans that make the trip to nearly every Pro Circuit for the last year or so.

Feature

Draft Profile: Erik Cabanero

Erik Cabanero is at the top of the leaderboard with a 12-3 record going into pod 3. Let's see how he does in this draft and if he can maintain the success he has seen thus far.

Match

Round 15: Erik Cabanero vs. Niles Rowland
Two fine players from the USA met with a Top 8 berth a mere 2 wins away.

Match

Round 15: Kakarot Turker vs. Mario Boley
With frequent Top 8s at Australian $10K events and a win in Sydney last year, Kakarot Turker should be familiar to most.

Match

Round 14: Alex Antonios vs. Heath Baker
Both Alex and Heath are in danger of falling out of contention for Top 8.

Match

Round 13: Michael Jacob vs. Keegan Walls
Keegan is a New Zealander from the capital city, Wellington. This is his first time at a Pro Circuit, so he’s coming into this match as the underdog.

Match

Round 13: Jason Hager vs. Paul Van Der Werk
Jason comes from West Virginia. Paul Van Der Werk is a Sydney local.

Match

Round 13: Connor Holmes vs. Ian Vincent
Connor Holmes and Ian Vincent were both sitting on 8-4 records going into round 13.

Feature

Draft Profile: Keegan Wells
For the second Draft pod, I sat down with Keegan Walls, from Wellington, New Zealand, and interviewed him about his draft.

Feature

Draft Profile: Paul Van Der Werk
Paul is one of Australia’s prime overall players, and but one of the Aussies renowned for consistency in both Constructed and Sealed Pack play.

Feature

Draft Profile: Niles Rowland
Niles is riding high after 12 rounds; after going 3-0 in his first pod today, he’s alone at the top of the standings with 11 wins.

Interview

Interview with Paul Ross
Ah, Paul Ross — Head Judge . . . gaming enigma . . . king of the dance floor.

Match

Round 12: Kakarot Turker vs. Michael Lou
Today, both players are 2-0 in the first pod after going 5-4 yesterday, so every win is vital.

Match

Round 11: Shaun Hayward vs. Darryn Ying
This round, we’re watching

New Zealand

players from Oceanic team The Four Horsemen, Shaun Hayward and Darryn Ying (Daz) face off.

Match

Round 11: Paul Van Der Werk vs. David Leader
Paul Van Der Werk is a Sydney-based player who is as famous for running popular card store Good Games with his friend Scott Hunstad as he is for being “the guy who dressed up as Wolverine for $10K Brisbane.”

Match

Round 10: Adam Prosak vs. Michael Jacob
As they shuffled away, the two players pondered over today's hard-hitting question: "Who is the best Bond?"

Feature

Draft Profile: Jonathan Luey
Sitting at the top table this morning, I peered over Jonathan’s shoulder as he made his picks, and then interviewed him as he built his deck for this first draft pool.

Match

Round 10: Eric Cabanero vs. Jonathan Luey
Jonathan Luey is a regular Sydney drafter who, along with his friend Darryn Ying, worked out the Silver Age metagame to a tee yesterday and piloted his Checkmate / Villains United deck to an 8-1 result. We covered his Draft picks and deckbuilding strategy earlier, so let’s see how it stands up to super hero combat.

Feature

Draft Profile: Adam Prosak
Adam is in 21^st place going into the first round of Draft today, which puts him in Pod 3 with the likes of Michael Jacob, David Leader, Alex Antonios, Paul van Der Werk, Keng Yin Lee, Ryan Jones, and Alex Smith. That is one rough table!

Feature

Country Breakdown

Thursday

Match

Round 9: Troy Armstrong vs. Conor Holmes
While both players had qualified for Day 2 already, competition was still fierce.

Match

Round 9: Adrian Capilitan vs. Jason Zhi
So, we go to the bubble.

Interview

Jonathan Luey
Jonathan Luey has just gone 8-1 today.

Feature

Deck Profile: Press Chess
I’m talking to Adam Prosak about the deck that he’s playing today.

Feature

Deck Profile: Team Zissou’s “Rocky”
They’re affable, they’re intelligent, and they come from the land of bratwurst and sauerkraut. Could you expect anything but brilliance from Team Zissou of Germany, with their lovely red hats?

Match

Round 8: Ben Quemard vs. Adam Prosak
Ben Quemard is a popular Brisbane player who has made the trip down for PC: Sydney. His last-minute decision to play CM / VU seems to have proved valuable today as he sits across from one of the game’s finest, Adam Prosak.

Match

Round 7: Scott Hunstad vs. Nick Vaca
Its an all-Australian round 7!

Match

Round 7: Nik Smith vs. Thomas Scheer
Thomas Scheer has flown in all the way from Baamberlg, Germany. Nik Smith is a New Zealander who is currently living in Perth.

Interview

Team MINK
Hailing from Melbourne, Australia, and comprised of a group of guys with some very solid Vs. experience under their belts, MINK formed after this collective group of Melbournians got frustrated with what they felt were less-than-ideal Constructed performances.

Feature

Metagame Breakdown
I’m here to tell you what everyone is playing.

Feature

Deck Profile: The Harvey Bullock Machine
Paul Carson-Wenmoth is one of the players to follow during this PC.

Match

Round 6: Paul Carson Wenmoth vs. Lee Keng Yin
Paul Carson Wenmoth is a New Zealand player who has made his way across the Tasman to make his Pro Circuit debut. Lee Keng Yin has made the trip all the way from Singapore, alongside his "Goblin Bowling Team" team-mates.

Match

Round 5: Lindsay Heming vs. Kenny Nguyen
Lindsay Heming is playing what his team, The Dark Alliance, regards as the best deck in the format: Kree / Villians United. Kenny is playing a very funky Checkmate / Heralds of Galactus deck.

Interview

Liam Luamgrath
Ten years old, amazingly well spoken, polite, and a pleasure to be around, Liam grinded in via the Golden Age LCQ yesterday morning and then killed time by 3-0’ing an MTU draft in the afternoon.

Match

Round 5: Enchante Chang vs. Dave Spears
As part of The Four Horsemen, Enchante Change has been a part of some of the biggest decks that the game has known, including Good Guys, Kree/Inhumans, and the diabolical High Voltage.

Feature

Deck Profile: Three Wellingtonians
Three of the Wellingtonians (Wellington is a New Zealand city) have come to Sydney equipped with a long-curve team-up between Darkseid’s Elite and Checkmate.

Interview

Troy Palmer
I’m interviewing Troy Palmer, an X-Men fan who’s been with the game from a very early point in its life.

Match

Round 4: Jonas Skali vs. Mitchell Fujino
Jonas Skali has made the trip all the way from Germany. He traveled with three other German players from Team Zissou, all sporting some super-hot red beanies a la Bill Murray from The Life Aquatic.

Interview

Aaron Newson
Aaron has always been a pleasant personality in the trading card scene, with an enthusiastic attitude and a really well developed sense of humor.

Match

Round 3: Paul van Der Werk vs. Alex Smith
Paul has five $10K Top 8s and made Day 2 at PC LA 2005. He also lost a challenge in Auckland against an ingenious Arkham player and was forced to wear a Wolverine suit to $10K Brisbane.

Match

Round 3: Dave Leader vs. Casey Tice
Casey Tice, you might be surprised to learn, is the wife of Doug Tice, and Doug is a very lucky guy. Dave Leader you'll all likely be familiar with, as he's one of the faces of FTN here today.

Interview

The Donkey Club - Jason Hager
TDC doesn’t really need much of an introduction. The Donkeys are clearly the most dedicated Vs. System team in the world, and their results have a tendency to speak for themselves.

Feature

Deck Profile: Skrull Legion of Doom

Today, I’m looking at a unique take on the Skrull deck that debuted at $10k Sydney in December 2006.

Match

Round 2: Michael Jacob vs. Ian Vincent
Michael Jacob is representing The Donkey Club and should provide a valuable insight into the team's strategy for this PC (so far, we’ve only heard whispers). Across from him sits Ian Vincent, best known for his win at PC: San Francisco and his charming British accent.

Match

Round 2: Alex Antonios vs. Matt Oldaker
Matt Oldaker flew in from West Virginia in search of Aussies to bash. He finished sixth at Pro Circuit So Cal and used the prize money to fund this trip. AJ is a local Sydney player who blew everyone away last year in the local $10K events.

Match

Round 1: James Kong vs. Andrew Corney
These two friends are battling it out in the first round of PC Sydney.

Match

Round 1: Darryn Ying vs. Ryan Jones
As round 1 of Pro Circuit Sydney swings into action, The Four Horsemen's Darryn Ying faces off against FTN's Ryan Jones.

Interview

The Four Horsemen
With four $10K Championship trophies, multiple $10K Top 8 appearances, and a number of PCQ wins, the team has definitely got a good chance going into this Pro Circuit.

Interview

Team Brisvegas
Team Brisvegas consists of the players who are pretty much the heart and soul of Vs. System in their town.

Feature

Country Breakdown

Interview

The Real Man Party
The Real Man Party is a team of players from the Vs. System epicenter of Australia—Sydney.

Interview

Team FTN - Kim Caton and Ryan Jones
Kim Caton is a twenty-nine-year-old member of prolific team FTN and has made the journey all the way from Philadelphia for some Silver Age action.