Couldn't take time off work for Thursday and Friday, and needed to be home on Sunday, so I had written off going to GenCon UK this year. However, Kate said that I should go, and playing Paul Bravey on Thursday night, I built a deck that I was quite happy with. It starting off as a 'fun' duelling dishonour deck I had built for this weeks game. It ended up as a pure Scorpion dishonour deck :) Fitting really, as this is probably the last time it will be viable in a major tournament.

So Friday at work I spent some time finding out how to get to UMIST in Manchester and planning a route for the GPS (fantastic bit of kit that). The RAC route planner (http://www.rac.co.uk/services/routeplanner/) gave a distance of under 200 miles and an estimated three and a half hours journey time :( Any Americans reading this may be surprised that this is considered a long way in England! However, there must at least ten to fifteen million people living in the area between Reading and Manchester. The population density of England is something that makes any journey over 20 miles a long one.

As it was such a long journey, and the tournament started at 11:00, I planned to go up that evening and stay at the Travel Lodge (just off junction of the M6 on the A556). However, when I got home on Friday evening I was so shagged that I decided to try and get an early night, and go straight up in the morning. After all Kate and I had just returned from a 3,000 mile trip down to the Alps and South of France...

I was also agonising over which bike to take, mine is 10 years old with 85,000 miles on the clock and severely shagged, Kate's is less than a year old, has 10,000 miles on the clock, and the mounting for the GPS. However, my bike is faster, and has a better weather protection. Kate settled that by wanting to visit her parents. Oh well, I'll just have to see how the GPS works in the tank bag. :(

I got up at 05:30, was loaded with the bike fuelled and leaving Reading (40 miles west of London) at 06:30. By 07:00 I was north of Oxford. At 09:00 I was at UMIST in Manchester. As I was riding around trying to find some bike-parking, I saw another bike pull in. I rode over to ask him where it was, only to have him ask me. Bugger. We managed to find the porters lodge and the bike parking was next to it, under one of the railway viaduct arches. Oh, and the other biker had also come up to play L5R!

I registered for GenCon and went up to the tournament room. There I bumped into Paul Bravey, Kay Kin and a load of other familiar faces. We hung around and chatted while waiting to register. I was actually early! After registration, and more catching up, they announced that there was to be a parade in the trade hall. In the trade hall, I met up with a few more of the usual suspects.

I then went into the foyer where a number of "Rokugani" stood with a "Lion"[1] and large drum. As I stood waiting for the parade to start I was eavesdropping in on a conversation Mark Wooton, Luke Peterschmit, and Steve Horvath were having. Mark said hello, and explained how glad he always was to see me at tournaments, as then he wouldn't be the oldest one there!

Thanks Mark, you old git!

The parade set off into the trade hall, with the Lion dancing in the lead (chasing a photographer), and the two people carrying the drum while a third played it, and some "Rokugani" young ladies distributing cards! However, while eavesdropping, I had heard Keith describing the route, so rather than fight my way through the crowds I went the other way, and stood with Keith at the top of some steps, waiting for the procession to come out of the back of the building. The "Lion" was brilliant, and the dancers worked bloody hard to make it so, a very nice touch! I got some good cards from the girls, including an Experienced Air Dragon! As I have one, I promptly traded it with Paul Bravey for an Experienced Void Dragon. Yea! :)

Finally I found Gary Whittle, who bought me a coffee and a pasty at the pub round the corner. We also played a couple of games while waiting for registration to finish. I beat the crap out of him! Yes, looking promising!

The story was read, the challenges were made, most were accepted. I was just about to declare a challenge against any Scorpion playing with a Ninja personality, to cleans our clan of the shadow in the name of Our Lady, when I remembered that I had an Aramoro experience 3 in my deck! Doh!

The games were a bit of a blur, and I have a terrible memory (I put it down somewhere...) especially for names, so sorry for missing names and not having much in the way of the games. My first game was against Unicorn, usually an easy target for dishonour. He got a great draw, I didn't. He got an Experienced 3 (I think) Kamoko out, dropped the burden of the word on her and started munching my provinces. My deck finally kicked in just as he took the last one! He played well, and it was a good game. As it was over so quick, we then played a friendly and I was able to beat him, but it was close. I won the next two, including a really tough one against a Fox Rattling (I think it was Fox, sorry if not) where I managed to dishonour him out by chucking the favour for a Breach of Etiquette, bowing for it, and chucking again and picking up a Shame! I was on my last province, and he had a _huge_ amount of force! I really thought I had lost that one. As it was, I didn't win any more. One was Shadowlands Hoard (not a chance). This was after a redraw, where I would have played Gavin Cassells. I then played Gavin, and lost anyway! I also lost the last game to a Crane. I held him off for a long time, but after I ran out of cards (both decks) I could not stop him from gaining honour :(

So, won two, lost four, and 66th out of 100.

They were all great games though, against great opponents. That is, after all, what it is all about. :)

For one game, I was seated next to a game that Mark Wooton was playing. Mark, being really cool, had bought along a copy of the Book of the Five rings. He read a passage to his opponent prior to the match. Nice touch! :)

After the game, Steve Horvath came over and started to talk to Mark. I stayed to eavesdrop, notice a pattern here? Well, I am a Scorpion.... While they were talking the box of greed came out. By the time I could tear myself away, the next game was about to be announced. I was "collected" from the queue for my next game before I got anywhere near the box. Rest of the games were either too long, or the box didn't appear, so it looked like I wasn't going to get a go. While Ads was sorting out the results, and who had gone through to the finals he, very kindly, gave me a nod and I was able to Ambush the guy with the box of greed! :) Yeah! I spent too much money, and got some great cards :) :)

Next I managed to get in a sealed deck. I drew a Fox stronghold, and got knocked out in the first game by a Monkey. He out forced me and out honour ran me. During that game some preliminary awards and prizes were given out. The last place for each clan got something (I believe it was a signed rare from Kay Kin - not sure though). At least I wasn't the last place Scorpion! After that the best placed player from each clan, that hadn't gone through to the finals, got a clan T-shirt. Then those of the invites that had been decided for the Sunday invitational game were given out. Much to my surprise my name was called out! Bugger! I had to go home, today! As I couldn't make it, I asked if Gary (Whittle) could take my place. That was quietly and firmly refused! Bugger! Then the award for most honourable player was announced. There were two, one a Crane, and one a Scorpion (two sides of the same coin or what <g>). The Crane player was Gary, and of course with that came his invite to the game. Ah! :) I was very pleased, and proud, to be asked to play in the invitational, and extremely sad not to be able to play. Thanks for asking guys, it meant a lot! Sorry I couldn't make it.

I then played my first game of L5R played with a single booster alone! True to the days form I lost... Oh well, it was great fun.

Then I watched one of the first finals games, the one played by Gary Wittle and Joe Jackson. Wow! That was some game! Joe managed to drop the final ring just after Gary got over 40 honour! A tense and great game. Congratulations to Joe, commiserations to Gary. I really thought you had it for a while there.

Then it was time for me to go. :(

I went to say goodbye to Adam Jones and Mark Armatige. Great guys, who did a fantastic job of organising the tournament. Just as I was leaving Adam introduced me to Steve Horvath, who I had been annoying talking to on and off all day. In doing so he said some very nice and kind things about me that really made my day! Thanks Ads, much appreciated.

I left UMIST about 10:30 and was home in bed by 01:30 - Twenty hours after getting up. I'm getting too old for twenty hour days, but it was worth it. Thanks everyone! :) I'm really glad that I was able to make it after all, if only for the day: Thanks to Keith and all at WotC for working so hard. Thanks to Steve and Luke for coming all the way over. Thanks to Mark and Adam for doing such a brilliant job running things. Thanks to all who played me, for such great games. Also thanks to everyone that was there and made it such a great atmosphere.

Finally, I'm really looking forward to Gold! For a long time I've felt that there were too many factions and too much speed. Speaking to Steve, I really got a sense of excitement and optimism about the future. It must have been a difficult decision but it is a change that I think is very much needed.

1] This was a "two man" Lion. My local Chinese restaurant has done a "Unicorn" dance (with a two-man Unicorn) a couple of times for Chinese New Year. I couldn't tell the difference, but one of the "Rokugani" young ladies told me there was one.--