The Tournament Differences

[Nibbity]

Today was my first tournament. What a long and hard day.

Now, one of the biggest reasons i'm posting this in the Marth forum is to not only ask questions about your marths in tournaments, but to thank you all. So many of you have knowingly or not so knowingly helped me, either if I read your threads, posts, or battled you personally and recieved much help from it. I would be absolute garbage without the amount of help I recieved, and I have this great community to thank.

With mushy stuff aside, here we go.

I'm not gonna sugar coat it or lie. I did lousy in tournament standings. I do blame this on myself and the random matches on the first bracket. My first match happened to be against the guy who was 1st during doubles and very close to first for singles. I, of course lost.

My own mistakes were very easy to see, and i'd love to hear your imput on this part.

I believe mostly because it was my first tournament that I acted nervous, and in that course, I played much more defensively, and I got grabbed, time after time after time. I did win a lot of friendly matches, but I can't count how many times i've been grabbed or chain grabbed because I hadn't taken the chance to attack and I left myself open.

Killing myself was also very big with the dolphin slash. This is never a normal problem with me, 3/30 times I would kill myself attempting to grab the edge, but increased a hefty 16 or 17/30 times, and that's why I, in fact lost the second singles match....dolphin slashing under the level. Ugh.

Now, for those who have been to tourneys, I would like to know

-How was your first tourney? Were you nervous to be more aggresive like I had?
-Did you continuously get better as you played more? Or in that sense, did you get more experienced for every tourney you attended?
-Did how you play change progressively?
-Did you adjust to people better?

Please discuss. And once again, thank you.

 

[Dr Peepee]

Unless it was from my videos, I'm pretty sure I wasn't much help because I'm observing these boards too lol.

My first tournament was Melee, and I actually stepped up my game while I was there for the level of experience I had.

As for my first Brawl tournament, I was still plenty nervous, since it was like starting over again. I was incredibly nervous about being aggressive though. The result of this was that I had to work extra hard against an already formidable opponent(Lord Karn) for two sets of finals(Winners, then Grand). Since I couldn't think properly due to the high tension state, the money on the line, and the people around watching(during Grand Finals), I was suffering.

The main thing that I did to combat this was to try to focus almost exclusively on every move Karn made in an attempt to block out every other stimulus around me. It worked well enough for the win, but it was darn close(2-2, last stock, fairly high percents), and I was sweating some by the end lol.

This type of experience only adds up to your improvement against other people if you let it. If you focus on the wrong aspects of this tournament(losing to lesser players, silly recovery/killing/gimping mistakes, etc), then it nullifies everything you could have learned about your opponents and yourself. For my example, I took away the knowledge that I was a(slightly) better player than I had realized, and that I should develop some more confidence in my skills to keep myself focused during intense matches.

I hope that this was helpful!

 

[∫unk]

Hey, at least you got out there... better than most.

First game first tournament is always nervous.. for anyone. I've actually been in tournies before but I got nervous for my first Brawl tourney.

I actually played "dumb aggressive" for my first. I just threw out attacks whenever I pleased... and got promptly punished for it.

You get better as you play more and go to more tournies... it's also cause if you play with a group of friends you're only used to their style. You have to train your mind to think different and not expect a pattern but to find one out as the match goes on. This is the number 1 difference between good casual players and good tournament players.

The best thing is every tourney you learn a lot and will improve... keep at it.

 

[Nibbity]

Dr Peepee - Yes, this helps a lot haha. And your videos really helped my aspects on using the Dolphin Slash and how to be smarter and aggressive at the same time. And noobish gimping really threw me off, even if it was rare, it was so stressful, because when your in a match that counts, that KILLS you. And in doubles, I find focus to be harder, and in singles, when everyone is watching, it's as nervewracking as you think of it. I was going nuts in my mind, people uttering tips to each player, encouragements, insults, etc.

Junk - Thanks man. I bet you didn't know you helped me also haha. Sorry for the bad info on R.O.B, it was the best I had haha. In doubles I did more aggressive things, but to my surprise a lot of players were caught off guard. Of course, in singles I got frustrated because smashes and fairs were easily avoided and were chain grabbed in response. I'm gonna keep going to these shenanagins and look deeper into techniques.

 

[DarkLouis331]

Yesterday was my 2nd money tournament ever actually =P

During my first money tournament (In April 2008 for Brawl) I was really nervous like you lol During some friendlies, I lost some matches and won some too so I wasn't sure how I was going to do in the tournament. Once the tournament started I faced a Pit in the first round with Wolf, my main, and I lost my first match. However, I really wanted to go on in the tournament so I won the next 2 matches against Pit and I advanced =) (It was best 2/3 btw) My confidence built up a little bit, but I lost the next round and lost again in the losers' bracket, knocking me out of the tournament. I'll admit, I did terrible, and I was really hungry too...keeping your energy up is something you can't ignore XP

I went to a tourney yesterday as well at the same place I went for my first tournament, so I felt more comfortable there, like it was my home court lol And I brought some Burger King to avoid getting hungry at this tournament lol I won my first 3 matches in the winner's bracket, so that was a dramatic improvement for me. But during my next match I lost to one of the best players in Ohio (supposedly lol) His skill was far above mine obviously, I got nervous and made some stupid mistakes lol Then I lost again in the losers' bracket against a Snake player, but I ended up placing 5th in this tournament so I was very happy with myself nonetheless. People began to notice me and compliment my Wolf more. It was a rewarding experience for me.

Other than these, I play with a few of my beginner friends sometimes and I made it to the finals at a local anime convention (but lost to someone who is slightly better than I am in my town lol)

I think everyone does get at least a little nervous, everyone has a different playstyle...you never know what to expect. But Smash/Brawl is a fun game, the strategy and psychological aspects of it can get deep, and I think that's what keeps me coming back for more.

 

[Cloudstealth]

My first tourney, I won doubles. I was happy with that. I won my first round, and then decided to snadbag, because my bracket looked hard and I didn't want to try.

Been goin to money Tourneys since the game came out. I get better every tournament, I was always placing top 3-5 every tourney, but slowly everyone's game caught up. Now in tournaments, I basically get a round or two in then have nothing but hard matches.

And yes I was super nervous in singles, that's why I sandbagged and went to the losers bracket and started from there. I was playing super aggro Marth first tourney. In recent tournies I like playing "Prowling Marth".

Prowling is a fancy word, for a Wolf Mindgame, where you do nothing but stare at your opponent while not moving. When they approach you mock them by taking steps back, just keep running around and making them mad, and then when they get too over aggressive you just Fsmash or Dtilt them away and stand still again. Believe me it'll catch some people off guard, just have fun spacing them.

Either way, you learn ALOT more from tournaments, go to as many as possible.

 

[smit_ massacre]

I remember the first tournament I went (which I won XD), the nerves I had in the build up and in my first actual match were intense. I had opted out of friendlies to ensure none of my tactics were sussed out or stolen, a big mistake looking back but it didn't have too many distressing effects on my game. I would strongly suggest in participating in friendlies however, get those first frags and deaths out the way

Other than that, not much else was different. It was nice to see a change in characters and tactics that I'm not used to seeing within my circle of friends.

 

[jinofcoolnes]

My frist torney in was in brawl which i opted out just to do friendlys.

Iam going really play in one soon.

 

[OmegaXF]

My first tourny was nerve wrecking, in fact ti was melee I believe. I had always practiced with my friends and I of course knew I would have to play differnt to someone else's playing style which wasn't a problem. It was just the fact that everyone was looking directly at me. I was facing a fox and I had no problem fighting him it was just the fact that he had so much support and he was used to the environment. I felt out of place. I dd good but it just hit me mentally more than affecting my playing style. I knew I could have did better but I was just distorted I guess. Afterwards I came in 3rd and did some friendlies with a DK. Did better than the last match up. But the rest of the tournys were better. I knew the environment and really amped my game up more than worrying about who was looking. Solid IMO.

 

[Pierce7d]

Prowling is a fancy word, for a Wolf Mindgame, where you do nothing but stare at your opponent while not moving. When they approach you mock them by taking steps back, just keep running around and making them mad, and then when they get too over aggressive you just Fsmash or Dtilt them away and stand still again. Believe me it'll catch some people off guard, just have fun spacing them.

I do this too, lol. When combined with consistent perfect shielding, your opponent loses their cool really quickly.

My first tournament was melee. I sucked @ melee. Like, I was at the very bottom of competitive. Better than non-competitive players by a lot, sucked compared to everyone else.

In Brawl, I've done reasonable well in tournament. I haven't been to one in a while (money issues) but usually I place high and don't win due to a loss to a Metaknight.

My advice to you is not to experiment in mid-tourney. This is something I used to do a lot, thinking everyone was leagues ahead of me, and I better come up with some new AT on the spot or I would lose.

A) That's impossible
B) It screws you up.

Seriously, Youtube can mess with your head. Not everyone out there is Azen, or Chu, or PC Chris, or M2K, and you're good too.

Stick you what you know. Play to have fun, play to win, and play to improve, and you'll find multiple types of success.

 

[Nibbity]

Yeah, I figured out trying to really think of ways to outskill other characters very quickly didn't turn out great...so yeah, having fun really does mean a lot in a tournament and fighting other good competetive players really does help, even if you don't know it I think.

 

[Rutger]

I am glad I found this topic, made me feel less nervous for whatever reason. I have my first tournament this Sunday (FAST 1) and I was freaking out that M2K and others at his skill level will be there. So now I'll go, have fun, and accept what happens and learn from it.

Anyways, I'm going to pick up Marth soon (not before this tourney sadly) and I can already see this board will be a big help with it.

 

[Mighty_mo76]

I remember when I played at a small "tourney" at my school. It was more of a smashfest but with everyone thinking they were the best since it was the first event like that at my school.

I was the only one who knew what wavedashing and sffling etc...were, but that didn't seem to help me.
That was a little over two years ago and my mindest wasn't as advanced as it is now.

You get better at a game just by getting older.

Neway, I was extremely nervous and my hands felt like jelly. I would literally shake like I had been ***** by a burglar.

So, all the knowledge I knew was not good enough to beat all those n00bs who didn't even own the game.
Experience is a very valuable asset.

And like you Nibbity, I too wish to express my thanks for the marth community on the boards for helping me without knowing it. Thanks guys. Tis game is alot of fun. Just like having a bunch of freinds yu don't know on the internet. (sounds paradoxical, doesn't it?)

 

[AllGoodNamesAreTaken]

First time I went to a tourney, I only went for friendlies. Although I signed up for doubles but there weren't enough people. I went for friendlies because I first want to experience what it is like playing someone you don't know and play a completely different playstyle than what you are use to. Sure they may be sandbagging of something but my point is I wanted to gain experience first. The second time helped a bit as I wasn't as shaky as I was the first time I went even though the first time was mere friendlies.

 

[3xSwords]

First Brawl tourney for money I was nervous as hell. Man I couldn't even do dashdancing or maybe it was b/c I was using a brand new controller which I will say is not recommended, b/c all the controls are stiff. I only played doubles but I realized I got caught in the stupid aggressive mode due to no experience. I was a f-smash noob. I would dodge fine but I would f-smash to punish not a good idea. Thus I lost, but now I know I can do a lot better b/c I've changed my mindset and won't be as nervous.

 

[HADOOKEN]

Dont feel bad about self deaths,... honestly when i'm playing someone better than me, and theyre laying it on thick, i tend do do silly tactics in hope of just getting them off me, and this leads to silly mistakes, dolphin slashing to doom being a common one

 

[Mighty_mo76]

I hated it when people better than me (What?! There are actually people better than me? Yeah, I know...)
kept winning with simple tactics, and I would barely keep up with their thinking.

Back then I always felt like everyone was just a little Bit better than me, when in
actuality they were way better than me.

 

[Megavitamins]

Just keep playing and eventually you'll get used to a competitive atmosphere ^_^

 

[∫unk]

If you have monthlies in your area... go to them. Monthlies will make you way better than friendlies or self-training can ever get you.

 

[Mighty_mo76]

I like the new avitar Junk. Its verry berry black Beary. ^_^

 

[Nibbity]

Megavitamins - your right, im trying to go to as many as possible which should help me adapt. thank goodness they run many in the summertime.

Junk- I dont have monthlies sadly. However, thank goodness there are tournament listings in smashboards that show that there are many tournaments in Connecticut, so i'm pretty much set. P.S, yeah, I agree with Mighty Mo, nice new avatar hah.

HADOUKEN - im really happy someone shares something like that with me haha. It's something I practice constantly, just to be more confident knowing the distance from the ledges and jyst being more calm so I wont freak out and die.

 

[Ced5000]

My first tourney was last saturday my first 2 matches(I lost 1) I was really nervous and felt I should have won both, then I got my act together and beat a G&W/ DK user, then i ended up by losing to snake overall I felt I was not aggressive alot of times where I should have been while sometimes I was too aggressive(cost me a round)

 

[Pierce7d]

I find another problem that newcomers often have with tournaments is that they play a hyper-aggro style, and get scrapped by patient players. However, if you've never played a patient style, you're not going to know how to play patience, and at this point you pretty much lack experience and you're screwed.

Practice different styles. Okay, so you're winning at home, with your friends, training partners, etc. Good. You know what you're doing to win, you probably have it down to a science.

Now try something new in your style and see what that brings you.

For me, I love Dancing Blade. It punishes everything, and gets past that shield.

So I play a few matches COMPLETELY without Dancing Blade, and see what new things I have to improvise. Breaking off of what I know allows me to discover NEW things, and sometimes even BETTER things. By not using Dancing Blade, I now have developed a better tilt game. Dtilt is less likely to get me shield grabbed when spaced properly, and now I have more options that I can comfortably rely on.

And PLEASE! If you haven't tried playing entirely defensive matches (IE: you never dash anywhere and you never approach unless your opponent has entered your range or is open) then you really should work on it. Marth is also a defensive beast, and this really will help you develop your patience, which is a REQUIREMENT for high level play.

 

[¯\_S.(ツ).L.I.D._/¯]

In recent tournies I like playing "Prowling Marth".

Prowling is a fancy word, for a Wolf Mindgame, where you do nothing but stare at your opponent while not moving. When they approach you mock them by taking steps back, just keep running around and making them mad, and then when they get too over aggressive you just Fsmash or Dtilt them away and stand still again. Believe me it'll catch some people off guard, just have fun spacing them.

Ya, i do this, but unfortunately I've never gone to a brawl tourney, since there haven't really been any near me that I can attend, but I'm hosting a small one (like 8 people) next Saturday, like I said very small, but I'm still nervous. It's just friends, but we're all going all out and I think I'll win. So yeah, my tourney was two days ago, I won some cash that I don't have yet but I'll get. I only lost 3 matches out of the 16 matches I played, and it was fun.

 

[Nibbity]

Pierce7d - you're absolutely right. I didn't actually do dancing blade as much because I thought I would be spamming it and be cheap, which isn't really likely now...it's a safe and dependable move. However yeah, not doing it does help mostly for tilts, I've been working on my f tilt and d tilt along with Dolphin Slashing out of my shield...oh, and grabs. Good call though, not doing DB really does affect things you need to do.

 

[eskimo bob]

I've never been to a single game tourney (except for tcgs a few years back.) the only tourneys I've attended to are multi-game ones. they were both made by a nintendo magazine and I attended my first one when I was 9. yes, 9. I haven't really felt any angst or any bad feeling except for when I'm actually traveling. I get nervous and bite on my nails more than I usually do and when I get there I'm a cool cat. however I got knocked out of the qualification round since it consisted of a racing game I had never played before. heck, if I would've proceeded to the next round I would've made a fool of myself since it was a tony hawk game and I've to this day only played tony hawk games once. the next tourney I went to was the same thing, nintendo game tourney created by the magazine. this time I was only 11, but only one year had passed. this time I felt even less nervous and I was just thinking of how fun I was having. there were two games that you could play this time and the ten best from each game would advance. I was the youngest person in a 300 man tournament and out of the little more than 100 people that played the same game as I did I qualified. I didn't progress into the semifinals, though, but that qualification has made me into what I am today; a way too self confident *******. I truly believe that I can do anything now, so I seldom get nervous anymore and I don't regret much at all.

... sorry about that.

 

[Nibbity]

haha don't be sorry, we all like stories. Man, being 9 at a tournament is quite a feat. And being 11 and doing very well is even better! Congratualtions on your progress.

 

[eskimo bob]

why thank you, good sir.

 

[Nibbity]

Haha, sure thing! This is the Marth community. I've seen it to be very positive and helpful on a lot of occasions. I hope to keep it that way lol.

 

[Mighty_mo76]

Agreed. Nice thread.

I'm still waiting for ike is solid's results and reflections. I was planning to do the same thing since i have huge transportation issues to go to weeklies. So i was gonna host a friendly tournament (maybe 8 people) and I would win (ezy way to get money). Haha, it's like stealing from your friends.

But it's really about spending time w/ yur friends and just hanging out. ^_^

 

[Nibbity]

Thank you very much. I really am lucky to main Marth haha, it's just simply very very helpful.

transportation is always a problem when you don't havea liscense. People needing to drive and pick up kids are always calling around wondering how you are and where you are, etc. Hahaha, I would do that too but i dont think my friends would fall for that one.

and yes, agreed. I don't know about you guys, but if i'm at a party, no matter who, Brawl is normally there and played. I think it's nice that it brings people together.

 

[Omega_Star]

My first Brawl tournaments were those Gamestop release tournaments. I won the first two, but couldn't continue on after that because the ****ers wanted to send me to Kansas City, MO, and my aunt died that weekend.

My second Brawl tournament, I discovered how stupid Snake, Diddy Kong, and Meta Knight are.

My third Brawl tournament, and MGC tournament, I came in second place, losing in a close finals set that came down to the fifth game, last stock, and high percent.

My fourth Brawl tournament, which was today, I discovered that I really hate Meta Knight when a player I played in Melee, and beat regularly, who neither player nor likes Brawl eliminated me with Meta Knight, who he used only because Falco wasn't unlocked. He beat me in a close game the first round when I was Marth at FD, then I counterpicked at Halberd with MK and two-stocked him, then he counter-picked me at Pikmin level and beat me in a really close game.

The funny thing is that I'm growing to dislike Brawl more with each tournament that I attend, but I'll still play it because that it what people are competing in nowdays.

I had played in several Melee tournaments, too, but I suppose this isn't what this is about anymore.

 

[¯\_S.(ツ).L.I.D._/¯]

Haha, sure thing! This is the Marth community. I've seen it to be very positive and helpful on a lot of occasions. I hope to keep it that way lol.

Ya, most people here are very nice, like me! Lol, but seriously I'm nice on the Marth Boards and mean on the other ones, mostly because I get mad when people say stupid things, that's why I try to say intelligent things for the most part. Ya, so since most people say smart things on the Marth Boards, I don't have to get angry, and YOU WON'T LIKE ME WHEN I'M ANGRY! Ha Ha Ha, Hulk FTW.

 

[Nibbity]

Ya, most people here are very nice, like me! Lol, but seriously I'm nice on the Marth Boards and mean on the other ones, mostly because I get mad when people say stupid things, that's why I try to say intelligent things for the most part. Ya, so since most people say smart things on the Marth Boards, I don't have to get angry, and YOU WON'T LIKE ME WHEN I'M ANGRY! Ha Ha Ha, Hulk FTW.

Oh yeah, I haven't seen you post anywhere but here, but yes I agree you're very welcoming haha. I just don't like it when people say things that have already been said over and over by many people, like if someone made a thread saying Dancing Blade is good, with nothing else interesting. Hulk is the man for sure, but everyone's saying Batman's the best now...maybe I need to see the movie.

 

[Mighty_mo76]

When Hulk turns green, does his....you now....thing turn green as well? if so, then he definitely beats Batman.

Ike_is_solid, did you host that thing on Saturday? I'd like to hear about it so I know what works and what don't work and how it went. Curious.

Plz tell us ^_^

 

[Kodachrome]

You know, I really dig the mentality that pervades the marth boards.

I do have a question, though...where do you guys generally go for these "weeklies" and "monthlies?" Are they at chains such as gamestop or what? I'm in Minnesota, and we have next to no brawl scene, so I don't know...

Main reason I'm asking, I guess, is because I've been lurking/contributing next to nothing for some time, now. I feel that I'm to the point where a tournament would do me good. I do have good players to play against, but they're online. However, I've practiced enough to where I have most everything except the true pivot down pat, and I can flow from one thing to the next fairly easily and practically. From there, it's just a matter of experience in real life...so...yeah.

WHERE THE HECK ARE YOU GUYS HIDING ALL THESE TOURNAMENTS?!

 

[¯\_S.(ツ).L.I.D._/¯]

When Hulk turns green, does his....you now....thing turn green as well? if so, then he definitely beats Batman.

Ike_is_solid, did you host that thing on Saturday? I'd like to hear about it so I know what works and what don't work and how it went. Curious.

Plz tell us ^_^

Ya, I hosted, and it went fine. It was me and like 6 of my friends, and I set up the bracket, we did a round robin to determine the seedings, and then most points got a bye to the second round, and so on. I won. The only thing that didn't work is some of my friends wanted rematches with my other friends after they'd been eliminated. So that didn't really work. And oh yeah we did double elimination. Overall it was great.

 

[jinofcoolnes]

Iam going to the NY Tournament on friday.I feel like i need to place decently to Rep Marth there.....

 

[Nibbity]

Kodachrome - One thing to say...this site does wonders for you if you wanna find a tournament near you/ in your state. I recently found four new tournaments that are being held in the next month close to me, I think you should be able to do the same if you just go to the tournament threads.

 

[Kodachrome]

Tournament threads?! BRILLIANT!

sometimes I just...*facepalm*

Thanks, nibbity. I'll run over there right now.