Your First Tournament - A Guide to Making the Most of It

[baldurseeyou]

It sounds good at first but sometimes it gets very stressful. I usually try to come prepared,
but sometimes I kinda freak out when I do.
I keep another controller just in case.

 

[Collective of Bears]

Really informative. I'm still a bit hazy on how counterpicking works, but I'll figure it out.

 

[FireKirby7]

Great read. Answered a lot of my personal questions......
Tourney-goers are usually respectful and nice right???
I don't want to get into any trouble.

 

[Melomaniacal]

Great read. Answered a lot of my personal questions......
Tourney-goers are usually respectful and nice right???
I don't want to get into any trouble.

Almost always. I've never met a tourney-goer that was out-right rude or mean.

 

[SCOTU]

people are usually pretty good. It's more likely to find someone cocky/annoying than someone mean/rude.

 

[_Phloat_]

Well, most of the community is intelligent. Asking if someone is going to be rude is like asking if there is gonna be someone rude in school.. Well, yea, but it isn't really a problem.

For instance, at the last tournament I went to, there was a guy winning some friendlies. So I went up and asked if he wanted to play one, after he won.

Well, my turn comes around and he changes from Pika to Ike. He says he is gonna "test me" to see if I am good enough to play his Pikachu.

Instead of being offended, I just told him I was gonna test him with my back aerial. And I threestocked him.

Then he went pika and I won.

Some other guy comes up to play, and he asks for next game. So, I just turn to him and say "sorry, I have to test you first *picks ike*"

He laughed.

Morale of the story: there are gonna be some people there that you may not like, but you gotta learn to deal with it, like real life. There is no minimum coolness requirement to get in, but rest assured the majority of people are gonna be cool, and they are have the same interest as you that day =].

He also told me I need Vaseline >_>. ****

 

[Circa]

Thanks for making this thread. I'm planning on attending Genesis this July, which may end up being my first tourney if I don't have the money for smaller tourneys by then...economy sort of leaves no jobs open in Michigan, it seems. I had a lot of worries, but thanks to all the info you gave I have absolutely no worries at all, and am actually looking forward to it.

Even if it will cost me bookoo bucks to fly to Cali and stay in a hotel and such...oh well. I have other things I need to do in Cali anyway, and that just gives me an excuse for it. ^.^

 

[Vanst]

I've been to some melee tourneys before in the past, so I have some experience of what a Smash Bros tournament is like. I have never been to a Brawl tourney though and I hope to go to one soon!

 

[SCOTU]

Brawl tournaments are not too dissimilar from Melee tourneys. Actually, the only difference you're likely to notice is that the average age of the players tends to drop a bit.

 

[Vanst]

Brawl tournaments are not too dissimilar from Melee tourneys. Actually, the only difference you're likely to notice is that the average age of the players tends to drop a bit.

Thats good to know thanks.

 

[AvaricePanda]

Brawl tournaments are not too dissimilar from Melee tourneys. Actually, the only difference you're likely to notice is that the average age of the players tends to drop a bit.

Heh, I'd feel a little better about my young'un-ness then.

But it sucks because there are ABSOLUTELY NO LOCALS/REGIONALS in Indiana/Indianapolis (other than that Winona Lake one next month, but I can't go because of the lol overnight and age problem).

 

[Levitas]

I hear about tournaments at Purdue every so often. In fact, there's a melee thing that scotu and I are going to in 2 weeks iirc.

 

[J-Cords]

This was very informative. I have never been to a tourney before though because idk where to start looking for one in the first place and it may be hard for me to get a ride, since I am only 15 and can't drive yet. Btw I live in Jersey and I was wondering if there are alot of tourneys that go down here? I am clueless.

 

[SCOTU]

check the regional zones or allisbrawl. I'm sure there are a fair amount of tourneys near you, since the best player of both brawl and melee lives in your state.

 

[AvaricePanda]

I hear about tournaments at Purdue every so often. In fact, there's a melee thing that scotu and I are going to in 2 weeks iirc.

Melee. Yeah....

I should have said that there are no brawl locals/regionals around where I live. Not many, any. There's a Brawl tourney in Winona Lake in early March, and I'm trying to persuade my parents to let me go, but they aren't comfortable with me sleeping in a cabin.

I don't have any friends that play Brawl; all of my friend's parents are much more lenient.

 

[-Syn-]

Nice

You should look for situations where you get *****, and look for patterns that you react to that get you *****. Try not to follow those patterns anymore.

Best advice I have ever heard =p

 

[hippiedude92]

so scotu i've been leaning on your guide for some quite time now which leads me to more questions before my tourney tomrrow haha ;3

How will i meet specific people? Like for instance how did Anther find ally or something irl? Do they just yell out the name out loud randomly? Or did all the pros just call each up and meet at X place ? Or do you just roam around the t.vs look at their gamertags and see if that's really them? (idk how most pros look like irl cept m2k lol)

What does CRT stand for?

*more questions abit later

 

[skyace89]

so scotu i've been leaning on your guide for some quite time now which leads me to more questions before my tourney tomrrow haha ;3

How will i meet specific people? Like for instance how did Anther find ally or something irl? Do they just yell out the name out loud randomly? Or did all the pros just call each up and meet at X place ? Or do you just roam around the t.vs look at their gamertags and see if that's really them? (idk how most pros look like irl cept m2k lol)

What does CRT stand for?

*more questions abit later

CRT=cathode ray tube

I'm pretty sure they just call each other or something and meet up there i guess...

 

[SCOTU]

well, it's usually pretty easy to find the good players. You can wait for one of their matches to be called, and see who plays in it. Esp. after the tourney goes, a lot of times, good players will hang out together. Also, it's easy to spot an important match cause a bunch of ppl are watching

 

[crimson123]

lol man I wish I knew about this before I whent to my first 1v1 tournament. Man I had fun. I used Fox and got third place. I almost beat a guy who seemed like goku with Metaknight lol. Then I played a guy with pikachu.... Man I didnot know pikachu could chain grab... lol

 

[DtJ XeroXen]

Melee. Yeah....

I should have said that there are no brawl locals/regionals around where I live. Not many, any. There's a Brawl tourney in Winona Lake in early March, and I'm trying to persuade my parents to let me go, but they aren't comfortable with me sleeping in a cabin.

I don't have any friends that play Brawl; all of my friend's parents are much more lenient.

You don't have to sleep in a cabin there, you can sleep in the game room too! (Or you can just show up the day of the tourney, play, and leave later that night, which is what I did the first time I went there)

You must have strict parents, because I'm like 15 and my parents don't care at all that I'm going to this. Hope you can convince them!

 

[AvaricePanda]

You don't have to sleep in a cabin there, you can sleep in the game room too! (Or you can just show up the day of the tourney, play, and leave later that night, which is what I did the first time I went there)

You must have strict parents, because I'm like 15 and my parents don't care at all that I'm going to this. Hope you can convince them!

OH SNAP I JUST REALIZED--

The actual tournaments only on one day. Yessss...there's a chance if I just go on saturday.

 

[spork_kitty]

It's more likely to find someone cocky/annoying than someone mean/rude.

Am I the only person who thinks that's just as bad? Cocky people are intolerable.

 

[SCOTU]

It's more likely to find someone cocky/annoying than someone mean/rude.

Am I the only person who thinks that's just as bad? Cocky people are intolerable.

to tollerate cocky people, either 1) they're really good, so they can back up their cockyness, and it doesn't matter, or 2) they're not good, they just talk big, so you can ignore them completely, sweeping it under the rug as them being dumb.

 

[.Marik]

Good thread, too bad I blew my chance at my first Tournament.

I played hard, I played good. People said my Yoshi was amazing.

But against MetaKnight's and Snakes and other top/high tier characters, I guess I still got a long way to go.

Due to the disadvantages against Yoshi...

Oh well. There's always next time.

 

[wh1te5had0w]

this helped me a lot

 

[hippiedude92]

Scotu my suggestion is that you should add, that when they're banning the stages, then picking a CP stage, that you can change your character ALSO your oppenent (assuming he won the first match or so), can change their character as well.

This is how I lost to D1 like a wreckless ***** since it was my first tourney. I play luigi, he used falco, he 3 stocked me. Then next match, I CP with Mario, assuming he can't change falco to another character but instead he changed his character to D3, and I already called my CP which was Castle Siege. So basically I had no clue he can the winner can change their character too as well. And I got fully ***** all against me lol.

but yeah you should something like that somewhere in there. First goers like me didn't know that apparently :/

 

[SCOTU]

After game 1, the winner of game 1 may "ban" a stage they don't want counterpicked against them. From the list of "neutral" and "counterpick" stages available at that tournament, the loser of game 1 may select a stage that they wish to play on for game 2. The winning player of game 1 then selects their character for game 2, then the loser of game 1 selects their character for game 2. Then game 2 is played.

I'll probably restructure this paragraph to make it easier to read.

 

[Bluefire]

this was insightful
i hope to host a tourney one day

 

[hippiedude92]

I'll probably restructure this paragraph to make it easier to read.

haha. that sounds about right. hope my suggestion is a decent contribution cause, i literaly got ***** by D1's D3 (mario on castle siege, with walk off CGs = phail T.T ). xD

 

[Dayzin]

Some really helpful tips here, nice post.

 

[beastman93]

This was a great post to tourney n00bs like myself. Too bad I don't live in the city or anything so the only tourney I was at, was the midnight launch of Brawl at GameStop.

 

[SCOTU]

yeah, most people have to drive between a half hour and an hour and half to get to their nearest tourneys, if they're not part of the group that hosts tourneys in a state.

 

[Popcornio]

Also something worth menchoning is trying to make some friends at these events. This way you could find more local players. This allows people to get together more often with more people than previous and would allow for people to play a wider ranger of people/characters/play-styles. It's just a way to get more experience, even when your not at a tourney.

 

[sparkaura]

um im new to this board and i havent had my first tournament but this guide will be useful if i can ever find a place were tournaments are being held

 

[Huntress]

Nice guide, very useful for people who are contemplating to enter a tourney.

 

[Pancakesyo]

this help a whole lot thanks yo

 

[Allied]

this definitally helped a lot for my friend i just showed him ^_^
me and him are going to a tournament this saturday

 

[SCOTU]

cool, good luck guys!

 

[OrangeMewtwo1337]

AWESOME, thanks~!!! I have a garage tournament this Saturday, this helped me out alot