Goat Format Championship 22: Top 8 Player Interviews

We saw 145 duelists enter for the year's 2nd Goat Format Championship event. After 9 rounds of swiss, eight had risen to the top! Join us in congratulating these amazing players on a job well done! 

How did you prepare for today's event? Did you practice with a specific person or team?I didn't do basically any prep for this event. I fine turned some side deck cards but this is basically the same deck I got 2nd at a previous FLC and 2nd at GGP Chicago. Its been good to meWhat deck did you play today and why?Warriors. Because its the second best deck and there isn't many good warrior players left so I thought I had a good shot at doing well. (Plus didn't feel like playing turbo mirrors)What decks or players were you looking forward to playing against?I wanted to play against mostly all turbo as that's what my deck is best vs and what I have the most experience playing. Didn't have anyone in particular I wanted to play.What decks or players were you NOT looking forward to playing against?No cheese deck or cheese players. Library, RGT, burn, any of thatWhat card had been overperforming for you today?Book of moon. Lots of cards did well today but book was a debatable cut and it was great all tourney saving me from snatch steals and letting me loop my main deck magician of faiths.What has been your favorite moment of the event so far?Getting first in swiss (again) basically all there is for something memorable lmao (instantly lost in top cut)​If you could go back, what (if any) changes would you would make to your deck today?I wouldn't make any changes but I would take back some plays I made in top cut GG. Congrats to whoever the winner is and to all of top 8. Good event and thank you to all the staff that did the leg work

How did you prepare for today's event? Did you practice with a specific person or team?Only practice I had are the war league playoffs and Patreons. After getting Yugioh'd in the finals of war league, I decided to go scorched earth on the GFC.What deck did you play today and why?Chaos turbo. It has the highest ceiling and can play out of sticky situations. When it's your day, it's your day. Goat format is akin to poker and sometimes you just have to hope you can outdraw your opponent. CT gives you the best odds at that. What decks or players were you looking forward to playing against?Nobody in particular. Been playing long enough that it just becomes a screen name on the other side.What decks or players were you NOT looking forward to playing against?Alternative stuff which I somehow managed to avoid like RGT, Last Turn, burn, and rituals. What card had been overperforming for you today?Besides turbo being turbo, including Book of Moon as the 40th card actually got there. I won 3 or so games I otherwise wouldn't have and was a very clutch card. People aren't used to seeing it anymore so the surprise factor is there when you have a response to a Sorc effect or Snatch activation. What has been your favorite moment of the event so far?Bluffing a set TT by summoning Tsuk and book'ing Giya's BLS. I then set an MST. She topped the MST and targeted my set MST. Then BLS swung into the Mirror Force I had sitting there for a while. Little things like that justify the method to my madness lol.​If you could go back, what (if any) changes would you would make to your deck today?​No changes. Sometimes the deck played itself and sometimes I was a tough out for players. I had a good weekend just like anyone else could have. Just need to stay fresh and active. ​

How did you prepare for today's event? Did you practice with a specific person or team?#standbyphase, Safari Zone, 519 and GametimeMI What deck did you play today and why?Chaos Turbo, Best deck most likely to succeed with..What decks or players were you looking forward to playing against?Anything and everythingWhat decks or players were you NOT looking forward to playing against?Gimmick Otk garbage, RGT and the likes.. What card had been overperforming for you today?Night Assailant was coming up pretty clutch for me most of the event What has been your favorite moment of the event so far?AJTBLS Winning.. that's my guy and if it wasn't me winning, I'm glad it was him.​If you could go back, what (if any) changes would you would make to your deck today?Maybe change the XING out, cuz ppl expect it now and the surprise factor is spoiled

How did you prepare for today's event? Did you practice with a specific person or team?I’m involved in discord servers and exchange information with teammates and good minds. What deck did you play today and why?I played Chaos Turbo because it’s the best deckWhat decks or players were you looking forward to playing against?I was looking forward to playing mirror matchesWhat decks or players were you NOT looking forward to playing against?Alternate win conditionsWhat card had been overperforming for you today?Gravekeeper spy, Chaos sorcerer What has been your favorite moment of the event so far?Winning another invite ​If you could go back, what (if any) changes would you would make to your deck today?​I wouldn’t change anything​

How did you prepare for today's event? Did you practice with a specific person or team?I was pretty primed and ready to play this deck today fresh off of testing for/playing GGP Atlanta last week. My team shopped a slightly better version of the deck, but I almost didn't play it! The last two days I was planning to play a weird Stun Warrior deck, but my teammates convinced me to use it since there was expected to be a low warrior turnout. I play a lot of ladder so I'm usually quite fresh to play.What deck did you play today and why?I played Ritual Chaos aka. Quish Turbo aka. Blue Turbo. I am convinced this is another tier one deck in Goat Format and I hope people play the deck and see it for themselves. It makes good use of all the good turbo engine cards while being very aggressive and proactive.My esteemed Yugioh dueling team captain ShaggyPowers randomly showed a build using Abyss Soldier, which made me recall a conversation I had with Clay Vision about his "Spin Cycle" deck, where he used Manju and Senju to get Doriado for Abyss Solider fodder. Alephya2 did the same, and I realized that I could easily slot it into my deck for basically no opportunity cost.All in all, the deck is fast, consistent, versatile, sacky, and I felt well-prepared for what today's meta had to offer.What decks or players were you looking forward to playing against?Turbo and burn are pretty easy matchups when the deck is doing its thing. I also always love running into unfair decks, just because I am very familiar with how they play and how to take them apart.What decks or players were you NOT looking forward to playing against?Control decks and warrior decks are always tough. The current iteration of the deck also hates Turbo builds with Solemn Judgement, but intend to fix that in future builds.What card had been overperforming for you today?For the most part everything performed as intended. It was very satisfying to get to win a game specifically using the Whale not once but twice.What has been your favorite moment of the event so far?Game 1 vs. AJT in the swiss rounds was super intense. Even though I lost it was a really good match. I always love to see just how good at the game players of his caliber really are. It was also satisfying to get my revenge on rbcdr, especially when a worlds invite was on the line.​If you could go back, what (if any) changes would you would make to your deck today?​If faith was in the side against these good turbo players it would be waaayyy easier for me to keep up in games 2 and 3. I think I'll be slightly changing the ratios to accommodate this in the future. I hope other people pick up the deck and see how it goes.​

How did you prepare for today's event? Did you practice with a specific person or team?I copied a goat control list from splevin and made some small edits with his guidance, but I did not do any testing with the deck beforehand since it was a last minute swap.What deck did you play today and why?I played Goat Control because its fun and I wanted a top with it.What decks or players were you looking forward to playing against?WarriorWhat decks or players were you NOT looking forward to playing against?Any of my UI teammatesWhat card had been overperforming for you today?Trap Dustshoot and Solemn JudgementWhat has been your favorite moment of the event so far?Beating a salty rgt player by playing better​If you could go back, what (if any) changes would you would make to your deck today?​I would cut lv2 in the side for an exiled​

How did you prepare for today's event? Did you practice with a specific person or team?Practiced with Team 519 (and associates) as well as Safari ZoneWhat deck did you play today and why?Chaos Turbo with Raigeki Breaks (first time in a long time). I played this deck because I thought it was the best deck for the large field. What decks or players were you looking forward to playing against?ALT WIN and BURN. What decks or players were you NOT looking forward to playing against?519/associates/Safari ZoneWhat card had been overperforming for you today?DekoichiWhat has been your favorite moment of the event so far?Snatch Stealing Moxie's Kycoo putting it in defense and using storm (ended up being a lethal line).​If you could go back, what (if any) changes would you would make to your deck today?​None.​

How did you prepare for today's event? Did you practice with a specific person or team?To be honest I didn't practice with any particular person or team. What deck did you play today and why?I chose the Chaos Turbo strategy because I think it's the most efficient and fits me as well.What decks or players were you looking forward to playing against?I think the control match-up is the most convenient What decks or players were you NOT looking forward to playing against?Aggro decks like warriors are the most dangerousWhat card had been overperforming for you today?SPIRIT REAPER BY FAAARWhat has been your favorite moment of the event so far?I think the unexpected gift from round 7, when my opponent didn't just banish a set reaper and instead chose to attack, so survived until the next turn when I had lethal. ​If you could go back, what (if any) changes would you would make to your deck today?Return out, Dusthsoot in