I started playing Customizable Card Games in 1995 when I was 10 years old.

My first tournament was at Butler University in my hometown of Indianapolis for the Star Wars: Customizable Card Game. My dad walked me in, made sure I got acquainted with the tournament director, and then left me to it. That was the beginning of what’s now been over 30 years of playing card games.

When I was a kid, I understood never getting the time of day from the top players. I was there to have fun and maybe score a pack or two, and they were there to win. It was only as I got older that I became more aware of the invisible barrier that separated me from those players- and once the cause was no longer age, I had to look for another explanation. I had the money to buy the cards I needed now, so it couldn’t just be collection asymmetry. It wasn’t having enough time and energy to commit to the game- unlike now, I had more than enough of that.

Was I just dumber? A worse player? The insecurity began to seep in.

Over the years, I’ve shifted from being a Timmy, to a committed Johnny – perpetually working to deckbuild my way to a win. I almost did it twice in the Star Trek CCG, a game where smart deckbuilding really mattered. That was great for my gaming confidence, but when I started pursuing other games (like the Star Wars LCG) that relied less on deck construction and more on in-game skill, my performance suffered, and the insecurity returned.

What I’ve Learned

It wasn’t until Star Wars: Destiny began in 2016 that I started to understand what it would take to move to the top tables of a modern competitive card game. My GarbageRollers collaborator, Justin, was a big help. He introduced me to the Discord threads that mattered and used the vocabulary I’d need to learn to rise. Our team powered me to a top-8 finish at GenCon. When SWU emerged after Destiny’s death, I was able to pick up where we’d left off, using the tools I’d learned across my years of experience. Now, I want to share those as dos and don’ts with you!

DO: Get With The Winners

This has often been the hardest part for me- you can’t get to a win if you’re not communicating with the people winning. I’ve spent a lot of years being intimidated by these folks, assuming they’d never want to talk to a scrub like me. But on the contrary, I’ve found that many competitive players are kind, open people. If you approach them with an open mind, ready to learn, they’re often willing to help.

DON’T: Think You Can Do It Alone

I spent so many years working in my own bubble. Hours upon hours table-topping games with myself, thinking that if I worked that process hard enough it would be good enough to propel me to more wins and eliminate that plaguing self-doubt. It just doesn’t work that way. You need to play and collaborate with as many competitive players as possible.

DO: Learn the Lingo

What I said above about getting with the winners? That doesn’t do you much good if you literally can’t understand what they’re saying. Each game has its own vernacular, and understanding it helps you understand the game better. If someone says “Yeah, submarined into the cut with my 1-drop aggro deck,” you need to know what that means. Our Slang Dictionary can help with that!

DON’T: Get Butthurt

Nobody wants to deal with a sore loser. But it’s especially embarrassing when you’ve lost, you’re angry, and you don’t fully understand why. I’ve been to a lot of tournaments where I showed up thinking I knew the game, and got blown away because I wasn’t actually on the competitive level. Taking the frustration of experiences like that out on the people around you isn’t productive. Losing is embarrassing, and it sucks, but you can’t make a scene without compromising your own growth. It’ll make you radioactive to other players, and nothing in card games happens without them.

DO: Know the Cards and Know the Rules

This one’s pretty basic. You can’t expect to be competitive if you don’t understand what cards are out there, and how they interact. You should have very high standards for yourself on rules knowledge. Get on the Discord and follow all the rules updates that come out. If you wait for official FFG comms, it’s probably too late.

DON’T: Think You Can Deckbuild Yourself To A Win

I’m super guilty of this. One key behavior I had to fix was not locking in a deck early enough in my tournament prep. There are examples of wild off-meta decks that take tournaments out of left field, but it’s important to know that making one of those isn’t something that anybody has in them every time. Now, I lock in what I’m going to play a couple weeks prior to the event and PRACTICE WITH THAT DECK. It’s so important to learn your deck’s playlines and gain familiarity into key matchups. Don’t sacrifice getting good reps with a deck you like in a futile search for the “perfect deck.”

DO: Chase Losses

When you’re doing your tournament prep, find the decks and players that beat you and seek them out. Wins don’t really teach you anything. The goal of practice should be to create a play environment tougher than the tournament. You want your losses before you depart.

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I hope these tips will help you the way they’ve helped me. I still have a lot to learn, but I’m certain that going forward, I won’t be doing it alone!