The first tourney of the new year was played at the Southgate stadium of Babe-B & Bud-D. A big game. In attendance were Elmo, Babe-B, Melkor, ToeJamm, Bugz, Decoy, Candy Cane, Bud-D, and, playing his first Triominos tournament game, Level-9 Wizard (aka The Wizard). Also in attendance were Future Draft Pick #1 & #2. Depicted in the first picture below are those players and Draft Picks with whom you are already familiar:
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| L-to-R: Decoy, FDP#1, ToeJamm, Elmo, Melkor, Babe-B, Bud-D, BugZ, Candy Cane, FDP#2 |
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| Decoy waves to indicate he is sitting next to MiT Level-9 Wizard |
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| Bud-D modelling the Leader's Chapeaux a la Lapin |
6:04 Melkor is notekeeper/scribe. Things happened because I said they did
6:05 Quite possibly the largest Triominos game of all time: 9 players
6:06 ToeJamm did something, but no one remembers
6:07 Grand Master Bud-D is official rule maker due to unique circumstance of game (ed-the large number of players)
6:09 Lvl 9 Wizard lays Triple 3
6:14 Master ToeJamm provides strategy advice to Lvl 9 Wizard that is strangely similar to "do well if you can": Prophetic.
6:19 ToeJamm: "Well I'm sitting here trying to 'strategy'". Prophetic.
6:27 ToeJamm observes that it's awesome to have a new player; the wise masters have a chance to recite the metaphysics of the game. Lvl 9 Wizard humbily listens, soaks in the new dimensions opening before him, and then lays out.
6:30 Master Bud-D forgets it's his turn because he's too busy meditating about what it would have been like to have gone to a Donovan concert.
6:33 Master ToeJamm explains to Lvl 9 Wizard the ascending clockwise value principle to avoid possible hexagramb lays. He sagely adds at the end of his lecture, "I'll be dropping knowledge bombs all day".
6:37 ToeJamm commits a boner, Babe-B remarks on the flatteringly exaggerated gestures some made on the boner.
6:40 Elmo lays a bridge to show the Lvl 9 Wizard how to set up power-lays. ToeJamm patiently watches, pleased others show the genius of his wisdom.
6:43 ToeJamm lays a bridge, audience still exhausted from teh glorious (more so?) lay by Elmo.
6:45 Candy-Cane lays ANOTHER BRIDGE! SO MUCH HAPPENING!!!
6:45 Future Draft Pick #2 has a gastro-intestinal excretion, he's so moved.
6:47 Melkor, brooding in his secret lair for an age of man, lays out.
7:00 Decoy is a little confused by numbers and what represents a higher score when reading them from highest to lowest.
7:03 Lvl 9 Wizard lays a Triominos Triangle.
7:09 Candy-Cane lays Triple 0; always a good lay.
7:13 Lvl 9 Wizard likes Cream. No context provided or required.
7:15 Bud-D explains how the Master have learned that strategy goes out the window the more players, why sometimes a Master can be in last place. Melkor responds that it's important for Masters to infrequently experience what the Juniors live...like Jesus?
7:21 Babe-B: "Whose turn is it?"
7:22 Decoy lays a Bridge
7:24 Melkor with a flour-de-lay-da-Bridge. There is much discussion on the eloquent flick of the bridging tile from Melkor's hand
7:26 BugZ flour-de-last-tile.
7:39 Lvl 9 Wizard believes it's the exact time to draw. Never late.
7:46 ToeJamm forgets how to play the game and reprocesses memories of being physically and mentally dominated by Melkor in his youth.
7:52 ToeJamm ask a question of the participants: "Who says a Master can't be cocky?" The grim & accusatory stares of the senior masters provides the only answer that matters.
7:55 Decoy enables Melkor to bridge worlds.
7:56 Lvl 9 Wizard corrects ToeJamm's nomenclature about tiles.
7:59 An intellectual, mind-expanding discussion about Monty Python's contributions to the metaphysics of the game culminates with ToeJamm's controversial observation, "Who cares what Master Dick thinks."
8:00 Candy-Cane flour-de-lays out.
8:12 4th Triomino Triangle. Record. (Ed-debatable)
8:19 BugZ with a polyhedron of 6 sides.
8:20 Elmo with a polyhedron of 6 sides.
8:21 I'm so excited.
8:22 ToeJamm "I've never listened to a Tool song during Triominos".
8:23 Bud-D informs the younger generation they can choose their own music. Transfer of musical authority complete.
8:25 ToeJamm: "Ethics isn't relative." KNOWLEDGE BOMB
8:26 Candy-Cane bridges worlds east & west.
8:33 Children are crying. Our Muse is silent to the voluminous decibals vibrating from ToeJamm's energetic, possibly what some Mosh Pit patrons would say "uncomfortably loud" defense of a boner-bridge-rule altercation. (Ultimately ruled a Boner)
8:39 Candy-Cane Lays-A-Bridge.
8:42 Decoy lays out while quietly pointing out a previously laid boner of his. From the mouths of babes.
8:57 Our 5th Triomino Triangle.
9:17 Whose turn is it? ToeJamm spends a significant amount of time contemplating how numbers relate to each other, how they can be the exact same, how they can be different. How he has 1 point. It's a strategy.
9:23 Words were said; Elmo laid a tile.
9:24 ToeJamm: "You're old and it has an 'affection' on you." (about something forgotten)
9:26 Babe-B flour-de-lays a bridge amidst even more voluminous aplaum from ToeJamm.
9:29 More words of prophecy from Master ToeJamm, "Music doesn't even matter anymore. What do numbers even mean???" The depth and breadth of his speech are an argument; he's winning in his mind.
9:33 Babe-B flour-de-lays a hexagramb and gut-check.
9:37 ToeJamm seriously is unclear how many points he gains from a bridge with a 1-4-0 tile.
9:39 Lvl 9 Wizard casts a 'finis' spell and goes out.
9:40 Lvl 9 Wizard, as is tradition, wins. Newbie Tradition fulfilledLvl 9 Wizard - 481, BugZ - 419, Candy-Cane - 394, Melkor - 343, Elmo - 341, Decoy - 340, Bud-D - 333, ToeJamm - 326, Babe-B - 250.
More action shots from Game:
