New Players and Tournaments
I’ve previously written about common mistakes new players make and after attending my first tournament, I thought I’d share some of my thoughts both for new players and organisers.
Firstly I want to congratulate Joe Parsons for an excellent event in Bristol. It was the first two-day event we’ve ever had and saw 40 people vying for top spot - taken by our very own Tom Greenway in the end! Head over to our social accounts (like Facebook or Instagram) to see more.
First, a Little Context
I would describe myself as “hesitant” when it comes to new situations in the gaming community, as I’ve had a few poor experiences in the past (like the guy who didn’t talk to me but would waft his hand to indicate it was my turn in a Magic tournament). Being a newer player is also cause to pause, as the implication to me has always been that tournament = expert. Lastly, anxiety will rear its head on occasion about getting there, and where to stay, and how tired I’ll feel, and what I’d do if I forgot something, and blah blah blah, silly brain stuff.
Honestly - Just Do It!
Even if you’re a new player, I would absolutely recommend going along to a Moonstone tournament. The community is wonderful - full of patient, fun, enthusiastic folks. Rules errors were pointed out so they could be fixed and it was normal for players to ask their opponent for confirmation whether characters were in range or not.
Moonstone is the type of game that’s fun whether you’re winning or not and happily this transfers into a tournament too. I won two games and lost four, but thoroughly enjoyed them all! Moonstone is also simple to learn, yet tricky to master - like chess. Playing in a tournament has taught me so much about how different characters and troupes work, it probably would have taken months to learn the same amount from other sources.
The Baron bravely takes cover behind Dim & Dimmer so that he can safely gather a moonstone.
Choosing a Troupe
I decided I’d use a Commonwealth troupe as it’s one I was most familiar with. The Baron, Flintlock, Hogswash and the Friar were auto-takes for me, with the remaining four characters ones I considered a bit longer. I chose Dim and Dimmer to help with high evade characters and give me a blocker on the field, plus I just love everything about them! Finally, I decided to take Boris to help me tackle Pyschopomps if I faced a Shades character or needed to try and flood the field for some reason.
Then I debated Jackalope, Eric and Poppycock for a while - unsure which two to take. I even asked advice from Ben Owens (who kindly gave me a lift) and Dhimesh Parmar (who won ‘best Commonwealth player’ of the weekend) on the morning of the tournament. In the end I settled on Jackalope and Eric. Probably not the best synergy across all the characters, but I knew how to use them and (more importantly) enjoyed playing them too.
All the games I played were very close, where I won or lost by a single moonstone and it came down to the final turn in most cases to determine which way the game would go. I used every character once except Eric, although I know some players (like Ben) stuck with the same five in each game. Overall, I’m pretty pleased with my choice and performance!
So, here’s what I learned:
Familiarity with my own characters was important - knowing what they would all do without having to spend too long looking at the cards meant I could think tactically
Synergy is helpful, but Moonstone is well-balanced so there are things to be done even with what seems like an unusual mix of characters
I’d probably try to practice my troupe choices more next time, but it’s not really necessary
Go with what’s fun to play over and above anything!
Hogswash eyes Boom Boom McBoom over the top of a moonstone…
The Drop
The way the moonstones land makes such a huge difference to the likely outcome of a game. There’s no set rule, it varies by the troupe you’re playing and by what your opponent has chosen to play. I’ve certainly not mastered it, but on reflection the drop of moonstones in the final game probably contributed to my loss.
Three moonstones were very near my deployment, which meant I had to keep someone there to dig them up. If I’d taken Flintlock instead of the Friar then things may have been different, but Faeries have such a high evade I doubt Flintlock would have ever shot them (hence I didn’t take him). Then my remaining four characters had to charge up the field to attempt to secure one more stone. One stone was near-ish the middle, but the other three were nearer my opponent’s side. With quick-moving Faeries that could also mind control and move my characters easily, it was an uphill battle.
Should I have mulligan-ed? Maybe. Even with forcing my opponent to go first and taking a double activation between turns, that hill to winning remained very steep. Tom has written a very helpful article about early bird vs initiative, which I plan to read in more detail as I think it’ll help me!
I took this photo later in the final game, where you can see one of two remaining moonstones poking out on the left for the Friar to collect (to finish 3-4 rather than a horrible loss!). You can also see how far the rest of my troupe has had to move up to try and take out a pesky Faerie - my opponent was kind enough to move Hogwash for me as I couldn’t reach! Also note I’m down to four characters as Hogswash was mind controlled into murdering Jackalope in the first turn. Despite all that, it was so much fun!
Longshanks
Longshanks is the tournament organiser’s tool of choice, so I regret not looking at it for longer than a few minutes before it all started! Everything is on there - the pairings, table numbers, performance, standings etc. For those new to it, ty to take a look at Longshanks the night before so you don’t have a panic about where you’re going or ask someone about it before the tournament starts.
Names and Faces
I’m good at faces and knowing names, but connecting the two together doesn’t always happen in my brain. When people already know each other it makes it somehow harder, as it’s tricky to say “Sorry, who are you?” when conversations are in full flow. Well, I finder it trickier anyway! I also reflected a bit on what someone brand new to the community might be thinking.
A suggestion for tournament organisers then - name badges. Sticky ones, maybe colour coded or with Faction symbols printed on them, that sort of thing, so I can causally glance at someone’s tag to remind myself of the name they said two minutes ago.
For new players - ask people, they really don’t mind repeating their names!
There were 40 participants at this tournament - lots of names and faces to remember!
What to Take
Tournament organisers will confirm what gameplay items you’ll need, but likely:
D4s and D6s
Arcane and melee deck
Miniatures and their character cards
Pen for the cards
A way to track energy
Measuring tape and/or widgets
I kept this inside a bag in my shoulder bag, so it was all together and easy to carry around. Also inside my bag were layers (it ended up being really hot so these weren’t needed!) and a large water bottle. Despite the bottle I still ended up feeling dehydrated because of all the talking - keep that in mind!
What I’d Do Differently Next Time
I realised pretty quickly that I didn’t know enough about my opponent’s troupes.
Luckily I faced three Leshavult troupes with characters I knew a bit about and that were similar to each other. Then there were two similar Goblin troupes, again with the odd character I knew. The last game was against Faeries with a lot of the new characters and this was the troupe I knew less about, plus was the one game that felt like I’d lost in the first round. Don’t get me wrong, it was still so much fun to play, but by not knowing my opponent I was making semi-blind decisions.
Next time then, I’d either use the fan-made Moontome app to load my opponent’s cards and read them through at the start. Or, I’d simply ask my opponent more questions/to see their cards. Everyone is so friendly I know they’d be happy to do it, but the significance didn’t click until that last game. Of course, playing more games with and against different types of troupes will also help!
Final Thoughts
Meeting and chatting with so many people in the community was a true highlight, unlike other tournaments everyone seemed to want to hang out together afterwards (with a lot of chatter still about Moonstone). I could have hung out longer, but knowing what I’m like sleeping in hotels I called it a night when many others did. Maybe next time I’ll stay out just a little longer…
Overall, I had an amazing time and I’m now thinking about running a tournament in early 2026 (watch this space!). My thanks to all my opponents and people I spent time with, and huge congratulations again to Joe. I’m looking forward to the next one!
I turned Hogswash slightly so I could measure his move without Trotters’ snoot getting in the way. When he stopped it looked like he’d been distracted by the tasty pile of hay!