Free The Steak

Last Saturday was my 3rd visit to GameCrab (http://gamecrabcafe.com/). I particularly wanted to go back because of something I saw in their website:



How could I NOT take them on? =D

And so I did!



The rules of the challenge are:

• The game of the month is Super Boggle (a 5x5 letter board).


• Declare a challenge, and pay P15.


• Play 5 rounds of Super Boggle, where only 5-letter words and above are counted.


• Scoring, per word:
  
  
  
  • 5-letters: 2 points
  
  
  • 6-letters: 3 points
  
  
  • 7-letters: 5 points
  
  
  • 8-letters and above: 11 points
  
  
  
  


• Beat the GameMaster's total score.


• Claim your FREE steak! The steak regularly costs P99!


• One challenge per person per day.

Upon arriving, I was already feeling nervous (as I always do, before competitions). I couldn't get into my "word-finding mindset".

After quite some time (of looking around and sizing up the GameMaster from afar), I overheard someone else asking about the challenge. I was panicky, thinking that someone had beaten me to it. I watched as the GameMaster explained the rules to some guy -- who, lucky for me, was really just asking! The guy left right away -- and I approached the counter soon after!

We took the tables at the center. It was a bit chilly and my hands felt really cold. They were shaking, too. The cold was a welcome excuse for the shaking.

Round 1. As the challenger, I shook up the blocks, let them settle and handed the set to the arbiter. The arbiter puts it down, opens the cover and flips the sand timer. It's on! And I couldn't find any 5-letter words! It took me until one-third of the timer had elapsed before I could write my first word. At the end of round, all but one of the handful of words I could jot down was cancelled. GameMaster Sef, 6. Nikki, 2.

Round 2. It was almost the same story, only slightly worse. GameMaster Sef, 10. Nikki, 2.



Round 3. I was all "What the heck! I suck! I lose!" I didn't quite absorb the rules earlier. I thought that it was a best of 5 match, and if I lost this third round, it was the end of the challenge. I was muttering, "Arrrgh, last round.."

Yes, I am scowling. I got pretty distracted, when I noticed the gang watch. I waved them away, and at one point I even covered my face. I try to excuse myself, saying that I was distracted. GameMaster Sef try to call back the gang, in jest.

I'm sorry, peeps -- I'm at my most anti-social when I'm under pressure..

It ends. GameMaster Sef, 13. Nikki, 6.

I let out a sigh of relief -- relief that it was, at least, over. Then I was told that we weren't done yet! It was explained once again that we were to play out all 5 rounds, and the winner was to be decided based on the total points over those 5 rounds, that I could still catch up! I was saying that it was hopeless anyway, that I had no chance of coming back. But I still played.

Round 4. I forgot about the scores. I forgot about what round it was. I was just.. ready. The timer is flipped, and the game starts. As before, I couldn't figure out any words. I was merely staring at the letters. Until, when almost half the timer had passed, I started tracing a word that snaked across the board. Then, the words just came out.


Behind me are Chester and Edge, spotting lots more words

True relief!

GameMaster Sef, (something). Nikki, 20.

My first word was THIRTEEN -- an 11-pointer!

I couldn't believe it! It was all going too fast!

The score was recorded every round, but I didn't know the running totals. I didn't know how much more I needed. The next and final round started too soon.

Round 5. Again, I didn't start writing early. But after some time, like in the previous round, the words, they just came out. When the round ended, it strangely felt that it ended at just the right time.

We had almost the same number of words written down. Mine were scored first. I had barely cancelled anything on his list. But, it turned out that most of his words were not on the dictionary they were using (most being colloquial words)! I was feeling really hopeful at this point. The scores were totalled.


At the left are GameMaster Sef and Mikong Aguilar (from PhRUG!)

GameMaster Sef, 42. Nikki, 44!

I closed my eyes, tilted my head back and raised both my arms. Aahhh, yes. I missed that feeling.

We shook hands, and he asked me if I was open for a rematch the next time I visited. Of course, I was! =D

I learned that it was his first ever loss. The other Super Boggle GameMaster had already lost once. That made me the second person to win the challenge.

I was told that I had to write on their bulletin.



He pointed at the lower-right corner of the page, and I wrote my name. I was almost finished, when I was interrupted. It seems that I wasn't supposed to write my name! Just a tick on the tally. I felt really dumb.



So, there's the long tally of challengers who lost (lower left), and just two ticks for the challengers who won (lower right) -- and, look at that! That's my name right there!

(photos courtesy of Tin, http://blackstrung.multiply.com/)