Diamond Quest CXI - Sunday, October 16th!

[Rel]

Diamond Quest CXI

October 16th, 2022 at 8pm ((ET))

Join us on an Expected Journey...

... A Journey to Find the 111th Diamond!

On Sunday, October 16th, starting at 8pm by the Eastern Clock, we at the Outback will be hosting the 111th Diamond Quest! Alas, eleventy-one cycles is far too short a time to spend amongst such sporters as yourselves! And speaking of, who will lay claim to the precious Black Diamond?

Register below to take your shot at the legendary stone! Early seeding access is now open!

As always, we ask that all participants arrive a reasonable amount of time before 8pm to be counted as present and prepared for the event. There are no activity requirements for joining this tournament.

Our roster will lock promptly at 8:05pm, so be sure to be there!

We look forward to seeing you!

--The DoF Staff (Nero, Ria, Kheldar, Matt, and Rel!)

((OOC: Early Seeding will be based on the Emerald Rankings found on the Duel of Fists Standings page, followed by sign-up or walk-in time for those that don't pre-register. Those who sign up after 9pm EST on October 14th, as well as walk-in participants, will be seeded below the early registrants. The tournament roster will lock promptly at 8:05pm on the night of the event.

Tournament format will be Double Elimination, alternating to Round Robin if needed based on the number of entrants.))

[Partly Cloudy]

Count me in.

—Gatito

[Delahada]

I'll do this

- Sal

[Strawberry]

We'll see if the Fates deem me fit to shine on. I'll be there!

Karma

[Rachael Blackthorne]

Unless mon duties prevent otherwise, I will enter the Diamant Quest.


--Rachael Blackthorne

[Koyliak]

I’m game.
-Koy

[Yuzuki Kuwabara]

I'll join.
-Yuzuki

[Mairead Harker]

Looks like I can make it after all.

Maggie

[Goldglo]

History was made at the 111th Diamond Quest in spectacular fashion! In Diamond Quest CXI, ten duelers vied for the Outback's top title! In order of seeding, they were:

Koyliak VanDuran-Simon
Rachael Blackthorne
Salvador Delahada
Yuzuki Kuwabara
Gatito
Karma Armstrong
Maggie Harker
Stitch
Angel
Droet

With the field set, the opening round featured Stitch against Angel and Maggie against Droet. Stitch came away with a 5-2 win while Droet defeated Maggie 5-3.

Everyone got into the mix thereafter, with Stitch narrowly defeating Koy 6-5, Gatito doing the same to Yuzuki (5-4) and Rachael also edging out a win against Droet (5-4) while Karma had a larger margin of victory over Sal (5-1).

Sal and Maggie were the first to go home, both losing by a 5-3 score to Angel and Yuzuki, respectively. Koy and Angel followed shortly thereafter as Yuzuki defeated the Fashionista 5-2 and Droet took down Angel also with a 5-2 score.

Gatito kept his dreams of Diamond alive with a 5-1 drubbing of Stitch while reigning Diamond Karma had a much tougher fight against Rachael, but she came out on top 5-4. Stitch then sent Droet home (5-2) and Yuzuki continued battling through the bottom bracket, defeating Rachael 5-3.

The semi-finals was a doozy, pitting Karma against Gatito. With history (and a guaranteed shot at the Diamond) on the line, Gatito pulled out all the stops and cruised to a 5-0 victory, making Karma's road to repeat a lot more difficult.

After another lower-bracket win (5-4 over Stitch), Yuzuki's night was brought to a halt by Karma (5-2), setting up a rematch of the semi-finals.

In a turnabout that stunned the audience, Karma shook off any nerves from that prior shutout and opened the Finals with a 5-0 shutout over Gatito, meaning that one final duel was needed. Should Karma win, she'd be a back-to-back Diamond. Should Gatito win, he'd claim his first Diamond and become only the second dueler in history to simultaneously hold the titles of Diamond, Overlord and Archmage!

Gatito opened with the lead that he extended to 3-0 by the end of the fourth round. Was yet another shutout in store? The answer was no, as Karma traded points in the fifth and then started a comeback, narrowing the score to 4-3 after the seventh round. The eighth round was an exchange she couldn't afford and one that Gatito desperately wanted; the trading of punches ended the night and Gatito officially became the second-ever DiArchLord!

Congratulations to Gatito on his historic achievement!

((https://challonge.com/t5paaahq))
*Historical Note: The first DiArchLord was Avery Shiv Blade, who accomplished the feat over 20 years ago!