Andreas Uller, Austria

This Interview with Andreas Uller was hold by openCards user FutureGuy.

• Name: Andreas Uller
• Known on the dboards as: Toben Dax
• Age: 25
• Regular player group: Austria
• Current/highest Decipher rating: no idea - I don’t really care about that
• STCCG 2E accomplishments: Winner of Austrian TOC 2005

1). How did you start playing Star Trek CCG?

I started collecting 1E just after Alternate Universe was released in 1995, when a friend pointed that game out to me. However, that friend stopped collecting shortly afterwards, so I didn’t play a single game until 2000, when I got in contact with a few other players in Austria and we started organizing regular tournaments in Graz and Vienna.

2). Do you play any other TCGs beside Star Trek?

No. I tried out Lord of the Rings and Babylon 5, but apart from the more appealing gameplay, I also prefer the story of Star Trek, which is the main reason why I started collecting and playing the Star Trek CCG and still do.

3). Can you remember your first Star Trek 2E tournament? How did you do?

I can’t remember my first 2E tournament, but I still do remember some things from my first 1E tournament. I was playing a Klingon deck and it didn’t work at all. In four rounds I didn’t solve one mission and so I ended up last with 0/-390 (I somehow managed to get 10 points in one game).

4). Some of the players travelling to Berlin will have never played in such a large event. What advice can you give to these players who want to build the best possible deck for the event?

Bring along a deck you know very well, you should have played it in at least a tournament or tested it thoroughly with/against a friend. When a game gets close (and games will get close) a small mistake can make a big difference.

5). Since Worlds 2006, we have seen Starfleet, Voyager and The Original Series enter the game. Do you think these 3 affiliations will make an impact at the European Championships?

Voyager is played a lot right now - but in my opinion this doesn’t necessarily mean it will still be that way in July. With TOS it’s just the other way round: At least in Austria, not many players use it, but again it doesn’t have to stay like this until July, especially if In a Mirror, Darkly is released until then. Starfleet is very competitive after These Are The Voyages and will still be at the European Championships.

6). What was the first major 2E event you attended outside of your own country or outside your regular playing area? Do you feel that your game improved after playing?

That was a TOC in Bratislava, I think it was in 2004. Actually, I was surprised to find out that the playing style of the Slovak and Czech players who also attended was hardly different to that of Austrian players. Of course, this doesn’t mean you should expect that everyone in Berlin will be playing decks like you know them from back home.

7). Which decks or strategies are the most popular in Austria in comparison to other countries? Anything you’ve never seen being played on a tournament?

I think decks focused on pure mission-solving are not that popular in Austria. Many decks use battles, capturing, assimilation and other strategies to weaken the opponent (and/or strengthen themselves) before solving missions. A reason for this might be that tournaments here are less of a competition, but rather a possibility to meet with friends and have fun. And obviously it’s more fun if you have some interaction with the opponent. I was wondering, that nobody has tried a Gal Gath’thong-deck so far at a tournament in Austria. From what I read in reports, they can be quite effective.

8 ). The German Star Trek scene has always been the home of some top players. Have you ever played against Germans and where do you see the difference in how they play in comparison to players from Austria?

Thorsten Wanek attended a tournament in Graz, but I’m not sure if I played against him there. But from what I know from tournament reports I read, I think Germans prefer a very focused deck, while Austrians like to include a few cards for back-up strategies or small side-effects. Of course this means, that the deck size grows and sometimes this leads to also adding a drawing strategy.

9). Which affiliation do you think will dominate the European Continental Championships, if any? Will there be a certain strategy your are going to prepare against?

Federation, simply because it has the most possibilities. When talking of headquarters, I think it will be quite evenly spread, because some players will try to bring some surprising decks. It’s not possible to be prepared against every type of deck, and since there will be all kind of decks, I will simply try to play my strategy.

10). What’s your experience with “going first” in 2E and what card or tactics would you suggest to a player going second in a game?

I have had very few games, in which I won or lost because I went first or second. In the end, there are so many things that depend on luck (like drawing cards, random selections from dilemmas etc.), and going first is just one of them. The best strategy when going second is of course: Make the best of it. Sometimes you can use the advantage of knowing what your opponent has already played. For example in a battle-deck, you could play a cheaper ship if you know your opponent has only a weak ship. In a capture-deck, you have a wider choice of personnel to abduct from your opponent. And the real advantage lies in the end of the game, if it goes to over-time: You know that your opponent won’t be able to do anything after you finished your turn. So you could e.g. follow a secure strategy to get just 5 more points than he has instead of a more risky one to get more points than you need.

11). If you had to place a 10 euro bet to name 3 players to reach the final 16 on day 2, which 3 players would you choose?

Since there will by many German players, I think Germans will have a slight advantage (by knowing the decks and strategies of their opponents), so I’ll go with three Germans: Thorsten Wanek, Marc Schütze, Ulf Benjes.

12). What are your personal goals that you hope to achieve at EC2007. How far do you think you will go?

If I can make it to Day 2, I’ll already be happy. From there, too much depends on the pairings to make any predictions.

13). What 3 cards released from There are the Voyages do you expect to see a lot of at the European Championships?

Distress Call - no reason not to include it in your Dilemma pile Optimism - good for and against a variety of decks Gal Gath’thong - there are some very good decks based on this ship

14). If you could change one rule, or one game mechanic, of 2E, what would you do?

2E is very good the way it is, but sometimes I think it shouldn’t be possible to bring back cards from the discard pile.

15). When not playing Star Trek, what else do you enjoy doing?

I’m working for the Austrian Red Cross as a volunteer EMT (ambulance driver and calltaker/dispatcher). Apart from that I enjoy what every student enjoys: watching TV, going out and do anything but learning.

16). Name your favourite ever card? Why?

Unexpected Difficulties - There’s hardly any deck that doesn’t use it

17). Have you ever built a deck that looked great on paper, but did terrible in a tournament.

After Strange New Worlds came out, I played a fun deck that was based on bringing T’Pol and Seven into play. I didn’t expect to win anything with that deck, but I was quite confident I could bring them both into the game easily. However, this turned out wrong and there was only one game where I could bring them both into play.

18 ). Can you tell us the most memorable game of Star Trek 2E you have ever played? Why does this game in particular stick out in your mind?

That was the last round of the 2005 Austrian TOC. I was playing against Vilim Pokupec and the winner of this game would win the TOC. If I remember correctly, he was playing a Bajoran Integrity Mission Solver deck and I have lost a few times against such decks, so I didn’t expect to win. However I was very lucky during that game: When stopping personnel with dilemmas, I not only once drew exactly the one personnel he needed to complete the mission. So I managed to beat him, and this was only my second tournament win.

19). Create a 2E dream card of yourself!

2 Andreas Uller

Biology, Engineer, Physics, Science

If present with a Medical personnel, this personnel loses , gains Medical and is Cunning +1.

“The glass is twice as large as it needs to be.”

Integrity 6, Cunning 7, Strength 5

This is a mixture of my study of Engineering Physics and my work as an EMT, the quote is from a joke about what various professions say about the half full/half empty glass which in my eyes perfectly characterizes Engineers. Several years ago, our local dAgent made dream cards of all the regular players. In that 1E-version I could download Blue Alert.