American Semi FinalSemi Final Game 1Gonzo (Ito) - 1 banner won, 22 blocks lostCavie (Shimatzu) - 4 banners won, 4 blocks lost
Semi Final Game 2Cavie (Ito) - 1 banner won, 22 blocks lostGonzo (Shimatzu) - 4 banners won, 6 blocks lost These two battles ran close to even as possible. Similar strategy was implemented by the Shimatzu each time - bring up the cavalry on the right to attack the weaker Ito left. In the first game the Ito was set up better and Joe made an excellent counter attack on Yoshihiro’s cavalry, surrounding him and playing Cowards. Somehow Yoshihiro managed to survive the attack and dwindle down the Ito forces.The 2nd game progressed in a similar style as the first but the Ito’s army did not respond as organized to the Yoshihiro attack. The difference here was the Ito’s Arquebusier’s had better accuracy and got in some hits that they did not in the first game. In addition Yoshihiro was taken out by a Ninja assassin giving them the only banner to tie the banner scores.Even though this is a 4 banner scenario it felt a little more complicated to me especially since Joe is such a good player and kept me scrambling for ways adjust my plans every turn. Joe definitely outplayed me but the banner count did not reflect that. Dice favored me on the shooting side with the Arquebus and the lucky Ninja assassin roll. I haven’t had a match come down to the difference being 2 blocks for the win. Thanks for the great match Joe, it was a close one!
