Nicola Bradford and Debbie Gutermuth face off.	Rob Kircher lost to Arthur Wines in the semi-finals.

Young-uns Agin

The 2010 tournament attendance rebounded strongly with a few schedule and format tweaks. For 2010 we used a later start time so we fit in the 'pre-Slapshot' zone on Saturday night which avoided many of the conflicts (especially Dominion) that we encountered last year. But the most positive feedback received was the use of a Mulligan Round for the multiplayer round. It gave everyone a guaranteed chance to play in two games, and it allowed players who prefer the two-player format the ability to compete without having to run the gauntlet of the multiplayer round.

The last tweak, using the Inns and Cathedrals expansion in the Mulligan Round, had mixed reviews. This expansion adds three elements: inns on the lake that cause the road they adjoin to be worth double if finished or nothing, cathedrals that cause the city they are in to be worth threes point per tile/pennant if finished or nothing, and an additional "large" meeples that counts as two meeples. On the positive side, most players appreciated the minimal additional rules, the additional tile types, and the opportunity to make a few extra moves in the game from the added tiles. On the downside, the games lasted longer and we were short a few copies. So it looks like the first two tweaks we will keep and I will have to revisit the use of the Inns and Cathedrals expansion next year.

There was a marked change in play style among the players who made it to the advanced rounds this year that reminds me of the better AI opponents in the iPad/iPhone Carcassonne app. The strategy is to trap opponent's meeples and try to get many quick two-point scores from cities and short roads and finish up with claiming farms. I noted several occasions where monasteries were not claimed even with a player having meeples remaining.

This strategy was very evident among the top three who are all from the same family: daughter Carolyn Strock, uncle Arthur Wines, and father Dan Strock. The remainder of the laurelists included perennial contender Rob Kircher, 2004 champion "Legendary" Dan Hoffman, and David Mattingly who was filling in for his wife Meredith, a 2009 laurelist, who could not participate. Emerging from a tense Final game over Uncle Arthur, Carolyn claimed the 2010 crown keeping the streak of the "under 21 champions" alive at six years and counting.

GM Tom McCorry (left) and Dan Strock get in some practise while waiting for the next round.	GM McCorry and his top three finalists who all broke into the Laurels list for the first time.