No such issues this time as we had the properly stunning NWGC venue to ourselves (apart from a few local gamers here and there. Thanks to the doubles format we only needed seven tables too so there was plenty of space for people to set their armies up and move around to watch the other games when they were done with theirs. I'm pretty sure this helped make the event feel more relaxed than last time on its own.
As a reminder, Double Trouble events differ from normal doubles tournaments in that no one shows up with a partner. Instead, they arrive with a 750pt list and get paired with a new partner and two new opponents in each and every round. It's deliberately a social event first and a competitive tournament second. You struggle to bring too much filth in a 750pt army as it is and you can't rely on synergy between your force and the other half of the army. Numbers were slightly down on last time (28 compared to 32) but I think the imminent release of 8th didn't help me. Still, nothing I could do about it as I'd had the date booked in for a long time.
Results
Come back tomorrow and Tuesday for the painting competition round up but here's the final table from the tournament itself:
Click on the image to enlarge it if you're having trouble making out the text. Bear in mind the positions are pretty meaningless. The tournament prizes are separated into Master Tactician (most VPs from Maelstrom cards) and Genocidal Maniac (most "blood points" i.e. destruction of enemy units). The former going to David Irving and the latter going to Mark Hinson. It's interesting to look back to DT1 and think that Matthew Grimes' summoning Daemons list wouldn't be anywhere near as effective in the upcoming 8th edition. Anyway, I'm not sure how the hell David managed to accrue quite so many VPs but his opponents vouched for the numbers! I guess if your games are going to seven turns then there's plenty of scope for it.
My good friend Matt was frustrated to narrowly miss out on the blood points title but it's worth noticing that he played with Mark in the second round and matched his score in the final round. He'd have needed to table his game one opponents to tie things up (but would still have lost on VPs as a tiebreak anyway).
Rob Nathan should win a second award for Most Consistent Performance but he actually managed to score less points than he did at DT1 (41.66 compared to 43.84 to scoop the Nobody Loves Me Award for lowest combined total).
Sadly no trophies this time round but hopefully I'll be able to reinstate them for DT3. However there was, as ever, a generous raffle. I gave away a Shadow War rulebook, three scenery kits, a start collecting set (the winner selected BA), Gangs of Commorragh (which Matt won, can't wait to give it a go) and finally a Warhammer Quest: Shadows Over Hammerhal box (worth £90 RRP). I think that's pretty good for a 28 strong event giving everyone a 1 in 4 chance of a prize. More than half of the prizes were worth double the ticket price too!! For those who don't already know, I do this as my method of discouraging people from bringing pure filth. The tournament prizes are always worth less than something you could get by sheer luck of your name being drawn from the bag.
Finally, a big thank you to everyone who came along to the event. Thanks also to the incredibly generous Element Games for allowing me to run the event at their stunning venue. Seriously, the place is easily the best place I've played in a tournament (OK I didn't actually play but you know what I mean). Mats for every table, a massive array of scenery, storage space under the tables for your reserves etc and much improved decor compared to the old NWGC before Element took over. We should be supporting companies like Element who are prepared to invest in making venues that make tournaments more enjoyable. Why not pre-order your copy of 8th edition from them (if you haven't already)? Yes, I do receive a small cut of the sales but their service is excellent.
All that remains for me to say is that Double Trouble 3 will be at the NWGC on June 9th 2018 and I'll be hosting a new singles event "Nevermind The Blog Wars" (thanks James Coldrick for the name suggestion) on November 11th 2017. Stay tuned to the blog for more details or join the Double Trouble group on Facebook.