Battle of the Masters

The masters of Pokémon battling are congregating in one place to see who's the best of the best... as I write this. The Pokémon World Championships this year are being held in Anaheim, California, for both the card game (TCG) and the video game (VGC). For players who have perfected their skills and have been recognized as such, this is a great occasion to test their skills with and against the best of the best. It's surely a lofty goal to aspire to, but it is by no means impossible either.

Some of my compatriots (though I don't know them that well) have made some strides in the past to achieve entry to this supreme occasion. I recall a fellow VGC player who had to go through competitions in other countries to even qualify for the Championships because of a lack of a means otherwise. On the TCG side, a few made it to the Championships and did fairly OK. So it's a hard thing to get to the Championships and imaginably even harder to do well.

I'm ill-suited to participate in the Championships in any way due to a variety of reasons, but at the least I can note the progress of others (close to me) as they make efforts to be able to participate in this hallowed event. I can also further increase my skills in both areas of the Championships, though it would probably not reach the levels - or not anytime in the near future - of those who have truly mastered the games enough to be able to participate. And that's what these Championships truly are: they're the "battle of the masters" designed to see who are the most ultimate among ultimates.

I still stand behind anyone who wishes to and does make efforts to get to these Championships. Whether or not these efforts are realized, and in the positive case, whether or not great progress was made in the Championships, any effort is respectable. I'm no master myself in the ways of these Championships, but to support others' effort somehow is masterful in and of itself as much as making own efforts to become one for Pokémon, which is great no matter what.