So I have finally bitten the bullet. I'm booked for regionals in the New Year. It's my first one, in fact it's my first official tournament. I'll have been playing about 2 years by the time it comes around and looking forward to it.

Any advice there for a newbie to this. Everything from approach to prep to what to bring, what to expect etc. Advice gladly received!

Eat Breakfast and Drink Water.

Eat food, make some sort of organized tray (It can literally be the bottom half of the core set box if need be, case in point, be semi-organized), Plan your list beforehand (make sure its all packed the night before), get plenty of sleep, expect to be on your feet for most of the day, meet all kinds of cool people, see some wicked paint schemes, and the two most important rules of all, Have fun and......

HAIL HYDRATE!!! (make sure to drink plenty of fluids. Water is best.)

Yeah, but don't drink too much or you'll be doing the potty dance halfway through a grueling match. But yeah, make no mistake 6 rounds of Swiss is a marathon. Expect to be very tired by the end, mentally and physically. Be sure to pace yourself and take breaks outside if you can and maybe not talk about X-Wing during lunch.

Double check you have everything the night before. My first tournament was a store tournament, I forgot all my dice and had to scurry around trying to get some. It all worked out in the end but I didn't need the distraction and the stress of trying to rectify my stupid mistake.

Have fun, tournaments are the best learning curve, play different people from different metas, it's a lot of fun!

Double check you have everything the night before. My first tournament was a store tournament, I forgot all my dice and had to scurry around trying to get some. It all worked out in the end but I didn't need the distraction and the stress of trying to rectify my stupid mistake.

Have fun, tournaments are the best learning curve, play different people from different metas, it's a lot of fun!

Ditto. I took two lists to a tournament, deciding to figure out which list to run as I drove to the event. I decided on the list, got there, and realized that the list I decided to run was missing the dials! Luckily, a kind soul let me borrow the two dials I needed so I could run the list I wanted to run.

Tournament check list:

0. Have fun

1. Shower

2. Eat and drink

3. Do you have your list?

4. Keep a snack/water handy

5. No really, do you have your list?

6. Have fun.

That's about it really. Don't take the matches too seriously, but still bring your A-game. Make sure you have fun, win or lose. Good luck!

Tournament check list:

...

3. Do you have your list?

...

5. No really, do you have your list?

I really should pay attention to this part...

Two weeks ago... forgot dials...

One week ago... forgot cards...

make sure you write your list down correctly. Apparently forgetting to write something down gets you DQed now.

Don't fly ships off the board.

Pre shelled pistachios seem to be good for this game.bring that.

I think you should bring a spare roll of toilet paper!

Win all of your games. It'll be fun.

good personal hygiene

Thanks everyone. Son interesting advice there. Im not overly worried about the fatigue side of things, im a teacher and on my feet all day anyway. Ill be sure to bring plenty of supplies and i intend to 'have fun' or as much fun as you can when getting pummeled!

What have you got for carrying builds in? Do you have a special tray or box that holds all you need and how can you minimise issues when trasnferring from table to table?

Yeah, but don't drink too much or you'll be doing the potty dance halfway through a grueling match. But yeah, make no mistake 6 rounds of Swiss is a marathon. Expect to be very tired by the end, mentally and physically. Be sure to pace yourself and take breaks outside if you can and maybe not talk about X-Wing during lunch.

These kind of comments always make me smile, it's 6 games of playing with toy models, it's not an Olympic feat of endurance. A Marathon is gruelling, this is nothing like that!

Turn up, take something you are comfortable with flying and are confident with the rules. Most important it's going to be 6 games so take something you enjoy( stay away from the latest janky net list). Have a quick look through the latest FAQ and don't forget your Fly Casual Y fronts.

Done.

Yeah, but don't drink too much or you'll be doing the potty dance halfway through a grueling match. But yeah, make no mistake 6 rounds of Swiss is a marathon. Expect to be very tired by the end, mentally and physically. Be sure to pace yourself and take breaks outside if you can and maybe not talk about X-Wing during lunch.

These kind of comments always make me smile, it's 6 games of playing with toy models, it's not an Olympic feat of endurance. A Marathon is gruelling, this is nothing like that!

Turn up, take something you are comfortable with flying and are confident with the rules. Most important it's going to be 6 games so take something you enjoy( stay away from the latest janky net list). Have a quick look through the latest FAQ and don't forget your Fly Casual Y fronts.

Done.

Forgetting to drink enough happens easily and results awefull headaches which result in bad play and most importantly a loss of fun. And keeping your A-game for 6 matches is a test of endurance. Surely it is not literaly like a run-your-body-to its-limits marathon, but never is a good idea to underestimate mental fatigue. Physical fatigue also happens, since many of us spend most of their time seated at work and not all venues offer chairs/a lot of times your judgement is better when standing. As someone who once waited 7 hours to be in first row on a Motörhead concert I can tell you how unhappy that can make your back.

Thanks everyone. Son interesting advice there. Im not overly worried about the fatigue side of things, im a teacher and on my feet all day anyway. Ill be sure to bring plenty of supplies and i intend to 'have fun' or as much fun as you can when getting pummeled!

What have you got for carrying builds in? Do you have a special tray or box that holds all you need and how can you minimise issues when trasnferring from table to table?

You can use something like a 7 day pill organiser to carry your stress, target locks, foci etc etc. after a battle you have very limited time to pack up so you don't want all your tokens spread everywhere. Shoebox would do. Not the most professional looking but it does the job. You will find as you play more and more organised events you will refine your tourney kit to cater to your needs.

Agreed. You will be playing many games in a short space of time. Anything you can do to (a) reduce the odds of you losing something, and (b) reduce the time wasted moving tables and setting up is good. There are many reasons people tend not to bring swarms to a tournament, and not all of them are directly game-related....

Yeah, but don't drink too much or you'll be doing the potty dance halfway through a grueling match. But yeah, make no mistake 6 rounds of Swiss is a marathon. Expect to be very tired by the end, mentally and physically. Be sure to pace yourself and take breaks outside if you can and maybe not talk about X-Wing during lunch.

These kind of comments always make me smile, it's 6 games of playing with toy models, it's not an Olympic feat of endurance. A Marathon is gruelling, this is nothing like that!

Turn up, take something you are comfortable with flying and are confident with the rules. Most important it's going to be 6 games so take something you enjoy( stay away from the latest janky net list). Have a quick look through the latest FAQ and don't forget your Fly Casual Y fronts.

Done.

It is 6 games, but I played one without chairs over the weekend. I don't normally stand for 9 hours straight and it was on hardwood... and I'm a big guy. It feels like a marathon when your feet hurt like hell! Wear good shoes for sure!

something like a flat Tupperware for cookies or something works in a pinch to store the squad between rounds. I use a plano thing because I like the individual slots for token organization. otherwise I use a cardboard box from other games.

After your first time you will see what other people are using and you will get a better idea what you want to shoot for as far as a squad container.

the goals are just....keeping all the tokens and bits in order. and easily setting up and putting away. you just cant go big with it. keep it all as tight and small as you can get away with. a lot of tournaments have very little or no room at all between the playmats for stuff to sit.