This Week in the ITC 7-12-18 plus Feedback from #2 Overall Josh Death.

Hello, fellow Warhammer 40k fans! SaltyJohn from TFG Radio, and one of the Las Vegas Open Head Judges, here to bring you a wrap up of this week in the ITC!

First, not a whole lot has happened in the standings the last two weeks. We still have a few bigger events approaching and a lot of the Factions and the Top 10 have solidified for the moment. We’ll start to see a lot of changes in Factions where there previously wasn’t a lot of competition and/or they were still using Index. Knights and to a lesser extent Renegade Knights, Orks are rapidly approaching with Space Wolves rumored to be hot on their heels. Aeldari are set to suffer the most in the post-Imperial Knights meta, at least initially I believe, so watching what the top Aeldari players do to adapt will be interesting. Locally the idea of Aeldari flyer detachments has become popular. We’ll just have to wait and see. I have the top ten currently in the ITC below, you’ll note a lack of major change.

Josh Death, our current number two player in the ITC graciously agreed to answer some questions about himself and how this season is going for him, but before we do that I wanted to go over some of the news from Best Coast Pairings again, as their App makes the ITC possible and their expansion into other systems while improving a great product is great to watch unfold! If you don’t follow them on Facebook you should.

Paul and the rest of the crew at Best Coast Pairings work really hard to put out a quality product. My favorite part of being a subscriber is I can see lists that are submitted to any event in the App! It makes looking through and assessing the meta shifts a bit easier. This weekend has a lot going on, in terms of competitive 40k.

That screenshot from the ITC page here on Frontline Gaming shows that this coming weekend there is a GT in Minnesota and 4 (yes that’s 4!) Majors! Preferred Enemy in Australia, Caledonian Revolution in the UK, The American Team Championships in Tennessee, and TSHFT in Washington! I am really excited to see the lists, results, and shifts in the meta and ITC standings from all these great events this weekend. It will be especially fun to see the shifts that could occur outside of North America as the UK and Australia events are for regions with the most opportunity for upward and downward movement in the standings. Next week I hope to have responses from the current ITC leader Matt Root, but today we have an equally talented 40k player answering my questions. The current number 2 player in the ITC in the world, Josh Death.

Question 1: How long have you been playing 40k? How long have you been playing it competitively? 25 years.

Question 2: What got you into the hobby originally? I got suspended from school and found a hobby shop while wandering around downtown, the guy behind the counter asked me if I wanted to see a cool game…

Question 3: What is your favorite part about playing 40k competitively? example: do you enjoy list theory, math hammer, the competition, the camaraderie, your team etc I love the puzzle that is trying to unlock that winning combination. Watching the meta evolve and constantly facing a new challenge when it does.

Question 4: If you’re on a team, what role does your team play in your competitive 40k life? Is it a support mechanism, a sounding board, just a group of friends? etc. I bounce lists off them all the time, and we practice heavily.

Question 5: What is your take so far on the ITC and BCP now that it’s several seasons in? The ITC single-handedly saved competitive 40k, and I feel it’s a strong reason why GW came back into their desire to support the competitive community. BCP was the technology that allowed the ITC to maintain the growth that they were starting to display and it’s what is going to take competitive 40k into the future.

Question 6: What do you attribute your success so far this season to the most? I found a winning combination early in the season and was able to capitalize on that quickly. I also moved across the country towards the end of the previous season so that I could have access to a more frequent and higher caliber of practice.

Question 7: How do you prepare for events, big and small? Do you have a routine or regimen? A 2-3 day hard practice regimen leading up to leaving for the event. When I play practice games I will often play one game with my list, and then we will immediately swap lists and play the other person’s list, same mission same deployment. It really helps to let you pick apart your own list and see where it can improve and also helps you learn what to prepare for if you face different lists. If lists are publicized I will print them out and go through them one by one, I then write notes on each list telling myself what to look out for and general tips on facing the list. It helps to be able to look at the lists without the pressure of needing to start the next round right away or the mental drain of previous rounds.

Question 8: What faction do you play? Why? I play every faction. I get each codex when they come out and will spend a month or so working on each one. I figure it is the best way to know what I may be coming up against in the future and what tricks to look out for if I know how to play each list.

Josh has some very impressive routines for preparing for an event. The idea of playing a game, swapping armies, and playing again is very valuable. I have found, the more I talk to the top ITC players because of this article series, that they all share very specific things in common that make them good. One of those things is an organized, and intensive, regimen for preparing for events through practice, analyzing lists, and analyzing the newest codices. It is certainly something that takes a lot of time on the part of these players, but that type of commitment is what it takes to be one of the best 40k players in the world. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on Josh’s responses, and I look forward to seeing the results of this weekends events!

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